April 2024 Movies

Dune: Part Two

Cast: Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Stellan Skarsgård, Josh Brolin, Florence Pugh

Director: Denis Villeneuve

Rating: M

Synopsis: Paul Atreides teamed up with Chani and the Fremen tribespeople to get revenge on those who harmed his family.

Reviews

Dune Part Two is an epic space opera that delivers on the promises made by the first film – and deserves to be seen on the big screen.

ScreenHub Australia

With jaw-dropping visuals and unrivalled battle sequences, the vistas of the desert planet of Arrakis are so overwhelming that Dune: Part Two begs to be seen on the largest screen possible.

abc.net.au

The Zone of Interest

Cast: Christian Friedel, Sandra Hüller, Johann Karthaus

Director: Jonathan Glazer

Rating: M

Synopsis: German-occupied Poland, summer of 1943. More than anything, Hedwig, an indefatigable mother of five, wants to keep her well-organised life as is. After all, she has worked her fingers to the bone to create a fragrant slice of paradise to raise her children, and nothing will change that. If only her husband, the distinguished SS officer and Auschwitz commander Rudolf Hoess, weren’t always burdened by his duties. But perfection is a fleeting illusion. As the oblivious life of the commandant’s wife unravels in cloudless bliss, Rudolf finds himself swamped with work, saddled with testing a new ventilation design and overseeing the installation of a highly effective Topf and Sons multi-muffle, non-stop incineration oven system. Indeed, it’s hard to imagine that just a hair’s breadth away from the peaceful and idyllic Höss household, the unimaginable horrors of the Final Solution were unfolding in full swing. And as noisome fumes and muffled, blood-curdling noises blemish Hedwig’s fragrant utopia, a question emerges. When evil becomes banal and apathy requires no effort, what separates man from beast?

Reviews

The Zone of Interest makes for a cruel and profound questioning of humanity’s dark underbelly.

The AU Review

Only the constant pall of smoke, and a dread-inducing soundscape, tell of the horrors beyond the wall as the idyllic life of the commandant of the death camp and his family rolls by in Glazer’s Oscar-nominated film.

The Guardian

The Great Escaper

Cast: Michael Caine, Glenda Jackson, John Standing

Director: Oliver Parker

Rating: M

Synopsis: Bernard Jordan escapes from his care home to attend the 70th Anniversary of the D-Day Landings in France.

Reviews

This is a triumphant movie, poignant and heart wrenching at times, that should be watched by all audiences.

cityhub.com.au

The humour is light but authentic and the opportunity to enjoy some very human emotion is completely refreshing which makes The Great Escaper a little gem of a film.

FIFTY+SA

Kung Fu Panda 4

Cast: Jack Black, Awkwafina, Viola Davis

Director: Mike Mitchell, Stephanie Stine

Rating: CTC

Synopsis: Po is gearing up to become the spiritual leader of his Valley of Peace, but also needs someone to take his place as Dragon Warrior. As such, he will train a new kung fu practitioner for the spot and will encounter a villain called the Chameleon who conjures villains from the past.

Reviews

While it is always lovely to see Jack Black back in this role, unfortunately, the outing, while still fun, did not have the energy of the previous entries.

TL;DR Movie Reviews and Analysis

Whilst Kung Fu Panda 4 is ultimately a step back in terms of ambition when compared to the previous three films, there’s no shortage of laughs and good intentions throughout, which ultimately helps Po and co. rise above whatever shortcomings the story presents.

The AU Review

The Tiger’s Apprentice

Cast: Brandon Soo Hoo, Henry Golding, Lucy Liu

Director: Raman Hui

Rating: PG

Synopsis: The story centres on a normal boy, Tom, who gets drawn into this world against his wishes when his eccentric grandmother who he lives within San Francisco’s Chinatown turns out to be the guardian of the phoenix egg. When his grandmother perishes in battle and is spirited away in a ghost cart, Tom must apprentice with an unlikely mentor – a tiger, Mr. Hu – to learn ancient magic and become the egg’s new protector. They team up with an unlikely band of exotic creatures, each representing a different sign of the Chinese zodiac, who can morph into human form while retaining their innate animal characteristics.

Reviews

Michelle Yeoh, Henry Golding and Sandra Oh are among the all-star voices in this likable but generic story of a San Francisco teen and a posse of animal shapeshifters

The Guardian

“The Tiger’s Apprentice” is not an awful movie per se—some of the animation is striking and there are a couple of funny moments—but it is one of those frustrating exercises that seems to have assembled all the elements for a genuinely innovative film and then fails to make much of them.

Roger Ebert

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire

Cast: Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard

Director: Gil Kenan

Rating: PG

Synopsis: In Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, the Spengler family returns to where it all started – the iconic New York City firehouse – to team up with the original Ghostbusters, who’ve developed a top-secret research lab to take busting ghosts to the next level. But when the discovery of an ancient artifact unleashes an evil force, Ghostbusters new and old must join forces to protect their home and save the world from a second Ice Age

Reviews

There’s sporadic fun to be had across the board, without question, but Frozen Empire doesn’t exactly win its case as to why this series should continue. 

The AU Review

Despite some decent gags there’s very little life left in the tired franchise – it feels like it’s run its course and it’s time to think of something new

The Guardian

Io Capitano

Cast: Seydou Sarr, Moustapha Fall, Issaka Sawadogo

Director: Matteo Garrone

Rating: MA 15+

Synopsis: Two Senegalese teenagers, Seydou and Moussa travel from Dakar to Europe in the hope of becoming pop stars, finding danger, heartbreak and unexpected joy along the way.

Reviews

Garrone’s film hinges on one of the most impressive and transfixing acting debuts in recent memory, from breakout Seydou Sarr.

indiewire.com

The Italian director of the film “Gomorrah” focuses his tender yet unsparing lens on two teenage boys journeying from their home in Senegal to Europe.

The New York Times

Hate to Love: Nickelback

Cast: Chad Kroeger, Ryan Peake

Director: Leigh Brooks

Rating: M

Synopsis: Nickelback is one of the most successful acts in music history — they’re also the number one band haters love to hate. This intimate portrait surveys the Canadian stadium rockers’ rollercoaster career.

Starts Wednesday, 27 March 2024

Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey 2

Cast: Scott Chambers, Tallulah Evans, Ryan Oliva

Director: Rhys Frake-Waterfield

Rating: CTC

Synopsis: Deep within the 100-Acre-Wood, a destructive rage grows as Winnie-the-Pooh, Piglet, Owl, and Tigger find their home and their lives endangered after Christopher Robin revealed their existence. Not wanting to live in the shadows any longer, the group decides to take the fight to the town of Ashdown, home of Christopher Robin, leaving a bloody trail of death and mayhem in their wake. Winnie and his savage friends will show everyone that they are deadlier, stronger, and smarter than anyone could ever imagine and get their revenge on Christopher Robin, once and for all.

Starts Thursday, 28 March 2024

Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire

Cast: Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Dan Stevens

Director: Adam Wingard

Rating: M

Synopsis: The new instalment in the Monsterverse puts the mighty Kong and the fearsome Godzilla against a colossal deadly threat hidden within our world that threatens the existence of their species and our very own, as well as diving deep into the mysteries of Skull Island and beyond. Delving straight into the origins of Hollow Earth, this film will explore the ancient Titan battle that brought man and monster together forever.

Starts Thursday, 28 March 2024