For a film to be based on such an acclaimed novel and to start so strongly, the biggest disappointment stems from its ability to conjure up everything we’ve already seen before.
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REVIEW: The Great Gatsby (2013)
It is entirely possible to enjoy Baz Luhrmann’s latest disco furball The Great Gatsby, despite repeated suggestions to the contrary.
FIVE STAR FILMS #51: The Master (2012)
(Editorial note): Months ago Nick and I were in an email exchange about whether or not we wanted a FIVE STAR FILM entry for The Master. At the time I resisted, I thought that it need…
REVIEW: Evil Dead (2013)
It’s certainly violent, no question, but that’s about all it has going in favour.
REVIEW: The Place Beyond the Pines (2013) – 2nd Opinion
For the second time, Derek Cianfrance shows us his love of cinema’s loners and outcasts via the ultimate It kid of now, Ryan Gosling.
No & Oblivion – The Meaning of Reality
In the past week two very different films have premiered that offer completely different versions of the world we know. No, the latest feature from Pablo Larrain and Oblivion, the sophomore film from Joseph Kosinski (TRON: Legacy).
Adaptation Fixation: Charles Bukowski’s Women
Here’s a few pointers as to why this would be a success …
REVIEW: The Company You Keep (2013)
That 70’s kid, Robert Redford, is back with a new political thriller that seeks to educate the youth of today on just what it was really like for the adults of his generation. The anti-war…
The New Action Movie, Brought To You By Super Nintendo
What is clearly evident however is director Jon M. Chu hasn’t spliced this opening together with some clever editing as influenced by gangster films of the 70s. Rather, the inspiration is drawn from that old device that sat under the television during the 90s – the Super Nintendo.
REVIEW: Trance (2013)
Don’t miss it.
REVIEW: A Good Day to Die Hard
In reference to a fifth addition to the action franchise, the big question on everyone’s mind should be Why? For what reason or necessity is there a fourth sequel to a film released twenty-five years…
REVIEW: Warm Bodies (2013)
The zombie-fanatic crowd will love it; everyone else needn’t bother.
Amour & Side Effects: The end of life as they know it
The latest release from Michael Haneke, and a wave of relief considering the soul-crushing previous White Ribbon, concerns the final days of an elderly couple Georges and Anne (Jean-Louis Trintignant and Emmanualle Riva in fantastic form).If we’re talking finality then Side Effects plays alongside rather neatly. There are no old, wrinkly people to speak of (rather a more photogenic cast); this plays as more of an exercise in the finality of careers/social lives/freedom.
Can ‘The Canyons’ succeed?
The Canyons was meant to be an exercise in the future of filmmaking. An example to illustrate that yes, independent cinema has a new face and it is even more possible than before. In an…
REVIEW: The Last Stand (2013)
When viewing a certain kind of action film – one starring Arnold Schwarzeneggar – you make a decision on what lens you adopt to view the film through. As a critic, one generally views each…
Dredd: The Action Hero We Needed
2012 was the year of the superhero – there was nary a true action film to be found. The Avengers ruled the box-office, the first true ensemble superhero movie and it made a stupid $1b;…
FIVE STAR FILMS #31 – Beau Travail (Good Work) (1999)
I first saw this film when I was studying Film 101 at Newcastle University in 2004. I don’t remember a single thing the lecturer discussed with us afterwards but the film was stuck in my…
Sheer F*cking Armageddon: Different approaches to The End of the World
The apocalypse, as according to the lens of Hollywood, is something that doesn’t exist. Cannot exist. “This is America,” they all seem to shout, “you can’t tell us what to do!”
FIVE STAR FILMS #29: Clerks (1994)
“I’m not even supposed to be here today!”
In defence of Cosmopolis
A lot of critics bashed the film upon its release, unfortunately so.
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FIVE STAR FILMS
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FIVE STAR FILMS #52: The Craft (1996)
t’s (arguably) the definitive movie about witches. Sure, Hocus Pocus was fun and sure, The Witches was creepy (nobody mention Practical Magic) BUT The Craft had every teenage girl in the nineties wanting to play light as a feather, stiff as a board at their next sleepover. It was cool, it was creepy and it was cult. It ceaselessly became a 90s classic. In the name of Manon, we look at why. Read more →
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FIVE STAR FILMS #51: The Master (2012)
(Editorial note): Months ago Nick and I were in an email exchange about whether or not we wanted a FIVE STAR FILM entry for The Master. At the time I resisted, I thought that it need Read more →
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FIVE STAR FILMS #50: The Insider (1999)
Mann’s specific cultural and historic origins are illustrated in the formal qualities and thematic philosophy of the ‘70s and this is represented directly through his characters (Bergman particularly in this film). During the 1968-1980 period American films began to speak about different hallmarks of the deconstruction of the American image, and especially the crisis of masculinity. Read more →
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FIVE STAR FILMS #49: The Descendants (2011)
It's a rare bird of a film that can elevate itself so distinctly between a first and second viewing to make a reviewer back-flip on their original estimations. The Descendants is such a film. Read more →
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FIVE STAR FILMS #48: Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
"one of the greatest sci-fi action films ever made: Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" Read more →
Latest Features
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INTERVIEW: Marc Forster (Director of World War Z and Quantum of Solace)
Last week I was lucky enough to be involved with four other journalists in a roundtable junket interview with the director of World War Z, Marc Forster. We fired off a couple of questions each and this is what Marc had to say about the film.
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Blake Howard’s Sydney Film Festival 2013 Diary Days 1-6
Here's some very informal, experiential musings of the 60th Sydney Film Festival - my 3rd.
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INTERVIEW: Catriona McKenzie (Director of Satellite Boy)
Catriona McKenzie is the writer/director of Satellite Boy, her award-winning debut feature, set to have a national release through Hopscotch Films on June 20.
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GWP Roundtable: What’s your favourite film adapted from a novel?
Baz Luhrmann’s version of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby has been released in Australia and it’s going to be a tough sell with fans of the novel, and the same goes with all adaptations.
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Alicia Malone’s Cannes Diary: Day 10
As my alarm jolted me awake this morning, five thoughts went through my head in quick succession. One: Have they done studies on how little sleep can a person survive on? Two: Am I the case study?? Three: When I get back to LA, I’m so doing a juice cleanse. Four: Oh god, that sounded really LA. Five: I wonder how early the crepe place opens?