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Out on Friday 28 August
Dr Dre and the rest of N.W.A express themselves. Tom Courtenay and Charlotte Rampling reflect on their years all 45 of them. Samuel L. Jackson is headmaster of a school with a dangerous twist. Yes, heres this weeks new releases. Click on for our reviews of Straight Outta Compton, 45 Years, Barely Lethal, Hitman: Agent 47, LEclisse, Addicted To Sheep and North V South: Long Time Coming. For the best movie reviews, subscribe to Total Film.
STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON
In a year where the spotlight has fallen yet again on police brutality, there are times when Straight Outta Compton, F. Gary Grays sprawling, two-and-a-half hour ode to seminal hip-hop group N.W.A, feels electrifyingly urgent. After all, this is Niggaz With Attitudes, whose righteous fury would found reality rap social commentary informed by tough, working-class streets, where growing up black and poor means guns, drugs and racist cops with the authority to kill a minority. Opening in the titular Los Angeles neighbourhood in the late 1980s, the rise of the six-strong N.W.A is mainly told through its triumvirate: low-level drug dealer Eric Eazy-E Wright (Jason Mitchell); his friend, talented DJ Andre Dr Dre Young (Corey Hawkins); and angry, young poet OShea Ice Cube Jackson (played by Ice Cubes son OShea Jackson Jr.). Tired of being broke, bullied and, in Dres case, looking after a child, they independently record their debut single, Boyz-N-The-Hood. This gets the attention of sleazy manager Jerry Heller (Paul Giamatti). It is with Hellers help that theyre signed and begin to record debut album Straight Outta Compton, a montage that gives way to one of the biopics more resonant scenes: the group, standing outside the studio, harassed into humiliation by police officers. Its not subtle, but its here, with faces in the dirt, that Fuck Tha Police is born an inferno that became an anthem of the oppressed, and that led to notoriety, threatening letters from the FBI and a riot breaking out after an (illegal) live performance. It doesnt last, though. As N.W.A begins to fall apart, so too does the momentum, SOCs wit and revolution petering out for the melodrama of contract disputes a topic, much like holiday photos, that is only interesting if its relevant to you. Stretching thin, the second half jars from one milestone to the next The Chronic! Snoop Dogg! 2Pac! Ice Cube the family entertainment star! Its fun for fans of west coast hip-hop but suffocates any hope of depth; what, for example, about the groups lyrical misogyny and homophobia? Ice Cubes conversion to the Nation of Islam? Or the real story behind their beef with Eazy-E, who died of AIDS in 1995? Alas, as is usually the case of these kind of biopics those produced by their very subjects history is tweaked, tucked and tidied up to fit. THE VERDICT: Straight Outta Compton soars for an hour before spiralling into a bloated, melodramatic mess. Still, its worth it for the early ferocity, capturing just how powerful N.W.A really were. Director: F. Gary Gray Starring: OShea Jackson Jr., Corey Hawkins, Jason Mitchell, Neil Brown Jr., Aldis Hodge Theatrical release: 28 August 2015 Stephen Kelly
45 YEARS
Following his breakthrough hit Weekend, Andrew Haigh returns with this assured marital drama that proves the British director is no flash in the pan. While Weekend dealt with two guys who hook up for the titular two days, 45 Years sets its sights on a couple in it for the long haul. Haigh may not attempt to go the distance and depict a marriage spanning four decades plus change, but he leaves it to his admirable actors to fill in the blanks. Set in Norfolk, it tells of the long-married Mercers Geoff (Tom Courtenay) and Kate (Charlotte Rampling). Approaching their 45th wedding anniversary, with a party in the offing, the pair receives some startling news: the body of Katya, Geoffs ex-fiance from a time before he met Kate, has been discovered half a century after she disappeared while the then-couple were on a Swiss walking holiday. Like the Mike Leigh film of the same name, its a tale of secrets and lies though not half as melodramatic as that might sound. Haighs film is deliberately muted; events here popping into town for a spot of lunch, walking the dog, riverboat cruises mask the turmoil of emotions swirling beneath the surface. Courtenay and Rampling, who took Best Actor and Actress at this years Berlin Film Festival for their work, are both on sublime form. But dont expect a cosy, Best Exotic Marigold Hotel-style pandering to the grey pound here; 45 Years doesnt patronise mature audiences. Its a very real piece about long-term marriage, typified by the scene where Kate and Geoff make love. His cinematic voice developing strongly, Haigh has delivered a surprisingly touching and tender film. THE VERDICT: Just as impressive as Weekend, this is a subtle drama driven by two veteran thesps at the top of their game. Director: Andrew Haigh Starring: Charlotte Rampling, Tom Courtenay, Geraldine James, Dolly Wells, David Sibley Theatrical release: 28 August 2015 James Mottram
BARELY LETHAL
Prescott is a girls school with a difference: the pupils are trainee assassins; the syllabus ABCs are ammo, bazookas and chainsaws; and the headmaster is Samuel L. Jackson. Agent 83 (Hailee Steinfeld) would much rather have a normal life, so when a mission to capture enemy spy Victoria Knox (Jessica Alba) goes awry, she gets a chance to escape. Next stop: high school, in the guise of Canadian exchange student Megan but can she really blend in when everything she thinks she knows was gleaned from Mean Girls and her military training keeps kicking in at awkward moments? Kyle Newmans comedy-thriller promises to be an audacious genre mash-up, but forgets to sculpt the mash into coherent shape. The cheeky title suggests something darkly insolent but the film settles down as a conventional teen movie with a USP, rather than the killer subversion it couldve been. It doesnt help that Barely Lethal seems unsure of its target audience. The knowing script is pitched towards older, savvier types, with a sly conversation that equates Megans first kill with losing her virginity. Yet Newmans direction skews considerably younger: bright, bloodless and friction-free, its more Agent Cody Banks than Kick-Ass. Similarly, while in-jokes abound (Maybe she watched The Notebook one too many times? reckons Steve-Os sensitive torturer), any satire falters because the narrative exists in a bubble of high-school movie clichs. Megans romantic travails and rivalry with bitchy fellow agent-turned-student Sophie Turner play out with crushing predictability. Ignore the tonal contradictions and its likeable enough fluff, buoyed by Steinfeld and the ever-watchable Jackson. But it still falls well short of cult status. THE VERDICT: Uneasily pitched between irony and innocence, this is a kid-friendly Kick-Ass that isnt kid-friendly enough. Director: Kyle Newman Starring: Hailee Steinfeld, Jessica Alba, Samuel L. Jackson, Sophie Turner Theatrical release: 28 August 2015 Simon Kinnear
HITMAN: AGENT 47
The double-edged sword inherent in all videogame-derived movies the more faithful you are to the game, the more nonsensical the film becomes pretty much leaves Hitman: Agent 47 bleeding to death on the floor almost before the opening credits are done. A sequel to the barely remembered 2007 Hitman film, this version trades in a bald Tim Olyphant for an equally close-shaven Rupert Friend. As the title assassin, Friend is tasked with hunting down the nefarious Dr Litvenko (Ciaran Hinds), a mad doctor credited with creating bald weirdo killers just like the one who's chasing him. But of course he has to find the doctor's beautiful (and confused) daughter (Hannah Ware) first, since she holds the key to well, who knows, really. Director Aleksander Bach is so concerned with giving the audience whiplash that we never really understand exactly what's going on. True to its game origins, 47 eschews plot for non-stop bloody mayhem, aping not only the gimmicky kills of the source material but also the cinematic blood-ballets of 80s-era John Woo films. If you're in it for a bit of the ol' ultraviolence you might get some kicks. But if you fancy a cohesive story, forget it. Director: Aleksander Bach Starring: Rupert Friend, Hannah Ware, Zachary Quinto, Ciaran Hinds, Thomas Kretschmann Theatrical release: 27 August 2015 Ken McIntyre
WE ARE YOUR FRIENDS
According to Cole (Zac Efron), a wannabe DJ who dreams of becoming the next Calvin Harris, all you need is a laptop, some talent and one track! With help from Wes Bentleys superstar turntablist he might get there, too provided he can ditch his deadbeat childhood chums. Basically Entourage with a beat a comparison reinforced by Emily Ratajkowskis turn as Bentleys assistant-cum-girlfriend Max Josephs flashy rite-of-passage yarn will likely attract derision from the real Pete Tongs of this world. But for non-DJs its entertaining fluff, with a predictably sick soundtrack. Director: Maz Joseph Starring: Zac Efron, Emily Ratajkowski Theatrical release: 27 August 2015 Neil Smith
LECLISSE
Less like a story, more like a poem raved Martin Scorsese about Antonionis gorgeously detached love-story, which sets Monica Vittis isolated translator roaming through 60s Rome. The last slice of the directors aptly named Alienation Trilogy, its chilly outlook and glacial pace are offset by its beauty and fearless experiments with film form. Friendships have foundered over whether the intractably random ending is inspired or irritating. Thankfully, Alain Delons brash stockbroker jolts the movie from its Antonioniennui and infuses his affair with Vitti with surprising warmth and playfulness. Director: Michelangelo Antonioni Starring: Alain Delon, Monica Vitti, Francisco Rabal Theatrical release: 28 August 2015 Kate Stables
ADDICTED TO SHEEP
Documentarian Magali Pettier spent 18 months filming the Hutchinson family in a bid to discover what drives farmers Tom and Kay to rear sheep in the High Pennines, amid unforgiving weather conditions. The answer, it seems, is Toms obsession with breeding the perfect specimen. Pettier captures some surprisingly powerful moments, such as the young children discussing the death of a lamb with startling nonchalance. But by letting the farming speak for itself, the documentary feels sparse, and levels of interest will depend on sharing Toms unusual passion. Director: Magali Pettier Theatrical release: 28 August 2015 Matt Looker
NORTH V SOUTH: LONG TIME COMING
Guy Ritchie meets William Shakespeare in this tedious retelling of Romeo And Juliet, which swaps Montagues and Capulets for warring gangsters from London and The North. Our star-crossed lovers are the Scouse criminal Terry (Elliott Tittensor) and Willow (Charlotte Hope), the daughter of a cockney crime boss. Their love is not shown, but rather told in voiceover. Writer/director Steven Nesbit musters moments of fun a chase between a car and gyrocopter being one. But thats a rare bright spot amid the onslaught of tired gangster cliches. Director: Steven Nesbit Starring: Freema Agyeman, Steven Berkoff, Bernard Hill, Charlotte Hope, Elliot Tittensor, Keith Allen Theatrical release: 28 August 2015 Stephen Kelly
