Drama Reviews and Features | Little White Lies

Genre Drama

Individual sitting in armchair holding mug, looking out window, in cosy domestic setting.
Review

Remembering Every Night review – cinema as poetry

by Barney Nuttall

Yui Kiyohara’s wistful, meditative new film follows three women’s lives as they intersect in the quiet outskirts of Tokyo.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
4
In Retrospect
Heavily-jewelled headdress worn by a person with dark sunglasses and a black outfit, set against a dimly lit background.
Review

On Becoming A Guinea Fowl review – searing and disorientating

by Hannah Strong

The death of a beloved uncle in a middle-class Zambian family brings some difficult truths to light in Rungano Nyoni’s surreal second feature.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
4
In Retrospect
Mia Wasikowska in an orange shirt and brown skirt walks in front of a school campus building with students behind her.
Review

Club Zero review – leaves a sour taste

by Hannah Strong

Jessica Hausner’s drama about a teacher who begins a troubling diet club at an elite high school is a poorly-judged slog to sit through.

4
Anticipation
2
Enjoyment
2
In Retrospect
Two women, one older and one younger, sitting close together and looking contemplative.
Review

All We Imagine as Light review – this one is for the lover girls

by Jenna Mahale

Payal Kapadia’s first fiction feature is a gorgeous romance concerning the lives of two contrasting nurses in present-day Mumbai.

4
Anticipation
5
Enjoyment
5
In Retrospect
Ralph Fiennes in Conclave, standing in an ornate red and gold liturgical vestments, surrounded by other clergy in similar attire.
Review

Conclave review – a slick romp with delusions of grandeur

by David Jenkins

A power struggle at the heart of the Catholic church is the conceit for Edward Berger’s quite silly papal drama.

4
Anticipation
3
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Young woman in pink dress posing between metallic curtains.
Review

Layla review – Bilal Hasna shines

by Marina Ashioti

This occasionally-vibrant odd couple gay relationship drama is too superficial and silly to leave a lasting mark.

3
Anticipation
2
Enjoyment
2
In Retrospect
A man in uniform with a cap, tie, and badges, standing in front of a carnival-like backdrop with blurred lights.
Review

Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point review – a lo-fi holiday classic in the making

by Hannah Strong

A large Italian-American family gather for the holidays in Tyler Taormina’s freewheeling festive feature.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
4
In Retrospect
A woman wearing a turban-style head covering, facing away from the camera with a serious expression.
Review

The Piano Lesson review – high-quality but low-impact work

by Leila Latif

Malcolm Washington makes his feature directorial debut with an ambitious adaptation of one of August Wilson’s most well-known plays.

3
Anticipation
3
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Outdoor scene with lush greenery, fields of tall grass, and a person in the distance with arms outstretched.
Review

Bird review – a magical, energetic marvel

by Hannah Strong

Social and magical realism merge in Andrea Arnold’s scintillating Thames Estuary fable about the friendship between a latchkey kid and a smiling wanderer searching for home.

4
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
5
In Retrospect
Joyful couple embracing under fireworks display, woman holding red rose.
Review

Anora review – an amazing, hypermodern concept for a film

by David Jenkins

A young sex worker thinks she’s hit the jackpot when she falls for a Russian nepo baby, but his parents have other plans in Sean Baker’s anti-rom-com.

4
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
4
In Retrospect