By Eric Hillis
Movie of the week – Gremlins
Many horror movies have adopted a Christmas setting, too often for cynical marketing reasons. Joe Dante’s Gremlins however doesn’t have a cynical bone in its body. A classic piece of post-Spielberg ’80s blockbuster cinema, it’s a lot darker than you might remember, and not the sort of movie that would be marketed for kids today. You can catch it at the Lighthouse on Friday and Tuesday evening.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
The big release of the week – and let’s face it, any week – is Star Wars: The Last Jedi, the latest installment of the ultimate sci-fi franchise. My 10-year-old self will hate me for saying this, but it’s a stinker, an overlong slog bogged down by flat dialogue, a lack of set-pieces and too much smug, self-aware comedy that at times threatens to put the film into Spaceballs territory. It’ll make billions!
Dunkirk
A truly great piece of modern cinematic spectacle is Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk, which returns to the Irish Film Institute in its 70mm form this week. If you missed it first time around, or if you didn’t get to see it projected in 70mm, now’s your time to catch up with one of the year’s best films.
