James Harvey, Author at Film Stories

Klokkenluider review: a journalist visits a government whistleblower

by James Harvey | Aug 29, 2023 | Reviews

Neil Maskell's directorial debut, Klokkenluider, masterfully mixes comedy with existential dread - here's our review....

mission impossible dead reckoning train set piece

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning, and the history of the Hollywood set piece

by James Harvey | Jul 13, 2023 | Feature

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One is out this week, and in the last half hour, everything blows up. But when did we start doing that - a...

The Flash review: The best superhero movie this week

by James Harvey | Jun 14, 2023 | Reviews

When Barry Allen (Ezra Miller) goes back in time to prevent a personal tragedy, things don’t go entirely to plan in this fun but unspectacular s...

Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse review: every Spider-person all at once

by James Harvey | Jun 02, 2023 | Reviews

When a new villain raises his multi-dimensional little head, it’s up to Spider-Man and, um, lots of other Spider-People to stop him. Here’s our Spi...

Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3 review not directed by Louis Leterrier

Guardians Of The Galaxy Volume 3 review: Marvel hits a winner

by James Harvey | May 03, 2023 | Reviews

The Guardians of the Galaxy return in Volume 3, a brilliant final outing and the first MCU film you might think twice before bringing an 8-year-old...

The Pope's Exorcist review: the power of Crowe compels you

by James Harvey | Apr 10, 2023 | Reviews

When a single mother’s son is plagued by a particularly demonic-looking stomach bug, she calls on the services of Chief Exorcist Father Gabrielle A...

The Super Mario Bros. Movie review: more 'okie dokie' than 'wahoo!'

by James Harvey | Apr 05, 2023 | Reviews

When brotherly plumbing duo Mario (Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day) find themselves transported to the magical Mushroom Kingdom, they’ll have to r...

Fantasy movies, and the success of the new Dungeons & Dragons film

by James Harvey | Apr 04, 2023 | Feature

The list of great fantasy movies may be about as long as a halfling’s arm, but with the release of Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves, it j...

Have blockbusters stopped trying to surprise us?

by James Harvey | Mar 24, 2023 | Feature

John Wick: Chapter 4 is just the latest blockbuster to do exactly what it says on the tin. But when did Hollywood decide we stopped wanting more?...

John Wick: Chapter 4 review: the Wickiest Wick in the West

by James Harvey | Mar 22, 2023 | Reviews

Coming out of retirement (again) to seek his freedom, John Wick (Keanu Reeves) must trot around the globe to kill The Marquis (Bill Skarsgård), the...

Shazam! Fury of the Gods review: a blast from hero movies past

by James Harvey | Mar 16, 2023 | Reviews

When the Daughters of Atlas cross from their realm into ours, Billy Batson (Asher Angel) must join with his family of heroes to stop the Greek...

We Have A Ghost review: a tragically lifeless Netflix comedy

by James Harvey | Feb 25, 2023 | Reviews

When Kevin (Jahi Di’Allo Winston) finds a middle-aged ghost (David Harbour) in his attic, the pair must work together to uncover Ernest’s identity in...

Cocaine Bear review: grizzly good fun

by James Harvey | Feb 24, 2023 | Reviews

When a black bear comes across a stash of cocaine in a Georgia forest, assorted character actors converge to meet their maker in Elizabeth Banks’ a...

Viking Wolf review: all bite, no larks

by James Harvey | Feb 10, 2023 | Reviews

When 17-year-old Thale witnesses a grisly tragedy in the woods, she becomes a key witness in an investigation which may or may not feature a wolf....

How The Northman went from box office flop to a VoD goldmine

by James Harvey | Feb 09, 2023 | Feature

The Northman was one of 2022's most prominent box office flops - but, one year on, it's made Focus Features a tidy sum. What went so wrong with the...

The films Blumhouse made - then never got into cinemas

by James Harvey | Jan 30, 2023 | Feature

Blumhouse made its name turning tiny budgets into box office mega-hits - but the secret to its success might be the films it never widely released at...

You People - Eddie Murphy and Jonah Hill

You People review: culture clash comedy drags its feet

by James Harvey | Jan 27, 2023 | Reviews

When Ezra (Jonah Hill) and Amira (Lauren London) decide to get married, they’ll have a tough time bringing their parents along for the ride in N...

The British films coming to cinemas in 2023

by James Harvey | Jan 19, 2023 | Feature

Butter up those crumpets and stick the kettle on - here's every British film with a confirmed cinema release date in 2023....

Ranking (nearly) every straight-to-streaming Christmas film in 2022

by James Harvey | Dec 22, 2022 | Feature

Looking to navigate this year's avalanche of straight to streaming Christmas movies? We've watched them all - and here's our guide......

Your Christmas Or Mine review: a thoroughly charming festive treat

by James Harvey | Dec 02, 2022 | Reviews

Young couple Hayley (Cora Kirk) and James (Asa Butterfield) suffer festive tragedy at the hands of the UK rail network in Jim O’Hanlon’s com...

Elizabeth Hurley in Christmas in the Caribbean

Elizabeth Hurley has made three Christmas films in two years – but which is best?

by James Harvey | Nov 25, 2022 | Feature

Fans of Austin Powers and gently acerbic Christmas comedies rejoice: Elizabeth Hurley has made three of them in the space of two years. If you were...

Lashana Lynch as Miss Honey and Alisha Weir as Matilda in Roald Dahl's Matilda The Musical

Roald Dahl's Matilda The Musical review: an absolute delight

by James Harvey | Nov 23, 2022 | Reviews

Emma Thompson steals the show as Miss Trunchbull in this gloriously fun adaptation of Roald Dahl's Matilda The Musical....

Christmas With You review: by-the-numbers festive fare

by James Harvey | Nov 18, 2022 | Reviews

Pop star Angelina (Aimee Garcia) finds festive inspiration (and love) in unexpected places in Christmas With You – here’s our review. A...

How do movies film underwater?

by James Harvey | Nov 17, 2022 | Feature

With Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and the upcoming Avatar: The Way of Water both shooting extensively underwater, it seems filming wet is the new...