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Sinners – movie review

Evil pervades in the fifth collaboration between writer and director Ryan Coogler and Michael B. Jordan (Black Panther, Fruitvale Station, Creed). We’re in Clarksdale, Mississippi in 1932, which is where identical twin brothers Smoke and Stack (both played by Michael B. Jordan) return after seven years away. They were part of the Chicago gangland scene,…

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Prophet (Theatre Works) – theatre review

Faith is put under the spotlight in Jodi Gallagher’s immersive new work Prophet. Is it the story of Christianity? There are certainly elements of it in there. I am thinking of Jesus and one of his disciplines in particular. This journey started with Gallagher writing about Jewish mystic Sabbatai Zevi and his prophet, theologian Nathan of Gaza. Mind…

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Cold War – movie review

Romeo and Juliet are transplanted from Renaissance Verona to mid-20th Century Poland in Paweł Pawlikowski’s stunning Cold War. This elegant film charts a fractious love affair against the backdrop of fractious times. Pawlikowski has a reputation as a stylish and thoughtful director; sometimes compared to a younger version of his compatriot Roman Polanski (without the…

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The Woman King – movie review

Inspired by events that took place in a powerful African state in the 19th century, The Woman King is the story of a battalion of female warriors. Known as the Agojie, their job was to protect the Kingdom of Dahomey, and its ruler King Ghezo (John Boyega). The narrative focuses primarily on two figures –…

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Galveston – movie review

The word gritty doesn’t do justice to Galveston. This hard-boiled, downbeat crime drama features a host of questionable characters and some bravura acting. Ben Foster never fails to impress and is perfectly cast as a 40-year-old debt collector with a major health issue. Elle Fanning adds to an already impressive resume as prostitute Rocky, who’s…

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Savage – movie review

Savage is brutal, devastating, powerful. It features a war of attrition borne of a tyrannical upbringing in New Zealand told in three time-frames over 24 years. Savages is the name given to a patched-up gang started by a couple of cell mates from juvenile detention. But let’s go back a step, Danny – known in…

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