Film Group
Film Group
Film Reviews , Winter 2021
© Tobis Film
Ein Festtag ( Mothering Sunday )**** UK 2021 Opened December 23 , 2021
Director : Eva Husson Writing credits : screenplay by Alice Birch , based on a novel by Graham Swift Principle actors : Odessa Young , Josh O ‘ Connor , Sope Dirisu , Olivia Colman , Colin Firth
On a beautiful mild spring day in March , 1924 , Jane Fairchild ( Odessa Young ), a young maid , has her day off . While her employers , Mr . and Mrs . Nivens ( Colin Firth and Olivia Colman ), meet up with the local gentry for a picnic , Jane sneaks off to visit with the son of one of these neighboring families , Paul Sheringham ( Josh O ’ Connor ), while his parents attend the picnic . The young couple spends an intoxicating few hours together , most of it naked in Paul ’ s bedroom . When Paul leaves to finally join the picnic , Jane has the run of his family ’ s house to herself , where she wanders , still naked , through the beautiful rooms filled with possessions she can only dream of having . It is the last time Jane will ever see Paul , and she ’ s already grieving the loss of their secret relationship , though that grief will be transformed by the end of the day .
This is a movie very focused on grief : the Nivens and the Sheringhams have lost their sons in the First World War , and their collective pain is best articulated by Mrs . Nivens , whose rage balances out her husband ’ s bumbling befuddlement in the face of loss . Jane wants to be a writer , and the movie flashes forward in time to reveal how she manages to turn these stories — and her place in them — into successful novels . Mothering Sunday is filmed in a lush and careful way , taking time to linger on details and moments that stretch out into posterity . It ’ s a slow film , but it ’ s never dull . Jane ’ s future accomplishments as a writer stem from the events of this single day , from the love affair with Paul to the miserable advice Mrs . Niven bestows upon her , beseeching her to turn her disadvantages in life into advantages . So director Eva Husson takes the time to capture this day from all its angles , richly examining the hours of Jane ’ s life so that she can juxtapose them against moments in Jane ’ s later relationships and experiences . The result is a beautifully rich and moving film . ( Diana Perry Schnelle )
Sing — Die Show Deines Lebens ( Sing 2 ) **** France / Japan / USA 2021 Opening January 20 , 2022
Director : Garth Jennings Writing credits : Garth Jennings Principal actors : animation ( original English actors overdubbed in Germany )
Buster Moon and his team of musicians Meena , Gunter , Rosita , Johnny , and Ash , arrive at the office of Crystal Entertainment , hoping to impress Mr . Jimmy Crystal . They claim to include a famous performer , Clay Calloway . By chance , they finagle a gig in Mr . Crystal ’ s theater . He even arranges for them to reside in his fancy Crystal Tower Hotel . They begin staging for their musical Not of This World . They practice dancing with Nooshy , who has creative ideas . Newcomer Darius works with Meena on a duet . The biggest surprise is Porsha , the daughter of Mr . Crystal , who joins the troupe , singing
36 In Hamburg