The first Review of the year is presented by Martha Kearney
THE PANEL:
Miranda Sawyer |
Johann Hari |
Ian McMillan |
Charlie Wilson's War
Directed by Mike Nichols (The Graduate, Catch 22) and written by the creator of The West Wing, Aaron Sorkin, Charlie Wilson's War
is based on the true story of how one congressman who loved a good time (Tom Hanks), one Houston socialite who loved a good cause (Julia Roberts) and one CIA agent who loved a good fight (Philip Seymour Hoffman) conspired to bring about the largest covert operation in history to help end Afghanistan's Soviet occupation.
They armed the Mujahideen and the film points ahead to the impact this had on 21st Century life in the region but does the film get the balance between comedy and politics right?
Charlie Wilson's War is at cinemas nationwide Rated 15
Moving Wallpaper and Echo Beach
Moving Wallpaper and Echo Beach are two inter-linking shows from the makers of Life On Mars and Spooks.
Jason Donovan and Martine McCutcheon return to their soap roots to play the parts of ex-lovers in Echo Beach.
Moving Wallpaper is a behind-the-scenes comedy showing us an army of executives, crew and publicists struggling to make Echo Beach a success and pushed to their creative limits by their hapless producer (Ben Miller).
Moving Wallpaper is on ITV1 Fridays at 9.00pm
Echo Beach is on ITV1 Fridays at 9.30pm
The Bad Girl by Mario Vargas Llosa
Ricardo Somocurcio, the narrator of the story, is a Peruvian translator living in Paris.
His unremarkable existence is only disrupted by his love of the eponymous Bad Girl who flits in and out of his life at various times and in various guises throughout their 40 year relationship.
He first meets her when she's masquerading as a Chilean girl in Lima before she vanishes only to reappear in Paris as Comrade Arlette, an activist on her way to train in Cuba. As the story unites and separates them will he ever discover her true identity?
The Bad Girl is the 16th novel from Peru's most famous novelist whose other books include Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter, Conversation in the Cathedral and The Feast of the Goat.
The Bad Girl is published by Faber & Faber
La Cage aux Folles
La Cage aux Folles was originally a play by Jean Poiret.
Set in 1970s St Tropez, Georges (Philip Quast) runs a transvestite cabaret club at which his partner of 20 years, Albin (Douglas Hodge), stars nightly.
Their happiness is threatened when Georges' biological son Jean-Michel, whom the couple have raised together, gets engaged and his very conservative future in-laws want to meet his parents.
The musical version followed in 1983 with one of the numbers, "I am what I am", becoming a gay anthem. This revival is directed by Terry Johnson.
La Cage aux Folles runs at the Menier Chocolate Factory, London until 8 March
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