RIDE ALONG 2 - film

I took my 16 year old nephew along to the preview of this action comedy, figuring it'd be more his kind of movie than mine. As we sat waiting for it to start, this genius said, "let's look up some reviews!" The first one that popped up, from Variety Magazine, read as follows:

"Another tired, witless and potentially lucrative attempt to spin an exhausted buddy-cop template into action-comedy gold."

We laughed in that, 'oh dear, this will be a long two hours' kind of way.

And so it was.

Ice Cube plays a detective and comedian Kevin Hart plays his hopeless offsider/soon-to-be brother-in-law. Crime fighting ensues.

For me, there was an occasional chuckle but nowhere near enough to warrant recommending you go and see this. 16 year old nephew said he enjoyed it a little more than he expected to, courtesy of fast cars and hot babes I presume, but he didn't particularly like it either.

Trailer here. In cinemas Thursday 18 February.

ZOOLANDER 2 - film

Confession time... I haven't seen the first Zoolander film.

It's popular enough though that I get the general gist so I guess I wasn't going into this completely blind.

And you know what? I really enjoyed this. It's silly, mindless, funny fun. I laughed a lot, in that way you can when something is not requiring you to think at all, just lighten up and have a good laugh.

You don't need to know the storyline. It's dumb. But if you know you're a Zoolander kinda person, then you know this is for you.

It's not getting great reviews, more middle-of-the-road three stars type of stuff, but I just think that if all you want is to completely switch off and laugh for a couple of hours, go for it.

This three star review in The Guardian makes some fair points but this is not a movie that high brow critics will enjoy. It knows who it's audience is and gives them what they want.

STEVE JOBS - film

Didn't love this, didn't hate it.

This biopic about Apple co-founder Steve Jobs (Michael Fassbender) is interesting if, like me, you didn't follow the story of Apple in the '80s and '90s, and Jobs' role in it.

The constant as we see him launching three different products over about 14 years, is that the guy is a real jerk and certainly a nightmare to work for. This point, no matter how accurate, is laboured and by the end of this two hour film I was thinking 'We get it! Let's wrap this up!'

There's a little of his personal life which did help paint the (unattractive) picture of the man.

Kate Winslet is a main player as Apple's marketing director & Jobs' right hand woman, Joanna Hoffman. In a strange turn of events, the strength of her eastern European accent dials up about 10 notches about a third of the way through the film. Okkaaaay then.

It's written by Aaron Sorkin, well known for his writing of TV series The West Wing. Fans will recognise and enjoy his style here.

If you don't get to the movies often, I reckon you could save this one for when it's released on DVD. (Or online or whatever you cool kids are doing.)

A three and a half star review from the Sydney Morning Herald here and a three star review from the Herald Sun here if you want to read more.

Trailer here. In cinemas now.

DIRTY GRANDPA - film

Think of the worst film you've seen in ages.

This tedious, unfunny film starring Zac Efron, Robert De Niro & Parks & Rec legend Aubrey Plaza is worse than that. What were they thinking?!

Avoid.

Leigh Paatsch from News Ltd gave it ZERO stars.

Trailer here. In cinemas now.

SPOTLIGHT - film

This Oscars Best Picture nominee is so brilliant. I absolutely loved it. The subject matter is utterly sickening but the film treats it sensitively and compellingly.

It's based in 2001 on a true story of The Boston Globe's Spotlight (investigative journalism) team's pursuit of the story of child sex abuse by Catholic priests.

You'd have to be living under a rock to have not heard about this despicable abuse of power that occurred in the USA, Australia and many, many other locations, but this film is an interesting look at how the lid was lifted on the scandal and just how many people with power swept it under the rug.

The cast, including well known names Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams, Liev Schreiber and Billy Crudup, are all superb but a special shout out for mine to Michael Keaton and Stanley Tucci who are both stand outs in this. 

While I'm offering shout outs, an extra special one to the bogan who listened to her voicemail in the middle of the cinema in the middle of the film. Stay classy!

A four star review here from The Guardian if you want to know more. Trailer here.

THE BELIER FAMILY - film

This subtitled French film is part comedy, part drama, part musical, about a family of four where the parents and son are all deaf and have come to rely on their daughter/sister Paula to help them navigate the challenges they face.

Quite by accident, 16 year old Paula discovers she has a beautiful singing voice which of course her family cannot enjoy in the way most can. You don't need to know much more than that. Just know that I absolutely loved this film and it's getting universally positive reviews. I laughed, cried, and walked out with a spring in my step!

There's a lot of excellent films out at this time of year but none of them will make you feel as good as this one will. It's been out in Australia for quite a while but the positive reviews and word-of-mouth mean there's still quite a few session times. (Don't drag your feet, though.) It's only at arthouse cinemas though; you won't find this one on at your local Hoyts!

Note: If in reading this you have thought either "I don't like subtitled films" or "I don't like musicals", get over it and see this anyway!

Here's a four star review in the Sydney Morning Herald if you want more on the story or just reinforcement that this is a wonderful film.

Trailer here.

THE BIG SHORT - film

Loved this! A bit kooky at times but in a good rather than unpleasant way.

This US film is based on a book of the same name about the financial crisis of 2007-08 and what was going on in the finance sector as the housing sector collapsed.

The stellar cast of Ryan Gosling, Brad Pitt, Christian Bale, Steve Carell and more are all fantastic in this Oscars Best Picture-nominated film.

It tracks the story of four 'outsiders' who predicted and bet on the collapse and what happened when their predictions were realised. If you'd like a slightly depressing look at just how arrogant and corrupt the giant banks were at the time, this is just the ticket.

This film was written (and directed) by Adam McKay, the man behind Anchorman (and the slightly less popular Anchorman 2) so whilst it's not pure comedy, there's definitely some funny lines throughout.

I'm not going to lie to you, despite the genuinely helpful asides to explain the more complex aspects of the story delivered through celebrity cameos (think Margot Robbie, Selina Gomez and Anthony Bourdain) there was still moments I was a bit confused by how complex the finance sector is! I would benefit from a second viewing some time I think, and certainly enjoy it.

Happily recommend this. More in this glowing review from Time Magazine.  In the interests of balance, two Australian critics, Leigh Paatsch from News Ltd and Jake Wilson from Fairfax, both liked it a little less and gave it 3.5 stars.

Trailer here. In cinemas now.

CAROL - film

This drama set in New York in the 1950s, starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara, is so fantastic.

Blanchett is Carol, an unhappy woman in the process of separating from her husband. While Christmas shopping she meets shop assistant Therese, played with big dopey eyes by Mara. Both are discontent with their lives and a complex love affair unfolds.

Cate Blanchett is at her best in this and if you've seen her in anything at all before you will know that must mean she's superb. Indeed, she is nominated for the Best Actress Oscar. Mara is also great and has a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for her trouble.

A five star review here from The Telegraph UK for those interested in further reading.

I really enjoyed this one and would happily recommend it. Trailer here.

THE REVENANT - film

Based on the experiences of 19th-Century fur-trapper (Leonardo DiCaprio as Hugh Glass) and adapted from a Michael Punke novel about him, this thriller western is attracting a lot of positive reviews and awards. I'm talking Best Drama Motion Picture, Best Actor in a Drama Motion Picture for Leonardo, Best Director for Alejandro González Iñárritu and a bunch of Oscar nominations so, y'know, people are clearly into it. But I confess that even though it is in so many respects an excellent film, I found it gruelling to watch and bordering on pretentious.

So my personal take on this one is that if your taste skews a little toward the pretentious (time for some honest self reflection here, you guys), then you'll dig this. But if you like more of a, say, mindless rom com, then this isn't for you.

At about the hour and a half mark of this two and a half hour film I was so tense I actually thought to myself, 'I'm not sure I can take another hour of this'! Now, for some of you that will be the sign of an excellent film but I just found the whole thing a bit stressful! As my friend said at the end, "that wasn't a pleasant experience".

There can be no denying Leonardo DiCaprio is amazing in this and the supporting cast including Tom Hardy are also excellent.

In the interests of fairness I present this five star review in The Guardian but for me it's more along the lines of this three star review in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Trailer here. In cinemas now.

SUFFRAGETTE - film

Suffragette is a film based in London in 1912 about female activists, known as Suffragettes, who were fighting for women to have the right to vote.

Carey Mulligan as Maud demonstrates the considerable price women fighting for this paid. I won't spoil it but she is at first a reluctant suffragette but comes to be a force to be reckoned with, inspired by the movement's hero and leader Emmeline Pankhurst (Meryl Streep) who appears fairly briefly in the film. Helena Bonham Carter is great, as usual, as one of the movement's leaders.

The critics are a little divided on this one. I mean, few hated it, but there are those that loved it and those who though it was just ok, I guess you could say. For example, a four star review here from The Telegraph UK and a less glowing review here from Variety magazine.

I thought this film was good, though perhaps not amazing. It made me overwhelming grateful, though. The rights and freedoms I have as a woman in 2016 came at a price for many women before me. I hope lots of women who don't know about the history of this issue, and those who could do with a reminder, see this one.

Trailer here.

JOY - film

Jennifer Lawrence stars as Joy Mangano, the woman who invented the self-wringing Miracle Mop in the early 1990s. In this "semi-biographical" film she plays the role well, you absolutely buy her desperation, her hustle, hustle, hustle to get the thing off the ground. Pardon the pun.

But there's a lot going on around her that didn't really support the story and arguably detracted from it.

I liked this but didn't love it. I concur with this three star review in The Guardian Australia.

Trailer here.

DADDY'S HOME - film

This comedy starring Mark Wahlberg and Will Ferrell is a bit meh.

Will plays conservative step-father Brad and Mark is fun rebel father Dusty. The two kids whose affection they're fighting for are in the background really on this one and that's good news because neither are great actors.

There's some laughs to be had but nowhere near enough to make it worth shelling out $20 to see this, for mine.

A 2.5 star review in the Sydney Morning Herald says it all, really.

Trailer here.

THE NIGHT BEFORE - film

URGH.

I thought this Christmas comedy movie starring Seth Rogan, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Anthony Mackie was really ordinary. 

The storyline (three old school friends have a massive night with much drug taking, hijinx ensues) is just dumb & the characters are all pretty unlikeable. There was certainly a few laughs (more from others in the cinema than me) but nowhere near enough to make me recommend that you shell out $21 to see this. (I swear it wasn't that long ago that movie tickets were $18...)

To give credit where it's due, there was one thing I enjoyed about this film - the fact that Seth Rogan's character's wife was played by an average-size woman. You know, like a 12 or 14 maybe, rather than a rake-thin size 6. Her performance was good.

(I know she's pregnant in that photo!)

Mindy Kaling has a supporting role and I really like her but she wasn't central enough to help me like this film more. Miley Cyrus also makes an unexpected and amusing cameo, I must concede.


This Fairfax review gave it 2.5 stars which is more generous than I would have been and Leigh Paatsch from News Ltd even gave it 3 stars and a pretty glowing review. I AM CONCERNED FOR HIS WELLBEING YOU GUYS THIS IS NOT A THREE STAR FILM.

Anyway, watch the trailer if you want to get the gist of it. But if you see it and you think it's rubbish, don't say I didn't warn you.

SISTERS - film

When two of the funniest women on earth star in a film, it's bound to be funny, right?

With Amy Poehler and Tina Fey starring, Sisters IS funny but I'm sad to say, the storyline is really pretty ordinary. Like, actually just lame. It truly pains me to say that because I wanted to love this so bad.

With Amy as 'the good sister' Maura and Tina as 'the wild sister' Kate, they really give it a red hot go as sisters returning to their home town in Orlando in their early 40s to reluctantly pack up their childhood bedrooms. They plan one last blow out party which does include many funny moments but the story and dialogue it's built on is just, well, meh. The party does showcase a funny supporting cast including Maya Rudolph as their snooty old school enemy.

Poehler and Fey riff off each other in a genuinely funny way at times and I certainly laughed a lot including in a dance scene that was right up my slapstick alley.

However if you are looking for comedy at Tina-in-30-Rock or Amy-in-Parks-and-Recreation level, I'm sorry to say you'll be disappointed. If you just want a few pretty mindless laughs, then sure, get along to this one.

The reviews are mixed from what I can see (there's not many around, it's not released in many places yet) so in the interests of balance here's a pretty poor one in US Magazine and here's a much better one in Variety magazine.

Trailer here. In cinemas January 7.

THE DANISH GIRL - film

This arthouse film is based on the true story of artists Lili Elbe (formerly Einar Wegener) and Gerda Wegener. Einar and Gerda were happily married and living as artists in Copenhagen in the early 1920s when Einar started to experiment and increasingly believe he was a woman in a man's body.

I won't say much more as I think this is a good one to go into not knowing the story. I found it very engaging and think this film is excellent and well worth seeing. It's not perfect, but still worth a look. (For example, I personally would prefer they were speaking Danish with subtitles than in English but hey, I'm a wowser like that.)

Eddie Redmayne (who you might recognise from his Oscar winning performance as Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything) is Einar and Lili and is wonderful and utterly believable. His wife, who is obviously in a very complex situation indeed, is played by Alicia Vikander who is also excellent in this.

For more, check out this four star review in The Telegraph UK.

Trailer here.

In cinemas January 28.

99 HOMES - film

99 Homes is not a doco but based on true events around the US housing crisis. I don't really agree with the common description of "thriller" but boy this is a great film.

Starring Andrew Garfield (Dennis Nash), Laura Dern (Dennis' mother Lynn) and Michael Shannon (Rick Carver), we follow Dennis' transformation from man having his home possessed to man doing the possessing, with dodgy wheeler and dealer Rick as his boss.

It appeared at the Melbourne International Film Festival earlier and the year and has been widely well reviewed.

For more on the film, check out this four star review in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Trailer here.

THE DRESSMAKER - film

Based on a best-selling novel, this is an Australian comedy drama set in the outback in the 1950s.

It stars Kate Winslet (Tilly) with a near flawless Australian accent, as well many famous Australian faces. Liam Hemsworth (#hubbahubba), Hugo Weaving, Sarah Snook, Shane Borne, Judy Davis, Rebecca Gibney and Alison Whyte are all wonderful in significant support roles.

Tilly, a talented dressmaker, returns to her rural hometown to right some wrongs of her past. Those 'wrongs' mean that the eclectic bunch of characters in the town don't exactly welcome her return. This manifests in disturbing, menacing and amusing ways.

I loved this film and would happily recommend it to anyone, though it probably does skew a little toward women and a little older, if the session I was in was anything to go by.

Check out this four star review by Fairfax's Jake Wilson if you want to know more. 

Trailer here.

FREEHELD - film

Based on a true story, this is about New Jersey cop Laurel's (Julianne Moore) fight for her police pension to be transferred to her partner Stacie (Ellen Page) when she dies, in line with what is allowed when a partner in a heterosexual marriage dies. This fight begins when Laurel is diagnosed with cancer and her situation becomes increasingly grim. She's actually not all than enthusiastic in what becomes a battle for marriage equality (with a small role for Steve Carell as a marriage equality activist) but her love of Stacie drives the campaign.

It's a powerful love story and paints Laurel and Stacie as the compelling but unassuming advocates they seem to be in real life.

That said, this somehow comes across a more of a midday movie for TV than a hit motion picture for the big screen. It's good but not great, in that it never really swept me up into their fight. The ending seemed obvious which isn't necessarily a crime, but it just meant I was never hooked in, wondering how it would unfold.

Side note - the age difference between the women is acknowledged in the film and a reflection of the age difference of the real women on whose story this is based, but it was hard to not see them as a mum & daughter pairing rather than as an intimate relationship pairing. Probably a poor refection on me but hey, you can't help how your brain interprets things. Well, maybe you can. OK, you get it, enough babbling now.

Shout out to Julianne Moore, who is excellent in this.

More in this 3 star review from News Ltd's Leigh Paatsch if you want additional reading.

Trailer here.

BURNT - film

A film that brings together two of my great loves - amazing food and Bradley Cooper - Burnt does not disappoint.

Cooper plays a messed up aggressive chef which in many respects makes him thoroughly unlikeable but I'll be frank: he's HOT and HE SPEAKS FRENCH. IN LIFE AND IN THIS FILM.

The story's probably a tad predictable but if that's it's worst crime, I think it's doing ok.

His pursuit of three Michelin stars in his culinary comeback has ups and downs and one or two surprises in spite of the aforementioned predictability.

I personally loved the food porn element of the film. I love to cook and love to watch others cook, though all the yelling of a professional kitchen depicted in this film is a tad scary! YES CHEF!

Here's a three star review by News Ltd's Leigh Paatsch if you want to know more. I agree with his positive sentiment but also his observation about the supporting cast - there's a lot going on there, probably a little too much.

Happily recommend this one.

Trailer here. In cinemas now.

BRIDGE OF SPIES - film

Directed by Steven Spielberg, co-written by the Coen brothers and staring Tom Hanks, this film has a lot going for it on paper.

Based on a true story, Hanks plays an American insurance lawyer recruited by the CIA to negotiate the recue of a US pilot detained in the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

It's getting great reviews (this four star review in the Sydney Morning Herald, for example) but for me, it's a thriller than never actually got thrilling. It builds to a considerable crescendo but I never ever had that edge-of-your-seat, will-they-won't-they? feeling that comes with a good thriller.

Hanks is fantastic (der) but regardless, I didn't walk out of this film thinking it was amazing or even great. Just good.

Trailer here. In cinemas now.