Apparently it’s WWII month for the stay-at-home films. While last week’s “The Courier” showcased a well-cast but bland approach to familiar tropes, “Six Minutes to Midnight” is exactly the opposite. Eddie Izzard is a witty comedian, colorful voice actor and often a decent eccentric antagonist in films like “Victoria & Abdul” (where she originally co-starred […]
Tom Hooper’s film version of “Cats” the musical is as bizarre as it is confusing. The adaptation has suffered greatly upon rollout, stemming from visual effect backlash when the characters were unveiled. The concept of taking actors’ faces and digitally inserting them into this amalgamation of human/cat bodies is the kind of peculiar you stare
Television and documentary screenwriter Ben Elton fills in the gaps of William Shakespeare’s later life with drama and intrigue. His first acting and directing gig since “Murder on the Orient Express,” Kenneth Branagh is nearly unrecognizable as the famous poet and playwright. Together Elton and Branagh present a unique dive into the lesser-known facets of
There are so many ways this spy drama could have gone, but the television turned movie director Trevor Nunn seems at odds with how to navigate through the backstory. “Red Joan” uses the same framework as “The Wife,” going back and forth between the present and the past. Oscar-winner Dame Judi Dench (her performance is
Director Kenneth Branagh (“Thor”) has procured the leading role of famous literary inspector Hercule Poirot for himself. A former television film, based on Agatha Christie’s most popular mystery novel, “Murder on the Orient Express” gets the big screen treatment with a cast as long as the train. There are ensembles where the cast works as
No matter what Stephen Frears delivers, it’s always going to be different ingredients on the same menu. Previous collaborations, “Philomena” and “Mrs. Henderson Presents”, suggest that Dame Judi Dench is heading towards an 8th Oscar nomination, and her third under Frears direction. Of course, this isn’t the first time Dench has played a Queen or
Although it’s an obvious attempt to fill a void left by Harry Potter in the young adult fantasy genre, Tim Burton’s latest Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children doesn’t have the originality many start-up franchises do. Burton’s decision to use more practical tricks than visual effects certainly make the segments in and around the iconic
Director John Madden (Shakespeare in Love) and the cast who survived the first film return to India to once again check into the Marigold Hotel. “Why die here when you can die there,” says hotel co-owner Muriel Donnelly played by Oscar winner Maggie Smith (Downton Abby, Harry Potter). It’s Smith’s charm and wit that keeps