Nocturnal Animals
What’s it about?
An art gallery owner is haunted by her ex-husband’s novel, a violent thriller she interprets as a veiled threat and a symbolic revenge tale.
What did we think?
Cindy Nelson says: My high expectations for Tom Ford’s second foray into feature films were not disappointed – this stunning thriller creates a world that is both brutal and visually beautiful, telling a story within a story that you won’t expect, and having you on the edge of your seat right to the last frame. An unsettling, violent and stylish film with emotional, powerhouse performances.
Doctor Strange
What’s it about?
A former surgeon with damaged handsnamed Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) becomes a powerful sorcerer under the tutelage of a mystic known as the Ancient One (Tilda Swinton). Rachel McAdams, Mads Mikkelsen, and Chiwetel Ejiofor co-star in this entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
What did we think?
Anthony Sherratt says: A highly polished affair featuring possibly the most impressive visual effects we’ve seen in the MCU so far, Dr Strange ticks most of the boxes. The performances are top shelf, the often difficult transition of magic onto the big screen is well-handled and Marvel’s penchant for ever-present humour is of course still on show. The storyline is a bit too simplistic for my taste but that’s the danger of an origin story combined with a need to dumb down complex concepts. Still, Doctor Strange is a worthy addition to the ever burgeoning MCU and will entertain for a few hours.
Jack Reacher: Never Go Back
What’s it about?
Tom Cruise returns as Lee Child’s enigmatic action hero. In an action movie. With lots of action.
What did we think?
The second Jack Reacher film is a slick affair with quality production, scenes and acting. It’s hard to fault specifically but its largely by-the-numbers feel leaves little impression beyond the moment. Adding emotional constipation to an action hero is hardly a huge step but Cruise handles it well while Cobie Smulders basically reprises her SHIELD role and does a good job. Youngster Danika Yarosh also entertains but the pieces somehow just don’t come together.
To be fair it’s a fun action movie that will pass the time and popcorn, but despite the polish this film just doesn’t Reach (see what I did there?) great heights.
Hell or High Water
What’s it about?
Two brothers stage a few gnarly bank robberies to try and save their farm while keeping a cunning Texas ranger at bay.
What Did We Think?
Nick Bleeker says: Bolstered by terrific performances from Chris Pine and Jeff Bridges, Hell or High Water sets its scenes beautifully, capturing the dry isolation of the west and the characters within that world, it’s just a shame the plot is paper-thin.
Deepwater Horizon
What’s it about?
The night in 2010 when the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded, causing the worst oil spill in US history.
What did we think?
Nick Bleeker says: While initially hamstrung by technical jargon and setup, the film goes from zero to a billion in the space of five minutes as the second act begins. The resulting destruction is an incredible spectacle that is grim, bloody, and ultimately, deeply saddening.
The Girl on the Train
What it’s about?
People learn to regret living by train lines.
What did we think?
Sarah Taviani says: I’ve read the book. I knew how the story would unfold. But half an hour in, it became clear the moral grey areas were off limits. Rachel’s more repugnant actions were omitted, and the development of other characters suffered as a result.
Emily Blunt does well with her portrayal of Rachel and Danny Elfman’s score was spot-on, but in the end, the film felt like a thought-provoking study of alcoholism rather than a thrilling mystery.
What’s Popular
I Feel Pretty
What’s it about?
An average-looking, average-weight person crushed by society’s unhealthy obsession with svelte beauty gets everything she wishes for, before losing it all. Then regaining it because Hollywood.
What did we think?
Stephen Scott says: a funny, moral allegory that falls apart when it gets confused about its own identity.
The Pitch: “Amy Schumer magically gains the body of a supermodel, except she’s only imagining it … but this belief banishes her self-doubt and she lives her life with gusto and happiness”
The Reality: “Amy Schumer pulls off a lot of laughs, carries the concept really well, but just over halfway the plot and characterisations get lost and inexplicably she goes all Mean Girls / Devil Wears Prada, and even though her final speech brings back the original concept, it’s a hollow victory as her joyous oration about looks-aren’t-important is celebrated by a room of supermodels”
Truth or Dare
What’s it about?
A group of college friends celebrating their last spring break together in Mexico play a game of Truth or Dare in the ruins of an old missionary. When they return home, they discover something evil has followed them back and wants the game to keep going, with deadly consequences.
What did we think?
James Tinniswood says: I pick truth: eh. It borrows from It Follows, Unfriended and Final Destination but is neither as tense as the former two or as over-the-top and silly as the latter. Most of the Pretty Young Things are either underwritten or just not good people, so it’s often hard to care when they’re forced to do bad things. The kind of movie where people earnestly say “the game is playing us”. Fine but forgettable.
Rampage
What’s it about?
A gorilla gets infected with a virus of some sort and some other animals get big and aggressive and the Rock is a primatologist(?)
What did we think?
Nick says: This movie is garbage. There is absolutely nothing redeeming about it. The action is boring, humour doesn’t work, and the Rock tries too hard. Gee whiz. Just watch anything else.
Isle of Dogs
What’s it about?
In the near future the dogs of Japan are diseased and dangerous. Every dog is sequestered on a trash filled island off the coast. Six months later a young boy steals a plane in a desperate attempt to rescue his beloved pet.
What we thought
Dan says: Wes Anderson’s film-making is exceptional but I find his stories chaotic and unsatisfying. In Isle of Dogs his art is recontextualised by the sublime stop motion puppeteering and the Japanese locations. It makes it much easier to settle in and appreciate a performance, rather than a story. The narrative is thin on the ground but that’s not what you’re watching for. The theme of lost dogs is so beautifully crafted that I can only urge you to get out and see this film.
“They’re good dogs Brent”
Editor's Choice
I Feel Pretty
What’s it about?
An average-looking, average-weight person crushed by society’s unhealthy obsession with svelte beauty gets everything she wishes for, before losing it all. Then regaining it because Hollywood.
What did we think?
Stephen Scott says: a funny, moral allegory that falls apart when it gets confused about its own identity.
The Pitch: “Amy Schumer magically gains the body of a supermodel, except she’s only imagining it … but this belief banishes her self-doubt and she lives her life with gusto and happiness”
The Reality: “Amy Schumer pulls off a lot of laughs, carries the concept really well, but just over halfway the plot and characterisations get lost and inexplicably she goes all Mean Girls / Devil Wears Prada, and even though her final speech brings back the original concept, it’s a hollow victory as her joyous oration about looks-aren’t-important is celebrated by a room of supermodels”
Truth or Dare
What’s it about?
A group of college friends celebrating their last spring break together in Mexico play a game of Truth or Dare in the ruins of an old missionary. When they return home, they discover something evil has followed them back and wants the game to keep going, with deadly consequences.
What did we think?
James Tinniswood says: I pick truth: eh. It borrows from It Follows, Unfriended and Final Destination but is neither as tense as the former two or as over-the-top and silly as the latter. Most of the Pretty Young Things are either underwritten or just not good people, so it’s often hard to care when they’re forced to do bad things. The kind of movie where people earnestly say “the game is playing us”. Fine but forgettable.
Rampage
What’s it about?
A gorilla gets infected with a virus of some sort and some other animals get big and aggressive and the Rock is a primatologist(?)
What did we think?
Nick says: This movie is garbage. There is absolutely nothing redeeming about it. The action is boring, humour doesn’t work, and the Rock tries too hard. Gee whiz. Just watch anything else.
Isle of Dogs
What’s it about?
In the near future the dogs of Japan are diseased and dangerous. Every dog is sequestered on a trash filled island off the coast. Six months later a young boy steals a plane in a desperate attempt to rescue his beloved pet.
What we thought
Dan says: Wes Anderson’s film-making is exceptional but I find his stories chaotic and unsatisfying. In Isle of Dogs his art is recontextualised by the sublime stop motion puppeteering and the Japanese locations. It makes it much easier to settle in and appreciate a performance, rather than a story. The narrative is thin on the ground but that’s not what you’re watching for. The theme of lost dogs is so beautifully crafted that I can only urge you to get out and see this film.
“They’re good dogs Brent”