September 2022 Movies
Three Thousand Years of Longing
Drama, Fantasy, Romance
Cast: Tilda Swinton, Idris Elba, Pia Thunderbolt
Director: George Miller
Rating: M
Cinema Score: —
Synopsis: “Three Thousand Years of Longing” marks George Miller’s return to filmmaking since Mad Max: Fury Road stormed the box office in 2015. This latest outing is an adaptation of A.S. Byatt’s short story titled “The Djinn in the Nightingale’s Eye”.
The film follows the story of Dr Alithea Binnie, a lonely academic, who discovers a Djinn in her Istanbul hotel suite and offered to grant her three wishes in exchange for his freedom. She knows all too well that wishing can be hazardous. But when she finally gave in, her wish was something that astonished them both.
Reviews:
“I was enchanted by this tale of a straight-laced career academic whose relationship with an ancient and powerful being makes them both grow and change for the better. Far from the ‘be careful what you wish for’ story that Alithea thinks she’s in, Three Thousand Years of Longing is a film that says: go ahead and wish for whatever you want.”
Screen Hub
“Miller may be best known for his Mad Max movies, but his career has traversed genre, and in some ways, Three Thousand Years feels like a consummation of certain strands in his career.”
Rolling Stone
Orphan: First Kill
Crime, Drama, Horror
Cast: Isabelle Fuhrman, Julia Stiles, Rossif Sutherland
Director: William Brent Bell
Rating: M15+
Cinema Score: —
Synopsis: Isabelle Fuhrman once again breathes life to Esther/Leena in this prequel to the 2009 horror flick “Orphan”. The film traces the origin of Esther, a 31-year-old woman who has a rare hormonal disease that made her look like a child.
Leena travels to America after escaping from an Estonian psychiatric ward and presents herself as “Esther”, the missing daughter of Allen and Tricia Albright. Leena falls for Allen and plots to separate the couple.
Reviews:
“Overall, Orphan: First Kill is a fun addition to the Orphan franchise. It will appeal more to those fans who like their horror campy rather than creepy. But it still has enough surprises to keep its viewers guessing.”
Grimdark Magazine
“Whilst in comparison it makes the original look like Oscar material – though I stand by my opinion that Vera Farmiga’s performance in that film is award-worthy – First Kill manages to have more fun with its premise.”
The AU Review
Embrace Kids
Documentary
Cast: Jameela Jamil, Celeste Barber, Chloe Hayden
Director: Taryn Brumfitt
Rating: G
Cinema Score: —
Synopsis: A documentary film from internationally recognised positive body-image advocate, Taryn Brumfitt, “Embrace Kids” talks about image, bullying, gender identity, advocacy, and representation through the eyes of school-aged kids.
Spider-Man: No Way Home’s ‘More Fun Stuff Version’
Action, Adventure, Science Fiction
Cast: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Benedict Cumberbatch
Director: Jon Watts
Rating: M
Cinema Score: —
Synopsis: Peter Parker’s identity is revealed and can no longer separate his normal life from his life as a superhero. He asked for Doctor Strange’s help to make the world forget who the real person behind the mask is. But the spell, as it turns out, has dire consequences.
To celebrate the 60th anniversary of Spider-Man’s comic book debut, Spider-Man: No Way Home returns to theatres via The More Fun Stuff Version and will feature new and extended scenes.
Reviews:
“Holland’s Peter Parker is a true-hearted hero whose first instinct isn’t to condemn and kill but to give second chances. It’s not a one-dimensional heroism because that goodness will be tested in this film and the complexity of the characterisation and Holland’s performance is one of the things that elevates Spider-Man: No Way Home.”
news.com.au
“If you want your superhero movies all fight, and light on moral choices and narrative, you might find yourself disappointed. But if you love Spidey for his ongoing grappling with complex moral ideas, you’re probably going to love ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home.”
SCENESTR
After Ever Happy
Drama, Romance
Cast: Hero Fiennes Tiffin, Josephine Langford, Louise Lombard
Director: Castille Landon
Rating: MA
Cinema Score: —
Synopsis: The final instalment of the After film series, “After Ever Happy” picks up where “After We Fell” left off. As the shocking truths about the couple’s families unfold, Hardin and Tessa find themselves at a crossroads. Would they choose to continue their relationship, no matter how toxic it is, or forever be broken apart?
The Quiet Girl
Drama
Cast: Catherine Clinch, Carrie Crowley, Andrew Bennett
Director: Colm Bairéad
Rating: M
Cinema Score: —
Synopsis: Cáit, a neglected nine-year-old girl, was sent away from her dysfunctional family to her foster parents. Shy and untrusting at first, she would then open up and grow to love the couple.
Reviews:
“Clinch’s performance as Cait is powerful. In the silences, the camera lingers on her sad blue eyes, speaking volumes. The young actor captures the tentative awkwardness of a child starting to see the world anew and realising the painful secrets the adults around her have kept quiet.”
Central News
“Where The Quiet Girl excels is in its restraint. At many points, an event sinister or shocking feels like it’s coming around the corner. But what happens instead proves much more rewarding. It’s nothing more than a simple story of family and neglect and poverty and love. And it’s perfect.”
The Weekend Notes
The Retaliators
Horror, Thriller
Cast: Michael Lombardi, Marc Menchaca, Joseph Gatt
Director: Samuel Gonzalez Jr., Michael Lombardi, Bridget Smith
Rating: R18+
Cinema Score: —
Synopsis: A horror-thriller film that follows the story of a small town pastor who discovers a dark and twisted underworld whilst searching for answers behind his daughter’s death.
Reviews:
“A boilerplate revenge thriller periodically energised by its punk-rock splatter movie gloss, The Retaliators nevertheless succeeds largely thanks to Michael Lombardi’s engrossing work in the lead role.”
Flickering Myth
“Samuel Gonzalez Jr. and Bridget Smith’s film doesn’t give its audience any breathing space, constantly chopping between perspectives and timelines. Initially bewildering, The Retaliators grows to be a blunt, bloody and brutally bombastic slice of genre cinema which is a guaranteed crowd-pleaser.”
Backseat Mafia
Ticket to Paradise
Comedy, Romance
Cast: Julia Roberts, Kaitlyn Dever, George Clooney
Director: Ol Parker
Rating: CTC
Cinema Score: —
Synopsis: A divorced couple finds themselves flying out on a mission to find their daughter and stop her from making the same mistake they did 25 years ago.
Reviews:
‘Ticket To Paradise’ doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel and it’s not subverting the genre. It’s not taxing the brain, or even trying to be anything other than what it is – an old-school romantic comedy. People who love old-school romantic comedies will love this because it’s very much that with two titans of the genre.
Entertainment.ie
“If you’re a George Clooney or Julia Roberts fan, there is definitely elements to be enjoyed for you. They’re both super charismatic and elevate the movie from the very bottom of the barrel.”
1news
DC League of Super-Pets
Animation, Action, Adventure
Cast: Dwayne Johnson(voice), Kevin Hart(voice), Kate McKinnon(voice)
Director: Jared Stern, Sam Levine
Rating: CTC
Cinema Score: A-
Synopsis:
Krypto the Super-Dog enlists a rag-tag bunch of animals — a hound, turtle, potbellied pig and a squirrel — on a mission to rescue his buddy, Superman, and the rest of the Justice League.
Reviews:
“As a film, Super-Pets speaks the essential ingredient of true, lasting friendship and unconditional love. Ace, in a pivotal scene where he reveals the sacrifice that cost him his family, says, ‘That’s love, when you’d do anything for the other person.’ In a genuinely heartfelt moment, Ace illustrates the sacrifice needed to truly love as a friend should love.”
Pulse 941
“True to its animated predecessors, Super-Pets pulls off what other superhero entries have struggled to summon from the CGI universe: lighthearted fun and self-aware humor woven with real evergreen themes – the fear of change, learning to love friends through transitions, trusting that love will remain through the seasons.”
The Guardian
Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank
Animation, Action, Comedy
Cast: Michael Cera(voice), Samuel L. Jackson(voice), Ricky Gervais(voice)
Director: Chris Bailey, Mark Koetsier, Rob Minkoff
Rating: CTC
Cinema Score: A-
Synopsis: Hank, the hound dog, dreams of becoming a samurai. He finds himself in a land of cats that are in need of a protector. The problem is, they hate dogs. But a twist of fate will have Hank being appointed as the town’s new samurai.
Reviews:
“Paws of Fury’s bizarre existence and inspired goofiness allows it to eke out a soft victory in the crowded realm of derivative animation.”
IGN
“Paws of Fury is an efficient yet underimagined animated fable that barely musters the flavor of a cliché Western comedy.”
Variety
Bodies Bodies Bodies
Comedy, Horror, Thriller
Cast: Amandla Stenberg, Maria Bakalova, Rachel Sennott
Director: Halina Reijn
Rating: M15+
Cinema Score: —
Synopsis: A group of twenty-somethings is having a hurricane party. But a party game called “Bodies, bodies, bodies” went terribly wrong when a dead body turned up.
Reviews:
“A particular standout is Rachel Sennott (‘Shiva Baby’), whose shrill whine perfectly captures and lambasts her Alice, an aspiring podcaster taking herself way too seriously for her own good. The stakes feel genuine too, and the film’s most gripping moments are watching Sophie and her friends turn on each other as the victim list rises and the potential culprit list dissipates.”
Switch
“Even if it devolves into some contemporary social media cliches, Bodies Bodies Bodies will slay audiences with its highly topical blend of horror and comedy.”
Flicks
