Reviews

When such a well-loved TV series like Veronica Mars is given a new lease on life, it’s that much more special and significant when it is made possible by the fans. The Kickstarter campaign which saw a $2 million goal attained in rapid time brought the Kristen Bell-led cast back to loving arms of the…

How much you will enjoy 300: Rise of an Empire really depends on how you felt about the first film. While the first 300 was mildly engaging with its plot, thoroughly entertaining with its action, and awesome with its effects, our second outing – complete with new director Noam Murro – is too excessive to…

The Transitions Film Festival prides itself on screening a program of world-changing documentaries. This year is no different, and the festival included documentaries about important subjects; true stories from around the globe to challenge and inspire the viewer. One such documentary is Growing Cities.  The hour-long film covers the topic of urban farming, following film makers Dan…

The Wind Rises (Kaze Tachinu) is the much heralded and final offering from legendary Japanese animated feature film director of Studio Ghibli fame – Hayao Miyazaki. In true Miyazaki style, it is loosely based on historical events steeped deeply in fantasy and adventure. Although this film is a highly fictionalised biography, it pays tribute to…

Good old Mick Taylor, every backpacker’s worst nightmare come to life, there’s nothing like a rifle wielding, redneck lunatic bearing down on you in nowhere Aussie bushland, to get the heart racing. But why was this particular homicidal maniac so appealing? Enough to rake in over $27 million in box office sales worldwide, with a…

Were you aware of the centuries old space dust you breathe in daily? Or the billions of micro-organisms thriving on your body right now? Mysteries of the Unseen World 3D brings these little known facts to life, uncovering an invisible world, too fast, too slow and too small for the human eye. A feat of…

When I think about movies like Non-Stop, I like to imagine a bunch of guys in suits sitting around a table, somewhere in a Hollywood boardroom, with an elaborate multiple choice flowchart spread across the table. It’s littered with options, and the guys around the table work their way across and choose from the options. “So……

The transitional space of the open road appears to be the setting most conducive to good storytelling for director, Alexander Payne. He gave us a disheveled Jack Nicholson on a mission to travel across the US to sabotage his daughter’s approaching wedding in About Schmidt (2002), a heartbroken Paul Giamatti taking a wine connoisseur’s tour…

Stylish and brutal, Lone Survivor refuses to hold your hand during its harrowing 121 minutes, while you gasp and squirm at the incredibly uncomfortable fate of four U.S Soldiers deployed in the lonely mountains of Afghanistan. Based on the true story of 2005’s failed Operation Red Wings, this film handles the unquestionable dangers of Navy…

If you’re making a film “based on a true story”, what responsibilities do you have to your true story? It’s a question that’s been raised several times over the past year – with several major details of The Butler proving to be fabricated, and the truths of 12 Years A Slave called into question, it bears discussion as to…

Every year, it seems there is a film that deals with more than its fair share of controversy, and Blue is the Warmest Colour was that film in 2013. A film that needs no introduction if you’ve heard any of the stories; since its Palme d’Or win back in May, it seems Blue has barely…

Date movies are a given every Valentine’s Day. Usually doomed romances or wildly unrealistic melodramas, they serve their purpose for that one day of the year and are more often than not instantly forgotten. Despite what its When Harry Met Sally inspired poster suggests, Are We Officially Dating? (aka. That Awkward Moment) is a welcome alternative to the normal Valentine’s…

Take two of Hollywood’s heavy-weight legendary actors, both who’ve previously starred in boxing related films, throw in as many nods as you can to the sport, as well as a good helping of comedy and a little drama and that pretty much is Grudge Match. Two aging boxers Henry ‘Razor’ Sharp (Sylvester Stallone) and Billy…

Long weekends don’t usually end up changing your life. Henry is in that tricky period of being 13 years old and belies wisdom beyond his years in choosing to live with his single mother Adele who is coping with depression, played by a beautifully elegiac Kate Winslet. The story is set in 1987 and revolves…

“No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin … People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart” With such beautiful and moving lines, gracefully unaltered from the original source material…

Take some of Hollywood’s greatest actors all in their twilight years and the storyline from The Hangover and you basically have Last Vegas, with a lot more tact and an evenly balanced dose of comedy and drama. A lot less risqué but I guess that’s what happens when you’re targeting the baby-boomer market. Meet our…

A free black man living in New York, Soloman Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor) accepts a job working as a violinist with a circus, does a few gigs in different cities and ends up in Washington. His travel companions trick him, sell him in to slavery and, as the title suggests, the film tells the story of…

Trudging through the wasteland of found-footage, Paranormal Activity has always managed to stay afloat where others – that attempted a similar style – were quickly dismissed. The feel of amateur footage lends itself greatly to the typical tropes of supernatural horror, adding a slightly more effective dose of realism and making it so much more…

Martin Scorsese’s three hour odyssey into the world of Wall Street excess isn’t the sort of film you might expect from the master filmmaker; one who’s brought us classics such as Raging Bull, Taxi Driver and Goodfellas. Often emotionally brutal, violent and breathtaking in their own right, Marty’s films have rarely shied away from controversy…

It’s been quite some time since we’ve seen Keanu Reeves in a Hollywood blockbuster; it’s been even longer since he’s been in a decent film. Reeves’ famously silent, wooden way of acting has always been strangely endearing, but in Carl Rinsch’s 47 Ronin, his presence is lacking as he quietly broods throughout the film, occasionally…

Based on the Tom Clancy Jack Ryan series, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit is director Kenneth Branagh’s foray into the political and economic espionage thriller field. It’s also the first to not be specifically based on a Clancy novel, but take inspiration from the series and create a new story for our central character. Setting the…

It’s 1961 in Greenwich Village and in a short time this city will become a Mecca for folk troubadours. This all started when a young man called Robert Zimmerman changed his name to Bob Dylan and became a legend. But Llewyn Davis’ life is taking a rather different route, it’s one that is as aimless…

Fans of Disney films, and in particular Mary Poppins and those interested in the back story of how that film came to pass will find this almost biopic about author P.L. Travers intriguing and even emotionally moving. Saving Mr Banks is a somewhat confusing title as the film focuses on Travers and her dealings with…

Majestic, powerful and intimidating, the sad reality is that sharks have more reason to fear us, than the other way round. Thanks to netting, shark finning and mercury poisoning we’ve managed to push over 90% of shark species to the brink of extinction. Directors Luke Cresswell and Steve McNicholas choose to broach the subject more…

It’s almost become cliché to say it now, but Meryl Streep dominates yet another film. August: Osage County is an adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize winning play of the same name, with original playwright Tracy Letts penning the screenplay for The Company Men director John Wells to helm. A darkly comic drama, the film begins…

The Little Mermaid. Beauty and the Beast. Aladdin. The Lion King. These animated musical classics were all released within a 5 year period (1989-1994) when Disney animation was at its high point. This fruitful period, known as the Disney Renaissance, continued until the end of the century and also included films such as Mulan (1998) and Tarzan (1999). However, during the…

Catholic guilt can be one pervasive beast and if ever there was a film to embody this phenomena it’s Philomena. This is the tragic drama/comedy that is inspired by a true story. It crosses three nations, several decades in time and shows the misdemeanours of an institution that should’ve protected its vulnerable charges. The film…

There’s a lot riding on the second installment in The Hobbit trilogy. The first film, An Unexpected Journey, did fairly well (if grossing over a billion dollars worldwide is your definition of “fairly well”) but received some less than favourable reviews, primarily due to its length and some issues with the High Frame Rate technology. Though…

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is a film, which thrives in the visual first, and the story second. But the story is a very close second. Based on a short story in the New Yorker magazine by James Thurber – but not completely following it – we see Walter Mitty – played by Ben…

The Muscle Shoals documentary is as soulful as the music that came out of the Alabama County of the same name. The documentary is filled to the brim with the rich musical history of the town that gave the world The Swampers, and countless hits from The Rolling Stones, Aretha Franklin and way too many others…