Critical Week: On a mission

Well, the 93rd Oscars managed to completely reinvent their ceremony for the pandemic era, although the severely simplified structure left it feeling a bit awkward. A host would have helped provide some humour, context and connectivity. The one comedy bit didn't work at all (aside from Glenn Close's apparently not-so-impromptu jig), and the order shuffle at the end left it ending on a dry note. But the winners were all hugely deserving, and it was great so see people celebrating in one place together.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Limbo • About Endlessness • Laddie
The County • Truman & Tennessee
Heavy Trip • The Outside Story
PERHAPS AVOID:
Without Remorse
ALL REVIEWS >

Back to the movies, the big movie this week was Without Remorse, Michael B Jordan's take on the Tom Clancy franchise-launcher. Jordan delivers the goods, but the film is rather tough going. More intriguing is the sci-fi drama Stowaway, with its low-key approach and philosophical themes, plus a terrific four person cast led by Toni Collette and Anna Kendrick. Much bigger still, Mortal Kombat is a big-scale battle epic that holds the interest in a guilty pleasure way, despite the simplistic plot.

A bit higher brow, Benedict Cumberbatch stars in the Cold War biopic The Courier, a tautly written, directed and acted thriller about a normal guy pulled into the spy game. Bob Odenkirk is solid in the derivative but engaging action thriller Nobody. Sebastian Stan and Denise Gough really go for it in the uneven Americans-in-Greece romance Monday. China's maestro Zhang Yimou brings his stunning visual approach to the riveting 1930s spy thriller Cliff Walkers. Veteran filmmaker Agnieszka Holland finds some superb textures in the fact-based 1950s Czech drama Charlatan. The dryly funny and enormously violent Dutch thriller The Columnist has its moments. And the stylish doc Some Kind of Heaven explores the lives of residents in America's most enormous retirement community, basically Disney World for pensioners. Hint: it isn't heaven for everyone.

Films to watch this coming week include the animated adventure The Mitchells vs the Machines, the marital drama The Killing of Two Lovers, the house party comedy The Get Together, the moviemaking action comedy In Action and the horror comedy Fried Barry.

Out on a limb: Oscar picks & predictions

I've never been particularly good at guessing how Oscar voters will cast their ballots, but I have to give it a go each year anyway. And I've seen all of the films, so at least I'm qualified, eh? That said, here are who I think will win, who I want to win and who could possible upset the field. As usual, I will be hoping for lots of upsets and surprises. There's nothing worse than a predicable Academy Awards ceremony. And thankfully, this year's strangely over-extended awards season and offbeat releasing schedules make it one of the least predictable line-ups in years...

PICTURE
Will / should win: Nomadland
Dark horse: Minari

INTERNATIONAL FILM
Will win: Another Round
Should win: Quo Vadis, Aida?

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
Will / should win: Soul
Dark horse: WolfWalkers

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Will win: My Octopus Teacher
Should win: Collective
Dark horse: Crip Camp

DIRECTING
Will / should win: Nomadland - Chloe Zhao
Dark horse: Promising Young Woman - Emerald Fennell

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Will / should win: Promising Young Woman - Emerald Fennell
Dark horse: Minari - Lee Isaac Chung

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Will / should win: Nomadland - Chloe Zhao
Dark horse: The Father - Christopher Hampton, Florian Zeller

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Will win: Carey Mulligan - Promising Young Woman
Should win: Frances McDormand - Nomadland
Dark horse: Viola Davis - Ma Rainey's Black Bottom

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Will win: Riz Ahmed - Sound of Metal
Should win: Chadwick Boseman - Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
Dark horse: Anthony Hopkins - The Father

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Will win: Yuh-Jung Youn - Minari
Should win: Maria Bakalova - Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Dark horse: Amanda Seyfried - Mank

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Will / should win: Daniel Kaluuya - Judas and the Black Messiah
Dark horse: Paul Raci - Sound of Metal

ORIGINAL SCORE
Will / should win: Soul - Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Jon Batiste

ORIGINAL SONG
Will win: Speak Now, One Night in Miami - Leslie Odom Jr, Sam Ashworth
Should win: Husavik,  Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga - Savan Kotecha, Fat Max Gsus, Rickard Goransson
Dark horse: Io Si (Seen), The Life Ahead - Diane Warren, Laura Pausini

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Will / should win: Nomadland - Joshua James Richards

FILM EDITING
Will win: Sound of Metal - Mikkel EG Nielsen
Should win: Nomadland - Chloe Zhao
Dark horse: The Trial of the Chicago 7 - Alan Baumgarten

PRODUCTION DESIGN
Will / should win: Mank -  Donald Graham Burt, Jan Pascale

COSTUME DESIGN
Will / should win: Ma Rainey's Black Bottom - Ann Roth

VISUAL EFFECTS
Will / should win: Tenet - Andrew Jackson, David Lee, Andrew Lockley, Scott Fisher

MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
Will win: Ma Rainey's Black Bottom - Sergio Lopez-Rivera, Mia Neal, Jamika Wilson
Should win: Pinocchio - Mark Coulier, Dalia Colli, Francesco Pegoretti

SOUND
Will / should win: Sound Of Metal - Nicolas Becker, Jaime Baksht, Michelle Couttolenc, Carlos Cortes, Phillip Bladh

Critical Week: Keep looking up

This is the final week in this year's wildly over-extended awards season, with the Academy Awards capping things off on Sunday night in Los Angeles. They're promising a fresh take on the awards show, mixing in-person events with virtual elements, so it will be interesting to see what the show's director Steven Soderbergh and friends come up with. And a relief to finally have this year's marathon behind us. Shadows' annual SWEEPSTAKES has racked up a record number of awards, tallied together to see this year's true winners.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Homeward • Tu Me Manques
Black Bear • Into the Labyrinth
ALL REVIEWS >

It's also been a busy week at the movies for me, with a bunch of smaller films. The Outside Story stars the terrific Brian Tyree Henry (above) as a homebody who gets locked out of his flat and learns some cosy but (ahem!) key life lessons. It's gently engaging, as is Percy vs Goliath, which stars Christopher Walken as a real Canadian farmer who takes on a greedy multinational corporation (is there any other kind?). And then there's the gifted RJ Mitte starring in the conceptual thriller The Oak Room, which spins stories within stories in a way that's likeable and rather chilling.

A bit further afield, the involving Stone Fruit uses nonstop dialog and naturalistic performances to knowingly explore a waning relationship, while Making Sense mixes brainy science with sudsy soap-style plotting for some low-budget fun. There were two lively, colourful docs:  Steelers tells the story of the world's first gay-inclusive rugby team in London, and House of Cardin looks at the fashion designer's work, and a bit of his personal life. The short film collection Upon Her Lips: Pure Feels features five strong clips about female emotionality, while the 15th anniversary director's cut of Another Gay Movie offers a great excuse to revisit this silly and strikingly bold pastiche comedy. And then there's this drama from Hong Kong, the only Oscar-nominated feature I hadn't seen. So now I'm all ready for Sunday night's ceremony...

Better Days

dir Derek Kwok-cheung Tsang
scr Lam Wing Sum, Li Yuan, Xu Yimeng
with Zhou Dongyu, Jackson Yee, Yin Fang, Huang Jue, Wu Yue, Zhou Ye, Zhang Yifan, Ran
release Chn 25.Oct.19, US/UK 8.Nov.19
19/China 2h15 ****

Taking on intense academic pressure as it's multiplied by ruthless bullying, this drama from Hong Kong has a striking visual style that cuts to the core of the issue. Director Derek Kwok-cheung Tsang shoots this with loads of visual style, capturing small details of teen life while depicting the everyday challenges of survival for China's underclass. The knotted plot is overlong, but it's powerful, important and strongly moving. And the two central performances are knock-outs.

The story takes place in 2011 in Anqiao, as Nian (Zhou) is preparing for her university entrance exam. After a friend commits suicide due to bullying, the mean girls ramp up their violent attacks on Nian. Her mother (Wu) is only concerned about grades, so Nian feels she can't talk to her. She's also so conscientious that she can't help but go to the assistance of teen petty criminal Bei (Yee) as he's being brutally beaten by thugs. Afterwards, they develop an unusual friendship, as he becomes her protector.

Students in Nian's class are desperate to get into prestigious universities, and because she's not as pretty as the other girls but gets better marks, they ruthlessly harass her in ways that are genuinely horrific. Young detective Zheng (Fang) is shocked by these cold-hearted girls. And it's painful to see how such vile abuse has left Nian scared and worryied about the mental health of her only remaining school friend. And all of this is beautifully countered by her warmly offbeat connection with Bei.

Nian believes that everything will be fine once she makes it past the exam, but Bei tries to ground her. Their evolving friendship is infused with humour and beautifully played interaction that hints at a possible romance without being seedy about it. The script sometimes gets preachy regarding the topic, but it feels earned. Yes, the violence is difficult to watch at times, while some of the plot's twists are emotionally wrenching, but the tenderness is simply gorgeous.

15 themes, language, violence • 19.Apr.21

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In the next couple of days, I'll catch up with this week's big releases Stowaway, a space-mission drama with Toni Collette, and Mortal Kombat, the videogame-based action battle thriller. There's also Bruce Dern in The Artist's Wife, the 1950s-set Czech drama Charlatan, the Dutch revenge-comedy The Columnist and the care home doc Some Kind of Heaven. I'll also be up all night on Sunday to watch the Oscars live at London time.

Critical Week: Enjoy the view

London began reopening this week, and after four months of lockdown it feels like Christmas! The weather is brightening up too, although it's still chillier than it should be. Meanwhile, the movies I've been watching have been a bit further from the mainstream than previous weeks, including Ed Westwick and Louise Linton in the pitch-black rom-com Me You Madness, which is uneven but engaging. Dustin Hoffman stars in the brain-bending Italian thriller Into the Labyrinth, an over-ambitious film that looks great and has a nice Lynchian touch. And the edgy teen drama Beast Beast adopts an approach that feels fresh even as it explores familiar themes.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Gunda • True Mothers
In the Earth • The Banishing
PERHAPS AVOID:
I'm Not in Love • Sensation
ALL REVIEWS >

There were also four documentaries. Truman & Tennessee: An Intimate Conversation is like a double biopic, beautifully edited together to explore the parallel lives of two iconic writers who were close friends. Laddie: The Man Behind the Movies is a terrific trip into film history, warmly exploring the life of producer Alan Ladd Jr, who was responsible for getting a huge number of timeless classics made. And from Norway, Gunda is a wordless black-and-white look into a pig's life on a farm. It's utterly enchanting, and sharply pointed too. I also caught up with this Oscar-nominated documentary...

The Mole Agent  [El Agente Topo]

dir-scr Maite Alberdi; prd Marcela Santibanez

with Sergio Chamy, Romulo Aitken, Berta Ureta, Marta Olivares, Rubira Olivares, Petronila Abarca, Zoila Gonzalez

release Chl 21.Aug.20, US 28.Aug.20,  UK 11.Dec.20 

20/Chile 1h24 ****.

This documentary plays like a reality show, as a private investigator hires an elderly man to go undercover in a retirement home. The story unfolds with the engaging pace of a breezy adventure, as each scene is infused with witty observations. Filmmaker Maite Alberdi shoots this expertly, making it feel more like an scrappy comedy than the fly-on-the-wall doc that it actually is. But of course, there's something much more serious going on here, and Alberti's film becomes a warm exploration of age that's both entertaining and deeply moving.

After interviewing a hilarious line-up of men in their 80s and 90s, investigator Romulo hires the alert Sergio and teaches him to use spy cameras in pens and glasses and call in reports using FaceTime. His job is to make sure that the mother of Romulo's client isn't being mistreated. Once inside, Sergio settles in to his secret task, interviewing people and reporting back to Romulo. Meanwhile, sparky resident Berta befriends Sergio and makes a move. And she's not the only one. But then with 40 women and only four men, it's hardly surprising that the charming Sergio is elected king.

Alberdi hilariously plays with the format, as she drafts in a wide range of colourful characters. She even sends her film crew inside on a bogus job, so they can secretly document Sergio's mission. His reports are remarkably observant, and he even solves another mystery in the nursing home, but it's his compassion that wins us over. And his conclusion to the case is eye-opening. Alberdi's approach is so offhanded and amusing, that she catches us off-guard with the film's real agenda, exploring about how it feels to get old and live in a nursing home away from loved ones. These spirited retirees have a lot to teach us.  

PG themes • 24.Apr.21

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Even with cinemas still closed, there is no end of films to see at home, and review screeners to watch include Glenn Close in Four Good Days, Christopher Walken in Percy vs Goliath, RJ Mitte in The Oak Room, the designer doc House of Cardin, the rugby doc Steelers, the shorts collection Upon Her Lips: Pure Feels and the 15th anniversary director's cut of Another Gay Movie.

Critical Week: Fight the power

As lockdown slowly eases and London descends into a late-winter chill, the most striking film I saw this week came from Russia. Andrei Konchalovsky's Bafta-nominated Soviet drama Dear Comrades is a viscerally relevant story of profound injustice. It's unmissable. Otherwise, the week's big movie was a very late online screening of the monster mash-up Godzilla vs Kong, after it had already been released online in the USA, and therefore was already on all the pirate sites. It was an enjoyable action blockbuster, with above-average effects (even on a laptop screen) and a great cast running around pointlessly in the background. Really can't wait to be able to see these kinds of movies on enormous screens where they belong, but there's still around five weeks before cinemas in the UK reopen.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK: 
Palm Springs • The Truffle Hunters
Moffie • Rose: A Love Story 
Sequin in a Blue Room 
PERHAPS AVOID: 
Love, Weddings & Other Disasters
ALL REVIEWS >

Everything else was tiny by comparison. Christopher Smith's The Banishing is an above-average horror, with a solid script that deepens characters to make us care, and then to scare us. Sensation is a rather thinly written British sci-fi thriller about a guy who discovers he has some sort of sense-manipulative powers, although it's never terribly clear. Also a bit tentative, the underpowered British romcom I'm Not in Love is a well-played look at a key relational turning point. From Argentina, A Common Crime is a tricky thriller told in an uncanny low-key, often silent style. And the documentary The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart tells the remarkable story of the Gibb brothers, along with a strikingly relevant look at the music industry over the past half-century, plus of course a lot of great music. I also finally caught up with this documentary, which has been nominated for a Bafta on Sunday...

The Social Dilemma
dir Jeff Orlowski
scr Vickie Curtis, Davis Coombe, Jeff Orlowski
with Skyler Gisondo, Vincent Kartheiser, Jaron Lanier, Tristan Harris, Tim Kendall, Jeff Seibert, Shoshana Zuboff, Bailey Richardson
release US/UK 9.Sep.20
20/US Netflix 1h34 ****

Exploring the impact of big tech, this essential documentary opens with a quote from Sophocles: "Nothing vast enters the life of mortals without a curse." The filmmakers interview pioneers who built big platforms like Facebook, Google, Twitter and Instagram, who speak of how they're now frightened of the consequences. The central question is why the world seems to be going crazy at the moment, and why tech giants are so resistant to ethical design. And it's shocking to see how much control these companies have over their users.

The issue isn't easy to define, as social media impacts society in such a wide variety of ways, often hard to see. Platforms were deliberately designed to be addictive, and to implant subconscious thoughts users would never have on their own. So the point is that advertisers are clients, and the user's attention is the product that they're buying. Fine details about our lives and habits are fuelling huge profits, because advertisers are desperate for data that predicts our actions. This film lifts the curtain on exactly how all of this works, as well as the unintended consequences of letting this cat out of the bag.

Interviews and clips are framed with a knowing family drama (featuring Gisondo) that acts these things out, accompanied by whizzy, sci-fi effects sequences with Kartheiser as algorithmic puppet-masters. The raw truth is that these companies don't want to make our lives better, and they're not evil either; however, they're exploiting our psychology to make unprecedented profits without regulations or competition. And the impact is clear: anxiety levels have exponentially increased among young people, leading to a marked rise in self-harm and suicide. And since we're only seeing news that targets us, we're believing lies and building an increasingly polarised society.

This lucid, fascinating film outlines all of this clearly, including how these systems were designed to learn and evolve on their own, to the point that even the people who manage them don't know how they work and don't yet have the will to correct them, because capitalism demands increased profits. Which is deeply terrifying as persuasive technology magnifies conspiracy theories and makes people willing to kill for them, literally threatening civilisation. So simply being aware that this isn't a fair fight is a positive step. As is taking steps to break the addiction. More importantly, never get your news from online-only outlets. And watch this film.

12 themes, language, violence • 6.Apr.21

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Coming up this next week, I'm planning to watch Dustin Hoffman in Into the Labyrinth, Dakota Fanning in Effie Gray, Ed Westwick in Me You Madness, and the docs Gunda, Steelers, Truman & Tennessee and Henry Glassie: Fieldwork.

Screen: April TV roundup

The seemingly never-ending lockdown continues to provide more time to watch television than usual, and I've squeezed in entire series between films over the past few months. It's been a largely mixed bag, with only a few triumphs: It's a Sin, Call My Agent (final season) and Young Rock (so far). There seems to be a bit of a lull at the moment, so I'm catching up with a couple of things before new stuff begins dropping in May. Here's what's kept me distracted since January...

Wandavision 
Just when you've think that Marvel has played all its cards, this show breaks new ground with its opening episodes, dead-on pastiches of sitcoms from the 1950s to the 90s. Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen have fun with the lead roles, playing to the laugh-track silliness while adding an undercurrent of dread. There are terrific side roles for Kathryn Hahn, Teyonah Parris and Randall Park. And the production values are extraordinarily cinematic for a half-hour TV series. Then reality flips and it becomes rather a lot more Marvelly, especially as it approaches another overblown, formulaic, effects-heavy finale. It's a shame that the story ultimately feeds the Marvel Universe beast, because this would have been iconic as a stand-alone show. (Disney)

It's a Sin 
Russell T Davies mines his personal history for this lively, telling series set in 1980s London. It's a strikingly fresh approach to the period, capturing a realistic mix of energy and life as a community of gay men faces the horror of the Aids outbreak. Olly Alexander shines in the central role, while newcomer Callum Scott Howells deserves to become a star for his terrific turn as the observant Colin. Davies has a gift for creating ensembles of recognisable people then sending them through literally earth-shattering events, while never losing either the humour or emotion. This approach makes the show a landmark exploration of the Aids pandemic, and with only five episodes it left us wanting more. (BBC)

Lupin
Fiendishly entertaining, these first episodes are labelled as "Part 1", and (warning!) they end on a cliffhanger that leaves us impatient for the next chapter. Omar Sy brings his outsized charisma to his gentleman-thief character Assanne, who was raised on, and seeks to emulate, the classic Maurice Leblanc stories about Arsene Lupin. The show's cat-and-mouse structure is a lot of fun, as are the elaborate heists and cons that fill each episode. And it'd also deepened with some complex interpersonal issues. There are a few rather obvious plot elements, but it's all so skilfully written and played that we're happy to go along with it. And now we're waiting impatiently for Part 2 in the summer. (Netflix)

The Irregulars
There's a lot to enjoy about this scrappy adventure-thriller about a group of offbeat teens in 1870s London. The writing is fairly simplistic, relying on corny horror, the usual relational carnage and a lot of magical mumbo jumbo, and the show seems oddly unsure how to handle the presence of Sherlock Holmes (a fascinating Henry Lloyd-Hughes). But Dr Watson (Royce Pierreson) adds intrigue to the shenanigans, and the young cast members manage to be likeable even though their characters are all a bit too reactionary, impulsive and downright angry about everything. Darci Shaw is particularly strong in a difficult role, delivering on the promise she showed as the young Judy Garland in Judy. (Netflix)

The Stand 
Stephen King's epic 1978 novel gets the sprawling series treatment, with a sometimes jarring structure that unevenly flickers around in time. The eerily resonant premise is set around a pandemic that kills 99.9 percent of humans, leaving the remnant to take a stand with good in Boulder (James Marsden and Whoopi Goldberg) or evil in Las Vegas (Alexander Skarsgard and Nat Wolff). The editing is unnecessarily choppy, and the direction makes the whole show look rather cheesy, but the excellent actors help the series build some momentum as things heat up. So it's frustrating that the writers and directors botch the climax then finish on a jarringly lacklustre epilog. (CBS)

Your Honor
This show's hyper-manipulative style makes it both gripping and annoying at the same time, particularly in the wildly intense, downright panicky first episode. And things remain at peak-pressure moving forward. Bryan Cranston is excellent as a determined judge compromised by his son's involvement in a hit and run that's linked to a mob boss and his fearsome wife (the terrific Michael Stuhlbarg and Hope Davis). The script throws everything imaginable at the characters, and then some. So even with the continuous glaring plot implausibilities and very few characters who remain likeable, it's compulsively watchable rubbish. (Sky)

The One
There's a terrific idea at the centre of this series: that DNA can be used to find your perfect match. Although there are serious problems with the writing, from a string of massive holes in the premise to an over-reliance on the tired procedural murder case that holds the series together. It would have been far more engaging to explore the central idea with more complexity. Side-plots are promising, but they're never developed into anything interesting, merely feeding into a dull mystery. The casting seems oddly dull, but the actors are strong enough to hold the interest. And of course there's always the hope that the show might go somewhere interesting. Alas, it doesn't. (Netflix)

ONGOING & ENDING

Young Rock
Dwayne Johnson has so much charisma that he's easy to watch in just about anything, and here he's playing a ridiculously starry version of himself, narrating his life story. Three terrific young actors play him at 10, 15 and 20, and after the choppy first episode it just gets better and better, inventively diving in for a nuanced and often hilarious exploration of each period in Johnson's entertaining young life, surrounded by riotous family members and colourful wrestlers. With its 2032 framing scenes (featuring the superb Randall Park interviewing Johnson about his presidential campaign), this series could run and run. And Johnson could no doubt run 11 years from now. (NBC)

Kim's Convenience: series 5
In its final season, this series continues with its collection of snappy and amusingly insecure people causing all kinds of awkwardness as they meddle in each others' lives. Simu Liu missed the first few episodes (as he was off being a Marvel star), but makes a welcome return. And each of the ensemble cast members continues to add wrinkles to his or her character, riffing off each other with silly enthusiasm. It's all very broad, and most of these people are infuriating; perhaps a bit more progression in the overall story arc would make it a classic. But it's hugely likeable, the humour is warm and often topically resonant, and in its own nutty way the show frequently touches a nerve. (CBC)

Call My Agent: series 4 
With another collection of perfect episodes, this awesome French comedy comes to an end after four seasons. Sigourney Weaver, Jean Reno and Charlotte Gainsbourg are among the actors playing themselves as they drive their agents around the bend.  And once again the ensemble led by Camille Cottin, Thibault de Montalembert and Gregory Montel are endearing, intrepid and hilariously inventive as they try to both save their firm and maintain relationships with their riotously passive aggressive clientele. There are only 24 episodes in total, and they are hugely binge-worthy. It's a shame they're not making more of them, but this is the kind of classic show that will be worth revisiting from time to time. (Netflix)

SECOND SERVINGS

Snowpiercer: series 2 
Things have become much more heated, as it were, in this second season, as Snowpiercer has merged with supply train Big Alice, bringing a new collection of troublemaking characters, including Sean Bean as the imperious Wilford. Emotional issues are bubbling up everywhere, and they bring far more interest than the action thrills. There are also intriguing things going on outside on the frozen-over earth, although sending Jennifer Connolly out there feels like a mistake dramatically, because the warring factions on the train aren't nearly as interesting as the slow-churning power struggle between her, Daveed Diggs and now Bean. Still, the season built to an exciting climax. (Netflix)

Dickinson: series 2 
There's an ongoing problem with this show, as it indulges in so many flights of fancy that it's difficult to determine what's actually happening in the plot and what's in the imagination of iconic poet Emily Dickinson, who is sharply well-played by Hailee Steinfeld. Plus of course the unmissable Jane Krakowski as her mum. The modern-day touches are witty and very clever, making this feel like a more accurate rendition of history than the usual po-faced approach. This also allows for some perhaps too-knowing references to present-day issues. And while there are real biographical elements scattered throughout each episode, the writers are mainly creating stories out of implications between the lines of poems and letters. (Apple)

Staged: series 2 
After making a splash with their offhanded, larky lockdown sitcom, Michael Sheen and David Tennant are back for more six months later. And the premise is hilariously inspired, as they try to sabotage Hollywood's efforts to make an American version of season 1 without them. Big stars again make witty cameos, including Whoopi Goldberg and Ben Schwartz as slippery agents, plus Cate Blanchett, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Ewan McGregor, Michael Palin, Jim Parsons and many more playing ridiculous versions of themselves. All of this is a knowing look at the insecurities of being an actor, played to perfection using video conferencing screens, then sharply edited to keep us chuckling. (BBC)

I GIVE UP

Raised by Wolves: The idea for this show was intriguing, and it came recommended, but I struggled to get through three episodes of ponderous moralising before giving up. I just couldn't find a reason to care about anyone on-screen. (HBO)

NOW WATCHING: Young Rock, The Queen's Gambit, The Conners (3), This Is Us (5), Kim's Convenience (5), Mom (8), Shameless (11).
LOOKING FORWARD: The Mosquito Coast, Pose (3), The Handmaid's Tale (4), Special (2), Younger (7).

Critical Week: Don't be shy

The weather perked up this week, giving us three days of summer-style heat to revel in just as lockdown restrictions eased slightly. It's been great to get outside each day and enjoy it, and I hope there's more of this soon (we've returned to the chill again today). Meanwhile, I'm back to normal movie-watching after the festival glut of the past two weeks. The most notable film I caught up with this past week was the Oscar-nominated Tunisian drama The Man Who Sold His Skin, a fiendishly clever and remarkably moving film that uses a true premise to explore enormous issues in an earthy, often witty way. 

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Undine • The Man Who Sold His Skin
PERHAPS AVOID:
Chaos Walking • Last Call
ALL REVIEWS >

There are also important themes in the Canadian drama Like a House on Fire starring Sarah Sutherland, although the film is relentlessly mopey. Jeremy Piven is charming but miscast in the loose, ramshackle comedy Last Call. The British romance The Drifters is an enjoyably freeform take on the immigrant experience with a slightly contrived plot. And from Kosovo, the dark drama Zana is a gloomy but involving look at the emotional devastation of war.

Films coming up this week include a very late press screening of the blockbuster mashup sequel Godzilla vs Kong, Jessica Brown Findlay in the horror The Banishing, the Argentine thriller A Common Crime and the Chilean doc The Mole Agent.