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

The Humans (out Sep 29) marks the feature film debut of director Stephen Karam and is based on his Tony Award winning stage play from 2016. In the same vein as August: Osage County, it's about a family who come together (this time for Thanksgiving) and secrets spill into the open. Solid performances but slow in patches. Grade: B.

See How They Run (out Sep 29) is about a real murder set in the middle of a fake murder. Set on London's West End in the early 1950s, the actors performing Agatha Christie's stage play The Mousetrap are caught up in their own mystery when a Hollywood screenwriter is murdered. It works as a credible whodunit with stars Sam Rockwell and Saoirse Ronan (who play the investigating detectives) the best of the cast. Grade: B+.

Ticket to Paradise is a corny, cheesy, formulaic romantic comedy about two bickering divorcees (George Clooney and Julia Roberts) who travel to Bali to stop their 20-something-year-old daughter from getting married to a guy she just met.  I like the cast and the setting (it was made here in Queensland) but the misadventures of these characters have been poorly conceived. Grade: C+.

Hunt (out Sep 22) is a solid South Korean flick set in the early 1980s about agents within the Korean Central Intelligence Agency trying to identify a North Korean spy who is leaking information to destabilise the country. There's a bit too much going on at times but I still enjoyed enjoy this as an interesting thriller where agents use a variety of curious tactics to help weed out the mole. Grade: B+.

Fall (out Sep 22) is a fictional thriller about two experienced climbers who scale a 600-metre television tower and then get stuck at the top after the rusty ladder breaks. The opening act (dumb backstory) and closing act (rushed, clumsy) didn't work for me but the middle act is terrific and, thanks to great cinematography and sound, director Scott Mann makes the most of the scenario. Grade: B.

The Curious Case of Dolphin Bay (out Sep 22) won't win awards for its acting but it's a watchable Australian-made family flick about teenagers going in search of a long-lost treasure. For kids more than adults. Grade: B-.

Moonage Daydream (out Sep 15) is a non-traditional documentary about captures the essence of the late David Bowie. I like this line from director Brett Morgen - “If you can put it in a book, I don’t want it in my films.” Void of narration and talking heads, Morgen provides audiences with a wild, uplifting “experience” through the mediums of sight and sound. Grade: A-.

DC League of Super-Pets (out Sep 15) is a cute animated feature about a group of animals who are called upon to support the more traditional human superheroes. The jokes are hit and miss but it's a good one for younger audiences. Grade: B.

Bodies Bodies Bodies (out Sep 15) is a thriller about a group of young friends who get together for a drug/alcohol fuelled catch up. When one of them is killed, the finger pointing begins. I liked the finale but the lead up isn't as convincing. Grade: B-.

Franklin (out Sep 8) is an Australian documentary with two key elements - one is a depiction of events in the early 1980s regarding attempts to block the government from building a dam on the Gordon River in Australia (an interesting history lesson), and the other is a current day story of a son honouring his late father (not quite as interesting). Grade: B.

The Quiet Girl (out Sep 8) is a simple, nice Irish drama about a young girl who is "palmed off" by her neglectful parents onto a pair of distant relatives for several months. There, she comes out of her shell and realises the value of true parental figures. Nice performances. Grade: B.