Fundamentally there is much about Sami Blood that cinema has seen many times over, though for her debut feature writer-director Amanda Kernell has delivered a uniquely complex and painfully relevant coming-of-age while also shedding light on the largely unknown indigenous population of Swedish Lappland. A film of cultural identity and great pain, the prodigiously talented…
At first glance, the logline for Ingrid Goes West can sound a bit twee, tacky or hyperbolic. In the wrong hands, this feels like a film that could easily have come off the wrong way. However, it’s to the credit of director Matt Splicer that it feels less like a lecture from your parents more…
This is not a love song- it’s a review of Public Image Limited’s (PiL) documentary. The film, The Public Image Is Rotten is one that focuses on John Lydon AKA Johnny Rotten AKA the band’s one mainstay (just like The Cure’s Robert Smith). It shows an outspoken and spiky man who has tempered through age…
Adapting her own novel for the big screen, German author-director Helen Hegemann makes a polished feature debut with Axolotl Overkill. Pulse firmly on the rapid strobe-lit streets of Berlin, the film is very much a muse on teenage excess and independence, as self-destructive as in can be, with an assured sense of style and impressive…
A Modern Man is a documentary about a handsome, contemporary classical violinist named Charlie Siem. But who is Messer Siem? Unfortunately that question is not really answered in this film because this British-Norwegian musician puts up a wall that is largely impenetrable. This film is directed by Eva Mulvad (The Good Life). It begins with…
When you consider the name Winnie Mandela do you think of the mother of a nation or a terrorist? The documentary, Winnie tends to sit in the former camp by telling this woman’s history and story from her own point-of-view. It’s fascinating to hear her out and this documentary is a long overdue one, but…
The Untamed, Amat Escalante’s oddball genre film built with space monsters and sexual tension, could have worked just as well as a dysfunctional family drama. The eccentric Mexican director has packed a lot into his fourth feature, an instantly memorable and incredibly unique piece that understands its best possible tension comes from contrasting a heady…
In a world where fashion can be fickle and disposable a designer like Dries van Noten is a gem. The Belgian designer has spent over three decades in the business and remans fiercely independent when other fashion houses have allowed themselves to be bought out. He rallies against the notion of fast fashion and strives…
It’s the late 1970’s Venice California is the birthplace of a new go-to trend, roller-dancing, and a group of young roller skaters, almost all exclusively African-American, are about to bring it to the people. Documentary film Roller Dreams takes a look at this iconic but short-lived group of skaters, the Venice scene in the 80’s…
Based on the Nikolai Leskov novel Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District, itself inspired by the character in Shakespeare’s classic Macbeth, William Oldroyd‘s daring film is far from the period piece one might expect given its title. Tightly pieced together by Alice Birch‘s bold screenplay via a star-making performance from Florence Pugh, Lady Macbeth is a psycho-sexual thriller disguised…
Kiwi filmmaker Florian Habicht jumps from making documentaries about Pulp and demolition derbies to modestly prodding around the Southern Hemisphere’s biggest horror theme park with Spookers, a stylish 85-minute piece that manages to weave together stories of exploitation and therapy amongst a whole heap of (fake) blood, guts and playful vignettes. It’s clear Habicht and…
Imagine living in a world where you found it impossible to understand your bills, where you couldn’t text people and you had difficulty getting a driver’s licence because you couldn’t pass the Ls test. For around 40-65% of Indigenous Australians this is a reality because they are functionally illiterate. The documentary film, In My Own…
Right at home in the “Freak Me Out” strand of this year’s Sydney Film Festival, Game of Death is probably more-or-less exactly the film you expect it to be. It’s a simple but fun romp that manages to eke out the most from its wacky premise, despite being held back by structural shortcomings and uneven…
There’s a lot that can happen in 24 hours, and unless you stop and take a moment to let it sink in, you might just miss something magical. From acclaimed actor David Wenham comes his feature film directorial debut with Ellipsis, a film that came together under unusual circumstances but the end result is something…
The prospect of watching a documentary on town planning probably won’t have people tripping over themselves to watch it. But when you realise that the subject of the film, Citizen Jane: Battle For The City helped preserve some significant parts of New York, it’s a different story. This film is a brief but intriguing look…
It’d be an arduous task to contemplate a more significant moment in the history of cinema than that of the shower scene in Alfred Hitchcock’s masterful slasher Psycho. As not only would its value of shock go on to define the representation of violence and sex for years onwards, it has definitively etched itself into…
In many ways, Cãlin Peter Netzer’s latest feature Ana, mon amour provides an elegantly poignant dissection of when solicitude collides with mental illness. It is unflinchingly explicit, raw in its psychoanalysis and mostly effectual to the ideals it is aiming to exude. Although, dissimilar to Netzer’s previous film, the Golden Bear winning Child’s Pose, the…
There is certainly something splendid somewhere within Maliglutit, the first collaboration between directors Zacharias Kunuk and Natar Ungallaq, unfortunately, it is all but concealed. The distinguished pair have taken on the task of adapting classic material, and despite the endeavour of imbuing the film with idealism and vigour, Maliglutit can never amount to anything significantly…
In 2015 there was the outstanding film Amy by Asif Kapadia and following on from that comes yet another biopic that examines the life and all too tragically early death of a different powerhouse musical performer. In Whitney ‘Can I Be Me’ we go from the beginning right through to the end of Whitney Houston’s…
As we near the opening night of the 64th Sydney Film Festival a whole stack of new films have been announced as part of the diverse program. Dipping into the Cannes pool, SFF have brought over some of the most talked about pictures, including winner of this year’s Palme d’Or (the biggest prize in world…
The 64th annual Sydney Film Festival shows no signs of slouching on the line-up front this year, with the announcement that star Steven Yuen (TV’s The Walking Dead), 2017 Cannes Palme d’Or contender Bong Joon-ho, and Australian actor Daniel Henshall (Snowtown) will attend for the premiere of their feature Okja, fresh from its controversial showing…
Who would have thought that one of the most anticipated movies of the year would be a film about a mutant super-pig? Well, this is thanks to the critically acclaimed Korean director, Bong Joon-ho, whose previous films have been critical successes all over the world. His impressive resume so far includes films like the strikingly…
Last week we filled you in on the first films we picked for the annual Sydney Film Festival – but that barely scratched the surface on the amazing catalogue of feature and short films that will grace the event. So here’s another six films we think you can’t afford to miss at the 2017 event……
The 64th Annual Sydney Film Festival launched its amazing program yesterday, and over 12 days this June, there’ll be more film premieres and screenings than you’ll know what to do with. Over the next couple of weeks we’ll be letting you know plenty of our highlights – and we’re starting off with counting down the…
Tickets are set to be released today for the world-premiere screenings of recipients of the 2016 Lexus Short Film Fellowship. In partnership with the Sydney Film Festival, the short films will be shown at an exclusive screening and throughout the Festival itself in mid-June. This year’s filmmakers and respective short films include Anya Beyersdorf (How the Light…
The 64th Sydney Film Festival has unveiled itself today as it divulged a plethora of juicy details, including 28 prominent new films to be featured and the first of over 150 Festival guests. First though, the event has announced a brand new location for the festival. The SFF will now take place in Randwick’s iconic…
Nascent filmmakers looking to launch their careers in the same way as Australian film luminaries Chris Noonan (Babe), Don McAlpine (Moulin Rouge) and Jack Thompson (The Man From Snowy River) will have their opportunity as the Sydney Films Festival has begun taking submissions for their 2017 program. The 2017 Sydney Film Festival will take place…
Submissions are now open for the 2017 Lexus Australia Short Film Fellowship, the largest cash fellowship (AUD$200,000) for short films in Australia. Hosted by the Sydney Film Festival and Lexus Australia for the second year, the event encourages aspiring Australian filmmakers to submit an eligible short film. A Sydney Film Festival panel will select 20…
Sydney Film Festival’s 2016 Travelling Film Festival is returning to Toowoomba and Mackay this October with a fantastic selection of international cinema and festival favourites. A program of nine films (eight features and one documentary) has been announced for Toowoomba. The program includes Festival favourites Elvis & Nixon starring Kevin Spacey and Michael Shannon, Sydney Film Festival’s…
Viggo Mortensen is no stranger to portraying a damaged father in a journey to protect his children à la The Road, but Matt Ross’ quirky tale has a lot more than just Aragon to draw in audiences. A quick glance at Ross’ resume won’t inspire confidence because of its relative shortness, however, Captain Fantastic flew…
