Everybody Knows

HEART and humour are nicely balanced in this true story about a wrestling family from Norwich. KEIRA Knightley is caught up in a love triangle in a dreary drama set in post-war Hamburg. MARK Wahlberg and Rose Byrne foster three troublesome kids in this charming feel-good drama.

ANDY’S RATING: ★★

In cinemas on Friday

A-LIST couple Penélope Cruz and Javier Bardem can’t save this muddled and melodramatic whodunnit.

We’re in rural Spain for a wedding, a go-to device for any screenwriter who needs to bring family and old friends together.

Cruz’s Laura, the sister of the bride, jets in from Argentina with her children – teenager Irene (Carla Campra) and young son Diego (Ivan Chavero). Her Argentinian husband (Ricardo Darin) stayed at home.

At the raucous reception we spot Bardem dad-dancing, the father of the bride being grumpy and a grizzled bloke who is probably somebody’s uncle.

Before director Asghar Farhadi can establish who the characters are, Irene disappears from a locked bedroom. Then Cruz gets a text from the kidnappers, warning her the kid will be killed if the police are called.

Bardem, who it turns out is Laura’s old flame, plays detective. It’s clearly an inside job, so several people who we half recognise are in the frame.

As the mystery deepens we are hit with soapy sub-plots involving past affairs, dodgy deals and long-held resentments.

As the tale gets more implausible it becomes increasingly difficult to care. And don’t bother trying to guess the villain – you’d need to be more psychic than sleuth to crack this case. Download now, DVD & Blu-ray from tomorrow