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Tenet Earns A Number 1 Debut

Christopher Nolan’s time-bending epic Tenet debuts at Number 1 on the final Official Film Chart of 2020!

Notching up 149,000 sales across disc and digital to outsell the rest of the Top 5 combined, the sci-fi action hit stars John David Washington as the ‘Protagonist’, a secret agent who manipulates time to prevent World War III. Robert Pattinson, Michael Caine, and Elizabeth Debicki also star.

Flying 15 places, Roald Dahl’s The Witches lands at Number 2 this week. The modern remake of the classic children’s book stars Anne Hathaway, Octavia Spencer and Stanley Tucci. Jim Carey’s The Grinch (2000) holds firm at Number 3, and Love Actually also freezes in place at Number 4. Elf’s three-week stint at Number 1 ends as it drops to Number 5.

Falling a few places but holding on to a spot in the Top 10 are Last Christmas (6), Home Alone (7), The Polar Express (8), whileThe Muppet Christmas Carol (9).

Finally, the 2018 animated version of The Grinch returns to the Top 10 after climbing one place to Number 10.

This week’s Official Film Chart features a look at X-Men spin-off The New Mutants. The superhero horror starring Maisie Williams and Anna Taylor-Joy is available to Download & Keep from December 28.

Now, as well as OfficialCharts.com, the Official Film Chart can also be found on FindAnyFilm.com – the ultimate site for Film and TV fans to discover all the legal ways to buy the entertainment they want on disc and digital formats.

The Official Film Chart Top 10 – 23^rd December 2020

LW	Pos	Title	Label
NEW	1	TENET	WARNER HOME VIDEO
17	2	ROALD DAHL’S THE WITCHES	WARNER HOME VIDEO
3	3	THE GRINCH	UNIVERSAL PICTURES
4	4	LOVE ACTUALLY	UNIVERSAL PICTURES
1	5	ELF	WARNER HOME VIDEO
2	6	LAST CHRISTMAS	UNIVERSAL PICTURES
5	7	HOME ALONE	20TH CENTURY FOX HE
6	8	THE POLAR EXPRESS	WARNER HOME VIDEO
8	9	THE MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL	JIM HENSON VIDEO
11	10	THE GRINCH (ANIMATED)	UNIVERSAL PICTURES

VIEW THE FULL TOP 40 – https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/film-chart/

23rd December 2020

Climate Of The Hunter: Review

Alma (Ginger Gilmartin) and Elizabeth (Mary Buss) are sisters, although as sisters often are, they very rarely see eye to eye. One day they reconnect with an old friend, Wesley (Ben Hall) who they haven’t seen for twenty years and he comes to stay, but Alma’s son, Percy (Sheridan McMichael) and Elizabeth’s daughter, Rose (Danielle Evon Ploeger) both take an instant dislike to the man they consider to be a stranger.

Although the sisters soon find Wesley to be seductively alluring and they both vie for his attention. The trouble is that as Alma starts to notice things about Wesley, she starts to believe that he may be a vampire.

Climate of The Hunter is a throwback horror movie directed by Mickey Reece and co-written by John Selvidge. The idea behind Climate of The Hunter must have been to try and evoke those kinds of movies that someone may have stumbled across late one night on television in the Seventies – and it fully succeeds.

Everything in Climate of The Hunter from the wardrobe, the cinematography, the acting and even the locations make the movie feel like it was filmed over 40 years ago, but it was only first shown at Fantastic Fest in 2019. Even with this knowledge though, it’s hard not to be sucked into the cinematic world that it creates and forget about modern cinema.

These days most audiences these days may expect everything to be explained to them as the plot goes along. However, Climate of The Hunter is more of a snapshot of film making from an era gone by done to perfection and the audience today may even be able to imagine how the movie was made even if it actually did come out at that time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhTIC4Nooxk

Climate of The Hunter is David Lynch meets Nosferatu and if that sounds like your kind of thing then you will thoroughly enjoy it. There are no nods or winks to the modern day and the movie fully immerses itself in its aesthetic which makes it an incredible cinematic achievement.

Thankfully it isn’t trying too hard to evoke a certain period either, feeling authentic right up until the very last shot.

23rd December 2020
Skylines: Review

2010’s Skyline was a forgettable dud, with a visual-effects laden trailer masking the cheap and overly-simplistic film underneath the surface (I remember being foolishly optimistic for the film based on the trailer). Instead of letting the brand vanish into the ether, producer/screenwriter Liam O’Donnell revived the franchise with 2017’s Beyond Skyline. Thriving as a dopey, yet wildly entertaining B-movie corn fest, O’Donnell pulled off a rare feat by correcting the first film’s major misgivings. Now back in the writer/director role with Skylines, O’Donnell’s sincere dedication to his world can only take the formulaic material so far.

Following the events of Beyond, Skyline follows a broken planet trying to pick up the pieces from the alien invasion. When a virus threatens to turn the now earth-dwelling friendly alien hybrids against humans, Captain Rose Corley (Lindsey Morgan) must lead a team of elite mercenaries on a mission to the alien world in order to save what’s left of humanity.

Similar to its surprise predecessor, much of Skylines’ strengths can be attributed to Liam O’Donnell’s makeshift technical abilities. I have ample respect for the ways O’Donnell operates within the low-budget genre framework. Instead of letting budgetary restrictions compromise his vision, he implements a clever mixture of practical and CGI effects to create his own lived-in landscape.

The action setpieces pack a blockbuster punch through O’Donnell’s steady framing, while his globe-trotting narrative conveys an immersive sense of scale for audiences to indulge in. Whereas Beyond Skyline focused on throwing gonzo energy at the screen, Skylines is O’Donnell’s attempt to make this franchise into its own entity. The script pays ample attention towards lore building, turning these formerly cliched creatures into their own unique presence.

As much adoration I can pay towards O’Donnell, his latest film ultimately did not mesh for me. I respect the writer/director’s decision to evolve the franchise rather than playing to what previously worked in Beyond, but this film loses some of that manic charm in the process. Without wildcard moments like Iko Uwais martial arts fighting aliens, Skylines bears a closer resemblance to your typical VOD genre vehicle. It doesn’t help that O’Donnell’s screenplay largely borrows from superior contemporaries, with the Alien meets District 9 premise lacking its own distinct voice (despite the premise’s surprising relevance, there’s little substance to be found).

Skylines lingering sense of familiarity is only made worse by the subpar cast. Lindsey Morgan is capable again as Rose, but the supporting cast does little to elevate their gruff stereotypical roles (the soldiers are basically your generic platoon troops without an ounce of charisma). Frank Grillo and Johnny Weston are sorely missed here, as there are few actors who can extract much personality from their by-the-numbers roles.

While the swift experience is entirely palatable, Skylines struggles to find its own presence amongst a crowded subgenre. That being said, this is still a night and day improvement over the 2010 original, and I am happy to support whatever Liam O’Donnell does next with his talents.

Vertical Entertainment will release SKYLINES in select Theaters, Drive-ins, on Demand and Digital on December 18th.

23rd December 2020
Dọlápọ̀ Is Fine: Review

A young black woman, ready to leave boarding school, struggles with pressures to make changes to her identity for a job in the City.

Dọlápọ̀’s hair, a resplendent afro, is the most striking thing about her appearance, and something she takes obvious pride in. Her school-friends, as we come to learn, are fascinated by and appreciative of it too. This was represented in the relationship between Dọlápọ̀ (Doyin Ajiboye) and her best friend Imogen (Katie Friedli Walton).

Their close bond is genuine, although certain early scenes suffered from stagey dialogue and awkward delivery. Some more interaction with the other pupils, and perhaps some of the teachers as well, would have helped show her acceptance and integration within the school’s diverse but closed community.

The crux of the film’s central issue, and one of the more powerful and effective moments, is a scene in which she meets a careers advisor (Joan Iyiola) who encourages Dọlápọ̀ to hide her afro and change her name to Dolly, in order to succeed in the professional world. A black woman herself, she is immediately antagonising, confronting Dọlápọ̀ with the harsh realities of how she will be perceived in a predominately white workplace, judged on her physical appearance and given African name.

This toughness also suggests her own bitterness at having herself chosen to conform in order to get where she is, ultimately sacrificing a part of her own identity in exchange for acceptance. By making her character relatable, having had to negotiate the same system, it hints that the tough love approach is forged equally between the blurred lines of realism and racism. By not showing sympathy in the way we might expect, their’s is perhaps a more honest relationship, one which at least shows respect in treating Dọlápọ̀ as an adult, not a schoolgirl.

Dọlápọ̀’s decision is far from an easy one to make. There are underlying factors at work. It symbolises a crossroads, a landmark which questions one’s character, confidence and self-belief.

It touches not just on the issue of race but also of conformity to white, conventional standards of female beauty. The film is an enjoyable watch with a satisfying payoff which offers hope and triumph over adversity. It’s a journey which tests her mettle, but in the end Dọlápọ̀ is more than just fine, she is empowered.

22nd December 2020
News Of The World: The BRWC Review

His low-key persona may not grab attention, but Paul Greengrass’ virtuosic verve behind the camera has morphed mainstream cinema. With United 93 and The Bourne Trilogy, the unheralded director employed kinetic handheld framing to intensify his distinct zeitgeist titles. Greengrass’ fresh persona changed action filmmaking forever, even though some of his recent endeavors haven’t been as inspiring (22 July and the long-awaited Jason Bourne were missed opportunities). In an intriguing switch-up, Greengrass trades his modern sensibility for the old-school appeals of the wild west in News of the World, a winning adventure elevated by one of the industry’s marquee talents.

News of the World follows Captain Jefferson Kyle Kid (Tom Hanks), a Civil War veteran now working to spread the news to local townsfolk. When he discovers a kidnapped native girl (Helena Zengel), the two journey across the dangerous Texas landscape to return her home.

It’s refreshing to see Greengrass adopt a new visceral identity, trading his usually sweaty intimacy for a sweeping grandiosity. Indulging in the barren deserts and rocky locales, the film aptly sets a setting for audiences to get lost in, along with portraying the inherent dangers behind Captain Jefferson’s mission. There are a lot of traditionalist elements to Greengrass’ presentation (the film boasts your typically subdued western score), but the director also discovers avenues to leave his mark on the material. He enhances the action/adventure elements with nail-biting tension, including a 20-minute standoff that sings with authenticity and gritty impact. I credit Greengrass for taking the familiar husk of the subgenre and enriching it through his accomplished craftsmanship.

News of the World rests much of its success on its well-matched leads. In the least shocking news ever, Tom Hanks delivers a strong effort as Captain Jefferson, intimately exploring the gooey emotions under the character’s stern facade. Along with developing a well-constructed character, Hanks shines as a masterful orator when performing his unique job. The news-telling scenes could have been woefully flat in the wrong hands, but his ever-present charisma engages the audience from jump street. Young newcomer Helena Zengel deserves a lot of credit for disappearing into her role as the timid Johanna. Zengel conveys the character’s stark journey with emotional sincerity while forming genuine comradery with Hanks onscreen. The characters’ lack of verbal communication doesn’t mask their shared desire to grow from their past traumas, with that kinship molding into a heartfelt emotional core.

News of the World works capably as an old-school adventure, but Greengrass’ film misses the boat on deeper conceits. There are frames where audiences can see the thematic ideas behind Captain Kyle’s journey, observing the ways news and news manipulation shape a populous’s notions about the world around them (a lawless cult makes Kyle read ignorantly curated stories). It’s a thoughtful idea, one that’s often handled with a clumsy obviousness by Greengrass and Luke Davies screenplay (the film’s Reconstruction setting also rarely gets the attention it deserves). The third act also loses some of its pacing momenta as the narrative searches for a satisfying conclusion (the strong last few frames help combat the ending’s predictably).

News of the World is the type of old-school epic that we don’t see enough of these days. While inherently straight-forward, Paul Greengrass and company’s sincerity rings true within the material.

News of the World will be on Netflix from 10^th February. It won’t be in cinemas in the UK.

22nd December 2020