Best Films To Watch in London This Week
All the movies worth catching in the capital, from a London-set drama to a documentary about China's one-child policy...
Out and about this week? Fancy a film but can’t make your mind up what to see? Look no further: we’ve assembled the best of what’s on in London and gathered them here to make choosing a great movie as easy as possible. Whether it’s a horror-comedy with a delicious cat and mouse premise or a documentary that takes us to the bottom of the sea, WeLoveCinema has you well and truly covered…
The Last Tree
Writer-director Shola Amoo’s semi-autobiographical sophomore feature hones in on the life of a Nigerian-British foster child named Femi, played by Tai Golding as a child, and by Sam Adewunmi as an adult, whose life takes a sudden turn when he has no choice but to uproot from his idllic home in the Lincolnshire countryside to inner city London. It’s a switch that transforms him completely – and onto a less fortunate path filled with crime. Amoo’s film is a sad yet heart-warming story that asks questions about how the past and the places we live come to shape us into who we are. Adewunmi is excellent in a breakout role.
Get The Last Tree showtimes in London.
The Farewell
Based on true events experienced by the film’s writer and director, Lulu Wang, The Farewell zeroes in on a Chinese family who learn that their elderly matriarch is terminally ill and decide not to tell her. Instead they fake a wedding party as a way of gathering the family together for one last goodbye. Though fairly common in China, such practices are – of course – at odds with western sensibilities, a point emphasised here by Wang surrogate “Billi,” played by the ace Awkwafina (finally getting the nuanced role she deserves). The Farewell has already been lauded overseas for its balanced approach to the subject matter and its fresh depiction of family life. Remarkably, it even stars some of the director’s actual family.
Get The Farewell showtimes in London or read our full review here.
One Child Nation
Most of us know that in China there are certain laws that dictate how many children a person is allowed (currently it’s two); this fascinating documentary takes a deep dive into the highly controversial policy – implemented between 1979 and 2015 – that stated citizens were allowed only one. One Child Nation‘s directors, Zhang Lynn and Nanfu Wang, set about exploring its dire consequences, not to mention the propaganda that drove this strange and – as it turns out – rather cruel practice, highlighting how people were essentially brainwashed into believing one child was paragon. Insightful, angry, and essential.
Get One Child Nation showtimes in London.
For Sama
It’s impossible to imagine what trying to live your every day life in the midst of a war zone is actually like; this riveting documentary is about as close as most of us will get. Recorded using a handheld camera during the Siege of Aleppo in war-torn Syria, For Sama hones in on a student-turned-filmmaker named Waad al-Kateab (who shot the footage), her husband, and daughter, Sama, as they attempt to survive five years within the city walls. The footage was later assembled with help from co-director Edward Watts, and the results are terrifying and brutal, but ultimately life-affirming. Surviving a war zone is one thing; raising a baby as bombs are dropping around you is another. If you only catch one doc this year, let it be this one: more than deservedly, it won the Prix L’Œil d’Or at Cannes in May.
Get For Sama showtimes in London or read our full review here.
Sea of Shadows
National Geographic’s new documentary – produced by none other than Leonardo DiCaprio – zeroes in on an endangered species of porpoise known as the vaquita, of which there are only said to be 15 left in the entire world. That shockingly low number is what gives this film its thriller-like tension, as their numbers are thought to have dwindled based on being caught (mostly by accident) in the nets of Chinese gangsters looking for a valuable fish called the “totoaba” in waters off the coast of Mexico. It’s an occasionally unfocused piece of work, but nobody can doubt Sea of Shadow‘s good intentions – or its timely message.
Get Sea of Shadows showtimes in London.
Hotel Mumbai
Based on the real life terrorist attacks that occurred in Mumbai back in 2008, Hotel Mumbai assembles a talented cast – including Dev Patel, Armie Hammer, and Jason Isaacs – for an ensemble piece set in the five-star Taj Mahal Palace hotel. Patel works there, whilst Hammer is an American caught up in the conflict. As the film switches between multiple characters as they each attempt to fight off the terrorists, not to mention the terrorists themselves, the film is undeniably thrilling to watch – though at times you might wonder whether this action-orientated take on a real tragedy warrants a treatment of this sort.
Get Hotel Mumbai showtimes in London.
Ready or Not
It’s hard to argue with the delicious set-up that powers this relentlessly entertaining horror-comedy, in which a newlywed (Samara Weaving) must enter into a murderous game of hide and seek with her husband’s parents in order to join the family. It’s silly, of course, but that’s part of the fun – Ready or Not wears it tongue firmly in its cheek, as Weaving’s unsuspecting Grace learns of the traditions of a clan whose wealth has been accumulated selling board games. Funny and gory in equal measure, Ready or Not also works as a rallying cry against the super rich, and gives us a great new Scream Queen in Weaving.
Get Ready or Not showtimes in London.
Hustlers
Slick, sexy, and relentlessly entertaining from start to finish, Hustlers arrives as one of the year’s most unexpected triumphs. Think of this empowering feminist tale as a reverse Wolf of Wall Street, in which a group of strippers fight back against the greedy bankers who brought the financial system to a halt in 2008. Constance Wu – fresh from a squeaky clean role in Crazy Rich Asians – is dynamite as “Destiny,” a stripper drawn into the hustle of the title. Funny, relevant, and boosted by a brilliantly authentic camaraderie between its stars, Hustlers also contains what might just be Jennifer Lopez’s greatest screen performance to date – as Ramona, she’s resourceful, tantalising, and completely mesmerising to behold.
Get Hustlers showtimes in London or read our full review here.
Ad Astra
James Gray has made his best and most mythic film yet with this strange, hypnotic, and life-affirming space adventure starring Brad Pitt. Like so many directors who venture into this cosmic territory, Gray is channeling 2001: A Space Odyssey and Solaris (and even a bit of Interstellar). But he’s also reworking Apocalypse Now here, too, with a Freudian story about a stoic astronaut (played by Brad Pitt) on a perilous mission to stop his dad (Tommy Lee Jones) from destroying the universe. What sets Ad Astra apart from other sci-fi films is the surreal blend of blockbuster action sequences and Terrence Malick-like ruminations. And at the middle, there’s Pitt – quiet, contemplative, shining like the brightest star in the galaxy.
Get Ad Astra showtimes in London or read our full review here.
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