Familial conflict and the high cost of preserving a legacy are central to two new films — one of which is tack-sharp and sublimely witty without forsaking its emotional core, while the other is an unexpected update of a timeless tragedy that manages to retain the impact of its source material.
‘The Christophers’
The latest release from the accomplished, eclectic filmmaker Steven Soderbergh is titled The Christophers, which sounds like a family saga and does deal in part with a broken relationship between parent and offspring. Only there’s no one on screen with the last name Christopher. Directed by Soderbergh, whose sly, literate espionage drama Black Bag was one of the best movies of 2025, The Christophers is a face-off between strong-willed characters that addresses the fickle nature of the art world, questions of birthright, how fame impacts the famous, and what an artist ultimately owes admirers and the public at large. Additionally (and happily), it’s a bit of a caper film.
Played by the eloquent Ian McKellen, Julian Sklar is a dying painter and former critics’ darling hiding from the world in his cluttered, multistory London townhouse. Julian’s disenfranchised son, Barnaby, and daughter, Sallie would like to get their hands on the artist’s supposedly unfinished portrait series known as The Christophers (named for the person depicted in the paintings) and monetize it as their inheritance after his death. As Barnaby and Sallie see it, Julian may have fallen out of favor, but his passing and the subsequent discovery of legendary “lost” paintings from a peak moment in his career would raise the value of his work.
To enact their plan, Barnaby and Sallie contact Lori Butler, a young painter played by Michaela Coel. Lori has dabbled in forgery, and the siblings believe she has the skill to complete The Christophers if she can spirit the canvases out of Julian’s attic. The plan is to get the infirm Julian to hire Lori as an assistant, which would give her access to the atelier and enable her to snatch the abandoned paintings. And Julian does bring Lori into his confidence, even as he sees her for the potential adversary she is. Although Julian’s life is slipping away by the day, the cat-and-mouse game that develops with his new aide seems to energize him. An extra ingredient in this simmering pot is Lori’s history with Julian. It turns out that his notoriously imperious attitude toward fledgling artists still has a sting.
What an absolute treat to witness McKellen — still at the top of his game at the age of 86 — work his magic opposite the vibrant Coel whose career is just getting started. James Corden (Into the Woods, Peter Rabbit, CBS-TV’s The Late Late Show) and Jessica Gunning (the Netflix series Baby Reindeer) take on the supporting roles of the conniving brother and sister, and they manage to show glimpses of long-simmering pain that almost justify their whiny, disgruntled demeanor. Along with rapier-like dialogue, the screenplay by Ed Solomon is salted with astute observations about the tidal nature of popular acclaim.
Among his more notable credits, Solomon scripted Now You See Me, Men in Black, and Soderbergh’s period crime drama No Sudden Move. This latest Soderbergh-Solomon collaboration features a less conventional type of criminal activity than No Sudden Move, yet the intended art heist is not as important as the clash of personalities. If you’re up for watching a battle of wits that pits McKellen’s prickly old master against Coel’s youthful upstart, The Christophers will give you plenty of that … and more.
The Christophers is currently playing in select theaters.
‘Hamlet’
Oscar and Emmy winner Riz Ahmed is a revelation as everyone’s favorite tormented Shakespearean prince in a lean, gritty, effective modernization of the Bard’s peak tragedy Hamlet that relocates the story from centuries-ago Denmark to contemporary London’s well-to-do South Asian community. This Hamlet, adapted from the original play by screenwriter Michael Lesslie and deftly directed by Aneil Karia, may have a different setting and more exotic cultural trappings, but the dialogue, edited here and there to keep things rolling, is straight from Shakespeare.
As in the play, Hamlet gets news that his father — here, a powerful CEO rather than the king of Denmark — has died. So the prodigal son comes home for the funeral and learns that his uncle, Claudius, is about to marry his newly widowed mother, Gertrude, and take over the family business. The ghost of Hamlet’s father appears to him and reveals a fiendish truth about the patriarch’s untimely death, sending Hamlet, true heir to the empire, into unhinged revenge mode.
Those who revere Hamlet’s immortal soliloquies should worry not. They are highlighted in the movie, with the most famous one actually performed by Ahmed behind the wheel of a speeding car. Various other alterations are cleverly conceived and work well within the context of the modern milieu. The sprawling development and construction company owned and operated by Hamlet’s father is called Elsinore, rather than that being the name of the Danish royal castle; and the invading armies of Norway’s Prince Fortinbras are changed into angry squatters made homeless by a massive Elsinore project.
An excellent supporting cast maintains fealty to Shakespeare’s words and enriches the revision. They include Morfydd Clark as Ophelia, Hamlet’s star-crossed love interest; Joe Alwyn as Laertes, Hamlet’s closest friend; Timothy Spall as Polonius, the king’s counselor and father of Ophelia and Laertes; Art Malik as the sinister Claudius; and Sheeba Chadha as conflicted Gertrude. As good as they all are, the crowning achievement of Hamlet 2026 is the lead performance by the charismatic Ahmed. A maelstrom of fury, regret, and bewilderment, his Hamlet is reason enough to see this bold reimagining of a classic.
Hamlet is currently playing in select theaters.
