Gambling addiction drama Mississippi Grind indulges nearly all the clichés of the ‘nihilistic loser seeking redemption’ movie right down to the relationship with a hooker with a heart of gold but impressive turns from leads Ryan Reynolds and Ben Mendelsohn animate a slightly creaky story. Ryan Reynolds and Ben Mendelsohn play two pathological gambling addicts, Curtis and Gerry, who try
Read moreThe gentle understated Love Is Strange begins as an examination of the difficulties faced by same sex couples but ends up as a more conventional indie family drama. George (Alfred Molina) and Ben (John Lithgow) play a recently married couple enjoying life in an upmarket New York apartment. When, in a reaction to the wedding, the catholic school where George
Read moreLiam Neeson’s latest film Non-stop will no doubt have had action junkies salivating. The no-nonsense title and a poster that features Neeson blasting away with a pistol in the middle of an aeroplane cabin, suggests a Taken-style parade of relentless and mindless action. Those who delight in cinematic carnage may, however, be slightly peeved to discover that, aside from a
Read moreSet mostly in 1980 and based on a true story, British-Australian co-production The Railway Man begins as a typically quirky, charming romance set in a world of steam trains and verdant English countryside. The film recalls Brief Encounter as the calm, sensible and sensitive Patti (Nicole Kidman) meets and eventually marries the awkward, dishevelled trainspotting nerd Eric Lomax (Colin Firth).
Read moreOne Mile Above from director Jiayi Du is a mostly successful mix of humanist drama, travelogue and adventure story that occasionally recalls Sean Penn’s Into the Wild in its tale of a man confronting the elements and himself. The film follows the journey of young Taiwanese man Zhang (Zhang Shuhao) who decides to honour his late brother by completing a
Read moreNot to be confused with Nic Roeg’s freaky 1970 counter-culture film, Performance depicts the traumas afflicting a revered American string quartet as they confront human frailty in its many forms. The film was originally titled A Late Quartet but this was changed in Australia to avoid confusion with Dustin Hoffman’s film Quartet which also focused on a group of classical musicians.
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