Reviewed by GREG KING Director: Damien Chazelle Stars: Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy, Jason Clarke, Kyle Chandler, Pablo Schreiber, Christopher Abbott, Ethan Embry, Patrick Fugit, Olivia Hamilton, Ciaran Hinds, Corey Stoll, Shea Whigham, Lukas Haas. Oscar winning filmmaker Damien Chazelle has quite a resume to his credit. He who gave us the superb drama Whiplash, which was my top film of 2014. He followed that with La La Land, a colourful and kitsch homage to the old Hollywood musicals of yesteryear, but I was not quite as enamoured with it as many other critics seemed …
CHAPPAQUIDDICK
Reviewed by GREG KING Director: John Curran Stars: Jason Clarke, Ed Helms, Jim Gaffigan, Bruce Dern, Kate Mara, Clancy Brown, Jim Fiore, Olivia Thirlby. This engaging historical docu-drama is a cynical study of corruption, ambition, power, the power of celebrity, the abuse of power, and family. Chappaquiddick centres around the scandal that surrounded Senator Ted Kennedy and the tragic drowning of political staffer Mary Jo Kopechne in 1969. The incident almost cost Kennedy his political career and certainly derailed his …
WINCHESTER
Reviewed by GREG KING Director: Michael and Peter Spierig Stars: Helen Mirren, Jason Clarke, Sarah Snook, Finn Scicluna-O'Prey, Angus Sampson, Eamon Farren, Bruce Spence. San Francisco 1906. Sarah Winchester (Helen Mirren), the eccentric widowed heiress to the repeating rifle company fortune, has been building a monstrous house. Built over a period of 38 years it is seven storeys tall with over one hundred rooms. It was continually extended with construction crews working around the clock. Sarah maintains that she is building …
KNIGHT OF CUPS
Reviewed by GREG KING Director: Terrence Malick Stars: Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Natalie Portman, Brian Dennehy, Wes Bentley, Teresa Palmer, Joe Mangianello, Imogen Poots, Joel Kinnaman, Nick Offerman, Antonio Banderas, Isabel Lucas, Ben Kingsley, Jason Clarke, Nicky Whelan. Once upon a time Terrence Malick was a revered filmmaker, especially after his first two films - the powerful Badlands and the visually beautiful Days Of Heaven. But lately he seems to have become more obtuse in his filmmaking, churning out soporific and dull psychological claptrap. Since …
EVEREST
Reviewed by GREG KING Director: Baltasar Kormakur Stars: Jason Clarke, Josh Brolin, Jake Gyllenhaal, John Hawkes, Emily Watson, Martin Henderson, Sam Worthington, Michael Kelly, Kiera Knightley, Robin Wright, Elizabeth Debecki, Thomas M Wright, Naoko Mori. I've never particularly been interested in climbing a mountain, and after seeing this dramatic feature about a tragic attempt to climb Mt Everest in 1996, I have even less interest. Although paradoxically many who watch the film may somehow be inspired to take up the challenge. Since Edmund Hillary conquered Mt …
TERMINATOR GENISYS
Reviewed by GREG KING Director: Alan Taylor Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Emilia Clarke, Jai Courtney, Jason Clarke, J K Simmons, Dayo Okeniyi, Courtney B Vance, Matt Smith, Lee Byung-hun, Sandrine Holt. He promised he'd be back, and it's good to report that Arnold Schwarzenegger has returned to the Terminator franchise that made him a bona fide box office draw card, albeit looking little worse for wear. Thirty years ago James Cameron gave us an ambitious mix of sci-fi and action in the original Terminator movie about an unstoppable android sent back in time to kill the …
DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES
Reviewed by GREG KING Director: Matt Reeves Stars: Andy Serkis, Toby Kebbell, Jason Clarke, Gary Oldman, Keri Russell, Kodi-Smit McPhee, Kirk Acevedo, Jon Eyez, Enrique Murciano, Nick Thurston, Terry Notary, Judy Greer, Larramie Doc Shaw, Lee Ross. The original 1968 film Planet Of The Apes was a great piece of sci-fi that also offered a cautionary tale about nuclear proliferation and science out of control, and a world in which the natural order was turned upside down. It was both a critical and commercial success, and spawned a series of sequels and even a tv series. …
SWERVE
Reviewed by GREG KING Director: Craig Lahiff Stars: David Lyons, Emma Booth, Jason Clarke, Vince Colosimo, Roy Billing, Travis McMahon This clever Australian-made noir-like thriller is infused with the spirit of American crime writer James M Cain (The Postman Always Rings Twice, etc), Hitchcock, and even the films of John Dahl (The Last Seduction, Red Rock West, etc). Colin (David Lyons, from ER, Sea Patrol, etc) is on his way to a job interview in Broken Hill when he witnesses a car crash. Checking the ruined car he stumbles upon a suitcase that contains …