Drama
Men Review
Alex Garland brings two of the most talented actors of modern cinema and theatre together, stacks the odds against one of them and gaslights an entire viewership in the process in Men, a gorgeously absurd new film that ponders the question: if a strange bloke turns up naked at your house but doesn’t actually get inside, has any harm been done? Garland takes a different approach at highlighting the...
Little Tornadoes Review
It’s Australia, 1971, and a revolution is happening in the cities. But in the country, things stay exactly the same. The first thing I noticed about LITTLE TORNADOES was the overwhelming soundscape. The insects were singing. They chirped, or shrieked, in a way that was almost claustrophobic. It made it seem like a horror film, but the jump scare never came. Instead, I had to sit with the op...
Top Gun: Maverick Review
After more than thirty years of service as one of the Navy’s top aviators, Pete Mitchell is where he belongs, pushing the envelope as a courageous test pilot and dodging the advancement in rank that would ground him.
To Olivia Review
It’s easy to be a bit snobby about a film like TO OLIVIA. It’s so very earnest. Made for British tv, but released in cinemas in Australia, it tells the story of author Roald Dahl and his Hollywood star wife, Patricia Neal. Considering Dahl’s famous writing, you might expect a childish, macabre, and wickedly funny take on the lead up to his success with ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’. Alternat...
Everything Went Fine Review
Sophie Marceau (the object of every 90s Bond fan’s desire) is a woman whose father asks too much in Everything Went Fine, the new film from acclaimed French director François Ozon. Based on Emmanuèle Bernheim’s autobiographical novel Everything Went Well, the story follows two sisters dealing with the aftermath of their father’s major stroke and the often comedic hoops through which they must jum...
How to Please a Woman Review
HOW TO PLEASE A WOMAN is a fun little comedy about great sex, housework, and the mature woman. Being a mature woman at this point (in longevity if not life accomplishments), I had a really great time watching it. Sally Phillips plays Gina, a busy woman who is feeling unfulfilled, but hasn’t quite noticed yet. She’s taken for granted, both at work and by her husband. The highlight of her day is her...
The Northman Review
In a one-two punch of New England folklore and carelessly spilled beans, Robert Eggers established himself as a modern auteur to watch. I remember seeing The Witch on a weekday afternoon in a huge, empty cinema – factors that only added to the feeling of isolation and unease. I left with a massive appreciation for the role that sound plays in horror and a newfound goat phobia. Watching The L...
The Duke Review
Jim Broadbent is an idealistic (and wholly unsuccessful) poet who doesn’t think he should have to pay to watch telly in The Duke, the latest (and final) film from dear departed British director Roger Michell. Michell directed Hugh Grant at his floppiest-haired and most charmingly befuddled, and had the good sense to pull out of helming that second Craig-era Bond film that no one likes nor remember...
Goliath Review
GOLIATH opens with a disclaimer. ‘Although based on real events, the characters and situations portrayed in this film are fictional. Nevertheless, resemblance to actual persons or events is no coincidence’. The following film definitely portrays some polarising characters, and situations. I can see why they needed to make that legal disclaimer. It protects them from prosecution, but it also makes...
The Batman Review
Much as when Spider-Man finally turned up in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Matt Reeves’ The Batman smartly eschews retreading the caped crusader’s origin story, assuming correctly that after 80 years, almost everyone turning up for a Batman movie understands the lay of the land. We know who Bruce Wayne (Robert Pattinson) is, and why he dresses up as a bat to fight crime in the oppressive urban he...
Cyrano Review
Little did he know that when he made his 2005 adaptation of Pride & Prejudice, Joe Wright would be cementing his place in my bubble bath cinema of joy. Having rewatched his version countless times from the warm, sudsy confines of someone else’s bathtub, I feel the same sense of calm and contentment each time that only a two-hour massage or beta blockers bring. With his new film Cyrano (an adap...
Infrared Review
Abandoned camera film, recently discovered. No sign of the people it belongs to. I love a found-footage horror film, and INFRARED definitely commits to the bit. It’s decidedly dedicated to it. There’s no opening credits, no music. The title card tells us we’re about to watch footage from a tv pilot. It’s a ghost hunting show called INFRARED. The host is Wes, played by Jesse Janzen. He’s hal...