UK Film Review Podcast

Part 1 of the Films of Spielberg special podcast. From Duel to Raiders of the Lost Ark. Remember to subscribe to the UK Film Review Podcast for more episodes of The Films Of, as well as our other shows.For the latest film reviews, head to the official UK Film Review website - https://www.ukfilmreview.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to another special edition of the UK Film Review Podcast. In this episode, titled Cannes Film Festival 2026, host and film critic Chris Olson sits down with resident critic Jack Salvadori, who has just returned from the Croisette. The 79th edition of the Cannes Film Festival proved to be a thoroughly complicated affair, and Jack brings his characteristically candid, unfiltered insights straight from the cinema halls of France to our listeners.The conversation begins with what Jack fiercely defends as the absolute best film of Cannes 2026: El Ser Querido (The Beloved). Directed by Rodrigo Sorogoyen, the film marked the director's confident, precise arrival in Official Competition. Jack walks Chris through how the film rests entirely on the monumental shoulders of Javier Bardem, who delivers one of the finest performances of his career as Esteban Martínez, a legendary, Oscar-winning filmmaker returning to Spain to shoot a colonial-era desert epic. However, beneath the cinematic grandeur lies an intimate family drama regarding Esteban's attempt to reconnect with his estranged daughter, Emilia, played by Victoria Luengo. Jack highlights Sorogoyen's mastery of tension and restraint, particularly in how he shifts the atmospheric temperature from comedy to psychological terror in an instant, creating an emotionally layered masterpiece that should have taken the festival's top prize.The discussion then turns to the historic presence of queer cinema at the festival, spearheaded by Los Javis' latest offering in Official Competition, La Bola Negra. Earning a strong four-star review from Jack, the film is framed as an epic of desire, memory, and inherited trauma. Spanning two-and-a-half hours, the Spanish directing duo weaves three parallel narratives across different time periods to explore how the spectre of the Spanish Civil War and generational repression bleed into the present day.From triumphs, Chris and Jack pivot to the film that actually did take home the coveted Palme d'Or: Fjord, directed by Cristian Mungiu. In a less positive review, Jack expresses his intense frustration with the festival jury's decision, describing the film as a monument to mediocrity that never remotely earns its prestige. Set in a remote Norwegian town, Fjord follows a deeply religious Romanian family whose five children are suddenly separated from them by local child welfare services following allegations of physical abuse. While praising Sebastian Stan's impressively restrained and believable performance as the exhausted patriarch, Jack argues that Mungiu's social critique is surprisingly one-dimensional. Next, the critics look at Pawel Pawlikowski's highly anticipated return after seven years with Fatherland. Shot in immaculate, austere black and white, the film feels like the final movement in an unofficial trilogy that began with Ida and Cold War. Set in 1949, the narrative follows Nobel Prize-winning author Thomas Mann, played with weary grandeur by Hans Zischler, as he returns from American exile to a physically and ideologically shattered Germany to receive the Goethe Prize. Finally, Jack shares his joy over the ultimate dark horse of the festival: Club Kid. Written, directed by, and starring Jordan Firstman alongside Cara Delevingne, this charming A24-acquired comedy became the word-of-mouth sensation whispered about in the Palais queues. Firstman plays Peter, a chaotic, forty-year-old party promoter whose perpetual adolescence is shattered when a sharp ten-year-old boy from London arrives on his doorstep, revealing himself to be the son Peter never knew he had. Jack commends the film for its effortless humour, emotional sincerity, and unapologetically queer perspective that never feels ornamental. It is an uplifting note to end on, proving that cinematic discovery is still possible amidst the politics of Cannes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join film critics Chris Olson and Brian Penn for episode 35 of the UK Film Club Podcast. With the latest movie reviews including:Avatar: Fire and AshHamnetSong Sung BlueThe RipArmstrong: Dark SecretsBehind the PoseGifted Pain#Models WantedAvatar (2009)Remember to head to our website for more movie reviews and to watch the latest film trailers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join Callum and James for a 2-parter episode of The Films Of, this episode is all about the films of 2025.Remember to head to the UK Film Review website for the latest movie reviews and the latest film trailers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Filmmaker Interview with Matthew Lupis and Andy Lupis by film critic Chris Olson about their indie feature film, All Is Fine In '89. Head to our website to read Chris Buick's All Is Fine in 89 film review, as well as watch our newest selection of the latest movie reviews and the latest film trailers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join Rachel on The Scream Test horror film podcast as she reviews A Serbian Film. Remember to head to our official websites for the latest movie reviews and the latest film trailers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.