8 Out & About


UNFRIENDED (15) IT IS the one-year anniver- sary of the death of Cali- fornia high school student Laura Barns (Heather Sos- saman), who committed sui- cide after someone posted a humiliating video of her at a party. Laura’s best friend Blaire (Shelley Hennig) is on her laptop, enjoying an intimate video chat with her boyfriend Mitch (Moses Jacob Storm), who wants to lose his virginity with her at prom when they are in- terrupted by friends Adam (Will Peltz), Jess (Renee Olstead) and Ken (Jacob Wysocki) for a group chat. Blaire notices an uninvited user with the screen name Billie227 has gate-crashed the conversation but the friends assume it ‘s a tech- nical. Soon after, Blaire re- ceives a cryptic message, apparently from Laura’s dormant Facebook account. The friends are convinced classmate Val (Courtney Halverson) is responsible and attempt to unmask her as the troll. Hennig and co deliver solid performances straight to camera, as if staring into webcams. The intriguing set-up promises more than the film ultimate- ly delivers. Rating: Three stars


FAR FROMTHE MAD-


DINGCROWD(12A) IT’s 1870 and Bathsheba (Carey Mulligan) is living with her aunt Mrs Hurst on the adjacent property to handsome sheep farmer, Gabriel Oak (Matthias Sch- oenaerts). She rebuffs his heartfelt advances, telling a crestfallen Gabriel, “I don’t want a husband.” Soon af- ter, Bathsheba inherits her


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CINEMAWORLD


a giant slug called Obesey (Paul Tylak) and his parasitic passenger, Stayput (Patrick Fitzsymons). As the young- sters head for higher ground, Dave and Hazel desperately attempt to turn around the ark. Fittingly, Two By Two: Ooops... The Ark Has Gone is a damp squib. Rating: Two stars


AVENGERS: AGE OF


uncle’s vast estate and defies expectation to turn around the ailing farm, aided by her companion Liddy (Jessica Barden). Bathsheba hires Ga- briel, who has fallen on hard times, as the estate’s shep- herd and he continues to pine for her from afar. Meanwhile, wealthy farmer William Bold- wood (Michael Sheen) makes his feelings for Bathsheba known, but her head is turned by dashing and reckless Ser- geant Troy (Tom Sturridge), whose heart was broken


HORROR: Shelley Hennig stars as Blaire in Universal Pictures’ Unfriended (2015) OOOPS... THE ARK HAS


at the altar by servant girl Fanny (Juno Temple). These three suitors leave Bathsheba in an emotional whirl and when Boldwood offers her fi- nancial security as his bride, she turns to brooding Gabriel for advice. Anchored by Mul- ligan’s nuanced performance, Far From The Madding Crowd is a visually arresting, but ultimately anaemic por- trait of rural desires. Rating: Three stars


TWOBYTWO:


Marigold sequel has just as many laughs as the irst


THE Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, the sequel to the hit comedy The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, will be screening at The River- front Theatre from Tuesday, May 5, to Thursday, May 7, at 3pm and 7.45pm each day. Now that The Best Exotic Mari-


gold Hotel is full to the brim with its long-term residents, managers Muriel (Maggie Smith) and Sonny Kapoor (Dev Patel) have their sights set on expanding their busi- ness and wish to open a second hotel in India. However, they will only be able to open once they re- ceive an anonymous visit from a company inspector. As well as a new hotel on the


cards, romantic relationships also start to blossom within the elderly group and Sonny also has his own wedding to plan. As the big day nears, family and guests find themselves enchanted by the romance of an Indian wedding. Featuring an ensemble cast with


the likes of Judi Dench, Bill Nighy and Richard Gere, it is no surprise that the Best Exotic Marigold Ho- tel was in need of sequel. Directed by John Madden and written by OI Parker, the second film is packed with just as much laughs as the first. It’s a chance to see two cul- tures collide, as British pension- ers are swept up by the brightly coloured choices India has to offer.


MANAGER: Maggie Smith as Muriel Donnely in the ‘Marigold’ sequel


GONE (U) DAVE (voiced by Dermot Ma- gennis) and his son Finny (Callum Maloney) belong to a fluffy land-based species called Nestrians. “There’s a flood coming. We’ll drown if we don’t leave,” Dave ex- plains. On cue, storm clouds gather and the heavens open, ushering the two Nestrians on their exhausting trek for survival. They arrive to dis- cover that “all animals are


welcome on Noah’s ark... as long as you’re on Noah’s list.” Alas, Dave and Finny are rejected, as well as two bat- like predators called Griffins (Aileen Mythen, Magennis again). The resourceful Nes- trians adopt laughable dis- guises to pose as carnivorous hyena-like Grymps alongside a genuine mother animal called Hazel (Lara Flynn) and her daughter Leah (Ava Connolly). The roaring flood arrives but Finny and Leah are stranded on dry land with


ULTRON(12A) IN THE breathless action- packed opening, the Avengers storm a Hydra stronghold in the central European city of Sokovia under the control of Baron von Strucker (Thomas Kretschmann) in order to reclaim Loki’s magical staff, the Chitauri Scepter. During the melee, siblings Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen) and Pietro Maximoff (Aaron Taylor- Johnson), who have been subjected to secret Hydra experiments, are unleashed. Wanda uses her dark sorcery to convince Tony Stark (Rob- ert Downey Jr) that he will bring about the deaths of the entire team. Tormented by his nightmarish vision, Stark secretly plans to harness the power of the Chitauri Scep- ter to awaken a dormant ar- tificial intelligence program to protect mankind. Instead, Stark unwittingly unleashes the villainous Ultron (voiced by James Spader). Captain America (Chris Evans) clash- es with Stark for control of the Avengers comprising Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Black Widow (Scarlett Jo- hansson), The Incredible Hulk and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner). Rivalries intensify and fragile bonds of trust fray as mankind’s survival hangs in the balance. Rating: Four stars


Cinema


The Second Best Marigold Hotel (PG)


2hrs 02 mins


Tuesday5,Wednesday 6, Thursday7 May, 3pm &7.45pm


2hrs 08 mins


Selma (12A)


Monday11, Tuesday 12, Wednesday13 May, 7.45pm


£5.50, reductions £5.00


or book four films in one booking and see them all forjust£16!


Join the cinema emaillistand receiveregular updatesabout The RiverfrontCinema by signing up at:


www.newportlive.co.uk/the riverfront


Book Now: 01633 656757


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