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The Hangover
Anthony Macali
A Las Vegas-set comedy centered around three groomsmen who lose their about-to-be-wed buddy during their drunken misadventures, then must retrace their steps in order to find him.
"The Hangover" premise is familiar and simple, the perfect breeding ground for plenty of laughter and stupidity. While the trailer might steal most of the best moments, the film is still hilarious. The characters are half as likeable as they should be, but it does make it funnier when bad stuff happens to them. It only struggles towards the ending, as jokes resort to bad cameos and slapstick. Despite a few headaches, it's still a winner.
The Guard
Anne Murphy
An unorthodox Irish policeman with a confrontational personality is teamed up with an uptight FBI agent to investigate an international drug-smuggling ring.
"The Guard" is a comedy threaded with some serious themes. The genre is an original police-buddy action combination delivered in a lilting Irish style which proves delightful. The central character is a foul-mouthed modern masterpiece, politically incorrect, big hearted, world weary and honourable, as well as disrespectful, again a little bit of everything in the mix. This is a very funny movie but not so much laugh out loud as wryly observed and darkly humorous. Many unguarded moments.
The Green Hornet
Anthony Macali
Following the death of his father, Britt Reid, heir to his father's large company, teams up with his late dad's assistant Kato to become a masked crime fighting team.
"The Green Hornet" tries to be cool, tries to be awesome... and fails dismally on both accounts. Our hero duo are completely uninspiring, and the film's meager amount of laughs are drawn from nothing but their bitterful banter and marvellings at high-tech creations with self-indulged clamour. The action scenes do their job, and there is an interesting sub-plot of media politics, but it arrives far too late in the piece for salvation. It sting's, it hurts, and has been done much better before.
The French Kissers
Wendy Slevison
A coming-of-age tale about an adolescent boy and his efforts to fit in amongst his peers.
This is an endearingly pragmatic and unrestrained film about the tricky, sticky life of a French fourteen year old boy. There is no airbrushing here – the pimples are real, and ready to pop - a warning to the weak of stomach! The gritty and authentic performances from the mostly young and inexperienced cast are excellent. The first-time director, previously known for writing comic strips, has created a simple and appealing alternative to the overly-glossy, largely American contributions to the teenage angst genre. Pucker up!
The Five-Year Engagement
Anthony Macali
Tom proposes to his girlfriend, Violet, but unexpected events keep delaying their marriage.
"The Five-Year Engagement" is all about hanging in for the long haul, withstand those tumultuous times and you will be rewarded. The film has much in common with the couple at its centre. There are ups and downs along with a series of funny bits that don't add up to very much. Thankfully, the characters slowly grow on you (in particular the impressive and ever-charming female lead), emotion creeps in, and the messages about relationships defy Hollywood convention and actually contain some truth. Nobody's perfect.
The First Beautiful Thing
Anne Murphy
A misanthropic professor returns to his hometown to assist his dying mother.
A mother's life is recounted through the memories of her son, and the present viewed through his eyes. "The First Beautiful Thing" is about the everyday frustrations of family, the people closest to us who we never quite forgive for being themselves. The acting is engaging, warm, and vulnerable, as characters are authentically portrayed in this humorous and at times very moving story. The film moves seamlessly between past and the present, the scenes coloured with familial warmth. A truly beautiful thing.
- Genre » Comedy Drama
- Release » Limited 23 Sep 2010
- Festival » Italian Film Festival 2010
The Extra Man
Tom Jones
A man who escorts wealthy widows in New York's Upper East Side takes a young aspiring playwright under his wing.
Louis Ives travels to New York city to discover who he is. Is he a gentleman? An escort? A writer? Or... a woman? Much like the central character, this film suffers from its own identity crisis; it has no identity. The characters are not relatable on any level and this undermines the film's realistic base to the point where it's hard to take it seriously at all. Set in the city that never sleeps, this film may actually send you to sleep.
The Dilemma
Anne Murphy
A man discovers that his best friend's wife is having an affair.
"The Dilemma" is a window into the phallocentric world of a couple of blokey blokes, and it might have been best to keep the blinds down. In a series of poorly edited improvisations, naif blockheads blunder around trying to bump into a joke. Serious themes are underdeveloped and presented with a whacky, zany tempo that leaves the effort uncomfortably mired in primitivism. It's disappointing given the plot opportunities to explore infidelity, depression, relationship, addictions, commitment and more. Insight or parody? No dilemma here mate, it's all ham.
The Dictator
Andrew O'Dea
A heroic dictator risks his life to ensure that democracy will never come to the country he oppresses.
Tastelessness and absurdity run wild in "The Dictator" as no sexuality, race, gender or religion are spared the ruthlessness of the supreme leader. It's downright offensive... you know you probably shouldn't laugh, but it's so wrong that it coerces it out of you in some perversely wicked way. Unforgettably memorable moments are bolstered by a fast pace and short running time, and although the jokes are hit and miss, thankfully it's mostly the former. If you're after something outrageous, then prepare to be hilariously oppressed.
The Descendants
Tom Jones
A land baron tries to re-connect with his two daughters after his wife suffers a boating accident.
The depiction of suburban life in Hawaii adds some interest to this film, but the central dramas are not particularly compelling or original. The moments of potential intrigue don't last long enough, so the stakes for the hero character are never raised high enough to set your heart racing. The narrative voice-over is unwarranted, something the director obviously worked out a third of the way into making the film, as it's nowhere to be heard in last two thirds. Descending in more ways than one.
The Day I Saw Your Heart
Anne Murphy
Justine is an x-ray technician with a youthful-minded father who plays golf with her ex-boyfriends.
"The Day I Saw Your Heart" is an amusing and off-beat film about family ties. The plot follows the complex relationships of fathers, daughters, sisters, wives and babies. The story is original and told in an anecdotal style, a bit like skimming through someone's diary. This French movie provides interesting viewing, if slight, as it bubbles along with a light touch. It lacks any depth or real insight into the characters themselves, but their eccentricities more than compensate for their shallowness. Watch to see some big hearts.
- Genre » Drama Comedy
- Release » Limited 07 Mar 2012
- Festival » French Film Festival 2012
The Darjeeling Limited
Anthony Macali
Three American brothers who have not spoken to each other in a year set off on a train voyage across India with a plan to find themselves and bond with each other.
It's difficult to relate to this wealthy family, so far detached from reality. Rather, you laugh at their bickering, addiction to cough medicine, fondness of snakes and pepper spray, and other mishaps aboard the Darjeeling Limited. The Indian people and culture suffer from the little attention they receive in this feature, which delivers more of a postcard snapshot than an enlightening journey. What the film lacks in spirit, it makes up for in family camaraderie.
The Concert
Anne Murphy
Thirty years ago, Andrei Simoniovich Filipov, the renowned conductor of the Bolshoi orchestra, was fired for hiring Jewish musicians.
"The Concert" is a wonderful, formulaic, crowd-pleaser. Of course, formulaic can be wonderful if you can forgive the sense of knowing what's going to happen before it unfolds. As the story builds, the many farcical sequences notwithstanding, there's a sense that something other than the music is being orchestrated. By the time the final concerto is played there is not a dry eye in the house. The magnificent crescendo plays shamelessly to our sentimentality yet it's still uplifting. Bravo.
The Clink of Ice
Anne Murphy
An alcoholic writer is visited by an incarnation of his cancer.
"The Clink of Ice" is as original as it is deeply and darkly humorous. Imagine bantering with your life threatening illness and laughing. The premise of personifying a malignant disease in a suit sets up an intriguing film. Not that there is anything funny about cancer or facing death. Typically we deride perverse situations as being as 'funny as cancer' but the director and cast prove dexterous enough to turn that assertion around. As bleak as the themes of the movie are, the clinking of ice muffles the death knell.
- Genre » Comedy Drama
- Release » Limited 17 Mar 2011
- Festival » French Film Festival 2011
The Change Up
Andrew O'Dea
A comedy in which a married father accidentally switches bodies with his best friend, leading to a series of wildly complex difficulties.
This instalment of the body-swap genre is ultimately a crass affair, and is largely dependant on shock value rather than wit – not to say it's completely devoid of any intelligence. Like its protagonists, the audience too will be split, as the film's talented cast push the boundaries of tastefulness. Some will find the perverse humour laugh-out-loud funny, while others will simply find it vulgar and clichéd. "The Change Up" is definitely borderline... it really could go either way.