Twelve Films At Christmas - 1, 2 & 3

Darkest Hour takes considerable historical liberties but, in the final analysis, none of those liberties can undermine the foundation of a decent film, specifically the central performance of Gary Oldman as Winston Churchill. Churchill himself denies all rudiments of dramatic realism - you couldn't make him up. Those liberties taken are particularly hard on Attlee and his Labour Party but perhaps his is a story to be told elsewhere - mind you, Attlee the Movie sounds a tad fanciful. I'd watch it. This version of Churchill gets 7/10.

Nothing new can be said about the next film but I greatly enjoyed watching it for the umpteenth time. The Godfather is schlocky fiction converted to genuinely great cinema. Notwithstanding its length I think you can argue that not a single scene is wasted - all serve a dramatic purpose. It never drags. That the sequel to it is marginally better is one of the miracles of cinema. Is Brando hamming it up or is he brilliant? Well, both to a degree - his character has to exude a charismatic and benign evil. Brando's extreme method achieves that difficult fusion. 9/10.

Now to get all seasonal and saccharine. Yesterday the Groupie and I watched the modern(ish) remake of Miracle on 34th Street - Mara Wilson and Richard Attenborough both acting their socks off at either end of the thespian age range. Nicely done and it brings back fond memories of viewing it with the girls when they were young. 7/10. It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas. We even went to mass this morning.