For what it’s worth, I tend to enjoy the yearly Call of Duty, even if it’s just for a few months. The breakneck pace and punchy gameplay are generally enough, while some of the recent Modern Warfare entries have pretty much kept me around throughout the entire year. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 looks…
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Despite the grandeur of some of its large scale battle sequences and reliable talent across the board, there’s a disjointedness to Ridley Scott‘s Napoleon that renders it shockingly inept at times and, overall, rather underwhelming. Hailed as one of the greatest military leaders and strategists in history, the Napoleon depicted here (as portrayed by Joaquin…
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As someone who’s childless and pushing a certain age bracket, on the surface it would seem as if the Trolls films shouldn’t necessarily appeal to me. But within their candy-coated, unicorn fever dream-like aesthetic are surprisingly well-aimed jokes of maturity and, as an unashamed pop music enthusiast, a far-too-enjoyable soundtrack. Children will absolutely lap this…
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It’s a long title, but this is also a long franchise. With the Like a Dragon series heading in a new direction, we see the Gaiden games coming back to piece together some of the missing pieces. Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name picks up the story of the previous protagonist…
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OPPO is no slouch when it comes to providing a wide range of handsets, from entry-level value to premium competitors. While we recently reviewed the OPPO A78 5G, the newly released OPPO A58 might sit below in terms of outright specs, but is still an incredible alternative for the everyday user, given its lower price…
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The thematics of power and the consequences of privilege Emerald Fennell explored in 2020’s confronting Promising Young Woman are exacerbated in her wicked follow-up, Saltburn, which feels as if The Great Gatsby and The Talented Mr. Ripley were invited to participate in an orgy with Bret Easton Ellis and the cast of Euphoria in a…
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Similar to how Robert Rodriguez expanded his faux trailer Machete into a feature-length exploitation action movie following its positive reception ahead of his and Quentin Tarantino’s joint B-movie double feature Grindhouse (2007), Eli Roth has finally made good on his mock trailer and turned in Thanksgiving, a self-aware slasher that embraces its R-rated bad taste…
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I’m a somewhat casual UFC fan when it comes to the real-life sport. But I’ve rather enjoyed the past few EA Sports UFC games for their balanced gameplay and variety of modes. If our UFC 4 review had anything to say about the context and position of the MMA franchise in video game form, it’s…
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It wasn’t so long ago that the Marvel machine was something of an unstoppable force to be reckoned with. Each film seemed to pull record-breaking numbers upon its opening weekend and, more often than not, were winners across the board with critics; at least enough to be deemed “Fresh” on Rotten Tomatoes, which has become…
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As far as savvy sex-working women go, the character driving the bulk of The Big Dog‘s emotional and psychological torture isn’t the most traditional. Pretty Woman this isn’t, with the financial dominatrix side of sexual services being explored here (Findom, for those in the know) in Dane McCusker‘s intriguing black dramedy that delights in the…
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The first Ghostrunner admittedly caught me off guard. While I had managed to get around to it and finish it multiple times since its release, I had always been waiting on something to follow up on the parkour-infused action of Mirror’s Edge. Ghostrunner 2 is a solid extension in this regard, providing many of those…
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Like his previous works that celebrate their fantastical, absurdist nature with a certain gravitas, Yorgos Lanthimos grounds Poor Things, an undeniably wild, oft-offensive, sexually liberated black comedy, with a stirring sense of emotion and topical commentary. In 19th century London – or what such a time period looks like within Lanthimos’ vivid imagination – the…
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Within the opening minutes of May December, small-town mother Gracie Atherton-Yoo (Julianne Moore) is throwing a community BBQ with all the social niceties we come to see over the future 113 minutes she shrewdly projects. In hoping she has enough food to feed the masses, she opens the refrigerator and questions if she has enough…
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Whenever a horror film does well at the box office, the internet as a collective (or, more specifically, Twitter, sorry, X) likes to announce that “horror is back!” But the truth is, it never really went anywhere. Sure, like most genres it has its ups and downs in terms of general interest and monetary returns,…
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Inspired by Hotel Coolgardie, Pete Gleeson’s shock 2016 documentary about two female Finnish backpackers and their work experience at a predominantly male-frequented pub, The Royal Hotel similarly shines a light on the the disturbing, toxic nature that can spawn from a small, isolated town that exploits Australia’s “drinking culture” mentality. An ironic title that will…
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As someone who lost their father at a young age, and therefore never had the conversation regarding my sexuality (and all that could possibly entail), the thought process throughout and inability to hold back my emotions during All of Us Strangers was palpable. Adapted by writer/director Andrew Haigh (Looking: The Movie) from Japanese author Taichi…
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Though she’s known for her dramatic work primarily on television’s Grey’s Anatomy and Killing Eve, Sandra Oh enthusiasts are all too aware that the actress has a serious talent for the comedic flare; The Princess Diaries, anyone? But even still, the absolute let-loose mentality the actress adheres to for Quiz Lady is another level entirely,…
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Gorgeous but unsatisfying, Pedro Almodóvar‘s campy telenovela Strange Way of Life is a sexy short feature that proves the ultimate tease as it doesn’t entirely deliver on the sex appeal of its leads and then climaxes before we’ve even moved on from foreplay. Said leads are Ethan Hawke and Pedro Pascal, playing two perfectly-tailored cowboys…
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With the Black Lives Matter and #MeToo movements featured prominently, as well as the overall intertwined arc of the COVID-19 pandemic, Black White and the Greys is a film that eerily encapsulates the emotional push-and-pull we universally experienced. A relatable, at-times uncomfortable drama, Black White and the Greys is a collaboration between Marchelle Thurman and…
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I’m going to come out swinging. Mike Mignola’s Hellboy is simply one of the best comic book characters ever made. While I’m not an avid reader of comics in general, I’ve certainly read most of these, complete with a unique, yet unmistakable art style, complex and diverse themes and some impressive writing across the board….
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*Trigger warning: This review discusses eating disorders* The satirical possibilities present within Jessica Hausner‘s dramatic Club Zero are ripe. The execution, however, is undercooked; ironic, considering the topic at the core of this truly odd and oft dangerous film. At an elite private school, the enigmatic Miss Novak (Mia Wasikowska) has arrived to teach a…
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Given that Jim Weir and Jack Clark‘s frighteningly uncomfortable Birdeater is an Australian chiller set in the outback (at least for the majority of its running time), audiences are justified in thinking it could fall in line with other brutality-in-the-bush titles like Picnic at Hanging Rock or even Wolf Creek. The more accurate comparison though…
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“Before we continue I’d like to apologize to anyone who might be upset or offended by what you saw before the break. It’s not every day you see a demonic possession on live television.” Not the most typical sentence you’d expect to hear from a late night host, but such is the statement made by…
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There has to be something said for the power of nostalgia. Despite not having any major success in Australia as of late – at least comparatively to when they first burst on the scene in the mid-90s – The Corrs packed out Sydney’s Qudos Bank Arena to practical maximum capacity as they delighted fans with…
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Providing some of the most memorable titles across nine generations of consoles, from the NES to the PlayStation 5, Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 wraps up a significant portion of this franchise’s history in one convenient package. While there are plenty of reasons to return for the ride, this collection feels like a missed…
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Having dealt with a duo of alien invasions for his Occupation films, it makes sense that Australian filmmaker Luke Sparke would want to look at something a little more grounded for his next cinematic feat. Whilst still working with an exaggerated mentality, Bring Him To Me is a crime thriller that bathes in a smaller,…
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With its tried and true premise, and graphic novel origins, one may expect The Killer to fall into the expected traps and tropes of the hitman subsect of the action genre. And though that wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing, with David Fincher at the helm, as well as reuniting with his Se7en screenwriter Andrew…
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Outside of New Zealand it’s highly likely that the political clash at the centre of Hamish Bennett and Paul Middleditch‘s Uproar is one that’s never been heard of. Set in 1981, the ultimately uplifting, oft-powerful coming-of-age dramedy centres around the controversy that arose from the South African rugby team touring New Zealand at the time. …
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The action camera market has been dominated by a few key players over the years, and DJI, known for its high-quality drones and imaging technology, has made a significant impact with their Osmo Action series. Their newest addition, the DJI Osmo Action 4, continues to raise the bar for action cameras and solidifies itself as…
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Watching Scarygirl it becomes even more increasingly annoying that Australian cinema hasn’t embraced animation as thoroughly as we should. Sure, we have the likes of Blinky Bill and Ferngully to claim as our own (and, yes, I’m aware of Happy Feet, but it feels like an entity separate from the more independently funded productions), but,…
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