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| Quo Vadis, Aida Photo: Courtesy of Venice Film Festival |
Jasmila Zbanic's measured and powerful drama considers the run-up to Srebrenica genocide, which left more than 8000 dead, from the perspective of UN interpreter Aida Selmanagic (Jasna Djuricic), her headteacher husband Nihad (Izudin Bajrovic) and their two teenage sons Hamdija (Boris Ler) and Sejo (Dino Bajrovic). We remain gripped to Aida as the crisis in her hometown looms and watch as the United Nations fails to intervene with devastating consequences. Djuricic puts in a masterful performance as a mum under increasing pressure as her panic mounts from with the chaos of a UN camp while her husband and sons are outside. Clear sighted and with an epilogue that acts as a reminder of the lasting impact of conflict, Zbanic's drama is not to be missed.
Drive My Car, midnight, Film4, Wednesday, February 27
Jennie Kermode writes: Working class driver Misaki helps actor and stage director Yûsuke to navigate more than just the streets of her remote Japanese island in Ryûsuke Hamaguchi's Drive My Car, which won Best International Feature Film at the 2022 Oscars. As he struggles with the disappearance of his equally famous wife and his resultant sense of purposelessness and loss of control, Chekov's Uncle Vanye looms large within his consciousness, and he skilfully exploits a brash young actor with a crush on his wife in order to avoid having to take on the title role himself, which could force him to confront aspect of his own personality that he's desperately trying to deny. It's a film about interiors both material and personal, and though it's sometimes a bit stagey, Hamaguchi makes good cinematic use of the island setting, which proves to be more complex than Yûsuke anticipated. The dryness of the script is alleviated by the emotional depth which Hidetoshi Nishijima brings to the leading role. it's an unabashedly literary film from a director who continues to experiment and produce some of the finest works in present day Japanese cinema.
The Father, 9pm, Film4, Wednesday, February 27
One of the most heartbreaking fictional explorations of Alzheimer's you're likely to see transports us into the headspace, and confusion, of Anthony Hopkins' Anthony. Time and space no longer operate in the same manner for him and his daughter Anne (Olivia Colman). First it's just a watch Anthony can't find but nothing seems to fit together quite right, particularly not his conversations with Anne, which often seem to contradict themselves. Florian Zeller - who wrote the role specifically for Hopkins - immerses us completely in Anthony's confusion, while the actor has never been better, shifting mood on a dime as his characters' confusion mounts. Gripping and quietly devastating.
Femme, Netflix, from Thursday, February 28
Jennie Kermode writes: "Loosely based on Sam H Freeman and Ng Choon Ping's 2022 short of the same name, Femme hinges on the rejection of the idea that to be feminine is to lack strength. After a drag queen is violently assaulted and degraded, a chance encounter provides an opportunity for revenge in a twisty tale of seduction which sees power move back and forth as the stakes continually rise. Nathan Stewart-Jarrett and George MacKay are both at the top of their game as the film keeps you on the edge of your seat in the run-up to breaking your heart."
Spaceman, Netflix, from Friday, March 1
There's a point at about an hour into this space drama from Chernobyl director Johan Renck when you will know with certainty if you're in or you're out so far as it is concerned. It marks the moment when lone space traveller Jakub (Adam Sandler) encounters a strange companion after hundreds of days on his mission to a mysterious space cloud. If you're in, then the film's sombre (some might say ponderous) tone will have done its job and you're taking it seriously. If you're out, then the appearance of Hanus (voiced with an enjoyable ethereality by Paul Dano) is likely to give you a fit of the giggles. I personally enjoyed the creature creation of this Netflix film, which also features some beautiful production design on the spaceship itself. I'm less convinced by the sloth-like pacing and the psychological underpinning is also rather trite given that it seems Jakub just needs to learn to appreciate his wife (Carey Mulligan) more. Not out of this world, certainly, but watchable with a few beers and, possibly, your favourite hazelnut spread. Full review coming soon.
If you like your psychological arachnid-inflected dramas on the darker and less easily understood side than Renck's offering then this stylish chiller from Denis Villeneuve is worth a look, even though it's not his best film. Jake Gyllenhaal takes on double duty as a melancholic history teacher and his virile doppelganger, actor Anthony Claire. Villeneuve creates a sustained an increasingly surreal mood as his atmospheric tale of alienation unfolds. The score from Danny Bensi and Saunder Jurriaans is right on point and the director serves up a last scene that won't be forgotten in a hurry.
The Impossible, 11.05pm, BBC2, Friday, March 1
Emotion is to the fore in Juan Antonio Bayona's disaster movie that focuses on a single family in the immediate aftermath of the tsunami that hit south-east Asia on Boxing Day in 2004 and is based on a true story. It's an opportunity to see a star in the making as a very young Tom Holland makes a lasting impression as youngster Lucas, who tries to man up for his mother (Naomi Watts) after she is badly hurt when they are swept up by the flood. The tsunami itself is presented with gut-wrenching realism but the visceral action is followed up by just as intense performances from Watts and Ewan McGregor - better than he had been in years - as the father desperate to find his family.
You'll need to pop over to Vimeo to watch this week's short film selection - Matus Vizar's animated Pandas.
