KAJILLIONAIRE (12A, 105 mins) Crime/Drama/Comedy. Evan Rachel Wood, Gina Rodriguez, Debra Winger. Writer and director: Miranda July
ARTIST and film-maker Miranda July continues to explore the human condition from an unapologetically off-kilter perspective in a comedy drama about a family of small-time crooks.
Old Dolio Dyne (Evan Rachel Wood) carries out petty thefts in Los Angeles with her parents Robert (Richard Jenkins) and Theresa (Debra Winger), who seems incapable of showing her a shred of warmth and compassion.
The family divides the spoils of each underhand scheme but fails to pay the rent on a squalid apartment, which acts as a base of operations.
A bright and bubbly outsider called Melanie (Gina Rodriguez) gate-crashes the clan’s hand-to-mouth existence, hoping to learn the tricks of the con trade.
Old Dolio is initially jealous of the vivacious interloper, who possesses some of the traits she lacks. Melanie ultimately forces Old Dolio to scrutinise her unconventional and damaging upbringing.
:: In cinemas from today.
I AM WOMAN (15, 116 mins) Biography/Drama/Music. Evan Peters, Danielle Macdonald, Tilda Cobham-Hervey. Writer: Emma Jensen. Director: Unjoo Moon
UNJOO Moon writes and directs a biopic of Australian singer-songwriter Helen Reddy, who rose to worldwide fame with the feminist anthem I Am Woman.
Helen (Tilda Cobham-Hervey) arrives in 1966 New York with her three-year-old daughter on the promise of a recording contract.
Her hopes are cruelly dashed when the record company tells her that they have enough female talent on the roster and she should return home. Instead, Helen chooses to stay in America without a visa.
She forges a close friendship with rock journalist Lillian Roxon (Danielle Macdonald) and captures the mood of the second wave of the feminist movement with her song I Am Woman.
Aspiring talent manager Jeff Wald (Evan Peters) becomes her agent and later her husband.
However, his drug addiction gradually poisons the relationship and Helen realises she must take control of her career.
:: In cinemas plus available on download and streaming platforms from today.
AKIRA (15, 124 mins) Animé. Mitsuo Iwata, Nozomu Sasaki, Mami Koyama. Director: Katsuhiro Ôtomo
THE cult Manga comic series comes majestically to life in a 4K re-release of writer-director Katsuhiro Otomo’s startling 1988 animation, set in a future Japan presided over by marauding gangs of bikers and rebels intent on overthrowing the government.
The artwork is ferociously true to the comics, but plot and character are slightly scrambled in translation.
The plot centres on Shotaro Kaneda (voiced by Mitsuo Iwata) and best friend Tetsuo Shima (Nozomo Sasaki), who lead their gang, the Capsules, in a turf war against bitter rivals the Clowns.
The feud pales into insignificance when doctors discover that Tetsuo possesses devastating psychic abilities similar to a little boy called Akira, who destroyed Tokyo decades before.
:: In cinemas from today.
