Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/712794
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 17 JULY 2016 This Week 33 IN CINEMAS TODAY Embassy Cinemas Valletta Tel. 21 227436, 21 245818 The Legend of Tarzan (12A) 10:15, 13:30, 16:00, 18:30, 20:55 The Conjuring 2 (15) 10:15, 14:15, 18:00, 20:50 Me Before You (12A) 16:15, 18:40 The Secret Life Of Pets (U) 10:00, 12:15, 14:30, 16:45, 19:00, 21:15 Central Intelligence (12A) 10:25, 13:30, 16:00, 18:30, 21:00 Absolutely Fabulous (15) 10:00, 12:15, 14:30, 16:45, 19:00, 21:15 Valletta Living History (U) 10:00, 10:45, 11:30, 12:15, 13:00, 13:45, 14:30, 15:15 Eden Cinemas St Julian's Tel. 23 710400 The Legend of Tarzan (12A) 14:00, 18:50, 20:50, 23:20 Absolutely Fabulous (15) 14:00, 16:25, 18:50, 21:15, 23:45 Independence Day: Resurgence (12A) 14:00, 16:25, 18:50, 21:15, 23:45 Colonia (15) 14:05, 18:30, 23:00 Central Intelligence (12A) 14:05, 16:25, 18:45, 21:05, 23:30 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows (12A) 14:05, 16:25, 18:45, 21:10, 23:35 Angry Birds (U) 14:10, 16:20, 18:35 The Secret Life of Pets (PG) 14:15, 18:40 Ice Age: Collision Course (U) 14:15, 16:30, 18:45, 21:00 Now You See Me 2 (12A) 14:20, 18:00, 20:45, 23:25 Gods of Egypt (12A) 14:25, 18:10, 21:00, 23:35 The Conjuring 2 (15) 14:30, 17:55, 20:45, 23:30 Precious Cargo (18) 16:25, 20:55 The Legend of Tarzan (12A) 16:25 The Secret Life of Pets (PG) 16:30, 21:10 Alice Through the Looking Glass (PG) 20:55, 23:20 Empire Cinemas Bugibba Tel. 21 581787, 21 581909 The Legend of Tarzan (12A) 10:45, 13:20, 16:00, 18:30, 21:05 Ice Age: Collision Course (U) 11:05, 13:25, 15:45, 18:00, 20:35 The Secret Life of Pets (U) 11:00, 13:45, 15:55, 18:00, 20:30 Gods of Egypt (12A) 10:20, 13:00, 15:40, 18:20, 21:00 Central Intelligence (12A) 11:00, 13:35, 16:05, 18:30, 20:55 Independence Day 2: Resur- gence (12A) 10:45, 13:20, 15:55, 18:30, 21:05 The Conjuring 2 (15) 16:00, 21:05 Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie (15) 10:55, 13:40, 18:35 SADLY, oppression is the only real constant in human history. It's the basis for all conflicts – national and intimate – and most of our laws are crafted to try and circumvent it in some way. So it's hardly surprising that films about oppression are a popular and consistent feature of our annual cinematic roster. In one corner, you have pop cul- ture behemoths like The Hunger Games franchise grafting on a hero's journey to the struggle, and offering up a hard-won but ultimately redemptive narra- tive whose aim is to entertain and inspire. In another, you've got the arthouse offerings – the likes of which we've witnessed during the Valletta Film Festi- val – which frame all forms of oppression as being unbeatable, and attempt to squeeze dramatic leverage and poignancy out of how us mere mortals contend with that cruel fact of human ex- istence. Then you've got something in between. The middlebrow con- tenders. Usually based on true, harrowing historical events, and usually international co-produc- tions with a clutch of nationally varied – but still generally rec- ognizable – actors in their arena, these movies try to have the cake and eat it too. An endeavour which, for various reasons, all too frequently results in dilution and disappointment. And al- though its dramatic beats are in the right place and its intentions cannot be faulted, Florian Gal- lenberger's The Colony doesn't quite manage to evade the pit- falls of this particular mode of storytelling. Based on a shocking histori- cal episode that somehow man- ages to combine the effects of two horrible regimes in one fell swoop, The Colony takes its cue from the religious sect Colonia Dignitas, founded in 1960s Chile by former Nazi Corporal turned Baptist preacher Paul Schafer – here played by Michael Nyqvist (The Girl With the Dragon Tat- too). Under the guise of religious teaching, the Colony served as a dumping ground for political ac- tivists opposing the Pinochet re- gime, while also helping to arm their militia. We discover its inner workings after a German student, Daniel (Daniel Bruhl) who's helping out with the pro-Allende resistance in Chile is taken in by the gov- ernment as Pinochet's coup seiz- es the country. His distraught girlfriend Lena (Emma Watson) sees no option but to infiltrate the Colony posing as a newly- minted nun. But once there, she has to negotiate through a strictly segregated male-female mini-society, and stay out of the hawkish glare of Gisela (Richen- da Carey) if her mission is to be of any success. Meanwhile, Dan- iel is tortured into seeming men- tal retardation after he refuses to give the names of his revolution- ary collaborators. But we soon find out that this is all an act, and there's a glimmer of hope for the lovers' plan to reunite and es- cape the tightly secured facility. For all the horror it portrays – and Gallenberger is adept at some of the subtler moments of creepiness from Schafer – the film remains a coddling romance drama lodged in the middle of an otherwise compelling set- up. With its pretty leads and polished but uninspiring pho- tography, it remains commend- able for bringing the Colonia to public attention, but something of a lame duck on the actual cin- ematic stakes. Further reading is encouraged. Middlebrow movie activism ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ COLONISE THE STARS ★ ★ ★ ★ COLONISE WITH KINDNESS ★ ★ ★ HIPPIE COMMUNE ★ ★ POST-COLONIAL TRAUMA ★ COLONIC IRRIGATION FILM By Teodor Reljic THE COLONY (15) ★ ★ ★ Revolutionary road: Emma Watson and Daniel Bruhl are caught between a rock and a hard place in Pinochet's Chile Creeper preacher: Michael Nyqvist thrills to the part of former Nazi religious cult leader Paul Schafer with disturbing gusto