Image via perthartslive.com
Aki Kaurismäki masterfully tells a gentle fable that holds a profound and contemporary moral message. Continue reading
The Other Side of Hope (Toivon tuolla puoven) (2017)
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The Hunt (Jagten) (2012)
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Image via jontoddcollins.com
What if you’re a decent man, with an affinity for children, and you are accused of being a paedophile? This is the dilemma that faces Lucas (Mads Mikkelsen) when a misinterpreted remark by a young pupil at the kindergarten where he teaches sparks a flawed investigation. Continue reading
The Endless (2017)
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Image via http://www.theverge.com
The Endless fulfilled the promise of its name and felt never-ending. Listed as a horror, it is more a muddled sci-fi, low on suspense and high on exposition. Continue reading
C’est La Vie! (Le sens de la fête) (2017)
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Image via http://www.hollywoodreporter.com
C’est La Vie! is a wry and heartwarming French comedy about love, napkin twirling and the frustrations you feel when nothing goes quite as planned. Continue reading
The Greatest Showman (2017)
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Image by Annie Liebovitz via http://www.vogue.com
If you want to see a film that makes you believe that all is right with the world, that discrimination, racism and the class system are problems that were resolved 100+ years ago with a bit of song and dance and hugging, then this is the film for you. Continue reading
John Wick (2014)
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Image via http://www.johnwick.movie
[ORCHESTRAL MUSIC] I am sad. My wife has died. She gave me a dog. A bad man has killed my dog. [WISTFUL MUSIC] He has stolen my car. I love that car. I drive it fast because I am sad. I am sad and angry. I am John Wick. Bam. Bam. Pew. Pew. Pew. Kapow. Blam. Blam. Continue reading
Jane Got a Gun (2015)
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Image via http://www.theyoungfolks.com
But Dan got two guns. Jane, for all her prominence in the film’s title and promotional posters, doesn’t get to do much with her gun. It is her ex-lover, brooding and sweaty Dan Frost, who drives most of the action and provides the dramatic centre. Continue reading
I Am Not Your Negro (2017)
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Image via miff.com.au
This unusually constructed documentary is an illustrated recitation of the words of James Baldwin, American writer and social critic. It begins with a letter to his agent about an idea to write the stories of Medgar Evers, Martin Luther King, and Malcolm X, all men who are outspoken about civil rights and all assassinated in the 60s. Continue reading
Passengers (2016)
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Image via http://www.washingtonpost.com
Passengers is a neat example of how female characters are stereotyped in Hollywood films. With only four named characters of substance, it’s not surprisingly that only one is female, Aurora Lane (Jennifer Lawrence). Her role is to meet the romantic and sexual needs of the hero, Jim Preston (Chris Pratt), and to provide a framework for the essential goodness and heroism of his masculinity by personifying the worst of archetypal femininity. If you plan on seeing this film, and I wouldn’t rush out to do so, perhaps read no further. I won’t give away any plot points that aren’t obvious from the outset but I will probably say enough about the characters that you have a pretty good idea of the entire film. So, spoilers. Continue reading
God’s Own Country (2017)
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Image via miff.com.au
I missed this one at MIFF and it’s a timely tale of the damage caused by a lack of love and acceptance. Johnny (Josh O’Connor) lives on an isolated Scottish farm with his dad (Ian Hart) and Nan (Gemma Jones). There’s not much warmth in his world. His dad, whose physical ability has been limited by a stroke, lets Johnny know of his expectations and also his constant disappointment. Continue reading
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