Small Things Like These ★★★★☆
Directed by Tim Mielants. Starring Cillian Murphy, Eileen Walsh, Michelle Fairley, Emily Watson, Clare Dunne, Helen Behan, Zara Devlin. 12A cert, gen release, 99 min.
Adapted by Enda Walsh from Claire Keegan’s novel, Small Things Like These – to paraphrase Walt Whitman – contains multitudes. Murphy plays a coal merchant in 1980s New Ross who uncovers awful secrets about the local Magdalene Laundry. A deep-dive character study anchored by fiercely internalised central performance, the film is quietly emblematic of a changing Ireland. Cultural markers from the 1980s - Dangermouse on TV, The Human League’s Don’t You Want Me Baby playing in the pub - are jolting in a setting that, in aspect and attitudes, could pass for the 1950s. The large female cast are all strong. Full review TB
Heretic ★★★★☆
Directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods. Starring Hugh Grant, Sophie Thatcher, Chloe East, Topher Grace. 15A cert, gen release, 111 min
How’s this for a horror movie pitch? Two Mormon missionaries discuss theology with a learned scholar for almost two hours. With Heretic, the Oscar-nominated writers of A Quiet Place have fashioned a most unlikely nail-biting thriller. Grant puts a diabolical, uniquely, well, Grantian spin on the baddies of Paddington 2 and Dungeons & Dragons. If you’ve ever wanted to watch him croon Radiohead’s Creep or do a Jar Jar Binks impression to debunk religion, this is the movie for you. Great sepulchral cinematography from Chung-hoon Chung. First-class (slightly late) Halloween entertainment. Full review TB
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Anora ★★★★★
Directed by Sean Baker. Starring Mikey Madison, Mark Eydelshteyn, Yura Borisov, Karren Karagulian, Vache Tovmasyan. 16 cert, gen release, 140 min
Electrifying contemporary screwball comedy about a New York sex worker (Madison) who hastily marries a young Russian client (Eydelshteyn), only for him to flee pathetically when his oligarch parents and their henchmen turn up. This is a film that, countering its blaring riffs with gentler underscores, will replay countless rewatches. The screenplay wears its research into the sex industry lightly. The editing swings from sharp jab to mighty roundhouse. A deserved winner of this year’s Palme d’Or that somehow never flags over 140 breathless minutes. Madison is a marvel. Full review DC
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story ★★★☆☆
Directed by Ian Bonhôte, Peter Ettedgui. Featuring Christopher Reeve, Matthew Reeve, Dana Morosini, Glenn Close, Robin Williams, Susan Sarandon, Whoopi Goldberg, Jeff Daniels. 12A cert, limited release, 104 min
In an era when studios are shuffling too much of their material to streaming, it might seem churlish to wonder why a perfectly decent documentary is making its way into commercial cinemas. But this portrait of Christopher Reeve, actor and (more importantly here) disability campaigner, really is the sort of thing – interesting without breaking new ground – you would expect to encounter surfing late at night round the arts channels. The tale of the Superman actor’s commitment after being paralysed in an equestrian accident is powerfully told. This is, nonetheless, a conventional piece of work. Full review DC
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