The Breadwinner review – Nate Bargatze’s dated dad comedy loses us entirely

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The comedian makes an unconvincing bid for movie stardom in a largely unfunny and old-fashioned feature-length sitcom episode The popular standup comedian Nate Bargatze uses his appealingly deadpan demeanor to convey relatable, family-friendly jokes about his own middle-class doofiness. Funny as he can be, his affect doesn’t seem ideal for performing with others. Back in the 90s, an American sitcom would have been built around him anyway; today, the form isn’t quite so ubiquitous, and sold-out standup tickets have remained his bread and butter. Yet Bargatze has done surprisingly well as a two-time Saturday Night Live host, especially for more writerly pieces that other celebrities might not so perfectly underplay. For his film debut The Breadwinner, Bargatze takes cues from an earlier SNL player – specifically and unfortunately, the suburban dregs of Adam Sandler’s late-2000s/early-2010s middle period. As in vaguely sour-spirited Sandler vehicles like Grown Ups or Jack & Jill, Barg...
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Band Four review – Hong Kong goes indie as musical family get the band back together

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Three generations of a talented family reunite unexpectedly, but there’s little surprising about their subsequent journey, despite its undeniable charms

You’d have to have a heart of brick to take against this earnest musical drama from Hong Kong about a single parent in an indie band dealing with her failed rocker dad suddenly walking back into her life (after leaving 20 years ago when she was little). It’s a warm and watchable valentine to music and starting afresh. But I did find something a bit make-believe and naive in its feelgood message about the power of music to heal old wounds; the idea that a sentimental chord or two could strum away the kind of pain and resentment it can take years of therapy to work through.

Cantopop star Kay Tse plays Cat, lead singer of Band Four, and single mum to pint-sized drumming prodigy Riley (Rondi Chan). Cat nursed her own mum through years of illness, and it’s at the funeral that her dad King makes an appearance – all of five foot nothing, a ponytail, rock star sunglasses and leather jacket. Real-life musician Teddy Robin Kwan plays it beautifully; beneath the swagger there’s an unmistakable air of genuine regret. King is back to make amends to Cat and he’s got a surprise: a teenage daughter, her half-sister. Cat is fuming but King shamelessly ingratiates himself with little Riley, who is delighted by his new grandpa and auntie.

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