January
Summer special: AFR critics on best viewing, books and music
In the first of a two-part summer series, The Fin podcast talks to critics around the Financial Review newsroom to get their top picks from the past year.
December 2024
- Opinion
- Holidays
Five streaming Christmas movies that are so bad, they’re good
“Brain rot” was the Oxford English Dictionary’s word of the year. Here’s some holiday drivel to help you join the trend.
- Rachael Bolton
Four Australians nominated for embattled Golden Globes
Guy Pearce, Nicole Kidman, Cate Blanchett and Naomi Watts are up for gongs for roles in movies and limited series.
- Jake Coyle
August 2024
‘Kneecap’ and ‘Touch’: edgy Irish hip-hop and an Icelandic romance
The fictionalised biopic of a loud, incomprehensible band has a rough and ready quality, while a heart-warming drama somehow manages to keep the lid on the treacle jar
- John McDonald
Alien: Romulus – this film floats like a giant piece of astro-junk
After seven chapters, the series has become utterly predictable, cluttered with the bodies of dead characters and fossilised storylines.
- John McDonald
Sleeping Dogs movie review: Russell Crowe in top form in this thriller
Crowe’s performance in the lead role reminds us what a fine actor he is in this slow-burner that occasionally erupts into violent action.
- John McDonald
Deadpool & Wolverine film review – on its way to cinematic immortality
This “action-comedy” has more blood-letting than any other superhero movie, but its “R” rating hasn’t stopped it making financial history.
- John McDonald
July 2024
Movie reviews – Gothic Aussie Birdeater and old-school B flick MaXXXine
This dark, ugly chiller set in the bush is hard to fathom, but fiendishly dumb B-grader MaXXXine at least entertains.
- John McDonald
‘Fly Me To The Moon’ review: Johansson shines in space age romcom
Director Greg Berlanti’s would-be screwball comedy is not concerned with plausibility – he wants us to be seduced by the characters.
- John McDonald
June 2024
A Silence movie review: a sex fiend’s lawyer seeks atonement
In Belgian director Joachim Lafosse’s film, a legal professional’s crimes catch up with him, plus we take a look at Australia’s Spanish Film Festival.
- John McDonald
The Sitting Duck movie review: A true story of a nuclear whistleblower
The role of Maureen Kearney is tailor-made for 71-year-old Isabelle Huppert, an actor with a unique ability to tell us everything we need to know, while giving nothing away.
- John McDonald
Finally, a documentary about Midnight Oil
Paul Clarke’s ‘The Hardest Line’ is largely a celebration of the Oils that never ventures a word of criticism.
- John McDonald
Swashbuckling Dumas classic a double dose of pure escapism
Director Martin Bourboulon has taken numerous liberties with Alexandre Dumas’ plot, but preserved its breathless sense of adventure.
- John McDonald
May 2024
Movie review: High & Low – John Galliano is a breathless ride
This documentary tracks the rise and fall and rehabilitation of the acclaimed fashion designer, whose grotesque extravagance was no impediment to success.
- John McDonald
Movie review: Furiosa – drives hard but takes too many wrong turns
George Miller’s latest Mad Max film is bogged down by the gruesome particulars of his post-apocalyptic world – and Chris Hemsworth’s wooden acting.
- John McDonald
The Taste of Things movie review – a feast for the eyes
Director Anh Hung Tran has created an utterly absorbing film about cuisine as a model for life.
- John McDonald
‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ and ‘Monster’ movie reviews
One is set to be a blockbuster, but the other is one of those critically acclaimed films that can expect to enjoy only a modest success at the box office.
- John McDonald
Bad timing for biopic about an Israeli prime minister
Golda looks at the stakes of high-powered confrontation in the Middle East, and Fremont is a subtle, bittersweet, wryly humorous film.
- John McDonald
April 2024
This might be the most explosive tennis movie ever made
Challengers packs a punch with breathless action while Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s Evil Does Not Exist builds slowly and silently.
- John McDonald
This new Aussie horror is scary and funny
There’s not a moment in “Late Night with the Devil” when you’re not eager to know what’s going to happen next.
- John McDonald