SPOTLIGHT | Catch Liam Neeson in ‘Retribution’, Wesley Snipes as ageing stripper & Helen Mirren in ‘Golda’
There’s nothing low-key or low-budget about this week’s episode of Spotlight, with big-screen action, comedy and drama, and interviews with Hollywood heavy hitters.
Action veteran Liam Neeson takes the lead in the new cinema release, Retribution (also starring Matthew Modine, Embeth Davitz and SA-born Noma Dumezweni). Driving his children to school, workaholic banker Matt Turner gets a call from an unknown assailant who says his luxury SUV is rigged with a bomb that will be detonated if he doesn’t follow a series of twisted instructions.
This remake of 2015 Spanish thriller El Desconocido, described as “malevolently fun”, hooks the audience right from the get-go and the 90-minutes of running time fly by. Look out for presenter Collette Prince’s interview with the movie’s acclaimed director Nimród Antal (Predators, Machete).
For a bit of fun, Back on the Strip is out in cinemas with a stellar cast including Wesley Snipes, Kevin Hart, Tiffany Haddish and Spence Moore II. Wannabe-magician Merlin heads to Vegas to follow his dreams but finds himself making magic of a different kind when he gets recruited to a revival of the Chocolate Chips, a once-famous black male stripper crew.
On a more serious note, award-winning Helen Mirren plays the title role of docudrama Golda, also on out on screens. It follows the high-stakes role of Israel’s former prime minister Golda Meir during the 19-day Yom Kippur War in 1973. Directed by Guy Nattiv (Skin), it also stars Liev Schreiber (Henry Kissinger) and Camille Cottin.
As promised, this week’s episode includes an interview with Tim Ballard, the US federal agent-turned-vigilante, who inspired The Sound of Freedom. This true story about his mission to save trafficked children is already a box office hit in SA.
