Category Archives: Reviews

THEATRE REVIEW: Gemma Arterton in ‘Nell Gwynn’

Posted on February 17, 2016 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – Jessica Swale’s thoroughly entertaining play “Nell Gwynn”, about the strumpet turned actress who beguiled a king of England and became a queen of the London stage, is filled with laughter and music and a few … Continue reading →

Posted in Music, Reviews, Theatre | Tagged 'Nell Gwynn', Anneika Rose, Christopher Luscombe, David Rintoul, David Sturzaker, Gemma Arterton, Greg Haiste, Hugh Durrant, Jay Taylor, Jessica Swale, Michael Garner, Michelle Dotrice, Nica Burns, Nicholas Shaw, Nigel Hess, Peter McGovern, Sarah Woodward, Sasha Waddell, Shakespeare's Globe | Comments Off

Art meets science in space at the Natural History Museum

Posted on February 12, 2016 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – The Natural History Museum’s exhibition “Otherworlds: Visions of Our Solar System”, on show now through May 15, is as good as a movie as it takes visitors on a journey through space with spectacular still … Continue reading →

Posted in Music, News, Reviews | Tagged 'Otherworlds: Visions of Our Solar System', ESA, Joseph Michalski, Michael Benson, NASA, Natural History Museum | Comments Off

FILM REVIEW: Bryan Cranston, Helen Mirren in ‘Trumbo’

Posted on February 5, 2016 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – The infamous treatment of filmmakers in Hollywood during the communist witch hunt of the 1940s and 1950s should have made for a powerful movie but Jay Roach’s “Trumbo” misses the target.

Posted in Film, Reviews | Tagged 'Trumbo', Bryan Cranston, Dalton Trumbo, Diane Lane, Edward G. Robinson, Gregory Peck, Helen Mirren, John Goodman, Michael Stuhlbarg | Comments Off

FILM REVIEW: Quentin Tarantino’s ‘The Hateful Eight’

Posted on January 8, 2016 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – Quentin Tarantino’s western “The Hateful Eight” reveals him as a horrible sham who relies on the skills of talented filmmakers to make his pictures look and sound great despite his absence of talent as a … Continue reading →

Posted in Berlin International Film Festival, Film, Reviews | Tagged 'The Hateful Eight', Jennifer Jason Leigh, Kirt Russell, Quentin Tarantino, Robert Richardson, Samuel L. Jackson, The Weinstein Company, Walton Coggins | Comments Off

THEATRE REVIEW: Frank Loesser’s ‘Guys and Dolls’

Posted on December 20, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – If you like musical theatre, beg, borrow or steal a ticket to see the Chichester Festival Theatre’s dazzling production of Broadway classic “Guys and Dolls”, which opens at the Savoy Theatre on Jan. 6 and … Continue reading →

Posted in Music, Reviews, Theatre | Tagged 'Guys and Dolls', Abe Burrows, Damon Runyan, David Haig, Frank Loesser, Gavin Spokes, Gordon Greenberg, Jamie Parker, Jo Swerling, Peter McKintosh, Savoy Theatre, Siubhan Harrison, Sophie Thompson | Comments Off

FILM REVIEW: Saoirse Ronan in John Crowley’s ‘Brooklyn’

Posted on December 12, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – A finely nuanced performance by Saoirse Ronan as a young Irish ex-pat in New York is one of the many pleasures of John Crowley’s warm and entertaining “Brooklyn”.

Posted in Film, Reviews | Tagged 'Brooklyn', Colm Tóibín, Domhnall Gleeson, Emory Cohen, Fiona Glascott, Jessica Paré, Jim Broadbent, John Crowley, Julie Walters, Lionsgate UK, Michael Brook, Nick Hornby, Saoirse Ronan | Comments Off

FILM REVIEW: Daniel Craig as James Bond in ‘Spectre’

Posted on December 11, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – The latest James Bond film, “Spectre”, has grossed around $800 million around the world, so it’s clear that the filmmakers know what sells. It’s just a shame that it’s not really a James Bond film. … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Reviews | Tagged 'Spectre', 007, Christoph Waltz, Daniel Craig, James Bond, Ralph Fiennes, Sam Mendes, Thomas Newman | Comments Off

FILM REVIEW: Danny Boyle’s ‘Steve Jobs’

Posted on December 9, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – Danny Boyle apparently blames the box-office failure of his film “Steve Jobs” in the U.S. on the decision by distributor Universal Studios to break it wide too early. Universal reportedly blames the film’s leading actor, Michael … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Music, Reviews | Tagged 'Steve Jobs', Aaron Sorkin, Daniel Pemberton, Danny Boyle, Jeff Daniels, Kate Winslet, Michael Fassbender | Comments Off

FILM REVIEW: Howard Hawks’ ‘Only Angels Have Wings’

Posted on May 16, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – With a sparkling new 4K digital restoration, “Only Angels Have Wings”, directed in 1939 by Howard Hawks and starring Cary Grant, Jean Arthur and Rita Hayworth, is back in UK cinemas thanks to distributor Park … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Reviews | Tagged 'Only Angels Have Wings', Cary Grant, Howard Hawks, Jean Arthur, Park Circus, Rita Hayworth, Sony Pictures Entertainment | Comments Off

FILM REVIEW: ‘Kingsman: The Secret Service’

Posted on January 29, 2015 by admin

By Ray Bennett “Kingsman: The Secret Service” could put the nail in the coffin of secret agent movies just as “Blazing Saddles” put the kibosh on westerns in the 1970s. It takes the increasingly absurd violent action of recent James … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Reviews | Tagged 'Kingsman: The Secret Service', 20th Century Fox, Colin Firth, Jane Goodman, Mark Strong, Matthew Vaughan, Samuel L. Jackson, Sophie Cookson, Taron Egerton | Comments Off