We may not celebrate Thanksgiving locally, but November is going out with a bang, dropping five new films at South African cinemas before we even reach the December holiday period.
That’s on top of concert recording Westlife at the Royal Albert Hall (in celebration of the group’s 25th Anniversary); a similar 10-year experience for SEVENTEEN; South African short film anthology Heart & Hustle; and the Throwback rerelease of Ancient World epic Troy at Ster Kinekor.
The sure-fire box office hit of the week is going to be Zootropolis 2 (AKA Zootopia 2), the nine-years-later follow-up to Disney’s animated buddy cop tale, featuring anthropomorphic animals. This time, with their partnership already under strain, rookie cops Judy Hopps (voiced by Ginnifer Goodwin) and Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman) must unravel a mystery involving scapegoated pit viper Gary (Ke Huy Quan).
Look out for our Zootropolis 2 review before the end of the week.
If you’ve been craving a good romantic comedy drama, A24’s Eternity looks here to scratch that itch. Miles Teller, Elizabeth Olsen and Callum Turner star in this afterlife love triangle, where Olsen’s Joan must choose where to spend eternity, and with whom: the man she spent her life with, or her first husband, who died tragically young. Apparently the film will keep you guessing until the end.
Still keeping things on the fluffy, feel-good side is British musical Christmas Karma. Bend It Like Beckham director Gurinder Chadha oversees this modern day reimagining of Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. Kunal Nayyar plays miserly conservative Eshaan Sood, who is forced to re-examine his past, present and future by ghosts in the form of Eva Longoria, Billy Porter, Boy George and Hugh Bonneville.
For even more feel-good energy, there’s South Africa-set family film Bird Boy. Orphan August (Litlhonolofatso Litlhakanyane) finds himself living on a farm in the arid countryside with his new foster parents (Téa Leoni, Tony Kgoroge). He struggles to fit in until he finds friendship in the form of Koobus the ostrich. Their bond is threatened, though, when Koobus is declared too unruly, and sent away, prompting a rescue mission to reunite the pair.
Finally, if this week’s movie selection has been too upbeat for you so far, provocative thriller Anniversary is out to balance the scale with some dark topicality. In the film, a close-knit family headed by Diane Lane, and Kyle Chandler, is torn apart as a new political movement called “The Change” envelops the country. Also with Madeline Brewer, Zoey Deutch, Phoebe Dynevor, Mckenna Grace and Dylan O’Brien.