‘Sensitive and vibrant slice of life’ Reality TV and artistically-minded documentaries sometimes share a key feature: a predatory hunt for “worthy” subjects to exploit. On the brighter side, they also exhibit a fascination with real people living their unique lives. The approach taken is very much guided by the producer or director. Shamira Raphaela’s latest piece, Shabu, is filled with kindness, ...
‘Glamour like only the Italians know how to do’ Despite you reading this in a hopefully sweltering August (the UK general release date) I crammed myself into the Curzon basement for the press screening in June. Now that might not seem relevant until we realise that the gay gods gifted British theatre critics with a coming-of-age trans story, set in ...
‘A quiet scream in the face of an increasingly heartless world’ “Growing old is not for sissies,” said Bette Davis at her most adroit. With rising healthcare and living costs, that statement is even truer now. Chie Hayakawa’s new film, Plan 75, shunts us a few years into the future and a few horrific steps forward along our current trajectory. Japan ...
‘A formidable lead performance let down by a disjointed story’ When you picture the mid-90s, what comes to mind? For me, it’s everything “gangsta”, drugs, bad haircuts, and liberally spray-painted surfaces. If you add all those to the world of dirt bikes and stunts, you have Rodeo – except it’s somewhat confusingly set in the present day. French writer/director Lola Quivoron’s first ...
‘Like turning a piece of topaz around in the sunlight’ We have all seen our most irritating friends Instagram posts; pruning in the blue lagoon, drenched in earth spit from geysers, drinking odd concoctions in Reykjavik’s bars. But Iceland’s history has always been tempered by depopulation, hardship, and natural ferocity. It wasn’t always a snowy playground for Europeans on a bucket list ...
‘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 ...