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Cinema

UK Cinema Releases: Friday 28th May 2010

Including Sex and the City 2, The Losers, Rec 2, Tooth Fairy and The Time That Remains

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NATIONAL RELEASES

Sex and the City 2 (Warner Bros.): The sequel to the 2008 film, which was based on the HBO series of the same name, sees Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), Samantha (Kim Cattrall), Charlotte (Kristin Davis) and Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) cope with more relationship problems and jet off to Abu Dhabi.

Directed by Michael Patrick King, the early reviews on this have been brutal, although that probably won’t stop female audiences flocking to see this. [Vue West End & Nationwide / 15]

The Losers (Optimum Releasing): The first of the guys-on-a-mission movies to be released this summer (the others being The A-Team and The Expendables) is an adaptation of the Vertigo comic book series about members of US Special Forces team (Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Chris Evans and Idris Elba) who are double crossed on a mission in Bolivia and seek vengeance with the help of a mysterious woman (Zoe Saldana).

Directed Sylvain White, it got mixed reviews and luke-warm box office when it opened in the US last month although over here it might attract male audiences who don’t want to be dragged along to see Sex and the City 2. [Cineworld Wandsworth, Clapham Picturehouse & Nationwide / 12A]

[Rec] 2 (E1 Entertainment): The sequel to the 2007 Spanish horror film takes place immediately after the events of the first film, with producing company Filmax International describing it as having “the same claustrophobic concept” as REC but with “new means of transferring fear from the screen to the spectator through the recording lens. So in other words it is the Blair Witch in Barcelona all over again, with some ridiculous typography going on in the title.

Written and directed by Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza, it stars Jonathan Mellor and Manuela Velasco. Discerning horror fans might turn up for this one, given that the original directors are back, but the endless torrent of horror remakes and sequels over the last few years could prove a turn off. [Cineworld Shaftesbury Ave., Empire Leicester Square & Nationwide / 18]

Space Chimps 2 (3D) (Entertainment): The sequel to the 2008 animated film about chimps in space (the title is pretty self-explanatory) follows Comet, the chimp form the first film, who travels to Planet Malgor and also has to deal with the feared alien ruler Zartog who takes over Mission Control.

Animated by Vanguard Animation, who were behind films such as Valiant (2005) and Happily N’Ever After (2007), the first film did decent box office and the fact that this is in 3D may boost its box office here. [Empire Leicester Square & Nationwide]

Tooth Fairy (20th Century Fox): A comedy about a cocky minor league hockey player nicknamed “The Tooth Fairy” (Dwayne Johnson) who is turned into a real one and is ordered to see the head fairy (Julie Andrews) and do good deeds.

Directed by Michael Lembeck, it co-stars Ashley Judd and Stephen Merchant. Judging from the US reviews, it is unlikely to be deemed a modern classic. [Empire Leicester Square & Nationwide / 12A]

ALSO OUT

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The Time That Remains (New Wave Films): A semi-biographical black comedy written, directed and starring Elia Suleiman, this explores the creation of the Israeli state from 1948 to the present. Co-starring Saleh Bakri, Leila Mouammar, and Bilal Zidani it was at Cannes last year and is the third film – after Chronicle of a Disappearance and Divine Intervention – in a trilogy charting the story of Palestinian dispossession and displacement over the past 60 years. [Selected Cinemas / 15]

The Happiest Girl In The World (Soda Pictures): A drama about a young Romanian girl who wins a car in a competition and goes with her parents to collect it in Bucharest. Directed by Radu Jude, it stars Andreea Bosneag and Doru Catanesou. [BFI Southbank & selected Key Cities / 15]

Kites: The Remix (Reliance Big Entertainment): An English language ‘remix’ of a Bollywood film, produced and edited by director Brett Ratner. Shorter than the Hindi version by about 40 minutes this one is hoping to be a crossover hit with English language audiences. [Nationwide / 12A]

Fish Story (Third Window): A Japanese anime/action/horror/comedy/drama hybrid about a mysterious punk song performed in the 1970s which has a ‘profound effect on the future’. Directed by Yoshihiro Nakamura, it stars Vincent Giry, Gaku Hamada. [ICA Cinema]

> DVD and Blu-ray Picks for Monday 24th May including Up in the Air, Road to Perdition and Capitalism: A Love Story
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