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Impact Reviews Recommends
Zadie Smith, Intimations (2020) Despite being a mere 96 pages, Intimations by Zadie Smith explores what we all went through over the pandemic: a sense of ‘what now?’. Through six personal essays about 2020, she unpacks her mind in a time of crisis. She touches on the pandemic, race, politics, and more, all whilst our world was changing and we learnt to live with this new reality. Zadie Smith recognises that her essay collection is one of many memoirs to emerge from this period, but she doesn’t let that diminish her own experiences. Her writing stands out for its recognition of the constant need to be doing something – and something big at that – during this pause in our lives.
IMPACT Our Planet (2019) Sir David Attenborough’s iconic documentary, Our Planet, directly deals with the uncertainty surrounding the planet’s future. Each episode explores different natural habitats, from rivers to the rainforest and the high seas, addressing the very real question of what will be next for our planet if we do not stem human interference and ever-growing climate change. These threats are causing catastrophic environmental consequences, including melting sea ice and coral bleaching. The most memorable part of the series is the exceptional photography. By presenting the environments and their inhabitants in such a realistic manner, viewers are filled with dread at the thought of the ambiguous future of this wildlife, and also with a sense of determination to enact change. By Hannah Walton-Hughes
SZA, ‘CTRL’ (2017) ‘CTRL’ is an album that is hard to put into words; you must experience it to understand it. It’s lyrically masterful, genreblending and raw. Despite being such a personal album, it is remarkable how relatable and universal SZA’s experiences are. ‘CTRL’ will take you on a rollercoaster of emotions: happiness, liberation, anger, sadness and insecurity. The album resonates with people who are still trying to figure out their life as they transition into adulthood. It accurately depicts insecurity, relationships, and the struggle to find and formulate your identity. Throughout the album, SZA demonstrates how hard it is to gain control - and how easy it is to lose it. In SZA’s words, “God bless these 20 somethings.”
By Victoria Mileson
By Daria Paterek
Three Colours: Blue (1994) Three Colours: Blue, directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski, follows a woman named Julie (Juliette Binoche) after the death of her husband and child in a car accident. The character is consumed by grief, seemingly unable to move forward in life as she avoids social interaction. The film is part of Kieslowski’s ‘Three Colours Trilogy’, in which each film respectively explores a theme from the French motto ‘Liberty, Equality and Fraternity’. Exploring Julie’s freedom, but also her difficulty in starting a new life, Kieslowski crafts a film which is the quietest of emotional rampages, as the character comes to terms with the death of her family. By Alex Watkin