Critical Week: Winter is coming

Yes, the weather has taken a turn in London, still sunny but much colder, perfect weather for going to the cinema. And holiday movies are starting to turn up as well. But I also saw a few big movies this past week, including House of Gucci, which stars Lady Gaga and Adam Driver in a soapy story of conniving and murder, and it's all true. It's also hugely entertaining. Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem play Lucy and Ricky in Being the Ricardos, Aaron Sorkin's smart and pointedly topical drama set around the landmark 1950s sitcom. It's rivetingly well-made, and a lot of nostalgic fun too. 

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn
Encanto • House of Gucci
Annette • Rebel Dykes
ALL REVIEWS >

There were also two big animated features: Disney's Encanto is a charming, beautifully crafted bit of magic set in Colombia, while Sing 2 carries on the hilarious music-based antics of a group of animals as they take their show to the big time. I saw two British holiday-themed films: Aml Ameen's Boxing Day is a clever blend of traditional London romcom with a sharp depiction of the city's vibrant Caribbean subculture, while Silent Night is a black comedy starring Keira Knightley with a remarkably dark end-of-the-world edge to it. Less enjoyable was the sentimental drama Not to Forget, although its cast features ace Oscar-winning veterans Louis Gossett Jr, Cloris Leachman, Tatum O'Neal and Olympia Dukakis.

This coming week I'll be watching Javier Bardem in The Good Boss, Colin Firth in Operation Mincemeat, Noomi Rapace in Lamb, Stellan Skarsgard in Hope, the coming-of-age drama I Am Syd Stone and the Turkish drama Beyto.

LFF: Out of isolation

Going to the cinema still seems like a novelty after the past year and a half, especially sitting in a packed theatre without any signs of social distancing. Even if most of the audience is wearing a mask. It's great to be back in public, reuniting with friends at the 65th BFI London Film Festival, which is heading into its final weekend. There's a glimmer of hope that this is the way forward, things will continue to open up further, and life will return to normal, or at least a new normal. In the mean time, I'm enjoying this glut of higher than usual quality films. Here are some highlights for Thursday...

7 Days
dir Roshan Sethi; with Karan Soni, Geraldine Viswanathan 21/US ***.
There's plenty of charm in this contained romantic comedy, which mixes the pressures of Indian culture with the uncertainty of the pandemic. It feels both improvised and somewhat constructed, and wins over the audience with the awkward but cute chemistry between charismatic actors Karan Soni and Geraldine Viswanathan. It's also a clever look at issues specific to a subculture that will have a far wider resonance for audiences.

Munich: The Edge of War
dir Christian Schwochow; with George MacKay, Jannis Niewohner 21/Ger ***.
Based on Robert Harris' fact-based book about a fateful moment just before World War II, this diplomatic thriller has plenty of heart-stopping moments that spark attention. It's skilfully directed by Christian Schwochow to maintain a slick pace and clever period detail, and the adept cast injects emotional meaning into the characters and situations. Although there's always the nagging sense that this might be as much conjecture as reality.

Ali & Ava
dir-scr Clio Barnard; with Adeel Akhtar, Claire Rushbrook 21/UK ****
Here's another Yorkshire-based drama from the gifted Clio Barnard, this time a gently effective romance based around workshopped characters and situations. Anchored with energetic performances from Adeel Akhar and Claire Rushbrook, who are surrounded by a cast of fresh faces, the film traces a surprising second chance at love for two 40-somethings who are caught off-guard by each other. And their likability disarms the audience too.

Paris, 13th District [Les Olympiades, Paris 13e]
dir Jacques Audiard; with Lucie Zhang, Makita Samba 21/Fr ***.
An intriguing interweaving of stories and characters, this French drama evokes a refreshingly multicultural view of modern society, never making a issue of the ethnic issues between people, because they add to their connections rather than stress them. Filmmaker Jacques Audiard follows three characters through engaging intertwined journeys of self-discovery. Amid the various twists, the film is rather oddly male-gazey, but it's also insightful and likeable...
FULL REVIEW >

Full reviews of festival films will be published as possible and linked at Shadows' LFF HOMEPAGE 
For full information, visit

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C R I T I C A L   W E E K

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
The Invisible Life • The Last Duel
Never Gonna Snow Again
ALL REVIEWS >

Regular releases I've watched this week include the deafening, but much improved, sequel Venom: Let There Be Carnage with Tom Hardy, the superbly unsettling dark romantic satire The Beta Test with Jim Cummings, the offbeat but intriguingly arty Maltese drama The Grand Duke of Corsica with Timothy Spall and the moving but awkward Canadian small-down drama On the Fringe of Wild.

For the rest of this week, the LFF dominates my screening schedule, including Frances McDormand in The Tragedy of Macbeth, Tilda Swinton in Memoria, Will Smith in King Richard, Terence Davies' Benediction and Paul Veerhoeven's Benedetta.

Critical Week: Stay classy

Over halfway through our month-long Lockdown 2.0, it's clear that everyone is seriously bored with all of this now, longing for a reopening of cinemas, restaurants, pubs, theatres and everything really in time for Christmas. Meanwhile I've had three days and counting without internet, thanks to Virgin Media's astonishing inability to solve whatever the problem is in my neighbourhood. This means that I've had to use my phone's 4G to watch movies this week. And the films were a mixed bag. Ron Howard's new movie Hillbilly Elegy, which stars Glenn Close and Amy Adams. It's watchable but too simplistic to have any kind of kick. David Fincher's biopic Mank, starring Gary Oldman as the screenwriter of Citizen Kane, has equally great performances (especially from Amanda Seyfried as Marion Davies), and much more visual panache, although Fincher's perfectionism drains the story of passion.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK: 

Lovers Rock • Another Round

Mosul • Happiest Season

Possessor

PERHAPS AVOID:

Hillbilly Elegy • Buddy Games

The Ringmaster

FULL REVIEWS >

And then there's the messy romantic comedy Love, Weddings & Other Disasters, a frothy, corny multi-strand affair starring Diane Keaton and Jeremy Irons. Jungleland stars the superb Charlie Hunnam and Jack O'Connell as brothers on a road trip with the always excellent Jessica Barden, but the film is too hushed to come to life. Lost at Christmas is an awkward little holiday rom-com from Scotland, with just about enough charm to win us over. Host is a refreshingly original British horror movie set entirely on a Zoom screen, and it's skilfully terrifying. And The Ringmaster is a sickeningly derivative Danish horror movie that's uber-grisly but not very scary.

There were also two docs: Zappa uses extensive archival material to trace the iconic musician's career, while Markie in Milwaukee is about a 7-foot deeply religious trans woman who decides to live as a man again, then has to face her true nature. I also caught Kevin Hart's new stand-up show, Zero F**ks Given, which has a nicely intimate feel in his house, including some very personal jokes. And then there was The Lego Star Wars Holiday Special, a giddy bit of Christmas fluff that felt like just what I needed.

This coming week I'll catch up with Red, White and Blue, the third film in Steve McQueen's Small Axe series, as well as the all-star musical The Prom, Viggo Mortensen's Falling, Diane Lane in Let Him Go, Drew Barrymore in The Stand-In, Margot Robbie in Dreamland, the psychological thriller Muscle and the shorts collection The American Boys.

Critical Week: A family portrait

I'm missing being in Venice this year for the festival, but it's been a busy week for screenings in London. This week we've caught up with the Sundance hit Wildlife, Paul Dano's riveting, moving directing debut starring Carey Mulligan and Jake Gyllenhaal as a couple coming apart in 1960 Montana. It's powerfully told from the perspective of a teen boy (Ed Oxenbould), as is Eli Roth's offbeat horror movie The House With a Clock in its Walls. Its main stars are Jack Black and Cate Blanchett as magical neighbours who take in a teen boy (Owen Vaccaro) with scary/comical results.

The most fun at the movies this week was the screening of US box office hit Crazy Rich Asians, a fairly standard rom-com plot packed with massively entertaining characters. The all-star true heist story King of Thieves features Michael Caine, Jim Broadbent and Tom Courtenay, and is more fascinating than thrilling. The all-star adaptation of Chekhov's The Seagull features Annette Bening, Saoirse Ronan and Elisabeth Moss, and is involving but perhaps over-ambitious. And Jeremy Irons has a great time chomping on scenery alongside Jack Huston in the engaging comedy-drama road movie An Actor Prepares.

And there were two less-starry offerings: Five Fingers for Marseilles is a gorgeously shot modern-day Western from South Africa about childhood friends facing off over the future of their struggling hometown. It's seriously powerful. And the Raindance documentary I Hate New York is the eye-opening profile of four trans icons who have changed the fabric of the city they love (yes, the title is ironic).

This coming week I'll be distracted from the goings-on in Venice and Toronto by Mark Wahlberg in Mile 22, Bella Thorne in Assassination Nation, Harry Dean Stanton in Lucky, Omari Hardwick in A Boy A Girl A Dream, Blaxploitation remake Superfly, the mystery thriller Lost Child, the British drama Sodom, the Palestinian drama Wajib, the Guatemalan drama José and the immigration doc Bisbee '17.