Psycho. #59
Sorrenti-maybe?
Latest
Jukebox; or, You’re Not the Only One With Problems
What unites the three apparently very different films of this 10th, Jukebox episode of Hard Truths? In Sidney Lumet’s The Offence (1972), Sean Connery plays a detective-sergeant who has seen too much. Milton Moses Ginsberg’s underseen, Rip Torn-starring arthouse gem Coming Apart (1969) charts the psychological unravelling of
Psycho. #58
Held hostage by TV.
Julia Ducournau
From the ultraviolence of Raw (2016) to the over-the-top silliness of Palme d’Or-winner Titane (2021) and the emo intensity of Alpha (2025): the cinema of French director Julia Ducournau is hard to ignore. With Alpha now playing in French cinemas, Elena and Manuela gather in London to talk about
Be Scientific, Douchebag
On the last 30 years of climate change cinema
Brave Acting at Il Cinema Ritrovato
Manuela reports on some striking performances seen in Bologna.
Psycho. #57
Real art.
Ari Aster
With just four feature films, American filmmaker Ari Aster has established himself as one of the foremost voices of our phone-addicted, psychically damaged, paranoid generation. As his 2020-set neo-western Eddington comes out in cinemas this summer, Elena and Manuela—recording together in the rich soundscape of Elena’s garden—discuss
Psycho. #56
Normies have feelings, too.
‘F1’ and ‘Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning’
Two massive stars fight for relevance in two of this summer’s blockbusters: Brad Pitt in Joseph Kosinski’s F1, and Tom Cruise in Christopher McQuarrie’s Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning. Both have things to hide, and things to prove. In this episode of Hard Truths, Elena and Manuela
Psycho. #55
True story.
Psycho. #54
An individual voice.
Hard Truths
Il Cinema Ritrovato
Recording together in the same room for the first time in Hard Truths history, Elena and Manuela discuss the wonders of Il Cinema Ritrovato directly from Bologna, Italy, where the annual repertory cinema festival organised by Cineteca di Bologna takes place. Talking about some of the prints and restorations playing
Psycho.
Psycho. #53
Tom's fans.
Psycho.
Psycho. #52
Caspar has seen things you people wouldn't believe.
Hard Truths
Love Hurts: Four by Max Ophüls
In Letter From an Unknown Woman (1949), a young woman spends the better part of her life fantasising about a man who barely knows of her existence. It is difficult to imagine the pleasure-seeking characters from La Ronde (1950) or Le Plaisir (1952) ever adopting such an impractical view of
Psycho.
Psycho. #51
Cage-i-ness.
Hard Truths
Bleak Week: London
The sun of June can be oppressive in its own way. For the fourth year in a row, the American Cinematheque in Los Angeles has given local cinephiles a refuge from the mirth of spring-summer months with Bleak Week: Cinema of Despair — a week-long season of soul-crushing and gruelling masterpieces.
Extras
What a Gamble! On Martin Scorsese's New York, New York (1977)
At a time when film can be schematic and timid, the huge risks taken by Scorsese have a spicy tingle about them; feeling such deep regret at a missed opportunity is likewise unusual now.
Psycho.
Psycho. #50
Looking for the "best" "croissant" in Cannes this year.
Psycho.
Psycho. #49
The Cannes experience.
Hard Truths
'Sinners'
This third episode of Hard Truths, about Ryan Coogler's Sinners (2025), is a lot less about twins than we expected — but that's only because the film is so rich. Elena and Manuela talk about Coogler's far-reaching vision for the possibilities of IMAX and cinema
Psycho.
Psycho. #48
God's lonely protagonist.
Hard Truths
Three Westerns
In this second episode of Hard Truths, Elena and Manuela discuss three fantastic, very different films, all of them westerns: Forty Guns (Sam Fuller, 1957), The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (John Ford, 1962), and Ride Lonesome (Budd Boetticher, 1959). They recently screened in Paris as part of the Cinémathèque