FILM OF THE WEEK
REALITY

Tina Satter’s intense directorial debut is superbly acted by a hand-picked cast. Sydney Sweeny plays Reality Winner, a 25-year-old woman, who one day is confronted outside her Georgia home by the FBI. She is puzzled by their insistence iand complies to their questions before they slowly move into her home for a further series of interrogation… It is based on the incredible true story of a young woman accused of leaking classified report about Russian interference in 2016 U.S. elections to the press. In 2019 her compelling story was turned into a stage play called “This is Room” and is now adapted for the big screen. It is beautifully and imaginatively directed by Satter, who doesn’t betray its verbatim theatre origin and is wonderfully cinematic. Sweeney is spellbinding as the eponymous heroine and delivers one of the best performances of the year. She is a magnetic presence and is destined for greater things. She is brilliantly supported by Josh Hamilton and Marchant Davi as Agents Garrick and Taylor, the men responsible for getting the truth out of Reality. It is a pair of quite difficult roles but both actors make them appear very credible and never sink into stereotypes. Nail biting tension with the best ensemble acting I have seen in ages. Highly recommended!
THE BOOGEYMAN

This creepy, supernatural horror is based on the 1979 Stephen King short story which follows the story of psychiatrist Will Harper (Chris Messina) and his two daughters Sadie (Sophie Thatcher) and Sawyer (Vivien Lyre Blair), still mourning for their mother’s recent death. Little Sawyer is plagued by nightmares and things get even spookier when a mysterious man named Lester Billings arrives at the psychiatrist’s home desperate to talk about his three young children’s murders…It is a dark and hugely atmospheric film and benefits tremendously by the committed performances of Thatcher and Lyre-Blair, as the vulnerable yet resourceful daughters. It is basically a B movie but is efficiently directed by Rob Savage with strong production values.
MAD ABOUT THE BOY

This wonderful documentary written and directed by Barnaby Thompson celebrates the life and career of the brilliant Noel Coward. The film is narrated by Alan Cumming with Rupert Everett both perfectly cast and with the right pitch in recreating the master’s voice and world. Thompson has unearthed some never seen before private home movies plus rare photographs and archive material. Particularly joyous is watching those rare clips from his witty comedies- especially with Maggie Smith in deliciously good form in Coward’s production of HAY FEVER at the National. A must for theatre lovers!
AMANDA

An impressive feature film debut from writer/director Carolina Cavalli, who follows the story of Amanda (Benedetta Porcaroli), a young Italian woman, who returns home to her family after a few years studying in Paris. Like the protagonist in THE GRADUATE, she has no friends or plans for the future. Her mother reminds her about a childhood friend and soon enough Amanda reconnects with Rebecca (Galatea Bellugggi), an equally neurotic if no more eccentric than her…. It is an assured first feature from Cavelli, whose distinct and quirky piece of filmmaking is worth celebrating!
WAIT FOR ME

Keith Farrell’s gritty drama takes place somewhere in the North of England and follows the story of Allison (Karen Hassan), a young woman trapped in a life of crime and prostitution. She is haunted by memories from the past especially when she was forced to abandon her baby daughter. But when she meets an equally damaged stranger, he curiously inspires her to attempt an escape from her violent predicament…Screenwriter Barnard O’Toole provides the actors with fully fleshed characters and deliver strong performances. It is a harsh and bleak world but at least there is a distant, faint light at the end of the tunnel.
HYPNOTIC

Robert Rodriguez, the energetic Mexican director of EL MARIACHI and FROM DUSK TILL DAWN falls under the spell of hypnotism for this lethargic thriller. Detective Danny Rourke (Ben Affleck) is desperate to find his missing daughter and is prepared to do anything to find her. In the meantime, he is investigating a series of out of this world bank robberies and resorts to seeking advice from gifted psychic Diana Cruz (Alice Braga), who may hold the key to these strange occurrences…It is intriguing but not as compelling as Christopher Nolan’s exceptional INCEPTION. Rodriguez shares Nolan’s ambition but lacks his vision and imagination. Affleck sleepwalks throughout- the perfect cure for insomniacs. See it I you must but make sure you stay until the final credits.
THE OLD MAN MOVIE: LACTOPALYPSE

This totally mad Estonian stop motion animated comedy follows the eponymous old man and his grandchildren as they begin a race against time to find his milky cow before it explodes… The stop motion animation works and at first its scatological humour and utterly bizarre premise seem like fun but by the end the endless and repetitive gross out jokes run out of steam. It’s good to see a film from Estonia and full marks for its originality but as it stands it would only make a more effective short!
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