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Poor Things
(2023)
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Katie Smith-Wong
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For a film laced with body horror, hedonism and chauvinism, Poor Things is often hilarious.
Posted Dec 05, 2023
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Wonka
(2023)
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Rory Doherty
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This character was defined by turning cold on the one thing he loves most, because of industry, the same forces that are now making a cinematic universe out of his creator.
Posted Dec 04, 2023
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The Eight Mountains
(2022)
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Luke Buckmaster
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a film that extends the concepts of mountains into symbolic spaces: they double as things in life that are large and looming, but cannot necessarily be returned to
Posted Dec 01, 2023
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The Exorcist: Believer
(2023)
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David Michael Brown
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Sacrilegious to the original and apparently the first of a proposed trilogy, it will be hard to keep faith beyond this lacklustre entry.
Posted Nov 28, 2023
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Silent Night
(2023)
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Luke Buckmaster
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One might expect Woo to crank up the immersive elements of his soundtrack in compensation for the lack of spoken words. But he does something more interesting: hollows the soundspace out, makes it feel tinny and sparse.
Posted Nov 28, 2023
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Next Goal Wins
(2023)
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Adam Fresco
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Does provide some cheery, if predictable, family viewing, but it lacks originality and that certain special spark that made the director’s earlier films, such as Boy, so delightfully, laugh-out-loud funny.
Posted Nov 27, 2023
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Napoleon
(2023)
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Luke Buckmaster
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Neither elegantly staged nor frenetic; you won’t come away from it with your spine tingled, or wooed by balleticism and choreography.
Posted Nov 24, 2023
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Saltburn
(2023)
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Cat Woods
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Fennell definitely adds a potent dose of (very, very) dark humour into Saltburn.
Posted Nov 14, 2023
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Dream Scenario
(2023)
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Rory Doherty
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In one of his strongest performances ever, Nicolas Cage emboldens not just Dream Scenario’s heightened, surreal edge, but its deeply distressing drama too.
Posted Nov 07, 2023
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When Evil Lurks
(2023)
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Steve Newall
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After having two thrilling viewings of Demián Rugna’s chilling, gory and incredibly tense tale of demonic possession, the odds are stacked against a stronger horror presenting itself in 2023.
Posted Oct 30, 2023
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The Killer
(2023)
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Stephen A. Russell
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Fassbender, marking a welcome return after a four-year time-out, of course, is key. A remarkable presence, he’s able to grip our attention, often single-handedly.
Posted Oct 27, 2023
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Foe
(2023)
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Cat Woods
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Not since 2015’s By the Sea have we seen such an epic waste of acting talent in what could, and should, have been a captivating portrait of a marriage in disintegration. Foe is tedious.
Posted Oct 27, 2023
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Dumb Money
(2023)
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Liam Maguren
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You can’t help but feel there was a great movie brewing that got chucked off the boil.
Posted Oct 27, 2023
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Suitable Flesh
(2023)
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Matt Glasby
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An expert pastiche: gory, horny and gleefully OTT.
Posted Oct 27, 2023
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Jules
(2023)
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Adam Fresco
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Unashamedly sentimental, with a plot as ridiculous as that garish hairdo, Jules underneath it all is that rarest of modern movies: a heartwarming tale about people of a certain age finding comfort, community, and companionship in one another.
Posted Oct 25, 2023
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Fair Play
(2023)
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Katie Parker
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Luke might not mind a bit of period sex, but seeing his fiancé as his professional superior? Now that’s a boner-killer.
Posted Oct 09, 2023
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Totally Killer
(2023)
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David Michael Brown
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Behind the grue and the gags, this faux ’80s slasher is surprisingly knowing and intelligent in its characterisation. When was the last time you heard Michael Myers or Jason Voorhees talk about the space-time continuum and the Mandela Effect?
Posted Oct 03, 2023
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Reptile
(2023)
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Luke Buckmaster
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A very absorbing whodunnit procedural assembled with cooly unnerving aplomb, like a David Fincher thriller.
Posted Oct 03, 2023
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Stylebender
(2023)
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Liam Maguren
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Stylebender tells a good story about a fighter becoming a champion but it’s a downright fantastic film about a man reconciling with his internal rage - anger turns into fuel, then becomes an addiction, but always takes a mental toll
Posted Sep 28, 2023
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The Creator
(2023)
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Tony Stamp
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It’s hard not to be impressed with the sci-fi spectacle of it all. The film itself though is a slog, overly grim and sloppily assembled, a whiff no matter how good it looks.
Posted Sep 27, 2023
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Alcarràs
(2022)
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Travis Johnson
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Simón has created a film that splits the difference between poetry and documentary.
Posted Sep 21, 2023
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Carmen
(2022)
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Travis Johnson
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Opera fans will not be happy with the liberties Millepied has taken with the material. And those with a taste for more provocative and iconoclastic fare? Sadly, they’re out of luck too.
Posted Sep 21, 2023
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A Haunting in Venice
(2023)
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Eliza Janssen
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Despite some genre-hesitant stuffiness, A Haunting In Venice still feels more substantial than the other two Poirot adaptations. There are enough nifty little clues that lock into a satisfying bigger picture, and Poirot’s arc gives the film momentum.
Posted Sep 13, 2023
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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
(2023)
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Luke Buckmaster
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I dig its bold look and wished some of that boldness was brought to the writer’s room. The film feels too polished, too calibrated, too arranged.
Posted Sep 12, 2023
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The Nun II
(2023)
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Eliza Janssen
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The Nun II redeems its less-than-divine predecessor, and is packed with plenty of solidly spooky, memorable moments.
Posted Sep 07, 2023
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Priscilla
(2023)
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Rory Doherty
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With her finest work in over fifteen years, Sofia Coppola sensitively reapproaches girlhood without sacrificing the emotional rawness behind a tremendously famous love story.
Posted Sep 05, 2023
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Theater Camp
(2023)
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Amelia Berry
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Surprisingly good. Shockingly good, even. Life-affirming and joyful without ever being twee, cutting and satirical without ever being cruel—if there was ever a worthy successor to Guffman, Best in Show, and A Mighty Wind, then Theater Camp is it.
Posted Sep 04, 2023
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Maestro
(2023)
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Rory Doherty
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Moving, carefully crafted, and sometimes frustrating version of Bernstein’s booming highs and intimate lows. It's Cooper’s direction and Matthew Libatique’s cinematography that stand out most boldly.
Posted Sep 03, 2023
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The Equalizer 3
(2023)
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Daniel Rutledge
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As much as I liked the first two Equalizer movies and the similar Man on Fire, the whole-hearted leap this one takes toward exploitation cinema is super pleasing.
Posted Aug 31, 2023
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Past Lives
(2023)
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Aaron Yap
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It’s quite the remarkable first film for Song, who brings a tender, elegant economy to her storytelling that doesn’t quite prepare you for how much it’ll wipe you out at the closing stretch. This one aches really good, folks. I can’t shake it.
Posted Aug 31, 2023
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Sympathy for the Devil
(2023)
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Luke Buckmaster
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Cage is unhinged and off his trolley (we wouldn’t want it any other way) but keeps eerily calm, or at least eerily repressed, for a lot of it, concealing his psychotic insides and biding his time.
Posted Aug 30, 2023
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The Truman Show
(1998)
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Luke Buckmaster
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Thinking about The Truman Show in 2023, it’s clear the film—marvellously written by Andrew Niccol—was ahead of its time in some respects and doomed to be quickly dated in others.
Posted Aug 30, 2023
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Ego: The Michael Gudinski Story
(2023)
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Amelia Berry
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At its heart, a story of Australian ingenuity - a lone determined figure who turned a culture obsessed with “Imported cars. Imported clothes. Imported music” into one that celebrated homegrown talent.
Posted Aug 24, 2023
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Sorcery
(2023)
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Stephen A. Russell
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Seething with righteous fury burning bright below its meditative pace, it casts a ferociously powerful spell.
Posted Aug 21, 2023
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Tótem
(2023)
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Stephen A. Russell
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Eliciting remarkable performances from its youngest star all the way up to its eldest, it thrums with humanity and will leave you desperate to fall into the arms of your own when the credits roll.
Posted Aug 21, 2023
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Strays
(2023)
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Cat Woods
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A significantly more sweary, lewd and hilarious canine adventure than anything Disney could dream up. If you can imagine Bill & Ted as a scruffy terrier and a delinquent Boston Terrier, you’re on the money.
Posted Aug 16, 2023
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Gran Turismo: Based on a True Story
(2023)
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Rory Doherty
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Between Blomkamp edging back towards the mainstream, a selection of impressive work from new and established actors, and the subtitle “based on a true story” actually delivering genuine enjoyment, there’s enough in Gran Turismo that deserves attention.
Posted Aug 08, 2023
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Meg 2: The Trench
(2023)
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David Michael Brown
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So gutless it’s difficult to fathom why Wheatley signed up for this fishy fiasco in the first place.
Posted Aug 03, 2023
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Chevalier
(2022)
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Eliza Janssen
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Even if it does skew a little towards TV miniseries broadness, Chevalier is rousing in all the right places, and at the very least serves as a welcome introduction to a forgotten musical legend.
Posted Aug 02, 2023
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Talk to Me
(2023)
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Eliza Janssen
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It might’ve been slightly oversold to horrorheads as a new height of never-before-seen terror, but at its best, Talk To Me still packs a grisly, dread-inducing impact.
Posted Aug 01, 2023
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Oppenheimer
(2023)
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Luke Buckmaster
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It’s laughable to suggest Oppenheimer and Strauss’ moral crimes are comparable, but Nolan goes further than that: emphasising the latter’s chicanery in highlighter pen while the protagonist receives the soft glows of nuance.
Posted Jul 20, 2023
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Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning, Part One
(2023)
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Luke Buckmaster
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Movie publicity departments love hyperbolic turns of phrase like “Ethan Hunt’s greatest adversary.” And yet for once a line like that feels justified.
Posted Jul 11, 2023
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Wham!
(2023)
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Steve Newall
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Wham!’s story may have been told many, many times, but there’s still something infectious about revisiting (or discovering) the pair’s enthusiasm as kids and where their DIY bedroom pop project ended up taking them.
Posted Jul 07, 2023
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Joy Ride
(2023)
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Cat Woods
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Is it just for women? Is it just for the Asian diaspora? Hell, no.
Posted Jul 05, 2023
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Run Rabbit Run
(2023)
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Eliza Janssen
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Just one of Shiv’s frosty, cunning glances is more scary and original than anything Run Rabbit Run has to offer.
Posted Jun 29, 2023
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You Hurt My Feelings
(2023)
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Cat Woods
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Holofcener is not a director who wants her audience on the edge of their seats. Rather, she’s an expert at making audiences wriggle uncomfortably in those seats, inadvertently questioning our own motivations and intentions.
Posted Jun 23, 2023
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Pretty Red Dress
(2022)
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Lillian Crawford
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For all its flaws, Pretty Red Dress is a promising feature debut from Edwards, who with a clearer sense of vision can clearly weave together complex themes without losing their nuance.
Posted Jun 20, 2023
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Past Lives
(2023)
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Stephen A. Russell
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A deeply emotionally mature film in which happily ever after isn’t guaranteed. Majestic.
Posted Jun 20, 2023
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Anatomy of a Fall
(2023)
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Stephen A. Russell
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Hüller is on fire, Snoop the dog deserves equal adulation, and you’ll be debating what really went down in the foyer for hours.
Posted Jun 20, 2023
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Perfect Days
(2023)
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Stephen A. Russell
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A sublime film about finding your own way, it’s a feast of slow cinema for the soul.
Posted Jun 20, 2023
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