Philip Bagnall

Sound of Falling Review: Haunted House Story With her uber-confident second feature film Sound of Falling, director Mascha Schilinski artfully dissects the 20th century in Germany.

In U.K./Irish cinemas now, Mascha Schillinski's SOUND OF FALLING is a slow-burn stare into the abyss of national shame, as one household carries the burden of abuse across generations.

My review from Cannes last year for @loudandclearrvs.bsky.social: loudandclearreviews.com/sound-of-fal...

Great release of a great film. Well done on the essay.

Sirāt Review: Sun, Sand and Salvation Confrontational but contemplative, Oliver Laxe’s Sirāt is a brilliantly energetic and well-crafted take on the long night of the soul.

Had two different colleagues at my day job tell me yesterday they went to see SIRĀT at the weekend. Glad to see this mystifying, terrifying film reaching beyond its subtitles and challenging material to get to wider audiences.

My review from Cannes 2025: loudandclearreviews.com/sirat-film-r...

I feel embiggened by this perfectly cromulent prose.

Calvaire (Blu-ray Review) – Thoughtful Torture Apparently, it has become fashionable again to hate on the ‘cinema du corps’. Perhaps news from the real world feels so horrid some days that a brutal horror just isn’t called for. New French Extre…

Fabrice Du Welz's CALVAIRE comes to Blu-ray courtesy of @arrowvideo.bsky.social. Adjacent to New French Extremity, but it's thornier and goes to more interesting places than most films with that label. Fenders & genders in a blender.

My review for @filmhounds.co.uk: filmhounds.co.uk/2026/02/27/c...

Sirāt Review: Sun, Sand and Salvation Confrontational but contemplative, Oliver Laxe’s Sirāt is a brilliantly energetic and well-crafted take on the long night of the soul.

Oliver Laxe’s SIRĀT is a dark night of the soul for the raver set, a sandy odyssey that never relinquishes its tension for a moment.

One of the highlights of last year’s Cannes Film Festival is finally in U.K./Irish cinemas. My review for @loudandclearrvs.bsky.social:

Room for one more, boys? :)

Today, and every day.

Menus-Plaisirs, les Troisgros (Film Review) – In-Depth And Delicious Visit the post for more.

Here’s my review of MENUS-PLAISIRS, LES TROIGROS, the final film by Frederick Wiseman. An intoxicating swan song, it’s now streaming on BFI Player

filmhounds.co.uk/2026/02/22/m...

If I Had Legs I’d Kick You Movie Review | Rose Byrne Is One Tough Mother! - HeadStuff Philip Bagnall reviews If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, Mary Bronstein’s darkly comedic take on motherhood, led brilliantly by Rose Byrne.

Rose Byrne gives the performance of her wonderfully diverse career as an extraordinarily put-upon parent in Mary Bronstein's IF I HAD LEGS I'D KICK YOU, in U.K./Irish cinemas today.

My @headstuff.bsky.social review: headstuff.org/entertainmen...

The Secret Agent Review: On The Run In Brazil Kleber Mendonça Filho’s The Secret Agent is a sharp and complex thriller, with a fantastic lead performance from Wagner Moura.

THE SECRET AGENT is finally in U.K. and Irish cinemas today. I've been raving about Kleber Mendonça Filho's sublime thriller, and Wagner Moura's terrific performance therein, since Cannes.

My @loudandclearrvs.bsky.social review: loudandclearreviews.com/the-secret-a...

"[W]atch me. Watch my heart break. Watch me jump. Watch me learn that after death there's nothing. There's no more watching. There's no more following. No love. Say goodbye to Hazel for me. And say it to yourself, too. None of us has much time."

Adieu, Tom Noonan.

Found this pic of Frederick Wiseman chatting about MONROVIA, INDIANA at the London Film Festival in 2018. Such a charming and wise gent. We shall miss him dearly.

American cinema’s greatest documentarian. His films stand as monuments to the frailty and perseverance of human endeavour. R.I.P.

It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley (Film Review) – A Sweetly Conventional Tribute “Sometimes a man gets carried away, when he feels like he should be having his fun Much too blind to see the damage he’s done”          – Jeff Buckley, ‘Lover, You Should’ve Come Over’…

IT’S NOT OVER, JEFF BUCKLEY is conventional as you like, but the sweetness and creativity of its subject shines through.

My @filmhounds.co.uk review: filmhounds.co.uk/2026/02/its-...

Little Amélie or The Character of Rain | Dazzling Animation Treats Kids With Intelligence And Respect - HeadStuff Philip Bagnall praises Japanese animationLittle Amélie or The Character of Rain for engaging with lofty ideas from a child's perspective.

LITTLE AMÉLIE OR THE CHARACTER OF RAIN is the best animated film you’ll see this year. Soulful and smart like few other films aimed at children are. A delight.

My @headstuff.bsky.social review: headstuff.org/entertainmen...

Glad to see someone vocalize this. I’m usually hard to please, but it baffles me when people rail against something just because some over-caffeinated Bluesky/Twitter-dweller decided to take offence on someone else’s behalf. TOUCH GRASS, ffs.

Update: I have now renewed my Letterboxd subscription, if only to stop seeing FYC adverts for del Toro’s appalling take on Frankenstein.

The Rules of Attraction (2002) Original Trailer [FHD] YouTube video by HD Retro Trailers

Vale, James Van Der Beek.

If all you know him for is Dawson's Creek, you'll be shattered by his despicable turn as a college fuckboy sociopath in Roger Avary's THE RULES OF ATTRACTION. TV teen stars undermine their images with gusto. Hold your nose and enjoy.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUgP...

#TeamMargaret

Post a banger not in English:

youtu.be/N2sNcfD4nYI?...

The Straight Story (Blu-ray Review) – Lynch’s Road Trip To The Country One happy trend to emerge from the passing of David Lynch last year was seeing people rediscover his entire body of work. His films are almost all held in the highest regard, but even this most sin…

THE STRAIGHT STORY is David Lynch’s most accessible film, with a heart-melting Richard Farnsworth as a man going to great lengths (or rather medium lengths, but very slowly) to right a wrong.

My review of the new @studiocanal.co.uk Blu-ray for @filmhounds.co.uk: filmhounds.co.uk/2026/02/the-...

Hey, @letterboxd.social, if I promise to renew my Patron membership, will you get rid of the simping, shilling Charli xcx branding?

“Wasn’t her mother one of the Kilbride Infinitis?”

The Dead (Blu-ray Review) John Huston's tender and true final film, The Dead, adapted from James Joyce’s short story, joins the Criterion Collection.

Absolutely thrilled that THE DEAD, John Huston’s final (and some would say best) film is now on Blu-ray from @criterion.bsky.social.

One of my favourites for many years, one of cinema’s greatest swansongs, and the finest film to come out of Ireland yet.

My review: filmhounds.co.uk/2026/01/the-...

Did a bathtub kill Ronald and Mary Bronstein’s dog? Or steal their car?

THE MAGA HAT?!?! Already doubled over laughing #Curb

a man with glasses and a bald head is standing in front of a tree and making a funny face . ALT: a man with glasses and a bald head is standing in front of a tree and making a funny face .

Finally catching up on older seasons of Curb Your Enthusiasm (I know, I know. I’m not a TV guy, leave me alone), and in the opening minute of the first episode, Larry David snaps a young couple’s selfie stick in half. I missed this motherfucker.

F1 movie review | Take a Pitt stop with the Daddest Dad Movie that ever Dadded - HeadStuff Sports movies feel surplus to requirements. They romanticize and celebrate their chosen game, even though a given sport is its own best advertisement. No film can recreate the in-person thrill of watc...

No issue with F1's Best Picture nomination. It's this year's TOP GUN: MAVERICK nod, appealing to a broader audience. It's no better or worse than SINNERS, and miles better than the hideous monster that is FRANKENSTEIN.

My review: headstuff.org/entertainmen...