Born to Be Blue. 2015. Directed by Robert Budreau Starring Ethan Hawke, Carmen Ejogo, Callum Keith Rennie and Kevin Hanchard SYNOPSIS: A period biopic – which openly takes liberties with the truth – on jazz musician Chet Baker’s addictions, love affairs and struggles with creativity. There’s a moment in Born to Be Blue when […]
Movie Review – Ma ma (2015)
Ma ma, 2015. Directed by Julio Medem. Starring Penelope Cruz, Luis Tosar, Asier Etxeandia and Teo Planell. SYNOPSIS: An upbeat single mother tackles love and mortality after being diagnosed with breast cancer. Besides her appearances in Pedro Almodovar’s films, Penelope Cruz’s potential as a serious actress remains largely untapped. On paper, Ma Ma is the […]
Movie Review – Elvis & Nixon (2016)
Elvis & Nixon, 2016. Directed by Liza Johnson Starring: Kevin Spacey, Michael Shannon, Alex Pettyfer, Johnny Knoxville, Colin Hanks and Evan Peters. SYNOPSIS: A comedic what-if story spun out of a real life meeting between Elvis Presley and President Nixon in the White House in December 1970. The King and the U.S. President have a […]
69th Cannes Film Festival Review – The BFG (2016)
The BFG. 2016 Directed by Steven Spielberg Starring Ruby Barnhill, Mark Rylance, Bill Hader, Jemaine Clement, Penelope Wilton, Rebecca Hall and Rafe Spall SYNOPSIS: Sophie, a young orphan, encounters the Big Friendly Giant who takes her to his magical homeland. But as the duo bond, Sophie’s life – and the fate of other children – […]
69th Cannes Film Festival Review – Mal de Pierres (2016)
Mal de Pierres (From the Land of the Moon), 2016. Directed by Nicole Garcia. Starring Marion Cotillard, Alex Brendemühl and Louis Garrel. SYNOPSIS: A spirited but delusional young woman in post-war France ends up in a marriage of convenience. When an illness takes her to a retreat in the Alps, she meets and falls in […]
69th Cannes Film Festival Review – Toni Erdmann (2016)
Toni Erdmann, 2016. Directed by Maren Ade. Starring Peter Simonischek, Sandra Hüller, Thomas Loibl, Trystan Puetter and Hadewych Minis. SYNOPSIS: A bittersweet German comedy about a prankster father who disguises himself as a man named ‘Toni Erdmann’ in a bid to get the attention of his serious, business executive daughter. Parents and adult children struggling to […]
69th Cannes Film Festival Review – Money Monster (2016)
Money Monster, 2016 Directed by Jodie Foster Starring George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Jack O’Connell, Caitriona Balfe and Dominic West SYNOPSIS: The presenter and producer of a flamboyant financial news TV show finds themselves in a hostage situation when a young, working class investor decides to take revenge for the tumbling share price of a major […]
69th Cannes Film Festival Review – Cafe Society (2016)
Café Society, 2016. Directed by Woody Allen. Starring Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Steve Carell, Parker Posey, Paul Schneider, Corey Stoll, Blake Lively and Anna Camp. SYNOPSIS: A 1930s-inspired comedy about a native New Yorker who transfers to glamorous Hollywood and finds himself in a love triangle with a secretary and a powerful married man. The […]
Kirsten Dunst, Mads Mikkelsen, Vanessa Paradis and Donald Sutherland join Cannes jury
In keeping with tradition, the Cannes film festival jury will be as starry as the talent walking the red carpet at the Palais. After taking home the trophy for best actress in 2011 for her role in Melancholia, Kirsten Dunst will now be part of the panel handing out the awards next month. The Bring […]
Jessica Chastain’s Rise to Oscar Nominee and Blockbuster Star
Sara Hemrajani on the rise of Jessica Chastain… In the past five years, Jessica Chastain has gone from unknown actress to established talent. The Californian famously embraces all genres, from a modern interpretation of Shakespeare’s Coriolanus to spy thriller The Debt to elaborate costume horror Crimson Peak, to name but a few. With the release […]