Reviews
Wonder Woman review - Gal Gadot shines in uneven superhero yarnThursday, 01 June 2017
After dipping a toe in the new-look DC Comics universe to brighten the otherwise leaden Batman v Superman, now Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman gets a chance to shine in her own Hollywood movie. Gadot makes a pretty fine job of it too, bringing a bit of... Read more... |
On the Town review - triple threat Danny Mac and co are unmissableThursday, 01 June 2017
On 8 April 1952, screenwriters Betty Comden and Adolph Green were chatting to Charlie Chaplin at a party when he started raving about a picture he’d seen the previous night at Sam Goldwyn’s house. It was called Singin’ in the Rain – had they... Read more... |
Richard Goode, Royal Festival HallThursday, 01 June 2017
How to change the way we hear Chopin and Beethoven: play Bach first. Richard Goode opened his Royal Festival Hall recital with the Partita No.6 in E minor, perhaps the most enigmatic and challenging of its siblings. Its intricate contrapuntal lines... Read more... |
Sand in the Sandwiches, Theatre Royal, Haymarket review - delightful but sanitisedThursday, 01 June 2017
Bard of Metroland and scourge of Slough, John Betjeman is, alongside Philip Larkin on parenthood, still one of the 20th century’s most-quoted poets. Hugh Whitemore’s play, part highlights reading and part biographical drama, offers a hugely charming... Read more... |
La Strada, The Other Palace review - Fellini's tragicomedy becomes a noisy rompThursday, 01 June 2017
Hitting the essence of a Fellini masterpiece in a different medium is no easy task. Try and reproduce his elusive brand of poetic melancholy and you'll fail; best to transfer the characters to a different medium, as the musical Sweet Charity did in... Read more... |
Jean Arp: Poetry of Forms review - subversive pioneer honoured in HollandThursday, 01 June 2017
This summer the wonderful Kröller-Möller museum in Otterlo hosts the first major Dutch retrospective of the works of Hans (Jean) Arp since 1960 – an exhibition that will travel in a marginally smaller version to Margate’s Turner Contemporary later... Read more... |
Broken, BBC One review - things look bleak in McGovernvilleWednesday, 31 May 2017
This is Jimmy McGovern, so it’s no surprise to find ourselves up north and feeling grim. The prolific screenwriter’s latest drama series is located in what is described only as “a northern city” (though apparently it’s 60 miles from Sheffield, which... Read more... |
Killology, Royal Court review – both disturbing and life-affirmingWednesday, 31 May 2017
The monologue is a terrific theatre form. Using this narrative device, you can cover huge amounts of storytelling territory, fill in lots of background detail – and get right inside a character’s head. But the best monologues are those that... Read more... |
Britten Sinfonia, Adès, Milton CourtWednesday, 31 May 2017
Thomas Adès and the Britten Sinfonia are embarking on a three-year project, coupling the symphonies of Beethoven with works by contemporary Irish composer Gerald Barry. Adès is keen to highlight the radical vision of the two composers, so expect... Read more... |
Hokusai: Beyond the Great Wave, British MuseumTuesday, 30 May 2017
With its striking design, characteristically restricted palette and fluent use of line, Hokusai’s The Great Wave, 1831, is one of the world’s most recognisable images, encapsulating western ideas about Japanese art. First seen outside Japan in the... Read more... |
LSO, Haitink, BarbicanTuesday, 30 May 2017
Bernard Haitink is one of the great Bruckner conductors of our time. His interpretations are expansive yet vivid and always go straight to the heart of the music. But he is also an old man, and physical frailty is increasingly inhibiting his work,... Read more... |
Hanif Kureishi, Brighton Festival review - a combative, funny and moving talkMonday, 29 May 2017
Hanif Kureishi and his interviewer Mark Lawson are both wearing black Nike trainers, and long professional acquaintance makes them as comfortable with each other as an old, expensive pair of shoes. Kureishi’s promo tour for his latest novel, The... Read more... |
