The notion of a biological clock and its exclusivity to women is a road travelled many a time over the course of cinematic history. Such an idea pertaining to men however is another story entirely, and one that has seldom been explored. Enter, Together Together. Written and directed by Nicole Beckwith (returning to Sundance 6…
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In How It Ends, the joint-directorial effort from Daryl Wein (Lola Versus) and Zoe Lister-Jones (The Craft: Legacy), the question is proposed of what would you do if you knew the world was coming to an end?. It’s a question that has familiarity to it, but Wein and Lister-Jones have the smarts and wit to…
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Most films that play with infinite time loops as their narrative hook inevitably find themselves compared to 1993’s much-loved Groundhog Day. And though such films since then have broken the mould as much as they can regarding the premise on hand – the Tom Cruise actioner Edge of Tomorrow and the horror/comedy Happy Death Day…
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Coming off of such aggressive roles in features as Dragged Across Concrete and Brawl In Cell Block 99, the thought of Vince Vaughn flailing his arms and strutting with the poise of a flustered teenage girl is one that’s all the more appealing when you view it in its actuality. And it’s the hulking 6’5…
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Whilst the novelty of the original Borat film has indeed worn off, this surprise sequel showcases creator Sacha Baron Cohen‘s twisted mindframe still has a place in an America, a country that sadly has only deteriorated since he last held up his own dirty mirror to their mentality. A few weeks ago none of us…
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We have ten double passes to give away to the upcoming release of the Australian comedy Rams, starring Sam Neill, Michael Caton, and Miranda Richardson. In remote Western Australia, two estranged brothers, Colin (Sam Neill) and Les (Michael Caton), are at war. Raising separate flocks of sheep descended from their family’s prized bloodline, the two…
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When you realise that ageing grifters Robert and Teresa Dyne (Richard Jenkins and Debra Winger) named their daughter Old Dolio (Evan Rachel Wood) after a lottery-winning homeless man, you immediately learn everything you need to know about the swindling couple. They thought the name would secure them inheritance of some sort, but instead they live…
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If there’s anyone who would be secure enough to make a film based around politics, Jon Stewart would arguably be one of the most well suited. Whilst not quite as politically savvy as one might expect, given his penchant for satire, Irresistible is nonetheless a sly, consistently witty affair that wisely doesn’t exactly choose a…
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Zoey Deutch is a star, and as her infectious enthusiasm and penchant for live-wire-fuelled comedy proves in Buffaloed, the world is simply waiting to catch up to her. In the same manner as someone like Anna Kendrick, Deutch does so much with so little, going-for-broke with a fearlessness that often elevates both the material she’s…
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Whilst it’s easy to roll your eyes at the almost insultingly familiar narrative Babyteeth works with at its core – terminal ill teenager falls in love with the wrong guy – it somehow manages to avoid most of the genre cliches, thanks to a mindset that isn’t afraid to be messy, frustrating and, at times,…
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So you should know going into The King of Staten Island that, yes, director Judd Apatow hasn’t changed his aesthetic in terms of narrative length or character ingredients. A too-long comedic drama (emphasis on the drama here) focusing on a typical man-child who’s failed to launch himself, Staten Island hopes to be more endearing than…
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*This review will contain spoilers pertaining to Dead To Me’s first season* It goes without saying that if you haven’t finished season one of Netflix’s deliciously comedic Dead To Me (or watched it all, shame on you if so), this second season is not for you to play catch up. And after the unexpected note…
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Though the blueprint behind Come As You Are is quite insultingly familiar – three sexually-charged men on a road trip that’s as heavy on situational humour as it is on their own self-discovery – director Richard Wong proves that appearances are indeed deceiving. The core structures of the road-trip-comedy are in place, but Come As…
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If we have learnt anything throughout cinema’s depictions of estranged families, it’s that the more alienated you are from one another, the more unpredictable your journey will be. This proves especially true in Come To Daddy, a pitch black comedic thriller that director Ant Timpson bathes in gory oddity. There’s an unease immediately present from…
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*The AU Review will continue with its planned SXSW 2020 coverage. We have been in contact with the respective representatives for available films in order to give them the coverage they intended. Proof that more than enough can be conveyed in a fraction of the time of a standard feature, Ashley Eakins‘ short-feature Single is…
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*The AU Review will continue with its planned SXSW 2020 coverage. We have been in contact with the respective representatives for available films in order to give them the coverage they intended. The description outlined for the comedy series Everyone Together sounds rather typical. Dysfunctional families from two very different cultural backgrounds subsequently bond and…
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As Last Christmas merrily makes its way to cinemas (read our review here), the film’s director, Paul Feig, brought his own cheer to Australia as he enthusiastically discussed making a new (hopeful) seasonal classic. The AU Review’s Peter Gray sat down with the filmmaker to learn about how Emma Thompson’s George Michael-inspired script came to…
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As much as Last Christmas is selling itself on the notion that it’s “inspired” by the musical catalogue of the late, great George Michael – or more specifically the Wham! festive classic that this film’s title has lifted as its own – it’s ultimately not as formidable as it wishes to be. That’s certainly not…
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Australian cinema has already seen Ali and Muriel getting married (to other people) but Promised takes a different approach. This dramedy, set in the 1970’s, is a look at an arranged marriage, starring a pair of Italo-Australians. The results are an imperfect story that brims with real heart. It’s obvious that this independent film was…
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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…
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Tim Ferguson is probably best known as one of the members of the comedy trio Doug Anthony All Stars that were particularly popular on Australian television screens in the late 80’s. In this Adelaide Fringe performance, Ferguson chats to us about his life and times, including his diagnosis with Multiple Sclerosis; “Why have just one…
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Just as much of a surprise as the delightfully twisted original – 2017’s Happy Death Day – Happy Death Day 2U is revelatory not because it improves on its predecessor’s horror temperament, but because it completely bypasses the slasher genre trope and cements itself firmly within the grounds of science-fiction. Given how much fun writer and director…
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When you think of zombie comedies, it’s difficult to look beyond the witty brilliance that is Edgar Wright’s Shaun of the Dead (2004). Whilst we’ve had our share of interesting takes on the walking dead in the years since, the arrival of Anna and the Apocalypse stands as the choreographed high-kick the genre needed. Not…
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Before Melissa McCarthy’s involvement essentially fast-tracked The Happytime Murders into production, the dark comedy had languished in development limbo for the good part of decade with both Cameron Diaz and Katherine Heigl attached at various moments as potential headliners. With the final product now upon us, McCarthy’s penchant for vanity-free comedy feels like the most…
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Whilst no one is going to go out of their way to suggest The Spy Who Dumped Me is here to reinvent the wheel in its chosen hybrid genres, Susanna Fogel’s kinetic spy caper does a bloody good job at delivering on its advertised packaging. An action-comedy that proves both consistently amusing and alarmingly crazed…
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Given that we can almost outsource every chore, errand, and activity that come our way, it only makes sense that the unfortunate responsibility that is breaking up with someone be a lucrative business too. Enter The Breaker Upperers, a duo of frozen-hearted, screwed-over singletons who appear more than happy to break the heart of someone…
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Hours after landing in Australia, we spoke with US comedian, three time author, podcast host and former host of The Man Show, Doug Stanhope. He exclusively spoke to the AU’s Lachlan Mitchell about his upcoming appearance on an episode of the Roseanne revival, Roseanne Barr’s twitter feed, why he hates sitcoms, why he feels his season of…
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South by Southwest (SXSW) have announced the initial line up for the SXSW Comedy Festival, kicking of 9 to 18 March 2018. The festival will pull guests from all corners of the entertainment industry and showcase film and media icons alongside the next wave of groundbreaking comedic talent. This year will also host performances from…
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A word of warning; if you have a phobia or are allergic to pop corn then Tom Flanagan’s show Kaput is not for you. For everyone else though, read on. Kaput is a show in the mold of the ageless slap-stick style, from comics such as Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton to more modern day…
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The Alvarez Family’s return on January 26th is an understated mark of success for One Day at a Time. Centring on the lives of a Cuban-American family surviving under the Trump administration, the Netflix sitcom is a cultural manifesto, exploring Latin American family tropes through a period of uncertainty and division in the US. With the…
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