ON SCREEN
Alice Burns finds out about recent film launches and the latest DVD releases
Spider-Man: Far From Home
Release Date: 2nd July
Director: Jon Watts
Starring: Tom Holland, Zendeya, Samuel L Jackson, Marisa Tomei and Jake Gyllenhaal
Certificate: PG
In the aftermath of the cataclysmic events of Avengers: Endgame, Peter Parker is unceremoniously thrown back into the ordinary world of school. On the plus side, he’s got a summer holiday to Europe planned with a group of friends and is more than ready to leave his trusted spidey-suit at home. However, things don’t quite go to plan when Nick Fury drops in with the unwelcome news of a new elemental threat wreaking havoc around Europe. Parker reluctantly agrees to help stop these mystery forces lurking within the snaking mazes of Venetian canals, but not everything, or everyone, is as they seem.
The Lion King
Release Date: 19th July
Directors: Jon Favreau
Starring: Donald Glover, James Earl-Jones, Beyoncé, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Seth Rogan
Certificate: U
After the success of Disney’s recent live-action remakes including the Jungle Book and Beauty and the Beast, this year marks the 25th anniversary since the original Lion King was released in 1994. The film follows Simba as a cub as he idolises his father, King Mufasa, learning the ways to rule in time for when the sun sets on his father’s reign, but his Uncle Scar has other ideas. This re-imagining of the original features songs new and old, with Elton John and Beyoncé rumoured to be creating a new end-credits song. Hakuna Matata, its sure to be a hit!
If Beale Street Could Talk
Release Date: 17th June
Director: Barry Jenkins
Starring: Kiki Layne, Stephan James, Regina King, Teyonah Parris and Colman Domingo
Certificate: 15
Barry Jenkins directs this Academy Award and Golden Globe winning cinematic masterpiece set in Harlem, New York, telling the story of African-American sweethearts, Fonny and Tish. However, the couple are torn apart when Fonny is falsely arrested for the rape of a Puerto Rican woman, highlighting the injustice of racial prejudice and corruption at the heart of the American justice system. Whilst carrying Fonny’s child, Tish campaigns for his freedom, helped by her family support network in Harlem, who teach her to trust love all the way.
