Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/731331
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 25 SEPTEMBER 2016 40 This Week IN CINEMAS TODAY Embassy Cinemas Valletta Tel. 21 227436, 21 245818 Bridget Jones's Baby (15) 10:15, 13:00, 15:45, 18:25, 21:05 Finding Dory (U) 10:00, 12:15, 14:30, 16:45, 19:00 Suicide Squad (15) 21:10 Mechanic: Resurrection (15) 16:05, 18:25, 20:50 The Magnificient Seven (12) 10:10, 14:00, 18:00, 20:50 Ben Hur (12A) 10:30, 13:30, 16:00, 18:30, 21:00 Kubo and the Two Strings (PG) 10:25, 14:00, 16:20, 18:40, 21:00 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 Finding Dory (U) 13:20, 15:30, 17:40 War Dogs (15) 14:00, 16:20, 18:45, 21:10, 23:40 Pete's Dragon (U) 14:05, 16:25, 18:40 Kubo and the Two Strings (PG) 14:05, 18:35, 20:55 Mechanic: Resurrection (15) 14:10, 16:20, 18:40, 21:10, 23:25 Nine Lives (PG) 14:10, 16:15, 18:25, 20:45 Bad Moms (15) 14:10, 16:30, 18:50, 21:15, 23:40 Sausage Party (15) 14:20, 16:30, 18:50, 21:15, 23:20 The Beatles: Eight Days a Week - The Touring Years (PG) 14:25, 18:00, 20:50, 23:30 Bridget Jones's Baby 14:30, 18:20, 21:05, 23:00 Kids in Love (15) 14:30, 18:45, 23:05 Ben-Hur (12A) 14:30, 18:10, 20:50, 23:30 The Magnificient Seven (12) 14:30, 18:00, 20:50, 23:35 Kubo and the Two Strings (PG) 16:20, 23:10 The 9th Life of Louis Drax (15) 16:25, 20:45 Michael Buble – Tour Stop 148 (PG) 20:00 Suicide Squad (15) 20:50, 23:30 The Shallows (12) 23:30 Empire Cinemas Bugibba Tel. 21 581787, 21 581909 Ni ne Lives (PG) 11:15, 13:30, 16:00, 18:20, 20:45 Mechanic: Resurrection (15) 11:15, 13:30, 16:00, 18:20, 20:45 The Beatles: Eight Days a Week - The Touring Years (PG) 21:00 Ben-Hur (12A) 10:20, 13:00, 15:45, 18:25, 21:00 Bridget Jones's Baby 10:30, 13:15, 15:55, 18:30, 21:05 The Magnificient Seven (12) 11:15, 13:30, 16:00, 18:20, 20:45 Kubo and the Two Strings (PG) 11:00, 13:15, 16:15, 18:30 THERE'S a magic in animation, be it ink and paints on cellulose film or the digital figures on a computer screen. But no form of animation is as magical as stop motion, where tiny manipulations bring actual models to life. Thus it's fitting that this big screen film featuring this technique stars an animator of sorts, as the titular Kubo can magically bring origami figures to life, all in the name of telling a story. And it's just as well that the protagonist of Kubo and the Two Strings is a storyteller, as this is a film that's as much about story- telling as it is the quest suggested by a bare-bones plot synopsis. The one-eyed Kubo (Art Parkin- son) makes a living out of playing the shamisen (a Japanese two- stringed instrument similar to a banjo) while retelling the stories told by his ailing mother - action- packed tales starring his late fa- ther, a legendary samurai known as Hanzo, and his quest to defeat the malevolent Moon King. Not sure whether to believe his not always lucid mother's warnings of never leaving the house after dark, Kubo heads out at night in order attempt to communicate with his father's souls. And that's when the mother is proven right, as he ends up facing a pair of witches (both voiced by Rooney Mara) - twin daughters of the Moon King (Ralph Fiennes), who wants Ku- bo's remaining eye. The mother intervenes, using the last of her power to teleport her son away from the village with a quest - the recovery of his late father's sword, helm and armour, in order to face the Moon King once and for all. So far, so very Campbellian (as in Joseph Campbell, of The Hero of a Thousand Faces fame). Of course, any wannabe hero needs companions, and Kubo gets three - a tiny samurai able to point the way to the three artefacts, a stern yet capable Monkey (Char- lize Theron) and an amnesiac oversized beetle known as, well, Beetle (Matthew McConaughey). Together, the quarter sets to trek across ancient Japan and a face variety of adversities, a style of story intentionally reminiscent of myths old and new, be it the folk- tales inspiring the film's look or more contemporary media such as the Legend of Zelda games. But what adversities our protagonists face! After all, this is a film by Lai- ka, the animators behind Coraline and ParaNorman, and Kubo and the Two Strings is the finest ex- ample of their craft yet - the sword is found embedded in the skull of a gigantic skeleton, crossing a lake has Kubo summon a galleon out of a blizzard of autumn foliage, and an attempt to recover the armour has our protagonist surrounded by a multitude of eyeballs belong- ing to a massive underwater beast. As the film's opening tells the audience, "if you must blink, do it now," fine advice lest you risk missing the animators' next visual marvel. Thankfully, the film as finds at least some time to breathe in be- tween the action set pieces. The script maintains a warm sense of humour, as Monkey and Bee- tle amusingly bicker on how to best protect their young charge. There's also a running theme of family, as early on the Moon King is revealed to actually be Kubo's grandfather, and actually desires that his nephew claims a rightful place in the heavens. But doing so demands he loses his remain- ing eye, as this is what ties him to humanity and its myriad flaws. Scenes such as this reveals a core of rare honesty to the film - it might be skewed towards younger viewers, but it is willing to tackle themes as serious as suffering, death, the power of storytelling and the value of kindness over vi- olence. Kubo and the Two Strings' narrative beats might be wholly predictable to anyone who's seen a movie or three, but its ending does have a genuine as heart- warming as it is surprising. Really, if there's to be a com- plaint to be had towards Kubo and the Two Strings is that it's a bit too short - at little more than 100 minutes of length it perhaps requires a bit more time for its characters to breathe. But then again as far as demands go this is somewhat churlish, seeing how much work is evident in each beautifully crafted frame. As such, this remains Laika's masterpiece, even more so after a summer of superheroes, remakes and re- boots. Wholly recommended. By Marco Attard Kubo and the two strings ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ MAGIC IN MOTION ★ ★ ★ ★ FULL MOTION PUPPETRY ★ ★ ★ STOP-GO ANIMATION ★ ★ LIMITED MOBILITY ★ NO WILL TO MOVE FILM KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS ★ ★ ★ ★ Things go Ray Harryhausen-esque turn when a giant skeleton shows up To Boldly Go: Kubo and company make way in one of the many lavish vistas crafted by Laika and its army of animators.