The Nativity Story

And this week's Friday night movie has been... The Nativity Story!

Original image located here. Accessed 19th December 2025

Here's a curve ball for you all: The tackling of a religious-themed film.
I have been wanting to see this for quite some time but I've always held it off - this is because I have been on the internet long enough to know that talking about religion is asking for trouble. 
But seeing as it's that time of the year.....

To adapt a story from the Bible is similar to adapting Shakespeare: The material has been done countless times before so the challenge lies in finding a new angle. So what does this movie do?
What I find interesting is that the director is one Catherine Hardwick: Future director of the first Twilight movie. And while her interest in desaturated colours is present here and her approach may be heavy-handed (A choral version of Silent Night playing at the end? Seriously?), there are some striking visuals at play here. I also admire the realistic approach this movie takes. I am also impressed to see a pre-fame Oscar Isaacs giving a compelling performance as Joseph. And the sci-fi nerd in me finds it amusing to see Alexander Siddig playing the Angel Gabriel. 

But what really makes this movie works is that it tells the story of a couple going on a journey and facing various trials and tribulations before before and during. And that's where the movie really shines, being gripping and finding a strength in both it's simplicity and sensitivity. 

So may I conclude this post by wishing you all a Merry Christmas. 

The Elephant Man

And this week's Friday night movie has been... The Elephant Man!

Original image located here. Accessed 12th December 2025

Earlier in the year, I watched The Straight Story as it was one I had been meaning to do for some time - and the passing of David Lynch was as good as any reason to get off my lazy arse and watch it. And here, we have a similar situation: This one has gone down as one of David Lynch's finest works, proving that, beyond the veil of his surrealist impulses, lies a deep interest in humanism.

And this is indeed a remarkable film: It's not just the humanist message throughout - keep in mind this was the first time it emerged in Lynch's filmography so many would think he didn't have it in him - but how Lynch coaxed compelling performances out of his leads. Anthony Hopkins is his reliable self but John Hurt does wonders - which is impressive given he's hiding behind a mountain of makeup and effects. Through in some truly staggering black and white imagery and its easy to see why this has gone down as one of Lynch's best. 

And speaking from an autistic perspective, the films most famous line - "I am not an animal! I am a human being!!" does indeed resonate.

Senior Year

And this week's Friday night movie has been... Senior Year!

Original image located here. Accessed 5th December 2025

Sometimes a film appears on your watch list and it stays there for so long that you forget why you put it there in the first place. But in this case, I think I know why: My first point of contact with this movie was seeing saw that scene where the cheerleader is thrown up but doesn't get caught and is subsequently knocked out. Nothing like some mindless violence to get one interested.

What I got however was a movie that seems to be at odds with itself: On one hand it could have gone and said something about arrested development and being a teen in an adult's body but it did not (did it see Young Adult and get cold feet?). And on the other it could have gone and said something about the current youth being disrupted out of lifelessness by an older person - and while it does do that it comes across as forced. So what does that make this movie?

Certainly there are some good jokes and Angourie Rice does an AMAZING job of channelling Rebel Wilson but the rest of the time? Just too much cringe for my liking. Damn...