Sundance film festival: taut and emotionally intelligent drama follows the aftermath of an eight-year-old witnessing a horrifying sexual assault

Josephine, the titular character of Beth de Araújo’s stunning second feature, is eight years old. Played by equally remarkable newcomer Mason Reeves, Josephine likes playing soccer with her dad Damien (a phenomenal Channing Tatum), with whom she is close – the film’s crisp, near wordless opening minutes, which shift seamlessly from Josephine’s perspective to third party co-conspirator, running with the pair through San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, swiftly convey a tender, playful bond: supportive, teasing father and innocent child.

That’s about all we know of Josephine – all we need to know, really – before seeing the incident that ruptures her youth. Having run ahead of her father at the park, Josephine alone witnesses the brutal rape of a female jogger by a man in a distinctive aqua polo. Much to the audible shock of viewers at the Sundance premiere, de Araújo rejects the ellipsis now de rigueur in movies handling sexual assault, how much of post-MeToo cinema – Promising Young Woman, She Said, Women Talking, last year’s Sundance standout Sorry, Baby – have skipped over or elided the actual assault, de-emphasizing violence and allowing viewers to fill in the blanks.

Josephine is screening at the Sundance film festival and is seeking distribution

Der langjährige Bundestagsabgeordnete Axel Fischer hat sich von Aserbaidschan mit mehreren Zehntausend Euro bestechen lassen, befindet das Oberlandesgericht München. Seine Verteidiger legen Revision ein.

Das Korruptionsverfahren gegen den früheren CDU-Bundestagsabgeordneten Axel Fischer steht vor dem Abschluss. Wichtiges Indiz in der Frage, ob er Geld aus Aserbaidschan erhalten hat, ist eine SMS.

Axel Fischer ist wegen Korruptionsvorwürfen angeklagt: Er soll Geld aus Aserbaidschan angenommen haben, um dem Land im Europarat Vorteile zu verschaffen. Nachdem er wiederholt vor Gericht gefehlt hat, gibt es nun Konsequenzen.

The president’s bizarre insistence that the dead Jackie Chan-Chris Tucker series should return resulted in a shock announcement this week. Maybe there’s more to come …

So far, Donald Trump’s control of the media has involved a lot more stick than carrot. Thanks to a combination of outbursts and indiscriminate legal threats, the powerful figures at the centre of a rapidly consolidating industry find themselves with little option but to bend to the president’s every demand. Unfortunately, what he’s demanding is Rush Hour 4.

Just a few days ago, this seemed like a weird overreach, like when Trump used a keynote speech at a McDonald’s to demand more tartare sauce on Filet-O-Fish sandwiches. But in this case it really happened. Trump told majority Paramount Skydance shareholder Larry Ellison that he wished someone would make Rush Hour 4, and now Rush Hour 4 is being made.

Brett Ratner, accused of sexual misconduct by several women, will bring his hit franchise back to the big screen

Rush Hour 4 is reportedly a go at Paramount – after Donald Trump intervened on behalf of the movie.

The studio will now release the next sequel by Brett Ratner, the director, who had retreated from Hollywood after numerous allegations of sexual misconduct during the #MeToo movement.

The US president has reportedly asked Paramount for a fourth instalment of the cop comedy starring Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan. Whether he wants an acting credit or has suddenly come over all inclusive remains to be seen

It is said that by 328BC, having made empires kneel to him, Alexander the Great wept … for there were no more worlds to conquer.

Similarly, having solved the Middle East and Ukraine issues with only a couple of technicalities to iron out and put an end to so many other wars as well, Donald Trump may also be tempted to sob at having run out of important tasks. And yet, just as he is about to kneel in anguish on the Oval Office carpet, he is apparently perking up at the thought of one more mighty challenge.