Seasoned film critic. Gives a great interview. Penchant for horror. Unashamed fan of Michelle Pfeiffer and Jason Momoa.
Whilst it may not quite boast as impressive an ensemble as the original Ocean’s trilogy managed to concoct (George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon and Julia Roberts to name a few), Ocean’s 8 still steers ahead on charm and glamour, proving that an octet of women can do anything just as capable as an eleven-strong…
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Music and movies will collate as one throughout this year’s Sydney Film Festival with the Sounds On Screen program. Highlighting a series of musical-themed documentaries, as well as several feature films with a strong musical influence, the titles on hand promise to both entertain and inform. Influential rock singer Joan Jett (Bad Reputation), controversial British-Sri…
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After a near two-decade absence from the Australian film industry, Simon Baker makes a glorious (ahem) splash with the soulful Breath. Taking cue from the evocative descriptions set about in Tim Winton‘s 2008 novel, Baker proves both assured and affectionate as he takes directorial duties for an equally vivid and placid coming-of-age tale that benefits…
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First and foremost it must be noted that Super Troopers 2 is indeed a film made for a particular audience. The original 2001 comedy came and went theatrically without much notice, but over the years it earned rightful cult status as its receptive audience came to appreciate its random, low brow humour. As successful as…
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Before Truth or Dare even begins, you know exactly what kind of movie you’re about to see. Hoping to be some sort of new-era Final Destination, but failing miserably in the process, Truth or Dare follows every beat you expect it to, and it’s in this predictability that the film succeeds in being a massively entertaining ride for all the…
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Even when working off a plot device that doesn’t exactly test the limits of originality, a clever script and utter dedication from its workers can transform the familiar to something beyond our expectations. Such is the case with A Quiet Place, an impossibly eerie chiller that presents civilisation as a fallen project, and those who…
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Love, Simon has quickly become something of a phenomenon. Before it officially hits Australian cinemas, its critical response worldwide has been unanimously positive (its Rotten Tomatoes score currently sits at 91%), and celebrities such as Neil Patrick Harris and Kristen Bell, neither of whom have had anything to do with the film personally, have bought…
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Given his penchant for dark, more gothic views on material, Guillermo del Toro‘s foray into big budget filmmaking – 2013’s Pacific Rim – always seemed a little odd. Capable of delivering so much more than what that film ultimately was able to, del Toro may have injected some of his usual fantastic-ness into proceedings, but…
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Spearheading a $150 million dollar movie sequel would be daunting for even the most experienced of directors, so you can only imagine how Steven S. DeKnight felt when he was handed Pacific Rim: Uprising following the departure of original director Guillermo del Toro. Best known as the creator, head writer, and producer of the Spartacus…
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Rousing its fair share of controversy over Paramount Studios’ decision to release it to streaming service Netflix the world over (save for North America and China) instead of in cinemas for which it was initially intended, Alex Garland‘s ambitious Annihilation is certainly a unique production for such a risk-adverse studio. Whilst there’s a certain arthouse…
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Depending how you look at it, 12 Strong‘s insistence on bypassing the usual heavy-handed political messages and overt emotional punches that pertain to war genre films will either be a welcome or rejected additive. It’s a film that’s pretty standard (at least in comparison to genre greats like Saving Private Ryan and Black Hawk Down),…
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A film that appears more episodic than cohesive, The Square is an indulgent and uncomfortable piece of work from a filmmaker who’s clearly enjoying himself as he dissects human behaviour and the pretension of modern art. Excited to present his latest art installation to the public – the titular Square – chief curator at a…
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Known for his rapid-fire flair for dialogue, writer Aaron Sorkin proves ideally suited to tackling the true story of Molly Bloom. Bloom, a former professional skier, earned her stripes working under one of the co-owners of the infamous Viper Room as she recruited high-profile talent to take part in secretive poker games in the club’s…
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In cinemas now, Sweet Country director Warwick Thornton sat down with The Iris’ Peter Gray to talk about the film and the importance of storytelling as an Indigenous filmmaker. You’ve been involved in other projects since Samson and Delilah, but would you classify Sweet Country as your official follow-up? Yeah sophomore project. The second album,…
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To think that a notorious figure like Tonya Harding could be, in any way, made out to be sympathetic is no mean feat, yet screenwriter Steven Rogers, director Craig Gillespie, and star Margot Robbie (also serving as one of the film’s producers) have achieved just that in I, Tonya. For the uninitiated, the saga of…
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Returning to her homeland on the eve of an eventual Oscar nomination, Margot Robbie was all light and levity as she walked the pink carpet at the Australian premiere of I, Tonya. Understandably a figure in high demand from a media standpoint alone, The Iris’s Peter Gray was fortunate enough to nab a brief moment…
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Director Craig Gillespie wasn’t particularly interested in making a biopic about disgraced figure skater Tonya Harding when he was offered the script. But the simple uttering of the name “Margot Robbie” was enough to change his mind, and the rest, as they say, is history. As both the film and Robbie’s performance dominate the current…
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Golden Globe award winning actress Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty) is set to visit Sydney later this month in a brief promotional tour for her latest film, the biographical thriller Molly’s Game. Based on the true story of world-class skier turned Hollywood poker princess Molly Bloom, Molly’s Game has already earned Chastain her fifth Globe…
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Primarily known for the defining Australian classic Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, writer/director Stephan Elliott is hoping his latest cinematic venture earns similar status and praise. A labor of love, Swinging Safari is a semi-autobiographical comedy that expresses the trials and tribulations of Elliott’s own childhood through a series of wild montages that highlight the…
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In the lead up to its national release on January 18th, the cast and crew of the new Australian comedy Swinging Safari strutted their stuff down the orange carpet to talk all about their crazy new film, one which has the potential to earn classic status alongside director Stephan Elliott‘s defining feature, Priscilla, Queen of…
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Spin-the-vase, a late night taste of fondu, and a rotting beached whale make for just some of the intricate ingredients of Stephan Elliott‘s semi-autobiographical comedy Swinging Safari, a gloriously playful film that finds both the humour and the horror of growing up in Australia in the 1970’s. As kinetic a film it may be (I…
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Ruby Rose chats to The Iris’ Peter Gray about how she landed her role in Pitch Perfect 3, getting to skip the action this time around… and she tells us why she doesn’t want to direct a feature film. Watch the full interview here: Pitch Perfect 3 is in cinemas on New Years Day through…
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Going for broke and wearing its heart on its sleeve for all to appreciate, The Greatest Showman is a corny yet engaging musical that embraces its overt positivity with stride. An enthusiastically romanticised telling of how legendary American showman P.T. Barnum (portrayed by a wholly committed Hugh Jackman) worked his way from rags to riches…
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Bringing their perfect pitch and poise to the red carpet on the (not-so) eve of the release of the closing chapter of the Pitch Perfect series – appropriately titled Pitch Perfect 3 – founding Bellas Rebel Wilson, Brittany Snow and Anna Camp, alongside new recruit Ruby Rose, allowed their devoted fanbase the opportunity to say…
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We really shouldn’t be overly surprised at this point when Pixar release yet another beautiful, thought provoking, emotionally stirring film. What’s more important is the respective film’s ranking in the overall studio canon, and if it will earn longevity (ala Toy Story) or leave little impression (2015’s The Good Dinosaur). Time will tell if Coco…
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Similar to the majority of other anime titles on offer, In This Corner of the World is suitably aimed at older audiences. Whilst the animated medium usually suggests family-friendly viewing, Sunao Katabuchi‘s thematically heavy drama is more thought-provoking than visually reliant. Concerning itself predominantly with the bombing of Hiroshima towards the end of World War…
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A performance removed from his knowing talents on Game of Thrones, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau‘s turn in Shot Caller is a strong, powerful showcase for the actor in a film worthy of seeking out during its limited season. When Ric Roman Waugh‘s film begins, Coster-Waldau’s character, Jacob Harlon, is referred to as “Money”, and his appearance checks…
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As easy as it would’ve been for writer/director Stephen Chbosky (The Perks of Being a Wallflower) to nail Wonder‘s sentimental subtext into the ground – those grand old morality notes like “beauty is only skin deep” and “never judge a book by its cover” are covered here nicely – there’s something alarmingly non-saccharine about the…
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Given how lush Priscilla Cameron‘s debut feature The Butterfly Tree appears, it’s a real shame that the material at hand doesn’t match its aesthetic. With its jazz-influenced pop soundtrack and Baz Luhrman-like colour pallet, there’s no denying how visually appealing the film is, but it becomes strikingly evident that it’s all for show when Cameron’s…
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Who ever would’ve thought the day would come that Mel Gibson would be re-established enough to earn himself a prime role in a family-aimed comedy? Whilst the controversial figure has been steadily working over the least few years, either headlining under-seen projects (Get The Gringo, Blood Father) or co-starring in ensemble pieces (Expendables 3, Machete…
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