Movie fans alert! What to see this weekend at the cinema, on DVD and on TV

Lads in a maze, coming-of-age drama and a diva drag queen

Maze Runner

by Charles Gant |
Published on

In the cinema: The Maze Runner

Have you had enough of movies based on young adult novels set in a dystopian future? Let’s hope not as, following Hunger Games and Divergent, The Maze Runner is now making a bid for your attention: a film about a bunch of teenage lads trapped on open land surrounded by a high perimeter wall. The only way out is through a giant concrete maze, but a) it’s patrolled by deadly creatures and b) it switches around every night, meaning that it’s different every day. Why is this occurring? The movie is big on intrigue, and the revelation, when it finally arrives, is less than fully satisfying, but the young cast impresses: Dylan O’Brien (Teen Wolf), Will Poulter (_We’re The Miller_s), Thomas Brodie Sangster (Game Of Thrones) and Kaya Scodelario (Skins). The film is basically old sci-fi flick Cube crossed with Lord Of The Flies, but this is not a criticism.

On DVD: Joe

The big Hollywood DVD on offer this week is A Million Ways To Die In The West from Seth Macfarlane of Family Guy and Ted fame, but we can’t in all honesty recommend that film: it has a few LOLs, but really it’s a comedy sketch idea stretched to feature length, and Seth is more of a voice talent than a movie actor. However, we CAN recommend coming-of-age US indie flick Joe, starring young Tye Sheridan (Mud, The Tree Of Life) and Nicolas Cage. It’s directed by David Gordon Green, who makes his living doing stoner comedies like Pineapple Express. Joe is one of his personal, heartfelt projects, and is recommended for fans of American indie cinema. Tye Sheridan is a star for the future. You won’t be seeing him in standard teen movies – he’s too quirky for that – but he’s got a presence that makes him easy to care about, and he draws you in.

On TV: Kinky Boots (BBC2, Sunday, 10.35pm)

Chiwetel Ejiofor won the Best Actor movie Bafta for his heartbreaking performance in 12 Years A Slave, but here’s one he made earlier. The premise may not sound immediately appealing: a drag queen (Ejiofor) comes to the rescue of a man (Aussie actor Joel Edgerton) who needs to diversify after inheriting his dad’s ailing shoe factory. No, really. The film didn’t exactly pack cinemas when it was released in 2005, but it’s sweet, funny, charming and also features Nick Frost in the cast. Kinky Boots has now been retooled as a hit musical on Broadway in New York, but here’s your chance to see the film that inspired it. Joel Edgerton appeared opposite Tom Hardy in Warrior, and was also in Zero Dark Thirty and The Great Gatsby. He’s got a very likeable screen presence and deserves to be better known.

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