Mini Review - 1%
1% (out Oct 18) is an Australian drama about two guys fighting for supremacy within a major bikie gang. Mistakes are made and things get out of control. Great performances from the whole cast including the two leads - Ryan Corr and Matt Nable. Grade: B+.
Mini Review - Wajib
Wajib (out Oct 18) is repetitive but it's still an engaging Palestinian drama about a father and his son who have lengthy discussions and disagreements while driving across Nazareth and delivering wedding invitations. Grade: B.
Mini Review - Donbass
Donbass (out Oct 18) is a curious drama that is, in essence, a collection of short stories about characters involved in the war between Russia and the Ukraine. It's a tricky film to be fully invested in given its fragmented nature. Grade: C+.
Mini Review - A Star is Born
A Star is Born (out Oct 18) is a remake of the 1937 original and stars Bradley Cooper as a singer-songwriter battling alcoholism and Lady Gaga as a waitress looking to break into the music industry. The film focuses too much on Cooper in the second half but for the most part, this is jaw-droppingly good cinema with great music and great performances. Grade: A-.
Mini Review - Bad Times at the El Royale
Bad Times at the El Royale (out Oct 11) is an entertaining thriller from writer-director Drew Goddard (Cabin in the Woods) about a group of strangers, all who are carrying secrets, who spend a night at a run-down hotel in Tahoe. There are some great performances but the real star of the film is the hotel itself. This was damn good fun! Grade: A-.
Mini Review - The Seagull
The Seagull (out Oct 4) is based on the play by Anton Chekhov and follows a group of people staying a country estate in Russia. They have differing views on love and differing views on art. It's a quality cast (headlined by Annette Bening) but it feels too much like a staged play and the story doesn't flow. Grade: C+.
Mini Review - In Like Flynn
In Like Flynn (out Oct 11) is a biopic which chronicles the life of Errol Flynn in the early 1900s before he moved to Hollywood and became a movie star. He's an interesting person with a curious back story... but the stiff dialogue makes this movie hard to fully go along with. Grade: B-.
Mini Review - First Man
First Man (out Oct 11) is about the life of astronaut Neil Armstrong. We all know he landed on the moon and so the focus is on who he was as a person and the decade of hard work that led to the famed Apollo 11 mission in 1969. Ryan Gosling delivers a restrained but powerful performance and director Damien Chazelle (La La Land) ramps up the emotion during a strong final act. Grade: A-.
