Wednesday, 28 October 2026

 October 29th 2026

Pressure
Tenzing
Russell Hobbs British Film Festival
My Dearest Senorita (streaming on Netflix)

Wonderful films yet again this week! Not to mention the ever-popular British Film Festival, with its plethora of top-notch latest release movies. 

Pressure
Dir: Anthony Maras
Length: 100 min

© StudioCanal - I never imagined weather forecasting
could be so thrilling! 
So many films have been made about D-Day, but here's one with a very different slant. It's 72 hours before the Allies' planned invasion of the beaches of northern France. It's do-or-die; this military operation will probably decide the fate of the free world and be a turning point in the Second World War. After careful planning and a proposed date, the operation is threatened by deteriorating weather. General Eisenhower (Brendan Fraser) calls upon two meteorologists to advise him on when the invasion is good to go, but they cannot agree. Irving Krick (Chris Messina) bases his forecasts solely upon historical data, but newly-appointed James Stagg (Andrew Scott) takes a completely different approach, saying one must use modern methods to read the pressure systems. Never has weather forecasting been made so exciting!! The director (previously of the gripping Hotel Mumbai) knows how to inject great tension into a story that could have been dull. Scott is so impressive in his portrayal of Stagg's steely determination, and Fraser gives another great performance as Eisenhower. With actual meteorologists overseeing the scientific details of the film, everything feels authentic, and the details of weather systems become surprisingly engaging. Strong support from Kerry Condon and Damien Lewis in smaller roles fill out a rivetting story that will surprise and captivate.
4.5 - wholeheartedly recommended

Tenzing
Dir: Jennifer Peedom
Length: 125 min

© Apple TV - two of climbing history's
greats - with the emphasis on the local!
Acclaimed Aussie filmmaker Peedom has garnered plenty of awards for her excellent documentaries, Sherpa, Mountain and River. Now she directs a narrative feature about a seminal event, when Edmund Hillary (Tom Hiddleston) and Tenzing Norgay first set foot on the summit of Mt Everest. Although New Zealand-born Hillary got the main credit, this lovely film focuses on the Tibetan man's story. We learn about Tenzing at three stages in his life: the nine-year old boy (Samdrup Dorje Lama), who dreams of one day being in a team that climbs "his" mountain; the 20-year old (Tenzin Dalha), who joins an expedition as a porter, and finally the adult (Genden Phuntsok) who becomes head of the Sherpa team for the British expedition headed up by John Hunt (Willem Dafoe). The film jumps back and forth through the different periods of Tenzing's life; including meeting his beloved first wife Dawa (Thinley Lhamo), and his later determination to stand up for the rights of the Sherpas and his own recognition as an official climbing team member.  Although told in a fairly conventional narrative style, the film is full of glorious scenery, with New Zealand's southern alps a stand-in for Everest;  further footage was shot in Nepal. There are many heart-stopping moments, and despite having seen many Everest films, this one is a terrific homage to a man who has never quite received the credit he deserves, and who fulfilled his childhood dream.
3.5 - well recommended

Russell Hobbs British Film Festival
Melbourne: 28 Oct - 6 December - check website for all other states
Palace Cinemas
Find all you need to know at:  britishfilmfestival.com.au

The festival this year has 36 new films featuring the cream of British acting and directing talent. No point my itemising them here - you can check it all out on the website. But I will draw your attention to a retrospective of five incredible films, celebrating their various anniversaries: Hamlet, Last Orders, The French Lieutenant's Woman, The Man who Fell to Earth and Shirley Valentine. My initial reviews:

Extra Geography
Dir: Molly Manners
Length: 93 min
Flic (Marnie Duggan) and Minna (Galaxie Clear) atttend an English girls' boarding school. They are best of friends, doing everything in tandem. Deciding they must become more "worldly", they make a pact to fall in love with the next person they see. This happens to be their geography teacher, a New Zealander, the naive Miss Delavigne (Alice Englert). At the same time the school is putting on a production of A Midsummer Night's Dream in conjunction with a boy's school. As the two projects proceed, the girls' friendship starts to fray at the edges. Coming of age films risk being twee, sentimental or predictable, but this one is a winner, combining droll humour with a story that is poignant and totally engaging. The two leads are stunnning in their debut performances - although the girls can be exasperating, they are also charming, and a vibrant reminder of the challenges faced in growing up. The story gives insight into teen female friendships, with their intense bonds as well as the anguish of discovering you are not in fact twins, but quite different individuals. The director chooses to leave aspects of the girls' emerging sexuality subtle and somewhat ambiguous, making for speculation and lively post-movie discussion!  A thoroughly endearing and stimulating watch.   


My Duchess
Dir: Mike Newell
Length: 95 mins
The term "elder abuse" is much bandied around these days but there could be no worse case of this than what happened to Wallis Simpson, the wife of Edward, Duke of Windsor, who abdicated the British throne to marry the woman he loved, and to live in France. After Edward's death in 1972, Wallis (Joan Collins) takes on formidable French lawyer Susanne Blum (Isabella Rossellini) to manage her affairs. Blum gradually takes over the Duchess's life, isolating her from friends,  taking power of attorney over Wallis's  finances, and eventually selling off many of the royal possessions. Collins, now 93 years old, shows she's still got what it takes in the acting department, and is not afraid to be seen at her physical worst as the Duchess gradually sinks into a sad and sorry old age. Rossellini is chilling as the conniving lawyer, who gives an excellent lesson in coercive control. The film is a very handsome production, with the lavish royal life on full display: jewels, gowns, furnishings, and artworks.  The supporting cast are impressive, notably Charles Dance as Lord Mountbatten, Miranda Richardson as Lady Mosley, and Laurent Lafitte as Montalban, a loyal (but fictional) friend of Wallis. Not strictly true to historical fact, this is nevertheless a disturbing portrayal of what can happen if you give over control to the wrong person! 

My Dearest Senorita
Dir: Fernando Gonzalez Molina
Length: 113 min
Streaming on Netflix  - 2026
© Netflix - compassionate film about finding one's
true identity
Adela (Elisabeth Martinez) is a conservative 25-year-old, living with her parents and teaching catechism in Pamplona, Spain. She is tall and ill at ease in her body, perplexed as to why she must take oestrogen and is told she can never have children. Finally a visit to a gynaecologist reveals to her the truth that she was born intersex, and her parents had made the decision to operate on the baby, such that her designated sex would be female.  After the shock news, Adela moves to Madrid, sheds her female identity and takes on a masculine identity and name, A.D. Sharing Adela/AD's gender identity journey are queer physiotherapist Isabel (Anna Castillo) and gay priest Father Jose (Paco Leon), along with a colorful and sympathetic collection of Madrid misfits. This is a remake of a 1972 film, which was the first queer film in a post-Franco Spain. The modern version is a compassionate and often heartbreaking journey with our main character; an exploration of the torment of fitting into and coming to terms with a new and confronting sexual identity. Martinez, themselves an intersex actor, brings a complete truthfulness and credibility to their character. This moving and enlightening film is almost a lovesong to those who don't fit the stereotype, and is a testament to the power of self-acceptance. 
4 - highly recommended
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