Category Archives: Film & TV

Film & TV

Review The Eternal Daughter by James Ellis

Leave a comment
out of 5 stars (4 / 5)

Dir: Joanna Hogg. Certificate 12a, 96mins.

I took it in my stride that I had the ending of this film spoiled by ladies who had seen an earlier screening. Turns out The Eternal Daughter was secretly filmed during lockdown, another A24 flutter, they seem to be getting bigger and bigger.

Tilda Swinton is Julie Hart and her mother Rosalind, who arrive to an estate in North Wales, the former seeking script ideas, the latter to remember past trips to the place. As their holiday goes by, things are not what it seems for anyone involved, the hotel filled with mystery and secrets. Julie struggles with writer’s block during her stay and her mother recounts several deeply sad stories of her previous time there. Julie finds herself recording many conversations, desperate for ideas.

Hogg has honoured the tradition of the classic gothic, ghost story and has kept a lot of its trappings in the big, gloomy estate. It is more atmosphere, less spooks, with green lights, branchs scraping upon windows and eerie late night scuffling. The decent score features a flute heavy air, later revelled as a diagetic sound, related to a minor character in the film. The use of Bartók is effective, recounting The Shining in the chill factor. The beautiful spaniel in the film easily upstaged Tilda in either role, often crying and spread across the fine furnishings. Carly-Sophia Davies, who also introduced the film, plays a fed up receptionist, getting great bouts of attitude problems.

Some strange continuity errors appear baked into the film, Julie and Rosalind will be in their beds in one scene, only to be seen the next shot in the bed of the other. This, I can only assume ties into the reveal at the end. This film was spoilt for me, and I dont want to give it away. Knowing this plot twist made me focus more on aspects of The Eternal Daughter I wouldn’t have done, if not knowing. Aside from the strange continuity, you don’t pick up much in what the twist might be.

Having said this, I throughly enjoyed it’s humour, character development and brief run time.

The Eternal Daughter is out now on limited release. 

Film & TV

Review Anatomy of a Fall by James Ellis

Leave a comment

out of 5 stars (2 / 5)

Anatomy of a Fall, Dir: Justine Triet. Certificate 15, 152mins

After much buzz at winning the Palme d’Or, Justine Triet and her Alpine whodunnit could just be an Oscar contender for next year. I’m still thinking of last year’s winner: The Triangle of Sadness  and it’s safe to say I much prefer that oddity over this.

Out of the few cinema encounters I’ve had his year, The Anatomy of a Fall is my least favourite. There are several things I struggled with. Our lead character Sandra, and her son Daniel are grieving the loss of husband and father, Samuel. This fall in question is from their chalet, as pounding steel drum RnB is heard throughout, Sandra unable to continue with an interview recording at the same time. She becomes suspect number one and the entirety of the film is her striving for innocence, aside the doubts and experiments of her blind son Daniel. We along with the law, discover the fraught relationship between Sandra and Samuel, the latter having contributed to the blinding of their son. Can Sandra come away from the accusations? Or is she or Daniel involved in something more sinister?

The performances fair well, Sandra Hüller as Sandra is highly appealing, stoic in many moments, impassioned in others. This is a highly convincing role. Milo Machado Graner as Daniel, impressing as a child performer with acting chops I think any child aspiring in the industry would envy. Sandra’s defendant is Swann Arlaud as Vincent, an elegant and subtle role. Samuel Theis as Samuel (I am wondering why some actors are playing their namesake in character), is seen through flashbacks, though mostly through his voice memos. One blazing scene between the couple, later played in court goes into their furious deterioration and I’d say, is the best scene in the film.

It was a bit on the long side in length. My major gripe is some strange camera ideas and supporting actors not quite fitting the roles within the court. I’m no expert, but the way some of proceedings for the trail were executed had some odd, fast and loose qualities. Being mostly in French, the film takes some typical swipes at the English language, Sandra being German spoke it with French partner Samuel as it was easier for her. The court insist she speak French, even though a translator is present. Bizarrely, Jehnny Beth as Marge, is Daniel’s guardian issued by the court, has a near identical haircut to him. The flippant remark about Sandra being being bisexual,  might have led into an interesting fling with Marge. This was not explored. I just cannot get over the ludicrous dramatic zoom in upon the judges face, right after the fight recording is played. Something which really brought me out if the film.

We never really find out what exactly happened to Samuel, there was talk of suicide, Sandra getting off scot free, even with the frayed relationship with her son. If I am spending this much time in a film, I do insist on at least some form of closure.

Anatomy of a Fall is out now on limited release. 

Featured, Film & TV, Music, Musical, Theatre

Review: Everybody’s Talking About Jamie by Gemma Treharne-Foose

Leave a comment

out of 5 stars (4 / 5)

Press Night 23 October 2023

“A riotously upbeat tale for our times….” 

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie (playing at the WMC until the 28th October) has had a meteoric success since the original documentary about 16 year old Jamie New (who wants to be a drag queen) was introduced to us on our TV screens in 2011. Since then, we’ve seen a musical, an award-winning world tour and a movie starring Richard E Grant and Sharon Horgan. Attending the opening night in Cardiff with my teenage daughter, I wondered if the setting of much of the play (in a typically grim British state school) would chime with her or potentially be shot down as a sad attempt by Millennials to capture Gen Z culture…never an easy line to tread!

It’s the kind of premise that would make a Daily Mail reader’s head explode. We have a gloriously camp 16 year old Jamie New who daydreams of stardom as the next big thing in the Drag scene. His accomplice, a Muslim, hijab-wearing Pritti Pasha (Talia Palamathanan) is his best friend and wing-woman. Supporting his bold and some might say outrageous career aspirations while maintaining her own moral and religious code, the friendship represents the kind of unity and integration that we all wish for. This is never too forced, or too jarring in its earnestness. Talia Palamathanan’s voice is absolutely sensational and her solo number ‘It means beautiful’ (by Dan Gillespie Sells) is stunningly delivered and I saw multiple folks around me wiping away the tears at the end of the number.

Huge credit for first-class character work and rapport with the audience must go to Shobna Gulati as Ray and stand-in Georgina Hagan (who was replacing Rebecca McKinnis as Jamie’s Mum Margaret New the night I attended). Georgina’s two solo tracks “If I met Myself Again” in Act 1 and “My Boy” in Act 2 were truly some of the best numbers in the show. Georgina’s vocals gave me goosebumps and although I’m not usually a fan of sequences with contemporary dance peppered into some scenes, Georgina’s emotional delivery took the whole scene to the next level. The dancers accompanying her were superb – it helped to tell the story and made Georgina’s incredible vocals even greater.

Some of the set-up for Jamie’s big reveal may remind you of Billy Elliott (young Northern lad overcomes toxic and stifling masculinity and a troubled father-Son relationship to follow his dreams, plucky ‘Diamond in the rough’ family members will rally around to support him when it really counts, etc etc). But this show, though perhaps formulaic in places, manages to simultaneously pack in a great story, outstanding choreography, quality songs and a great set. I wasn’t a huge fan of the visuals on the screens behind the stage set – it made the overall look and feel a little ‘commercial-like’ or trying to be like MTV or a swishy campaign when the action and performance on stage really is enough to carry the show…no glossy brand-like photography needed!

Hot on the heels of the incredible Layton Williams who played Jamie New in 2019 (and is now fox-trotting across our screens in BBC’s Strictly), is Ivano Turco. Ivano’s performance as Jamie is spectacular. Sometimes when you listen to the original soundtrack to popular musicals, it can feel like it’s not possible to improve on this ‘original recipe’ – and no disrespect to anyone on the original soundtrack but Ivano’s silky smooth voice is like honey. His approach to the songs is beautifully soulful and his relationship and interaction with Georgina Hagan as his Mum was lovely.

My daughter and I LOVED this show. We listened to all the songs again on the drive back home and we’ll be closely following Ivano’s career – he’s destined for a glittering future. This is a gloriously upbeat tale for modern times and it’s a dopamine booster. Highly recommend it!

Film & TV

Series Review, Anfamol, S4C, by Gareth Williams

Leave a comment

out of 5 stars (4 / 5)

A Welsh adaptation of Fleabag seems quite superfluous in the face of Anfamol’s success. For this is a production that takes the best of Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s comedy and turns it into something original. First conceived as a stage play, the critical acclaim which it received has seen Rhiannon Boyle now adapt it for the screen. She has taken the frank, witty, dark and direct elements of her monologue and traversed them into a script that is punchy and pointed, hilarious and harrowing. The result is a five-part series that injects S4C’s schedule with something that is vivaciously fresh. Boundary-pushing at its best.

Bethan Ellis-Owen reprises her role as Ani, a forty-something single woman looking to become a mother on her own terms. Ellis-Owen brings a subtle sharpness to her emotions; able to portray dogged determination and inner brokenness with apposite aplomb. Her knowing side-looks to camera borrow unashamedly from Waller-Bridge; while the addition of fantasy sequences, particularly with exotic sperm donor Estevez, offer the kind of quirky aside that feels distinctly Welsh. (Think Parch or Enid a Lucy). There is a dark side to such visions however. For alongside the comic that, in part, comes from its overtness to sex and unabashed portrayal of the fertility process is the devastating effects of postnatal depression and the exacting reality of life as a single mum. Ellis-Owen manages to navigate these emotional shifts with ease; and in doing so, presents to us a character that is highly empathetic, and authentic in every way.

She is joined by a stellar support cast, of which Sara Gregory is the most prevalent. Playing Nia, a kind of nemesis to Ani, Gregory brings a chic strength to her character that cleverly masks a hidden life of sadness and despair. While publicly portraying herself as “Blueprint Mother” online, privately, Nia is struggling. Her birth-plan goes out the window; her marriage is distant, husband absent; and when Ani trolls her online, her success as an online blogger is left in tatters. But along with Ani’s seemingly perfect sister (played by Lowri Gwynne), the drama comes to a point where perfection is extinguished as a myth and vulnerability is celebrated in all its f***ed-up glory. Sticking two fingers up to the chauvinistic, infantile male sex at the same time, it becomes a powerful and thought-provoking piece on feminism, motherhood and mental health in the present age.

Anfamol continues S4C’s excellent batch of female-led dramas whilst offering something very different to what has come before. And though it may feel derivative of Fleabag, it is by no means a copy of it. It has its own distinct subject matter and significant narrative to tell.

Click here to watch the series.

Reviewed by
Gareth Williams

Film & TV, Literature, Theatre

Review: Life of Pi, Wales Millennium Centre by Gemma Treharne-Foose

Leave a comment

out of 5 stars (3 / 5)

Press Night Oct 18th 2023 

‘A visual feast…’

Those who watched Ang Lee’s film adaptation of Yann Martel’s 2001 novel will be familiar with the premise of Life of Pi. A young 16-year old boy from Pondicherry in India is launched into an epic adventure as the ship carrying his family and their zoo to a new life in Canada sinks – and he finds himself adrift in the ocean with only a fearsome Bengal tiger for company. 

Through the prism of Pi’s recollections later in a hospital ward, we hear how he survives 227 days at sea – and how the narrative which we come to believe – as bizarre and hallucinogenic it seems – is later completely turned on its head. 

This is a story exploring themes of religion, the complexities of people, the sanctity and sentience of animals and the sheer will to survive. The degree to which this stage adaptation adds to or takes away from both the book and Ang Lee’s film adaptation is up for debate, however. 

Previous reactions to the stage tour all seem to touch on this production being a “visual feast” or “an incredible visual adaptation”, “aesthetically pleasing” or that the puppeteers and animals steal the show. This is most certainly true – the production’s stunning set, magical special effects and masterful puppetry will wow the senses and pack a visual punch. 

But some of the book and film’s deeper delves into the philosophies of the human experience and the hypocrisies of religion are lost somewhat in this truncated stage adaptation. Speaking for myself and my father, seeing this stage show for the first time, we found ourselves disliking and feeling upset by some of the depictions of animal suffering. Truth be told, we can’t even stomach David Attenborough’s programmes these days.

This unease mind you, is probably a sign of the incredibly well-executed puppetry and choreography by the team. This did remind me also of the discomfort I felt watching Ang Lee’s film. So absorbed was I by the idea that the animals were suffering, I probably missed some of the intended broader points of the story. The highlight of this production, then becomes focused on the mode of delivery of the story rather than the story itself. Because the plot is pretty harrowing and – to quote a former colleague of mine who I bumped into in the show’s interval: “pretty grim”. 

This is not a stage show that will not exactly elevate or lift you as some productions can. It illustrates the difficult line writers and directors tread in that no creative really wants to spoon feed their audience and only serve up neat and today tales in a pretty little bow. But in the quest to make us think and engage us with what’s going on via the mechanisms of the stage production, we lose the potential to get under the skin of the characters and get to know them well. The characters become pawns for pondering the story, rather than characters you truly care about. Life of Pi is also an exploration of the stories we tell and how they come to form part of our “truth” – and as an audience you’ll be confronted with these idiosyncrasies in live time, preferring one version of “truth” over another. 

As an audience, we become desperate for those light moments of relief when Pi makes a quip, when the stars come out, when the glowing wiggly fish arrive because we’re reminded of the moments of light relief and beauty in a world that can be truly depressing and awful at times. As Pi tells Ms Okamoto in the hospital ward: “I’ve had a TERRIBLE journey…” 

Life of Pi in 2023 hits differently. You’ll think about how some things never change. When Pi’s family flee India due to the dangerous unrest (supposedly echoing Indira Ghandi’s 1976 declaration of “The Emergency”), you’ll ponder the plight of others in the world who now face becoming refugees in hostile territories, as we see playing out when the family are treated poorly by crew and passengers on route to Canada. 

Huge congratulations and oceans of praise must go to the energetic and engaging Divesh Subaskaran playing Pi. His physicality and presence in the lead role is stupendous, leaping from one side of the boat / bed to the other and embodying all of the trauma, hope and mania of Pi during his tumultuous journey across the sea. His stamina, his powerful voice, warmth and wit shine through even in the bleakest of times. You are rooting for him from the very beginning and willing for his terrible story to take a turn for the better. The chemistry and rapport between Divesh and Keshini Misha playing Pi’s sister Rani is sweet, offering up a ray of hope ahead of the family’s ill-fated journey. 

Finally, the purveyors of the visual magic in this show have to be set and costume designer Tim Hartley, Puppetry and Movement Director Finn Caldwell. The lighting, visual effects and projections in this production are wonderful thanks to Andrzej Goulding and Tim Lutkin. 

Life of Pi may not be an easy watch – but it’s certainly a beautiful one.

Film & TV, Theatre

Review, Rebecca, Charing Cross Theatre, London by James Ellis    

Leave a comment

Photo credit: Mark Senior

out of 5 stars (2 / 5)

After a hefty scandal in its original outing, the German take on the classic English book Rebecca as a musical has finally made it to London. Sadly, the curse which is synonymous with the story still leaves it mark…

The elegance and intrigue of Daphne Du Maurier’s tale has not translated well in this staging by Alejandro Bonatto. There is something of a pantomime about the whole thing. I can assume the budget was right for this, even with some practical use of quite a small stage, designer Nicky Shaw should get a shoutout for this. The songs by Michael Kunze and Sylvester Levay have some charm and passion, but remain remarkably old fashioned. Precise extracts from the novel are present, yet it’s the generic vocal line and unappealing melodies which stand out. I spent over 14 hours listening to the audio book and it’s amazing how much was the story just stops and starts on stage. This tension does not always work when you have to take a break with songs.

The cast are vocally fine, with what they are given. I was pleased with the loud and proud ensemble who play the service staff, salty sailor types and Monte Carlo snobs. Our leading lady is never given a first name, the mark of Rebecca as Mr de Winter’s first wife looms over all. As “I”, said second wife is Lauren Jones who works well in the unassuming role. She puts up with a lot, curiously there is no mention of children or plans for any from either wife. Elements of Jane Eyre cannot be denied either. As Maxim de Winter, I wasn’t so convinced with Richard Carson, though dashing and subtly spoken. I didn’t really get the outbursts nor mental anguish from his time with Rebeca and here death. A singing voice that felt quite Les Mis, marginally less depressing than that show.

Kara Lane had fun as Mrs Danvers, perhaps the most fascinating living character in the story. Obsessed with Rebeca whom she always cared for, her singing reach absurd moments belting out the title characters name, some of the best moments in the show. The supporting cast varied from compassion to miscast. Some problematic aspects…the role of Ben who feels quite Sondheim like was played with conviction from an adorable David Breeds, his broken, mysterious, lines signs straight from the book. Sarah Harlington as Beatrice might be the best suited for any of these roles, Piers Bate as Frank Crawley getting little time to show sympathy in the ongoing scandal. Emily Apps as Clarice and Alex James-Ward as Rebecca’s cousin also worked well in the scattered pacing.

Its rare that I’m annoyed with a show. Rebeca deserved better.

Rebecca runs at Charing Cross Theatre till 18th November 2023.

Film & TV, Literature

Review, An Audience with Lucy Worsley on Agatha Christie, St David’s Hall by James Ellis

Leave a comment

Photo credit: Hay Festival/Paul Musso

Perhaps best known for her documentaries on the telly, Lucy Worsley remains a vision of the past. It remains her openness, her determination to shed light upon these famous female figures throughout English history that is endearing. Her girlish charm, her sensible style and swift wit are what make you fall in love with her.

Her arrival to the Cardiff stage was everything I expected it to be and I was still elated. Gracing the space in a nymph like green and sparkly number, her time throught the night was on the murder mystery mistress Agatha Christie. All this to smoothly plug her new book, which people, bought in droves on the night. Impressive to hear that over a thousand tickets had been sold for the Cardiff talk alone.

Christie, here is given the full shake down by Worsley. Her upbringing in Torquay, two separate marriages swirled with affairs, archeology and aging gracefully. The might of her huge selling power in novels galore is commendable, though I’m thinking “was she truly a great writer?”, our presenter saying Murder in the Vicarage is a work of genius. It’s easy to tap into Agatha’s old psyche to see why she loved stories that involed murder and the mode of finding the killer. Work as a nurse during WWI, might pertian to certain horrors, her need to write with a driving force of creation her fuel. Catharsis unbounded.

Lucy makes a PowerPoint presentation funny, thoughtful and expectedly educational. Her reach spans far with TV work, books, live events and job at Hampton Court Palace. We won’t dare mention what a contractor once said to her when she was knocking about with her parasol one day! Though I must confess, I think I might respectfully disagree with Lucy over Christie’s famous disappearance. Her hubbie’s affair put her into an apparent fugue state, which resulted in a suicide attempt, hiding in a hotel for two weeks, alleged amnesia and apparently…a South African accent. If she was faking it, I doubt she could be blamed, her husband pushing her over the edge in mental and physical realms (she planned to force her car over some sand dunes). We are never ourselves in extraordinary circumstances.

Though I doubt I’ll be reading Lucy’s recent page flutter, this was a thoroughly good evening and meeting her after was a briefly, real delight, the longest queue behind me itching to meet her themselves.

Lucy Worsley continues on tour around the UK.

Agatha Christie by Lucy Worsley is available to buy now.

Film & TV

Review, The Martin Decker Show, A Kevin Jones/Keiron Self Co-production, by Gareth Williams

Leave a comment

out of 5 stars (4 / 5)

The Covid lockdowns presented both challenges and opportunities for creatives. For actor Keiron Self and producer Kevin Jones, The Martin Decker Show was conceived in such a context and now reaches its climax in a 70-minute film. Shot almost entirely on iPhone and GoPro cameras, it is a witty and cleverly conceived mockumentary that parodies the self-made ‘stars’ of social media. It lightly pokes fun at the online world of gaming and fitness videos while telling a story that contains a real depth of emotion. I was pleasantly surprised by its ability to be both humorous and heartbreaking. It is by turns off-piste and tragic.

Fans of Self will recognise in his protagonist some of the hapless romanticism of another of his characters, Roger Harper, from the sitcom My Family, for which he’s best known. In Martin Decker though there is a repressed sadness behind the jollity that eeks out as the narrative progresses. This results in a story that is full of pathos, made all the more prominent by the comedy on which it is built. What is witnessed is, in essence, a mid-life crisis; a mental breakdown of sorts of a white, middle-aged man who refuses to accept that his wife no longer loves him. The film ingeniously points to this state of affairs: from the slightly rundown semi-detached dwelling to Martin’s loose-fitting appearance in shirt and tie, not to mention the many calamitous moments while filming videos for his YouTube channel. He is, in many ways, a reincarnation of Keith Barrett, actor-comedian Rob Brydon’s character in the sitcom Marion & Geoff. He certainly displays the same kind of false positivity that at once draws sympathy and pity. But there is also a growing insanity, presented in such an offbeat style that one is forced to laugh at him at times, in spite of oneself and his situation. Martin’s stubborn refusal to admit what is happening right in front of him becomes both the cause and effect of his comedic value. Add in the deadpan commentary of Lynne Seymour, who also plays Martin’s wife, and it is a recipe for pure entertainment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHGsTmvHc4Q

There is a serious side though. For encased within scenes of Minecraft videos and tinselled-up cars are genuine moments of tragedy. They beat palpably through the silence which is held by Self with such deftness that it’s hard not to be emotionally struck by the hopelessness and humility of his personal circumstance. It comes to a head in the bathroom, where most of Martin’s videos have been shot. He hides in a cupboard from whom he thinks is his wife’s new fella when, in fact, it is her. There is something incredibly poignant about her message to him, delivered, as it is, via the very camera that he has used to form his own YouTube channel. The consequence, when he finally faces up to reality, is so simply and beautifully done that one is left to admire, with satisfaction, a film of unexpected depth and genuine charm.

The Martin Decker Show may start with its protagonist faking applause for his own show. But by the end, this real audience member was clapping authentically, so impressed was I by this lockdown creation.

For more info, including cinema screening dates, click here.

Reviewed by
Gareth Williams
Film & TV

Review, Barbie by James Ellis 

Leave a comment

out of 5 stars (4 / 5)

Barbie, Dir: Greta Gerwig. 12a, 114 mins

The summer of 2023 in cinema circles will be best remembered for the bizarre joining of the forces of Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer and Greta Gerwig’s take on Barbie. Both released on the same day, “Barbenheimer”, as it’s been dubbed might just save the cinema after all, this double feature proudly making millions and creating debates on both films themes.

Unsurprisingly, Barbie the film has rilled up all the wrong people and we are here for it. Some declaring it woke, anti-men, sexist, alt-right and everything in between. With some sprawling marketing, the film has cleverly trudged through the premise of making an actual Barbie film, made by the its creators Mattel. We didn’t need this back in 1990’s, The Simpsons episode ‘Lisa vs. Malibu Stacey’ perfectly captured the thoughts of many. Todd Haynes infamous Karen Carpenter film will never be released due to the use of her unlicensed music, brilliantly uses Barbie dolls to tackle the eating disorders of its leading lady. We’ve had Babrie be used and discussed as above, yet this is her first official feature. Does it work?

Greta Gerwig has made the right Barbie film for our current climate. Unafraid to poke fun at men, Mattel, misogyny and more. Her and Noah Baumbach have written a strange and genuinely funny script which at times pops as much as the tower of pink we as an audience cannot escape. The sets and costumes here are as hyper and over the top as you’d expect. Margot Robbie could only ever be perfect as this Barbie, what might be her most delightful role for some time. She is baffled as to why she after living her perfect life, is now feeling depressed and getting cellulite. Sent to the quirky Kate McKinnon as Oracle like Weird Barbie (a nod to the children who played too rough with their dolls). She tells Barbie to go out into the real world and find the child who is actually playing with her.

What follows is often sharp and so anti-men, I went along with it knowing it was in good humour. Stealing the show is Ryan Gosling as Ken, who is bound to win awards for his take on the role. The lavish musical number “I’m just Ken” is destined for an Oscar nom as well. Ryan embraces everything wrong with toxic men, feeling useless in Barbieland and then empowered by the patriarchy in our own world. It’s outrageous just how much Barbie is harrassed the moment she arrives in our realm, a groper she hits, instantly lines her up for a mugshot, with a joyous Ken.

I had a thought that a plot twist boy would be playing with this Barbie, but it turns out it’s the mother Gloria, who has started to play with Sasha, her daughter’s dolls. Some sweet and apt moments occur between Anerica Ferrera and Ariana Greenblatt, yet it’s not why we are here. The lack of conflict and a villain slows down the dynamics of the film too. It could have shaved off some ten minutes aside. Will Ferrell as the Mattel CEO, is his typical, giddy self, though him fainting on the corporate board table might just be his funniest moment in the film. An ensemble of other Barbies, Kens and other odd casting choices adds style, dirty jokes and a well needed diversity to proceedings. Michael Cera playing as Alan, Ken’s friend who had a limited release as a doll, is clever casting as he defines the nervous, other guy at the party that is Barbieland. Helen Mirren is underplayed as a matter of fact, yet catty narrator, first heard in the opening Space Odyssey parody.

The film is rife with Barbie lore, spanning decades: the dolls they would rather forget and the cult ones they are happy to wink at. Many an Easter egg is to be found here and there are some sweet scenes concering Barbie’s creator that I won’t spoil. Even if some of her rhetoric is out dated and questionable.

Also, it has to be said that this is isn’t really a children’s film (it’s a 12a), unless parents are willing to answer some big questions they might be faced with during and after a screening. The last line of the film caught me right off guard.

Barbie is out now on general release.  

Film & TV, Music

Review Meltdown, Johnny Jewel & Zola Jesus, Southbank Centre by James Ellis

Leave a comment

out of 5 stars (5 / 5)

The Southbank would simply Meltdown from the heat. This year’s fest sees Christina and the Qeens platforming an array of lush artistic activity. Our warm up for Johnny Jewel was Zola Jesus.

Zola arrived on stage, vamp and punk and I was in love. She said she rarely uses piano and was treated to a concert grand, she couldn’t believe her luck. With wild operatic vocal and an easy pop aura, I found myself taken unawares. Her own songs were introspective and honest. I never expect to hear Dido’s Lament by Purcell. Folk songs were also offered from Ukraine and Armenia. She has this extasic quality about her. Most certainly the discovery of the festival. I’d love to hear more feverish opera!

The main event was Johnny Jewel, best known for his work on the new Twin Peaks from David Lynch. His set used clips from the films he worked on, Lost River, Bronson and Drive aside old horror including The Nude Vampire and A Bay of Blood. It’s the piercing synths and all round heightened flair that Johnny brings to his sound world. Tell Me a stunningly touching song with vocals from Saoirse Ronan was heard near the end and I’m so glad it was. The spine tingling saxophone solo for his Windswept in Twin Peaks The Return was a real highlight, with video from the whole of the show’s run. His bow at the end appeard to have broken him, back bent for a durational period.

What an utter thrill to hear live. Won’t you come back, Jonnhy?

Meltdown runs till 18th June 2023