Dahomey (PG)
Directed by Mati Diop
★★★ 

 
 
WINNER of the coveted Golden Bear award at this year’s Berlinale, Dahomey is an immersive and haunting work from co-writer director Mati Diop which explores the effects of colonisation, appropriation, self-determination and restitution. 

It follows the return in November 2021 of 26 royal treasures from the Kingdom of Dahomey by the French government. They were among thousands of others plundered by French colonial troops in 1892.  

The artifacts are seen being packed up and shipped off from Paris to their land of origin, the present day Republic of Benin in west Africa. Interweaved with the fly-on-the-wall footage are thoughts voiced by the treasures themselves in surreal sequences where fact and supernatural fiction merge, which proves very distracting. 

Once the treasures arrive in Benin their unpacking is intercut with students at the University of Abomey-Calavi debating their return, which is the most fascinating and enlightening part of the documentary. 

I could have done with more of that and less of the ethereal voiceovers because the students raise crucial points. A couple of them denounce this development as insulting because out of the 7,000 works the French appropriated, they have only given back 26. It isn’t made clear why or what further action the authorities in Benin are planning to take. 

They also discuss the impact of colonisation, one of which is them being forced to speak and write in French instead of their indigenous languages which should be part of their education but isn’t. 

This film should reignite the debate in Britain about returning the Elgin Marbles to Greece. 

In cinemas October 25.

The Room Next Door (12A)
Directed by Pedro Almodóvar
★★★

 
 
PEDRO ALMODOVAR’s first film in English takes a deep dive into confronting both our own mortality and the death of the planet. 

Based on Sigrid Nunez’s novel What Are You Going Through, it follows former close friends Ingrid (Julianne Moore) and Martha (Tilda Swinton) who reunite when Ingrid discovers that Martha has terminal cancer. Having decided that she is going to die on her own terms, Martha asks Ingrid if she can accompany her to a holiday home (which is gorgeous) and be in the room next door when she does it. 

Winning the Golden Lion award at this year’s Venice Film Festival, this is very much a two-hander which feels more like a heavy stage play.

Moore and Swinton never disappoint but they seem to be working overtime delivering long monologues in a film that doesn’t seem to flow naturally. John Turturro is also in the mix as their former lover who is obsessed with the climate crisis, but has little to do.  

Written and directed by Almodovar, I fear something my have been lost in translation as this lacks his usual sublime touch. Maybe he should stick to films in Spanish.  

In cinemas October 25. 

Emilia Perez (15)
Directed by Jacques Audiard
★★★ 

 
 
THIS is an audacious musical crime thriller centred on a Mexican cartel boss who enlists the help of a lawyer to stage his own death and help him to become the woman he always wanted to be. 

Co-written and directed by Jacques Audiard (Rust and Bone, A Prophet), it is loosely based on Boris Razon’s novel Ecoute and is driven by powerhouse performances from its phenomenal Spanish-speaking female cast. 

Trans actor Karla Sofia Gascon steals the film as Emilia Perez/gang leader Manitas del Monte while Zoe Saldana gives a marvellous turn as his solicitor Rita. Selena Gomez is equally wonderful as Manita’s wife and Adriana Paz as Emilia’s lesbian lover. 

The musical numbers are really distracting and do not quite work, suddenly petering out towards the end. However the complex and heartfelt narrative keep you gripped throughout. 

In cinemas October 25 and on Netflix November 13.

 
Venom: The Last Dance (15)
Directed by Kelly Marcel
★★ 

 
 
TOM HARDY returns as Venom for the third and final instalment in the trilogy, which lacks rhythm and cohesion although it is surprisingly funny. Or maybe not, if you are a staunch Venom fan. 

Written and directed once more by Kelly Marcel and picking up where the last film ended, Eddie and Venom (Hardy) are on the run from aliens who want the Codex key, hidden inside Venom, which will allow the villainous Knull (Andy Serkis) to escape his prison. 

Hardy is clearly having a blast and is joined by a stellar cast including Juno Temple, Rhys Ifans and Chiwetel Ejiofor. 

Ifans plays the head of a hippie-dippy family of four who befriends Eddie on their way to the mysterious Area 51. Their scenes are some of the most entertaining but feel like they have been shoehorned in from a different film. 

Let’s just pray this is truly Venom’s final dance. 

In cinemas October 25.