Stephen Romei

Stephen RomeiFilm Critic

Stephen Romei writes on books and films. He was formerly literary editor at The Australian and The Weekend Australian.

@PairRaggedClaws

Stephen Romei

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SPIDERHEAD. Chris Hemsworth as Abnesti in Spiderhead and Miles Teller. Netflix © 2022

A new Hemsworth in Spiderhead

The Thor star plays a man in charge of human guinea pigs in this character-driven movie in need of a lot more character.

Stephen Romei

★★★★½Review

Baz at his best will rock the Oscars

I think the 30-year-old American actor Austin Butler, aka Luhrmann’s Elvis, will win best actor at the 2023 Academy Awards.

Stephen Romei

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More to life than ‘Happiness Index’

A teacher wonders if he should abandon his students in Bhutan to chase his dreams of being a singer in Australia in the extraordinarily beautiful film Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom.

Stephen Romei

film reviewsReview

The Valet -- In “The Valet,” world famous movie star, Olivia (Samara Weaving) faces a PR disaster when a paparazzi snaps a photo of her with her married lover, Vincent (Max Greenfield). The hard-working valet Antonio (Eugenio Derbez) accidentally appears in the same photo and is enlisted to pose as Olivia’s new boyfriend as a cover up. This ruse with Olivia thrusts Antonio into the spotlight and unexpected chaos. In this fish out of water romantic comedy, two worlds and cultures collide as both Olivia and Antonio start to see themselves more clearly than ever before. “The Valet,” directed by Richard Wong and written by Rob Greenberg and Bob Fisher, is the English-language remake of the hit French film. Antonio (Eugenio Derbez) and (Samara Weaving), shown. (Photo by: Dan McFadden/Hulu)

Samara Weaving a knockout star

The 30-year-old actor has won me over with romantic comedy The Valet, which is more sweet than bitter.

Stephen Romei

film reviewsReview

Why Tom Cruise could be a bigger deal than this movie

The ‘old-fashioned’ film star is at the centre of Top Gun: Maverick, the decades-in-waiting sequel to Tony Scott’s 1986 blockbuster Top Gun.

Stephen Romei

The Drover’s WifeReview

Supplied image of Leah Purcell in The Drover's Wife

Instant Australian classic

Leah Purcell has reconfigured a Henry Lawson story into a multi-award winning play, then a novel and now a spellbinding, gut-wrenching movie.

Stephen Romei

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(L-R): Xochitl Gomez as America Chavez, Benedict Wong as Wong, and Benedict Cumberbatch as Dr. Stephen Strange in Marvel Studios' DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. ©Marvel Studios 2022. All Rights Reserved.

Alt-reality loses the plot

Benedict Cumberbatch is a fine actor but sometimes you can have too much of a good thing.

Stephen Romei

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Snails a slow-burn thriller

If you liked The Shining or Mary Harron’s adaptation of American Psycho then psychological thriller The House of Snails is for you.

Stephen Romei

film reviewsReview

Nicolas Cage as Nic Cage and Pedro Pascal as Javi in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent. Photo Credit: Katalin Vermes/Lionsgate

Hilarity uncaged in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent

I can’t remember a recent film that has made me laugh as much as this outlandishly yet accurately titled piece of satirical auto-fiction starring Nicolas Cage.

Stephen Romei

The lost cityReview

L-r, Brad Pitt, Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum star in Paramount Pictures' "THE LOST CITY."

Full action-adventure rom-com mode

The Lost City is Channing Tatum’s best performance to date, especially for the scenes where he has to man-up to Brad Pitt.

Stephen Romei

Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/author/stephen-romei/page/24