Tim Burton was sent several scripts following the success of his directorial debut feature Pee-wee’s Big Adventure, but quickly became disheartened by their lack of imagination and originality; then came a script from novelist and screenwriter Michal McDowell, whom Stephen King had once called “the finest writer of paperback originals in America today”. Delighted by what McDowell had […]
Review: Beetlejuice (1988) Read More »
Films like Wake in Fright, Picnic at Hanging Rock or Pricilla Queen of the Desert are the “masterpieces” off Australia cinema that usually get thrown around when the topic of conversation arises. However, while recognized as such in its own right, The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith isn’t as well known to mainstream audiences. Hopefully that
Blu-ray Review: The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith (1978) Read More »
It’s always interesting when a director known for a particular genre suddenly deviates or changes from their usual style and subject matter. However, there’s the risk of these ambitious projects becoming overlooked. I feel this is the case for George A. Romero’s Knightriders, a unique and personal drama nestled between Dawn of the Dead and
Live by LARP: Knightriders (1981) Read More »
Daniel Radcliffe returns to the wilderness, not as the versatile dead body we saw in 2016’s Swiss Army Man, but as young Israeli adventurer Yossi Ghinsberg in the biographical drama Jungle from Australian director Greg McLean (Wolf Creek). This survivalist feature was subject to a limited theatrical run following its premier at the Melbourne International
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Upon the opening credits it feels as though you’re being whisked away to a romanticised version of the past, where courage and sacrifice stood firm against those who wished to do us harm. Set in London 1943, a fateful entanglement between brave American bomber pilot Lt. David Halloran (Harrison Ford) and British nurse Margaret Sellinger
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Six months after playing with an Ouija board, Madrid teenager Estafania Gutierrez Lazaro died suddenly and inexplicably in August of 1991. Known as the “Vallecas” case, the series of events which allegedly took place have often been likened to the controversial Enfield Poltergeist case in Britain. Spanish director Paco Plaza, creator of the popular [REC]
Netflix: Verónica (2017) Read More »
During the four devastating years of World War I, aerial combat was a daring new means of inflicting damage on the enemy, but was a fragile state of existence for those who took to the skies. New to DVD from Umbrella Entertainment, the action/drama Aces High shows the enormous strain placed upon a squadron of
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As the second month of 2018 comes to an end, you may be surprised to know that Alex Proyas’ Dark City turned twenty-years-old, one of a number of films I was exposed to as a teenager and aspiring film buff by Foxtel’s annoyingly repetitive schedule. Like many films that’ve gone to achieve widespread acclaim, this
Review: Dark City (1998) Read More »
Expanding their catalogue of World Classics, premium Australian label Umbrella Entertainment have added the rather sophisticated French mystery The Champagne Murders (Le scandale) from genre master Claude Chabrol. Following a trio of social high-flyers, the business partner of a champagne tycoon is being framed for a number of grisly murders, at a loss of who
DVD Review: The Champagne Murders (1967) Read More »
Without a doubt this past Valentine’s Day was certainly one for the books. After a tedious drive to an area of Melbourne which felt equivalent to the “outer rim” in Star Wars, my girlfriend and I found ourselves in inside Westfield Southland’s semi-luxurious and intimate Europa Cinema to catch one of the final showings of
Review: The Shape of Water (2017) Read More »