Underwater (2020)
There’s something satisfying about a well-executed B-movie. Underwater well and truly fits the bill.
The Alluring Ambiguity of Olivier Assayas’ Personal Shopper
Personal Shopper offers a challenging reflection upon identity and spirituality, enriched by Kristen Stewart’s extratextual resonance with its themes. Also, there are ghosts.
Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk (2016)
Ang Lee, known for his recent use of emotive VFX (Life of Pi), has again delivered an aesthetically engaging and emotionally driven film with Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk.
Top 10 picks of 2016 Brisbane Asia Pacific Film Festival
For SBS Movies, I run down the top ten films to see at the 2016 Brisbane Asia Pacific Film Festival.
The Huntsman: Winter’s War (2016)
The Huntsman: Winter’s War traffics pretty well exclusively in clichés. Oh, you can point to Frozen – Emily Blunt’s ice queen, the ‘power of love’ – or Lord of the Rings – there’s a golden circle emblazoned with Elvish runes that drives people to murder and dwarven comic relief (Nick Frost, Sheridan Smith, Rob Brydon)…
The Best Films of 2015
As befitting the blood pact all movie bloggers must sign upon founding their website, what follows is a list of my favourite films of 2015. It’s been a strong year at the cinema, even if I felt it was a slight step down from last year (specifically, I didn’t see a single new film I…
American Ultra (2015)
Here are the things to like about American Ultra: Kristen Stewart’s performance as a put-upon girlfriend. She’s fantastic, as always. The chemistry between Stewart and on-screen boyfriend Jesse Eisenberg, playing a kind of Cheech-and-Bourne stoner/super-soldier mashup. Some imaginative use of neon/black light colours. …and that’s it, sadly. American Ultra could have been a funny, energetic…
Double Feature: Clouds of Sils Maria (2014) and Camp X-Ray (2014)
Once-spidermonkey Kristen Stewart has swiftly escaped the confines of franchise cinema to prove herself one of the most promising young actresses of her generation. Her sullenness – relentlessly mocked by the tabloid press when she was at the centre of pre-teen Twilight attention – has become an asset in the subsequent years; as a performer,…
Still Alice (2014)
One of the unfortunate consequences of Australia’s long-delayed exposure to Oscar contenders is that the critical narrative around these films has coalesced long before they screen here. So it is with Still Alice, which the majority of critics have described as some variation of overly sentimental Alzheimer’s weepy that will win Julianne Moore the Oscar.…
Double Feature: Adventureland (2009) and The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)
The similarities between Adventureland and The Perks of Being a Wallflower are abundant and easily apparent. Each follows an adolescent male on the verge of adulthood – James (Jesse Eisenberg) and Charlie (Logan Lerman) respectively – who aspires to be a successful writer. Each combine the traditional “nerdy” traits of introspection, intelligence and awkwardness with…
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