Bovie Movie

Watching this messy comedy drama, you may well wonder if director Spike Lee has totally lost the plot. Not only is this film audaciously offbeat, but it’s also excruciatingly clichéd and so unconventionally constructed that it plays like a handful of genre movies all competing for supremacy. Jaws will certainly drop, as suave Anthony Mackie goes into unofficial business by impregnating rich lesbians — including Monica Bellucci’s Mob princess — after being sacked as a whistle-blower from a corporation pushing a defective Aids vaccine. Following the internalised emotion of 25th Hour, Lee is back on his socio-political hobby horse, attacking corporate culture, greed and preconceptions about black men. Unfortunately, the feature’s increasing ludicrousness and his insistence on pandering to crude male fantasies ultimately undermine any serious messages. Still, there are some very funny moments, not least John Turturro as a Godfather-quoting Mafia don. Consequently, the overall effect is like a car crash — a tragic waste, yet impossibly riveting. 

Shakespeare’s famous play is updated to the hip modern suburb of Verona still retaining its original dialogue. The gun-toting members of the families wage a vicious war on the streets as the star-crossed lovers, their tragic destiny.

The latest from Pixar (home of Toy Story, Monsters, Inc and The Incredibles) measures up to, if not quite surpasses, the best of that animation stable. Here, a country rat with a gift for haute cuisine ends up saving the bacon — actually, the soup — of the garbage boy at Paris’s finest restaurant. Together, they set out to fulfill each other’s culinary dreams. Though it’s a wee bit on the long side, this fast-moving, wholesome comedy nevertheless has some absolutely brilliant comic turns, the highlight being Peter O’Toole as Anton Ego, the tough, bitter food critic (who, rather disconcertingly, looks like Will Self). Working with a tight, well-judged script and sensational animation that makes you want to go home and cook — as well as be nicer to rodents — director Brad Bird has made the best family comedy of the year. 

Jason thought his inheritance was going to be the gift of money and lots of it. Was he ever in for a big surprise. Based on the best-selling book “The Ultimate Gift” by Jim Stovall, the story sends trust fund baby Jason Stevens on an improbable journey of discovery, having to answer the ultimate question: “What is the relationship between wealth and happiness?” Jason had a very simple relationship with his impossibly wealthy Grandfather, Howard “Red” Stevens. He hated him. No heart-to-heart talks, no warm fuzzies, just cold hard cash. So of course he figured that when Red died, the whole “reading of the will” thing would be another simple cash transaction, that his Grandfather’s money would allow him to continue living in the lifestyle to which he had become accustomed. But what Red left him was anything but simple. Red instead devised a plan for Jason to experience a crash course on life. Twelve tasks, which Red calls “gifts,” each challenging Jason in an improbable way, the accumulation of which would change him forever.

John Carpenter’s cult classic gets a contemporary re-working in this exciting action thriller. The English-language debut of director Jean-François Richet, it maintains the original’s basic concept, but brings both protagonists and story into the 21st century. Focusing more on individuals and their relationships rather than pure action, this simple urban western is set in an isolated, sparsely manned Detroit police station under siege during its final night before closure. The aim of the relentless assailants is to retrieve laid-back crime lord Laurence Fishburne, which forces the prisoners and cops inside into an uneasy alliance to stay alive. Every frame of this film crackles with raw energy, as Richet cranks up the tension, economically exploiting sight, sound and extreme violence to gripping effect. The acting is enjoyable, too — despite some corny dialogue and clichéd characters — with Ethan Hawke’s emotionally scarred police sergeant a particular standout.