|
3.5/5
|
69%
|
Dangerous Liaisons (2012) |
"
The cinematography is gorgeous, the costumes are gorgeous, the sets are gorgeous, and the people are so gorgeous it beggars belief. What can I say? Gorgeous."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
48%
|
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 (2012) |
"
if you haven't seen any of them - why not see this one? It's crazy fun for less than two hours ... It's all very tonally specific, and the tone is bonkers. But it's so intriguing, and everyone looks so good ... the guiltiest pleasure of the year."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
56%
|
Bachelorette (2012) |
"
Bachelorette is all about these very fine actresses playing some pretty sad, desperate women who have some pretty funny lines to say."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
4/5
|
85%
|
End of Watch (2012) |
"
The street characters are played by a remarkable panoply of real-life types who speak in a thrilling, totally believable patois."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
78%
|
Dredd (2012) |
"
Tonally one-note, and that note is grim, nihilistic, super-stylized, violent and humorless. But it's a spectacular technical feat, hugely loyal to its source ... an extremely expensive arthouse action flick for the die-hard crowd."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
51%
|
Savages (2012) |
"
Veers way off course in its second act, becoming confusing and vague - indeed, stoned. But it all comes good in the end."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
5/5
|
96%
|
Argo (2012) |
"
The whole thing is paced like a whip, and the third act may literally be the most suspenseful piece of film I've ever seen - and yes, I have seen Rear Window. Recommended without any reservation for every and any cinemagoer."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
1.5/5
|
43%
|
To Rome with Love (2012) |
"
There are four "stories", linked by the fact that they all take place in Rome. None of them are funny, interesting or in the slightest way connected to how real people exist."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
4/5
|
86%
|
Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012) |
"
This movie has to be seen to be believed, and to be believed, it simply has to be seen."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
4.5/5
|
93%
|
Looper (2012) |
"
Intelligent, extremely imaginative, visually stunning and constantly surprising, this is filmmaking of the highest order from Rian Johnson."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
4/5
|
75%
|
Killing Them Softly (2012) |
"
A masterclass in precise, auteurist cinema ... Short, sharp, talky, lean, and almost completely inhabited by men, Killing The Softly is cerebral, nasty, and hugely entertaining."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
85%
|
The Master (2012) |
"
The least accessible of Anderson's films, and the least enjoyable, but it's intelligent and original enough for him to remain a "must-see" director."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
4.5/5
|
92%
|
Skyfall (2012) |
"
I have no compulsion whatsoever in declaring Skyfall, in terms of cinematography, the best looking Bond film ever ... Action movies simply don't look like this - but ... this is no ordinary action movie."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
2.5/5
|
68%
|
God Bless America (2012) |
"
It's an intriguing satirical idea, and it works very effectively in places, while being tremendously didactic and heavy-handed in others."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
2/5
|
81%
|
Pitch Perfect (2012) |
"
Great young actors ... are encouraged to seriously overplay their particular stereotype, which makes the film grating and repetitive ... Obviously green-lit in the wake of Glee, it makes a joke at that show's expense, setting a challenge it fails to win."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
1.5/5
|
12%
|
Red Dawn (2012) |
"
This remake has none of the cultural currency of the original, nor its violence nor campy panache. It is a cowardly, irrelevant thing ... one of those really ill-advised remakes that should never have happened, but at least will be forgotten very quickly."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2012
|
|
|
83%
|
Seven Psychopaths (2012) |
"
Shamelessly rips off Tarantino and is overloaded with self-referential smarminess, but the ending's a cracker and there are some scene-stealing performances. "
—
FILMINK (Australia)
Posted Nov 8, 2012
|
|
|
87%
|
Arbitrage (2012) |
"
Richard Gere is in top form in this smart, layered and thrilling financial drama. "
—
FILMINK (Australia)
Posted Sep 27, 2012
|
|
|
79%
|
Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012) |
"
Genuinely funny and gleefully entertaining, its creators aren't afraid to throw everything they've got at the screen to see what sticks - and a lot of it does. "
—
FILMINK (Australia)
Posted Sep 13, 2012
|
|
1/5
|
22%
|
The Words (2012) |
"
Sometimes you're flabbergasted when very good actors are in very bad films. But no-one sets out to make a bad movie. They just turn out that way. But, seriously, there's no way that the script of The Words could have appeared good to anyone, could it?"
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Sep 8, 2012
|
|
|
74%
|
Hope Springs (2012) |
"
A boring, depressing and inane look into a failing middle class marriage - that is unaided even by the class of its lead stars. "
—
FILMINK (Australia)
Posted Aug 23, 2012
|
|
3.5/5
|
67%
|
Jackpot (Arme Riddere) () |
"
A true "black comedy" if ever there was one."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Aug 15, 2012
|
|
3.5/5
|
64%
|
Cosmopolis (2012) |
"
Hyper-stylised, cold, cerebral, difficult, stylish, at times visually sublime and at times unintentionally humorous, Cosmopolis is David Cronenberg back in Cronenberg Land ... You can't say it's anything other than unique."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Aug 4, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
80%
|
Magic Mike (2012) |
"
What works in the movie are its cast, locale, and unique milieu. We're shown the behind-the-scenes workings ... the same way we become privy to the workings of wrestling in The Wrestler, although it's obviously much, much more fun being a stripper."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jul 30, 2012
|
|
3.5/5
|
100%
|
The King Is Dead () |
"
The King is Dead!, while not as brilliant as Bad Boy Bubby or Alexandra's Project, shares with those films a unique and perverse vision of Australian suburbia ... De Heer's always bold, and here he's bold again. The Independent King is certainly not dead."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jul 24, 2012
|
|
4/5
|
88%
|
The Dark Knight Rises (2012) |
"
Nolan is skirting brave ground applying Batman to what is essentially a 9/11 story, re-framed as an act of domestic terrorism, but he stays on the audience's side by never treating the terror as sensationalistic ... An extremely satisfying conclusion."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jul 19, 2012
|
|
2.5/5
|
58%
|
Hysteria (2012) |
"
It's a tall tale that happens to be true, and, in the right hands, it could be wonderfully funny. I'm not sure that Wexler's were the right hands."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jul 17, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
——
|
The Curse Of The Gothic Symphony () |
"
Extremely similar in theme, structure and tone to last year's Mrs. Carey's Concert, it suffers in comparison to that exquisite film, but it certainly stands alone as a swift, entertaining look at a very particular artistic quest."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jul 17, 2012
|
|
3.5/5
|
40%
|
Tonight You're Mine (2012) |
"
The climax is almost unbearably joyful. Feel-good movie of the year, thus far? Absolutely."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jul 10, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
68%
|
Ted (2012) |
"
What interests MacFarlane is the business of funny, and a talking teddy bear (particularly one with a healthy sex drive) is pretty funny."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jul 5, 2012
|
|
1.5/5
|
73%
|
The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) |
"
Don't believe the marketing: this is the same old boring origin story all over again. Watch Peter Parker get bitten! Watch him discover his spider-powers! Watch him use them on the "school bully" before taking them to the street to fight crime!"
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jun 27, 2012
|
|
4/5
|
89%
|
A Royal Affair (2012) |
"
This gorgeously mounted, exquisitely acted slice of Danish history is, in this age of political polarisation, strangely and depressingly topical. I was certainly enlightened by the history here, which encompasses a Royal Tale of intrigue and passion."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jun 25, 2012
|
|
4/5
|
47%
|
Snow White and the Huntsman (2012) |
"
You could literally cast Harold Pinter's The Homecoming AND The Caretaker with these eight men and run them side by side on the West End to packed houses for years."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jun 23, 2012
|
|
2.5/5
|
41%
|
Rock of Ages (2012) |
"
Two films in one: the good film, which is composed of extremely proficient, highly energetic production numbers (of which there are many), and the clichéd, surprisingly non-energetic other film, which is composed of all the talky bits."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jun 18, 2012
|
|
3.5/5
|
74%
|
Prometheus (2012) |
"
It's not Alien, but very, very few films are. It's exciting, extremely well made and mysterious. It's also, at times, very confusing, difficult to follow, and, bizarrely for a Scott film, has a couple of seriously clunky moments."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jun 8, 2012
|
|
2.5/5
|
22%
|
What to Expect When You're Expecting (2012) |
"
I wasn't expecting how warmly I'd feel towards the characters by the end of the movie - and I certainly wasn't expecting to tear up a little bit during one of the couple's denouements. How in hell did that happen?"
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jun 4, 2012
|
|
3.5/5
|
80%
|
Get the Gringo (2012) |
"
Gibson's character gives a ten year old kid (who becomes a major character, without ever becoming a brat) a cigarette, and the kid lights it up and smokes it. Try getting MGM, Universal, Paramount or Disney to release that. "
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jun 4, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
70%
|
Men in Black III (2012) |
"
Director Barry Sonnenfeld was the cinematographer on Misery, Raising Arizona and Blood Simple - and there is no doubt he has a signature, comedic camera style that works for his material."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jun 1, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
28%
|
Bel Ami (2012) |
"
Adapted from Guy de Maupassant's second novel, published in 1885, Bel Ami is a good film, with some very strong elements, let down rather tremendously by a seriously amiss piece of central casting."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted May 27, 2012
|
|
3.5/5
|
99%
|
Jiro Dreams of Sushi (2012) |
"
It's an interesting exploration of a particular aspect of Japanese culture, which is fathers and sons working together. It's a very likeable film, and sometimes, that's enough. If you're a Japanophile or a sushi nut, you'll likely be in heaven."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted May 22, 2012
|
|
2.5/5
|
57%
|
The Dictator (2012) |
"
The whole love story shackles the movie, forcing it to ultimately and ruinously fit into the strict confines of the rom-com genre, whereas Cohen has always been at his best, like any rubber chicken, when allowed to be free range."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted May 21, 2012
|
|
3.5/5
|
66%
|
The Woman in Black (2012) |
"
It's a good clean, very British romp - the kind of horror movie you could take your mum to. As long as you're not hoping to be scared to death, you'll have a great time, too."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted May 15, 2012
|
|
2/5
|
38%
|
Dark Shadows (2012) |
"
The longer the movie plays, the more disjointed, episodic, and incoherent it becomes. It has no idea what it is."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted May 15, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
36%
|
Iron Sky (2012) |
"
If you like your sci-fi strange, and if you appreciate "little films that can - and do", you just might groove to this. I did."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted May 8, 2012
|
|
4/5
|
93%
|
King of Devil's Island (2011) |
"
The true events on which the film are based are wonderfully stranger than fiction, and by the end of the film I was deeply moved and thrilled by what I had seen."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted May 6, 2012
|
|
5/5
|
72%
|
Wish You Were Here (2013) |
"
It confidently embraces a fractured narrative that ranges across time and between two countries without ever being confusing or obfuscating... Wish You Were Here is deeply excellent on every level it chooses to operate."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted May 3, 2012
|
|
3.5/5
|
92%
|
Marvel's The Avengers (2012) |
"
That director Joss Whedon has put them all in the same movie and made it work at all is no mean feat."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted May 1, 2012
|
|
2/5
|
85%
|
Romantics Anonymous (2011) |
"
If you really like French ambience, this film is drowning in it. But don't expect Amelie or Chocolat. This film is far less witty, charming and moving than those films, no matter how desperately it tries to emulate them."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Apr 29, 2012
|
|
2.5/5
|
86%
|
The Pirates! Band of Misfits (2012) |
"
This is the first time I've gone to an Aardman film and left feeling that there wasn't anything in it for me."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Apr 22, 2012
|
|
1.5/5
|
34%
|
Battleship (2012) |
"
Besides being a blatantly obvious Transformers rip-off, Battleship is essentially explosion porn - a practically endless litany of stuff being blown up, with the destruction of Hong Kong thrown in for good measure."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Apr 22, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
71%
|
Carnage (2011) |
"
Carnage is ... more of a curiosity than a major experience - but it's fun and funny, and sometimes that's enough."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Mar 11, 2012
|
|
5/5
|
99%
|
A Separation (2011) |
"
It's fast paced, exciting, thrilling, edgy, moving, engaging, and - in its portrait of a justice system almost radically alien to the one I live under - absolutely fascinating. "
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Mar 11, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
89%
|
Buck (2011) |
"
It would be a very hard-hearted person indeed who would not warm to the gentle charms of ... this low-key, fondly personal look at one of life's gifted but hardly world-famous personages."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Mar 5, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
51%
|
Contraband (2012) |
"
Kormakur's talent shows itself best when handling the sheer immensity of his props. The freighter and its containers are used to great effect, their sheer weight and bulk providing action scenes that are highly unusual and innovative."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Mar 5, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
84%
|
My Week with Marilyn (2011) |
"
Michelle Williams is astonishingly good as Marilyn Monroe in My Week With Marilyn. It's a great shame the film itself can't equal the brilliance of Williams' performance."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Feb 27, 2012
|
|
4/5
|
79%
|
The Grey (2012) |
"
The Grey features some astonishing sequences, spectacular cinematography, excellent performances and heartfelt ruminations on mortality, faith, masculinity, hope, family and existence. It also has really really cool wolves."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Feb 27, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
85%
|
Chronicle (2012) |
"
There is no denying its originality, commitment, and sheer entertainment value."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Feb 27, 2012
|
|
4/5
|
79%
|
Shame (2011) |
"
It is hard not to use an excess of superlatives for Shame, and it is impossible to avoid the chestnut "it won't be for everybody". It's dark, even brutal, and it makes you examine parts of your own psyche that you might not love to dwell on."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Feb 27, 2012
|
|
3/5
|
98%
|
The Artist (2011) |
"
An occasion when style really does triumph over substance."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Feb 27, 2012
|
|
4/5
|
96%
|
The Muppets (2011) |
"
The new muppet movie, written by Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller, is a total delight. Any fears that the muppets may have been unwisely thrust into something that is outside of their inherent character can be safely allayed."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 22, 2011
|
|
3.5/5
|
75%
|
The Adventures of Tintin (2011) |
"
If, like me and countless millions, Tintin kind of was your childhood, then this film will no doubt have already created a kind of panic within you: what if they screw it up? They haven't, so don't worry."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 22, 2011
|
|
3/5
|
43%
|
J. Edgar (2011) |
"
J. Edgar is a love story. The fact that one of the lovers is someone you wouldn't want at your dinner table means that the film is handsome, well crafted, but not nearly as involving as it might have been."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 14, 2011
|
|
4/5
|
99%
|
Bill Cunningham New York (2011) |
"
Don't worry if you've never heard of Bill Cunningham. This delightful documentary is all about getting to know the man - and he's a major, fascinating character."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 14, 2011
|
|
1/5
|
3%
|
Jack and Jill (2011) |
"
How much did they pay Pacino to do this? Four million dollars? Ten million? Who knows. But let's be very clear straight up: this is not Pacino's Being John Malkovich."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 7, 2011
|
|
3/5
|
91%
|
Arthur Christmas (2011) |
"
There are things you just wouldn't see in a Pixar or Disney movie. For example, one of the main elves has an eyebrow piercing, uncommented on. Even more than that: two of the boy elves kiss... each other. It's progressive."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 7, 2011
|
|
4/5
|
90%
|
Attack the Block (2011) |
"
Fighting aliens with these diverse, street-smart, slang-slinging little criminals is all the more fun for fighting them in the Block: a fantastic funhouse of a battlefield, providing plenty of room for extremely witty and well-shot action sequences. "
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Dec 4, 2011
|
|
3/5
|
85%
|
The Ides of March (2011) |
"
I'm so convinced that Clooney will eventually make his Huge, Important Film About American Politics that it's odd to me he's made this one: his small, entertaining film about American politics."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Nov 23, 2011
|
|
3/5
|
76%
|
We Need to Talk About Kevin (2012) |
"
Don't see it if you're pregnant. Seriously."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Nov 23, 2011
|
|
4/5
|
82%
|
Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) |
"
If the concept of the film doesn't interest you, I reckon you should take a punt: you'll be very nicely surprised at just how good it is."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Aug 11, 2011
|
|
4.5/5
|
81%
|
Red Dog (2012) |
"
I was immensely moved by "Red Dog", and I can't picture a movie-goer who won't be. It's wonderful."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Aug 11, 2011
|
|
4/5
|
72%
|
Hanna (2011) |
"
The entire thing - the whole weight of the movie - rests on the remarkable abilities of Saoirse Ronan ... she's an exceptional actor. She's one of a kind."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Aug 3, 2011
|
|
3.5/5
|
84%
|
Tucker & Dale vs Evil (2011) |
"
Has way more than the average serving of laughs out loud, and even has a few of those laughs that go on and on, that hurt your gut."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Aug 3, 2011
|
|
1.5/5
|
44%
|
Bad Teacher (2011) |
"
Weirdly ill-conceived. Diaz is good and very believable as ... the most dislikable character I've encountered in a film in a long time ... [which] makes for a lousy movie."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jul 27, 2011
|
|
4/5
|
96%
|
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 (2011) |
"
This is a massive, tentpole, franchise movie with impeccable good taste -- its most essential, surprising and exhilarating ingredient."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jul 20, 2011
|
|
2.5/5
|
74%
|
The Human Resources Manager (2011) |
"
The long, long journey that makes up the bulk of the film is bizarrely undramatic."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jul 13, 2011
|
|
2/5
|
41%
|
Special Treatment (2011) |
"
The tag line for the advertising campaign is bold: 'A film that dares to tell the truth about women.' I, unfortunately, missed whatever truth that was."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jul 13, 2011
|
|
3.5/5
|
85%
|
Meek's Cutoff (2011) |
"
Kelly Reichardt's extremely modest film is slow, but it is also intriguing, moving and meaningful."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jul 13, 2011
|
|
1.5/5
|
84%
|
The Tree of Life (2011) |
"
It feels like Malick made the film for himself, rather than for an audience."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jul 6, 2011
|
|
3/5
|
89%
|
The Trip (2011) |
"
Your enjoyment of the film rests entirely on enjoying the company of Coogan and Brydon. I find the duo extremely talented and funny, and many sequences in the film are very, very, funny indeed."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jun 30, 2011
|
|
2.5/5
|
81%
|
Kung Fu Panda 2 (2011) |
"
Go for a beer in the middle forty minutes; come back refreshed for the ... [final] extraordinary battle sequence."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jun 29, 2011
|
|
2 1/2
|
87%
|
X-Men: First Class (2011) |
"
January Jones ... in a James-Bond-style white catsuit, probably sums up the tone of the film as it should have been the whole way through. "
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jun 22, 2011
|
|
4/5
|
82%
|
Super 8 (2011) |
"
If Super 8 isn't as moving as ET, as mysterious as Close Encounters, or as exciting as Raiders, it has heart, humour and sheer storytelling panache in spades."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jun 22, 2011
|
|
4/5
|
88%
|
Cane Toads: The Conquest (2012) |
"
[Lewis'] art is all his own: no-one else shoots ugly amphibious imported pests in 3D quite like him."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jun 22, 2011
|
|
3/5
|
55%
|
Blame (2010) |
"
It's essentially well acted, beautifully shot, and the script has enough propulsion to sustain its very modest eighty-eight minutes. "
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jun 22, 2011
|
|
4/5
|
48%
|
Sleeping Beauty (2011) |
"
Sleeping Beauty is some kind of masterpiece ... enormously rich, complex, and great food for thought."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Jun 22, 2011
|
|
4.5/5
|
86%
|
The Snowtown Murders (2012) |
"
Definitely, and defiantly, Australia's Next Great Film, and the scariest it has ever produced."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted May 20, 2011
|
|
3.5/5
|
77%
|
Thor (2011) |
"
Take an eight year old boy with you to increase your chances of a rollicking, if more-than usually ridiculous, time."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted May 6, 2011
|
|
3/5
|
71%
|
Never Let Me Go (2010) |
"
It is a downer -- a heavy downer -- there's absolutely no denying that. I recommend it highly, but not if you're looking at something light to cheer you up."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Mar 30, 2011
|
|
5/5
|
77%
|
In A Better World (2011) |
"
In A Better World won this year's Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film -- the most obviously deserving award of the night. Completely, unquestionably recommended."
—
ABC Radio (Australia)
Posted Mar 30, 2011
|
