24th November 2020
You’ve heard about the fashion and the drama – but does The Queen’s Gambit truly deliver the goods? The Queen’s Gambit follows Elizabeth Harman (Anya Taylor-Joy), a fictional chess protege, on her journey from timid orphan to chess royalty. Along the way, Harman must overcome substance addiction, lingering trauma, sexism, and a whole host of ...
22nd November 2020
Goose Masondo explains the significance of trans allegories in our favourite films. When you think of queer cinema, what comes to mind? Perhaps Brokeback Mountain, the classic gay cowboy romance? Or Blue is the Warmest Colour, the catalyst for lesbian awakenings everywhere in the early 2010s? Or perhaps even more recent additions to the canon, ...
20th November 2020
A powerful and necessary show that blends out-of-this-world fantastical horrors with the real horrors of racism and White supremacy. H. P. Lovecraft is a revered science fiction and horror author, known for pioneering the cosmic horror style early in the 20th century. He takes a special interest in the fragility of human existence, the horrors ...
20th November 2020
A road movie with a tragic edge, Supernova is a beautiful but unpretentious representation of unconditional love. A campervan journey through the Lake District is the kind of classic UK “staycation” which might ring particularly familiar after this past summer. It is also the basis for writer-director Harry Macqueen’s latest film, Supernova: ambling country roads ...
18th November 2020
Francis Lee delivers a captivating vision of desire in 1840s coastal England. Writer/director Francis Lee has released his follow-up to his much-lauded debut God’s Own Country. In this aching portrait of a lesbian affair in early Victorian England, Lee continues on form; crafting an engaging albeit narratively rocky, if you’ll excuse the pun, cinematic experience. ...
17th November 2020
The third entry in our Food on Film series, covering the significance of food in Miyazaki’s animations. If you’ve ever had the pleasure of entering the mystical and magical dimensions of Hayao Miyazaki’s films, then you’ll have noticed their many unique charms. For over 35 years, the veteran Japanese animation director and co-founder of Studio ...
2nd November 2020
Saint Maud is an uncomfortable yet mesmerising horror experience that is equal parts shocking and sorrowful. Watching the trailer for the bleak and grisly psycho-horror Saint Maud you’d easily be led to believe that it was a simple possession story. The film is interspersed with the genre hallmarks — there are indeed floating bodies, strange ...
29th October 2020
“Roaring with intimate humanity.”Ed Fernandez reviews Mogul Mowgli, out 30 0ctober. Mogul Mowgli begins with Zed (Riz Ahmed) leaping around the stage in a packed-out New York music venue, delivering an electrifying rap performance to a hype-infused crowd. From this opening scene, Ahmed’s impassioned performance pulls your eyes, effortlessly inhabiting both the energetic highs and ...
29th October 2020
Is there anything wrong with fanfiction-to-movie productions? From the dawn of the movie industry, filmmakers have been using other media — books, plays, real-life events — as inspiration for their own art. While nowadays it may seem easy for some to roll their eyes and proclaim “Hollywood has no original thoughts anymore”, it’s important to ...
27th October 2020
Does the prestige horror trend mark a shift in the genre, or are we just more willing to engage critically with these films when they’re photographed well? Horror has never been highbrow, but since films such as Get Out and A Quiet Place, a new form of horror film has made it into the mainstream: ...
