Nicholas Hoult and Elle Fanning are the stars of new comedy/drama The Great.
A ‘sort of based on a true story’ tale of a royal woman from rural Austria, who marries an Emperor. Only she finds out that her life is not quite what she’d imagined and she’ll have to choose between her own personal happiness and the future of Russia.
Additional key cast includes Phoebe Fox, Adam Godley, Charity Wakefield and Douglas Hodge.
I’m in for the power struggle, the costumes, plus the entertaining silliness and word play.
Gwilym Lee, Paul O’Kelly, Bayo Gbadamosi, Michael Odin Cartwright, Charlie Price, Christophe Tek, Phill Webster, Sacha Dhawan and Sebastian De Souza also star.
The True Story Of The Kelly Gang (2019), Charlie Hunnam
Set during 1870s Australia, The History Of The Kelly Gang is a new crime/biography about Australian bush-ranger Ned Kelly and his gang as they flee from authorities
Based on the novel by Peter Carey, director Justin Kurzel’s key cast includes George MacKay, Russell Crowe, Nicholas Hoult and Charlie Hunnam.
It’s not so much the story of all the killing that interests me, or even the Ned Kelly legend. I mostly want to to find out how well the finished product comes together with the mix of Hoult, Hunnam and Crowe.
Essie Davis, Orlando Schwerdt, Thomasin McKenzie, Earl Cave, Marlon Williams, Sean Keenan and Louis Hewison also star.
X-Men – Dark Phoenix (2018), Jessica Chastain, Sophie Turner, 20th Century Fox
Director Simon Kinberg’s X-Men – Dark Phoenix has a good looking new trailer.
Starring Jessica Chastain, James McAvoy, Nicholas Hoult, Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Fassbender and Sophie Turner, X-Men – Dark Phoenix is all about their team member Jean Grey’s new incredible corrupting powers and how the rest of the X-Men deal with it.
I’m in to enjoy the stunning visual effects and find out if Jean Grey will fully embrace her dark side. Before doing all that though, I’m a tad behind so I just need to watch all the movies after X-Men First Class (2011).
Evan Peters, Alexandra Shipp, Ato Essandoh, Tye Sheridan, Kodi Smit-McPhee and Summer Fontana also star.
Tolkien is the new biography/drama about J. R.R. Tolkien, author of The Lord Of The Rings and The Hobbit.
Starring Nicholas Hoult, Lily Collins and Mimi Keene; director Dome Karukoski’s film will explore the formative years of the orphaned author as he finds friendship, love and artistic inspiration among fellow outcasts at school.
Trailer 1
Trailer 2
On account of fantasy not being my favourite genre (though I am quite curious about this Tolkien story), I’m more excited for big fans of The Lord Of The Rings and The Hobbit movies.
I just need to find out if I react to Tolkien the same way I did to The Lord Of The Rings movies. By which I mean, I was, dare I say, underwhelmed.
The story of the The Favouriteis set in the 18th century and centres on England’s Queen Anne (Olivia Colman), whose close friend, Lady Sarah (Rachel Weisz) steps in to govern England because the queen is too frail.
Director Yorgos Lanthimos’s film starts off relatively pleasantly, even though the atmosphere is quite tense. The tension continues, and things take a darker turn as the true motivations of the key players surrounding the queen begin to emerge. As a result, I found myself feeling increasingly sorry for Anne. Especially in her unfortunately frail state, and considering the tragedies she’s already endured.
Woven in with the tension and darkness is humour, which I enjoyed, and a noticeable amount of gratuitous but well-placed profanity. I liked the central performances by Coleman, Weisz and Emma Stone. I’ve never seen Stone’s generally very sweet-looking face and big, beautiful eyes take quite the less-than-sweet look they do in this movie. As for Coleman, I always knew she was capable with comedy, thanks to Peep Show, my favourite sitcom of all time. And, she does well in this heartbreaking, dramatic role. No wonder she’s already won the Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture.
The makeup and 18th-century costumes on both the men and women did well in delivering some fun and entertainment. Especially considering that many men walked around in massive wigs, quite a lot of makeup and ladies, especially the queen, wore dresses with comically puffy sleeves and skirts.
The Favourite is not at the top of my list as far as movies about British royalty are concerned, but I did have a good time. Watch it because it’s generally good, and who knows, you might love it even more, particularly if you like rabbits.
