It’s difficult to think of a recent film more exquisite and more perfect than Carol. It may seem too soon to call the film a masterpiece, but I can confidently say that it is truly up there with some of the greatest movies of recent times. More importantly, it takes its place alongside Brokeback Mountain…
Read more
Set sometime after the Civil War, and apparently contained within the same universe as 2012’s Django Unchained, Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight introduces us to Major Marquis Warren (Samuel L. Jackson), a bounty hunter on route to the town of Red Rock to cash in on his deadly efforts. But on this cold day in…
Read more
After first watching the trailer for Joy, I had little idea of what the film was about, except that it starred Jennifer Lawrence as Joy—a strong, successful woman who, at some point, cuts her hair. And since its release, the debate as to what this film is really about has not settled, with reviewers each…
Read more
There are literally thousands of historical films that document the tragedies and triumphs of men. From war epics to biopics about world leaders, scientists and rock stars, according to the cinema the history of mankind is considered to be more important than the history of womankind. That’s not to say that there aren’t a…
Read more
The highly anticipated The Force Awakens, the seventh film in the Star Wars franchise, introduces its viewer two new lead characters. and a new era for the cult sci-fi hit. Set thirty years after the defeat of the Galatic Empire in Return of the Jedi, The Force Awakens follows Finn (John Boyega) and Rey (Daisy…
Read more
Fans of the James Bond franchise have spent years eagerly awaiting Spectre, the latest installment in the perennially-beloved spy film series. Currently the second-highest-grossing film in the Bond franchise, Spectre revives the action-packed fun of the Roger Moore era. Though the film struggles to match the brilliance of Skyfall (2012), the film’s strong cast, visual…
Read more
Every day in Australia, police face 657 cases of violence against women. Every week, 2 women are murdered, often by somebody they know. While watching Hitting Home, Sarah Ferguson’s new documentary on Australian domestic violence, my friend wonders aloud, ‘Has it always been this bad?’ I answer: ‘Yes.’ It’s just that this year, we’re paying…
Read more
With the latest instalment now in cinemas, Kate Voss takes a look at the history and evolution of the Bond girl, and what it means to be a woman in James Bond’s universe. Very few film franchises over the past fifty years have been more packed with more pure masculinity than the James Bond films. While these…
Read more
Elizabeth Harrower’s ‘new’ collection of short stories, A Few Days in the Country: And Other Stories, is enchanting. By which I do not mean that it contains magic, or the promises of happy endings. No; Harrower’s writing is pure, unadulterated realism. Her stories occupy the real world, and make an effort to reveal the lives…
Read more
What will most likely draw audiences to The Lobster is its gimmick. The protagonist, David (Colin Farrell), is sent to a dreary hotel where he has forty-five days to select a life partner, or he will be turned into the animal of his choosing (a Lobster). The world that writers Yorgos Lanthimos and Efthymis Filippou…
Read more
‘When are you planning to have kids?’ I’d bet you good money that every woman has been asked this question at some point in her life. More than once. This question is almost always well-intentioned but, at the same time, works on the assumption that not only is procreation inevitable, but something that every rational…
Read more
One of the most complex and perilous issue facing Mexico-US relations in the twenty-first century are the treacherous drug cartels, corrupting every aspect of day-to-day life in border cities like Tijuana and Juarez, and the intricate infiltration of these cartels by FBI agents. This complicated issue is incredibly difficult to grasp, let alone to translate…
Read more
In 1988, the musical landscape was forever changed when hip-hop group NWA (N****s With Attitude) hit the charts, radios and stages across the globe. A story whose telling is long overdue (as Ice Cube rightly points out, there are plenty of Elvis films out there), Straight Outta Compton charts the politically-charged history of one of…
Read more
The Girls on Film Festival is back again in 2015 after the incredible success of its debut last year. This year’s program features an eclectic mix of universal classics, home-grown gems, foreign language films and unique documentaries that will surely delight even the most casual of film fanatics. Highlights of this year’s line-up include…
Read more
