Alden Ehrenreich appears in a scene from "Solo: A Star Wars Story" by Ron Howard, one of the biggest film releases of Ramadan.
Alden Ehrenreich appears in a scene from "Solo: A Star Wars Story" by Ron Howard, one of the biggest film releases of Ramadan.
Alden Ehrenreich appears in a scene from "Solo: A Star Wars Story" by Ron Howard, one of the biggest film releases of Ramadan.
Alden Ehrenreich appears in a scene from "Solo: A Star Wars Story" by Ron Howard, one of the biggest film releases of Ramadan.

There are plenty of great movies coming to UAE cinemas over Ramadan


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Ramadan was once a quiet time for cinemas in the UAE: distributors and exhibitors agreed that the holy month was a period when people wanted to be at home with their families, and the common practice was to hold back films that released in other markets during the month until Eid weekend or beyond. Cinema release schedules during the month would be peppered with old, unheard of or unloved movies that distributors would drop into cinemas to clear their shelves or meet contractual agreements.

Then, in 2016, Disney decided to take a chance when it experimented by releasing the Pixar animation Finding Dory during Ramadan, at the same time as the rest of the world. The results were emphatic – Finding Dory smashed box office projections, attracting double the audience the major chains had predicted and comfortably topped the box office for the month.

The studios took note, and last year a trickle of big ticket films, including Wonder Woman and The Mummy, released during Ramadan, pulling in the crowds, and this year the floodgates have opened, with big blockbuster releases almost every weekend. Here's our rundown of some of the biggest releases to look forward to. Bear in mind that release dates can change at short notice, so check local listings before heading out.

1. Deadpool 2 – May 17

Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) and Colossus.
Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) and Colossus.

Ryan Reynolds returns as the wisecracking anti-hero Deadpool in the sequel to the 2016 original, which became the highest-grossing R-rated film ever. Thanks to a first-of-its kind collaboration between studio Fox Searchlight and the UAE’s National Media Council, which saw members of the NMC viewing the movie while it was still in post-production, fans of the loveable rogue are promised that they’ll be able to see the full original version of the movie, in its entirety, at exactly the same time as the rest of the world.

2. A Wrinkle in Time – May 17

A belated release for Disney's astral travelling sci-fi adventure, which released in March in most markets. The film, which tells the story of a young girl's intergalactic journey to find her missing father, was something of a disappointment at the global box office, but there's no doubting the movie's blockbuster status. An all-star cast includes Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon and Chris Pine, while director Ava DuVernay (Selma) became the first African-American woman to direct a film with a nine-figure budget – the movie's total budget, including marketing, is believed to be in the region of $250 million (Dh18 million).

3. Solo: A Star Wars Story – May 24

We're back to the Star Wars Universe for probably the biggest release of the month, with Ron Howard's take on the origin story of one of the franchise's most popular characters, reluctant hero Han Solo. Alden Ehrenreich takes on the role first popularised by Harrison Ford in the original 1977 film, and in this backstory of the young Solo, we look set to learn about his early ambitions to be an imperial pilot, his journey into intergalactic smuggling, and his first meeting with his much-loved sidekick, the Wookie Chewbacca.

4. Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom – June 7

Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas-Howard and Jeff Goldblum reprise their roles in this sequel to 2015's Jurassic World, and the fifth film in the Jurassic Park series. The UAE is getting a rare early release for the latest in the rampaging dinosaur action franchise, alongside India and the major European markets, some two weeks before it lands in cinemas in the US. This time around, we're told our heroes are trying to save the dinosaurs in the now-closed theme park from an impending volcanic eruption, but it's a safe bet they'll be terrorised by a marauding giant lizard or two while they're at it.

5. Ocean’s Eight – June 7

An all-star cast including Sandra Bullock, Anne Hathaway, Cate Blanchett, Helena Bonham Carter and Rihanna team up for this female-fronted spin off from Stephen Soderbergh's Oceans Trilogy of heist movies. Bullock plays Debbie Ocean, sister of George Clooney's Danny from the first three films, and having evidently entered into the family business herself, she assembles a crack team to pull off the heist of the century at New York's Met Ball. Cameos include Matt Damon and Carl Reiner reprising their roles from the first movie, tennis players Maria Sharipova and Serena Williams, fashionistas Anna Wintour and Alexander Wang, pop star Zayn Malik, and Instagrammers Kim Kardashian and Kyle Jenner.

6. The Incredibles 2 – June 14

An animated sequel to the hit 2004 caper about a family of super heroes. The main cast including Holly Hunter and Samuel L Jackson reprise their roles more than a decade on, once again squaring up against John Ratzenberger's The Underminer, as well as a new villain, the mysterious Screenslaver. Other new cast members include Better Call Saul's Bob Odenkirk, who plays superhero fan Winston Deavor and Isabella Rossellini's The Ambassador.

7. Loving Pablo – June 14

Another belated UAE release, this time for Fernando Léon de Aranoa's biopic Loving Pablo, which tells the story of Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar (Javier Bardem) from the perspective of his long-term mistress Virginia Vallejo (Penelope Cruz) – the movie is based on Vallejo's memoirs. De Aronoa is a brave, or possibly foolish, man to choose to make his version of Escobar's story in a couple of hours so soon after Narcos did so with huge success over more than 30 hours, but he does a reasonable job, with Bardem and Cruz's performances of particular note.

_________

Milestones on the road to union

1970

October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar. 

December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.

1971

March 1:  Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.

July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.

July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.

August 6:  The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.

August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.

September 3: Qatar becomes independent.

November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.

November 29:  At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.

November 30: Despite  a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa. 

November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties

December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.

December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.

December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.

Personalities on the Plate: The Lives and Minds of Animals We Eat

Barbara J King, University of Chicago Press 

UNpaid bills:

Countries with largest unpaid bill for UN budget in 2019

USA – $1.055 billion

Brazil – $143 million

Argentina – $52 million

Mexico – $36 million

Iran – $27 million

Israel – $18 million

Venezuela – $17 million

Korea – $10 million

Countries with largest unpaid bill for UN peacekeeping operations in 2019

USA – $2.38 billion

Brazil – $287 million

Spain – $110 million

France – $103 million

Ukraine – $100 million

 

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Tearful appearance

Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday. 

Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow. 

She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.

A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.

ENGLAND SQUAD

Joe Root (c), Moeen Ali, Jimmy Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Jos Buttler, Alastair Cook, Sam Curran, Keaton Jennings, Ollie Pope, Adil Rashid, Ben Stokes, James Vince, Chris Woakes

What are the GCSE grade equivalents?
 
  • Grade 9 = above an A*
  • Grade 8 = between grades A* and A
  • Grade 7 = grade A
  • Grade 6 = just above a grade B
  • Grade 5 = between grades B and C
  • Grade 4 = grade C
  • Grade 3 = between grades D and E
  • Grade 2 = between grades E and F
  • Grade 1 = between grades F and G
'Downton Abbey: A New Era'

Director: Simon Curtis

 

Cast: Hugh Bonneville, Elizabeth McGovern, Maggie Smith, Michelle Dockery, Laura Carmichael, Jim Carter and Phyllis Logan

 

Rating: 4/5

 
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Leaderboard

63 - Mike Lorenzo-Vera (FRA)

64 - Rory McIlroy (NIR)

66 - Jon Rahm (ESP)

67 - Tom Lewis (ENG), Tommy Fleetwood (ENG)

68 - Rafael Cabrera-Bello (ESP), Marcus Kinhult (SWE)

69 - Justin Rose (ENG), Thomas Detry (BEL), Francesco Molinari (ITA), Danny Willett (ENG), Li Haotong (CHN), Matthias Schwab (AUT)

What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion

Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)

Report to local authorities

Warn others to prevent further harm

Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence