BoyActors - Reviews/Ratings by diogenes

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Reviews by diogenes

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350 reviews/ratings - 18 pages (20 reviews/ratings per page)

Tango Argentino (1992)

Just stunning. Nikola (Nikola Zarkovic) has a father, mother and sister, all of whom seem self-absorbed and make little effort to relate to him. But he finds an emotional connection with the generation above his parents', and in return receives the love and affection he needs. The sheer beauty of this film is what really stands out. An emotionally truthful film about the ability of people to find meaning in their lives through tenderness and care for others, and the need to break down the barriers between people and between generations. The film also affirms the dignity of the elderly and the intrinsic worth of human life (in contrast to attitudes in the west, where society tends to view the elderly as a 'burden'). Nikola Zarkovic is just an extraordinarily wonderful and sensitive actor, an absolute joy to watch. Highly recommended.

My Movie Rating:

10 / 10

Tarzan's Desert Mystery (1943)

This was the one which veered into fantasy horror, with man-eating plants, prehistoric lizard-like monsters, and giant spiders...and - believe it or not - it works! The shot of Boy (Johnny Sheffield) caught in the web of the giant spider, with the spider slowly approaching (and with Nancy Kelly somewhat ineffectually trying to free him), burnt itself into my memory as a kid. A very exciting Tarzan film, and a must-see for all Johnny Sheffield devotees. Highly recommended.

My Movie Rating:

8 / 10

Tayna zheleznoy dveri (1970)

A charming, whimsical morality tale. Recommended.

My Movie Rating:

8 / 10

Teeth (2018)

Oh, I don't know. It's nicely acted, and surprisingly grisly. I rather liked it!

My Movie Rating:

7 / 10

Le Temps du loup (2003)

A bleakly realistic masterpiece.

My Movie Rating:

9 / 10

There Will Be Blood (2007)

I love this film. Daniel Plainview is a spiritual void, but of course he'll never realise that himself. Some have criticised the finale, but I rather like it - there had to be a final confrontation between Eli and Daniel - the former a little desperate, the latter completely unhinged - and naturally the more insane character ends up on top! Dillon Freasier is just wonderful - he's been rightly described as a "quiet, magnetic, intelligent presence" in the film - a boy one can't help but love and want to protect. To give this film anything less than 10 stars would seem churlish and quibbling.

My Movie Rating:

10 / 10

Threads (1984)

I actually watched this when it was originally transmitted in 1984. Since then, I've watched it two more times, and each time I've needed a couple of days simply to recover my equilibrium after viewing it - that's how good it is.

My Movie Rating:

10 / 10

Through the Magic Pyramid (1981)

The entire Egyptian army is unable to subdue three small children armed only with a bow and arrow. Don't tell the Hittites!

My Movie Rating:

6 / 10

Time Bandits (1981)

I reckon the Napoleon section is overlong and doesn't quite come to life, despite Ian Holm, which is a pity - but after that, things pick up considerably. There is a heartbreaking tragedy in the protagonist being benevolently plucked from Mycenae just when he has found something like a true home and a true father. I rather liked the ending! I like the sense of his being left totally on his own - though I think he's probably ultimately better off anyway. The glimpses of the TV game show that we see at the start are hilarious!

My Movie Rating:

9 / 10

To the Lighthouse (1983)

A beautiful production with great acting and some fascinating themes.

My Movie Rating:

10 / 10

Toast (2010)

The first hour of this movie is the best, with Oscar Kennedy delivering a natural and delightful performance as young Nigel. A slightly older Nigel is played by Freddie Highmore in the last half hour. Unfortunately, Highmore has certain limitations as an actor, the main one being that he can't act. Instead, he is clearly of the 'less is more' school of acting and his 'acting' consists largely of standing around and not emoting, maintaining a completely blank expression throughout the time he is on-screen.

What redeems this last half hour to some extent is the hilarious plot involving a sort of arms-race in the kitchen between Nigel and his step-mother as each tries to win Nigel's father's heart by baking ever more perfect culinary delights.

Also recommended, Nigel Slater's entertaining autobiography "Toast: the story of a boy's hunger", on which this film was based.

My Movie Rating:

7 / 10

Today They Took My Son (2016)

As so often happens, I find myself agreeing with Saga! Yes, it's a piece of agitprop, but told in so direct and straightforward a manner as to make it compelling. An excellent and necessary short film.

My Movie Rating:

9 / 10

Tom & Thomas (2002)

Pleasant enough fluff. The scene in the maze of mirrors was the best part. London is never that picturesque in reality.

My Movie Rating:

6 / 10

Tom's Midnight Garden (1989)

Complete perfection. This really could never be bettered. Jeremy Rampling is unutterably wonderful as Tom. Forget the kitschy 1999 film which was produced with both eyes firmly on the Yank market - this is the real deal.

My Movie Rating:

10 / 10

Tomer en Elias (2016)

An intriguing look at a close fraternal relationship. Mingus Claessen is such a charismatic young actor, I find myself wishing he'd starred in more films than just this one.

My Movie Rating:

8 / 10

The Tomorrow People (1973-1979)

Some of the episodes and storylines were truly cringeworthy ("A Man For Emily", "The Thargon Menace") or just plain dull ("Slaves of Jedikiah", "The Vanishing Earth", "The Medusa Strain", "Into The Unknown"), but there were many which were actually rather entertaining ("Hitler's Last Secret", "A Much Needed Holiday", "The Doomsday Men", "Castle of Fear") and some were even rather good science fiction stories ("Living Skins", "Secret Weapon", "The Dirtiest Business"). Definitely worth a look; and even the poor episodes are worth enduring for the cast commentaries on the DVD discs - Peter Vaughan-Clarke and Nicholas Young really spark off each other to give what must be some of the most marvellously witty, funny and downright entertaining commentary tracks of all time!

My Movie Rating:

8 / 10

Treasure Island (1950)

Bobby Driscoll is excellent as Jim Hawkins, but Robert Newton completely steals the show as Long John Silver. Disney at its finest.

My Movie Rating:

8 / 10

Treasure Island (1990)

I enjoyed this immensely, and Bale makes a fine Jim Hawkins.

My Movie Rating:

8 / 10

The Tree of Life (2011)

It is difficult to 'review' this film, since, for me, this is an astonishing artistic masterpiece. The basic premise can be easily stated: haunted by his ongoing grief at the death of his brother, the adult Jack (Sean Penn) recalls his boyhood in the 1950s, but from a vast cosmic perspective stretching over thousands of millions of years. In its scope and imaginative vision, and its broader philosophical and spiritual themes, this movie invites comparison with Kubrick's "2001: A Space Odyssey" (1968). But whereas "2001" is dominated by its awe-inspiring science fiction ideas and hardly ever descends to the human scale, "The Tree of Life" is dominated by a human drama set within its wider context. Does this cosmic perspective diminish man? To me, it has rather the opposite effect. The splendour of the stage on which man enacts his little drama somehow makes this drama seem all the more significant - lends it some of its own splendour. The voiceover is characterised by a series of questions without answers. The universe is presented as ultimately mysterious. Humans are condemned to having mere fragments, confusing pieces of a jigsaw, but with no ability to see the complete picture. In the sandbar sequence at the end, there is the hope that nevertheless the human story makes some kind of overall sense, even if we, in our lives, are unable to comprehend it. Although the family portrayed in the film attends a Christian church, there is no mention in the voiceover, and no suggestion in the sequence of images, of the specifically Christian God, the God who revealed himself in the person of Jesus of Nazareth (though there is nothing specifically to contradict this either). Instead, the God to whom questions are addressed in this film is remote, inscrutible, in some sense ultimately unknowable, making the quote from Job at the start of the movie particularly apposite. There is so much to think about in this film, that it would take a considerable volume, I think, to unravel the various strands. Suffice to say that all the actors are wonderful, and the boy actors who play the three brothers (Hunter McCracken, Laramie Eppler, Tye Sheridan) are unutterably superb. An essential film to watch and to re-watch.

My Movie Rating:

10 / 10

The Tulse Luper Suitcases, Part 1: The Moab Story (2003)

I just love the whole style of this film, though admittedly it will not be to everyone's taste. Tulse Luper is a collector because he has a passion for taxonomy, for system - he admires people like lexicographers and compilers of encyclopaedias, because they put diverse phenomena in one place under a single system, thus creating unity and order out of chaotic fragments. This fascinates me because ever since my early childhood I have shared the same passion. ('Taxophilia'?)

My Movie Rating:

9 / 10

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