MUBI Notebook / Act Like a Man: Jean-Claude Van Damme

As we head into 2020, I'm starting a brand new column over at MUBI Notebook. It's called Act Like A Man, and it's all about actors past & present and their relationship to masculinity, persona, desirability, and their viewers. The first one is about the Muscles from Brussels himself, Jean-Claude Van Damme -- and his unusual appeal to women and gay men. You can read it online now.

BBC Culture: Hollywood Heartthrobs Through the Ages

In time for the release of Little Women this month - which stars everyone's favourite boy, Timothee Chalamet - I wrote about the anatomy of the movie heartthrob for BBC Culture. You can check it out here.

BFI: Where to Begin With...Vincente Minnelli

    For BFI, I wrote a primer to the work of Vincente Minnelli - and got to talk about some truly great movies, like An American in Paris, The Band Wagon, and Meet Me in St Louis. Read it here. 

Little White Lies / Threads #12: The Signet Ring

For the latest edition of my column Threads, on film and fashion, I wrote about the masculine power of the signet ring. You can find it in print only in the new Uncut Gems issue of Little White Lies, on newsstands and available now!

MUBI Notebook: What Makes a Screwball Comedy?

    For MUBI Notebook, I wrote about Preston Sturges' The Palm Beach Story and why contemporary screwball comedies just can't live up to what came before. Find the piece here, on their website.

Little White Lies: Robert De Niro and Al Pacino Interview

For Little White Lies latest issue, I had the immense privilege of talking to Robert De Niro and Al Pacino, two heroes of American cinema, about Martin Scorsese's The Irishman, their long relationship, and the gangsterisation of American politics. You can see it on newsstands now or online here.

Sight & Sound / Life Doesn't Stop for Divorce: An Interview with Noah Baumbach about Marriage Story

For the latest issue of Sight & Sound Magazine, I spoke to director Noah Baumbach about his film Marriage Story, starring Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson. It's one of my favourite interviews I've done, and you can find it in print only in Sight & Sound, on newsstands now or for purchase online here.

BBC Culture: Is Martin Scorsese's The Irishman the End of the Gangster Movie As We Know It?

Over at BBC Culture, I wrote about Martin Scorsese's latest film, The Irishman, and how it's a masterpiece that feels a lot like a swan song for a whole genre of movies. You can read it here. The Irishman is out in select UK cinemas this weekend, and on Netflix everywhere on 27 November. 

BFI: Why Bad Taste is Over - An Interview with John Waters

 For BFI, I had a great chat with John Waters about the Criterion blu-ray release of his 1981 movie Polyester  - we also talked Trump, Marvel v. Scorsese, and what bad taste means these days. Read it here. 

BFI: Death and The Musical

    For the BFI Musicals season, I looked at the darker side of the American movie musical -- and how death haunts the best of them now so many of our film legends have passed away. Read it online. 

SSENSE: Suiting on Film / American Gigolo

   For SSENSE, I wrote a little capsule about one of my all-time favourite films, American Gigolo, and the Giorgio Armani suiting. Check out the whole list here. 

MUBI Notebook: Antonio Banderas and the Archetype of the 'Latin Lover'

In time for a retrospective of his work at NYC's Quad Cinema, I wrote about Antonio Banderas and his career trajectory as a 'latin lover' - within and without the films of his closest collaborator Pedro Almodovar. Read the essay here at MUBI Notebook.

VICE: The Actress Who Killed Her Abusive Husband and Was Expelled from Hollywood

     For VICE, I spent several months researching the forgotten story of '60s actress and Playboy model Saundra Edwards, whose career was cut short when she shot and killed her violent husband. You can read all about her here. 

Little White Lies: Threads #11 - The Sequin Dress

For my latest installment of Threads, for the special Judy Garland-themed issue for the release of biopic Judy, I wrote about the musical-friendly wardrobe choice of the sequin dress. Worn by drag queens, flappers, and movie star divas since the 1920's. Threads is print-only, so you can pick up Little White Lies on newsstands or on the website here.

Little White Lies: The Photoplayers

For the beautiful new print issue of Little White Lies magazine, themed around Judy Garland for the upcoming biopic about her, I wrote about old Hollywood gossip / fan magazines like Photoplay and how they used coded language to hint at the scandals of the stars. Print-only, but you can find it on newsstands from today or to buy online here.

The Playlist: Babyteeth, dir. Shannon Murphy (Venice Film Festival)

For The Playlist, I reviewed Babyteeth, the last film I saw in Venice and one of only two Competition films directed by a woman. Shannon Murphy is an Australian filmmaker making her feature debut, and it's an accomplished and devastating film, with some flaws but not enough to really mar the whole. 

The Guardian / G2: 'Incel' violence is horrific, but Joker doesn't take sides

For the Guardian, I wrote an editorial about incel violence and claims that this film will inspire right-wing vigilantism. Here's the piece. 

The Playlist: The King, dir. David Michod (Venice Film Festival)

I wrote about David Michod's new film for Netflix, The King - starring Timothee Chalamet, Joel Edgerton, Lily-Rose Depp, and Robert Pattinson - for The Playlist. Read it here.

Vulture: Spike Lee Calls Nate Parker's New Film 'A Part of History'

Here's a quick news piece about the premiere of Nate Parker's new movie American Skin at Venice Film Festival, where it was presented by producer of the film Spike Lee. It was awful. Read about it here.

The Playlist: Wasp Network, dir. Olivier Assayas (Venice Film Festival)

    For The Playlist, I wrote about Olivier Assayas' new Cuban spy drama Wasp Network out of Venice Film Festival. Here's the link.

Sight & Sound: Joker, dir. Todd Phillips (Venice Film Festival)

Here's a first-look review of Joker, the disturbing origin story for one of comic books' most famous villains, for Sight & Sound online. 

The Playlist: The Perfect Candidate, dir. Haifaa Al-Mansour (Venice Film Festival)

I wrote about The Perfect Candidate, Saudi Arabian director Haifaa Al-Mansour's film in Competition at Venice Film Festival, for The Playlist. Read what I thought about it here.

Sight & Sound: Marriage Story, dir. Noah Baumbach (Venice Film Festival)

For Sight & Sound online and out of Venice Film Festival, I did a first look review Marriage Story - Noah Baumbach's latest, starring Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson. I loved it. Check it out here.

Vulture: Everything You Need to Know about Brad Pitt's Space Movie, Ad Astra (Venice Film Festival)

I had fun writing a little (spoiler-free!) round-up of good things to know about James Gray's new philosophical space drama Ad Astra, starring Brad Pitt and Tommy Lee Jones. Here it is. 

The Playlist: An Officer and a Spy, dir. Roman Polanski (Venice Film Festival)

Here's a dispatch out of Venice Film Festival for The Playlist on Roman Polanski's latest, An Officer and A Spy. 

ICO: A Contemporary Perspective on Margarethe von Trotta

For the Independent Cinema Office's restoration of her films, I wrote about veteran New German Cinema filmmaker Margarethe von Trotta from a contemporary perspective. The ICO's tour of four of her movies (The Personal is Political: The Films of Margarethe von Trotta) is ongoing through the year. You can learn more and read my piece on their website, here.

BFI: Pauline Kael & the Men from Dream City

This year sees both legendary film critic Pauline Kael's centenary and an August season of films at BFI Southbank celebrating Cary Grant. Given Kael's seminal New Yorker essay about Grant, The Man From Dream City, I examined her writing on male stardom and male beauty for a piece at BFI. Check it out here.

AnOther Magazine: Remembering Piero Tosi, Visionary Costume Designer to Visconti and Fellini

    I wrote about the amazing perfectionism and detail of costume designer Piero Tosi, who worked with Luchino Visconti on ten films including The Leopard and Death in Venice. He passed away aged 92 earlier this month, so for AnOther Mag, I looked at his work in this piece.

Little White LIes: The Vietnam War Film They Wanted You to Forget

In time for the 50th anniversary of the summer of 1969 - and to tie in with my BBC Arts essay film on the subject - I wrote about Vietnam War doc Winter Soldier and how it disappeared very quickly because of the radical subject matter it contained. You can read about the doc here at Little White Lies online, or you can watch my Inside Cinema essay film on BBC iPlayer. 

BBC Arts / Inside Cinema: Nixon's America - A Country Divided

The essay film I wrote and did voiceover for is now on BBC iPlayer: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07h0qbz

BBC Arts / Inside Cinema: Spacesuit Style

 For BBC Arts and Little Dot Studios, I wrote and did the voiceover for an episode of new series Inside Cinema. This one is all about the evolution of the costume design of the movie spacesuit. Check it out on BBC iPlayer here. 

She Found it At the Movies: Women Writers on Sex, Desire, & Cinema

I'm so pleased to announce the upcoming publication of my first book, an anthology I've edited of 21 amazing culture writers. It's out in March 2020 and available to pre-order now, here: https://redpress.co.uk/collections/red-press-bookshop/products/she-found-it-at-the-movies

BFI: '90s Stardom: Pretty Young Things

For the upcoming BFI '90s season, I wrote about stardom among the it-boys and -girls of the decade -- particularly how screen masculinity seemed to become more sensitive in the likes of Leo, Brad, Johnny and River. Yet, somehow, women still got the short end of the stick. Find the piece here.

BFI: Woman With a Movie Camera Summit / Let's Talk About Thirst

At BFI Southbank on 22 June, I did a talk at the annual Woman With a Movie Camera summit to talk about female desire, sex, and cinema. 'Let's Talk About Thirst' was a fun sneak-peek at the upcoming anthology I'm editing, called SHE FOUND IT AT THE MOVIES. More details to come soon! 

Little White Lies: 100 Greatest British Films

  For Little White Lies Issue 80, I wrote some capsules on the 100 Greatest British Films of all time - including Peter Watkins' Culloden, Bronco Bullfrog, and Radio On. On newsstands now or available online here. 

Hyperallergic: A Conversation with Filmmaker Jeanie Finlay about Her Doc 'Seahorse'

   For Hyperallergic, I spoke to filmmaker Jeanie Finlay about her film Seahorse, the story of pregnant man Freddie McConnell. Check out our chat here. 

Dazed Magazine: Jim Jarmusch and Adam Driver in Conversation / The Dead Don't Die

    For my debut in Dazed Magazine's June print issue, I sat down with Jim Jarmusch and Adam Driver to talk about their new film The Dead Don't Die. You can read it online here, find it on newsstands now, learn more about the issue.

SSENSE: Writers on the Fashion Essential to Coming-of-Age Films / Judy's Red Lipstick in Rebel Without A Cause

For SSENSE, I took part in a list feature where each writer wrote a bit about fashion in coming-of-age movies. I chose Rebel Without a Cause, in particular Judy's red lipstick. Fashion + beauty + film = my favourite stuff to write about. Check out the whole piece here. 

Film Comment: Finest Hour / David Essex in That'll Be The Day

      For the latest (May/June) issue of Film Comment, I wrote about David Essex and his surprisingly layered performance as a young, ambitious rock and roll star of the '50s in That'll Be The Day. You can get the print mag here on the website.

 

BAMCinematek Beyond the Canon: Richard Pryor's JoJo Dancer, Your Life is Calling + Bob Fosse's All that Jazz

I was really happy to write a short piece for BAMCinematek, an amazing Brooklyn repertory cinema. Their Beyond the Canon series screens an accepted masterpiece with a lesser-known counterpart. On Saturday 18 May at BAM, Richard Pryor's Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life is Calling and Bob Fosse's All That Jazz will screen in a double-bill. I wrote all about the two movies here, on their blog.

The Face: Dragged Across Concrete and the #BlueLivesMatter Cop Drama

For the relaunch of legendary magazine The Face, I wrote about S. Craig Zahler's questionable new cop drama Dragged Across Concrete. Check out the piece here on the new website! 

Little White Lies: Have Film Audiences Fallen Out of Love with the Western?

Jacques Audiard's great western The Sisters Brothers is out in UK cinemas today. Unfortunately, when it came out in the US, it flopped at the box office. I wrote a bit about why contemporary westerns don't tend to do very well commercially anymore  over at Little White Lies online. 

Sight & Sound Magazine: Fear + Desire: Stanley Kubrick's Preoccupation with the Male Body

   From the sturdy slaves in Spartacus to the prizefighters of his early films, Stanley Kubrick was long preoccupied by the dimensions of the male body. I wrote about it in print for the May issue of Sight & Sound Magazine, which is available on newsstands now or online here. The Stanley Kubrick season runs at BFI Southbank in London over the next two months.

   

MUBI Notebook: The Visionary Difference of Robert Siodmak's Film Noir

Two of Robert Siodmak's amazing classic film noirs, Phantom Lady (1944) and The Killers (1946) are now streaming on MUBI. For MUBI Notebook, I wrote about Siodmak's influence on the American crime thriller and his background as a German Jew escaping from Nazi Germany. Check out the piece here. 

New Statesman: How Agnès Varda Revolutionised the Inner Lives of Women Onscreen

   For my debut piece at the New Statesman, I wrote about Agnès Varda's incredible seven decade career and how she portrayed the female experience onscreen. RIP Agnès.