YOUR GUIDE TO THIS WEEK’S NEW CINEMA RELEASES

There are some goodies at the cinema this week – aside from the popcorn! Here are the new movies on offer…

TOP PICK TO SEE

Top pick this week is MR HOLMES in which an aged, retired Sherlock Holmes looks back on his life, and grapples with an unsolved case involving a beautiful woman. I give this one ***1/2 stars and will post my review shortly. The Hollywood Reporter’s David Rooney describes it as ‘… a ruminative film of minor-key rewards, driven by an impeccably nuanced performance from McKellen as a solitary 93-year-old man enfeebled by age, yet still canny and even compassionate in ways that surprise and comfort him.’

OTHERS TO SEE

13 MINUTES (original title ELSER) is the breath-taking story of a man who nearly would have changed the world. 1939, when Hitler tricked millions of people at the height of his power, one said a radical No: Georg Elser, disparaged as an assassin, is one of the greatest resistance fighters.
(Written by anonymous). Breathtaking doesn’t describe the move and I’ll post my reasons for that in my upcoming review.

MAYBE/MAYBE NOT

The sci-fi thriller SELF/LESS is about a dying real estate mogul who transfers his consciousness into a healthy young body, but soon finds that neither the procedure nor the company that performed it are quite what they seem. Sounds intriguing but general viewers and critics are divided on its rating. The Playlist’s Kevin Jagernauth is ruthless in his description of SELF/LESS as ‘… brain/less entertainment, but if there’s any consolation, the impression it leaves is so fleeting that you can soon replace it with better movie memories.’ General audiences, though, are rating it 3 to 3.5 stars.

TO AVOID

Finally, there is one to avoid. THE GALLOWS is set 20 years after a horrific accident during a small town school play in which students at the school resurrect the failed show in a misguided attempt to honor the anniversary of the tragedy – but soon discover that some things are better left alone. According to Screen International’s John Hazelton, ‘The Gallows offers up few new ideas and very few genuine scares.’

That’s it for this week. See you at the movies!

*NOTE* Movie summaries are adaptations of movie summary on IMDB. Opinions are mine unless credited.