Wendy Ide’s pick of other films: Relay, Facing War, Palestine 36 and more

Relay

(111 mins, 15) Directed by David Mackenzie; starring Riz Ahmed, Lily James, Sam Worthington

For the first 30 minutes or so of David Mackenzie’s propulsive New York-set thriller, Relay, Riz Ahmed’s character, Ash, has no lines whatsoever. But he’s such an intense presence, so ferociously in the moment as an actor, that we hardly notice his silence. Ahmed doesn’t need to talk to command our attention. It’s an astute piece of casting for this particular role: Ahmed combines lithe physicality and compulsively watchable star power with the ability to disappear behind the many disguises that his character deploys.

Ash (which might not be his real name) provides a bespoke service, brokering mutually beneficial but precarious deals between corrupt organisations and potential whistleblowers. Some might call it a kind of blackmail but, for Ash, it’s a moral obligation as well as a lucrative hustle. He’s extremely good at the job, with the ability to think four steps ahead of the tricky, ruthless individuals who are on his tail (Sam Worthington heads up a team of private contractors). Ash keeps a distance from his clients, communicating solely through a phone conversation relay service normally used by deaf people.

Then he takes on a new case. Sarah (Lily James) is a former research scientist whose employers have hushed up the health risks of a genetically modified grain. There’s something about this naive idealist that disarms Ash and persuades him to bend his strict rules of operation. A couple of plot holes notwithstanding , this is pacy, enjoyable stuff – a crisply edited and pleasingly slippery tale that unfolds in the grubby corners of New York where only bad things happen.

Facing War

(105 mins, 12A) Directed by Tommy Gulliksen; featuring Jens Stoltenberg

Granted exceptional access to, and a remarkable degree of candour from, its subject, former Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg, Facing War provides a fascinating insight into high-level diplomatic processes and a portrait of a capable and charismatic politician at work.

The documentary, directed by Stoltenberg’s Norwegian compatriot Tommy Gulliksen, follows the official over the final year of his Nato tenure. Stoltenberg’s stint in the top job has already been extended several times and he is under pressure (not least from then US president Joe Biden) to stay on longer. With Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Nato members are forced to strike a tricky balance between offering support to Ukraine (not a Nato member but lobbying hard to become one) and avoiding an all-out war with Russia.

It’s gripping viewing. Stoltenberg, unexpectedly, cites mob boss Tony Soprano as the fictional character with whom he most identifies. And while parallels with organised crime might not be what the Nato communications department might have hoped for, as we watch Stoltenberg dancing around the unpredictable whims and dangerous egos of powerful men, the parallel makes a lot of sense.

Palestine 36

(120 mins, 12A) Directed by Annemarie Jacir; starring Saleh Bakri, Yasmine Al Massri, Kamel El Basha

A sturdy, stirring historical drama – it’s the Palestinian submission to the international Oscar category this year – Palestine 36 explores the 1936-39 Arab revolt against British rule, laying bare the colonial interference that sowed the seeds for the Israel-Palestine conflict. It’s rather schematic and simplistic in its approach, with clearly defined nefarious villains and noble heroes.

But this is a handsomely mounted period piece that competently navigates its complex network of interwoven storylines. Key among these is that of Yusuf (Karim Daoud Anaya), a high-achieving young man who leaves his village to work as a chauffeur in Jerusalem. His employer is a wealthy Arab newspaper owner whose glamorous lover Khuloud (Yasmine Al Massri) writes firebrand columns for the paper under an assumed male name. Confronted by oppression and injustice, Yusuf must make a choice: submit or fight.

Kenny Dalglish

(103 mins, 12A) Directed by Asif Kapadia; featuring Kenny Dalglish, Marina Dalglish, Paul McCartney

Asif Kapadia’s trademark immersive, all-archival documentary technique makes for deeply satisfying portraits of his subjects. Films such as Senna, Diego Maradona and, now, Kenny Dalglish go beyond a straight biographical account of a life and career, and weave the subject into a rewardingly textured account of a cultural moment. Which is just as well, as – God love him – football legend Kenny Dalglish is not the most compelling raconteur. Much of first part of the film is comprised of grainy stock shots of Glasgow tenements and general malaise, followed by footage of Dalglish’s younger self scoring multiple goals while he describes, in a laconic and monotonal voiceover, what we are watching on screen.

But like Kapadia’s Maradona documentary, the film grows more interesting when it examines the relationship between the footballer and his adopted city. For the people of Liverpool, Dalglish was more than just an unusually gifted player – he was a totemic presence and a beacon of hope in the blighted Thatcher years.

Shelby Oak

(91 mins, 15) Directed by Chris Stuckmann; starring Camille Sullivan, Brendan Sexton III, Sarah Durn

This crowdfunded horror is sunk by its formulaic premise: in 2009, four ghost-hunting YouTubers mysteriously disappeared. Three mutilated bodies were later found, but one, Riley (Sarah Durn), was never accounted for. Her sister, Mia (Camille Sullivan), never gave up hope of finding her, and this sluggishly paced supernatural slog follows her quest (invariably pursued alone and at night, with only the overwrought sound design and some demon dogs for company). It’s a tonal and formal mess: part straight horror, part mock doc, part found-footage chiller (think: The Meh Witch Project). Even the use of that hoary horror location chestnut, the creepy derelict funfair, can’t inject much atmosphere into this curiously inert and sterile film.

Photograph Heidi Hartwig/Critical PR/Hulton Archive