Never. Rarely. Sometimes. Always: A multiple choice many will be familiar with in some form or another. These are the typical options that face anyone being asked to assess their mental and physical wellbeing in a medical setting. These words can appear anywhere from a dentist surgery form to a direct question from a therapist. … Continue reading
“We need to strip the system down and rebuild it and make sure that things are fair and equitable for women. How do we examine the microaggressions that can strip a young woman of self confidence, that prevents her from climbing the ranks and do what the boys are doing?” These were recent words from … Continue reading
This year, documentaries, horror films and adaptations of classic American literature all make it into my top ten. Following on from Get Out, Jordan Peele exceeded all expectations with the astonishing, original and confident Us. It’s closely followed at the top of my list by Olivia Wilde’s Booksmart which hit a painful, truthful nerve as well … Continue reading
PSA: I’m a Cats apologist. As a child I would watch the VHS of the theatre production on repeat. I knew every jellicle cat’s name. The beauty of the musical, despite being an 80s coke-fuelled fever-dream of a production, is in the performers’ athleticism, the striking stage make-up and the extraordinary junkyard stage design. All … Continue reading
Reviewing documentaries is a very different beast to reviewing fiction. There are different considerations to be taken when attempting to weigh up the positive and negative qualities of a documentary film. Attempting to review For Sama is a whole separate challenge. Where to start with this compelling, horrifying, masterful movie? Director Waad Al-Kateab filmed many … Continue reading
After leaving an eerie impression with family horror hit Hereditary, Director Ari Aster returns a year later with Midsommar. Following in the footsteps of its predecessor, it is broken relationships that sits at the heart of this folk-festival nightmare. Dani, our grief-stricken protagonist accompanies her boyfriend and his friends on an academic expedition to Sweden … Continue reading
Infamous for the intensity his film’s exude, Peter Strickland returns with In Fabric – following his critically acclaimed Dukes of Burgundy and Berberian Sound Studio. Though different in subject, all of his films overflow with an evident love of cinema, with Strickland having proved himself a master of bringing together the technical elements that make his films so … Continue reading
For anyone who had a reasonably good time at high school, the memories remain romanticised. The simultaneous frustration of wanting to escape and the overwhelming sorrow at a poignant chapter coming to a close, it remains bittersweet. It’s no surprise that so many teen movies conclude with graduation ceremonies – a hopeful and uncertain time. … Continue reading
It’s not very often that a film is so striking, so complex and so delicious that attempting to write a review of it proves overwhelming. Where am I supposed to start with reviewing Jordan Peele’s Us? The director’s follow up to his 2017 debut confirms the true, consistent talents of Peele, undoubtedly a horror film … Continue reading
Bleak and brilliant, Ray & Liz opens with scenes from a fly-infested council-flat bedroom where a man resides – sleeping, smoking, drinking, but never leaving. He passes the time looking out the window and listening to the radio. This is Ray, alcohol-dependant and isolated. These scenes make up one third of Richard Billingham’s Ray & … Continue reading
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