In Praise Of | Little White Lies

In Praise Of

Three women with distinctive hairstyles and facial expressions, wearing neutral-coloured outfits, posing indoors.
In Praise Of

Why Luis Buñuel’s bourgeois satires are perfect pandemic viewing

by Jake Cole

The Spanish master’s back catalogue is filled with pertinent messages, including a parody of social distancing.
A woman with dark curly hair wearing a black dress, smiling as she holds a telephone receiver.
In Praise Of

Why I love Joan Crawford’s performance in Daisy Kenyon

by Justine Smith

Otto Preminger’s 1947 love triangle with a postwar twist sees the Hollywood star at her bristling best.
Image shows a young woman sitting on the floor wearing a white vest top and looking directly at the camera.
In Praise Of

Tsai Ming-liang’s The Hole is one of the great films about living in isolation

by Ruairi McCann

The director’s slow cinema musical from 1998 sees a mysterious epidemic send Taipei into lockdown.
Black and white image of a woman with dark hair looking away from a man in a hat.
In Praise Of

How Russ Meyer changed the face of American film

by Justine Smith

The sleaze king of Hollywood cinema paved the way for a generation of filmmakers, evading post-Code censors with his ​“nudie-cuties”.
Elderly man resting in bed, woman standing beside him.
In Praise Of

Magnolia at 20 – In praise of PTA’s cathartic masterpiece

by Emily Cashen

Two decades on from its UK release, this sprawling epic still has much to teach us about the joys of letting go.
Two adults, a man and a woman, standing close together in a dimly lit room.
In Praise Of

In defence of Candyman 2

by Sam Thompson

With its Southern Gothic setting and Tony Todd on top form once again, the 1995 sequel deserves a second look.
A woman with curly blonde hair and a fur coat sitting in an armchair, smiling at the camera.
In Praise Of

Why I love Kate Hudson’s performance in Almost Famous

by Keli Williams

Penny Lane, the complicated, free-spirited heroine of Cameron Crowe’s coming-of-age classic, is played to perfection.
Woman in a yellow knitted sleeveless top, standing indoors with colourful backdrop.
In Praise Of

How Kelly Reichardt’s depiction of loneliness helped me feel full again

by Annie Wojnarowski

Watching Certain Women as a severely depressed 17-year-old, I saw my own feelings of isolation reflected back at me.
Cartoon image of Pinocchio sitting on the floor, tinkering with a wooden object. He wears a blue jacket, red shorts, and a yellow hat.
In Praise Of

The pull of Pinocchio – How an Italian fairy tale became a pop culture staple

by James Clarke

On the 80th anniversary of Disney’s animation, we look at the different ways this magical fable has been interpreted.
Monochrome close-up of a bearded man wearing a cowboy hat and sunglasses, smoking a cigarette.
In Praise Of

How Sam Peckinpah transformed the TV western

by Justine Smith

Before he moved into films, the director conceived a bold, unromanticised vision of the American frontier.