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| Sentimental Value Photo: Kasper Tuxen/Courtesy of Cannes Film Festival |
Sentimental Value , MUBI, streaming now
Sinners might have been drawing the awards nomination headlines but Joachim Trier’s complex family drama has been reeling in the plaudits since it won the Grand Prix in Cannes last year. It follows sisters Nora (Reinate Reinsve) and her younger sibling Agnes (Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas) who, after the death of their mother, find themselves reconnecting with their filmmaker father Gustav (Stellan Skarsgaard). Their fractured relationship proves no quick fix and pressure is increased by Gustav’s latest project, which he hires a young US starlet (Elle Fanning) to feature in after Nora rejects him. Textured and dense with the emotional complexity of adult children trying to come to terms with long gestating grievances with their parents, this is also a lovely exploration of sibling relationships. The film is ambitious in the way it lets tensions spin between the art Gustav is creating and reality but Trier and his co-writer Eskil Vogt’s attention to detail pays off in spades.
The Farthest, 10pm, BBC4, Monday, February 16
Emer Reynolds fascinating documentary takes a deep dive into the US Voyager programme - described here as "the science project of the 20th Century" - two spacecraft sent on a “grand tour” of the fringes of the solar system, with the team aiming for photos of Jupiter and Saturn as a minimum, with Uranus and Neptune also in scope. The film offers a balanced view of the mission and the groundwork that went into it with the experts chosen proving adept at explaining things in layman’s terms. Details of the Golden Record which was made to offer a snapshot of 55 languages and a lot more from Earth for any passing alien, are also woven in. Not just a scientific consideration but one that broadens into philosophical and emotional spaces.
Late Night With The Devil, 11.05pm, Film4, Monday, February 16
Jennie Kermode writes: If you know anything about live television, you'll understand that it's natural territory. Those amicable, smiling strangers you let into your living room and feel as if you know - like Jack (David Dastmalchian), a late night chat show host with a beige suit and an easy smile - are, behind the scenes, engaged in ruthless competition, the tension spiralling as they struggle to beat competitors' numbers, with little room for real humanity or moral concern. Late Night With Devil sees Jack at his most desperate (and Dastmalchian at his very best) as he presents the Halloween special which could make or break his career, and on which he plans to have a child supposedly possessed by a demon hypnotised live on stage. Directors Colin and Cameron Cairnes keep us guessing as to whether or not there's anything supernatural happening. We can never be sure how much is staged - but then there is the tremendous irresponsibility of it all, the exploitation, and Jack's crumbling mental health. It's an exquisitely composed tale in which no one escapes culpability - and that includes the audience.
Mr Nobody Against Putin, 11.25pm, BBC4, Tuesday, February 17
When Russian teacher Pavel “Pasha” Talankin realised that his school was becoming weaponised to steep children in the propaganda of the state as the Ukraine invasion began, he was in an unusual position in that he was employed to record events. From a position of that legitimacy, he charted the coming months as the messaging became stronger and the shadow of war slowly creeps over the schoolyard. Shaped by David Borenstein, who was supporting Pasha from a distance, this begins in playful manner but is ultimately a sobering consideration of the Russian war machine and its lasting impact on the youth of the country.
Hot Fuzz, 9pm, ITV4, Thursday, February 19
Edgar Wright gave himself a tough act to follow with his debut zombie spoof Shaun Of The Dead but he solidly replicates the joy with this warmly made parody of an American buddy cop movie that, like Shaun, finds much of its humour in eccentric Britishness. The film reunites Simon Pegg and Nick Frost as a hot-shot city cop sent to the countryside and his small town sidekick who find themselves on the trail of a killer. Pegg and Frost spark off one another perfectly as Wright manages to inject just the right level of silliness while maintaining the action adrenaline.
The Innocents, All4.com, streaming now
There's a touch of The Midwich Cuckoos to the kids we encounter on a housing estate, with the sense of oddness only magnified by the bright summery setting. Ida (Rakel Lenora Fløttum) is less than sympathetic to her older sister Anna (Alva Brynsmo Ramstad), who has autism. That makes a friendship with the similarly aged Ben (Sam Ashraf) appealing... especially when he reveals he has special powers. Elsewhere on the estate Aisha (Mina Yasmin Bremseth Asheim) also has special abilities - including being able to talk to Anna. All the more disturbing for the maintenance of the children's perspective, this is a subtle spinechiller from Eskil Vogt – yes, him again – showing his range.
Women Talking, 11.40pm, BBC2, Sunday, February 22
Jennie Kermode writes: In light of the recent Gisèle Pelicot case, the particular horrors at the core of Sarah Polley's drama feel all the more resonant, but really there are any number of forms they could take. That men frequently abuse women is not a new story, and it's not one that the film concerns itself with in detail; there is nothing gratuitous about it. Rather, its focus is on how women might react. Here, the options seem limited and clear. All of the men from their small Mennonite community – apart from a sympathetic young gay man and a younger trans man who has himself been abused – have gone into town to arrange bail for a man whom the women dared to accuse. They have given the women an ultimatum: forgive them completely or face eternal damnation. The women now see themselves as having three options: stay and do nothing, stay and fight, or leave. The film follows their discussions as they are determined to make their choice together. It is not a perfect film and parts of it drag, but the stellar cast makes quite an impact, and Polley's willingness to explore the mechanisms of power between the women as well as externally give it real depth.
The short film selection is taking a break because, frankly, I'm snowed under (and soon to be snowed on) with Berlin, it'll be back next week.
