antminghella

I saw a preview of this and absolutely loved it. It was very funny (the scene where the cranky old men test out the ring tones for instance is a classic) and touching. I loved the fact that it had none of the usual faces that you see in Britcoms. I didn't recognise anyone in it apart from Benny Wong - who was amazing in this - and the very funny girl from Hot Fuzz, who was just as funny in this. I love the fact that it keeps about ten different stories rolling along. I also loved all the gardening stuff. It reminded me of The Secret Garden and it gave the whole thing a bit of poetry and beauty that you just don't see in films about working class people normally.

I've seen lots of Winterbottom's films and always thought he was obviously gifted but not quite fulfilling his potential. This is an exciting feeling. You hope that the next film will be the one. Well this is announcement that he's no longer trying. It's a public statement of creative, moral and emotional vacuity. It's got nothing to say apart from "look at me, I'm rude!" and frankly I can get that at home from my two year old. When a middle aged man displays intense interest in the sex lives of younger people, that's not interesting or innovative. that's masturbation. Bertolucci did it in Stealing Beauty but at least he went to the trouble of having a script, a location and a story. This is just bone idle. And to say it's not porn is simply gutless. It is porn. It's got all the standard porn shots in it. If it's not erotic that's not because it's something other than porn. It's because it's not very good porn.