Reviews

Spooks, lies and the state—new film grasps for the truth

A serious but mild-mannered civil servant with a drinking problem gets caught up in a web of intrigue and collusion between the state and private intelligence services.

Soul of a Nation exhibition paints a bold picture of Black Power

Barkley L. Hendricks, 1969, Icon for My Man Superman (Superman Never Saved any Black People—Bobby Seale)

A powerful new exhibition at Tate Modern brings together the work of black artists from across decades of struggle in the US, writes Harold Wilson

War for the Planet of the Apes—Attempt at gorilla warfare ends in monkey business

The film did not live up to the preceding films and seemed unsure of what it was trying to be.

A Good Day to Die, Hoka Hey—photographer’s film avoids the big picture

There is a stereotype of war photographers as hard-living egoists hooked on the adrenaline of the chase.

Exhibitions in Middlesbrough that inspire radicalism

The Middlesbrough Museum of Modern Art (Mima) is far from having million pound paintings hanging on sterile walls.

New film Freesia tells the story of the fight against Islamophobia

Freesia uses real examples of racist attacks to paint a picture of Islamophobia in Britain today. The film’s director Conor Ibrahiem spoke to Yuri Prasad

New documentary highlights human cost of housing crisis

Seldom has a film had a more timely release.

How can we solve the crisis and win decent homes?

Two new books look at the housing crisis from different perspectives. Socialist Worker interviews the authors.

Alone in Berlin shows the significance of small acts

Director Vincent Perez’s latest film brings Hans Fallada’s novel Alone in Berlin to the screen.

The Place is Here—exhibition celebrates our unity against the racists

An art exhibition in London and Middlesbrough shows black artists taking on racism and empire but it falls short on class politics, says Antony Hamilton

These Trees are Made of Blood—a jarring cabaret of state oppression and resistance

This horrifying cabaret pays tribute to the Madres de la Plaza de Mayo—women who never stopped searching for their children “disappeared” by Argentina’s dictatorship.

Film shows art rebel John Berger in his democratic element

The Seasons in Quincy provides a fitting and poetic tribute to the committed humanity of late art writer and revolutionary John Berger, says Jeff Jackson

Exhibition of drawings challenges our disconnect society

The Graphic Witness exhibition at the Drawing Room in south London is showcasing works from the 1930s up until today.

Reviews round-up

See what events are coming up with reviews of events and exhibitions

New drama Ackley Bridge must try harder to go beyond the stereotypes

Channel 4’s Ackley Bridge promises a hard hitting exploration of the social issues associated with growing up in poor and supposedly ethnically segregated northern industrial towns.

The Handmaid’s Tale is a bleak but compelling story of women’s oppression

The new TV adaptation of Margaret Atwood’s classic feminist text could be the best drama of the year, writes Sarah Bates

Beyond the Great Wave—British Museum’s focus is not on Hokusai’s best

The British Museum is celebrating the most famous figure in Japanese art. Katsushika Hokusai was a prolific print-maker and painter who lived from 1760-1849.

The Other Side Of Hope puts refugees’ struggles in a cold context

Well over a million people have been shoved through Europe’s “reception centres” since the refugee crisis began in 2015. Yet it’s remarkable how little impact this has had on the big screen.

The Shepherd—a cruel tale of greed, developers, land and sheep

Nothing much goes on in Anselmo’s world, which he shares with his beloved dog Pillo. Like any other farmer the land and the weather are the important things in his life.