Release Date – 12th January 2024, Cert – 15, Run-time – 1 hour 47 minutes, Directors – Kibwe Tavaras, Daniel Kaluuya

Whilst planning to move to a better apartment, Izi (Kane Robinson) takes in a bereaved child (Jedaiah Bannerman) to his home in The Kitchen, a block of flats regularly attacked by police trying to evict the residents.

There’s a believable design to the world of The Kitchen. Both the titular block of flats and the landscape outside of it. It’s nice to know that no matter how run down the streets of London are, at least Poundland still exists. Yet, it’s a place that the residents of The Kitchen visit little. They largely spend as much time as close to their flats as possible. The small space outside of the building is full of vibrant shops and stalls, easy to close in case the police break in.

Orders have been in place for an extensive time for the demolition of The Kitchen, however the residents refuse to leave – in part for not being able to afford a new, modern flat. Therefore, the police frequently run in capturing as many people who don’t make it back to their flats in time in scenes which maintain a chaotic intensity. The one person with little plan to stay is Kane Robinson’s Izi, he’s saving up to move to one of the various high-tech apartments surrounding his current home. However, he experiences a setback when he takes in bereaved child Benji (Jedaiah Bannerman) after seeing him at the funeral home he works at – where the dead are allowed to move on by being used to grow trees.

As the pair’s quiet and engaging relationship grows the raids on The Kitchen increase in frequency and brutality. It makes Izi even more intent on leaving, however Benji is making his plan more difficult: the flat he’s preparing to move into is only for one person and is strictly monitored. There’s a lot going on in the film in regards to its themes and the different strands that it follows for its central characters, and indeed the main location as we reach the halfway point it feels as if it starts to lose itself amongst them.

As things stretch on the various strands are kept in place, and as they continue it feels as if the story could be condensed into a short film, or as if it’s been adapted from one. Into the second half it starts to leave a somewhat cold feeling. Interest in the setting may be maintained, but with the way the themes are drawn out or tangled throughout the run-time means that things never quite have the same gripping nature as the occasional louder bursts. The themes and focuses shift from scene to scene and, again, almost bring a jumpy quality to the overall film, especially in the second half when the developments should be having more emotional impact.

While there’s interest in the world and engagement with the characters The Kitchen loses itself amongst its different strands, losing effect and feel as if it could be more condensed.

Release Date – 24th November 2023, Cert – 15, Run-time – 2 hours 9 minutes, Director – Bradley Cooper

Leonard Bernstein (Bradley Cooper) looks back on his life, particularly his changing relationship with Felicia Montealegre (Carey Mulligan).

Perhaps one of the best sequences in Maestro is a sequence solely focusing on an orchestra being conducted by Leonard Bernstein (Bradley Cooper). He passionately leads the group as their music echoes across the stone walls of a brightly lit church. At the end as the final note faded a composer sat next to me, having expressed his interest in the film for the musical angle to me beforehand, simply said ‘wow’. Afterwards, when mentioning that his response was my favourite thing about the film, he didn’t know he’d made the quiet exclamation. Further showing the power of the scene, particularly to him.

It’s a moment solely focused on the music, and indeed Bernstein’s relationship to it. The opening stages could almost be plucked straight from a musical as a young Bernstein joyously bounds from his home into a music hall – a huge smile across his face. It’s an energetic start, further encapsulated by Cooper’s performance, getting into the voice and character very early on. While some more stylised sequences may somewhat stick out amongst the more natural, talky tone of the rest of the film, there’s a good early push to show the spark of Bernstein’s rise to fame. “Music is the most important thing I can do” he explains later in the film.

Yet, the relationship that Cooper’s latest directorial effort is more concerned with is that with his wife, Felicia Montealegre (Carey Mulligan, doing a very good ‘old timey Hollywood’ accent). Bernstein looks back on his life in an interview which opens the film, the early days of the couple’s romance shown in black and white. Over time the relationships is tested, particularly when it comes to the central figure delving into his sexuality. It’s a point you wish the film itself would delve into more, alongside a number of other points throughout, as it often skims the surface of what feel like key areas to return to a whistle-stop tour of the central marriage.

Perhaps why the second half works somewhat better as elements relating to Bernstein’s affair and sexuality are reeled in for a focus on the later years of the pairs relationship. You still wish that some more detail would be provided on other matters, the film occasionally feels as if it wants to discuss them more but doesn’t want to push its run-time or get distracted. Therefore, it generally tries its best to stay on its path of looking at Bernstein and Montealegre’s relationship over the years. Like Bernstein with his music you sometimes wish that the film would get a bit more lost in these moments, dig in to find more and bring out the emotion. Instead it avoids doing so, occasionally bringing to mind thoughts that perhaps this might work best for people with a pre-existing knowledge of Bernstein and his work – one beyond his mention in R.E.M.’s It’s The End Of The World As We Know It (and yes, that does get a brief, smile-inducing play).

While what’s present is likable and does a good job of engaging you in the story of a man who “leaves the bathroom door open for fear of being alone” – helped particularly by Cooper’s great central performance – you simply wish that it did that bit more. Instead it sometimes feels as if things are slightly unfocused instead of hesitant, especially in the first half before a more direct nature comes in for the final stages. The later years where Bernstein’s career seems to take a different form, and to some extent the film does as well – although still keeping the more natural dialogue and depictions – showcase the more personal drama for Cooper and Mulligan and its as their relationship becomes more tense, and potentially distant, the things feel most focused.

While starting off with energy and promise, especially thanks to a great performance from Bradley Cooper, Maestro is held back by the fact that it rarely delves into multiple key and interesting points about its central figure, bringing them up but never developing them.

Release Date – 12th January 2024, Cert – 18, Run-time – 2 hours 21 minutes, Director – Yorgos Lanthimos

Since being brought to life Bella (Emma Stone) has been confined to the home and lab of her creator, Dr Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe), until she escapes with a debauched lawyer (Mark Ruffalo), learning about the freedoms of the open world.

Bella Baxter’s world is a black and white affair. Confined to the home and lab of her creator, the experimental Dr Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe), he’s monitored and analysed as she rapidly develops from making slurred animal noises – in tune with the stitched-together hybrids around the rest of the house – to constructing complete sentences. Soon she yearns to explore the outside world and what it has to offer. Like her we experience an otherworldly feel to the fantastical colour scheme and landscapes throughout director Yorgos Lanthimos’ latest. The off-kilter nature of things offers a strange world for Bella to explore, with the audience alongside her on another journey of development, and understanding.

As she escapes her home, running off with debauched lawyer Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo – barely containing his glee with this intentionally hammy and overdramatic role), her eyes are opened to potential freedoms across the world (and all manner of desserts). The world is made up of fascinating contrasts – “I have adventured and seen nothing but sugar and violence” Bella describes “it is quite charming”. Even with the greed and ill intentions she encounters Bella remains a fascinated and eager figure, raring to find her place in the world she’s still learning so much about. In turn she’s an equally fascinating figure from whom we see a full arc of development from over the almost two-and-a-half hour run-time. It feels as if we see her mind expanding in real-time, making for an even more intriguing character hook.

The mixture of the film’s themes, Lanthimos’ style and the visual design of the piece create the vibe of a dazed Wes Anderson, tapping away feverish fantasies at a typewriter that can just about keep up. It’s a strong yet controlled pace with which the themes themselves develop over the course of the film. Further encapsulated within Stone’s performance. As Bella takes part in an utterly joyous dance scene it’s hard not to think that Stone’s on her way to a deserved second Oscar.

As Poor Things depicts growth and strength emerging from unlikely places and circumstances, those with exteriors otherwise creating prejudices of offput and strangeness, it itself potentially creates empowerment from its initial oddities. We see the protagonist push ahead into and away from the world around her, no matter what others say or do; especially Ruffalo’s self-inflated lover, gaining a number of laughs with his vanity, and shutdowns from Stone.

It all makes the final image all the more effective, and particularly enjoyable. The final stages may feel slightly on the long side, but it’s worth it for the last shot before we cut to the credits. Held within the occasional comedic bluntness of the dialogue is an eloquent portrait of personal growth and exploration. Caught in an otherworldly place there’s a lot of visual strength on display and a clear effort in costume, production design and cinematography, complimented by Jerskin Fendrix’s score which adds to the overall engagement factor and effect. Wrapping you further in what’s being detailed on the screen, making for an even more immersive experience. One which has us connect with Bella as she too explores this world for the first time, being willed on by the audience as from the beginning it’s clear she’s making her own way. And what a joy it is to see her do so in such stylistic and untrepedatious fashion.

Bella Baxter is a fascinating, joyous and empowering character made by Emma Stone’s brilliant leading performance, her development is the core hook of Poor Things. Spurred further by the strong otherworldly visual detail emphasising her views and journey against the strong supporting cast around her.

Release Date – 1st January 2024, Cert – 12, Run-time – 1 hour 49 minutes, Director – James Hawes

Looking back on his life, Nicholas Winton (Anthony Hopkins) tries to find a home for his personal documents recounting his efforts in World War II to save child refugees in Prague.

The clip of Nicholas Winton’s second appearance on British consumer affairs series That’s Life goes viral every few months. It consistently manages to stir the emotions in those watching as the full scale of his work decades before is revealed to him. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that such a monumental feat of humanity has made its way to the big screen.

Clearing out his home office whilst his wife (Lena Olin) is away, Winton (Anthony Hopkins) looks back on his efforts to save refugee children in Prague just as World War II breaks out. Johnny Flynn effectively plays the young Winton in a number of flashback sequences which construct the bulk of One Life’s run-time. Such points could so easily feel like another standard British wartime drama, but there’s something about the spirit of the film as a whole which carries it through, alongside the central performances.

“Lots of these children grew up thinking that the worst thing that was ever going to happen to them was piano practice” is the statement given early in the film, as Jewish families face the threat of Nazi occupation. While, of course, there’s plenty within pitching Winton in great deals of heroic light, mixed in with sentimental tones, there are a good deal of sequences which avoid heavy-handedness and that aforementioned typical British war drama feel.

As the older Nicholas compiles various letters, files and documents in the hope of finding a good new home for the book telling of the work he and his fellow volunteers put in to saving the lives of hundreds of children I found a genuine faith in humanity building up in me. Building up to the key emotional core and recreations, especially when sticking the landing with the eventual That’s Life scenes. Such feelings lift the film up as a whole, stir the emotions within the viewer and simply help to push the film beyond something limited by familiarity.

Hopkins and Flynn work together, although never sharing the screen, to bring about the personal emotions of Winton and co’s work. The rush to make sure that children escape to safety as the Nazis clamp down on Czechoslovakia. The pair both give strong performances leading the film with great effect, with James Hawes’ direction helping to rein in the potential for forced hoped-for-impacts along the way. Perhaps the biggest proof that the film works is in the fact that the viral clip which is recreated manages to still have an effect; an element of surprise, particularly thanks to the fact that the moment is simply allowed to exist as it is, albeit with one or two slight cinematic flourishes to shine a light on Winton and his greatly admirable humanitarian efforts and achievements.

Generally avoiding heavy-handedness, forced sentimentality and an over-familiar feeling One Life manages to stir the emotions thanks to being reined in by director James Hawes, alongside Johnny Flynn and Anthony Hopkins’ effective leading performances.

Release Date – 26th December 2023, Cert – 12, Run-time – 2 hours 4 minutes, Director – Hayao Miyazaki

After the passing of his mother, 12-year-old Mahito (Soma Santoki) is whisked to an unfamiliar new home, where a heron (Masaki Suda) takes him to a fantastical other world claiming that his mother is still alive.

In each of his films, no matter how many times he’s retired, there’s always been something deeply personal from Hayao Miyazaki poured into the inner-workings. His last-film-until-the-next The Boy And The Heron is no different. Amongst the unmistakably Ghibli-infused worlds, landscapes, creatures and food another part of his heart and soul is injected into a narrative of grief and legacy.

12-year-old Mahito (Soma Santoki) is whisked away by his father (Takuya Kimura) to an unfamiliar countryside location after his mother is killed in a bombing in Tokyo. The very formal child tries his best to keep himself to himself in the strange surroundings, no matter how much the various elderly women residing there try to talk to him. It could be so easy for Mahito to seem beyond his years, and in some regards he does, but Miyazaki does a good job of reminding us that he is still a child. During a key sequence, after having been annoyed by a heron at his window, he constructs his own bow and arrow. It’s a simple sequence capturing a youthful creativity and drive which reminds us, just before we dive into the adventure proper, that our protagonist is a child.

He fails in killing the heron, which it turns out not only has a big toothy grin but can also talk (an enjoyably irate and taunting voice from Masaki Suda). The creature tells the child that his mother is actually still alive, and in turn takes him to another world. The fantastical world which he is taken to sprawls with layers and details. Finely animated there’s plenty to like about the visual landscapes that are on display, and the figures that reside within them – including Ghibli’s answer to the Adipose Child. However, there are moment where it feels as if the plot is somewhat wandering.

As you can see the stages of the narrative the jumping between locations and characters begins to make the just over 2 hour run-time feel overlong. Things wind around without it always feeling as if the film knows where it’s going to lead to, largely led by Miyazaki’s personal influence and feelings, which still manage to be an engaging fore. As with his previous films such touches allow for a depth in the emotional elements of the piece, even if the surroundings feel somewhat drawn-out and winding. Yet, even during the longer moments – sometimes made to feel more so by occasionally gradual pacing – there’s still a good deal to be drawn in by visually, and a handful of times tonally.

Miyazaki’s latest personal animation is another visually detailed work from Ghibli which is led by engaging tones and ideas, but with an occasionally wandering and jumpy narrative feels slightly overlong.

Release Date – 8th December 2023, Cert – PG, Run-time – 1 hour 38 minutes, Director – Sam Fell

When their daughter (Bella Ramsey) runs away to a haven for chickens Ginger (Thandiwe Newton) and Rocky (Zachary Levi) band together with other escapees from Tweedy’s Farm to break in before something more sinister is revealed.

Chicken Run’s concept is simple: The Great Escape with chickens. Throw in some very clever jokes and one of the greatest villains to grace the silver screen and you’ve got a mix for a rightfully high-regarded film. Aardman’s first feature show themselves as they meant to go on. Playfully tinkering with genre elements to get laughs through their distinct and loving stop-motion homages. They’d do similar with horror flicks (particularly Hammer horror titles) in Wallace And Gromit: The Curse Of The Were-Rabbit and sci-fi classics in the underrated gem A Shaun The Sheep Movie: Farmageddon.

It therefore comes as something of a surprise that with the simple idea of breaking in Chicken Run: Dawn Of The Nugget feels somewhat generic for Aardman. Even the animation, albeit still impressive, doesn’t quite have the same effect. There are multiple shots in the original where so much is happening where you wonder ‘how did they manage to pull that off?’, here this response is limited to just once, perhaps twice.

Yet, as Ginger (Thandiwe Newton) and Rocky (Zachary Levi) attempt to break into what’s advertised as a chicken haven there are still some enjoyable Aardman-esque jokes and puns here and there – plus an excellent use of Cliff Richard’s Summer Holiday. The best moments are those hidden in a scene – a newspaper headline declaring that “police suspect fowl play” – or, as mentioned, some masterclass-level puns and wordplay, including in visual gags. These are the moments that remind you that there is an Aardman film amongst the more familiar elements of the narrative.

As Ginger and Rocky’s daughter Molly (Bella Ramsey), having escaped at the start of the film in search for a more free life, alongside new friend Frizzle (Josie Sedgwick-Davies) discovers that the Barbieland for chickens they’re in may not be everything it’s been sold as there’s a recognisable set of heist film tropes playing out around the rest of the building. Rocky and rats Nick (Romesh Ranganathan) and Fetcher (Daniel Mays) crawl through air vents and get caught in machines, while the other familiar faces (and in this case voices) try to logically work their way around. We spend so much time jumping back and forth between them and the factory’s tech-whiz Dr Fry (Nick Mohammed – seemingly having a fun time being in an Aardman feature) that the once-terrifying Mrs Tweedy (Miranda Richardson) has little to actually do here.

When she is used it’s mostly in the third act, containing some of the best stuff of the film overall, and perhaps having the most feel like the original. It’s when Dawn Of The Nugget finally feels as if it properly finds its stride, and as if the elements have come together for it to finally do what it wants to do. A lot of the creativity and spark is held here, alongside a the strongest feeling of joy in what is being made, making for something more enjoyable in the grander moments of the 98 minute run-time. There’s a journey to go on before then, and thankfully one with a likable nature and enough silly, very British, puns and elements to keep things moving and the audience engaged.

While for much of the run-time Chicken Run: Dawn Of The Nugget may feel rather safe by Aardman’s standards there are enough jokes and moments to remind you of just what makes the passionate British stop-motion masters so great.

Release Date – 17th November 2023, Cert – 15, Run-time – 1 hour 57 minutes, Director – Todd Haynes

Actress Elizabeth (Natalie Portman) enters the life of out-of-the-limelight Gracie (Julianne Moore) and her younger husband Joe (Charles Melton) in order to research for a film about the controversy around their relationship 20 years before.

Elizabeth (Natalie Portman) insists that all she wants is for Gracie (Julianne Moore) to “feel seen and known”. The actress is visiting the small, coastal town Gracie and her young husband Joe (Charles Melton) live in in order to research for a film she’s been cast to play the former star in. She promises that “it’s a complex and human story” just as the complexities of the relationships, and indeed her investigation, come into play.

Gracie and Joe’s relationship is a controversial one, having made headlines 20 years before due to Gracie being married in her 30s while Joe had only just become a teenager. The scandal swept the country in headlines and while the couple have tried to put the past behind them Elizabeth’s presence brings up questions and hidden feelings. Especially as what’s research and what’s personal begins to conflict and combine.

The main ideas of the past between Gracie and Joe feel somewhat swept aside for much of the film. They’re brought up here and there, but don’t feel properly delved into until near the final stages. It leaves an uncertain air to certain proceedings and the focus nears being how in-depth Elizabeth wants to go for the role, how much she needs to know vs how much she wants to know. We see various scenes between her and Gracie showing their hesitant relationship, with one scene where the pair look into a bathroom mirror and apply make-up seemingly going for a faux sexual tension.

There are plenty of instances throughout May December which appear to be going for campy but simply end up as clunky. Most of the time this is down to individual lines of dialogue bringing you out of a scene like the sound of a dropped pan. When it comes to amusement the best the film can come up with is perhaps its most casual point which feels least like an attempt – as Joe lies on the sofa, drinking beer, eating crisps, watching a documentary about caulk. The more in your face moments are scene endings which feel like their aiming for some form of self-away parody.

As Elizabeth’s connection with the pair changes overtime things simply get more and more crossed over and not in the way the film perhaps intends. Things twist and turn with shifts in focus across various scenes. The overall effect is something rather clunky and eventually unengaging. There may be something somewhat interesting to start with, even if with a stop-start nature thanks to clunky lines of dialogue. However, as the past is truly dug up and other figures from Gracie and Joe’s past have their say as to what happened, and indeed Joe questions the real nature of his marriage and relationship, things go downhill. The film becomes messy and unengaging, and while it might have a level of self-awareness its watered down campiness never really has effect or does anything to lift it up.

Occasionally feeling like its aiming for self-aware parody May December seems to brush aside some of its key themes until too late, with its supposed campiness being overshadowed by its clunky dialogue and eventual overall nature.