‘Marred in the mud and mess of living off the land’ Remember when the pandemic caused a mass stampede to the countryside? Well, the statistics are in and have shown nature’s healing power has already begun to wane as those brave explorers are slowly drawn back to the cities. What is to blame for this reversed migration? A great example ...
‘Tragic tale full of heart and beauty’ An image that stays with you from Cette Maison is a mother and a daughter staring at a stretched canvas of a tropical island scene, birds and the sounds of the sea swelling in the background. Two people watching a screen as we sit in the Brixton Ritzy watching them on another, larger one. ...
‘Searing dissection of wealth’ From the devilishly demented mind of Ruben Östlund comes a satirical masterpiece. Float away into a world of dark comedy, delightful details, and so much vomit. Turning his razor-sharp gaze away from the art world – the focus of his 2017 Palme d’Or winner The Square – Östlund sidles up to the uber-rich. Here are the beautiful people, ...
‘Oddball characters, single-minded goals and bitingly funny one-liners’ A good biopic should make you understand the subject under the microscope. Dark comedies, however, turn their scourging brushes on the easy targets – the worlds or people ripe for comedy. Owen Kline’s directorial debut Funny Pages takes the easiest of shots, but with such showmanship. In his crosshairs are comic books, which have ...
‘Binoche is irresistible’ More French than impeccable food, fiery politics, or chic clothing; Both Sides of the Blade dives headfirst into an ever-so-stormy love triangle. Delicate performances from our trio strive to pull the story back from its pedestrian premise, and on the whole succeed. As in 2017’s Let the sunshine Claire Denis collaborates with the writer Christine Angot and actress ...
‘Flounders in what it is trying to say’ Deep beneath the Ham Yard Hotel, Cyrano de Bergerac is brought once again vividly onto the silver screen. Sadly, this beloved farce has an identity crisis in the chrysalis and comes out bewildered. Satirising the romantic French novels of the 1600s, Edmond Rostand’s 1897 play Cyrano de Bergerac is known for its ludicrous, comic ...
‘Progenitor of the vampire film genre’ Wilton’s music hall is an utterly distinctive venue, from its 1859 theatrical incarnation, it’s been everything from a church to a rag warehouse. Period details, lovingly distressed walls, and small holes in the ceiling, history coming out the wazzoo! I can’t think of a better place to see Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror with an original ...
‘Fails to capture the acidic wit of Wilde’ Stars combine and theatres from east to west collaborate for a digital recontextualising of Oscar Wilde’s seminal novel. But can the Belle Epoch really dance to the tune of the pandemic? Oscar Wilde’s 1890 novel is steeped in scandal, debauchery, and vanity. The life of the naive Dorian is ruined as he ...
‘The attempt to pull these women out of their historical setting brings its own problems’ From the heart of St Albans (Maltings Theatre to be precise) and shot straight to your home, this production drags the wives of King Henry VIII kicking and screaming into the 21st century. We all know the rhyme, don’t we? Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, ...
‘Clumpy and punctured plot with frankly unacceptable directing’ The 13th installment of the cult 1989 straight-to-video hit Puppet Master has landed in UK cinemas, drenched in blood, a cloak of “offensive humour” and killer Nazi puppets. Yes, you heard me right, killer.Nazi.Puppets. The success of this franchise must come from an ironic enjoyment of the B movie style but S. ...