Critical Week: Bump in the night

It's been the third heatwave of the summer already, and I've been seeking refuge in air conditioned cinemas. There have been a few big screenings this week. We had a properly blood-soaked screening of the super-violent Evil Dead Burn, which kind of sidesteps the franchise for some gory horror. The live-action remake of Moana, is exactly like the 2016 animated original, but it helps to have actors Catherine Laga'aia and Dwayne Johnson on screen. 

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Shoot the People
The Last One for the Road
ALL REVIEWS >

As for movies outside the mainstream, Willem Dafoe gets a fantastic lead role in the smart, funny, moving drama Late Fame, costarring a scene-stealing Greta Lee. Sean Bean menaces Mackenzie Foy in the atmospheric, wintry Western The Isolate Thief. Finn Whittrock confronts his past in the thoughtful drama Westhampton. Summer campers get very silly, but also find some deeper meaning in The Floaters. And the doc Shoot the People is a bracing look at the work of British photographer Misan Harriman. 

Meanwhile, I also finally caught up with the brightly lit, extremely creepy Backrooms, complete with the Everything Must Go extra footage. And I finally watched the superb doc Marty: Life Is Short, celebrating the extraordinary life and career of Martin Short. Finally, there was a live performance of a bold Spanish-produced take on Shakespeare's Richard III at the Cockpit.

Coming up this next rather busy week, I'll be watching Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey, teen romance Heartstopper Forever, the biopic De Gaulle: Resistance, a film of Hadestown: The Musical, action thriller Son of the Soil, British romance A Year in London, Mexican drama Last First Time, the AI doc Synthetic Sincerity, the designer doc Brunello: The Gracious Visionary and a live performance of Blue Mist at the Theatre Royal Stratford East.

Critical Week: Lie low

With the big autumn festivals behind us, it feels like awards season kicked off this week, as studios begin jostling for attention with special screenings of their contenders. Channing Tatum gets one of his best roles yet in Roofman, the astonishing true story of a nice-guy criminal. It's entertaining and surprisingly moving too. I also attended a lively Q&A screening with Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt and writer-director Benny Safdie for another true story, The Smashing Machine. It's an unusually realistic mixed martial arts biopic with terrific performances from the whole cast.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Brides • Ellis Park
ALL REVIEWS >

Dylan O'Brien is terrific in Twinless, starring opposite gifted writer-director James Sweeney in an offbeat drama about grief and obsession. Marion Cotillard goes glacial in The Ice Tower, a too-murky fantasy about a teen girl who because fascinated by an actress on a film set. Eddie Marsan and Sam Claflin go very dark in All the Devils Are Here, an intriguing, artful British crime drama set in a gloomy farmhouse on a moor. 

Hong Kong icons Jackie Chan and Tony Leung face off in riveting, fast-paced cops-and-crooks thriller The Shadow's Edge. From Argentina, Kill the Jockey is a skilfully made and very quirky romp infused with dark emotions. And Justin Kurzel's doc Ellis Park beautifully explores the life of musician Warren Ellis and his involvement in rescuing animals in Indonesia. I also attended Acosta Danza's exhilarating A Decade in Motion on stage at Sadler's Wells. 

Films to watch this coming week include Leonardo DiCaprio in One Battle After Another (after I was unable to attend the only press screening), Riz Ahmed in Relay, Marlon Wayans in Him, Malcolm McDowell in The Partisan and Hunter Doohan in The Wilderness. There are also live performances of Lacrima at the Barbican and Get Down Tonight at Charing Cross Theatre.

Critical Week: Are you not entertained?

As we get stuck into November, the year's big titles are beginning to turn up at press screenings, and none is bigger than Ridley Scott's sequel Gladiator II, a mammoth epic set in Ancient Rome starring Paul Mescal, Denzel Washington and Pedro Pascal. The script is flawed (Connie Nielsen's role is criminally underwritten), but the film is hugely entertaining. Another sequel might even be more anticipated: while not as magical as No 2, Paddington in Peru is a charming, funny movie that sees our heroic little bear on an Amazon adventure accompanied by Olivia Colman and Antonio Banderas

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
No Other Land
Piece by Piece
ALL REVIEWS >

Another big one, Wicked: Part I stars Cynthia Erivo Ariana Grande and Jonathan Bailey (with added spark from Michelle Yeoh and Jeff Goldblum). It's gloriously assembled on a lavish scale, and we have to wait a year for Part II. Bill Skarsgard is imperious in Robert Eggers' profoundly horrific Nosferatu, costarring Nicholas Hoult, Lily-Rose Depp, Emma Corrin, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Willem Dafoe. Julianne Moore and Tilda Swinton find lovely textures in Almodovar's The Room Next Door, while Sebastian Stan, Renate Reinsve and Adam Pearson shine in the complex and powerfully provocative drama A Different Man. Meanwhile outside of awards contention, Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans provide some sparky banter in the otherwise over-familiar Christmas action comedy Red One. And the quirky British comedy Time Travel Is Dangerous is packed with hilarious performances and local North London gags.

This coming week I'll be watching the long-awaited Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl, the acclaimed animated adventure Flow, Isabelle Huppert in A Traveler's Needs, the biopic Bonhoeffer and more awards contenders. I'm also travelling to Southern California to visit family for a couple of weeks, and I'm sure to see a few things out there before it's time to submit my ballots.

Screen: April TV Roundup

I'm always amazed at how watching an episode or two every now and then adds up so quickly: these are the shows I saw over the past few months in between the movies and stage shows. I use TV as an amuse bouche to reset my brain between work, which is why I won't watch anything based around death (I avoid shows about detectives, doctors, lawyers or cops). I'm also not a huge genre fan, but I do get into some fan series now and then...

W H A T   A   D R A M A

The Mandalorian: series 3
Folding this show's narrative in line with other series is showing some strain, as writers abandon what made it so special to begin with. No longer a series of little adventures, it's now a big, overly complicated mega-plot with random action beats and far too much murky conspiracy-mongering. Plus stunt cameos. There are still small joys to be found, thankfully. And it does eventually bring story threads together in a meaningful, even exciting way. But Disney's cinematic universe-building has snuffed out this show's charm. (Disney). 

Star Trek - Picard: series 3 
This show gets bigger with each season, and this one sends Patrick Stewart's ageing admiral on an epic adventure as he takes on old but newly fearsome foes, all while being a fugitive from Starfleet justice. Over these episodes, he reassembles virtually the entire cast of The Next Generation (as well as the score), which is thrilling even without the enormous action set-pieces they are thrown into. The plots are properly mind-bending, which may make us long for more simplicity. But the show's ambition is impressive and hugely satisfying. (Paramount)

His Dark Materials: series 3
Philip Pullman's trilogy of novels come to their on-screen conclusion with a remarkable faithfulness to the material. Impressively produced to a high standard, this fantastical story reaches a powerful, startling conclusion. The excellent ensemble cast is led by the terrific Dafne Keen and Will Parry, as two young people pulled into a parallel-world adventure. And where it goes is remarkably mature, never speaking down to teens in the audience. It of course helps to have the likes of James McAvoy and Ruth Wilson on board. (BBC)

Welcome to Chippendales
Skilfully written by Robert Siegel, this series centres on the pioneering male-stripping venue and its shocking history of murders and suicides. It boldly takes on the American dream with complex, surprising results. And it features stellar performances from Kumail Nanjiani as businessman-founder Steve Bannerjee, Murray Bartlett as his creative genius cohort Nick Dei Noia and Annaleigh Ashford as Steve's brilliant wife Irene, plus ace support from the likes of Juliette Lewis, Robin de Jesus and Andrew Rannells. The show also cleverly mixes pitch-black elements with 1980s glitter. (Hulu)

Extrapolations
Ambitious and smart, this show challenges the viewer to think about the future as the episodes skip years ahead in time, from the 2030s to 2070. Loose connections along the way are clever, as are observations and conjecture. Although there are some undercooked elements, most notably the tech (clear glass screens look cool but are ludicrously impractical) and fashion. And some of the science sounds a bit iffy. But the stories have a strong kick to them, and the terrific A-list cast finds moving emotions along the way. (Apple)

Pretty Baby:
Brooke Shields
There's an astonishing honesty to this two-part documentary. A model virtually from birth, Shields was sexualised by the media from a very young age, treated as either a slut or a goody-goody, and never allowed to be either a complex person in her own right. She speaks openly throughout, accompanied by interviews with family and friends and an excellent archive of photos and footage. Through all of this, Shields is articulate and never afraid to explore even the darkest chapters of her life, from rape to postpartum depression. Which leads to a powerfully insightful conversation with her daughters. (ABC)

I T ' S   C O M I C A L

Beef
Steven Yeun and Ali Wong star in this pitch-black comedy about two angry people whose road rage incident blossoms into a full-on family feud. As it gets messier and messier, the show is sometimes very hard to watch, but the characters are so vivid that we can't look away. The writers sometimes push things into cartoonish territory, but the terrific cast keeps it grounded, including ace supporting players Joseph Lee, Young Mazino, David Choe and Maria Bello. Watching this is a harrowing experience, but it's packed with insight into human nature. (Netflix)

Shrinking 
Jason Segel brings his hangdog brand of comedy to this smart sitcom about psychologists who take their personal issues to work. As a recent widower with a sparky teen daughter (Lukita Maxwell), Segel is as likeable as ever. And his banter with colleagues Harrison Ford (who's hilarious) and Jessica Williams is a lot of fun. Coming from the team behind Ted Lasso, the tone is warm and gentle, which can leave scenes feeling like they need some edge. But the characters get increasingly endearing over the course of these 10 episodes. So it's good news that more are coming. (Apple)

That 90s Show
Rebooting That 70s Show with a new era of nostalgia, the writers cleverly bring back most of the original cast in cameo appearances, but centre around returning scene-stealers Kurtwood Smith and Debra Jo Rupp, now dealing with the antics of their granddaugher (Callie Haverda), who makes charming idiot friends while visiting for the summer. Most jokes and sight gags are the same, but by shifting everything by two decades there's a whole new perspective, plus an endless supply of things to make fun of. And the new characters are great. (Netflix)

History of the World: Part II 
Mel Brooks' 1981 movie History of the World: Part I finally gets a sequel. And it's as uneven as ever. Once again, all-star cameos populate the sketches, which usually simply take a historical event and overlay it with jokes based on either Jewishness, social media or both. It's not particularly clever, and some sequences are too silly to elicit a laugh, but it does have enough witty moments to make it worth a look. And some recurring performances are memorable, from Wanda Sykes as a sassy Shirley Chisholm to Jay Ellis as a super-cool Jesus. (Disney)

Unstable 
Rob Lowe teams up with his son John Owen Lowe to play, yes, father and son in this over-goofy sitcom set in a biotech company. Written by Lowe Jr, the script cleverly and mercilessly pokes fun at Lowe Sr, who plays a handsome-genius scientist who, working with his nutty scientists, might be able to save the planet from climate change. Each character is so broadly ridiculous that they're not particularly believable, but they're fairly hilarious, and well-played by Sian Clifford, Aaron Branch, Rachel Marsh, Emma Derreira and Frank Gallegos. (Netflix)

Young Rock:
series 3
Dwayne Johnson continues mining his childhood for amusing anecdotes, and it's beginning to look like he will never run out of material. Not only is he a lot of fun in the framing scenes with Randall Park (and Dawnn Lewis in this season), but the actors playing his younger self (Adrian Groulx, Bradley Constant and Uli Latukefu) continue to grow on us. They also continue to grow up, which adds an extra zing to the overall narrative arcs. The little sermons tucked inside each episode are corny, but they add to the charm. (NBC)

Abbott Elementary: series 2
This sitcom is never as sharp or original as it could be, but it's hugely watchable thanks to its smart setting in an underfunded state school populated by teachers who love their jobs. The chemistry between the cast members keeps it engaging, even if the will-they-won't-they situation between Quinta Brunson and Tyler James Williams never quite builds up steam. And some token characters feel oddly underdeveloped. But Janelle James is hilarious as the scene-stealing principal, and Sheryl Lee Ralph is a national treasure. (ABC)

The Conners:
series 5 
This extremely long-running sitcom, which began as Roseanne in 1988, continues to take on current issues with unapologetic honesty, finding earthy humour in unexpected places while deeply developing each of its lively characters. The ensemble cast is as strong as ever, and it's a rare series that has allowed the shape of the family to grow and change over the years, reflecting real life through an astute and refreshingly amusing perspective. Which allows comments about things like fractured politics and the rising cost of living to have real bite. (ABC)

I   G I V E   U P

Poker Face: This is a very well-made show, with clever writing and a terrific cast made largely of scene-stealing guest stars. But I'm simply not a fan of series that hinge around murders, and barely made it through three episodes. (Peacock)

Marie-Antoinette: Sharply written and produced, this show struggles to feel like anything new amid a sea of more inventive period costume dramas. It has terrific wit, and a solid Euro-cast, but it never quite held my interest. (BBC)

CURRENTLY WATCHING: Mrs Davis, Schmigadoon (2), Ted Lasso (3), Dave (3), Succession (4), The Marvelous Mrs Maisel (5).
COMING SOON: Citadel, Bupkis, White House Plumbers, The Afterparty (2), The Other Two (3).

Previous roundup: DECEMBER 2022 >

Critical Week: We don't need another hero

October is a fairly insane month for a film critic in London, with several overlapping festivals at any given time, plus the onslaught of awards season screenings. The London Film Festival ended on Sunday night, and on Wednesday I was on-stage at the opening ceremony of the London East Asia Film Festival, where I'm heading up the jury. This means I have 16 East Asian movies to watch over the next 10 days, plus the usual releases. 

This past week's big movies included the darker-than-usual superhero adventure Black Adam, starring an unusually violent Dwayne Johnson. It's skilfully made, but everything else about the film feels familiar. Jessica Chastain and Eddie Redmayne have meaty roles in The Good Nurse, a wrenching true story that's riveting and very disturbing. And Billy Eichner stars with Luke Macfarlane in Bros, a gay romcom that's a bit smug but also very funny and refreshingly honest about issues of insecurity and self-loathing. 

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Decision to Leave • Piggy
The Banshees of Inisherin
ALL REVIEWS >

Kicking off LEAFF was the brisk, adrenaline-pumping Korean thriller Hunt, starring Squid Game's Lee Jung-Jae, who also makes an impressive directing debut (I helped present him an honorary award at the opening ceremony). And then there was Voodoo Macbeth, a fascinating drama about Orson Welles' groundbreaking 1936 all-Black stage production of Shakespeare's Scottish play. Made by a crowd at USC Film School, it's an entertaining romp packed with pointed sideroads. Finally, Eternal Spring documents Chinese activists who audaciously hijacked state TV using eye-catching animation and powerful first-hand interviews.

Coming this next week are the horror hit Barbarians, the British drama Enys Men, animated adventure The Amazing Maurice and quite a few films from East Asia.

Critical Week: Let's talk about love

Screenings are few and far between at the moment, with most smaller releases running scared from the single big movie that's either coming out this week or is still dominating the box office. But there are still some good things out there - both in cinemas and on streaming services - even as the blockbusters have been merely ok so far this summer. One of the most endearing films of the year is Billy Porter's comedy-drama Anything's Possible, a teen romance that's packed with heart and just enough realistic edge. And the newcomer leads, Eva Reign and Abubakr Ali (above), are terrific. Meanwhile, this week's big release is the animated DC League of Super-Pets, a comically entertaining adventure packed with genuinely smart gags delivered by a scene-stealing vocal cast, even if the superhero formula feels as stale as ever.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Hit the Road • Sharp Stick
Ali & Ava • Hypochondriac
ALL REVIEWS >

More intriguing was The Score, an inventive genre mashup starring the terrific Will Poulter, Naomi Ackie and Johnny Flynn that features romance, comedy, violence and musical numbers. Juliette Binoche stars in master filmmaker Claire Denis' Both Sides of the Blade, a boldly complex French drama about relationships and regret. And the horror thriller Hypochondriac finds some original, and deeply unsettling, things to say about mental illness while properly freaking us out.

Screenings remain thin next week, but I'll be watching Brad Pitt in Bullet Train, Charlotte Rampling in Juniper, the Predator spin-off Prey, the animated adventure Luck and the refugee doc Fadia's Tree.

Critical Week: We need a hug

After a film festival, I enjoy things quieting down a bit. But we're now in awards season, which means that the for your consideration screenings have started up. At least this means that movies are generally of a much higher quality than usual. So it's the weekly releases that bring us back to earth and remind us what the public is more used to watching than fabulous foreign masterpieces. Speaking of which, I watched Pedro Almodovar's latest festival darling Parallel Mothers, a glorious melodrama about mothers and daughters that has witty and darkly emotional elements, plus a hint of Hitchcockian intensity. And at the centre, Penelope Cruz is fantastic.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Mothering Sunday • Belfast
Keyboard Fantasies
PERHAPS AVOID:
Cry Macho • Red Notice
ALL REVIEWS >

I also enjoyed the retro joys of Ghostbusters: Afterlife, a nearly 40-years-later sequel that includes cameos from the original cast alongside a likeable new ensemble led by Finn Wolfhard, Carrie Coon and the irresistible Paul Rudd. Ryan Reynolds and Dwayne Johnson are also fairly irresistible, but their new action comedy Red Notice is so derivative and lazy that it's hard to like. Tom Hanks is as great as always in Finch, a watchable post-apocalyptic drama that feels somewhat underpowered. And Clint Eastwood's waning steely charisma helps make Cry Macho bearable because its script is frankly awful.

A bit off the beaten track, Joaquin Phoenix is relaxed, warm and wonderful opposite staggeringly gifted young newcomer Woody Norman in the gently comedy-drama C'mon C'mon. Richard Jenkins, Amy Schumer and Steven Yeun shine among the excellent six-person cast of The Humans, a stagey drama that roots around in the concept of being a family in America. And the engagingly bristling German drama Blurred Lines sends its two energetic teen protagonists on a momentous trip to Istanbul.

This coming week, I'll be watching Jessica Chastain in The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Andrew Garfield in Tick Tick Boom, Jonathan Rhys Meyers in Hide and Seek, Spanish romance Isaac, Celine Sciamma's Petit Maman and the doc Kurt Vonnegut: Unstuck in Time.

Sundance London: Feel the Love

The ninth Sundance Film Festival London kicked off tonight, bring a selection of top movies from the January festival to Picturehouse Central for four days of screenings and special events. Press screenings were packed into three days earlier this week, and I'm also planning to attend a couple of screenings on Sunday to watch some shorts and see what the Surprise Film turns out to be. This is always an enjoyable micro-festival, with lots of filmmakers present and a nicely relaxed atmosphere. I'll be back with daily blog entries, starting with three of my favourite films. The first won the top awards at Sundance in January.

Coda 
dir-scr Sian Heder; with Emilia Jones, Troy Kotsur 21/US ****
Beautifully written and directed by Sian Heder, this enormously engaging story digs deep into its themes, challenging us to look at deafness through a new perspective. Even if the open-hearted story is familiar structurally, there's an edge to the character interaction that resonates strongly through joy, pain and a steady stream of sharp humour. This allows the strong cast to create people who resonate deeply, and perhaps even inspire us.

Censor
dir Prano Bailey-Bond; with Niamh Algar, Michael Smiley 21/UK ****
Set in the late 1980s, this horror thriller is infused with political issues of the era that are equally fresh today. It's strikingly directed by Prano Bailey-Bond in genre period style, taking a dreamy dive into the mind of the central character, who is played with thoughtful intensity by Niamh Algar. Knowingly subverting the genre, this unusually witty, challenging freak-out also has an appropriately emotional gore-filled payoff.

The Most Beautiful Boy in the World
dir-scr Kristina Lindstrom, Kristian Petri; with Bjorn Andresen, Robine Roman 21/Swe ****
Combining artful new footage with astonishing archival clips, this documentary works on various levels to explore the nature and impact of beauty. It's a profile of Bjorn Andresen, cast as the representation of beauty by iconic filmmaker Luchino Visconti in his 1971 classic Death in Venice. Half a century later, Bjorn remains haunted by this. And the film reveals him as a man making peace with some powerful ghosts... FULL REVIEW >

• For more festival information: PICTUREHOUSE: SUNDANCE
• Visit Shadows on the Wall's anchor page for SUNDANCE LONDON for links to all reviews.

~~~~~~~ ~~ ~~~ ~~~~
CRITICAL WEEK

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Limbo • The Sparks Brothers
The Boy Behind the Door • Ailey
The Most Beautiful Boy in the World
ALL REVIEWS >

There were also a few non-festival films this week. Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt and Jack Whitehall are hugely entertaining in the Disney adventure Jungle Cruise, which might be overblown, bit it's also a lot of fun. The well-made Spanish dramatic thriller The Offering is dark and sinister, and hides its secrets too long. The beautifully assembled doc Ailey traces the life and legacy of the iconic Alvin Ailey with terrific archive footage. And I also caught up with this one on a big screen...

Nowhere Special
dir-scr Uberto Pasolini; with James Norton, Daniel Lamont 20/UK ****
Beautifully written and directed, and inspired by a powerfully emotional true story, this film follows a single dad (James Norton) seeking a home for his young son (Daniel Lamont) before cancer takes him. While the premise is wrenching, scenes are packed with buoyant life, revealing the terrific connection between a wryly funny working-class father and his wide-eyed son. Both Norton and the bright little Lamont are first-rate, avoiding sympathy to create a vivid, life-affirming exploration of the impact of mortality. Definitely worth a look.

Coming up this next week, I'll be watching James Gunn's sequel/reboot The Suicide Squad, coming-of-age thriller John and the Hole, the caper thriller Playing God, the Scandi-thriller Wildland, Brazilian drama The Fever, animated adventure Moonbound.

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).