Hello, and welcome to the Geeky Brummie Film Roundup! Each week we run through the biggest new cinema releases and why you should be excited for them. This week: Doug. (It’s a quiet one…)
Usual disclaimer: unless otherwise stated, I haven’t seen these movies yet so all of my opinions are based on trailers, early reviews and other rumours and buzz.
The Fall of Sir Douglas Weatherford
Peter Mullan plays Kenneth, the proud descendant of local hero Sir Douglas Weatherford, who dresses up and gives Sir Douglas-themed tours of the Scottish town they both called home. But when a film crew rolls in looking to use it as a location for their new fantasy show, Kenneth is appalled by their lack of respect for tradition and history. As he finds himself increasingly in conflict with both the film crew and his fellow townsfolk, who are much more excited about their moment of stardom, he goes further and further off the rails.
I haven’t heard too much about this film, but anything with Peter Mullan in the cast is instantly going to be worth watching. He’s demonstrated in the likes of Tyrannosaur and last year’s I Swear that despite his gruff exterior he knows how to pull at an audience’s heartstrings, which is perfect for the backstory here of Kenneth coping with the recent loss of his wife. But he can also be threatening (see Westworld), and there’s something darkly foreboding about his scenes in the trailer holding up a replica sword and muttering that he’s “still the king of these lands” while contemplating a mannequin’s fallen head on the floor. The official synopsis says that he descends into madness, and I’m not sure whether the trailer quite gives away just how far that descent goes.
The supporting cast includes Gayle Rankin (GLOW, House of the Dragon) as Kenneth’s daughter Anna, and the film is directed by Sean Dunn in his feature debut. It looks like a sweet tale about looking backward while moving forward, and about the merits of reality vs fantasy. Is Kenneth’s idealised view of his family history really any more tangible than the world of swords and dragons being imposed upon it? If you like darkly comic British dramas then this should be a great way to spend a couple of hours.
- The Fall of Sir Douglas Weatherford on IMDB
- The Fall of Sir Douglas Weatherford on Rotten Tomatoes
If you only see one film this week…
…see The Fall of Sir Douglas Weatherford. It’s the winner by default, but it looks like fun too.
Still in cinemas and worth a watch
- Disclosure Day
- Masters of the Universe – As colourful, campy and over-the-top as you would want a He-Man movie to be. Masters of the Universe has plenty of nods to the original cartoon (who doesn’t love standing in a circle and laughing from your hips at a good joke?) and an absolutely incredible soundtrack courtesy of Brian May and composer Daniel Pemberton. Jared Leto is actually quite entertaining as Skeletor (if only because you can easily forget that it’s him). The biggest let-down is the quality of some of the CGI – Cringer in particular never quite looks right – but the film overall is entertaining enough to let that pass. There is a mid-credits scene which is worth sticking around for, and an end-credits scene that you can probably guess.
- Backrooms
Trailer of the Week
Don’t you just hate it when you’re eating calamari when suddenly out of nowhere it drags some guy down your throat with it? That’s the problem encountered by an unfortunate sperm whale in upcoming horror-thriller Whalefall, which follows a scuba diver (Austin Abrams) who unwittingly becomes lunch while searching for his father’s (Josh Brolin) remains in the ocean. Trapped in the stomach of the whale with an angry giant squid and only an hour of oxygen left in his tank, can he use his dad’s teachings to find a way out? This is a pretty intense trailer that looks absolutely horrifying and might actually topple Resident Evil (which comes out a month earlier) as this year’s Film That Will Make You Most Glad That You’re Not Austin Abrams. Whalefall will make a whole new generation afraid to go back in the water when it lands in cinemas on October 16th.
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