Yet again the London Film Festival was crammed full of the widest possible selection of movies from around the world and the usual great and the good from the world of cinema gathered to enjoy the best of international movies.

The London Film Festival increasing in size over time, rarely misses the opportunity to take note of the changing dynamics of the industry.  As for the press, they are given plenty of access to see a wide range of movies from noon 'til night both in advance and during the festival.

This year I decided to do a little cramming and write about watching seven movies over the course of a weekend.  This is just a snapshot of how hard the press work to keep up with the 'movie action'; but the weekend's activity also highlights just how useful an immersion course can be if you are prepared to end up with rectangular eyes.

My weekend of movies was varied as it was eclectic and despite my patience to watch even some fairly awful fare, sometimes you just don't pick the best of the bunch!

So my first screening was early on a Saturday morning when I got up to see a movie that I might not have selected if I had not been going for a marathon!

And yet perhaps experience should count more than hindsight as my instincts said "No"  but my strategy said "Why not give it a go?".

As I crept into the darkened cinema for the weekend early viewing I took a deep breath.   I did not expect the theatre to be full at that time in the morning; but I certainly did not expect it to be that empty!

Things did not bode well as I walked out one hour into the film.  As a journalist, I can normally sit though anything, but Perestroika was the exception.  What looked good.at the beginning - I enjoy train journeys and I had visited Russia on several occasions so this movie should have been an interesting refresher - turned increasingly sour over time.  The storyline had sounded interesting:  a video crew travelled back across Siberia twenty years after their last journey where a tragic accident had taken place.  But the harsh reality of this movie was that it told the story of a journey seen through the eyes of someone on a combo of drugs, painkillers and also having the remnants of a nervous breakdown.  And what even less palatable was that it appeared as if they used some of the footage more than once throughout the movie.  Of course I will not know how their journey ended but after only one hour of my journey (and only just half way through the film) I left the building.

It was hard to tell whether the American Airlines Gala was life imitating art or art imitating life as George Clooney took on the role of Ryan Bingham as he tried to reach the magic number of flying 10 million air miles on American Airlines for which he could receive the questionable honor of having his name on the side of a plane.

Bingham's job is the kind of job nobody wants: the man who flies into town to let the little and not so little people know that they have been let go or made redundant - whatever the correct terminology may be at that moment in time.  Job DONE he then jumps onto his next American Airlines flight with only one target in mind: that elusive 10,000,000 miles.  But this world changes when his boss decides to go high-tech - in this case conference calling - for a one on one 'firing' session.  And his days of jumping on and off planes appeared over.  Would he ever reach that golden figure of 10million?

At the outset, the film seemed predictable as Bingham meets a female clone of himself in a bar; but the truth be told, this movie is more about the ever-changing roles and battles of the sexes than it is about a man whose career seems somewhat inhuman and callous.   Cleverly turning the expected into the unexpected, Clooney's character takes a 360 degree turn ... but will it be to his cost?  Why not check it out?

However my target was onto movie number three.  Thoroughly entertained by the Clooney movie - although George was also giving 'the performance of his life' in the much applauded The Men Who Stare at Goats -  I was very happy to be siting back watching a screener of The Eagle Hunter's Son in the comfort of my own home.  This German Sweden production, set in Altai mountains between Mongolia and Kazakhstan, was exceptional more for its role exposing to a wider audience the fabulous dramatic landscape of the region and less for the story itself.   Somewhat blood curling as man and animal pitched themselves against the wild harsh terrain this was difficult fodder during my evening snack.  And perhaps on reflection, by using non-actors, the story seemed a little one-dimensional as Bazarbai - a young 12 year old nomad - is forced to take on on the role of the new recruit of family eagle hunters. 

In sharp contrast to the landscapes of the Eagle Hunters, I loved the very stark, simple black and white documentary which told the story of the Uruguayan singer Jorge Deexler.  Best known for his award winning song in the movie The Motorcycle Stories, this is a low key, yet completely engaging movie as you just want more a and more of this artist's great music.

Every film festival should be seen as incomplete unless you get the opportunity to watch a fantastic music or sports documentary and This Very Instant certainly did it for me as I became a lifelong fan of Jorge Deexler in the space of about 95 minutes precisely.

The Exploding Girl is a slice of life drama about a boy and a girl spending their school vacation in New York as they go through a journey of relationships sometimes interrupted by he fact that the Ivy - played by Zoe Kazan - has a fairly serious illness. 

As a past student in New York, the story seemed almost familiar and like all 'spring break' - type timelines, it had a beginning middle and end.. It should also be said that although this was no great cinema, it did have a charm and authenticity in its storylines and characterization which made it a pleasure to watch.

Also set in New York, although this time in a less attractive borough, Ched Samir resigns from a top Manhattan restaurant when he is passed over for a promotion and returns to run his parents local Indian when his father becomes ill.  With the unique powers of magical Indian spices in the form of Akbar played by Naseeruddin Shah, the restaurant is elevated from unsightly and unhealthy to the top of the New York Times must try list. And as with all good food movies, love is in the air - and Today's Special is no exception!   I recommend this film for its mix of mediocre cliches and great humour......   and a tasty morsel to finish off the weekend.

But the best is left to last as my weekend favorite was most definitely the funny winsome Dear Lemon Lima.  This delightful movie is both fun and quirky and tells the story of a group of 'non-sporty, social outcasts' attending a school in Alaska as they attempt to compete against the 'jocks' in the annual Snow Storm Survivor Competition - an event inspired by the World Eskimo Olympics.

This is a feel good movie which makes you feel as you leave the darkened theatres after a weekend cram packed with everything different that the world is a wonderful place and good does win over evil etc. etc.

I recommend the crash course weekend movie special to those film buff 'experts' who want a roller coaster ride around the world through the medium of good and not so good AND bad movies!