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Nur, a Palestinian, lives amongst the alleyways of a refugee camp near Ramallah but dreams of becoming an archaeologist and writing a novel about the true origins of Mary Magdalene. With his best friend Murad in prison and the claustrophobic camp curtailing his freedom, Nur takes on a new identity after finding an Israeli ID card in a secondhand leather jacket.

Eternally, the dual identity offers an exclusive sense of freedom and opportunity, being hired for an archaeological dig, but internally he is plagued by the conflicting emotions this brings. Exploring identity, belonging and freedom through the lens of Israeli-Palestine relations, A Mask The Colour Of The Sky’s author Bassem Khandaqji wrote the novel in an Israeli prison, having been jailed for his role in a 2004 suicide bombing; he was released in 2025, the year after this haunting, reflective work won the International Prize for Arabic fiction.

Despite the melancholy nature of the novel, the exquisite prose conveys the depth of feeling and sense of place portrayed with such vivid detail. Revealing the humanist element with such force, it leaves you thinking about the world and its inhabitants in a different light; a breathtaking and astonishing read. 

Persepolis, first published in 2000, follows the story of a young girl growing up during and after the 1979 Iranian Revolution, also known as the Islamic Revolution. Eight years later, the film adaptation was nominated for best animated feature at the Oscars, having been co-directed by Satrapi.

John Carney, writer/director of the brilliant Once and Sing Street, is back with Power Ballad, a superbly entertaining heartfelt comedy drama about the meaning of life and music itself. Paul Rudd, on superb form, is Rick, an American in Ireland after meeting the love of his life there played by Marcella Plunkett whilst on tour with his rock band Octagon. Fifteen years later, they have a daughter (Aja, an engagingly snarky Beth Fallon) and Rick is fronting a covers band at weddings with close mate Sandy (Peter McDonald) on electric guitar.

Rick has never stopped writing music despite his reduced circumstances, but his dreams of making it big seem long gone. A chance meeting at a wedding seems him spending the night bonding with Nick Jonas’ Danny, a former boyband member struggling to go solo. They play music together, with Rick sharing one of his compositions.

Six months later, that song is number one after Danny releases a heavily produced version of it having left Rick in the dark. Full of rage about its appropriation, Rick sets out for payback. Will he be able to confront the man who stole what was his? Getting past Danny’s flinty megabucks agent, played by Jack Reynor, will prove tricky.

Brilliantly observed and with so much to say about the nature of creativity, the music industry and how songs mean different things to different people, this is a joyful film peppered with original songs that do exactly what they need to. The song that is contested over is spot on in its DNA, with Rudd and Jonas lending their individual takes to its performance. It’s a warm, human film that will leave you emotionally spent; Carney has an ability to effortlessly pull the heartstrings whilst not getting too sentimental, balancing the tears and relationship traumas with a deft eye for comedic dialogue in a script co-written with McDonald.

Paul Rudd has never been better as the musician who battles on, a dreamer with warmth and grit. The twists and turns of Power Ballad’s plot feel anchored and authentic, and Jonas is solid as a successful artist looking for his next big thing. Go see it and punch the air.

Dir: John Carney (15, 98 mins)

In cinemas now 

words KEIRON SELF

The Chinese proverb “It can be difficult to find a black cat in a darkened room, especially when there is no black cat” is how Neil Griffiths – author and founder of The Republic of Consciousness Prize for Small Presses – describes the childhood depicted vividly in his memoir The Wrong Son. Griffiths’ last novel, 2017’s As A God Might Be, questioned the merits of religion, gaining props from then-Archbishop Of Canterbury Rowan Williams. 

The Wrong Son kicks off smoothly – until a harrowing car crash, circa the early 1960s, which results in Griffiths’ father losing his wife, pregnant at the time, as well as his young son. Not long after, he meets a married woman who abandons her own husband and child to be with him. Two years later, this book’s author is born, and enters a family unit where all is far from peachy. Guilt and grief alike have taken a devastating hold and clouded emotions, resulting in a perfectionist mother and unfeeling father. 

Griffiths manages to navigate and survive his childhood existence, but not without bearing psychological scars. What he does cleverly in The Wrong Son is draw up the findings of psychoanalysts D.W. Winnicott and Jaques Lacan, with the latter resonating with him more profoundly. (Lacan believed that one’s self is shaped by the emotional environment they were born into; conversely, some of Winnicott’s beliefs seem more questionable today.)

As a result, The Wrong Son is both highly engaging and educational. Think Charles Bukowski crossed with Nick Cave and an added dose of psychoanalysis and you will be close to what Griffiths has achieved here.