Whoever thought that John Lennon had such an unhappy childhood (unless you’re a hardcore Beatles fan, of course)? Indie filmmaker and conceptual artist Sam Taylor-Wood’s (Love You More) biographical film about the late singer-songwriter’s formative teen years is an entertaining and fairly straightforward piece which should sit well with the non-indie crowd (nothing fuddy-duddy or high-brow here, unlike her celebrated visual art works), and perhaps that’s a good move, considering that the majority of Beatles fans consist of the mom-and-pop variety.
(USA) If you are the sort who swears by the therapeutic benefits of retail therapy or cannot resist spending a month’s salary on the latest monogrammed designer leather bag, you will probably relate to shopping addict Rebecca Bloomwood and be giddy with excitement just from watching her swipe plastic in Confessions of a Shopaholic. Based on the Shophaholic series of chick-lit novels by Sophie Kinsella, this film adaptation is part Ugly Betty meets The Devil Wears Prada, but with less wit and fashion sensibility thrown in.
Category IIA. This movie promises love, lust, sex and betrayal. What it delivers is a miserable medley of half-baked intrigue and mild bedroom shenanigans, not enthralling and certainly not sexy. Its lusty, star-studded cast – Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson and Eric Bana – couldn’t have been more squandered.
