THE WEDDING BANQUET
Rating: M
Duration: 103 mins
Director: Andrew Ahn
Cast: Bowen Yang, Lily Gladstone, Kelly Marie Tran, Han Gi-chan
Genre: Comedy, romance
Opens: May 8
Two gay couples hatch a scheme to stage a marriage, have a baby, get a Green Card and live happily after – until Grandma flies in from Korea to plan a wedding banquet – what could go wrong?!
Frustrated with his commitment-phobic boyfriend Chris, Min makes a proposal: a Green Card marriage with their friend Angela in exchange for her wife Lee’s expensive IVF. Their plans are upended, however, when Min’s grandmother surprises them with an extravagant Korean wedding banquet to celebrate their nuptials.
Hilarious indy film you didn’t realise you’d been waiting for!
WITH OR WITHOUT YOU
Rating: CTC
Duration: 114 mins
Director: Kelly Schilling
Cast: Marta Dusseldorp, Melina Vidler, Albert Mwangi
Genre: Drama
Opens: May 8
An Australian road trip movie beautifully filmed across the vast landscape. Chloe sets out to remove her entertaining but alcoholic mother Sharon from the claws of temptation to start new lives in an idyllic location. They find themselves on an unexpected road trip with a mysterious West African man called Dalu. As the three embark on a trip in Chloe’s rundown wagon, misconceptions and misunderstandings lead to the realisation that facing your fears is the first step to freedom.
OCEAN WITH DAVID ATTENBOROUGH
Rating: CTC
Duration: 105 mins
Director: Toby Nowlan, Colin Butfield, Keith Scholey
Cast: David Attenborough
Genre: Documentary
Ocean with David Attenborough takes viewers on a breathtaking journey showing there is nowhere more vital for our survival, more full of life, wonder, or surprise, than the ocean.
The celebrated broadcaster and filmmaker reveals how his lifetime has coincided with the great age of ocean discovery. Through spectacular sequences featuring coral reefs, kelp forests and the open ocean, Attenborough shares why a healthy ocean keeps the entire planet stable and flourishing.
Stunning, immersive cinematography showcases the wonder of life under the seas and exposes the realities and challenges facing our ocean as never-before-seen, from destructive fishing techniques to mass coral reef bleaching.
Yet the story is one of optimism, with Attenborough pointing to inspirational stories from around the world to deliver his greatest message: the ocean can recover to a glory beyond anything anyone alive has ever seen.
LA COCINA
Rating: MA15+
Duration: 139 mins
Director: Alonso Ruizpalacios
Cast: Rooney Mara, Oded Fehr, John Pyper-Ferguson
Genre: Drama, comedy
Opens: May 15
Filmed in stark black and white and set to a staccato beat, this is a film festival darling for those who appreciate the art of film.
Amidst the lunchtime rush of The Grill, a bustling New York tourist trap, a series of events threaten to bring the kitchen to a crashing halt as the staff each chase the elusive American dream. When a large sum of money goes missing from the register, suspicion falls on Pedro, an undocumented cook who dreams of a better life and is in love with Julia, an American waitress who cannot commit to a relationship.
Rashid, the restaurant owner, has promised to help Pedro obtain legal status, but a shocking revelation about Julia compels Pedro to spiral into an act that threatens to shut down one of the city’s busiest kitchens once and for all.
THE SALT PATH
Rating: M
Duration: 115 mins
Director: Marianne Elliott
Cast: Gillian Anderson, Jason Isaacs, James Lance
Genre: Drama
Opens: MAY 15
For all those who loved The Way and stories of pilgrimage. The Salt Path is the profound true story of husband and wife Raynor and Moth Winn’s 630-mile trek along the beautiful but rugged Cornish, Devon and Dorset coastline.
After being forcibly removed from their home, they make the desperate decision to walk in the hope that, in nature, they will find solace and a sense of acceptance.
With depleted resources, and only a tent and some essentials between them, every step along the path is a testament to their growing strength and determination.
The Salt Path is a journey that is exhilarating, challenging, and liberating in equal measure. A portrayal of home, how it can be lost and rediscovered in the most unexpected ways.
UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE
Rating: G
Duration: 89 mins
Director: Matthew Rankin
Cast: Rojina Esmaeili, Saba Vahedyousefi, Matthew Rankin
Genre: Comedy, drama
Language: French with English subtitles
Opens: May 22
Winner of an inaugural udience award at Cannes. In a mysterious and surreal interzone somewhere between Tehran and Winnipeg, the lives of multiple characters interweave with each other in surprising and mysterious ways. Gradeschoolers Negin and Nazgol find a sum of money frozen in the winter ice and try to claim it.
Meanwhile, Massoud leads a group of increasingly-befuddled tourists through the monuments and historic sites of Winnipeg.
Matthew quits his meaningless job in a Québecois government office and sets out upon an enigmatic journey to visit his mother.
Space, time and personal identities crossfade, interweave and echo into a surreal comedy of misdirection.
Bridging two nations with a clever and surreal conceit, Universal Language is a culture clash comedy brimming with wisdom.
