THE BOYS IN THE BOAT 12A

When the rowing gets tough…

★★★★★ OUT 12 JANUARY CINEMAS

George Clooney follows up The Tender Bar (2021) with another unabashed heartwarmer, a solid but fairly predictable old-school sports biopic celebrating a scrappy US university rowing eight who powered to the 1936 Olympics against all the odds.

Adapted from Daniel James Brown’s bestseller, this real-life underdog story zeroes in on Callum Turner’s proud but penniless Depression-era student Joe Rantz, who desperately battles for a crew place just for the free lodging. Director Clooney’s sweaty close-ups of the crew’s back-breaking training adroitly emphasise the teamwork that gruff coach Al Ulbrickson (Joel Edgerton) instils into his argumentative recruits, who combat their hard times with inspiringly hard work.

Too bad, then, that Mark L. Smith’s taciturn script (it’s a manly movie, set in a stiff-upper-lip era) is too understated to get you really rooting, Seabiscuit-style, for the raw but exceptional crew when they try to trounce their rich-boy rivals. Still, rowing races are notoriously hard to infuse with tension on film (see 1996 megaflop True Blue); by moving snappily between drone shots, screaming crowds and tendon-straining rowers, Clooney manages to generate some water-whipping excitement. Any attempt at Chariots of Fire-style emotional intensity is tanked, however, by Callum Turner’s unhelpfully laconic, low-key performance. He’s effortlessly overshadowed by a brooding turn from Jack Mulhern (Mare of Easttown) as the boat’s enigmatic lead oarsman.

THE VERDICT Clooney steers his well-made, old-fashioned sports drama with style and skill. But it’s never quite oar-some.

Which country do you think they’re from? Answers on a postcard please…

THE COLOR PURPLE TBC

From page to stage to screen…

★★★★★ OUT 26 JANUARY CINEMAS

This latest adaptation of Alice Walker’s Pulitzer-winning tale of an African-American girl’s coming of age in early 20th-century Georgia takes its cue not from the 1985 Spielberg movie but the noughties Broadway musical. Making her screen debut, Fantasia Barrino reprises her stage role as the abused Celie, whose only respite comes from her bond with sister Nettie (radiant Little Mermaid star Halle Bailey).

Celie is handed over to cruel farmer Mister (Colman Domingo) to care for his home and ungrateful brood, but a lifeline arrives in the form of jazz singer Shug Avery (Taraji P. Henson). Although Mister is infatuated with Shug, she’s the one who helps set Celine on the path to sexual and spiritual empowerment.

Despite its cast’s myriad talents, Blitz Bazawule’s movie proves less impactful than its forerunners. Boasting spectacular choreography, it’s an utter feast for the eyes. But there’s often a disconnect between its harrowing subject matter and upbeat song-and-dance numbers. The chemistry between Barrino and Henson is lacking, but Danielle Brooks is formidable as Celie’s daughter-in-law Sofia (a role that previously bagged producer Oprah Winfrey an Oscar nod). Meanwhile, the third act sees a series of redemption arcs come together in an overly neat way; the film treads a fine line between saccharine and crowd-pleasing, though there’s no doubt that a few moments will elicit tears.

THE VERDICT Walking a tough tonal tightrope, this musical adap suffers wobbles but is handsomely shot and performed.