When Rowan Athale‘s ambitious neo-noir thriller Strange But True opens on the sight of a panicked Nick Robinson running from an unseen threat – with a broken leg, of all things – there’s an immediate sense of intrigue that settles in. Just what he is running from is gradually revealed when the film takes us…
There have been many adaptations of Shakespeare’s work to the big screen with varying results. Twice before Australians have tackled the Bard’s work with Baz Luhrman’s Romeo + Juliet and Justin Kurzel’s Macbeth both hitting the silver screen with positive critical response. Once again it seems the combination of Australian director David Michôd, with fellow…
There’s at least one Oscar-grab movie released every year designed with the intent on pushing its lead performer to the front of the nominee queue. Judy appears to be that movie for 2019. And that’s certainly not a criticism against the film as it’s a fine biopic in its own right, but Renee Zellweger‘s dedicated…
Christmas comes early this year as director Paul Feig has been announced to tour Australia to unveil his new romantic comedy, Last Christmas. Universal Pictures announced today that the director will visit Sydney and Melbourne between November 4th and 6th, 2019 for a series of press opportunities. Feig is a writer, producer and director whose…
On its surface, Hustlers appears like something more at home in a summer blockbuster run than amongst a litany of awards season hopefuls. With its ensemble female cast stacked with big names, of both the film and music world, and a narrative centred on the exploits of a group of strippers, you may be expecting…
If you’ve been living under a rock you may have missed all the buzz about Fleabag. The British comedy-drama, written and created by Phoebe Waller-Bridge that follows a young woman known as “Fleabag” navigating life and love in London whilst trying to cope with tragedy. Waller-Bridge stars as the titular character who will often break…
It may sound wrong to start off a review in the first person as well stating my personal bias, but I am planning to anyway because it would be unfair for the reader and myself due to certain restrictions in my writing. First off, I love horror films of the ’80s. I grew up watching…
For cinemagoers we’ve been inundated of late with films that are adaptations, remakes or film franchises. So it’s unusual for us to finally have one that’s an original concept, which inadvertently puts a lot of pressure on it to be worth the time and money to see. Gemini Man was originally conceived in 1997 and…
A lot has been said leading up to the release of Joker, with some of the most common arguments surrounding whether the film was necessary and whether there would be fatigue around yet another portrayal of the Clown Prince. The trailer didn’t reveal much and left audiences a little perplexed. But after predominantly receiving positive…
Cosplayers and fans of Film and TV descended on Sydney’s Showgrounds over the weekend for the NSW leg of Oz Comic Con 2019 with celebrities Hayley Atwell, Michael Eklund, KJ Apa and Australia’s own Kid Flash Keiynan Lonsdale in attendance. Nathan brings us all the action from the weekend.
We’ve loved him since Interstellar, but fell in love with him in Call Me By Your Name. And now Timothée Chalamet fans are getting the chance to see their divine partner in the flesh as he walks the red carpet for the Australian premiere of THE KING. 23-year-old Chalamet depicts young Hal, later crowned King…
Last night, comedian Eric Andre hit the stage at the Meridian Hall in Toronto as one of the headliners of the annual Just For Laughs comedy festival. Part of his Legalize Everything Tour, the hilarious hour and a half show was something of a tamer affair than what you might have seen on his popular…
A gallery from the Sydney Premiere of Joker, the new film starring Joaquin Phoenix
Shout hallelujah c’mon get happy because Renee Zellweger is coming to Australia! Universal Pictures has announced that the Academy Award winning actress will visit Melbourne and Sydney this October to celebrate the highly anticipated release of Judy, the Judy Garland biopic from Rupert Goold. Zellweger’s portrayal of the legendary star has been widely predicted by…
Whilst I’m sure the plethora of talent on hand here had an absolute ball making The Dead Don’t Die, Jim Jarmusch‘s deadpan (emphasis on the dead) zombie comedy fails to translate that suggested fun to its audience. Set in the fictional mid-American town of Centreville – the epitome of smalltown USA where there isn’t much…
What a strange little arthouse horror flick Koko-di Koko-da is. What starts out as a relatively straight-forward tale of a once-happy family trying to maintain a sense of worth before breaking down entirely, quickly descends into an experiment of madness, one that is often repetitive and unlikeable but no less inherently fascinating. The aforementioned once-happy…
As we nudge ever closer to the warmer months but not quite before the closing of the year the pop culture scene gets an injection with Oz Comic Con landing in both Brisbane and Sydney over consecutive weekends. Pop culture conventions have long left an impression on the scene particularly for fans of film and…
The effects are seamless. The acting is introspective. The emotional undercurrent aims for supremacy. It’s an operatic space venture that defiantly refuses to adhere to cohesiveness on a narrative level. And it’s because Ad Astra flirts with moments of greatness only to stubbornly stifle them that James Gray‘s ambitious drama will prove to be one…
Beginning in 1982 with First Blood, then 1985’s Rambo: First Blood Part II, 1988’s Rambo III, then 2008’s Rambo, 11 years later the Rambo saga is releasing a fifth and final film to close out the iconic action hero’s story. Originally adapted from John Morrell’s novel First Blood, it centres around the character of John…
Former Sonic Youth bassist-singer Kim Gordon, pop musician-producer-songwriter Benny Blanco, and actor-comedian Cheech Marin have been announced, among others, in an initial line-up regarding keynote and featured speakers for the 34th annual South By Southwest Conference and Festival (March 13-22 2020). “We’re kicking off the 2020 season with a captivating group of speakers. From Keynotes…
Downton Abbey was a television show filled with glamour, wealth and manners. For six seasons, viewers were treated to a bird’s eye view of the community connected to that famous British estate. While the film adaptation could have become just an extended episode of the series, this film instead manages to hold its own as…
Watching a film like Tabernacle 101 is a frustrating experience. On the one hand, the Australian-made, low (and I mean low) budget sci-fi piece deserves some admiration for the mere fact that it has managed to snare itself a US theatrical release, however limited it may be (it played the first week in September in…
There is good reason Stephen King’s story of It has endured for decades. Amongst his best work, the famed horror author has always been strongest when he’s sketching elegant parallels between fight and flight. Sure, that’s been done to death in modern cinema, and the dynamic between the two states has been mined by horror…
Over the weekend Disney held its sixth D23 Expo, an event where the company gets to showcase all its forthcoming news and announcements to both the media and the general public. In a surprising turn after dropping the official launch announcement less than a week ago for Disney+ the company has come charging out of…
With controversy preceding its release, The Nightingale has seen polarising responses from festival audiences, from walkouts to awards. The controversy stems from the film’s depiction of rape, with two gruesome examples early in the film. These however, provide the necessary bedrock for a deep look into our colonisation’s patriarchy, genocide and classism, with white (male)…
With only eight films in his illustrious career, writer/director Quentin Tarantino has left an indelible mark on cinema in the last few decades. Love him or hate him, you cannot deny the filmmaker’s unique style and vision. With Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, his ninth (and potentially penultimate) film, Tarantino offers a deeply personal piece…
The Australian Dream is one of two recent documentaries about AFL legend Adam Goodes’ playing career and his his powerful anti-racism advocacy, with Ten’s The Final Quarter already making waves. Written by famed journalist Stan Grant and directed by BAFTA-winning director Daniel Gordon, the film is an inspiring (and infuriating) exploration into the depths of…
French director Céline Sciamma is one of the best writer/directors in French Cinema working today. She specializes in coming-of-age dramas and this reviewer has been a fan of her work ever since he saw her film Tomboy. From fantastic directorial work like her directorial debut Water Lilies and her prior film Girlhood to stellar screenwriting…
Filmgoers have always mused upon the fact that there are formulas in cinema that have been explored over and over. Cliches and tropes, if you will. In the case of this review, the formula that has been explored numerous times is the adaptations of the works of renowned English writer/playwright William Shakespeare. What makes Shakespeare’s…
If you were asked to name some of the greatest and most influential filmmakers, what names would spring to mind? Hitchcock, Kubrick, Spielberg, Tarantino? Perhaps Eisenstein or Chaplin? How about Alice Guy-Blaché? No? Luckily for you (and for Alice’s legacy), Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy-Blaché is here to help. Narrated by Jodie…
