The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee (2020) - Movie Review

Paul Hogan has been Australia’s cultural ambassador to the rest of the world for nearly forty years. He may not hold the title officially, but whenever someone beyond our shores thinks of Australia, it’s usually in connection to either “shrimp on the barbie” or “that’s not a knife”. Personally, I grew up around stories of him having problems with the taxation office, but that’s neither here nor there; as much as he has influenced stereotypes, he’s an icon for a reason, and I respect his contribution to the Aussie cultural identity. Which is why I am sorry to report that his latest film, a meta-sequel to the films that made him famous, is fucking dreadful.

Guardians Of The Tomb (2018) - Movie Review

 

Creature features are relatively easy stories to get right. Mainly, because there isn’t much to get right in the first place. Either make a giant-sized version of a regular creature like a snake or a shark, or let the imagination run wild and create a whole new species like with Tremors. Add some likeable characters and a basic plot to make the two meet, and there you go; job done. Of course, as is the case with any sub-genre, there is always room for error and in the age where Sharknado is a thing, the worst thing a creature feature can do is be dull. No points for guessing how this one turns out.

Ladies In Black (2018) - Movie Review

The plot: University hopeful Lisa (Angourie Rice) gets a job at clothing store Goode's during the Christmas season. As she connects with her co-workers Fay (Rachel Taylor), Patty (Alison McGirr) and Magda (Julia Ormond), it becomes clear that all of them have complicated relationships with those around them, ones that just might get a bit easier once they take into account who they have in their lives.

A Few Less Men (2017) - Movie Review

I really, really wish I would stop jinxing myself. First the whole low attention span thing comes back to bite me with Dickshark, and now I’m forced to reconsider my statement about Australia’s output for this year. I say this because we are once again dealing with a raunchy Australian comedy starring Xavier Samuel… and it’s really saying something when it’s a follow-up to a film that barely anyone liked to begin with. Released in 2011, A Few Best Men is a film that I barely remembered watching less than an hour after sitting through it and what little I did recall made me feel pretty comfortable with my general lack of recollection. But even with how bad that turned out, I won’t say that I was expecting this to be quite so painful. Let’s kindly get this the hell over with already.

The Dressmaker (2015) - Movie Review

I hate the term ‘chick flick’. Like, really hate the term. Not only does it bank on the idea that women only want a very select number of elements in their entertainment, which is pretty damn regressive, but it is also primarily used as a put-down by critics, as if what women presumably want to watch is something to inherently be ashamed of. I’ve discussed films that fit into this category before, specifically romantic shlock like The Best Of Me, but it seems like the term really doesn’t have much reason to be used nowadays. I’ll wait until the release of the Expendabelles before I feel the need for any official eulogy for the term, but gender shouldn’t qualify as a defining factor when it comes to what film is meant to interest a person. Or maybe this is just my fence-sitting naivety shining through once again, I don’t know. Anyway, I bring this all up because this film supposedly counts as a chick flick. I say "supposedly" because I’m still not entirely sure who this film is meant to appeal to, if anyone at all.

Oddball (2015) - Movie Review

Even as someone who has a dog, I have never really understood the appeal of films starring dogs. Whether it’s the Underdog adaptation, the numerous Air Bud sequels, the numerous Beethoven sequels… actually, that’s another thing: I have never understood why these films spawn franchises that last for that damn long. Anyway, while it may be the archetype of the 'a child and their pet' subgenre, unless your name is Disney, chances are you won’t be able to bring anything new to the proceedings. As such, probably the only way that this could be done any more, and make it to the big screen no less, is if it was based on a true story. Thankfully, we have another entry in the stranger than fiction files where in south-western Victoria early last year, a sheepdog saved a colony of penguins from predators like wolves and foxes. Well, anything for something potentially interesting to come out of Australian cinema, I say, but how well did this story translate to film?