Lisa Cholodenko's 1998 High Art is an eerily precise portrayal of stone-broke bohemian city living
In this hip and smacky drama-romance, a young woman drifts through parties, trying to find a higher purpose.
By Philippa Snow
Making Ma Rainey
She changed popular music forever, but the "Mother of the Blues" is not the household name she deserves to be.
By Stephanie Phillips
The New Year we long for is the one in which the virus no longer dominates our lives
As fireworks lit up London's skyline, I thought of us all in the city below watching from our separate spaces.
By Tracey Thorn
Why Tony Scott's The Hunger is more than just a footnote in David Bowie's acting career
Bowie was 36 when he starred in Scott's 1983 erotic horror. Five years after his death, it feels strange and sad to see him contemplating his mortality in the prime of his youth.
By Simran Hans
How Netflix changed the channel
The unorthodox philosophy that transformed a struggling mail-order DVD company into one of the tech industry's great powers.
By Ian Leslie
The best films for Christmas 2020
Though most aren't showing in cinemas, a handful of streaming releases try to make the season bright.
The ten best films of 2020
New Statesman critic Ryan Gilbey chooses his top movies of the year.
Happiest Season is a warm, light-hearted festive romp
This Kristen Stewart-Mackenzie Davis romcom asks "What if Meet the Parents had been 90 per cent gayer?"
David Fincher's Mank sparkles like a Hollywood classic
Screenwriters don't dream of getting their name above the title. But in this remarkable film, a screenwriter's name is the title.
Love & Basketball is more than a chick flick
Gina Prince-Bythewood's 2000 debut film is clear-eyed and serious about female ambition and gender roles.