For up to date local cinema links and day-by-day listings of what’s showing on local screens every week visit the Virtual-Lancaster Cinema Page. Read on for the weekly round-up, and reviews.
An excellent time for new releases with eight films either being released or new to the region. There is family comedy with the animation Hotel Transylvania 2 (U) and more adult comedy with The Intern (12A). There is science fiction action with The Martian (12A) and crime adventure with Sicario (15). Art house entertainment comes in the form of Macbeth (15) and The Importance of Being Earnest (12A). Finally, new to our region, though released in September, there are the dramas Tangerines (12A) and The Second Mother (15).
Movies that have disappeared from the cinemas this week include Minions; Pixels; Straight Outta Compton and The Man From U.N.C.L.E.. However for one day only we have the return of Jurassic World.
Science fiction on offer this period include the excellent The Martian and the Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials. Also available is horror with The Visit. For more down to earth drama we have Miss You Already and 45 Years. Comedy comes in the form of The Intern; Bill and The Bad Education Movie.
Family films on offer include Home; Hotel Transylvania 2 and Inside Out.
A film of note is the classic silent movie Sunrise, being screened with a live score. Also at the Dukes there is an hour of shorts with This is Not a Cartoon.
High culture is on offer this week with Royal Opera House: Le Nozze di Figaro.
Reviews
Everest
Director: Baltasar Kormakur
Certificate: 12A
Cast includes: Jake Gyllenhaal, Jason Clarke, Robin Wright, Nasko Mori
A docudrama set in May 1996 when two expeditions tried to make it to the peak of Mount Everest. However a blizzard resulted in the death of eight climbers. The main emphasis is on the five climbers who perished on the South face. This is a dramatic and moving film, best appreciated in 3D to get the most of the scenery and the dizzying drops. The mountain itself is the primary focus, with character development taking second place, though there is much made of the trials of the climbers and of the emotional distress of loved ones left behind. An unsentimental movie which makes the viewer feel that he is part of the expedition.
Jurassic World
Director: Colin Trevorrow
Certificate: 12A
Cast includes: Bryce Dallas Howard, Irrfan Khan, B.D. Wong, Chris Pratt
This is the fourth instalment in the Jurassic Park series and the best of the sequels. Jurassic World is a theme park in Costa Rica that has been open for some two decades. However visitors are starting to get bored with the sight of tame dinosaurs. Hence, their lab has been using genetic techniques to create a real monster dinosaur, Indominus Rex, to rekindle interest. The park is managed by Claire Dearing (Howard). Owen Grady (Pratt) is an animal behaviourist working with the Dinosaurs. On the day that Claire brings her two nephews to the park the Indominus Rex escapes. She must work with Owen to save her nephews and save the day. The movie has number of fine action pieces though the action gets in the way of character development. Also there is a romance element between Claire and Owen. The dialogue in not always believable, but there are jokes and the film pays homage to the original Jurassic Park. For an audience not yet jaded by dinosaurs, this is an entertaining action film.
Miss You Already
Director: Catherine Hardwicke
Certificate: 12A
Cast includes: Drew Barrymore, Toni Collette
Milly (Collette) and Jess (Barrymore) are lifelong friends though their lives are very different. Milly works as a PR executive. She is married to a Rock star and has a perfect family. Jess however has a more mundane job and is desperate to have a baby. Milly’s life is thrown in turmoil when she is diagnosed with breast cancer. The film follows her fight with cancer and the stresses it puts on her relationship with Jess who finally conceives a baby. This is a passable movie which provides something of an emotional rollercoaster ride.
The Martian
Director: Ridley Scott
Certificate: 12A
Cast includes: Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig
A manned mission to the planet mars is aborted when the crew face a huge sandstorm. However astronaut and botanist Mark Watney (Damon) is left behind, presumed dead. Yet he lives and must now find a way to survive and contact Earth in the hope that a rescue mission can be mounted. The movie is based on the 2011 novel of the same name by Andy Weir. This is a homage to the ingenuity of man in desperate circumstances. The movie is visually effective, scientifically accurate and is well seasoned with humour. An excellent film that has received glowing reviews.