Miriam Balanescu
@balanescumiriam.bsky.social
Books, film + general culture writer BBC Culture Guardian Sight & Sound AnOther i-D Prospect Mag miriambalanescu(at)outlook(dot)com
from (fake) flea-ridden Grey Gardens events, nudist director q&as to the occult, I checked out the new @thenickelcinema.bsky.social and talked to Pink Palace @riocinema.bsky.social and the LCVA about London’s underground cinema scene for The Londoner
www.the-londoner.co.uk/nudists-sata...
www.the-londoner.co.uk/nudists-sata...
Nudists, satanists and fake cat poo: Inside London’s underground cinema scene
The capital's rep cinema scene is flourishing. But can these micro theatres survive?
www.the-londoner.co.uk
November 15, 2025 at 12:52 PM
from (fake) flea-ridden Grey Gardens events, nudist director q&as to the occult, I checked out the new @thenickelcinema.bsky.social and talked to Pink Palace @riocinema.bsky.social and the LCVA about London’s underground cinema scene for The Londoner
www.the-londoner.co.uk/nudists-sata...
www.the-londoner.co.uk/nudists-sata...
Reposted by Miriam Balanescu
The Times interviewed dozens of migrant men sent to a prison in El Salvador by the Trump administration. Independent forensic analysts called the testimony credible and consistent and said the treatment met the U.N.’s definition of torture.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/08/w...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/08/w...
‘You Are All Terrorists’: Four Months in a Salvadoran Prison
www.nytimes.com
November 8, 2025 at 11:58 AM
The Times interviewed dozens of migrant men sent to a prison in El Salvador by the Trump administration. Independent forensic analysts called the testimony credible and consistent and said the treatment met the U.N.’s definition of torture.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/08/w...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/08/w...
I also talked to Lynne Ramsay (!) for TIME Magazine
We chatted about Die my Love’s all-important needle drops, a hopeless Robert Pattinson and Jennifer Lawrence feeling ‘empowered’ acting in the role while pregnant
time.com/7331657/die-...
We chatted about Die my Love’s all-important needle drops, a hopeless Robert Pattinson and Jennifer Lawrence feeling ‘empowered’ acting in the role while pregnant
time.com/7331657/die-...
The Meaning Behind the Incendiary Ending of 'Die My Love'
Lynne Ramsay discusses the conclusion to her postpartum relationship drama starring Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattinson.
time.com
November 7, 2025 at 8:09 PM
I also talked to Lynne Ramsay (!) for TIME Magazine
We chatted about Die my Love’s all-important needle drops, a hopeless Robert Pattinson and Jennifer Lawrence feeling ‘empowered’ acting in the role while pregnant
time.com/7331657/die-...
We chatted about Die my Love’s all-important needle drops, a hopeless Robert Pattinson and Jennifer Lawrence feeling ‘empowered’ acting in the role while pregnant
time.com/7331657/die-...
in honour of her role in Ronan and Daniel Day-Lewis’s father-son psychodrama Anemone, I talked to Samantha Morton for @anothermag.com about Under the Skin, why she can’t get her second film greenlit (despite winning a Bafta) and acting being triggering
www.anothermag.com/design-livin...
www.anothermag.com/design-livin...
Samantha Morton on Anemone, and Cinema’s Betrayal of the #MeToo Movement
The Bafta-winning star reflects on her role in Ronan Day-Lewis’s darkly poetic debut, her boundary-pushing career, and the film industry’s pushback against post-#MeToo change
www.anothermag.com
November 7, 2025 at 8:06 PM
in honour of her role in Ronan and Daniel Day-Lewis’s father-son psychodrama Anemone, I talked to Samantha Morton for @anothermag.com about Under the Skin, why she can’t get her second film greenlit (despite winning a Bafta) and acting being triggering
www.anothermag.com/design-livin...
www.anothermag.com/design-livin...
Reposted by Miriam Balanescu
I wrote for BBC Culture about Hedda Gabler - a 19th-century character who has had a truly unprecedented afterlife and become a feminist icon - speaking with Nia DaCosta and Tessa Thompson about their queer new take on Ibsen’s play
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
Monster or victim?: The fascination of Hedda Gabler, the 'female Hamlet' who divides opinion
An unhappy bride plotting others' downfalls, 19th-Century anti-heroine Hedda Gabler is one of the great roles for women – and as new film Hedda is released, she remains controversial.
www.bbc.co.uk
October 25, 2025 at 6:27 PM
I wrote for BBC Culture about Hedda Gabler - a 19th-century character who has had a truly unprecedented afterlife and become a feminist icon - speaking with Nia DaCosta and Tessa Thompson about their queer new take on Ibsen’s play
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
I recently went on the Klassiki podcast to chat about Eastern European horror in the 1960s-1980s. If you’re looking for lesser-known Halloween movie recs, have a listen!
klassiki.online/horror-behin...
klassiki.online/horror-behin...
Horror behind the Iron Curtain
Host Sam Goff speaks to critic Miriam Balanescu about the forgotten tradition of horror filmmaking under communism.
klassiki.online
October 28, 2025 at 12:41 PM
I recently went on the Klassiki podcast to chat about Eastern European horror in the 1960s-1980s. If you’re looking for lesser-known Halloween movie recs, have a listen!
klassiki.online/horror-behin...
klassiki.online/horror-behin...
Reposted by Miriam Balanescu
“Is there a word that means something is both true and false? I’ve looked, and I’ve yet to find one…"
@balanescumiriam.bsky.social reviews "Fire Exit" by @morgantalty.bsky.social
@balanescumiriam.bsky.social reviews "Fire Exit" by @morgantalty.bsky.social
Book review: Fire Exit
Morgan Talty's debut novel is a powerful exploration of family, heritage and identity
newhumanist.org.uk
October 27, 2025 at 10:43 AM
“Is there a word that means something is both true and false? I’ve looked, and I’ve yet to find one…"
@balanescumiriam.bsky.social reviews "Fire Exit" by @morgantalty.bsky.social
@balanescumiriam.bsky.social reviews "Fire Exit" by @morgantalty.bsky.social
I wrote for BBC Culture about Hedda Gabler - a 19th-century character who has had a truly unprecedented afterlife and become a feminist icon - speaking with Nia DaCosta and Tessa Thompson about their queer new take on Ibsen’s play
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
Monster or victim?: The fascination of Hedda Gabler, the 'female Hamlet' who divides opinion
An unhappy bride plotting others' downfalls, 19th-Century anti-heroine Hedda Gabler is one of the great roles for women – and as new film Hedda is released, she remains controversial.
www.bbc.co.uk
October 25, 2025 at 6:27 PM
I wrote for BBC Culture about Hedda Gabler - a 19th-century character who has had a truly unprecedented afterlife and become a feminist icon - speaking with Nia DaCosta and Tessa Thompson about their queer new take on Ibsen’s play
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
Reposted by Miriam Balanescu
I wrote about The Mastermind, why there were so many art heists in the 70s and the robber as heartthrob in pop culture for BBC Culture
Didn’t make it into the piece, but Kelly Reichardt said she stole a potato from Whole Foods in the name of research
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
Didn’t make it into the piece, but Kelly Reichardt said she stole a potato from Whole Foods in the name of research
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
'Paintings were suddenly seen as money': The reason art heists exploded in the 1970s
Acclaimed new film The Mastermind, starring Josh O'Connor, tells the story of an art heist gone wrong. It's inspired by a wave of similar thefts at a time when society was in upheaval.
www.bbc.co.uk
October 17, 2025 at 3:10 PM
I wrote about The Mastermind, why there were so many art heists in the 70s and the robber as heartthrob in pop culture for BBC Culture
Didn’t make it into the piece, but Kelly Reichardt said she stole a potato from Whole Foods in the name of research
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
Didn’t make it into the piece, but Kelly Reichardt said she stole a potato from Whole Foods in the name of research
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
October 20, 2025 at 7:53 PM
Reposted by Miriam Balanescu
This historical dive article on 70s art heists by @balanescumiriam.bsky.social is also really worth a read!
I wrote about The Mastermind, why there were so many art heists in the 70s and the robber as heartthrob in pop culture for BBC Culture
Didn’t make it into the piece, but Kelly Reichardt said she stole a potato from Whole Foods in the name of research
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
Didn’t make it into the piece, but Kelly Reichardt said she stole a potato from Whole Foods in the name of research
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
'Paintings were suddenly seen as money': The reason art heists exploded in the 1970s
Acclaimed new film The Mastermind, starring Josh O'Connor, tells the story of an art heist gone wrong. It's inspired by a wave of similar thefts at a time when society was in upheaval.
www.bbc.co.uk
October 20, 2025 at 10:40 AM
This historical dive article on 70s art heists by @balanescumiriam.bsky.social is also really worth a read!
sorry to everyone who missed my favourite ever post-credit sting for 100 Nights of Hero
October 19, 2025 at 12:34 PM
sorry to everyone who missed my favourite ever post-credit sting for 100 Nights of Hero
Between Pillion, Blue Heron and a tiny one sprinting through crunchy leaves in Green Park just now, the world is telling me I need a daschund
October 18, 2025 at 3:08 PM
Between Pillion, Blue Heron and a tiny one sprinting through crunchy leaves in Green Park just now, the world is telling me I need a daschund
Reposted by Miriam Balanescu
My first book, Icons of Cinema: Greta Gerwig, is out now! Tysm to gorgeous friends, family and colleagues for their support, as well as everyone from Studio Press/Bonnier Books 🎀 If you have a Greta girlie in your life you should get them a copy, it’s cute and well-researched! 🙂↕️ lnk.to/GretaGerwig
October 18, 2025 at 12:54 PM
My first book, Icons of Cinema: Greta Gerwig, is out now! Tysm to gorgeous friends, family and colleagues for their support, as well as everyone from Studio Press/Bonnier Books 🎀 If you have a Greta girlie in your life you should get them a copy, it’s cute and well-researched! 🙂↕️ lnk.to/GretaGerwig
I wrote about The Mastermind, why there were so many art heists in the 70s and the robber as heartthrob in pop culture for BBC Culture
Didn’t make it into the piece, but Kelly Reichardt said she stole a potato from Whole Foods in the name of research
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
Didn’t make it into the piece, but Kelly Reichardt said she stole a potato from Whole Foods in the name of research
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
'Paintings were suddenly seen as money': The reason art heists exploded in the 1970s
Acclaimed new film The Mastermind, starring Josh O'Connor, tells the story of an art heist gone wrong. It's inspired by a wave of similar thefts at a time when society was in upheaval.
www.bbc.co.uk
October 17, 2025 at 3:10 PM
I wrote about The Mastermind, why there were so many art heists in the 70s and the robber as heartthrob in pop culture for BBC Culture
Didn’t make it into the piece, but Kelly Reichardt said she stole a potato from Whole Foods in the name of research
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
Didn’t make it into the piece, but Kelly Reichardt said she stole a potato from Whole Foods in the name of research
www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
I wrote about the abstract artist Arthur Dove, The Mastermind and wasted artistic potential for @wallpapermag.bsky.social
www.wallpaper.com/art/film/the...
www.wallpaper.com/art/film/the...
In The Mastermind, stolen art becomes a mirror of lost ideals
In 'The Mastermind', four stolen artworks by Arthur Dove are a revealing plot point
www.wallpaper.com
October 16, 2025 at 7:11 PM
I wrote about the abstract artist Arthur Dove, The Mastermind and wasted artistic potential for @wallpapermag.bsky.social
www.wallpaper.com/art/film/the...
www.wallpaper.com/art/film/the...
delighted to have written my first review for @theartnewspaper.bsky.social of the unfortunately rather bland, airbrushed biopic Moss & Freud, which just premiered at LFF
www.theartnewspaper.com/2025/10/14/m...
www.theartnewspaper.com/2025/10/14/m...
Moss & Freud review: film exploring unlikely friendship ultimately fails to scratch the surface
Director James Lucas’s feature-length debut, which premiered at the London Film Festival last week, holds back from exploring the complexities of its protagonists
www.theartnewspaper.com
October 14, 2025 at 8:11 AM
delighted to have written my first review for @theartnewspaper.bsky.social of the unfortunately rather bland, airbrushed biopic Moss & Freud, which just premiered at LFF
www.theartnewspaper.com/2025/10/14/m...
www.theartnewspaper.com/2025/10/14/m...
Reposted by Miriam Balanescu
Irish PEN/PEN na hÉireann Irish PEN/PEN na hÉireann is gravely concerned about the detention of writer Naoise Dolan...The flotilla was illegally intercepted last night and seized by armed Israeli forces in international waters.
irishpen.com/2025/10/08/t...
irishpen.com/2025/10/08/t...
Thousand Madleens flotilla Statement - Irish PEN/PEN na hÉireann
8 October 2025 Irish PEN/PEN na hÉireann Irish PEN/PEN na hÉireann is gravely concerned about the detention of writer Naoise Dolan, one of several Irish citizens taking part in the Thousand Madleens f...
irishpen.com
October 8, 2025 at 6:49 PM
Irish PEN/PEN na hÉireann Irish PEN/PEN na hÉireann is gravely concerned about the detention of writer Naoise Dolan...The flotilla was illegally intercepted last night and seized by armed Israeli forces in international waters.
irishpen.com/2025/10/08/t...
irishpen.com/2025/10/08/t...
Reposted by Miriam Balanescu
A rallying, railing portrayal of a broken education system."
Cillian Murphy is a headteacher pushed to the brink in emotion-fuelled drama Steve – available on Netflix 19 September.
Read the Empire review: www.empireonline.com/movies/revie...
Cillian Murphy is a headteacher pushed to the brink in emotion-fuelled drama Steve – available on Netflix 19 September.
Read the Empire review: www.empireonline.com/movies/revie...
September 18, 2025 at 2:35 PM
A rallying, railing portrayal of a broken education system."
Cillian Murphy is a headteacher pushed to the brink in emotion-fuelled drama Steve – available on Netflix 19 September.
Read the Empire review: www.empireonline.com/movies/revie...
Cillian Murphy is a headteacher pushed to the brink in emotion-fuelled drama Steve – available on Netflix 19 September.
Read the Empire review: www.empireonline.com/movies/revie...
Reposted by Miriam Balanescu
Spinal Tap is back and to mark their return I rounded up 10 of the best mockumentaries for the BFI site
www.bfi.org.uk/lists/10-gre...
www.bfi.org.uk/lists/10-gre...
10 great mockumentary films
As the ultimate mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap gets a new sequel, here’s a list that should really go up to 11.
www.bfi.org.uk
September 13, 2025 at 11:43 AM
Spinal Tap is back and to mark their return I rounded up 10 of the best mockumentaries for the BFI site
www.bfi.org.uk/lists/10-gre...
www.bfi.org.uk/lists/10-gre...
Spinal Tap is back and to mark their return I rounded up 10 of the best mockumentaries for the BFI site
www.bfi.org.uk/lists/10-gre...
www.bfi.org.uk/lists/10-gre...
10 great mockumentary films
As the ultimate mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap gets a new sequel, here’s a list that should really go up to 11.
www.bfi.org.uk
September 13, 2025 at 11:43 AM
Spinal Tap is back and to mark their return I rounded up 10 of the best mockumentaries for the BFI site
www.bfi.org.uk/lists/10-gre...
www.bfi.org.uk/lists/10-gre...
Reposted by Miriam Balanescu
The second instalment of Asta Olivia Nordenhof’s pithy and experimental treatise on capitalism is out now from @vintagebooks.bsky.social
I reviewed it for tomorrow’s @ftweekend.com
www.ft.com/cms/f1019020...
I reviewed it for tomorrow’s @ftweekend.com
www.ft.com/cms/f1019020...
The Devil Book — Asta Olivia Nordenhof rages at a decrepit system
The latest instalment of the Scandinavian Star septology features a reckless sex worker who makes a Faustian pact with a tycoon
www.ft.com
September 12, 2025 at 12:20 PM
The second instalment of Asta Olivia Nordenhof’s pithy and experimental treatise on capitalism is out now from @vintagebooks.bsky.social
I reviewed it for tomorrow’s @ftweekend.com
www.ft.com/cms/f1019020...
I reviewed it for tomorrow’s @ftweekend.com
www.ft.com/cms/f1019020...
The second instalment of Asta Olivia Nordenhof’s pithy and experimental treatise on capitalism is out now from @vintagebooks.bsky.social
I reviewed it for tomorrow’s @ftweekend.com
www.ft.com/cms/f1019020...
I reviewed it for tomorrow’s @ftweekend.com
www.ft.com/cms/f1019020...
The Devil Book — Asta Olivia Nordenhof rages at a decrepit system
The latest instalment of the Scandinavian Star septology features a reckless sex worker who makes a Faustian pact with a tycoon
www.ft.com
September 12, 2025 at 12:20 PM
The second instalment of Asta Olivia Nordenhof’s pithy and experimental treatise on capitalism is out now from @vintagebooks.bsky.social
I reviewed it for tomorrow’s @ftweekend.com
www.ft.com/cms/f1019020...
I reviewed it for tomorrow’s @ftweekend.com
www.ft.com/cms/f1019020...
Reposted by Miriam Balanescu
In my first for @wired.com, I interviewed Laura Bates about her new book The New Age of Sexism about how AI is harming women and girls www.wired.com/story/is-ai-...
Is AI the New Frontier of Women’s Oppression?
In her new book, feminist author Laura Bates explores how sexbots, AI assistants, and deepfakes are reinventing misogyny and harming women.
www.wired.com
September 9, 2025 at 8:18 PM
In my first for @wired.com, I interviewed Laura Bates about her new book The New Age of Sexism about how AI is harming women and girls www.wired.com/story/is-ai-...
With Honey Don’t! out now, I wrote about this year’s coterie of onscreen cult leaders for @curzon.com
www.curzon.com/journal/why-...
Thanks to @yasminomar.bsky.social for the commission and astute edits
www.curzon.com/journal/why-...
Thanks to @yasminomar.bsky.social for the commission and astute edits
September 7, 2025 at 10:35 AM
With Honey Don’t! out now, I wrote about this year’s coterie of onscreen cult leaders for @curzon.com
www.curzon.com/journal/why-...
Thanks to @yasminomar.bsky.social for the commission and astute edits
www.curzon.com/journal/why-...
Thanks to @yasminomar.bsky.social for the commission and astute edits