Film Review: Elysium (2013)
Set in the distant future and exploring anxieties about pollution and overpopulation comes Elysium, written and directed by Neill Blomkamp. Like Blomkamp’s previous film, District 9,
Film Review: Cold War (2012)
Overall, Cold War is a reasonably well-executed action thriller, with an absorbing plot and enough twists and turns to keep audiences vested in the eventual outcomes.
Film Review: Errors of the Human Body (2013)
Errors of the Human Body is a well-executed, frightening insight into the potential for genetic experimentation to go awry. Importantly though, the film suggests that whilst the human body contains in-built errors in the form of mutations, it is other human errors that can worsen these situations beyond what was thought possible.
Film Review: Fast & Furious 6 (2013)
If you’re willing to suppress rational thought, Fast & Furious 6 is exhilarating and often humorous, sometimes unintentionally so.
Film Review: One Mile Above (2011)
Directed byJiayi Du, and adapted from a book by Chang Chia-Lu and Cheng Hsiao-Che, the film is quietly absorbing and beautifully shot, and suggests that with enough motivation we harbour resilience and tenacity beyond what we thought possible.
Review: The Reluctant Fundamentalist (2012)
There have been numerous films exploring the various impacts reverberating from the 9/11 terrorist attacks, but The Reluctant Fundamentalist, directed by Mira Nair, adopts a different, more internally-driven perspective.
Film Review: Tabu (2012)
Filming contemporary films in black and white, and without dialogue, can invoke feelings of nostalgia for a bygone era. Or, alternatively, they can be alienating. Tabu, a Portuguese film directed by Miguel Gomes and written by Gomes and Mariana Ricardo, takes that risk, with mixed results.
Film Review: The Place Beyond the Pines (2013)
Decisions, the possibility of unforeseen, and devastating consequences resonating long after they are made, are the focus of director Derek Cianfrance’s new film The Place Beyond the Pines, written by Cianfrance, Ben Coccio and Darius Marder.
Film Review: Spring Breakers (2013)
Spring Breakers deftly blends stylistic direction with critical, at times comic, insights into excessive youthful gratification. As the movie progresses the film becomes increasingly implausible, but it remains engaging because of its ability to undermine expectations.
Film Review: Olympus Has Fallen (2013)
Films that explore terrorist attacks on America as their central plot line aren’t exactly a rarity these days. Enter action-packed thriller Olympus Has Fallen, directed by Antoine Fuqua and written by Creighton Rothenberger and Katrin Benedikt.