ALSO SHOWING
Berlin Syndrome (15)
Complex gender relations are at the heart of this third feature from Australian writer/director Cate Shortland, which akes an artful approach to the sort of backpackersin-peril premise commonly found in exploitation cinema. Adapted from Melanie Joosten’s novel about an Australian photographer whose instant attraction to a Berlin local develops into an all-too-plausible nightmare scenario, the film hinges on Teresa Palmer’s enigmatic turn as the life-experience-seeking Clare, whose openness to the world she’s documenting on her extended trip attracts the attention of school teacher Andi (Max Riemelt). He seems like a nice guy on the surface, but as their relationship takes a turn for the sensuous, Clare discovers that his gentle demeanour is part of a calculated strategy to keep her in his life against her will. What follows is a skilful, delicately wrought character study, punctuated with moments of extreme horror that reinforce the heroine’s resilience and refusal to give up on the world however toxic her situation becomes.
My Cousin Rachel (15)
Rachel Weisz is on fantastic form in the title role this tasteful yet quietly sinister adaptation of Daphne du Maurier’s gothic period novel of the same name. Adapted and directed by Roger Michell, he and Weisz have put a satisfying feminist slant on this tale of a woman in 1830s England whose suspected complicity in the recent death of her husband torments his soon-to-be-heir. Sam Claflin plays the latter, a callow young man called Philip who instantly falls for the beguiling Rachel (Weisz), but grows increasingly paranoid that she’s manipulated him into transferring his fortune her, despite her protestations to the contrary. That ambiguity is the nicely handled trick of the film. It subtly encourages us to view Rachel through Philip’s naive eyes while simultaneously presenting a more rounded view of her via careful framing, layered dialogue and Weisz’s subversive performance.
The Shack (12A)
Avatar’s Sam Worthington isn’t terrible in this bizarre faith-based tale about a father learning to reconnect with God after his youngest daughter is abducted and murdered. But there’s only so much he can do with a film that essentially casts him as a liveaction Ned Flanders, then subjects him to the sort of ordeal you might find in a David Fincher movie, before lurching into a bonkers fantasy in which gets to spend a weekend with God (Octavia Spencer) and Jesus (Avraham Aviv Alush) learning how to walk on water at their Edenlike retreat. Serving up a series of comforting myths about God’s ability to heal suffering in a world in which tragedy is unavoidable, it’s ultimately a film about forgiveness – a message that might come in handy if you find yourself watching this gibberish.
Wonder Woman (PG)
Patty Jenkins isn’t the first woman to direct a superhero movie, but she’s the first to get a shot at a mega-budget one with a globally recognisable character. That it should be Wonder
Woman gives it an added sweetness and she’s responded with a movie that does justice to the Amazon demigoddess, delivering an origins story that’s earnest yet fun and exciting without being grandiose. Having been introduced in last year’s much-maligned Batman Vs Superman, Wonder Woman’s links to the DC Extended Universe are quickly re-established with a low-key opener involving her alter-ego Diana Prince (Gal Gadot).
Happily, though, the film soon winds the clock back to the First World War with Wonder Woman arriving in war-torn Europe, unfazed by the concept of “No Man’s Land”. Gadot is a wonder in the role and the film feels fresh in its determination to tell a good story rather than simply build a franchise.■