A con man tries to fleece a widow; but there’s more here than meets the eye. A crime caper and a dramatic thriller, The Good Liar stars two of the UK’s best known and most beloved actors – Helen Mirren and Ian McKellan. Consummate swindler Roy Courtnay (McKellen) has set his sights on his latest…
Timothy Spall looks nothing like most of the characters he’s played – and yet like all of them. The acclaimed actor is stylishly dressed, even sporting a light jacket despite the oppressive heat outside. He’s a man who seems comfortable in his own skin. Polite and thoughtful, he’s very much the image of a leading…
François Ozon is one of France’s leading filmmakers. His movies typically involve characters caught up in circumstances beyond their control, and often feature a clever twist (see, for example, his early Swimming Pool; or his more recent In the House). In By the Grace of God, Ozon strays from his usual style and into an…
Martha: A Picture Story Martha Cooper’s aim was to become a National Geographic photographer. Instead, at 76 years young, she’s revered for her photographing street art (or graffiti). In the 1970s, as the boroughs of New York City burned, Cooper worked as a photographer for the New York Post. She looked for images of creativity…
Quick test – who was L. S. Lowry? If you’ve got no idea, I suspect you’re not alone. Lowry went from obscurity in the suburbs of Manchester to become one of the most revered British artists of the 20th Century. Director Adrian Noble explores the artist’s life in microcosm in Mrs Lowry and Son. Lowry…
One of the great whodunnits, Knives Out has a whip-smart script, a stellar cast and a delicious tongue-in-cheek humour. When wealthy crime novelist Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer) dies at his estate, the police begin probing. But someone mysteriously also engages debonair Detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) to investigate. The cops and Blanc begin questioning the…
An epic adventure and love story featuring the key voice talent from the original mega-success (2013), Frozen II is a strong follow-up. If Frozen ended with happily ever after, this is effectively the day after happily ever after, when life gets in the way. All appears ship-shape in the kingdom of Arendelle, with Elsa (Idina…
After seeing this doco, I fell in love with Suzi Quatro all over again. Growing up she was the “it” girl for me – this sexy, dynamic bass player and singer with that gravelly voice … all dressed in leather. I loved songs like “Devil Gate Drive”, “48 Crash”, “The Wild One”, “Stumblin’ In” and…
Brian Kirk’s 21 Bridges is a predictable procedural broken into two parts – one involving a big haul of drugs and cop killers, and the other corrupt police. The script by Adam Mervis and Matthew Michael Carnahan (World War Z) is nothing we haven’t seen many times before. The only interest is how it reaches…
Judy and Punch is a real mixed bag. This Australian production from actor-turned-director Mirrah Foulkes is something of a breakthrough for the local industry. It proves Australian cinema can be more than just sunshine, beaches and gritty dramas. But its wildly uneven tone and confronting themes will test audiences’ patience. Domestic violence presents a huge…
