SEVEN FILMS TO SEE THIS WEEK
‘AI: Artificial Intelligence’ Today, OSN Movies Thriller HD, noon
Steven Spielberg’s version of a project his friend Stanley Kubrick began working on in the 1990s is the tear-jerking tale of 12-year-old David, a self-aware artificial life form and his struggle to find meaning in an uncaring universe. Spielberg delivers a cuddlier version of the movie Kubrick may have created had he not died in 1999, but his ability to invoke empathy for his characters, as well as a moving final scene, mean that he also delivers an emotionally involving experience.
‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story’ Tomorrow, OSN Movies Action HD, 6.45pm
Gareth Edwards is at the helm for this debut spin-off movie from the main
Star Wars series, which is probably the best of the Disney-era Star Wars films to date. Leading the story is Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones), who is rescued by the Rebel Alliance with a critical mission in mind: to contact someone with whom she has a personal connection, who has information about the Empire’s devastating new weapon – a “Death Star” capable of destroying planets.
‘Being John Malkovich’ Tuesday, OSN Movies HD, 11pm
John Cusack stars as Craig, an unemployed puppeteer who discovers a secret portal that leads into the mind of actor John Malkovich in Spike Jonze’s quirky movie, which is every bit as odd as it sounds. Malkovich plays himself, while Cusack came to the movie after asking his agent to bring him “the most unproduceable script you can find”. There’s a host of cameos including Winona Ryder, Brad Pitt, David Fincher and Sean Penn, and the movie was nominated for three Oscars, including Best Director and Best Original Screenplay.
‘Four Rooms’ Wednesday, Paramount Movies, 9.40pm
Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez are among the executive producers and writers of this anthology movie based on the experiences of Tim Roth’s Ted, a bellhop working in a Hollywood hotel. Four different stories, with some crossover and Ted as the common link, are told during the course of New Year’s Eve, ranging from babysitting to spell-casting witches and hostage situations. The film fared badly at the box office, and Madonna deservedly picked up a Razzie award for her role as witch Elspeth, but if you can ignore that particular element, it’s an entertaining watch.
‘Zombie Girl’ Thursday, Sundance Channel, 6.45pm
Emily is making a zombie movie. It’s feature-length, it’s gory and the zombies are lumbering, dead-eyed monsters. So far, so zombie movie. There’s one major difference, though – Emily is 12 years old. This documentary follows the amazing, twoyear-long efforts of Emily Hagin as she splashes the blood and ooze, and grows as both a person and a director during the making of her 2006 zombie flick Pathogen. The doc picked up a Spirit of Slamdance Award at the Slamdance Film Festival. Pathogen, meanwhile, made its debut in February 2006 and was later released on DVD. It didn’t pick up any other awards, but does hold a 100 per cent Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
‘Amreeka’ Friday, Sundance Channel, 4.10pm and 11pm
Jordanian director Cherien Dabas’s debut feature tells the tale of Muna, a Palestinian single mother who wins a green card in a lottery to work in the United States. Excited to be finally able to escape the daily ritual of harassment at Israeli checkpoints, Muna heads to the land of opportunity with her son. She soon discovers that the streets are not paved with gold, however. She arrives immediately after the invasion of Iraq, with the US still adopting a collective siege mentality post-9/11, and so the welcome she receives is not what she was hoping for.
‘Blade Runner 2049’ Saturday, OSN Movies First, 12.05am
Harrison Ford returns as everyone’s favourite replicant-retiring gun slinger, Rick Deckard, 35 years after he last took on the role, in Denis Villeneuve’s sequel to Ridley Scott’s classic 1982 sci-fi Blade Runner.
Scott executive produces, and Ryan Gosling joins the cast this time as a young Blade Runner on a search for truth, as Deckard joins him on his mission. The sequel was one of the most-hyped films in recent memory, but the movie didn’t set box offices alight on release, much like its predecessor, which went on to become a cult classic thanks to the VHS and DVD markets. The 2017 film was highly critically praised, with Oscars for cinematography and special effects among its five nominations.