list.co.uk/film list.co.uk/film a woman trying to survive. Dundee Contemporary Arts, Dundee, Thu 18 Oct. Brave (PG) ●●●●● (Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman, US, 2012) Kelly Macdonald, Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson. 100min. A rebellious Scottish princess defies her mother’s marriage plans and unleashes a curse on her fairytale kingdom, then must complete a number of challenges in order to lift it. The kick-ass tomboyishness of Merida and luscious landscapes make up for a wavering story. General release. The Campaign (15) ●●●●● (Jay Roach, US, 2012) Will Ferrell, Zach Galifianakis, Jason Sudeikis. 85min. Yet another half-assed comedy in which Ferrell plays a pompous and idiotic blowhard; good supporting performers (Sudeikis, Aykroyd, Lithgow, Cox) are squandered and only Galifianakis manages to be funny even when his lines are not. Selected release. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days (U) ●●●●● (David Bowers, US/Canada, 2012) Zachary Gordon, Robert Capron, Devon Bostick. 93min. Wimpy Kid Greg’s (Zachary Gordon) plans go wrong when his dad suggests he get a summer job rather than pining after love-interest Holly. Low key, wholesome family fun. Selected release. English Vinglish (PG) (Gauri Shinde , India, 2012) Sridevi, Adil Hussain, Mehdi Nebbou. 134min. Sridevi returns to the screen as a repressed New York housewife who’s life is changed when she enrolls in an English language course. Odeon at the Quay, Glasgow, Thu 18 Oct. Frankenweenie (PG) ●●●●● (Tim Burton, US, 2012) Winona Ryder, Catherine O’Hara, Martin Short. 87min. Burton’s revival of his 1984 short is a glorious monochrome success. General release. Hit and Run (15) ●●●●● (David Palmer & Dax Shepard, USA, 2012) Kristen Bell, Dax Shepard, Bradley Cooper. 100min. Yul (Shepard), a former getaway driver, finds that he and girlfriend Annie (Bell) are being pursued by Yul’s arch-enemy Alex (Cooper), leading to much violent problem-solving. Shepard is a personable leading man but a poor writer and co-director of this grating and derivative action flick. Cineworld Renfrew Street, Glasgow, Thu 18 Oct; Showcase Cinema Glasgow, Glasgow, Thu 18 Oct. Hope Springs (12A) ●●●●● (David Frankel, US, 2012) Meryl Streep, Tommy Lee Jones, Steve Carell. 100min. After 31 increasingly routine years of marriage, Kay (Streep) and Arnold (Jones) decide to reinvigorate their marriage by visiting a counsellor (Carell) in Maine coastal town Great Hope Springs. Gentle marital comedy featuring fine central performances, albeit with an incessantly upbeat soundtrack and picture-postcardish visuals. Dominion, Edinburgh, Thu 18 Oct. Hotel Transylvania (U) ●●●●● (Genndy Tartakovsky, US, 2012) Adam Sandler, Selena Gomez, Andy Samberg. 91min. Dracula (Sandler) has created a hotel offering holidays to eldritch abominations, but when human slacker Jonathan (Samberg) checks in and fancies Dracula’s daughter (Gomez), the count is not happy. The script lacks the appeal and sophistication of Pixar, the messages are heavy-handed and the voice acting is uninspired. General release. House at the End of the Street (15) ●●●●● (Mark Tonderai, US, 2012) Jennifer Lawrence, Elisabeth Shue, Max Thieriot. 100min. Chilling thriller following a mother and daughter who move into a new house, only to discover that there’s more to their new neighbours than meets the eye. Empire Clydebank, Clydebank, Thu 18 Oct. Ice Age: Continental Drift (U) ●●●●● (Steve Martino, Mike Thurmeier, US, 2012) Ray Romano, Denis Leary, John Leguizamo. 92min. Ice age buddies Sid, Manny and Diego encounter teenage mammoths desperate for independence, shifting continental plates and a gang of unusual pirates in the fourth instalment from the franchise. Polished animation
Alchemy Film and Moving Image Festival
LISTINGS Film
At the end of October, Hawick will host a weekend dedicated to film, landscape and the natural world. Taking the theme of ‘wild’ as its starting point, Alchemy Film and Moving Image Festival will be showing feature films including Andrew Kotting’s Swandown (pictured), Ben Rivers’ Two Years at Sea and the UK premiere of Re-formation, a personal look at the Dutch Bible Belt by filmmaker Jeanette Groenendaal. There are also many, many experimental and artist films screening over the weekend, spread across four short film programmes. Look out too for the retrospective dedicated to the poetic work of Robert Cahen. ■ Various venues, Hawick, Fri 26–Sun 28 Oct.
but with an unoriginal script and banal characterisation. Cineworld Renfrew Street, Glasgow, Thu 18 Oct; Vue Ocean, Edinburgh, Thu 18 Oct; Vue Omni, Edinburgh, Thu 18 Oct. Killing Them Softly (18) ●●●●● (Andrew Dominik, US, 2012) Brad Pitt, Richard Jenkins, James Gandolfini. 104min. The director of Chopper returns with a bleakly humourous gangster flick offering a commentary on modern day moral bankruptcy. It’s got some audacious cinematography but is let down by some dialogue-heavy sequences that aren’t quite witty or insightful enough to keep up the momentum. The Hippodrome, Bo’ness, Fri 19–Thu 25 Oct. Lawless (18) ●●●●● (John Hillcoat, US, 2012) Tom Hardy, Shia Le Beouf, Guy Pearce. 115min. A prohibition era drama about three brothers making a living from brewing and smuggling liquor until the appointment of a vicious enforcer halts their easy-going relationship with the local law. Written by Nick Cave, Hardy and Pearce turn in remarkable performances watered down by the debatable LaBeouf. The Hippodrome, Bo’ness, Thu 18 Oct. Liberal Arts (12A) ●●●●● (Josh Radnor, US, 2012) Elizabeth Olsen, Zac Efron, Josh Radnor. 97min. Directionless thirtysomething Jesse (writer-director Radnor) strikes up a friendship with bookish and ravishing 19-year-old Zibby (Olsen). How I Met Your Mother star Radnor is terrific company and his second feature is a lot of fun, if a little muffled in niceness. Cameo, Edinburgh, Thu 18 Oct. Looper (15) ●●●●● (Rian Johnson, US, 2012) Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt, Jeff Daniels. 118min. Time-travel thriller. A hitman for the mob recognises a target as himself from the future. Excellent time travel acion flick from Brick director Johnson. General release. On the Road (15) ●●●●● (Walter Salles, France, 2012) Sam Riley, Garrett Hedlund, Kristen Stewart. 137min. Adaptation of Jack Kerouac’s seminal novel that lacks the vitality of the source material. Selected release. ParaNorman (PG) ●●●●● (Chris Butler/Sam Fell, US, 2012) Voices of Kodi Smit-McPhee, Anna Kendrick, Christopher Mintz-Plasse. 92min. Norman (Smit- McPhee) can communicate with the dead, which complicates his life when he’s tasked with protecting his town from a centuries- old curse. A funny and stylish kids’ film, but it’s worth making sure your little ‘un is prepared for terror as well as laughs. General release. The Perks of Being a Wallflower (12A) ●●●●● (Stephen Chbosky, US, 2012) Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, Ezra Miller. 103min. In a 90s American high school, Charlie (Lerman) negotiates first love and social strictures in the wake of a personal trauma. Writer/director Chbosky adapted his own novel, giving a purity of voice and intent to this sincere and witty drama, while Miller steals the show as Charlie’s new best friend. Selected release. Prometheus (15) ●●●●● (Ridley Scott, US, 2012) Noomi Rapace, Michael
Fassbender, Guy Pearce, Idris Elba, Logan Marshall-Green, Charlize Theron. 123min. In the definitely-not-a-prequel-to-Alien, a spaceship’s crew investigates what appears to be an alien vessel. Despite a largely effective cast and stratospheric technical values the plot is murky and the tone is inconsistent. Brunton Theatre, Edinburgh, Tue 30 Oct. Pusher (18) ●●●●● (Luis Prieto, UK, 2012) Richard Coyle, Bronson Webb, Agyness Deyn. 88min. Frank (Coyle) is a STARTER FOR 6
Discover how Starter for 6 supports innovative start ups in the creative industries. Turn to page 75
18 Oct–15 Nov 2012 THE LIST 73