Movie of the week – The Other Side of Hope
Cult Finnish director Aki Kaurismaki returns this week with The Other Side of Hope. A comic drama that follows the intersecting lives of a Helsinki restaurant owner and a Syrian immigrant, it’s packed with Kaurismaki’s customary quirkiness, and is genuinely hilarious in parts. Any commentary it offers on Europe’s immigration crisis is paper thin however.
The Red Turtle
The Red Turtle is the latest production from acclaimed animation house Studio Ghibli. Playing out entirely without dialogue, it’s the story of a man shipwrecked on an island with only the titular reptile for company. After an engrossing first half it takes a less interesting turn, but animation buffs won’t want to miss this one.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Salazar’s Revenge
Pirates of the Caribbean: Salazar’s Revenge is the latest in a franchise that has been running on fumes for several installments now. Some inspired visual flourishes from the Norwegian directing duo of Joachim Ronning and Espen Sandberg can’t save this from becoming another bloated bore thanks to uninteresting characters and Johnny Depp’s highly annoying performance.
I Am Not Madame Bovary
Sometimes foreign movies struggle to translate outside of their own culture, and I feel that’s the case with new Chinese film I Am Not Madame Bovary, a comedy that follows a slightly daft woman as she takes on her country’s notorious bureaucracy. It sounds like a universal tale, but the satire fails to translate to western sensibilities and the gimmick of framing the action in a circle rather than a rectangle proves little more than a distraction.
By Eric Hillis of themoviewaffler.com
