Ghosts of old Hollywood and demons of contemporary life both hang heavy over David Fincher’s Mank. This ostensible biopic of Citizen Kane screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz does a great job of exploring a troubled character struggling with his problems and his art. But it also delves into what Fincher sees as the root of America’s…
Following a whirlwind romance in Monte Carlo, a naïve unnamed young woman (Lily James) is swept off her feet by the handsome and debonair and recently widowed Maxim De Winter (Armie Hammer) and marries him. She is whisked off to Manderley, his imposing ancestral mansion on the windswept English coast. But far from an idyllic…
Something is not quite right with talented artist Rosalind (Olga Kurylenko) in Paula van der Oest’s The Bay of Silence. One minute the mother of young twin daughters is exuberant and full of life. The next, she’s sullen and suspicious. She sleepwalks and claws at the walls. Then she meets and falls for Will (Claes…
Marie Curie is one of those people. Most of us have a vague idea about her, but her real genius remains elusive. Marjane Satrapi’s (Persepolis) handsome but slightly awkward Radioactive paints a fuller – if generally deferential – picture of the groundbreaking scientist. Lauren Redniss provides the source material via her “visual non-fiction*” book, Radioactive:…
Presented by Palace, the British Film Festival will screen from 10 November in Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra and Byron Bay at reduced capacity and late November in Melbourne, when restrictions permit. The British Film Festival celebrates the finest filmmakers and acting talent British cinema has to offer and the 2020 program features some of…
John Hyams’ psychological thriller Alone has twists aplenty. This two-hander set in the Pacific Northwest kept me engaged throughout. Six months ago, Jessica (Jules Willcox) lost her husband in tragic circumstances. Now she’s decided to move away. Her parents were going to help her pack, but she decided to do it alone and avoid especially…
Cinematic exchanges between Australia and Iceland are, understandably, rare. But that hasn’t deterred director Jeremy Sims, who successfully translates Grímur Hákonarson’s 2015 Icelandic hit Rams into RAMS (note the subtle difference). The tyrannies of distance and language prove no barrier for Sims. And when you think about it, maybe Australia and Iceland have quite a…
– Misbehaviour – Only in cinemas from 26 November 2020 We have 5 double in-season passes thanks to StudioCanal. *(Tickets valid in Australia only)* Watch the trailer HERE In 1970, the Miss World competition took place in London, hosted by US comedy legend, Bob Hope. At the time, Miss World was the most-watched TV show…
A Polish film about a teenage criminal might seem an odd vehicle to explore big questions of morality. But that’s what you get in director Jan Komasa’s extraordinary Corpus Christi. This deceptively simple story turns out to be one of the most inventive and profound films of the (admittedly disrupted) year. The film would almost…
Liam Neeson brings his Taken persona to the lead role in the action-drama Honest Thief. He plays ex-marine, Tom, who went on to become a successful bank robber. Tom looted 12 small-town institutions of more than $9 million over eight years. But a year ago he stopped – because he met Annie (Katie Walsh), who…
