Film

Boardwalk Empire has always been one of the few series on television that approaches the element of surprise from an artistic standpoint. The Emmy winning show played this hand very strongly throughout it’s five-season run, taking it from just a super stylish, superbly curated gangster period drama to something much, much more and memorable than…

Girls isn’t a glamorous show and in many ways that’s what makes it feel so brutally honest and real. In the third season the characters are the most fully developed and realised versions of themselves to date. It’s also one that is full of the kinds of stories and things that will challenge, enthral, frustrate…

Based on the best-selling autobiography of the same name, Clint Eastwood’s new film American Sniper is the gripping story of Chris Kyle, the “Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History”. Starring Bradley Cooper in the lead role, the film avoid the typical “war movie” plot twists or convolution, endeavouring instead to focus on a man who…

Make no mistake about it, the story which has inspired director Angelina Jolie to bring this film to life is equal parts heartbreaking and genuinely inspiring, digging into the crux of the human spirit – or rather a particular human spirit – and a resilience that seems almost impossible. Unbroken is a biopic about remarkable…

Few films of recent years have had ingredients for wonder so specific as Birdman. Michael Keaton portraying a washed up, former comic book star trying to revitalise his career in an inventive script co-written and directed by the man who brought us Biutiful; the potential for amazement is through the roof and somehow, the film…

It’s hard to not like Liam Neeson, the delicate mix of tender and tough-as-nails be brings to the now well-known character of Bryan Mills gives us a lead that we can really get behind, but Neeson isn’t so much the problem in Taken 3, it’s that damn dead horse they keep flogging. When Taken first…

I wonder how James Lapine felt as he penned the screenplay for the Disney film adaptation of his popular book turned musical Into the Woods almost two decades after its release. Debuting in 1986 with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, Into the Woods has been developed into several productions, won a stack of Tony…

Russell Crowe doubles as director and lead actor in Australia’s latest global contender, The Water Diviner, bringing something to the world which deals with the hellish Battle of Gallipoli, Australia’s most impactful war and the primary reason for our national day of mourning – ANZAC day. While the story may be a bit too complex…

The new Disney animated film Big Hero 6 – released in cinemas today – is the anticipated effort from directors Don Hall and Chris Williams, inspired by an obscure Marvel comic of the same name. Though Marvel were not involved in the film directly, a cameo from a certain Marvel patriarch keeps at least one…

Initially, St. Vincent may seem like a rather bland story, and it’s far from the most original idea. Take a grumpy, cynical aging man who lives on his own and gradually dig into his heart by way of teaming him up with the endearing 10 year old boy who he is roped into babysitting. A…

One Last Time. It’s the hashtag that’s being used to promote the last film in the epic Lord of the Rings universe – a reference to a line in the film, but also a clever reminder about how we’re supposed to feel about the film. NOSTALGIC. This is (hopefully) the last time we’ll have the…

In this dramatic thriller biopic The Imitation Game examines the life of Alan Turing, an English mathematician and logician who along with his team of code-breakers, crack the German Enigma code and helped the Allies win World War II. The film examines the parallels of Turing’s personal and early life and how it shaped him…

In the next installment of the Night At The Museum film franchise our hero, night security guard Larry must discover why the magical tablet that brings all the museum displays to life is beginning to lose its power. As one of a handful of family friendly films released for the Christmas holiday period we check…

The Making of Boyhood is a ten-minute feature about the film of the same name that was written, produced and directed by Richard Linklater (Dazed & Confused, School of Rock). Boyhood is a film that was 12 years in the making and is partly fictional and partly autobiographical. It’s also one that could be renamed…

In 2011, during the aftermath of the GFC and in the wake of what would become the Occupy Movement, Hollywood gave the world three unlikely heroes, who were well and truly part of the 99%, and created a plot that would allow this trio – Dale (Charlie Day), Nick (Jason Bateman) and Kurt (Jason Sudeikis)…

“Please look after this bear”. This is what the tag that is initially around Paddington’s neck says but it is also applicable to this movie adaptation. The film is a re-telling of Michael Bond’s stories that has been carefully updated to a modern setting. This means it’s a charming tale that doesn’t compromise on quality…

Love is Now is ultimately a testament to DSLR film making, with striking photography and some superb production coming together to ensure the film never dips below a certain visual standard, playing out as something photographers the world over will herald as a marvel achievement. Backed by Nikon Australia, the film succeeds at capturing the…

Ridley Scott’s latest shot at epic storytelling Exodus: Gods and Kings as is as grand as one would expect, making full use of cutting edge visual effects and immersive, atmospheric set pieces to ensure the film is never dull to look. In terms of plot, the other side of the coin is balanced much better…

Serena is an adaptation of a Ron Rash novel that at times is considered even too strange to be fiction. This period drama starts off as a sumptuous, romantic tale set in North Carolina during the Depression. It is a slow burn to begin with but in the final act it turns into a bizarre…

In the last decade society has experienced an enormous upheaval with technology and the effect of that on people and their social relationships has also changed drastically. In Men, Women & Children we take a stark look at the interactions between parents and their kids and how the digital age is both a help and…

By Alexandra Donald Jimmy’s Hall, the latest from veteran filmmaker Ken Loach, is a stately portrait of a struggle for justice that’s a delicately executed, picturesque film and a charming watch – if not a particularly memorable one. Based on the life of Irish political activist Jimmy Gralton, the film charts the titular character’s return…

The Mule marks the Directoral debut of Angus Sampson and Tony Mahony, starring Sampson as Ray Jenkins alongside Leigh Wannell (Gavin) as “brothers in life”, with Gavin roping Ray into becoming a heroin mule following a trip to Bali. After getting nervous at Sydney Airport, he gets taken away by the police for suspicious behaviour and in…

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…

You may be feeling your patience wearing thin while watching The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1; that is, if you’ve only come on board for the tense wheel of brutality in which two tributes from each district are forced to kill each other until one remains. No, there’s no such hunger games here as compared…

The Captive proves to be a deeply disturbing experience, tackling the stomach churning subject of paedophilia and its resulting organisations/rings. Director Atom Egoyan has accompanied clever scriptwriting with a stellar cast, ensuring a continually spine tingling undercurrent throughout, which no doubt has cemented the film’s contention for the Palme d’Or award at Cannes Film Festival…

Maps to the Stars is sickening, soulless, horrifying, and one of the most entertaining rides to be had in a cinema this year. David Cronenberg’s (The Fly, Eastern Promises, Videodrome) latest film is a no holds barred Hollywood satire, spitting venom at the vacuous, self-important microorganisms writhing around in the Petri dish that is Tinseltown….

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…

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…

Let’s be white chicks! Wait, we already did that… okay let’s be cops! Damon Wayans Jr. (from films including Dance Flick and The Other Guys) and Jake Johnson (from TV ‘s New Girl) team up as best buds and roomies, Justin and Ryan, pretending to be policeman, for a good old fashioned comedy caper. These…

Stephen Lance continues showing love for the unexpected in his first foray into a full length feature, My Mistress, dabbing an angsty coming-of-age story with just enough difference to keep things interesting, drawing upon his own teenage experiences to make for a semi-autobiographical exploration of pain, distraction, and healing in a young kid. In this…