November 29th

Lean on Pete
Puzzle
Sorry to Bother You
Normandy Nude
Creed II
Anna & the Apocalypse

What a mixed bag this week. Serious drama (with horse), relationship problems, jigsaw puzzling, telemarketing, boxing, French agricultural crises, and zombies. Definitely something for everyone! 

Lean on Pete
Dir: Andrew Haigh
Length: 121 min 

© Transmission -  a boy, a horse, and
hopes for a better future

Charley (Charlie Plummer) and his single dad Ray (Travis Fimell) head to Oregon after a series of tough breaks. Charley, though only 15, must work, and lands a job with  racehorse owner Del (Steve Buscemi), looking after a horse called Lean on Pete. Charley is enjoying his job and bonding with Pete, when further personal tragedy strikes. When Charley also discovers Pete is headed for the knackery, he takes drastic steps to rescue the beloved horse, while at the same time trying to get in touch with a long-lost aunt. This is the best of American Indie film-making. The story cuts to the heart of disadvantaged lives and examines how easily a young person can make the wrong decisions that could wreck the rest of his life. Plummer is a revelation in his role; and the director draws compassion and heart into every scene. With added talent like Chloe Sevigny and Steve Zahn in smaller roles, this is a little gem of a film.
4 - highly recommended! 

Puzzle
Dir: Marc Turteltaub
Length: 103 min 
Exclusive to Cinema Nova

© Sony -  tender drama of
self-discovery

Agnes (Kelly McDonald) lives life the way her European parents taught her - be a good wife and mother, go to church meetings, and put the needs of your husband and two sons above yours. When she is given a jigsaw puzzle as a gift, Agnes discovers she is really good at it, travels to New York to buy another, and answers an ad for a partner to enter into the National Jigsaw Championships. Her partner is wealthy, reclusive inventor Robert (Irrfan Khan, known to western audiences from Life of Pi and The Lunchbox). Agnes begins to discover there is another side to life from what she is used to. I love this film, not the least because I love jigsaws. No, really, it is insightfully scripted, careful to avoid cliches, and simply  beautiful in a way that avoids demonising any of the characters. David Denman as Agnes' husband Louie is particularly noted as the redneck husband also trapped in the only stereotyped role he knows, but it is McDonald and Khan who steal the show.   
4 - highly recommended! 

Sorry to Bother You
Dir: Boots Riley
Length: 102 min 
Exclusive to Cinema Nova

© Universal - zany and satirical, putting the world
of telemarketing is in a futuristic spotlight

Cassius "Cash" Green (Lakeith Stanfield) takes a job at a sleazy telemarketing company, where he is advised by fellow worker Langston (Danny Glover) that if he uses his "white voice" he will make more sales. Soon Cash joins the ranks of the "power sellers", but he is in for a major shock when he discovers what goods the company is actually marketing. Meantime Steve Lift (Armie Hammer), immoral boss of Worry Free, is marketing a lifestyle that is virtual slavery - food and lodging in exchange for a lifetime of indentured work. The connection between both companies becomes gradually apparent with further horrific revelations of scientific experiments being undertaken. As Cash's friends protest against all manner of injustices, Cash must choose between a whopping salary and leaving his reprehensible workplace. STBY is a bit sci-fi, scathingly satirical, and very entertaining.
3.5 - well recommended! 

Normandy Nude
Dir: Philippe Le Guay
Length: 109 min 

© Palace - photography, nudity and cattle combine
to try to save an ailing town

The town of Mele sur Sarthe in Normandy (NW France) is in crisis. Rural industries are being squeezed economically and farmers are going under. Then American photographer Newman (Toby Jones) with offsider Bradley (Vincent Regan), turns up, looking for a field in which to mass-photograph the locals - nude. Much-loved Mayor Balbuzard (Francoise Cluzet) sees an opportunity to get the town's plight into the mainstream news, but can he talk the townsfolk into baring their all for the greater social good? Sweet is definitely the word for this cute French film. But it has a darker underbelly with important and timely social commentary on the dire situation for agriculture going on in the background. All the characters are pleasing to spend time with, Cluzet is (as always) marvellous to watch, and the scenery and livestock make for bucolic, relaxing viewing. Nothing earth-shattering here, and the ending unfortunately is a bit abrupt, but it's definitely a feel-good film which reminds us of the importance of solidarity, loyalty and strong leadership.
3 - recommended! 

Creed II
Dir: Steven Caple Jnr
Length: 140 min 

© Warner Bros - predictable but enjoyable, 
with the aging Rocky back in the spotlight

Adonis Creed (Michael B Jordan) is heavyweight boxing champ of the world. More than 30 years earlier Adonis's father Apollo was killed in the ring by Ivan Drago. Now Drago throws out a challenge - his son Victor must fight Adonis. Can ex-champ Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) bring Adonis up to speed to protect himself from the hulking Russian giant, and avoid another boxing tragedy? I didn't expect to enjoy this, but, aside from cringing at some of the more vicious fight scenes, I find it a jolly good story filled with perseverance, worldly wisdom, and romance in the form of Bianca, Adonis's deaf girlfriend and famed singer. Despite its many cliches, the film is nicely crafted with strong arena-based boxing scenes, and enough relationship sub-plots to carry the story on several levels. The aging Rocky is affectionately played, Jordan is a hunk, and with a predictable but satisfying ending, what's not to enjoy?
3 - recommended! 

Anna and the Apocalypse
Dir: John McPhail
Length: 105 min 

© Icon - teen zombie gore-fest - with
plenty of great songs

Anna (Ella Hunt) and her friends are getting ready for the end of school year when the unthinkable happens - a mysterious virus attacks the folks of Little Haven, turning them into zombies. You don't have to be a zombie buff to enjoy this good-natured film, which has emotion and intelligence, while being a fun teen spoof on the well-worn zombie genre. I'm not sure if the un-dead have been put to music  before, but the songs in this musical version are particularly tuneful and well executed. It's a bit like a cross between Saun of the Dead and High School Musical. I suspect the film will have appeal to mid-teens, what with enough bad language to please, the requisite blood, gore and splattered brains, a dollop of teen romance, and a crazy headmaster we all hope will join the undead or get munched (a wonderfully over-the-top performance by Paul Kaye). Put Christmas into the mix, and a bit of heart string tugging as the heroes and heroines try desperately to find their parents, and you've got a recipe for some blood-soaked fun.
3 - recommended!