Michael Shannon Movies Blog

  In the future there will be a whole genre of films that were made during lock down restrictions. Some are less obvious than other but this one is your poster boy for COVID. It’s more ‘crappy corona’ than ‘pumping pandemic’ however, and even at 80 odd minutes it was a struggle to get through it. If you have filming limitations what better central character to have than a recluse who never leaves his flat? We meet our protagonist Ken as he goes through his daily routine. He has identical bottles of drink and all his food is unlabelled apart from a tag noting what it is. He’s clearly OCD and also has a hobby of stuffing dead birds, which he receives through the post, strangely enough. He is a fledgling content creator too and we see him make several videos that give us an insight into his life, not least that he’s a divorced Dad. He’s not getting the hits however, but during a web chat with a friend he’s told that one of his dead birds fell off his shelf during a video. It’...

  There are some films you don’t like because they are poorly made or have a confusing narrative. Others you dislike because the characters don’t work for you or the film doesn’t go anywhere. This film I really disliked because it was difficult and annoying and a real effort to get through. The main reason for that could be explained by the constant subtitle ‘Liam Cries’. Man, that popped up every two minutes and if crying babies aren’t your thing I’d suggest that you give this picture a wide berth. The film open with activity in a remote farmhouse. We see gunshots and then flashes of light– I’d have thought given the relative speeds of light and sound we’d get the flash first, but it’s not a science lesson so we can let that go. A ‘40 years later’ caption appears and we are at the same house with a young couple and their crying baby. The baby screams non stop for about two minutes and I was close to turning the film off there and then. The house has been on the market for yea...

  Here’s a film that will leave you scratching both your head and your skin after 100 minutes of disturbing viewing. Ashley Judd stars as Agnes, a barmaid in a lesbian bar who has struggled in the ten years since her son disappeared during a supermarket visit. She lives in a grotty motel room and offers little resistance when her lesbian friend sets her up with a quiet man at the bar. This chap, Peter, played by our friend Mr Shannon is polite and says he doesn’t want sex as he’s off that kind of thing. Agnes lets him stay the night, on the sofa, and the next morning Peter witnesses a domestic as Agnes’ recently freed husband shows up to take her money and punch her in the gut. Peter doesn’t intervene but gets some loving anyway. The night of passion soon gives way to some disturbing moments as Peter feels a bite from a bug. He determines it to be an aphid and the room to be infested with them. The next day he’s invested in a load of bug spray and fly papers, but they do ...

  As my loyal reader is doubtlessly aware I reviewed this film under its alternative title of ‘The Harvest’ in my definite Article movie blog. I said in that that the title and poster, as shown below, were massive spoilers. What things can you harvest? Well there’s crops and… - and this film isn’t about agriculture! The film opens with surgeon Samantha Morton saving a young boy who suffered an injury whilst playing baseball. We initially think she’s a good sort, but her cold manner and chunky knit sweaters suggest otherwise. At home she has a bed bound son and a husband in Michael Shannon whom she’s not shy in putting down. She is always the doctor and he the nurse in all aspects of their relationship. Michael has one outlet in his miserable existence, as he’s sleeping with the pharma rep who provides him with the drugs needed to sustain his son. The film develops when orphan Maryann moves in with her grandparents across the woods from the Shannons. She’s a nosey girl...

  This period horror/drama is quite early Shannon, but he does muster 4 th billing in what has to be said a low budget offering. The two stars who have their names before the title are Henry Thomas and Patrick Fugit – if the child stars of E.T. and Almost Famous rock your boat then this could be the film for you. We open in the American Civil War era with a group of soldiers depositing some cash at a bank. It seems like a straightforward transaction but there is a lot of bad acting, long pauses and faffing over paperwork. It seems like something is a bit fishy, but before this is explored a bunch of bandits show up to rob the bank. Shannon is among their number playing Clyde, whose main character point is that he wears a funny hat. He is outgunned by another gang member who didn’t get the memo and showed up as a Droog out of ‘A Clockwork Orange’. The bank raid is pretty bloody with a head explosion and plenty of claret on the walls. The bandits take some shots themsel...