tilda swinton – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

SNOWPIERCER – Review by Susan Granger

April 28, 2026 Susan Granger Chris Evans, Jamie Bell, John Hurt, olivia spencer, Radical Entertainment, SNOWPIERCER, tilda swinton

If you’re watching your budget and wary about paying for pricy streaming services, here’s some good news…Radical Entertainment has placed the fan-favorite, post-apocalyptic Snowpiercer series on free, ad-supported platforms like Roku, Pluto TV, Tubi, Plex and The CW. South Korean filmmaker Boon Joon-ho’s first English-language production is an action-packed thriller. Passengers are strictly segregated by class. Compartmentalized order within the convoy is enforced by a grotesquely fascistic bureaucrat (Tilda Swinton). When anyone complains, his/her arm is inserted into a porthole, frozen and amputated.

Reviews

BALLAD OF A SMALL PLAYER – Review by Lynn Venhaus

October 29, 2025October 30, 2025 Lynn Venhaus Alex Jennings, Ballad of a Small Player, Colin Farrell, Edward Berger, Fala Chen, netflix, Rowan Joffe, tilda swinton

Stylish but slow and shallow, Ballad of a Small Player is an underdeveloped and overproduced drama that drowns in its own pretentions. Despite its visual splendor, the storytelling is scattered and too surreal to sustain interest. A mystifying misfire from director Edward Berger, it’s disappointing because his two previous films were Oscar nominees for Best Picture – the international winning feature All Quiet on the Western Front in 2023 and Conclave in 2024. He knows how to frame a narrative – the conundrum is do we want to spend 101 minutes on this one?

Reviews

THE ROOM NEXT DOOR – Review by Susan Granger

February 4, 2025February 4, 2025 Susan Granger Golden Lion, julianne moore, pedro almodovar, The Room Next Door, tilda swinton

Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodovar’s first feature film in English – The Room Next Door, winner of the Golden Lion at the 81st Venice International Film Festival – revolves around mortality and euthanasia, the decision to commit suicide. Aware that her inoperable cervical cancer is terminal, Martha (Tilda Swinton), a former war correspondent estranged from her only daughter, convinces her novelist friend Ingrid (Julianne Moore) to accompany her to a a serenely peaceful rented house – in the woods of upstate New York – where she plans to take a fatal drug dose. Acquiring the lethal pill off the dark web, Martha decides to be self-determined to the end but she doesn’t want to be alone, which is why she asks Ingrid to be in the room next door, to be her witness.

News

WEEK IN WOMEN: Tilda Swinton to receive Honorary Golden Bear at Berlinale – Brandy McDonnell reports

January 29, 2025January 30, 2025 Brandy McDonnell Berlin International Film Festival, Honorary Golden Bear, lifetime achievement award, tilda swinton

The 75th Berlin International Film Festival will award Scottish actor Tilda Swinton the Honorary Golden Bear for her lifetime achievement. Since 1977, the Berlin International Film Festival, aka the Berlinale, has paid tribute to the artistic lifetime achievement of leading figures in cinema with an Honorary Golden Bear. The award is presented every year at the Opening Gala, which this year is set for Feb. 13 at the Berlinale Palast.

Reviews

THE ROOM NEXT DOOR – Review by Diane Carson

January 10, 2025January 11, 2025 Diane Carson Alberto Iglesias, John Turturro, julianne moore, pedro almodovar, Sigrid Nunez, The Room Next Door, tilda swinton

The Room Next Door follows an ill woman preparing for death. In his debut English language film, iconic Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar faces death head on. It’s not that his earlier films have avoided the subject, but this time the narrative focuses on it. Martha, with terminal cancer, is ready to end her life and invites long-time friend, former colleague Ingrid to share her last days. Surprisingly, The Room Next Door is much more about living than dying; specifically, what makes each desirable, the freedom of life and embracing its end.

Reviews

THREE THOUSAND YEARS OF LONGING – Review by Martha K Baker

September 1, 2022September 1, 2022 Martha K. Baker (Archived Contributor) Augusta Gore, george miller, Idris Elba, John Seale, Three Thousand Years of Longing, tilda swinton

It is a maxim of good writing to show rather tell. That rule applies especially to telling stories. But what about a movie based on the art of story-telling? A movie is all about showing — after all, it’s called “show” business. Breaking this rule causes Three Thousand Years of Longing to be sadly mediocre.

Reviews

THREE THOUSAND YEARS OF LONGING – Review by Susan Granger

August 31, 2022September 1, 2022 Susan Granger Augusta Gore, george miller, Idris Elba, Three Thousand Years of Longing, tilda swinton

George Miller’s Three Thousand Years of Longing delves into the thought-provoking power of fantasy and storytelling. Adapted from The Djinn and the Nightingale’s Eye, it’s scripted as a cautionary tale by director George Miller and his daughter, Augusta Gore, with exquisite vignettes, exploring themes of fate, loneliness and the universal desire for connection. With superb comedic timing, Tilda Swinton and Idris Elba play off each other perfectly.

Reviews

THREE THOUSAND YEARS OF LONGING – Review by T.J. Callahan

August 26, 2022September 1, 2022 T. J. Callahan Idris Elba, Three Thousand Years of Longing, tilda swinton

Based on a short story, Three Thousand Years of Longing is visually stunning, and the original score by Junkie XL smooths the rocky storyline. It grants us some warmth and deep thoughts on seduction with brains not brawn, but if I had one of the three wishes in play, I’d ask for my time back.

Festivals Reviews

THREE THOUSAND YEARS OF LONGING (MIFF 2022) – Review by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas

August 16, 2022August 17, 2022 Alexandra Heller-Nicholas george miller, John Seale, margaret sixel, melbourne international film festival, MIFF2022, Three Thousand Years of Longing, tilda swinton

And so, the meme-ification of Tilda Swinton continues. She can act, sure – she can act the living shit out of it – but Swinton’s star persona is surely at a point now where one finds it difficult to ever shake the presence of the actor herself, leaving the poor character she’s playing somewhere in her shadow. There’s no arguing that Swinton can act, but for myself at least, I sometimes wish I could watch a film where her star presence suffocates her characters with slightly less intensity.

Reviews

THE PERSONAL HISTORY OF DAVID COPPERFIELD -Review by Susan Granger

December 11, 2020December 11, 2020 Susan Granger Armando Iannucci, charles dickens, dev patel, Morfydd Clark, The Personal History of David Copperfield, tilda swinton

Intrigued by the title? I was too, particularly since 2020 marks the 150th year since the death of Charles Dickens, but it’s certainly not the semi-autobiographical tale that I remember. Scottish director Armando Iannucci’s revisionist version begins in 1850 in a London theater, where David Copperfield (Dev Patel) addresses the audience, speculating on whether he’ll turn out to be the hero of his own life.

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