Musing over a cranberry is not going to improve my mental health — Consider the cranberry. Smell the cranberry. Chew the cranberry. Feel better yet? Neither would I when first introduced to mindfulness in this way. Mindfulness is flavour of the month, but it’s awful. It offers no real solutions or proper coping strategies for emotional and mental distress. When you have real…

Love does not and should not come with a how-to manual — Twenty-seven years on from Bridget Jones’s Diary and according to the Office for National Statistics the single population of the UK stands at 35%. …

Depression is a battle of will, you do not always need to reach for the medicine cabinet — Any of you that have experienced depression will know the feeling drags you into a painful inertia. Even getting up seems like an impossible task and you can be reduced to floods of tears with next to no provocation. If you have not experienced depression yet there is a high…

Do you want to become a ‘Transmission Hacker’? — They call themselves ‘Transmission Hackers’. You can become a ‘human virus neutralising shield’ in the community and stealth deactivate the virus. UK based company Akhand Armour says they can help people become a human ‘Sanitising Shield’ in the community. In the same way as people can become ‘virus transmitters’, we…

So very far from the best British storytelling has to offer — The Bezonians starts off rough-and-ready and with what I hope is tongue-in-cheek humour, as the characterisations are so crass and machismo driven – although allegedly this is a crime thriller. Plato runs the Bezonians Social Club in North London, where generations of Cypriot immigrants have gambled away their savings supposedly. …

A Finnish romantic comedy to soothe the soul and leave you feeling more positive — Master Cheng is a truly sweet Finnish romantic comedy that may lighten your mood significantly if you are having a bad day. The story revolves around Master Cheng (Chu Pak Hong), his son Niu Niu (Lucas Hsuan) and Sirkka (Anna-Maija Tuokko). …

If this is the best Neo-Noir has to offer it is a film genre set to die — A cast list I knew and great visuals draw me to this film. However, this film is terrible, saved only by the inclusion of a few great actors (Johnathan Rhys Meyers, Michael Madsen and Jeremy Piven) delivering below average lines. American Night is neo-noir set in New York City’s corrupt…

Ever wanted to chase a porn star in peril? This should have been the Greek comedy for you, but it falls short — This eccentric Greek comedy starts off with promise and maintains some very sweet performances. However, it can not quite deliver the belly laughs that a comedy should. It may make you smile and warm to our two hapless heroes Christos (Michalis Sarantis) and Antonis (Makis Papadimitriou), but if you’ve had…

Charming indie vampire comedy in the making, if you like Buffy the Vampire Slayer then it is your Christmas treat — Red Snow has all the makings of a charming indie vampire comedy. It’s not quite Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but it could hold its head up in that crowd. It’s not often that you fall in love with a bat and this film proves a useful warning for anyone who…