14 h. ago Sisu: Road to Revenge review – Finnish hero takes on a Red Army butcher in terrific sequel

Punchy, old-school stunt work, inventive baddie-splattering and a simple plot as our grizzled Finish prospector finds a new foe in his Soviet-occupied homelandIn 2022, the Finnish indie action movie Sisu had the look of a one-hit wonder. Pitting a grizzled prospector against an entire platoon of Nazis, writer-director Jalmari Helander heeded the lessons of George Miller’s Mad Max: Fury Road, principally that there is serious cinematic value in going pedal-to-the-metal along a single, straight narrative line. That profitable sleeper hit now yields this choice follow-up, which somehow feels more expansive while still clocking in under 90 minutes.Having seen off the SS, indomitable hero Aatami (Jorma Tommila) gains a tragic backstory and a new, vicious postwar foe in the tremendously named Red Army butcher Igor Draganov, played by wily James Cameron favourite Stephen Lang. Again, the economy of Helander’s approach proves striking and thrilling. No unnecessary obstacles have been placed...

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28 h. ago Film reviews: Wicked: For Good | The Thing With Feathers | Sisu: Road to Revenge

Jon M Chu’s attempt to mine yet more backstory from the rich lore of The Wizard of Oz is utterly devoid of magic, writes Alistair Harkness

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31 h. ago Mahmood Mamdani on Zohran, Uganda and forced expulsion: ‘Who is part of the nation and who is not?’

After being expelled from his homeland in 1972, the academic has grappled with questions of political belonging – a major theme of his son’s mayoral campaignThe night before Mahmood Mamdani was expelled from Uganda in 1972, a senior professor from the university where he had been employed as a lowly teaching assistant wandered into his family home, looking for spoils. The rest of the family had already left – for the UK, the US and Tanzania – but 26-year-old Mamdani had decided to remain until the final day of the three-month period that Idi Amin, the Ugandan president, had designated for all Asians to leave the country. Passing over the furniture and other remnants of decades of family life, the professor hit upon a carton of Johnnie Walker Red, which Mamdani invited him to take home. Continue reading...

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4 d. ago Portugal to take action after Cristiano Ronaldo red card amid World Cup ban threat

Cristiano Ronaldo was shown a straight red card in Portugal's surprise 2-0 defeat away to the Republic of Ireland on Thursday and faces being banned at the World Cup

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7 d. ago Red, white and shoe: Tuchel and England embrace their new World Cup super slipper

Thomas Tuchel is all for the marginal gains and the Three Lions have taken to new, fluorescent red shoes to boost their focusIt was certainly a strong look, impossible to ignore, something only a top‑level footballer could carry off – and even then, the jury was out. When Ezri Konsa strolled in to preview Thursday’s World Cup qualifier against Serbia at Wembley, the England defender did so in what, at first glance, appeared to be a cross between a pair of slippers and oversized Crocs. In garish, fluorescent red.On closer inspection, it was possible to make out grooves and nodules on them, and then it was time for the science part. Apparently, if you wear these your concentration improves. Well, that is according to the manufacturer. Something to do with the pressure points on the foot, perhaps. Was Konsa convinced? Unclear. How about Thomas Tuchel? Ditto. Continue reading...

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7 d. ago Red, white and shoe: England and Tuchel have world at their feet with fresh focus

Thomas Tuchel is all for the marginal gains and the Three Lions have taken to new, fluorescent red shoes to boost their focusIt was certainly a strong look, impossible to ignore, something only a top‑level footballer could carry off – and even then, the jury was out. When Ezri Konsa strolled in to preview Thursday’s World Cup qualifier against Serbia at Wembley, the England defender did so in what, at first glance, appeared to be a cross between a pair of slippers and oversized Crocs. In garish, fluorescent red.On closer inspection, it was possible to make out grooves and nodules on them, and then it was time for the science part. Apparently, if you wear these your concentration improves. Well, that is according to the manufacturer. Something to do with the pressure points on the foot, perhaps. Was Konsa convinced? Unclear. How about Thomas Tuchel? Ditto. Continue reading...

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7 d. ago Predators review – grimly compelling look at reality TV revenge hunt for child abusers

David Osit’s documentary takes a disturbing look at the televised shaming served up by the hit show To Catch a PredatorIt’s too soon to know for sure, but this may end up being ranked as one of the best nonfiction films of the year. At least let’s hope lots of people get to see this, even if it’s a mistake because they meant to buy a ticket for Predator: Badlands. Instead of an alien hunter with gnarly teeth, this offers a profoundly troubling meditation on our collective thirst for revenge – or at least the kind of bizarre performance art version of revenge as served up by reality TV show To Catch a Predator, a US series that ran from 2004 to 2007 and which featured weekly footage of paedophiles and would-be paedophiles being duped, shamed and arrested.Predators’ director David Osit, at first just an offscreen voice but eventually a fully seen (in every sense) presence, explains that he used to watch To Catch a Predator avidly as a young man. Every episode was roughly the same: a m...

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8 d. ago Myleene Klass stuns in ruby red heels as she takes inspiration from Dorothy at the Wicked: For Good European premiere

The Classic FM star, 47, commanded attention in a pair of towering bejewelled Jimmy Choo stilettos. She paired her heels with a green sparkly £960 Maia peridot mini dress, which featured a silver lining.

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2 w. ago Other People’s Fun by Harriet Lane review – darkly comic tale of envy and revenge in the Insta age

The worlds of the haves and the have-nots clash, in a toxic friendship between two women brought together by a school reunionOf all the seven deadly sins, envy is the last to be commodified. You can understand why – unlike lust, anger or even sloth, it’s not something to admit to. In his Allegory with Venus and Cupid, Bronzino depicted envy as an ugly green hag, clutching her head and howling impotently; now Instagram has allowed anyone online to gain access to images of the lifestyles of those richer, prettier and luckier than ourselves.Ruth, the narrator of Harriet Lane’s third novel, Other People’s Fun, is corroded by it. Alone, her marriage over, her daughter grown and her freelance work as dull as it is low paid, she is that most dangerous of characters: an overlooked middle-aged woman with nothing to lose. When she bumps into beautiful, stupid and entitled Sookie at a school reunion, she reconnects with her teenage self “and all her violent desires”. Having flown und...

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3 w. ago David Beckham's surprise financial boost after being linked with Man United takeover bid

Manchester United icon David Beckham has received some unexpected financial news after being linked with a shock Red Devils takeover bid

Politics

3 w. ago David Beckham receives shock financial boost amid Man Utd takeover claims

Manchester United legend David Beckham has received an unexpected financial boost after being linked with an extraordinary Red Devils takeover bid

Events

3 w. ago Ruben Amorim shares true feelings on Bruno Fernandes ahead of Man Utd milestone

Manchester United midfielder Bruno Fernandes is set to make his 300th appearance for the club when the Red Devils take on Brighton at Old Trafford on Saturday afternoon

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3 w. ago Man Utd news: Matheus Cunha's true colours shown as Brazil star risks punishment

Here's all the latest news and updates from Manchester United, both on and off the pitch, as the Red Devils prepare to take on Brighton in the Premier League

Events

4 w. ago Diablo review – Scott Adkins enters Cormac McCarthy territory in over

Its deranged antagonist might be an Anton Chigurh rip-off, but some fantastically flailing fight scenes almost lift this otherwise humdrum action rompNo Country for Old Men’s Anton Chigurh was the scariest thing to come out of Latin America since Argentinian inflation. So it’s taken a surprisingly long time to see a direct imitator: the dark-clad avenger El Corvo, played here by Marko Zaror. Not only does he have the gauche coiffuring (bald on top this time), but also the philosophical penchant, asking imminent victims if they’ve given themselves a present recently. If the Cormac McCarthy rip-off wasn’t enough, Ernesto Díaz Espinoza’s ponderous thriller also gives El Corvo a couple of scenes lifted from The Terminator, and the villain from Enter the Dragon’s blade-hand for good measure.Diablo isn’t all cliches though: martial arts multitool Scott Adkins has a potentially interesting role inverting the usual over-the-border revenge mission. He plays former bank robber Kris, who’s bee...

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last month ‘It’s possible’: Jürgen Klopp says return to manage Liverpool could yet happen

Klopp has current roles with Red Bull and German leagueFormer manager commemorated Diogo Jota in podcastJurgen Klopp says it is “theoretically possible” that he could one day return as Liverpool manager. The 58-year-old walked away from Anfield in 2024, ending a transformative nine-year spell at the club that included a Champions League success and the Reds’ first league title in 30 years. He has taken on roles as head of global soccer with the Red Bull group and in an advisory capacity with the German Football League.Liverpool won the Premier League last season under Arne Slot but many fans who revere Klopp would welcome the notion that he may eventually return. In a wide-ranging interview on The Diary of a CEO podcast, he told Steven Bartlett: “I said I will never coach another team, a different team, in England. So that means if then it’s Liverpool...yeah. Theoretically it’s possible.” Continue reading...

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