Love is Strange (15)
four stars
Dir: Ira Sachs
With: Alfred Molina, John Lithgow
Runtime: 94 minutes
ALFRED Molina and John Lithgow play Ben and George, a New York couple who get married after four decades together. Their joy at finally being able to affirm their love in public is soon diminished by a run of bad luck which starts with Ben being sacked from his job as a teacher. Their bond is about to be tested as never before: George and Ben can cope, but how will their family and friends measure up? Ira Sachs's drama is a gentle, endearing affair, with delicate performances from veterans Molina and Lithgow at its core, and first class support from Marisa Tomei as the niece who opens her home to the couple only to find her patience stretched. Played with humour, heart, and telling a few sharp home truths about fairweather friends while it is at it, Love is Strange is just different enough to stay with you for a long time after.
The Interview (15)
two stars
Dirs: Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg
With: Seth Rogen, James Franco
Runtime: 112 minutes
AFTER all the hoopla about hacking, boycotts, alleged threats from North Korea and all, The Interview finally lands with an unimpressive thud. James Franco plays Dave Skylark, a deep as a puddle chat show host, with Seth Rogen (also the film's director) as Aaron, his producer. After the two manage to secure an interview with Kim Jong-Un they find themselves the centre of attention, with the CIA in particular wanting the hapless duo to carry out a little extra-curricular mission while they are overseas. Franco and Rogen have a grand old time trading jokes with each other, and they wheel on their celebrity buddies, among them Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Eminem, and Rob Lowe for some cameos. The whole enterprise smacks of being an in-joke, or a weak Saturday Night Live sketch stretched to almost two hours.
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