Action, corny humour and a thin script mark Hobbs & Shaw; the 9th feature from The Fast & Furious franchise. This one is a spin-off though, not a sequel. At stake is … surprise, surprise … just the future of the world due to a virus the likes of which we haven’t seen before. Hobbs…
This is the third feature length documentary from Oscar winning director Asif Kapadia, who previously gave us the superb, well-researched and insightful documentaries Amy (2015), about the late singer Amy Winehouse, and Senna (2010), about the late Formula 1 race driver Ayrton Senna, which were two of the finest documentaries of the past decade. For…
“Some people think football is a matter of life and death. I assure you, it’s much more serious than that.”: Bill Shankly. The one-time Liverpool manager’s quip plays out on a far more profound level in The Keeper. And while football plays a significant role in Marcus H. Rosenmüller’s drama, it’s certainly not its sole…
Anger was my overwhelming emotion while watching this passionate, moving documentary about the barbaric Japanese practice of slaying defenceless whales in Antarctica. Four vessels of the marine wildlife conservation organisation Sea Shepherd set out on their ninth campaign to police the waters of the Antarctic. The location is the world’s only international whale sanctuary, where…
While watching Apollo 11, I felt immense pride in what Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins and the entire NASA team managed to achieve 50 years ago – on 20 July 1969. The never-before-seen footage lifts the lid on exactly what happened from the final hours before take-off until the three astronauts returned safely to…
Even if you’re not a ballet fan, it’s likely you’ve heard of Rudolph Nureyev. Along with Anna Pavlova and Mikhail Baryshnikov, he’s an icon of the art form. But in The White Crow, actor turned director Ralph Fiennes delves into some lesser-known parts of Nureyev’s story to create a fascinating portrait of a supreme –…
Disney gives The Lion King a Jungle Book treatment, turning animation into a blend of live action and computer-generated imagery. The visual effects are spectacular. If you haven’t seen the 1994 original cartoon version, I suspect you’ll be satisfied with this 2019 representation of the story of young Simba’s rise. Director of The Jungle Book,…
Ever since Jaws made us afraid to go into the water we’ve had any number of monster films featuring a variety of killer creatures, from sharks to killer whales to grizzly bears to rats, spiders, snakes, piranhas, and even crocodiles that all played on our fears of nature and predators. In 1980 we even had…
Stuber is another variant on the buddy-cop formula that was popular in the 80s and 90s. However, films like Lethal Weapon, Midnight Run and 48 Hours did this sort of thing much better. It’s LA’s hottest day since 1911. Vic Manning (played by former wrestler Dave Bautista) is a tough and perennially angry LA cop…
Somewhere in cinema land there’s a space in between Ghost World, Superbad, The Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. In that space, you’ll find Booksmart. Actor Olivia Wilde turns her hand to directing in this very funny but sharply observed teen comedy. It’s also – completely unexpectedly, one of the more empathetic films of…
