The Guardian's best-rated reviews this week highlight the standout thriller Last Seen on Apple TV, the return of the microtonal polka-dotted alien duo Angine de Poitrine to the live stage, and a host of other cultural gems across television, film, books, and music.
Television: Last Seen and Other Must-Watch Shows
In the gripping Australian thriller Last Seen, emergency call handler Ian, played by Patrick Brammall (fresh from Colin from Accounts), believes his missing daughter is still alive after taking a mysterious call. Maxine Peake co-stars in this propulsive drama.
Reviewer Luke Buckmaster praised the show: "It doesn't just pile on the twists; it makes the twists really matter, because we always understand, with painful clarity, the emotional consequences for the people experiencing them. This is riveting television, and one of the standout shows of the year."
Also worth watching is the final season of Colin from Accounts on BBC iPlayer, which picks up three years after Ashley rejected Gordon's humiliating proposal. Rachel Aroesti noted, "Colin from Accounts has been like a ray of sunshine in the schedules. It's been a huge hit across the world, and many will mourn its ending."
For a more serious watch, Britain's Forgotten Girls on BBC iPlayer offers an infuriating look at how victims of grooming gangs in the UK have been repeatedly failed by authorities. Lucy Mangan commented, "The details are few and horrifying. A number of them mention having to go to school as if nothing had happened the night after an inaugural gang-rape."
On Channel 4, Tommy Robinson: Where's the Money Gone? sees Matt Shea investigate allegations about the co-founder of the English Defence League's finances. Jack Seale wrote, "Has Shea landed an unanswerable haymaker? Not quite. Would any evidence of impropriety cause the flow of money from the faithful to dry up? Probably not. But this programme asks a lot of the right awkward questions."
If you missed it, Reckless on ITV1 relocates Neil Forsyth's Guilt to Fremantle, Perth, where a brother and sister accidentally kill someone. Lucy Mangan called it "a fantastic, fun ride grounded by a realistically fractious, but at heart loving, relationship between the siblings."
Film: Everybody Digs Bill Evans and More
In cinemas now, Everybody Digs Bill Evans is Grant Gee's film delving into the creative and personal torment of the great American jazz pianist, with a supporting turn from Bill Pullman as his cantankerous father. Peter Bradshaw described it as "a film about music; particularly, about what remains when a musician cannot play and is left to consider the terrible sacrifices made."
Also showing is Oasis: Don't Look Back in Anger, which captures the Gallagher brothers' comeback concerts. Bradshaw noted, "We see again the Oasis congregation engaging in colossal Dionysian events of mass joy – but of course, the poignancy of time passing and the irresistible narrative of the brothers' public reconciliation give a new layer of emotion to the songs."
For something more surreal, Better Go Mad in the Wild follows director Miro Remo into the Czech countryside to find two brothers living an isolated life. Phil Hoad praised it: "There is copious wisdom regarding family, nature, interdependency and love in this rowdy, rapturous and brilliant film."
Claude Chabrol's eerie 1969 domestic thriller La Femme Infidele also returns to cinemas. Bradshaw observed it resembles "more like something by Buñuel: an elaborate absurdist joke at the expense of the French bourgeoisie."
On Netflix from 10 September, Call My Agent! The Movie reunites the gang from the French talent-agency sitcom. Leslie Felperin wrote, "Writers Fanny Herrero, Lison Daniel and Violaine Bellet, along with director Émilie Noblet, skilfully open the tap and let the stream of industry-insider jokes flow at an even pace."
Books: Hawking Biography and More
In books, Graham Farmelo's unflinching biography of Stephen Hawking is reviewed by Philip Ball, who noted, "The unavoidable truth is that Hawking's overweening ambition and self-promotion, his repeated failure to acknowledge the work of others, his sexism and controlling behaviour were largely ignored because of his disability."
Sebastian Barry's The Newer World, reviewed by Sara Collins, explores the memories of a formerly enslaved man after the American civil war. Collins said, "I can think of no other writer who could describe blood and chaos in language that reaches for such a high register."
Rebecca F Kuang's Taipei Story follows an American Chinese student at a language school in Taiwan. Kit Fan noted, "Kuang recreates the uncanny process of language acquisition, as if the reader is learning Mandarin side by side with Lily."
Kate Atkinson's Our Noble Selves is a noirish mystery set around the 1951 Festival of Britain. Lucy Atkins remarked, "There is a gentle plea, here, for resilience and decency." Jon Ronson's The Castle explores modern masculinity, with Anthony Cummins saying, "Ronson makes these bizarre tales feel emblematic of topsy-turvy times."
Missouri Williams's The Vivisectors, a Booker-listed gothic saga, was reviewed by Ian Maleney, who concluded, "For all the layers of alienation and abjection which encrust Williams's tale, there remains a model campus romance novel at its heart."
Albums: Neil Young and Angine de Poitrine Live
Neil Young's Second Song, out 18 September, leans into his gentle acoustic side. Alexis Petridis wrote, "The sublime shares space with the not bad and the insubstantial: a superior example of a late-period Neil Young album."
Haruomi Hosono's Yours Sincerely is out now, with Stevie Chick praising it: "His 23rd solo album is wilful, playful, unpredictable and utterly beguiling." Gretchen Parlato's The Wise Ones features guests including Robert Glasper, with John Fordham noting it "confirms that Parlato's inimitable character never lets her slip into the generic."
Lucas Debargue's Gershwin Variations showcases his jazz chops, with Clive Paget highlighting "12 virtuoso etudes on Gershwin songs."
Finally, the experimental band Angine de Poitrine is touring now, with a live show at Le Poisson Rouge in New York. Alexander Abnos said, "The ability to finally see the duo's superb musicianship up close carried the show – as did the reminders that they are still human."
