Captain Fantastic review: Viggo Mortensen road-trip movie can’t rescue depressingly cliched indie effort September 6, 2016 Captain Fantastic hints at a fresh take on the American indie movie, but lapses disappointingly into a series of cliched genre tropes dressed up with pretty lens flare. We meet the Cash family – father Ben and his six children aged from eight to 18 – as they stalk a deer through lush woodland, killing [...]
Sausage Party review: Knob-gags abound in Seth Rogen’s family unfriendly animated film September 2, 2016 The term ‘animated comedy’ generally comes with the assumption that it’s also family friendly. However, the team behind The Interview are back to lampoon Pixar et al in Sausage Party, imagining a world where items of food come to life (a la Toy Story) and believe they go to The Great Beyond once they are [...]
Cafe Society film review: Woody Allen conjures up old Hollywood glamour for this formulaic, but enjoyable, romance September 2, 2016 The Cannes debut of Woody Allen’s latest film was marred by controversy when French comedian Larent Lafitte made a jibe about the allegations of sexual impropriety made against the director. The picture itself, however, is a decidedly uncontroversial trip down Tinsel Town’s memory lane. Set in the 1930s, Jesse Eisenberg plays a young man lured [...]
The Entertainer at the Garrick: Kenneth Branagh is on top form again in this perfect post-Brexit play September 2, 2016 In 1956 the Suez Crisis signalled the end of Britain as a world power, and its demise on the global stage is mirrored in the lives of Archie Rice and his family. Television and rock ‘n’ roll threaten to eclipse the traditional English music hall, and Kenneth Branagh’s Archie, scion of a vaudevillian dynasty, is [...]
Veronica Scanner at Royal Academy: how you can be made into a 3D bust in the RA’s latest exhibition September 2, 2016 This Royal Academy exhibition asks how the latest technology – specifically the new crop of sophisticated 3D printers – fits into the artistic canon. In one of the strangest shows of the year, the RA has borrowed a gigantic 96-camera 3D scanner – it’s come all the way from Madrid – in order to create lifelike [...]
Björk Digital: experience the singer’s Vulnicura album in a new VR exhibition at Somerset House September 2, 2016 Björk’s musical career is distinguished not only by her genre-bending music, but her imaginative visuals; with each album comes stunning, otherworldly imagery, often embracing the latest technology. It is no surprise then that this exhibition of her work is comprised of a sequence of music videos, primarily presented using Samsung virtual reality headsets, the resulting [...]
Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping review: Lonely Island’s mockumentary skewers self-absorbed stardom August 25, 2016 Musical comedy troupe Lonely Island’s mockumentary skewers modern pop culture, with Brooklyn Nine-Nine star Andy Samberg playing a self-absorbed, Bieber-esque solo artist ready to unleash his second album on an unsuspecting public. Taking aim at spoilt young mega stars and their ridiculous indulgences, the familiar plot is lifted by the energy of the cast and [...]
Gary Numan: Android in La La Land is a surprisingly touching rockumentary about one of music’s true geniuses August 25, 2016 You don’t expect subjects such as Asperger’s Syndrome, depression and parental bonds to be explored in a music documentary, but then electronic music pioneer Gary Numan has never been one to meet expectations. The disarmingly frank star discusses his career and difficulties with the limelight, and embarks on a daunting transatlantic move with his colourful [...]
Cell film review: Dull dialogue kills this film that’s co-written by Stephen King about smartphone zombies August 25, 2016 Cell hopes to do for smart phones what Jaws did for beaches, but it’s unlikely anyone will be wary of their devices after seeing this messy adaptation of the Stephen King novel. John Cusack competes with Samuel L Jackson for the most bored looking star, playing two men desperate to survive a zombie holocaust instigated [...]
Julieta review – Pedro Almodóvar’s story of love, loss and grief is compelling and beautiful August 25, 2016 After the high-camp of I’m So Excited and the queasy body-horror of The Skin I Live In, Pedro Almodóvar returns to his roots with a story that shines a light into the dark recesses of grief. It initially appears to be a modern noir, a detective story complete with moody jazz soundtrack, albeit one drenched [...]