Philip Kemp

4 weeks ago | bfi.org.uk | Philip KempReviews |Philip Kemp |Ben Nicholson |Samuel Thomas Davies

Alex Garland and Iraq War veteran Ray Mendoza’s rigorous re-enactment of the 2006 Ramadi incident is a powerful depiction of combat but leaves little space for the audience to connect with its characters.

Sep 3, 2024 | ft.com | Philip Kemp

Seventy-five years ago, in 1949, a film was released that was soon rated the finest British movie of all time. To many critics, it still is.

Sep 2, 2024 | bfi.org.uk | Alex Barrett |Dylan Cave |Adam Scovell |Philip Kemp

Despite being the most prolific director at England’s beloved Ealing Studios, Basil Dearden is largely absent from history books – that is, when he’s not being damned with faint praise or outright savaged. Take this, for example, from David Thomson’s The New Biographical Dictionary of Film: “[Dearden’s] proficiency was at the expense of inventiveness or artistic personality… His films are decent, empty, and plodding.” Ouch.

Oct 16, 2023 | bfi.org.uk | Philip Kemp |Kambole Campbell |Sophia Satchell Baeza |Jason Anderson

News, reviews and archive features every Friday, and information about our latest magazine once a month. After the disappointment of the high-concept, futuristic Downsizing (2017), The Holdovers finds director Alexander Payne gloriously back on prime form.

Jul 20, 2023 | bfi.org.uk | Jonathan Romney |Ben Nicholson |Philip Kemp |Jessica Kiang

Christopher Nolan’s serious, scholarly epic about ‘the father of the atom bomb’ J. Robert Oppenheimer revolves around verbose courtroom confrontations, but the beautiful visual touches – and Cillian Murphy’s grave, introspective performance – put it among the director’s best. 20 July 2023By Jonathan RomneySign up for Sight & Sound’s Weekly Film Bulletin and moreNews, reviews and archive features every Friday, and information about our latest magazine once a month.