Although there is the American comfort food of a Melissa McCarthy comedy coming out this week, there is definitely an international flavour to the other new releases.
In The Boss, McCarthy does her best female version of Donald Trump as an industry titan who is sent to prison for insider trading. After she is released from prison, she emerges ready to rebrand herself as America’s sweetheart, but not everyone she’s screwed over is not so quick to forgive and forget. The movie is co-written by McCarthy and her husband Ben Falcone who also directs. The Boss also features a strong supporting cast that includes Kristen Bell, Peter Dinklage, Tyler Labine, Kristen Schall, Dave Bautista and Kathy Bates.
Even though it’s in English, Hardcore Henry is an action movie directed by Moscow native Ilya Naishuller who has brought together an international cast featuring Russian star Danila Kozlovsky, South African Sharlto Copley, American Haley Bennett and Brit Tim Roth. What is most interesting is the style in which it was filmed, being shot almost entirely with a GoPro Hero 3 camera from the point of view of the protagonist. What this means is that it has the feel of a first-person shooter video game and the audience sees everything through the eyes of Henry.
Set in Moscow, Henry is a man resurrected from the brink of death as a cybernetic super-soldier who is trying to save his wife from a powerful warlord. While the concept might sound cheesy, the movie started a bidding war from studios when it premiered at the Toronto Film Festival and is currently holds an 81 per cent fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Also featured at the Toronto Film Festival was Demolition, an American film from Canadian director Jean-Marc Vallee (Dallas Buyer’s Club, Wild). Jake Gyllenhaal stars as a successful investment banker whose life unravels after losing his wife in a tragic car crash. What starts as a complaint letter to a vending machine company turns into a series of letters revealing startling personal confessions. The letter catches the attention of a customer service rep (Naomi Watts) and the two form an unlikely connection. With her and her son’s help, he starts rebuilding his life but only through the demolition of the life he once knew.
From Canada comes Across the Line, a film inspired by a true story of a young black man from a rural Nova Scotia town who has dreams of becoming an NHL star. To do so, he must keep his nose clean but it is hard to do as his older brother is trouble and the girl he is crushing on makes it even more difficult.
And if you are interested is something a truly international, check out Ambarsariya, a Punjabi-language (with English subtitles) comedy thriller about a man who lives a dual life as a secret agent and an insurance agent. He is put on a mission to protect the honest and idealistic Home Minister of Punjab who has had a hit put out on him by the mafia.
