Music Reviews and Features | Little White Lies

Genre Music

Two people, a man and a woman, standing on a beach with grassy hills in the background. The man is wearing a colourful graphic T-shirt and a teal cardigan, while the woman is wearing a patterned, multi-coloured coat.
Review

The Ballad Of Wallis Island review – relishes in daft physical comedy

by Katherine McLaughlin

Come­di­an col­lab­o­ra­tors Tim Key and Tom Bas­den co-write and co-star in James Grif­fiths’ pleas­ant bro­mance flick.

4
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
A silhouetted figure against a glowing, neon-tinged night sky with swirls of green and blue lights.
Review

The Extraordinary Miss Flower review – an eccentric music doc

by David Jenkins

Unearthed love let­ters pro­vide cre­ative fuel for Ice­landic singer Emilíana Tor­ri­ni in this charm­ing, music-fuelled char­ac­ter study.

4
Anticipation
3
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Two young men with intense expressions, one gesturing forcefully.
Review

Dig! XX review – the original version is still the best

by David Jenkins

Ondi Tim­o­n­er revis­its her clas­sic 2004 rock doc with an extend­ed ver­sion that doesn’t add much to the great­ness of the original.

4
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
3
In Retrospect
Woman wearing a wide-brimmed hat and fur-trimmed coat, gazing pensively.
Review

Maria review – a tender eulogy for a remarkable talent

by Hannah Strong

Angeli­na Jolie has nev­er been bet­ter as the leg­endary opera singer Maria Callas, cap­tured in the final week of her life by Pablo Lar­raín’s ele­gant bio­graph­i­cal drama.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
4
In Retrospect
Close-up of a man singing and playing a guitar, with a microphone on his head and warm lighting.
Review

A Complete Unknown review – drips with hollow trivia

by David Jenkins

Tim­o­th­ée Cha­la­met plays music leg­end Bob Dylan in James Mangold’s lat­est, which appears total­ly unwill­ing to escape the vapid biopic formula.

3
Anticipation
2
Enjoyment
2
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
Two men talking by the ocean, one wearing a green jacket and the other a blue plaid shirt and cap.
Review

blur: To The End review – flails for a sense of narrative closure

by Callie Petch

The lat­est doc­u­men­tary about the Brit­pop come­back kings sad­ly does­n’t reveal much that we did­n’t already know from pre­vi­ous film outings.

3
Anticipation
2
Enjoyment
2
In Retrospect
Greyscale portrait of an elderly man wearing glasses, with a serious expression.
Review

Opus review – gorgeous document of a supreme artist

by Xuanlin Tham

Neo Sora cre­ates a beau­ti­ful por­trait of his late father, filmed just before he passed away from can­cer in 2023.

4
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
4
In Retrospect
Cartoon interior of a cluttered room with a smiling ghost-like character reading a newspaper, surrounded by household items and furniture.
Review

Robot Dreams review – a wordless wonder

by Michael Leader

A dog cre­ates a robot friend for him­self in Pablo Berg­er’s intri­cate, amaz­ing silent animation.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
4
In Retrospect
Close-up of a person with dreadlocks performing on stage, holding an electric guitar and microphone.
Review

Bob Marley: One Love review – a low-calorie music bio

by David Jenkins

An ultra-con­ven­tion­al juke­box biog where a cel­e­bra­tion of the music trumps a true explo­ration of the man.

3
Anticipation
2
Enjoyment
2
In Retrospect
Woman reading a magazine on a sofa, wearing a red dress.
Review

Priscilla review – subtle and sensational

by Hannah Strong

A star is born in Sofia Cop­po­la’s bio­graph­i­cal dra­ma based on the rela­tion­ship between Priscil­la and Elvis Pres­ley, with Cailee Spae­ny deliv­er­ing a remark­able performance.

3
Anticipation
4
Enjoyment
5
In Retrospect
A woman performing on stage, dressed in a pink costume and holding a microphone. She is surrounded by backup dancers on a brightly lit stage with a dark background and glowing lights.
Review

Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour review – the story of a lifetime

by Lillian Crawford

The pop princess’s record-break­ing sta­di­um tour comes to the big screen with thrilling results for fans.

5
Anticipation
5
Enjoyment
5
In Retrospect