Hail, Caesar! (12A)
(Joel & Ethan Coen, 2016, UK/US) Josh Brolin, George Clooney, Alden Ehrenreich, Scarlett Johansson, Tilda Swinton. 106 mins
A lavish, literate tribute to 1950s Hollywood, with a host of star names, some virtuoso set pieces and a showcase of endangered showbiz skills such as lassoing, tap-dancing and analogue editing: what’s not to like? If anything, there’s too much to like here. Brolin’s studio fixer has so many fires to put out – starting with the kidnapping of Clooney’s matinee idol – and so many ideological circles to square, the story seems to run off in all directions, only intermittently hitting its comedy marks. Not all roads lead to Rome, alas.
Truth (15)
(James Vanderbilt, 2015, Aus/US) Cate Blanchett, Robert Redford, Topher Grace. 125 mins
Blanchett is in control, even as her character loses it, in a newsroom thriller detailing how a tainted titbit about George W Bush’s military record ruined the careers of CBS anchor Dan Rather (Redford) and producer Mary Mapes (Blanchett). A true story told with partisan politics.
London Has Fallen (15)
(Babak Najafi, 2016, UK/US/Bul) Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, Morgan Freeman. 99 mins
Wrong place, wrong time again for Butler’s conveniently action-ready agent, as the US president is kidnapped and London becomes collateral damage in another evil terrorist masterplan. It could be his Die Harder.
The Choice (12A)
(Ross Katz, 2016, US) Benjamin Walker, Teresa Palmer, Maggie Grace. 111 mins
Another rinse cycle in the Nicholas Sparks melodrama machine, where romance and tear-jerking tragedy may bleed into each other.
Hitchcock/Truffaut (12A)
(Kent Jones, 2015, Fra/US) 80 mins
François Truffaut’s famous 1962 interviews and resultant book are the jumping-off point for this illuminating, if familiar, Hitch love-in, with insights from the likes of Scorsese, Wes Anderson and Olivier Assayas. Compulsory cinephile viewing.
Time Out Of Mind (15)
(Oren Moverman, 2014, US) Richard Gere, Ben Vereen, Jena Malone. 118 mins
A refreshing instance of against-typecasting finds Gere adrift on the uncaring streets of Manhattan after he slips off the bottom rung of the ladder. It’s an empathetic character drama whose artsiness is both a blessing and a curse.
The Other Side Of The Door (15)
(Johannes Roberts, 2016, Ind/UK) Sarah Wayne Callies, Jeremy Sisto, Sofia Rosinsky. 96 mins
An Indian setting and a dose of Hindu mysticism are just about the only distinguishing features of this otherwise routine horror, in which a mother goes to unwise lengths to commune with the son she lost in a fatal auto accident.
Goodnight Mommy (15)
(Severin Fiala, Veronika Franz, 2014, Austria) Lukas Schwarz, Elias Schwarz, Susanne Wuest. 100 mins
It’s hard to know who to side with in this supremely creepy horror: the detached, mischievous twin brothers or their unsettlingly bandaged “new” mother, whose recuperation after surgery upsets this hermetic domestic dynamic irreparably and, ultimately, violently.
Out from Friday
The Divergent Series: Allegiant The plot thickens in part three of the Shailene Woodley-led hi-tech dystopian saga. Out from Thu
Anomalisa A stop-motion meditation on life, love and self-help from Charlie Kaufman and co.
Traders Shallow Grave-like Irish thriller on a grisly get-rich-quick scheme.
Kung Fu Panda 3 Jack Black’s cuddly warrior discovers his roots in a bright family animation.
The Witch Occult dread descends on British settlers in 17th-century New England.
Fifty Shades Of Black Scary Movie-style spoof of you-know-what.
The Ones Below Neighbouring couples get uncomfortably close in this London thriller.
The Here After Intense Swedish teen angst as a young offender attempts to reintegrate.
Next To Her Israeli drama about a young woman caring for a sister with learning difficulties.
Among The Believers Documentary exploring the roots of religious extremism in Pakistan.
Coming soon
In two weeks... Tom Hiddleston in tower-block thriller High-Rise… Bunker action in spin-off 10 Cloverfield Lane…
In three weeks... Superhero face-off Batman vs Superman: Dawn Of Justice… Disney’s animal-nation animation Zootropolis…
In a month... Audacious one-take German thriller Victoria… A sporting legend (almost) flies again in Eddie The Eagle…
