Captain America: Civil War (2016)
Genre: Fantasy
Certification: 12A
Duration: 147 minutes
Directed by: Anthony and Joe Russo
Starring: Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr, Scarlett Johansson, Sebastian Stan, Anthony Mackie, Don Cheadle, Jeremy Renner, Paul Rudd, Elizabeth Olsen, Tom Holland, Frank Grillo
KRS Releasing Ltd

Chris Evans reprises his role as Captain America in the much-lauded sequel.

Captain America (Chris Evans) is back with a host of superheroes for a brand new adventure, which went down very well with critics and earned very high ratings before its release date.

Directed by brothers Anthony and Joe Russo (You, Me & Dupree, Community), the film is a sequel to 2011's Captain America: The First Avenger and 2014's Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and the 13th film of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

One year after the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron, another international incident involving the Avengers resulting in collateral damage occurs, prompting politicians to form a system of accountability and a governing body to determine when to call in the team.

The new status quo deeply divides members of the team. Captain America (Evans) believes superheroes should remain free to defend humanity without government interference while Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr) sharply disagrees and supports oversight.

As the debate escalates into an all-out feud, Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) must pick a side.

Critics showered the film with praise. Among others, Justin Chang of Variety wrote: “A decisively superior hero-vs-hero extravaganza that also ranks as the most mature and substantive picture to have yet emerged from the Marvel Cinematic Universe.”

Fellow Empire Magazine reviewer Dan Jolin said: “Matching its blockbuster scale and spectacle with the smarts of a great, grown-up thriller, Captain America: Civil War is Marvel Studios’ finest film yet. There. We said it again.”

The film premiered in the US on April 12 and was screened at CinemaCon 2016 on April 13. It is being released internationally today. The film opens in Malta on Friday and in the US on May 6.

Ratings
IMDB: 8.3/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 97%
Empire Magazine: 5 stars

Desert Dancer (2014)
Genre: Biopic
Certification: 12
Duration: 104 minutes
Directed by: Richard Raymond
Starring: Reece Ritchie, Freida Pinto, Makram Khoury, Marama Cortlett, Tom Cullen, Simon Kassianides
Eden Leisure Group

Reece Ritchie and Freida Pinto embrace their passion for dance and each other in Desert Dancer.

The 2014 British biographical drama film is based on the true story of Afshin Ghaffarian, a young, self-taught dancer in Iran, who risked his life for his dream to become a dancer despite a nationwide dancing ban.

During the volatile climate of the 2009 Iranian presidential election, where many cultural freedoms were threatened, Afshin (Reece Ritchie) and some friends, including Elaheh (Freida Pinto) form an underground dance company.

Through banned online videos, they learn from timeless legends who cross all cultural divides, such as Michael Jackson, Gene Kelly and Rudolf Nureyev.

Afshin and Elaheh also learn much from each other, most importantly how to embrace their passion for dance. They fall in love in the process.

The film, shot in Morocco, England and Paris, received tepid reviews. Frank Scheck of the Hollywood Reporter wrote: “Desert Dancer too often lapses into generic cinematic clichés, failing to live up to the dramatic potential of its subject matter.”

Scott Foundas of Variety put the blame on first-time director Richard Raymond: “As with so many extraordinary true stories, British director Richard Raymonds’s debut feature leaves you craving more truth and less canned inspirationalism.”

Cinemagoers should be on the lookout for Maltese actress Marama Cortlett, who plays the part of Mona. Cortlett, who starred in the 2012 Sinbad series which was shot in Malta, is making a name for herself abroad. She last starred in The Dovekeepers, which was also shot in Malta, and in the US Biblical TV series A.D. The Bible Continues. She is next rumoured to star in the drama Fallen Eagle: Broken Wings.

Ratings
IMDB: 5.9/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 26%
Empire Magazine: 2 stars

Criminal (2016)
Genre: Action drama
Certification: 15
Duration: 113 minutes
Directed by: Ariel Vromen
Starring: Kevin Costner, Gary Oldman, Tommy Lee Jones, Ryan Reynolds, Gal Gadot
KRS Releasing Ltd

Kevin Costner plays a dangerous inmate who acquires super powers in Criminal.

Directed by Israeli-born Ariel Vromen, the action drama stars Kevin Costner, Gary Oldman and Tommy Lee Jones in their second collaboration since the 1991 film JFK.

The story revolves around CIA agent Bill Pope (Ryan Reynolds) who dies while travelling to a secret location to meet a hacker who can launch missiles at will.

Desperate to find his whereabouts, officials turn to an experimental neurosurgeon who can transfer memories from one brain to another. The guinea pig for the procedure is Jerico Stewart (Kevin Costner), a violent and dangerous death-row inmate. Gifted with Pope’s skills and knowledge, Stewart must race against time to stop a sinister international conspiracy.

Critics has received mainly negative reviews. They have lamented that the film does not exploit its sci-fi premise and that it is a half-baked action thriller.

Peter Bradshaw went even further with his comments and described the film as “an extremely ridiculous and unpleasantly violent science-fiction thriller”.

Made on a budget of circa $30 million, the film made almost $11 million since its opening last week.

Ratings
IMDB: 6.5/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 31%
Empire Magazine: 1 star