Film Round-Up 2015

It's been a pretty good year for film, yet again.

As I seem to have spent the majority of 2015 in the cinema, it seemed only appropriate to pull together a list of the good, the bad, and the ugly released in the U.K. in 2015.

I think I've covered everything, from my top 10 films of the year to mini-awards for 'The Film That Made the Best Over-Dramatic Use of a Waterfall'; 'The Film That I Wish I Could Experience For The First Time All Over Again' and 'The Film That Blew My Mind (and not at all in a good way)'.

I hope that these lists will provide you with inspiration for a cinema trip over the next few days, or give you some ideas for hidden gems to look for on Netflix and Sky Movies when they arrive next year. Make yourself a cup of tea: it's a long post!

Transformation Tuesday: Week 79

Well, Christmas was fun!

Gingerbread Biscoff Cake

As it's probably clear from all of my baking posts: I'm really scared of taking risks in the kitchen. I know what I'm good at - and what I'm comfortable making - and generally stick to it. Yes, I'll branch out on the odd occasion (Technical Thursdays are definitely the exception and not the rule!), but on the whole I have a very narrow repertoire.

I don't quite know why I did it, but when my turn came to provide a cake for Cake Club at work, I decided to take a chance on a recipe I'd stumbled across on the BBC Good Food website instead of sticking to something I was confident with. It ended up being one of the best cakes I've ever made, sparked a bizarre debate on the score (Cake Club is very serious, and there was a lot of discussion as to whether it was a 9.8 or a 10, but I'd have been delighted with either!) and I knew I had to make it again the following week so my family would have the opportunity to try it.

Behold, the Gingerbread Biscoff Cake: a three layered monster of light gingerbread sponge and decadent caramel biscuit cream cheese icing. It. Is. Amazing.

Transformation Tuesday: Week 78

I love Christmas.

The Ciné File Vol. 38

It's been an awfully long time since my last set of film reviews for The Ciné File, so this is a pretty long one I'm afraid!

Instead of full reviews I've grouped films together by their defining characteristics - be them strong central performances, cinematography or set design, for example - and made a brief comment on each. I felt that'd be much better than a never-ending list of reviews!

From Brooklyn to Burnt, The Intern to The Program, Anomalisa to Bridge of Spies, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens to Sicario I've seen a wide range of films over the last few months: so much so that it's pretty helpful to have them all finally written down!

Transformation Tuesday: Week 77

Buddy the Elf, what's your favourite colour?

Coming Soon: December 2015

How on earth is it December already?!

It's a funny month for film: we may be in prime territory for awards worthy films but as everyone's excited for Christmas and probably spending the majority of the month watching Elf on repeat, frantically doing last minute shopping, and indulging in Netflix binges indoors with a mince pie rather than heading to the cinema, the recently released films are a bit of a mixed bag.

Christmas films are in abundance, from the comedy-horror Krampus, to multi-generational family caper Christmas with the Coopers, to festive lad's night out The Night Before. I haven't seen Krampus - I still refuse to watch horror films - but I can say that although the other two are wholly unremarkable and will be forgotten as soon as the season ends, they're perfect if you've not quite embraced the festive spirit yet and need a nudge towards finding your Christmas jumper, decorating your tree, and singing Christmas songs extremely loudly in the car on your way to work (surely it's not just me that does that?!).

Angelina Jolie makes her bid for a spot in the awards conversation with By The Sea, written, produced and directed by her, filmed on her honeymoon and starring her and her husband Brad Pitt as a troubled couple. Unfortunately it's been met with mixed reviews so far, just like Ron Howard's epic In the Heart of the Sea. It's not all serious dramas though: Lily Tomlin is making waves in Grandma, Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg play warring fathers in Daddy's Home and the unrivalled duo of Tina Fey and Amy Poehler retain their crowns as the Queens of Comedy with Sisters. It's a hysterically funny film, with a scene featuring a misplaced ballerina figurine that made me cry laughing.

Oh, and there's a new Star Wars film out, not that anyone's noticed at this stage...

Transformation Tuesday: Week 76

I think I like Slimming World.

Transformation Tuesday: Week 75

This week went well.