Transcripts For BBCNEWS The Film Review 20180120

It for the papers tonight. A warm welcome to the film review on bbc news. To take us through this weeks cinema releases is mark kermode. What have you been watching this week . Very exciting week. We have the post, starring tom hanks and meryl streep. Coco, the new animation from pixar. And the commuter, the new liam neeson action vehicle. And the post, its aboutjournalism. I cant wait, im excited. Did you like it . I really did, its a newsroom thriller about the revelations of the pentagon papers, a report which basically said that successive us administrations had misled the country about the vietnam war. The film is largely set in 1971. Tom hanks is ben bradley, the editor of the washington post. He is eagerfor a scoop. Meryl streep is Catherine Kate graham, the publisher and proprietor of the washington post. Its going to the stock exchange, so its finances are slightly precarious. When the white house gets an injunction on the new york times, after they publish some of the pentagon papers, ben bradley wants to publish. But meryl streep says, hang on, there are reasons why we cant do this, not least of all that it might actually endanger the paper. Here is a clip. Do you have the papers . Not yet. Oh gosh, oh gosh, because you know the position that would put me in. You know, we have language in the prospectus. Yeah, i know, i know that the backers can change their mind. I know whats at stake. You know, the only couple i knew that both kennedy and lbj wanted to socialise with was you and your husband, and you own the damn paper. Its just the way things worked. Politicians and the press, they trusted each other so they could go to the same dinner party, and drink cocktails and tell jokes, while there was a war raging in vietnam. I dont know what were talking about. Im not protecting lyndon. No, youve got the man who commissioned the study, hes one of about a dozen party guests out on your. And protecting the paper. The thing i like about this film is it has a number of intertwining stories. One is the story of kate graham finding her own voice. Shes surrounded by men in boardrooms at the beginning. She doesnt really speak, shes slightly like a fish out of water. But during the course of this, she has to step up to the mark and decide whats the right thing to do. Second thing is, it runs almost like a prequel to all the president s men. The end of this film runs right into the beginning of all the president s men, which is a film that i was really, really affected by in the 1970s when it came out. I was a kid when i saw it, and loved it. Theres great period detail, sequences in the Printing Presses of the washington post. Were looking at the hot metal machinery, the old linotype machines. I love all that stuff. Most importantly, its a really contemporary story. That in 1971. Yes, the period detail is great, the performances are great, meryl streep and tom hanks are fantastic, the whole ensemble cast is great. But this is a really contemporary story about, in this particular case, a corrupt president in the white house attempting to stop the press from expressing you know, the right of free speech. And you look at that, and you look at whats happening today, in which the press is under attack, all the stuff about fake news. Recently we had the so called fake news awards. Its a film almost like a call to arms for the press, the independent press. From a free press, to truth to power. And its interesting that what spielberg has done is to take a period piece and tell the story straight, you know, its not twisted in any way at all, and tell it in a way which makes it seem urgently contemporary, in terms of its gender politics, in terms of its newspaper politics, in terms of the way it talks about the necessity for a free speech and good reporting, good factual reporting, to keep check on authorities. I mean, i ive seen the film twice now, and would happily go back and see it a third time. And you dont need to be interested injournalism, or in the issues youve just raised, to like it as a film . I think that helps, and i certainly know some people who arent interested in those things, and arent interested in that particular bit of history, who have said, why would you go and see it . You see it because it is a personal drama about those two characters, but also something that leads you very much by the hand. It does assume from the beginning you might not know this stuff, so it gives you a primer. It starts you in a battlefield, and it leads you and tells you all you need to know. I would encourage anyone to go and see it, because i think its a film that is timely, although it is a period piece. And i think you dont have to be specifically interested in that war or the pentagon papers orjournalism to find it a gripping drama. And the performances are just great. 0k, fantastic. An animated film is your second choice. And a really good one, coco, the new film from pixar, set at the mexican day of the dead festivities. So12 year old miguel longs to be a musician, but his family have banned music, because his great grandfather years ago chose music over family. So therefore there was no more music in the family anymore. On the magical day of the dead, fate takes a hand in the land of the dead. I thought this was terrifically entertaining, and also very, very touching fare. On the one hand, it has lovely animation and slapstick sequences, and all the sort of stuff you would expect from a pixar vehicle. More importantly, it has great songs, great music. But its dealing with some very difficult subjects its dealing with dementia, its dealing with memory, its dealing with death and life, its dealing with loss. Its dealing with the way people live on, as long as they live on in our memory. And also the way songs and music will linger in our minds sometimes, you know, if anybody has had any experience of people with dementia, music somehow cuts through. Cuts through, doesnt it . There are moments that will make you weep, moments that will make you laugh. In the end, itll make you cheer. If you liked this film, you see it and you like it, and i really think you will do, theres another film from a few years ago, from 2014, called book of life, which got overlooked. It does have thematic depth. They make a nice companion. Go and get book of life on dvd, because its a different film, but there are great similarities and they are both terrific. Ok, the commuter. The premise of the story is quite gripping. The commuter does it deliver . Liam neeson is a ex cop working as an insurance salesman. The beginning of the film, he loses hisjob, hes doing his commute. He needs money because he has to pay for his kids tuition. Suddenly, vera farmiga turns up and says, i want you to find someone for me. I cant tell you who they are, or what they look like, but if you do it there will be a reward. Heres a clip. Someone on this train does not belong. All you have to do is find them. Thats it. This person is carrying a bag. You dont know what it looks like, but inside that bag is something they have stolen. This person goes by the name of prynne. Its not a real name. They will be on this train until coldspring. You find them, you find the bag, the 100,000 is yours. Dont leave the train before finding the bag. Dont tell anyone about this offer. Waita minute, waita minute. Simple. I thought this was hypothetical. Its just a little thing. Shouldnt be too hard for an ex cop. How did you know . Oh, thats me. Youre being serious, right . You have until next stop to decide. What kind of person are you . Ok, so its intriguing set up. Theyre strangers on a train. She has this find the person, cant tell you why, there will be reward. Hitchcock thrillers you set up those rules. The rules have to make sense, and you have to obey the rules. What happens, it has an interesting premise and set up, and 20 minutes in it goes, none of this makes sense, and actually, we dont care. It throws the rules out the window. Why would he do it . That is thrown out. And itjust gets back into liam neeson Walking Around the train punching people. And the most frustrating thing is that when you see that clip, you think its intriguing. Whats going on . Its literally 20 minutes in, the film goes, i dont care. I dont think these rules add up to anything. The whole scenario doesnt make a. Shall wejust have him punching somebody . And you get the first punching sequence, and then you go, ok, fine, it is taken on a train. Its that film youve seen all those times before, except on a train. It reminds you, what happened to that really interesting idea you threw out the window . Ok, fine, moving swiftly on. Not a patch on the film of the week, three billboards, which i have not. I thought about it every single day since i saw it, which is interesting in itself. Brilliant performance by frances mcdormand, who has a strong chance of winning the best actress oscar. Martin mcdonagh, who wrote and directed, has done a really terrificjob. Made a tragicomedy that is comic and genuinely tragic. I know it is divisive. Some take against it, and dont get on at all. But i laughed in the bits that are funny, but i also cried, because i think it really deals with tragedy, it really deals with loss. Its really well filmed. There are moments in it that are almost transcendent. They are about, like with coco, life and death. The chaucerian ear for obscenity that Martin Mcdonagh has rings true. Did you love it . With hindsight, i loved it. I wasnt sure as i was watching, but i think the script is terrific, and its really stayed with me in a positive way. Dont take somebody who doesnt like swearing. That goes without saying. Thats the only caveat, isnt it, its a very striking film. For dvd . So i am not a witch. It turned out in the outstanding debut category at the baftas. A satirical, surreal tale of a young girl who is given the chance to accept life as a witch, or turn into a goat. The director has done a brilliantjob. I thought it was a really remarkable feature, something which, yes, its funny, yes, its satirical, but its also about misogyny and magic. One of those films, again, sometimes youre watching it and dont know whether to laugh or cry, and end up doing both. Its really well worth checking out. Thank you, mark. A really, really intriguing week. And many more like that to come, because were building up to awards season. Plenty to come. A reminder, before we go, you will find all of the film news and reviews from across the bbc on the website. And you can find all our previous programmes on the iplayer as well. Its a cracking week. Enjoy your cinema going. Thanks for being with us. Bye bye. Good evening, temperatures have already dropped well below 10 celsius across parts of scotland. Very cold air in place and then into the equation we are going to add some wet weather. Pushing in from the west of the rest of the night. This rain is likely to turn to snow across parts of northern ireland, wales through the early hours, likely to bring some significant issues with ice. Look at the overnight lows, 13 over the snowfields of scotland quite easily, sunspots could get lower than that. There are in mind with the wet weather sliding into the cold weather sliding into the cold weather risks are some snow and ice which could cause trouble disruptions during tomorrow. This is hardly day panned out, the cold start in the wet weather sliding its way in from the midlands northwards, a spell of snow, especially over high ground although much of it will turn back to reign as the day goes on because the mild air will be working in, quite a windy day as well, real contrast in the temperatures in newcastle, 12 in plymouth, for the week ahead it looks much more mild, wind and rain to come at times. That is all from me for now. Good night. This is bbc world news. Im chris rogers. Our top stories Afghan Special forces respond after Gunmen Attack kabuls intercontinental hotel. A workerfrom a worker from the hotel approached and said a suicide attacker entered the hotel. Turkey launches an air and ground assault against what it says are terrorist groups in northern syria. 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