This Week’s Movie Menu (20 – 26 January 2025)

With the Oscar nominations finally set to be announced this week, we’ve reached a crucial point in the awards season – and this week’s releases reflect the prestigious times we are now in, including a massive historical epic, a haunting ghost story, and a sci-fi action extravaganza…

Movie of the Week

 

The Brutalist (dir. Brady Corbet)

CAST: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn, Stacy Martin, Raffey Cassidy, Isaach De Bankolé, Alessandro Nivola, Emma Laird, Jonathan Hyde, Peter Polycarpou, Jaymes Butler, Ariane Labed

CREW: Brady Corbet (director, writer), Mona Fastvold (writer), Nick Gordon, D.J. Gugenheim, Andrew Lauren, Trevor Matthews, Andrew Morrison and Brian Young (producers), Daniel Blumberg (composer), Lol Crawley (cinematographer), Dávid Jancsó (editor)

PLOT: In 1940s New York, Hungarian-Jewish architect László Tóth (Brody) arrives after surviving the Holocaust and being forced to leave his wife Erzsébet (Jones) and his niece Zsófia (Cassidy) in Europe. There, he is eventually recruited by wealthy American industrialist Harrison Lee Van Buren (Pearce), who commissions László to design and build an ambitious new development…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

  • Filmmaker Brady Corbet’s magnificent historical epic harkens back to the visionary New Hollywood era in the best possible ways
  • Oscar-winner Adrien Brody delivers some career-best work in the lead role, while the likes of Felicity Jones and Guy Pearce form part of the equally phenomenal ensemble cast
  • It is currently tipped to be nominated for numerous Oscars, especially after winning the Golden Globes for Best Picture (Drama), Best Director and Best Actor (Drama)
  • Some gripping cinematography, immense character work, and of course some immaculate production design all makes the three-and-a-half-hour runtime (including a handy intermission!) go by much faster
  • After Francis Ford Coppola’s costly misfire Megalopolis, this is the real epic about an ambitious architect that you need to soak into your eyeballs!

The Brutalist is showing in cinemas from Friday 24 January 2025

What’s Showing in Cinemas This Week?

 

Presence (dir. Steven Soderbergh)

CAST: Lucy Liu, Julia Fox, Chris Sullivan, Callina Liang, Lucas Papaelias, West Mulholland, Eddy Maday

CREW: Steven Soderbergh (director, cinematographer, editor), David Koepp (writer), Julie M. Anderson and Ken Meyer (producers), Zack Ryan (composer)

PLOT: After moving into a new suburban home, a family becomes convinced that they are not alone…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

  • This is no ordinary ghost story, as Oscar-winning filmmaker Steven Soderbergh brings a chilling new perspective to the classic haunted house formula
  • Said perspective is that of the ghost itself, as the viewer witnesses the other-worldly nature of this supernatural being who endlessly floats around a house tormenting its newest occupants
  • Soderbergh shot the film in a three-week period, reportedly with no close-up shots of the actors, and always within this singular location
  • Though the film was very well-received at last year’s Sundance Film Festival, some audience members still walked out due to its fierce intensity – surely a good sign that this horror movie designed to scare people is doing its job properly!
  • It is said to be one of the most original and indeed one of the scariest supernatural horrors in recent years, and you will be hard-pressed to think of another time when you were both this scared and this impressed all at once

Presence is showing in cinemas from Friday 24 January 2025

 

Flight Risk (dir. Mel Gibson)

CAST: Mark Wahlberg, Michelle Dockery, Topher Grace, Monib Abhat, Paul Ben-Victor

CREW: Mel Gibson (director, producer), Jared Rosenberg (writer), Bruce Davey, John Davis and John Fox (producers), Antônio Pinto (composer), Johnny Derango (cinematographer), TBA (editor)

PLOT: FBI agent Madelyn Harris (Dockery) is tasked with escorting informant Winston (Grace) to testify against a powerful crime boss, but once airborne in a small charter plane she realises that the pilot, Daryl Booth (Wahlberg), is a hitman that has been sent to assassinate him…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

  • Mel Gibson is back in the director’s chair nine years after his last film Hacksaw Ridge, for a smaller-scale but still high-octane action-thriller
  • Mark Wahlberg puts in a devious central performance as a hitman posing as a pilot, a role that saw the actor shave his head (in lieu of a bald cap) to create an unflattering look for his character
  • The film was granted a waiver during the SAG-AFTRA strikes, which allowed production to continue uninterrupted by the industry-halting union action
  • You’d be surprised by how many tense action sequences director Gibson can conduct at several thousand (simulated) feet in the air
  • This is a fun and enjoyable ride for anyone looking for a neat thrill to begin their year at the movies

Flight Risk is showing in cinemas from Friday 24 January 2025

 

Sunray: Fallen Soldier (dirs. James Clarke and Daniel Shepherd)

CAST: Tip Cullen, Tom Leigh, Luke Solomon, Steven Blades, Will Bowden, Nicholas Clarke, Daniel Davids, Andy Gatenby, Kevin Golding, Karlina Grace-Paseda, C.J. Howells, Gemma Knight Jones, Dimitris Kafataris, Franky Lankester, Aaron Mackenzie, Alex Montagnani, Ryan Noire, Saskia Rose, Tygorah Smith, Lewis Raymond Taylor, Denver White, Doireann May White

CREW: James Clarke and Daniel Shepherd (directors, writers, producers, cinematographers, editors), Sam Seeley (writer, producer), Tristan Lane Clarke (editor)

PLOT: After his daughter has a fatal drug overdose, war veteran Andrew Coleman (Cullen) rounds up some of his old friends to hunt down those responsible…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

  • This suspenseful revenge thriller features some visceral and heavily realistic violence that goes harder than most others
  • Said realism comes from the fact that the film not only stars but is also made by actual former Royal Marines Commandos, who bring their first-hand combat experience to a cinematic environment
  • In addition to the retribution plot, the film takes a hard look at the difficulties faced by war veterans trying to fit back into the society they originally left behind
  • The action is truly brutal, made by people who have clearly seen such extreme violence whilst in action
  • Both a compelling thriller and a salute to the bravery of all commandos past and present, this is nail-biting stuff you can’t afford to miss!

Sunray: Fallen Soldier is showing in cinemas (and will be available to rent/buy on digital platforms) from Friday 24 January 2025

What’s Showing At Home This Week?

 

The Killer (dir. John Woo)

CAST: Nathalie Emmanuel, Omar Sy, Sam Worthington, Diana Silvers, Saïd Taghmaoui, Angeles Woo, Eric Cantona, Tchéky Karyo, Grégory Montel, Hugo Diego Garcia, Michaël Erpelding, Aurélia Agel

CREW: John Woo (director, producer), Josh Campbell, Brian Helgeland and Matt Stuecken (writers), Alex Gartner, Charles Roven and Lori Tilkin deFelice (producers), Marco Beltrami (composer), Mauro Fiore (cinematographer), Zach Staenberg (editor)

PLOT: Zee (Emmanuel), a professional assassin residing in Paris, refuses to kill a blinded young woman, Jenn (Silvers), during one of her assignments, triggering an explosive series of events…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

  • Action movie legend John Woo brings to audiences an all-new vision of his own 1989 Hong Kong classic
  • Fast & Furious alumni Nathalie Emmanuel fills the deadly lead role, previously played by Chow Yun-Fat, while the likes of Omar Sy and Sam Worthington also pop up in memorable supporting roles
  • The remake spent years in development, as early as 1992 when Richard Gere and Denzel Washington were touted as potential leads (but was nixed at the time over worries about homoerotic undertones)
  • Woo brings his usual energetic flair to the film’s numerous action sequences, some of which even outdo the ones that he directed in the original
  • It’s a tightly paced and endlessly exciting action-thriller that proves once more why John Woo is a true titan of this genre of cinema

The Killer is streaming exclusively on Sky Cinema from Friday 24 January 2025

 

Star Trek: Section 31 (dir. Olatunde Osunsanmi)

CAST: Michelle Yeoh, Omari Hardwick, Kacey Rohl, Sam Richardson, Sven Ruygrok, Robert Kazinsky, Humberly Gonzales, James Hiroyuki Liao, Miku Martineau

CREW: Olatunde Osunsanmi (director, producer), Craig Sweeny (writer, producer), Erika Lippoldt (writer), Aaron Baiers, Ted Miller, Frank Siracusa, John Weber and Michelle Yeoh (producers), Jeff Russo (composer), Glen Keenan (cinematographer), Bartholomew Burcham (editor)

PLOT: In the far future, Philippa Georgiou (Yeoh) – the Mirror Universe’s former emperor and now a nightclub owner operating outside of Federation space – is recruited by Starfleet to lead a covert mission that could decide the fate of the universe…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

  • Oscar-winner Michelle Yeoh reprises her fan-favourite role from Star Trek: Discovery for a bold and action-packed new sci-fi adventure
  • Originally developed as a spin-off series, the pandemic forced its redevelopment into a standalone feature, one that fits better with Yeoh’s movie star image
  • A fresh cast of new characters joins Yeoh’s Georgiou on a dangerous journey to explore and eliminate a powerful new threat – in other words, it’s classic Star Trek!
  • Expect plenty of stunning sci-fi visuals to be brought to life by some dazzling computer and make-up effects
  • It could mark the start of a new wave of feature spin-offs set within the Star Trek Universe, in addition to all the ongoing series and theatrical movies

Star Trek: Section 31 is streaming exclusively on Paramount+ from Friday 24 January 2025

 

The Girl in the Pool (dir. Dakota Gorman)

CAST: Freddie Prinze Jr., Kevin Pollak, Monica Potter, Gabrielle Haugh, Brielle Barbusca, Tyler Lawrence Gray, Jaylen Moore, Michael Sirow

CREW: Dakota Gorman (director), Jackson Reid Williams (writer), Eric Brenner, RJ Collins, Larry Greenberg and German Michael Torres (producers), Adam Bosarge (composer), Alonso Homs (cinematographer), Rob Bonz (editor)

PLOT: On his birthday, family man Thomas (Prinze Jr.) is left panicked when he finds his mistress Hannah (Haugh) dead in his pool, forcing him to conceal the body during a surprise party with friends and family…

FIVE REASONS TO BE EXCITED:

  • Former teen idol Freddie Prinze Jr. resurfaces for the lead role in this suspenseful mystery-thriller
  • There’s a fine number of supporting players including Kevin Pollak and Monica Potter, all with their fair amount of suspicion
  • Hitchcock’s legendary one-take thriller Rope is said to be a major influence on director Dakota Gorman’s film, with the action all unfolding within a continuous time period
  • The film throws numerous red herrings at you until the time comes for the truth to unravel, with decisively shocking results
  • It’s a taut and gripping time that brings out the best in its lead actor, soon to be seen in the upcoming reboot of his breakout film series I Know What You Did Last Summer

The Girl in the Pool is available to rent/buy on digital platforms from Friday 20 January 2025

That’s about it for this week – be sure to come back next week for a whole new set of movies to work up an appetite for!

Want to see our past menus?

Want to find a specific film?

Search for it in the box below:

Captain America: Brave New World (dir. Julius Onah)

Sam Wilson investigates a dangerous new conspiracy as Captain America…

Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy (dir. Michael Morris)

Bridget Jones embarks on the next chapter of her ever-rocky love life…

Heart Eyes (dir. Josh Ruben)

A masked serial killer stalks a couple on Valentine’s Day…

Memoir of a Snail (dir. Adam Elliot)

In 70s Australia, young Grace is tragically separated from her twin brother…

Love Hurts (dir. Jonathan Eusebio)

A real-estate agent is forced to return to his violent past life…

Dog Man (dir. Peter Hastings)

After an accident, a cop and his dog companion are brought together in an unexpected way…

September 5 (dir. Tim Fehlbaum)

During the 1972 Munich Olympics, an American broadcasting team covers a devastating event…

Kinda Pregnant (dir. Tyler Spindel)

A woman pretends to be pregnant for attention…

The Fire Inside (dir. Rachel Morrison)

In 2012, 16-year-old boxer Claressa Shields makes Olympic history…

Hard Truths (dir. Mike Leigh)

Two sisters have two very different reactions to grief…

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Optimized by Optimole