Film
The timeless mystery of Charlie Chaplin
Eleven years ago, I was summoned to the Manoir de Ban, a huge white house overlooking Lake Geneva, to meet…
The closing of the Chinese mind
I was born in Nanjing five years after the Tiananmen Square protests. By then, records of the demonstrations and the…
A self-regarding take on I’m-not-sure-what: Bergman Island reviewed
Bergman Island sounds, on first acquaintance, like a theme-park attraction. Roll up, roll up! Let us speed you through the…
Boldly and brilliantly unoriginal: Kermode and Mayo’s Take reviewed
Last April Fools’ Day, Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo wound up their award-winning film review show on BBC Radio 5…
Quietly devastating: Benediction reviewed
Terence Davies’s Benediction is a biopic of the first world war poet Siegfried Sassoon told with great feeling and tenderness.…
The nightmare of making films about poets
Craig Raine on the challenges of translating poets’ lives and work to the screen
Should have been even longer with less gore: The Northman reviewed
In Rus, which we now call Ukraine, Amleth (Alexander Skarsgard) begins his pursuit of revenge. A sea captain who later…
Fellowes fluffs it: Downton Abbey – A New Era reviewed
Downton Abbey: A New Era is the second film spin-off from the TV series and, like the first, it doesn’t…
Disney's rococo roots
A clever, original exhibition at the Wallace Collection has Laura Freeman twirling her way through the West End
A hoot: The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent reviewed
The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent stars Nicolas Cage playing a version of Nicolas Cage, in a parody of Nicolas…
Mostly gripping – and boasts not one but two Mr Darcys: Operation Mincemeat reviewed
Operation Mincemeat is based on the book by Ben Macintyre, which in turn is based on what Sir Hugh Trevor-Roper…
Was Thomas Edison guilty of murder?
In September 1890 a Frenchman called Louis Le Prince left his brother in Dijon and boarded a train to Paris,…
Will put you in mind of Lost in Translation: Compartment No. 6 reviewed
Compartment No. 6 is set aboard a long train journey across Russia, a country we don’t hear much of these…
Oscars diary: a jaw-dropping night
Oscar week is intense – and it’s been a while since it’s been as intense. The red carpet is full…
Didn't deserve an Oscar: Coda reviewed
This year the Oscar for best film went to the drama Coda– ‘Child of Deaf Adults’ – but the ceremony…
You will feel nothing: The Worst Person in the World reviewed
The Worst Person in the World is a Norwegian film that has made a big splash. To date, its star…
Fun, good-natured and schmaltzy: Phantom of the Open reviewed
Phantom of the Open is a comedy-drama telling a true story that would have to be true as no one…
A compelling, if flawed, example of the new American noir: Red Rocket reviewed
Mikey (Simon Rex) first appears striding down a road in utterly wrecked jeans and shirt. He is carrying nothing and…
Humourless and stale: The Batman reviewed
The latest Batman film, The Batman, may be a reboot, or even a reboot of a rebooted reboot that’s been…
Perfection: The Duke reviewed
The Duke is an old-fashioned British comedy caper that is plainly lovely and a joy. Based on a true story,…
May put you off Chaplin for ever: The Real Charlie Chaplin reviewed
Charlie Chaplin is one of the most famous movie stars ever and is certainly the most famous movie star with…
Staggeringly confident and powerful: After Love reviewed
As there are no stand-out films this week aside from Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation of Death on the Nile — is…
Sounds ghastly but it's somehow riveting: The Souvenir – Part II reviewed
The Souvenir: Part II is Joanna Hogg’s follow-up to The Souvenir (2019) but it’s not your regular sequel. It’s not…
Unpredictable, delicious and flamboyantly stunning: Parallel Mothers reviewed
Pedro Almodovar’s latest is a film about identity, secrets, lies, buried skeletons, real and metaphorical. But what you mainly need…
Manipulative and sentimental but also affectionate: Belfast reviewed
After Artemis Fowl and Murder on the Orient Express you may have had concerns about Kenneth Branagh ever helming a…
