The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry: Another cosy British drama April 28, 2023 Having stolen art to highlight the plight of the elderly in The Duke, Jim Broadbent is back being a lovable eccentric in this adaptation of Rachel Joyce’s The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry. He plays the title role of Harold, a retired man lacking purpose until he receives a letter from an old friend in [...]
Air film review: Ben Affleck’s feel-good Nike movie April 27, 2023 Good Will Hunting besties Matt Damon and Ben Affleck reteam for the story behind the Air Jordan shoe, a product that still is the gold standard among sneaker heads but had a rocky road to infamy. This biopic follows Sonny Vaccaro (Damon), an executive at the struggling Nike brand who believes he has found basketball’s [...]
Little Richard: I Am Everything– A stunning documentary about an overlooked legend April 27, 2023 Throughout history, those who created great movements are rarely the ones who enjoyed the benefits. Little Richard: I Am Everything is a stunning documentary about a singer, but also a meditation about how cultural history is manicured. Told through archive footage and talking head interviews, it’s about the life of Richard Wayne Penniman, the singer [...]
How to blow up a Pipeline review: Vital but underdeveloped climate drama April 27, 2023 Headlines about how doomed we all are due to climate change have sadly started to have less of an impact, as we all get more fatigued by the endless bad news. Thankfully, creatives have been trying to make the same points in different ways. Netflix satire Don’t Look Up imagined the life of a beleaguered [...]
Dixon and Daughters at National Theatre: A harrowing tale of abuse April 27, 2023 It’s easy to get sniffy about soap operas but there’s an undeniable value to those nightly instalments of drama that shine a powerful light on the minutia of modern life. Dixon and Daughters, a new play by Deborah Bruce, brings to mind the very best of soap opera, from its domestic setting to the complex [...]
Draft rules for UK gambling sector expected to be published today April 27, 2023 The long-awaited gambling white paper setting out government proposals to make regulation of the sector “fit for the digital age” is expected to be published today. Campaigners are hopeful it will include plans for affordability checks and the introduction of a statutory levy on gambling operators to pay for research, education and treatment of problem gambling. Other measures hoped to feature [...]
Isaac Julien show at Tate Britain is like a punch from a velvet glove April 27, 2023 When the Tate Modern’s new wing opened in 2016 it promised to usher in a new era in which performance and video would be given equal billing to paint on canvas. Aside from 2018’s blockbuster Steve McQueen show, this brave new world hasn’t quite materialised, and it seems telling that the biggest, most exciting video [...]
The Mario movie plays it safe, but gives us decent nostalgia – review April 25, 2023 After his one-time rival Sonic became a box office hit, it seemed inevitable that Nintendo mascot Mario would get his own movie. Illumination, the animation studio behind Minions, will be hoping this animated adaptation fares better than the 1993 live action disaster with Bob Hoskins. Taking inspiration from 40 plus years of gaming history, The [...]
Taste the Metaverse: Maison Assouline’s cocktail inspired by the digital world April 25, 2023 Best known as a publisher of opulent coffee table books on topics including culture, art, fashion, luxury goods and travel, Maison Assouline, nestled in the heart of Piccadilly, is a self-proclaimed “bastion of elegance”. Its London flagship is located in a century-old bank building, designed by the Cenotaph architect, Edwin Lutyens. With its high shelves [...]
Animal at Park Theatre review: A smart take on disability, dating and online culture April 25, 2023 Animal opens with the lead character, David, attempting to utilise a masturbation pump. A cerebral palsy sufferer, inserting his penis into the device’s nozzle is just one of the many things he is unable to do. Explaining why he needs to return it to the online sex shop is another. What follows is an examination [...]