The last week of the academic term brings with it the highly anticipated finale to the epic trilogy of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit. If that isn’t for you, we have a sprinkling of festive films throughout the week including the rerelease of The Polar Express, as well as a gang crime at the other end of the spectrum in We Still Kill The Old Way. Aid your end of term winding down with a cosy trip to the cinema.
This week gets off to a festive start with the rerelease of The Polar Express. The animation stars Tom Hanks as Santa Claus, and was nominated for three Oscars after its original release in ten years ago. The adventure tale follows a young boy who is beginning to doubt the existence of Santa Claus, as he is picked up by the Polar Express and taken on a magical journey to the North Pole.
Bringing Tibet Home is a journey documentary directed by Tenzin Tsetan Choklay that focuses on the making of Tenzig Rigdol’s art piece ‘Our Land, Our People’. The art piece was comprised of 20,000kg of Tibetan soil smuggled to Dharamsaka in India. Its aim: to allow thousands of countrymen exiled from Tibet to once again set food on their native soil. The film follows Rigdol’s journey as he risks his life to construct his art.
Agyness Deyn stars in the adaptation of Ray Robinson’s novel, Electricity. Said to be an off-kilter spin on Lewis Carroll’s classic Alice in Wonderland, the film’s protagonist, Lily O’Connor, is a young woman dealing with epilepsy that brings on warped hallucinations as she searches for her long lost brother.
The Face of Love is a psychological romance drama that unfolds as a recently widowed woman falls for someone who is the apparent double of her late husband, who died drowning. Starring Annette Bening and the late Robin Williams, the film explores the devastating effect of grief and the guilt of moving on after a loved one has gone.
The Great Museum is set at one of the most important museum in the world- Vienna’s Museum of Art History. The feature documentary takes us on a behind the scenes look at the renovation of the museum, and the struggles those involved went to in order to maintain the greatness of the museum.
The Green Prince takes place at the heart of the Israeli-Palestine conflict. Filmed as a documentary-style drama, the true story begins when the son of a Palestinian leader is coerced into turning spy for the Israelis- the most shameful thing he could possibly do.
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies is the third instalment of Peter Jackson’s latest trilogy. The epic finale, starring Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen and a stream of others, brings to us the defining moment in the history of Middle Earth. With battles galore, the fight against Smaug to save Middle Earth is at its height and is sure to be the conclusion that everyone is hoping for.
Manakamana is a documentary shot entirely from the confined space of a cable car high above a jungle in Nepal. This stunning visionary work follows a group of pilgrims traveling to worship at the ancient mountaintop temple of Manakamana.
Inspired by Naomi Oreskes’ and Erik Conway ’s acclaimed novel, documentary Merchants Of Doubt reveals to its audience the secretive group of pundits-for-hire who, presenting themselves as scientific authorities, caused mass confusion about the public threats of toxic chemicals, pharmaceuticals and climate change.
The inspiration for Disney’s award-winning Frozen hits the big screen this Christmas. The Snow Queen: Magic Of The Mirror, is a magical winter fairytale for all the family, following the tale of the courageous young Gerda in her journey to restore warmth to her frozen Kingdom and save her brother from the Snow Queen’s icy grasps.
Tale Of Samurai Cooking, is a Japanese historical romance drama set in the Edo Period. Oharu, a skilled cook, is married off to Yasunobu on account of her talent. However, despite being the heir of a highly regarded catering family, Yasunobu is himself a terrible cook until Oharo commits to sharing with him her talent and her passions.
The Circle is a swiss biopic about the young teacher Ernst Ostertag who, in the climate of his 1950’s bourgeois existence finds himself falling in love with the transvestite star Robi Rapp. In this heart-rendering drama, director Stefan Haupt explores the inner conflicts of a stifled homosexual society, following Ernst in his fight for gay emancipation.
Rejoin the Fairies in Tinker Bell And The Legend Of The NeverBeast, when a strange and fearsome-looking new creature is found to be lurking in Pixie Hollow. But despite the Scout Fairies rash orders to capture the monster, talented animal fairy Fawn discovers the creature may not be so fearsome after all. Can Fawn convince the other Fairies of the NeverBeasts’ true nature before it’s too late?
We Still Kill The Old Way is an 18-rated action crime thriller starring Steven Berkoff, Ian Ogilvy and James Cosmo as a group of ageing London gangsters provoked into a vigilante killing spree when one of their crew is murdered by a street gang.
