MIss Sloane on BLU RAY - A Review of the 2017 Film starring Jessica Chastain, John Lithgow, Michael Stuhlbarg and Sam Waterson - A Review by Mark Barry...

Fantastic Film with a Huge And Varied Cast 

Working With Ballsy and Clever Writing...

Who doesn't love a whodunit and especially one with brains built in and a ballsy leading lady gouging your viewer eyeballs out every time she’s on screen?

After many crafty plot twists about devious and dubious lobbying techniques puppet-handled by unaccountable power and the self-serving righteous vermin behind guns – the movie ends up in a courtroom with a conscious choice for our sought-after piece-of-work fixer Elizabeth Sloane - you either fight the beast or you sell your soul (like you may have done in the past) and capitulate to it.

All of this lofty yet highly entertaining subject matter is expertly handled by a long line of quality lead actors and actresses including Michael Stuhlbarg (the scientist in "The Shape Of Water" and Edward G. Robinson in "Trumbo"), John Lithgow (Winston Churchill in "The Crown"), Sam Waterson (boss Charlie Skinner in Aaron Sorkin's "The Newsroom"), Mark Strong and stunning ladies like Jessica Chastain, Alison Pill and Gugu Mbatha-Raw (all with too many great films to mention).

I thought "Miss Sloane" was brilliant – bristling with fabulous talent and actors drawn to the piece no doubt by seriously great writing from Jonathan Perera. As the cold hand of evil behind all that is calibre ammunition, lucrative velocities and even the right to bear arms - for sure some of the hijinks towards the finale may reek of a 'too clever clever' plot device for its own clogs. But by that time you're enjoying it all so much, it's a miniscule niggle in a very big and tasty pot of political gumbo. This is a script that makes you think, that informs and appalls spent bullet by spent bullet and yet still manages to shed light on the deliberately murky world of gun procurement, their easy-peasy sale and the devastating outcome of their encouraged use. And that's to be applauded.

My only feeling is that the movie "Miss Sloane" and its finely cut edges might have denied it credibility at the time of release precisely because it was so damn entertaining, thereby blocking what I feel would and should have been thoroughly deserved Oscar nominations. The Academy makes another mistake (won't be the first time folks).

In the meantime check out this sleeper on BLU RAY that so many seem to have missed. And to Director John Madden - well done sir, and more please right soon…