Amazing Grace
PG, 118 mins Three stars
An old-fashioned biopic of William Wilberforce (Ioan Gruffudd), Amazing Grace
offers modest entertainment and plenty of moral uplift and historical
education. The director, Michael Apted, has the difficult task of
dramatising what is essentially the workings of a pressure group and its
struggle to win minds and hearts. So the focus is on Wilberforce and his
various struggles with God, politics, ill health and even love. Plenty of
great British thespians — Albert Finney, Michael Gambon, Toby Jones — are on
hand to lend support. It would be great as Sunday-night television viewing,
but a trip to the cinema may be another matter. CL
Catch a Fire
12A, 101 mins Three stars
Set in apartheid-era South Africa, this is the true story of the
transformation of Patrick Chamusso (Derek Luke) from a man with a passion
for his wife, family and football — and no interest in politics — into a
gun-toting member of the ANC. The story moves from family saga to
all-too-familiar cat-and-mouse action film, with Chamusso being pursued by
his former torturer, Colonel Nic Vos (Tim Robbins). Directed by Phillip
Noyce (Rabbit-Proof Fence), this is a worthy, moving film that offers a
rather familiar look at the evils of apartheid. CL
TMNT
PG, 87 mins Three stars
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles return, not only with a snazzily abbreviated
title, but in a wholly computer-animated film — a technological leap forward
from their previous movies (made in the 1990s), in which they were
represented by blokes in rubber suits. Nostalgic fans of that format might
argue that it was more fun. Certainly, the concept of giant bipedal turtles
interacting with humans makes less of an impression when the humans are
themselves cartoon figures. But Kevin Munroe’s film should still go down
well with its target audience, eight-year-old boys. Although it is no better
than a Saturday-morning television ’toon in its garbled story, it has good
action scenes, in which the turtles bound over rooftops within a marvellous
rendering of a film-noir New York. EP
Midnight Movies
18, 88 mins Three stars
Looking back to the 1970s trend for late-night cinema showings of
antimainstream films, Stuart Samuels’s documentary focuses on six movies
that thus gained cult followings: El Topo (officially the first midnight
movie), Night of the Living Dead, Pink Flamingos, The Harder They Come, The
Rocky Horror Picture Show and Eraserhead. There is evocative footage of
young people in dank cinemas enjoying a shared transgressiveness that is
harder to find in film-going today. Yet what makes this more engaging is the
lack of excessive nostalgia from the cheerful talking heads (among them
George A Romero, John Waters and David Lynch). Generally, they see it as no
bad thing that the sensibility once found only in midnight movies is now
evident in big-money studio pictures. EP
The Gigolos
12A, 95 mins Three stars
A low-budget British film by a first-time feature director (Richard
Bracewell), The Gigolos rejects routine genres for understated comic drama.
Set in London, it concerns a young smoothie (Sacha Tarter) who works as an
escort to well-off middle-aged women (including clients played by Sian
Phillips, Susannah York and Anna Massey). When an injury temporarily puts
him out of the game, his laconic, girl-shy aide (Trevor Sather) stands in,
with consequences that shake up their partnership. Working from a script
written with Bracewell, the two leads achieve an unforced, likeable
naturalism. The slight story only just holds together in the hurried
conclusion, but the film speaks well of its makers. EP
Brasileirinho
U, 90 mins Three stars
Mika Kaurismaki’s documentary is an introduction to the music known as choro,
a flamencoish Brazilian form that developed in the late 19th century when
musicians in Rio began to combine European melodies with native rhythms.
Though it has been eclipsed by samba and bossa nova, choro is still going
strong, and Kaurismaki describes the mixture of traditionalism and evolution
that has kept it alive. Although this gives us some biographical anecdotes
from genial musicians, there is nothing to match the fantastic human
interest of Buena Vista Social Club. The music itself is lovely, but the
discussions of technical points were hard work for this layman. EP
Catch and Release
12A, 111 mins One star
If the Starbucks corporation ever made a film, it would be something like this
chick flick, in which the characters are thirtysomethings sharing a boho
dwelling, and acoustic guitar music wells up at emotional moments. Nothing
with any flavour of real life happens at any stage, while Jennifer Garner’s
character gets over her husband’s sudden death by falling in love with his
best friend (Timothy Olyphant). Susannah Grant’s film might have been merely
bland if Juliette Lewis hadn’t come along to make it positively painful.
Nearly always an irritating actress in any circumstance, she is cast here as
somebody actually meant to be irritating. It’s a gruesome double whammy. EP
I Want Candy
15, 90 mins One star
The story of two ambitious film students (Tom Riley and Tom Burke) who get
funding for a movie on the condition that it is a hardcore porn flick,
Stephen Surjik’s film wants to be a British answer to America’s smutty teen
movies. One thing to be said for it, then, is that it’s no worse than a
typical Hollywood equivalent. Another small plus point is that it maintains
a British tone, rather than aping American mannerisms. I can also add that
the cast (including Carmen Electra, playing a porn star called Candy
Fiveways) make a good effort. But all this is just a build-up to me saying
that the film isn’t funny. The depiction of the porn industry as one of
happy performers and harmless, comical bosses isn’t commendable, either. EP
Edward Porter and Cosmo Landesman
