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...
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...
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...
In Adam Cooper’s directorial debut Sleeping Dogs, Russell Crowe (Gladiator, Virtuosity) plays Roy. A retired Washington county homicide detective. Based on the novel The Book of Mirrors with screenplay co-written by Cooper. Roy is vulnerable and grizzled, battling Alzheimer’s disease and recovering from an experimental procedure to stimulate regrowth of neural pathways. This part of the narr...
Struggle without End. Director Mike Jonathan (Cinematographer, The Volcano: Rescue from Whakaari) recreates the historic battle of Ōrākau Pā, Aotearoa,1864. Where local Maori tribes unite in a last stand against Colonial forces’ ongoing confiscation of land, desecration and general campaign of violent disrespect. Ka Whawhai Tonu is predictably grim in its presentation of Maori strength and s...
Releasing today, mostly French production Mr Blake at Your Service! is an odd one. Starring John Malkovich (Red, Burn After Reading), this endearing and quirky comedy drama shirks genre tropes and fails to realise the stakes it takes an hour and fifty minutes to set up. In order to unpack this film a little some spoilers are ahead. Fair warning, it’s a little désordonné. Director Gilles Legardinie...
Twisters lands in Australian cinemas this week, nearly 30 years after the previous instalment in the Universal Studios franchise. Here’s hoping that this new film isn’t just a nostalgic trip down memory lane, but instead a worthy successor to its blockbuster predecessor. My experience with the original Twisters is pretty minimal. I saw the film years ago when I was young, but I didn...
It is rare that a film is as simultaneously familiar yet frighteningly disturbing as Birdeater, and the unique combination makes for a disconcerting ride that is not quickly forgotten. Directors Jack Clark and Jim Weir have created a narrative that echoes an experience that many Australians have experienced – a classic bush trip with mates to celebrate the end of school, a significant birth...
Based on the 2020 novel The Captain and Ann Barbara, itself loosely based on historical events, The Promised Land brings the stoic and frequently brutal 1755 Nordic frontier to Aussie cinemas from June 20. Directed by Nikolaj Arcel with gorgeous cinematography by Rasmus Videbaek, starring a stone cold Mads Mikkelsen (Rogue One) as Ludvig Kahlen and Amanda Collin (Raised by Wolves) as Ann Barbara. ...
Tashi, an ambitious and former tennis prodigy is married to a champion (Art) on a losing streak. Her strategy for her husband’s redemption takes an unexpected turn when Mike faces off against former best friend Patrick, who is also Tashi’s former boyfriend. Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers brings a ménage à trois to the tennis court, bouncing fast paced romantic drama and comedy across th...
Writer and Director Alex Garland (Men, Ex Machina) delivers a spectacular, confronting and all too plausible take on a fictional modern conflict gripping the United States of America. Civil War asks, What If? What if the corrupt President (Nick Offerman – The Last of Us) broke all the rules and attempted to create a dictatorship. Abolishing legal process, exempt from prosecution, disbanding ...
Inspired by historical war diaries, Jordan Prince-Wright’s West Australian film Before Dawn transports audiences to the harsh trenches of the Somme and beyond, 1916. Starring Levi Millar (Pan, A Wrinkle in Time) as Jim Collins, Travis Jeffrey (Danger Close, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes) as Thomas and Myles Pollard (The Turning, Drift) as Sgt Beaufort, Before Dawn swings hard and fast. Landing...
