-
Oscars 2018: The Shape of Water wins Best Picture, Best Director
Mexican director Guillermo Del Toro was the big winner of this year’s 90th Academy Awards, making a splash with wins for Best Picture, Best Director, Original Score and Production Design. As widely predicted, Frances McDormand won Best Actress for her role in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Gary Oldman won Best Actor in Darkest Hour,…
-
Film Review: Annihilation
★★★★☆ When a mysterious object crashes into a lighthouse, it creates a phenomenon known as ‘the shimmer’, a zone that appears to alter the plants and animals within it. No one who has gone into the shimmer has returned, but growing out of control, biologist Lina (Natalie Portman) is sent in with a strike team…
-
Oscars 2018: Our final predictions
With the 90th Academy Awards taking place later this evening/tomorrow morning, the time-honoured tradition of speculating on the winners is now upon us. This year, the Academy will be pulled in two directions: the #MeToo movement as well as fresh memories of #OscarsSoWhite will put pressure on the judges to widen their traditionally conservative choices.…
-
Film Review: Game Night
★★★★☆ Isn’t it refreshing to go into a Hollywood comedy expecting the absolute worst, only to come out literally invigorated by how well-constructed said comedy turned out to be. Made by the same people who brought you Horrible Bosses (don’t hold that against them), Game Night is the sort of raucous, joyous and brilliantly self-aware comedy we’ve all…
-
Interview: Josephine Decker, dir. Madeline’s Madeline
Madeline’s Madeline, the latest film from Josephine Decker, wowed audiences when it premiered at Sundance last year. Telling the story of a precocious young girl (newcomer Helena Howard) who takes her acting classes a little too seriously, it is a psychologically rich tale about parenting, race, and the blurring between art and life. We sat…
-
Oscars 2018: The latest odds
Bust out the proverbial popcorn because it’s that time of year again. Yes – you know what we’re talking about. The Academy Awards are almost here. On Sunday 4 March, the red carpet will roll out at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California. The Oscars ceremony is always entertaining. Even if is sometimes bitter-sweet –…
-
Interview: Sebastián Lelio, dir. A Fantastic Woman
One of the biggest names to emerge from Chile’s new golden era of cinema, Sebastián Lelio first achieved international recognition with his fourth film Gloria, a dynamic comedy-drama about a middle-aged woman’s ill-fated romance with a retired naval officer. This week marks the release of his hugely anticipated follow-up A Fantastic Woman, a brazenly expressive…
-
Fantasy vs. reality: Real-life portrayal in movies
We all enjoy going to the cinema to catch a movie from time to time. And while there’s plenty of fun to be had with movies based on true events, one of the joys of watching films is that the content isn’t always real: it’s a chance to kick back, relax and enjoy a really…
-
DVD Review: Night of the Living Dead
★★★★★ After languishing for decades with sub-par public domain versions, George Romero’s classic Night of the Living Dead is finally granted the release it deserves, with a lovingly restored print. For the first time, the craft and artistry involved in the first modern zombie film is fully visible. Few filmmakers can lay claim to have…
-
Film Review: Mute
★★☆☆☆ The latest film from Moon director Duncan Jones, Mute is a weak sci-fi neo-noir about a speechless man who goes in search of his missing girlfriend, only to discover a dark underworld. Left mute by a childhood boating accident, for which his strictly religious Amish mother refused medical treatment to cure, Leo Beller (Alexander Skårsgard)…
VENICE 2026
