TL;DR – An interesting look at what it means to be alive, but feels more like an opening act than a complete film.
Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
The next in our look at the 2019 AACTA Awards Short Film Competition delves
into the notions of what it is to be alive. It explores a world where androids
have become the new working class and the ever reaching effects that would
have.
One area where this film excels is in its production, with some beautifully
framed shots. There is this use of light and colour to bring us into this world
of Andromeda (Kestrel Leah) all situated around story time with a young Ella (Mai
Brunelle) who has not quite worked out what Andromeda is.
TL;DR – A beautiful and haunting animation of the impact of a single day.
Score – 4 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
Today we start our exploration of the 2019 AACTA Awards Short Film Competition
by exploring Lylah D’Souza’s work Ambulance
that is inspired by a true story that brings real weight to the narrative once
you see it play out.
Ambulance is an animated short film
that charts the story of one day in the Narrator’s (Lylah D’Souza) life. It is
the perfect encapsulation of life because it is the juxtaposition of the
serious and the ephemeral. It highlights the weird things that you remember on
days of stress, something I can deeply connect with.
TL;DR – It starts really strong with moments of real tension, but it is let down by a muddled ending.
Score – 3 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
Today we get to look at a film that is almost the reverse of the norm. It is
not at all uncommon for there to be English adaptions of foreign language films
as there is a long history of people assuming that subtitles are a real barrier
for commercial success. Well, today we get to see a film that has made the
reverse trip with Kidnapping Stella
being the German adaptation of the English film The Disappearance of Alice Creed. With that in mind, let’s take a
look at how well a film does going the other way across the channel. Though I
must say that at times this is a deeply confronting film, and you should
probably know that before jumping in.
So to set the scene, we open in on two gentlemen Tom (Max von der Groeben) and
Vic (Clemens Schick) as they go about their day running errands and picking up
supplies. They renovate a room, get a van ready, and put in a new bed. All
really normal, but for the fact that they block out all of the windows, and
that they have masks. Because what they are doing is not renovating, they are prepping
the room for something, and that something is Stella (Jella Haase) who they
kidnap off the street to ransom back to her parents.
TL;DR – A solid, if not very imaginative action flick
Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
It has been a while since I have sat down and watched a solid action flick, the
kind where you can get out some popcorn, sit back and not think that hard about
what is going on. Well, today we have an example of just that with Point Blank which is a reimaging of À Bout Portant, a French film from a
couple of years ago.
So to set the scene, we open with Abe (Frank Grillo) smashing his way out of a
window leaving a dead District Attorney in his wake. On the run, with a gunshot
wound, he texts his brother Mateo (Christian Cooke) for a pickup, but just when
he arrives Abe is hit by a car. Later that night Paul (Anthony Mackie) is doing
his rounds as a nurse at the local hospital leaving his very pregnant wife
Taryn (Teyonah Parris) at home resting when he comes to examine the John Doe.
Only to be ambushed by a masked figure, dramatically changing his life.
TL;DR – As the swan song for the Phase 3 it delivers of nearly every front but mostly in heaping amounts of charm
Score – 4.5 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid and post-credit scene (you 100% need to stay for the mid-credit at least)
Review –
To be a bit honest I had some concerns about this film before I walked into the
cinemas. I quite liked the first Spider-Man
and the films since has showed that Tom Holland was one of Marvel’s best
casting choices. However, this film was coming off the double whammy of being
the follow up to both Endgame
and also the first film since the revolutionary Into
the Spider-Verse, and they are tough acts to follow. However, literally
five minutes into the movie I knew I was in for a good time, but I didn’t know
was how much of an impact this film would have on the greater landscape.
So to set the scene, we open with a quick recap of everyone who dies in Endgame, so if you have not seen it yet
get ready for that band aid to get ripped off real quick. It also gives a
little perspective as to how the world adapted to what they now call the blip
with half of the people disappearing then reappearing 5 years later. It looks
like most of Peter Parker’s (Tom Holland) friends got snapped and have to
suffer through doing the school year all over again. Well after all the stress
of Endgame, Peter is happy that he is able to take a break because he and his friends
MJ (Zendaya), Jacob (Jacob Batalon), Betty (Angourie Rice) and unfortunately Flash
(Tony Revolori) are going to Europe on a school trip. However, before he leaves
Happy (Jon Favreau) arrives at his aunt May’s (Marisa Tomei) charity dinner to let
Peter know that Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) is looking for him and Peter does
the only normal thing and ghosts Nick Fury. Well you can guess how well that
went.
TL;DR – While there is a kernel of a really good idea here, all the moving parts never quite connect
Score – 2.5 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
When reviewing films, I really like when I come across a scenario that
intrigues me. Well today we have just such a scenario where people’s lives
become unravelled through no fault of their own, okay maybe a little fault of
their own. However, while an interesting idea is a good start, it is not the
end of the equation and unfortunately that is the case here.
So to set the scene, three friends Eagle (Sean Nateghi), Bobby (Joseph Martinez),
and Dominic (Jay Habre), are out one weekend camping in the hills. They are
catching up and talking about their past and future as Eagle is just out of
jail after being set up in a break and enter. The weekend was great but when
they get back to their car they discover that while they were gone someone had
dumped a body in the back of their car. Immediately the question of what to do
splits the group and things spiral out from there.
TL;DR – A 15-minute musical experiment that smashes the music of Thom Yorke with the sensibilities of Paul Thomas Anderson
Score – 4 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
This has been the year of the experimental music video/film hybrid, we have
gotten the narrative version with Guava
Island, the absurd with Bash
Brothers, and the documentary hybrid with HΘMΣCΘMING.
Well, today we continue this genre with a collaboration between director Paul
Thomas Anderson noted for more visually stylistic films like Phantom
Thread and Thom Yorke one of the main voices behind Radiohead. If you
are a fan of Thom or Paul then I assume that combination instantly got your attention,
and if you are not this is only 15 minutes so check it out anyway.
So to set the scene, we are on a train and a lady (Dajana Roncione) leaves her
lunchbox behind and a man (Thom Yorke) takes it for himself only for things to
get weird. Well, that is about it, as it is only 15 minutes there is not a
whole lot more to say other than it is quite a ride.
The first thing I want to talk about is the choreography from Damien Jalet which
is one of the three core things that makes this one of the most interesting
things I have seen so far this year. There is a flow to the movement, but also
a precision that is a really interesting blend. There is a lot of group
performances that gives this an organic feel, but also the sharp movements are
also otherworldly. Which does sort of fit the theme as anima is referring to
the soul. To be honest, I am also always a sucker for the movement that lines
up with the beat of the music.
TL;DR – A submarine film that knows how to be a great submarine film and have you sitting on the edge of your seat.
Score – 4 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
It has been a while since I have watched a good military film, let alone one
set on a submarine. There is a level of tension that you can rarely get in
other films as two ships hunt each other in the dark. It is a scenario that you
can really use to your best advantage if you have the cast that can sell it.
Well, today we look at a film that is taking all of these elements, but can
they pull it off, well let’s take a look.
In the not too distant future, where America has isolated itself and Russia is
on the rise, we open in the waters off Syria. A commando team has been watching
the Russian Port at Tarsus and is in need of an evacuation. Luckily France has
a submarine offshore for that very reason. However, as the submarine gets into
position Chanteraide (François Civil) the ship’s Acoustic Warfare Analysist can
here something else out there other than the Iranian frigate, but as there is
no submarine with four props it is discounted. That is until it lights the ship
up with a sonar blast, alerting the Iranians to the submarines position and
everything gets messy real quick. Back at base, everyone is on edge because
Russia has invaded Finland, and there are threats of nuclear war. Chanteraide
is certain that what he heard was not a drone, but time is running out.
TL;DR – A film that is funny in places, has some good effects and cast, but can’t escape its boilerplate plot
Score – 3 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
Back in the day, oh goodness, 1997 was over two decades ago, I had no idea that
a moth floating through the air was going to lead to something just magical.
That first Men in Black film was like
lighting in a bottle, hell I still have that theme song playing in my head from time
to time. However, since then the follow-up films have never been able to
capture, or even come close to that first film (though the cartoon series
almost did). Flash forward to last year when I heard that they were taking
another shot at the series, honestly, I felt a bit mostly meh. But then they announced
that it was going to be headed by Tessa Thompson and Chris Hemsworth. Well if
there is a way to get me instantly interested in something it is to cast Tessa
Thompson and Chris Hemsworth and let’s see how they did.
So to set the scene, back in 2016 Agent H (Chris Hemsworth) and High T (Liam
Neeson) arrive in Paris to stop a catastrophe, for the Hive, a destructive
species, was about to use The Eiffel Tower to gate onto Earth and take it over.
We then find ourselves with a young girl called Molly (Mandeiya Flory) who got
to see the Men in Black in action and hid so she never had her memories wiped
by the Neuralyzer. Now in 2018, all grown up Molly (Tessa Thompson) tries to
find the MIB and after a lifetime hunt, she is given status as a probationary officer
and sent to the London Branch where something does not seem right.
TL;DR – An interesting juxtaposition of the past and present, through music, Bob Dylan, and a very particular look at the 1970s.
Score – 4 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit scene
Review –
Recently I’ve been listing in to a weekly Twitch podcast about music, exploring
all the different genres that had no experience with. This has gotten me more interested
in exploring the world behind music and Hollywood’s recent biopic
spree has helped a bit in this regard. But when you find that a film about
Bob Dylan has dropped on Netflix, by Martin Scorsese no less, you stop what you
are doing and jump back to the 1970s.
So to set the scene, Rolling Thunder Revue tells the story of Bob Dylan and
friends tour across New England and beyond during 1975. This was a year where
America was at crossroads, Nixon had just resigned, the Vietnam War debacle was
still in everyone’s mind, and economic recession had started in places of the
Rust Belt. All in all, it is a time very similar to the one we find ourselves
in right now. It is at this moment of flux that Bob decided to get a group of
folk/rock pals and do a tour, something he had not done in a while, and we get
to see it all.
TL;DR Movie Reviews and Analysis 