Three brilliant films, and not one set in America. They have changed my mind about what was my preference for movies set in the USA. I have always enjoyed the different settings for these films, whether it be in a city or in some remote wilderness, the landscape across the country is so varied. But these three films, along with the others I have seen recently (Babel, Black Book and Apocalypto) are all set in different countries, and have all been great. The only disappointment this year so far, has been Night in the Museum - set in New York. The only interesting bit was the sequence in Central Park and picking out the San Remo Apartments I recognised from the Manhattan Scrapers book that Michael gave me for Christmas.
All the acting in Venus was very special. A lot must go down to the director Roger Michell and the writer Hanif Kureishi whose name I did not recognise. But he had collaborated before with the same director for the film "The Mother" and turns out he wrote the screenplay for one of my favourite films "My Beautiful Laundrette. As the BBC website puts it, "a veteran purveyor of suburban misanthropy".
I also thought that the writing carried Notes on a Scandal. I thought that Patrick Marber's screenplay for "Closer" was very disappointing. Especially after seeing his wonderful version of Strindberg in "After Miss Julie". But here he was on top form, and the film held my attention for every second.
I did not expect too much from Blood Diamond, but it turned out to be a good thriller. A bit too much gratuitous violence ( coming from someone who loves horror films), but the plot development was highly satisfactory. The message seemed a little lost now that Sierra Leone is at peace.
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