Materialists (15)
Directed by Celine Song
⭑⭑⭑⭑☆

AFTER her critically acclaimed and Oscar-nominated debut Past Lives, Celine Song returns to shine a searing light on the ruthless and materialistic modern world of dating and finding love. 

Set in New York, it is inspired by the writer-director’s own experiences working as a matchmaker for six months. Song has described her second feature as being about fighting the way capitalism is trying to colonise our hearts and love. Singletons see it as a numbers game, only wanting to date people who earn over six-figure salaries, are well-educated and, in the case of middle-aged men, women who are fit and in their twenties. Those over 40 are completely written off. But as Song shows, you cannot quantify or categorise love. It does not succumb to an algorithm. 

The film follows Lucy (a dazzling Dakota Johnson), a successful matchmaker, with nine weddings under her belt, who finds herself torn between her perfect match, the tall, extremely wealthy and handsome Harry (Pedro Pascal on charismatic form), and her flawed ex, the struggling actor John (an endearing Chris Evans).  

Song deconstructs conventional romantic comedy to create a rich, thought-provoking yet frank and unsentimental look at dating and love in which the humour emanates organically from the drama. Although you can predict the ending, Song keeps you guessing as Lucy is as materialistic as her clients with their unrealistic demands and expectations, as highlighted in a montage which is reminiscent of Sex and the City. 

Johnson, Pascal and Evans are outstanding and keep you engaged throughout as Song proves she isn’t a flash in the pan but a master film-maker. 
MD
In cinemas now.

Unmoored (15)
Directed by Caroline Ingvarsson
⭑⭑⭑☆☆

A SUCCESSFUL Swedish TV presenter’s life is destroyed when her husband is accused of rape in this tense yet haunting psychological Scandi-noir drama. 

Based on the novel The Living and the Dead in Winsford by Hakan Nesser, it follows Maria (Mirja Turestedt) as she agrees to accompany her controlling husband (Thomas W Gabrielsson) to Morocco to escape the scandal. In Poland she flees from him, triggering an unfortunate chain of events and heads to Exmoor in Britain with her dog. Her idyllic stay there soon turns to paranoia as she is plagued by her fears. 

This is a taut and deeply atmospheric thriller, and an impressive directorial debut feature by Caroline Ingvarsson, carried by a quietly powerful performance by Turestedt. 

Maria considers herself a feminist yet fails to recognise that she is being emotionally abused by her husband as the film explores self-denial and trauma. 

However it seems to unravel at the very end with a rushed finale which poses more questions than it answers.  
MD
In cinemas August 15.

Together (15)
Directed by Michael Shanks
⭑⭑⭑⭑☆

REAL-LIFE husband and wife Dave Franco and Alison Brie play a couple who take being inseparable and joined at the hip to chilling new heights in this bold and stomach-churning body horror. 

This slow-burning and deliciously dark psychological horror is full of genuine jump scares and horrifying moments (involving rats and a chain saw, though not simultaneously) and proves an impressive debut feature by writer-director Michael Shanks. 

It is driven by fearless and commanding performances from Franco and Brie who give their all as Tim and Millie who, at a crossroads in their relationship, abandon their friends and old life in the city to move to a remote house in the country. 

The film explores co-dependency and how love can transform to become literally all-consuming. Plus, in a long-term relationship, discerning where one person begins and the other one ends. 

It is audacious and imaginative but not for the squeamish. Worth persevering until the end, however.
MD
In cinemas August 15.

Bambi: A Tale of Life in The Woods (PG)
Directed by Michel Fessler
⭑⭑⭑☆☆

WHEN the 1923 book Bambi was first translated from German to English in 1928 and became a bestseller, the pitfalls of translation became evident. This talking animal coming-of-age tale lost its political subtext as a parable of persecuted Jews to become merely an animal story with a strong message about the conservation of nature.

Disney did nothing to reclaim that context, obviously, and this film returns to the source. But the new translation into naturalistic cinema remains a puzzling affair. Here, the anthropomorphism meets lavish, nature documentary footage. So — is this fiction, or is this fact? Is this allegory, or is this observation of nature?

Clearly, the film is intended for an audience of wide-eyed kids and we are spared the moments of explicit pain — of birthing, or the death of Bambi’s mother at the hands of hunters. The animals, while mute, have human characteristics: the crow can unpick a gate fastening, the king deer can undo a snare, and leads his wounded son to hallucinogenic fungi with medicinal properties.

But, despite this, the characters have no personality, just presence, and there is no dramatic conflict but rather a series of brilliantly cut and fully orchestrated episodes, punctuated by drone shots of the woods, in which the deer goes through the seasons, grows up and grows antlers. And that’s it.

Exquisite, for sure, but boring.
AR
In cinemas August 15.