THE HOAX The Hoax, directed by Lasse
Hallström, depicts events in the life of Clifford Irving, a failing
American novelist who became well known in the early 1970s when his
"authorized autobiography" of recluse Howard Hughes was exposed as a hoax.
The film stars Richard Gere as Clifford Irving and Alfred Molina
as friend and fellow writer Dick Suskind.
Review
As you might expect, Richard Gere is excellent as Clifford
Irving, the failing writer who becomes more and more embroiled in
his own complicated web of lies. Although the Clifford Irving
character is not a very engaging one, because his plan is so clever,
you almost want him to get away with it. His long-suffering friend,
admirably played by Alfred Molina, also inspires sympathy as he
becomes more and more involved in a plot which he really wants
nothing to do with. Worth seeing.
ZODIAC (15)
Zodiac is based on the Robert Graysmith books about the
real life notorious Zodiac, a serial killer who terrorized San
Francisco with a string of seemingly random murders during the 1960s
and 1970s. San Francisco Chronicle cartoonist Robert Graysmith (Jake
Gyllenhaal), alcoholic reporter Paul Avery (Robert Downey Jr.) and
careworn policeman David Toschi (Mark Ruffalo), all become obsessed
with capturing the gloating, brutal killer but it is Graysmith whose
life is eventually taken over with piecing together the evidence and
trying to solve the cryptic clues and puzzles with which the killer
taunts them.
Review
Tension mounts throughout the film and events are made even
more scary by the fact that they are true. The era of the film is
skilfully evoked, showing us police methods hampered by the lack of
today's technologies - there are no faxes, mobile phones or computer
databases here. Some of the violence was a little too graphic for me
but all added to the atmosphere and I did find the film a bit too
long. However, it is a cleverly made film with a strong cast.
GOLDEN DOOR (12) Italian with
subtitles Synopsis The story is set at the beginning of the 20th century. Salvatore
(Vincenzo Amato), a poor Sicilian farmer, and a widower, sets out on
the arduous journey to emigrate to America with all his family,
including his old mother. They meet Lucy (Charlotte Gainsbourg), an
English lady who is also making this journey to a new life. In order
to be admitted to the US, Lucy must be married so she proposes to
Salvatore. Once arrived in Ellis Island (the "golden door" to
America) and before being allowed in to the country, they are
forced to endure a series of degrading examinations and tests. Their
destiny is in the hands of the custom officials.
Review
The film gives us an insight into the appalling rigours of
early emigration. At times, there is a dreamlike, surreal tone
which serves to emphasise the strangeness and difference of this new
life the characters are embarking on. It highlights the enormity of
the decision to go to the New World for these impoverished,
uneducated people who have no real idea of what awaits them as they
set out for the land of milk and honey. This was an interesting film
which can be appreciated from an artistic point of view as well as
in terms of the story, acting etc. However, to me there were several
questions left unanswered at the end of the film and I would have
liked to know what happened when the travellers finally reached
their destinations but I suppose the film's main purpose was to
depict the journey to the new life and that is what it did.
BECOMING JANE (PG) Synopsis
Becoming Jane
gives us
a biographical portrait of a young Jane Austen, played by
Anne Hathaway and depicts her romance with a young, penniless Irishman Tom Lefroy (James McAvoy).
Feisty Jane (clearly the inspiration for many of Jane Austen's own
heroines) is the youngest daughter of upper class but
impoverished parents (played by James Cromwell and the illustrious
Julie Walters). At a time when a girl such as Jane's only hope of a
secure future was to marry well i.e. to someone with the right background and
fortune, eloping with someone with no money and no prospects was a
certain recipe for disaster for all concerned. As Mrs Austen
remarks, in marriage - "Affection is desirable. Money is absolutely
indispensable!" Realising that the future together could only
bring eventual heartbreak and ruin to both themselves and
their families, the pair part and Jane returns home to the unwanted
attentions of other more eligible suitors
Eventually, Jane forgoes the lure of the security offered by a
loveless marriage and, through her writing, becomes a woman of
independent means.
Review The film evokes the era well and is beautifully filmed in
Ireland. The fact that the main premise for the film - that Jane's
"affair" with Tom Lefroy was the inspiration for her writing - was
based only on letters which Jane wrote to her sister Cassandra and
cannot therefore be historically proven, whilst probably causing
real Jane Austen buffs to hoot with derision, nevertheless gives us
a good story which makes a delightful film. Anne Hathaway plays the
feisty, impetuous heroine to perfection and James McAvoy gives us a
romantic lead worthy of any Jane Austen hero. There is a strong
supporting cast with some excellent, witty dialogue.
Now showing at the mac Cinema - see
www.macarts.co.uk for
details and also at other local venues.
Click player to view trailer
NOTES ON A SCANDAL (15) Synopsis Based on Zoe Heller’s novel of the same name,
Notes On A Scandal is the story of
Barbara Covett (Dame Judi Dench), a teacher at a North London
comprehensive. On the verge of retirement, Barbara is a cynical,
bitter spinster who despises both colleagues and students alike. Her
only friend is her aging cat and the diary in which she writes her
commentary on her humdrum, lonely life. It is Barbara's narration of
this diary which drives the plot along and the contents of the diary
actually bring about the climax of the film.
Cate Blanchett plays new art teacher Sheba who flounders
in the tough world of the school. Barbara is initially
condescending, but gradually becomes friendly with Sheba until she
discovers that Sheba is having an affair with one of her students
and, making herself Sheba’s confidante, convinces herself that they
share a friendship which is much more than it actually is.
The feeling that this relationship, along with all the others in the
film, is doomed from the start is very apparent throughout as the
characters interact and make their dreadful life shattering
mistakes. No-one can emerge from the scandal of the title unscathed
- although as we see Barbara possibly embarking on another
relationship at the end of the film, perhaps her life has,
ironically, been least affected by this scandal which she made so
public.
Review Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett head a strong cast as
their powerful performances bring
Patrick Marber's script to life. They both play their very
contrasting roles to perfection making their characters believable
and promoting feelings of both pity and contempt in the audience.
Sheba's older husband is played by Bill Nighy whilst
Andrew Simpson is her schoolboy lover Steven.
This is a darkly riveting film but with touches of humour.
It's well worth seeing.
Now showing at the newly refurbished mac Cinema - see
www.macarts.co.uk for
details and also at other local venues.
Click player to view trailer
THE QUEEN (PG) Synopsis "The Queen"
portrays the British royal family in crisis
immediately following the death of Princess Diana in August 1997. In
the immediate aftermath of the Princess's accident, the tightly
contained, tradition-bound world of the Queen of England clashes
with the slick modernity of the country's brand new, image-conscious
Prime Minister, Tony Blair. The result is a battle between private
and public, responsibility and emotion, custom and action - as a
grieving nation waits to see what its leaders will do.
Review
Helen Mirren heads a strong cast in the title role, playing
the part with sensitivity and bringing this real character to life
as the true-life newsreel footage never does. This is not merely a
superficial impersonation but the portrayal of the human being
behind the public face. Who could not sympathise with the monarch
who, living a life entirely devoted to duty and serving her people,
so seriously misjudged the mood of those people? Michael Sheen as
the newly elected and enthusiastic Prime Minister faced with dealing
with the tragic situation is superb and other cast members include
Helen McCrory, playing the part of Cherie Blair with flair and
Alex Jennings as Prince Charles who manages to gain sympathy for
Charles as he struggles to cope with this much publicised event.
This is a thought provoking and very enjoyable film which deserves
acclaim.
Now showing at the newly refurbished mac Cinema - see
www.macarts.co.uk for
details and also at other local venues.
FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS (15)
Click player to view trailer
Synopsis The film depicts one of the most crucial and
bloodiest battles of the war in the struggle for the island of Iwo
Jima, which culminated with what would become one of the most iconic
images in history: five Marines and a Navy corpsman raising the
American flag on Mount Suribachi. The inspiring photo capturing that
moment became a symbol of victory to a nation that had grown weary
of war and made instant heroes of the six American soldiers at the
base of the flag, some of whom would die soon after, never knowing
that they had been immortalized. But the surviving flag raisers had
no interest in being held up as symbols and did not consider
themselves heroes; they wanted only to stay on the front with their
brothers in arms who were fighting and dying without fanfare or
glory. ‘Flags of Our Fathers’ is
based on the bestselling book by James Bradley (the son of one of
the flag raisers) with Ron Powers, which chronicled the battle of
Iwo Jima and the fates of the flag raisers and some of their
brothers in Easy Company.
Review ‘Flags of Our Fathers’
highlights the difference between truth and myth, particularly where
war is concerned where the one so often does not reflect the other.
It is a powerful and poignant evocation of an event which most
people know very little about. This is definitely not the sort of
film you go to see for a bit of light entertainment but, as a
thought provoking and well told portrayal of real people and events,
it deserves to be recognised as a triumph for Director Clint
Eastwood.
Now showing at the newly refurbished mac Cinema - see
www.macarts.co.uk for
details and also at other local venues.
MISS POTTER (PG)
Click player to view trailer
Synopsis "Miss Potter" tellsthe storyof Beatrix
Potter, (Renee Zellweger), the author we all know of but whose life
we know nothing about. When the film opens, Beatrix is a
talented story–teller who creates stories about animals and
illustrates them for her own pleasure. When she takes her drawings
to a local publisher she is shocked when they tell her they‘ll print
them. Having decided that married life is not for her she does not
count on the attraction she feels for the young publisher, Norman
Warnes, played by Ewan McGregor, who is given the responsibility of
getting her books out to a waiting public. Their unexpected romance
creates friction within her own family and she is torn between her
loyalties to her parents and a love she thought she‘d never find.
Review This delightful film is much more than a love story
however and appeals on several levels, dealing as it does with the
strict codes of behaviour of Victorian society and showing us in
Beatrix, a woman ahead of her time. The scenery is
breathtaking and will surely encourage people to visit Beatrix's
beloved Lake District. I thoroughly enjoyed
"Miss Potter" and so did my husband
who later revealed that he had only gone because I asked him to and
that he really wasn't looking forward to it. However, he had
nothing but praise for it and suggested that we visit the Lakes in
the summer!
Now showing at the newly refurbished mac Cinema - see
www.macarts.co.uk for
details and also at other local venues.
STRANGER THAN FICTION (12a)
Click player to view trailer
Synopsis In "Stranger Than Fiction",
Will Ferrell plays Harold Crick, an IRS Agent whose world is turned
upside-down when he begins to hear his life being chronicled by a
narrator only he can hear.
The Narrator, Kay Eiffel (Emma Thompson), a nearly forgotten author
of tragic novels, is struggling to complete her latest and best
book, unaware that her hero is alive and uncontrollably guided by
her words. Fiction and reality collide when the bewildered and
hilariously resistant Harold hears the Narrator say that events have
been set in motion that will lead to his imminent death.
Desperate to escape his fate, Harold seeks help from eccentric
English professor Dr. Jules Hilbert (Dustin Hoffman) and finds
unexpected comfort in a burgeoning romance with a defiant audit
subject, Ana Pascal (Maggie Gyllenhaal). Unluckily for Harold, Kay's
impatient publishers have unleashed a stern assistant named Penny
Escher (Queen Latifah) to help the author finish her book and finish
off Harold Crick.
Review I enjoyed the film, finding the character of Harold both engaging
and sympathetic - I cared what happened to him. The cast was strong
and made the most of both plot and script. It was a pleasant, fairly
un-demanding evening's entertainment which I would recommend.
Now showing at the newly refurbished mac Cinema - see
www.macarts.co.uk for
details and also at other local venues.
LateRooms Search Panel
Instantly search and compare
hotels & accommodation, see the many discounts available and book
the best price online - local hotels, UK hotels, & Worldwide hotels Where
to stay, hotels and accommodation
