‘Oasis: Don’t Look Back in Anger’ Review: A Rich and Poignant Celebration of a Beloved Band’s Glorious and Improbable Return
Developed over time first seen 2 months ago
The Hollywood Reporter has published its review of "Oasis: Don't Look Back in Anger," a documentary charting the band's blockbuster 2025 reunion tour, praising it as a rich and poignant celebration despite its deliberate avoidance of any probing into the Gallagher brothers' famous feud or the mechanics of their reconciliation after 15 years apart. The reviewer, who admits going in sceptical of music documentaries, describes being unexpectedly moved to tears throughout, arguing the film succeeds in showing how much the band means to fans across the world even as it withholds personal or political interrogation, being destined for Disney+.
Directed by Will Lovelace and Dylan Southern, the film blends concert footage with backstage interviews, audience reactions and glimpses into individual fans' lives, leaning heavily on tracks from the 1995 album "(What's the Story) Morning Glory?". The review highlights close-up footage of concertgoers across the UK, Ireland, Brazil, South Korea and the US, spanning generations from Gen Z to older Gen X fans, and notes that the Gallaghers come across as self-effacing and warm towards each other, with Noel calling Liam "delightful" — though the reviewer suggests the film's heavy use of montage sometimes leaves it feeling like build-up to a narrative that never fully arrives.
- THR review praises Oasis reunion documentary as moving and celebratory
- Film avoids probing the Gallagher brothers' feud or reconciliation
- Directed by Lovelace and Southern; heading to Disney+
New here? Start with this
Oasis were one of Britain's biggest rock bands in the 1990s, fronted by brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher, whose songwriting talent and volatile relationship became almost as famous as the music itself. The band split acrimoniously in 2009 after years of public fighting, and a reunion seemed unlikely for over a decade. In 2025, the brothers reformed for a reunion tour, an event many fans had long assumed would never happen.
"Oasis: Don't Look Back in Anger" is a documentary directed by Will Lovelace and Dylan Southern that chronicles that reunion tour, mixing concert performances with interviews and footage of fans reacting around the world. It draws heavily on material from the band's landmark 1995 album "(What's the Story) Morning Glory?", one of the best-selling British albums of all time. The film is set to be released on the streaming service Disney+.
The story here concerns a published review of the documentary from The Hollywood Reporter, which assesses how the film portrays the band's comeback and the emotional response it captures from fans. The reviewer notes that the documentary focuses on celebrating what Oasis means to its audience rather than examining the details of the brothers' long feud or how they resolved it, which is relevant background for readers trying to understand what the film does and does not cover.
Full account
A new documentary charting Oasis's much-discussed 2025 reunion tour, 'Oasis: Don't Look Back in Anger', had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival before heading to Disney+. Directed by Will Lovelace and Dylan Southern, the film blends live concert footage from the band's comeback shows with behind-the-scenes material, tracing how Noel and Liam Gallagher came back together after roughly fifteen years of not speaking. Both reviewers agree it is less an exposé than a warm, largely celebratory account of the reunion, built as much around the audience's emotional response as around the band itself.
The film opens by acknowledging the brothers' long estrangement head-on, using archive footage of the notorious unfinished Rock en Seine festival appearance as a reminder of how acrimonious things once became, before moving into footage of the band's six-week rehearsal period in the summer of 2025 as they prepared to tour again. From there it intercuts polished performance sequences with fan testimonies and personal stories, giving considerable screen time to the people in the crowd rather than dwelling on the mechanics of how the reunion was brokered or what passed between the brothers privately.
Both accounts note that Noel and Liam appear notably restrained and amiable in their new interviews, a marked change from the combative public personas that once defined them, though one review suggests this softer presentation may reflect careful media handling as much as genuine reconciliation. Neither brother offers much insight into the emotional undercurrents of the split or the reunion, and neither review found any real dirt-digging or unresolved tension explored on screen; instead, the film leans into nostalgia, gratitude and the shared experience of the tour, steering well clear of anything resembling political or personal interrogation.
Where the two assessments part ways is in their overall verdict. One critic approached the film sceptically, expecting tedium, but found themselves unexpectedly moved to tears by its wistful, communal atmosphere, praising its editing of interviews, performance clips and fan stories even while conceding that its heavy use of montage sometimes substitutes for a clearer narrative. The other review is notably more sceptical, describing the film's efforts at sincerity as clumsy and its avoidance of real tension as evasive, and arguing that it missed an opportunity to properly examine why the reunion resonated so strongly in Britain in 2025 — a moment shaped by Brexit, the pandemic, political instability and a countervailing surge of national optimism around football — contrasting this with the band's very different cultural standing at their 1990s peak.
Where outlets differ
Tone of the reviews diverges sharply: one is a personal, emotionally affected account that ultimately embraces the film's nostalgic, feel-good approach; the other is more analytically critical, viewing the same restraint and lack of tension as a weakness rather than a virtue.
The more critical review frames the film's even-handedness as a symptom of its 'obvious financial' motivations and PR-managed interviews, a cynical reading not present in the more emotionally receptive review.
Only one source situates the film within a broader argument about 1990s nostalgia and contemporary British politics and culture (Brexit, Covid-19, football, the rise of right-wing politics), suggesting the film missed a chance to explore this; the other source focuses more on the personal, individual emotional impact of the film and its craft (editing, structure, humour) without this wider socio-political framing.
One review notes the Disney+ release context and jokes about the film's frequent strong language; the other emphasises the Venice Film Festival premiere and draws a direct comparison to the band's earlier 2016 documentary 'Supersonic'.