Chor Nikal Ke Bhaga
Ankit Sethi (Sunny Kaushal) is heavily in debt to a loan shark. He agrees that, with the help of his flight attendant girlfriend Neha Grover (Yami Gautam), to steal some diamonds on a flight. There are a couple of linked problems that need to be overcome if you are to enjoy this Indian thriller.

There is quite a lot of running time spent flashing back to Ankit meeting Neha and them falling in love. It can be pretty cringeworthy. Also, Ankit is meant to come across as charming but he seems very creepy right from the start. However, once the plot, with its many twists and turns kicks in, the movie becomes very enjoyable, though heavily reminiscent of Spike Lee’s Inside Man and Grover ends up giving a good performance.
Rating: 7 out of 10

Faraaz
This Bangladeshi film is based on the real-life attack on Dhaka café in 2016. Faraaz is a tense hostage drama that unfolds over one claustrophobic night. This mostly works really well, especially once we get to the hostage situation. I did not know how things turned out, so I found it genuinely tense, with Aditya Rawal chilling as the leader of the terrorist group.

The police come across as comically inept, and, though amusing, that felt overdone. Apart from Rawal, the best performance was by Juhi Babbar as Faraaz’s Mum and it is only towards an emotional finale, we see why this film was named after him.
Rating: 7 out of 10

Kill Boksoon
Gil Bok-Soon (Jeon Do-Yeon) is a single mother and a lethal contract killer, with a 100% success rate. She works for M.K. Ent, which is run by Cha Min-Kyu (Sol Kyung-Gu), who originally trained her. Right before Bok-Soon is set to renew her contract, she is given a mission that brings her loyalty into question. This is a real standout amongst the plethora of Asian action movies that appear on Netflix.

It may be a little overlong and very implausible but director Sung-hyun Byun, who also wrote the screenplay, stages a number of impressive fight scenes and keeps things moving very well. Do-Yeon is one of the most celebrated actresses in South Korea and she is excellent. Esom, who plays a manager at M.K Ent who dislikes Gil, is brilliantly unhinged.
Rating: 7 out of 10

Also this month

The German documentary Big Mack: Gangsters and Gold recounts the story of Donald Stellwag who was convicted of a bank robbery he did not commit and not convicted for his probable part in a crime many years later. Not very illuminating, with a boring protagonist and ropey recreations.

Chupa is a formulaic and largely charmless kids fable about a mythical creature, the chupacabra.

The sequel Kings of Mulberry Street: Let Love Reign might be more enjoyable for those who have seen the original. If, like me, you have not, you will probably find that this amateurish South African comedy totally lacks wit or charm.

Oh Belinda is a pointless Turkish-language remake, directed by Deniz Yorulmazer, of a well liked 1986 film Aaahh Belinda. An actress appears in a commercial and finds that she has turned into the character she is portraying.

The acting is pretty unconvincing but it is not eye-gouginly hideous as in the painful Filipino comedy Partners in Crime.

The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die might be popular with fans of the TV series or previous films. But, although, I am interested in British history, I found it gloomy and boring.

The Spanish drama Phenomena is about three middle aged women who investigate paranormal events and who look into the disappearance of their leader Father Pilón. Competently made and acted, but lacking a spark.

One More Time from Sweden is aptly titled as it feels like a familiar re-tread of films we have seen before. This comedy stars Hedda Stiernstedt as a 40 year old woman who wishes she was 18 again, and is forced to relive her 18th birthday over and over.

Similarly, Queens on the Run also has an overly familiar feel with four middle-aged women going on a road trip and becoming involved with criminals. For example, I feel like I have seen the scenes of them taking magic mushrooms with hippies countless times before. It does though, have a lot of energy and good performances from Martha Higareda (who also wrote the screenplay) and Alejandra Ambrosi.

Finally, Hunger is a Thai drama about Aoy, a humble noodle chef, who is give a chance to work for a renowned and demanding chef. After The Menu last year, this feels a bit toothless as a satire on the fine dining industry. However, Chutimon Chuengcharoensukying is excellent as Aoy and a romantic subplot works really well.

Ratings out of 10:
Big Mack: Gangsters and Gold: 3
Chupa: 3
Kings of Mulberry Street: Let Love Reign: 2.5
Oh Belinda: 2.5
Partners in Crime: 1
The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die: 3
Phenomena: 3.5
One More Time: 4
Queens on the Run: 5.5
Hunger: 5