Review: Richard III at Trafalgar Studios July 10, 2014 ★★★★☆ In Jamie Lloyd’s Richard III, now is, quite literally, the Winter of Discontent. It’s set directly after the political turmoil of 1978-9, in a world where the military seem to have taken charge. It’s a neat one liner, but somewhat confusing in terms of plotting. For instance, it isn’t immediately clear why a bolshie [...]
London’s top lidos: Make a splash in an outdoor pool July 8, 2014 Wherever you are in London, there are outdoor pools perfect for cooling down during the coming heatwave. Here are some of our favourite places to take our kit off in public: Brockwell Lido, SE24: Located in Brockwell park, this is as much of a Brixton landmark as Electric Avenue and Atlantic Road. The [...]
Seth MacFarlane: wanted dead or alive for making dreadful Western spoof May 29, 2014 FILM A MILLION WAYS TO DIE IN THE WEST Cert 15 | One Star THERE are a million ways to die in Hollywood, but being one of the worst ever hosts of the Academy Awards apparently isn’t one of them. Seth MacFarlane survived his Oscars nightmare with enough star quality intact to attract a number [...]
Theatre review: A Human Being Died that Night May 29, 2014 Among the secret service personnel working for the apartheid government, no one used the word “kill”. Instead people were “dealt with” or “taken for a drive”. Such linguistic sleights of hand are steadfastly avoided in A Human Being Died That Night, a taut, brilliantly acted play that looks with a scientific eye at the politics [...]
Should have stayed in bed: Sleeping Beauty update is luke-warm May 29, 2014 FILM MALEFICENT Cert PG | Two Stars DISNEY’S live action remake of Sleeping Beauty is an inversion of the fairytale told from the perspective of Maleficent. The cackling horned villain, who spends most of the animated version glowing green and plotting with a raven, is reimagined as a vengeful fairy who curses princess Aurora to [...]
Just the right balance of brains and silliness May 29, 2014 FILM EDGE OF TOMORROW Cert 12a | Four Stars IRON MAN, Saving Private Ryan and Groundhog Day complement each other surprisingly well as inspiration for the latest Tom Cruise blockbusting sci-fi epic, Edge of Tomorrow, in which Hollywood’s smallest titan fights and dies and fights and dies over and over again. Humans are locked in [...]
Where to drink May 27, 2014 London shows no sign of the summer slump as we head towards June, with a variety of bars and clubs launching in all corners of the capital. Jason Atherton’s rise to the top continues quite literally with his new bar at City Social. Situated on the 24th floor of Tower 42 on Broad Street, it [...]
All hail a brilliant double bill May 26, 2014 THEATRE WOLF HALL + BRING UP THE BODIES Aldwych Theatre | By Simon Thomson Four Stars THE UNDERTAKING is epic; two three-hour plays, back to back. But with crackling dialogue, compelling acting, minimalist sets, masterful special effects, extravagant costumes and ersatz crumhorns, the six hours fly by. Adapted from the first two-thirds of Hilary Mantel’s [...]
Godzilla thunders back onto screens May 15, 2014 FILM GODZILLA Cert 12a | By Alex Dymoke Three Stars SKYSCRAPERS haven’t come in for this much abuse since Prince Charles started sounding off about contemporary architecture. Brit director Gareth Edwards’ take on the classic Japanese B-movie doesn’t so much reimagine the original as inject it with growth hormones. It’s a monster of a monster [...]
Cannes 2014: old boys dominate the selection again May 15, 2014 From Cronenberg to Godard, familiar names leave room for only five Palme newcomers TWO DAYS ago, the Cannes Film Festival opened with a right royal stinker. Nicole Kidman’s Grace Kelly biopic Grace of Monaco was met with a galaxy of one star reviews, the consensus being that it surpassed even last year’s Naomi Watts’ Diana [...]