PLANNING ON HEADING to the cinema this weekend?

There are a few new movies out, but which is a must-watch, and are there any you should avoid?

We take a look.

Michael Inside

What we know

This incredible, moving and hard-hitting (yet naturalistic) Irish film is about a young teenager who finds himself caught up in low-level drug dealing, and is sent to prison. The impact this one act has on him and his grandfather make for compelling viewing. Not just a fantastic Irish film, but a fantastic film full stop.

What the critics say

• “Behind the lens, Berry directs with the eye of a documentary maker but could show plenty of others a thing or two about keeping the tension in a drama from start to finish. Walls close in – onscreen and off.” – RTE
• “While its tough subject matter may be a hard ask for audiences outside Ireland, where it should find an enthusiastic reception, this is a film shot with integrity and heart.” – Screen Daily 

What’s it rated?

• RottenTomatoes: None yet
• IMDB: 9.0/10

BPM

What we know

Set in the early 1990s as the Aids crisis gripped France, this centres on a group of activists – and a couple who fall in love amidst social change.

What the critics say

• “This dialectical representation of queer lives, meshing the personal with the political to ultimately devastating effect, sees BPM shift from being a painstaking history of a movement to an urgent call to arms.” – Sight and Sound 
• “Director Robin Campillo, a cowriter on Laurent Cantet’s social realist films The Class and Time Out, devotes significant screen time to philosophical debate but also appeals to the senses with graphic sex and a throbbing techno score by Arnaud Rebotini.” – Chicago Reader

What’s it rated?

• RottenTomatoes: 7.7/10
• IMDB: 7.6/10

Love, Simon

What we know

A teenage boy who hasn’t told friends or family about his sexuality finds himself falling in love with a mysterious classmate. Does he know who the person is, and will he be able to come out in his own time?

What the critics say

• “With its sheer warmth, openness, likability and idealism, Love, Simon won me over. It takes all the corniness and tweeness of the coming-of-age genre and transplants new heart into it.”  – The Guardian
• “ Simon’s portrayal of a closeted gay teenager will undoubtedly be important to teenagers like him who have not seen a character like them on the big screen, but Simon’s awkward high school love story is universal and can – and should – be enjoyed by anyone.” – Screen Rant

What’s it rated?

• RottenTomatoes: 7.6/10
• IMDB: 8.1/10

Which one would you go see first?