(**** stars) Bowfinger was woefully underrated when it first came out (I’m also guilty of that misdemeanour)… Steve Martin perfectly renders hack Hollywood movie director Bobby Bowfinger, trying to crack the big-time. To that end he secretly films mega-movie-star Kit Ramsey (Eddie Murphy) so he can include the footage in his new movie. Very satisfying screwball comedy and Hollywoo
(**** stars) British director Sally Potter (Orlando, The Tango Lesson) likes to make distinct art-house movies and for that she makes no apologies. And when they’re a riveting as Yes why should she – the dialogue is in verse with music and dance front and centre. A beautifully flowing, passionate and political love story where East and West collide . Say yes to Yes.
(**** stars) Legendary blue-collar writer/poet Charles “Hank” Bukowski is the subject of this documentary, which takes its stylistic cues from the dark humour and deep pain of its late subject’s literary legacy. Includes brilliant candid interviews with “Hank”, friends and family, plus extraordinary archival footage from American and German television. Equal parts ugly and beautif
(**** 1/2 stars) Bill Hicks Live! is a great DVD for Bill Hicks fans plus a comprehensive introduction for those unfamiliar with the work of this late, very great comedian, who died before his time aged 33 in 1994. Hicks was equally loved and hated for his outspoken and often X-rated material but there’s no doubting his funny-bone. Includes three of his best live concerts and a gr
(**** stars) You Can Count On Me is where acting great Mark Ruffalo (Zodiac, Just Like Heaven) got noticed and Laura Linney again tore up the screen as a great character actress. They play brother and sister reunited in a small town when a crisis occurs. Packing an emotional whallop the size of Kansas, this American indie recalls the great ‘small’ movies of 70s US cinema.
(**** stars) This “documentary thriller” can only be of interest as the Beijing Olympics approach. In terrifying detail it recounts the events that overtook the 20th Olympiad in Munich, 1972, when a group of Palestinian terrorists took eleven Israeli athletes hostage. The film is as disturbing as it is savagely critical of the authorities. Stunning non-fiction.
(**** stars) Austrian director Michael Haneke’s films present an uncompromising, highly individual point-of-view – not always pretty but it makes great movies. Daniel Auteil and Juliet Binoche play a middle class Parisian couple whose lives become under siege when mysterious videotapes start arriving for ‘no apparent reason’ to their home. The tension burns only to reveal a shocki
(***** stars) Comedian Will Ferrell flexes his dramatic acting chops in this gem. He plays forlorn taxman Harold Crick whose only social contact seems to come from audits. One day he starts hearing voices inside his head – a narration about the banality of his life… Stranger things are a foot for Harold as he rapidly finds out. A sweetly sad ‘dramedy’.
**** stars. Stars Cillian Murphy (Batman Returns) as a young man who takes up arms alongside his brother, in the Republican struggle against the British government and English soldiers of the 1920s. It is a powerful and sobering exploration of Irish history, family, the politics and pitfalls of armed struggle, and the beginnings of the IRA.
**** stars. This is a spirited biopic based on the life and times of country singing great, Johnny Cash. Joaquin Phoenix plays Cash with much grace and compassion, as does Reese Witherspoon as Cash’s eventual bride June Carter. It’s a love story, a portrait of overcoming adversity, and an unashamed celebration of the ‘man in black’s’ inspiring music.
**** stars. An intelligent and entertaining satire based on Christopher Buckley’s best-selling novel. Aaron Eckhart (The Dark Knight) plays Nick Naylor, a spin doctor for Big Tobacco who loves his job, until he meets his match in Heather (Katie Holmes), an investigative reporter with less scruples than him. Smoking may be no laughing matter; thankfully Thank You For Smoking is.
*** and a 1/2 stars. Superior remake of outdated 1976 kids baseball movie, thanks to the screenwriters of Bad Santa, great direction by Richard Linklater (School Of Rock), and a maverick actor Billy Bob Thornton. Thornton plays hack coach who manages to drag a team of bratty kids kicking and screaming into the play offs. Hilarious.
**** stars. A black comedy about a ‘guy in a tie’ having a crisis. Nicolas Cage plays David Spritz, a TV weatherman who regularly has rubbish chucked at him by his disgruntled audience. Facing personal meltdown he digs a pit of despair and then… takes up archery! A terrific screenplay makes The Weatherman a little ray of sunshine.
*** and a 1/2 stars. Perfume is the big-budget international adaptation of the best-selling novel by Patrick Suskind. John Hurt is our crusty narrator who introduces us to the life and times of freakish serial killer Jean-Baptiste Grenouille (Ben Wishaw), an emotionally damaged orphan with a penchant for perfume and psychosis. An ambitious, sometimes inspired film, both horrifying and beguiling.
**** stars. Like Silkwood and Erin Brokovich before it, North Country is another ’whistle blower’ movie ‘based on true events’. Set in 1989 inside an American steel mine, Chalize Theron plays Josie, a single mum forced to work there from desperation. She discovers female co-workers enduring an abusive campaign of sexual harassment. When she speaks up the consequences are disturbing. Compelling dra
Director Stephen Frears (High Fidelity) achieves the remarkable – a film that both humanises and satirises the Royal Family. Set in 1997 (the year Princess Diana was killed), Helen Mirren gives a great performance as Queen Elizabeth, as does unknown Michael Sheen as PM Tony Blair. An astute observation of a moment in history, and a fascinating character study.
*** stars. A surprising feel-good-cross-dressing-comedy about a failing boot business and the drag queen who resurrects it. Joel Edgerton plays Charlie; he must rescue his dad’s ailing boot factory. He enlists the help of Lola (Chewitel Ejoifer), a drag queen with big ideas about marketing boots. Straight meets gay, country meets the city, and old ways meet new. Fun.
**** and a 1/2 stars. In 1967 septuagenarian New Zealander Burt Munro (Anthony Hopkins) made his lifelong dream come true by travelling to the Utah Salt Flats in an attempt to break a land speed record in his beloved 1920s Indian motorcycle. Based on a true story, this is a beautifully crafted character-driven film with humour, heart and – surprisingly - great action!
**** stars. An eco-friendly kids animation- made in Sydney! Young emperor penguin Mumble (voiced by Elijah Wood) is a misfit – he can’t sing (shame), but he can dance (more shame) so he may never find a mate. He sets off to find love, only to find a potential threat to penguin survival – and crazy characters voiced by the hilarious Robin Williams.