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.

Burning

What we know

This Korean movie – heavily lauded by critics – is based on a Haruki Murakami short story, and features a dark love triangle. 

What the critics say

• “The larger, more agonizing question here, though, involves what it means to live in a divided, profoundly isolating world that relentlessly drives a wedge between the self and others.”- New York Times
• “Everyone is hungry for something in Burning, the new film from South Korean master Lee Chang-dong. How that hunger manifests, and what hunger even signifies, is up for debate.” – RogerEbert.com

What’s it rated?

• RottenTomatoes: 8.7/10
• IMDB: 7.7/10

Can You Ever Forgive Me

What we know

The great Melissa McCarthy and wonderful Richard E Grant star in this Oscar-nominated feature based on the true story of author Lee Israel. Down on her luck, Israel starts to make money by forging letters by legendary writers. 

What the critics say

• “Loneliness, onscreen at least, tends to be a vibe, a #mood, a way of looking off into the distance as a certain kind of melancholy tune plays. In Nicole Holofcener and Jeff Whitty’s screenplay, it’s a physical reality, a stench you live with until you are both used to it and loath to escape it.” – Vulture
• “In the charming, fact-based Can You Ever Forgive Me? the character of Lee Israel allows for McCarthy’s comic skills to shine through, exemplified in an opening scene that quite perfectly sets up her irascible, heavy-drinking antiheroine as she gets fired from a day job she hates anyway.” - The Guardian

What’s it rated?

• RottenTomatoes: 8.2/10
• IMDB: 7.4/10

Capernaum

What we know

In this mostly unscripted and improvised Lebanese drama, a 12-year-old boy who is sentenced for a violent crime sues his parents for neglect.

What the critics say

• “Forced to become a shrewd materialist — in his interactions with adults he is almost always trying to make a deal or work an angle — he somehow clings to a sense of honor and a capacity for empathy.” – New York Times
• “Proving herself an astonishingly accomplished director of non-professional performers as well as a measured storyteller, Labaki draws attention to the plight of children in Beirut’s slums and the Kafka-esque bind of people without ID cards.” – Variety

What’s it rated?

• RottenTomatoes: 7.5/10
• IMDB: 8.2/10

Which one would you go see first?

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