Cry-Baby, The Musical. Review by Barbara Lewis. “Cry-Baby” may be set in 1950s Baltimore, but lyrics that at once celebrate and satirise the democratic checks and balances of the “nifty country” that is the United States of America make it tailor-made as a tonic for our times.
year 2025
Poetry review – CHRONICLE OF DRIFTING: Charles Rammelkamp explores the curious world evoked by Yuki Tanaka’s poetry
Poetry review – VISITING HOURS: Wendy French examines an unusual mix of poems and pictures by Michel & Gillie Robic, arising from an anxious time spent in hospital
Poetry review – THE WORLD YOU NOW OWN: Jon Stone browses an elegant, erudite and entertaining new collection by PW Bridgman The World You Now Own: New Poems and a Novella in Verse P. W. Bridgman Ekstasis Editions ISBN 978-1-77171-552-2 109pp $28.95
Poetry review – I SING TO THE GREENHEARTS: Pat Edwards enjoys novel and surprising viewpoints in the new collection by Maggie Harris
The Barnabas Kos Case. Review by Alan Price. The Barnabas Kos Case is a subtle and witty satire directed by Peter Solan and adapted from the 1954 short story of Peter Karvas. It is a Slovak oddity still retaining its power to disturb and entertain.
Poetry review – SONNETS FOR MY MOTHER AS LEAR: Michael Bartholomew-Biggs is impressed by Martin Malone’s poems about the challenges of caring for an elderly parent
Siena: The Rise of Painting 1300?1350. Review by Graham Buchan. This, quite simply, is a stunning exhibition. It asserts that the first half of the fourteenth century is when painting came into its own. It was now that painting, as an art form, first became something to be commissioned and acquired.
Poetry review – WISH: Paul McDonald appreciates the directness and persistent optimism of Maggie Brookes-Butt’s well-crafted poems
Poetry review – POISON: Jennifer Johnson admires the originality of Louise Warren’s latest chapbook
REMEMBERING DONALD ATKINSON: Michael Bartholomew-Biggs reflects on the relatively short career of a very original poet and adds some personal memories.
Yojimbo – 1961 / Sanjuro 1962 – (Kurosawa). Review by Alan Price. The BFI continue their new 4k Kurosawa restorations with two of his most famous samurai films Yojimbo and Sanjuro. Both feature superb performances by Toshiro Mifune as a ronin (a vagrant samurai drifter).
By Alan Price • film, year 2025 • Tags: Alan Price, film