Theatre review: John by DV8 November 7, 2014 ★★★☆☆ Lyttelton Theatre When Lloyd Newson, director of verbatim physical theatre company DV8, wanted to create a play about male attitudes towards love and sexuality, he interviewed fifty volunteers. But from the moment John walked in and told his tale, Newson knew he had to change tack. John’s father was a rapist, his mother [...]
Film review: Interstellar November 7, 2014 ★★☆☆☆ After the supermassive success of last year’s Gravity, it was only a matter of time before we got another mega-budget flick about Hollywood stars being sent to the stars. Christopher Nolan, who has an exemplary track record in smart sci-fi epics (Inception, The Dark Knight), is one of the few filmmakers who might have [...]
Film review: Mr Turner October 31, 2014 ★★★★★ François Truffaut once suggested that there’s something about England’s countryside – “The subdued way of life, the stolid routine” – that’s “anti-cinematic”. If only he’d lived to see Mike Leigh’s latest movie, which is about all of these things and yet is a film of the utmost eloquence. Mr Turner is not concerned with [...]
Leigh and Spall turn on the style October 30, 2014 FILM MR TURNER Cert 12a | By Alex Dudok de Wit ★★★★★ François Truffaut once suggested that there’s something about England’s countryside – “The subdued way of life, the stolid routine” – that’s “anti-cinematic”. If only he’d lived to see Mike Leigh’s latest movie, which is about all of these things and yet is a [...]
Gilles Peterson interview coming up in City A.M. Bespoke October 23, 2014 Legendary DJ Gilles Peterson caught up with City A.M. Bespoke magazine last week to talk about how the shifting face of the music industry has changed the way he works, how he fancies opening a restaurant and what it’s like to record a radio station for Grand Theft Auto. Peterson was promoting the launch of [...]
Art review: Rembrandt: The Late Works, The National Gallery October 20, 2014 ★★★★★ Rembrandt knew he was a genius. You can see it in his eyes as they stare witheringly from his self-portraits in the first room of the National Gallery’s new exhibition, Rembrandt: The Late Works. Authentic Rembrandts are such a big draw for art galleries that few museums are willing to loan them [...]
Film review: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles October 20, 2014 ★☆☆☆☆ Cert 12A “There’s nothing wrong with a bit of froth”, protests Will Arnett at the start of Teenage Ninja Mutant Turtles 3D. “Sometimes, people just want candy.” He’s arguing the case for the light-weight, lifestyle news that he finds himself making with a less-than-impressed Megan Fox. I have a sneaky suspicion [...]
Film review: The Judge October 20, 2014 ★★☆☆☆ Cert 12A In the first project under new production company Team Downey, Roberts Downey Jr goes tete-a-tete with Robert Duvall in this hybrid family drama/oddball comedy/ courtroom thriller. Director David Dobkin, who is better known for comedies like The Wedding Crashers and The Change Up, extracts terrific performances from his heavyweight leads, but [...]
Theatre review: East is East, Trafalgar Studios October 20, 2014 ★★★★☆ Trafalgar Studios Most people will remember East is East from the 1999 film, part of the cultural fabric of the New Labour years alongside the likes of Notting Hill and Human Traffic. Ayub Khan Din’s play came two years prior, capturing his feelings of alienation and confusion over his cultural identity as a [...]
Film review: Palo Alto October 20, 2014 ★★★★☆ Cert 15 In Richard Linklater’s coming-of-age film Boyhood, being a teenager looks like a lot of fun. The sense of possibility is palpable, and the world seems like an endless stream of opportunities for the taking. In Palo Alto, being a teenager looks bewildering and the world seems utterly incomprehensible. Adapted from [...]