Sit back, put your feet up, have a cuppa…
Like weary Christmas shoppers gratefully collapsing onto a coffee shop sofa, film fans are being given a breather this week after being hit with a succession of must-see blockbusters, from Paddington 3 to Moana 2.
Time to catch up on those you’ve yet to see, or perhaps to sample something off the beaten track, as Amy Adams runs with the dogs in Nightbitch and Cate Blanchett battles zombie bog people in Rumours (which, as that description might indicate, is very much not a Fleetwood Mac biopic).
New releases
Nightbitch
A new film from Marielle Heller, the director of Can You Ever Forgive Me? and A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, is always welcome – and the premise of her latest is nothing if not intriguing.
Amy Adams stars as an artist turned stay-at-home mum whose realisation of how much her life has changed causes ‘her maternal instincts to manifest in canine form’, which is blurb-speak for ‘she starts turning into a dog’.
If reviews have tended towards the ‘more bark than bite’ angle, Heller’s track record plus the prospect of Adams eating mac’n’cheese from a dog bowl ought to recommend this for those seeking something a little different this week.
| Cert 15, 98 mins | |
| Everyman | |
| From Fri Dec 6 |
Rumours
If you really want a walk on the cinematic wild side, however, then this surreal comedy about an ill-fated G7 summit has it all, from zombie bog people to a giant brain.
Cate Blanchett’s German Chancellor and Charles Dance’s US president (with an inexplicably English accent) are among the world leaders who meet to draft a statement in the face of an impending global crisis.
Things turn from bad to worse as the bickering group find themselves lost in the woods outside their chateau, where they have all manner of strange and sinister encounters…
| Cert 15, 104 mins | |
| Vue | |
| From Fri Dec 6 | |
| More details |
Unstoppable
This true-life drama tells the incredible story of Anthony Robles, who was born with one leg but went on to become a champion wrestler.
Based on his 2012 book of the same name, the film follows Robles (Jharrel Jerome, When They See Us) as he fights to pursue his dream with the love and encouragement of his mother Judy (Jennifer Lopez).
With a strong supporting cast including Bobby Cannavale and Don Cheadle, Variety’s review suggests that this is a superior entry in the tried-and-tested sporting underdog genre, which ‘never makes beating the odds – at home, or in the wrestling arena – look too easy’.
| Cert 12A, 123 mins | |
| Vue | |
| From Fri Dec 6 |
Other screenings
Community cinema
South Bank Community Cinema close their autumn season with a proper feelgood treat in the form of 1980s-set musical comedy Sing Street.
Written and directed by John Carney (who helmed the similarly music-themed tales Once and Begin Again), the film follows teenage outcast Conor (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo), who teams up with a gang of fellow misfits at his new school to form a band, all in the hopes of impressing enigmatic aspiring model Raphina (Lucy Boynton).
If that sounds a little hackneyed, this delightful film is anything but, grounding its sense of wide-eyed wonder in bittersweet reality and boasting winning performances from its charming young cast, not to mention a brace of toe-tapping original songs you’ll be humming on the way home – as Mark Kermode said in his review, ‘I laughed, I cried, I bought the soundtrack album’.
The film screens at Clements Hall, South Bank on Fri 6th at 8pm (doors 7:30pm). Tickets are £4 (cash only), and SBCC advise that it’s best to book in advance by e-mailing [email protected].
Family-friendly films
It’s time to sing-along-a-Scrooge at City Screen this weekend, as their Kids’ Club hosts definitive Dickens adaptation The Muppet Christmas Carol on Sat 7th (tickets £3.30).
There’s a clash of the curmudgeons as Jim Carrey’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas goes up against Benedict Cumberbatch’s more enigmatically titled The Grinch – catch jeering Jim at Cineworld (Sun 8th, £5.00) and Vue (Sat 7th, Sun 8th, Thurs 12th, £6.99 – £9.99), while beastly Benedict can be found in Cineworld’s Movies For Juniors slot on Sat 7th and Sun 8th (£2.50).
Everyman’s Toddler Club is showing The Polar Express, which is celebrating 20 years of travels through the uncanny valley (Fri 6th, Sat 7th, £6.25 child/£9.80 adult plus toddler), while Vue’s Mighty Mornings have gone the non-festive route with recent release Buffalo Kids (Sat 7th, Sun 8th, £2.49).
The CBeebies Panto 2024: Beauty and the Beast (£3.99) and The Magic Reindeer: Saving Santa’s Sleigh (£6.99 – £9.99) continue daily at Vue; the latter is also on at Cineworld on Sat 7th and Sun 8th only (£6.49 child, £8.99 adult), while their Autism-Friendly screening this month is Paddington in Peru on Sun 8th (£6.49 child, £8.99 adult).
Picturehouse Christmas Cinema at St Saviourgate
City Screen are going the extra mile (well, maybe more like half a mile) with their seasonal schedule this year, with a twinkling selection of festive favourites set to screen in the iconic setting of St Saviour’s Church.
Bruce, Macaulay, Hugh, Kermit – the gang’s all here, with screenings taking place from Thurs 12th to Fri 20th – with a special Christmas film quiz hosted by Radio 1’s Ali Plumb on Sun 15th.
Things kick off with The Muppet Christmas Carol and Bridget Jones’s Diary on Thurs 12th – tickets are £12 child, £15 adult and £24 for two family members, and your ticket includes a £5 credit towards food and drink on the night. Head to City Screen’s website for a full list of screenings.
Ferrell knows Santa Claus and Chalamet does sandy chores: old favourites back on the big screen
I’ve remarked before how hard it is for a new film to be admitted into the established canon of Christmas classics, but January of this year saw the release of a film which seems a nailed-on cert to become a seasonal staple: The Holdovers, director Alexander Payne’s smart, funny and moving tale of a Grinch-like teacher (Paul Giamatti) who’s lumbered with looking after the pupils at his elite boarding school who can’t go home for the holidays.
It’s great to see City Screen giving it their seal of approval by adding it to their festive roster – if you missed it amongst all those other awards-magnets at the start of the year, you can catch it on Weds 11th.
The old guard are, of course, amply represented too, chief amongst them this week being Gremlins, which celebrates 40 years of maniacal mischief with screenings at Cineworld (Fri 6th) and Vue (Fri 6th, Sun 8th, Weds 11th).
There’s more Christmassy carnage courtesy of Messrs. Willis (Die Hard, Everyman, Fri 6th) and Culkin (Home Alone, City Screen, Sun 8th), while more wholesome fare is on offer in the form of It’s a Wonderful Life (Cineworld, Mon 9th), Elf (Vue, Fri 6th, Sat 7th, Mon 9th) and Love Actually (Everyman, Sun 8th, Tues 10th).
Those looking for a bit of musical merriment, meanwhile, are pointed in the direction of André Rieu’s 2024 Christmas Concert: Gold and Silver, which sees he of the lustrous locks get the party started in his inimitable style at City Screen (Sun 8th) and Vue (daily from Sat 7th).
And finally, if, like me, you’re determined to bury your head in the sand and put off Christmas shopping for as long as you can, where better to do that than Arrakis: Dune Parts 1 and 2 screen in an IMAX double bill at Cineworld on Sun 8th, including a recorded Q&A with director Denis Villeneuve himself.
With that in mind, let’s close proceedings this week with none other than Fatboy Slim’s Weapon of Choice, famous for its Christopher Walken-starring video and slightly less famous for having lyrics inspired by Frank Herbert’s sprawling sci-fi opus – at least according to some people on Reddit, and those guys are almost never wrong…