The price of a movie ticket keeps increasing. And since many of you (yes, you are) are passionate about the seventh art, a review of this week’s new films will surely help you better choose your movie. So here are the films not to miss.
To the Wonder by Terrence Malick.
This is THE release of the week. Why? Firstly, because it is the new film by Terrence Malick who won at the Cannes Festival with The Tree Of Life two years ago. While his last film dealt with the relationship between a son and his father, this one focuses more on human-divine and man-woman relationships. Love will therefore be at the center of this new work but in two forms. As usual, the director strings together shots as magnificent as they are anecdotal, sometimes conveying more than a line of dialogue.
For the film, Malick surrounded himself with Ben Affleck (who made waves recently with his film «Argo»), Olga Kurylenko, and Rachel McAdams.
Synopsis: “Even though they met late, the passion experienced by Neil and Marina at the Wonder – Mont-Saint-Michel – erases the lost years. Neil is certain he has found the woman of his life. Beautiful, full of humor, originally from Ukraine, Marina is divorced and the mother of a 10-year-old girl, Tatiana. Now, the couple is settled in Oklahoma. Their relationship has weakened: Marina feels trapped. In this small American community, she seeks advice from another expatriate, a Catholic priest named Quintana. The man has his own problems: he doubts his vocation…”
Wadjda by Haifaa Al Mansour.
This Saudi film is likely to be one of the year’s pleasant surprises. Through the story of a little girl who dreams of freedom, the condition of women in Saudi Arabia is depicted here with intelligence. What better way than the spirit of a child both naïve and brilliant to decipher such a complex issue? The film received unanimous praise at the Venice Festival where some critics called it a masterpiece.
Synopsis: “Wadjda, twelve, lives in a suburb of Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. Although she grows up in a conservative environment, she is a lively girl who wears jeans and sneakers, listens to rock music, and has only one dream: to buy the beautiful green bike that will allow her to race against her friend Abdallah. But in the Wahhabi kingdom, bicycles are reserved for men as they are deemed a threat to the virtue of young girls.
Wadjda is therefore denied the money for this purchase by her mother. Determined to find the money on her own, Wadjda decides to participate in her school’s Quran recitation competition, with the winner receiving the much-desired money.”
It Boy by David Moreau (II).
Okay, let’s admit, the level has radically dropped. But cinema is also meant to relax and have a good laugh. And It Boy seems to fulfill this role. Virginie Efira stars with Pierre Niney (seen in “I Like Watching Girls”). The story of Alice Lantins, a rather uptight woman whose ambition is to become the next editor-in-chief of the magazine she works for. But the competition is fierce, and her image doesn’t work in her favor. The perception of her colleagues changes when rumors spread that she is dating a young high school student. Alice quickly sees the advantage and pretends to have an affair with the young lucky one.
A good way to unwind on a Sunday evening with the family. And besides, Virginie Efira is pleasant to look at…
