Macbeth at the National Theatre: Rufus Norris’ stars fail to shine in this cautious production March 9, 2018 Rufus Norris, the artistic director at the National Theatre, isn’t having a great time right now. While his predecessor Nicholas Hytner is having a ball at the helm of the new Bridge Theatre down the riverbank, Norris has suffered a string of flops in the Olivier, from a sand-blasted Salome to the bafflingly coarse Common. [...]
Summer and Smoke at the Almeida: Tennessee Williams’ complex play is brought to heart-rending life in this fantastic production March 9, 2018 Tennessee Williams’ Summer and Smoke is about opposing forces: the microscopic and the infinite, the physical and the spiritual, anarchy and order, sanity and madness, and the thankless task we humans have trying to work out where exactly we fit into all this. It tackles these swooping metaphysical questions through the prism of unrequited [...]
Picasso 1932: Love, Fame, Tragedy at the Tate Modern: Exhibition focusing on a single year in the life of the great artist shows the sheer audacity of genius March 9, 2018 By the age of 50, Picasso’s days as a starving artist were long behind him. His paintings sold for fortunes despite the gathering economic gloom; he and his former-ballerina wife were courted by politicians and socialites; he was preparing to be celebrated by a major Paris retrospective, a rarity then for a living artist. [...]
Premier League TV rights packages booted into long grass amid “cut-price” concerns March 7, 2018 The Premier League has booted a decision on unsold TV rights packages into next month, as it faces being forced to accept a “cut-price deal” for the remaining 40 games. Sky and BT Sport snapped up five of seven packages on offer for a total of £4.5bn in mid-February. But the remaining two sets of [...]
Paris Saint-Germain’s Financial Fair Play gamble? Possible repercussions of an early Champions League exit for Europe’s big spenders March 5, 2018 When football’s most expensive player Neymar was debuted in front of the world’s media at Paris Saint-Germain this summer following his world record £200m move to France from Barcelona, there was only one competition up for discussion. Neymar’s arrival was seen as the Qatari-owned club’s big play in their search for the one major trophy [...]
Agadir review: Yto Barrada’s exhibition at the Barbican leaves out the hopeful part of the story February 8, 2018 The Barbican is the perfect location for this exhibition by Morrocan artist Yto Barrada. The utopian housing estate, built after the trauma of WWII, has much in common with it subject, Agadir, a modernist city that was rebuilt in a similar Brutalist style following an earthquake in 1960. It’s a shame then, that we only [...]
The 15:17 to Paris review: Casting real world heroes as themselves is the weirdest thing Clint Eastwood’s done since shouting at an empty chair February 8, 2018 How on earth did this film get made? The 15:17 to Paris is a retelling of the time three American men, two of them off-duty soldiers, beat a would-be terrorist senseless on a train to Paris. Directed by actor, filmmaker and renowned heckler of empty chairs Clint Eastwood, the film is notable for starring [...]
Rafael Nadal confirms intention to join Andy Murray at Queen’s Club Championships February 6, 2018 World No1 Rafael Nadal has joined recuperating Andy Murray in targeting The Queen’s Club Championships to kickstart his grass court season after confirming his intention to contest this year’s tournament. Murray, who has won a record five titles at the West Kensington club, has intimated that he hopes to make a return to the court [...]
Phantom Thread review: Daniel Day-Lewis bows out with fantastically creepy period drama directed by Paul Thomas Anderson February 2, 2018 There are few more enticing prospects than Paul Thomas Anderson, one of our greatest living filmmakers, directing Daniel Day-Lewis, one of our finest actors. Throw into the mix the frisson of extra excitement that comes with Day-Lewis’ claim that this will be his final acting role, and you have the ingredients for something unmissable. [...]
Roman J Israel Esq review: Denzel Washington shines but can’t quite save this messy law drama February 2, 2018 Roman J Israel Esq lines up its ducks – a star actor on blistering form, a timely dissection of racial bias in the US legal system, a distinctive visual style – yet manages to come home empty handed. It’s the second feature from Dan Gilroy, following 2014’s chillingly nihilistic Nightcrawler. And while that was [...]