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This week, there are FIVE new films out for you to choose from, led by Black ’47. Here are the titles, with more info below:
- Black ’47
Two For Joy
Skate Kitchen
The Wife
Night School
Black ’47 is set in Ireland during the Great Famine of 1847, the drama follows an Irish Ranger who has been fighting for the British Army abroad, as he abandons his post to reunite with his family. Despite experiencing the horrors of war, he is shocked by the famine’s destruction of his homeland and the brutalization of his people and his family.
I don’t know much about the period, but there’s a great cast in this and what looks like some decent action as everyone’s at each other’s throats, and it does look superb.
Director: Lance Daly
Stars: Hugo Weaving, James Frecheville, Stephen Rea, Freddie Fox, Barry Keoghan, Moe Dunford, Sarah Greene, Jim Broadbent
Hit or Miss? Verdict: Hit!
Two For Joy centres around a troubled family’s problems which come to a head during a stay in a seaside town.
The film looks like it could go either way, but it certainly has a cast that cannot be ignored, so I do want to check this out.
Writer/Director: Tom Beard
Stars: Billie Piper, Samantha Morton, Emilia Jones, Daniel Mays, Bella Ramsey, Grace Hogg-Robinson, David Elliot
Hit or Miss? Verdict: Maybe!
Skate Kitchen stars Rachelle Vinberg as Camille, whose life as a lonely suburban teenager changes dramatically when she befriends a group of girl skateboarders.
As she journeys deeper into this raw New York City subculture, she begins to understand the true meaning of friendship as well as her inner self. Her life as a lonely suburban teenager changes dramatically when she befriends a group of girl skateboarders. As she journeys deeper into this raw New York City subculture, she begins to understand the true meaning of friendship as well as her inner self.
The film is directed by Crystal Moselle and the only name I’ve heard of is Jaden Smith, son of Will, but as a film, this looks like it could be okay.
Hit or Miss? Verdict: Maybe!
The Wife
Behind any great man, there’s always a greater woman – and you’re about to meet her. It is crucial you get to know this woman – many of us already do and don’t even realise it. Joan Castleman (Glenn Close): a highly intelligent and still-striking beauty – the perfect devoted wife. Forty years spent sacrificing her own talent, dreams and ambitions to fan the flames of her charismatic husband Joe (Jonathan Pryce) and his skyrocketing literary career. Ignoring his infidelities and excuses because of his “art” with grace and humour. Their fateful pact has built a marriage upon uneven compromises. And Joan’s reached her breaking point.
On the eve of Joe’s Nobel Prize for Literature, the crown jewel in a spectacular body of work, Joan’s coup de grace is to confront the biggest sacrifice of her life and secret of his career. The Wife is a poignant, funny and emotional journey; a celebration of womanhood, self-discovery and liberation.
Despite two decent leads, to me, this film looks pretty dull so I’ll give it a…
Hit or Miss? Verdict: Miss!
Night School stars Kevin Hart as a short man who shouts a lot, has problems with his girlfriend, then shouts some more, then continues to get indignant for the next 90 minutes to two hours… but after a lot more shouting, everything turns out fine… just like all his other films.
Prior to that, he’s a successful man, but never actually finished high school, a bit like Homer in that Simpsons episode where he failed remedial science.
The fact this junk has SIX writers speaks volumes.
Oh, and I like the way the poster confirms their surnames, especially her’s, since when it comes to my Haddishes, I’m ALWAYS getting them mixed up! So many of them!!!! 😉
Night School is directed by Malcolm D Lee, who also made Girls Trip, where a lot of black women shouted at each other, and then at everyone else.
Writers: Kevin Hart, Matthew Kellard, Harry Ratchford, Glenda L Richardson, Nicholas Stoller, Joey Wells
Also stars: Tiffany Haddish, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Keith David, Taran Killam, Melissa LeEllen, Megalyn Echikunwoke, Rob Riggle, Romany Malco, Brooke Butler
Hit or Miss? Verdict: Miss!
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.