Pixar returns to the franchise that started it all for a fifth go-around. Woody, Buzz, and the toy gang are now competing against every parents nightmare: the electronic tablet!
The story picks up a few years after the last instalment, and things have drastically changed. Aside from the new toys added to the mix, the biggest shocker is how Woody (Tom Hanks) has actually aged. At first glance, it doesn’t seem like much, until everyone’s favourite pull-string cowboy toy removes his hat and reveals he is balding.
The gang are then thrust into the digital age with the introduction of Lilypad (Greta Lee). All the kids are glued to their tablets and screens. Bonnie, now 8 years old, and her friends use their devices to interact with one another via group chats and online games. Lilypad becomes the film’s main antagonist as the toys grapple with her. Are they in danger of facing extinction now that kids don’t spend as much time with their toys?
This is the dilemma our heroes must face in this new adventure. Pixar once again showing they are masters of their craft.
It’s close encounters of the deferred kind in Stephen Spielberg’s wondrous conspiracy spectacular.
Alien life has long been confirmed and concealed from the public. Disclosure Day opens in the middle of the fight to declassify that information. Whistleblower Daniel (Josh O’Connor), a cybersecurity expert at the Wardex corporation, is on the run with a bit of alien technology, while his girlfriend Jane (Eve Hewson) is in Wardex’s custody (headed up by a villainous Colin Firth). Daniel and fellow whistleblower, Hugo (Colman Domingo), stand firm against the idea that corporations should have control over information any more than they should air or light.
And then there’s meteorologist Margaret Fairchild (Emily Blunt, completely stealing the film), suddenly gifted with telepathic abilities (channelling a mysterious alien language). She must face reality in a more intimate way, tearing open the closed-off parts of her childhood years.
The plot is something straight out of an episode of the X-Files, but Spielberg sprinkles in enough of his movie magic and sense of awe to make it feel like a huge event. See it big, see it loud. See it here.
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A pleasant Italian gem on drinking buddies, ageing and wistful flavours of life
Francesco Sossai’s dramedy is a about a boozy car trip with small-time ex-criminals who are now old and broke, but mostly still living for the moment. Carlo (Sergio Romano) and Dori (Pierpaolo Capovilla) are in a search for another “last” drink, life as a perpetual bar crawl. To them, the party is never quite over.
The olden days seem to have slipped away from them rapidly. And the financial crisis of 2008 has probably been rough on them as a pair who burned through whatever cash they possessed. If only they could dig up the sizeable chunk of money that their old friend buried somewhere in town before he left for Argentina. Maybe they will one day, right after that last drink.
Most might think of a last drink as a way to cap off an evening, but for Carlo and Dori, the eternal search for a last drink is a search for an evening that never ends. The Last One for the Road has humour, a heart and a melancholic streak.
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A glossy portrait of Michael Jackson’s rise from child prodigy to global superstar, covering the years from the Jackson 5 through the height of his 1980s fame.
The film traces Michael’s journey from performing under the demanding eye of his father Joseph Jackson (Colman Domingo) to breaking away as a solo artist alongside key figures including Quincy Jones and manager John Branca. Along the way, it highlights both the extraordinary pressure surrounding his success and the intense spotlight that shaped his life from childhood onwards.
Much of the film’s appeal relies on the music itself, with elaborate recreations of iconic routines and concert moments serving constant reminders as to why Jackson became one of the defining entertainers of modern pop culture. In his screen debut, Jaafar Jackson impressively captures both the physicality and mannerisms of his uncle, while Domingo brings real force to the role of Joseph.
The film closes before the most controversial chapters of Jackson’s life, but its major box-office success and audience appeal have paved the way for a follow-up. Any continuation, however, would inevitably have to confront the darker scandals and complexities surrounding his later years more directly.
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Laurent Tirard’s fun and frothy French comedy sees a peloton of nuns race for renovation of their dilapidated hospice.
When the local nursing home is on the brink of collapse, it falls to Mother Veronique (Valérie Bonneton) and the five quirky sisters of the St. Benedict convent to find a solution. Their big break comes when they spot a poster for a bike race offering a €25,000 cash prize and a trip to the Vatican for the winner. It seems like the perfect opportunity, but there's one major problem: none of the sisters are skilled cyclists. To make matters worse, their rival convent, led by Mother Veronique's childhood nemesis, Mother Josephine (Sidse Babett Knudsen), has their own plans for the prize money. But as they say, God works in mysterious ways.
Tirard, a versatile filmmaker with a talent for balancing lighthearted narratives with emotional depth, died at the age of 57 last September following a long illness. Here, the stunning landscapes of France’s Jura region provide a beautiful backdrop for his final film, a heartfelt and uplifting tale of resilience, camaraderie, and faith.