after the government imposes tougher restrictions on arrivals to keep out new strains of coronavirus. a further 1,295 people have died in the uk — according to the latest covid figures. but the number of new infections has dropped to its lowest level so far this year. stricter covid restrictions come into force in scotland — with changes to takeaway and click—and—collect services. india launches one of the world's biggest covid vaccination programmes — the government hopes to inoculate three hundred million people in the coming months. president—electjoe biden sets out plans to speed up immunisations in the united states — promising to vaccinate 100 million people within his first 100 days in office. germany's christian democrats have elected armin laschet as their new leader — a key moment in the race to succeed angela merkel as chancellor. now on bbc news, mark kermode brings you the film review. hello and welcome to the film review with me mark kermode. and despite the fact that covid has closed cinemas and put us in lockdown once again, there is still plenty of new movies for you to experience and enjoy in the comfort and safety of your own home. this week's most arresting release is dear comrades, the latest from acclaimed russian film—maker andrei konchalovsky. set in 1962 in a provincial town in the southern ussr, this increasingly harrowing drama stars acclaimed stage and screen actor yuliya vysotskaya as lyudmila, a party devotee with a nostalgia for stalinist ideas in the age of khrushchev. "what am i supposed to believe in if not communism", asks lyuda as her beliefs are challenged in the fallout of a factory strike and protest to which the army and kgb respond with deadly force. as the authorities rush to cover up a state—sponsored atrocity, lyuda searches for her missing daughter, for whose life she fears after scenes of terrible violence. based on real events, that were not officially acknowledged until 30 years later, dear comrades is a powerfulfilm that draws visual inspiration from soviet classics like the cranes are flying and ballad of a soldier. presenting its bleakly crisp black and white images in a retro four by three frame. the result is an affecting recreation of a terrifying historical event that at times recalls the impact of the infamous 0dessa steps scene from battleship potemkin. conjuring an utterly convincing world in which the stillness of the cameras merely amplifies the sense of growing chaos. yet despite the true grit of its historical setting, it's the personal story of lyuda's journey that gives dear comrades such an emotional punch, with vysotskaya perfectly embodying a character who slips from stoic political stalwart to frantically anguished mother before our very eyes. it's available now on curzon home cinema with plans for a big—screen theatrical release whenever that becomes possible. david. i'm sorry, can you repeat the question? who, or what is david bowie? from the sublime to the ridiculous with stardust, a trite, unauthorized reimagining of david bowie�*s 1971 american tour which opens with the disclaimer: what follows is mostly fiction. it's also mostly rubbish, hobbled by the legally required absence of any original songs by bowie, who died five years ago, and whose estate wanted nothing to do with this movie. i need to be known, i need them to know me! instead, accomplished actor/musician johnny flynn is left to bash out a couple of bowie related cover versions like jacques brel�*s my death. while musicjournalists merrily misquote lyrics to the man who sold the world. presumably because the film—makers don't have the rights to use the real ones. now, this in itself would not necessarily be terrible. tom haynes brilliantly inventive velvet goldmine was similarly denied access to bowie�*s back catalog, but sparkled anyway. there is no authentic to me. it'sjust fear. yet with stardust, a clunky script co—written by director gabriel range makes heavy weather of alleged psychological scars, painting bowie�*s supposed fear of family schizophrenia in unsubtle strokes that lack invention, insight or width. strokes that lack invention, insight or wit. the key elements of bowie�*s ever—changing career. perhaps a different way to talk about me when on the phone. comedian podcaster mark maron does his best to hold it all together as stateside publicist ron 0berman, and jenna malone cuts a vaguely sympathetic figure as bowie�*s wife angie. butjust when you think that maybe they can save this debacle, along comes james cade whose impression of mark bolan is so toe curling that i had to take my shoes off and then throw them at the screen. it all recalls the opportunist silliness of 2003's grand theft parsons, another film which turned a modern rock legend into a bad joke. you can find stardust on a range of home viewing platforms, but bowie fans would be better served just dusting off their old lps and basking in the majesty of a talent to which this shoddy affair cannot hold a candle. oh, and if you want some of the real bowie on screen, then check out next week's secrets of cinema on pop movies. bbc four, tuesday night. i mention it only in passing. now we are getting somewhere. now, 1945 saw the release of david lean's acclaimed adaptation of noel coward's blithe spirit. a hit stage play which had taken london and broadway by storm. margaret rutherford and kay hammond, both of whom started in the original stage production, reprised their roles as a medium and a ghost. the letter conjured up by a seance which reintroduces her to former husband rex harrison, now remarried to constance cummings. now these roles have been refilled by respectively damejudy dench, leslie mann, dan stevens and isla fisher in a new version of blithe spirit which add some perfunctory nods to modernity while still retaining a basic skeleton of the original. elvira? hello? i haven't the foggiest idea of how to send her back. directed by downton abbey alumnus edward hall from a script by nick moorcroft, meg leonard and piers ashworth, this latest incarnation was due to open in uk theaters last year emma but after covid delays it was acquired for sky cinema. you're in trouble now. but to be honest, i can't imagine this somewhat lackluster production ever setting movie theaters alight, even with a starry cast whose performances range from the kooky to the caricatured come up with a rather irritating lack of panache. i can feel it in my base chakra. probably trapped wind. and while lean's original won oscars for its spectacular poltergeist effects, this looks more like a drab tv movie thatjust happens to be set in some eye—catching art deco surroundings. how dare you! "just photograph it, dear boy," coward apparently told lean. believing his play to be near perfect. i shudder to think what coward would have made of this adaptation, which is, at best, innocuously forgettable. altogether more ambitious, although also derivative, is archive. an eerie science—fiction drama from writer—director gavin rothery. which lifts rifts from everything from moon and ex machina, to blade runner, marjorie prime, ghost in the shell and even robot and frank. how are you feeling? theo james is george almore, an isolated scientist attempting to imbue the spirit of his dead wife into a secretively developed artificial intelligence. having previously built two prototypes, george seems to have struck gold with his third attempt, a biomechanical creation that can carry the recorded thoughts and consciousness of his lost love. i know what you're doing in there. but what will happen to the cast—offs that still need to be cared for, and can george really conduct such wild experiments under the radar? we received the notifications of your wife's transition. - she's not ready to go yet. of course. it may not be the most original idea, and the final reel twists won't surprise any genre enthusiasts, but an atmospheric score by steven price, who won an oscar for his work on gravity, and typically eye—catching cinematography from the great laurie rose lift this above the realms of mere repetition into something strangely haunting and effecting. it's nice to finally talk to you. supporting players stacy martin and the recently nobled tobyjones 0be add lively half, but it's james who carries the drama following in the footsteps of lonely screen astronauts like bruce dern and sam rockwell. do you need my help? leave me alone. current lockdown restrictions may have nixed the planned cinema release, but viewers can find archive on digital download from monday. free at last, free at last! thank god almighty, we are free at last! i'll leave you with news of mlk/fbi, an engrossing documentary about the us government's surveillance and harassment of martin luther king that seems all the more relevant in these troubled times. after the march on washington, it's clear that martin luther king junior is the most dangerous negro in america. and we have to use every resource at our disposal to destroy him. considering doctor king to be a communist threat, j edgar hoover went to great length to dig into his private life hoping to discredit him with evidence of extramarital infidelities. this represents the darkest part of the bureau's history. tracing the racist tropes of hoover's campaign back to birth of a nation and beyond, sam pollard's film argues that the fbi's activities were not some kind of renegade aberration, but a key part of an existing political order. they were running a surveillance state. along the way we hear from former fbi directorjames comey who says that the records of the bureau's action made him feel physically sick when learned of a cache of unreleased surveillance tapes that some believe should never be heard. it's compelling and alarming fair, a warning from history that there are those who will stop at nothing to retain white power. the greatness of america is the right to protest for rights. mlk/fbi is available on vod and through virtual cinema screenings now. that's it for this week, thanks for watching the film review, stay safe and i will see you next week. hello and welcome to sportsday — )a double ton for the captain — joe root reaches 228 // but sri lanka stage a fightback in the first test. 1a days in a hotel room — that's the reality facing almost 50 tennis players, after positive coronavirus tests on their flights to the australian open. and finally — a win for sam allardyce as west brom manager — they beat wolves at molineux. good evening — welcome to the programme. we're starting in sri lanka, where the home side staged a fight back on the third day of the first test. they finished the day on 156 for 2 in their second innings...but england still have a lead of 130, after a stunning double century from captainjoe root. joe wilson reports: the match was not yet england's but saturday morning wasjoe root�*s. watch carefully, asjoe root finally makes a mistake. straight to deep mid—wicket. well, by then, he'd made 228. a monumental innings. it felt like a match—winning performance. well, not yet. up the stairs, lunch, prepare to bowl. home side batting again, 286 behind, with plenty to prove. there's more to sri lanka than ducks. four noughts on the scorecard in the first innings, a strong start this time. and england had a problem, for the first time — how to dismiss those who stubbornly remain. well, kusal perera could have hit this anywhere. he found a fielder. sometimes, the luck�*s with you. sometimes. 0ne caught, now one dropped. thirimanne to sibley... and down. and the captain, well, it's still a lovely view — from up there. sri lanka's fightback continued, as the skies darkened. england needed something before the close. here it comes. 0h, beauty! just a faint touch.
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