These two documentaries opened on 31 October 2019 in limited release. Both are worth searching out. Happy Sad Man An empathetic look at a number of ordinary Australians struggling with mental health issues, Happy Sad Man is a beautifully composed and moving documentary. The focus is on five men aged from their 30s to 70s,…
The 6th British Film Festival is the biggest yet. Running across seven cities (most until 24th November, 2019) and 19 cinemas, it showcases 30 films, including 16 Australian premieres. Below are reviews of some of those premieres. To download the program, for more information and bookings, go to www.britishfilmfestival.com.au Official Secrets (MA) – 112 minutes…
Well, there’s always the “Disappointment of the year” award. I’m afraid this year Little Monsters will take this. I had regained confidence in the combination of horror and comedy after watching Monster Party and The Dead Don’t Die. I’ve always had a problem with it when moviemakers mix these two genres. But these last two…
I lost track of the Terminator franchise long ago. I think it was after Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003). And since that film logically tied off the loose ends, I was comfortable with it finishing there. But then we had the weak and divergent Terminator Salvation (2009) and Terminator Genisys (2015). I’d stopped…
Balloon tells the true story of two East German families’ escape to the West a decade before the Wall was torn down. It’s a tense and dramatic film, with moments of melodrama. We’re in the summer of 1979. The Strelzyks and Wetzels have been working on an audacious plan for more than two years. They…
We’ve all had that thought – “This year, my resolution is to get fit and do a fun run / marathon / triathlon / insert sporting achievement here”. Usually it lasts until the end of January, maybe mid-February and then we slump back into our old lazy habits before Easter rolls around. Brittany Runs a…
I wept tears of joy watching Ron Howard’s stellar documentary charting the life of one of the greatest operatic tenors to have blessed the planet. Including never before publicly seen photos and footage, Pavarotti is insightful and compelling. The music icon sold more than 100 million records in his lifetime. Dubbed “The People’s Tenor”, Pavarotti…
American remakes of European movies perhaps don’t have the best track record. But Bart Freundlich’s After the Wedding – a re-working of Susanne Bier’s 2006 Danish film of the same title* – mostly succeeds thanks to some clever writing, sharp direction and fine acting. The action is transplanted from Copenhagen to New York; but the…
We’ve all heard the adage “family first”, but this is ridiculous! Every time a person marries into this wealthy and secretive family … at midnight they have to play a game. That is a time-honoured tradition that can’t be broken. You see, this clan made its money off the back of board games. The new…
As a filmmaking culture, Australia has a lot of people with great ideas. But small budgets and stingy government funding mean sometimes those ideas aren’t fully realised. And sadly, Promised is one of those. Writer-director Nick Condi’s somewhat unconventional family drama is apparently based on a true story, but its heart gets lost in a…
