THE OUTRUN

(15) 118mins         

★★★★★

“IT never gets easy… it just gets less hard,” is the advice recovering alcoholic Rona (Saoirse Ronan) is given in this adaptation of Amy Liptrot’s best-selling memoir.

We first meet this intriguing character when she is living with her kind, God-fearing mum on the remote island of Orkney in Scotland.

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The last two inches of Rona’s hair are bright blue, showing that a previous life of wild times and hedonistic nights may be growing out of her.

She works alone on the family farm while listening to dance tracks on her headphones and downing cans of full-fat Coke.

There’s something manic about her while doing the smallest of tasks.

She’s like a coiled spring, ready to shoot off any minute.

She is clever, fun and full of energy.

We soon see why. In various flashbacks, we follow a fully blue-haired Rona in London, living with boyfriend Daynin (Paapa Essiedu) and studying to be a scientist.

But she carries her demons, with the devil on her shoulder, alcohol.

As the flashbacks continue, we are shown more distressing examples of how Rona poured booze all over her lovely life and then just lit a match.

She is self-destructive and sometimes violent.

She falls into a canal, and puts herself in some terrifyingly risky situations.

It all feels scarily real.

Daynin, who clearly adores her, has his patience pushed to the limit and — as many who have dealt with addicts know — he finally realises there is nothing he can do.

Change has to come from her.

And then it does, when she wakes up in a hospital.

We then see her at Alcoholics Anonymous, where she shares her tales with other survivors.

All this is juxtaposed with Rona living her solitary life in the freezing weather of the Scottish Isles with not even a TV to distract her from herself.

Director Nora Fingscheidt gives this drama a steady hand, allowing the character of Rona to breathe without becoming a cliché.

It is raw and very real, perfectly balancing the monotony and frustration of recovery with the joy and hope it can bring.

The backdrop of the Scottish landscape is sublime, leaving you craving fresh air and the chill on your face.

The standout star though is Saoirse’s understated, outstanding performance.

She truly is something to behold.

MEGALOPOLIS

(15) 138mins

★★☆☆☆

KNOWN for his Mafia movie The Godfather, director Francis Ford Coppola invested over £100million of his own money in this futuristic feature inspired by ancient Rome.

Premiered at Cannes Film Festival in May, it is set in a decaying metropolis where architect Cesar Catilina (Adam Driver) is granted power to rebuild it with a new invention, as a sustainable Utopia.

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His nemesis Mayor Franklyn Cicero (Giancarlo Esposito) seeks to thwart his plans.

Caught between them is the mayor’s daughter Julia (Game Of Thrones star Nathalie Emmanuel) who seeks her own path to happiness.

But Coppola’s attempt to tackle big ideas about humanity falls flat, with a bloated, confusing mess almost impossible to sit through.

The lead actors do their best but can’t save this overstuffed, overcrowded, downright ridiculous movie.

The most pretentious film ever? Probably not, but a contender.

Even with a star-studded secondary cast featuring Aubrey Plaza, Shia LaBeouf and Jon Voight, this vanity project is sure to leave viewers scratching their heads and more than a bit bored.

Linda Marric

MY OLD ASS

(15) 89mins

★★★★☆

YOUTH is wasted on the young, right?

In this whip-smart coming-of-age comedy, we follow 18-year-old Elliott Labrant (Maisy Stella) who one day has a strange encounter with her 39-year-old self (Aubrey Plaza).

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Older Elliott arrives just as younger Elliott is indulging in some potent mushrooms on her birthday.

Wise words and life lessons ensue, most of which young, carefree Elliott naturally dismisses.

The teen just wants to leave her life on her family’s farm in a Canadian harbour town and like most kids her age, is focused on hanging with her mates, exploring her sexuality and eye-rolling at her mum.

But when older Elliott tells her to “stay away from anyone called Chad”, she tries to take it on board, especially when a farm help called Chad (Percy Hynes White) arrives and Elliott promptly falls in love.

No clear explanation is given as to how older Elliott can travel in time.

The film also doesn’t bother with negative consequences to sexual promiscuity or light drug use, which is refreshing.

The result is a charming, edgy film that will make you laugh and cry.

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7th Heaven stars Beverley Mitchell, David Gallagher and Mackenzie Rosman have spoken out about the “inexcusable” behavior of their former co-star Stephen Collins.

The actors, who portrayed three of Collins’s seven TV children on the hit family drama, addressed his past sexual abuse scandal on the latest episode of their 7th Heaven rewatch podcast, Catching Up With The Camdens.

“We want you to know that we see all of your comments and we know how excited you all are for the rewatch, but before we get into that we do think it’s important that we say something about Stephen Collins,” began Mitchell, 43, who played the headstrong Lucy Camden.

The trio first launched the rewatch podcast back in July; however, the September 23 episode marks the first where they revisited the show’s pilot to share behind-the-scenes memories.

Gallagher, 39, who starred as conscientious Simon Camden, continued: “All forms of abuse, sexual abuse of any kind, it’s inexcusable. And victims of abuse need to be shown compassion and they should be given support.”

“As we rewatch these episodes, it would be impossible not to talk about Stephen because he was such a big part of the show and our lives,” added Rosman, 34, who played spunky Ruthie Camden. She went on to clarify that none of them had “any inappropriate experiences with Stephen.”

Mitchell assured listeners that Collins will not be joining the podcast. “We do not excuse or condone his behavior. Our hope for this podcast is to reconnect with you, our fans, to relive some Ninetiess nostalgia and to share our fondest memories of 7th Heaven,” she said.

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“We know this is difficult and we understand that it can be triggering,” Gallagher said. “But we want to say that we love you guys and we are so grateful for all the love and support that you, our community, have shown to us. So, hopefully you guys will stick with us as we continue on this journey.”

In 2014, Collins, who starred as Reverend Eric Camden in the 11-season drama that aired on The WB (now the CW) from 1996 to 2007, admitted to inappropriate sexual misconduct with three underage girls between 1973 and 1994.

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“Forty years ago, I did something terribly wrong that I deeply regret. I have been working to atone for it ever since,” he shared in a statement at the time. “I’ve decided to address these issues publicly because two months ago, various news organizations published a recording made by my then-wife, Faye Grant, during a confidential marriage therapy session in January, 2012. This session was recorded without the therapist’s or my knowledge or consent.”

He was subsequently dropped by his talent agency, and 7th Heaven reruns were pulled from two networks. Collins did not end up being prosecuted for his alleged crimes.

During an interview with Katie Couric at the time, he blamed his actions on “poor impulse control” but maintained: “I am not attracted to underage girls.”

Collins hasn’t acted since 2014, with his final credit being the voice of Howard Stark in a single episode of the animated series Avengers Assemble.

If you have been raped or sexually assaulted, you can contact your nearest Rape Crisis organisation for specialist, independent and confidential support. For more information, visit their website here.

MAFS UK fans have accused one star of faking her feelings for TV after they made a shocking U-turn.

They returned to the E4 experiment tonight after walking out on her husband on their honeymoon.

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She also skipped the first dinner party of the series and left him to break the news to their co-stars.

But tonight, Richelle stunned her husband as she made a surprise return, walking into the apartment and telling Orson: “Listen, I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry.”

He turned away from the cameras and appeared to be too overcome with emotion to speak.

Orson eventually said: “Richelle, what are you doing to me?

“In my head I was like, ‘she’s done’.”

Harsh viewers didn’t have much sympathy and one said: “So Richelle back is she? She’s probably only doing it for TV exposure.”

Another said: “I don’t trust this Rochelle at ALL! She called him fake but nope, I think it’s her that’s fake!”

And one more chimed: “Richelle seems like a different person.”

Before quitting their honeymoon, Richelle confessed she struggled to process her emotions and found it difficult to believe that Orson was genuine when he told her he had feelings for her.

She was seen breaking down in tears during the intense scenes in Mauritius.

Explaining what happened, the businesswoman told Orson tonight: “I have a tendency to run when I feel stressed.

“I felt like I needed to pull away, it was getting too much.

“I went home and I spoke to a couple of friends, I was able to process my thoughts and put everything in perspective.

“I can’t deny like, I do like you. I’m really sorry. I feel really bad.”

Explaining what happened in a chat with the cameras, Richelle said: “I had a blip, I had a wobbly, as they say, ‘pressure bursts pipes’ and my pipes burst.”

The pair later faced their blip in the commitment ceremony, and she told the experts: “He’s a lot more comfortable talking about his feelings. I’m a lot more reserved.”

She added: “I guess I always want to dig deeper, like, why? I guess, just how genuine he is.

“It’s so early on, and I’ve been single for so long. And doing it all in the spotlight, with the cameras.”