Image via miff.com.au
My daughter is teaching herself Korean and before I left for MIFF, she taught me how to say, “I’m tired. However, I want to watch a movie” in Korean. I thought of her when I saw Burning in the sumptuous Versailles that is the Regent Theatre. Continue reading
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This one was a last minute swap when I couldn’t face racing to Hoyts to be potentially disappointed by Robert Pattinson in the farcical, some say feminist western Damsel. That’s one of those films that can be a delight or a travesty and I didn’t feel like risking it. Dark River was a good choice. Directed by Clio Barnard it’s a dark and brooding tale of abuse as seen through the eyes of a survivor. Continue reading
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This low-key love letter to Tasmania made me want to hang out with director Ted Wilson and his engaging family. Continue reading
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I like a film that makes you feel a bit emotionally wrung out by the end. Directed by Chilean Sebastián Lelio (A Fantastic Woman) and his first English-language film, this is a rich and absorbing story about religion, family and independence. Continue reading
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If you have experienced the sleepless nights of parenthood or the mental fragility that can come with it, it’s hard not to feel a connection with this story. Even if you haven’t, the powerhouse performances of Charlize Theron as exhausted mother Marlo and Mckenzie Davis as Tully, the night nanny she hires, will hook you in. Continue reading
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A shameless pleasure, this warm adaptation by Mike Newell (Four Weddings and a Funeral) of the book of the same name by Mary Ann Shaffer hits all the right notes. Continue reading
Image by Nic Duncan via http://www.embankmentfilms.com
This lyrical and literary rumination on masculinity is like diving deep under a wave with a long slow rising to the top amidst dim light and soundless pressure. Director Simon Baker allows Tim Winton’s story to slowly unfold and brings a bleak and beautiful landscape to the fore as an integral character. Continue reading
Image from The Great Dictator via filmforum.org
Two hours with Barry Jones is not enough. As the credits rolled, I felt tears prick my eyes as if a dear friend was leaving; I didn’t want this warm, engaging conversation to end. If you live in Melbourne, make sure you catch this at the Cinema Nova before it disappears.
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Aki Kaurismäki masterfully tells a gentle fable that holds a profound and contemporary moral message. Continue reading
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This remarkable film gently and profoundly shows the fragility of US life on the poverty line from the point of view of the children and families who live on the margins. As realistic as a documentary, it is set within the fractured community of motels in Florida, on the doorstep of Disney World. Continue reading
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