May 26th
The Trip to Greece - new feature film
The Story of Film - 15 part series - DocPlay
10 Years with Hayao Miyazaki - Japanese

With restrictions easing, people may well be looking forward to heading off to cinemas in the  foreseeable future. At the moment I'd say, leave it to the brave. But at least things are looking up, and for those still avoiding the increasingly thronging crowds out there, there's still plenty of fine film to be caught from the comfort of your couch (or perched on your exercise bike).  

The Trip to Greece
Director: Michael Winterbottom
Length: 103 min
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqkSrXsUOlk
Available now on iTunes, Google Play, YouTube, Sony Playstation, Telstra & Fetch TV 

 © Madman - the two kings of dry humour are at it
again in gorgeous Greece

This is the fourth gastronomic trip Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon have taken together, and, unfortunately, their last. After The Trip (visiting northern England), The Trip to Italy, The Trip to Spain, comes this journey to my favorite overseas destination. The two retrace the steps of Odysseus, starting with Lesvos, home of poet Sappho, then Macedonia, Athens, the Peloponnese and finally Ithaca, the island Odysseus returned to. Now I know not everyone enjoys this droll, very chatty form of humour, but I come to it from a place of just loving the silly conversations these two guys have, trying to one-up each other, and outdo each other with silly accents ("That's not how Michael Caine talks - this is how" - this time it's Ray Winstone imitations). The scenery is to die for, historical facts interesting, and while there is the same dry humour this one has a little extra plot depth in its ending. And needless to say the food has one totally drooling. When you can't get on a plane to Greece, give this one a go!

10 Years with Hayao Miyazaki
Director: Kaku Arakawa
Length: 4 x 49 minute episodes
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/ondemand/video/

 © JFF - Miyazaki is an animator almost without
peer. 

Thanks to the team at the Japanese Film Festival, there is some excellent FREE watching for Japan-o-philes! With a smorgasbord of documentaries, anime series, travel series, and much more, this is a fabulous opportunity to top up your craving for all things Japanese. I've always loved the animations from Studio Ghibli who gave us such sublime films as My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away, Ponyo, Princess Mononoke, Howl's moving Castle, The Wind Rises and many more. In this fabulous series, we get an insight into the creative process of co-founder of the studio Hayao Miyazaki. For lovers of these animations, I suggest this is something not to be missed. 

The Story of Film - an Odyssey
2011
Director: Mark Cousins
Length: 15 x 1 hour episodes
Streaming on DOCPlay: https://www.docplay.com

© DOCPlay - heaven for movie fans

The ultimate doco for movie lovers (yes I know, many of you tell me you've already seen this, but I hadn't.) Film critic Mark Cousins spent six years on four continents to cover more than 1000 films and spanning 11 decades. Unlike similar American-based docos, Cousins looks at film the world over, comparing movements, trends, iconic films from everywhere, sometimes as a complement and sometimes as a contrast to what Hollywood was up to.  He includes clips from the films, interviews with directors and actors, now grown old, and the wealth of information and entertainment here is simply monumental. I now have a new list of films I must track down from the past, and from far-flung countries.