This November, the 2023 Cunard British Film Festival (presented by Palace Cinemas) will bring the finest British filmmaking, production and acting to Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth, Brisbane, Canberra and Byron Bay. Many of Britain’s most enduring and well-known faces feature in this year’s stunning selection including Anthony Hopkins, Timothy Spall, Olivia Colman, Helena Bonham Carter,…
Art and crime have always been strange but frequent bedfellows. From the often-illegal activities of Caravaggio to the sensational art heists of the 20th Century, public fascination with both never seems to wane. And while art crime can be deadly serious, director Roger Michell gives it a comic twist in The Duke. Michell’s films tend…
Once upon a time, Luc Besson was the hottest director in French cinema. But the years and a couple of misfires (Valerian, anyone?) have seen him overtaken by the likes of Celine Sciamma and Olivier Assayas. Still, Besson gave us classics like The Big Blue, Subway and (my personal favourite) Leon: The Professional. Now he’s…
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…
The most festive of the traditional Christmas family film offerings this year is Diney’s live action stunner, The Nutcracker and the Four Realms. With writing credits including the original Nutcracker storyteller, ETA Hoffman and a score of whimsically re-arranged motifs from Tchaikovsky’s much-loved ballet of the same name, this new film adaptation is a little…
The seniors’ road trip The Leisure Seeker is, if you can believe this, a lighthearted take on dementia. The heavily concocted drama however stretches beyond acceptance. John and Ella Spencer (Donald Sutherland and Helen Mirren) have almost reached the end of the road. Ella is frail, while John’s memory is failing. Instead of going quietly into that…
The promo says Winchester was inspired by true events. It’s 1906. On an isolated stretch of land near San Francisco sits reputedly the most haunted house in the world. Built by Sarah Winchester (Helen Mirren), heiress to the Winchester rifle fortune, construction continues 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It’s been like that…
