Film & TV

Generations of Men is a powerful short that generates a wealth of conversation: Darwin International Film Festival Review

A film that speaks volumes in its silences just as much as it does its audible dialogue, Generations of Men, a powerful new short inspired by Judith Wright‘s book of the same name, is just as much a testament to the strength and resilience of women during colonial times as it is a reminder of…

Read More

Film Review: Runt is a comfortable, cordial comedy for the entire family

Based on the beloved novel by Craig Silvey, Runt is an effortlessly likeable Australian family venture that overcomes any of its cheesiness thanks to an ensemble committed to the cause of providing old-fashioned entertainment There’s some topical themes at bay here under the surface – drought-stricken farmers, real estate corruption – but Silvey’s script never…

Read More

Heretic; Hugh Grant delivers career-best work in this truly riveting genre piece: TIFF 2024 Review

In the last few years Hugh Grant has truly taken pleasure in playing against the grain of expectation he laid upon himself after a career of inhabiting predominantly likeable characters.  Arguably starting with his wonderfully committed camp turn as the villainous Phoenix Buchanan in Paddington 2 in 2017, Grant has been on an incline of…

Read More

Anora; Mikey Madison delivers a performance for the ages in Sean Baker’s passionate and profane piece of art: TIFF 2024 Review

It’s too easy to claim that writer/director Sean Baker makes inaccessible films due to the fact that so many of his narratives centre around the society underrepresented, chief among them being sex workers.  As we saw in such previous works as Tangerine and Red Rocket, Baker seeks to remove such a stigma around pornography performers, prostitutes…

Read More

Nightbitch is a meditation on motherhood, isolation and female rage, driven at the helm by a fearless Amy Adams: TIFF 2024 Review

Despite the fact that the recently released trailer made Nightbitch look more like a quirky comedy – think a female-drive, R-rated take on Tim Allen’s The Shaggy Dog – I can attest that Marielle Heller‘s take on Rachel Yoder‘s seemingly unadaptable 2021 novel of the same name is far from the laughable ridiculousness some may…

Read More

Win tickets to see James McAvoy in the new thriller Speak No Evil

To celebrate the release of Speak No Evil, in Australian theatres from September 12th, 2024, starring James McAvoy, thanks to Universal Pictures Australia we have 5 digital double passes (Admit 2) to giveaway. When an American family is invited to spend the weekend at the idyllic country estate of a charming British family they befriended…

Read More

We Live in Time; Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh charm in simple, emotional affair: TIFF 2024 Review

Given that the trailer for We Live in Time very much informs audiences that it will be a tale of potential emotional manipulation, with the Nick Payne-penned script basing itself around a family dealing with late-stage cancer, it proves worth the screentime as Brooklyn director John Crowley breathes a certain life into proceedings, aware that…

Read More

Daniela Forever adds layer upon layer to where it comes undone: TIFF 2024 Review

Given the imaginative manner he has expressed in his previous work, it makes sense that Nacho Vigalondo (Colossal) would create something like Daniela Forever, a romantic science-fiction tale that adds layer upon layer of artistry to itself that it practically (and unfortunately) comes undone. A little Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, a little Inception,…

Read More

The Last Showgirl; Pamela Anderson is an actress reborn in Gia Coppola’s quiet snapshot of a movie: TIFF 2024 Review

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…

Read More

Unstoppable is a rousing true story that speaks to the power of resilience: TIFF 2024 Review

Not to be confused with Denzel Washington’s 2010 runaway train thriller – or the lesser known 2004 outing from Wesley Snipes – Unstoppable, which marks the directorial debut of editor William Goldenberg, whose credits include such titles as Coyote Ugly, Miami Vice and Air, is a by-the-numbers sports drama that lives by its inspirational hook. …

Read More

Presence; Steven Soderbergh’s haunting POV drama favours style over substance: TIFF 2024 Review

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….

Read More

The Substance; Coralie Fargeat’s meditation on the standards of today’s beauty indulges in bloody, black humour and body horror: TIFF 2024 Review

The idea of wanting to be younger and create a more perfect aesthetic version of one’s self is a thought many (if not all) of us have conjured at one point or another.  And so often do the two go hand-in-hand, despite the fact that being younger and looking better aren’t always reliant on the…

Read More

Film Review: Bonnard, Pierre And Marthe is as much a love story as it is a character study

Behind every great man is a great woman. Especially if that man is as shrouded in mystery and as reclusive as post-impressionist French painter and printmaker Pierre Bonnard. Bonnard, Pierre & Marthe is as much a character study as it is a love story about the decade-spanning romance between famed painter Pierre Bonnard (Vincent Macaigne)…

Read More

Adelaide Film Festival announce four movies ahead of full program

Four movies and other events have been teased out ahead of the full Adelaide Film Festival announcement coming on September 17th. Cannes Film Festival 2024 Palme d’Or Award winner, Anora, reimagines Pretty Woman as a tragicomedy and cements director Sean Baker as someone to watch. It screens at the AFF on Thursday October 24th. Screening…

Read More

SXSW Sydney announces exciting screen program for 2024 addition

SXSW Sydney (October 14th – 20th, 2024) is back for its second year, and its bringing a bold and inspiring mix of local and international features, showcasing the best across drama, horror, comedy and documentaries for its Screen Program. The lineup includes the Australian premiere of Lucy Lawless‘s directorial debut, Never Look Away, a documentary about…

Read More

Win a family pass (Admit 4) to the new Australian comedy Runt

Thanks to StudioCanal Australia and Think Tank Communications, we have 5 family passes (Admit 4) to giveaway to see the new Australian comedy Runt, starring Celeste Barber, Jai Courtney, Matt Day and Jack Thompson, in Australian theatres from September 19th, 2024 (with Queensland starting from September 12th). Based on Craig Silvey’s best-selling novel, this delightful…

Read More

Film Review: Stream is disgustingly endearing in spite of missed narrative potential

At over 2 hours long, with performances that are predominantly uninspired, and a script that doesn’t delve beyond setting up a narrative solely to off its variety of stock-standard characters, Michael Leavy‘s slasher Stream leaves a lot to be desired.  In the same breath, it’s so gloriously gory and committed to not taking itself seriously…

Read More

Film Review: Thelma is a hilarious, and unlikely, love letter to the action genre

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…

Read More

Interview: Josh Margolin on honouring his grandmother in action love letter Thelma and the stunt work of June Squibb

Thelma Post is a 93-year-old grandmother who loses $10,000 to a con artist on the phone. With help from a friend and his motorized scooter, she soon embarks on a treacherous journey across Los Angeles to reclaim what was taken from her. Not the most likely action narrative, but it’s the perfect genre entry for…

Read More

Film Review: Hinckley: I Shot the President is a topical documentary that’s at once informative and entertaining

On July 13th, 2024, Thomas Matthew Crooks, a 20-year-old loner from Pennsylvania, attempted to assassinate former U.S. President – and current Presidential nominee – Donald Trump.  Failing in his intended mission by only wounding Trump, though he did fatally strike one rally attendee before being killed by the Secret Service Counter Sniper Team, the still-unexplained…

Read More

Interview: Kneecap director Rich Peppiatt on collaborating with the Irish band to tell their story and the importance of preserving indigenous languages

There are 80,000 native Irish speakers in Ireland. 6,000 live in Northern Ireland. Three of them became a rap group called Kneecap. From up-and-coming British director Rich Peppiatt, Kneecap is the real-life story of how this anarchic Belfast trio became the unlikely figureheads of a civil rights movement to save their mother tongue. The film won the Audience…

Read More

Film Review: Kneecap is riotous and confronting as it bridges the gap between politics and crowd-pleasing

A far deeper, more important film than many may be expecting from what is being sold on the surface, Rich Peppiatt‘s Kneecap speaks to the importance of language preservation within the fictionalised biopic framing of its titular rap group. There’s an undeniable energy to Peppiatt’s direction as he throws an array of substances at the…

Read More

Film Review: The Blind Sea is an inspiring documentary that celebrates the tenacity of the human spirit

The ocean is already a wild, unbridled space for those of us that can see its dangerous beauty.  Such intensity would only be exacerbated when removing the sense of sight, but for Australian surfing athlete Matt Formston it’s his reality, and one that he’s more than willing to exist within. Formston’s impressive athleticism and against-the-odds…

Read More

Interview: Neil McGregor on uncovering history for his provocative documentary John Hinckley: I Shot the President

In March 1981, John Hinckley shot U.S. President Ronald Reagan in a failed assassination attempt driven by a dangerous obsession with the Martin Scorsese film Taxi Driver and actress Jodie Foster.  The attack shocked the world and forever changed American history.  Found not guilty by reason of insanity, John spent thirty-five years in a psychiatric…

Read More

Win tickets to see the return of Michael Keaton in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

The ghost with the most is back! To celebrate the release of Tim Burton‘s ghoulish sequel Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, in Australian theatres from September 5th, 2024, starring Michael Keaton, Catherine O’Hara, Winona Ryder, Willem Dafoe, Monica Bellucci, Justin Theroux and Jenna Ortega, thanks to Warner Bros. Pictures Australia we have 5 digital double passes (Admit 2)…

Read More

Adelaide Film Festival teases the first six movies for their 2024 season

The Adelaide Film Festival runs between 23th October and 3rd November and will feature the movie The Correspondent. The opening night gala marks the world premier of this gripping movie. Directed by Kriv Stenders, The Correspondent stars Richard Roxburgh as Australian war correspondent Peter Greste who was arrested and jailed in Cairo, Egypt in 2013,…

Read More

The Lord of the Rings: The War of Rohirrim trailer returns audiences to Peter Jackson’s groundbreaking Middle Earth through the eyes of legendary anime director Kenji Kamiyama.

New Line Cinema’s original anime feature The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim returns audiences to the epic world brought to life in Peter Jackson‘s The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, based on the revered books by J.R.R. Tolkien, through the eyes of legendary anime director Kenji Kamiyama. Set 183 years before…

Read More

Win tickets to the new Irish comedy Kneecap starring Michael Fassbender

Thanks to Madman Entertainment, we have 10 double in-season passes (Admit 2) to giveaway to the wild Irish language comedy Kneecap, a real-life story of how the titular anarchic Belfast trio became the unlikely figureheads of a civil rights movement to save their mother tongue. The film won the Audience Award at Sundance this year…

Read More

Interview: Director Karl R. Hearne and star Dale Dickey on revenge drama The G; “We did something that’s original and different.”

Written and directed by Karl R. Hearne, The G, which focuses on a mysterious older woman seeking revenge on the corrupt legal guardian who destroyed her life, is a unique take on the classic revenge thriller. Inspired by this real-life grandmother and lead by renowned character actress Dale Dickey (Winter’s Bone, Iron Man 3, Leave…

Read More

Film Review: The G is a taut revenge thriller dominated by Dale Dickey

Between The Beekeeper, Thelma and now The G, older women haven’t had the greatest luck in cinema when it comes to scams of some sort as of late  Whilst financial abuse via a scam phone call collective was at the centre of the formers – which resulted in Jason Statham and June Squibb, respectively, trolling…

Read More