ASSASSIN CLUB Dir: Camille Delamarre
(15) (134 mins)
Henry Golding, far away from Crazy Rich Asians but fresh from the action heroics of the underwhelming Snake Eyes, takes on another fisticuffs/gunplay extravaganza. Sounding like a riff on John Wick, this has Golding as an assassin tasked with killing seven people around the globe. Only problem is those seven people are also assassins out to kill him. As you can imagine, violence follows, while Daniela Melchior is his underwritten love interest whom he’s trying to protect after this one last job. Noomi Rapace looks set to chew the scenery and kick ass as Golding’s biggest threat, the vicious Falk – and Sam Neill suavely takes on the Ian McShane/M role, doing all the exposition. A Euro B-movie from experienced action film editor Camille Delamarre (Taken 2, Brick Mansions), this will no doubt proceed exactly as expected, with plenty of nonsensical action and little else.
Out Fri 14 Apr
EVIL DEAD RISE Dir: Lee Cronin
(18) (97 mins)
The lo-fi horror film that turbocharged the careers of Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell with its gore and thrills has entered a new realm. Following the splatstick of Evil Dead 2 and the apocalyptic madness of Army Of Darkness, the franchise seemed to be, well, dead – until Fede Alavarez’s horrific 2013 reboot, and shortlived TV series Ash Vs Evil Dead. People keep reading the Book Of The Dead, and in this sequel the location moves from the cabin in the woods to a city environment. Estranged sisters Ellie and Beth, played by Alyssa Sutherland and Lily Sullivan, have their reunion cut short by some demon possession. This leaves Beth caring for her sister’s child Kassie (Nell Fisher) amidst some terrifying set pieces. Combining the kineticism of the originals, visceral camerawork and chainsaw-welding, writer/director Lee Cronin seems to have captured the energy of his predecessors, blending horror with humour, flies on eyeballs, lifts full of blood, contorted bodies and one-liners. Groovy.
Out Fri 21 Apr
GODLAND
Dir: Hlynur Pálmason (12A) (143 mins)
An epic tale that makes full use of the beauty of Iceland, Godland follows a Danish priest as he struggles to set up a new parish against great odds. Set in the late 19th century, Elliott Crosset Hove plays Lucas – a religious man who, armed with a wooden camera, aims to photograph and civilize the Icelandic people. Determined, furthermore, to travel through the country via an arduous route to get to know the landscape and its populace, he soon finds himself in trouble, annoying his guide Ragnar (Ingvar Sigurosson). The pair see breathtaking volcanoes, while enduring illness and hardship too, on their way to Lucas’ parish, where he is due to create a new church. Director Pálmason certainly looks set to capture the rugged, unforgiving beauty of Iceland in a tale of culture clash and arrogance, with a generous, immersive running time that may try the patience but will hopefully reward.
Out Fri 7 Apr
POLITE SOCIETY Dir: Nida Mansoor
(12A) (103 mins)
A genre mashup from Nida Manzoor, creator of Channel 4’s excellent We Are Lady Parts, this martial artsfest blends action and comedy yet breaks fresh cinematic ground. Priya Kansara plays Ria – a Pakistani Muslim schoolgirl who, wanting to become a stuntwoman, is helped filming her action videos by older sister Lena (Ritu Arya). Lena has recently dropped out of art school and has a spiky relationship with her sister, but when Lena falls under the spell of an apparently charming doctor, Salim (Akshay Khanna), Ria has to step in, taking fu-filled action to break up their relationship. Salim has a domineering mother, played by Nimra Bucha, to whom he is in thrall, but is there more to her than meets the eye – and much more may be at stake for the sisters. A fresh, exhilarating and funny ride seems to be on the cards, blending Bollywood, martial arts movies, societal pressures and heart in a clarion call to sisterhood.
Out Fri 28 Apr
THE POPE’S EXORCIST Dir: Julius Avery
(15) (120 mins)
Russell Crowe adds an Italian Dolmio sauce accent to this tale of demonic banishments, supposedly based on truth. Crowe plays Father Gabriele Amorth – the chief exorcist of the Vatican itself, performing over 100,000 exorcisms in his lifetime. He even wrote two memoirs on his experiences and now forms the central figure of The Pope’s Exorcist, under the supervision of Julius Avery, director of WWII horror Overlord. Looks like Crowe’s Love And Thunder scenery-chewing is set to continue with a ripe performance as Amorth, who after falling foul of the Vatican finds himself embroiled in a supernatural plot to get close to the Pope himself (played by Franco Nero). Expect head-twisting, vomiting, low voices, child possession and people flung around the room, as Crowe battles Satan himself – basically, all the horror tropes look set to be involved, with added Vatican cover-ups. Are you not entertained?
Out Fri 7 Apr
THE SUPER MARIO BROS MOVIE Dir: Michael Jelenic / Aaron Horvath
(PG) (92 mins)
Nintendo’s bouncy plumbers get another big- screen outing in a totally animated effort that will hopefully slay the memories of their last screen incarnation, the early 90s live action offering starring Bob Hoskins and John Lugiziamo. Directed by the people behind the entertaining Teen Titans Go!, this promises a more coherent vision of the 40-something adventurers. Chris Pratt controversially voices Mario, out to rescue his brother Luigi (Charlie Day) from the clutches of Bowser, given full throttle insanity by a roaring Jack Black. Along the way Mario enlists the help of Princess Peach – no longer the damsel in distress, and voiced by Anya Taylor- Joy – and the Mushroom Kingdom is explored. How a 40-year-old series of platform games can provide a satisfying narrative is open to question, but hopefully this will meet the challenge, and soon we will have a Fast & Furious Super Mario Kart…
Out Fri 7 Apr
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