The Briefly — everything reviewed, in under 200 words

‘The Room Next Door’

Film

Writing in a language different than our own can prove a daunting task. Yet some brilliant writers like Jhumpa Lahiri and Kazuo Ishiguro have written masterpieces — in Italian and English respectively. That’s not the case for Pedro Almodóvar who dives head first into his first English language feature. Previously the Spanish filmmaker made two shorts in English, but The Room Next Door is his first full length film, which he adapted from a book by Sigrid Nunez. Brilliant looking, perfectly cast and, on paper, sounding like yet another Almodóvar masterpiece, the film quickly makes itself known for its self consciousness. The thing with English is, and American English at that, that as a language it is very liberating and free. But not in this. Tilda Swinton talks at Julianne Moore, only to be answered back with a similar loftiness. The Room Next Door is the story of an ex war correspondent who is losing her battle against cancer. She asks a friend, another writer who is famously afraid to death, to help her end it all. Yet what is missing in this project is Almodóvar’s usual flair for the ridiculous, his ability to make us laugh through our pain. 

‘Sister Act’

Theater

Where would you go to run away from someone who is trying to kill you? That may hardly sound like fun to you, but this basic premise has been the starting point for many a film, song and book. Now made into a West End musical, the adventures of wannabe singer Deloris Van Cartier as she enters a convent to save her skin is the kind of feel good, laugh out loud event that predictably plays to a packed audience, night after night. After Deloris witnesses her boyfriend, gangster Curtis Shank shoot someone he believes snitched on him and his crew, she runs to the police only to find old high school friend “Sweaty Eddie”, now a cop. He suggests the very last place Shank could find her, The Holy Order of the Little Sisters of Our Mother of Perpetual Faith. Culture clashes, funny happenings and a whole lot of singing and dancing complete the package and audiences, myself included, go home happy night after night. What the musical may lack in originality, it more than makes up with talent — including lead Alexandra Burke, Ruth Jones as the Mother Superior and the ever-so-cute Lee Mead as Eddie. 

‘Thelma’

Film

Thelma Post is not your typical 93-year old grandmother. Yes, she gets confused using the internet — who doesn’t — yes, she has a hearing aid, yes she loves hanging out with her kind grandson. But at the core, she’s really an Ethan Hunt from Mission Impossible in disguise. When Thelma gets conned out of her savings by criminals pretending to be her beloved grandson in trouble, she enlists the help of an old friend to retrieve the money and off they go together on the adventure of a lifetime. What is extraordinary about Thelma is that the film — written and directed, but also edited by actor and standup comedian Josh Margolin — finally gives veteran character actress June Squibb her first starring role! Imagine being 94 and finally playing the lead, after being features in TV shows like Law & Order and Curb Your Enthusiasm as well as films like Meet Joe Black and Nebraska, which garnered her an Oscar nomination as Best Supporting Actress. Funny, charming, extremely personal and wildly entertaining, Thelma is the quiet hit of this summer season and should be on everyone’s must-watch list. 

Akub in Notting Hill, London

Restaurant

These are challenging times for the world. But, thankfully, not for the palate of those in the mood for some great Palestinian food, right in the heart of London. French-Palestinian Chef Fadi Kattan and entrepreneur Rasha Khouri teamed up to bring the people what they want, and that is some great Middle Eastern food with flair and flavor right from a tiny townhouse in Notting Hill. From their ‘Maftool Shomal Salad’ which features the surprising taste of preserved lemons jumping out of the hand-rolled wheat and fennel combo, to the ‘Short Rib Fatteh’ with meat so beautifully cooked it melts in your mouth, this is heaven on a plate. More things to try include a ‘Beitinjan Bil Tahinia’, the restaurant’s take on a classical Arab dish of eggplant with tahini sauce, and a divine ‘Mafghoussa’ dish, which mixes whole and squashed zucchini slathered in yogurt and garlic, and topped with a refreshing sprinkling of mint. Everything at Akub is balanced and soothing, enough to prove that old belief that if we could only get the Israeli and Palestinian leaders to sit down for a long, leisurely meal, we could very well achieve peace in the Middle East. 

‘Kinds of Kindness’

Film

Yorgos Lanthimos knows how to ruffle our feathers. And in his latest, he pushes the boundaries of faith, control, and reinvention to the absolute limit. Told in three different tales, each featuring characters that don’t bleed over into the next chapter except for one, cryptically named RMF, the film is a return to form for the Greek filmmaker. In the first chapter of this film you never knew you needed until you watch it, a man is told what to do by his boss, Raymond. From who to marry, what to eat and wear, to who to kill and how, Robert seems content in being controlled — until one day he isn’t. In the second tale, Daniel’s wife Liz is rescued after having been lost on an ocean expedition. But is Liz really back, does Daniel suffer from paranoia or is there another angle to this story? And in act three, two devotees and their cult leaders dance a game of control, need, and want until a truly climactic ending that will raise the hairs on your arms. But also make you laugh, all at once. Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Willem Dafoe and Margaret Qualley shine in this absurdist tale.

Barbie

Exhibition

If we ever identified as girls, we probably played with a Barbie. Although, when I asked around I found a couple of my friends who hadn’t, preferring other activities. Personally, I grew up surrounded by the iconic doll, Ken and various accessories like horses and cars. I kept my collection under my bed, neatly tucked away in drawers that doubled as Barbie’s home. My parents never bought me baby dolls, as Barbie was meant to be empowering and I still remember Lucilla, their cool London friend, gifting me my first Barbie. As an aside, Lucilla was also the first in my parents’ circle to sport a mini skirt. I told you she was cool! Anyway, ongoing at the Design Museum in London is a fascinating exhibition focusing on Barbie, complete with a photo booth made up like a pink Mattel box and some paraphernalia from the 2023 blockbuster. While the exhibition provides never-ending delight for young girls and their moms visiting, I found it lacking in explanations — like when Barbie stopped having bendable legs, which I don’t remember reading there — and accessories. In one display, the text pointed to designer’s outfits by Margiela but none were shown. 

‘NAOMI in Fashion’

Exhibition

“She set an impossible standard.” I overhear a pretty, young woman tell her friends at the V&A exhibition on Naomi Campbell. She’s not wrong. In some way, an entire fashion exhibit dedicated to this supermodel of supermodels seems like a set up. Setting all of us “normal” women up to fail by comparison. Even the pretend catwalk installed front and center of the second floor of the show offers some horrible lighting and replays our efforts showcasing all our worst assets. I come away feeling depressed and demoralized, and that takes a lot! What is lacking is the messiness, the humanness of Naomi’s life, hinted at only in one dark corner of the ground floor, with a video of her walking out of the NYC Dept. of Sanitation after doing community service for having thrown a phone at her assistant. “You can’t sit with us,” is the caption of a photo of Campbell with Kate Moss and it’s unclear whether they said it to former Vogue EIC Edward Enninful, who curated the NAOMI exhibition, or it’s the image’s title.

Dumplings’ Legend

Food

While this image shows up when the name of this Chinatown eatery is googled, along with “crispy duck”, it is not what you’ll be served there. Inside what would be more appropriately named “Indigestible’s Legend” or “Mean Waiters’ Legend” we were served plate after plate of inedible, triple fried, unrecognizable food which even the staff could not explain. Fried puffs that looked phallic, a duck which last saw moisture in the late 1800’s and a fried concoction meant to look like a peacock, but which tasted like a toilet brush. And when we asked for a plate of simple, steamed dumplings or some veggies, we were told “no, we don’t have, too big a portion for you,” by the cranky, middle-aged, mask-wearing waitress, who seemed surprised I wouldn’t finish the duck. While I typically don’t write negative reviews, preferring that ol’ “the only bad press is no press” approach, this time I feel compelled to save fellow diners from the worst eating experience of their lives. And perhaps avoid them a trip to a hospital, sooner or later, for an inflamed liver — an unpleasant byproduct of too many fried foods.