I TELL YOU WHAT I THINK
First on Entertainment

Sex sells and so it is with the fourth of Colleen Hoover’s novels to be turned into a film. The most recent before Verity was Reminders of Him, before that Regretting You and, first up, It Ends With Us. Verity Crawford (Anne Hathaway) is one of the best-selling authors on the planet, whose success is built on taking the villains’ perspective in her work. Married to the love of her life, Jeremy (Josh Hartnett), who is in real estate, the pair went on to have two children

Tom Cruise is hardly the action hero for which he is most noted in the cleverly co-written and directed film by Alejandro G. Iñárritu (The Revenant). Instead, he is an eccentric, wealthy billionaire who has a “my way or the highway” approach. He plays Digger Rockwell, who sleeps with a godforsaken 30-year-old cat and likes ordering others around. But he is a man also about to be in a heck of a lot of trouble. A billion-dollar drilling operation he has going in Greenland

It was originally known as the cube and later the arch, an architectural creation with uninterrupted line of site to the Arc de Triomphe. As it turned out, it was plagued by controversy. In 1982, French president François Mitterrand (Michel Fau) launched an international competition to design the flagship project of his term in office. The surprise winner was an unknown 53-year-old from Copenhagen. His name was Otto von Spreckelsen (Claes Bang). He taught architecture

Road Runner constantly outpacing and outsmarting Wile E. Coyote in classic Looney Tunes’ shorts was a memorable part of my childhood. Beep Beep was the only sound emanating from Road Runner, while Wile E. Coyote didn’t speak. It was left to the latter to be squashed, smashed, dropped and exploded, only to bounce back, time and again. And one mustn’t overlook the ingenious ACME products … the contraptions he used to try to conquer his nemesis. Now, all that is revisited

This is no shaggy dog story. Rather, it is an American survival thriller starring Brad Pitt as a former special forces soldier, who – like his retired combat dog – suffers from PTSD. The pair saw plenty of action and came out worse for wear, but both press on. Pitt, as officer James Belmont, appreciates the Alaskan wilderness, flying around in a seaplane with his beloved compatriot, Odin. With tent and a whole stack of gear at the ready, Belmont and Odin camp out, befor

Featuring superb, vibrant animation and a compelling, up-tempo soundtrack, Forgotten Island presents a fresh, rich, dynamic and subversive story about friendship. Young Jo doesn’t run with the pack. She likes telling scary stories, just like her beloved grandmother, with whom she lives. Jo’s favourite concerns the threats that await on the island of Nakali, which is populated by magical and mythical creatures. Having just transferred to a new school, Jo is sent to the pr

The contention at the heart of this compelling documentary is unmistakable. Defamation laws have been weaponised by alleged perpetrators of gendered violence against women, such that the victims are silenced. Based on international human rights lawyers Jennifer Robinson and Dr Keio Yoshida’s book How Many More Women?, writer and director Selina Miles tells a series of disturbing stories. We hear directly from Robinson, who was inspired to become a barrister because of h

A Depression era drama, The Weight concerns the plight of widower Samuel Murphy (Ethan Hawke), the father of smart young daughter Penny (Avy Berry). It is 1933 and we are in Eugene, Oregon. Like so many others, Samuel is on struggle street when he and Penny are evicted from their apartment while they are attending church. Leaving most of their earthly goods on the landing, they search for a place to stay when Samuel is set up by the police. He ends up in the clink, whi

Totally believable (NOT!) comes this thrilling, high-octane, comedic actioner set in and around Brisbane and the Gold Coast. It concerns a runner, namely a person charged with transporting goods (potentially legal and illegal) from place to place – in essence, a driver for hire. In this case it is ex-military American strongman Hank Malone (Alan Ritchson), who knows how to handle himself. He returned from Afghanistan all messed up, having taken to the bottle. Along the

Inspired by fact, By Any Means is a historical crime thriller. On 10th January, 1966 US civil rights leader Vernon Dahmer (Giancarlo Esposito) was murdered in Mississippi by the Ku Klux Klan. The reason: his work on recruiting Black Americans to vote. With less than 40 per cent of eligible coloured voters registered, the businessman offered to pay the $2 poll tax* for those who couldn’t afford it. That prompted the ire of the KKK, led by Imperial Wizard Sam Bowers (Jos

If you are into monster movies, you are likely never to have seen anything quite as bizarre and extreme as this Korean mystery, science fiction thriller. The first 50 minutes presents the point of view of police chief Beom Seok (Hwang Jung-min) running around like a chook without a head. Why? Because he is trying to make sense of something terrorising the neighbourhood. At that point, we – the audience – have no idea of just what is scaring the bejesus out of everyone tha

The wild young adult days of former American celebrity chef and author Anthony Bourdain are captured in narcissistic detail in Tony. The narrative feature, starring Dominic Sessa as Bourdain, covers only a period of months in his life, but it is certainly telling. It is set in 1975. Using his wiles, 19-year-old Bourdain is angling for a writing fellowship at Vassar College. Never backward in coming forward, in a bar he hits on Nancy Putkoski (Emilia Jones), a former Hig

Kinky and sexually charged, I Want Your Sex is an erotic dark comedy. Naïve twenty-three-year-old Elliot (Cooper Hoffman) almost can’t believe the fact that he has just landed his first job after finishing university. It is working as an assistant to renowned, sexually provocative artist Erika Tracy (Olivia Wilde). Apart from anything else, it will mean that Elliot can finally pay his half of the rent to his best friend and roommate, the equally sensitive Apple (Chase S

Nearly two decades ago, an incident shattered a family and now the patriarch – a feted, but ailing author – is intent on making good before he drops off the mortal coil. Forever sickly, stumbling about, popping pills and turning to the bottle, his name is Andrew Dyer (Bill Nighy). He lives a reclusive life in an old mansion in the country, aided by a devoted housekeeper, Gerde (Anna Geislerová). With him, when he is not at boarding school, is his 17-year-old son Andy (No

A decidedly French dark comedy about the class divide, The Party’s Over involves a well to do family and their caretakers, who are at loggerheads. Parisian lawyer Philippe Trousselard (Laurent Lafitte) and his former actress wife Laurence de Preville (Elodie Bouchez) are spending the summer at their villa. That is in the south of France. With them is their daughter, Garance (Noee Abita), who also aspires to be an actress, and her boyfriend of four months, Mehdi El Glaoui

Jacob Elordi’s star continues to rise in the dystopian thriller The Dog Stars. Playing opposite another imposing leading man in Josh Brolin, I felt like I was watching an acting masterclass. We are in Erie, Colorado, near a mountain range on the south side of Denver. A deadly flu outbreak has claimed the majority of the Earth’s population. Among those that made it through, many are affected by a crippling blood disease. Now, the few survivors are forced to confront th

A most entertaining dinosaur movie, unlike any dinosaur movie you have seen before, The End of Oak Street is, in a word, surprising. It is 1982 and the Platt family live on a pleasant street in Flowerdale, Michigan, where it is not unusual for neighbours to come together and have fun. Aspiring novelist Denise (Anne Hathaway) is not in a good place mentally. She is contemplating divorcing her husband, Greg (Ewan McGregor), who doesn’t open up to her. She can’t understand

Isla Fisher has ample opportunity to show off her comedic acting chops in the girls’ buddy comedy Spa Weekend. Realised in the spirit of Bad Moms and The Hangover, she plays Mel, the most outrageous of a foursome who became firm friends at middle school. Gifted some choice lines and visual gags, Fisher is all over them. She doesn’t disappoint with a hugely spirited performance. So, to the plot: Life has gotten in the way of regular catch ups for the quartet. Arguabl

Pure evil threatens to bring the dead back into the world of the living in this sixth instalment of the supernatural horror franchise, which started in 2010. They are trapped in purgatory, an astral dimension known as The Further, and a young Pittsburgh mother and dentist, Gemma (Amelia Eve) holds the key. A malevolent entity, Cyrus (Sam Spruel) recognises that Gemma has the unique ability to travel back and forth between the real world and The Further. Gemma, who is a

Protests in the heart of Paris are rife. We are talking 2018. Society is on the precipice and people are struggling, so they pour their anger and dissatisfaction into verbal and violent demonstrations. Many are from the regions – first time protestors, families even, some who haven’t had cause to come to Paris before. Police numbers have been doubled to cope with the increasingly aggressive situation that confronts them on the streets. Officers have been pulled from o