Cannes 2021: Nitram review
★★★★☆ Justin Kurzel first made his name with his breakout film Snowtown, a true crime murder story that shone an unflattering light on small town Australia. Following some missteps, Nitram is a solid return to form […]
Cannes 2021: Casablanca Beats review
★★★★☆ Positive School is the name of an arts centre in the heart of Sidi Moumen, a suburb of Casablanca. It’s hard to find. New teacher Anas (Anas Basbousi) drives down a labyrinth of small streets […]
Cannes 2021: Memoria review
★★★★☆ Apichatpong Weerasethakul has been a stalwart of the arthouse circuit since his Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives won the Palme d’Or back in 2010. The Thai independent filmmaker has returned with Memoria, […]
Cannes 2021: Red Rocket review
★★★★☆ Sean Baker is quickly establishing himself as one of the finest filmmakers in America today. With Starlet, Tangerine and The Florida Project, he has already displayed a precise and empathetic eye for those living the […]
Cannes 2021: A Hero review
★★★★☆ No good deed goes unpunished, and such is the case for Rahim (Amir Jadidi), the protagonist of Asghar Farhadi’s A Hero. Imprisoned for debt, he is on two-day leave when he meets up with his […]
Cannes 2021: Hit the Road review
★★★★★ A family car journey isn’t always an enticing premise – either for a film or in real life. But in Panah Panahi’s feature debut Hit the Road, the ride is one that both the audience […]
Cannes 2021: Flag Day review
★★☆☆☆ Despite having retired from acting and directing in order to concentrate on writing awful novels, Sean Penn – like a bad Steven Soderbergh – is back once again. Returning to Cannes after the thrashing his […]
Cannes 2021: Small Body review
★★★★☆ Agata (Celeste Cescutti) is a young woman who gives birth to a stillborn child. She lives on the coast of Veneto in North East Italy in a deeply religious community where the priest assures her […]
Cannes 2021: After Yang review
★★★★☆ The lexicon of the ‘robot’ – taken from the Polish word for ‘worker’ – has gone through multiple evolutions and conceptual changes, frequently reflecting the concerns of the times. From android to replicant, it has […]
Cannes 2021: The Worst Person in the World review
★★★★☆ Finding your way in the postmodern world isn’t always easy. The answers might be different but the questions are perennial. Do I settle down or play the field? Am I looking for a soulmate or […]
Cannes 2021: The Souvenir Part II review
★★★★★ Perhaps the biggest difference between The Souvenir and Part II is its shift towards comedy. Whereas the first film charted the doomed love affair of Julie (Honor Swinton Byrne), the aspiring film student, and Anthony […]
Cannes 2021: Everything Went Fine review
★★★☆☆ A bland title – much like a bland line of conversation – can hide an abyss the way a household fridge can hide a corpse. François Ozon is a master at this kind of observational […]
Cannes 2021: Our picks of the festival
There’s never been a Cannes quite like this. Vaccine passports, saliva COVID tests, facemasks: welcome to the Croisette in the time of coronavirus. Cannes has returned, following a year long deferral. Spike Lee is once more […]
Cannes 2019: Sibyl review
★★★☆☆ Movies love certain professions and psychotherapy is certainly one. They have to listen to people’s problems while (usually) masking their own issues. From Richard Burton in Equus to Billy Crystal in Analyse This, there’s an […]
Cannes 2019: Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite wins Palme d’Or
It’s been a vintage edition of the Cannes Film Festival, with many excellent contenders in the competition. The Palme d’Or went to South Korean director Bong Joon-ho and his masterful black comedy thriller Parasite. It was […]