Reviews by Jennie Kermode

Order by: Date, A–Z

• 
  Awakening The Zodiac (2017)

  Review preview for Awakening The Zodiac

  Writers Jennifer Archer and Mike Horrigan correctly surmise that the key to making a Zodiac story compelling is not horror but mystery.

  A couple who are struggling to make ends meet come across film reels that may have belonged to the legendary serial killer, and set out to track down their source.
• 
  Azrael (2024)

  Review preview for Azrael

  We get demonstrations of skill, from the weaving of a bracelet to the use of herbs to treat a wound, and these elements reinforce the idea that this is a real society which has developed organically over time.

  Many years following the apocalypse, a devout cult of mute zealots hunts down a young woman who has escaped her imprisonment.
• 
  'A' For Alpha (2021)

  Review preview for 'A' For Alpha

  The themes are delicately handled and confrontations don't develop in the ways you might expect.

  A man struggles to reconcile the reality of his life with what he grew up to think he should be doing as a man.
• 
  Abattoir (2016)

  Review preview for Abattoir

  This feels like an episode of Mystery Theater and will charm fans of old radio horror.

  After the death of her sister and nephew, real-estate investigative reporter Julia uncovers the sinister truth behind a series of gruesome murders where the entire killing rooms have been dismantled and pulled from their foundations.
• 
  Abe And Phil's Last Poker Game (2017)

  Review preview for Abe And Phil's Last Poker Game

  Although it's not entirely successful as a film, its balance of comedy and tragedy serves to demystify a part of life too often hidden away.

  Two very different men become friends in a care home and bond with a young nurse looking for her birth father, hoping it might be one of them.
• 
  Accepted (2006)

  Review preview for Accepted

  Its amiable heroes and starched villains fill out a familiar storyline with gusto.

  Rejected from eight colleges, Bartleby decides to start his own.
• 
  The Accidental Husband (2008)

  Review preview for The Accidental Husband

  Essentially a celebration of glorious selfishness.

  An angry firefighter decides to get revenge on the radio agony aunt who ruined his relationship, spoiling her wedding plans by faking a document which says she's already married to him.
• 
  Ache In My Name (2011)

  Review preview for Ache In My Name

  Vivek creates a personal but outward looking picture of shifting power, raising questions about ownership of the self.

  Musings on the pronunciation of personal names.
• 
  Actresses (2015)

  Review preview for Actresses

  Jeremy Hersh's astute little film explores the performances we all give in day to day life.

  A successful actress forms a relationship with a starstruck newbie actress who doesn't know how to leave work at the door.
• 
  Act And Punishment (2018)

  Review preview for Act And Punishment

  This is a film packed with information, visually as well as verbally.

  A documentary about Pussy Riot and Russian traditions of political resistance enacted through art.
• 
  Adrift (2006)

  Review preview for Adrift

  One cannot help but long for them to hurry up and drown and get it over with.

  Six party-goers find themselves stranded in the ocean, unable to get back aboard their yacht. Out to own on DVD from December 26.
• 
  Ae Fond Kiss (2004)

  Review preview for Ae Fond Kiss

  Unfortunately, though all the performances are strong, there's simply not enough chemistry between the leads to make their struggle believable.

  Dangerous liaison between a lapsed Irish Catholic and a first generation Pakistani Muslim.
• 
  Afterdeath (2015)

  Review preview for Afterdeath

  Afterdeath deserves credit for trying to do something different.

  Five young people wake up on a beach washed up by the tide. Where are they? What brought them there, and what are the strange creatures that surround them?
• 
  After The Fall (2014)

  Review preview for After The Fall

  This is not the action thriller it has been billed as but a slow, smouldering portrait of a man losing his way.

  After losing his job, an ordinary man resorts to desperate measures in order to provide for his family.
• 
  After The Wedding (2006)

  Review preview for After The Wedding

  An astonishingly powerful story.

  After a shocking discovery at an investor's family wedding, the supervisor of an orphanage finds himself facing a complex dilemma.
• 
  After Tiller (2013)

  Review preview for After Tiller

  Some of their patients' stories are so heartbreaking that they will test the mettle of even the most steadfast opponents.

  A look at the work of late term abortion providers in the US.
• 
  The Aggression Scale (2012)

  Review preview for The Aggression Scale

  This film is an impressive contribution to the genre and marks out its two young leads as ones to watch.

  When a gang of criminals on the hunt for missing money attack a remote family home, they get more than they bargained for from a troubled teenage boy.
• 
  Agnelli (2018)

  Review preview for Agnelli

  Densely structured and thorough.

  The story of Gianni Agnelli, the legendary Italian industrialist and playboy, as told by family, friends, lovers, professional confidantes and rivals.
• 
  Agnosia (2010)

  Review preview for Agnosia

  Agnosia is a majestic film, filled with stunning imagery from the very first scene.

  A young woman with a rare sensory disorder finds herself threatened by a mysterious conspiracy as she strives to guard her wealthy father's secret.
• 
  Albana's Asylum (2006)

  An Albanian teenager struggles to find social acceptance in Glasgow, where she is seeking asylum.
• 
  Alena (2015)

  Review preview for Alena

  Everything about this film is exquisite, from its gorgeously textured cinematography to the delicate performances of its stars.

  A troubled girl arrives at an expensive boarding school and finds herself distinctly unwelcome.
• 
  Alex (2011)

  Review preview for Alex

  Jed Berry delivers an assured performance that belies his age.

  A teenager left to roam the streets by his heroin-addicted mother dicovers he has a remarkable gift.
• 
  Alexa To Exa (2015)

  Review preview for Alexa To Exa

  A modest but important film.

  A personal exploration of what it means to come to terms with one's identity in a society whose categories and narratives never seem to fit.
• 
  Alice Neel (2007)

  Review preview for Alice Neel

  A fascinating story.

  A portrait of the famous portrait painter Alice Neel.
• 
  Aliens In The Attic (2009)

  Review preview for Aliens In The Attic

  A successful formula bears repeating, but what ought to be fondly familiar here is just annoying.

  Kids take on an alien invasion.
• 
  Aliens Vs Predator - Requiem (2007)

  Review preview for Aliens Vs Predator - Requiem

  The laws of physics are away on their tea break.

  Another monster mash up.
• 
  All Cheerleaders Die (2013)

  Review preview for All Cheerleaders Die

  When it comes to action, the physical abilities of the cheerleaders make them genuinely scary predators.

  A gang of cheerleaders embark on a supernatural path of vengeance.
• 
  All In Good Time (2012)

  Review preview for All In Good Time

  Harish Patel delivers an unforgettable performance that combines blundering insensitivity with heartbreaking vulnerability and will still have you laughing out loud.

  Young newlyweds are anxious to consummate their marriage but family keeps getting in the way.
• 
  All I Want (2017)

  Review preview for All I Want

  The whole thing feels very Californian.

  The emergence of secrets complicates a wedding anniversary celebration.
• 
  All The Boys Love Mandy Lane (2006)

  Review preview for All The Boys Love Mandy Lane

  Mandy is the final girl to end all final girls.

  Mandy Lane is the object of everyone's desires at a party in a remote cabin, but is there someone out there who wants her too much?
• 
  All This Panic (2016)

  Review preview for All This Panic

  For many viewers, the film will require taking a step back, ditching assumptions and making a conscious effort to listen. It's worth it. These girls have a lot to say.

  What is it like to come of age in New York City? First-time director Jenny Gage follows vivacious sisters, Ginger and Dusty, and their high school friends over the course of their crucial teen years.
• 
  All Watched Over By Machines Of Loving Grace (2011)

  Review preview for All Watched Over By Machines Of Loving Grace

  Like many Utopian thinkers, Curtis appears to have fallen into the trap of thinking that because his theories fit well in some instances they can be applied to everything.

  A documentary asking whether we are now dominated by the systems we built for our own convenience.
• 
  Almost Holy (2015)

  Review preview for Almost Holy

  There are many ways of interpreting the events depicted here. The background of desperation is palpable.

  On the streets of Ukraine, a pastor kidnaps children to try and save them from a life of drug abuse and destitution.
• 
  Almost Paris (2016)

  Review preview for Almost Paris

  The film's weaknesses are more frustrating because first time feature director Domenica Cameron-Scorsese shows considerable talent.

  In the wake of the mortgage-lending crisis, a former banker returns to his hometown.
• 
  AlphaGo (2017)

  Review preview for AlphaGo

  This isn't a film for those interested in the nitty gritty of how work like this is assembled. Rather, its focus is on the philosophical and experiential issues associated with the rise of the machines.

  Google's DeepMind team takes on one of the world's top Go players in a weeklong tournament.
• 
  Always Shine (2016)

  Review preview for Always Shine

  Davis clearly relishes this role and delivers a standout performance, really letting rip.

  Psychological drama about obsession, fame, and femininity follows two friends, both actresses, on a trip to Big Sur, to reconnect with one another.
• 
  Amanda Knox (2016)

  Review preview for Amanda Knox

  Directors Rod Blackhurst and Brian McGinn do a good job of keeping things balanced and of illustrating the ways in which sensationalism can be misleading.

  The 2007 murder of a British exchange student Meredith Kercher in Perugia, Italy is a case study in the vagaries of crime and punishment.
• 
  American Folk (2017)

  Review preview for American Folk

  Serves of a reminder of what America can be at its best.

  Two strangers, both folk musicians stranded in California, take a road trip to New York in the days after 9/11.
• 
  Americons (2015)

  Review preview for Americons

  Director Avgerinos has an editing background and it shows in a surfeit of visual ideas which communicate Jason's disordered mental state very effectively but sometimes threaten to overwhelm the viewer.

  A former college sportsman is drawn into exploitative real estate scamming in the run-up to the US housing market crash.
• 
  Le Amiche (1955)

  Review preview for Le Amiche

  Le Amiche is a deceptively sharp look at a society in flux and at the destructive effect on individual lives of lingering social divisions.

  A woman grows gradually disillusioned with the new circle of friends she has formed in dramatic circumstances.
• 
  Among Ravens (2014)

  Review preview for Among Ravens

  The drama is well balanced, with good chemistry between the various members on the ensemble cast and an effective counterpointing of pathos with dark humour.

  The introduction of a stranger to an annual gathering of friends and family throws strained relationships into sharp relief.
• 
  Among The Believers (2015)

  Review preview for Among The Believers

  Naqvi and Trivedi achieve a fine balancing act, giving no ground either to the fundamentalists or to the Islamophobes.

  An exploration into the spread of the radical Islamic school Red Mosque, which trains children to devote their lives to holy war, from a very young age.
• 
  Angelica (2015)

  Review preview for Angelica

  This is high Gothic melodrama by the numbers.

  In Victorian London, puritanical doctors prescribe abstinence to a young couple after the life-threatening birth of their daughter. Sexual repression leads to obsession and opens the door to paranormal phenomena
• 
  Angry Inuk (2016)

  Review preview for Angry Inuk

  Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, presenting as well as producing, paints a bleak portrait of the impact of pressures on the seal trade.

  An Inuk filmmaker takes a close look at the central role of seal hunting in the lives of the Inuit.
• 
  Animated Guide To Polish Success (2011)

  Review preview for Animated Guide To Polish Success

  Visually appealing and consistently fun to watch - this doesn't feel like receiving a lecture.

  The animated film was produced by Platige Image for Polish Pavilion at EXPO 2010 in Shanghai - to promote the economy.
• 
  Aningaaq (2013)

  Review preview for Aningaaq

  This seven minute short was originally made to go with Gravity but it stands up very well on its own.

  A Greenlander out on the ice picks up a distress call from a stranded astronaut.
• 
  Anna (2013)

  Review preview for Anna

  With strong performances all round and gorgeous cinematography by Óscar Faura, it's a powerful piece of work.

  A forensic psychologist is faced with a young woman who may be a victim or a psychopath.
• 
  Anti Matter (2016)

  Review preview for Anti Matter

  It's anchored by a strong performance from Yaiza Figueroa, who is definitely one to watch.

  After participating in a wormhole experiment, a PhD student starts having trouble with her memory and finds herself in increasingly disturbing situations.
• 
  An Saileach (2012)

  Review preview for An Saileach

  The film is beautifully photographed, spare but evocative.

  A folk song tells of a journey and a terrible decision.
• 
  Appropriate Behavior (2014)

  Review preview for Appropriate Behavior

  A solid, grounded piece of work that approaches its subject with a maturity remarkable for a first feature from a young director.

  A young New Yorker struggles to understand herself in the aftermath of a break-up.