Hamnet (2025), directed by Chloe Zhao

Based on an acclaimed novel, this film offers a different take on William Shakespeare from the point of view of his wife. It starts with their courtship and moves through to a year after the death of their 11-year-old son, Hamnet. Agnes is portrayed as a woman of nature and an herbalist, which is why she and their three children never moved to London. Will had to go there for his career but she needed to stay in the country, so they were apart for much of their marriage but their love never wavered despite a rocky patch after losing their son. Jessie Buckley embodies forest woman Agnes and deserves all the accolades she won for this film. Paul Mescal has almost a peripheral role as Will, but his understated performance has been underrated. The film has been described as grief porn, which is a wild exaggeration, but it is a little slow in places and could effectively be 10 minutes shorter. Emily Watson and Joe Alwyn provide solid support and the child actors are very good.

Oppenheimer (2023), directed by Christopher Nolan

Physicist J Robert Oppenheimer, ‘father of the Atomic bomb’, is a polarising historical figure, who rode a rollercoaster of adulation and vilification. This film depicts how his early left wing leanings and Jewish background fuelled a genuine opposition to Nazism and led naturally to his wartime work on the bomb. His earnest belief seemed to be that dropping the A-bomb would end all war because the consequences were so horrific. The end would justify the means. His post-war work to influence US policy in this direction was also an attempt to assuage his conscience about the destruction his work wreaked. Combined with his early communist sympathies, this put him at odds with McCarthyist America. The film’s structure is odd, starting with what eventually becomes clear to be his downfall and flashing back and forward in time throughout. Apart from the war years of the Manhattan project, the exact time period is never entirely clear and for some reason the latest time period is shot in black and white. Famous figures of physics abound in a dizzying array that barely allows time for recognition in a feature film, even one that is three hours long. The story could probably have been better told in a limited series format. That said, Nolan uses VFX well to help explain quantum physics to a general audience whose closest point of reference is likely the Big Bang Theory. The stellar cast is excellent and Cillian Murphy and Robert Downey Jr are exceptional and deserving of their Oscars. But while interesting the film as a whole is overlong and overhyped. Its most useful purpose is to point the way to discovering more about a fascinating character in a crucial period of history. It also serves as a timely reminder that US politics has always been fucked.

Downton Abbey – A New Era (2022), directed by Simon Curtis

Starting with a wedding and ending with a funeral, the second spin-off film of the beloved TV series is mostly about the costumes and glorious settings. The Dowager Lady Grantham has discovered she owns a villa in the south of France, following the death of an old flame. She is putting her affairs in order and decides to leave the villa to Sybil, the only great-grandchild unprovided for. Half the extended Crawley family travels to France to check it out, while Lady Mary allows a film crew to take over Downton Abbey for a month to finance roof repairs. So we see two dramas play out, with Lord Grantham questioning his origins in France while the advent of talking pictures puts careers at risk in England. This film has more plot than the first one, but there are a lot of happy endings and new opportunities, except for the obvious, in a way that is a little overdone. It is a pity Matthew Goode couldn’t make even a day’s filming, as while the absence of Lady Mary’s husband is covered well for the most of the film, his non-appearance at the end is a glaring problem. Overall it is a film just for the fans, with Maggie Smith getting all the best lines as is her due.

The Dig (2020), Directed by Simon Stone

In the summer of 1939 widow Edith Pretty hires excavator Basil Brown to investigate mounds on her Sussex property. The amateur archaeologists defy experts and authorities to make one of the most important historical finds in Britain. This very quiet, slow and restrained film has a muted colour palette of grey, beige and brown, occasionally enlivened by a flash of green or gold, which perfectly suits its tone and pace. Carey Mulligan and Ralph Fiennes, as Edith and Basil, create an affinity that rises above age and class to develop mutual respect and friendship. Johnny Flynn, Lily James and Ben Chaplin feature in a subplot that reinforces the gentle theme of being true to oneself and taking opportunities for happiness when they arise. This thoughtful and well-crafted film demonstrates that Netflix is doing a better job than some studios at this kind of historical tale that is loosely based on a true story.

Summerland (2020), directed by Jessica Swale

During WWII in a small town on the south coast of England, academic Alice Lang is the town witch, taunted by children and ostracised by adults. Her reclusive and unpleasant demeanour doesn’t help her situation, but as we learn, she is lonely and miserable – mourning the parting from the love of her life years earlier. Her hardened heart softens when an evacuee child, Frank, is forced on her and she remembers how to love. A small and slow tale of dealing with grief and loss, the film offers some laughs and some beautiful moments. Gemma Arterton is wonderful as Alice and Penelope Wilton is well cast as older Alice. Lucas Bond does a great job of Frank.

Little Women (2019), directed by Greta Gerwig

After several film and TV adaptations, did we really need yet another interpretation of Little Women? It turns out we did. This adaptation is faithful to the main events of the book but presents them in a different way, which for the most part works very well. The film moves back and forth in time over seven or eight years, comparing and contrasting different events and feelings in the lives of the March girls. There are a couple of glitches in the timeline, but it’s a minor quibble. The cast is outstanding, with Saoirse Ronin bringing out Jo’s passion and frustration at the lot of a girl in the 19th century and Florence Pugh portraying Amy as a brat who grows into a classy woman. It is a little odd that in this classic American tale, none of the four girls is played by an American. Emma Watson and Eliza Scanlen were interesting choices for Meg and Beth, but the four actors work well as an ensemble of believable sisters who fight hard but always have each other’s backs. Laura Dern makes a fine Marmee and Meryl Streep is a hoot as Aunt March. The details of period costumes and buildings are meticulous and the cinematography makes the most of the gorgeous New England setting. Gerwig’s screenplay makes the implied feminism of the novels more explicit, with well-made points about the economics of marriage and women’s limited choices. There is a slight blurring of identities at the end, with the book Little Women accredited to JL March, but this seems appropriate given the wide acknowledgement that Louisa May Alcott’s novel was heavily autobiographical.

All Is True (2019), directed by Kenneth Branagh

The story of William Shakespeare’s retirement, after his Globe Theatre burned down in London, starts off ponderously slowly. Some very dodgy camera work, with weird angles and out of focus shots, adds to the difficulty of getting in to the film. Fortunately every aspect improves as the film goes on. Ben Elton’s warm, sad and witty script helps the actors to shine, seamlessly weaving Shakespeare’s words into the tale. The beauty of the outdoor setting and the wonderful recreation of 17th century Stratford work their own magic. Kenneth Branagh does a good job of portraying Shakespeare, with little of the self-indulgence often displayed in his performances. Judi Dench is excellent as always, but she is too old for the part of Anne. The bard’s wife was older than him, but not old enough to have been his mother. Likewise Ian McKellen as the Earl of Southampton. The trouble lives of Shakespeare’s daughters, credibly played by Lydia Wilson and Kathryn Wilder, add a truly interesting note to the story of the famed bard.

The Aftermath (2019), directed by James Kent

Hamburg 1945 - Rachel Morgan arrives to join her husband, a senior officer in the army of occupation, five months after the end of the war. Firebombing has devastated the city and the hungry local people are still searching the rubble for their dead and missing. The British army has requisitioned a grand house, with staff, for the Morgans, owned by architect Stefan Luber. Morgan has compassion and empathy for the German people that he seemingly cannot extend to his stricken wife. He allows Luber and his daughter Freda to remain in their house, confined to the attic, rather than evicting them to a labour camp. Rachel had hoped to reconnect with her husband in a more private setting, not surrounded by resentful Germans. What follows is a complex story of grief, loss and new beginnings, set in the snowy Bavarian landscape. Keira Knightly and Alexander Skarsgard make credible lovers, while Australian Jason Clarke is very good as the repressed British army officer. This is a thoughtful and interesting film that is marred by several groanworthily convenient plot improbabilities and logistical glitches towards the end.