DR MARTIN HARRIS (Liam Neeson) travels to Berlin with his wife Elizabeth (January Jones) to attend a biotech conference. En route, there is a freak traffic accident and Martin slips into a coma, waking four days later in hospital with fractured memories. Discharging himself from hospital, he races to the hotel and is delighted to find his wife . . . except Liz doesn’t recognise him and another man (Aidan Quinn) with the same name is on her arm. Suitably confused, Martin hunts down taxi driver Gina (Diane Kruger), who was involved in the accident, but as an illegal immigrant, she is reluctant to go to the police. Unknown wraps a simple premise in layers of deceit.
Viewers will guess the twist well before they should, but it’s of little consequence because he punctuates the intrigue with some well-orchestrated set pieces. Neeson flexes his fifty-something muscles with gusto, but there’s scant emotion to his performance. He relies on Kruger to elevate the film above standard popcorn fodder.
Rating: lll
In With The Flynns (12)
A YOUNG couple struggle with the pressures of parenting in this six-part BBC One sitcom. Thirty-something Mancunians Liam and Caroline Flynn (Will Mellor, Niky Wardley) have a rebellious teenage daughter Chloe (Orla Poole) and two younger sons, Mikey (Lorenzo Rodriguez) and Steve (Daniel Rogers). Times are tough and Liam and Caroline sometimes have to make sacrifices in order to make ends meet, not that the kids understand. Liam’s wayward brother Tommy (Craig Parkinson) hinders more than he helps and there’s always advice from cantankerous father Jim (Warren Clarke), who believes he always knows best.
Rating: lll
Country Strong (12)
COUNTRY star Kelly Canter (Gwyneth Paltrow) is battling her inner demons and the bottle. Following a stint in rehab, she embarks on a tour orchestrated by her husband and manager James that supposedly marks her great comeback. Alas, Kelly can’t keep her hands off the spirits or singer Beau Hutton (Garrett Hedlund), a man she met at rehab who has joined the tour. The addition of prom queen turned singer Chiles Stanton (Leighton Meester) to the tour puts the Canters’ marriage under further strain.
As recent stints on Glee attest, Gwyneth has the vocal strength to contend with the musical numbers, and on-screen chemistry with Hedlund simmers nicely, but writer-director Shana Feste chooses to dissipate the sexual tension with a rival romance that is a damp squib. Caricatures masquerade as rich and complex, making it difficult to sympathise with them.
Rating: ll
