|
60%
|
Broken (2013)
|
"It is a sad viewing experience, but never a pessimistic one. Skunk's world is full of love; whatever fractured form it may take, Broken always returns to that enriching notion."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
80%
|
The Boxer (1997)
|
"An intelligent, provocative piece of cinema, with something quite bold to say in the Irish context."
|
David Stratton
|
|
60%
|
Drift (2013)
|
"The film could very easily have devolved into a cornball family drama/sports soap opera, but it remains both steadfastly likable and quietly compelling throughout."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
96%
|
Chasing Ice (2012)
|
"Less a didactic 'message-movie' than a study of one man's steely determination, the debut helmer directs with a sure hand and no-frills aesthetic. "
|
Simon Foster
|
|
——
|
Drug War (Du Zhan) ()
|
"Drug War is an absorbing, exciting film, and the work of a profoundly assured craftsman."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
65%
|
Antiviral (2013)
|
"As a piss-take of society's shallow fascination with Kardashian-like nobodies, Antiviral is coolly effective, but there's little insight into the psychology that drives normal people to fixate on such 'celebrities'. "
|
Simon Foster
|
|
44%
|
Thale (2013)
|
"There is a great deal of humour in the story; the message that 'man is the real savage' is not fresh but it's well played by the director and his leading men."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
38%
|
Blue Like Jazz (2012)
|
"Blue Like Jazz certainly breaks the mould in terms what audiences have come to expect from spiritual cinema, but it refuses to take the necessary leap required to fully redefine mainstream audiences' perception of this niche genre."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
——
|
Crave ()
|
"Putting aside the nagging sensation that you may have seen this type of character study before, Crave proves to be an impressive career-maker for all involved. "
|
Simon Foster
|
|
——
|
Himmatwala (2013)
|
"As grotesque and garish a spectacle as I've seen in quite some time, this Hindi remake of a coarse and unremarkable hit comedy from 1983 is cringe-worthy and puerile."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
——
|
Saving General Yang (2013)
|
"Bloody tale of honour, revenge and sacrifice intermittently hits the target"
|
Don Groves
|
|
73%
|
Chained (2012)
|
"Lynch...presents nuanced, sepia-tinged menace with a clear and determined eye. "
|
Simon Foster
|
|
68%
|
Trance (2013)
|
"Kinetic thriller about hypnosis is irritatingly befuddling, not mesmerising"
|
Don Groves
|
|
——
|
Reverse Runner ()
|
"Given that the past 12 months of Australian big-screen comedy has been arguably its direst ever, the amiably silly low-budgeter Reverse Runner comes as somewhat of a revelation."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
66%
|
Mama (2013)
|
"There are lots of shocks but no real surprises in Andres Muschietti's Mama, a grimy, unpleasant Canadian-Spanish co-production from the stable of Guillermo del Toro. "
|
Simon Foster
|
|
——
|
Mt. Zion ()
|
"Mt. Zion, a likeable drama from writer director Tearepa Kahi, cleaves closely to this ancient coming-of-age parable about how the quest for showbiz success can corrupt the innocent. "
|
Peter Galvin
|
|
79%
|
A Late Quartet (2012)
|
"Superb acting adds weight to scenes involving infidelity, illness and ego, but those elements also read like some standard soap-opera button-pushing."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
——
|
The Attacks Of 26/11 (2013)
|
"A better film might have proved cathartic to a reeling nation; The Attacks of 26/11 just adds insult to the injury. "
|
Simon Foster
|
|
90%
|
The Immortal Story (1968)
|
"The Immortal Story is, in part, concerned with the very nature of storytelling, something that Welles was fascinated with his whole life."
|
Peter Galvin
|
|
68%
|
Great Expectations (2013)
|
"Remaking a literary and cinema classic can be a Dickens of a job. "
|
Don Groves
|
|
——
|
I, Me Aur Main (2013)
|
"Sharma and screenwriter Devika Bhagat refuse to lay the blame for the lead character's flaws at his own feet, thereby undermining the arc that allows for his redemption (however meagre it may be). "
|
Simon Foster
|
|
——
|
Kadal (2013)
|
"The richness of his vision suggests that the 57-year-old Ratnam...was invigorated by the energies of his young cast and the thematic opportunities of Kadal's classic good vs. evil premise. "
|
Simon Foster
|
|
——
|
Un bonheur n'arrive jamais seul ()
|
"Cynics may groan at the inherent clichés, but cast and crew pull off familiar situations with gentle laughs and a winning sentiment."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
38%
|
Save Your Legs ()
|
"Tame Aussie bromantic comedy pushes no boundaries."
|
Don Groves
|
|
70%
|
The Loneliest Planet (2012)
|
"An elliptical, often baffling relationships drama about trust and reconciliation"
|
Don Groves
|
|
89%
|
Roman Polanski: A Film Memoir ()
|
"What rises to the surface and sparkles are Polanski's gifts as a raconteur, his fierce intelligence and his guile. "
|
Peter Galvin
|
|
——
|
Bye Bye Blondie ()
|
"Writer/director Virginie Despentes delivers a sweet, if slight, mature-age love story with Bye Bye Blondie, exhibiting considerable growth as a filmmaker since her maddeningly-overrated debut shocker Baise-Moi (2000)."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
0%
|
Blinder ()
|
"Australian footy-themed melodrama fumbles, kicks few goals. "
|
Don Groves
|
|
——
|
Bienvenue parmi nous (Welcome Abroad) ()
|
"Two lost, wounded souls repair their lives in affecting dramedy"
|
Don Groves
|
|
95%
|
West of Memphis (2012)
|
"Somewhere along this narrative's mammoth timeline, examining the construction of modern social heroes became more important than the memories of three little boys."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
46%
|
The Sweeney (2013)
|
"There's plenty of muscle in Nick Love's bloody, boys' own adventure, but not much suspense and next to no logic."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
64%
|
Anna Karenina (2012)
|
"Passion overwhelmed by heavily stylised theatrics."
|
Don Groves
|
|
78%
|
Flight (2012)
|
"Washington's layered, nuanced take on the anguish and blindly self-destructive spiral of Whittaker is some of the actor's best work."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
88%
|
Django Unchained (2012)
|
"Impolitic though it might be to suggest it, there's something extremely satisfying about the violence here-though, for my money, it resides less in seeing these racist thugs get their comeuppance, than in the director's staging of it."
|
Shane Danielsen
|
|
81%
|
The Impossible (2012)
|
"South East Asian tsunami survival saga is a test of endurance"
|
Don Groves
|
|
93%
|
Zero Dark Thirty (2013)
|
"Crackerjack thriller brilliantly chronicles the 10-year countdown to capturing bin Laden. "
|
Don Groves
|
|
46%
|
Beyond The Black Rainbow (2012)
|
"Audiences who appreciate oddball first efforts from talents such as Lynch (Eraserhead), Cronenberg (Shivers) and Jeunet (Delicatessen) will be thankful. "
|
Simon Foster
|
|
92%
|
Farewell, My Queen (2012)
|
"The complex triangle at the dark heart of his film, set against the surging social change of a nation, makes for both a superb historical epic and a compelling human drama."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
33%
|
Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola (2013)
|
"A technically proficient widescreen opus that shifts, jarringly, between a generic love-triangle rom-com, a farcical political black comedy and a preachy message-movie. Some fragmented images and well-played moments leave an impact; most don't."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
——
|
Table No. 21 (2013)
|
"It is not without some well-staged dramatics and the Fijian Tourism Board would be thrilled with the coverage, but Table No 21 is just a too over-the-top in its histrionics and downright silly in its plotting to offer any lingering impact. "
|
Simon Foster
|
|
——
|
The Guillotines (2013)
|
"Clearly a commentary on the shifting status of rule in modern day China, the prolific Lau's latest is nevertheless an obtuse work that buries much of its subtext and historical relevance beneath overstated dramatics and cacophonous staging."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
63%
|
Hitchcock (2012)
|
"Highlighted by two strong leads and solid support work but hamstrung by a low-budget sense of period and some soapy dramatics."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
51%
|
Trouble with the Curve (2012)
|
"Watching this film (agonisingly protracted at almost two hours) is a little like spending time with an curmudgeonly uncle you hate visiting."
|
Shane Danielsen
|
|
49%
|
The Man With the Iron Fists (2012)
|
"The Man with the Iron Fists is as limp as last week's wet noodles."
|
Russell Edwards
|
|
44%
|
Habibi Rasak Kharban (Habibi) (2012)
|
"It is an impressive first effort by Yousef."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
69%
|
Liberal Arts (2012)
|
"Learning life's lessons is a bittersweet experience in Josh Radnor's appealing film"
|
Don Groves
|
|
73%
|
Love Is All You Need (2013)
|
"An appealing comic romance for and about folks of a certain age."
|
Don Groves
|
|
——
|
Love Story ()
|
"Minor shortcomings aside, Love Story is a winning blend of soft-hearted cinematic romance and doco-style human insight."
|
Simon Foster
|
|
94%
|
Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has To Travel (2012)
|
"This pleasurable documentary is jammed packed with images from magazines, photoshoots and newsreels of a life well lived, but also lots of historical footage of the life Vreeland imagined she had too."
|
Russell Edwards
|
|
65%
|
2 Days in New York (2012)
|
"Episodic and sluggishly paced, 2 Days in New York has no drive and no story tension and for some that won't matter since the film's manic energy seems to derive from the fact that everyone here talks fast and loud and often..."
|
Peter Galvin
|
75%
22%
67%
85%
46%
40%
