Film and Theatre

Reviews

Please scroll down for latest reviews... 

---

THE ALCHEMIST AT HOXTON HALL

Reviewed by Paul Titley 3/9/’10

Ben Johnson’s classic satire of human gullibility has been brilliantly crafted and brought up to date in this very funny production. Rachel Parish’s contemporary version treats the audience to a fast and furious fest on the folly of greed.  The original was 17th Century, but this is a thoroughly modern, very 21st Century take.

The Alchemist is full of golden performances with great comedic characterisations from all the cast; but whilst doubling up of parts allowed the actors to show their versatility, the production would benefit from some pruning. One and three-quarter hours without an interval - and especially given the hectic pace - the play is a tad too long.

However, don’t miss it! The script is amusing and the acting extremely good. It feels unfair not to mention them all, but Rose-Marie Christian as Danny was virtuoso, while Hugh Darbyshire’s unforgettable portrayal of the twat Edwin deservedly drew the heartiest laughter. Wonderful performances were also turned in by Jon Foster, Zoe Ford, Elisa Armstrong, Claire Quinn, Thomas Blyth, Freya Alderson and Nick Whitley. The play runs at Hoxton Hall until the 10th of September,  so see it soon or miss a treat.

 

---

MOTHER

Reviewed by Jenny Rowsome  31/8/'10

Bong Joon-ho’s Mother is a murder mystery that goes above and beyond our usual expectations. With great depth and insight into the emotions surrounding this heartbreaking tragedy, Mother is a film intended to disturb.

Do-Joon, a young man with learning difficulties and son of a traditional Korean herbalist and healer, is arrested for the murder of a young girl. Unable to fight back, his mother goes on a quest to prove his innocence...Flashbacks are used to help us piece together the tragedy, and bit by bit our sympathies change. Mother is beautifully constructed as a story, and many details which seem merely character quirks and scene setting in the early part, later assume sinister significance.

The film is brilliantly unpredictable and moving. The startling performance by Kim Hye-Ja as the isolated, overprotective single mother makes this film what it is. Kim Hye-Ja somehow makes an intrinsically dislikeable character likeable, evoking a sense of magnificent awe and admiration for her, despite her many flaws.

Leaving viewers with more questions than answers and although deeply disconcerting, it is beautiful for its profoundly realistic depiction of an uncertain world,  in which a mother and son try to get by.

---

THE SECRET IN THEIR EYES

Reviewed by Jenny Rowsome 16/8/'10

Winner of the 2010 Best Foriegn Film Oscar and directed by Juan Jose Campenella, The Secret In Their Eyes is the crème de la crème in Argentinean film.

Beautifully shot from start to finish, the slow-paced film moves from past to present as we follow Esposito on his frantic mental journey to uncover the truth.

Filled with mystery and romance - but not much real action till end- it tells the story of an unresolved crime case in which a beautiful young woman is raped and murdered.

Issues surrounding the case – revenge, justice, freedom, corruption – unfold as we revisit events with retired criminal court employee Benjamin Esposito.  With the idea of writing a novel, he reopens the case. his effort to resolve the unresolved leads him to unpredicted self discoveries.

In between deeply violent and shocking scenes we enter the criminal court office where we watch Esposito and his colleague engage in bantery slang such as ‘Bolludo’ and ‘Che’, the Porteño’s answer to Hackney’s ‘Blud’ and ‘Wagwaan’.

Campenella’s portrayal of Argentinean wit is surprisingly accurate, although silly at times.  City life, appears to be charming Porteño cafes, grand train stations and an infamous football stadium. But there are dark and shocking undertones.

A particuarly enjoyable film for me, as I was nostalgically transported back to my own hilarious and chaotic times in the Argentinean capital. 

---

GAINSBOURG

Reviewed  by  Charlie Clarke  10/8/'10

A film of beautiful scenes: Gainsbourg moves from a selection of biopic facts into a fantastical arrangement of puppets and love-making, cabbages and Nazi’s.

Based on a graphic novel written by the debutant director Joann Sfar, the project has gathered together a collection of high-performance actors, including Eric Elmosnino, who’s portrayal of Serge Gainsbourg himself, is truly exceptional.

The story begins with Gainsbourg as a child. His comic attitude to Nazi invasion and his already mature relations with the opposite sex are the content for his development and originality as a young painter. One of his early creations La gueuleor ‘The Mug’, transcends his status as fictional character and plays out the role of Serge’s alter-ego, or to be more precise, his erotic instinct, in the form of a giant and sinister puppet.

The film goes on to document his rise to stardom, his numerous and tumultuous love affairs and his genius and diversity as a musician and song writer. Each of his great songs is presented as aligned with a particular lover, i.e ‘Je t’aime…moi non plus’ with Jane Birkin and ‘Bonny and Clyde’ with Brigitte Bardot. This layout allows for a string of monumental and intense musical presentations that each standout from the rest of the film, intoxicating the audience, like a dramatic opera or west-end production.

If you’re not already a follower of this influential French icon, then you would do well to at least pay a visit to Wikipedia. For although prior knowledge is not necessary for enjoyment (as it wasn’t for me), the film moves at a determined pace, not always clarifying the more biographical details, and at times (especially with the subtitles) one might find the desire to draw breath and work out who it is that Serge is now casually seducing…..

---

INCEPTION

Reviewed by Danny Slater

In Christopher Nolan's latest film, Inception,  Nolan's subconscious is a place of action, complexity and beauty way beyond the fields of jumping sheep that most of us experience.

Inception is an unashamedly complex thriller,  which cuts between dreams and reality until we're left dazzled by the uncertainty of what is real and what's not.  A team of dream-weaving thieves (led by Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Ellen Page)  attempt to break into a hidden vault in the mind of their target (Cillian Murphy), in order to commit an act of corporate espionage 'the inception'.

The cinematography is breathtaking.  DiCaprio toys with a dream city, twisting and bending it with gasps from the audience. Then Gordon-Levitt uses the visual paradox of a 'penrose staircase', hard not to laugh at.  But  focusing on props and extraordinary special effects, at times prevents a deeper exploration of the characters..

Many reviewers have drawn comparisons between this and films such as The Matrix and Memento but feeling more like a traditional Heist film than  “Sci-Fi action”the plot is much closer to The Sting and Ocean's Eleven .

Nonetheless, this is a film that has to be seen for its value as a visual spectacle and the way it explores a series of brilliantly ambitious ideas. 

---

LONDON RIVER preview with the Director Rachid Bouchareb

Reviewed by Jenny Rowsome 7/7/10

If you are looking for something intense then this is the film for you… with its dark subject matter and depiction of a harsh reality, it takes you on a rollercoster ride of emotions and will definitely leave you pondering over your popcorn for hours after it ends…

French directed ‘London River’, Rachid Bouchareb’s latest release, stars Brenda Blethyn and Malian actor Sotigui Kouyate.  The film documents the aftermath of the 7/7 bombings by exploring the ‘moment after the shock’ for two parents searching for their missing children.

Blethyn’s character, a Protestant English widow from Gernsey, and Kouyate’s character, a Muslim man from France, are brought together through their mutual pain and discovery of their childrens' love affair. Initial prejudices are overcome as the two parents’ experiences become intertwined through their losses.

London River presents the tragedy of trauma as a catalyst in bringing different types of people together. The setting is Finsbury Park, portrayed as a friendly place populated by a tight Algerian, Muslim community. We share  the parents'  feelings of isolation, confusion and fear as they journey through the nervy streets, into hospitals and finally the local police underworld.

At the Rio's question and answer session, filmed for London Tonight (Wed.8/7/10), Bouchareb talked about his motivations to make the film.  He chose an extreme situation to prompt the unlikely friendship of two totally different people, and then revealed his own gruelling experience of the day: his daughter was in London on 7/7 and he couldn't contact her.

As a French-Algerian Muslim he also wanted to touch on issues of racial prejudice that exist in France as well as in the UK, seeing it “easier to address the issue in a different country”. By having a Muslim victim of the bombings he tells a story often forgotten by the media, that terror is an attack on everyone and affects us all.

The film is a surprisingly quiet comment on a controversial subject that Bouchareb deals with well. Although chaotic at times, the film's depiction of multicultural London is warm and welcoming. As a Hackney local, I appreciate Bouchareb’s accurate depiction of Finsbury Park and the local community and was happy to recognise corner shops, pubs and buses along Blackstock Road. Brilliant for all those who enjoy delving into the deep, but anyone looking to switch off,  I would suggest trying something else…

---

GREENBERG

Reviewed by Jeremy Stimson 13/6/10

If you’re looking for another formulaic, over the top Ben Stiller comedy you may not like this film. Touted as a step into the mainstream for a movement known as “Mumblecore”, now famous for monosyllabic and improvised dialogue that rarely has direction. But this Hollywood incarnation is surprisingly an incredibly refreshing experience.

The story follows Roger Greenberg (Ben Stiller) as he recovers from a nervous breakdown by doing “nothing” and staying at his brother’s house whilst the family is on holiday. His sanctity is then disturbed by an awkward friendship that develops with his brother's housekeeper; Florence Marr (Great Gerwig, a Mumblecore founding member).

 There are no heroes or villains, just normal people with their good or their bad sides on show.  It’s this honesty and realism that, more often than not, provides some very funny moments.

Watching the film at the newly renovated Everyman Screen on the Green made the viewing experience much more unique. Make sure you book one of the sofas!

---

MAUERPARK SCREENING at The Rag Factory

Reviewed by Jenny Rowsome 9/5/10

The screening of Mauerpark, a short documentary by Francesca Weber-Newth and Sally Mumby-Croft (Silent City), was part of an intimate evening at The Rag Factory one of Brick Lane’s most delightful secrets.  If you haven't been before The Rag Factory's unpretentious  and inviting atmosphere hosts a selection of varied film nights. With people pouring down the stairs, this was clearly a popular night.

The film looks at Mauerpark in Berlin. Meaning ‘Wall Park’, the former wasteland that separated East from West, once a symbol of death and segregation and now a space for growth, freedom and creativity.   Ideas, opinions and experiences of the local community illustrate the significance of the park in overcoming Berlin’s divided history and uniting individuals. Interviews, performances and music cleverly link together to document these changes.  The fate of the park, currently undecided, as government officials, local people and developers debate over what should happen next. The film presents a vision for positive change, acting as a poignant reminder to us all of the value of green city spaces.

---

THE ILLUSIONIST

 

Reviewed by Ruby Thompson 4/9/'10

This week's films

 

83 Upper St, Islington, N1 ONU
020 7226 3520
0870 066 4777 (75p charge)

Screen on the Green

Ticket prices:

Members:Premier Adults £11.50  Standard Member £9.00 Non Members :Premier Adult £12.50 Standard Adult £10.00Child £7.50 Standard Group of 10: £90

SCOTT PILGRIM VS.THE WORLD (12A)

Thurs 2nd, Fri 3rd, Mon 6th, Tues 7th, Thurs 9th:18.00,20.45 Sat 4th: 14.00,17.00,20.00 Sun 5th: 14.15,17.00,19.45: Wed 1st, Wed 8th: 15.15,18.00,20.45    Chris Evans, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Michael Cera:Director: Edgar Wright:Comedy:112 mins

Baby Club: Wed 1st: 12.00

Everyman Screen on the Green welcomes genre-smashing filmmaker Edgar Wright (Hot Fuzz, Shaun of the Dead) for an exclusive Q&A alonside his lates movie: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World tells the amazing story of one romantic slacker's quest to power up with love.
Meet charming and jobless Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera). A bass guitarist for totally average garage band Sex Bob-omb, the 22-year-old has just met the girl of his dreams...literally. The only catch to winning Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead)? Her seven evil exes are coming to kill him. Genre-smashing filmmaker Edgar Wright (Hot Fuzz, Shaun of the Dead) tells the amazing story of one romantic slacker's quest to power up with love in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.

RETRO SEASON: The Lost Boys 1987 (15)

Sat 4th: 23.00 :97 mins: Corey Haim, Dianne Wiest, Jason Patric, Kiefer Sutherland: Director: Joel Schumacher: Thriller:97 mins

In this hit '80s hybrid of the horror movie and the teen flick, a single mum and her two sons become involved with a pack of vampires when they move into an offbeat Northern California town.
Lucy (Dianne Wiest) and her sons, Michael (Jason Patric) and Sam (Corey Haim), move to Santa Carla to live with Lucy's lovable but curmudgeonly father (Barnard Hughes). Lucy gets a job from video-store owner Max (Edward Herrmann), then begins dating him, while Sam hangs out with Edward and Alan Frog (Corey Feldman and Jamison Newlander), a pair of vampire-obsessed comic-shop clerks.
Soon Michael falls in with some actual vampires after becoming enamored of one of their victims: Star (Jami Gertz), a gypsy-like vixen who is trying to hold on to her humanity even though vampire leader David (Kiefer Sutherland) wants to play Peter Pan to her Wendy.

Kids Club: SPIRITED AWAY (PG)

Sat 4th: 10.30:Director: Hayao Miyazaki: Animation:125 mins

While moving to a new home in Japan, Chihiro and her parents take a wrong turn down a mysterious wooded path. They come across an ominous-looking tunnel of which only Chihiro is scared. Going through the tunnel, they are lead them to a mysterious town filled with restaurants that have all kinds of delicious food on display. Chihiro's parents quickly sit down and start gorging themselves, assuming they will pay the restaurant upon their return. Chihiro's doubt of this strange town leads her to wander off, and she comes across a building of titanic size, where a young boy warns her to leave before nightfall. However, as the sun sets, the town begins to fill up with the gods of Japan's mythology, and Chihiro returns to find her parents mysteriously turned into pigs. The young boy, Haku, works in the building, which is a bathhouse for 8 Million gods. He helps Chihiro find work in this new world, find a way to save her parents from a dinner platter, and find her way home.

35 - 47 Bethnal Green Road, E1 6LA .Liverpool Street Tube. Info & Booking 020 76137498
www.richmix.org.uk.

Ticket Prices

£8  conc £6.00 : £7 conc £5.50 (before 17.00 Mon – Fri only)  Family ticket: Mon – Fri 9.00 -17.00 All day Sat & Sun:1 adult and 2 children £16.00; 2 adults and 1 Child £18; 2 adults & 2 children £22.00.Children under 2 are free.    Orange Wednesdays  (see Rich Mix website for details)

Rich Mix is Fully Accessible for wheelchairs and all cinema screens have a fully integrated infra red system for guests who are hard of hearing.

SALT (12A)

Fri 3rd - Thurs 9th: 16.00, 18.30

Senior Screening

Tues 7th:16.00

Director:Phillip Noyce: 100 mins:Evelyn Salt is accussed by a defector of being a Russian spy. Salt goes on the run, using all her skills and years of experience as a covert operative to elude capture. As the hunt to uncover the truth behind her identity gatherse pace, the question remains: "Who is Salt?

THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE (15)

Fri 3rd– Thurs 9th:14.45, 18.00, 21.00: Dir: Daniel Alfredson: 129 mins

The second part of Stieg Larsson's international best-selling trilogy finds journalist Mikael Blomkvist still intent on exposing the crooked and corrupt practices of establishment figures. When a young journalist approaches him with a meticulously researched thesis about sex trafficking and those in high office guilty of child abuse, Blomkvist goes to work but his investigation soon becomes personal when his tattooed friend Lisbeth Salander is accused of multiple murders and links to Blomkvist's case become clear. As Salander goes on the run, Blomkvist searches her past for clues to prove her innocence, but what he unravels is more unexpected than he could ever have imagined. As equally fast-paced and gripping as the novel, Noomi Rapace again delivers a mesmerizing performance as one of literature and cinema's greatest modern heroines.

INCEPTION (12A)

Fri 3rd– Thurs 9th:20.45

Ellen Page, Ken Watanabe, Leonardo DiCaprio Director: Christopher Nolan:Science Fiction:148 mins

Visionary filmmaker Christopher Nolan (Memento, The Dark Knight) writes and directs this psychological sci-fi action film about a thief who possesses the power to enter into the dreams of others. Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) doesn't steal things, he steals ideas. By projecting himself deep into the subconscious of his targets, he can glean information that even the best computer hackers can't get to. In the world of corporate espionage, Cobb is the ultimate weapon. But even weapons have their weakness, and when Cobb loses everything he's forced to embark on one final mission in a desperate quest for redemption.

THE EXPENDABLES (15)

Wed 1st,Thurs 2nd:16.00, 18.30,

Director: Jay Roach: 103 mins
The Expendables is a hard-hitting action/thriller about a group of mercenaries. The mysterious Church offers them a job no one else would take, and what looks like a routine mission becomes a fight to save countless lives, including their own.

DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS (12A)

Fri 3rd - Thurs  9th:15.00, 17.45, 20.30

Parents and Babies Screening

Mon 6th: 11.00

Dir: Jay Roach: Comedy
Dinner for Schmucks tells the story of Tim, a guy on the verge of having it all. The only thing standing between him and total career success is finding the perfect guest to bring to his boss' annual Dinner for Extraordinary People, an event where the winner of the evening brings the most eccentric character as his guest. Enter Barry, a guy with a passion for dressing mice up in tiny outfits to recreate great works of art. From Jay Roach, director of ‘Meet the Parents’ and ‘Meet the Fockers’ comes an unforgettable feast about two unlikely friends and one very memorable dinner.

Kids Cine Time: SPACE CHIMPS (U)

£1.50 

Sat 4th & Sun 5th: 11.00, 14.00

Dir: Kirk DeMicco: 81 mins
Ham III, the slacker grandson of the first chimp blasted into space before manned spaceflight, joins two other astronaut chimps for a dangerous mission through a black hole to an inhabited planet. When they’re stranded there, the chimps must help the inhabitants rid themselves of a tyrannical leader, and then figure out how to get back to Earth.

107 Kingsland High Street,  E8 2PB
020 7241 9410

mail@riocinema.org.uk
www.riocinema.org.uk/

Ticket Prices

Phone bookings 2-8pm or online go to www. Booking fee 50p for one ticket, £1 for two tickets or more. Friends of the Rio- free. Payment by most credit and debit cards (not American Express).

CATS AND DOGS - THE REVENGE OF KITTY GALORE (U)

Wed 1st- Thurs 2nd: 14.00, 16.00
Directors: Brad Peyton: 82 mins.

Former feline spy Kitty Galore has become a very bad cat and is devising a plan to bring down not only her long-standing canine enemies, but also her former kitty comrades. In an unprecedented move, cats and dogs must put aside their differences to join forces in an unlikely alliance. But will this be enough to save themselves – and their humans? The age-old battle between the species is given a modern, high-tech twist in this fun-filled family adventure.

THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE (15)

Wed 1st:18.00, 20.45 Digital:Thurs 2nd: Parents & Babies only :11.45 :Thurs 2nd:15.00, 18.00, 20.45
Fri 3rd- Thurs 9th 18.00,20.45 :Fri 3rd,Mon 6th, Thur 9th: extra showing:15.00

Parents & Babies only:Tues 7th: 12.30

See Rich Mix for full summary and details.

JASPER PENGUIN EXPLORER(U)

Sat4th:11.00  Tues 7th:16.00
Dirs: Eckart Finberg & Kay Delventhal: 80 mins.

The South Pole is full of penguins that think the world is flat! Unconvinced by this, young penguin Jasper is thrilled when a colourful parrot finds himself stranded in the freezing cold. Where has he come from? Curiosity gets the better of him and soon he's on a cruise ship adventure that's great fun and too cute for words!

LONDON INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL:Children and Families Sessions

Sat 4th: Session 1: (U) 13.30: Session 2 (PG) 15.30

THE WRECK OF THE DIDDLEY
dirs: Fatcat & Fishface: 4mins
A wickedly good singing-pirate romp.

COOKED
dir: Jens Blank: 7 mins
An unlikely love triangle between a walrus, a seal and a lobster in an Arctic sauna.

Plus 16 other short films. See the Rio website for full summaries.

BLACK DYNAMITE (15)

Sat 4th: 23.30
Dir: Scott Sanders: 84 mins.

Once there was Shaft and Superfly; now there's Black Dynamite, a karate chopping dynamo who oozes cool-cat charisma as he tracks down the killers of his kid brother. All the absurd, campy, raunchy and cool elements of traditional 70's blaxploitation films are perfecly re-worked in this celebratory and affectionate send-up of the movies of the time when black was, for the first time, big box office.

CLEO FROM 5-7 (PG) and BREATHLESS (PG)

Sun 5th: Breathless  Cleo to 14.00 + Breathless 15.50  Digital

Dir: Agnès Varda: 90 mins.
From one of the founders of the Nouvelle Vague, a spirited mix of cinema-verite and melodrama that records two hours in the life of Cleo, a singer anxiously awaiting medical test results.The Paris of the 1960s is beautifully captured, accompanied by a music score by Michel Legrand and an appearance from Jean-Luc Godard.

Dir: Jean-Luc Godard: 90 mins.
An homage to the pace and energy of the American gangster film of the 1940s, this landmark film was at the forefront of the French New Wave. After stealing a car and impulsively murdering the policeman who pursued him, small-time thief Michel goes on the run, taking American girlfriend Patricia along for the ride. Innovative jump cuts, overlapping dialogue and hand-held camerawork announced the arrival of Jean-Luc Godard and the start of a cinematic revolution.

LONDON CAN TAKE IT (U) and THE DAY WENT WELL (PG)

Wed 8th:  14.30

Dirs: Humphrey Jennings, Harry Watt: 9 mins.
American journalist Quentin Reynolds narrated this poetic tribute to the resiliency and courage of the people of London as they faced night after night of German bombing seventy years ago.

Dir: Alberto Cavalcanti: 93 mins.
Adapted from a story by Graham Greene, this Ealing Studios production imagines a wartime world in which disguised German paratroopers attempt an invasion during Whitsun weekend 1942. However, they have not taken into account the indomitable spirit of the inhabitants of the very British village of Bramley End. Still a fascinating and compelling piece of cinema today thanks to Cavalcanti's restrained realistic direction and the playing of a perfect cast.

BREATHLESS (PG)

Parents & Babies only: Digital:Thurs 9th: 12.30

Please see earlier show at The Rio for full summary.

 

 

 

Visit: Hoxton Hall

 

 

 

 

Visit: Arcola Theatre