The first Friday of March brings with it four new cinema releases, in addition to good news regarding Ster Kinekor’s Throwback Cinema offering – it’s expanding its locations!
For some time now, Throwback Cinema titles have be screened at the following Ster-Kinekor sites: Sandton and Rosebank Nouveau in Johannesburg; Irene and The Grove in Tshwane; Gateway in Umhlanga; Baywest in Gqeberha; Somerset in Somerset West; and Blue Route, Cavendish, V&A Waterfront and Tygervalley in Cape Town.
However, due to the popularity of the campaign, seven additional movie houses have been added to the list from March, and these are: Mall Of Africa, Eastgate and Cresta in Joburg; Vaal in Vanderbijlpark; Mooirivier in Potchefstroom, Shelly Beach on the KZN South Coast, and CapeGate in Cape Town.
If you need a reminder, Throwback Cinema gives audiences the chance to watch modern classics once more on the big screen, for a limited time, at a reduced price of R50 a ticket. This week, that means a return for Oscar-winning drama Good Will Hunting, which pretty much launched the careers of Matt Damon and Ben Affleck.
Oscar-winning filmmaker Bong Joon-ho is back with his follow-up to Parasite in the form of Mickey 17. Based on the 2022 novel by Edward Ashton, this quirky science fiction comedy centres on Mickey Barnes (Robert Pattinson), a wholly unimpressive everyman who signs up for a space exploration job as an “Expendable.” Translation: he’s a disposable employee expected to die in his duties and continually be regenerated as a clone with his memories intact. Also with Naomi Ackie, Steven Yeun, Toni Collette and Mark Ruffalo.
Look out for our Mickey 17 review over the next few days.
In homegrown comedy A Scam Called Love, an ambitious chef from South Africa enters a green card marriage with a cash-strapped line cook from Atlanta. The couple journey to Cape Town to gather proof of their relationship, only to find that deceiving the government is easy compared to fooling your family. A Scam Called Love is directed and written by husband-and-wife duo Carla Fonseca Mokgata and Spoek Mathambo.
Angel Studios, the company behind Sound of Freedom and Cabrini, released uplifting drama Brave the Dark just a few weeks ago. Now they’re back with Rule Breakers, which is based on a headline-making true story about a group of young women from Afghanistan who defy societal norms and, through their passion for computer science, enter a global robotics competition. Of course, that comes with threats and sacrifices, but also hope and courage. Nikohl Boosher leads the cast as pioneering Roya Mahboob, while Phoebe Waller-Bridge has a small role as a contest judge.
Finally, for some star-heavy prestige drama, there’s The Great Lillian Hall, inspired by real-life events. Veteran Broadway star Lillian Hall (Jessica Lange) pours her heart and soul into preparing for her next big role but finds herself blindsided by confusion and forgetfulness. She strives to make it to opening night while holding on to her fading memories and identity. Also starring are Kathy Bates, Lily Rabe, Jesse Williams and Pierce Brosnan.