ALLAN HUNTER at the Movies SECRET AGENT James Bond first appeared in the pages of ‘Casino Royale’ in 1953. It is a novel that has never been filmed by the official Bond team until now, but it has been worth the wait. Going back to basics has reinvigorated the entire production, adding a fresh impetus […]

Arches/National Theatre of Scotland, North Edinburgh Arts Centre and touring 2006

ALLAN HUNTER at the Movies JAMES MCAVOY is one of the hottest names in British cinema. The rising Scottish star isn’t just good-looking, hard-working and fashionable, he also has the kind of versatile talent that should ensure him a long career. He has an impressive range that stretches from the endearing fawn in ‘The Chronicles […]

Community Theatre, Fortrose, 3 November 2006

ALLAN HUNTER at the Movies ITALIAN DIRECTOR Michele Placido has made a film worthy of comparison with Martin Scorsese’s ‘Goodfellas’ in ‘Romanzo Criminale’, a vivid tale of childhood friends immersed in organised crime. Based on a bestselling novel, this sweeping epic runs from the late 1970s to the early 1990s, tracing the rise and fall […]

Brunton Theatre, Musselburgh, and touring 2006

ALLAN HUNTER at the Movies ‘RED ROAD’ has been one of the great Scottish success stories of 2006. Invited to compete at the Cannes Film Festival in May, it became one of the discoveries of that event and was awarded the Jury Prize. It is a powerful tale of loss, guilt, revenge and redemption that […]

Oscar’s, Dingwall, 21 October 2006

North Edinburgh Arts Centre, and touring 2006

ALLAN HUNTER at the Movies HOW DO YOU follow a film like ‘Lost In Translation’? That was the problem facing Sofia Coppola after her Oscar-winning triumph with that wistful, beguiling Bill Murray treat. Her follow-up is an irreverent historical yarn that turns Antonia Fraser’s respected biography of Marie Antoinette into an extravagant romp where the […]