FILM: BARBIE - A Summer Hit That’s Not Just For Summer

Think pink and enjoy the feel-good film phenomenon that is Barbie.

Directed by Greta Gerwig, who co-wrote it with her partner, Noah Baumbach, the film has taken the world by storm in 2023. It stars Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken. They shine, along with a stellar cast, in this enchanting, hilarious romp which has captivated audiences young and old, fanatical and cynical alike.

The visual effects are stunning and the soundtrack - with music by Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt - is super-catchy. Lizzo, Dua Lipa, Sam Smith & Billie Eilish are among the stars whose work features on the already multi-play listed soundtrack.

The movie is a mixture of comedy and fantasy based on the Barbie fashion dolls by Mattel. It follows Barbie and her boyfriend, Ken on a journey from crisis to self- discovery, with plenty of twists and turns, as well as laughs, to keep you amused and entranced.

The supporting cast includes Helen Mirren, singer Dua Lipa, America Ferraro of Ugly Betty fame, Kate McKinnon, Rhea Perlman, Will Ferrell, Issa Rae, Michael Cera and Simu Liu.

It’s the first live-action Barbie film, after a string of computer animations and specials. Filming took place mainly at the Warner Bros Studios in Leavesden in England and at the Venice Beach skatepark in Los Angeles.

Barbie premiered in Los Angeles in July 2023 and its simultaneous release with Universal’s Oppenheimer led to the cultural phenomenon known as

Barbenheimer, where audiences went to both movies as a double bill. Barbie has been critically acclaimed and is the highest grossing film directed by a woman, and the 18th highest grossing film of all time.

Pacy and imaginative, funny as well as moving, the film begins in Barbieland, a matriarchal society with various types of the doll, and Kens who spend all day playing at the beach, while the Barbies work in professions like law, medicine and politics. The action then moves to the real world as Barbie and Ken go on the road to find themselves, with alarming and hilarious consequences.

The main themes include female empowerment, breaking stereotypes and the message that you shouldn’t be boxed in by other people’s expectations.

Favourite quotations from the movie include Ken saying: “To be honest, when I found out the patriarchy wasn't just about horses, I lost interest.”

Barbie: “You can be brainwashed, or you can be ugly. There's nothing in between.”

And Ruth who says: “We mothers stand still so our daughters can look back and see how far they've come.”

The director, Greta Gerwig and her co-writer Noah Baumbach have impressive CVs. They wrote Greenberg, Frances Ha, Mistress America and White Noise. As a solo filmmaker, Gerwig wrote and directed Lady Bird, and Little Women (2019) earning Oscar nominations.

Gerwig and Baumbach were given full creative freedom in writing the film. They collaborated on the screenplay during the Covid pandemic lockdowns and described the writing process as free and open.

The film is a 12A and runs for 1 hr 54 minutes and if you want to get away from bad news and the daily grind, check out this movie, which is a joy to watch and will put a spring in your step and a smile on your dial.

FILM REVIEW | MINIONS - THE RISE OF GRU

Cinemagic Young Film Critic Angelika Dzenite attended a special preview of Minions: The Rise of Gru with thanks to Universal Pictures Ireland and here shares her thoughts with us.

Minions: The Rise of Gru is an amazing family-friendly comedic, animated movie, which features talented film actors and actresses such as Steve Carell (voice acted Gru), TarajiP.Henson (voice acted Belle Bottom) and Russell Brand(voice acted Dr Nefario).Minions: The Rise of Gru is directed by Kyle Balda who has also made some other amazing filmography such as Despicable Me 3, Minions, The Mask and The Lorax. The films he has produced have been very successful and have won many awards like the nomination for Best Animated film in 2015 for the BAFTA Awards as well as being nominated for Outstanding Visual Effects in Animated Features in 2018 at the Visual Effects Society Awards.

The movie is about how Gru, when he was young, wanted to become a villain and this movie explores what motivated him into joining the villain Corp known as the vicious 6, as he had always aspired to be like Wild Knuckles who was unfortunately betrayed by his own team. The animated film then shows the idea of when young Gru goes to apply for the opening space in the vicious 6, it ends up going horribly wrong and that is when Gru thinks of a plan which then ends up with him and his minions on the run. What makes this film so beautiful is that it shows the power of friendship within the story line. as when Gru is on the run he bumps into Wild knuckles and is in need of help and Knuckles then helps Gru.

The plot of the story was very well done with the background to every main character you have seen in the film, as you got a glimpse of either what powers they had or what involvement they had in the film or in the film of “Despicable Me”. Theconflict was very smart as it led to a lot of rising action like the minions learning karate to them having a huge battle scene near the end of the film. The animation was amazing and really brought the feeling of excitement and action to the theatre, not to mention the music was spot on as it was based upon the 1970s which made it more accurate, and the creativity of the characters was spectacular, from a nun with floating powers and nun-chucks to a gut with an iron fist and super strength. This film also had female empowerment and showed  cultural diversity through villains to heroes.

The creative elements in the Minions: The Rise of Gru were surprisingly good but could have been better. The characters were well written, but I was expecting better because some of them barely had any screen time, like Dr Nefario who was only seen 2 minutes in the film. I wished they could have explained how he was a villain at some point in his life. Thevillainous 6 was a good concept to add to this film but I feel like the story line was rushed as it didn’t give us enough time to understand why he desired to become a villain and how he was villainous in school or at home. The genre was comedy, adventure, action and animation, the director succeeded in some parts of the film to include humour but at the same time it lacked it as well, it was the same with action. The dialogue was well written and at the end of the film it was all put together and made a heart-warming ending.

To conclude I enjoyed the film personally and it really brought childhood imagination to life as you were able to laugh and feel hyped for fight scenes as well as you get to experience spectacular animated movie with a good story line filled with character development and surprises. I would most definitely suggest this film to any age as it suitable and it gets you set off for an adventure on how Gru ended becoming a villain and hero by heart.

TV: THE TOURIST

The Tourist (reviewed by Letitia Fitzpatrick)

Local hero, Jamie Dornan is on our small screens in an original television thriller which has given the BBC a New Year hit.

The actor from Holywood in County Down shot to stardom as the sadistic billionaire in the Fifty Shades of Grey films, played a terrifying serial killer in The Fall, which co-starred Gillian Anderson, and more recently, starred in the movie Wild Mountain Thyme.

Sir Kenneth Branagh's semi-autobiographical film Belfast has earned Dornan Golden Globe and Critics' Choice nominations - and potentially BAFTA and Oscar nods, too.

Now, he is very compelling in The Tourist. Set in the Australian outback, it has more twists and turns than an Aussie highway, with car chases thrown in for good measure, and a hero who loses his memory.

It’s the latest offering from successful writers Harry and Jack Williams who penned The Missing, Baptiste, Liar and Angela Black.

Dornan is trying to work out why he was chased by a truck which runs him off the road, as he drives along a deserted highway. However, he seems more resigned than shocked by this. Next thing we know, he wakes up in hospital and can’t remember who he is.

It’s not a very serious thriller which brightens up our screens in these dark times. The cop investigating Dornan’s case is a rookie, Helen, played convincingly by Danielle McDonald.

As Dornan tries to piece together his identity, it becomes clear that he’s not just your average tourist in Oz. And the viewer wonders if he’s a good guy in the wrong place at the time, or a criminal with a dark past. The plot thickens, in a funny and stylish way, as the relationship between Dornan and the policewoman develops.

The series also stars Shalom Brune-Franklin, an English-American actress known for playing Private Maisie Richards in the BBC series Our Girl, Umm Khulthum in The State and Aoife in the Australian series Doctor Doctor. She starred as DC Chloe Bishop in all seven episodes of BBC One's Line of Duty, series six (2021).

For Dornan, playing someone who doesn't know themselves was a unique experience, which he describes as a journey of discovery. He found it weird not to have a clear back story and that also attracted him to the script.

All six episodes of The Tourist are available on the BBC iPlayer.

TV REVIEW: STAY CLOSE

Stay Close (Netflix) (review by Letitia Fitzpatrick)

Is Stay Close your new Netflix binge-watch?

Northern Irish actor James Nesbitt is a brooding detective in this mystery drama miniseries based on the 2012 Harlan Coben novel of the same title. It’s a thrill-ride of a story about people who keep shocking secrets from their families and closest friends.

The author is a master storyteller and Coben is hot property at the moment. 14 of his 31 novels are due to be adapted for Netflix as original series or films, with him serving as executive director on all projects. His plots often involve the resurfacing of unresolved or misinterpreted events in the past, murders, or fatal accidents, and have multiple twists.

Last year we had The Stranger, an adaptation of Coben’s 2015 bestseller, which told the increasingly demented tale of a husband (Richard Armitage) who discovers from a mysterious stranger that his wife faked her pregnancy and miscarriage before she disappeared.

Stay Close promises something similar. The plot centres on Megan Pierce played by Cush Jumbo, who starred as attorney Lucca Quinn in The Good Wife and The Good Fight. Megan is a suburban mum with a picture-perfect life, and a loving husband and three children who are living the dream. But she harbours a secret past that will soon intrude into her comfortable world and everything she cherishes.

Another character with a murky past is Richard Armitage, who plays a down-at-heel paparazzo, Ray Levine. His talent as a documentary photographer is a distant memory, after he lost the woman he loves who is now missing.

James Nesbitt (star of Cold Feet, Murphy’s Law, Bloody Sunday, The Way and The Missing) plays Michael Broome, a burnt out police detective. He’s haunted by the cold case of a disappeared man, the only one he ever failed to solve. 17 years later to the day, another man goes missing, and Broome takes on that case too, stirring up the past, opening old wounds and striving to find the truth about both men.

Weaving their way through the tale of Megan, Ray and Michael are two psychopaths determined to get their own way. Comedian Eddie Izzard is also in the cast, playing Harry Sutton, a lawyer and a former associate of Megan’s. Sarah Parish is cast as Lorraine Griggs, a mysterious woman from Megan’s past.

Released on New Years Eve 2021, the series was filmed in England although the novel was set in the United States. There are a few cliches and corny lines along the way, but so far, the series is proving very popular with viewers and most reviewers.

FOLIO | TV NEWS: KILLING EVE IS BACK

By Letitia Fitzpatrick

Good news in Binge Watch Land: Killing Eve is coming back.

The British spy thriller TV series follows Eve Polastri, played by the superb Sandra Oh, a British intelligence investigator whose mission is to catch the psychopathic assassin, Villanelle, played by the chilling and compelling Jodie Comer.

As the chase intensifies, the two women become obsessed with each other. Based on the Villanelle novel series by Luke Jennings, the series was produced in the UK by Sid Gentle Films for BBC America and BBC iPlayer, where the first three series are now available.

The first series had Phoebe Waller-Bridge of Fleabag fame as the head writer, the second series award-winning actress and director Emerald Fennell, the third series Suzanne Heathcote and the fourth and final series, which has yet to air, Laura Neal.

The show has been very successful in the United States as well as the United Kingdom, receiving critical acclaim for its writing and lead actresses’ performances. Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer have scooped awards including BAFTAs, as has Fiona Shaw for her part as Carolyn Martens, head of the Russia Section at MI6.

The story begins as Eve Polastri, bored with her protection role within the British intelligence agencies, becomes overly interested in female assassins, their mindsets and methods of killing. After she is fired from MI5, Eve is delighted to b e recruited by a secret division inside MI6, chasing an international assassin who goes by the name of Villanelle.

Eve meets Villanelle and finds to her dismay that members within both their secret circles may be interconnected. She becomes obsessed with the killer who is equally preoccupied with Eve, to the detriment of both their missions.

Both women are professional, childless, hard-working, ambitious and somewhat obsessive. They are also flawed and broken, and while their worlds betray them, they come to almost trust each other. Their complicated love-hate relationship is at the heart of the show.

The notion of female assassins is not unique, but the novelist’s take was seen by the production company as fresh, intelligent and bold, not exploitative and the mutual obsession between the woman was engaging.

For the role of Villanelle, the production considered over 100 actresses, before casting Jodie Comer. Sally Woodward Gentle told Backstage that the production “didn’t want Villanelle to be like Nikita or The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - that male fantasy version of what a woman who’d come for them might look like. We wanted her to be able to disappear into a crowd.”

Film locations include Tuscany, Paris, Berlin, Romania, London and Oxford. Filming for the fourth and final series began in June 2021.

FOLIO | TV REVIEW: THE CHAIR, NETFLIX

By Letitia Fitzpatrick

Another very watchable triumph for Netflix is The Chair, an America comedy-drama TV series.

Set in the fictional, Pembroke University, in what looks like New England, it stars the marvellous Sandra Oh, of Killing Eve fame.  She plays Professor Ji-Yoon Kim, the newly appointed chair of the university’s English department and the first woman to be chosen for the prestigious post.

She tries to ensure the tenure of a young black female colleague, Yaz McKay (Nana Mensah), as well as steer a course through her relationship with her friend and crush, Bill Dobson, played by Jay Duplass.  He’s a lovable but boozy colleague who has lost his way, since his wife died, and his daughter went to college.

Ji-Yoon’s life is made more difficult by the fact that enrolment is down, and the dean tells her to remove three members from her department.

Among the main characters are a senior English department faculty member, Yaz McKay played by Bob Balaban, and the university dean, Paul Larson, played by David Morse.

The award-winning actress Holland Taylor of The Practice fame delivers scene-stealing work as Joan Hambling, a senior faculty member who feels overlooked. The department members are all at war with each other, and the world over various grievances.

Ji-Yoon also struggles to parent her strong-willed adopted daughter, Ju Ju played by Everly Carganilla. 

The Chair was created by Amanda Peet and it was filmed at colleges in Pensylvania and Pittsburgh. 

There are only six half-hour episodes in the series which was widely acclaimed for its excellent observations about academia, and its fine cast led by an empathetic and very funny performance by Sandra Oh.

The Chair is a light, clever send-up of academic life, and it gives Sandra Oh a chance to expand her range, and leaves the viewer wanting more.

LOKI - A REVIEW, BY NIAMH FERGUSON

After her fab review of Cruella, lovely Niamh Ferguson is back to review her fave TV show by Marvel, even though the series itself hasn’t finished yet. No mean feat, right?!

One thing to note though, if you’re a fellow fan - this is your official spoiler warning for both the series and Avengers: Endgame!!! Over to you Niamh:
Loki is perhaps my favourite TV series by Marvel, despite it being unfinished. 

It’s directed by Kate Herron (best known for her work on Sex Education) and its executive producers are Kevin Feige (who is the President of Marvel Studios) , Louis D'Esposito , Victoria Alonso, Stephen Broussard, Tom Hiddleston and Michael Waldron.

I’m a big fan of Loki as a character, due to both his humour and his villainous ways, and I was excited when I saw that he was getting his own series. Tom Hiddleston ( also known for The Avengers, the Thor sagas and Early Man) plays the signature role of Loki. 

Episode 1 starts off with Loki picking up the tesseract (as seen in Avengers: Endgame) and him being teleported into the Gobi desert. As he was never supposed to pick it up in the correct timeline, it caused a nexus event, which is a breach of “The Sacred Timeline.” The Time Variance Authority then arrested him, with Hunter B-15 taking the lead, and he was brought to Judge Ravonna Renslayer for the verdict. As his timeline was about to be reset, a worker named Mobius took him away to ask him a few questions .

There's a lot I love about Loki, but I do  think that the special effects were overpowering everything else. There were a few robots used in one episode, and how smooth their faces moved was surprising to me, you’d think they were real people if you didn’t know the truth!

I think the costumes, designed by Christine Wada, were also amazing, and they fit the theme perfectly! She had to design a genderbent costume too, which is when a designer takes a costume and makes it fitting for the opposing gender. (in this case, it was from male to female) - how cool is that?

I love the choice of filming location too, the location of the TVA headquarters could not fit the theme any better, it looks just like the sci-fi kind of place an organisation like that would reside in.

I also love how Kate Herron decided to make it officially canon* that Loki was genderfluid, which is when on different days, one may feel like the opposing gender.

Casting:

Here is the main cast of episode 1-

Tom Hiddleston as Loki

Owen Wilson as Mobius

Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Ravonna Renslayer

Wunmi Mosaku as Hunter B-15

Tara Strong as Miss Minutes 

New characters in episode 2

Sasha Lane as Hunter C-20

Sophia Di Martino as “The Variant”

With a special appearance in episode 3 from the famous Richard E. Grant!

I rate this 5/5 and it’s great for any Marvel fans around my age!

*If something is canon , it’s accepted in that fictional universe. (e.g, It’s canon that Double Trouble from She-Ra is non binary)

FILM | CRUELLA REVIEW BY NIAMH FERGUSON (AGE 11)

Cruella is quite a unique 12-rated movie, from what I’ve watched before, with the main character being somewhat of an antagonist. 

The movie starts to properly begin after a traumatic event for Estella, and she wakes up, hat over her head, to a dog licking her face. Two boys accompany the dog, and all three are thieves. One of the two, Horace, tells her to go back to her mother. Estella stays silent, when the other one, Jasper realises that Estella is an orphan. They hear a whistle and the voice of an officer saying “Oi, thieves!” Assuming Estella’s one of them, they start running with Estella tagging along. She follows them to their hideout without them knowing. She falls and lands in their secret lair, not knowing her hat fell off and Horace and Jasper both notice her hair, which is somehow, half black and the other half white. Estella and the boys remain close for the duration of the story as the events unfold. 

What I love the most about the movie is the creative skill of the costume designers. For a long time I had really wanted to become a fashion designer, but I gave up on that dream. I believe that Cruella has sparked that feeling again. Jenny Beavan is incredibly skilled at costume design and I admire her greatly for it. My favourite costume was either Emma Stone’s costume from the Black and White Gala, being lit on fire to be truly revealed, or her costume from when she came out of the trash lorry. Those two were amazingly skilled and must’ve taken a long time to actually pull from concept to reality. 

The casting was also totally on point, and Emma Thompson, (best known for Sense and Sensibility, Nanny McPhee and her work in Harry Potter) as the Baroness was a great choice. I enjoyed seeing Emma Stone playing the young Cruella. 

The soundtrack was excellent, with the movie being set in the 70’s, and the music was well chosen from that era. I actually knew loads of the songs, with my mum and dad listening to them a lot when I was younger, and watching Stranger Things a few months ago. I love those kinds of songs actually, and I really love the rock genre! 

I also loved the chills that this movie gave me around the end of the film, with quite the plot twist. I didn’t find anything I truly dislike about the movie, but in my opinion, there was a bit of a fast pace a high intensity plot resolution close to the end. 

It is directed by Craig Gillespie (Best known for I, Tonya and also another Disney production Million Dollar Arm) and produced by Andrew Gunn (Freaky Friday and Sky High)

Overall, the movie is definitely worth watching if you’re a fan of the live action genre! In my opinion, it tops all the other Disney movies I’ve ever seen! As you can tell from what you’ve read, I definitely rate this 5 stars out of 5!

Niamh Ferguson aged 11 & 5/6!!

FOLIO | MOTHERLAND ON BBC IPLAYER

It’s funny and fabulous, and you won’t want it to end. Motherland is a superbly sharp comedy from the pens of Sharon Horgan (Catastrophe) and Graham Linehan (Father Ted), as well as Helen Linehan and Holly Walsh.

This British sitcom about the ups and downs of parenthood among a bunch of competitive mums in middle-class London ran for three glorious series of half hour episodes and is still available to watch.

Motherhood stars Anna Maxwell Martin who was nominated for a Bafta for the part of Julia, a self-absorbed slummy mummy who gets the shock of her life when her own mother decides to stop providing a free childminding service for her grandchildren. Julia is now forced to pay attention to her children’s schooling, and the concept of middle- class motherhood.

A self-centred, egotistical worrier, Julia wants to do as little parenting as possible and lean on her new friends at the school gate. Anna Maxwell Martin feels the comedy was important in these uncertain times when the world is going through a pandemic. She reckons we are all struggling, and we need something to make us laugh, even just for a few hours.

Julia struggles with juggling work and home life, an absent husband, nanny problems, a nit outbreak and a crush on her builder, among other trials. The actress relishes being an angry, over-the-top person. She was a hit as the grim-faced passive-aggressive DCS Patricia Carmichael in the immensely popular police drama, Line of Duty, which was filmed in Northern Ireland.

Another of the major characters in Motherland is Amanda (Lucy Punch), a vain yet insecure yummy mummy and social mountaineer who wants everyone to envy her. She is the superficially polite but acerbic leader of the Alpha Mums who are the mean girls at the cafe near the school.

Down-to-earth Liz (Diane Morgan) lives in a council flat and is a chaotic and blunt-talking single parent, who is unpopular with Amanda’s clique, and becomes buddies with Julia, helping her navigate the stormy waters of actually taking care of your own kids.

The third member of their unlikely trio is Kevin, (Paul Ready) an earnest stay-at-home dad who unsuccessfully tries to ingratiate himself with Amanda’s circle but finds true friendship and lots of laughs with Julia and Liz.

Motherland is excellently crafted and funny as well as poignant, as the characters deal with the ups and downs of life. Motherland is still available on the BBC iPlayer, and it’s addictive!

FOLIO | EMER D BRINGS US THE VERY BEST OF THIS WEEKEND'S AT HOME//ONLINE ENTERTAINMENT

Our good friend Emer Dooris from Emer D blog is back with us, guest blogging this week to bring you her top picks of entertainment from home. She’s a great all-rounder when it comes to the arts, but particularly loves theatre and music… But we also have some fab TV in here too including my own recommendation for the week The Framing of Britney Spears.

And with spring in the air it’s lovely to see some positivity around with all the music, theatre and art that we all so desperately need to get us through what will hopefully be the last of the lockdowns (but we wont hold our breath!).

HEADLINERS

Jack Garratt will be live on his YouTube tonight at 8pm where he will be playing an acoustic version of his album Phase from the Village Underground in London.

Want to get that Friday Feeling? Roger Sanchez is live streaming as part of the house nation over on futurescreen.tv tonight at midnight till 3am!

Burning the night oil? Patti Smith will also be lives streaming at 2am on Veeps.com and 3 Doors Down will be playing their greatest hits on mandolin.com.

THEATRE

Original Theatre online present their first theatre live stream this weekend. ‘Good Grief’, starring Sean Clifford and Nikesh Patel, tells the story of two friends navigating the five stages of grief through comedy and absurdity. Find out more at www.originaltheatreonline.com

Curve at Home, in association with the Birmingham Hippodrome, will stream an intimate, bold and beautiful new digital version of the WhatsOnStage award-winning production of ‘The Colour Purple’  this weekend from www.curveonline.co.uk

FILM

Need something to finish the mid-term break with the kids? Check out The Willoughbys on Netflix. PG animated fun for all! (We loved this wonderful piece, written by Ricky Gervais)

To commemorate that anniversary of the trial of the Chicago 7, Netflix has released the film of the same name on its YouTube channel for 48hrs this weekend. Starring Eddie Redmayne, Sacha Baron Cohen, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Jeremy Strong, Michael Keaton (and many more), it tells the real life story of a peaceful protest to end the Vietnam War which ended in an historic court case.  The film has been nominated for 5 Golden Globes, 6 Critic’s Choice Awards and 3 SAG Awards, so it's one not to missed! Jump on to the Netflix YouTube account now!

Also just out on Netflix is ‘Behind Her Eyes’, which is based on a best-selling thriller by Sarah Pinborough. We’re not horror fans here at The F Words, but we could def go a psychological thriller!

THE OTHER BEST BITS…

Check out Stan and Ollie on BBC1 at 8.25pm. The film tells the story of Laurel and Hardy's famous tour of Britain and Ireland in 1953 (they even popped into the Grand Opera House on this tour and stayed in Belfast for a couple of weeks).

Or Limitless starring Bradley Cooper and Robert De Niro is on 5Star at 8pm. We loved this movie back when it first came out.

Oh and if you haven’t watched it yet, ‘The Framing of Brittany Spears’ is currently on NowTV/Sky Documentaries. Editor Cathy Martin has been following the #FREEBRITNEY campaign for the last year and was a massive advocate of this documentary when it first came out.  Poor Britney was harangued and harassed for abnormal behaviours when actually they were pretty normal reactions to being CONSTANTLY hounded by a press and paparazzi who were unhealthily OBSESSED with every move she made. I mean, poor Britney was on lockdown before any of us even had an inkling of lockdown life as she tried to live her life against the massive wave of pressure among paps to get a money shot (an upskirt pic of her by a paparazzo was rewarded with a $1m fee by People magazine). And then for her father to team up with a crooked lawyer to forcibly become her custodians and decide every tiny thing about her including how and what she was medicated and drugged with?! Aaaaargh!

Anyway, Cathy’s advice: IT’S A MUST-WATCH.

Back to me though, I’ll be honest I'll have to finish Married at First Sight Australia before I tackle any of these as I’m addicted! But whatever you get up to, enjoy!

E x

FILM / FOLIO | Box Sets Worth The Binge

At a time when many of us a. will be spending more time at home than usual and b. could use a little cheer - or at least a distraction, it seems apt to share a roundup of brilliant box sets worth the binge. I'd love to hear yours too, so please repost this on social with your favourites - and tag us so we can share your picks!

LOVE IS BLIND, Netflix

“I have met the person I want to spend the rest of my life with. I’ve never seen her before."

A kinda dating version of The Voice, this reality show features a bunch of singles who date in pods with a wall between them and get to know each other without knowing what they look like. Astoundingly, most fall in love within days, get 'blind engaged' and some even marry weeks later. The most entertaining part is watching how being on the outside affects their relationships, many of which unsurprisingly deteriorate. A compelling guilty pleasure watch!

NEXT IN FASHION, Netflix

If you liked Project Runway, you'll love this show hosted by Alexa Chung and Tan France, where 18 designers compete for the chance to win a cash prize and the opportunity to sell their line on Net-a-Porter. Some really impressive looks are the result!

SEX EDUCATION, Netflix

It may feature teens and have an American vibe, but this UK show is loved by all ages and is flippin’ hilarious. It features a virgin teenager who gives sex counselling to his fellow students for money, with tips gleaned from his actual sex therapist mother, the gorgeous Gillian Anderson. Graphic, not for the easily offended and funny, it's also very tender at times - and hugely entertaining.

YOU, Netflix

A New York bookstore manager and serial killer who falls in love with a poetic customer and quickly develops an extreme, toxic, and delusional obsession. He feeds his toxic obsession using social media and other technology to track her presence and remove 'obstacles' to their romance. At times disturbing, entertaining and addictive.

THE MORNING SHOW, Apple TV

Hugely entertaining show starring Jennifer Aniston as a news anchor whose life is turned upside down when her co-host, aka Steve Carell, is fired after being accused of sexual assault by a number of colleagues. With her own job potentially on the line, she faces rivalry from local reporter played by Reece Witherspoon.

THE CROWN, Netflix

The Crown tells the inside story of two of the most famous addresses in the world - Buckingham Palace and 10 Downing Street - and the intrigues, love lives and complexity behind them. Absolutely fantastic and a visual delight.

LIAR, ITV Hub

A psychological thriller about two people whose initial attraction leads to far-reaching consequences for all involved. Things escalate after a teacher dates a recently widowed surgeon and quickly spiral out of control, ultimately exposing the power of truth, deception and trust.

THE STRANGER, Netflix

This superb thriller follows a family whose secrets and lies are made public by a complete stranger, creating mayhem in the lives of all involved and leading to an entangled mystery in the search for answers.

CHEER, Netflix

A documentary series following the world of competitive cheerleaders from the 14-time National Champions at Navarro College in Corsicana, Texas. They deal with injuries, sacrifices and personal setbacks leading up to the championship competition.

Ozark, Netflix

Can't wait for season three of this series (late March) as it follows a financial adviser forced to take his family away from their Chicago hometown of Chicago to the Missouri Ozarks, where he must launder $500 million in five years for a drug boss, or else. Incredible acting and a must watch.

FILM | Little Women (2019)

BY Molly McHugh

The new film adaption of Louisa May Alcott's novel, Little Women  is a heartfelt, emotional but yet uplifting story of four sisters through their teenage years at the time of the American civil war. Having not read the book nor seen previously produced films, I was in complete awe of Alcott’s purist storytelling and Greta Gerwig’s phenomenal creative and truthful direction of feminism in the 19th Century.

The four March sisters; Jo (Saoirse Ronan), Meg (Emma Watson), Amy (Florence Pugh) and Beth (Eliza Scanlen) each played a defined and personalised character under the care of their mother Marmee March (Laura Derm – who just won an Oscar for her role, whoop!) whilst their father (Odeon Kirk) was pastoring at the Civil War. Greta Gerwig revamped the novel by beginning the film at the sisters’ adulthood, flashing back to their childhood/teenage years.

The first scene begins with Jo, the impulsive writer trying to make her way selling story’s to stern publisher Mr Dashwood (Tracey Letts) at a difficult time where ‘morals don’t sell’.  Jo claims her anonymous friend wrote the published stories while she teaches in a boarding house in New York. Denying her love for a further critic Professor Friedrich Bhaer (Louis Garrel), she drops her writing and flees back to New England with news her young sister Beth had fallen ill.

The scene reverts to  rural New England seven years previous;  andthe March family,  struggling to show happy faces through their first Christmas without a father figure. With not a Christmas tree in sight nor presents underneath, Marmee makes the girls pack up and deliver their Christmas Breakfast and spare blankets to a lesser neighbour where children were sick, cold and hungry. They returned home to a full breakfast provided by a wealthy neighbour Mr Lawrence (Chris Cooper) who saw their generosity through his window. Theodore, also known as Mr Laurence’s Grandson 'Laurie', (Timothée Chalamet) became best friends with Jo March and became a brother-like figure to the rest of the sisters.

Beth, the younger of the sisters, was too timid to attend school where physical abuse was popular in a time of low funding for girls’ educations. Beth stayed at home doing  chores, following her mother’s kindness caring for sick children and practising her love for music on Mr Lawrence’s daughter’s piano.  Beth was rewarded with a gift of the Laurence’s piano, but unfortunately her care for others left her ill with scarlet fever. Amy was shipped off to live with Aunt March (Meryl Streep) due to a  fear of catching the fever, where she perfected her painting and aspired to become a well-known, fine artist. In an era where women could only be successful by marrying rich as expressed by Aunt March (a wealthy widow) Amy was gullible and travelled to Europe with Aunt March meeting Fred Vaughn (Dash Barber) who proposes to her.

Meg, the eldest of the sisters, who remembered the times when the Marchs had money was a pretty, girly girl, who liked nice dresses and to be seen as proper to society. Meg, battling her greed through a tough time of illness and war, soon became aware of the value of money and the importance of her health and family. Meg marries Orphan John Brooke (James Norton) and has twins becoming a stay at home mother near the family home.

As Beth becomes sicker, she persuades Jo to write her stories and read them to her. Jo stays by her side until she takes her last breath. Amy arrives home with a plot twist marrying Laurie, and Jo’s heart sinks until Professor Bhaer arrives with condolences and she realises her true love. After the loss of Beth, Jo picks up her pen and writes endlessly for days and days a novel based on the life of the four sisters called ‘Little Women’. She takes it back to Mr Dashwood as her own and negotiates the book to be published at a fair price and the way she wants it. Jo uses the money from the book and Aunt March’s house left in her will to start up a school for girls and boys where the three sisters teach education, art and music and no longer live in poverty.

For me, this film was an eye-opener seeing how the March sisters were entertained by the art of play and the simplicity of spending time together with the absence of television, mobile phones or even transport. A film of honesty, strong morals and realism is exactly what this generation needs to see, and I hope the novel – or others from this era - create many more adaptions for future generations to come.

FILM | GLORY BELL, IT’S GLORIA BELL

Gloria Bell is a remake of Sebastián Lelio's Spanish-language Gloria (2013). Here, the location switches from Santiago to Los Angeles, with Julianne Moore starring as a free-spirited fifty-something office worker, navigating life as a divorcee.

I wrongly assumed that her life would be depicted as a celebration of her freedom, enjoying a perfect relationship in the bosom of her now-grown family. Instead it is a candid depiction of awkward family scenarios and useless boyfriends, peppered with office life, car singing and everyday moments. She finds joy in her local singles nightclub, where she dances like no-one's watching in Diane Von Furstenberg wrap dresses.

Julianne Moore is both charming and mesmerising as Gloria; the heightened realism of her unfiltered life both disconcerting and refreshing. Gloria Bell is not a movie where much happens, but a character study of her life, from embarking on a new romance to the mundane, like handwashing her bras in the bathroom sink or having a bikini wax. Most of the action takes place around her, from her son's new baby girl and absent partner to her daughter falling in love and relocating with a Swedish big wave surfer. Everything that happens is underpinned by the unpredictability of life, happiness and dissatisfaction.

Gloria loves her grown-up kids and enjoys what seems to be a relatively content life, but her continual return to the dance floor (usually alone), relaxation classes and laughter therapy imply a hidden sadness.

She hooks up with a paintball instructor, Arnold (John Turturro) at the singles bar and the two begin a somewhat shaky relationship. Arnold’s ex-wife and daughters are needy and we soon realise that he hasn't moved on in the way that Gloria has. One moment he is all over her and the next he disappears, as if overwhelmed by his feelings.

One such instance is at a dinner party with Gloria's children and ex-husband, which leaves her hurt, angry and questioning everything. As the family look over old photos, Arnold becomes increasingly marginalised - even in the frame - where he is placed at the edge of shots and often in soft focus. His exasperation adds both tension and humour until he excuses himself and sneaks out of the building. Much as he and Gloria seem to adore one another, his unpredictability changes her life into something much more complicated.

Music plays a significant role in the film with a repertoire including Gloria Gaynor’s Never Can Say Goodbye, Anita Ward’s Ring My Bell and numbers from Olivia Newton-John, Bonnie Tyler, Earth, Wind and Fire and Air Supply.

Moore is in every scene of the movie and I love her all the more for how she played it.

The supporting cast includes John Turturro, Brad Garrett, Michael Cera and Caren Pistorius.

I saw Gloria Bell at QFT, Belfast and hope that it makes its way to more cinemas around the City.

FILM | Secret life of pets 2

by Ruben, 11

Every pet owner in the world wonders, 'what does my pet do when I'm not there?' and the answer in this movie is, 'go to your animal friends' houses,' 'protect their crush's busy bee', or even 'become a bunny superhero!'

If you're looking for more than a story of two dogs getting chased by a once evil (now the opposite) bunny and his gang, then ask and you shall receive.

Secret Life of Pets 2 is a great film with a pretty original storyline based on animals trying to save a white tiger from a Russian circus-running animal abuser.

The rabbit has a bigger role this time around, alongside Max and Duke (the two main characters from the first Secret Life of Pets film). I think it was quite nice to give the rabbit some fame but reckon they should've stuck to dogs and cats ....that's just my opinion and nevertheless it is a successful, funny film.

There are a number of morals to this story and the main one is Max the dog becoming brave. It all started when his owner Katie got married and had a baby called Liam. Max decided it was his priority to protect Liam and got so anxious about his safety that he started a nervous scratching habit. He scratched so often that he had to go to a behavioural specialist vet and get a protective cone on his head.

When the family went on holiday to a farmhouse in the countryside, Max met a big sheepdog called Rooster, who helped him overcome his fears. At first he was apprehensive, but when Rooster told Max to help him save Cotton the lamb, his courage started to grow. Cotton had escaped and ended up on an apple tree on the verge of a steep cliff. Rooster told Max that he would have to go down there and rescue him as the tree wouldn't support his weight - and in a literal cliff hanger moment, Max found the courage to save both Cotton and the day!

There are also many funny moments included in Secret Life of Pets 2. At the start, when the bunny Snowball's owner dressed him up in a superhero outfit, he took on the role of CAPTAIN SNOWBALL and went around doing flips and gymnastic moves. Later, he starts rapping in the style of the pop song, Panda.

This film has a direct audience: children, although adults will enjoy it too. It has a lot of child friendly scenes that are meant to make children laugh as well as cartoon characters and a heart warming storyline.

Although child friendly, it does include some mild violence. Being PG rated, there are a lot of moments that a child may try to recreate at home, so parents should be aware of that. I think it's suitable for ages 4+.

One of my favourite parts was the montage of real life animal clips at the end, so don't race out when the credits start!

FILM | ROCKETMAN

Rocketman opens with Elton John bursting through a doorway and striding towards us in a flaming orange devil costume, complete with horned headpiece and towering wings, as if about to take centre stage. Instead he enters dimly lit rehab, declaring himself an alcoholic, cocaine addict, sex addict, bulimic, shopaholic and more.

He sees his younger self in a corner of the room and starts singing. The boy sings too and the scene changes to 1950s England, with everyone on the street dancing to The Bitch Is Back.

And so our journey through the highs and lows of Elton's wild life begins - flitting back and forth between a dreary childhood and the rocky road to stardom.

Rocketman takes the form of an extravagant musical fantasy, with tunes selected to suit the mood rather than any kind of chronological order, some playing at points before they'd even been written. Candle in the Wind at Elton's first official audition a case in point.

The timeline was also creative at times for the sake of the story... the filmmakers have said this film is not a factually correct biography and that they took some liberties:

“What I care about is capturing moments cinematically and musically,” director Dexter Fletcher told Rolling Stone. “I have to take artistic license, which is what Elton said I should do. He’s a creative, artistic person and that’s the way we approached it.”

Visually, the film is rather charming, instilling a sense of nostalgia that immediately drew me in. The slightly washed out colour palette of the flashbacks is reminiscent of 70s style photographs; ditto the fashion... and the decor in  Elton's childhood home looks just like my grandmother's. This is of course interspersed with sequins, glamour and an absolute riot of colour, as vibrant as the music throughout.

Fletcher's film captures a great sense of creative intimacy between Elton John and lyricist friend and confidante, Bernie Taupin (Jamie Bell), in contrast to that with somewhat slimy manager and lover, John Reid (Richard Madden). Taron Egerton's performance as Elton was outstanding. Hand-picked by the man himself to play him in Rocketman, he threw himself into the role magnificently, even singing his own songs.

To be honest, I'd set the bar low for this movie after spotting some negative reviews, so was surprised to find it pleasantly enjoyable. It's been criticised as being overly glossy, without enough tantrums and tiaras, but I beg to differ.

"Maybe I should have been more ordinary."

Rocketman is an honest account of the depths that Elton sank to, the struggle to win his parents' approval and adapt to life in the limelight, feeling like a farce, unloved and unaccepted by his family and society. I would have liked to see more focus on his first marriage, subsequent coming out and meeting his husband, David Furnish (the film's producer). It does, however have its fair share of sex, drugs and rock'n'roll:

"Some studios wanted to tone down the sex and drugs so the film would get a PG-13 rating. But I just haven’t led a PG-13 rated life. I didn’t want a film packed with drugs and sex, but equally, everyone knows I had quite a lot of both during the 70s and 80s, so there didn’t seem to be much point in making a movie that implied that after every gig, I’d quietly gone back to my hotel room with only a glass of warm milk and the Gideon’s Bible for company." Elton John, The Guardian

The music in the film was fantastic and it's worth seeing for that alone, even if (like me) you're not Elton's biggest ever fan. The storyline was touching and I loved the reminder of some brilliant hits from Tiny Dancer to I'm Still Standing. Rocketman's riot of high emotion juxtaposed with an overdose of glamour is most definitely best enjoyed on the big screen.

FILM | ARABIAN ADVENTURE WITH DISNEY'S NEW ALADDIN MOVIE REVIEW BY ANGELIKA DZENITE - AGE 14, ASHFIELD GIRLS SCHOOL

The Adventures of Aladdin” hit cinemas last week bringing Disney's original 1992 story to life in a whole new way.  The storyline in this new version has not been adapted too much, just some extra unexpected thrills and a few scary moments thrown in for good measure. In my opinion, the transition from a well-known animated movie to a live action musical works extremely well for Disney and the director, Guy Ritchie who have seen the film take in a whopping £67.8 million at the box office in opening week - wow!

 The film follows the traditional story of street boy, Aladdin, (played by Mena Massoud) who meets and romances Princess Jasmine by chance in the city market and we are simultaneously introduced to the villain Jafar who plots to take over as Sultan.  On his adventures, Aladdin finds a lamp with a Genie, played brilliantly by (a very muscly) Will Smith, who pops out granting Aladdin three wishes.  Will Smith brings a very distinctive and quite camp humour to the film, creating laughs the entire way through, while Marwan Kenzari, who plays an excellent villain in Jafar, is fearsome and evil to a tee!

 In this era of female empowerment, a new scene which stands out for me is when Jasmine - played brilliantly by British teen actress Naomi Scott - brings a modern twist to this classic by ‘roasting’ one of her suitors – I laughed so hard (and proudly) at this point, although I wasn’t as keen on the kissing scenes!  In this film the character of Jasmine develops and she has a larger role than in the original film, which is unexpected but cool. [Note from editor Cathy - she also looks like a young Catherine Zeta-Jones but with the steely determination of Angelina Jolie in Maleficent or Gal Godot's Wonder Woman].

The movie is long enough - two hours and eight minutes long - so little ones might get restless, but I doubt it, as it takes you on the adventure of a lifetime and is worth every minute – so much so that I went to see it twice in two nights! 

 Overall, I really enjoyed the film and I would recommend it for all ages, from very young children to the elderly. It has a fantastic soundtrack and, like any great fairytale, good overcomes evil, but in this one the girl is as much the hero as the guy, which I love. 

 I would give Adventures of Aladdin a rating of 5 stars as it is one of the best live films Disney has ever made. So go ahead, get on your magic carpet and fly yourself down to your local cinema to catch this classic with a contemporary twist!

 By Angelika Dzenite
Aged 14
Year 10 at Ashfield Girls’ High School, Belfast

FILM | DUMBO – A DARKER TALE OF THE FLYING ELEPHANT FOR 2019

By Lola Harker-Quin and Leah Worbey, aged 11 years old and pupils at Seaview Primary School, Belfast

This week we watched the spectacular - and at times emotional - movie, Dumbo, which was directed by the magnificent Tim Burton. Tim also directed Alice in Wonderland, The Nightmare Before Christmas and Edward ScissorHands, so we knew this new version of the classic 1941 Disney movie would be quite different. We think Tim Burton has made Dumbo a little bit more scary and dark. Personally, we enjoyed this, but we wondered if smaller children might not enjoy this as much, so parents beware!

 The story begins with a family trying to come to terms with the effects of war. Holt (the father) is the trainer of Dumbo. The circus is failing until they realise Dumbo can fly. Suddenly, the circus is popular again. But Holt and his children realise there are dark secrets underneath all the fun and laughter. Our favourite part of this heart-warming movie was when Dumbo flew for the first time in front of the two young children, Milly and Joe Farrier. The saddest part of this magical tale was when Jumbo Jr. got his foolish name Dumbo, at the circus where he performed. We also realised that the little mouse character Timothy Q isn’t in this new movie as he was the original trainer of Dumbo. If it weren’t for this brilliant cast, Colin Farrell, Michael Keaton, Danny DeVito, Eva Green and Alan Arkin, this movie wouldn’t be half as good as it is, but we really highly recommend this overall happy tale!

FILM | Avengers: Endgame (Spoiler: It's Epic)

                                                                                       by Ruben, 11

Avengers: Endgame is the epic conclusion to an 11 year old saga that started the year I was born! Marvel has been working on this movie ever since they released Iron Man... so it was amazing (or should I say marvellous) to see all of our favourite superheroes in one jaw-dropping film.

Endgame is a thrilling, action-packed film. It isn't one of those rubbish action movies that only has one exciting moment (no offense DC-Comics), but is fantastically entertaining from start to finish, with countless hair-raising scenes.

From my perspective, I loved this film. The suspense of it all really sets the scene for how good it actually is. One of my favourite bits was how they turned the Hulk into half human / half Hulk so that he had a mixture of his super strength and green-ness, but also the genius Bruce Banner version of him, making a perfect balance for a Superhero. (Btw this also meant he didn't have the same problem as in Infinity War, where he couldn't change from Banner to Hulk).

One of the biggest aspects of the film was that it contained so much emotion, with multiple heartbreaking scenes that brought tears to our eyes - for example when Iron Man snaps all villains out of existence, with major consequences.

There are lots of hilarious parts too, like when a rocket ship almost landed on Ant-man and the force exploded his taco, Nebula said to War Machine: 'careful on the landing there's an idiot nearby!'

Then at the end, when Star Lord tries to kiss Gamora as she helps him up off the ground, Nebula remarks: 'Really? You can do better than him' and Gamora responds: 'He's the only option apart from a racoon and a man who never wears a shirt!'

I think it's best to see Endgame on the big screen if you can because the visuals are amazing, better still in 3D, which really brought the characters to life for me.

The film is 3 hours long, which might be a bit much for some people, but I think it's fine because if you think about it, there is so much content to include after all the things that happened in the previous film. If you think this fantastic, memorable film sounds too long, you're missing out... don't say I didn't warn you.

I can't stress it enough that this film is for both adults and children, as is every Marvel film. I'd say it's suitable for anyone aged 10+ as there's a lot of sci-fi action, some blood, it's very emotional and they swear quite a lot, just in case that puts you off.

For all of the reasons above, I think it's a necessity to go and watch Endgame. 

It's so good, I went to see it twice.

FILM | WHAT DOESN'T KILL ME

F Words contributor Ellen Lundy took to the Feminist Film Festival in London recently and watched “What Doesn’t Kill Me”. Read all about it!

 This low-budget movie is a tribute to the resilience, strength and indomitable spirit of women and their torturous stories. If, at the end of this heart-wrenching documentary, you’re not angrily denouncing the ineptitude and downright injustices of the American family legal system, then you need to purchase a single ticket journey on one of those Space X rockets blasting off soon at a launchpad near you. 

British filmmaker Rachel Meyrick, formulated this exposé on the inequalities and systematic abuses of American women. She single handedly shot, edited, produced, directed and travelled throughout 6 years of her life, investigating the contradictions of the judicial system on the American child custody issue. We get personal accounts from women and children who have been subjected to systematic abuse, surviving mothers, domestic violence experts and family law attorneys - one of whom subsequently had to escape an abusive relationship, but didn’t feel that she could trust the legal system (in which she works) to protect her or her child. We’re talking about a system that favours the abusive father over the protective mother.  I hear you, “No way! This cannot be real life!?” Alas it is far too real for most American women.

The protagonist of the film, the unassailable 86-year-old Charlotta, takes us through her 60 years of mental, verbal and physical abuse. Through this shero, we meet other survivors and their unique, yet hauntingly similar stories. We meet women and children who have been separated and silenced, who are now fighting back.  Captured in a pre-Trump control we can’t help but wonder,  one of the most powerful countries in the world wasn’t protecting the most vulnerable women and children then, so what’s put in place to help them now? I’m guessing not much given recent events in America and to quote Trump recently “Women are doing just fine”.  Here’s one statistic you will learn from this harrowing documentary, 1 in 3 women who suffer from domestic abuse in America are killed everyday by their abuser. Women are doing just fine…?

The information given makes you want to scream, in fact there was the occasional “No!!!” “WHAT!?” and gasps filled with fear and sorrow in the theatre. However Meyrick’s pacing in this documentary is one of the main elements that moved me. One aspect in particular is a shot she uses just at the right moments from inside a moving car filming a suburban street. I feel that Meyrick is purposely putting her audience in the car with her, moving past these typical American family houses with dark, twisted, sadistic hidden tortures and gifts us with a sense of safety by moving past these houses instead of turning into one of the driveways of house of horrors. 

Although this film focuses mostly on mothers, it needs to be watched by all. What Meyrick has so masterfully achieved is to lift the veil of pretence, to reveal the grotesque truth of the American family legal system.

“What doesn’t kill me” may concern the American family legal system however, disturbingly we can make the personal connection wherever you’re from. It’s a fact that laws and legislations pretty much everywhere favours men and not the other half of the population, women! This documentary educates, inspires and motivates change. We don’t leave our seat to reflect, we leave our seat to reform; not just for American women - but for women all round the globe.

Find out more here: whatdoesntkillme

FILM | GRACE AND GOLIATH - A GIANT HEART-WARMING MOVIE!

I fell in love this week. Not with a man, but with a movie.
The movie was Grace and Goliath - a production made by the charity Cinemagic led by my dynamo chum Joan Burney-Keatings with a star-speckled cast and a whole heap of volunteers and kids from here and LA ‘learning on the job’ from some wonderful industry mentors.

 Aside from the feel-good footage of our city and beautiful Atlantic coastline, and the characters played by actors and personalities including Emy Aneke, Laura Whitmore, Ciaran Hinds, Ciaran McMenamin, Olivia Nash and Paddy Jenkins (love these two!) - among others, the film also had a key ingredient in its truly wonderful storyline. And I am proud to say another chum, Maire Campbell, wrote this (now award-winning) script.  Described by the film’s director, Tony Mitchell, as a “love letter to Belfast and the people of Northern Ireland”, it had me in tears for probably the whole second half of the movie! And I do love a good cry at the cinema.

The story kinda goes like this: A Hollywood big shot (and he knows it!), Josh Jenkins, (Emy Aneke) sweeps into Belfast to make a movie, but before long his world crashes and he loses everything. Lily, his hotel’s cleaner, (played by Olivia Nash) invites him to stay with her crazy family and gradually the people of this ‘strange’ city touch his heart, forever.

It’s a powerful story about the kindness of strangers and of how one man’s GOLIATH ego is brought down by one single blow...of GRACE! And the Grace in the movie is wonderfully played by the producer Joan Burney-Keatings’ daughter Savannah. With a superb home grown cast and cameos from Suranne Jones, Sally Lindsay and Bronagh Waugh (who plays a blinder with a flippin’ fantastic Portrush accent!) GRACE AND GOLIATH is set to be the family film of the year.

Tony Mitchell, Director, who has lived in Northern Ireland for the last ten years, explains why he wanted to get involved with GRACE AND GOLIATH:  “In addition to the film’s redemptive storyline I felt the time was right to show a modern, progressive Belfast and breakaway from its historical ‘troubled’ past. As a ‘blow-in’ I see it differently and wanted to use that to focus on its beauty and less on its division.
Secondly, here was a film from Northern Ireland with a mixed-race lead actor and several very strong female roles – it was our turn to embrace change.

“Lastly, and most importantly the ethos of Cinemagic is to train young people. In addition to our small highly skilled indie crew we had 48 young trainees shadowing our every move; a challenging prospect that turned out to be an amazing experience for everyone involved. I couldn’t imagine doing another film without them.”

Joan Burney Keatings MBE, producer and executive producer of GRACE AND GOLIATH, and Chief Executive of Cinemagic, the award-winning Belfast-based film and television charity for young people, added:  “We are thrilled with the excitement and positive feedback, both locally and internationally, for our latest feature film GRACE AND GOLIATH. Private screenings earlier this year for industry representatives in Los Angeles and New York generated significant interest from distributors and international recognition for Cinemagic.

“The film showcases the beauty of Northern Ireland, its stunning landscape and also the genuine warmth, humour and spirit of the Northern Ireland people. We are unique in so many ways and this feature film captures and conveys our positivity."

“GRACE AND GOLIATH also offered young film trainees from Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland and Los Angeles to take part in a unique Cinemagic training model. This pioneering model, which offers trainees invaluable practical, hands-on experience of working on a film, was initially designed for Cinemagic’s first feature film A CHRISTMAS STAR in 2014. Due to its huge success, it has been further developed and now incorporates a fantastic international element working with young trainees from Los Angeles.”

UK sales company Starline Entertainment recently picked up the rights to GRACE AND GOLIATH and will distribute the film internationally.

GRACE AND GOLIATH (Cert PG) will open in cinemas from Friday 5 October 2018 but meanwhile, you can watch the GRACE AND GOLIATH promotional trailer here https://youtu.be/YnYVXpQVtUc

Local cinemas showing the movie include Omniplex Banbridge; Omniplex Craigavon; Omniplex Dundonald; Omniplex Lisburn; Omniplex Omagh; IMC Ballymena; IMC Enniskillen; IMC Omagh; IMC Banbridge; IMC Newtownards; Movie House City Side; Movie House Dublin Road; Movie House Glengormley; Movie House Coleraine and Odyssey Belfast.

A series of school screenings will also be available across cinemas in Northern Ireland. For further information on this please contact your local cinema or film distributor Eclipse Pictures on claire@eclipsepictures.ie

REVIEWS

Adrian Fulle, Executive Producer, Variety, the weekly American entertainment trade magazine and website, said: “For me, GRACE AND GOLIATH is one of those gems I never expected to find during my lifelong search for great stories. As a filmgoer and storyteller, I love everything about this movie; it's writing is top notch, the performances were outstanding, and it has such a strong heart that it's impossible to not love it. As a dad, it gave my daughter and I a very memorable experience we could bond over, and that was probably the most important thing for me.”

Ross King MBE, ITV TV host, commented: “Loved this movie, laughter, tears it has it all. A movie with a real heart!”

#graceandgoliath   #CinemagicFest2018