WES ANDERSON brings his offbeat and distinctly adult sensibilities to bear on Roald Dahl’s classic creation Fantastic Mr Fox.
Anderson imprints his personality so indelibly on the script, co-written by Noah Baumbach, that it’s hard to see children enjoying the film. Unlike his previous films, Anderson chooses stop-motion animation as his medium here and it works a treat.
Visually, the months of painstaking effort have been worthwhile, including fast-paced action sequences of the wily vulpine sneaking around farmyards in search of a tasty treat.
Featuring the voices of George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray and Brian Cox.
Rating: ****
CIRQUE DU FREAK: THE VAMPIRE’S ASSISTANT (12A)
THIS spooky fantasy, based on the popular series of books by Darren Shan, is a largely bloodless, family-friendly yarn designed to set the scene for future films.
High-achieving teenager Darren and his best friend Steve visit a freak show in the dead of night. When Steve is injured from a spider bite, Darren agrees to become a member of the undead in exchange for saving his buddy’s life and the friends are drawn into a 200-year-old vampire war.
Rating: ***
COUPLES RETREAT (15)
LOVE is a battlefield – and in Peter Billingsley’s vapid comedy, co-written by co-stars Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau, enemy lines are drawn on one of the most beautiful locations on the planet.
Filmed on a remote Pacific Ocean island, it is a flimsy excuse for best buddies Vaughn and Favreau to enjoy a free holiday with some of their acting mates. Their script is so unfunny, you could fairly categorise the film as a drama.
Rating: ***
THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS (12A)
AUDIENCES will flock to witness the final performance of Oscar-nominated actor Heath Ledger before his accidental drug overdose part-way through principal photography of Terry Gilliam’s film, which is every bit as disjointed and befuddling as it is visually arresting and fanciful.
The director had to hastily cast Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell as stand-ins for Ledger. Lily Cole, Christopher Plummer, Andrew Garfield take centre stage as an immortal circus frontman has to deal with The Devil.
Rating: ***
