ELLA McCAY
(12A) 115mins
★★☆☆☆
ACCLAIMED screen-writer James L Brooks’ big return to directing after 15 years should have been a celebration of his 50-plus years in the industry.
Instead, Brooks (known for TV classics Taxi and , plus Terms Of Endearment and As Good As It Gets) has come up with such a clumsy misfire that it is genuinely baffling.
Set in an unnamed US state in 2008, film Ella McCay follows 34-year-old Lieutenant Governor Ella McCay, pictured stars Jamie Lee Curtis and Emma MackeyCredit: AP
Woody Harrelson plays her estranged dad EddieCredit: AP
Set in an unnamed US state in 2008, the film follows 34-year-old Lieutenant Governor Ella McCay (), who is meant to be the fresh new face of politics.
Nonsense
She’s juggling family drama, work and the news that her mentor, Governor Bill (Albert Brooks), is ditching state politics for a cabinet job in the incoming new administration.
What should be a clean transition story becomes a messy, confusing narrative about strained family ties, marital strife and a whole load of barely believable nonsense that feels far-fetched and frankly silly.
On paper, you couldn’t have dreamt of a more perfect cast.
turns up as Ella’s opinionated Aunt Helen, while plays her estranged dad Eddie — a serial cheat who betrayed his wife (Rebecca Hall) multiple times during their long marriage.
Slow Horses star Jack Lowden plays Ella’s husband Ryan.
Elsewhere, Spike Fearn is criminally underused as Ella’s troubled younger brother, Casey, while The Bear’s Ayo Edebiri plays Casey’s ex-girlfriend, Susan.
Comedian Kumail Nanjiani pops up as Trooper Nash, Ella’s amiable police detail who seems to be the sanest person in her entourage.
Julie Kavner (the voice of Marge Simpson) does a great job narrating.
It’s an impressive group, yet somehow every performance feels stiff, awkward and oddly detached.
It is as if no one knew what sort of film they were in or why they were even turning up.
Ella McCay has no idea what it wants to be. Brooks was once the master of sharp, warm comedy- dramas, but this is strangely flat and overacted.
Scenes that are meant to be emotional feel forced, while those that aim for comedy barely manage to raise a smile. It feels like a cheap TV movie.
Ella McCay isn’t just a misfire for Brooks, it is a full-blown face-plant.
Linda Marric
Slow Horses star Jack Lowden plays Ella’s husband RyanCredit: AP Film news
28 DAYS LATER III has been given the green light, with Cillian Murphy in talks to return.
ZENDAYA and Robert Pattinson will play an unhappy couple in The Drama.
A NEW Men In Black film is in the works, with rumours Will Smith will return.
ELEANOR THE GREAT
(12A) 98mins
★★★☆☆
Eleanor The Great follows the story of an elderly woman who lies about surviving the HolocaustCredit: Alamy
makes her confident directorial debut with a rather controversial subject – an elderly woman, who lies about surviving the Holocaust.
In the lead role of Eleanor is June Squibb, who is as brilliant as ever.
She perfectly captures the character’s grumpiness, humour, and genuine regret over letting people down.
Her scenes with Nina (Erin Kellyman), a young journalism student who is dealing with a loss, are among the film’s most enjoyable.
Elsewhere, Chiwetel Ejiofor is Nina’s award-winning journalist father and Rita Zohar plays Bessie Stern, Eleanor’s best friend, whose real Holocaust story she stole.
The film isn’t perfect, though. The ending is too sentimental and there are no real repercussions from Eleanor’s deceit and betrayal.
Still, Johansson shows promise behind the camera.
She gives the film a grounded, cinematic look and captures in its best light.
Instead of the shock factor, Johansson uses this set-up to explore grief, guilt, and loneliness, especially later in life.
SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT
(18) 96mins
★★★★☆
Cult horror Silent Night, Deadly Night serves up oodles of goreCredit: PA
SILENT Night, Deadly Night is a cracking slice of festive fright that proves isn’t all merry cheer.
This cult horror serves up oodles of gore, but what makes it stand out, is the bonkers backstory behind its killer Santa.
Written and directed by Mike P. Nelson, this is the second remake of the cult 1984 film of the same name.
It follows Billy (Rohan Campbell) who is haunted by the memory of witnessing his parents’ murder by a man in a Santa’s suit.
He snaps when Christmas rolls around, and goes on a killing spree.
Ruby Modine shines as Pamela “Pam” Varo, a small-town shopkeeper who becomes a believable intimate partner for Billy.
What really gives this film its edge is how it toys with your sympathies.
One minute Billy’s a wide-eyed victim, the next he’s doling out “naughty or nice” justice with an axe.
The kills are cheeky, the pace never drags, and the whole thing winks at the audience without turning into a silly parody.
It might not reinvent the slasher genre, but this film is bloody, brash and weirdly entertaining.
Linda Marric
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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