🍿31: Flee

This week, the Oscar-nominated 'animated documentary' Flee takes centre-stage as one of the few films to be rated 5-stars on Salty Popcorn.

“We can't lose each other and let all this glorious love end in nothing. Come home.”

~ The Great Gatsby, 2013

This is no Bridget Jones…

All too often I feel there aren’t enough good comedies being made at the moment, let alone rom-coms. In 2021 we were graced with the wonderfully funny Palm Springs, but it’s been a long time since then and nothing else has taken my fancy.

I was pleasantly surprised then when I saw I Want You Back (watch the trailer) on a whim earlier this week. Starring Jenny Slate and Charlie Day, this light-hearted comedy is about two people that get dumped and try to help each other win back their exes.

If you’re looking for an easy watch, you can catch it on Amazon Prime. Meanwhile, if you’ve got a favourite rom-com of recent years, then please let me know in the comments below.

---

Now for the headlines:

• Bill Murray is set to star in Aziz Ansari’s yet to be titled directorial debut. Read more.

• Kenneth Branagh has been added to the already star-studded cast of Cristopher Nolan’s upcoming Oppenheimer, while a first look at how Cillian Murphy in the lead role has also surfaced. Read more.

• Jenna Ortega is set to play Wednesday Addams in Tim Burton’s upcoming Netflix drama Wednesday. Read more.

• A book by Kyle Buchanan reveals just how bitter things got between Charlize Theron and Tom Hardy on the set of Mad Max: Fury Road. Theron reportedly felt so threatened, she asked for on-set protection. Read more.

---

Salty Popcorn is 100% free but you can support this independent publication by paying just £5 per month. In return, you’ll be the first to access upcoming premium features.

---

Upcoming Releases

Elvis

UK: 24 June // USA: 24 June

From filmmaker Baz Luhrmann comes a brand new biopic, starring Austin Butler as ‘The King of Rock and Roll’, alongside Tom Hanks as his infamous manager, Colonel Tom Parker.

You Are Not My Mother

UK: 25 March // USA: 21 September (‘21)

In a North Dublin housing estate, Char's mother goes missing. When she returns Char is determined to uncover the truth of her disappearance and unearth the dark secrets of her family.

---

Fact of the week

Here’s a fun fact to commemorate the release of the 50th-anniversary edition of The Godfather.

In one of the early shots where Don Corleone (Marlon Brando) is brought home from the hospital and he’s carried up the stairs of the Corleone home, Brando pranked his fellow cast by hiding weights in his bed, making him heavier to lift.

---

Review: Flee

Star rating:

5 (out of 5)

Where to watch: 

USA: Amazon ($1.99)

UK: Only in Cinemas

Runtime:

1hr 29m

Director:

Jonas Poher Rasmussen

Blurb: 

Flee tells the extraordinary true story of ‘Amin’, a man on the verge of marriage which compels him to reveal his hidden past for the first time.

The review (NO spoilers):

Flee is only the fourth film to be rated five stars on Salty Popcorn — and for good reason. This incredible true story, told through simple and understated animation, is as flawless as it is breathtaking.

While we may all be familiar with the story of refugees fleeing the Middle East and be aware of the lengths these people go to find something resembling safety, the incredibly personal account of ‘Amin’s’ story is a fresh take on an ongoing humanitarian crisis.

The beauty in this film lies in its simplicity. It’s not overly dramatised, it isn’t even politicised, it’s simply a man telling his story — though, the muted nature in which it’s told begs for compassion and brings out a spectrum of emotion with deft subtlety.

There is, however, plenty of tension to keep the audience gripped, but the humanity of this film is what really brings it home and at a little less than 90-minutes long, it doesn’t drag.

Animation and documentary may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but Flee can’t be compared to any other animation or documentary. It’s the first-ever film to be nominated at the Academy Awards for Best Documentary and Best Animated Feature (as well as Best International Feature Film), and it would be a shame for anyone to miss it.

Scroll down for The Critic’s Cut and to see what’s in the next issue.

---

If you liked Flee…

The Breadwinner

2017 | UK: Amazon (£2.49) // US: Amazon ($3.90)

After her father is arrested by the Taliban, Parvana is forced to disguise herself as a boy in order to earn money for her family. Like Flee, The Breadwinner was nominated for an Oscar back in 2017.

---

In the next issue:

The Batman

UK: 4 March // USA: 4 March | Watch the Trailer

---

The Critic’s Cut 🚨SPOILER ALERT🚨:

One of Flee’s major themes is Amin’s sexuality and how he grows up knowing that he’s different from his brothers, simply because he fancies men.

A moment that really got me was when Amin’s oldest brother, ‘Abbas’, drives him to a club, gives him some money and tells him to “have a good time”. From the outside of this club, the doorway is lit by a neon rose and as Amin walks through the foyer we can’t help but think Abbas has brought him to a strip club in an attempt to ‘reform’ him.

But when Amin draws back the curtain to reveal a lively dancefloor filled with muscly moustached men and drag queens, we realise that Abbas has given Amin something he needed almost more than anything else: acceptance.

---