I, Tonya (2017) / Jane Got A Gun (2016) / S.O.B. (1981) / The Merry Gentleman (2007) / Shazam! (2019) / En kongelig affære (2012) / Soul Survivors (2001)
Jane Got A Gun (2016) Effective blend of modern revisionism and traditional western, a no-nonsense Natalie Portman enlists hurt ex-lover Joel Edgerton to help protect her home from a violent gang seeking revenge. Revelations and narrative arc are predictable, action is robust, end is satisfying.
S.O.B. (1981) Black comedy that doesn't flinch from an acid satire of Hollywood, even as it finds warmth with its characters and plenty of physical and verbal laughs as producer Richard Mulligan transforms a flop into a soft-core musical. Julie Andrews sheds her image, Robert Preston is a delight.
The Merry Gentleman (2007) Michael Keaton delivers a nuanced performance and film, full of silences and battered souls, as a hitman finds redemption in friendship with a poignant Kelly Macdonald who is escaping abuse. Precisely designed and paced, even if the ending is unresolved.
Shazam! (2019) At its best when it plays with the character origins and the relationship between Zachary Levi's adult Shazam and superhero fan Jack Dylan Fraser. Faced with a super villain, it tends to lack a spark. Colorful design and VFX add considerably to the humor and affectionate tone.
En kongelig affære (2012) The changing order of 18th century Denmark is provoked by the doomed affair between Alicia Vikander's queen and court doctor Mads Mikkelsen. Elegantly produced and designed, with expressive use of location, skillfully combining emotion and intelligence.
Soul Survivors (2001) With its heroine lost between the living and the hereafter, the narrative and tone feel similarly confused about whether it's a love story, mystical thriller or religious horror. Style and pacing are similarly ragged and ambition uninspired, despite the personable cast.
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