The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020, Netflix) Featuring Eddie Redmayne, Sacha Baron Cohen, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Jeremy Strong, Mark Rylance, Michael Keaton, Frank Langella, John Carroll Lynch, and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. Written and directed by Aaron Sorkin. During his career, Aaron Sorkin has honed a confident style in writing screenplays for Oscar-expectant films. From A … Continue reading The Two Reviews: The Trial of the Chicago 7 and Sound of Metal
Can’t Get You Out of My Head: An Emotional History of the Modern World (BBC)Written and directed by Adam CurtisAvailable on YouTube Just to be clear, this documentary seemingly has nothing to do with Kylie’s 2001 hit ‘Can't Get You Out of My Head’ despite sharing the title. You could find a connection somewhere in … Continue reading The One Review: Can’t Get You Out of My Head (2021 Adam Curtis)
Many filmmakers have made their name by making stylised documentaries - Micheal Moore, Werner Herzog, Adam Curtis, Amy Berg, Joshua Oppenheimer, Nick Broomfield, Alex Gibney and Errol Morris are all big names that come to mind. Indeed, style derives from the individuals and can often take away from the content of their documentaries. But I … Continue reading The Focus of Film: 8 Documentaries with a Cause
Amy Scott’s recent documentary celebrating the life and work of the late director Hal Ashby, simply called Hal, may have slipped by without you noticing. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2018 and received a limited release late last year. Scott must be commended for making a tender and celebratory ode to an … Continue reading Peace and Love: The Wonderful Films of Hal Ashby
Background In 1993, Czechoslovakia dissolved into two independent states: Czech Republic (made up of the Bohemia and Moravia regions) and Slovakia. The 20th Century up until that point had been a turbulent time for the former country. After World War I, it gained independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire and grew into a socially and economically … Continue reading The European Masterpieces Part 4: Closely Watched Trains (1966 Jiří Menzel)
Mary Queen of Scots (2018 Focus Features and Working Title Films) Directed by Josie Rourke. Featuring Saoirse Ronan, Margot Robbie, David Tennant, Guy Pearce, Jack Lowden and Joe Alwyn. Mary Queen of Scots is a period drama set in the second half of the 16th Century about the troubled reign of Queen Mary of Scotland … Continue reading The Two Reviews: Mary Queen of Scots and The Front Runner
The Children Act (2018, FilmNation Entertainment and BBC Films) Directed by Richard Eyre. Featuring Emma Thompson, Stanley Tucci, Fionn Whitehead and Ben Chaplin. Based on a novel by Ian McEwan. This English-set drama follows the traumatic life choices surrounding religious objections to blood transfusions by Jehovah Witnesses. Seventeen year-old Adam (Whitehead) is dying and only … Continue reading The Two Reviews: The Children Act and Vice
The Death of Stalin (2018, eOne films & Gaumont) Directed by Armando Iannucci, featuring Steve Buscemi, Simon Russell Beale, Jason Isaacs, Rupert Friend, Michael Palin, Andrea Riseborough, Dermot Crowley and Jeffrey Tambor The biting political and social satire of Armando Iannucci has struck a chord with many viewers from his breakthrough with The Day Today … Continue reading The Two Reviews: The Death of Stalin and Annihilation
Andrzej Wajda’s masterpiece Ashes and Diamonds is set in a small provincial Polish town during early May 1945. Specifically on the day that Nazi Germany surrendered to the Allied forces. Here, we find a snapshot of Polish exiles and Soviet army occupants confronting the dawn of a new Poland. The events of the film are … Continue reading The European Masterpieces Part 3: Ashes and Diamonds (1958 Andrzei Wajda)
A Fantastic Woman (2017) Directed by Sebastián Lelio; Featuring Daniela Vega and Francisco Reyes Una Mujer Fantástica or A Fantastic Woman is a Chilean film set in Santiago. It had a staggered release in 2017 and opened in Australia in 2018. It might be described as an LGBT movie, but I think it is better … Continue reading The Two Reviews: A Fantastic Woman and Aquarius
Momentary Cinema 