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Get Hard

What’s it about? 

Will Ferrell is James King, a wealthy businessman found guilty of fraud who befriends a hard working small business owner, Darnell Lewis (Kevin Hart), in order to prepare for his time in jail.

What did we think?
Nick Bleeker says: Filled to the brim with racist jokes, rape “humour”, a weird thing against gay people, and a silly number of lazy gags about its title, Get Hard shows a decent rapport between Ferrell and Hart but fails to present any form of humour that isn’t absolutely, totally, 100% morally bankrupt. It gets the extra half star because Kevin Hart is tolerable.

Cinderella

What’s it about? 
Disney raids its back catalogue to gives one of its most iconic tales a coat of live-action paint.

What did we think? 
Amy Currie says: Director Kenneth Branagh’s take on Cinderella doesn’t stray too far from the source material, but plumps the story up enough to be interesting. It’s a beautiful chocolate box of a film that gives its familiar characters a bit more depth (but manages to resist the urge to update by simply cutting-and-pasting modern sass onto fairytale staples). Helena Bonham-Carter’s fairy godmother is a delight, but Cate Blanchett’s wicked stepmother steals the show. Oh, and the Prince (Game of Thrones‘ Richard Madden) wears some very, very tight breeches which can only be described as enchanting. See it before the clock strikes 12.

The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water

What’s it about?
When a diabolical pirate above the sea steals the secret Krabby Patty formula, SpongeBob and his nemesis Plankton must team up in order to get it back.

What did we think?
NOTE: Our reviewer declined to comment as she couldn’t bear to spend one more second of her life thinking about this film.

Insurgent

What’s it about?
Part two in the Divergent trilogy sees our heroes, Tris (Shailene Woodley) and Four (Theo James) attempt to uncover the truth about their society’s rigid faction system and bring down its Machiavellian government.

What did we think?
Lisa Clifford says: Insurgent begins where Divergent left off – a little disorientating for those unfamiliar with the first installment or novels. For a dystopian teen drama, it’s a pretty bleak look at the lengths some will go to for power and pulls no punches when it comes to violence and death. The strong cast does their best with the at-times mediocre dialogue. The story moves along a reasonable pace, spurred on by some decent edge-of-your-seat action sequences. An improvement on its predecessor, Insurgent builds to a satisfying climax while effectively setting up the final installment in the trilogy. Fans of the books and the first film will enjoy.

Home

What’s it about?
Oh, an alien on the run from his own people, lands on Earth and makes friends with the adventurous Tip, who is on a quest of her own.

What did we think?
Erin Lane says:  Not even the voices of Jim Parsons and Rihanna can save Home from a terrible blandness. Their presence might help the film’s popularity and, to be honest, it probably needs all the help it can get. The forced Boov dialogue – more Jar Jar than Yoda – grates and there are so many little morals coming at you that it’s hard to see what a child would go away with from the movie. A poor plot without a consistent theme just makes it difficult viewing for adults. It alternates between too cutesy and too clever for its own good (for example Tip is a nickname because her name is Gratuity). Kids might possibly like the cute aliens (who change colour with emotions) but let’s face it, cute aliens have been done before and much better.

Big Eyes

What’s it about?
It’s the early ’60s, and Walter Keane (Christoph Waltz) is famous for his kitsch, sentimental paintings of big-eyed children. But it’s all a con – the paintings were actually created by his wife Margaret (Amy Adams), and she’s had just about enough of living in his shadow.

What did we think?
Amy Currie says:  Director Tim Burton dials down his trademark spooky-quirky to make a biopic, and there’s not a Depp or Bonham Carter in sight. Adams finds the sweet spot between downtrodden and determined, and Waltz manages to be both the comic relief and a genuinely menacing presence.  There’s still enough Burton-ness to make the world seem just a little larger than life (and the gorgeous sets and costumes make the audience want to run away to the ’60s) but it trails off into a made-for-TV ending.  Worth seeing, but cross your fingers it doesn’t start a big-eyed art revival.

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