08 Nov

Coming out as gay to your parents is never easy. Coming out as gay to your deeply religious parents takes the experience to a whole new level of anxiety. For all the inspiring progress made for the LBGTQI community over the last few decades, religion has often remained bluntly and stubbornly steadfast in its damning stance that homosexuality is a mortal sin queer people choose for themselves. This view takes a nastier turn into extremist territory with the archaic practice of gay conversion therapy as a treatment method to...

15:46 / Reviews
1 Like
04 Nov

I must preface this piece by stating you're likely going to see plenty of film critics giving Suspiria a rave review. Some may even give it five stars. The word "masterpiece" will probably be thrown around more than a few times. And that's entirely fine. For an arthouse film like this, reactions are bound to be hugely varied. Much like last year's mother! (which I loved), this will no doubt stand as the year's most divisive film. As I always say, an opinion of a film is entirely subjective. No...

14:02 / Reviews
2 Likes
01 Nov

Based on your personal feelings towards Donald Trump and the Republican Party, your reaction to (and presumably interest in) Fahrenheit 11/9, Michael Moore's latest bombastic documentary, is likely already predetermined. If you consider Trump to be a crusading saviour of the people and his presidency really is making America great again, maybe sit this one out. That being said, and much to my surprise, Moore resists the urge to make this another cinematic presidential character assassination. Make no mistake, there are plenty of Trump attacks to be found...

08:03 / Reviews
1 Like
28 Oct

How do you summarise the extraordinary life of a larger-than-life icon in a two-and-a-bit hour film? This is the inherent conundrum facing any biopic, especially those based around a musician. Focus solely on a few key “important” moments in their life, and you’re missing the quieter, simpler times that balance the scales. But attempt to cram everything in, and you run the risk of delivering something entirely shallow. You really do have to sympathise with any screenwriter tasked with this difficult feat. Then there are those biopics which seemingly...

14:22 / Reviews
1 Like
23 Oct

They say truth is stranger than fiction, and that's especially evident in Can You Ever Forgive Me?, the delightfully absurd and deliciously bizarre true story of a washed-up writer who discovers a knack for forgery and a strangely fulfilling career change she never saw coming. Mining the as-yet untapped but mightily impressive dramatic talents of comedic superstar Melissa McCarthy, this may be her career change you're not expecting either. Following in the footsteps of other comedians who flipped their waning comical image (with Life of the Party and The Happytime Murders,...

13:54 / Reviews
2 Likes
21 Oct

Whenever we're presented with a film depicting the events surrounding a true-life terrorist attack, one has to ask if there is a greater purpose in making such a piece of cinema. Is this merely exploitation or is there something more to it? Through this kind of film, we may learn of acts of heroism and sacrifice not found in the headlines covering the incident or better understand how the event itself actually unfolded. Some examples of this genre do nothing more than recreating a moment in history few...

17:42 / Reviews
1 Like
19 Oct

Once a mainstay of Hollywood, the Western genre seemingly faded away in the late 1960s. In the last few decades, several filmmakers have made concerted efforts to keep the tales of the wild, wild west alive, in both traditional and non-traditional ways. Working very much in the former, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, the latest from writer/director duo Joel and Ethan Coen, is a six-part anthology with all the black humour, brutal violence, and gorgeous imagery we've come to expect from the Coen Brothers. Cinema purists may ponder if this can...

11:31 / Reviews
1 Like
18 Oct

When it comes to Hollywood remakes, you'd think rehashing a piece of cinema that's already been done three times before would be a colossal waste of time. Many were likely sneering at the thought of the fourth version of A Star Is Born, a film that has seen incarnations in 1937, 1954, and 1976. Plenty were also rolling their eyes when this latest version was delayed from May to October, with the hope of an awards season push. Writer/director (and actor and producer and songwriter) Bradley Cooper has...

14:04 / Reviews
6 Likes
17 Oct

The world of cinema loves to tackle the devastating effects of substance addiction. The life and times of a drug addict provide weighty fodder for any potential screenplay, particularly those which also seek to portray an addict's loved ones, as they watch helplessly from the sidelines. In writer/director Felix van Groeningen's compelling but frustrating Beautiful Boy, the tale is mostly told from the perspective of a beleaguered father, rather than the titular addict himself. It's a curious twist on this all-too-familiar tale, and one likely being lived by thousands of...

13:56 / Reviews
2 Likes
16 Oct

It's always hard to say goodbye to a legend. When Robert Redford announced The Old Man & the Gun would be his final acting performance (although he's since slightly backed away from this comment), there were plenty who didn't want to see him go. Redford has been a stalwart of cinema for almost six decades now, and he's still giving us stellar work at the age of 82. But, if he is to stick to his word and this is to be his farewell, he's going out on a charming...

16:50 / Reviews
1 Like