Out on Friday 6 November
Saoirse Ronan is caught in a transatlantic love triangle. Nicholas Hoult is caught in a 90s Britpop movement. Yes, heres this weeks new releases. Click on for our reviews of Brooklyn, Burnt, Scouts Guide To The Zombie Apocalypse, Kill Your Friends, The Closer We Get, He Named Me Malala, The Runner and Brief Encounter. For the best movie reviews, subscribe to Total Film.
BROOKLYN
The experience of voluntary exile and the gnawing sense of betrayal thats so often bound up with it is known to generations of Irish expats, and its at the core of this romantic drama from John Crowley (Intermission, Boy A), drawn with loving fidelity from Colm Tibns award-winning novel. The settings the small Irish town of Enniscorthy (Tibns birthplace) in the early 50s, where young Eilis Lacey (Saoirse Ronan) feels her life is going nowhere. Then, right out of the blue, comes the chance to move to New York, where a job and a new life await her a dazzling but terrifying prospect. Still, she goes, is at first lonely, homesick and overwhelmed, but gradually starts to adjust, to fit in, even to relish the tumult and glamour of the huge city. And she finds love. But then a death calls her back home, temporarily as she thinks and there it seems another kind of life, another love may be on offer. The casting throughout is nigh-on flawless. As Eilis, Ronan (on top form, which is saying a lot) subtly charts the shift from wide-eyed provincial girl to city sophisticate as much by stance and speech-patterns as by costume and hairstyle. She gets fine back-up from Julie Walters, visibly enjoying herself as her wasp-tongued Brooklyn landlady Mrs Kehoe, Jim Broadbent as a benevolent priest (maybe slightly overdoing the twinkle), and Brid Brennan ripely malicious as a small-town snob. As the two guys our heroine finds herself torn between, Emory Cohen (in NYC) and Domhnall Gleeson (in Ireland) each project charm in very different registers, and Eva Birthistle brings gusto to the brief role of a brassy blonde who shows Eilis how to survive a hellish transatlantic crossing and then parry the questionings of the immigration authorities. Equally impressive is the period recreation, conjuring up what now seems an impossibly remote age when distances were formidable and social conventions especially for young women terrifyingly restrictive. Nick Hornbys script captures all the wry humour, and the underlying aching melancholy, of Tibns novel, and Ronans performance makes us feel every tug at her divided loyalties. The films almost stolen, though, by Cohen as Tony, Eilis Italian-American boyfriend gentle, considerate, and full of a shy, instinctive courtesy. Much like him, this is a film that never insists or over-stresses its effects, but works its way quietly and irresistibly into our emotions. THE VERDICT: Colm Tibns bitter-sweet novel of the Irish expat experience brought impeccably to the screen by Crowley and Hornby, with Saoirse Ronan excelling herself in the leaf. Director: John Crowley Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Domhnall Gleeson, Michael Zegen, Emory Cohen, Mary ODriscoll, Julie Walters Theatrical release: 6 November 2015 Philip Kemp
BURNT
This Bradley Cooper vehicle sees the star don chefs whites as two-star Michelin man Adam Jones. If youre a chef, were told, hes like the Rolling Stones. We know this because hes had a terrible addiction problem drinks, drugs, women and he wears a leather jacket and rides a motorbike. With the clichs stacking like a side order of chips, the early signs dont look good for Burnt. Scripted by Steven Knight (Locke, Eastern Promises), the film is slightly better than the iffy marketing campaign might have you believe (tagline: Never underestimate a man with everything to lose). But only just. The prologue shows us how Coopers masterchef left behind debts and his late mentor in Paris and went to New Orleans to shuck one million oysters (literally) as penance for his ways. Now hes in London, trying to round up his old cooking crew to launch a new restaurant and get that elusive third Michelin star. Those reluctantly in for the ride include Daniel Brhls matre d, whose ailing father is bankrolling the venture (as long as Jones stays clean cue a minor role for Emma Thompson as his doctor). Also along for the ride is Sienna Miller as a single-mum sous chef. Scenes in the kitchen of Jones and his gang crafting culinary delights are invigoratingly filmed by director John Wells (August: Osage County) even if Burnt dishes up one too many prep montages. Cooper is also credible as the devilish talent who is striving to deliver culinary orgasms, shouting and stomping his way around the kitchen like a boot-camp sergeant major its outside of the kitchen that the film really loses heat. The sexual tension between Cooper and American Sniper co-star Miller? Yawn-inducing. The subplot that sees drug dealers chasing Jones for dough? Lacklustre. The other subplot involving Alicia Vikander as Jones mentors daughter? It goes absolutely nowhere. And so on and so on. Like the title suggests, all of this feels like its been under the grill for too long. THE VERDICT: With a script as bland as they come theres little chance of Cooper/Miller recapturing their American Sniper chemistry. A messy hotchpotch of ingredients, Burnt lacks substance where it counts. Director: John Wells Starring: Bradley Cooper, Sienna Miller, Alicia Vikander, Uma Thurman, Lily James, Emma Thompson Theatrical release: 6 November 2015 James Mottram
SCOUTS GUIDE TO THE ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE
Cockneys, werewolves, strippers... the list of minority groups weve seen the undead pitted against is ever-lengthening, but the results have been so mixed even the most cynical executives might have considered calling time before they reached Zombies vs Scouts. Not so. Christopher Landons (Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones) horror-comedy has plenty of zip and a likeable lead in one-to-watch Tye Sheridan (The Tree Of Life, X-Men: Apocalypse) but its all been done before except the filthy bits. And perhaps they shouldnt have been done at all. Sheridan plays Ben, one of a trio of best friends, whose interest in boy-scouting begins to wane as lady-scouting becomes more of a pressing concern. Junior year is when all the girls become sluts, reasons wingman carter (Logan Miller) who wants to party instead of accompanying super-keen Augie (Joey Morgan) on a camp-out with super-camp scout leader Rogers (Anchormans David Koechner, always good value). But when Ben and carter sneak off, a zombie outbreak forces them to try and save the town with the help of Denise (Sarah Dumont) a stripper with a yep heart of gold. Playing like a very late-franchise American Pie, Scouts has its funny moments most notably an out-of-the-blue Britney Spears rendition and an unexpected penile encounter but its largely arse gags, CG gore, and bros-before-hoes creepiness. Ben gapes at one of Denises colleagues for ages before he realises shes dead meat, theres a mean, strangely out-of-place cunnilingus scene, and Carter gropes a zombies breasts, reasoning: I just wanted to see some titties! It feels like three different films: one sleazy, one sweet, one mildly amusing. Perhaps Carters line, It was fun when we were kids but we have to grow up, man! should serve as the last word. Or a warning. THE VERDICT: Passes the time without really passing muster, but it cant compete with Shaun Of The Dead or Zombieland, and probably shouldnt have tried. Director: Christopher Landon Starring: Tye Sheridan, Logan Miller, Joey Morgan, Sarah Dumont, David Koechner Theatrical release: 6 November 2015 Matt Glasby
KILL YOUR FRIENDS
Originally positioned as a Britpop American Psycho, John Nivens 2008 novel concerned a black-hearted 1990s music-biz A&R man who hates bands, loves bugle (cocaine) and is fully capable of Bateman-ing his besties. Based on Nivens own script, director Owen Harris slick, big-screen version seems primed to follow in the footsteps of Filth, Jon S. Bairds rabblerousing 2013 Irvine Welsh adaptation. But where Filth, the book, was an out-and-out masterpiece, Kill Your Friends, the book, is a slighter proposition that offers itself up to a little bit of cinematic streamlining. Scheming, slandering and worse to beat his colleagues (including Craig Roberts and James Corden) to a promotion, Steven Stelfox (a chiseled, smartly cast Nicholas Hoult) is gleefully without conscience in contrast to Filths Bruce robertson, whose brutality hid a broken man. Boasting a block-rocking 1990s soundtrack (from Blur to Sneaker Pimps) and many funny moments, such as when Stelfox says Spice Girls wannabes the Song Birds would gobble a fucking donkey to meet Mark Morrison, Kill Your Friends is seductive in its nihilism, if not quite as persuasive as its protagonist. Schadenfreude (which Stelfox thinks is a Belgian trip-hop act) is its strongest suit, yet the secondary characters are rarely more than puppets. Georgia King, as a wily secretary, and Edward Hogg, as an earnest policeman, come closest to sharing the narcissistic spotlight. When it comes to internal monologues, however, Niven is no Welsh, and for every brilliant bon mot, there are many rape, murder and disability jokes that speak only to the emptiness of the antiheros soul plus its not entirely clear if anyone knows which is which. Dastardly good fun when Stelfox is riding high, a little limp when hes unravelling (like Robertson, to Radiohead), Kill Your Friends is a shiny new CD case with nothing inside. Which, on reflection, he might prefer. THE VERDICT: Nivens vision must have taken some stones to reach the big screen unsoftened, but the vicious glibness that represents its main draw and biggest flaw remains intact. Director: Owen Harris Starring: Nicholas Hoult, Craig Roberts, James Corden, Georgia King, Edward Hogg Theatrical release: 6 November 2015 Matt Glasby
THE CLOSER WE GET
It might seem like little more than therapy for documentarian Karen Guthrie, but this intimate portrayal of her parents strained relationship proves to be a relatable depiction of family life with several surprise twists. Mother Ann has been rendered mostly immobile after a stroke, so its dad Ian who takes centre stage as a light-hearted but guarded patriarch, reticent to discuss his past and his recently discovered secret child. As Karen draws parallels between her own nature and her fathers, she presents a poignant ode to the psychological bonds between generations. Director: Karen Guthrie Starring: Karen Guthrie Theatrical release: 6 November 2015 Matt Looker
HE NAMED ME MALALA
An Inconvenient Truths Davis Guggenheim returns with a very different doc, swapping eco-issues for a personal portrait of Malala Yousafzai. Winner of 2014s Nobel Peace Prize, shes the Pakistani schoolgirl who survived a gunshot to the head after speaking out against the Talibans policy of denying girls education. With Malala relocating to Britain while recuperating, Guggenheim attempts to capture the mundane amid the extraordinary, as Malala meets world leaders one day and does her schoolwork the next. Its hardly enthralling filmmaking, but with a subject like Malala, perhaps it doesnt need to be. Director: Davis Guggenheim Starring: Malala Yousafzai, Ziauddin Yousafzai Theatrical release: 6 November 2015 James Mottram
THE RUNNER
The latest drop in an apparent reservoir of Nicolas Cage clag (see also Dying Of The Light and Left Behind) casts him as a Louisiana congressman whose principled stand against the BP oil spill sees him thrust into the limelight just as his personal life implodes. Exposed as a philanderer and dumped by his wife, this ex-man of the people drifts into a life of alcoholism before making a last stab at redemption by which time youll be as bored as cage looks in a film with nothing new to say on Americas busted political system and its habit of diluting noble intentions. Director: Austin Stark Starring: Nicholas Cage, Sarah Paulson, Connie Nielson, Peter Fonda Theatrical release: 6 November 2015 Neil Smith
BRIEF ENCOUNTER
The David Lean-Nol Coward partnership that started with In Which We Serve reached its apogee with this touching 1945 portrait of thwarted romance, set in an England in which matters of the heart come a sorry second to societal proprieties. A speck of train dust unites Celia Johnsons middle-class hausfrau and Trevor Howards married doctor at a railway station that becomes a terminus of forbidden love, backed by swirling Rachmaninoff and a litany of British supporting players oblivious to the passion. Archive short A Kiss In The Tunnel accompanies this welcome 70th anniversary re-release. Director: David Lean Starring: Celia Johnson, Trevor Howard Theatrical release: 6 November 2015 Neil Smith
