5 Flicks: brief film reviews (and a review preview)

We've seen a few films in recent months/weeks/days. Look no further for in-depth and insightful reviews. From art house to blockbuster. 

Mr. Turner

Well acted, esp. Timothy Spall in title role. Visually stunning in parts. Fighting Temeraire scene gorgeous, but all too brief. One of my favourite paintings. A print hangs in our dining room. Featured in Bond film Skyfall, which I had for Christmas on DVD. I digress. Mr. Turner amusing. Sketchy plot. Salacious interest in painter's private life. Spall like an overexited Gruffalo. Nooo. 

Fury & The Imitation Game 

Benedict Cumberbatch convincing as brilliant, yet tragic Alan Turing. A war film for crossword puzzlers and computer nerds. Intelligent in a way that Fury wasn't. Keira Knightley does her cut glass English Rose thing. How breaking the Enigma code helped us to win WW2. Fury, a computer game for people whose thumbs have fallen off. 

The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies 

Samug the dragon (voiced by Cumberbatch) not happy. Spoiler. Dragon (not red) killed by Welshman. So that's how Sauron became the eye of fire thing.  Big battle. Men, Dwarves, Elves, Orcs, Bats, Eagles, a Wizard and a man/big black bear creature fight it out. Spoilers: Orcs lose. Good uns die. Short chap with big hairy feet wins the day. Got a ring. Could be important.

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1

Fronts seats. Craned necks. Screen too big. Games over. Revolution begins. Tyranny defied. Katniss Everdeen: face and voice of insurgency. Fragile hope. Misery and madness. 

Theory of Everything 

Boffin boy meets arty girl. Love. Boy falls ill. Marry. Black holes and stuff. More when we've seen film, not just preview. But preview shown before all films reviewed, so only seemed right to preview the review.