Film REVIEWS
ALSO RELEASED Act of Valor
Blank City (tbc cert) 94min. Documentary on New York’s vibrant No Wave scene featuring Debbie Harry, Jim Jarmusch, John Waters and Thurston Moore. Selected release from Fri 2 Mar.
If Not Us, Who? (tbc cert) 124min.
Story of Gudrun Ensslin, model student turned Baader-Meinhof militant, by German director Andres Veilel. Selected release from Fri 2 Mar.
Project X (18) 88min. From the producer of The Hangover Todd Phillips, comes a found-footage comedy about a group of friends who host a house party which gets out of hand. General release from Fri 2 Mar. This Means War (12A) 98min. Reese Witherspoon, Tom Hardy and Chris Pine star in a story about two CIA agents fighting over the same woman. General release from Fri 2 Mar.
Wanderlust (15) 98min. Recently unemployed Manhattan couple (Jennifer Aniston and Paul Rudd) decide to try living in a rural, hippy commune. General release from Fri 2 Mar. A Man’s Story (15) 98min. Documentary on fashion designer Ozwald Boateng, made over 12 years and featuring many famous faces. Selected release from Fri 9 Mar.
Cleanskin (15) 108min. Story of an undercover agent pursuing a terrorist cell. Stars Sean Bean, Abhin Galeya and Charlotte Rampling. Selected release from Fri 9 Mar.
How To Re-Establish A Vodka Empire (cert tbc) 75min. Filmmaker Dan Edelstyn discovers his family once owned a vodka distillery in Ukraine and attempts to bring the product to market in the UK. Selected release from Fri 9 Mar.
John Carter (3D) (12A) 132min. Mars-set fantasy action in which the titular hero is captured by 12 foot- tall, green barbarians. General release from Fri 9 Mar. Ordet (The Word) (12A) 126min BFI re-release of Carl Dreyer’s 1955 masterpiece about faith amongst a
70 THE LIST 1–29 Mar 2012
Danish farming family. Selected release from Fri 9 Mar.
Payback Season (cert tbc) tbc min. Rising star Adam Deacon stars as a footballer whose past catches up with him. Selected release from Fri 9 Mar. Booked Out (cert tbc) 83min. British indie film about aspiring artist Ailidh who photographs the neighbours in her block of flats. Selected release from Mon 12 Mar.
Four Horsemen (cert tbc) 97min.
Political documentary that brings together 23 thinkers and advisors and asks what can be done about current global political and economic problems. Selected release from Wed 14 Mar. 21 Jump Street (15) 109min. Comedy action about two useless cops (Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum) who are sent undercover to a local high school. General release from Fri 16 Mar.
Act Of Valor (cert tbc) 111min. Team of US Navy SEALs attempt to foil a deadly terrorist plot, based on true events. General release from Fri 23 Mar. The Hunger Games (cert tbc) tbc min. Jennifer Lawrence takes up the lead in this adaptation of Suzanne Collins’ bestselling young adult novel. General release from Fri 23 Mar.
21 Jump Street
ROMCOM THE DECOY BRIDE (12A) 89min ●●●●●
Though unabashedly formulaic in its construction, this cheap and cheerful Scottish-set romcom gets a hefty charge of energy from its thoroughly charming stars, Kelly Macdonald and David Tennant. She’s Katie, a Hebridean lass back home on remote (and fictional) Hegg after
the latest in a string of romantic disappointments. He’s James, successful novelist and befuddled bridegroom of Hollywood actor and household name Lara Tyler (Alice Eve), who’s holding her wedding on Hegg to evade the bloodthirsty paparazzi. Katie and James meet-cute; she agrees to pose as Lara to throw the press off the scent. The ensuing shenanigans draw on genre staples Notting Hill and Bridget Jones’s Diary as well as classics like Local Hero, Whisky Galore! and It Happened One Night and real-life phenomena such as Madonna’s wedding in Sutherland and the Da Vinci Code tourism to Rosslyn.
The film’s gentle jabs at island ways are often amusing (‘It’s like the whale all over again!’ is one elderly resident’s excited response to the island’s celebrity coup), but its plot is muddy in places, with too many elements struggling for attention; and as lovely as the English actor Alice Eve is, her Lara lacks the impact required of the script’s eccentric, bubble-dwelling Hollywood harpy. (Hannah McGill) ■ Selected release from Fri 9 Mar.
DOCUMENTARY BILL CUNNINGHAM NEW YORK (12A) 84min ●●●●●
You don’t need to be a fashionista to fall for Richard Press’ feature debut, an exuberant, occasionally intimate portrait of Bill Cunningham, a New York Times photographer specialising in street fashion and society events.
While he’s fascinated by those who stand out from the crowd, the octogenarian
Cunningham is hardly visually arresting himself (in his own words, he’s ‘a slob’). However, he’s sharp and winningly unassuming and the film follows him through some poignant moments as he prepares to be evicted from one of the few remaining studios in Carnegie Hall. Press’ documentary is enlivened by contributions from some of the characters Cunningham has captured, from Vogue editor Anna Wintour (‘we all get dressed for Bill’) to (extra)ordinary joes. Press shows sensitivity in his questioning and captures his workaholic subject with energy and compassion. Most importantly, his film illustrates how Cunningham’s significance extends beyond fashion; he’s a determined documenter of New York life and a fine feature of its streets. (Emma Simmonds) ■ Selected release from Fri 16 Mar.