TV: Download and dvd reviews

FILM OF THE WEEK

Richard Jewell (Cert 15, 131 mins, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, Thriller/Drama/Romance, available from April 13 on Amazon Prime Video/BT TV Store/iTunes/Sky Store/TalkTalk TV Store and other download and streaming services, available from June 8 on DVD £19.99)

Starring: Paul Walter Hauser, Sam Rockwell, Kathy Bates, Olivia Wilde, Jon Hamm, Ian Gomez.

In 1996, Richard Jewell (Paul Walter Hauser) is proud to work as a security guard at the 26th Summer Olympics in his home city of Atlanta.

During a concert in Centennial Park on the middle weekend of the Games, Jewell spots an unattended bag and raises the alarm.

His swift and decisive action saves countless lives and he is anointed a hero.

FBI Agent Tom Shaw (Jon Hamm) and partner FBI Agent Dan Bennet (Ian Gomez) come under intense pressure to apprehend the bomber.

They incorrectly identify Jewell as a suspect because his profile "fits the hero-bomber to a T".

Kathy Scruggs (Olivia Wilde), a hard-nosed journalist with the Atlanta-Journal Constitution, extracts confidential information from Shaw and splashes the FBI's suspicions about Jewell across the front page.

As a voracious media pack swarms around the home of Jewell's disbelieving mother (Kathy Bates), the grossly maligned loner hires lawyer Watson Bryant (Sam Rockwell) to refute the bogus accusations.

Based on a Vanity Fair article, Richard Jewell is a quietly indignant drama that restores Clint Eastwood's lustre as a gifted humanist director.

Scriptwriter Billy Ray distils three months of trial by media and at least one potential violation of Jewell's civic rights into a compelling character study.

The film is anchored by a winning performance from Hauser as the do-gooder, who pursues public service with a tenacity that errs uncomfortably close to obsession.

Rockwell is terrific as a down-on-his-luck lawyer, who is hired to pick at the seams of the FBI's conduct, and Bates was deservedly Oscar-nominated for her heartrending portrayal of Jewell's besieged single parent.

Rating: ****

RELEASED

Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise Of Skywalker (Cert 12, 141 mins, Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, Sci-Fi/Action/Adventure, available from April 13 on Amazon Prime Video/BT TV Store/iTunes/Sky Store/TalkTalk TV Store and other download and streaming services, available from April 20 on DVD £19.99/Blu-ray £24.99/3D Blu-ray £28.99/4K Ultra HD Blu-ray £36.99)

Starring: Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Joonas Suotamo, Anthony Daniels, Ian McDiarmid.

Following the death of mentor Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), Rey (Daisy Ridley) finds herself on a parallel journey of self-discovery to Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), who has assumed the position of Supreme Leader of the First Order after the demise of Snoke.

Finn (John Boyega), Chewbacca (Joonas Suotamo), X-Wing pilot Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) and C-3PO (Anthony Daniels) accompany Rey on her daredevil mission, while General Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher) presides over the entrenched Resistance.

Meanwhile, a shift in the Force propagates rumours about the return of Emperor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid).

When Rey's faith wavers, Leia repairs frayed nerves.

"Never be afraid of who you are," she tenderly instructs.

Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise Of Skywalker shoehorns every conceivable reason for viewers to whoop, cheer and - yes - surrender to steady trickles of saltwater into 141 minutes.

Director JJ Abrams and co-writer Chris Terrio preside over a happy union of old and new with obvious reverence and affection.

They provide generations of expectant Padawans and Sith apprentices with a nostalgia-saturated swansong.

Loose plot threads are tied neatly and heartstrings plucked as friendships and gently simmering romances threaten to become collateral damage of a bloodthirsty war against the First Order.

It's not always the most elegant film-making and the opening 20 minutes are extremely clunky - plot gears grind furiously with a dewy-eyed denouement in mind.

However, when planets align, Abrams delivers rousing action sequences, including one of the series' most visually stunning lightsaber duels, and he engineers a fitting farewell to the late Fisher using unreleased footage.

Rating: ***

Just Mercy (Cert 12, 132 mins, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, Drama/Thriller, available now on Amazon Prime Video/BT TV Store/iTunes/Sky Store/TalkTalk TV Store and other download and streaming services, available from May 25 on DVD £19.99)

Starring: Michael B Jordan, Jamie Foxx, Brie Larson, Rafe Spall, Tim Blake Nelson.

On November 1 1986, the town of Monroeville, where Harper Lee wrote To Kill A Mockingbird, recoils from news of a violent crime.

Eighteen-year-old part-time clerk Ronda Morrison has been strangled and shot dead at Jackson Cleaners.

A trial lasting a day and a half finds local man Walter McMillian (Jamie Foxx) guilty.

Two years later, idealistic lawyer Bryan Stevenson (Michael B Jordan) takes up Walter's case.

He co-founds the Equal Justice Initiative with southern firebrand Eva Ansley (Brie Larson) and visits Holman Correctional Facility, where Walter is awaiting execution.

The lawyer attempts to buoy his client's spirits but Walter is aware of the slim chances of success against District Attorney Tommy Chapman (Rafe Spall).

"You know how many people been freed from Alabama death row?" Walter sternly asks Bryan. "None... You ain't gonna be the one to change that."

Just Mercy is a robust courtroom drama, which adds a thick layer of Hollywood sheen to the true story of an Alabama pulpwood worker, who attempted to overturn his murder conviction from death row.

Jordan and Foxx savour meaty dialogue, countering hope with weary cynicism in energetic verbal exchanges against a backdrop of racial discrimination in 1980s Alabama - a southern state with a Latin motto that translates as "We dare defend our rights".

Oscar-winner Larson makes the most of limited screen time and London-born co-star Spall wrestles with a questionable southern accent.

Emotional beats of writer-director Destin Daniel Cretton's script are predictable but there is undeniable satisfaction when they land, accompanied by heavenly harmonies from a gospel choir on the soundtrack.

Rating: ***

The Rhythm Section (Cert 15, 108 mins, Paramount Home Entertainment, Action/Thriller, available from April 13 on Amazon Prime Video/BT TV Store/iTunes/Sky Store/TalkTalk TV Store and other download and streaming services)

Starring: Blake Lively, Jude Law, Sterling K Brown, Raza Jaffrey, Max Casella, Tawfeek Barhom.

Three years after the deaths of her parents and two siblings on Northeastern flight 147, drug addicted prostitute Stephanie Patrick (Blake Lively) receives a visit from freelance journalist Keith Proctor (Raza Jaffrey).

He discloses that the crash was caused by a bomb made by Mohammed Reza (Tawfeek Barhom) - an Islamic radical who walks the streets of London in full view of security services.

A blood-soaked quest for answers leads to Inverness, where Stephanie establishes contact with Keith's confidential source - a former MI6 operative codenamed B (Jude Law).

He helps Stephanie to kick her drug habit and learn basic combat skills to hunt down Reza.

The subsequent globe-trotting revenge mission ensnares sleazy businessman Leon Giler (Max Casella) in New York and intelligence broker Marc Serra (Sterling K Brown) in Madrid.

The Rhythm Section is a high-stakes thriller adapted for the screen by author Mark Burnell from his novel about an avenging angel, who criss-crosses the globe to put a righteous bullet between the eyes of her family's killer.

Reed Morano's picture is composed of familiar elements including a panicked car chase that owes a small debt (and large dents in the bodywork) to the Jason Bourne franchise.

Soft focus flashbacks to happier times disrupt dramatic flow as Lively embraces the physicality of the role.

A hand-to-hand combat training sequence in a country cottage kitchen with Law looks particularly bruising but Burnell's script doesn't delve deeply into her gnarly psychology or the suffocating survivor's guilt that propels her down the path of self-destruction.

Rating: ***

Sonic The Hedgehog (Cert PG, 99 mins, Paramount Home Entertainment, Action/Adventure/Comedy/Romance, available from April 10 on Amazon Prime Video/BT TV Store/iTunes/Sky Store/TalkTalk TV Store and other download and streaming services, available from June 8 on DVD £19.99/Blu-ray £24.99/4K Ultra HD Blu-ray £34.99)

Starring: Jim Carrey, James Marsden, Tika Sumpter, Lee Majdoub and the voices of Ben Schwartz, Donna Jay Fulks.

Blue hedgehog Sonic (voiced by Ben Schwartz) escapes from his world through a spinning portal and lands in the leafy glades of Green Hills in Montana, where cop Tom Wachowski (James Marsden) proudly upholds the law.

He is eyeing a move to San Francisco with veterinarian wife Maddie (Tika Sumpter).

Their plans are put on hold when Sonic breaks into the couple's home to escape military consultant Dr Robotnik (Jim Carrey).

"I was spitting out formulas while you were spitting out (baby) formula," hisses the evil genius, shadowed by slippery sidekick Agent Stone (Lee Majdoub).

Tom agrees to accompany the fugitive furball on a hare-brained odyssey to open a portal to a fungi-festooned planet, where Sonic will be safe from Robotnik and his weaponised drones.

Sonic The Hedgehog is a pleasing diversion which harks back to the Sega video games and delivers turbo-charged action sequences that slow down time to a crawl a la Quicksilver in the X-Men series.

A heady whiff of nostalgia permeates director Jeff Fowler's origin story, which boldly realises the anthropomorphic spiny mammal in a real-world setting using digital trickery and a jocular vocal performance from Schwartz.

As the film's hi-tech antagonist, Carrey is a scene-stealing delight, returning to the rubber-faced theatrics of his Ace Ventura and Mask heyday.

Admittedly, Pat Casey and Josh Miller's script is guilty of cloying sentimentality and struggles to articulate the title character's loneliness.

However, when Fowler's picture concentrates on fish-out-of-water comedy, father-son bonding and the campy delights of arch-villain Dr Ivo Robotnik, the pleasures outweigh the pain.

Rating: ***

Blue Story (Cert 15, 91 mins, Paramount Home Entertainment, Drama/Romance, available from April 13 on Amazon Prime Video/BT TV Store/iTunes/Sky Store/TalkTalk TV Store and other download and streaming services, available from April 20 on DVD £14.99)

Starring: Micheal Ward, Stephen Odubala, Karla Simone Spence, Rohan Need, Kadeem Ramsay, Khali Best.

Best friends Marco (Micheal Ward) and Timmy (Stephen Odubala) attend the same school in Peckham, south-east London, where they share a close-knit circle of friends including Dwayne (Rohan Nedd) and Hakeem (Kadeem Ramsay).

Unlike the rest of the posse, Timmy lives in neighbouring Deptford and postcode wars between rival gangs in the two boroughs dictate that he should consider Marco his enemy.

The teenagers refuse to allow this fierce animosity to weaken their fraternal bond - "Remember we've got each other's backs" - and they playfully trade barbs as Timmy pines for feisty classmate Leah (Karla Simone Spence).

Alas, one of Timmy's friends from home, Killy (Khali Best), attacks Marco and inflames tensions between the two tribes.

Blue Story is an urgent cautionary tale, which feeds on the energy and passion of writer-director Rapman.

He draws on his own experiences to explore the corrosive power of tribalism and the futility of gang warfare in his feature film directorial debut.

Ward and Odubala are well matched as fallen brothers in arms, whose bonds of trust fray with tragic repercussions for allies in their volatile orbits.

The script follows a predictable trajectory from brotherhood to bloodshed, employing a Romeo and Juliet-style forbidden romance as a catalyst for the enmity and petrol-doused retribution.

Rapman appears periodically on screen as a swaggering Greek chorus, underscoring his timely central message of cool heads under fire with lyrical narration.

"RIP to all the innocent lives/I hope these young 'uns wake up and they start seeing the light," he pleads aloud.

He is the creative dynamo that powers of every frame.

Rating: ***

Like A Boss (Cert 15, 83 mins, Paramount Home Entertainment, Comedy/Drama/Romance, available from April 13 on Amazon Prime Video/BT TV Store/iTunes/Sky Store/TalkTalk TV Store and other download and streaming services)

Starring: Tiffany Haddish, Rose Byrne, Salma Hayek, Billy Porter, Jennifer Coolidge, Karan Soni.

Mia Carter (Tiffany Haddish) and Mel Paige (Rose Byrne) have been best friends since junior high school, where they nurtured a mutual passion for make-up.

The gal pals run a home-made cosmetics store, Mia & Mel, aided by faithful employees Barrett (Billy Porter) and Sydney (Jennifer Coolidge).

Mel discloses the business is 493,000 US dollars in debt and persuades Mia to consider an investment proposal from Claire Luna (Salma Hayek), figurehead of the Oviedo brand.

After much debate, Mia and Mel agree to give Claire a 49% share in the business, which guarantees they retain control as long as their professional partnership remains intact.

Once the contract ink is dry, Claire plots with assistant Josh (Karan Soni) to divide and conquer by turning Mel and Mia against one another.

Like A Boss is an ugly and contrived celebration of female empowerment, which squanders the sparkling comic talents of a gifted cast.

Haddish and Byrne's double-act has a faint whiff of desperation while Hayek's conniving business titan lacks the killer one-liners of a bona fide pantomime villain.

Any boos or hisses from viewers will be for entirely the wrong reasons.

Our frown lines take lasting effect in opening scenes and no amount of Botox injections can shift them.

Miguel Arteta's picture staggers between ham-fisted set pieces including literal toilet humour sparked by dangerously hot ghost peppers and a musical sing-along choreographed to Tina Turner's Proud Mary that is more likely to inspire shame.

For a film which venerates the rejuvenating power of friendship, Like A Boss shows no discernible signs of intelligent life.

Rating: **

Playing With Fire (Cert PG, 96 mins, Paramount Home Entertainment, Comedy/Romance/Action, available from April 13 on Amazon Prime Video/BT TV Store/iTunes/Sky Store/TalkTalk TV Store and other download and streaming services, available from May 4 on DVD £19.99)

Starring: John Cena, Keegan-Michael Key, John Leguizamo, Tyler Mane, Judy Greer, Brianna Hildebrand, Christian Convery, Finley Rose Slater.

Captain Jake Carson (John Cena) takes charge of an elite team of smokejumpers in Redding, California.

His well-drilled squad parachutes into forest fires and includes wisecracking second-in-command Mark Rogers (Keegan-Michael Key), Rodrigo Torres (John Leguizamo) and aptly named silent giant Axe (Tyler Mane).

A storm rages around the fire station and a cabin catches light.

Inside the collapsing structure, Jake and co discover three stricken siblings - Brynn (Brianna Hildebrand), Will (Christian Convery) and Zoey (Finley Rose Slater).

As first responders, the smoke-jumpers become temporary guardians of the tykes until the weather improves.

Brynn, Will and Zoey run amok, leaving destruction in their wake, and sassy field biologist Dr Amy Hicks (Judy Greer) offers Jake support to regain control of his station.

Playing With Fire is a brash family-oriented comedy, which demonstrates a reckless disregard for the mental well-being of parents, who might expect a smattering of laughs from the convoluted Daddy Day Care set-up.

Cena's charisma and self-deprecating charm are extinguished in an action-packed opening, which is choreographed incongruously to Bruno Mars' dancefloor filler Uptown Funk.

The uneven tone is glaringly evident in the final 20 minutes as tomfoolery is hurriedly cast aside to prise open characters' hearts to the possibility of love.

Screenwriters Dan Ewen and Matt Lieberman hose down every clunky frame with syrupy sentiment and contrive scenes that slosh from crass and puerile (diarrhoea projecting into one character's face) to genuinely weird (a grown man staring into a young girl's eyes as he attempts to relieve himself).

Director Andy Fickman's film wouldn't spark to life if he poured petrol on it.

Rating: **

Also released:

And Then We Danced (Cert 15, 113 mins, Peccadillo Pictures, Drama/Romance - see below)

NEW TO DOWNLOAD, STREAM OR BUY ON DVD/BLU-RAY

Run (8 episodes, begins streaming from April 15 exclusively on NOW TV, Comedy/Thriller/Romance)

The past wreaks havoc in the present in the eight-part HBO comedy Run from the team behind Fleabag, which screens in weekly instalments on Sky Comedy and streams exclusively on NOW TV.

Ruby Richardson (Merritt Wever) and her college sweetheart Billy Johnson (Domhnall Gleeson) make an outlandish pact.

If one of the them texts the word "Run" and the other replies in kind, they will both drop everything and head immediately to Grand Central Station in New York City to embark on a cross-country American odyssey.

Seventeen years later, Ruby lives in the suburbs with her husband Laurence (Rich Sommer) and Billy is forging a career, separate from former PA Fiona (Archie Panjabi).

When the word "Run" appears on each other's mobile phones, Ruby and Billy instinctively honour their pact and board a train in Manhattan without a clue to their ultimate destination.

Love Wedding Repeat (Cert 12, 100 mins, streaming and available to download from April 10 exclusively on Netflix, Comedy/Romance)

Alternate versions of the same accident-riddled nuptials unfold in Dean Craig's romantic comedy, based on the 2012 French caper Plan De Table.

Jack (Sam Claflin) is poised to walk his little sister Hayley (Eleanor Tomlinson) down the aisle.

Unfortunately, he is distracted by the appearance of the girl who got away, Dina (Olivia Munn), and his embittered ex-girlfriend Amanda (Freida Pinto) and her new beau Chaz (Allan Mustafa).

One of Hayley's old flames, Marc (Jack Farthing), threatens to derail the wedding so Jack is charged with sneaking a draft of sleeping sedative into the troublemaker's champagne flute.

Unfortunately, table settings are rearranged by mischievous children, throwing the bride's desperate plan into disarray.

Liar - Series Two (Cert 15, 225 mins, Spirit Entertainment, available now on Amazon Video/iTunes/ITV Hub and other download and streaming services, available from April 13 on DVD £19.99/Blu-ray £22.99, Drama/Thriller/Romance)

Broadcast in 2017, the first series of gripping ITV drama Liar created by brothers Harry and Jack Williams engineered a "she said, he said" battle between teacher Laura Nielson (Joanne Froggatt) and handsome surgeon Andrew Earlham (Ioan Gruffudd).

Laura accused Andrew of rape, which he strenuously denied, and dark secrets from the characters' respective pasts returned to haunt them.

The second series arrives on home formats this week and unfolds following the discovery of Andrew's decomposing body in the Kent marshes.

His throat has been slit.

DS Rory Maxwell (Danny Webb) leads the investigation into Andrew's murder, which points a finger of suspicion at Laura and her sister Katy (Zoe Tapper).

As police diligently sift through evidence, a distraught Laura realises that she may never be free from Andrew's choking grasp.

The two-disc DVD and Blu-ray box sets include all six episodes.

Noughts + Crosses (Cert 15, 335 mins, ITV Studios Home Entertainment, available now on Amazon Video/BBC iPlayer/iTunes and other download and streaming services, available from April 13 on DVD £24.99, Drama/Thriller/Romance)

Based on Malorie Blackman's series of young adult novels, Noughts + Crosses is a provocative drama set in an alternative historical timeline.

In this 21st century, Africans have made Europeans their slaves and segregation is robustly enforced to keep apart the white underclass (Noughts) from the black elite (Crosses).

Against a backdrop of simmering social tension, Sephy (Masali Baduza), the daughter of influential Home Secretary Kamal Hadley (Paterson Joseph), sparks forbidden love with her childhood friend Callum McGregor (Jack Rowan).

He is the son of the family's housekeeper, Meggie (Helen Baxendale).

Sephy's boyfriend, military officer Lieutenant Lekan Baako (Jonathan Ajayi), becomes suspicious and when he discovers her betrayal across the class divide, he vows swift revenge against Callum.

The two-disc DVD include all six episodes of the acclaimed BBC One series, which was filmed on location in South Africa.

The Main Event (Cert PG, 102 mins, streaming and available to download from April 10 exclusively on Netflix, Comedy/Drama)

A young boy dares to dream big in director Jay Karas's life-affirming family comedy penned by Zach Lewis, Larry Postel and Jim Mahoney.

Eleven-year-old Leo Thompson (Seth Carr) is obsessed with the sportsmanship and spectacle of the wrestling ring.

He is determined to become a WWE superstar, regardless of the personal sacrifices.

By chance, the determined tyke discovers a magical wrestling mask, which grants him superhuman strength.

Leo exploits his newfound ability to enter a WWE competition and chase stardom.

Supported by his wise grandmother (Tichina Arnold), Leo overcomes epic challengers in the ring to discover if he truly has what it takes to be a future contender for the WrestleMania crown.

And Then We Danced (Cert 15, 113 mins, Peccadillo Pictures, available now on Curzon Home Cinema, available from April 13 on Amazon Prime Video/BT TV Store/iTunes/Sky Store/TalkTalk TV Store and other download and streaming services, available from May 25 on DVD £17.99, Drama/Romance)

Forbidden love lights the fuse on creative freedom in writer-director Levan Akin's critically acclaimed drama, which sparked violent protests in Georgia.

Merab (Levan Gelbakhiani) and his older brother David (Giorgi Tsereteli) are training as dancers at the National Georgian Ensemble, which proudly upholds the traditions of their east European country.

While David drinks to excess and risks being expelled from the company, Merab is studiously dedicated to honing his craft alongside Mary (Ana Javakhishvili), who has been his dancing partner since childhood.

A new addition to the company, Irakli (Bachi Valishvili), makes an immediate impact by stealing Merab's duet with Mary.

At first, Merab harbours jealousy and resentment towards his gifted rival.

As the two men spend more time together, lingering glances arouse unspoken attraction, which Merab and Irakli dare not consummate for fear of violent retribution.

Fauda - Season 3 (12 episodes, streaming and available to download from April 16 exclusively on Netflix, Thriller/Drama/Romance)

In the second season of award-winning Israeli political thriller Fauda, Israel Defense Force (ODF) operative Doron Kavillio (Lior Raz) separated from his wife Gali (Neta Garty).

He also continued the bruising battle against the Hamas military wing in Judea led by Walid (Shadi Mar'i) and Nidal (Firas Nassar) aka Al Makdesi, culminating in a devastating showdown.

In these next 12 episodes, Doron goes undercover as an Israeli Arab boxing instructor to earn the trust of a low-ranking member of Hamas.

A determined young boxer becomes a potential asset for Doron and his team as the mission moves to Gaza, where networks of tunnels built by terrorists pose a terrifying new challenge.

 

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