Movies

Winter is the perfect time of year to cosy up with a good film - and this one can’t be missed. With an 89% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, reviewers say this film is a “must-see”.The Magnificent Seven (1960), directed by John Sturges, has been named by Collider as one of the best western movies. The synopsis for the film on the site reads: “A Mexican village is at the mercy of Calvera, the leader of a band of outlaws. “The townspeople, too afraid to fight for themselves, hire seven American gunslingers to free them from the bandits' raids. On Rotten Tomatoes, one person said the movie is a "masterpiece of art".“The professional gunmen train the villagers to defend themselves, then plan a trap for the evil Calvera.”The film stars Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen and Charles Bronson.One person on Ro...

A "masterpiece" musical hailed by fans as "wonderfully acted" is streaming for free in the UK. Cyrano (2021) is based on the 2018 stage musical, which was in turn based on the 1897 Edmond Rostand play Cyrano de Bergerac.The film focuses on the titular Cyrano (played by Peter Dinklage of Game of Thrones fame), a gifted poet and swordsman plagued by a deep sense of unworthiness, and who is secretly in love with his childhood friend, Roxanne (Haley Bennett). Roxanne, a beautiful aristocrat, has fallen for a handsome soldier called Christian (Kelvin Harrison Jr.) who is not blessed with Cyrano's eloquence.Despite Cyrano's quiet despair at being his unrequited romantic feelings, he decides to help his love rival woo Roxanne by secretly penning love letters for Christian to use as his own.The...

Christy is in cinemas in the UK and Ireland and the harrowing yet poignant film is based on the real life of boxing phenomenon, Christy Martin.Directed by David Michôd, the film stars Sydney Sweeney in the title role as Christy in a story of resilience, courage, and the fight to reclaim one’s life.David spoke exclusively to Reach titles about casting actress Sweeney, who underwent a huge transformation for the role.She trained extensively in boxing and weightlifting, gaining over 30 pounds, and she performed her own stunts after refusing to use a stunt double for the boxing sequences.David said: "Mirrah Foulkes [director/screenwriter] and I were writing the script without a clear idea in our heads of who might play Christy, which can always be a little bit scary because we knew this was...

While Sir Sean Connery’s James Bond romanticised the world of Cold War espionage, Sir Michael Caine’s spy films presented a more grounded and accurate portrayal of the intelligence services.Based on Len Deighton’s 1962 novel of the same name, The Ipcress File starred Caine as Harry Palmer, an agent at the Ministry of Defence tasked with investigating the disappearances of some major scientists.The actor’s portrayal of a British Intelligence Officer as a regular man in glasses who cooks for himself at home was a stark contrast to Ian Fleming’s suave 007.Interestingly enough, the film was produced by Bond’s Harry Saltzman, with 007 production designer Ken Adam and composer John Barry also working on it.The first of Caine’s five Harry Palmer spy movies was critically acclaimed and a box of...

Shrek 2 is an all time classic animated film, one of those ones that parents can peer over their kids' shoulders and snicker at the inuendos and hidden jokes. Just like ogres, the films are layered it seems as there are all sorts of unknown facts still coming out about them to this day. One of those is the fact that talk show host Johnathan Ross actually had a cameo as the Ugly Stepsister, Doris, in the UK version of the film.It is not widely shown however, with most showing the US version which is very similar except for the fact the Doris is voiced by American chat show host Larry King instead. Videos of Ross's version have been posted online, but they have not been met with the kindest reviews. One YouTube commenter simply said: "Dreadful."A lot of other people on TikTok also were co...

WARNING: This article contains spoilers from Now You See: Now You Don'tThe third chapter of the spellbinding Hollywood heist film series, Now You See Me, has recently hit the big screen, with fans flocking to cinemas and contributing to a staggering opening weekend box office haul of £15.9million ($21million), reports the Mirror.After viewing the film, which includes a captivating post-credits scene, many are now dissecting the plot of Now You See Me: Now You Don't.The narrative follows the Horsemen as they welcome new members into their ranks, including Charlie Vanderberg (portrayed by Justice Smith), Bosco Leroy (Dominic Sessa) and June McClure (Ariana Greenblatt) after the trio dazzle with a deepfake show and topple a corrupt cryptocurrency exchange owner.J. Daniel 'Danny' Atlas (Jes...

Netflix has just dropped a delightful Christmas rom-com that's bound to charm fans of recent favourites like Merry Little Ex-Mas and Champagne Problems.This festive offering has garnered praise from audiences following its initial premiere on the American TV channel Lifetime in 2022.UK subscribers can now immerse themselves in the holiday tale as it landed on the streaming platform today (Monday, 24th November).Beyond the laughs and heartwarming romance, the production also features beloved Oscar-winner Rita Moreno in a significant role.Santa Bootcamp stars The Walking Dead's Emily Kinney as Emily Strauss, an event planner tasked by a successful shopping centre owner with organising a Christmas gala to wow his major investors, reports <a href="https://www.mirror.co.uk/film/netflix-ch...

An animated film has been called “truly underrated” by fans, who say it is “one of the best Christmas movies ever made”. Klaus is a 2019 animated Christmas adventure comedy film co-written, co-produced, and directed by Sergio Pablos in his directorial debut.A traditionally hand-animated film, it stars the voices of Jason Schwartzman, J.K. Simmons, Rashida Jones, Will Sasso, Neda Margrethe Labba, Sergio Pablos, Norm Macdonald (in his final film role released in his lifetime), and Joan Cusack. Serving as an alternate origin story of Santa Claus, independent from the historical Saint Nicholas of Myra and using a fictional 19th-century setting, the plot revolves around a postman stationed in an island town to the Far North who befriends Klaus, a reclusive toymaker (Simmons). Klaus was rele...

It is easy at this time of year to feel like Christmas films are the only option, but it is still a little early. Maybe you've run out of inspiration, are eager and have made your way through the Christmas classics already, or perhaps you simply aren't a fan of Christmas films. Well, you've come to the right place. Here, I have compiled a list of some of the best winter warmer movies. From the tales of Hogwarts to a chocolate factory and a magical version of England, these films will take you to new worlds. Here are my five favourite films to watch before December. Stardust is a 2007 romantic fantasy adventure film directed by Matthew Vaughn and based on Neil Gaiman's 1999 novel. It features an ensemble cast led by Claire Danes, Charlie Cox, Sienna Miller, Ricky Gervais, Jason Flemyng, ...

Wicked: For Good has a running time of 2 hours and 17 minutes, considerably longer than the stage musical. Whilst based on the Broadway production, the film includes additional content for audiences, featuring new musical numbers, a wedding ceremony and flashback scenes.This represents a shorter duration than the first instalment, which clocked in at 2 hours and 40 minutes.Despite sharing similarities and differences with the source material, audiences will encounter an unexpected final revelation.Drawing significant parallels with The Wizard of Oz, Wicked For Good concludes with Elphaba discovering love with Fiyero as they both escape Oz, whilst Glinda remains convinced they have perished.As she departs, Elphaba declares: "I wish Glinda could know we're alive, but she can't. No one can...