Author: Natalie Salvo

If he’s not the King then Ian “Molly” Meldrum is undoubtedly the Queen of Australian music. The broadcaster, raconteur, producer, TV presenter, journalist, band manager and passionate music fan has seen and done it all. To celebrate some 50 years in the music industry as well as his upcoming induction into the ARIA Hall of…

The film Imaginaerum is like opening the doors of perception and entering a music video by Finnish metal band, Nightwish. The movie is based on their seventh studio album and concept record. Imaginaerum seems to have the same trappings as most rock operas once they are adapted for the screen. That is that while the visuals…

The Way Of The Wicked is the film version of a dead-end. At first glance it offers some promise as it’s a story about a satanic, teenage boy who has telekinetic powers. But it’s not long before the proceedings go from haunting to staid and the drama becomes predictable and forgettable. The story begins with…

My Old Lady is a family melodrama that proves there’s no such thing as a free lunch. When a down-and-out American inherits a large apartment in Paris from his late father he thinks all of his pay days have come at once. But the residence comes with some strings attached, namely an old lady, her…

Imagine The Inbetweeners if they were an aspiring jangly rock quintet living in Manchester in 1990. The result would be Spike Island.The film tells the story of a gang of lads who just want to get off with girls, be in a band and meet their idols, The Stone Roses at the latter band’s Spike…

The James Brown biopic, Get On Up captures the very essence of the legendary, Godfather of Soul. It is a frenzied account that goes through story arcs like some people change clean clothes. But first and foremost is the amazing music by a true vanguard and the electric and infectious performance by Chadwick Boseman (42)….

Nicholas Sparks’ books – just like the film adaptions of his novels – are really only for hopeless romantics. They often require a suspension of disbelief and cynicism. But if the viewer can set these things aside then they’ll often find a pleasant yet predictable romantic drama and tearjerker. The Best Of Me is the…

Hector & The Search For Happiness is about a psychiatrist who sets out on an overseas journey in order to find joy. The idea is hardly a new one, especially as the self-help genre has already seen the likes of Eat Pray Love and The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, among others. Unfortunately, Hector’s story…

Won’t somebody think of the children? This may be Helen Lovejoy’s catchphrase from The Simpsons but it could also be used to sum up the documentary, InRealLife. The film could have asked a series of timely and important questions about the Internet but instead it feels like heavy-handed and judgemental scare-mongering. The film is written…

Brilliant Creatures is a two-part television series that celebrates four iconic Australians. Feminist and libertarian, Germaine Greer; writer/broadcaster/memoirist and poet, Clive James; the late firebrand, art critic, Robert Hughes; and savage satirist Barry Humphries all share things in common. The most important thing is that they left Australian in the fifties and sixties in order…

Kids On Speed? is a factual and fly-on-the-wall series which follows five children who are suspected to have Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). It’s a powerful and revealing show that looks at this much-maligned, misunderstood and stigmatised illness that has been met with controversy (due to its resulting in more children being medicated). This documentary…

When we consume every day, household products we assume that the ingredients have all been tested and are safe for humans to use. But what if this assumption was wrong? The Human Experiment is a documentary that looks at the pervasive, hidden chemicals that are found in all of the things we commonly use- from…

It may be hard to believe but there was a point in history where the idea of the teenager didn’t exist. You were either a child or an adult, there was no other option. Teenage is a documentary that is directed by Matt Wolf and is adapted from the book, Teenage: The Prehistory of Youth…

Perfect Sisters has some good features but that doesn’t mean it’s free from flaws. The film is based on a real life story, a case involving two Canadian sisters who performed matricide. But despite being based on a true crime story, this film is often unbelievable, flippant and lacking in emotion and tension. The movie…

When you shop at a farmers’ market or eat at a restaurant that displays the food’s providence on the menu (and the ingredients are local and fresh), chances are the name Carlo Petrini doesn’t immediately spring to mind. But he is the man who is responsible for the rise in these things. Petrini is the…

We as consumers may not realise that using everyday products is a lot like playing a game of Russian roulette. All sorts of consumables are laden with chemicals and independent testing is often rare or non-existent. Chemical companies are also very profitable and powerful machines, but there is hope as individuals out there strive to…

It’s not often that documentary filmmakers manage to capture their subject matter in an unobtrusive, fly-on-the-wall style manner. It’s even rarer for the filmmaker to achieve this while talking about sex, baby, and to show some explicit scenes of the deed without it all turning into sleazy voyeurism. But Love Hotel manages to achieve all…

Between Us first found success as an off-Broadway play but it fails as a film. The story focuses on two key episodes in two pairs of couple’s lives and exposes the flawed relationships between themselves and with each other. It is supposed to be an arty, intense and cerebral drama but instead it feels like…

Unravel is a short film that lifts the veil on the recycled garment industry. It is produced and directed by Meghna Gupta and travels to the Northern Indian town of Panipat. It is here that over 100,000 tonnes of discarded clothes from the West wind up each year and are subsequently recycled. The film mainly…

The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window & Disappeared (Hundraåringen som klev ut genom fönstret och försvann) looks set to divide people. The reason for this is because your enjoyment of the film hinges on whether you warm to the centenarian lead character. Ultimately, this film is full of dark humour (which also won’t…

Death is often tragic. But it’s even sadder when a young person has died from their own hand. Korean film, Thread Of Lies (우아한 거짓말) deals with this taboo issue in a soft and tender way. It also slowly reveals the tragic set of circumstances surrounding the lead character’s passing and does so with a…

The Hundred-Foot Journey is the latest addition to the recent surge of food-related films (see: The Chef, The Trip To Italy, Julie & Julia, etc). This new film is a feel-good one which will no doubt curry favour with many members of the audience. But despite being a pleasant trip, the overall meal could use…

The name Aaron Swartz may not mean an awful lot to some people. But if you’ve ever used Reddit, openlibrary.net or Creative Commons or if you can remember the real reason why there was an Internet black-out in 2012 then you’ve been touched by his work. Swartz was a gifted computer programmer and activist who…

And So It Goes won’t win any points for its name. Nor will it win any prizes for originality. But this rom-com does have a bewildering amount of talent coming together to make a film that’s not great, just nice. This means it is fun and pleasant enough to watch, but it won’t change your…

The Good Life (La Belle Vie) is a French drama film based on a true story. It’s a delicate, coming of age tale and portrait of paternal love set in the freewheeling countryside. It asks some big questions about love and freedom. But while it is beautiful, it fails to fill in some of the…

We Are The Best! (Vi är bäst!) is a loaded title but this Swedish film is all about challenging your expectations. The movie was written and directed by Lukas Moodysson, who was adapting the graphic novel that his wife, Coco, had penned about her fictionalised teenage years. The result is a feel good, coming-of-age story…

A Most Wanted Man is an espionage thriller about terrorists. But despite this genre, the film contains no explosions, gun battles or high-tech special effects. Instead, it has more in common with The Ides Of March, in that it is a tense and dramatic labyrinth of power plays where rivals with competing agendas use political…

The Angriest Man In Brooklyn could be dubbed “The Diary Of A Mad Man”. The film is a straight-to-DVD release directed by Phil Alden Robinson and stars comedian, Robin Williams as one obnoxious lawyer. After being told he has 90 minutes left to live the irate curmudgeon engages in a frenzied, amazing race around New…

Director Michael Winterbottom is no stranger to showcasing sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll in his work, as one of his most famous films to date is 24 Hour Party People. Four years after that was released came 9 Songs, a movie once described as the most explicit one in British film history. The controversial…

Departures (Okuribito) is a simple, Japanese film about some big subjects: love, life and death. This existential family drama was the winner of the Best Foreign Film Oscar in 2009. It is also a subtle and nuanced story where a Zen-like air means that even though the final message is poignant and meaningful, it is…