The Inspection review | Elegance Bratton’s military drama lacks nuance
★★★☆☆ Based on writer-director Elegance Bratton’s own experiences, The Inspection follows a young gay man on his way to become a Marine.
Reviews
Rolo Tomassi at Electric Ballroom review | Britain’s most underrated rockers reaffirm their brilliance
★★★★★
Over nearly two decades, Rolo Tomassi have amassed an ardent following without a modicum of mainstream attention. At their largest show to date, the Sheffielders indulge in the fruits of their labour, welcoming 1,500 loyalists to an evening of immaculate emotion.
Cuts & Bruises review | Inhaler mature with the scars to show for it on sophomore album
★★★★☆
Cuts & Bruises demonstrates that Inhaler are capable of that much-coveted element from debut to sophomore – maturity – whilst preserving the winning formula behind It’s Always Like This.
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania review | Who is Kang The Conqueror?
★★★☆☆
Paul Rudd’s Ant-Man makes a flashy return in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, which introduces us to Kang the Conqueror.
Nostalgia review | A siren-song to a youth lost in Naples
★★★★☆ In Mario Martone's Neapolitan gangster drama, cherished memories unravel and turn violent in a hail of masterful cinematography and impassioned performances.
Marcel The Shell With Shoes On review | Cuteness overload
★★★☆☆
Marcel The Shell With Shoes On is heartwarming and cute, but also designed for the social media audience.
Love Story from Hoxton Mini Press captures love in the Modern Age
A new photographic anthology, Love Story, from Hoxton Mini Press, showcases over 150 images from 23 talented photographers, exploring love in the modern world and challenging our perceptions of relationships.
Desire, I Want to Turn into You review | Caroline Polachek’s mashed-up rollercoaster ride
★★★☆☆
Desire, I Want to Turn into You, Caroline Polachek’s second solo album under her given name, has been one of this year’s most anticipated releases. And whilst there’s plenty to love about it (it has, after all, been released on Valentine’s Day), its experimentation doesn’t always stack up.
Master System review | Monster Florence’s cerebral rap explores our dystopian world
★★★★☆
Colchester alt-hip-hop group Monster Florence dissect the dystopian state of the world through lyrical tricks and commendable beats on their new album Master System; a record which ultimately demonstrates how underrated they are.
Reverend and the Makers at Islington Assembly Hall review | Write them off at your peril
★★★★☆
Sheffield outfit Reverend and the Makers rolled back the years to deliver welcome upbeat indie at Islington Assembly Hall – and even took to the streets to do so.
You Me at Six at Alexandra Palace review | Pop-punks return to their roots but play on autopilot
★★☆☆☆
You Me At Six take on Ally Pally on Saturday night, in a predictable show that adheres to the “arena rock 101” handbook.
Two Dozen Roses review | Ernest is disarmingly charming
★★★★☆ Ernest's Flower Shops (The Album): Two Dozen Roses is a deluxe country music expansion showcasing the versatile crooner's signature style and blending of influences.
The Last of Us | Episode 5 review: Endure and Survive
Episode 5 of The Last of Us sees Joel and Ellie fight humans and infected alike, including our first Bloater.
This Is Why review | Pop-punk Paramore evolve from their emo years
★★★☆☆
After nearly six years, pop-punk darlings Paramore return with brand new, highly anticipated album This Is Why.
Blue Jean review | Impressive, but flawed debut
★★★☆☆
In Blue Jean, Georgia Oakley’s impressive, but flawed debut, a PE teacher faces a personal crisis in Thatcher’s Britain.
Your Place or Mine review | Kutcher and Witherspoon can't connect in split screen bore
★★☆☆☆ Your Place or Mine is a straight-to-Netflix romantic comedy that reunites two likeable performers, Ashton Kutcher and Reese Witherspoon. I’m playing fast and loose with the word ‘reunite’ here because Kutcher and Witherspoon aren’t in the same room together for most of the movie.
Women Talking review | A moving ode to solidarity between women
★★★★☆
In Sarah Polley’s gentle Women Talking, a group of Mennonite women debate whether they should leave their colony after a series of brutal attacks against them.
This Stupid World review | Yo La Tengo carve their own brand of optimism amid despair
★★★★☆
After 16 albums and nearly 40 years as indie rock’s depressive cult heroes, you may think Yo La Tengo would be running out of things to say and ways to surprise. But on their 17th LP This Stupid World – their first of wholly original material since 2018’s There’s a Riot Going On – there’s a living urgency in the trio’s meditative assortment of reflective odes to time and past and all that holds.
The Lehman Trilogy review | an undeniably intimate epic
Charting the rise and fall of America's fourth largest investment bank, Sam Mendes' Tony Award-winning epic, The Lehman Trilogy, returns to the Gillian Lynne Theatre following its acclaimed Broadway run.
Truth Decay review | Screaming self-pity from You Me At Six
★★☆☆☆
The truth hurts. This much is true. And whilst You Me At Six attempt a return to their authentic selves on their eighth studio album, Truth Decay often wallows a bit too much in self-pity, with its more impressive melodic aspects too far and few between.
Pollen review | 'Tennis will soundtrack your next party'
★★★☆☆
Tennis's new album is the ideal soundtrack to a 'cool, artsy, backroom party' taking a break from Father John Misty. Read our Pollen review.
Raven review | Kelela revels in both the dancefloor and the afterglow
★★★★☆
After a hefty six-year hiatus, Kelela is finally back on the scene with her second studio album RAVEN. The singer re-emerges to add to the sanctified canon of her previous discography, all the way from her mixtape Cut 4 Me, released a decade ago, to her 2017 debut album Take Me Apart, with a scattering of features on tracks from the likes of Solange and Gorillaz along the way.
Magic Mike’s Last Dance review | Stripper franchise has run out of magic
★★☆☆☆ Steven Soderbergh and Channing Tatum return to conclude the stripper saga in Magic Mike’s Last Dance. Read our review.
Mogwai at The Garage review | Intimate and inspiring splendour from post-rock’s greats
★★★★★
Merely nine months after headlining Alexandra Palace to 10,000 people, Mogwai have returned to the capital for an intimate extravaganza of 600 attendees. However, the shrunken surroundings only add to the triumph and impact of their unexpectedly successful songs.
Kojey Radical at XOYO review | Air of optimism translates on stage
★★★★☆
With Kojey Radical securing a nomination for Best New Artist at this year’s BRITs, his ascent to mainstream stardom is nearly complete. His performance at Shoreditch’s XOYO on Friday proves this conversation is one that Kojey himself is simultaneously humbled and deserving of being a part of.
Hi-Fi Rush review | Rhythm-action at its most upbeat
Tango Gameworks serve up a joyful rhythm-action brawler that brims with Dreamcast-era charm. Here's our review of Hi-Fi Rush.
EO review | A tragic odyssey of equine proportions
★★★★☆ As much a tragic view of rural Poland as a cautionary tale on our relationship with animals, EO charts a donkey’s journey across two countries.
Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons review | short, sweet, sharp
★★★☆☆ Jenna Coleman and Aidan Turner star in the West End-debut of Sam Steiner’s character-limited dissertation on the importance of words.
The Unfriend review | A sparkling comedy of poisonous politeness
When Peter and Debbie meet the terrifyingly outgoing Elsa, they do everything in their power to stop themselves inviting her to stay.
Enys Men review | Weird for weirdness' sake
★★☆☆☆
Enys Men is Mark Jenkin’s attempt to repeat the success of Bait but it’s a disorienting, alienating tale of isolation and memory.
