Mini Reviews
Romantics Anonymous (out Apr 19) is a silly, light-hearted French tale about a struggling chocolate factory owner who meets the woman of his dreams. The problem is that both are hopeless when it comes to love. The over-the-top nature of the scenario wears thin during the later stages but I still found myself caught up in the charm of this farce. Grade: B.
Life In Movement (out now) is rough around the edges but it's still a heartfelt documentary that left me reflecting on the value of art... and what we leave behind when we pass away. It centres on 29-year-old Tanja Liedtke who died in 2007 in a tragic accident just after being appointed the Artistic Director of the Sydney Dance Company. Grade: A-.
Battleship (out Apr 12) is cheesy trash. I've seen plenty of great "alien invasion" movies but this is not one of them. The script lacks originality and fails to create any interesting characters despite a running time of more than two hours. I'll say this though - Rihanna isn't too bad in her acting debut. Grade: C.
The Deep Blue Sea (out Apr 12) is a sleep-inducing drama set in the 1950s about a married woman who has an affair with a young pilot and finds herself sucked into a world of despair. I was bored by the story and its characters. It's as simple as that. Grade: C.
This Must Be The Place (out now) is strange. A washed up rock star from Dublin travels to the U.S. following the death of his estranged father. I was intrigued by all of these characters (particularly Sean Penn in the leading role) but found it really hard to "get to know them". It left me wanting more. Grade: B.
Goodbye, First Love (out Apr 5) is a delightful French film from director Mia Hanson Love (Father Of My Children) that follows two teenagers experiencing "love" for the first time. It beautifully captures their innocence and their immaturity as they grapple with feelings they are only just discovering. Grade: A-.
American Pie: Reunion (out Apr 5) is filled with the same politically-incorrect, cringe-worthy humour that we’ve come to expect (like it or not) from the American Pie franchise. There are enough laughs to satisfy in this reunion-themed sequel but the screenplay needed work as a whole. Some subplots work well whilst others feel flat. Grade: B-.
The Pirates! Band Of Misfits (out now) is dull stuff. It's an animated clay-mation flick about a hopeless pirate who is trying to eclipse his rivals and win the annual award for Pirate Of The Year. The story is always struggling and it lacks the spark of previous Aardman films such as Chicken Run and Wallace & Gromit: The Curse Of The Were-Rabbit. Grade: C+.
Salmon Fishing In The Yemen (out Apr 5) centres on a fisheries expert in the UK who finds himself drawn into the world of a wealthy sheik with plans to introduce salmon to a river in the Yemen highlands. I tried to buy in but the absurdity of the story and the lunacy of Kristin Scott Thomas' character kept pushing me away. Grade: C+.
Mirror Mirror (out now) takes the famous fairy tale of Snow White and tries to (1) tell it from the perspective of the evil queen, and (2) turn it into a comedy. It has its moments but why did Snow White have to be such a boring character? She sucks the life out of the story. On a positive note, the costumes from the late Eiko Ishioka are beautiful. Grade: B-.
Wrath Of The Titans (out Mar 29) isn't great... but it's surprisingly better than the original film from two years ago. The film is at its most entertaining when the characters give up on the dull dialogue and simply let the action do the talking. Director Jonathan Liebesman deserves credit for the well choreographed fight sequences that make good use of both sound and visual effects. Grade: B-.
