FFFA 2021 Review – Bloodshot Heart

How do you mend a broken heart? Hans (Richard James Allen) is a middle aged driving instructor who still lives at home with his overbearing, Italian mother. Money is tight and they have to rent out a spare room to a young musician, Matilda (Emily David) who bares a striking resemblance to Sara, an ex …

Review – The Dry

The soil in this gripping Australian crime drama might be dry and barren, but it proves to be very fertile ground for tension and mystery in ‘The Dry’. Aaron Falk (Eric Bana) is a federal agent plagued by an unresolved trauma from his past. When one of his oldest friends is the culprit of a …

Review – ‘Rams’

No term as despised as ‘remake’. It’s right up there with ‘reboot’ and ‘sequel’. The very mention of it can send shivers down my spine, especially when carefully crafted foreign films get a lazy Yankee do-over. But what happens when a critically acclaimed Icelandic film gets an Ozzie twist? Colin (Sam Neill) and Les (Michael …

Review – ‘Morgana’

Conservative gender stereotypes are still a problem in the 21st century, often defining how people’s lives get influenced by peer pressure and the expectations within society. Even after all the battles women have fought last century in order to be seen as equals for once and for all, it still seems most of the world …

TIFF20 Review – ‘Penguin Bloom’

Based on a true story, ‘Penguin Bloom’ tells the story of Sam Bloom, who after suffering a traumatic accident finds herself searching for a reason to live. “If I can’t be a mother, then what am I?!”, she says with tears in her eyes. Glendyn Ivin’s crowdpleasing tearjerker paints a portrait of a family overcoming …

Review – ‘Blood Vessel’

‘Blood Vessel’ – what a terrific title! Not a first in its kind when it comes to ghost ships nor Nazi-horror, it tries to combine the two for a rather original but unsatisfying take on this horror sub-genre. Near the end of World War II, the survivors of a torpedoed hospital ship cling to life …

Review – ‘Babyteeth’

The film literally opens with the image of a babytooth slowly sinking to the bottom of a glass full of water. A shot that comes back in the final ten minutes of the film, translating to the protagonist’s loss of innocence and so much more. Babyteeth tackles a range of weighty subjects, and how this …

Review – ‘Hostage’ (1983)

Umbrella Entertainment is bringing back Frank Shields’ (The Breaker) ’80s cult classic ‘Hostage’. Not only is this version restored so it can be viewed in glorious 4K, this is also a slightly longer director’s cut of the film, based on the incredible, yet terrifying true story of Christine Maresch (Kerry Mack – The Lancaster Miller …

Review – ‘Emu Runner’

“Nature can mend even the most broken heart” Emu Runner is a story about a nine-year-old Indigenous girl, Gem Daniels (Rhae-Kye Waites), who lives in a remote Australian town. As she copes with her mother’s unexpected death, Gem finds solace in the company of a wild emu, unwittingly connecting with her mother’s traditional totem animal. …

Review – Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan

‘A true story of ordinary boys who become extraordinary men.’ Luke Bracey is Sergeant Bob Buick Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan tells the story of a group of Australian troops in Vietnam. It’s 1966, Major Smith (Travis Fimmel) is tired of taking care of (mostly) teenage soldiers, and requests to be transferred. His officer …