Precious is a new-style weepie but one that is much more bracing than depressing
Precious
Theatre
Ian McKellen is captivating throughout. He delights in the play’s gallows humour, yet is also maudlin and poignant
Waiting for Godot
Theatre
Slight quibbles notwithstanding, this will set the West End’s stock riding high
Enron
Utterly, utterly brilliant. You really are in for a treat
Though 'Trilogy' has won rave reviews, I personally found myself exasperated after about an hour
We went on a quiet sunday evening and the food was excellent, but the experience let down by the service and ambiance
London,
Evening Standard rating
Reader rating
Dir: Paul King.
Cast: Veronica Echegui, Richard Ayoade, Simon Farnaby, Noel Fielding, Edward Hogg
Description: Stephen Turnbull is an agoraphobic, who hasn't stepped outside the front door for over a year. His life is a carefully orchestrated routine until fate throws an almighty spanner in the works and Stephen has to contemplate the unthinkable: leaving the house. The huge emotional strain of opening the door then actually stepping outside sparks memories of Stephen's journey around Europe with best friend Bunny.
Country: UK. 2009. 101mins
Rampant rabbit: Simon Farnaby as the exuberant Bunny
Paul King’s sort-of road movie — which boasts cameos from his Mighty Boosh pals Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt — takes a while to get going and covers a lot of familiar ground.
It’s the story of best friends Stephen (Edward Hogg) and Bunny (Simon Farnaby). Stephen is shy and anal. Bunny is exuberant and horny. On their travels from Poland to Andalusia they meet a skankily gorgeous Spanish waitress called Eloisa (Veronica Echegui). Guess which one of these overgrown adolescents falls in love with her? But guess which one of them lures her into bed?
King’s masterstroke lies in the casting of Echegui. She is fantastically charismatic as Eloisa, the kind of woman who has a name for her shadow: it’s Concita — and the two don’t get along. Eloisa may remind you of the Penélope Cruz character in Woody Allen’s Vicky Cristina Barcelona. Echegui’s energy is impossible to resist and her portrait of a young nutcase transcends cliché.
Barratt is also good value as the dog-loving tramp who kindly invites Stephen and Bunny to a milk picnic. His Mighty Boosh co-star Fielding, by contrast, seems a little self-conscious as Eloisa’s matador brother.
King has the same kind of olde worlde, amateur-hour aesthetic as Wes Anderson and Michel Gondry, and his papier mâché/metalwork figures and landscapes are used to increasingly charming effect. It may or may not be a good thing that fey, OCD nerds are so fashionable right now — but given their economical panache, it’s hard to begrudge these jittery fellows their day in the sun.
Details are correct at the time of publication - please check with venue before booking.
Interesting that Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is being portrayed again in the movies. As someone who has severe OCD, I'll be interested to see how they do it, especially in the context of a comedy. I haven't seen an accurate portrayal in the movies since The Aviator.
- Leo Hughes, London, UK
Morning:
3°c
