Welcome to the Film Pie! Brisbane based film critic Matt Toomey has reviewed thousands of movies since 1996. See what's out now, or browse the review archive.

Mini Reviews

Walking Out (out Apr 5) is a low-budget feature about a teenager and his estranged father who try to reconnect on a lengthy hunting trip in the American wilderness. It looks beautiful (the film was shot in Montana) but the interaction between these two characters didn't feel authentic. Grade: C.

Have You Seen the Listers (out Apr 5) is a documentary about the life of Anthony Lister - a little-known Australian street artist who has travelled the world and been through many ups and downs. Feeling more like a 90 minute interview as opposed to a more broad reaching, insightful doco, director Eddie Martin failed to reel me in. Grade: C+.

A Quiet Place (out Apr 5) is a terrific horror-thriller that should hook audiences from the opening scene. The world has been attacked by giant grasshopper-like creatures which devour any living thing that makes a sound. Could you go the rest of your life without making a noise if your life depended on it? Lacking in dialogue, sound and music, you may feel very uncomfortable watching this! Grade: A.

Early Man (out Mar 29) is a fun stop motion animation feature from director Nick Park (Wallace and Gromit). It's centered around a soccer game between players from the primitive stone age and players from the more advanced bronze age. Grade: B+.

Ready Player One (out Mar 29) is set roughly 30 years into the future and follows a young guy trying to win a virtual reality video game. I think more could have been made of this futuristic concept but it's still a fun adventure from director Steven Spielberg with some out-of-this-world visual effects. Grade: B+.

Blockers (out Mar 29) is the story of three parents who do everything imaginable to sabotage their respective daughter's plans to lose their virginity on prom night. The characters are a bit simplistic and a few scenes are rushed but there are still plenty of great gags and laugh-out-loud moments. Leslie Mann the best of the cast. Grade: B+.

A Wrinkle in Time (out Mar 29) is an ambitious family film from director Ava DuVernay about a young girl, her brother, and her new best friend who travel to another universe in search of her missing father. It's never boring but in trying to pack so many themes into two hours, the film doesn't makes the most of its ideas and cool setting. Grade: B-.

The Death of Stalin (out Mar 29) is a comedy about the death of the Russian dictator in 1953 and the grab for power which followed. I'm a big fan of writer-director Armando Iannucci (Veep, The Thick of It) but with my limited knowledge of the subject matter and these real life character, much of the humour slipped past me. Grade: B.

The Other Side of Hope (out Mar 29) is a quirky comedy-drama about a Syrian refugee seeking asylum who befriends a struggling restaurant owner. Every character is hilariously unforgettable. Grade: A-.

Love, Simon (out Mar 29) marks a milestone in that it’s produced by a major Hollywood studio and has had the widest ever release for a movie with a gay teenager as the leading character. It follows his trials and tribulations as he comes out of the closet and falls in love for the first time. It’s cheesy, unrealistic and formulaic but that can be overlooked as it does a great job capturing the mindset of a teenager coming to grips with his sexuality. Very easy to like. Grade: A-.

Pacific Rim: Uprising (out Mar 22) is set 10 years after the previous film and follows a group of young soldiers who once again must use their giant robots to help save the world from an alien invasion. The work of the sound and visual effects teams is to be admired but it's chaos without tension. Stuff gets destroyed but I cared little about the outcome. Grade: C+.