Wednesday 22 November 2023

 November 23rd 2023

The Musical Mind: A Portrait in Process
Docplay
The Other Film Festival
Brolllie - a new Aussie content FREE streaming site 

Although a couple of high profile films release this week, (Napoleon, and Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes) I haven't yet been able to catch them, so I've reviewed a wonderful new cinema-released doco about creative musicians, and bring your attention again to the excellent doco platform Docplay, plus two free-of-charge streaming opportunities. 

The Musical Mind: A Portrait in Process
Dir: Scott Hicks
Length: 94 mins
© Bonsai Films - David Helfgott and Daniel
Johns share a special bond
In 1997 a movie called Shine won a Best Actor Oscar for Geoffrey Rush. He played an Australian musician named David Helfgott, a neurodiverse man with an incredible talent for playing piano. Now, a quarter of a century later, Hicks returns to familiar territory, but this time in a fascinating doco exploring the minds of four musicians and what leads them to create and perform. Daniel Johns, singer and guitarist from the band Silverchair, classical pianist Simon Tedeschi, singer songwriter Ben Folds and Helfgott, (now 76 years old and much-adored since Shine) let the audience into their lives and their creative process. It's eye-opening to hear of Johns' desire for musical chaos, Folds' obsession with a song he wrote as a child, and how it has colored all his music, and Tedeschi's life-long drivenness. And of course Helfgott, a genius who is also so childlike and sweet-natured in his total way of being. All are men with brains possibly wired differently; all with the touch of the genius brush. An especially touching and beautiful part of this doco is the relationship Helfgott has with children in the Bellingen Youth Orchestra, as he inspires and encourages them. Two women also feature: Helfgott's totally supportive wife Gillian, and Tedeschi's artist partner Loribelle Spirovski, who paints endless portraits of her man. This is a doco all music lovers should see.
3.5 - well recommended 

DocPlay
And speaking of documentaries, for those who are new to my site, or have maybe forgotten about this excellent streaming platform, I want to again alert docophiles to the best site in town for just about any documentary you are after. For less than $8 per month you can access more than 1000 films. With inflation, that's not even two cups of coffee per month!
Several films you may have missed that I've reviewed in the last few months are now available - all came highly recommended from me:
The Giants: Brilliant doco on Bob Brown 
Navalny: Russian dissident extraordinaire
Merkel: get to know the German Chancellor
The Lost City of Melbourne
© DocPlay
Though never yet reviewed by me, I caught this film some months ago at the end of its theatrical run. This is a movie to bring you to tears. See how the architectural heritage of our city was trashed by Whelan the Wrecker back in the 60s, discover what glories existed, and what little is left of our magnificent buldings.  

And who doesn't love a freebie?
Two great new opportunities for catching some excellent movie action for free. 
The Other Film Festival
Streaming free from now until December 10th, The Other Film Festival presents Resistance - streaming Deaf and Disability-led international feature documentaries and Australian shorts. The festival, going since 2004, is a leader in the global disability screen advocacy movement and centres on authentic storytelling and representation. 

Brollie - new streaming platform featuring Aussie content
A new platform from Umbrella Entertainment, Brollie brings you more than 300 titles, including such gems from independent Aussie cinema as Babadook, Two Hands, The Last Wave, Erskineville Kings, Walkabout, Road Games, Razorback, Mad Dog Morgan, Aznavour, House of Cardin and heaps more. What's not to love here? 




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