Pieta

  Pieta Korea (2012) Kim Ki-Duk In the struggling mercantile area of Cheonggyecheon, Lee Kang-do (Lee Jung-jin) is relentless and remorseless debt collector for a loan shark, happy to mete out unflinching levels of punishment on his non-paying clients. Out of the blue a forty-something woman, Jang Mi-sun (Jo Min-su), turns up at Kang-do’s home …

The Amazing Spider-Man

  The Amazing Spider-Man (Cert 12) 1 Disc (Distributor: Sony) Running Time: 131 minutes approx Hollywood has comes under fire for quite a few years now for the paucity of fresh ideas for their output and the subsequent reliance on remakes, reboots and adaptations of old TV shows and video games. If ever there was …

Sekirei – Pure Engagement

Sekirei – Pure Engagement (Cert 15) 2 Discs (Distributor: Manga Entertainment) Running time: 294 minutes approx. Even if you have seen the first series of the big boobed battle babes show that is Sekirei, which arrived on our shores last year, you will need to have either a very good memory or will have to …

Air Doll

Air Doll (Cert 18) 1 Disc (Distributor: Matchbox) Running Time: 116 minutes approx A lonely café worker Hideo (Itsuji Itao) has a lifelike sex doll he has named Nozomi, which he dresses and treats like a real woman. One morning after Hideo leaves for work Nozomi (Bae Doona) magically comes to life, dresses herself in …

Living (Zhit)

  Living (Zhit) Russia (2012) Dir. Vasili Sigarev In three separate tales sharing a common theme, a young boy Artyom (Alexei Pustovoitov) enjoys staring out of the window at the world outside, much to the frustration of his abusive mother (Anna Ukolova) and her latest boyfriend Igor. Meanwhile HIV-positive Anton (Alexei Filimonov) marries his girlfriend …

Ted

Ted (Cert 15) 1 Disc (Distributor: Universal) Running Time: 106 minutes approx. Eight year-old John Bennett is a very unpopular boy with no friends until he receives a teddy bear for Christmas. That night John makes a wish that he and Ted (as he named him – will be lifelong friends. The next morning John …

Free Men (Les hommes libres)

Free Men (Les hommes libres) France (2011) Dir. Ismaël Ferroukhi In occupied Paris, 1942, an Algerian immigrant Younes Ben Daoud (Tahar Rahim) makes a living selling black market goods to fellow immigrants with the intent of returning home with enough money for his family. A police raid sees him forced into playing the role of …

Ninja Scroll

Ninja Scroll (Cert 18) 2 Discs (1 Blu-ray / 1 DVD combo) (Distributor: Manga Entertainment) Running time: 92 minutes approx. For any western anime fan worth their salt, this title should need no introduction; it is after all one third of the “Holy Trinity” of anime films that spearheaded the breakthrough in interest of Japanese …

Elles

Elles France/Poland (2011) Dir. Malgorzata Szumowska Working mother of two Anne (Juliette Binoche), an investigative journalist for Elle magazine, is writing an article about student prostitution, for which she secures interviews with two young working girls, Polish immigrant Alicja (Joanna Kulig) and lower class French girl Charlotte (Anais Demoustier). To her surprise, Anne doesn’t find …

Once Upon a Time in Anatolia (Bir zamanlar Anadolu’da)

Once Upon a Time in Anatolia (Bir zamanlar Anadolu'da)Turkey (2011) Dir. Nuri Bilge CeylanOn a dark blustery night, a trio of cars make their way to the Anatolian steppe in as police, gravediggers, a doctor and the state prosecutor are in search of a dead body which had been interred there. The chief suspect of …