Matthew's Journal

Last week, I went to see "Cloud Atlas". It's based on the premise of re-incarnation, with the same few souls' fates being intertwined across many different time periods. The film flits between these different stories relatively quickly, which means I had to concentrate pretty hard to keep up with them all. I suspect if you've read the book, that's less of a problem! It's a very pretty film, and the various stories are engaging, but I would have liked a little more focus on the relationships between them. It's pretty long, too!

This evening, I saw "Shell". The Highlands can be majestic, awe-inspiring, beautiful, but in this film they are sparse and bleak. That suits "Shell", which is a sparse, bleak, Highland drama. Shell is a seventeen-year-old who lives in a remote petrol station with her father. The wind howls, and the house rattles as vehicles pass. The landscape captures the imagination, and the narrative keeps you wondering until the end. Not a cheery film, and some of the themes are uncomfortable, but worth 90 minutes of your time.