Blonde review: Marilyn Monroe biopic is exploitative and dull October 2, 2022 Another year, another lengthy Netflix Oscar hopeful. Blonde has been in development since 2010 with Naomi Watts and Jessica Chastain attached to star at various points. Can one of Hollywood’s hottest newcomers do justice to its eternal icon? Brought to the screen by director Andrew Dominik (The Assassination of Jesse James), the film is an [...]
Pinocchio gets the live action treatment in time for Disney+ Day September 16, 2022 Disney’s 1940 animation Pinocchio may not have the affection of some of its modern peers, but few can argue its place in cinema history. One of the most acclaimed animated films of all time, its magic and sentiment set the tone for the studio’s reputation. If you watch a Disney animated film, or visit one [...]
See How They Run: Saoirse Ronan shines in this twisty whodunnit September 15, 2022 Cinema trends come from unexpected places. After decades as a mainstay on Sunday afternoon TV, the whodunit seemed to take off in Hollywood after the success of Murder On The Orient Express and Knives Out. Both were the start of forthcoming trilogies, and hoping to replicate that success is murderous comedy See How They Run. [...]
Beast review: Idris Elba takes on the Jaws of the Savannah August 28, 2022 There can’t be many actors who keep as busy as Idris Elba, and that’s without all the stories linking him to James Bond. The Londoner has five films out in 2022, having appeared in Sonic The Hedgehog 2 and Thor Love and Thunder already. The third release in that list is Beast, an action-thriller from [...]
Mr Malcolm’s List review: by-the-numers but pleasantly entertaining August 26, 2022 The stale genre of costume dramas has been given a boost in recent times by productions that have opted for a more diverse approach in casting. Amando Iannucci’s David Copperfield and Netflix smash hit Bridgerton have all the hallmarks of the classic tales, but with stars that revive character tropes with a different approach, and [...]
Official Competition: Penelope Cruz shines in biting movieland satire August 26, 2022 One thing Hollywood loves to celebrate is itself. There are numerous movies of the highs, lows, and in-betweens of the American film industry, but not as many that focus on European cinema. New comedy Official Competition puts prestige cinema in the spotlight, and comes up with a winner. Set in Spain, an elderly millionaire (José [...]
The Feast sees horror descend on the Welsh Valleys August 19, 2022 Rural horror films are all the rage. Whether it’s the windswept mania of The Lighthouse, or the Icelandic wilderness of last year’s Lamb, directors have found terror in nature, and that continues with The Feast. In the Welsh mountains, politician Gwyn (Julian Lewis Jones) and his wife Glenda (Nia Roberts) live a life of simmering [...]
Mama’s Affair: There’s more to this Hong Kong comedy than Cantopop stars Keung To and Jer Lau August 19, 2022 Mama’s Affair has made headlines for being the acting debut of Keung To and Jer Lau, members of Cantopop boyband MIRROR. They are directed by Kearen Pang, a popular Hong Kong multi-hyphenate artist who was a part of the show on which the band was discovered. But despite its pop-culture credentials, it’s the veteran star [...]
My Old School is a surprisingly nice documentary about the man who posed as a kid to go back to school August 18, 2022 A decade of Netflix true crime may lead you to believe there’s something sinister in the set up for British documentary My Old School. It’s the story of Brandon Lee – not Bruce Lee’s son, but the Scottish school student who in the mid-90s was revealed to be a 32-year-old man called Brian MacKinnon. It [...]
Nope film review: Jordan Peele does it again in UFO horror mystery August 17, 2022 In the five years since his debut film Get Out, Jordan Peele has established himself as a new Master of Horror. The promotional material for his latest work suggests he knows how popular he’s become, too: his own name is highlighted with equal prominence to the film’s title: Nope. Taking place on a California ranch, the [...]