Review

Film Review: Spit; David Wenham provides a masterclass in comedy in amusing, poignant Gettin’ Square sequel

Whilst the 2003 Australian crime comedy Gettin’ Square has its loyal fans and critical acclaim to its name, it severely underwhelmed at the Australian box office upon its release, leading the very existence of Spit to be quite an anomaly in itself.  A two decades-on sequel to a flop genre flick is not the usual…

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Film Review: Mickey 17; Expect the unexpected from Bong Joon Ho, with Parasite follow-up anything but safe cinema

In some ways it’s unfair for Mickey 17 to use director Bong Joon Ho‘s Oscar-winning Parasite in its marketing, as this bonkers sci-fi effort is quite far removed from that aforementioned satirical thriller, and may lure audiences into a false sense of security. Of course, being a Bong picture, satire is still utilised, but waiting…

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Film Review: One of Them Days is a spirited genre vehicle elevated by the charming duo of Keke Palmer and SZA

When it comes to the tried and tested buddy comedy, chemistry is key.  Keke Palmer, arguably one of the most mega-wattage charm possessors currently working, and R&B music starlet SZA prove quite the dynamic duo in One of Them Days, an extremely spirited genre vehicle that they continually elevate when it occasionally gives in to…

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Elyas injects a sense of heart into its multiple bouts of choreographed brutality: Alliance Française French Film Festival Review

Whilst it’s been two decades since French director Florent-Emilio Siri dipped his toe in the action genre with the 2005 Bruce Willis vehicle Hostage, it’s evident he hasn’t lost any flair for such, with his relentless Elyas touching on topical themes whilst proving rousing as an exaggerated vehicle in the same vein of a Liam Neeson…

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Turbo Overkill brings that old-school heat to new-gen consoles

It’s so obvious to mention the original Doom at the slightest mention of boomer shooters. It wasn’t the first first-person shooter (FPS), but it still feels like the most important in terms of popularity and influence. Not only was the 2016 reboot a hit, but to this day, programmers and enthusiasts continue finding more and…

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Run, don’t dribble, to binge Kate Hudson’s Netflix comedy series, Running Point

A starring role with her talents front and centre always suited Kate Hudson, so, immediately, Running Point lands its lay-up, with the Netflix comedy series giving the actress the material needed to flourish. Inspired by Los Angeles Lakers president Jeanie Buss, the Mindy Kaling-produced series subs in the Los Angeles Waves and Hudson’s Isla Gordon,…

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Film Review: I’m Still Here is an engaging drama carried by the proud performance of Fernanda Torres

Whilst there were many movie-goers that may have been surprised at hearing Fernanda Torres‘s name being called at this year’s Golden Globes as the recipient of the Best Actress in a Motion Picture (Drama) over the likes of Nicole Kidman’s acclaimed turn in Babygirl and Angelina Jolie’s seeming front-runner presence in Maria, once I’m Still…

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Racewalkers celebrates both its titular sport and the power of male friendship with organic comedy: Slamdance Film Festival Review

As ridiculous a sport racewalking may seem – Aussies are sure to have images of Jane Turner and Glenn Robbins powerwalking with all their might come to mind – writing/directing duo Phil Moniz and Kevin Claydon lace such with a tenderness and respect that allows audiences to laugh with the sport’s quirk rather than at…

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Film Review: Bird fuses its harsh naturality with a sense of magical fidelity

Similar to the naturalistic, almost documentary-like aesthetic she laced her film American Honey with, writer/director Andrea Arnold approaches Bird with a realism that, for the majority of its 119 minute running time, rarely lets up to allow audiences a proper escape from the poverty-stricken housing estate setting it largely sits within. Unfolding through the eyes…

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Civilization 7 bids the dawn of a new era in its latest building sim

Sid Meier’s Civilization series has long been the gold standard in turn-based strategy, offering players the thrill of guiding an empire through the ages and watching history unfold, one turn at a time. With Civilization 7, developer Firaxis Games reimagines many aspects of the franchise, introducing improvements to combat, a fresh take on diplomacy, and a…

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Series Review: Good Cop/Bad Cop is a quirky situational comedy that benefits from its snappy ensemble and lived-in characters

Whilst there’s certainly nothing wrong with the prestige approach to television and treating an entire season as an extended film, essentially, Good Cop/Bad Cop is a welcome example of the type of throwback, one-hour sittings of pure entertainment, riding off the benefits of a snappy ensemble, familiar rhythms and lived-in characters. Set for release locally…

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Film Review: The Monkey; Absurdist horror flick favours giggles and gore

After last year’s Longlegs became a breakout success and lent a certain elevated air of relevance to writer/director Osgood Perkins‘ name, there’s understandably a level of expectation surrounding his follow-up, The Monkey, especially with the added gravity of being based off a Stephen King short story and having the producer credit of James Wan (Saw,…

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Film Review: The Last Showgirl; Pamela Anderson, as you’ve never seen before, sinks her teeth into Gia Coppola’s quiet drama

At the centre of Gia Coppola‘s The Last Showgirl is Shelley (Pamela Anderson), a 57-year old (though she’ll initially tell you otherwise) Vegas all-girl revue performer whose 30+ years in the Razzle Dazzle show are coming to an abrupt end.  But just as Shelley’s tenure is closing, and the uncertainty of life sets in, Anderson’s…

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Film Review: The Last Journey is a beautiful piece of storytelling about seizing life’s wonder

In a time when there’s so much uncertainty in the world, a film like The Last Journey feels even more special and affirming as it projects pure beauty and an uplifting nature in telling its central story around two men and their determination to reaffirm life’s wonder for another. Swedish journalists and television hosts Filip…

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Film Review: The Gorge; Anya Taylor-Joy and Miles Teller keep firing in a jumble of genres

Given that The Gorge is directed by Scott Derrickson, who has helmed such horror pleasers as Sinister and The Black Phone, penned by an action familiar in Zach Dean (The Tomorrow War, Fast X), and is headlined by the reliable duo of Anya Taylor-Joy and Miles Teller, one would feel safe sitting down to stream…

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Film Review: Heart Eyes indulges in equal parts charm and carnage

Whilst the slasher genre has certainly maintained a steady presence within the horror genre as of late, Heart Eyes very much leans into the sporadically gory, gloriously nonsensical mentality that so many Scream imitators indulged in across the late 90s and early 2000s in the wake of Wes Craven’s original slasher rejuvenating the field. The…

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Film Review: Captain America: Brave New World; Anthony Mackie soars above middling MCU actioner

Serving as the first cinematic Marvel offering of 2025, Captain America: Brave New World is neither a return to familiar form or a step in a, well, brave new direction, but a middle-range actioner that’s just serviceable enough to earn entertainment points; even if it ultimately adds up to very little of consequence. Post-Endgame, it’s…

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Sniper Elite: Resistance is functional where it counts, but plays things a little too safe

I’ve been a huge fan of the Sniper Elite series over the years, and have personally loved the gorgeous new locations and crazy missions that each instalment brings. While Sniper Elite: Resistance drops its predecessors’ numbered trend, it also makes this latest entry feel more like a side-step than a step forward. That’s not a…

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Film Review: Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy; Renée Zellweger brings back the Bridge in hilarious, heartfelt sequel

Whilst lightning has never really struck twice when it comes to the Bridget Jones film series – the 2001 original, Bridget Jones’s Diary, is entirely unmatched in its quality – hats must be taken off for director Michael Morris and writers Helen Fielding (whose novel of the same name it’s based off), Dan Mazer and…

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Film Review: Suze is a sublime, human vehicle for Michaela Watkins

Co-writing/directing team Linsey Stewart and Dane Clark have quite the sitcom premise on their hands with Suze, but yet, thanks to an inherent understanding of their characters, the film overcomes any outlandishness to prove itself a sweet relationship dramedy about flawed, real humans who just want to be loved – whatever form that arrives in….

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Hal & Harper is a special, emotionally nuanced series from Cooper Raiff; Sundance Film Festival Review

On the initial surface, Cooper Raiff‘s television series Hal & Harper appears to be a sibling drama about two children and their single father.  And whilst that is the case in the most basic of manners, when the film presents its grown-up cast (Raiff as Hal and Lili Reinhart as Harper) as the seven-and-nine-year-old iterations…

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Film Review: Amy Schumer’s Netflix “comedy” Kinda Pregnant is kinda awful

We’re only a month-and-a-bit into 2025, and it’s possible that Netflix have given birth (pun unintended) to one of the year’s absolute worst filmic offerings in Amy Schumer‘s Kinda Pregnant, an absolutely unfunny “comedy” that wastes the talents of its capable cast. A Happy Madison production – which tells you all you need to know…

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Film Review: Presence; Steven Soderbergh’s unique ghost story hones a defined, yet divisive personality

Much like how his 2018 psychological thriller Unsane was elevated by it being shot entirely on an iPhone 7 Plus, Steven Soderbergh is implementing another technological gimmick of sorts in Presence, a ghost story that’s filmed entirely from the point of view of the haunting figure lurking within the walls of a sprawling suburban residence….

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Film Review: Queer; Luca Guadagnino’s sweaty fever dream is sure to divide audiences

Described as his most personal work yet, Luca Guadagnino‘s Queer is an adaptation of William S. Burrough‘s 1985 novel of the same name; though published in the 80s, it was written between 1951 and 1953.  Guadagnino has made a career out of telling vastly opposing stories with each of his productions – Call Me By…

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Film Review: The Order is a terrifying, topical thriller that echoes the divisive nature of today’s society

When it comes to depicting real-life violence on screen, Australian director Justin Kurzel has an enviable history of such.  His 2011 debut, Snowtown, was a harrowing re-enactment of the South Australian body-in-a-barrel murders that plagued the 90s for close to a decade.  In 2021 he represented the 1996 Port Arthur Massacre through the psychologically taxing…

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Film Review: Widow Clicquot; Fitting for its namesake, true story telling is poised and tastefully made

There’s a certain period-piece sexuality billowing through Widow Clicquot that brings to mind other such similarly-set efforts as Atonement and Pride & Prejudice.  And given that those films’ second-unit director, Thomas Napper, is at the helm here, it makes perfect sense that such detail and intimacy is adhered to; fittingly, Joe Wright, director of the…

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Sauna is a nuanced, inclusive telling of a very human drama: Sundance Film Festival Review

Sensitively handling the queer love story at its core, Mathias Broe‘s Sauna explores the fluid possibilities of connection, further exacerbating its impact through the filmmaker’s own relationship with his transitioning partner. The sauna of the title refers to the place of work for young Johan (Magnus Juhl Andersen), a barely-legal, zero body fat-type twink who…

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Kingdom Come: Deliverance II delivers a fantastic medieval romp

We recently had the pleasure of previewing Kingdom Come: Deliverance II and apologise if we repeat anything here by chance. That being said, we must reiterate that when the original Kingdom Come: Deliverance was released in 2018, we were pleasantly surprised with the amount of freedom given to players, to explore a detailed and vibrant…

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The Things You Kill is a suspenseful, profound thriller that breaks apart what it is to transform: Sundance Film Festival Review

A self-awareness regarding certain specifications in getting his film made along with a universality in conjunction with its narrative, writer/director Alireza Khatami goes beyond genre conventions with The Things You Kill, a twisted thriller that breaks apart what it is to transform. At one point in the film, the language professor at the centre of…

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Predators is an at once frustrating and fascinating documentary around the world of online predators: Sundance Film Festival Review

There’s a certain frustration felt when watching Predators, a 96 minute documentary centering around the series To Catch a Predator, itself an offshoot from NBC’s Dateline.  In the early 2000s, the show lured audiences in as it highlighted online predatory behaviour – primarily older men meeting underage boys and girls for the intention of sexual…

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