SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

Freaktana A Major Disappointment

Odelecol Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

Verity Robins Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

nzpedals Great movie, even if the plot is a bit flimsy. I straight-away rated it a 10 because it meets all five of my tests 1. I can follow the story, I never have to ask "what is happening here". That is good writing and directing. (both David Kane) 2. I know who the characters are. I don't have to ask "who is this and what are they doing here". 3. Superb acting, not only the seven main characters, but the others and even the uncredited extras too. That takes good directing to make sure it all happens. 4. Several memorable scenes that stand out for their meaning for the whole movie. 5. Really good dialogue. The right words at the right time. OK, it's not really a story, more a lot of incidents that are skilfully, if loosely tied together. Do real people live like this? I don't, but I've enjoyed watching and listening. Three men and three women rotate partners over the course of two years, and a seventh has a girl-girl incident which fits in with all the other events. It starts with such a happy wedding, but that crashes at the reception when Danny(Douglas Henshall) trashes the wedding cake and storms out. The bride Hannah (Catherine McCormack) is in tears and heads of to the pub to get 'steamboats'. Two years later, they reconnect and head off for the much delayed honeymoon. How sweet. In between, there is an especially good scene on an escalator at a tube station. Hannah going down, Danny going up. They try to chat for a bit, then both turn to take a second look as the stairs take them apart. Very telling. Later, Danny comes to the Supermarket where Hannah is on a check-out and makes a moving, emotional speech. It works. A great performance from Jennifer Ehle too, especially a rather sad scene. There is only one silly scene, Marey and Liam bed-wrestling, with Liam still in his undies… and I 'm wondering, maybe that's how they do sex in Camden? Silly, but hilarious too. A final brief dialogue clip, Danny at the airport bar "She's not going to come…" and the guy next to him says… "I can't imagine why". But Hannah does run in and off they go to Corfu. Great.

blearyboy This Year's Love was released at a time in the fit of madness that followed Four Weddings And A Funeral, when everyone was desperate to rush out their very British romantic comedies. This Year's Love sadly got lumped it with all of these (generally poor) movies, which is a pity because it's one of the finest British films of the nineties.It's not cute, although it does have charm. It's not a comedy, although there are some very funny bits in it. It's not particularly romantic, although it's probably a lot more honest about love than anything Richard Curtis has ever written. What it is is an example of the kind of movie Britain can do like almost nobody else: a small, dense, focused study of well-written characters being slowly destroyed by their own flaws, unfolding gradually like a really great novel. It's dense and meaty and thoughtful and sad, and essential viewing for anyone who's left cold by the more treacle vision of the Four Weddings... school of movie-making.It does have a frantic dash to the airport at the end, I must admit. Although even that defies normal expectations.

Ronne For me, this film was lifted by the performances of Ian Harte and Kathy Burke. Both of these actors have had interesting careers in which they've not always made the right choices and here the film would be a much slighter thing without them. Ian Harte is absolutely outstanding - you see him disintegrate before your eyes while Kathy Burke's self-hatred must resonate with many women. It makes a change to see a London that a lot of Brits would recognise with geography that makes sense (apart from the taxi to Heathrow from Camden perhaps?). For all I enjoyed films like Four Weddings and a Funeral, it's nice to see the country I actually live in represented more realistically on screen.

Joe-144-2 If you fancy spending two hours watching unpleasant, self-absorbed characters shag around and bitch about one another witlessly, see this film. If you want to see it done with style, rent a Barry Levinson film or even an Eastenders omnibus. I found this movie totally pointless; the lack of any sort of climax or resolution makes a point about the aimlessness of the characters but makes for very dull viewing. Ian Hart is terrific but Jennifer Ehle is woeful; I've never seen her play a scene without that smirk on her face. Thank God for Kathy Bates, whose blunt tones are a relief during this movie's posturing.