Movies like The full Monty and Brassed Off have given us a sub-genre: the ‘quirky, warm-hearted, British working-class folks versus corporate meanie’ film. These movies are a little predictable but usually fun and endearing enough that we can comfortably overlook their clichés and simplistic view of working people. That’s mostly the case with the latest addition to the fold, Bank
Read moreThe eerie, dystopian parable, The Survival Of Kindness is the latest film for one of Australia’s most intriguing filmmakers, Rolf de Heer. Like an Avant Garde play expanded to the big screen, this film relies more on visual metaphor than plot which will prove perplexing and possibly irritating for some viewers. Those looking to surrender their normal cinema-going needs for
Read moreLike the prison movie, the military boot camp film is a pretty clichéd genre. There’s the sadistic drill sergeant, the meathead bully recruit, the strange military rituals and marching sing-alongs. We’ve seen it many times in movies but if done well it’s still fertile ground for a compelling drama. The Inspection, which is based on the experiences of photographer and
Read moreThrough his often crazed screen presence, Nic Cage has become a strange pop cultural icon and his films have almost become a subgenre unto themselves. His kooky charisma is given full licence to go into hyperdrive as he plays none other than Count Dracula in the slightly bonkers action/ horror comedy Renfield. Despite the imposing presence of Mr Cage, the
Read moreOn November 13, 2015, Paris was tragically hit by a series of terrorist attacks including the suicide bombing at Stade de France and the mass shooting ag the Bataclan Theatre. The various attacks resulted in 130 deaths. The tense, white knuckle French film, November, powerfully and viscerally dramatises the investigation into and pursuit of the terrorists who committed the attacks.
Read moreBritish playwright Alan Bennett (The History Boys; The Lady in the Van) has been documenting and dramatising the British character and the country’s institutions for decades. His play Allelujah, which examined the health system and its impact on the vulnerable people within in it has now been turned into a film. While at times very affecting, occasionally grim, sometimes amusing,
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