Contributions from David Jenkins | Little White Lies

Contributor David Jenkins

Cosy domestic scene with a person lying on a sofa in a living room with bookshelves and potted plants.
Festivals

MMXX – first-look review

by David Jenkins

The latest from Romanian filmmaker Cristi Puiu comprises four salty slices of pandemic-era life which range from the outwardly comic to the overtly grizzly.
A man wearing a black cap with a logo, a green jacket, and a serious expression, standing in a grey, blurred background.
Review

Expend4bles review – the living end

by David Jenkins

Surreally awful action spectacle which represents nothing more than the quickest route to a payday for everyone involved in its sorry creation.

1
Anticipation
1
Enjoyment
1
In Retrospect
Crowd of people sitting in an indoor venue, some wearing coats and scarves, with a decorated Christmas tree visible in the background.
Review

R.M.N review – effortless brilliance

by David Jenkins

Romanian director Cristian Mungiu returns with a superb social realist western with its finger on the erratic pulse of Europe.

4
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
4
In Retrospect
Two men with beards, one wearing a cap, engaged in conversation outdoors with a rocky background.
Review

Rotting in the Sun review – bold and brilliant influencer satire

by David Jenkins

The impish Chilean filmmaker Sebastián Silva returns with a sharp thriller about an influencer who turns detective after a filmmaker he’s involved with goes missing.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
4
In Retrospect
Retro-style graphic illustration featuring the text "Little white lies" alongside various geometric shapes and patterns in shades of red, white, and teal.
LWLies Magazine

LWLies 100: Special Anniversary Issue – Out now!

by David Jenkins

Party hats and streamers at the ready as we celebrate our bumper birthday edition – with four stunning covers up for grabs.
Two figures intimately embracing, gazing into each other's eyes against a blurred blue background.
Review

Passages review – a tantalising romantic car-crash

by David Jenkins

Ira Sachs returns with an intimate, intense three-hander about a Fassbinder-like film director played by the great Franz Rogowski.

4
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
4
In Retrospect
Armoured humanoid figure in dark suit with glowing blue lines, poised for action.
Review

Blue Beetle review – a fairly decent time at the movies

by David Jenkins

DC plunders the musty vaults for material and comes up with a poppy Latino riff on the boilerplate superhero yarn.

2
Anticipation
3
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Portrait of an older woman with short grey hair and glasses, wearing a green jacket, seated at a desk in a home library setting.
Review

The Future Tense review – invigorating, droll essay film

by David Jenkins

Joe Lawlor and Christine Molloy reflect on matters of cultural identity in this hopscotching journey through time, space and the Irish Sea.

4
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
4
In Retrospect
Two people sitting on concrete steps, a man and a woman, wearing casual clothing.
Review

L’Immensità review – infuriating hash of sentimentality

by David Jenkins

Penélope Cruz is in glamorous ​’70s matriarch mode in this patchy Italian family saga which tries to deal with themes it doesn’t fully understand.

4
Anticipation
2
Enjoyment
2
In Retrospect
Two women, one with short blonde hair and the other with dark hair, sitting in front of a yellow wall with lightning bolt shapes.
Review

Oppenheimer review – Cillian Murphy’s finest hour

by David Jenkins

This combustible and relentlessly-paced biography of the ​“father of the the atomic bomb” is a contender for Christopher Nolan’s best film.

4
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
5
In Retrospect