Reviews
3781
in total
published by Empire
(click to remove filters)
-
Rose Plays Julie
A review by Kambole Campbell for Empire2021-09-15
Rose Plays Julie is impactful and unsettling, heightened by slippery performances and enigmatic visual construction.Read entire review on Empire -
Misha and the Wolves
A review by Hanna Flint for Empire2021-09-03
Despite a few narrative gaps that needed filling, Sam Hobkinson delivers a rollercoaster-ride of a documentary with superb characters, insightful talking heads and jaw-dropping plot twists.Read entire review on Empire -
The Nest
A review by Ian Freer for Empire2021-08-24
Filled with both passive aggression and aggressive aggression, The Nest has the trappings of a haunted-house movie but delivers something much scarier — the slow death of a marriage, performed to perfection by Jude Law and Carrie Coon.Read entire review on Empire -
Censor
A review by Terri White for Empire2021-08-16
A psychedelic rabbit-hole-drop of a movie from one of the most exciting new directors working in horror today.Read entire review on Empire -
Fear Street Part Three: 1666
A review by Ian Freer for Empire2021-07-16
1666 mostly operates in a different register than 1994 and 1978, but is no less entertaining. It rounds off an ambitious triptych chock-full of horror-history allusions, strong world-building, sharp scares, palatable gore, lively filmmaking and a likeable set of characters. Other scary-movie franchises take note.Read entire review on Empire -
Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)
A review for Empire2021-07-12
Sonically flawless, authentically textured and deep-rooted in cultural significance, Summer Of Soul succeeds magnificently in capturing the scale, spiritual resonance and, yes, soul of the Harlem Cultural Festival. It will not be forgotten this time.Read entire review on Empire -
The Truffle Hunters
A review by Ian Freer for Empire2021-07-09
The Truffle Hunters is a low-key delight, a poignant lament for a fading art that doubles as foodie heaven. Go on a full stomach.Read entire review on Empire -
The Surrogate
A review by Ian Freer for Empire2021-07-09
Jeremy Hersh’s debut is naturalistic and well played. If it initially lacks momentum and oomph, the film becomes a multi-faceted look at issues surrounding surrogacy, anchored by Jasmine Batchelor’s central performance as a woman forced to make a life-changing decision.Read entire review on Empire -
In the Earth
A review by Ian Freer for Empire2021-06-14
It’s a visceral experience; part survivalist drama, part slash-and-stalk thriller, filled with intensity and dread, all amplified by wild editing strategies (flash cuts, jump cuts, abrupt cuts to black) and strobe effects to stoke up the atmosphere.Read entire review on Empire -
The Father
A review by Nick de Semlyen for Empire2021-06-10
Hopkins is extraordinary as a man flailing against a condition that’s taking everything from him. And Zeller proves he’s a natural filmmaker, orchestrating a Wagnerian opera of emotion based entirely around an old man in a flat.Read entire review on Empire -
Shiva Baby
A review by Alex Godfrey for Empire2021-06-07
A perfectly painted portrait that also makes for sharp social commentary, this just goes to show what you can do with a tiny budget but a huge amount of talent.Read entire review on Empire -
Land
A review for Empire2021-06-03
In her directorial debut, Robin Wright boldly strikes out for new territory, but the film is all too conventionally fenced in, lacking a narrative as compelling as its own dramatic Wyoming scenery.Read entire review on Empire -
Sir Alex Ferguson: Never Give In
A review by Ian Freer for Empire2021-05-28
It’s very conventional in form and dances round his famous temper, but Never Give In touches on topics (class, identity) rare in a sports documentary, etching a moving portrait of a man reflecting on his past at a point when his memory is slipping away from him.Read entire review on Empire -
First Cow
A review by Ian Freer for Empire2021-05-27
First Cow is archetypal Kelly Reichardt, slow, small and perfectly formed, elevated by stellar but understated performances from John Magaro and Orion Lee.Read entire review on Empire -
Rare Beasts
A review by Terri White for Empire2021-05-17
Billie Piper’s ambitious, darkly funny directorial debut suggests the arrival of a new filmmaker with a vision, verve and a voice.Read entire review on Empire -
Those Who Wish Me Dead
A review by Chris Hewitt (1) for Empire2021-05-12
A lean and mean throwback of a thriller bolstered by excellent performances and first-class filmmaking. Occasionally bites off more than its CG budget can chew, but when director Taylor Sheridan keeps the action grounded, it’s sweaty palms central.Read entire review on Empire -
Truman & Tennessee: An Intimate Conversation
A review by Ian Freer for Empire2021-04-30
Truman & Tennessee: An Intimate Portrait’s staid approach doesn’t always cohere into a gripping yarn but it is detailed, boasts a real feel for the fiction and, in-between the two men’s rampant viciousness, emerges as undeniably poignant.Read entire review on Empire -
Wild Mountain Thyme
A review by Ian Freer for Empire2021-04-28
It’s not just that Wild Mountain Thyme is bogged down by overripe Irish trappings. It also fails to work on the most basic romcom level — wanting to see a couple get together. Sadly, not even a strong cast can rescue a pot of gold from the end of this rainbow.Read entire review on Empire -
Nomadland
A review by Ian Freer for Empire2021-04-27
Nomadland is a Springsteen song in movie form, a beautifully rendered tale of what it means to be disenfranchised in America. Life on the road has never been so tenderly captured, politically alive and profoundly moving.Read entire review on Empire -
The Reckoning
A review by Ian Freer for Empire2021-04-13
Neil Marshall’s return to his homegrown horror wheelhouse doesn’t reach the heights of Dog Soldiers and The Descent. Instead, it’s a witch-hunt thriller that lacks the texture to be realistic and the no-holds-barred energy to be pulpy. Sean Pertwee has fun though.Read entire review on Empire
