Perspectives

Reading Time: 2 minutesOn the surface, The Lost King is a light-hearted comedy about a quirky woman who became obsessed with finding the remains of King Richard III, and in the process had hallucinations in which she saw and spoke with the King. Apart from Sally Hawkin’s outstanding acting, the attractions of the film are likely to be different for each of us. The issues tackled include research in the age of business-dominated universities, chronic fatigue syndrome, fractured families, and re-written histories. Above all, the story told by this gentle and entertaining film is based on real events and a tribute to the courage and determination of Phillipa Langley, who took on and defeated the authorities in her quest to find the remains of King Richard III.

Reading Time: 2 minutesHere After is an entertaining, unpredictable and original version of an afterlife romantic comedy. It is set in New York, where a young man dies in a motor vehicle accident. As he was not romantically attached at the time he finds himself before Scarlett, played by the ever so stylish Christina Ricci, who informs him that in order to pass to the other side he must find a similarly deceased soulmate. What complicates our leading character’s search is that the girl with whom he falls in love is not dead. This rom-com’s original concept makes the plot particularly interesting and less predictable. Visually, the film is quirky and urban-otherworldly. Christina Ricci is perfectly cast as Scarlett, the adviser, and dispatcher of uncoupled recently deceased. The Honey Bee character avoids many of the cliches of this genre and is also perfectly cast

Reading Time: < 1 minutePerfect Strangers is an Italian comedy/drama that is not only highly entertaining, but also, somewhat surprisingly, thought provoking.