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This week, there are SEVEN new films out for you to choose from, led by Parasite. Here are the titles, with more info below:Parasite
Underwater
Birds Of Prey
Dolittle
Mr Jones
Daniel Isn’t Real
Plus One
Parasite
The Kims – mother and father Chung-sook and Ki-taek, and their young adult offspring, son Ki-woo and daughter Ki-jung – are a poor family living in a shabby and cramped half basement apartment in a busy lower working class commercial district of Seoul. Without even knowing it, they, especially Mr. and Mrs. Kim, literally smell of poverty.
Often as a collective, they perpetrate minor scams to get by, and even when they have jobs, they do the minimum work required. Ki-woo is the one who has dreams of getting out of poverty by one day going to university. Despite not having that university education, Ki-woo is chosen by his university student friend Min, who is leaving to go to school, to take over his tutoring job to Park Da-hye, who Min plans to date once he returns to Seoul and she herself is in university.
Writer/Director: Bong Joon Ho
Stars: Kang-ho Song, Sun-kyun Lee, Yeo-jeong Jo
Hit or Miss? Verdict: Read the review!
Underwater has a trailer which feels like Alien under the sea, as a crew of underwater researchers must scramble to safety following an earthquake which devastates their subterranean laboratory.
Maybe there’s not an alien down there, but the trailer gives off that kind of suspense, so it’ll be interesting to see how that works out. From the trailer, it does look superb, however.
Director: William Eubank
Writers: Brian Duffield, Adam Cozad
Stars: Kristen Stewart, TJ Miller, Vincent Cassel, Jessica Henwick, John Gallagher Jr, Mamoudou Athie, Gunner Wright
Hit or Miss? Verdict: Hit!
Birds Of Prey – or Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) to give it the full title – is DC Comics’ spin-off movie with Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn in which, after splitting up with the Joker, she joins three female superheroes – Black Canary, Huntress and Renee Montoya – to save the life of a little girl (Cassandra Cain) from an evil crime lord.
The trouble with DC Movies is that they’re all being drip-fed into the cinema, in the time that it’ll take Marvel to pump out another 300 Avengers movies.
When the first full trailer came out, I thought it looked like it could be pretty good, but now, I’m wondering what the point of it is. I definitely have fallen out of love with these endlessly pointless superhero films, but if it’s for you, the film is out now.
Director: Cathy Yan
Screenplay: Christina Hodson
Comics: Chuck Dixon, Jordan B Gorfinkel, Greg Land
Also stars: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Derek Wilson, Ewan McGregor, Matthew Willig, Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Chris Messina, Rosie Perez, Steven Williams, Charlene Amoia, Ali Wong
Hit or Miss? Verdict: Miss!
Dolittle sees the titular doctor played this time by Robert Downey Jr… junior doctor? Either way, RDJr has bowed out of the Marvel universe to deal with different sorts of creatures, but is still joined by his Spidey pal, Tom Holland, who plays the voice of Jip.
After losing his wife seven years earlier, the eccentric Dr John Dolittle (Downey), famed doctor and veterinarian of Queen Victoria’s England, hermits himself away behind the high walls of Dolittle Manor with only his menagerie of exotic animals for company.
But when the young queen (Jessie Buckley – Beast) falls gravely ill, a reluctant Dolittle is forced to set sail on an epic adventure to a mythical island in search of a cure, regaining his wit and courage as he crosses old adversaries and discovers wondrous creatures.
The doctor is joined on his quest by a young, self-appointed apprentice (Harry Collett – Dunkirk) and a raucous coterie of animal friends, including an anxious gorilla (Rami Malek – Bohemian Rhapsody), an enthusiastic but bird-brained duck (Octavia Spencer – Bad Santa 2), a bickering duo of a cynical ostrich (Kumail Nanjiani – The Big Sick) and an upbeat polar bear (John Cena – The Wall) and a headstrong parrot (Emma Thompson – Years And Years), who serves as Dolittle’s most trusted advisor and confidante.
Dolittle is released in the UK on February 7th 2020, so just in time for the first half-term of the year. Normally, I’m unlikely to watch this sort of movie, but Downey Jr could most likely make it watchable, and it’s bound to be a lot better than Disney’s Jungle Cruise.
Director: Stephen Gaghan (Gold)
Screenplay: Stephen Gaghan, Chris McKay
Also stars: Michael Sheen, Marion Cotillard, Ralph Fiennes, Antonio Banderas, Selena Gomez, Ralph Ineson, Carmen Ejogo, Jim Broadbent
Hit or Miss? Verdict: Miss!
Mr Jones
Based on real events, the dramatic thriller Gareth Jones chronicles a British investigative journalist as he travels deep into the Soviet Union to uncover an international conspiracy. His life-or-death journey inspires George Orwell’s Animal Farm.
I was struggling to stay awake while watching the trailer, so I’ll pass on the whole film!
Director: Agnieszka Holland
Writer: Andrea Chalupa
Stars: James Norton, Vanessa Kirby, Peter Sarsgaard
Hit or Miss? Verdict: Miss!
Daniel Isn’t Real
When Luke decided to leave his mother’s home and face emancipation, he never thought it would be so complicated. His social awkwardness and his diverse traumas will make him seek the aid of an old buddy: his imaginary childhood friend Daniel, who is now a self-confident, manipulative young man. Daniel will start to help Luke, but his intentions will soon prove to be somewhat more sinister.
Lots of jump scares, and nothing to really draw me in, here.
Director: Adam Egypt Mortimer
Writer: Brian DeLeeuw
Stars: Miles Robbins, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Sasha Lane
Hit or Miss? Verdict: Maybe!
Delayed from three weeks ago, Plus One looks to be a typical mismatch comedy where longtime single friends, East Asian Alice (Maya Erskine) and white slacker Ben (Jack Quaid) attempt to survive a summer of wedding fever by agreeing to be each other’s plus one at every wedding to which they’ve been invited.
It looks like it’s been stuck in the Jan/Feb crap slot for a reason, and for no apparent reason, it needs two directors. They’re also responsible for writing it.
Writer/Directors: Jeff Chan, Andrew Rhymer
Stars: Maya Erskine, Jack Quaid, Ed Begley Jr
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.