fbpx

Remembrance Day movies – movie review

Journey’s End The true horrors of war feature in the somber WWI film, Journey’s End. The movies tells the story of a company led by the war-weary Captain Stanhope (Sam Claflin), waiting to take its turn in the front-line trenches in northern France. A German offensive is imminent and the officers (played by Paul Bettany,…

Read More

Boy Erased – movie review

Watching Boy Erased is hard work. It’s a downbeat look at a religious doctrine absolutely committed to outlawing homosexuality. You pity the poor souls who face indoctrination aimed at exorcising what is regarded as a vile sin. Boy Erased tells the true story of Jared Eamons (Lucas Hedges), the son of a Baptist pastor in…

Read More

Suspiria – movie review

As the director of delicate human dramas like Call Me by Your Name, Luca Guadagnino probably wasn’t the obvious choice to direct a remake of Dario Argento’s blood-spattered cult favourite, Suspiria (1977). But that’s exactly what he’s done and the results are impressive. Guadagnino hasn’t gone for a straight remake. This is a marked departure…

Read More

Fahrenheit 11/9 – movie review

Michael Moore (Bowling for Columbine) is back as he turns his attention to examining Donald Trump’s election win on November 9, 2016 (that’s 11/9 in American parlance). Moore travels across America to get a sense of the social, economic and political impact of the Trump presidency amidst the chaos of the new administration’s provocative tweets,…

Read More

Hunter Killer – movie review

Rah-rah! American heroes save the world from destruction in Hunter Killer. A hunter-killer is a vessel, especially a submarine, equipped to locate and destroy enemy vessels, including other submarines. Deep beneath the icy surface of the Arctic Circle, the Cold War never really ended. Here, at extreme depths invisible to the rest of the world,…

Read More

Wildlife – movie review

Masterfully constructed, Wildlife is an independent film with real bite. It plays out as a tripartite coming-of-age story. It’s small town America – Montana – in the 1960s. Joe Brinson (Ed Oxenbould) is 14 years of age. His parents – Jeanette (Carey Mulligan) and Jerry (Jake Gyllenhaal) – are about to face a major shift…

Read More

Backtrack Boys – movie review

The inspiring and humane documentary Backtrack Boys shows that there are very real and effective alternatives to juvenile detention in helping turn around the lives of troubled teenagers. In the northern NSW town of Armidale, jackaroo Bernie Shakeshaft has established a community-based organisation called Backtrack, which works with troubled boys who are on the path…

Read More