The clock comes to cancel: Time and the loss of control in ‘Tár’
Exploring how director Todd Field portrays a character running out of time and losing control.
About Me
I am a London-based film critic, on the search for new outlets for my work. I currently contribute to Loud and Clear Reviews, Scannain, Headstuff, and am co-host of 'Culture Corner' on Radio Harrow. I also contribute to The 250 Podcast.
I am available for articles, reviews, interviews and festivals. I have previously attended and covered:
- Cannes Film Festival
- Venice Film Festival
- BFI London Film Festival,
- Dublin International Film Festival.
If any journalists, editors, producers etc. like what they see here, get in touch:
Email: cynicalfilm@gmail.com
X/Instagram/Letterboxd: @CynicalFilm
Recent Work
Interview: Pat Collins on That They May Face The Rising Sun
John McGahern’s 2003 novel That They May Face The Rising Sun sounds like perfect material for writer-director Pat Collins. The acclaimed director of Song of Granite and Silence brings his calm and patient eye to this tale of two emigrés, Joe and Kate (Barry Ward and Anna Bederke), returning to Joe’s home in rural Ireland from London for a different pace of living. Collins and co-writer Éamon Little’s adaptation stays true to McGahern’s spirit. It honours the spirit of rural communities, while al
DIFF 2024 Review | Do Not Expect Too Much From the End of the World is Consistently Funny and Shockingly Intelligent
You shouldn’t judge a film by its title any more than you should judge a book by its cover, but the ethos of Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World is summed up in that title. Radu Jude’s masterful exploration of modern malaise is despairing but wise, trying to make sense of the modern world’s woes. The title evokes another woebegone exploration of the contemporary world, T.S. Eliot’s poem ‘The Hollow Men’. Like the modernist Eliot, Jude trades in provocative imagery and caustic commen
DIFF 2024 Preview | 10 Must-See Movies Coming to the Dublin International Film Festival
Since its inception in 2003, the Dublin International Film Festival (DIFF) has endeavoured to bring the best of international cinema to Irish audiences, and the 2024 slate is no exception. With films from some of the most exciting filmmakers around, this year’s selection offers plenty to ponder, revile, provoke and amaze.
This year’s festival takes place from 22nd February – 2nd March. Here are 10 films we recommend catching:
London-based Irish filmmakers Joe Lawlor and Christine Molloy return
This year’s festival takes place from 22nd February – 2nd March. Here are 10 films we recommend catching:
London-based Irish filmmakers Joe Lawlor and Christine Molloy return
Christine Molloy & Joe Lawlor on Baltimore: LFF Interview
We interview husband-and-wife writer-directors Christine Molloy and Joe Lawlor on their new thriller Baltimore, a retelling of an IRA art heist.
Baltimore tells the fascinating story of Rose Dugdale, an English heiress who rejected that life to volunteer for the IRA in the early 1970s, culminating in taking part in what was then the biggest art heist ever perpetrated. In April 1974, Dugdale and three others robbed priceless gems by European masters from Russborough House, Co. Wicklow, Ireland.
Baltimore tells the fascinating story of Rose Dugdale, an English heiress who rejected that life to volunteer for the IRA in the early 1970s, culminating in taking part in what was then the biggest art heist ever perpetrated. In April 1974, Dugdale and three others robbed priceless gems by European masters from Russborough House, Co. Wicklow, Ireland.
Daaaaaali!: LFF Film Review
Daaaaaali! is sublimely nonsensical fun, not at all to be taken seriously, yet with some clever commentary at play too.
At this year’s autumn film festivals, first Venice and now London, biopics of all shapes and sizes showed that this often-predictable genre is capable of taking risks and unleashing surprises. While the likes of Ferrari and Priscilla play things safe, you’ll also find the likes of the hilarious Hit Man or the deeply felt Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus to challenge expectations. Eve
At this year’s autumn film festivals, first Venice and now London, biopics of all shapes and sizes showed that this often-predictable genre is capable of taking risks and unleashing surprises. While the likes of Ferrari and Priscilla play things safe, you’ll also find the likes of the hilarious Hit Man or the deeply felt Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus to challenge expectations. Eve
Baltimore (2023): LFF Film Review
Try as the cast might, Joe Lawlor and Christine Molloy‘s film Baltimore fails to get under the skin of a determined firebrand.
In their 2022 film essay The Future Tense, husband and wife filmmaking duo Joe Lawlor and Christine Molloy took stock; of themselves, their careers, their country. Though London-based, the pair retain a distinctly Irish point of view in their films, either setting them in Ireland, or at least featuring characters from the diaspora. One of the throughlines of The Futur
In their 2022 film essay The Future Tense, husband and wife filmmaking duo Joe Lawlor and Christine Molloy took stock; of themselves, their careers, their country. Though London-based, the pair retain a distinctly Irish point of view in their films, either setting them in Ireland, or at least featuring characters from the diaspora. One of the throughlines of The Futur
Selman Nacar on Hesitation Wound: Interview
We sit down for an interview with writer-director Selman Nacar to discuss Hesitation Wound, his day-in-the-life Turkish courtroom drama.
The Orizzonti strand at the Venice Film Festival is dedicated to highlighting the most interesting up-and-coming voices in world cinema. On the evidence of Hesitation Wound (Tereddüt Çizgisi), writer-director Selman Nacar is a voice worth hearing.
Hesitation Wound centres on Canan (Tülin Özen), a defence lawyer living and working in the Turkish city of Usak.
The Orizzonti strand at the Venice Film Festival is dedicated to highlighting the most interesting up-and-coming voices in world cinema. On the evidence of Hesitation Wound (Tereddüt Çizgisi), writer-director Selman Nacar is a voice worth hearing.
Hesitation Wound centres on Canan (Tülin Özen), a defence lawyer living and working in the Turkish city of Usak.
Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus: Film Review
Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus is an elegant and moving tribute to (and from) a world class musical talent.
When the death of Ryuichi Sakamoto was announced in March this year, his loss was rightly mourned by music fans around the world. Sakamoto ultimately succumbed to cancer but, taking a leaf out of the books of David Bowie and Leonard Cohen, he decided to leave a record of his work for the world to appreciate before he passed. Thus, we get Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus, a simple but beautiful tribute
When the death of Ryuichi Sakamoto was announced in March this year, his loss was rightly mourned by music fans around the world. Sakamoto ultimately succumbed to cancer but, taking a leaf out of the books of David Bowie and Leonard Cohen, he decided to leave a record of his work for the world to appreciate before he passed. Thus, we get Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus, a simple but beautiful tribute
Coup de Chance: Venice Film Review
With Coup de Chance, Woody Allen proves he’s still capable of delivering a short and sweet charmer, even in a new country and language.
With Coup de Chance, Woody Allen proves that a change is as good as a rest. He fulfils a long-held ambition to make a film in France with a Francophone cast, and the gambit pays off. Despite the new setting (dictated by necessity as much as anything else), the familiar speech patterns, elegant settings and wry humour are firmly in place. Even the opening cred
With Coup de Chance, Woody Allen proves that a change is as good as a rest. He fulfils a long-held ambition to make a film in France with a Francophone cast, and the gambit pays off. Despite the new setting (dictated by necessity as much as anything else), the familiar speech patterns, elegant settings and wry humour are firmly in place. Even the opening cred
#Review: The Killer – Venice Film Festival 2023
An assassin has to be a ruthless and efficient machine. No distractions, no, misgivings, no room for error. It’s a discipline that Christian (Michael Fassbender) reiterates time and time again in The Killer (His repeated mantra is, “Stick to the plan.”). The same rigorous efficiency applies to David Fincher. No matter what the film, whether the playful nonsense of The Game or witnessing the birth of the future in The Social Network, Fincher commits to bringing the story to life with precision an
#Review: Maestro – Venice Film Festival 2023
It takes creativity to talk about creativity. Leonard Bernstein was one of the most consistent and engaging creatives of the 20th century. As composer and conductor, his influence continues to inspire, and not just in the world of music. Maestro was a longtime project on Steven Spielberg’s roster but, while remaining a producer on the final film, he opted to hand over the reins of the film to Bradley Cooper. The success of his remake of A Star Is Born was due in no small part to his effortless b
