Critical Week: Muscle power

There were two big decades-later sequels screened to critics in London this week. XXX: Return of Xander Cage returns Vin Diesel to his extreme-sports spy 15 years after he last played him. The movie is just as preposterous, but thankfully has a sense of humour about it. And T2 Trainspotting is a 20-year reunion for the cast and crew of the cinema-changing Scottish drama. Danny Boyle cleverly adapts the film's kinetic style to a new middle-aged vibe, with a resonant running theme about the nature of nostalgia and growing up. And Viceroy's House is Gurinder Chadha's personal account of the independence and partition of India in 1947 (more about the film closer to the release date).

We also got to see John Waters' "lost" 1970 black comedy Multiple Maniacs in a restored digital projection. It looks fantastic, and is jaw-droppingly unmissable - outrageous even after all these years. And I also caught up with a timely HBO documentary...

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Bright Lights
dir Alexis Bloom, Fisher Stevens; with Debbie Reynolds, Carrie Fisher 16/US ****
Warm and intimate, this documentary traces the close relationship between mother and daughter Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher. Anchored largely by Fisher's wry ongoing commentary, the film traces the careers of both actresses, as well as their private lives. It reveals that these two were tight friends who supported each other through the ups and downs of their lives with earthy humour and a fascinating balance of realism and optimism. It's a beautiful portrait of both women, and it also offers a bracing look at the life of Hollywood royalty over the past half century or so. From Carrie's astonishing singing talent to Debbie's unrequited passion to protect Hollywood's legacy, there's plenty in this movie that makes it an important document. But it's also emotionally moving, especially poignant following their deaths. Notably, the film was completed more than six months earlier. A must see for fans of Hollywood's golden age, from Singin' in the Rain to Star Wars.

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This weekend I have been consumed with my role as chair of the 37th London Critics' Circle Film Awards, the fifth year I've organised the event. The star-studded ceremony is on Sunday at The May Fair Hotel and I'll have a full report with photos here as soon as possible. I also have screenings this coming week of Mindhorn, Spaceship, The Odyssey and Who's Gonna Love Me Now. I know nothing about any of them.

Critical Week: Mommy issues

It was a busy week for UK critics, with another head-spinning collection of screenings. Robert Carlyle stars in and makes his directing debut with The Legend of Barney Thompson, an uneven black comedy costarring a scene-stealing Emma Thompson (as his mum, above) and Ray Winstone. It never quite gets the tone right. Also struggling with its tone, True Story recounts a fascinating real-life mystery starring Jonah Hill, James Franco and an almost-not-there Felicity Jones. Fascinating but too mopey to come to life properly. And Diane Keaton and Morgan Freeman are terrific in Ruth & Alex (aka 5 Flights Up) as a long-married couple planning a move from their beloved Brooklyn apartment. It's engaging but slight.

I took a break from the cinema to catch A Deadly Adoption on Channel 5. Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig star in this hilariously overwrought thriller that is either a raucous spoof or just another ridiculous Lifetime movie. You be the judge. Either way, it's very funny as it follows a damaged couple hoping to save their marriage by adopting a baby from an apparently sweet young pregnant woman. But of course it all turns nasty. Full credit to Ferrell and Wiig for never winking at the camera.

Further afield, we had the Aussie animation Maya the Bee, a charming and energetic little adventure; the found-footage horror The Gallows, which should really put an end to the genre with its utter lack of originality; and the riotous 1980s slasher movie spoof Dude Bro Party Massacre III, which manages to maintain the joke perfectly right to the very end. And there were also two docs that both rely far too heavily on talking heads: Misery Loves Comedy is an intriguing all-star exploration of the life of a stand-up, while Looking for Love explores romance in London's Afro-Caribbean community with insight and lots of personality.

Coming up this week: the new Disney-Pixar hit Inside Out, Ryan Reynolds in Self/Less, Jessica Alba in Barely Lethal, Michael Douglas in Beyond the Reach, Jena Malone in 10 Cent Pistol, the American indie drama Buttercup Bill, and two docs: exploring the Russian ballet company in Bolshoi Babylon and an acclaimed profile of six teen brothers in The Wolfpack.

EIFF 9: Sunshine or rain

Well I'm heading back to London today, missing the last few days of the festival here in Edinburgh. But yesterday was pretty full-on, with four feature films, eight shorts and two parties going late into the night. So I was pretty exhausted by the time I walked home in the rain at 1.30 am! Today I've just had two screenings before heading to the station for the train to London. I'll carry on blogging until Sunday.

California Solo
dir Marshall Lewy; with Robert Carlyle, Alexia Rasmussen 12/US ****
It's not easy to tell a powerfully emotional story without resorting to soppy sentiment, but this thoughtful drama manages to get the balance just right, thanks to sensitive writing and a terrific performance from Carlyle. He plays a Scot who has lived in California for decades, working quietly on a farm after his big-time rock band dissolved. But his tranquility is about to be shaken by a drunk-driving charge, which brings to light problems with his immigration status. Carlyle is terrific as the guy who feels like he can't go home again, due to guilt and regret over a past he has never confronted. But instead of boiling over into melodrama, writer-director Lewy keeps things earthy and real as the story heads to a conclusion we don't quite expect. A gentle gem.

Future My Love
dir Maja Borg; with Jacque Fresco, Nadya Cazan 12/Swe ****
Swedish filmmaker Borg gets a little carried away with her own artistry in this mash-up of documentary, film essay and visual poem, which explores the question of why humanity hasn't sorted out our problems even with enough information and technology at our disposal. Borg combines music, historical footage and an elusive black and white parallel story to explore this theme. At the centre is an extended interview with genius futurist Fresco, who explains the technocracy movement of the 1930s, a realistic plan to wipe out hunger, poverty and unemployment. And why this hasn't happened is simple: greed. The rich aren't willing to abandon a system that is no longer working if I means they can't accumulate as much private wealth as they want. Which basically makes this one of those beautifully made films that clearly explain what's going on but leaves us with no hope for a solution. Well not in our lifetimes, at least.

V/H/S
dir Ti West, Joe Swanberg, et al; with Calvin Reeder, Lane Hughes 12/US ***
Anthology meets found-footage horror in this crowd-pleasing collection of video-based shorts, each of which hinges on a terrifying twist. As with most of these kinds of collections, the results are hit and miss, but there's something to enjoy in each segment, including the framing story of a group of thugs searching for a videotape in a very dark and creepy house. The strongest story centres on a married couple taking a holiday to the Grand Canyon while being stalked by a sinister intruder. But even in this segment, the logic of the format is broken as we see things no one would ever film as part of a holiday video. Other infractions include flashbacks and gimmicky effects, but there's plenty of gore, nudity and clever visual inventiveness to keep us entertained.

Exit Elena
dir Nathan Silver; with Kia Davis, Cindy Silver 12/US ***.
This low-key improv-style comedy is so wilfully quirky that we keep expecting Lena Dunham to appear in the next scene. Elena (Davis) is a nurse assistant who takes a live-in job with a seriously dysfunctional family that simply won't let her just get on with looking after Grandma, intrusively trying to get her to become part of the family. This plays out with one awkwardly hilarious scene after another, as Elena tries in vain to maintain her privacy, then realises she has to let them into her life if she wants to survive. The story is very clever, and the performances are all so realistic that it's often a bit freaky to watch (Silver is particularly hilarious as the pushy mum). But the film's lo-fi production values and meandering style may put off some viewers.