Movie reviews

HOPE GAP

Watchable. White cliffs, lucid, sparkling sea in Sussex (!) and colourful - like the estranged wife's clothes, homey, filled with plants, interior of the house enliven the mentions of historic events and classic poetry the couple specialize in. This use of scenography is evident also later when the husband and his son talk in a little white room with no decor whatsoever, as if there was nothing left in the man's life. The human detail is deftly handled in the story. The couple know each other inside out: not only daily habits like the way each of them takes their tea but even the sound of the partner's breath. A Napoleon's troops example at school deals with how to leave someone to die mercifully. Then you hear: "there is no next life" after a marriage "is murdered" which reflects the historic dilemma. The agony of waking every day after the break-up is staggeringly true. On a lighter (or is it?) note, the woman takes in a dog, calls him her husband's name and the first command she teaches him is "stay". The film is well-intentioned but emotionally distant which is probably down to Bill Nighy and Annette Bening in the cast. At least Jamie (Josh O'Connor) looks like a spitting image of young Bill Nighy, hence plausible as their, especially Edward's (Bill Nighy) son. The title refers to Hope Gap located in Seaford but also the metaphoric meaning of the period of hope right after the beloved person has split up with you.

Mercifully, I got a screener in English but... alas, it was hardly audible. Bad luck.

MIJN BIJZONDER RARE WEEK MET TESS (MY EXTRAORDINARY SUMMER WITH TESS)

Watchable. A summer picture where Dutch views like crabs on the beach and flatlands with bike paths surprisingly smoothly blend with salsa music. The 1 hour 23 minute long movie, however, feels bland and protracted. The action's quite generic and therefore predictable - for adults anyway, children to who the film's directed are more likely not to have seen all that before, copied from several other stories and too simple for the duration of the picture. At least it's all well acted. In Poland, it's dubbed in Polish but in a nice way. The song running over the end credits will have you humming all the way home.

FOUR KIDS AND IT

Recommended. Thoroughly entertaining, lovable, lightweight fantasy which blends live action with CGI animation. Starts with a girl choosing a book in a library. The ones she picks are: "Little Women" and "Spider's Web" - both have their film adaptations. And "Four Kids and It" is based on a novel by Jacqueline Wilson so the director is clearly winking to the readers. Psammead looks authentic and cute. Dialogues sparkle with tart one-liners, e.g. "I'm sorry, I don't understand you at all." "I'm American." "Good to know. I thought you had a speech defect". Adventures are captivating and you never know (or at least I don't, not having read the book) what the next wish is going to be, it's so imaginative. Catering to older children, it has delighted the adult me as well. I wished it lasted longer. Dubbed in Polish for the local market - sounds decently but inaccessible to English-speaking kids. That's it. There's a long scene along with the final credits.

DAS VORSPIEL  (THE AUDITION)

Watchable. I've seen it all before. It's a pretty standard psychological drama comprising of generic tropes slapped onto the main storyline once here once there to keep the audience waiting for the conclusion. Lacks novelty. On the other hand, it's a rare occasion to see what violin lessons look like.

All the four reviews are based on distributors' screeners. Cinematic experience might differ.