Thursday 28 July 2022

 July 28th

The Forgiven
Murder Party
Falling for Figaro
Full Time
MIFF . . . get ready for August 4th - 4 films reviewed in advance


It's a bumper week for hurstosfiveminutefilms! Four in-cinema releases are reviewed. From French farce, to fast-paced personal dramas, to aspiring opera singers, there's an amazing variety. Plus, for those wanting to plan their time at MIFF, I begin my reviews a week in advance with some mighty interesting films. 

The Forgiven
Dir: John Michael McDonagh
Length: 117 mins
© Madman - top shelf acting - great plot -
excellent viewing
Wealthy Londoner David Heninger (Ralph Fiennes) and his glamorous wife Jo (Jessica Chastain) are driving through the remote Moroccan desert to attend a decadent party at the home of their friend Richard (Matt Smith). On route their car hits a local Bedouin boy. The police visit, and although David thinks the matter has been dealt with, events will prove otherwise. It's great to see Fiennes back in a carefully measured role, playing a complex character who is not totally what he initially seems.  Apart from how impressive this film looks and sounds with its exotic settings and music, it is intelligently scripted with a plot that had me totally engaged. Obvious issues of Western wealth and decadence sitting alongside third-world poverty are interwoven with exploration of  the customs and mores of the desert-dwelling locals. Smith and Aussie actor Caleb Landry Jones (star of Nitram) are excellent in the roles of the party-loving hosts, while their shallow behaviour and that of their debauched guests provides plenty of food for thought. Performances from the Moroccan actors are uniformly impressive. For me quite a stand-out film among my many viewings of late.
4 - highly recommended

Murder Party
Dir: Nicolas Pleskof
Length: 103 mins
© Pivot Pictures -  colorful French farce

Renowned architect Jeanne (Alice Pol) is invited to design a renovation for the mansion of Cesar Daguerre (Eddy Mitchell), a man made rich through his company that developed a collection of board games. When Cesar is found dead and reeking of arsenic, the games really begin, with a disembodied voice directing Jeanne and the household members (family and the butler, of course) to participate, find the killer or die. I am definitely not the person to recommend (or not!) this type of zany French farce. It is not my genre of film, but I recognise that other viewers love this sort of lunacy. To its credit, the film looks great, with an over-the-top color-saturated palette, but I find everything about the characters and the plot unbelievable, and, more importantly, not especially funny.
2.5 - maybe

Falling for Figaro
Dir: Ben Lewin
Length: 103 mins
© IFC Films - Joanna Lumley steals the show
in this credibility-stretching but delightful film
Brilliant and successful fund manager Millie (Danielle McDonald) is obsessed with becoming an opera singer. She leaves her job, and her partner Charlie (Shazad Latif) for a year, to travel to a remote village in the Scottish Highlands. There she hopes to take singing lessons from former operatic diva Meghan Jeffrey-Bishop (Joanna Lumley). The ultimate goal is to win the prestigious Singer of Renown competition. But she'll be up against Max (Hugh Skinner), another of Meghan's students, who's been trying to win for five years. In films of this nature you have to suspend disbelief - how could someone who has never sung hope to progress to these heights? That aside, there is so much to enjoy about this delightful film; it is funny, romantic, and at times silly (in a good way). The music is splendid (and that's coming from a non-opera fan), the countryside just gorgeous, and Joanna Lumley is an absolutely hilarious scene-stealer as the obnoxious singing coach. Although aspects of the plot are predictable, the film never falls into heavy formula; it remains fun and fresh and is a sure-fire, feel-good crown pleaser. 
3.5 - well recommended

Full Time
Dir: Eric Gravel
Length: 117 mins
© Palace - the pace and price
of a stressful existence
Julie (Laure Calamy) is a divorced Mum of two young kids. Although highly qualified in a professional field, she works as head chambermaid at a 5-star Paris hotel, but barely scrapes by, as her husband is erratic with alimony payments. When a general transport strike hits Paris, everything she has juggled for so long threatens to topple down like a house of cards. Significantly, this film has won three major Venice Horizons awards: Best Actor, Best Director and Best Film. Calamy is remarkable as Julie, a woman who puts on a face for the world, while underneath is going through more stress than is reasonably bearable. The pace of the film captures the drama of Julie's day, as she gets up before dawn, takes the kids to a nanny, runs most of the way to meet unreliable transport, and then faces all manner of pressures at her job, where the clientele are beyond demanding. (Meantime she's desperately applying for a new job.) A driving, pulsating music score, combined with a fast-paced shooting style, creates a stress which is almost unbearable, and one is soon totally invested in Julie's tumultuous lifestyle, as she frantically juggles everything, rarely able to grab  moment for herself. This is top-notch film-making, that really reflects what life is like for many struggling people in this fast-paced modern world.
4.5  - wholeheartedly recommended

MIFF
Melbourne International Film Festival 
4 - 28 August
Venues:  ACMI, Astor, Capitol, Nova, Forum, Hoyts Melbourne Central, IMAX, Kino, Lido, Pentridge, Sun
For everything you need to know visit: www.miff.com.au
It's that time of year where movie lovers risk deep vein thrombosis to be totally sedentary, reveling in endless films back to back, at Melbourne's most popular film festival, MIFF. And, as always, there is a plethora of wonderful films, plus special events, to celebrate MIFF's 70th anniversary. A record 61 films from the Cannes FF will be screened. 
One of the Festival's special strands is Melbourne on Film, with 25 Melbourne-focused films showing. Friday 5 August sees the launch of that strand, along with a book featuring a collection of essays on how our wonderful city has starred in movies over the years. 
All the festival films will screen in-cinema from 4-21 August and many will stream online from 11th - 28th August. Check out (above) the wonderful range of Melbourne cinemas in which the films will screen. And of course regional areas in Victoria won't miss out as MIFF travels to the likes of Warrnambool, Echuca, Geelong, Castlemaine and more. As always, lucky me has previewed a few.
 
The United States of America: Can you name every state of the USA in alphabetical order? Director James Benning has done it for you, devoting two minutes to each state, in the from of a near static shot. And they are not the archetypical images you would expect. Each shot shows that it is nearly impossible to categorise this vast country. Impatient people will not enjoy the slow pace of the film, but after a while it becomes like a game, looking for nearly imperceptible movement in each frame, studying its elements. In several places songs and speeches are used as voice/music-overs, inviting the viewer to ponder aspects of the country's history. And finally there is  very big surprise in the end credits - I'll leave it for you to discover.  

Reflection: You'd better brace yourself for this one - the film is set in the Russian/Ukranian conflict of 2014, but is terrifyingly current, and horrifically disturbing in its depictions of the conditions in Russian detention centres. Serhiy is a surgeon who signs up to go to war, alongside Andrii, his ex-wife's new husband. When the men are captured by Russian forces the nightmare sets in. Reconciling his trauma with a return to "normal" life and his daughter, Polina, is a challenge for Serhiy. This film also moves at times at a glacial pace, enabling the viewer to absolutely immerse in the emotions and experiences of each character. It is brutal and challenging viewing, but brilliant film-making, deserving of  its Golden Lion nomination at the Venice Film Festival.

General Hercules: Here's a winner of an Aussie documentary, set in the rough-neck town of Kalgoorlie. John Katahanas, known as General Hercules, is a gold prospector who lives rough in a caravan, and decides to run for mayor. He goes up against the current mayor, on an anti-corruption platform. The hard living, hard-swearing man is a total hoot, but underneath the film's surface there is  lot of serious social commentary - exposing greed, corruption and political behaviour that seems unnervingly familiar. Very entertaining and enlightening viewing, with a terrific insight into an iconic Aussie town most of us are unlikely to visit.

The Tale of King Crab: Luciano lives in a bucolic village in Italy in the late 1800s. But he is a drunk, and after killing someone he finds himself banished to the ends of the earth - Tierra del Fuego in Argentina. There, taking on the persona of a dead priest, he teams up with a posse of  gold-chasing pirates, and using a red crab to show the way to the lake where the gold supposedly lies, sets out on the quest. This strangely allegorical tale has won a truckload of various awards, and though I cannot profess to totally understand all its subtleties, it is absorbing throughout. The cinematography is absolutely worth noting; beautiful and dramatic, while the lead actor is charismatic. 






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Sunday 24 July 2022

 July 25th

Night Raiders
Official Competition
Cuba and the Cameraman (streaming on Netflix)
MIFF alert! Advance reviews coming soon!


Though this week's reviews seem light on, it's full steam ahead as I'm previewing for the imminent Melbourne International Film Festival, with the Korean FF hot on its heels! Square eyes indeed! All three films reviewed this week come well recommended. 

Night Raiders
Dir: Danis Goulet
Length: 101 mins
© Vendetta - a bleak future and oppressive
state is taken on by Cree people
Set in a near-future dystopian world, this is a story of America and Canada united, the whole continent divided by a wall, with impoverished and indigenous people on one side, and the right-wing ruling powers on the other. (Hmm, something Trump may have enjoyed!)  Children become the property of the state. Cree woman Niska (Elle Maija Tailfeathers) has successfully hidden her daughter Waseese (Brooklyn Letexier Hart) for several years but after an accident gives her up to be looked after by "the academy", where kids are brainwashed. Realising her mistake, Niska joins a group of Cree night raiders to attempt to steal Waseese and other children back. This intriguing film has a lot of indigenous political themes underpinning its story, and, recognising that issues are often similar throughout the world, director Goulet has New Zealand Maori actor Alex Tarrant included in an important role. Featuring a lot of native American Cree language, and shot in a very muted pallette to accentuate the doom and gloom, this is a thought-provoking film adding to the recent upsurge of Indigenous sci-fi.
3.5 - well recommended

Official Competition
Dir: Sylvie Oyahon
Length: 100 mins
© Palace - Cruz and her leading men bring
a lot of ego to this fun tale
Pen Cruz, like you've never seen her before, plays film director Lola Cuevas, a woman known for her unusual methods. She is co-opted by a wealthy tycoon who wants to leave a mark on the world, and gets her to direct a film from a Nobel-Prize-winning book, about sibling rivalry. Her leading men Felix (Antonio Banderas) and Ivan (Oscar Martinez) couldn't be more different in their acting approaches, but their egos are equally large. The film is witty, at times laugh out loud funny, and as a vehicle to stick it to the film industry and to arrogance, this is one worth seeing. Cruz and her leading men are terrific in their performances, and the minimalism of the sets means you can  concentrate hard on the over-the-top characters. 
3.5 - well recommended

Cuba and the Cameraman
Dir: Jon Alpert
Length: 113 mins
Streaming on Netflix
© Netflix - the Borrego brothers -
resilience personified
Imagine making a film for forty-five years! That's how long director Alpert has been taking his camera to Cuba, documenting the rise of Fidel Castro, but even more importantly, meeting the locals to assemble a vision of a fascinating nation that has been through a hell of a lot of turmoil. The most intriguing is the trio of Borrego brothers, who have worked the land for decades, and, despite grinding poverty, maintain a resilient and life-affirming attitude. Though not overtly political, the film does examine the effect of the Castro rule, and Alpert seems to have even befriended the leader over the years. But it's the view of the locals, and the very long-term real-life view of this country that makes for such fascinating and insightful viewing.  
3.5 - well recommended


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Thursday 14 July 2022

July 15th

Scandinavian Film Festival
Firestarter: The Story of Bangarra (streaming on ABC iView and Foxtel)
Spiderhead (streaming on Netflix)


So, saw Elvis a second time - this time 6/5 from me. Miss it at your peril! This week a wonderful wintry film festival comes to us from Scandinavia. Plus streaming platforms deliver yet again with a stunning doco on the Bangarra Dance Company, and a generally entertaining semi sci-fi thriller starring hunky Hemsworth. 

Scandinavian Film Festival
12 July - 10 August
Palace cinemas and Cinema Nova
For other states, programming, ticketing visit: www.scandinavianfilmfestival.com

Again this year the festival brightens your winter by bringing you the best of Nordic cinema from Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Iceland. A special feature of this year's festival will be a tribute to Scandi screen sirens, with such iconic films as Casablanca featuring Ingrid Bergman, Wicker Man with Britt Ekland and Queen Christina with Greta Garbo. As always, I have a few to recommend to you.

Nordic By Nature: Can you imagine a Michelin-starred restaurant in such a remote and idyllic setting? Well, here it is: KOKS, tucked away in the Faroe Islands. This delightful Danish doco brings us into the inner sanctum of head chef Poul Andrias Ziska and those working at this fine dining establishment. The difference is that all the produce is sourced from the immediate surrounds - the bounty of the sea and of rugged mountains in this remote location. Squeamish folk and vegetarians be warned: there is plenty of gutting of sheep, goats, fish and even whales. Somehow the workers are all "at one" with their surrounds and nature, and there is something very refreshing and unusual about this foodie film (not to mention mouth-watering, for adventurous diners). 
Quake

: In this bleak Icelandic psychological mystery, Saga is a separated mum bringing up her little boy. She suffers a severe epileptic fit and partially loses her memory. As she gradually reacquaints herself with those around her trying to help, she is frantic with fear that her child will be taken away from her. Gradually, with the help of a photo album from her childhood, she unearths some deep-seated memories that explain her fears. This is classic psychological drama, with fine acting, and compassionate, totally believable characters.  Anita Briem gives an intense and fine performance as the distraught mother.
A Matter of Trust: This intriguing Danish drama deals with five different tales, and though interwoven chronologically, they are not connected, but they all have something to do with trust, or lack of it. A doctor accompanies a repatriation flight of distressed refugees back to Afghanistan; a married man meets a virtual stranger for a weekend of sex;  a teen in school is upset after a photo he sends gets into the wrong hands, and then he turns to his teacher for solace; a pregnant young wife and her husband attend a funeral where he is obviously not welcome, but we don't know why; a mother and her little daughter, sporting a black eye, are on some crazy beach expedition, where things are not what they seem. Of particular note is much awarded Danish actor Trine Dyrhokm (pictured), in a powerful performance as the doctor. Despite the vignettes being short, each is absolutely engrossing.  

Firestarter - the Story of Bangarra
Dir: Wayne Baliar and Nel Michin
Length: 95 mins
Streaming on ABC iView and Foxtel
© Icon - Bangarra Dance Company told in
the words of those who created it
If you missed this at the cinema last year, here's your chance to catch up with this inspiring, informative and beautiful documentary. Winning the inaugural Change Award at the Adelaide Film Festival,  it traces the history of one of Australia's foremost dance companies. Thirty years ago the Paige brothers, Stephen, Russell and David made a big step towards Reconciliation by setting up a dance company that brings indigenous stories to life. The film is not only about the history of that company, but also about the ever-fraught situation for Aboriginal people in a white Australia. Told through archival footage, and the words of the only surviving brother, artistic director Stephen, this is a doco to delight, disturb, and make everyone think more deeply about our relationship with our country's First Nations people. The dance itself is thrilling, athletic and exquisite to watch, the issues as always challenging.
4 - highly recommended

Spiderhead
Dir: Joseph Kosinski
Length: 106 mins
Streaming on Netflix
© Netflix - fun and pharmaceuticals
in a prison setting
Dr Steve Abnesti (Chris Hemsworth) is in charge of some heavy-duty drug experiments, in a prison where the inmates are granted certain privileges in exchange for being part of a pharmaceutical  research project. Inmate Jeff (Miles Teller) starts to become suspicious about the true nature of the project and Abnesti's involvement in it. Yes, most critics have panned it, and it's certainly no Shutter Island, but there is something rather intriguing about the premise of this film, not to mention seeing hunky Hemsworth playing quite a different role from his muscle-bound superheroes. It's actually a great plotline, with the prisoners all having an Existenz-style portal wired into their backs, and through this the devious doctor injects all manner of drugs to gauge the reaction: fear, sexual arousal, obedience etc. The film certainly lets itself down with a very formulaic ending, but I've got to say, when I was in the mood for some light entertainment, with just a jot of thought-provocation, this one fit the bill nicely.
3 - recommended
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Thursday 7 July 2022

 July 8th

Sundown
Compartment Number 6
Yara (streaming on Netflix)
The Girl from Oslo - (just a mention of a great Netflix series) 

Two very strong cinema releases are here this week. Plus ongoing offerings from good ol' Netflix. Advance notification: the Scandinavian Film Festival will be starting next week. 

Sundown
Dir: Michel Franco
Length: 82 mins
© Kismet - the ever-impressive Tim Roth
gives us a mystery-shrouded character
Neil (Tim Roth) is on holiday at an exclusive resort in Mexico with Alice (Charlotte Gainsbourg) and two kids in their late teens. When Alice's mother suddenly dies the holiday is cut short. At the airport Neil announces he left his passport at the hotel, leaving Alice to return to London alone. But it's a ruse and Neil stays on, indulging in beer, the local lifestyle, and hooking up with local lass Berenice (Iazua Larios). No more clues from me as to why; suffice to say this is an almost existential story that centres on the mystery of what is driving (or not driving) the seemingly lackadaisical Neil. The power of the film is in the gradual unpeeling of the layers of the onion, as director Franco teases us in revealing the truth incrementally. As a picture of the seediness, poverty and criminality of aspects of Mexican life, there is a lot on display, but at heart the film is about Neil. Tim Roth is brilliant as Neil, who, rather than doing, simply spends his time being. The subtlety of Roth's performance is a revelation. This is the sort of film where by the end, the whole adds up to even more than its parts.
4 - highly recommended

Compartment Number 6
Dir: Juho Kuosmanen
Length: 107 mins
© Transmission - a small
gem of a film
Winner of the 2021 Ecumenical Jury Prize and the Grand Prix at Cannes (plus umpteen other awards) this is a quirky little gem of a film. Finnish girl Laura, (Seidi Haarla) is travelling north on a Russian train to the Arctic circle. Her girlfriend Irina was supposed to come but has stayed behind in Moscow. Laura wants to visit the 10,000 year-old petroglyphs in the frozen town of Murmansk. Her companion in the cramped compartment is Russian mining worker Ljoha (Yuriy Borisov), and from the get-go it looks like they could be a match made in hell. But things take an unexpected turn as the hard drinking, chain-smoking obnoxious Ljoha gets Laura talking about her life, and, on a stopover, even takes her to visit an old woman, a friend of his, who is full of worldly wisdom. This is one of those low-key slice of life films that surprises, constantly, as it goes along. The fact that so little happens and yet I became so engaged is testament to the strength of the direction and the acting. Ultimately the film taps into something about finding the common humanity that binds us and helps us get in touch with our deeper, sometimes hidden, self. 
4 - highly  recommended

Yara
Dir: Marco Tullio Giordano
Length: 96 mins
Streaming on Netflix
© Netflix - solid police drama based
upon a true crime in Italy
In a small Italian town 12 years ago, a 13-year-old girl Yara goes missing on her way back from gym training. When the body is found some months later, a determined prosecutor Letizia Ruggeri (Isabella Ragonese) introduces an innovative DNA testing procedure to track down the killer, via relatives who share a stand-out genetic quirk. This is based upon a true story which shocked Italians everywhere. The strength of the movie is underpinned by Ragonese's performance as a woman who simply will not give up, despite male authorities suggesting men could do the job better. The film offers an interesting take on a ground-breaking DNA-driven investigation, and has enough tension for those who love a solid crime procedural.
3.5 - well recommended

And one more thing . . . .
The Girl From Oslo
10 part series Streaming on Netflix

© Netflix - a gripping hostage drama
No, I'm not getting into the business of reviewing series (that could take ten lifetimes!) but I have fallen under the bingeing spell of this terrific Norwegian/Israeli drama about a Norwegian girl, and an Israeli brother and sister taken hostage by ISIS while they are holidaying in the Sinai. Secrets, deals, negotiations and double-crosses abound, as the Israeli Secret Service and defence forces, ISIS, Hamas, and the Norwegian parents all jockey to engineer a solution that meets their demands. Performances are uniformly impressive, the tension never abates, and the twists and turns will rope you in. I loved it.  
4 - highly recommended


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Friday 1 July 2022

July 1st

Haute Couture
Ali and Ava
Bruce Springsteen's Letter to You (streaming on Apple +)
Crip Camp (streaming on Netflix)

I've been on a binge watching streaming films, with more to come over the next weeks. Plus of course, new releases are still coming into our cinemas. (I'm itching to go and see Elvis again!)

Haute Couture
Dir: Sylvie Oyahon
Length: 100 mins
© Vendetta - passing the baton on
to the next generation
Esther (Nathalie Baye) is nearing the end of her career as head seamstress at a Dior high end fashion workshop (atelier) in Paris. One day her bag is stolen in the subway. When the thief Jade (Lyna Khoudri) returns it, instead of calling the police, Esther offers Jade a job as an intern at the fashion house. From there, both their lives will change. In many ways the arc of the film's narrative is fairly predictable, but, there is something very sweet and engaging about the characters. Esther, with her seeming harshness, sees Jade as a surrogate daughter (she is estranged from her own child). Jade, coming from a grungy lower-class life, sees hope for change in the opportunity offered her. The directer researched the daily life in a Paris atelier, and the film is a glorious showcase for the craft of designing and creating exquisite gowns. But more lovely than that is the idea of handing one's carefully honed craft on to the next generation. It makes for heart-warming viewing.
3.5 - well recommended

Ali and Ava
Dir: Clio Barnard
Length: 95 mins
© Transmission - a fresh and warm love story
Ava (Claire Rushbrook) is a middle-aged widowed mother, working as a teachers' assistant. She gives her all to her job and to her own kids. Ali (Adeel Akhtar) is a British born Pakistani going through a marriage break-up. When they meet via Sophie, the child of Ali's tenants, and whom Ava teaches, an instant rapport is apparent, with a lot of humour shared between them. But their lives each have deeply embedded issues and hurts. This is the genre of British film-making that reminds me of Ken Loach's work; gritty, ultra-realistic, moving, and sometimes quite hard to comprehend when the characters speak in their regional accents! But it is a film full of warmth and heart, with fabulous chemistry generated between the two leads. While the film focuses upon the romance, there are suitably subtle undertones of class and race issues, but they never overwhelm the basic story. The musical score is a treat, and much about the film and the characters' reactions is fresh and unexpected, making for powerful viewing.
4 - highly recommended

Crip Camp
Dir: James Lebrecht, Nicole Newnham
Length: 109 mins
Streaming on Netflix
© Netflix  - inspiring people overcoming
prejudice and disability
A nominee for best Documentary Feature at the 2021 Oscars, this is the story of a revolution, in which disabled people fought for their rights. Director Lebrecht was born with spina bifida and wasn't expected to live. When he attended Camp Jened in the 1970s his eyes were opened to a whole cohort of disabled people, who were seen by those who ran the camp as people in their own right. Many of them went on to fight hard and long for the passing of the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act, which guaranteed accessibility and non-discrimination for all. While the subject matter may sound grim, it is actually totally inspirational, with plenty of humour among all the lobbying and determination. The film can't help but encourage viewers to hold a mirror up to their own prejudices and ideas around disability. This doco makes for rivetting and important viewing.
4 - highly recommended

Bruce Springsteen's Letter to You
Dir: Thom Zimny
Length: 90 mins
Streaming on Apple+
© Apple+- The Boss pours his heart out
in an intimate musical doco
It's easy to say, if you're a Bruce Springsteen fan, don't miss this revealing documentary. But even if you're not, there is much to be gleaned from spending time with one of the world's most influential modern musicians and poets. The film, shot in evocative black and white, takes us into the studio where Bruce is recording with his old band of 40-plus years, the E Street Band. He talks about what each song means to him, and what playing with these musos for so much of his life means. Each song seems to address aspects of Bruce's life, and given he's over 70 now, there is a feeling of underlying reflection upon time passing and mortality. Close-ups of the individual musicians highlight the depth of talent gathered there. The film is an absolute music lovers' delight bringing out the humanity, not just the high-profile fame of "the Boss".
3.5 - well recommended
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