London Native Loyle Carner visits Leicester on the ‘Hugo’ Tour

On Friday 3rd March, Leicester saw South London’s very own Loyle Carner perform at De Montfort Hall as part of the hugo tour, celebrating the release of his highly personal and emotional third album. 

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Leicester’s “Local MVP” returns home: Sainte’s Vacation tour @ O2 Academy

Tuesday, 7th February saw Leicester’s very own rap prodigy, Sainté, at the campus-based O2 Academy on the homecoming leg of the Vacation tour, for his latest album of the same name.

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African American Hollywood: The Erasure of African and African Diaspora Voices through Film

As it has recently been Black History Month, and being a fan of film myself, I’ve been looking back and watching some of the recent greats of Black cinema, some of the films that have reached global status as tentpole pieces of kino that highlight the experiences of Black people. Films such as Get Out, Judas and the Black Messiah, and Selma.

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Is Queerbaiting a Relevant Criticism or Is It Turning into Gatekeeping?

In recent years, ‘queerbaiting’ has become more relevant in our media. It is when a show will hint at the potential for a queer relationship between characters, however they never allow it to play out on screens. They use it as an attempt to garner publicity or attract an LGBTQ+ audience; it is a cruel deception from the media, exploiting the desire for representation to boost viewership. 

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REVIEW: The Batman

After Ben Affleck stepped aside both in front and behind the camera, director Matt Reeves was left with the great challenge of completely rebooting Batman for the third time in twenty years. He’s opted for a darker and more realistic interpretation – in line with his work on the new Planet of the Apes films.

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REVIEW: Scream (2022)

The ‘legacy sequel’ – the new studio toy that hinges on cashing in on the old. Last year we had a sequel to the reboot of Halloween, the second attempt at rebooting Ghostbusters in five years, and even a return to The Matrix. The key is introducing a set of new characters that are intrinsically linked and probably very similar to the originals in some way, with those original characters key to the plot themselves – a plot that will create a façade of freshness without ever straying too far from the comforting formula. It’s an unoriginal and cynical trend, but it’s a trend that will reliably produce superficial but inarguable enjoyment: look at the plot of Spider-Man: No Way Home – Marvel knew exactly what they were doing and look at how successful they’ve been.

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REVIEW: Spider-Man: No Way Home

Spider-Man: No Way Home has just recorded the second-largest opening weekend at the US box office of all time (behind only Avengers: Endgame). Within just eight days of release, it’s not only become the highest grossing Spider-Man film, but also Sony’s highest grossing film ever – in the midst of a pandemic.

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The Last Duel and House of Gucci: Ridley Scott’s 2021

In a world of studio-filmmaking almost exclusively compiled of re-makes and an endless parade of superheroes and franchises, there’s something refreshing about The Last Duel and House of Gucci.

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