[star rating=”4.5″] THE SHAPE OF WATER. Directed by Guillermo Del Toro, with Sally Hawkins, Michael Shannon, Richard Jenkins, Doug Jones and Octavia Spencer.
Guillermo Del Toro does a magnificent job blending a magical fairy tale with Cold War spy movie, a B-grade creature feature and a classic love story. Plus, he gets in some social justice commentary without trying too hard, just putting it out there to let the audience pick up on it, or not. As much a take on Beauty and the Beast as it is a tale about what it means to be human, The Shape of Water features a stellar performance from Sally Hawkins and a gorgeous, delicate, moving score from Alexandre Desplat.
It’s got violence, nudity and cross-species sex, so it’s not a children’s story, but what it is is a story about outsiders and the very human need to connect. It is also about the love of movies, both the craft of movies and the way stories on screen captivate us and transport to another world. Read more: https://weekendspecial.co.za/the-shape-of-water-movie-review/ Extras: A Fairy Tale for Troubled Times. – THERESA SMITH
[star rating=”4″] 13 REASONS WHY. SEASON 1. Various directors, with Dylan Minnette, Katherine Langford, Christian Navarro, Alisha Boe. Netflix.
One of Netflix’s gems, 13 Reasons Why Season 1 has a compelling undertow that keeps you highly motivated to unravel the possible ‘reasons’. It all hooks around some cassettes Clay Jensen gets that were recorded by his school obsession – Hannah Baker. Part of the bait is that lead teen Clay is ridiculously slow in listening to the tapes, c’mon Clay!
Each tape reveals what led Hannah to kill herself, and we the viewer really need to hear what Clay did to help push her over the edge.
Hannah Baker’s prominence is much like Twin Peak’s Laura Palmer, except not quite as mysterious. There are moments where one questions the epic weight of all these ‘reasons’ (barring one), but the teen drama is all so pumped up to be super-bad it’s fun to see how these characters are going to play out. Based on Jay Asher’s 2007 novel Thirteen Reasons Why, 13 Reasons Why Season 1 highlights guilt, grief and bullying. Great casting all round. Extras: Hannah and Clay: An Unfinished Love Story, Justin Foley: Not your typical jock, Discovering Jessica Davis, Bringing the book to life, 13 Things about me, Beyond the reasons. – JANE MAYNE
[star rating=”3″] THE COMMUTER. Directed by Jaume Collet-Sera with Liam Neeson, Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson.
Director Jaume Collet-Sera and Liam Neeson have been on this merry-go-round before (most recently with Non-Stop) and it seems they just can’t get enough of action films with a sixty-something, slightly panicky, protagonist. In this outing Neeson plays an ex-cop who suddenly becomes an ex-insurance salesman after he loses his job. On his regular commute home, with money hassles on his mind, he is made an irregular proposal by a woman (Vera Farmiga) – locate a stranger on the train, and win $100 000 tax free.
Neeson gets sucked into things a little more robustly when it appears his wife and kid will suffer if he doesn’t do this thing. And thus ensues many sweaty chases up and down the passageways of a commuter train as he looks for a face that isn’t usually on the 6.15pm daily grind. It’s not a great premise, but Neeson is a competent actor and Collet-Sera has enough interesting angles up his sleeve to keep things chugging along. Extras: End of the Line, Off the Rails – featurettes. – KAREN RUTTER
[star rating=”4″] VAYA. Directed by Akin Omotoso, with Warren Masemola, Harriet Manamela, Phuthi Nakene, Zimkhitha Nyoka
Vaya’s spotlight falls on that great divide common to country and city life. It’s a familiar ethos which see-saws between cutthroat intent and kindly group consciousness. Here various character’s worlds collide in a cold, ugly cityscape overrun by sullied folk dulled by a merciless world – that so improperly-named City of Gold.
Every actor lends weight, and just as you worry for vulnerable Zanele (Zimkhitha Nyoka – Gold Diggers, Mutual Friends, Isithembiso, nominee for Africa Movie Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role), so do you root for Nhlanhla (Sihle Xaba), who gets wayled en route to meeting his cousin Xolani, a chilling Warren Masemola. Akin Omotoso recreates a grey, menacing world fraught with menace. Extras: Behind the Scenes – JANE MAYNE
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