# comedy films (blogs) — RSS Amplifier Recent posts from the 4 feeds in the RSS Amplifier directory that cover comedy films. Page: Feed: --- ## [Drive-in cinemas are rare these days. But the last one in Melbourne’s north still draws a faithful crowd](https://www.theguardian.com/film/ng-interactive/2026/aug/23/australia-drive-in-cinemas-melbourne-coburg) _2026-08-23 · Reporting and photography by Mridula Amin · Film | The Guardian_ The drive-in demands little of its audience. You can lie down, bring your dog and talk without fear of being hushed. Mridula Amin spent a night at one of the last of a dying breed Between a funeral parlour and a sink factory, a queue of cars slowly disappears down a driveway. Most arrive with plenty of time to spare – to turn their backseats into beds, tune their radios to the film audio and let… ## [‘Embryonic’: lost novel by French film-maker Éric Rohmer is republished](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/22/elisabeth-lost-novel-by-french-film-maker-eric-rohmer-is-republished) _2026-08-22 · Xan Brooks · Film | The Guardian_ English translation of Élisabeth, the New Wave director’s 1946 book about young lovers in prewar Paris, receives rave reviews as precursor to auteur’s cinematic work In the dog days of the second world war, 24-year-old Maurice Schérer wrote a tale of young lovers in prewar small-town France. He described lazy August swims in the Marne River east of Paris. He wrote about age-gap affairs and… ## [Nigel Havers: ‘My biggest disappointment? Not playing James Bond’](https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2026/aug/22/nigel-havers-interview-biggest-disappointment-not-playing-james-bond) _2026-08-22 · Rosanna Greenstreet · Film | The Guardian_ The actor on mucking out pigs as a teenager, an apology to his first wife and what makes him cry all the time Born in London, Nigel Havers, 74, was Bafta-nominated for his 1981 role in Chariots of Fire. His other films include A Passage to India and Empire of the Sun. On television he has appeared in Don’t Wait Up, The Charmer, Coronation Street, The Gentlemen and, most recently, Golden Boys. He… ## [Stand By Me at 40: Rob Reiner’s seminal coming-of-age saga remains a bittersweet triumph](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/22/stand-by-me-40th-anniversary) _2026-08-22 · Scott Tobias · Film | The Guardian_ The late director’s sensitive and detailed adaptation of Stephen King’s novella has an authenticity that so many imitators could never replicate Coming-of-age metaphors don’t get any blunter than a group of preteen boys following a set of railroad tracks to a classmate’s dead body, a sobering testament to the fragility of life and a sign that their own futures are not guaranteed. The Stephen King… ## [Celebrating Ice Cream on National Spumoni Day](https://psychotronicpaul.blogspot.com/2026/08/celebrating-ice-cream-on-national.html) _2026-08-21 · Paul F. Etcheverry · Way Too Damn Lazy To Write A Blog_ That's right - there actually is a National Spumoni Day, August 21! The Zack's Beyond Our Plate YouTube channel refers to the Italian dessert as The Magic Of Spumoni ! Love spumoni and ice cream in general? Yes! Indeed, lots of us like ice cream a great deal. This fact was most eloquently expressed by comedy king Eddie Murphy. Naturally, spumoni and ice cream have found their way to the cartoon… ## [David Harbour has blown Tony Stark’s cover in Avengers: Doomsday. It might just be what Marvel needs](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/21/avengers-doomsday-robert-downey-jr-tony-stark-david-harbour-marvel) _2026-08-21 · Ben Child · Film | The Guardian_ The actor, who plays Red Guardian in the film, made a cryptic comment to Variety that raised more Robert Downey Jr-shaped questions than answers. But was it a clanger, or expert trolling? Nobody knows exactly what solemn blood oaths Marvel uses to prevent spoilers. But we do know that Andrew Garfield spent most of the run-up to 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home – in which he would eventually turn up… ## [‘We’re barely above porn’: why would a film-maker choose to make a deliberately bad ‘mockbuster’?](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/22/anthony-frith-documentary-mockbuster-the-land-that-time-forgot) _2026-08-21 · Luke Buckmaster · Film | The Guardian_ With a tiny budget and six days, Anthony Frith directed a film for the studio behind Sharknado – and then made Mockbuster, a documentary about the experience Directors don’t tend to appreciate having their films eviscerated by critics. And us critics, well practised in lobbing proverbial grenades from the safety of our pretentiously book-lined, Cahiers du Cinéma-strewn offices, don’t tend to look… ## [The Odyssey becomes highest grossing R-rated film of all time](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/21/the-odyssey-highest-grossing-r-rated-film-of-all-time) _2026-08-21 · Andrew Pulver · Film | The Guardian_ Christopher Nolan’s epic has achieved $1.35bn at the global box office, overtaking 2024’s Deadpool & Wolverine The Odyssey has overtaken Deadpool & Wolverine to become the highest grossing R-rated film of all time. According to figures compiled by the Numbers , Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of Homer’s epic poem has achieved $1.35bn (£990m) at the worldwide box office, compared with the Ryan… ## [‘It is the riskiest film I’ve ever made’: Pedro Almodóvar on being the villain in his own movie](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/21/it-is-the-riskiest-film-ive-ever-made-pedro-almodovar-on-being-the-villain-in-his-own-movie) _2026-08-21 · Ryan Gilbey · Film | The Guardian_ As his new film Bitter Christmas is released, the legendary Spanish director turns his fire on Donald Trump, Will Smith, Netflix – and himself Black sunglasses indoors and a tufty cloud of cotton-wool hair: it can only be Pedro Almodóvar, bourgeois arthouse darling nonpareil and master of everything from screwball romps (Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown) to clammy thrillers (Live Flesh,… ## [Spa Weekend review – female answer to The Hangover spreads the slush with the massage oil](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/21/spa-weekend-review-comedy) _2026-08-21 · Peter Bradshaw · Film | The Guardian_ Despite stars Leslie Mann, Anna Faris and Isla Fisher and the writers behind The Hangover, this tale of friends at a luxury hotel is a dud Jon Lucas and Scott Moore are the screenwriters who struck gold nearly 20 years ago with The Hangover, a brilliant stag-weekend nightmare comedy about what happens in Vegas, which sadly spawned a terrible (though lucrative) franchise. Now, as writers and… ## [8.1% APY Plus Free Stock (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/78fZXKy1aCpI) _2026-08-21 · **Sponsored**_ Claim 8.1% APY and up to $1,030 in SK hynix and Nvidia stock. ## [Hazy sunshine, factor-50 smiles and Cliff Richard at the wheel: the 20 best summer holiday movies – ranked!](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/20/best-summer-holiday-movies-ranked-seasonal-romance) _2026-08-20 · Xan Brooks · Film | The Guardian_ From feelgood romances to heated interactions, here are the films that best capture the seasonal moment Let’s begin at the end. 2 September 1962: the final night of the summer vacation; one last big blowout before adult life intervenes. George Lucas’s rambunctious salute to footloose youth paints vivid vignettes of Modesto, California, rocking around the clock with its loose-knit gaggle of… ## [It Ends review – gripping micro-budget horror ranks among the year’s best](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/20/it-ends-horror-movie-review) _2026-08-20 · Owen Myers · Film | The Guardian_ Led by a stellar cast of gen-Z newcomers, Alex Ullom’s directorial debut is an expertly crafted nightmare about a road trip gone wrong Time loops often feel like the movies’ favorite zany stylistic trick: Bill Murray plotting to win Andie MacDowell’s heart, a college student solving the mystery of her own grizzly murder, or as a ruse for Anne Hathaway to face off with a T rex . The excellent new… ## [‘I love provocative stories’: producer Christine Vachon on fighting for her ‘offensive’ movies](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/19/producer-christine-vachon-offensive-movies-kids-poison-swoon) _2026-08-19 · Ryan Gilbey · Film | The Guardian_ The maker of indie classics Kids, Swoon and Poison on daring to have a temper in the 90s, what some producer credits mean – and what happened between her and Joaquin Phoenix Trailblazing producer Christine Vachon bestrides the world of US independent film-making like a colossus. She has championed idiosyncratic American cinema for more than 35 years, scoring hits such as the romcom Materialists,… ## [Mutiny review – Jason Statham’s fight-by-numbers action thriller just about stays above water](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/19/mutiny-movie-review) _2026-08-19 · Benjamin Lee · Film | The Guardian_ The hard-working action hero gives us exactly what we expect, and often want, in this sturdy cargo ship-set caper The dog days of August have already seen the trotting out of some usual suspects from a junky Eli Roth horror to a belated nostalgia comedy sequel to a Mike Pence-approved Ronald Reagan drama . This weekend, yet more howls will be heard in cinemas with a lower-tier horror instalment… ## [Insidious: Out of the Further review – evil returns but so does boredom](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/19/insidious-out-of-the-further-review) _2026-08-19 · Scott Tobias · Film | The Guardian_ Uninteresting mythology and junky effects push a once-promising horror franchise further from what it once was When the Insidious franchise started in 2010, it felt like a liberating moment for director James Wan and writer (and later director) Leigh Whannell, the Australian duo who captured the zeitgeist with the original Saw movie, which imported the gonzo energy of low-budget Ozploitation… ## [Christian metal band sues Netflix over KPop Demon Hunters name](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/19/kpop-demon-hunters-netflix-lawsuit) _2026-08-19 · Marina Dunbar · Film | The Guardian_ 25-year-old band Demon Hunter says name of streamer’s hit movie creates ‘substantial confusion’ among consumers Christian metal band Demon Hunter is suing Netflix , accusing the entertainment giant of trademark infringement and unfair competition tied to the blockbuster “KPop Demon Hunters” name. The lawsuit was filed on Tuesday by Hyde Lane, the company behind Demon Hunter, and alleges that… ## [Tom Holland set to earn $100m from Spider-Man: Brand New Day](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/19/tom-holland-pay-100m-spider-man-brand-new-day) _2026-08-19 · Laurence Phelan · Film | The Guardian_ In a year that’s seen the British actor star in the season’s two biggest blockbusters – and marry his co-star from both – he is reportedly earning a huge pay packet thanks to box-office bonuses The British actor Tom Holland is expected to “make at least $100m” for starring in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, according to the Wrap . Unnamed sources “with knowledge of Holland’s deal” say he was paid $20m… ## [Coyote Vs Acme review – quirky comedy returns from the dead to flip Wile E Coyote’s slapstick-violent world](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/19/coyote-vs-acme-review-wile-e-coyote-roadrunner) _2026-08-19 · Peter Bradshaw · Film | The Guardian_ After being shelved as a tax-writeoff, this Looney Tunes reboot redraws the hapless hunter as the Erin Brockovich of the cartoon world Here is a quirky, peculiar, yet strangely diverting live-action-toon hybrid of the kind that hasn’t been popular at the movies for many a day; it gives us a new twist on the surreal forever war between Wile E Coyote and the speedy Road Runner (catchphrase “beep… ## [Over/Under review – beautiful coming of age story of female best friends set across five summers](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/19/over-under-review-beautiful-coming-of-age-story-set-across-five-summers) _2026-08-19 · Leslie Felperin · Film | The Guardian_ There’s an astonishing naturalism about the two leads, navigating the ups and downs of adolescence, bodily changes and learning to use tampons Practically any woman who had a best female friend in early adolescence will be able to relate to this fragile, thoughtful drama about two American children, Violet (Emajean Bullock) and Stella (Anastasia Veronica Lee), living through the ages of nine to… ## [David review – biblical Goliath-slayer animation offers upbeat boybandish worship musical](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/19/david-review-biblical-goliath-slayer-animation-offers-upbeat-boybandish-worship-musical) _2026-08-19 · Cath Clarke · Film | The Guardian_ Christian kids’ movie is entertaining during the big battle, but the older bouffant hero’s lack of depth is distracting and the worship songs a weak link U2’s Bono once described King David as “the Elvis of the Bible” – but in this musical kids’ adaptation, David is more boyband than rock’n’roll, with voluminous bouffant hair and a soundtrack of upbeat worship songs. The singing is actually a weak… ## [Meet Claude, the AI assistant (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/VHpU1FEynj4x) _2026-08-19 · **Sponsored**_ Conversational AI to answer questions, brainstorm ideas, and help with tasks. ## [John Irvin, British film-maker who directed Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, dies aged 86](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/19/john-irvin-dead-british-director-tinker-tailor-soldier-spy-hamburger-hill) _2026-08-19 · Sian Cain · Film | The Guardian_ The director’s BBC hit opened the door to Hollywood action films including Hamburger Hill, The Dogs of War and Raw Deal John Irvin, the British film-maker who directed the Bafta-winning BBC miniseries Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy , as well as films including Hamburger Hill, The Dogs of War and Raw Deal, has died aged 86. Irvin died “peacefully at home” on 11 August, surrounded by his family, his… ## [Phyllida Law, prolific performer across stage and screen, dies aged 94](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/18/phyllida-law-performer-stage-screen-dies) _2026-08-18 · Andrew Pulver · Film | The Guardian_ As adept at comedy and musicals as she was drama, Law also acted alongside daughters Sophie and Emma Thompson in a career spanning eight decades Phyllida Law, whose prolific acting career encompassed a wide range of stage, TV and film roles – a number of which were alongside her daughters, Emma and Sophie Thompson – has died aged 94. Her personal manager, Jacky Leggo, said in a statement that she… ## [Match review – gory and slyly satirical catfishing horror for the age of Hinge](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/18/match-review-gory-and-slyly-satirical-catfishing-horror-for-the-age-of-hinge) _2026-08-18 · Leslie Felperin · Film | The Guardian_ Online dating’s eternal bugbear reaches a horrific apotheosis in this funny, grimy and impishly directed shocker Paola (Humberly González) is a pretty young woman about to turn 30 who hasn’t found herself a steady boyfriend – so, like many people of her generation, she’s on all the dating apps. The algorithm finds her match in Henry, who looks clean cut and kind eyed – or, at least, that’s what he… ## [‘I’ve always been fond of hairy creatures!’ Visual effects maestro Rick Baker on a monstrously good career](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/18/rick-baker-interview-visual-effects-makeup-gremlins-thriller) _2026-08-18 · Rory O'Connor · Film | The Guardian_ Rick Baker helped define Hollywood’s creature features with his wild makeup effects skills. From Locarno, he talks Gremlins, his love of simians– and why AI will never replace expert design When Rick Baker was 22 years old and laying the first bricks of what would become one of the great Hollywood careers, he travelled to Hatra in Iraq with director William Friedkin to assist with Max von Sydow’s… ## [Mark Rydell obituary](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/17/mark-rydell-obituary) _2026-08-17 · Ryan Gilbey · Film | The Guardian_ Actor and director whose movies notched up more than 20 Oscar nominations between them Stars flocked to work with the director Mark Rydell, who has died aged 97, and no wonder: he had trained as a performer alongside James Dean and Steve McQueen , later becoming west coast artistic co-director of the prestigious Actors Studio, while his movies notched up more than 20 Academy Award nominations… ## [Mark Rydell obituary](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/17/mark-rydell-obituary) _2026-08-17 · Ryan Gilbey · Film | The Guardian_ Actor and director whose movies notched up more than 20 Oscar nominations between them Stars flocked to work with the director Mark Rydell, who has died aged 97, and no wonder: he had trained as a performer alongside James Dean and Steve McQueen , later becoming west coast artistic co-director of the prestigious Actors Studio, while his movies notched up more than 20 Academy Award nominations… ## [Beatles film recreates iconic Abbey Road album cover](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/17/beatles-film-recreates-iconic-abbey-road-album-cover-sam-mendes) _2026-08-17 · Andrew Pulver · Film | The Guardian_ Social media footage this weekend revealed the cast of Sam Mendes’ four-film band biopic on the zebra crossing near the studio, posing for the famous image The production team behind the forthcoming four-film Beatles biopic, directed by Sam Mendes, has been spotted filming outside Abbey Road studios in London; this included a recreation of the celebrated Abbey Road album cover, for which the band… ## [Johnny Depp in talks to return to Pirates of the Caribbean franchise](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/17/johnny-depp-in-talks-pirates-of-the-caribbean-return) _2026-08-17 · Laurence Phelan · Film | The Guardian_ The actor, who previously said he would not play Captain Jack Sparrow again for ‘$300m and a million alpacas’, is being lined up for sixth film in the series according to producer Jerry Bruckheimer Johnny Depp is in talks to return as Captain Jack Sparrow in a sixth Pirates of the Caribbean film, according to the producer of the series, Jerry Bruckheimer. Bruckheimer told Deadline : “We’re talking… ## [Douglas Gordon by Douglas Gordon review – a brave glimpse inside the mind of the Scottish artist](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/17/douglas-gordon-by-douglas-gordon-review-a-brave-glimpse-inside-the-mind-of-the-scottish-film-maker) _2026-08-17 · Andrew Pulver · Film | The Guardian_ Director Finlay Pretsell captures Gordon setting things alight with a miniature blowtorch, smearing himself with silver paint and throwing shapes with a bullwhip Here is a brave and not entirely orthodox artist documentary; not so much a dates-and-shows-and-talking-heads profile, but resembling something of an act of art in itself. The subject is Douglas Gordon, the Scottish film and video-maker,… ## [Chris Carter is mistaken if he thinks more gore will bring The X-Files: I Want to Believe back to life](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/17/chris-carter-x-files-i-want-to-believe-directors-cut-critique-spoilers) _2026-08-17 · Ben Child · Film | The Guardian_ The director’s cut includes a host more body parts but no more insight into the villains’ personalities. What could be a gothic masterstroke is turned into a dreary procedural in the snow Warning: this article contains spoilers Everyone loves a director’s cut. But unlike some, The X-Files: I Want to Believe – Vrach Frankenshteyn, which debuted on Friday on Disney+, is not the kind of director’s… ## [Generate Viral Hot Takes (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/buVamQh1bmjz) _2026-08-17 · **Sponsored**_ Get platform-optimized hot takes and rebuttals to spark debate and engagement ## [‘Can we accept what we have done or not done?’: harrowing film follows doctors in Gaza](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/17/gaza-doctor-documentary) _2026-08-17 · David Smith in Washington · Film | The Guardian_ American Doctor follows three volunteer doctors as they try to save lives on the frontline and then return to the US to become advocates in congress When she wanted to confront Americans about the consequences of their actions – or inactions – in Gaza, Poh Si Teng reached for a genre with mass popular appeal: the medical drama. “Whether it’s The Pitt, Grey’s Anatomy, House, ER, even a comedy like… ## [The Hounds Gate Haunting review – a ghostly critic lurks in the stalls in this suspenseful spooker](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/17/the-hounds-gate-haunting-review-richard-mansfield) _2026-08-17 · Phil Hoad · Film | The Guardian_ This mockumentary from low-budget horror veteran Richard Mansfield isn’t the most subtle take on the artist-critic relationship but it has a certain sprightliness Where Quentin Dupieux’s 2023 theatre hostage-taking comedy Yannick pointed out that inside every punter is a critic, this no-frills British mockumentary suggests that if artists aren’t literally haunted by their reviews, then their inner… ## [49 Miles More review – screwball East Anglian road caper makes a smart left turn](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/17/49-miles-more-review-screwball-east-anglian-road-caper-makes-a-smart-left-turn) _2026-08-17 · Phil Hoad · Film | The Guardian_ When sobersided Max agrees to chaperone zany childhood pal Doug to a big night with the lads, everything goes predictably wrong, but some real surprises await Doug, the incessant funster played by Gregory Fung in this jaunty but finally poignant buddy comedy, joins the likes of The Hangover’s Alan Garner as the nightmarish BFF most likely to give you an aneurysm. After losing a round of bagsy,… ## [‘I see the incredible promise’: on set of an AI film shoot as new studios embrace controversial tech](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/16/directors-embracing-ai-film-making) _2026-08-16 · Robert Booth · Film | The Guardian_ Amid fears for jobs, some film-makers say AI could enable them bypass studio giants and take more creative risks Near the collonaded entrance to Sony Pictures’ historic Culver City film studio, a tech-powered rival has sprung up this summer. The artists at Promise, a new studio feeding off the potential of AI, can glimpse the lots where Singin’ in the Rain and Men in Black were shot, but no longer… ## [Mission review – dangerous quest to mend a broken childhood](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/15/mission-review-dangerous-quest-to-mend-a-broken-childhood) _2026-08-15 · Peter Bradshaw · Film | The Guardian_ Edinburgh film festival George MacKay plays a troubled restaurant worker embarking on bleak inner and outer journeys reflecting the pressures on young men Paul Wright has created a moodscape of loneliness in this seriously intended, strenuously performed movie, a followup to his 2013 debut feature For Those in Peril . As before, Wright is working with lead actor George MacKay, who here plays… ## [Borges and Me review – a sweetly imagined literary odyssey through the Highlands](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/15/borges-and-me-review-alan-cumming-fionn-whitehead) _2026-08-15 · Peter Bradshaw · Film | The Guardian_ Edinburgh film festival Luis Gnecco brings warmth, wit and quiet melancholy to Jorge Luis Borges in this gently enchanting adaptation of Jay Parini’s semi-fictional memoir There is great sweetness and high-minded, unworldly charm in this adaptation of American author Jay Parini’s embellished memoir , a romantic account of his road trip through the Scottish Highlands that, as a young doctoral… ## [Snapshot review – fun found-footage scarer follows amateur Ripper hunters in the 1880s](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/15/snapshot-review-fun-found-footage-scarer-follows-amateur-ripper-hunters-in-the-1880s) _2026-08-15 · Peter Bradshaw · Film | The Guardian_ Edinburgh film festival A women’s spiritualist investigation team go after the serial killer, braving evil forces conjured into being by fear, misogyny and political rage Here is a cheerfully ingenious lo-fi movie experiment from first-time feature director Joseph Archer and writer-performer Cathy Wippel; it’s a found-footage horror with hints of Blair Witch and Peeping Tom, set in the Victorian… ## [Will Poulter on challenging stereotypes in new opioid drama: ‘Shame on us for stigmatizing people’](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/15/will-poulter-interview-union-county-movie) _2026-08-15 · Owen Myers · Film | The Guardian_ The British actor delivers his strongest performance to date in indie film Union County as a person struggling with substance abuse trying to turn his life around Every week, Annette Deao, a drug dependency counselor, sits in the county jail and offers incarcerated people in rural Ohio a chance at recovery. One bright day she meets Cody, a young man who shuffles towards the lectern and quietly… ## [On August 14, 2026, Soupy's On!](https://psychotronicpaul.blogspot.com/2026/08/on-august-14-2026-soupys-on.html) _2026-08-14 · Paul F. Etcheverry · Way Too Damn Lazy To Write A Blog_ How the blog somehow missed the centenary of the birth of wacky, imaginative and marvelously goofy comedian Milton Supman, known professionally as Soupy Sales , back on January 8, we'll never know! Oh well, at least Way Too Damn Lazy To Write A Blog remembered our pals Dick Van Dyke and Mel Brooks, both of whom lived to see that 100th birthday. Let's rectify that grevious error of overlooking the… ## [Out There review – saucer-eyed teen searches for aliens in YA comedy drama](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/14/out-there-review-edinburgh-film-festival) _2026-08-14 · Peter Bradshaw · Film | The Guardian_ Wales, 1999: Maz is convinced her dead father was abducted by extraterrestrials in Simon Ryninks’s likable film, with a funny turn from Michael Sheen as a new age type Feature first-timer Simon Ryninks writes and directs this likably daft but big-hearted YA comedy drama, inspired by West Wales’s reputation as a hotspot for UFO sightings – particularly Broad Haven in Pembrokeshire, where many… ## [These Violent Delights review – Scottish Ballet’s feverish Romeo and Juliet is bold and unsettling](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/14/these-violent-delights-review-oscar-sansom-christopher-hampson) _2026-08-14 · Peter Bradshaw · Film | The Guardian_ Edinburgh film festival A taut, dreamlike reimagining of Shakespeare’s tragedy strips away romance in favour of dread, creating an engrossing and fiercely physical dance film Scottish Ballet, under the direction of Christopher Hampson and Oscar Sansom, gives us an engrossing dance riff on Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. The title alludes to Friar Lawrence saying, at the couple’s secret wedding… ## [Nicole Kidman opens up about divorce from Keith Urban – and ‘throwing my career away’ for Tom Cruise](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/14/nicole-kidman-british-vogue-interview-keith-urban-divorce-tom-cruise-marriage) _2026-08-14 · Sian Cain · Film | The Guardian_ Actor, 59, reflects on high-profile marriages in Vogue interview, saying she felt ‘deeply vulnerable’ after split from Urban Nicole Kidman has opened up about her divorce from Keith Urban and reflected on her marriage to Tom Cruise, saying she was warned being his wife would overshadow her career. In a new interview with Vogue , the 59-year-old actor spoke about going through two divorces under… ## [Edinburgh international film festival showcases a Scottish industry in rude health](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/13/edinburgh-international-film-festival-scottish-cinema) _2026-08-13 · Andrew Pulver · Film | The Guardian_ This year’s festival is superpowered by a strong year for Scottish cinema, showing it can thrive under the ‘four dimensional perpetual catch-22’ of global ambitions • Borges, ballet and BDSM: Peter Bradshaw’s 10 must-see movies at Edinburgh international film festival Now that its disastrous collapse and speedy rebirth is a trauma slowly receding in the rear-view mirror, the Edinburgh… ## [‘It was fun to get pushed around’: Andrew Rannells on ‘razzle dazzle’, kissing co-stars and being a better friend to Lena Dunham](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/13/andrew-rannells-interview-girls-lena-dunham-miss-you-love-you) _2026-08-13 · Ryan Gilbey · Film | The Guardian_ The star of Girls and The Book of Mormon talks about coming out, turning a showmance into a romance, and going toe to toe with the West Wing’s Allison Janney in new film Miss You Love You Imagine a cute, young, gay Jim Carrey with a withering line in put-downs: that is Andrew Rannells. Or rather, it was, back when he starred in Lena Dunham’s HBO series Girls as Elijah, the formerly closeted ex of… ## [Imelda Staunton: ‘Umbridge’s giggle needed to be short and sharp. So I just did a boom, boom’](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/13/imelda-staunton-interview-umbridge-harry-potter) _2026-08-13 · As told to Rich Pelley · Film | The Guardian_ The actor answers your questions on working with her dog, becoming a dame, Harry Potter, and making televisual history in The Singing Detective You and Bill Nighy were comrades in Pride , but play estranged spouses in & Sons. Was it more fun marching alongside him or giving him a piece of your mind? MrSOBaldrick It’s fun doing anything with Bill Nighy! I once saw you at RHS Garden Wisley . Are you… ## [‘I ran away to Paris to be a writer and ended up begging’: Bill Nighy on dashed dreams, golf emojis and playing a cranky novelist](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/13/bill-nighy-and-sons-golf-emojis-prince-ill-advised) _2026-08-13 · Ryan Gilbey · Film | The Guardian_ As his new film & Sons hits the screen, the actor turned podcast agony uncle relives his ‘cliched’ ambitions, deplores working lunches – and yearns to do the splits like Prince A dying patriarch summons his brood for a dramatic announcement. It may not be the most original starting point for a movie, but & Sons adds an eccentric twist – one that it would be unfair to reveal here but which nudges… ## [‘I turned down Gandhi because I’m terrified of snakes’: the amazing movie memories of Bruce Dern](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/12/bruce-dern-northbound-hitchcock-gandhi-edinburgh) _2026-08-12 · Xan Brooks · Film | The Guardian_ Famed for playing loners, cranks and wayward angels, the Hollywood star is now a wolfish 90 – but he still jogs daily. As he takes his latest film to Edinburgh, we meet the man Hitchcock called ‘the golden calf’ ‘Can you take another story?” asks the veteran actor Bruce Dern towards the end of our talk, as though every tale is a drink and the landlord has called last orders. He doesn’t want to… ## [Harry Potter fans force relocation of £430m undersea cable to avoid Dobby’s ‘grave’](https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/aug/10/harry-potter-fans-force-relocation-of-430m-undersea-cable-to-avoid-dobbys-grave) _2026-08-10 · Helena Horton · Film | The Guardian_ Power cable linking UK and Ireland now passes near Bronze Age human burial remains instead of fictional grave on Welsh beach Harry Potter fans have forced a new multimillion-pound power cable between the UK and Ireland to be relocated after complaining it would desecrate the “grave” of Dobby, a fictional elf. The character was laid to rest on Freshwater West beach in Pembrokeshire, Wales, in the… ## [The Odyssey becomes Christopher Nolan’s highest grossing film as it passes $1.1bn at box office](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/aug/10/the-odyssey-becomes-christopher-nolans-highest-grossing-film-as-it-passes-11bn-at-box-office) _2026-08-10 · Press Association · Film | The Guardian_ The film-maker’s take on Homer’s epic has beaten his previous record holder The Dark Knight Rises The Odyssey has become the highest grossing film of Christopher Nolan’s career, having made more than US$1bn at the global box office less than a month after its release. The blockbuster, which was released on 17 July, is an adaptation of Homer’s ancient Greek epic and follows Matt Damon as Odysseus,… ## [Remembering Allan Sherman](https://psychotronicpaul.blogspot.com/2026/08/remembering-allan-sherman.html) _2026-08-07 · Paul F. Etcheverry · Way Too Damn Lazy To Write A Blog_ Today's hat tip goes to one of a favorite comedian and wordsmiths from my misspent youth, a TV producer who was also a lyricist, musician, satirist and prolific recording artist, the great Allan Sherman (1924-1973). Here, Allan Sherman is the guest on The Mike Douglas Show, a very popular 1960's - early 1970s daytime TV variety program. Allan goes international with British pop group Herman's…