Author: Rosalynn Try-Hane

Roofman is actually a somewhat entertaining film based on a bizarre but true story. Had it been thirty minutes shorter then it would have heightened the drama and made it much more engaging.

In the 1990s, Jeffrey Manchester convicted of robbing branches of McDonalds by entering by the roof escapes from prison. You guessed it, he enters the roof of a Toys R Us and hides out for 6 months. During that time he goes to church starting a misguided love affair before the butterfly effect ensnares him.

Roofman is quite entertaining and manages to tell the story in a well balanced manner. We feel a lot more pathos for the central character due to the script without it slipping into melodrama. The film gets lots of gold starts for the attention detail and the 90s nostalgia. The heists are quite comical, especially the one that Jeffrey ends up in prison for.

However, the pacing of Roofman lets it down making it feel a bit biopic by numbers. It needed ruthless editing. There are so many scenes of Jeffrey reaching for a packet of M&Ms whilst hiding out in Toys R Us which we just didn’t need. A sharper script and dialogue would have elevated this film. The reason why it is compelling is due to the powerful performance by Channing Tatum showing his range.

Roofman was released in cinemas in the UK on Friday 3 October.

Dune Part 2: The BRWC Review.

Dune Part 2 is bolder and much more bombastic than the first instalment. In terms of cinematography and direction, this film is comparable to the sweeping epics of David Lean’s Lawrence of Arabia (both were filmed in the same desert), Star Wars and Blade Runner. Dune Part 2 is a feast for the eyes and ears.

In terms of storytelling, Dune Part 2 is much more coherent than Part 1. It feels less frenetic than the first instalment and we get to understand the motivations of each character, Paul Atreides (Timothee Chalamet) duty before love which feels well placed. Yet, his mother Lady Jessica (played with relish by Rebecca Fergurson) is less concerned with duty and more with power and ensuring both her son and unborn child are secure. However, a large chunk of this film is dedicated to the character of Feyd-Rautha and his bloodthirst. The gladiatorial set pieces are epic.

This is science fiction done extremely well. It is more about the images than the dialogue. We, the audience are given free rein to imagine what might be said rather than hearing any words. As with all great science fiction films, we know who are hero is and we are rooting for him. Yet, when danger does arrive we are intrigued as to how will our hero escape. What makes Dune Part 2 even more appealing is the amount of humour in it. This gives light relief from all the brutal action and the audience to take stock of what is being shown. Javier Bardem as Stilgar has great comic timing.

Dune Part 2 will be released in cinemas across the UK on Friday 1 March.

The Zone of Interest is absolutely chilling but compelling. Glazer has delivered a masterpiece and a conversation starter all in one. At the heart of this film is the central question: what’s more evil – the act of killing or pretending the killing isn’t happening?

The Zone of Interest’s sole focus is the family life of Auschwitz commander Rudolf Hoss and his wife Hedwig as they raise their family in the literal shadow of the concentration camp. Christian Friedel and Sandra Huller give outstanding performances as the commandant, Rudolf and wife, Hedwig. The Zone of Interest is disconcerting from before the opening frame as the music starts and the audience is plunged into darkness only for the shock to the eyes of colour and an idyllic family scene of a picnic by the river to be shown on screen.

The soundscape by Johnnie Burn is incredible and adds to the chilling effect as we watch the banality of evil. The everyday that most of us have experienced except never in the shadow of a concentration camp. Looslely Inspired by the book of the same name by Martin Amis, the script and direction by Glazer takes this to a whole different level.

The Zone of Interest is a masterclass on how to talk about terror without showing any images of the terror and it makes the audience feel terrified. We never see the classic images of transportation or lines of Jewish people in the concentration camp. Instead Glazer keeps his focus on his primary subject the Hoss family, and shows the clothes and other items stolen from the victims of the concentration camp being given out by Hoss’s wife to her friends and house staff. In another scene, we see a prisoner washing blood of Hoss’s boots.

It’s hard to articulate one’s thoughts on the film. It is absolutely necessary viewing. The Zone of Interest is even more chilling considering the current world events. The line between evil and decency is paper thin. Friedel’s Hoss is shown as a family man who just goes to work to do his job. Yet, watching the film it feels as if his wife, Hedwig, is the more evil of the two, now that she has the house and garden of her dreams she doesn’t care about the impact on anyone. She wants to stay and the fact that her former neighbours are being exterminated in the concentration camp next door is of little consequence. Except his job is the most heinous and evil things ever to happen in the 20th century.

The Zone of Interest will be released in cinemas across the UK on Friday 2 February.

It is certainly bold to turn Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize winning, the Color Purple, into a musical. This is a departure from the 1985 original film version about sisters Celie and Nettie, sisters torn apart after their mother died and one is sold off into an abusive marriage.

This musical version of The Color Purple feels like an altogether different story than what is set out in the book. It feels like Sofia’s story rather than Celie’s. The musical numbers help to bring a bit of brevity to what is otherwise still an emotionally challenging story of sexual abuse, incest, and racism. There’s a nod to the past, especially having Whoopi Goldberg appear as the midwife to deliver another one of Celie’s babies.

As with all musicals, the pace is dictated by the musical numbers, and as an audience that is what you are waiting for. This take on The Color Purple feels joyful rather than poignant and by the end of the film it all felt very happy. The entire cast is excellent. The songs are largely forgettable aside from Hell No which is sung by Sofia (Danielle Brooks). That character also has all the best lines eg “I haven’t seen you since Jesus wept.” Danielle Brooks dominates every single frame she is in. Her Oscar nomination is well deserved.

Overall, this is a solid musical adaptation but strangely devoid of the emotional devastation of the 1985 original.

The Color Purple is released in cinemas across the UK on 26 January.