CarolineStafford
The Story of Souleymane Review
L’Histoire de Souleymane (or “Souleymane’s Story” in English) is a complex political storyline wrapped in a touching narrative of the titular Souleymane. Directed by Boris Lojkine, the story follows Souleyman, a Guinean food delivery driver in the heart of Paris, in the two days before he is due to be interviewed about his application for asylum. Since its debut in Un Certain Regard, it has ...
Queer Review
Sometimes films set out to be unpleasant and unsettling – putting their audiences in a state of discomfort ultimately drives them to a greater understanding of the overall subject matter, and for many art house films that works. However for Queer, an adaptation of the unfinished novella of the same name by the famed William Burroughs, the lack of follow through leaves the audience feeling well, ju...
We Live in Time Review
There is nothing that quite compares to a tear-jerker or a good romance and We Live in Time seems to be already demonstrating its prowess in both categories. While it isn’t reinventing the genre, honestly it’s almost a cliché – the determined beautiful-but- quirky heroine marries the quiet, bookish male lead but shockingly develops a terminal illness somewhere in the narrative. However, the ...
Monster Summer Review
Monster Summer is a nostalgic 90s horror flick that sets out to capture the attention of the whole family. It seems very rare that a ‘scary’ film actually pulls off a multi-generational appeal but director David Henrie and writers Cornelius Uliano and Bryan Schulz do just that: it’s spooky, fun and won’t give your children nightmares, well, too many. It’s sort of like The Goonies meets Scooby Doo....
Wicked Part 1 Review
I’ve heard it said that movies come into our lives for a reason, bringing something we must learn, and Wicked (Part 1). From the director that brought us In The Heights and the masterpiece that was Step Up 3D, Jon M. Chu, comes the much anticipated silver screen adaptation of the beloved musical of the same name. While part of the success of In The Heights comes from the raw and realistic slant to...
Venom: The Last Dance Review
This is not your average superhero movie, this is not trying to be. This is violent, this is cringe, this is silly, this is fun. This is Venom. Hinted to be this iteration of Venom’s last hurrah, Venom: The Last Dance is co-written by director Kelly Marcel and lead actor Tom Hardy. Marcel has been the lead writer for the past two Venom movies and she maintains the same incredibly unique tone whil...
Hellboy: The Crooked Man Review
As a keen fan of the Hellboy films, I was thrilled when I heard that the franchise was getting another instalment with Hellboy: The Crooked Man. My excitement compounded with the news that the plot of the film was lifted directly from the Dark Horse Comic books by Mike Mignola, who co-wrote the screenplay with Christopher Golden and director Brian Taylor. Surely this delightfully detailed folk-hor...
The Critic Review
Star-studded and stuffed with promise, The Critic should be a recipe for an engaging and delicious murder mystery but unfortunately its debut has been met with some pertinent critique of its own. Loosely based Curtain Call, a novel by Anthony Quinn, and directed by Anand Tucker, The Critic stars Sir Ian McKellen as Jimmy Erskine, a cruel queer critique of theatre, based at the Daily Chronicle, and...
Transformers One Review
While audiences might be approaching the release of Transformers One with trepidation, after being burnt out by the repetitive trend of more explosions than plot in recent films from the franchise, however like the Transformers slogan, there is definitely more than meets the eye with this film. Welcome to the origin story of our favourite arch nemeses, Optimus Prime and Megatron. From the outset ...
Runt Review
Runt is the wholesome and heartwarming family flick that we need right now. Adapted from Craig Silvey’s beloved children’s story of the same name, Runt is directed by John Sheedy and he brings the same classic family-friendly atmosphere and sense of hope as in the original novel. Set in Upson Downs, the fictional country town suffering mid-drought inhabited by a bevy of kooky characters, and in p...
Kid Snow Review
Tent boxing seems like a myth only shared by crusty older publicans hanging onto their third frosted pint in the back bar – romantic tales of Australiana machismo that evoke the smell of sweat and red dirt. Director Paul Goldman breathes fresh life into these outback ballads with Kid Snow. Telling the story of a tragic Irish boxing family who switch from legitimate ring boxing to running a...
Last Summer Review
L’été dernier (Last Summer) plays on some trite French cinema cliches to produce a delicate but ultimately boring look into a twisted French family. Based on the 2019 Danish film Queen of Hearts, Catherine Breillat created a more erotically charged version that followed the same storyline – a middle-aged woman has a taboo affair with her husband’s teenage son from his first marriage. T...