This week's cultural highlights include a subtle coming-of-age tale set in 1990s Nigeria and a bold reimagining of Shakespeare's Hamlet starring Riz Ahmed. The Guardian's best-rated reviews offer a diverse range of films and documentaries.
British-Nigerian filmmaker Akinola Davies Jr makes his directorial debut with 'My Father's Shadow', a film about an absent father briefly reunited with his two young sons. Critic Peter Bradshaw describes it as 'a rich, heartfelt and rewarding movie' that poses the heartbreaking question: 'Is absence the same as love?'
Riz Ahmed stars as the tortured prince in an intelligent and stark retelling of Hamlet, set in the world of a shady family business. Bradshaw calls it 'an austerely challenging reading', contrasting it with Chloé Zhao's more empathetic approach in her upcoming film Hamnet.
Other notable documentaries include a troubling look at Michael Jackson's 2005 trial, a witty film about a glamorous funeral director, and a documentary allowing King Charles to explain his climate activism. A BBC-free David Dimbleby also presents an entertaining critique of the royal family.
