The Artist’s Wife review – an indie drama lacking inspiration April 29, 2021 Acting legends Leno Olin and Bruce Dern star in a film about the pressures of supporting greatness. Olin plays Claire Smythson, the wife of celebrated painter Richard (Dern). Living comfortably in their old age, Claire keeps their lives running while Richard is allowed to surround himself with painting and teaching. When he begins to show [...]
Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse: Michael B Jordan in so-so thriller April 29, 2021 The latest in the long line of cinema releases that have migrated to streaming, Michael B Jordan hopes to kick off another franchise in an adaptation of this Tom Clancy novel, itself a spin-off of the Jack Ryan series. He plays John, a committed Navy SEAL who is part of a raid in Syria that [...]
Truman & Tennessee: An Intimate Conversation review April 29, 2021 There have been many documentaries in recent years that take the form of audio-visual mosaics. Asif Kapadia’s Amy, Listen To Me Marlon, and last year’s Billie brought to life the journeys of famous faces through archive footage and lost conversations. Truman & Tennessee: An Intimate Conversation looks at the lives of Truman Capote and Tennessee [...]
Falcon and Winter Soldier Episode 6 finale review April 23, 2021 *** WARNING! This contains spoilers for all episodes of Falcon and Winter Soldier *** So, we come to the big finale, where everything will be resolved and all loose ends tied up. Just kidding, this is Marvel after all, but amid the teasers for forthcoming attractions we can hope for some kind of resolution. We [...]
The Oscars 2021: Our predictions for the big winners April 22, 2021 Hollywood’s big, back slapping Oscar party arrives on Sunday, but as with other awards ceremonies, the film industry will have to congratulate itself from a distance. It will be a different kind of awards, with a rumoured additional venue in London, but the same amount of anticipation regarding who will take home a gold statuette. [...]
Chick Fight review – lame comedy is far from a knockout April 22, 2021 In the absence of expensive promotion and cinema foyers, some films rely on a snappy title to stand out in streaming queues. Chick Fight might catch the eye for the wrong reasons, but a film will try anything to keep you from scrolling past. Sadly, most who see this film will wish they had. Malin [...]
Black Bear review – a meta tale of twists and turns April 22, 2021 Recently, we’ve been treated to big budget studio fare in the on-demand space, as Godzilla fought Kong, Eddie Murphy’s prince returned to America, and Zack Snyder re-assembled his Justice League. However, with cinema re-openings just a few weeks away, the larger blockbusters are holding off and, for the moment at least, the VOD space has [...]
Falcon and Winter Soldier Episode 5 – the fight for The Shield April 16, 2021 *** WARNING: This review contains spoilers for all current episodes of Falcon and Winter Soldier *** The last episode of Marvel’s action-packed series saw John Walker (Wyatt Russell) go rogue after the death of his partner at the hands of Karli Morgenthau (Erin Kellyman), viciously killing an unrelated ally in front of a gasping crowd. [...]
The Year Earth Changed – David Attenborough’s timely reminder April 16, 2021 “Nature is healing, we are the virus”. It’s the social media trope that evolved into a meme during the pandemic, as we notice the effects that mankind’s global pause had on the planet’s other inhabitants. However, as this new documentary special shows, cliches exist for a reason. Narrated by David Attenborough, film crews around the [...]
Love and Monsters film review – a charming apocalypse comedy April 15, 2021 On the surface, a mid-budget comedy about the end of the world might not be the sort of story we want to hear right now. However, new release Love and Monsters might turn out to be one of Netflix’s wisest choices, with the streamer having picked up the film for distribution outside of the US. [...]