Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition ★★★⯪☆
Directed by Malcolm Venville. Featuring Steve Harris, Bruce Dickinson, Nicko McBrain, Dave Murray, Adrian Smith, Janick Gers. 15A cert, gen release, 105 min
No, this decent documentary about Iron Maiden, survivors from the “new wave of British heavy metal”, is not a real-life This Is Spinal Tap. Maiden, formed more than 50 years ago, are too self-aware to drop too many foolish gaffes. They acknowledge the occasional silliness of their trade without making excuses. They rightly celebrate their professionalism and dedication to their fervent fans (who include a bouncing Javier Bardem). For the most part this is a sober examination of careers characterised by graft, professionalism and good will. Might the ghost of Tap have dampened any inclinations towards frivolity? Full review DC
Trad ★★★⯪☆
Directed by Lance Daly. Starring Megan Nic Fhionnghaile, Shona McAnally, Aidan Gillen, Sarah Greene, Peter Coonan, Ann Skelly. 15A cert, gen release, 90 min
The impressive Nic Fhionnghaile stars as a young fiddle player who, after falling out of love with traditional music, flees home with an irritating band of hippies led by Aidan Gillen. The film is essentially a rite-of-passage story with Nic Fhionnghaile, who had never even done a school play before, conveying grudging acceptance of inevitable compromise. Ultimately what sells Trad are the music sequences. Daly cuts to the rhythms, relishes audience joy and plucks out the players’ often passionate concentration. Few recent fiction films have thumped along so convincingly to the louder beats of the traditional form. Full review DC
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The Sheep Detectives ★★★★☆
Directed by Kyle Balda. Starring Hugh Jackman, Nicholas Braun, Nicholas Galitzine, Molly Gordon, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Bryan Cranston, Emma Thompson. PG cert, gen release, 110 min
Yes, it is a about a flock of sheep trying to solve a murder. The Sheep Detectives, a family-friendly whodunit that marries pastoral whimsy with unexpectedly weighty themes, is a rare, woolly beast. Adapted from Leonie Swann’s detective novel Three Bags Full, the film functions as a cosy mystery, a witty genre deconstruction and a meditation on loss, all fluffed up as a talking-animal caper. The farmyard hasn’t been this disarming since Babe. Much tomfoolery provides an important counterweight in an affecting children’s film that is unafraid to confront mortality. Full review TB
Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft – The Tour ★★★★☆
Directed by Billie Eilish and James Cameron. Featuring Billie Eilish, James Cameron, Finneas O’Connell. PG cert, gen release, 114 min
Eilish, possessor of the grandest vocal range of the current murder of pop starlets, has just upped the ante by recruiting the blockbuster boss and 3D pioneer James Cameron, listed here as the pop star’s co-director for this 3D concert film. Cameron knows his way around depth of field, and even his most softball questions and remarks enliven the capture of a spectacular performance in Manchester. The set list could use a few more upbeat numbers, but the project finds a heartfelt focus in the fans, who sob, snivel and bawl their way through loud, dramatic singalongs. Full review TB
