PICK OF THE MONTH

Maria (12A), Fri 10 Jan

It’s been a minute since Angelina Jolie last graced our screens, but believe us when we say it’s been worth the wait to see her as la grande diva of opera, Maria Callas. This cinematically gorgeous biopic, directed by Pablo Larraín (known for Jackie and Spencer), reimagines the legendary sopranos final days where she looks back over her life and career. Glamorous, glorious, heartbreaking and sooo good you’ll be begging for an encore! Fun fact, Jolie actually trained for several months to sing like Callas, her voice is multi-tracked and blended with Callas’ own in the movie. Impressive stuff.

We Live in Time (12A), Wed 1 Jan

Ditch the hangover and start 2025 balling like a baby courtesy of Florence Pugh, Andrew Garfield and their new, heartbreaking, romantic drama. Almut (Pugh) and Tobias (Garfield) meet when Almut hits him with her car (talk about a meet cute!). From there We Live in Time follows their decade-spanning, unconventional love story, through sickness, health and everything in between, as they learn to cherish every moment knowing tomorrow is never guaranteed. It’s giving One Day vibes which is only a bad thing if you aren’t packing enough tissues at the cinema!

Nosferatu (15), Wed 1 Jan

An impressive ensemble cast leads this haunting gothic horror which has already been lauded across the pond – Willem Dafoe, Emma Corrin, Nicholas Hoult, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ralph Ineson, Lily Rose Depp and Bill Skarsgård. Directed by horror maestro, Robert Eggers, Nosferatu is a Dracula-origin story inspired by the 1897 Bram Stoker novel. It sees Skarsgård play a hellish looking Count Orlok who becomes infatuated with a young woman, played superbly by Depp. In a word, it’s chilling, but even if horrors aren’t your usual jam this is worth peeking out from behind your popcorn for if all the fuss about it is to be believed. 

Nickel Boys (12A), Fri 3 Jan

Colson Whitehead’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, Nickel Boys, has been given the big screen treatment and, in a word, it is sensational. Set in 1962 during the Jim Crow era, with flashes forward to the present day, the film follows Elwood Curtis (Ethan Herisse) and his friend Turner (Brandon Wilson) and their experiences at the segregated and brutal reform school, the Nickel Academy. Directed by RaMell Ross, and also starring Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor and Hamish Linklater, cinephiles will particularly love the first person footage of this heartbreaking yet utterly mesmerising movie.

A Real Pain (15), Fri 10 Jan

If you’ve missed Kieran Culkin since the finale of Succession you’ll love this! He is back on quippy form in comedy drama, A Real Pain, and has found himself a superb double act in the form of Jesse Eisenberg, who also wrote and directed the film. They play estranged, mismatched cousins, who are forced to reunite – on a tour in Poland no less – in the wake of their beloved grandmothers death. Blending humour and heart, Eisenberg takes you on a journey of grief, Jewish identity and those pesky familial bonds. Another film scooping up the awards noms, and for good reason.

Babygirl (18), Fri 10 Jan

Nicole Kidman makes a serious (and might we add steamy) case for the cougars in Babygirl. She plays Romy, a powerful CEO who engages in a forbidden affair with her sexy and slightly sinister much younger intern (Harris Dickinson). Desire battles reason, and Kidman plays the tragic hero as her life falls apart around the affair. Though it raises some interesting questions about abuse of power, gender dynamics, erotic desire and culpability, there’s no denying it’s an absolutely thrilling joyride of a watch.

A Complete Unknown (15), Fri 17 Jan

Timothée Chalamet acts and sings his socks off as Bob Dylan in this cracking biopic of the singer-songwriter’s life. Covering everything from his first foray into folk and meteoric rise to his electrifying and controversial performance at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival, and everything in between. Brought to you by James Mangold (he of Walk the Line fame) and starring Elle Fanning, James Norton, Monica Barbaro, Will Harrison and Charlie Tahan. A Complete Unknown is an absolute corker of a watch, unsurprisingly tipped for Oscar success.

The Brutalist (18), Fri 24 Jan

Dubbed the cinematic event of the year, The Brutalist is already scooping up awards noms and it isn’t surprising with its cast of tip top acting talent – hello Adrien Brody, Guy Pearce, Felicity Jones, Emma Laird and Joe Alwyn. It follows the life of László Tóth (Brody), a fictional Hungarian-born, Jewish architect who, after surviving the Holocaust, emigrates to America. Here he struggles to achieve the ol’ American Dream, that is until a wealthy client changes everything. Enchanting, mesmerising and utterly compelling, prepare to be blown away. 

Flight Risk (15), Fri 24 Jan

For all your thrill seekers out there, book yourselves a seat on Flight Risk, Mel Gibson’s latest action-packed missive. Starring Mark Wahlberg as a pilot transferring an Air Marshal (Downton‘s Michelle Dockery) and her fugitive (Topher Grace) to trial where he’s all set to testify against a very dangerous mob. Somewhere across the Alaskan Wilderness, tensions begin to soar and all is not what, or who they seem. Tense stuff indeed. We’re watching for the action and Wahlberg in a semi-bald cap!

Saturday Night (15), Fri 31 Jan

Matthew Rhys, Willem Dafoe, Finn Wolfhard, Lamorne Morris, Nicholas Braun, Gabriel LaBelle and Cory Michael Smith are among the all-star cast bringing the origins of the iconic Saturday Night Live to life. Bursting at the brim with chaos and humour, the film unravels in real time taking you behind the scenes of the 90-minutes before the first ever broadcast revealing just how close it was to never happening.

Need more cinematic inspo? Here’s what else Muddy has been watching at the cinema.