Critical Week: Life's a beach

Awards season stuff continues to take up much of my time, with another flurry of nominations and winners released this week, including the biggest nominations of the season: the Oscars. As usual, the news was full of stories about surprise nods and angry snubs, as if this was something new. Meanwhile, I'm in the final 10-day push toward the London Critics' Circle awards, looking forward to having Michelle Yeoh at our ceremony to receive our top honour. It's looking like a properly starry event after two virtual years. Lots still to do to get ready for that!

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Close • The Fabelmans
Concerned Citizen
PERHAPS AVOID:
Maybe I Do • Shotgun Wedding
ALL REVIEWS >

Of course I've also been watching movies, and the Philippines was the main villain in two big Hollywood productions. Filmed in the Dominican Republic, Shotgun Wedding stars Jennifer Lopez and Josh Duhamel as the bride and groom who plan a lush destination wedding that's interrupted by ruthless pirates. Filmed in Puerto Rico, Plane stars Gerard Butler as a pilot who crash-lands on a remote Filipino island overrun with a ruthless militia. Both movies require their stars to step in when the law fails to protect them. And both are plainly preposterous, although Plane just wins the battle by being a bit more fun.

The rest are an eclectic bunch: Maybe I Do has a super-starry ensemble cast that features Diane Keaton, Susan Sarandon, Richard Gere, William H Macy, Emma Roberts and Luke Bracey. And yet the transition from stage to screen feels a bit dull and contrived. From China, the massive blockbuster sci-fi epic The Wandering Earth II takes the breath away with its enormous scale and vast cast of characters, and it's also deliberately funny, which is refreshing. From Australia, Seriously Red is an endearing drama about a woman who becomes a Dolly Parton impersonator to find herself. It's funny and edgy, like Muriel's Wedding. And from Israel, Concerned Citizen is a lovely naturalistic drama about a guy trying to decide whether to improve his Tel Aviv neighbourhood or just move away like everyone else.

Screenings are a bit scant this coming week, although that's because I've already seen the awards-contending films that are coming into cinemas now. Movies to see this coming week include Ryan Philippe in The Locksmith, Nick Moran in Renegades and some straggling awards contenders.

Critical Week: Happy place

We're halfway through Lockdown 2.0 in London, beginning to worry that if this doesn't work Christmas might be cancelled. But we'll try to stay positive. Movies I watched this week were a real mixed bag. One of the most challenging was the arthouse horror Black Bear, starring Aubrey Plaza, Christopher Abbott and Sarah Gadon. It's a smart, freaky exploration of creativity and control. Plaza also pops up in Happiest Season, an unusually intelligent Christmas rom-com starring Kristen Stewart and Dan Levy.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Collective • Mangrove
Supernova • Roobha • Born to Be
FULL REVIEWS >

The week's guilty pleasure was the utterly bonkers Chinese action romp Vanguard, starring Jackie Chan as the head of a global spy agency. The most disappointing film was the all-star Come Away, a mash-up origin story for both Peter Pan and Alice in Wonderland. It's a good idea that never quite comes together. Even worse is Buddy Games, a painfully unfunny lads comedy starring Josh Duhamel, who also directed, produced and cowrote the script. More watchable was the uneven Finding Steve McQueen, which chops around to recount the largest bank heist in US history. 

Off the beaten path, Mosul is an American-made film set in Iraq during the battle against Daesh, and it's a riveting, powerfully involving thriller that has an emotional kick. There were two very sexy films from Brazil: Divine Love is a provocative drama set in a near-future Christian community, while Dry Wind is a stylised collision of gay machismo. And from Romania, the documentary Collective is one of the most urgent films of the year, exploring a political corruption scandal in the style of a heart-stopping journalistic thriller.

I have the usual random collection of movies to watch this coming week, including Steve McQueen's Red White and Blue, Charlie Hunnam and Jack O'Connell in Jungleland, Vanessa Kirby and Ellen Burstyn in Pieces of a Woman, the Scottish holiday movie Lost at Christmas, the psychological thriller Muscle, the Zoom thriller Host, the Danish horror The Ringmaster and the documentaries Zappa and Markie in Milwaukee.

Critical Week: Just walk away

Lockdown continues in London, as I try to keep my eye on new films that are available on streaming platforms. It's been a very mixed bag this week, with the bigger titles more disappointing than some smaller gems. The main frustration at the moment is that there's nothing else to do but watch a movie, which for me is work. So sometimes I dip into a TV series, and I try to take a walk outside every day or two just to keep my legs from locking up. The weather has improved dramatically this week, so it's not very easy to stay in, especially when movies aren't terribly inspiring.

The Netflix action comedy Coffee & Kareem looked promising, but just never comes together at all, despite valiant efforts from Ed Helms and Terrence Little Gardenhigh (above), plus Taraji P Henson. Universal made the bold decision to release the sequel Trolls World Tour straight to streaming, while all other big releases are being delayed. But the film is perfect for watching at home - less inventive than the first one. And Disney debuted its live-action remake The Lady and the Tramp on its streaming service, again unsurprising since it's not terribly ambitious, although it is good fun.

BEST NEW FILMS THIS WEEK:
Same Boat
Who You Think I Am • Danger Close
PERHAPS AVOID:
Coffee & Kareem • Gold Dust 

Much better is the Curzon release Who You Think I Am, a slinky French thriller with romantic comedy overtones starring Juliette Binoche. Tigertail is a dull but moving drama about a Taiwanese-American man (the great Tzi Ma) reminiscing about choices he made. The Lost Husband is a very gentle downhome romance-novel style story starring Leslie Bibb and Josh Duhamel. Danger Close is a grippingly well-made battlefield movie dramatising a little known battle involving Anzac forces. And The Iron Mask is a bonkers Russian-Chinese coproduction featuring Jackie Chan and Arnold Schwarzenegger, an elaborately staged action fantasy odyssey.

Even further afield, Sea Fever is a claustrophobic horror movie from Ireland set on board a fishing boat. Also at sea, Same Boat is a genuinely hilarious comedy thriller shot guerrilla style on a cruise ship - it's a proper gem of a film. There's more horror in Behind You, a nasty bit of demon ghost grisliness that's creepy if not actually scary. The micro-budget Gold Dust is a not terribly funny comedy romp about treasure hunters in the desert. And Seeing Is Believing is a short film collection featuring high-quality segments from six countries exploring issues of identity and sexuality.

Coming up this week, more lockdown! Films I need to watch include the Sam Claflin romcom Love Wedding Repeat, the pitch-black comedy Why Don't You Just Die, the Baghdad-set terrorism drama Sergio, the sexu thriller Getaway, the monster movie Abominable and more horror 1BR.

Flare 3: Spill your guts

I always enjoy attending public screenings as part of the British Film Institute's annual Flare: London LGBTQ+ Film Festival, because audiences tend to be far more open and curious than those in most cinemas. Watching a movie in this atmosphere is an experience in itself, a collective series of sighs, gasps, laughter and tears. I saw two collections of short films over the weekend with public audiences, and all of them were terrific (more on those later). And I've enjoyed being able to chat with filmmakers about their work, including the directors of three of the films below. Here are some more highlights - a mainstream comedy (that's Nick Robison and Katherine Langford, above) and three docs...

Love, Simon
dir Greg Berlanti; with Nick Robinson, Katherine Langford 18/US ****
A fresh take on the teen rom-com, this film harks back to vintage John Hughes movies with its smart, self-aware characters and realistic situations that are both amusing and thoughtful. Based on Becky Albertalli's novel (cleverly titled Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda), the story also breaks ground by taking the central character's homosexuality in stride. So aside from being hugely engaging and very funny, it also carries a powerful kick.

A Deal With the Universe
dir-scr Jason Barker; with Jason Barker, Tracey 18/UK ***
Tracing some 15 years in the life of a couple, this autobiographical documentary is sometimes startlingly raw, as filmmaker (and former Flare programmer) Jason Barker and his partner Tracey chronicle their yearning to have a child, which led to extraordinary decisions along the way. Assembled as a collection of home movies and video diary entries, the film never embellishes the story. And the honesty speaks to several big issues.

Sidney & Friends
dir Tristan Aitchison; with Sidney, Guillit, Ben, Maria 18/UK ****
Shot over several years, this documentary explores a segment of Kenyan society that's virtually invisible, mainly because it wouldn't be safe for these people to come out in the open. Scottish filmmaker Tristan Aitchison gets sometimes startling access to this community, revealing the day-to-day issues in their lives. The film is beautifully assembled in an introspective way that draws the audience in and challenges our perceptions.

Conversations With Gay Elders
dir David Weissman; with Kerby Lauderdale, David Weissman 17/US ****
Part of a series, this doc is simply a conversation between two men. And it's utterly riveting. Honest and revelatory, it features filmmaker David Weissman (We Were Here) encouraging Kerby Lauderdale to recount his relatively normal story. It's a telling look at the thoughts and feelings of a man who grappled with his sexuality throughout his life. And what he has to say is vitally important in the wider conversation about the topic.

Critical Week: Into the woods

The most anticipated press screening this past week was The Place Beyond the Pines, a moody three-part drama starring Ryan Gosling and Bradley Cooper that's beautifully filmed and acted. It certainly leaves us with more to think about than the colourful Disney adventure Oz the Great and Powerful, which has fantastic 3D and a strong cast led by James Franco, Michelle Williams, Rachel Weisz and Mila Kunis, but feels both too family friendly and over-reliant on digital flashiness. We also caught up with Fire With Fire, a contrived but watchable thriller with Bruce Willis and Josh Duhamel; the lushly photographed French double-biopic Renoir, an intriguing film about both the painter father and filmmaker son; and the Icelandic true-life adventure The Deep, an astonishing story of survival that's intriguingly (and slightly dully) told without any manipulative moviemaking.

I also continued to preview films from the upcoming 27th BFI London Lesbian & Gay Film Festival (14-24 March). There was more James Franco - both on-screen and as codirector this time - with the seriously clever arthouse oddity Interior. Leather Bar., recreating 40 censored minutes from Al Pacino's 1980 thriller Cruising; rising stars Juno Temple and Riley Keough in the mopey romance Jack & Diane; the powerfully moving Iranian drama Facing Mirrors (my best of the fest so far); the provocative, intense Israeli drama Out in the Dark; the engaging, startlingly honest retiree documentary Les Invisibles; an eye-opening doc about female-to-male transexual pornstar Mr Angel; the artful Swedish kaleidoscopic doc She Male Snails; and the intensely powerful activism doc United in Anger.

This coming week, I've got still more James Franco in the crime comedy Spring Breakers, Steve Coogan in the Soho property tycoon biopic The Look of Love, Steve Carell as The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, the animated prehistoric comedy-adventure The Croods and the Spanish drama The Sex of the Angels.

Critical Week: An actor's second skin

For me, the biggest event of the week was a visit to the V&A's Hollywood Costume exhibition, showcasing hundreds of iconic movie costumes - from the silent era up to this past year. It's a mind-boggling collection, and difficult to pick favourites. Obvious ones include gowns worn on screen by goddesses like Judy Garland, Marilyn Monroe, Joan Crawford, Marlene Dietrich and Greta Garbo. But I really enjoyed the two Harrison Ford items - an expanded exploration of each item of Indiana Jones' costume, and the actual Han Solo outfit. There's also a superb section featuring Meryl Streep and Robert De Niro, and several round-table discussions between actors, costume designers and directors (for example: Tippi Hedren, Edith Head and Alfred Hitchcock "discussing" The Birds). Unmissable.

As for screenings, there were two big action movies - Arnold Schwarzenegger and Forest Whitaker in The Last Stand and Mark Wahlberg and Russell Crowe in Broken City - and a big weepy - Josh Duhamel in Safe Haven. Sorry, but I can't say anything about these films just yet - embargoes apply. I can, however, confirm that the two revival films I saw this week were wonderful: the 3D conversion of my favourite Pixar movie Monsters Inc and a big screen revival of A Place in the Sun, starring Montgomery Clift and Elizabeth Taylor at their most achingly gorgeous. And I quite enjoyed the subtle, low-budget comedy The Men Next Door.

This coming week is pretty dominated by the 33rd London Critics' Circle Film Awards on Sunday night - I am the chair of the awards committee, so am thoroughly involved in organising the ceremony. It should be great fun as always - and I'll offer a full report. Screening-wise, we have James McAvoy in Welcome to the Punch, Pierce Brosnan in Love Is All You Need, and Alex Gibney's documentary Mea Maxima Culpa, among others.