STACK Mar #137

44 / 99

Part courtroom drama, part Cold War thriller, Steven
Spielberg’s classy new film tells the fascinating tale
behind the shooting down of a US spy plane over
Russia in the 1960s. The story actually begins in
1957, when humble Brooklyn lawyer James Donovan
(Tom Hanks) is given the next-to-impossible task of
defending Russian spy Rudolf Abel (Mark Rylance).
Unsurprisingly he loses the case, but when US spy
plane pilot Gary Francis Powers is captured by the
Russians, Donovan becomes the middleman in a high
stakes prisoner swap deal. Working from a script co-written by the
Coen Brothers, Spielberg brings his trademark visual excellence and
immaculate pacing to the proceedings, while Hanks is in his element
as the mild-mannered but dogged lawyer. JF
The lawyer who came in from the cold.
BRIDGE OF SPIES
Release Date: 02/03/16 Format:
If you just can’t get enough of that Christmassy stuff
then listen up – even if it is only March. The Night
Before revolves around three New York City blokes
(Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen and Anthony
Mackie) who’ve been mates for years. They’ve now hit
their 30s, with one a lawyer, one an NFL star and one,
erm, a seasonal store elf. They’ve decided that this will
be their last big Christmas blowout, and score tickets
to the legendary and beyond-exclusive Nutcracker Ball.
It’s a night of drugs, alcohol, drugs, debauchery, drugs,
karaoke, drugs, dick jokes and drugs – but with a dab of sweetness
and light occasionally to anchor it. Imagine Pineapple Express crashing
A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas with small injections of It’s a
Wonderful Life and Home Alone – plus really daggy jumpers. AF
Three wise men. One wild Christmas.
THE NIGHT BEFORE
Release Date: 03/03/16 Format:
f a non-English speaking movie is successful, you can
et your last peso it will be remade. Such is the fate of
rgentinian ‘Best Foreign Language Film’ Oscar-winner
l Secreto de Sus Ojos, with this star-studded Hollywood
akeover. A hard-hitting thriller that boasts Chiwetel Ejiofor,
our’ Nicole Kidman and Julia Roberts, Secret in Their Eyes
pans 13 years as it plunges viewers into the shocking world
f teenage rape and murder. That the victim in question is
he daughter of DA investigator Jess Cobb (Roberts) sets
things rolling. Cobb, FBI counter-terrorism investigator Ray
Karsten (Ejiofor) and assistant DA Claire Sloan (Kidman) look into the crime,
but a conviction isn’t made and their partnership implodes. Still haunted
years later, Karsten discovers a lead and gets the cold case reopened, which
results in more than he’d bargained for... AF
The truth lies in the most unexpected places.
SECRET IN THEIR EYES
Release Date: 23/03/16 Format:
ven Adam Sandler’s most devoted fans would have to
dmit he’s been on autopilot of late. However, this fun
ddams Family-esque animated sequel finds the star/
o-writer back in sparkling form; it's arguably the best
andler movie since 2009’s Funny People. This time
round, Drac (voiced by Sandler) is gradually coming
round to the fact that his daughter, Mavis (Selena
omez), is now married to a human (Adam Samberg),
nd is delighted when they provide him with a grandchild.
However, when the boy shows no sign of becoming
a vampire, Drac and his pals resolve to bring out the monster within
him. The direction of Genndy Tartakovsky – creator of Samurai Jack
– fizzes with hyperactive energy, while grown-ups will appreciate the
accomplished comic playing of Sandler’s regular repertory company. JF
The Drac pack is back.
HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA 2
Release Date: 03/03/16 Format:
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44 MARCH 2016
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