April 1 2026
The President's Cake
Dance For Your Life
Father Mother Sister Brother
Trifole
With a long weekend coming up, you have plenty of time to indulge your passion for movies. And, as per usual, I have some strong recommendations for you. All these are opening tomorrow, April 2. (Just giving you a little extra time for your weekend planning!)
The President's Cake
Dir: Hasan Hadi
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© Rialto - children learning self-sufficiency
despite living in an oppressive society |
With awards galore, including the Audience Award at Cannes 2025, the film is set in Iraq in 1991, the last year of Saddam Hussein's rule. Schoolgirl Lamia (Baneen Ahmed Nayyef) is tasked with baking the annual cake with which the class will celebrate the President's birthday. Failure to provide a cake will be severely punished. On the quest for ingredients which they can barely afford, she heads into the city with her pet rooster and her grandma, from whom she is soon separated. Encountering and teaming up with her best schoolfriend Saeed (Sajad Mohamad Qasem), Lamia persists in her quest, encountering various people and experiences along the way. In the bustle of Bagdad streets we feel the tension and danger, and the lack of care (in fact, threat) shown by some of the adults is sickening. Nayyef's performance is the linchpin of the film, and the child's-eye view of life provides a small bright light, fuelled by the optimism, resourcefulness and perseverance of kids, even in dire situations. The film is both a moving human story, as well as an insight into a repressive, authoritarian and dangerous society.4 - highly recommended
Dance For Your Life
Dir: Luke Cornish
 |
© Mushroom Studios - alive with talent and rhythm,
and personal stories of striving |
When we watch a high-profile singer, live or on a music video, how aware are we of the back-up dancers? There is a whole world of ambitious young people out there, desperate to make it in the world of commercial back-up dance, but only a few will get there. This documentary shines a light on the journey of ten dancers from Australia, all students at Sydney's Brent Street Dance School. Out of 100, ten have been chosen to fly to London to audition for a company called Shapehaus, run by 38 year old Dean Lee, who has danced and choreographed for the likes of Janet Jackson and Kylie Minogue. We meet each of the ten dancers, hearing of their struggles and their hopes. Some are battling to overcome childhood bullying, some need dance for their self-confidence, some are fighting current injuries, but all are passionate about the craft and demonstrate exceptional vitality and talent. The way the film focuses on each dancer visually and emotionally really drives home the harsh reality of the sweat and tears behind this career. Dean, himself charismatic and authentic, choreographs a concert piece for the ten finalists, and we follow the rehearsals and countdown to the final show. Dean nurtures his dancers with praise and encouragement; he's not fixated on any one body type, but is looking for that indefinable something that makes a top jazz dancer. The film's music is rhythmic and driving, the dance moves are thrilling, and the youngsters and Dean are all quite endearing. Anyone who loves to watch top-level jazz dance should not miss this wonderful spotlight on Australia's talented dance scene. 4 - highly recommended
Father Mother Sister Brother
Dir: Jim Jarmusch
 |
© Madman - stilted times between
a children and parents |
This low-key but intriguing tryptich explore the relationships between three different pairs of adult siblings and their parent(s). Emily (Mayim Bialik) and her brother Jeff (Adam Driver) drive a long way to see their eccentric father (Tom Waits) in New Jersey. They are obviously all uncomfortable together, and the father has been sneakily deluding the kids that he's worse off than he really is. In the second episode, set in Dublin, sisters Timothea (Cate Blanchett) and Lilith (Vicky Krieps) attend a once-a-year afternoon tea with their very formal, somewhat distant mother (Charlotte Rampling). The awkwardness is palpable. By contrast, in the final episode, twins Skye (Indya Moore) and Billy (Luka Sabbat), are mourning their much-loved parents, killed in an air-crash. While sorting out things left behind in a Paris apartment, the twins learn more about their parents. Each segment is loosely linked with recurring motifs, like a Rolex watch, family sayings like "Bob's your uncle", and the overall theme that our past relationship with parents moulds what we are today. The film sports a strong cast, and while allowing each viewer to reflect upon their own parent/child relationship, there is a vague feeling of contrivance in the film, which is otherwise amusing and at times poignant.3.5 - well recommended
Trifole (Truffles)
Dir: Gabriele Fabro
Only at Lido and Classic
 |
© - grandfather, granddaughter,
a cute dog and stunning scenery! |
With plenty of nominations for awards at various international festivals, this gentle film adds to the growing oeuvre of movies about a much-sought-after mushroom - the truffle. Young Dalia (Ydalie Turk) comes from London to the Piedmont area in northern Italy to care for her 90-year-old aging grandfather Igor (Umberto Usini). He has been a passionate truffle hunter all his life, but his way of life is being threatened, as large grape-growing corporations are destroying the forests where truffles grow to plant commercial vineyards. Igor is suffering dementia, at times mistaking Dalia for his daughter Marta (Margherita Buy). When Igor hurts his leg he sends a reluctant Dalia out with his beloved truffle dog Birba to see what she can dig up, hopefully finding a big truffle to show at the annual Alba White Truffle Fair. OK, we have the set up for what I believed would be a fairly predictable plot, but surprises galore abound. The film heads off into a quasi-fairytale direction, with superstitions abounding and mysterious happenings in the night. Dalia returns from her ill-fated truffle hunt to become bizarrely involved in the pageantry and tradition that surrounds the celebrated Truffle Fair. The sudden jump from a delicate story of family ties to the loudness of the festival may jar for some viewers, but it does highlight a colorful longstanding tradition, even if there is a weirdness in Dalia's involvement. It also underscores the contrast between Grandpa's deep connection to the land as opposed to commerciality of the festival. Most striking are the breathtaking visuals of the Piedmont landscape - glowing autumn forests, mists over the vineyards, winding village streets. This gorgeous insight into tradition, love of land, and a dying way of life make for a memorable movie experience.4- highly recommended
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