32 ARTS
THEWEEK 22 February 2020FilmJaneAusten’s 1815 novelis“catnip”forfilmmakers,
saidMarkKermodeinTheObserver:therehavebeen
countlessadaptations–aswellas,perhapsbestofall,
AmyHeckerling’s1 99 5highschoolversion,Clueless.
This“latestcolourfulincarnation”,directedbymusic
videoveteranAutumndeWilde,isacrowd-pleaser,
evenifit“reducesthecomplexitiesoftheoriginaltext
toamorecaricaturedscreenromp”.Theplotisfairly
faithful;the“remarkable”AnyaTaylor-Joyplays
Emma,aspoilt youngheiresswhoentertainsherself
bymatch-makingwhilebeingcircledbythedashing
MrKnightley(JohnnyFlynn).Thisfilmisalmost
“toopretty”,saidLauraFreemaninTheSpectator.“ThelookisTinkerbellRegency”,with
ravishingcoutureandinteriors.MiaGothis“thebestthinginit”asEmma’sunsophisticatedfriend
HarrietSmith.Withsuperbcameraworkandsomeexcellentacting,this“scenicallylush”versionis
“pleasantenough”,saidTimRobeyinTheDailyTelegraph.It’stheheroinewholetsthesidedown.
AustensaidthatinEmmashehad“aheroinewhomnoonebutmyselfwillmuchlike”.Butwestill
want–andneed–toloveandforgiveher.NotthisEmma,whois“simplytoomuchofameangirl”.Emma
Dir:AutumndeWilde
2hrs5mins(U)Opulentadaptationof
theAustenclassic★★★TakashiMiike’snewfilmisa“relativeromp”
comparedtothe“shudderinghorror”ofhispast1 02
features,saidDannyLeighintheFT:it’sa“sweetly
comicTokyoB-moviewithjusttheoccasional
decapitation”.After“laconicsmall-timeboxerLeo”
(MasatakaKubota)isdiagnosedwithaninoperable
tumour,hewandersthestreetsinanexistentialstate,
wherehe meets Monica(Sakurako Konishi),ayoung
andterrified sex worker who hasbecome caughtup
ingangwarfare.It’sa“meet-cute thattrouncesany
RichardCurtis screenplay”,saidNick Chen on
Dazed.InMonica, Leo finds someoneworth fighting
for.Thepairrun offtogetheron anultraviolent adventure;the action is“kinetic,character-driven”,
andunusuallycoherent.Miike approaches the anarchylike a“musicianplayinghisfavouriteviolent
instrument”:themostchaoticscenes areaccompaniedbyafree jazz soundtrackcomposedbyKôji
Endô.Lessdaringthansomeof hisextravagantly gruesomepreviouswork,First Loveisalsofar
easiertowatch,saidRobbieCollininTheDailyTelegraph.Cool,thrillinganddarklyfunny,it
“broods andglowers foranhouror sobeforeturningunabashedlybananas”.First Love
Dir:TakashiMiike
1hr48mins(15)Boymeetsgirlinan
ultraviolentthrillride★★★★Whenthe trailer for this filmcameoutlastyear,
“allhellbroke loose”amongfansofthe 1990svideo
game,said BrianVinerintheDailyMail.Themovie
versionof thetitularhedgehog,theysaid,looked“all
wrong”,with“creepy” humanteeth.Sonicreturned
tothedrawingboard,therelease datewas pushed
back–andthecreature“stilldoesn’t look remotely
like ahedgehog”. Inthisdebutfeature fromJeff
Fowler,Sonic–“who,asI’msure you’re aware,
isanintergalactic adventurer capableofmovingat
supersonicspeeds”–fallsthrough aportalandlands
in Montana,where heclasheswithevilscientist
DrRobotnik, playedbyJim Carrey.“Ifthere’sanace inthehole,”saidSteveRoseinTheGuardian,
it’sCarrey’s performance,with “dartingeyes,twirlable moustache andexaggeratedmovements that
verge on interpretive dance”. Otherwise, it’s as you’d expect,said Ed Potton in The Times:“cursory
plot, aimless momentum,cartoonishcharacterisation”, andsoon. “There’s enough heretodivert
smallpeople forawhile, but theirparents woul ddowelltobring ablindfold and ear plugs.”Sonic the
Hedgehog
Dir:JeffFowler
1hr39mins(PG)Anintergalacticflop★The novicefilm makerJonKasbe spent four years
“embedded”inthe Kenyanbushcollectingfootage
for this newdocumentaryaboutelephantpoaching
and theillega livorytrade. The resultis“adeeply
nuancedand, at times, incrediblytense” film,said
Steven Sheehan on The DigitalFix. With an “evocative
score”and “involving,cinematic presentation”, it’s
“a non-fictionthri ller”. Kasbeobservesthelives of
a“swaggeringpoacher” knownsimplyasXand his
neme sis, a“sympathetic wildlife ranger called Asan”,
said KevinMaher in The Times.And “inapieceof
outrageous dramatic good fortune”, thetwomen
turn out to becous ins. Thereare tinyhints of“scriptedreality”which jarsomewhat; butitdoesn’t
matter when the characters are so “intimately revealed”.“I’mnot surethatIwascompletelyon
boa rd with this film,” said Peter Bradshaw in TheGuardian .Its eemsso “smoothly carpentered”
and neat.“Isitalmos ttoo good tobe tr ue?” Italsofails to examinethedemand forivory, without
which there wouldbe no illicit trade. Still, itis certainlya“taut” and “atmospheric”piece.When Lambs
Become Lions
Dir: Jon Kasbe
1hr 16mins (12)Elephant poaching in
the Kenyan bush★★★