Reviews - Hollywood Authentic

December 5, 2025

Words by JANE CROWTHER

Who hasn’t wondered ‘what if?’ about a lost love? Joan (Elizabeth Olsen) certainly has, despite a long marriage to perennial complainer Larry (Miles Teller). When she pops her clogs not long after he’s kicked the bucket she finds herself in an afterlife terminus with a destination choice to make. Does she head to a forever with her earthly ball and chain? Or with her handsome first husband, Luke (Callum Turner) who has been waiting for her for 67 years since he bought it during the Korean War? To help her in her quandary, she has an afterlife consultant and the choice of any number of fantasy existences to pick (Studio 54 World, Weimar World without Nazis, Men-Free World is full, Clown World decommissioned). Of course, there are rules: once eternity is decided, it can’t be undone and any escapees are thrown into the black nothing of ‘the void’…

Elizabeth Olsen, Miles Teller, Callum Turner, Da’Vine Joy Randolph — Leah Gallo/A24

It’s a classic rom-com scenario – a love triangle in which Joan must choose between the partner she has shared a life with and the husband she barely got a chance with; the familiar vs the novelty. And both hubbies are keen to win this contest, sniping and scrapping with each other as they try to entice Joan to endless days on the sunny coast in Beach World (Larry) or in a winter wonderland in Mountain World (Luke). Playing like a forties screwball comedy, Eternity is concerned with romantic overtures and smart protagonists, but also understands the choice paradox affecting us all. Yes, this may be a tale about picking the right guy, but it’s also about plumping for the right paradise, opening up bigger questions about happiness and contentment. While the characters walk through the recruitment hall of different, amusing eternities, audiences will certainly question their own ideas of perfection and if their current existence is meeting requirements.

Turner and Teller do admirably in matching each other in charm as well as foibles, ensuring the happy ending remains a genuine mystery while Da’Vine Joy Randolph sneaks off with many scenes as a seen-it-all afterlife consultant. Olsen, trapped between two spouses, is given more than standard fodder to work with by screenwriter/director David Freyne (co-writing the former Black List script with Pat Cunnane). Joan is frustrated by the process, tempted by an amusing third option and wrestles with what perfection looks like. And if, indeed, it exists on heaven or earth. Where she ultimately ends up feels earned and dramatically satisfying. That said, it’s a shame we don’t get to spend more time in some of the eternities – Ice Cream or Space World might have been fun to visit.

Pictures courtesy of A24
Eternity is in cinemas now

Screening Room

COVER UP

December 5, 2025

Words by JANE CROWTHER

In these days of AI, fake news and the decline of print media, it’s something of a thrill to watch Laura Poitras and Mark Obenhaus’ study of a Pulitzer-Prize-winning journalist as he looks back at his scoops and old-school investigative reporting. Now in his eighties, but still a pill on the phone to his sources and scribbling longhand on countless yellow legal pads, Seymour Hersh is renowned for breaking the story of the US military massacre in My Lai during the Vietnam War via dogged research, nosy-parkering and tenacity – and he’s continued to expose corruption, power play and cover-ups in the decades since. Such a thorn in the US government’s side that White House tapes caught Nixon calling him a ‘son of a bitch’, ‘Sy’ is an entertaining subject, and a reminder of disappearing skills and industries.

Seymour Hersh, Mark Obenhaus, Laura Poitras — Netflix

In charting some of Hersh’s most famous stories – including those interweaved with Woodward and Bernstein over the Watergate scandal, and the torture at Abu Ghraib prison – the directors chart some of the US government’s darkest secrets and plots straight out of movies. One of Hersh’s leads took him to the CIA’s attempts to create a real-life Manchurian Candidate using LSD, his folly in believing he’d found love letters between Marilyn Monroe and JFK is unpicked, and his current unveiling of atrocities in Gaza keeps him horrified. And while Hersh reveals his methodology (he spent an entire meeting making small talk with military top brass while transcribing an upside-down document on his desk), he also reveals his own story.

A working-class boy expected to take on his dad’s business, he developed an unexpected flair for writing, tearing up as he recalls a teacher taking him to the admissions office of the University of Chicago. Study led to work covering police beats and gangland slayings on Chicago local papers until he decided he wanted to write about more than ‘mass murders’.

His tenure at The New York Times was during a period when newspaper print was impactful, stories typed out and sucked up tubes in the newsroom, journalists propped their feet up on messy desks while smoking and calling moles on their landlines.

That’s not to say that Cover Up is a nostalgia trip (though aficionados of archival presses churning out news print are well served), the film stays relevant due to the constants that remain throughout history. That power continues to breed corruption, and that someone needs to hold administrations accountable. The big question the film seems to ask is – with truth seeking, hard news reporters like Hersh, now a vanishing type – who will perform this role going forward?

Pictures courtesy of Netflix
Cover Up is in cinemas now

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CHRISTY

November 28, 2025

Words by JANE CROWTHER

Sydney Sweeney’s transformation from pin-up to boxing bod in prep for this role was made much of in the press. It’s unfortunately the only transformative thing about the role, which is more interested in the eighties styling and domestic abuse of a trailblazing real-life female boxer than her achievements in the ring. Though the coercive and abusive relationship at the heart of this poverty porn biopic is grubbily fascinating (a husband living through his wife’s success while also feeling emasculated by it), it makes a film about female glass-ceiling smashing ultimately about a man.

Sydney Sweeney, Ben Foster, Katy O’Brian, David Michôd — Warner Bros. Pictures

We first meet Christy as a scrappy teen amateur pugilist from Tennessee whose ferocity in the ring attracts the attention of a middle-aged local manager, Jim Martin (Ben Foster in an amazing comb-over wig). Jim briskly marries his young charge, devoting himself to getting her the same deals as her male counterparts. Now in her books as well as her bed, Jim can control Christy’s rising fortune, fame and friendships, a svengali in a shell suit. Though Martin was a truly astonishing fighter, gaining representation by Don King, lucrative prize fights and endorsements, and press coverage usually reserved for the gents, David Michôd’s film concentrates on the battles at home. Jim becomes jealous of his wife’s dalliance with a former girlfriend and of her financial clout, punching down physically and emotionally.

Sharing similarities with I, Tonya, Christy doesn’t offer the same internal life seen in Margot Robbie’s interpretation of a sportswoman from the wrong side of the tracks. While Sweeney gamely swings, she doesn’t always connect – her performance often marooned in ugly wigs and fashion. Martin’s conflicted sexuality is explored, but her future wife (played with real warmth by Katy O’Brian) is given short shrift. Foster has more success playing a toxic misogynist, imbuing the manager with gimlet-eyed, hair-trigger malevolence which manifests in a horrific incident that is genuinely shocking. Always excellent, he manages to make Jim’s self-pitying motivation plain and his mercurial monstrosity horribly plausible.

The story of ‘the coal miner’s daughter’ – as Martin was dubbed – is certainly fascinating, but audiences may want to do their own research on leaving the theatre. Christy is the title, but we learn little of her, only the outside forces that came to define her.

Pictures courtesy of Black Bear Pictures
Christy is out in cinemas now

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PILLION

November 28, 2025

Words by JANE CROWTHER

Based on Adam Mars-Jones’ novella, Box Hill, Harry Lighton’s Pillion might be about a BDSM relationship between a shy young man and biker – with butt plugs, rubber wear and orgy picnics – but it’s also a tender romance that leaves you with a sense of hope for love in all its manifestations. And with the Christmas setting, it’s a perfect cockle-warmer for the season.

Henry Melling, Alexander Skarsgard, Lesley Sharpe, Douglas Hodge, Harry Leighton — Warner Bros. Pictures

Following Colin (Harry Melling) a meek traffic warden from Bromley who sings in a barber shop quartet with his dad, Pillion explores what happens when a gorgeous, statuesque biker (Alexander Skarsgård) muscles into his life and pushes his boundaries. They meet-cute: Colin has just harmonised in a pub with his singing pals when Ray, strapping and handsome in biking leathers, makes him pay for his round at the bar. Colin’s willingness to fork out for a bag of crisps denotes his suitability as Ray’s submissive and Ray tests it further by demanding a meet-up in a Bromley high street back alley a few days later. Sheltered Colin is thrilled to be unceremoniously pushed to his knees into a puddle to lick his paramour’s boots rather than go on a conventional date, learning he likes to be commanded. Ray moves on with his education by taking him home and ordering him to cook, sleep naked on the floor of his bedroom, wrestle and submit to sex…

That may sound exploitative or 50 Shades of Grey, but in the hands of Skarsgård and Melling the dom/sub dynamic is both sweet and funny. Though Ray is brusque, domineering and refuses to kiss, Colin finds his tribe in the BDSM community, his saucer eyes wide, a delighted smile on his face as he rides on the back of Ray’s bike, wears a heavy necklace like a choke chain and drapes himself over a picnic table in the woods for his lover’s use. His startled expressions at the things he’s asked to do and the politeness with which he obeys are fused with a giddy lust that ensures audiences feel assured of his empowerment, and part of the power play. That leads to comedic moments as Colin joins the biker gang (real life members of the LBGT+ group GMBCC) on a camping trip where he swaps sub stories with a fellow rubber-apron clad chap (Jake Shears) or takes Ray home for an awkward Sunday dinner with his nice, suburban parents (Lesley Sharp, Douglas Hodge).

Melling’s expressive face works in delicious counterpoint to Skarsgård’s inscrutable one – playing Ray as an enigma who doesn’t tell his lover his occupation or his true feelings. A moment where Ray gifts Colin a birthday present in a whisper and a gesture is played so delicately by both that it feels as heartwarming and joyous as any Richard Curtis romantic high. Equally, a scene in a cinema where power dynamics are inverted with a handful of popcorn plays as an emotional triumph.

Though it gives a window on the BDSM community, Pillion is much more interested in the way first love forms us, how it emboldens us, obsesses us and ultimately teaches us. And that makes it relatable, warm and feelgood – just with added lube, leather and latex.

Pictures courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Pillion is in cinemas now

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WICKED: FOR GOOD

November 21, 2025

Words by JANE CROWTHER

Broadway adap Wicked was a commercial and critical success last year – buoying the box office with its green vs pink frenemy saga of two teen witches who take different paths when exposed to the hypocrisy of the wizard of Oz. The sequel is much anticipated as the love triangle and Ozian battle for hearts/minds comes to a head and frankly, it matters not whether it’s actually any good, such is the devotion of its fanbase. Plus, as Christmas season movies go, For Good has a lot going for it – colour-pop everything, big tunes and four-quantdrant appeal.

Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Bowen Yang, Marissa Bode, Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum, Paul Tazewell — Giles Keyte/Universal Pictures

Having been separated by their differing ideology, ‘good’ witch Glinda (Ariana Grande) and ‘bad’ witch Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) spend this adventure coming to terms with being on the right side of history and ousting a narcissistic, corrupt and manipulative leader. The Wizard (Jeff Goldblum) and his media maven Madam Morrible (Michelle Yeoh) have been hoodwinking the citizens of Oz and while Elphaba is already riding high (literally, on her broom) against him, Glinda and her fiance Prince Fiyero (current sexiest man alive, Jonathan Bailey) are slowly coming around. And when that pesky farmgirl, Dorothy, arrives, war ensues. The truth is lost amid the chaos…

Exploring themes of integrity, identity and friendship, For Good boasts more bold Nathan Crowley sets, Paul Tazewell costumes and big musical numbers, but fewer banger songs. Missing crowd pleasers like ‘Popular’ and ‘Defying Gravity’, part two feels more drawn out than its predecessor, relying on the chemistry of its stars to do the heavy lifting. Luckily, Bailey and Erivo manage to hold attention with an illicit love affair that drives the film to its ‘melting’ conclusion with more passion than the BFF thread between the witches. Their steamy pre-coitus ditty As Long As You’re Mine delivers feels and a taste of reality amid the emerald vistas and flying monkeys. Erivo creates real pathos with Elphaba, while Grande struggles to make vapid Glinda sympathetic, despite sterling efforts. Even Colman Domingo, as a CGI Cowardly Lion, fails to make much of a dent. Despite knowing where this tale will ultimately end (as dictated by Victor Fleming’s 1939 tale), For Good takes its sweet time to arrive at it, then rushes the iconic moment with the bucket.

That said, those who’ve already bought into the silver-slippered allure of this world should be content with more rainbow eye candy. It will certainly bring in the green.

Pictures courtesy of Universal Pictures
Wicked: For Good is in cinemas now

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NOW YOU SEE ME, NOW YOU DON’T

November 14, 2025

Words by JANE CROWTHER

It’s been over a decade since Robin Hood magician Atlas (Jesse Eisenberg), mind-reader Merritt (Woody Harrelson), card shark Jack (Dave Franco), and escapologist Henley (Isla Fisher) got together as ‘The Horsemen’ to use their illusions and tricks to teach bad guys a lesson. Summoned by mysterious society, The Eye, the Horsemen are brought together with a new pack of young magicians to chase a McGuffin diamond around Europe and try to break the icy composure of South Africa mine owner Veronica Vanderberg (Rosamund Pike).

Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Fave Franco, Isla Fisher, Ariana Greenblatt, Dominic Sessa, Justice Smith, Rosamund Pike, Morgan Freeman — Katalin Vermes/Lionsgate

The new crew are played by Dominic Sessa, Ariana Greenblatt and Justice Smith but their MO is familiar. They like to sleight-of-hand steal fortunes from toxic tech bros and redistribute to their Gen Z audience via a series of fancy rabbit-out-the-hat stunts. On the trail of Vanderberg’s dirty arms money and fabulous gowns, the gang pitch up in Antwerp then find themselves in a fun house of illusion in Normandy, before private jetting to the Middle East for F1 shenanigans (one of them clearly has an expense account).

There’s a third reel reveal that can be guessed a mile off, a cameo from Morgan Freeman and a number of daft ‘magic’ tricks that impress on presentation rather than plausibility. For those seeking a perfect ‘second screening’ experience (the ability of a film to bring an audience along even if they’re simultaneously scrolling on another device), Now You See Me 3 provides constant exposition and a likable tongue-in-cheek vibe from a cast who clearly enjoyed reuniting. Newbie Pike is delicious as a foe, with an Afrikaans accent as clear-cut as her gems and haircut. She imperiously sells the Bond-lite energy almost singlehandedly, as one might expect from the former Miranda Frost.

In light of a recent real-life heist at the Louvre, it’s perhaps easier to suspend disbelief as the team lift the world’s largest diamond with some misdirection and costume changes. But the best magic tricks are those performed cinematically; fun fisticuffs in a forced perspective room, the incantation to Talladega Nights’ Ricky Bobby during a car chase, a pleasingly silly deception involving a lorry and a fog machine… Logic should be abandoned by all who enter, but for those looking for an amiable throwback romp, this threequel is diverting enough. But the success of the illusion relies on an audience not questioning the mechanics too robustly.

Words by JANE CROWTHER
Pictures courtesy of Lionsgate
Now You See Me, Now You Don’t is in cinemas now

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PREDATOR: BADLANDS

November 7, 2025

Words by JANE CROWTHER

They say you can’t reinvent the wheel, but Dan Trachtenberg seems able to find new and nimble ways to revisit the Predator franchise after Prey and Killer of Killers – his latest, a surprisingly funny and heartfelt entry. The killing machine alien and apex predator, a Yautja of the Badlands, may have all the horrific accouterments of Schwarzenegger’s original (double mandibles, an impressive arsenal, a relentless bloodlust) but the tables are turned on both him and audiences as the hunter becomes the prey, the baddie becomes the goodie.

Dan Trachtenberg, Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi, Elle Fanning, Predator: Badlands — 20th Century Studios

We meet Dek (Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi) as a young Yautja warrior trying to earn his invisibility cloak and tribal respect from an unyielding father who thinks him a runt. Forced to prove his worth he’s sent to the inhospitable planet of Genna where every animal and plant kills, and the ultimate trophy awaits slaying: the ‘unkillable’ Kalisk. That’s if he can get to the monster on a planet where flora shoots anesthesia darts, tree vines are murderous and even the grass is razor sharp. What a floundering Dek might need is a buddy. And he finds two in chattering severed robot, Thia (Elle Fanning), who’s lost her legs but not her tongue, and a spitting blue simian-esque creature with cute eyes and an instant devotion to the alpha alien. Together they create a misfit gang who, via a series of eye-popping misadventures, take the piss out of each other and learn about honour, wolf pack analogies and that family isn’t necessarily the one you’re born to. Touching on themes of colonial plundering, parental toxicity and AI, Badlands serves up a more human and humane predator than we’ve seen before.

Franchise purists might be apoplectic over the idea of a softer, caring protagonist, but there’s no shortage of badass action, cool tech, inventive slayings and CGI wonderment as Dek goes on a true ‘hero’s journey’. And despite having a face full of fangs and only speaking in grunts (made understandable by Thia’s translator capability and subtitles), murder-fuelled Dek becomes a fully rounded character who elicits compassion. It’s the equivalent magic trick of making audiences shed a tear for The Terminator in Cameron’s second outing. Dek’s interactions with Genna are also made amusing courtesy of Fanning’s perky performance and smart narrative beats that leave space amid the propulsive set pieces. It’s fun, funny and fresh – things we haven’t been able to say about this film collection in the slump before Trachtenberg got his hands on it. It bodes well for what he might do next…

Words by JANE CROWTHER
Pictures courtesy of 20th Century Studios
Predator: Badlands is in cinemas now

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TRAIN DREAMS

November 6, 2025

Words by JANE CROWTHER

Clint Bentley co-wrote Sing Sing and his adaptation (with Greg Kwedar) of Denis Johnson’s 2011 novella is just as heartfelt, gem-like and profound – the seemingly specific experiences of American men rendered universal in their poetic handling. Taking Johnson’s slim but gorgeous prose and building out to a treatise on grief, memory, time, the unstoppable march of progress and mankind’s mark on the world, Train Dreams is a haunting, spellbinding experience that recalls the dreaminess of Malick and asks the audience to leave the theatre newly appreciating the beauty of the small things in life.

Clifton Collins Jr., Clint Bentley, Felicity Jones, Joel Edgerton, Kerry Condon, William H. Macy — Netflix

Opening in the Pacific Northwest in the early 20th century with a sonorous voiceover narrated by Will Patton (like a meditation in itself), we meet lumberjack Robert Grainer (Joel Edgerton), a quiet man who goes where the work is. That takes him through cathedral groves of ancient forests, felling trees and building bridges to accommodate the railroad that will change the continent. It’s a hard life – poorly paid, hard graft and laced with death and racism – but one that blooms with the arrival of Gladys (Felicity Jones, luminous) into his life. A vibrant, capable woman who sees the interior story of this stoic man, Gladys provides happiness and a joyous filter on the world so that Robert can see its wonder. As the couple build an idyllic cabin together and welcome a baby, Robert has an anchoring home to return to from his nomadic labouring.

When he’s away he pines for his family and begins to appreciate people and places anew; Arn (William H Macy) the explosives expert who acknowledges the majesty of the trees the men work among, a religious chatterbox (Paul Schneider) whose background isn’t as virtuous as his bible quotes, the nameless men crushed like ants beneath falling logs, their boots left nailed to trunks as proof of their existence. And it’s this opening of his heart that fells him when tragedy occurs, forcing him to take solace in nature, the compassion of a Native American man (Nathaniel Arcand), the companionship of dogs and the resilient outlook of a forestry fire warden (Kerry Condon) who has returned from nursing duties in WW1. As technology advances, as man lands on the moon and as his particular way of life disappears, Robert moves through life nursing pain as evidence of love, of life.

Breathtakingly lensed by Adolpho Veloso using natural light, Robert’s seemingly unremarkable life becomes extraordinary – a man forgotten in the footnotes of history turned heroic figure. Damp forests shiver in the breeze, sunsets glow over babbling brooks, a humble chicken supper glows in candlelight, a train tunnel frames a tableaux that could be out of a painting… tracking Robert through his world. His capacity to yearn is clear in the cabin he builds and which is eventually subsumed back into the forest, the biplane he whimsically takes as an older man exhibits an ability to continue to grow, observe, persevere, like the trees around him. Though Robert doesn’t say much, Edgerton imbues him with such rich inner life that his homespun experiences feel complex, divine, intense. And though very much set in a specific, vanished time, they feel resonant. Covering themes of racism, immigration, deforestation, environmentalism, Train Dreams feels both intimate and global – a film like its lead character; deceptively simple but teeming with life, ideas and, ultimately, hope. By the time Nick Cave is singing plaintively on the end credits audiences will want to hug their loved ones (and a tree) a little closer.

Words by JANE CROWTHER
Pictures courtesy of NETFLIX
Train Dreams is in cinemas now and on Netflix from 21 November

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HEDDA

October 24, 2025

Words by JANE CROWTHER

Nia DaCosta puts a new spin on Ibsen’s classic Hedda Gabler by shifting the action from 19th-century Oslo to a sprawling country pile in 1950s England where the titular wife of an academic (Tessa Thompson, with a clipped accent of disdain) throws a house party – impulsively inviting a friend, Eileen (Nina Hoss) who, it transpires, is her ex-lover. ‘Hedda loves to eat out,’ one party wag announces tartly when discussing the dinners the newlyweds have enjoyed on their lavish honeymoon.

Imogen Poots, Nia DaCosta, Nina Hoss, Tessa Thompson, Tom Bateman — Amazon MGM Studios

Eileen is a scholar and rival to Hedda’s hubby George (Tom Bateman), and arrives at the soirée touting the manuscript of her new book, a barely controlled drinking problem and a new love interest (Imogen Poots). If the book is published, Eileen will eclipse George and threaten the precarious life the Gablers share, one party away from not affording their affluent lifestyle and in need of a professorial job which will be bestowed by another party guest, Professor Greenwood (Finbar Lynch). To assure her sexual dominance, social standing and financial security all Hedda needs to do is manipulate her guests during one bacchanalian night of boozing, dancing, skinny-dipping and gun-play…

DaCosta’s decision to bring the party described in the play into the forefront of the action is a dramatic improvement, giving this adap a danger and kineticism as Sean Bobbitt’s camera glides from room to room, out into garden mazes, up staircases to whispered power negotiation and to a lake as dark as the secrets of the players.

Like a Gatsby party unravelling in real time, relationships are tested, rage and jealousy boils and sex simmers – while the band plays on and chandeliers crash to the floor. At the heart of it all is Thompson in a fabulous dress; sardonic, feral, cruel. It’s an imperious performance that will likely garner noms chatter as well as dislike, while an ambiguous ending change might enrage purists. But for audiences looking for a fresh take on a classic – and one which teases feminism, equality and sexuality from a well-worn text – Hedda is a party invite worth taking up.

Words by JANE CROWTHER
Pictures courtesy of AMAZON MGM STUDIOS
Hedda is in cinemas now

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I SWEAR

October 10, 2025

Words by JANE CROWTHER

Tourette’s Syndrome is often misunderstood as merely cursing – and I Swear gives plenty of that to comedic effect. But as a study of a debilitating and socially ostracising condition it’s also loaded with compassion, serving as both a useful educational tool and a feelgood Brit film with the social conscience DNA of The Full Monty or Billy Elliot.

I Swear, Kirk Jones, Maxine Peake, Peter Mullan, Robert Aramayo, Shirley Henderson — Graeme Hunter/StudioCanal

Following the story of Galashiels local John Davidson (Robert Aramayo) as he looks back on his life from an MBE ceremony (where he tells the Queen to F-off), the film charts his difficult journey from developing uncontrollable tics as an 80s teen (Scott Ellis Watson) in an unforgiving school, through an adolescence marked by parental disdain and dust-ups with people taking offence at his outbursts. By the time he’s a young man (now played by Rings of Power’s Aramayo), his prospects of getting a job, friends or a life look bleak. But when he meets a mental health nurse, Dottie (Maxine Peake) and the gruff caretaker of a community centre, Tommy (Peter Mullan), John gets the love and respect he needs to forge a path to becoming a leader in the Tourette’s community and a campaigner for greater understanding. Along the way he’ll suffer false arrest, assault and cruelty, as well as moments that restore a belief in humanity.

If that sounds dry, it isn’t. Though the script by writer/director Kirk Jones aims to enlighten, there’s inescapable fun to be had in tracking John’s misadventures. Aramayo is supremely charming as a cheeky chap who involuntarily shouts his innermost thoughts, spits food and punches people while also apologising profusely. The hurt in his eyes is as readable as the bravura of his posturing, and his delivery of the tics that mark his condition feels authentic. The resigned dismay on his face as he’s shouting ‘I’m a pedophile!’ or ‘spunk for milk!’ while making a cuppa (and worse) is both undeniably funny and heartbreaking.

He’s surrounded by similarly excellent performances; Peake is warmth incarnate while Shirley Henderson (as John’s cold Mum) is brilliantly brittle. Very nearly stealing the show, Mullan essays patience and no-nonsense kindness that is a delight to watch. Along the way audiences may learn something – not only about Tourette’s, but also about the resilience and magnificent power for empathy of people. In our current dark times, that feels like a gift at the cinema. It’s also got a banging soundtrack and is likely to figure in the BAFTA shortlist come February. So worth getting a F-ing ticket…

Words by JANE CROWTHER
Pictures courtesy of STUDIOCANAL
I Swear is in cinemas now

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ETERNITY

December 5, 2025

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COVER UP

December 5, 2025

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CHRISTY

November 28, 2025

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PILLION

November 28, 2025

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WICKED: FOR GOOD

November 21, 2025

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NOW YOU SEE ME, NOW YOU DON’T

November 14, 2025

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PREDATOR: BADLANDS

November 7, 2025

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TRAIN DREAMS

November 6, 2025

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HEDDA

October 24, 2025

Screening Room

I SWEAR

October 10, 2025

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