Sam Campbell’s meta sitcom about a director making atrocious films has been hailed as one of the funniest shows of the year. The Guardian’s Stuart Heritage called it “so ostentatiously silly that it deserves to be paraded around the streets.”
Tina Fey’s comedy series about middle-aged friends reuniting for holidays returns, with Chitra Ramaswamy praising it as “even more perspicacious, poignant and hilarious than the first.” Marvel’s Spider-Noir, starring Nicolas Cage, also impressed Lucy Mangan, who said it “is shot with style and confidence.”
Elsewhere, Emilia Clarke and Haley Lu Richardson star as widows turned Cold War spies in a genre-blending comedy-drama that Mangan described as “an unexpected treat.” The horror film Backrooms, from 20-year-old director Kane Parsons, examines memory and fear, with Peter Bradshaw noting its “real fascination in exploring this vast, invisible city state of fear.”
John Carney’s Power Ballad, featuring Nick Jonas and Paul Rudd, tackles the binary of success and failure in show business. A tender highlight comes from the film Tuner, where Leo Woodall and Dustin Hoffman’s relationship is called “a real pleasure to watch” by Cath Clarke. John Woo’s 1990 epic Bullet in the Head also received acclaim for its “poignantly futile” violence.
John Travolta narrates and directs The Shepherd, a short film about a boy dreaming of being a pilot, which Bradshaw likened to a Wes Anderson movie. Finally, Emily Wilson’s new book of essays on translation challenges rounds out the week’s top-reviewed culture.
