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Stephen “Spling” Aspeling, a leading film critic and radio broadcaster, has released a new book, ‘The Essence of Dreams: An Anthology of Film Reviews’. The collection of Aspeling’s best-reviewed and most transportative films explores cinema’s ability to create immersive and seamless worlds that continue to linger in our imaginations long after the credits roll.


Adaptation

 A Haunting In Venice / All The Light We Cannot See / A Man Called Otto / All Quiet On The Western Front / Alone In Berlin / The Art Of Racing In The Rain / Beautiful Disaster / The Black Phone / Blue Beetle / The Boogeyman / The Dark Tower / Dune / The Good House / Killers of the Flower Moon  / Lady Chatterley’s Lover / Lion / Mrs. Harris Goes To Paris / One True Loves / Pain Hustlers / Papillon / Peter Pan & Wendy / The Secret Garden / Toorbos / The Whale / The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar

Inspired By

Air / The Amazing Maurice / Babylon / Barbarian / Barbie / Cocaine Bear / C’mon C’mon / Death On The Nile / Dog / Empire of Light / Haunted Mansion / Murder On The Orient Express / No Hard Feelings / The Lost King / Notre-Dame on Fire / The Pale Blue Eye / The Pope’s Exorcist / Professor Marston & The Wonder Women / Renfield / Shotgun Wedding / Those Who Wish Me Dead / The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent

Faith

Fatima / Miracle Club

Reimagining History

Babylon / The King / The Lost King / Medieval / The Northman / Outlaw King / 1960 / The Woman King

Romance

 A Ghost Story / Beautiful Disaster / Good Luck To You, Leo Grande / Lady Chatterley’s Lover / Master Gardener / Love Again / Redeeming Love / Titanic

Sequels

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever  / Book Club: The Next Chapter / Magic Mike’s Last Dance / Shazam! Fury of the Gods / Top Gun: Maverick

Supernatural

A Ghost StoryA Haunting In Venice / Dear David / Encounters / The Exorcist: Believer / The Gallows / M3GAN / Nanny / A Quiet Place / The Pope’s Exorcist / Scouts vs Zombies

Sports

Big George Foreman / The Survivor

Sexuality

Good Luck To You, Leo Grande / No Hard Feelings

Addiction

Ben Is Back

AI

The Creator / 100 Years Of AI

Stories About Writers

Genius / Rebel In The Rye 

Horror

MA /  

Serial Killers

The Killer / Midnight In The Switchgrass

Writing A Teleplay

All The Light We Cannot See

Interviews

Writer-director Gavin Hood talks about Oscar-winning Tsotsi / Tertius Kapp discusses the ecological horror fantasy Gaia / Johnny Breedt talks about Die Ontwaking / Christiaan Olwagen, talks about Poppie Nongena / Sallas de Jager on Dominie Tienie, Jonathan & Free State /Writer-director Gareth Edwards talks about what it takes to be a Filmmaker / Interviews with South African writers / Writer-director Etienne Kallos 

Origin Stories

The Last Voyage of the Demeter /

True Life Stories

About My Father / A Hidden Life / Air / Belfast / Big George Foreman / Blonde / Breathe / Bridge Of Spies / Call Jane / Dear David /Empire of Light / The Fabelmans / Golda / Gran Turismo / The Inspection / I Wanna Dance With Somebody / Kandahar / Killers of the Flower Moon / Life (James Dean Story) / Legend / Lion / Loving Vincent / Money Monster / The Old Man & The Gun / Oppenheimer / Pain Hustlers / Punch / Professor Marston & The Wonder Women / Run Rabbit Run / She Said / Sound Of Freedom / Spinning Gold / The Survivor / Till / The Walk

Wild & Wacky

Bad Times at the El Royale / Beau is Afraid / Everything Everywhere All at Once / The Menu / Nightmare Alley / Run / Smile / The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent / Violent Night

Satire

El Conde / The Menu / Rock the Kasbah / Triangle Of Sadness

Holocaust

The Survivor

Original Stories

65 / Asteroid City / The Banshees of Inisherin / Barbie / Don’t Worry Darling / Emily / The Estate / Hypnotic / Joy Ride / The Little Things / Master Gardener / The Mother / Plane / Polite Society / Tár

Female-Driven

Blonde / Call Jane / Emily / The Estate / Good Luck To You, Leo Grande / Joy Ride / MA / The Mother / Miracle Club /Mrs. Harris Goes To Paris / Nanny / Parallel Mothers / She Said / Women Talking

Creature Feature

65 / The Black Demon / Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile /

Musicals

Greatest Days / The Greatest Showman / The Little Mermaid / West Side Story

Gangster

 Legend

Dogs

A Dog’s Purpose / The Art Of Racing In The Rain / Dog / Call Of The Wild

Board Games

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

Gay-themed

Green Book / Die Stropers (The Harvest) / The Ignorant Angels / Heartstopper / Inxeba: The Wound / The Inspection / Kanarie / Moffie / My Policeman / Nyad / Punch / Rafiki / Red, White & Royal Blue / The Whale

South African

Alison /Angeliena / Gaia / Headspace / Die Ontwaking / The Recce  / Toorbos / Die Verhaal Van Racheltjie de Beer / Sew The Winter To My Skin / Vaselinetjie / 1960

Interviews with South African writers

Heist / Hostage Stories

Money Monster

Crime

Bodies / The Killer / Killers of the Flower Moon / The Little Things / Reptile /

Animation

The Amazing Maurice / Elemental / Epic Tails / Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio / Headspace / Ladybug & Cat Noir: The Movie / Rally Road Racers / Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken / Strange World

Independent Filmmaking

The Gallows

Crafting A Trilogy

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3.

Franchise

Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania / Creed III / Fast & Furious 10 / Halloween Ends / Insidious /  Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny / Mission: Impossible –Dead Reckoning Part One / Missing / My Big Fat Wedding 3. / Searching / Transformers: Rise of the Beasts / Saw /

Fantasy

Avatar / Avatar: The Way To The Water / Beau is Afraid / Dune / Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves / Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio / Peter Pan & Wendy / Strange World

What Are James Cameron’s 3 Levels Of Storytelling?

Disaster

 Notre-Dame on Fire

War / Combat

All Quiet On The Western Front / A Hidden Life / Bridge Of Spies / Mile 22

Superheroes

Andor / Black Adam / Black Panther / Black Panther: Wakanda Forever / The Flash / The Green Knight

TV Series

Cabinet of Curiosities / Justified: City Primeval /

Prison Culture

Shot Caller





The WORLD of FILM