1 Baby Driver (15)
(Edgar Wright, 2017, UK/US) 113 mins
Wright hotwires the US car-chase movie and takes it for a joyride, chopping the impressively staged action (and smart-mouthed inaction) to a virtually non-stop soundtrack like it’s a feature-length music video. Ansel Elgort is the getaway virtuoso of the title, who is permanently plugged into his headphones but has difficulty disconnecting from Kevin Spacey’s colourful crime gang.
2 Chubby Funny (NC)
(Harry Michell, 2016, UK) 89 mins
Michell makes a name for himself directing and starring in a fine London comedy that’s almost the opposite of his dad Roger’s Notting Hill. This feels transcribed from real life, with authentic characters, naturalistic conversations, and a series of hard knocks in store for Michell’s aspiring actor protagonist.
3 Risk (15)
(Laura Poitras, 2016/17, Ger/US) 91 mins
The Oscar-winning documentary-maker’s look at Julian Assange is doubly fascinating. First, for its intimate access to the WikiLeaks founder as he flees into exile. Secondly, because Poitras became part of her own story after recutting this less sympathetic version of events following further dealings with Assange and her own romantic involvement with one of her subjects.
4 Kedi (U)
(Ceyda Torun, 2016, Tur/US) 79 mins
A documentary about cats: how can you possibly resist? This soothing, playful film goes deeper than your average YouTube compilation, following a selection of feline characters on their excursions around Istanbul and exploring their deep relationships with the city’s human inhabitants. Beneath all the cuteness, it’s a novel social history.
5 In This Corner of the World (12A)
(Sunao Katabuchi, 2016, Jap) 130 mins
An accomplished anime detailing a young Japanese woman’s experience of the second world war with vivid authenticity and deceptively delicate imagery. The initial cutesy tone soon evaporates as her arranged marriage takes her into a hostile family, while the encroaching war brings rationing, air raids and worse.
