The shipyard painter, political activist and razor-sharp cartoonist Bob Starrett has just written a new book The Way I See It on his eventful life and times. Below we reprint one of his stories and review an essential read
ENO's production of La Boheme is a triumph,
JEFF SAWTELL recommends a film about the high human cost of unemployment - compassionate, committed cinema at its best.
Departing from his usual social realism, Danny Boyle's Millions embraces a little magical realism with a comedy by Frank Cottrell Boyce that could have been conceived by Ealing Studios.
Yet another Hollywood family friendly film promoting the US military, with Vin Diesel seeking to maximise his potential mimicking Arnie Schwarzenegger and taking on a comedy role babysitting brats.
By any artistic criteria, this stalk-and-slash shocker is crap.
This film is touted as "a comedy following the tragic life of legendary Frankie Wilde."
Based upon a true story, Bronwen Hughes's film stars Thomas Jane as Stander, a South African policeman who becomes disillusioned with his role as suppressor of the blacks and decides to become a bank robber.
The Black Stallion's Carol Ballard scores with this South Africa-set family film. Â
The inventive puppets and settings initially impress but the sub-Lord of the Rings epic fantasy of love and vengeance rapidly becomes irksome - although not as quite as wearisome as the cabal of British luvvies led by Derek Jacobi who delicately dub the Scandinavian offering.
Ethan Carter