Film Picks: Deep Cover, Hans Zimmer & Friends: Diamond In The Desert, Hi-Five

Deep Cover (M18)

101 minutes, streaming on Prime Video

Bryce Dallas Howard is Kat, an improv comedy teacher struggling to make ends meet. She jumps at the chance to make some quick cash when undercover cop Billings (Sean Bean) asks her to infiltrate London’s gangland by impersonating dangerous criminals.

The task is simple: Walk into a store and buy some illegal cigarettes. Kat needs to take along two others on the sting job. As her best students are unavailable, she is left with Marlon (Orlando Bloom), a hunky, washed-up method actor, and Hugh (Nick Mohammed), a socially inept IT guy.

Things quickly get out of hand when the trio somehow manage to infiltrate the London mob, setting up deals with gang leader Fly (Paddy Considine) and kingpin Metcalfe (Ian McShane).

Deep Cover is a fast-paced action comedy, and an entertaining and fresh take on the oddball crime caper genre.

Hans Zimmer & Friends: Diamond In The Desert

158 minutes, limited screenings at The Projector at Cineleisure

When Oscar-winning film composer Hans Zimmer is not captivating moviegoers with his sweeping scores in films like The Lion King (1994) and Gladiator (2000), he is selling out arenas for his Hans Zimmer Live world tours.

Hans Zimmer & Friends: Diamond In The Desert is a journey through Dubai, featuring performances from Zimmer and his 18-piece band at the Coca-Cola Arena, the dunes of the Arabian Desert and the Burj Al Arab.

The concert film is a cinematic arrangement of Zimmer’s greatest hits, including those from the Pirates Of The Caribbean series (2006 to 2011), The Dark Knight trilogy (2005 to 2012) and Dune: Parts One and Two (2021 to 2024).

There are also intimate conversations between Zimmer and his frequent collaborators Christopher Nolan and Jerry Bruckheimer, as well as other stars such as Timothee Chalamet, Billie Eilish, Pharrell Williams and Denis Villeneuve sharing insights and anecdotes about the German composer’s creative process.

Hi-Five (PG13)

119 minutes, now showing

K-pop idol Park Jin-young is eye candy as he tackles his first villainous role in this superhero action flick about a group of strangers who mysteriously receive superpowers after undergoing organ transplants.

Plucky teenager Wan-seo (Lee Jae-in) gains superhuman strength and speed after a heart transplant, with Oh Jung-se playing her overprotective father.

Aspiring writer Ji-sung (Ahn Jae-hong) can exhale typhoon-like winds after his lung transplant, while introvert Yak-seon (Kim Hee-won) gains healing powers after getting a new liver.

And gambler Ki-dong (Yoo Ah-in) can control electromagnetic waves after receiving a corneal transplant. Mild-mannered Sun-hyeo (Ra Mi-ran) is the only person whose powers have yet to manifest since receiving new kidneys.

When cult leader Young-chun (Park) learns he is gifted with the power of rejuvenation after receiving a pancreas transplant, he sets out to find the other organ transplant recipients to attain eternal life.

Expect some fantastical action sequences as the good guys battle it out with the baddie. The plot may be weak, but the strong cast keeps the film afloat. Moreover, the film does not take itself seriously, making Hi-Five fun to watch.