cinema

Film review: Normal

Garry ArnotLeave a comment

 Known for his darkly comic thrillers such as Kill List, Down Terrace, and Sightseers, acclaimed filmmaker Ben Wheatley, alongside his wife-cum-co-writer Amy Jump, has achieved cult-like fandom within the British indie scene. In recent years, his attention has shifted to what might be described as director-for-hire work with the likes of his Netflix adaptation of classic novel Rebecca and a bizarre foray into shark action with Meg 2: The Trench. His latest feature is neo-Western drama Normal penned by John Wick franchise creator, Derek Kolstad. The plot follows unassuming sheriff Ulysses (Bob Odenkirk) who is assigned an interim position in the fictional small town of Normal, Minnesota. When a local bank heist goes awry, he uncovers a sinister conspiracy involving the deadly Yakuza crime syndicate.

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cinema

Film review: The Drama

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With a celebratory engagement snap as the poster for Kristoffer Borgli’s latest feature, you could be forgiven for thinking that The Drama is a lighthearted rom-com of sorts. However, the Norwegian director’s work tends to lean into absurdist satire and this is no exception. Just days away from their wedding, loved-up couple Emma (Zendaya) and Charlie (Robert Pattinson) are crafting their heartfelt speeches and applying the final touches to their big day. After a few too many glasses of wine at their menu tasting with friends Rachel (Alana Haim) and Mike (Mamadou Athie), their relationship is thrown into disarray when a surprising revelation comes to light.

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cinema · GFF26 · Interviews

Couture Interview: Alice Winocour – ‘Angelina used to be a punk in her teenage years but she still is, I think’.

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Difficult to define by genre, writer and director Alice Winocour is a self-proclaimed cinephile who wants to explore all types of films. Her latest drama is Couture, which marks her English-language debut and takes place during Paris Fashion Week. Angelina Jolie stars as artist and filmmaker Maxine Walker and the plot gives us a glimpse behind the glitz of the star-studded event as three women face very difficult challenges. After its UK premiere at Glasgow Film Festival earlier this year, I was lucky enough to sit down with the director to discuss the piece…

It’s noted that your work not only spans various genres but has taken place all over Europe. Your last two films, Couture included, have been set in Paris. What do you think has pulled you back to your home city to tell these stories?

Yeah, actually it’s a good question as to me, my work is so personal and intimate that it always has to be set in a very distant world. I prefer fiction to be far away from me…then I really enjoyed shooting in Paris for Revoir Paris, and it felt very fresh to me. I feel very European as a director, and I’m attracted by European countries in my identity.

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cinema

Film review: Ready or Not 2: Here I Come

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It’s been seven years since directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett brought Ready or Not to our screens. Since then, the pair have made a couple of slashers in the Scream series and now the dynamic horror duo is back with a sequel to their 2019 hit. Picking up immediately where the original left off, Ready or Not 2: Here I Come sees doomed bride Grace (Samara Weaving) admitted to hospital after playing a deadly round of hide and seek with her devil-worshipping in-laws. She reunites with estranged sister Faith (Kathryn Newton) but soon realises that her nightmare isn’t over.

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DVD & Digital

Film review: Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man

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 After thirteen years, six series, and countless razor-sharp haircuts, creator and screenwriter Steven Knight brings his iconic Birmingham gangsters to the big screen. Directed by Tom Hopper who worked on some of its early television episodes, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man takes place during World War II and sees the great Tommy Shelby (Cillian Murphy) living in self-imposed exile, mourning the loss of loved ones and writing a novel.

 In the city, his son Duke (Barry Keoghan) has taken the reins of the family business and is approached for a lucrative job by fascist politician John Beckett (Tim Roth) who is allied with Nazi Germany. Following desperate pleas from his sister Ada (Sophie Rundle) and the mysterious Kaulo (Rebecca Ferguson), Tommy is forced to return to the life he’d left behind.

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cinema · GFF26

Film review: Couture

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As well as being an actor, filmmaker, and humanitarian, Angelina Jolie is considered a style icon due to her headturning red carpet looks over the years. She heads to Paris Fashion Week for her latest leading role in French drama Couture, written and directed by Alice Winocour. The plot centres around Maxine (Jolie), an American horror director who lands the gig to make a short that will introduce the fashion show. During production she meets teenage model Ada (Anyier Anei), and make-up artist Angèle (Ella Rumpf), and the women’s emotional stories begin to intersect within the harsh underbelly of the event, behind the glitz and the glamour of the runway.

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cinema · GFF26

Film review: My Father’s Island

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 Based on the autobiographically-inspired novella by David Vann, the latest feature from French writer and director Vladimir de Fontenay is My Father’s Island. Known by the book’s title Sukkwan Island in some countries, the psychological family drama centres around teenager Roy (Woody Norman) who lives with his mother Elizabeth (Tuppence Middleton) after her divorce. Seeking an opportunity to bond, his estranged father Tom (Swann Arlaud) suggests that they spend a year together at a lakeside cabin on a remote island in Norway. The pair’s trip begins as a wholesome soul-searching adventure, but soon becomes an intense fight for survival.

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DVD & Digital · GFF26

Film review: The Good Boy

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Off the back of the phenomenal global impact made by TV series Adolescence last year, Stephen Graham portrays another, but very different, complex father in his latest picture, The Good Boy (known by the title Heel in the US). Marking the English-language debut of Polish director Jan Komasa, the story centres around the shocking abduction of teenage tearaway Tommy (Anson Boon) after a raucous night out. Finding himself chained up in the basement of eccentric couple Chris (Graham) and Kathryn (Andrea Riseborough), he is subjected to their unconventional methods of rehabilitation.

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cinema · GFF26

Film review: One Last Deal

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The one-location chamber piece can be a difficult trick to pull off, even more so with just one actor appearing on-screen. This is the challenge presented in the latest feature by Irish director Brendan Muldowney who has garnered acclaim for his ambitious storytelling. Set entirely within a London office suite, psychological drama One Last Deal follows a day in the life of foul-mouthed football agent Jimmy Banks (Danny Dyer), charting his ecstatic highs and miserable lows as he tries to secure a lucrative contract for his top client whilst hoping to salvage his own somewhat disgraced reputation.

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