MIKE WARD’S SMALL SCREEN
disappointed. Its director, Guillermo del Toro, not only ticked all those boxes but created something mesmerising in its bonkersness, centred on an amazing performance by Sally Hawkins. Honours included the best picture Oscar.
FIFTY SHADES FREED (18)
(Download, DVD & Blu-ray)
GRIPPING, inventive, witty, erotic and emotionally engaging.
Yes, those are just a few of the words I’d use to describe this final instalment in the Fifty Shades saga, assuming you were holding a loaded pistol to my head. Since you’re not – and thank you for that – I’ll call it “dire”.
Jamie Dornan’s Christian and Dakota Johnson’s Ana are now Mr and Mrs Grey – still pausing, when they’ve a little time on their hands and there’s not much on telly, to do something soullessly kinky to one another, but now having their laughably swanky new life disrupted by a face from Ana’s past. The result could hardly be more vapid.
I, TONYA (15) (Download now, DVD & Blu-ray from Monday) THIS dark fact-based comedy tells the story
THE gender of the criminals has changed but it is pretty much business as usual for this allfemale spin-off from Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean franchise.
Sandra Bullock plays Debbie Ocean, the younger sister of Clooney’s possibly dead Danny, who’s been behind bars five years, eight months and 12 days precisely.
Debbie tells the parole board she is a reformed character but as soon as she is out of the door, she’s hustling free hotel rooms and expensive cosmetics.
But her eye is on a much bigger prize – a $150million Cartier necklace. The first part of her plan is to get the jewellery hanging around the neck of preening actress Daphne Kluger (Anne Hathaway) while she is hosting the glitzy Met gala.
For that she’ll need to sign up struggling fashion designer Rose (Helena Bonham Carter) who is tasked with finding a way to persuade Daphne it will be the perfect accessory for her big night. Then she needs to recruit a crew of criminals for an enjoyably convoluted heist.
The getting-the-team-together bit introduces us to Debbie’s former partner Lou (Cate Blanchett), jeweller Amita (Mindy Kaling), hacker Nine Ball (Rihanna), go-between Tammy (Sarah Paulson), and pickpocket Constance (rapper Awkwafina).
The genius of Soderbergh’s original was the way the preposterous twists kept stacking up. Here, director Gary Ross shows his hand early and devotes too much time to the aftermath when an English insurance inspector is given the job of retrieving the necklace.
It’s entertaining enough but to really sparkle, Ross should have taken risks. of US ice skater Tonya Harding, a sporting hero whose hard fought reputation lay in tatters as her ex orchestrated an attack on her fierce rival, fellow Olympic hopeful Nancy Kerrigan.
FINDING YOUR FEET (12)
(Download now, DVD & Blu-ray from Monday) SANDRA (Imelda Staunton) walks out on her cheating hubby (John Sessions) and moves in with sister Bif (Celia Imrie). Though they’re chalk and cheese, Bif helps Sandra rediscover a love of dance. A fine cast who struggle to add spark to a predictable script. NEXT WEEK: When the drug war escalates, Josh Brolin’s FBI agent reunites with Benicio Del Toro’s mysterious fixer in crime thriller sequel
Rob Brydon fends off a mid-life crisis by joining an all-male synchronised swimming team in Brit comedy Swimming With Men.