Sweeney Todd: The Demon
barber of Fleet Street
(116 mins, 18)
Musical horror starring Johnny Depp,
Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman,
Sacha Baron Cohen
After years of exile for a crime he
didn’t commit, Sweeney returns to
London to find his wife dead and his
daughter in the clutches of an evil
judge. Lost and alone, Todd opens a
barber’s shop. Bad move: when his
shaving technique turns deadly, his
mind turns to revenge... and he finds
a willing accomplice in pie-maker
Mrs Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter.) If
you don’t know the story I won’t put
you off your black pudding: suffice to
say the hellish couple indulge in
some Victorian meat recycling. From
its first spray of gore, director Tim
Burton’s film is a nightmare - in a
good way -made somehow even
more nightmarish by the fact that
everyone sings, courtesy of the 1970s
West End musical that inspired the
movie. Demon Actor of Hollywood
morphs into Demon Barber of Fleet
Street. Result? An Oscar cert.
Horrible but unmissable
Rambo
(93 mins, TBA)
Action thriller starring Sylvester Stallone,
Julie Benz, Jake La Botz, Tim Kang
No: I didn’t nod off in a cinema in 1982
and wake up confused in 2008, this really
is another John Rambo flick, and he’s
still being played by Stallone. At an
age when ‘action’ to most of us means
a free bus ride into town, Sly’s still wearing
a bandana and jumping out of trees,
killing people. Storyline? The destruction
of the Karen tribes by the Burmese
Army prompts a group of medical
missionaries to cross into Burma to help
them. They need a boat and guess
who’s the pilot, coaxed out of retirement?
Soon some of them need rescuing.
As Stallone takes the helm, and the
film, deep into the jungle, I could
dwell on the philosophical struggle
between Rambo’s belief that war is
the natural state of humanity, as
opposed to the peacenik missionaries
who maintain that love conquers all. I
could observe that despite its flaws,
this movie throws light on the reallife
plight of the Karen people... but I
won’t. Because anything the film
might say or mean is drowned in
blood. Warning: this violence contains
a movie, but only just
Definitely, Maybe
(95mins, PG)
Romantic comedy starring Ryan
Reynolds, Rachel Weisz, Abigail
Breslin, Kevin Kline
An enjoyable romance proving that
Definitely Maybe is more than just an
album by Oasis. New York father Will
Hayes is mid-divorce when his 10 year
old daughter Maya demands to know
more about his bachelorhood. So we
flash back to 1992 when Will is a
youthful wannabe politician working
for Bill Clinton’s election. Along the
way he falls for three very different
women. In an effort to keep the tale
suitable for children, Will (hopelessly)
tries a ‘PG’ version of events; also
discreetly changing the names of his
three former lovers. But who in the
story is Maya’s mum? College
sweetheart Emily? Best friend and
confidante April? Or a free-spirited
journalist full of ambition? Maya, and
we, are kept guessing as to which
woman Will eventually married, and
which other old flame he may still be
in love with today... lacking A-list
stars and epic action, this movie
won’t change the world or break box
office records. But if you fancy a
giggle and a cuddle in the back row
you won’t be disappointed. Definitely.
Watch Out For...
There Will Be Blood
Daniel Day-Lewis returns to our screens as an oil
prospector risking everything to be rich.
(February 15th)
Be Kind Rewind
Jack Black and Mos Def are video nerds who re-create
great moments from cinema, and become celebrities in
the process. (February 22nd)
The Bank Job
True story of a robbery: with Saffron Burrows and Jason
Statham of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels fame.
(February 29th)
Margot At The Wedding
More Jack Black, this time co-starring with Nicole Kidman
in her first comedy drama. (February 29th)
The Other Boleyn Girl
Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman as the
passionate but ill-fated lovers of Henry VIII. (March 21st)
