Doctor Strange (2016)
Genre: Fantasy
Certification: 12A
Duration: 115 minutes
Directed by: Scott Derrickson
Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachel McAdams, Benedict Wong, Mads Mikkelsen, Benjamin Bratt, Tilda Swinton
KRS Releasing Ltd

The Marvel Comics book superhero comes to life again after the 1978 live-action film Dr Strange starring Peter Hooten in the title role.

Multifaceted actor Benedict Cumberbatch takes on the role of the brilliant but egotistical surgeon Stephen Strange who turns into a superhero in this origin story, directed by Scott Derrickson (The Exorcism of Emily Rose, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Sinister).

The film sees how Dr Strange’s life changes after a car accident robs him of the use of his hands. When traditional medicine fails him, he looks for healing and hope in a mysterious territory. But he soon learns that the place is at the front line of a battle between dark forces bent on destroying reality.

Before long, he has to choose between his life of fortune or leave it all behind to defend the world.

Other protagonists include Rachel McAdams as a fellow surgeon to Strange; Tilda Swinton as a Celtic mystic known as The Ancient One who becomes Strange’s mentor; Chiwetel Ejiofor as her student Baron Mordo (a combination of characters from  the Doctor Strange myth); Benjamin Bratt as a paraplegic who learns to heal himself under The Ancient One; and Mads Mikkelsen as Kaecilius, a master of the mystic arts.

Cumberbatch has treaded new ground as a superhero with resounding success. Critics have showered praise on him and on the film in general.

Wendy Ide of The Guardian wrote: “Benedict Cumberbatch is unpredictable and intriguing as the Marvel superhero in a brain-melting tale that reinvigorates the genre.”

James Dyer of Empire Magazine described the film as “a bizarre and beautiful detour on the Marvel journey, which culminates in a mind-bending, expectation-inverting final act.”

The critics consensus on Rotten Tomatoes sums it all up by saying:  “Doctor Strange artfully balances its outré source material against the blockbuster constraints of the Marvel Comics Universe, delivering a thoroughly entertaining superhero origin story in the bargain.”

The film has been released in the UK and most of Europe in the last week of October but still has to open in the US and other countries  on Friday. It opens in Malta today.

Ratings
IMDB: 8.1/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 92%
Empire Magazine: 4 stars

Ouija: Origin Of Evil (2016)
Genre: Horror
Certification: 15
Duration: 96 minutes
Directed by: Mike Flanagan
Starring: Annalise Basso, Elizabeth Reaser, Lulu Wilson, Henry Thomas, Doug Jones, Parker Mack, Halle Charlton
KRS Releasing Ltd

The prequel to the 2014 supernatural horror film Ouija is set in 1967 Los Angeles, where a widowed mother named Alice (Elizabeth Reaser) unwittingly invites an evil spirit into her home by adding a new stunt to bolster her seance scam business.

When the force possesses youngest daughter Doris (Lulu Wilson), the family must face their fears and more in a battle to save the little one.

The film received generally positive reviews, as critics liked this new movie better than its predecessor.

Jeffrey Anderson of Common Sense Media, in fact, said: “Ouija (2014) was terrible but this prequel takes off in an entirely new direction with its mesmerisingly weird compositions and rhythms and wicked humour.”

Neil Genzlinger of The New York Times agrees. He wrote “Ouija: Origin of Evil is deliciously creepy, thanks largely to a terrific performance by the youngest of its stars.”

With a $9 million production budget, the film has made over $44 million in box office receipts worldwide since its release on October 21.

Ratings
IMDB: 6.7/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 82%
Empire Magazine: 3 stars

War On Everyone (2016)
Genre: Comedy
Certification: 15
Duration: 98 minutes
Directed by: John Michael McDonagh
Starring: Alexander Skarsgård, Michael Peña, Theo James, Tessa Thompson, Malcolm Barrett, Stephanie Sigman
KRS Releasing Ltd

The black comedy and buddy cop film is about two corrupt detectives, played by Alexander Skarsgård and Michael Peña, who set out to blackmail and frame every criminal unfortunate enough to cross their path in New Mexico.

Things take a sinister turn, however, when they try to intimidate someone who looks more dangerous than they are.

The film, which was screened at the Berlin Film Festival in February, has received tepid reviews but some critics really liked it.

Nick de Semlyen of Empire Magazine especially liked the movie. He described it as “a thinking person’s Bad Boys”, referring to the 1995 Will Smith and Martin Lawrence picture, and called its protagonists “two deliriously warped lawmen”.

Peter Debruge of Variety described the film as a “talky, sexy, irreverent and ultimately somewhat surreal buddy cop movie”.

Ratings
IMDB: 6.4/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 65%
Empire Magazine: 4 stars

The Clan (2015)
Genre: Biopic
Certification: 15
Duration: 108 minutes
Directed by: Pablo Trapero
Starring: Giullermo Francella, Peter Lanzani, Gastón Cocchiarale , Lili Popovich
Eden Leisure Group

This Argentine biographical crime film is based on the case of the Puccios, a middle-class family from Buenos Aires who aspire to move to the upper class.

Its director, Pablo Trapero, won the Silver Lion at the Venice International Film Festival in September 2015.

The plot set in the 1980s sees the Puccios kidnapping four rich neighbours to extort ransom money from their relatives but end up murdering three of them in the process.

The critics consensus on Rotten Tomatoes reads: “As shockingly compelling as it is dispiriting, The Clan delivers hard-hitting lessons even for viewers unfamiliar with the real-life history behind its story.” A.O. Scott of  The New York Times went as far as saying: “Pablo Trapero’s wrenching, exciting new film, could be described as an examination of the banality of evil.”

And Peter Debruge of Variety described the film as “a muscular, Hollywood-style account of the Puccio fiasco”.

Ann Hornaday of the Washington Post , however, was less impressed: “The Clan is an accomplished but not terribly original genre exercise – another story about amorality run amok, given an extra jolt from its real-life roots and heightened political context.”

Ratings
IMDB: 7.0/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 90%
Empire Magazine: N/A