Crime Reviews and Features | Little White Lies

Genre Crime

Portrait of a woman with dark hair, wearing a black headscarf, with an intense gaze against a blurred, colourful background.
Review

Holy Spider

by David Jenkins

Ali Abbasi crafts a thriller ripped from the head­lines in this sto­ry of ​‘The Spi­der Killer’ who tar­get­ed female sex work­ers in Mash­had, Iran.

3
Anticipation
3
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Middle-aged man in light-coloured jacket sitting thoughtfully in front of large, curved glass window.
Review

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

by David Jenkins

Benoit Blanc enters the canon of icon­ic movie char­ac­ters with Rian Johnson’s sec­ond for­ay into who­dunit (nu-dunit?) territory.

5
Anticipation
5
Enjoyment
5
In Retrospect
Young woman in black coat and hat standing on stairs in indoor setting.
Review

Decision to Leave

by Hannah Strong

The South Kore­an auteur known for squid-chomp­ing, luxe erot­i­ca and graph­ic tor­ture is back with a seduc­tive mys­tery thriller.

5
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
5
In Retrospect
A man and a woman seated in a wooden boat in a lush, green forest.
Review

The Score

by Natasha Jagger

Writer/​director Malachi Smyth’s fea­ture debut is a musi­cal heist film that strug­gles to strike the right chord.

3
Anticipation
2
Enjoyment
2
In Retrospect
A group of young people, some standing, some sitting, on a concrete ledge against a blue sky. Various poses and styles of clothing, with speakers or sound equipment in the background.
Review

Casablanca Beats

by Marina Ashioti

A for­mer rap­per sets up a hip-hop pro­gramme for the par­tic­i­pants of his local youth group in Nabil Ayouch’s well-mean­ing drama.

3
Anticipation
3
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Person wearing hat and coat, standing next to another man wearing a suit.
Review

The Outfit

by Josh Slater-Williams

A tai­lor and his assis­tant become caught up in organ­ised crime in Gra­ham Moore’s com­pelling drama.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Dark figure of Batman wearing black costume and mask, standing in a dimly lit room.
Review

The Batman

by Adam Woodward

Robert Pattinson’s grunge prince vows to wash the scum off Gotham’s streets in Matt Reeves’ noirish detec­tive thriller.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Couple in white wedding attire embrace, surrounded by guests in formal wear in grand hall.
Review

Death on the Nile

by Hannah Strong

Ken­neth Branagh directs and stars in a sec­ond Agatha Christie adap­ta­tion, but we’d rather he hadn’t.

2
Anticipation
2
Enjoyment
1
In Retrospect
A woman standing in a library, wearing a grey coat and glasses, arms crossed, surrounded by bookshelves.
Review

Petrov’s Flu

by Mark Asch

Kir­ill Sere­bren­nikov presents a fas­ci­nat­ing, intense por­trait of a com­ic book artist who suf­fers from a strange illness.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
4
In Retrospect
Person in a white dress standing in a wheat field, with a clear sky in the background.
Review

Flag Day

by Mark Asch

Sean Penn’s direc­to­r­i­al fol­low-up to The Last Face is a bla­tant­ly self-indul­gent van­i­ty project full of tir­ing clichés.

1
Anticipation
2
Enjoyment
2
In Retrospect