When so many movies are released each week and trailers often seem better than the movie itself, what should one do? In this precarious situation, we consult the The CineMagic 8-Ball(TM) to help us see through the nebulous marketing haze. Doing so just might save us all a disheartening trip to the cinema and spare us the shelling out for $7 popcorn and ridiculous concession stand prices. See what the 8-Ball says about this week’s releases…
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THE CALL
When veteran 911 operator, Jordan, takes a life-altering call from a teenage girl who has just been abducted, she realizes that she must confront a killer from her past in order to save the girl’s life.
The CineMagic 8-Ball says: “Outlook not good”
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FROM UP ON POPPY HILL
In Yokohama 1963, a budding romance develops between Umi and Shun as they join forces to save their high school’s ramshackle clubhouse from demolition. The story takes place in a Japan that is picking itself up from the devastation of World War II and preparing to host the 1964 Olympics – and the mood is one of both optimism and conflict as the new generation struggles to embrace modernity and throw off the shackles of a troubled past.
The CineMagic 8-Ball says: “Signs point to WIN”
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THE INCREDIBLE BURT WONDERSTONE
Superstar magicians Burt Wonderstone and Anton Marvelton have ruled the Las Vegas strip for years, raking in millions with illusions as big as Burt’s growing ego. But lately the duo’s greatest deception is their public friendship, while secretly they’ve grown to loathe each other. Facing cutthroat competition from guerilla street magician Steve Gray, whose cult following surges with each outrageous stunt, even their show looks stale. But there’s still a chance Burt and Anton can save the act – both onstage and off – if Burt can get back in touch with what made him love magic in the first place.
The CineMagic 8-Ball says: “Signs Point to Meh”
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SPRING BREAKERS
Four college girls who land in jail after robbing a restaurant in order to fund their spring break vacation find themselves bailed out by a drug and arms dealer who wants them to do some dirty work.
The CineMagic 8-Ball says: “Results uncertain. Go with your gut”
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GINGER & ROSA – Limited
London,1962. Two teenage girls – Ginger and Rosa – are inseparable. They skip school together, talk about love, religion and politics and dream of lives bigger than their mothers’ domesticity. But the growing threat of nuclear war casts a shadow over their lives. Ginger is drawn to poetry and protest, while Rosa shows Ginger how to smoke cigarettes, kiss boys and pray. Both rebel against their mothers: Rosa’s single mum, Anoushka, and Ginger’s frustrated painter mother, Natalie. Meanwhile, Ginger’s pacifist father, Roland seems a romantic, bohemian figure to the girls. He encourages Ginger’s ‘Ban-the-Bomb’ activism, while Rosa starts to take a very different interest in him. As Ginger’s parents fight and fall apart, Ginger finds emotional sanctuary with a gay couple, both named Mark, and their American friend, the poet Bella. Finally, as the Cuban Missile Crisis escalates – and it seems the world itself may come to an end – the lifelong friendship of the two girls is shattered. Ginger clutches at one hope; if she can help save the world from extinction, perhaps she too will survive this moment of personal devastation.
The CineMagic 8-Ball says: “Outlook good”
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Lots to choose from but we’d suggest Studio Ghibli’s From Up On Poppy Hill, even if it is dubbed. What will you be seeing? If you’ve seen any of these already, please let us know what you thought below.
