There’s a uniqueness to Desire Lines that writer/director Jules Rosskam (and co-writer Nate Gualtieri) implements to set the film as an open line of communication regarding the LGBTQIA+ community and their placement within their own culture. A narrative-driven drama that combines documentary pieces and talking head confessionals, the film’s hybrid mentality may not always work,…
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Diving both into the cutthroat world of journalism and the medium’s potential to garner fame off the back of manipulation and obsession, Roxine Helberg‘s Cold Copy, whilst not necessarily reinventing the wheel, still manages an air of tension throughout as it details the power dynamic between a journalism student and the media professional she aspires…
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The complexities of forgiveness and accountability against a familial backdrop laced with tension, regret and one’s own personal demons, Exhibiting Forgiveness is a thought-provoking drama, and one that bides its time in surrendering to its emotional explosiveness. Written and directed by Titus Kaphar, marking his feature debut, Exhibiting Forgiveness focuses on Tarell Rodin (André Holland),…
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Though its working with the elements of a dark comedy, a political thriller and topical social commentary, Bruno Mourral‘s Kidnapping Inc. manages to navigate its multiple themes and transition quite successfully from its farcical opening to its more stirring, sobering close. Set in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince (the film utilising both the Creole and…
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Though it’s an at-times lively and emotionally affecting tale, with a slew of stand-out performances across the board (Taraji P. Henson and the rightfully Oscar-nominated Danielle Brooks, for starters), the reimagined The Color Purple can’t help but catch itself between honouring its source material (Alice Walker‘s 1982 novel and the original 1985 film) and the…
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There’s a lot at play throughout the 122 minutes of Antonis Tsonis‘ Brando with a Glass Eye, a bizarre hybrid of a movie that deserves recognition for so confidently going against the grain, even if it doesn’t always successfully lands its execution. It’s offbeat – to say the least – and the opening minutes very…
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Though it leans into the action/thriller genre with a supreme wink, Thelma, Josh Margolin‘s frequently hilarious, always poignant ode to his own grandmother (and, clearly, a love of the action genre), is never spoofing the films it so evidently is earning its laughs from; and it’s that sweetness and keen sense of reinvention that helps…
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Whether it’s something we admit to or discuss or not, the idea of how one might kill themselves and the practical considerations that follow is something I’m sure we’ve contemplated. However morbid it may be to even suggest, pondering what you might jot down in a suicide note or even how many people would come…
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An emotional expedition outlaying the effects of dementia on both the mind its crippling and the hearts of those baring witness, Parida Tantiwasadakran‘s Young People, Old People & Nothing In Between is an affecting short that makes for a large impact. At the centre of the film is young Juice (Deedee Piamwiriyaku), 7-years-old and full…
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The Prince of Persia franchise might have been in hibernation for the past few years, but there’s no doubt that Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, the latest entry in the franchise, looked to bring things back to the old school. With the franchise beginning back in 1989 as a 2D side-scrolling adventure, it’s simply…
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For his debut feature, 2011’s Martha Marcy May Marlene, writer/director Sean Durkin specified that the actions that unfolded weren’t moulded after any one specific cult – the film centred around a young woman suffering from delusions and paranoia after returning to her family from an abusive cult in the Catskill Mountains – and that he more based his narrative after his…
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As someone who lost their father at a young age, and therefore never had the conversation regarding my sexuality (and all that could possibly entail), the thought process throughout and inability to hold back my emotions during All of Us Strangers was palpable. Adapted by writer/director Andrew Haigh (Looking: The Movie) from Japanese author Taichi…
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It goes without saying that the premise for Role Play is one that has been explored on multiple occasions. The marriage-on-the-rocks-is-rocked-even-further-by-realising-one-half-is-an-assassin is a narrative utilised by such stellar genre examples as True Lies, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, and Nobody, and to less grand effect in Apple TV’s recent misfire The Family Plan. Role Play sits…
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If there’s one thing we can rely on Jason Statham for, it’s B-movie cheap thrills that epitomise the term “guilty pleasure”. Escapism in its purest, bloodiest form, The Beekeeper (Statham took the B-movie memo a little too literally, it would seem) is a ridiculous actioner from proven genre director David Ayer (End of Watch, Fury,…
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I’m all for Microsoft’s Surface range being a great Windows-based alternative for those looking for something either smaller, light or longer-lasting to take out on the go. However, over the years, Microsoft seems focused more so on refining its current range, rather than evolving it. We took a look at the latest Microsoft Surface Laptop…
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After the misstep that was 2017’s ambitious Downsizing, writer/director Alexander Payne returns to more familiar territory in The Holdovers. Familiar in the sense that the high-school setting brings to mind his biting 1999 black comedy Election, his lead, Paul Giamatti, is a pitch-perfect educator, like his 2004 standout Sideways, and the dialogue peppered throughout is…
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Like many a millennial, the original Mean Girls from 2004 holds a special place in the depths of my queer, quote-filled heart. It’s why there was sense of trepidation in coming into the new iteration of Tina Fey and Mark Waters’ high-school comedy. Now, I was actually fully aware that this particular version was a…
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There comes a point in Boy Swallows Universe – Netflix’s splashy adaptation of Trent Dalton‘s semi-autobiographical novel of the same name – where you beg for the creators to let the show’s lead feature, 13-year-old Eli Bell (a standout Felix Cameron), earn a moment to catch his breath. Sure, it’d let us as viewers do…
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In the same week that Ferrari arrives in Australian theatres, Race for Glory: Audi vs. Lancia hits American multiplexes, digital and On Demand (an Australian release is yet to be determined), showcasing a more accessible racing story and the men driving such to fruition. Creative licence and enhanced melodrama are unavoidable in telling this particular…
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There’s nothing wrong with a movie being nice, but George Clooney‘s old-fashioned drama The Boys in the Boat is a little too sweet and tropey for its own good. Based on Daniel James Brown‘s best-selling nonfiction novel of the same name, the 1930s set tale feels as if it’s been made in that era through…
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Given the calibre of horror talent on board with Night Swim (between them, producers Jason Blum and James Wan have such genre treats as the Halloween series, The Conjuring films, M3GAN and Malignant), as well as the fact that the short film it’s based on earned critical acclaim upon its release a decade ago, one…
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Compared to the other “exceptional man” biopics of the last year (Oppenheimer, Maestro, Napoleon), Michael Mann‘s Ferrari is, sadly, the least interesting. Whilst it doesn’t take an entirely traditional narrative – the film only shows us a certain chunk of the man’s life – and Adam Driver does his best with his showy role, to…
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If you browse long enough on Twitter, sorry, X, you’ll note that there’s still chatter and self-diagnosed “hot takes” regarding Taika Waititi‘s 2019 outing Jojo Rabbit. The film already had its share of detractors in the immediate aftermath of its release, but an Oscar win for Best Screenplay and the general good word for its…
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And just like that, the DCEU comes to a close with a droplet rather than the splash we were expecting a decade ago. In 2013, when Man of Steel premiered, there was the promise of an exciting future of storytelling to be told for the variety of characters within the DC lore. There was rousing,…
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There’s been a lot of chatter around Wish and the fact that its release celebrates Disney’s centennial, where the major theme across a heft of the studio’s films – that of wishes being granted – would be tied together. It’s a sweet notion, without question, but it would appear that the creatives behind the film…
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Like his previous works that celebrate their fantastical, absurdist nature with a certain gravitas, Yorgos Lanthimos grounds Poor Things, an undeniably wild, oft-offensive, sexually liberated black comedy, with a stirring sense of emotion and topical commentary. In 19th century London – or what such a time period looks like within Lanthimos’ vivid imagination – the eccentric…
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Even if Anyone But You isn’t the type of film that would ordinarily interest you, it’s difficult to not know about Will Gluck‘s frisky romcom due to the “Are they/aren’t they” chemistry of stars Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell, two impossibly gorgeous actors who leaned into their own sex appeal during the filming in Sydney…
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Given how implicitly we (mostly) trust those in the medical profession it makes sense that such praise could give way to their intentional negligence. And such is the case with the stories behind Dr. Death, a (now) anthology series that takes its inspiration from the Wonderey podcast that detailed egregious cases of medial malpractice. The…
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Given that Migration, the latest animated offering from the Illumination collective (the production company behind such successes as Despicable Me and the inexplicable Minions), is penned by White Lotus creator Mike White, it makes sense that the film manages to make us care about its characters, rather than just be mildly amused at their comedic…
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Power banks are becoming increasingly important not only when out and about, but when using multiple devices too. While my phone is inevitably with me wherever I go, I might decide to bring along a secondary device. But even when those devices are fully charged, longer trips away call for a larger battery, with a…
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