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.

Dance: A joyous fusion

Acosta Danza
A Decade in Motion
artistic director Carlos Acosta
dancers Amisaday Naara, Adria Díaz, Daniela Francia, Frank Isaac, Leandro Fernández, Brandy Martínez, Cynthia Laffertte, Ofelia Rodriguez, Melisa Moreda, Thalia Cardin, Wendy Elizabeth, Alexander Arias, Aniel Pazos, Paul Brando, Edgar Zayas
Sadler's Wells, London • 23-27.Sep.25 ★★★★★

Acosta Danza celebrates its 10th anniversary with a programme of four exhilarating pieces that burst with Cuba's distinctive blend of rhythms, attitude and physicality. Performed by Carlos Acosta's company of seriously gifted and gorgeously muscled dancers, two of these works (98 Días and Llamada) are UK premieres, and all four capture what Acosta refers to as his home nation's "fusion of cultures, rhythms and dances". These are pieces that get the heart racing with astonishing choreography that expresses a pure love of dance. 

First up is La Ecuación (the equation) by choreographer George Céspedes, in which four dancers spiral around the frame of a cube in brightly coloured costumes. Their movement echoes and mirrors, in solos and groups, striking eye-catching shapes along with the jubilant thump of X Alfonso's music, which mixes marimba and maracas with rumbling techno undercurrents. With its bright colours, pulsing beats and inventive lighting, this is unusually expressive and expansive, and also acrobatic and cheeky, a celebration of soaring physicality that feels improvised but is skilfully precise.

Choreographed and designed by Javier de Frutos, 98 Días echoes the life-changing days poet Federico García Lorca spent in Cuba in 1930, rediscovering his multi-ethnic heritage. Along with music by Estrella Morente, the soundtrack features spoken words by Lorca, including a lecture about his arrival on the island and the evocative poem Son de Negros en Cuba. In cool blue jumpsuits with lace sleeves, a group of 10 dancers performs to both words and music, with gorgeous full-bodied movement that expresses the collision of cultures, highlighting Latin and African rhythms, classical flamenco and ballet flourishes, and both dancing and fighting in the streets. It's visually and emotionally breathtaking.

Even more emotive, Goyo Montero's Llamada (calling) sees the dancers on stage in white skirts and matador trousers, expressing deep yearning as thy spin both in a group and in their own spotlights. This is a rolling, floating piece with music by Owen Bolton, Miguel Poveda and Rosalia, and it explodes with passion as romance blossoms, lighting shifts to red and costumes are shed. The music and choreography are elegantly beautiful, creating wrenching connections between the dancers that evoke wider social themes, most notably that internal sense of direction that we all recognise regarding things like culture, religion and sexuality.

Finally, the entire company takes the stage for De Punta a Cabo (from end to end) by Alexis Fernández and Yaday Ponce. Set along Havana's Malecón seawall, this is a celebration of culture that depicts Cuba's unique blend of Native American, European and African heritage in both movement and music (by Kumar, Kike Wolf and Omar Sosa). In front of a projection of the bay, which sometimes features performers atop the wall, the dancers joyfully throw themselves into a range of eloquent movement, jumping and spinning as they engage with each other as if they're attending a street party. The music shifts from smooth and rhythmic to hip hop as night falls, and a pair of bongos adds enjoyable beats. It's no wonder that they strip off their sweat-soaked clothes and collapse in a heap at the end. Only to pop up for a very lively curtain call.

For details, SADLER'S WELLS >

photos by Hugo Glendinning, Argel Ernesto González Alvarez,
Ariel Ley, Enrique Smith Soto • 23.Sep.25

Dance: You've been framed

Eastman
Vlaemsch (chez moi)
director/choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui
performers Dorotea Saykaly, Helena Olmedo Duynslaeger, Christine Leboutte, Kazutomi ‘Tsuki’ Kozuki, Dayan Akhmedgaliev, Patrick Williams Seebacher, Nick Coutsier, Pau Aran Gimeno, Jonas Vandekerckhove, Nelson Parrish Earl, Darryl E Woods, Khalid Koujili El Yakoubi, Tister Ikomo, Maryna Kushchova
live music Floris De Rycker, Tomàs Maxé, Anne Rindahl Karlsen, Soetkin Baptist
sets Hans Op de Beeck • costumes Jan-Jan Van Essche
musical direction Floris De Rycker • sound Tsubasa Hori
Sadler's Wells, London • 18-20.Sep.25 ★★★

Belgian-Moroccan artist Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui takes a deep dive into his Flemish roots with this lively, multi-layered production that bursts with a wide range of ideas. It's visually dazzling and packed with metaphorical meaning as it mixes dance and music with spoken word, religion, language, art and culture. In other words, this is an exploration of identity, and it inventively reflects how difficult it is to isolate ethnicity and nationality in a world in which we all intermingle. It's also extremely singular, conveying ideas in ways that don't quite allow the audience to get inside them and feel them personally.

The stage is an astonishing mix of spaces and shapes, including elements from medieval Flanders, with sets, props and costumes that emphasise the region's perceived greyness. Musicians perform with ancient instruments, while De Rycker's vocal ensemble Ratas del Viejo Mundo harmonises in 16th century compositions. Intriguingly, other cultures continually seep into every aspect of the show, including Arabic musicality, American perspectives and sub-Saharan imperialistic influences, as well as some Far East touches. Everything plays out in lovely multi-lingual textures, although the words are more academic than resonant.

Full of fascinating touches, the complex choreography challenges the gifted performers to offer full-bodied expressions that shift from intimate movement to grand-scale tableaux. Much of this is laced with wit, as characters emerge and interact, playfully juggling elements involving gender and history. And rather a lot hinges around depictions of painters, as dancers repeatedly wield brushes, paint cans and picture frames in various scenes. Along the way, there are show-stopping moments, including a bus tour invasion of influencers gawking at the show. 

All of this plays out in such an intriguing flurry that the audience never has a clue what might pop up next. Key characters emerge to create through-lines in the narrative, including dancers, actors and singers, although what they mean and how they interact remains opaque. Indeed, many elements are head-scratchingly unclear, especially small bits of business taking place on the edges of the stage. Clearly it all has a profound meaning, and perhaps Cherekaoui's cheeky point is right there in the show's title, which is a deliberately misspelled archaic version of "Flemish": we should stop trying to put our cultural identity into a neat and tidy box.

For info, SADLER'S WELLS >

photos by Filip Van Roe • 18.Sep.25

Stage: Dance your life away

Teaċ Daṁsa
How to Be a Dancer in Seventy-two Thousand Easy Lessons
by Michael Keegan-Dolan
choreography and performance Michael Keegan-Dolan, Rachel Poirier
directors Rachel Poirier and Adam Silverman
set and costumes Hyemi Shin
lighting Adam Silverman • sound Sandra Ní Mathúna
Sadler's Wells East, Stratford • 17-20.Sep.25 ★★★

Blending his personal experiences into a lively performance art piece, Michael Keegan-Dolan takes the stage with long-time collaborator Rachel Poirer to explore the journey of his life through spoken word, dance and physical theatre. It's a fascinating show, largely because it's impossible to predict what might happen next. But it's also oddly indulgent, expressing ideas and narrating events in ways that keep the audience on the outside looking in. And for a show that explores ambition, identity and ancestry, it never quite cuts loose into something truly soul-baring.

Keegan-Dolan and Poirer immediately get to business unpacking a large wooden crate to place props around the stage for use later. For much of this 80-minute show, Keegan-Dolan recounts stories from his life while Poirer offers little asides, sounds and visual touches. There are also extended dance sequences and larger eye-catching moments involving ladders, lights, breeze-blocks, a disco ball, an egg and microphones on long cables. This show is constantly in motion, with a cheeky sense of humour that reflects in the performers' evident glee, especially in the sillier moments.

The story traces Keegan-Dolan from his childhood in Ireland to studying ballet in London and working as a choreographer across Europe, seen through the prism of his nationality as he stands up to authorities at every step (echoing his recent fallout with Sadler's Wells). Anecdotes chronicle moments of both embarrassment and tenacity, played out on-stage with honest wit and inventively visual flourishes. The choreography is impressively precise, even when things get messy. And Poirer's show-stopping dance numbers include a goofy cross-dressing sequence and a remarkable marathon solo to Bolero.

An eclectic mix of music spans from Ravel and Elgar to Talking Heads, Queen and Men Without Hats. Themes are also wide-ranging, touching repeatedly on art, religion and racism, with some vague nods to sexuality along the way. Most enjoyable is the lively storytelling, recounting youthful aspirations as they clash with reality. These are funny and telling, and offer brief moments of resonance along the way. Most sequences feel rather random, but the general sense of absurdity is lovely. As is the idea that life is short, so while I'm alive I will dance.

For info, SADLER'S WELLS >

photos by Fiona Morgan • 17.Sep.25

Critical Week: You're going to be just fine

It seems that awards season is arriving early this year, as screenings have already begun for many of this year's festival favourites, who are jostling for attention in the awards conversation. What's nice about this is that, at many of these screenings, we get a chance to meet the actors and filmmakers. And I particularly like getting a bit ahead of the buzz - making up my own mind without reading reviews. One of my most anticipated this year was Harris Dickinson's writing-directing debut Urchin, starring Frank Dillane (above). It's a stunner, authentic and artistic, and profoundly moving.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Plainclothes • Solo • Steve
The Lost Bus • Happyend
Tape • Peacock • Megadoc
ALL REVIEWS >

The starriest event, attended by the cast and crew, was for Steve, which stars Cillian Murphy as headmaster of an English reform school. It's another remarkably artful, skilfully shot and acted drama with a powerful kick. Paul Greengrass' riveting, immersive true story The Lost Bus stars Matthew McConaughey and American Ferrera as a pair of everyday heroes trying to save young kids during a horrific California wildfire. And Emma Thompson is terrific in the snowy and very gritty thriller Dead of Winter.

I also caught up with three festival favourites: The Love That Remains is an unusually nuanced collage of complex family life from Iceland, Two Prosecutors is a wryly ironic drama set in Soviet-era Russia as a young lawyer tries to take on the system and, from Spain, Romeria is an involving look at identity as a young woman seeks answers about her heritage. I also loved Mike Figgis' making-of-Megalopolis documentary Megadoc, which is a gorgeous portrait of Francis Ford Coppola. Finally, I attended two offbeat live performances that mix dance, music and spoken word: How to Be a Dancer in Seventy-two Thousand Easy Lessons at Sadler's Wells East and Vlaemsch (Chez Moi) at Sadler's Wells.

Films to watch this coming week include Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt in The Smashing Machine, Channing Tatum in Roofman, Sam Claflin in All the Devils Are Here and Brett Goldstein in All of You, plus Acosta Danza's A Decade in Motion on stage at Sadler's Wells. I'm also hosting a Q&A with director Sophie Dupuis and actor Felix Maritaud tomorrow following their new film Solo.

Dance: Perfect synchronicity

Murmuration: Level 2
by Sadeck Berrabah
music TRex
featuring Berrabah alongside 30 uncredited performers
costume, lighting and stage designers are also uncredited
Peacock Theatre, London • 10-20.Sep.25 ★★★★

After a sold-out tour through France, dancer-choreographer Sadeck Berrabah stages the UK premiere of the second version of his acclaimed Murmuration, named after the way birds flock together, creating shapes in perfect sync. It's a mesmerising show that mixes a range of movement, from ballet to hip hop, also inckluding elements of mime and martial arts. And it's set to a carefully curated mix of smooth music and eye-catching lighting.

The performers' precision is astonishing, as they never miss a beat. Much of the show consists of them arranged as a choir, creating rippling shapes with their arm, as well as some colourfully reflective props. And there are several more varied scenes featuring solos, duets or groups moving around the stage. Berrabah often appears as their conductor, injecting personality into the show. Dressed in baggy black costumes, the dancers mainly maintain neutral facial expressions. Then when the energy kicks up, they flash the occasional smile.

Energy is an issue with this show, because the sleepy muzak-like compositions and repetitive movements have a hypnotic quality that weighs heavily on the eyelids. Inventive lighting effects help spice things up, especially with some rich colour washes and a thrilling use of UV. Several segments also bring stronger beats both in the music and movement, as these hugely gifted and disciplined performers remain stunningly connected to each other. There are also brief moments in which a moment of spontaneous joy bursts out among them.

It all wraps up in a terrific one-two punch, as the good-natured Berrabah takes the stage to teach the audience an extended bit of choreo. This leads into a finale that is a real heart-stopper, as clever props and costume changes create magical effects along with a final text message spelled out beautifully with the cast's armography. This show is thoroughly entrancing. But perhaps for Level 3, Berrabah could encourage some improvisational spark to more effectively reveal the individuals who make up this exactingly singular company. 

For information, SADLER'S WELLS >

photos by Fabien Malot • 10.Sep.25

Critical Week: Take a break

Tube strikes have paralysed London this week, so the only films I've seen are those I could watch on links at home. I braved the bus one day to get to the theatre, a grisly journey involving flustered crowds, pouring rain and nightmarish traffic. But there were plenty of movies to watch. Paul Mescal and Josh O'Connor star in the understated romantic drama The History of Sound, which requires patience but has a lot to say. Denzel Washington reteams with Spike Lee for Highest 2 Lowest, a provocative thriller with a moral dilemma at its heart, reimagined from a Kurosawa classic.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Islands • Spinal Tap II
The History of Sound • Dreams
ALL REVIEWS >

Screening at Toronto Film Festival, Christy is a biopic about boxing champion Christy Martin. It's the usual story, but Sydney Sweeney is excellent in the title role. Michael Chiklis goes back to college in The Senior, based on the relentlessly inspirational true story of a 59-year-old who returns to play college football. The superb Adam Bessa stars in Ghost Trail, a complex, powerfully moving story about Syrian refugees in Europe. And the Hong Kong remake of Richard Linklater's 2001 drama Tape is seriously riveting exploration of perspective and memory.

I also attended the stage show Murmuration: Level 2, a mesmerising mix of music and movement. And I published my September TV Roundup featuring Chief of War, Wednesday, Smoke and much more.

Films screening this coming week include Harris Dickinson's Urchin, Marion Cotillard in The Ice Tower, Cillian Murphy in Steve, Mike Figgis' making-of documentary Megadoc and three festival favourites: The Love That Remains from Iceland, Two Prosecutors from Ukraine and Romeria from Spain.