STACK #169 Nov 2018

FILM & TV REVIEWS

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Minimum Experience. Maximum Damage. THE SPY WHO DUMPED ME

Television given the royal treatment. THE CROWN: SEASON 2

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Release Date: 07/11/18

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Release Date: 14/11/18

Audrey (Mila Kunis) is celebrating her birthday at a bar with her bestie, Morgan (Kate McKinnon), when she meets the handsome Drew (Justin Theroux). The two begin a relationship, until Audrey is dumped via a lousy text message. The distraught Audrey soon finds she’s in deeper than she thought when it’s revealed that Drew is in fact – surprise! – an undercover CIA agent tasked with delivering a USB drive that will prevent a terrorist attack. Consequently, Audrey and Morgan become embroiled in

The secret to a compelling historical drama is not the verbatim recounting of significant events but how you aggregate them through the thread of good storytelling. For this job there’s no better candidate than The Queen and Frost/Nixon scribe, Peter Morgan. Where season one of The Crown introduced the characters, season two layers on the flesh. Morgan’s deft ability to captivate and entertain viewers extends to the JFK assassination,

the world of covert operations. The Spy Who Dumped Me is more of an action flick than a comedy, with the fight scenes landing far more hits than the jokes. However, the winning chemistry between Kunis and McKinnon (n fine form as always) is a big plus, with the pair demonstrating that chicks can play the spying game just as well as the blokes. AK

the Suez Canal crisis that embarrassed the United Kingdom on the international stage, and even the Profumo affair. A purported £200 million was allocated for the production of The Crown 's second season, and every penny is up there on the screen – this is television on a grand scale, and not to be missed. PJ

THE HAPPYTIME MURDERS

THE BREAKER UPPERERS

SUBMERGENCE

RBG

Release Date: 21/11/18 Format:

Release Date: 01/11/18 Format:

Release Date: 21/11/18 Format:

Release Date: OUT NOW Format:

Joining the micro-genre of puppets behaving badly – that includes Team America and Meet the Feebles – comes this tale of a 1980s TV cast who are being targeted by a killer. You see, while puppets coexist with humans, they are spurned by society and considered inferior. Puppet P.I. Phil Philips reunites with his human ex-partner, Detective Connie Edwards (Melissa McCarthy), to track down the serial killer who murdered Phil’s brother and is now targeting the other members of 'The Happytime Gang'. Directed by Brian Henson, son of muppet master Jim, one can only imagine what his late father might have thought of the crude shenanigans that ensue. Keep out of reach of children! AF

Ever found yourself in a particularly awful relationship, but don’t have the guts to break it off? The Breaker Upperers are your girls. For a fee, they’ll act out any number of scenes of varying degrees of seriousness to get that unwanted partner off your hands and out of your life for good – sometimes without you having to even lift a finger. Madeleine Sami and Jackie Van Beek write, direct, and star in this hilarious Kiwi comedy, with Taika Waititi ( Hunt for the Wilderpeople ) onboard as script consultant and executive producer. Following this indie crowd-pleaser, viewers will be left eager for more from these talented New Zealand gals. AK

Best known for arthouse cinema fave Paris, Texas (1984) as well as Buena Vista Social Club (1999), German filmmaker WimWenders is still producing dream-infused dramas. Alicia Vikander and James McAvoy are star-crossed lovers. Her passion is to explore the bottom of the sea, while he is a British agent going undercover in Somalia. Their worlds are separate and danger lurks. Can they resurface to find each other? He might be an elusive director at times, but Submergence is high-conviction Wenders. Love might be futile but it matters. Submerge yourself in this unconventional romantic drama from an equally unconventional filmmaker. AC

The polarising United States supreme court nomination of Brett Kavanaugh was a media event that transfixed the world. With a lifetime appointment, the character of those on this highest of judicial positions has never been under greater scrutiny, especially as a cultural schism tears the nation. For progressives, the titular Ruth Bader Ginsburg and her colleague Sonia Sotomayor are the last line of defence against a conservative onslaught to rewrite long established legal precedence. This inspiring portrait of RBG is testimony to her depth of character, achievements, and why she's still fighting the good fight. AC

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NOVEMBER 2018

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