In the past few weeks I’ve been watching a load of films in the run up to the Bafta and Oscar awards, and it’s been an odd experience. Normally – if any of us can remember ‘normally’ any more – those of us who are Bafta members can go to private movie theatres in the centre of London and see the likely award winners weeks before the films go on general release, or we can catch up with any we missed. During Covid-19 that has been impossible.
Instead of viewing movies on big screens with friends and a live audience, we have all been sitting at home alone, watching online on laptops. Despite the fact that there are some truly great movies this year, it has been, for me at least, a very dispiriting couple of months because the shortlisted movies have been so often miserable and so lacking in mischief or good simple fun. Watching even some great performances and imaginatively directed features during the lockdown has been like taking part in an endless film fiesta of misery.
During lockdown, amid daily death and infection figures, no one needs any more unhappiness, and faced with it I have been suffering acute empathy failure. I began to long for the genius of romantic comedies of years gone by, of Marilyn Monroe in Some Like It Hot, or the daft cheerfulness of Notting Hill, or maybe the kind of good humoured chase of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and the clever idiocy of The Big Lebowski. Instead it's been a pool of despair.
The Bafta winner Nomadland, for example, is stunning. Brilliant. Revelatory. And relentlessly grim. It has a harsh documentary style, directed by Chloe Zhao and starring Frances McDormand, following the destruction of lives caused by the financial crash and the post-2008 recession that followed. Ordinary decent Americans end up losing their homes, living a trailer-park existence working in dead-end jobs. True, like most movies-of-misery this year, Nomadland has a heart of gold, but it was exhausting and I wanted it to end.
I began to long for the genius of romantic comedies of years gone by
Or there is a fine British film, County Lines. A decent young lad is ensnared into selling drugs and ends inevitably in a world of horrific violence, modestly relieved by some love at the end. Or there is Riz Ahmed's performance as a rock music drummer in Sound of Metal – a drummer who is becoming deaf. Or Judas and the Black Messiah – the story of a charismatic young African-American leader in the Black Panthers, a man betrayed by one of those he trusted.
Or Carey Mulligan's superb performance in Promising Young Woman. It's a revenge comedy – well, sort of – brilliantly uncomfortable as an exploration of the ways in which predatory men often escape responsibility for abusing women. It's an important yet grim theme, and such has been the movie-misery of the past two months Mulligan was one of the few who raised some smiles.
I found every single one of these films (and many more) admirable, but not truly enjoyable. I cheered the fact that two of the best directors are women – Emerald Fennell for Promising Young Woman and Chloe Zhao for Nomadland – and that an African American director, Shaka King, was recognised for the gripping tale of Judas and the Black Messiah.
At last awards ceremonies are featuring more diversity of talent in the movie industry. And I cheered that great social themes – attitudes to women, to workers, to people of colour – were being explored. But there was a missing ingredient in almost all the movies I’ve watched in 2021: relaxed entertainment.
Movies always have something to say about the times in which they were created. Busby Berkeley's extraordinarily choreographed great fantasies in his Gold Digger series were Hollywood's escape from the misery of the Great Depression of the 1930s.
James Bond movies were rooted in the neurosis of the Cold War, although the genius of Ian Fleming was to transfer the struggle between good and evil into one between the glamorous Bond and various eccentric corporate villains – Goldfinger, Dr No and the rest.
This year’s short listed films are unfortunately out of step with the zeitgeist of a world immersed in various kinds of lockdowns. We have enough to worry about, before relaxing to view even these superb movie tales of racism, economic depression, and sexual exploitation.
I longed to escape into various kinds of fantasy rather than confront the other ills of reality. But it’s not the moviemakers’ fault. Big budget movies can take two or more years from inception until they hit the cinemas. This year’s crop of Bafta and Oscar award winners were conceived in 2019 or earlier, long before most of us even heard the word coronavirus.
Maybe next year I'll be able genuinely to appreciate Nomadland or Sound of Metal, but for now I confess the films I have most enjoyed watching are the old Harry Potter series with my children, plus comical animations of various kinds. Escapism? Yes, sure. How about you?
Gavin Esler is a broadcaster and UK columnist for The National
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Types of bank fraud
1) Phishing
Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
2) Smishing
The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
3) Vishing
The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
4) SIM swap
Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
5) Identity theft
Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
6) Prize scams
Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
The specs
Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Company profile
Name: Oulo.com
Founder: Kamal Nazha
Based: Dubai
Founded: 2020
Number of employees: 5
Sector: Technology
Funding: $450,000
Results:
Women:
1. Rhiannan Iffland (AUS) 322.95 points
2. Lysanne Richard (CAN) 285.75
3. Ellie Smart (USA) 277.70
Men:
1. Gary Hunt (GBR) 431.55
2. Constantin Popovici (ROU) 424.65
3. Oleksiy Prygorov (UKR) 392.30
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
HIJRA
Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy
Director: Shahad Ameen
Rating: 3/5
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
FA Cup semi-finals
Saturday: Manchester United v Tottenham Hotspur, 8.15pm (UAE)
Sunday: Chelsea v Southampton, 6pm (UAE)
Matches on Bein Sports
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
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