ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT/IM WESTEN NICHTS NEUES ★★★★☆
Directed by Edward Berger. Starring Felix Kammerer, Daniel Brühl, Albrecht Schuch, Sebastian Hülk, Aaron Hilmer, Edin Hasanovic. 15A cert, limited release, 147 min
Excellent adaptation of Erich Maria Remarque’s durable novel concerning young Germans dying futilely in the first World War. There is a certain flattening of the characters. Some of the ironic juxtapositions are a tad on-the-nose. But the combat sequences are as impressive as anything commercial cinema has delivered over the Past decade — grubbier, nastier and noisier than those in Sam Mendes’ theatrically choreographed 1917. The film also works hard at arguing that this was the first act in a conflict that didn’t fully end until 1945. Not perfect. But worth savouring on the big screen. Full review DC
EMILY ★★★★☆
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Directed by Frances O’Connor. Starring Emma Mackey. Fionn Whitehead, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Alexandra Dowling, Amelia Gething, Adrian Dunbar, Gemma Jones. 15A cert, gen release, 130 min
Surprisingly impressive study of Emily Brontë. Cinematographer Nanu Segal makes terrific use of the grey skies and Yorkshire landscape. Michael O’Connor’s costumes are cleverly character-coded — Emily’s dresses are as rugged as Charlotte’s are fussy. The ensemble, including Dunbar as the Bronte patriarch, is a credit to casting director Fiona Weir. Mackey, in particular, is a powerhouse. The young star is matched well with O’Connor’s carefully calibrated, appealingly earnest script, which approximates a modern sensibility without striking a false note or straying from Emily’s contemporaneous moors. Highly recommended. Full review TB
HOLY ISLAND ★★★☆☆
Directed by Robert Manson. Starring Jeanne Nicole Ní Áinle, Conor Madden, Dermot Murphy, Mark Doherty, Maria Oxley Boardman, Arthur Riordan, Levi O’Sullivan. 12A cert, limited release, 87 min
Manson has constructed a film whose experiments too often run up against outré cliches every bit as familiar as those common to genre entertainment. David (Madden) and Rosa (Ní Áinle) appear to be trapped on a windy part of the eastern seaboard. There is a ferry service, but bureaucratic difficulties hinder onward travel. There are whispers of the contemporary, but the coin-operated phone box and David’s personal papers are from another era. It is saved by a fine cast almost making sense of its quirky mysteries. Riordan tells a great shaggy dog story. Ní Áinle looks like a star for the future. Full review DC
ROSALINE ★★★☆☆
Directed by Karen Maine. Starring Kaitlyn Dever, Isabela Merced, Kyle Allen, Bradley Whitford, Minnie Driver. Disney+, 95 min
As Shakespeare-inspired material goes, Rosaline, a likable new comedy based on Romeo & Juliet, is unlikely to be confused with Kurosawa’s Ran. This sprightly parallel romcom, which unfolds from the perspective of Juliet’s cousin Rosaline (Dever), is based on Rebecca Serle’s bestselling YA novel When You Were Mine. The script is lively, even if the film’s post-girlboss politics (Rosaline really wants to be a cartographer) and post-Bridgerton pop score feel awfully ho-hum. A winning cast — mostly drawn from the ranks of Gen Z — ensures that Rosaline’s spurned, sulky plans to steal Romeo back from Juliet feels fun. And Minnie Driver’s droll nurse is a delight. Full review TB
