Wednesday, 26 February 2025

February 27th 2025

The Seed of the Sacred Fig
The Last Journey
Inside
White Bird
Dahomey
The Goat Life (streaming on Netflix)


I go from a meagre one review last week to a hefty six today, offering you a huge choice of excellent viewing. 


The Seed of the Sacred Fig
Dir:  Mohammad Rasoulof
Length: 167 mins
© Sharmill -  political, personal and
powerful film-making
Iman (Missagh Zahreh) is an honest judge in Tehran, living with his wife Najmeh (Soheila Golestani) and daughters Rezvan (Mahsa Rostami) and Sana (Setareh Maleki). He receives a promotion to the position of investigating judge in the Revolutionary Court of Iran, but his integrity will be tested, as he is expected to sign countless death warrants for people who have been arrested protesting against the oppressive government. His family is instructed to keep a low profile, but free-thinking, modern sisters Rezvan and Sana are outraged at what is going on around them, especially when their friend is arrested and badly beaten on the streets. When Iman's gun goes missing he starts to doubt his wife and daughters, setting off a family crisis of mistrust and suspicion. Winner of three prestigious critics' awards at Cannes, this is an important and timely film. There is an intelligent blending of the personal family dynamic, counterpointed with the broader socio-political issues in Iran. Tension gradually ratchets up, making the film gripping, thrilling and ultimately a shocking indictment of Iran's system of corruption and oppression. Aside from its excellent scripting and powerful performances, the film is even more astonishing as it was shot entirely in secret, such are the dangers to film-makers in that country. 
4.5 - wholeheartedly recommended

The Last Journey
Dir:  Filip Hammar & Fredrik Wikingsson
Length: 90 mins
© Universal - a warm, funny and moving story of
a roadtrip attempting to revisit the past
Seeing the shorts for this, I assumed it was another zany Scandi narrative movie. But I was surprised to discover it is a documentary, featuring the two directors, along with Filip's father, Lars, and his mum, Tiina. Lars was a French teacher all his working life, with  a passionate love of France, a country to which he travelled countless times, with his wife and son. But now, ageing and retired he seems to have lost all his zest for life, and sits in his chair, perhaps just waiting for death. Filip is distressed and decides he will take Lars, along with his best pal Fredrik, on a road trip to France, to revisit favorite places, in the hope he can give his dad some of his old joie de vivre. They head off in a very old orange Renault, but things don't go totally as planned. This film is suffused with so much joy, fun, laughter, love and poignancy. There a is total naturalness between the characters, even more so than when Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan went off on their famously filmed road trips. The scenery and places in the south of France are, as  expected, simply beautiful, and the current adventure is interspersed with old video footage and photos of the family's past trips when Filip was a kid. The film also takes a sobering look at the issues involved in ageing, both physical and emotional, especially for those who no longer have the sense of identity their work gave them. The story is also a reminder that, even though we cannot turn back time or  recreate the past, there is so much to be gained from seizing the present. Filip's creativeness in devising special scenarios that will please Lars, along with an uplifting testament from past students, all combine to make for a moving and inspiring movie experience. 
4 - highly recommended

Inside
Dir:  Charles Williams
Length: 104 mins
© Bonsai - one of the best prison films
in years.  
Mel Blight (Vincent Miller) has spent many years in juvenile prison for killing another boy when he was 12. He is now being transferred to an adult facility. He shares a cell with Mark Shepherd (Cosmo Jarvis), a child rapist who has apparently "found God", speaks in tongues and runs services for inmates. Shepherd co-opts Mel to play keyboard to accompany the sermons. Fellow inmate Warren Murfett (Guy Pearce) has done an inside deal to kill Shepherd, and decides to sub-contract Mel to do the hit. And so Mel, totally alone in the world with no family or visitors, is caught between these two men who have taken him under their wings, and his own feelings of helplessness, despair and rage. This is no ordinary run-of-the-mill prison drama. Rather, it is a stand-out tour-de-force of film-making and acting, and none of the stereotypical scenarios we usually get in prison dramas. Pearce arguably gives a career-best performance. Miller knows how to use subtle facial gestures and minimum dialogue to maximum effect, while Jarvis is extraordinary at evoking an unlikely compassion for a man who has committed such a heinous act. Each character is so carefully nuanced and layered, so that we are reluctant to  unconditionally condemn; instead seeing a glimmer of the humanity that lurks underneath even the most reprehensible of characters. The film was shot in a not yet opened prison in Lara, Victoria, adding to its oppressive and realistic atmosphere. For those able to tolerate the bleakness, it is probably one of the most truthful and unsensationalised depictions of the broken justice system and its sad inhabitants that you've seen.  
4.5 - wholeheartedly recommended

White Bird
Dir:  Marc Forster
Length: 121 mins
© -  a grandmother recounts her childhood
hiding from the Nazis
Grandmother Sara (Helen Mirren) sits with her grandson, reproaching him for his unkind attitude to his classmates and his unruly behaviour. She decides the time has come to tell him of her childhood wartime experiences. And so begins a flashback to yet another Holocaust story, this one of a well-off French family who are rounded up by the Gestapo in Paris in 1942. Young Sara (Ariella Glaser) escapes and is hidden in a barn by the family of one of her classmates, Julien (Orlando Schwerdt), a boy paralysed in one leg by polio. Julien's kind mother Vivienne (Gillian Anderson) cares for the girl, while she and her brave classmate create a world of fantasy which helps them get through the nightmarish time. Although presented in a rather sanitised and overly romanticised way, this is a very engaging story, and it's always great to see Mirren in action. If it's more darker stories of this terrible era out there you want, head off to see The Brutalist.
3 - recommended
 
Dahomey
Dir:  Mati Diop
Length: 68 mins
Exclusive to Cinema Nova in Vic
© Rialto - unusual and informative doco
that will resonate with certain audiences
If you've seen the film The Woman King with Viola Davis, you may know of the kingdom of Dahomey in Africa. The country was once a major centre for slave trade and was taken over by the French in 1894. In 1960 the colony gained independnce and 15 years later became known as Benin. Enough of the potted history, but it is important in the context of this little award-winning documentary which raises some big ideas. Of course colonising countries love to plunder, and France stole some 7000 valuable items from Dahomey. This doco follows the process of repatriation of 26 of these items, and is told through the "voice" of a statue of one of Dahomey's kings, as it is returned to its country of origin. After a fairly slow and careful tracing of the process of packing and shipping the treasures, we join a spirited conversation among students in Benin as they debate weighty issues, among them the legacy of colonisation and the importance of the repatriation of artefacts. The film has won some pretty hefty awards, but is likely to be more popular with critics than your average movie-goer. 
3 - recommended

The Goat Life
Dir:  Blessy
Length: 173 mins
Streaming on Netflix

© Netflix -  modern slavery: an Indian
man is abducted and forced to work
in the blazing Saudi desert
Najeeb (Prithviraj Sukumaran) wants to provide for his beloved wife and forthcoming child, so follows a job lead which takes him to Saudi Arabia. When he and his friend Hakim (K. r. Gokul) are picked up at the airport, they soon find they have been abducted by brutish Arab criminals, who take them to the middle of the desert and  separate them. Najeeb finds himself being held captive and forced to work as a goat-herder. Beaten, starving and desperate, he looks for a means of escape. You'll need real staying power to survive this one, not only because of its length but because the story itself is so harrowing. It is based upon the real-life experience of a man from southern India, whose gruelling experience became the basis for a best-selling book in that country. Watching it, one really feels the pain, deprivation and suffering that Najeeb must have felt. Sukumaran's performance is stunning, as is the makeup which transforms him into a near-mute wild man.The wide-screen vastness of the stunning cinematography just adds to the feeling of his isolation. Indians often aspire to earning their fortune in the Arab Gulf States, but this story certainly casts a light on the harsh conditions many migrants endure. Ultimately this is a story of abduction and modern slavery, harsh to watch, but important to know about. (And . . . had I been editor, I'd have taken the knife to the run-time!)
3.5 - well recommended

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Thursday, 20 February 2025

February 21st 2025

Bird
It may not be a two-dog night, but it is a one-film week. And what a terrific film this is!  However, prepare for the onslaught of many more in the coming weeks. 

Bird
Dir: Andrea Arnold
Length: 119 mins
© Mushroom Group/Reset Collective  - moving,
funny, chaotic, and magical. A winner! 
Bailey (Nikiya Adams) is a young teen living with her brother Hunter and her Dad, Bug (Barry Keoghan), in a squalid run-down squat. Bug, who had Bailey when he was 14, is like an overgrown kid, and her stoner mother lives with Bailey's three half-siblings and an abusive boyfriend. So, Bailey more or less raises herself and is a loner, watching birds fly overhead, talking to seagulls, and in need of a friend. One day she chances upon a strange elf-like, skirt-wearing man, Bird (Franz Rogowski), who befriends her and gradually becomes like a protector to her. This gorgeous film celebrates both the joyous and the depressing sides of life. The conditions in which Bailey and her family live are chaotically recreated with loud music and grimy sets depicting an environment that borders on shocking. Bailey's little siblings, who she cares for deeply,  live in fear of the mother's violent boyfriend, while Bailey is distraught that her Dad plans to marry. But, when Bird enters her life, things change. We never learn where this man came from, and there is such an other-worldliness, gentleness and kindness to him as he transforms Bailey's life. Rogowski is simply mesmerising as this strange character. After all the in-your-face realism, the film takes a drastic turn towards the end, to enter a place of magic realism, but if you just go along for the ride you will be richly rewarded by this gem of a film.
4 - highly recommended
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Wednesday, 12 February 2025

February 13th 2025

Grand Tour
The Six Triple Eight (streaming on Netflix)
Europa Europa Film Festival

A quiet(ish) week for me, with the highlight being Italian film Anna from the Europa Europa Film Festival. 


Grand Tour
Dir:  Miguel Gomes
Length: 129 mins
© Potential - a very different combo of
love story and travelogue 
Billed as a "travelogue drama", Grand Tour is at once quirky, intriguing, and eye-opening, blending an Edwardian "romance gone wrong" tale with real documentary footage of contemporary life in the countries featured in the narrative. In Burma in 1918 Edward (Goncalo Waddington) flees his fiancee Molly (Crista Alfaiate) on their wedding day. He heads off on a travel circuit comprising Burma, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Japan and China. Determined to be married, Molly pursues him, sending letters but always one step behind. This is the sort of movie you need to surrender yourself to, and not hunt for any conventional narrative. As Edward's and Molly's stories are shown, the film is shot in black and white; the modern-day footage of people going about their lives in the various countries is in colour. Edward's adventures border on the surreal at times, but Molly's are more grounded in reality, as she meets an American rancher and his maid living in Vietnam.  Eschewing his marriage proposal she persists in pursuing Edward. The contrast between the colonial view of the eastern world, and the realities of life there today make for much philosophical pondering, and the narrative remains (mostly) engaging. Grand Tour won Best Director at Cannes 2024.
3.5 - well recommended

Europa Europa Film Festival
Feb 12-March 12
Melbourne: Classic and Lido Cinemas; Sydney: Ritz
For more info visit: www.Europafilmfestival.com.au

Want to see the best of European arthouse film in one festival? 46 films from 26 countries are headed your way, many of them nominated and awarded at Europe's most prestigious festivals. I've had a small advance sneak preview, and both films are the sort of gems that you seldom find upon general release. 
 
Anna: With several  Best Film wins to its name and a win for lead actress Rosa Aste, this is a thoroughly engrossing film with a decided David vs Goliath theme. Anna has lived on her father's land in Sardinia all her life, tending her goats and making cheeses which she sells at local markets. Then along comes a huge hotel chain, claiming they have bought the land from the local authorities and they intend to build. The locals are delighted that the hotel build brings them employment, but Anna and her handful of supporters are aghast that her rights should be so overridden. So begins the legal battle. Director Marco Amenta wields a slow and steady hand over his story, which totally draws you in to barrack for "the little person". Aste is absolutely deserving of her awards, with Marco Zucca a strong support as her lawyer. Shot in the rugged land of southern Sardinia, the stark and beautiful landscapes are a reflection of Anna's strength and pride in her land. (For goat lovers, the irrestible goats are stars in their own right!)

Mother Mara: Serbian star Mirjana Karanovic plays Mara, a mother grieving for her son who has died suddenly at age 20. She manages to vaguely keep up her competent businesswoman persona, but underneath she is falling apart. That is, until she starts an affair with a friend of her son, Milan (Vucic Perovic). This delicate, sad film features a star turn from its lead actress. It is a sympathetic look at the issues of loss, grief, ageing and rediscovering passion.  
Europa Europa is a highly recommended festival.

The Six Triple Eight
Dir:  Tyler Perry
Length: 127 mins
Streaming on Netflix
© Netflix - the true story of a battallion of 
women who defeated the odds
The Women's Army Corps (WAC) was established in the USA during World War 2, giving women an opportunity to serve in non-combat roles. This is the true story of the only WAC unit comprising women of color. The story opens with Lena Derricott King (Ebony Obsidian) in love with a Jewish boy. When he is killed in battle, she opts to join the 6888 Battallion, led by Captain Charity Adams (Kerry Washington). The women train hard, but somehow are always overlooked for serious missions because of their colour. Finally the army sends them to Europe, where they are tasked with sorting 17 million pieces of mail, which have neither reached home sent from soldiers, nor arrived from home at the battle field. They are given a small window to achieve the job, and the men in power think the women are not up to it. General Halt (Dean Norris), is especially vocal in his misogynistic and racist remarks. This is definitely in the "feel-good" category of movie making - a little sanitised and sweet, but with a good heart and telling a truly inspiring tale. There is nothing like seeing the underdog rise up and kick butt!  The two lead women are excellent in their roles, the period is well recreated, and a song from the movie is nominated for an Oscar.
3.5 - well recommended



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Thursday, 6 February 2025

February 7th 2025

Queer
The Presence
Widow Cliquot
The Order (streaming on Prime) 

Terrific viewing again this week. My pic of the week is actually a streaming film starring a wonderful Jude Law and based upon the true story of nailing a right-wing group of fanatics in the USA. But again there is something for every taste, from historical, to queer identity, to supernatural. Get watching!

Queer
Dir:  Luca Guadagnino
© Madman - Daniel Craig loses his 007 image
to become like you've never seen him
William Lee (Daniel Craig) is an ex-pat American living in Mexico in the 1950s. Sporting his shabby white linen suit, he cruises bars, indulges in all manner of opiates, and hooks up with younger men, all the time seemingly craving a deeper intimacy. He meets Eugene Allerton (Drew Starkey) who, despite their getting involved sexually, keeps his distance and hangs out with women. Lee invites Allerton on a trip to the Ecuadorian jungle in search of a drug that he believes will open telepathic corridors in the mind. Not so much "queer" as "weird", this is an oddly intriguing film, made compelling by a much nominated performance from Daniel Craig, who nails it as the dissolute, lonely man. (As far from 007 as you could imagine!) Based upon William Burroughs' semi-autobiographical book, the film certainly successfully evokes a languid, tropical, steamy and seamy feel, with terrific settings and a strong score. Along with Craig's amazing performance, there's an almost unrecognisable, excellent turn from Jason Schwartzmann. But things get really weird, making it feel almost like two separate films, when Lee and Allerton stumble across Dr Cotter (an almost unrecognisable Lesley Manville), researching psychotropic drugs in the middle of the jungle. I don't purport to get some of the strange goings on, but definitely recommend it for Craig's mesmerising performance. 
3.5 - well recommended

Presence
Dir:  Steven Soderbergh
© Rialto - the house is scary, but so 
is the dysfunctional family!
A typical American family of parents Rebecca (Lucy Liu) and Chris (Chris Sullivan) and their two older teen kids Chloe (Callina Liang) and Tyler (Eddy Maday) are buying a lovely large new home. We meet them just as the estate agent welcomes them in, but the camera's point of view makes it instantly clear that they are all being observed by someone (something?) else. Yep, there is a presence in the home, and everything that happens from that moment on will be observed from this third-party point of view. Before you jump to conclusions that this is just another horror film, let me assure you there is a whole lot more going on than this. In fact Soderbergh smartly never goes for cheap thrills and fright-inducing scares; the horror is of a deeper and more human nature. Daughter Chloe suffers from grief at the death of one of her schoolmates. Her mother shows little empathy, her brother seems to dislike her, the parents marriage is dodgy, and when Chloe meets new schoolmate Ryan (West Mulholland) it seems like a new flirtation may snap her out of her depression. But then the big twist and the real scariness sets in, with the ghostly presence possibly the most decent thing in a house where certain characters seem hell-bent on doing each other harm. The film works very well on this psychological level, eschewing too much music (silence speaks volumes), and employing the restlessly sweeping and swooping eye of "the presence", via the camera, to chilling tense effect.
3.5 - well recommended

Widow Cliquot
Dir:  Thomas Napper
© - a handsome production tellling the story
of the woman behind our favourite fizz!
A mini history lesson for champagne lovers: In 1772 Phillipe Cliquot (Ben Miles) founded a champagne house, and when his son Francois (Tom Sturridge) was married off to Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin (Haley Bennett), he was made his father's partner. In 1805 Francois fell ill and died. Phillippe wanted to dissolve the company but the young widow Barbe-Nicole Cliquot insisted she would carry on her husband's legacy. In a time when women were denied most rights, the idea of her running a champagne house was almost unthinkable, but this, her story, is testament to the monumental success she made of it, creating an iconic champers still loved around the world today. She was ably assisted by an old friend of Francois, gun salesman Louis Bohne (Sam Riley). This is a handsome production, shot across some glorious regions of rural France. It's quite an eye opener into what goes into making a top vintage, even if at times all the mixing, distilling and tasting gets a little slow to watch. Bennett is terrific as the strong woman who won't bow to male pressure, and overall it's a very watchable and lovely film.
3.5 - well recommended

The Order
Dir:  Justin Kurzel
Length: 116 mins
Streaming on Prime
© Amazon Prime - Law in one of his
best roles to date
FBI agent Terry Husk (Jude Law) heads to a small Pacific north-west town in the USA to recover from injuries and a marriage breakdown. He gets involved in solving a series of bank robberies and heists and becomes convinced this is not the work of financially motivated criminals, rather people acquiring funds to bankroll something rather more sinister - a white supremacist terrorist group plotting to possibly overthrow the government.  The group, known as The Order, is led by Bob Matthews (a chillingly menacing Nicolas Hoult.) Based upon a true story, this intelligently scripted, high action film couldn't be more timely, with the current rise in right-wing attitudes and organisations around the world. This is one of the best performances I've ever seen from Jude Law; he's not your stereotypical FBI dude; his grizzled appearance and gruff manner belie the  nuanced layers to his character as he grapples with personal demons. Backing up Law's and Hoult's star turns is Ty Sheridan as Deputy Bowen. Every single smaller role oozes with the evil that is right-wing fanaticism.  Aussie director Kurzel, known for Snowtown, knows how to ramp up the tension, making the film a worthy Golden Lion nominee at Venice FF 2024. Gripping and important viewing.
4 - highly recommended






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