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Square eyes: This week’s must-watch movies

Each week we bring you the latest new releases in cinema. This week we look at The 100 Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of The Window and Disappeared, 20,000 Days On Earth and Freedom, as well as other great films in cinemas now.

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The 100 Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out Of The Window And Disappeared

Director: Felix Herngren
Cast: Robert Gustafsson, Mia Skäringer, Johan Rheborg, Alan Ford
Duration: 114 mins
Language: English, Swedish, German, Spanish, French, Russian, with English Subtitles
Rating: M – Violence and coarse language
Release Date: 21 August

Why you should see it: Stephen A Russell for thelowdownunder says: “An amiably daft tale of a cranky old man, Allan (Swedish superstar comedic actor Robert Gustaffson), who has lived a long and quite unintentionally influential life, darting around the edges of major historical moments while encountering the likes of Franco, Truman and Gorbachev along the way. As his 100th year on the planet arrives, he finds himself forlornly incarcerated in an old folks’ home after using dynamite to wreak revenge on the fox that killed his beloved ginger moggy. Making a break for freedom, Allan somehow finds himself in possession of a suitcase full of cash with leather-clad, Neo-Nazi bikers on his tail. An unlikely road trip movie with more than a whiff of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty and Forrest Gump to it.”

Freedom

Director: Peter Cousens
Cast: Cuba Gooding Jr, William Sadler, Anna Sims, Bernhard Forcher
Duration: 95 mins
Rating: M – Mature Themes and violence
Release Date: 21 August

Why you should see it: Two men, in very different situations and living 100 years apart, are united by their search for freedom. One – Samuel Woodward (Cuba Gooding Jr.) – is an escaped slave, the other – John Newton (Bernhard Forcher) – a slave trader and poet who famously wrote Amazing Grace. Directed by Aussie theatre director Peter Cousens, the film has a musical twist, a solid heart and plenty of history.

20,000 Days On Earth

Director: Iain Forsyth, Jane Pollard
Cast: Nick Cave, Kylie Minogue, Ray Winstone, Blixa Bargeld , Warren Ellis, The Bad Seeds
Duration: 95 mins
Rating: MA15+
Release date: 21 August

Why you should see it: Stephen A Russell for thelowdowunder says: “Mesmerising. Even if you have missed the majority of Nick Cave’s career, the stunning opening sequence hurls you through its entirety in a couple of bewilderingly fantastic moments. Part trip down Cave’s darkly entertaining history, from crack addiction to Kylie, Nina Simone and beyond, there’s a pseudo-dramatic gorgeousness to this incredibly inspiring piece written by Cave alongside visual artists turned directors Jane Pollard and Ian Forsyth.”

The 100-Foot Journey

Director: Lasse Hallström
Cast: Helen Mirren, Manish Dayal, Om Puri and Charlotte Le Bon
Duration: 155 minutes
Rating: PG
Release date: 14 August

Why you should see it:  A delicious food romp from the director of the wildly popular Chocolat, The 100-Foot Journey stars Helen Mirren as snooty French restaurateur, Madame Mallory, who finds herself competing with an Indian family who open the only other restaurant in her picture postcard village. Also starring the stunning Charlotte Le Bon (Yves St Laurent) and fabulous Indian actor Om Puri. An easy-on-the-eye pleasure.

Snowpiercer

Director: Bong Joon Ho
Cast: Chris Evans, John Hurt, Tilda Swinton, Ed Harris, Jamie Bell, Octavia Spencer, Song Kang-ho
Duration: 126 mins
Rating: MA15+ – Strong themes and violence
Release date: 7 August

Why you should se it: Stephen A Russell for thelowdownunder says: “A masterpiece of dystopian delight that’s wickedly thrilling. An instant classic. Set in the future in a world baking under the effects of global warming, humanity is forced into a drastic attempt to reverse the worst of the ravages by releasing chemical coolant into the atmosphere. Alas, it works all too well, and the Earth is plunged into an eternal winter, Narnia-like, killing all life on the planet a little quicker than anticipated, save for the occupants of the Snowpiercer.”

Begin Again

Director: John Carney
Cast: Mark Ruffalo, Keira Knightley, Hailee Steinfeld, Adam Levine, Catherine Keener, Mos Def, Ceelo Green
Duration: 104 mins
Rating: M – Coarse language
Release date: 7 August

Why should you see it: Some films just have charm and this is one of them. It’s hard not to compare this to the gorgeous 2007 Irish film Once, but Begin Again has talent in its own right. It’s also lovely to see Keira Knightly back in such good form. Begin Again sees her playing Greta, a musician who has recently broken up with her rocker boyfriend (Maroon 5′s Adam Levine). When a washed-up record producer (the very grungy Mark Ruffalo) hears her playing on the streets of New York, their lives take completely unexpected turns.

Still Life

Director: Uberto Pasolini
Cast: Eddie Marsan, Joanne Froggatt, Andrew Buchan
Duration: 92 mins
Rating: M – Coarse language and themes
Release date: 24 July

Why you should see it: Stephen A. Russell for thelowdownunder says: “When it comes to the publicity campaign, promoting a quietly reflective film about a local council pen-pusher who arranges funerals and attempts to find the next of kin for those unfortunate souls who die alone might seem a particularly hard sell, but from the outset there’s a luminescent heart to writer/director Uberto Pasolini’s affecting examination of the human spirit.”

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