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FILM REVIEWS
Inside Out ✪✪✪✪½ (Opens 18th June most cinemas)
Disney’s Pixar has gone where most
parents fear to tread; they’ve taken us into the brain
Director and screenwriter Pete
Docter has brought us some of the greatest animated films to date including UP, MONSTERS INC, and TOY STORY, and he doesn’t miss the mark
here either. INSIDE OUT has some
refreshingly original ideas in exploring the idea that if emotions and memory
were run as an organization, how would everything work?
We first meet Joy (Amy Poehler)
who arrives inside the control room of baby girl Riley (Kaitlyn Dias) moments
after her birth. She is soon joined by Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Fear (Bill
Hader), Anger (Lewis Black) and Disgust (Mindy Kaling). They run Riley’s
reactions to life in a democratic manner with Joy mostly running the show,
meaning, for the most part, Riley has a happy disposition. That is until
Riley’s family moves from the Midwest to San Francisco. It’s a difficult
transition for the whole family, and Riley remains positive, even rallying the
family, until Joy and Sadness are accidentally sucked into the vault of long
term memories. Without Joy in control, the rest of the emotions make poor
decisions and Riley’s life spirals out of control. Joy and Sadness must find
their way back to the control room by navigating through Riley’s subconscious
travelling through the Dream Factory, hitching a ride on the Train of Thought,
navigating the maze of long-term memories, and even teaming up with Riley’s
childhood imaginary friend Bing Bong (Richard Kind).
The voice actors do a wonderful
job; the animation is colorful and imaginative, and despite its complex themes,
children will still easily relate. Another finely scripted, beautifully
imagined film from director and writer Docter, who clearly has the ability to
tap into his inner child. This time, literally.
Film Blurb
Growing up can be a bumpy road, and it's no
exception for Riley, who is uprooted from her Midwest life when her father
starts a new job in San Francisco. Like all of us, Riley is guided by her
emotions - Joy (Amy Poehler), Fear (Bill Hader), Anger (Lewis Black), Disgust
(Mindy Kaling) and Sadness (Phyllis Smith). The emotions live in Headquarters,
the control center inside Riley's mind, where they help advise her through
everyday life. As Riley and her emotions struggle to adjust to a new life in
San Francisco, turmoil ensues in Headquarters. Although Joy, Riley's main and
most important emotion, tries to keep things positive, the emotions conflict on
how best to navigate a new city, house and school. -- (C) Pixar
Minions ✪✪✪✪ (Opens 18th
June most cinemas)
My Thoughts
The first Despicable Me didn’t grab me. It may have been animation overload
in 2010. Despicable Me 2, though,
turned me around. The minions almost had their own little sketches within the
film. Those I loved. The credits sequence with the bumbling minions falling out
of the screen and auditioning for this film was fabulous.
Well, the Minions have earned their own
movie. Really they’re set to take over the world. They’re yellow, adorable, and
we can’t understand anything they say, but we all want one.
MINIONS
takes us back to the dawn of time by the narrator (perfectly voiced by Geoffrey
Rush), to discover how the minions have travelled through history serving evil
masters. It’s hilarious and very clever. Eventually they find themselves
abandoned and bereft in an ice cave with no evil master. Their joyful
enthusiasm for life diminishes as time goes on. The solution: Kevin, Stuart and
little Bob set out into the world to look for a new master and save the tribe.
They end up involved with Scarlet Overkill (Sandra Bullock), the world’s most
evil villain, and her husband inventor Herb Overkill (Jon Hamm). This sets them after the Queen’s
(Jennifer Saunders) crown.
I found this film laugh-out-loud hilarious.
Even the jaded twelve-year-old son, who doesn’t like many films, was laughing
throughout, as were most of the kids in the audience. The catch phrase for the minions
is Bananaaa. Seems they love the yellow fruit (herb). As we entered the foyer
after the film, there were kids running around screaming Bananaaa in the voice
of the Minions. Pretty satisfied cinema-goers there.
The film is witty, has enough nods to
history and adult concepts to keep parents and grandparents happy, and you just
cannot help but love these little guys. They’re so cute. Four out five
Bananaaaa from me!
Film Blurb
The story
of Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment's Minions begins at the
dawn of time. Starting as single-celled yellow organisms, Minions evolve
through the ages, perpetually serving the most despicable of masters.
Continuously unsuccessful at keeping these masters-from T. rex to Napoleon-the
Minions find themselves without someone to serve and fall into a deep
depression. But one Minion named Kevin has a plan, and he-alongside teenage
rebel Stuart and lovable little Bob-ventures out into the world to find a new
evil boss for his brethren to follow. The trio embarks upon a thrilling journey
that ultimately leads them to their next potential master, Scarlet Overkill
(Academy Award (R) winner Sandra Bullock), the world's first-ever female super-villain.
They travel from frigid Antarctica to 1960s New York City, ending in mod
London, where they must face their biggest challenge to date: saving all of
Minionkind...from annihilation. (c) Universal
GOING CLEAR: Scientology and the Prison
of Belief ✪✪✪✪
(Opens
18th June Luna cinemas)
My Thoughts
Much has been written and filmed on Scientology.
Probably at most critical you could say director Alex Gibney is not revealing
anything new here. We know John Travolta and Tom Cruise are the best known A
List celebrities endorsing the church. We know L. Ron Hubbard ruled the church
and its followers as though it was his own private fiefdom. We know they do
these odd tests, and somehow people believe in clearing the test levels they
will become more successful, not just in the church but in their lives. We know
that at the lower levels, people are treated abysmally and families are broken
up by their belief in the church—the divorce of Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise, a
well-known case in point.
However what makes this film fascinating
watching are the interviews with the leaders of the church who have come to
their senses and left the church. Going
Clear is a tell-all on what it really is like behind the scenes at the
highest level. One second-in-command even admits it was his job to come between
Cruise and Kidman. The entire film is a crazy and very sad story. The final
scene is actually gut wrenching for a parent to watch.
Gibney has rightly
made a name for himself as the top documentary maker in Hollywood with such
quality films as We Steal Secrets: The
Story of WikiLeaks, Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God, The
Armstrong Lie, and many more. This is another illuminating spotlight on an
intriguing subject. It may not contain many revelations, but, boy, a
fascinating story is still a fascinating story, and this is one polished and
well researched documentary.
Film Blurb
Directed by Oscar winner
Alex Gibney and based on the book by Pulitzer Prize winner Lawrence Wright,
Going Clear profiles eight former members of the Church of Scientology-whose
most prominent adherents include A-list Hollywood celebrities-shining a light on
how the church cultivates true believers, detailing their experiences and what
they are willing to do in the name of religion. One of the most talked about
films at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, this powerful documentary highlights
the Church's origins, from its roots in the mind of founder L. Ron Hubbard to
its rise in popularity in Hollywood and beyond. Going Clear is a provocative
tale of ego, exploitation, and lust for power. (C) HBO
NEWS
THAT SUGAR FILM IN SCHOOLS
For details go to: http://thatsugarfilm.com/schools/
The School Action Toolkit is
available now and costs $220
Fantastic
news that as of 1st July 2015 THAT SUGAR FILM will be released on DVD to
screen in schools with their School Action
Toolkit. This is a suite of resources
crafted around That Sugar Film and That Sugar Book to educate and
raise awareness about sugar consumption within primary and secondary school
settings. Developed in collaboration with curriculum experts, the Toolkit is a
one-stop shop that walks schools through a process for implementing sustainable
change and provides practical tools to help engage the whole school community.
• That Sugar Film on DVD
• That Sugar Book
• Study Guide (Years 5-10)
• 10 x short segments of the film for teachers to use
• Action Planning Guide
• Posters, handouts and worksheets for the classroom or home
• Digital materials and tools
FAN FORCE THAT SUGAR FILM
You can force a That Sugar Film screening at Readings Cinema
in Mandurah by going here : https://fan-force.com/screenings/that-sugar-film-reading-cinemas-mandurah/ and buying
tickets. Once it reaches its tipping point then the film will screen. What a
great idea
Date: Sunday 19th
July 2015
Time: 11:00AM
Location: Readings
Mandurah Details and Booking
SO, WHAT IS
FANFORCE? YOU ASK.
Well, FanForce is an exciting
new way to see films in the cinema. Film fans can see just about any film they
want – in any cinema – with a room full of other fans, just like you. FanForce
takes the financial risk out of hosting cinema screenings by putting these fans
first. If enough people buy tickets then the screening goes ahead.
SPECIAL EVENTS
PERTH REVELATION INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Date: Thursday 2
July 2015
Time: Sunday 12 July
Location: Luna
Leederville Details and Booking
Revelation
commenced its formal life in 1997. It was designed to showcase ideas "at
point" in contemporary independent film and find a place for them in a
conservative cinema and social environment.
Today, the event includes over 120
international films presented at cinemas, galleries, cafes and bars across
Perth. It attracts 12,000 patrons and 50 national and international guests over
10 days.
Revelation also includes a unique Academic
component (introduced in 2012), industry discussion sessions, live
performances, masterclasses, visual art exhibitions and other hybrid activity
generated by the event or independent curators. Revelation always welcomes
independently curated or initiated programs and ideas and actively embraces
creative professional development and mentoring opportunities.
Opening Night: LAST
CAB TO DARWIN
Intro and Q&A
Thu 2, Fri 3, Sat 4TH July with director Jeremy Sims and cast
members including Michael Caton
Rex (Michael Caton) is a cab driver from Broken Hill. On
the surface he appears as a simple man whose days are spent driving miners to
the airport, whose evenings are spent drinking a beer with a handful of old
mates and whose mornings pass by as he has tea with his neighbour Polly
(Ningali Lawford). But underneath the apparent simplicity of his daily life Rex
is in poor health. Now, facing bad news he understands that he wants to control
his final moments, meanwhile in Darwin Dr Farmer (Jacki Weaver) may have the
perfect solution. Rex just needs to drive there.
DVD Releases
SELMA ✪✪✪½ Click here
for review
WILD ✪✪✪½ Click here
for review
FOCUS ✪✪✪ Click here
for review
