Under the Shadow

Posted 3:59pm Monday 8th August 2016

Rating: A- Playing at Rialto Friday, August 12 - 8:30pm Wednesday, August - 17 4:15pm Under The Shadow is set in Tehran during the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s, and follows a family trying to survive two terrifying things: the constant threat of bombing, and the sudden presence of Read more...

Star Trek: Beyond

Posted 12:28pm Sunday 7th August 2016

Rating: B In this third instalment of the rebooted Star Trek film series, director Justin Lin of the Fast & Furious franchise takes over the helm from J. J. Abrams. This mercifully means fewer lens flares, but sadly also steers the movie towards being a mindless action flick.  In Star Read more...

The China Syndrome

Posted 12:20pm Sunday 7th August 2016

Rating: A Going through a phase of watching ‘70s movies, as you do, I tracked The China Syndrome down after reading Roger Ebert’s effusive praise of it. The film was released at a time when nuclear power plants were a relatively new thing, and people were a bit apprehensive about Read more...

A Month Of Sundays

Posted 1:11pm Sunday 31st July 2016

Rating: B+ Australia seems to be quite good at producing heartwarming comedies, and when I went along to this one I was expecting something in the same vein as The Castle or The Dish. In the end, it felt more like a Wes Anderson production, in that it is artfully shot and could be described as Read more...

The BFG

Posted 1:01pm Sunday 24th July 2016

Rating: C+ The BFG was my favourite childhood book by Roald Dahl, and as far as my distant memories of the book go, the movie does it justice story-wise. So why is the movie so dull? I’m really not sure, but here are some observations.  I didn’t find myself caring about either Read more...

The Conjuring 2

Posted 12:23pm Sunday 10th July 2016

Rating: B+ The Conjuring 2 is by the same director who made the Insidious movies, so as you’d expect, it scores very high on the shit-my-pants-o-meter. The trailer alone made me lose some sleep, and apparently someone actually died of a heart attack while watching the movie. If you like Read more...

Dante’s Peak

Posted 12:30pm Sunday 29th May 2016

Rating: B+ Was this anyone else’s favourite movie as a kid? For me it even overtook Jurassic Park at one point. (Though it just occurred to me that many of this year’s freshers weren’t born yet when it was released... holy christ). In my flat we bought a projector in lieu of a Read more...

Orphans & Kingdoms

Posted 12:28pm Sunday 1st May 2016

Rating: A It’s an interesting coincidence that both of the new Kiwi movies currently showing cover similar subject matter - both involve juvenile delinquents getting into a dangerous predicament alongside a reclusive adult, with everyone eventually bonding and becoming better Read more...

45 Years

Posted 12:33pm Sunday 10th April 2016

Rating: A Kate and Geoff Mercer are about to celebrate their 45th wedding anniversary. A few days prior to the party, Geoff receives a letter. The body of his former girlfriend, Katya, has been found in the Swiss Alps - perfectly preserved in the ice, into which she fell 50 years ago. (Possible Read more...

A Bigger Splash

Posted 1:47pm Sunday 3rd April 2016

Rating: B- Imagine if Spring Breakers was directed by Woody Allen. This movie is a bit like that, but sadly isn’t as interesting as the description makes it sound.  Tilda Swinton plays Marianne Lane, a Bowie-esque rock star who is vacationing on an idyllic Italian island, with her Read more...