Dazzled all over again by Bergman's PERSONA (1966) at BFI yesterday, on gorgeous 35mm. It's a film that rewards rewatching more than almost any other: every scene shimmers with ambiguity, every action provokes and rebukes interpretation, while remaining a gripping, sensual psychological thriller.

Chloë Moss's THE GUILTY at @donmarwarehouse.bsky.social, directed by Felix Barrett, is a haunting, harrowing thriller played out in real time with a riveting central performance by Russell Tovey as a troubled cop on a night shift where nothing is quite what it seems. I was spellbound & shaken by it.

Tony Leung Chiu-wai and Maggie Cheung would like a word …

Dawn@502eire.bsky.social · 2w ago

there is a recurring prompt around what’s the best that anyone has ever looked on camera and I never have an answer but I’m watching right now and I think it’s gotta be George Clooney in Ocean’s 11

Hofesh Shechter’s In The Brain is a dance party staged on the edge of apocalypse. Gorgeously lit and thrillingly scored, it's a stunning showcase for his young company, Schecter II, with a rare tenderness in its solo sections, finding solidarity in chaos. www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/hof...

When he began his collaboration with Bernard Herrmann, Alfred Hitchcock was also about to be launched as an unlikely TV star. My take on the creative symbiosis between the two men.

Jonathan Coe · Where was the drum kit? Hitchcock’s Music

The music Bernard Herrmann wrote for The Wrong Man is diffident, sometimes almost unnoticeable. His score for Hitchcock...

lrb.co.uk

In Bed With My Brother's Philosophy of the World is a blazing, brilliant remix of the story of The Shaggs co-starring theatre's secret weapon Nigel Barrett. Funny, fiery, furious, it's a perfect first show for the gorgeous new @theyardtheatre.bsky.social: same radical spirit, slightly comfier seats.

I'm very much looking forward to Dandelions and Poppy, a queer coming-of-age comedy about two girls and a horny gay dog called Dandelion by @artsemergency.bsky.social graduate Hosanna Johnson. Catch it at @thehopetheatre.bsky.social on 1-3 September: www.thehopetheatre.com/dandelionsan...

Five living writers I’ve read five books by (and look forward to many more) … Jennifer Egan Zadie Smith Emily St John Mandel Scarlett Thomas Sarah Waters

Noah Berlatsky@nberlat.bsky.social · 4w ago

five living writers that you've read five books by each Rita Dove Tasha Suri Courtney Milan Grant Morrison Tom Perrotta

I'm the grim reaper of television: any show that I love is immediately cancelled (RIP to LOVECRAFT COUNTRY, I LOVE DICK, THE CHAIR). So farewell, PONIES: Haley Lu Richardson & Emilia Clarke were an absolute joy as unlikely spies in 70s Moscow, with terrific scripts by David Iserson & Susanna Fogel.

What Is the Definitive Movie About America? www.nytimes.com/2026/07/01/m...

I hugely enjoyed Curry Barker's OBSESSION, despite being a horror film coward. Inde Navarrette is sensational: her storytelling scene matches Naomi Watts' audition in MULHOLLAND DR. as a sequence that transforms both performance & character. Also the most unsettling phone call since LOST HIGHWAY.

Spielberg's DISCLOSURE DAY is less like ET & CLOSE ENCOUNTERS than a fusion of TINTIN & THE POST. It's also as much of a personal portrait of his parents as THE FABELMANS, and his most 70s movie since — well — the 70s. So as a lover of Pakula & Pollack's conspiracy thrillers I had a wonderful time.

Sophy Romvari's BLUE HERON has haunted me for a week now. It's a powerful, intimate story of childhood, memory and a quest for closure that takes dazzling leaps in focus and form. As her troubled brother Jeremy, Edik Beddoes barely speaks but gives one of the strongest performances of the year.

My brilliant @artsemergency.bsky.social graduate Hosanna is bringing her funny, romantic queer coming-of-age story about two girls and a horny gay dog to The Hope Theatre in September. She's running a @gofundme.com to support it: please help out if you can ❤️🌼🐶 www.gofundme.com/f/dandelions...

Donate to Dandelions and Poppy is Back!! , organized by Hosanna Johnson

It can be hard to find true acceptance, but maybe a horny dog can help. Hi my name… Hosanna Johnson needs your support for Dandelions and Poppy is Back!!

gofundme.com

"If you’re making movies at the same time as Steven Spielberg, it’s hard not to feel like Salieri." Terrific interview with Steven Soderbergh about Spielberg, his own most challenging productions and his new app detailing the making of JAWS. deadline.com/2026/06/stev...

Really looking forward to seeing this for the first time at BFI Southbank, my spiritual home. Booking is now open for Kazuo Ishiguro's season of great films set on trains: whatson.bfi.org.uk/Online/defau...

Jonathan Coe@jonathancoe.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Book your tickets for the Rome Express, the grand-daddy of all train films, at the BFI Southbank on 21st July. Introduced by one of the world's greatest writers. (Kazuo Ishiguro, I mean. I will also be speaking.)

One of my favourite novels last year, interweaving the lives of a documentary film-maker, whom we meet smuggling a wolf cub out of the Chernobyl forest, and a young activist whose work inspires constitutional change. A climate story, a nature story and a love story that offers hope in fearful times.

E. J. Swift@catamaroon.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Out today! The paperback edition of When There Are Wolves Again 🪶🦫🌱🐾🐺 geni.us/WhenThereAre...

Wes Anderson's Archive at the Design Museum is an enchanting tribute to human imagination, packed with exquisite work by hundreds of artists. As well as iconic costumes & models there's huge joy in finding book covers, menus etc. that you may have missed on screen: designmuseum.org/exhibitions/...

Quote with a fictional band that isn't Spinal Tap.

Sylvain Neuvel@neuvel.net · 3mo ago

Quote with a fictional band that isn't Spinal Tap.

I'm not sure if Frankie Thompson is the universal cure for human suffering or its primary cause, but her new show HORRIBLE THINGS is one of the funniest hours I've ever spent in a theatre. She's a genius. Don't miss it. WIP at @camdenpt.bsky.social tonight & tomorrow: cptheatre.co.uk/whatson/Fran...

Frankie Thompson - Horrible Things (Works in Regress) | Camden People's Theatre

Frankie Thompson presents Frankie Thompson - Horrible Things (Works in Regress) at Camden People's Theatre

cptheatre.co.uk

Welcome back to the brilliant @theyardtheatre.bsky.social, returning at twice the size & twice the attitude with a breathtaking new season including In Bed With My Brother's Philosophy Of The World, Malmö Stadsteater’s The World Is Full Of Married Men & Ian McKellen's Lear: www.theyardtheatre.co.uk

The Yard Theatre

Reimagines theatre to reimagine the world

theyardtheatre.co.uk

Anya Reiss is one of our best playwrights: funny, fierce & ruthless, propelled by love & rage. Her new version of A Doll's House at the Almeida is scalpel sharp & pindrop tense, wrenching the play into the present, almost to the hour, with Romola Garai as a glorious, dangerous Nora.

François Ozon's haunting, timely adaptation of L'ETRANGER is a masterclass in directing. The first half is almost silent, told in striking, sensual imagery, the second driven by two dramatic set pieces. Benjamin Voisin is a charismatic, unsettling Meursault and Rebecca Marder a heartbreaking Marie.

If you can't get to the real seaside this Easter, Seurat and the Sea at the Courtauld Gallery is a holiday in 26 paintings. I found it very moving: Seurat sold only 3 pictures in his lifetime before dying at just 31, making these shimmering summertime seascapes feel as fragile as they are beautiful.

Tim Crouch's The Tempest at the Globe is spellbinding, combining his characteristic playfulness and thoughtfulness to create an original, beautiful version that confronts the play's problems while enhancing its magic. Sophie Steer is, of course, a marvel as Miranda, and the whole cast is a delight.

I hugely enjoyed Georgi M. Unkovski's DJ AHMET (Диџеј Ахмет) a coming-of-age tale with teeth about a young Macedonian shepherd who loves dance music and his beautiful neighbour Aya, but whose conservative community seeks to deny him both. Wonderfully acted & beautifully shot, it's in UK cinemas now.

I think Gore Vidal got it wrong: there are few greater pleasures than celebrating a friend's success. So I'm thrilled for Daniel Pemberton, whose magnificent music is a huge contribution to PROJECT HAIL MARY's impact. Here he is on creating the score: www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie...

‘Project Hail Mary’ Filmmakers Had a Radical Idea for Composer Daniel Pemberton

The composer, also known for Phil Lord and Chris Miller's 'Spider-Verse' movie, discusses his process on the hit film, which he calls the most challenging of his career: "I don't think I've ever been ...

hollywoodreporter.com

RIP Calvin Tomkins, the @newyorker.com's great profiler of contemporary artists, and a terrific biographer of Rauschenberg, Duchamp and more. Here's his funny, tender, touching memoir of his 100th year, from December: www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

Becoming a Centenarian

Like The New Yorker, I was born in 1925. Somewhat to my surprise, I decided to keep a journal of my hundredth year.

newyorker.com

THE DEVIL'S HAND (Maurice Tourneur, 1943) is a Faustian tale about a struggling artist who sells his soul for wealth & renown. Made under German occupation, it's also a powerful & enduring warning about the perils of collaboration, with a truly unsettling performance by Pierre Palau as the devil.