The Lobster Review – Animal House

The Lobster makes no attempt to ease you in to its surreal world. Opening on a woman shooting a donkey with a handgun whilst disconcerting string music screeches around her, we then move to a scene of a wife leaving her husband (Colin Farrell) for another man, leaving the husband to be carted off almost immediately to a strange hotel. Yorgos Lanthimos gives a statement of intent in his first few minutes – if you don’t want to be slightly confused and alienated, then The Lobster isn’t for you. As it turns out, the hotel is a place for singles, a punitive resort where you either find a match in 45 days or end up being turned into an animal. 

Paddington Review – Charmalading

 

Earlier this year, when I went to watch The Lego Movie, I was reminded, in the pre-film trailers, just how awful films for young children can be. What a relief, then, that Lego turned out so brilliantly, and, as a further bonus for family-friendly cinema this year, Paul King’s Paddington is a genuine delight. It’s smart, funny, warm, boasts a great British comedy cast, and has two broad but charming messages – that immigration is an integral part of British culture and, for the kids, that parents can be really cool sometimes, you just have to give them the opportunity. Whilst this had the potential to be a cynical cash-grab, instead Paddington is a great adaptation of the beloved stories, and the best way for a family to spend 90 minutes at the cinema this winter.