Black Book - Dir: Paul Verhoeven

From Paul Verhoeven, the director of such well known films as Basic Instinct, Robocop and Total Recall, comes this much more intimate but no less exciting film. The story centering around a Jewish woman that infiltrates a German HQ on behalf of the Dutch resistance is filled with twists, action, drama, and emotion. The characters speak in their native languages throughout the film and thus everything is subtitled. However this doesn't detract at all and if anything lures you further in to the world of the piece. The relatively unknown lead Carice Van Houten is absolutely amazing. This is definitely a JM RECOMMENDS.

Scanner Darkly - Dir: Richard Linklater

This was disappointing considering it was from Richard Linklater, director of one of my fave films Before Sunrise. It was doubly disappointing in that it is a story derived from the portfolio of famed sci-fi writer Phillip K Dick whose stories also include Total Recall and Blade Runner. The movie is presented in a sort of live animation that looks like real footage that has been colourised, in a process called rotoscoping. It looks really neat for the first five minutes and then becomes irritating beyond belief. It makes it difficult to follow a story that you really need to keep tabs on. Stars Keanu Reeves, Winona Ryder, Woody Harrelson and Robert Downey Jr. This is a JM THUMBS DOWN.