Oldboy ★★★★ PARK Chan-wook’s Oldboy was one of the films that started a new wave of fascination with South Korean cinema. The country has continued to produce some of the most audaciously entertaining films of the past two decades. Aside from its technical bravura, Oldboy (2003) also presents a nightmarish […]

Oldboy resets a modern template

Pet Semetary: Bloodlines ★★½ THE makers of Pet Sematary: Bloodlines are a cheeky bunch. The producer and scriptwriter call it a prequel to the Pet Sematary they made in 2019, ignoring the fact that film was a remake. They also claim they wanted to delve deeper into the mythology of […]

King adaptation wastes opportunity

Saw X ★★★ SAW X is apparently the best reviewed film of the franchise since the original, released almost 20 years ago in 2004. It’s a collection that I’ve dipped in and out of over the years – I watched the original again the other day – but have never […]

Latest Saw instalment a cut above

Ballerina ★★★ SOUTH Korean action thriller Ballerina is a frustrating watch. The first act, even of an action film, is meant to establish characters and narrative, but a half hour in I was none the wiser of exactly who main character Jang Ok-ju is and her motivations other than a […]

Ballerina busts some moves

Fair Play ★★★ FAIR Play makes its intentions clear from the opening. It wants to be seen as an erotic psychological thriller set in the corporate world, in the vein of films like Disclosure, but doesn’t really have that sensibility at all. It’s ultimately more of a relationship drama, spiced […]

Fair play to this one

The Expendables 4 ★★ DICTIONARY definition of cash grab: ‘An activity engaged in with the intention of making money quickly’…otherwise known as The Expendables 4. The action franchise started in 2014 produced two half-decent movies before quickly running out of steam. The latest instalment is just a repetition of the […]

Expendables live up to name

Ronin  ★★★★ JOHN Frankenheimer was one of the great film directors of the 1960s. Birdman of Alcatraz, The Manchurian Candidate, Seconds and Grand Prix we’re just some of the features that made him famous. The ’70s were less productive for Frankenheimer but still produced The Iceman Cometh, Black Sunday and […]

Ronin moves at full-throttle

Reptile ★★★½ BENICIO del Toro was made for dark crime thrillers. He’s got the kind of face, mannerisms and voice delivery perfectly suited to the sub-genre. Think of his roles in The Usual Suspects, The Way of the Gun, Traffic, Sin City, Savages, Sicario and its sequel and 2021’s No […]

Plenty of heat in cold-blooded Reptile

The Stone Killer ★★★ ANYONE who thinks Clint Eastwood is a less than average actor hasn’t seen many Charles Bronson films. The late Bronson was an unlikely box office action star during mainly the 1970s who likely gave meaning to the term ‘sleepwalking through a role’. Apart from when he […]

Eastwood edges sleepwalker Bronson

The Creator ★★★½ GARETH Edwards’ The Creator is one of the most under-rated films of 2023. It’s another science-fiction film that explores the future impact of artificial intelligence, but there are two aspects that make the film interesting and set it apart from others in the same vein. Firstly, it’s […]

Under-rated Creator worth a watch

Outback ★½ IF YOU’RE going to wander around the outback of Australia there are a few basic things you should do and take with you. 1 Tell a relative or good friend when you’re leaving and around when you expect to get there 2 Let them know you got there. […]

How to get yourself killed

A Good Person ★★★ IT’S interesting, but perhaps not altogether surprising, how many films improve as you watch them. The majority of straight, minimal location dramas are shot as close as possible to script order as possible, primarily to help the actors’ performances and the audience’s understanding of the narrative. […]

Cast grow into good roles