Terri is the film that so many of us have been waiting to see for a long, long time now. This isn’t one of your typical ‘nice’ teenage films. This is a film certainly goes into the Larry Clark style of teenage film. It’s true to life and will certainly be confronting for some audience members.

Terri (Jacob Wysocki – TV’S Huge) isn’t your typical high school student. He is an obese loner who wears pajamas to school and juggles his studies with looking after his Uncle James (Creed Bratton – TV’S The Forgotten & The Office) and now his newfound interest in dead animals. When his tardiness draws the attention of school principal, Mr. Fitzgerald (John C. Reilly – Carnage, We Need To Talk About Kevin) Terri finds himself meeting with Fitzgerald every week. Soon Terri is becoming friends with the very strange, Chad (Brodger Zadina – Blunderkind, TV’S The Glades) and the perceived promiscuous, Heather (Olivia Crocicchia – Almost Kings, TV’S Rescue Me)

Director, Azazel Jacobs (Momma’s Man, The GoodTimesKid) takes this film into some dark places, especially when you consider the finale. Sure, Mr. Fitzgerald wanted these three teens to become friends but did he really want something like this to happen? Jacobs has made a fine independent film and even though you marvel at it you can’t help but feel that the ending should have been a little bit stronger and better written. It’ll frustrate some, while others will just say that it’s good to see that makes it’s audiences think a little.

One of the things that really sticks with you is the performances of the leading cast. On the back of We Need To Talk About Kevin John C. Reilly puts in another fine dramatic performance (has he turned his back on comedy for good?) while Olivia Crocicchia and Bridger Zadina announce themselves with some eerily realistic portrayals. But the standout is Jacob Wysocki – this is his breakout moment.  He also comes from a comedic background but here he puts in a truly brilliant performance that is worthy enough to win awards and certainly shows that he has a big future ahead of him.

Terri is the kind of film that is going to be lapped up by those who love independent cinema. Unique in the extreme this is one of the hidden gems of the last 12 months.

Year: 2011

Director: Azazel Jacobs

Stars: Jacob Wysocki, John C. Reilly, Bridger Zadina, Olivia Crocicchia, Creed Bratton

Classification: M

Runtime: 101 mins

Rating:

Out now on DVD

Dave Griffiths

Documentary filmmaker Morgan Spurlock (Super Size Me, Where In The World Is Osama Bin Laden) has in the past gone after fast food companies and even one of the most prominent terrorists of all time, but this time he has his heart set on something that most people would consider even more evil… advertising in films and television shows. And while he may not expose exactly what he sets out to do he does dig up some pretty scary things about advertising in general.

After seeing the amount of product placement in one of Spurlock’s favourite TV shows, Heroes, he wondered if it was possible to make a film that is completely funded by corporate sponsorship. Pom Wonderful presents The Greatest Movie Ever Sold follows Spurlock as he meets with company executives, advertising experts and Hollywood bigwigs as he attempts to ‘sell’ every aspect of the film.

Spurlock has great intentions, I mean who hasn’t sat in a movie theatre and groaned at the sight of product placement in a movie, but he does slightly miss his mark. He skirts on the issue of product placement and while it is interesting to see how he works with the companies that he gets involved with the docco you don’t exactly see films like Iron Man selling space in their title or having their directors wear a ‘Nascar-style’ suit when they are doing interviews. For most of the film you feel that the execs featured are really just humoring Spurlock… and yes seeing a way to get some cheap advertising space.

What Spurlock does do a great job of is exposing the advertising world and the lows that they will go… and the research that they do to go to those lows. How many people would think that a advertising agency would go as far as putting someone through neurological tests to see how advertising works on them. That is the true power of this docco and something that Spurlock really should have focused more on.

Certainly not the greatest docco of all time but this is certainly worth a look if like so many people advertising annoys you… but you still want to know how it works.

Year: 2011

Director: Morgan Spurlock

Stars: Morgan Spurlock

Classification: M

Runtime: 84 mins

Rating:

Out now on DVD

Dave Griffiths

This classic six-part Doctor Who adventure, first broadcast in 1971 and released to DVD on December 1st, 2011, sees the titular Time Lord (Jon Pertwee) – having previously been forced to regenerate into his third body and cast into exile on Earth by his own people – finally venturing out into the stars again with brand new traveling companion Jo Grant (Katy Manning) by his side. Unfortunately for The Doctor, his journey isn’t exactly by choice and he quickly realizes the Time Lords have recruited him for their own plans. Which, as it happens, revolve around the recovery of top-secret files relating to something called The Doomsday Weapon. And so its off to the desolate planet of Uaxerius in the year 2742, where The Doctor and Jo find themselves caught up in a dispute between the local colonists and the Intergalactic Mining Corporation regarding ownership of the planet.

As if all this hubbub wasn’t rough enough for our heroes, things go straight down the toilet once the Doctor’s evil counterpart The Master (Roger Delgado) shows up with his own agenda.

Colony In Space holds a less-than-stellar position amongst the fanbase, generally being seen as one of the lower points of Jon Pertwee’s tenure as the Third Doctor. I can see why that is – being a story that moves painfully slowly – although I personally still found some enjoyment in it. The story itself works well enough and the actors clearly have enough of a grasp on their roles to make their performances believable, with the interactions between The Doctor and The Master, and The Doctor’s overjoyed reaction to the first sight of an alien planet since his exile being high points. That said though, there are a couple of things (aside from the chuckle-worthy special effects. I know its the 70′s, but seeing the TARDIS literally disappear and reappear on screen in the form of quick-cuts rather than fade in and out is just hilarious) that upset my experience: The first being that the Master’s involvement is made obvious from the first episode’s opening scene, thus ruining any element of surprise his appearance may have had later. Secondly, would be the character of Norton (Roy Skelton). He turns up in the story at a time when things are going especially bad, and he’s so obviously evil, its a wonder that everyone who isn’t The Doctor doesn’t twig to it.

Fortunately, all is not lost. The special features on this single-disc release are quite entertaining, including audio commentary from several actors as well as script editor Terrance Dicks, and “IMC Needs You!” – a documentary about the making of Colony In Space.

Caley Bethune

If you don’t like slow moving films then move along straight away because Of Gods And Men certainly isn’t the film for you, but if you do want to see a film that will totally engross you then it isn’t a movie that you should miss. Despite its slow moving ways Of Gods And Men sucks you right in and has you leaving the cinema convinced that you have just witnessed a film masterpiece.

Based on a true story Of Gods And Men tells the story of a group of French Catholic monks based at a monastery in Algeria when Muslim fundamentalists move into the area and beginning attacking people of other faiths. Led by Brother Christian (Lambert Wilson – The Princess Of Montpensier) and Brother Luc (Michael Lonsdale – Titeuf, le film, HH, Hitler A Hollywood) the monks continue to aid the local community with medicine and medical treatment while they privately argue whether they should trust in God and leave the area and return to France.

Director, Xavier Beauvois (Notre Ami Chopin, The Young Lieutenant) certainly doesn’t ‘nice-up’ the film for anyone. As you would expect there are long patches of the film where the monks sit in silence but this only serves as a way for the audience to better relate to the characters. They are peaceful people and these moments allow you to connect with them, and certainly makes sure that when they do talk that you listen. The moments of silence also make the scene with the helicopters (you’ll know what I mean when you see it) even more violent, and in a way makes your hatred for the Muslim fundamentalists even stronger. Beauvois is certainly a director that knows how to get his audience to think the way he wants them to think. He also manages to make such a sad story look eerily brilliant on the screen.

The acting in Of Gods & Men is so brilliant that you could actually be excused for thinking that it is a documentary. Led by Lambert Wilson the cast capture the characters to a T, and some people have actually left the cinema believing they are real monks and not actors. Hollywood certainly should wake up and begin casting Wilson in roles because he is one of the finest actors in France at the moment.

Of Gods And Men is a beautiful film that will certainly move you emotionally. It is graphic in parts but is a story that needs to be told. It is a must for lovers of serious cinema.

Year: 2010

Director: Xavier Beauvois

Stars: Lambert Wilson, Michael Lonsdale, Olivier Rabourdin

Classification: MA

Runtime: 122 mins

Rating:

Available on DVD from 23rd November, 2011

Dave Griffiths

Released on August 4th, 2011, Earth Story is one of the most recent additions to the growing collection of Classic-era Doctor Who DVD sets. As the title very clearly states, the tales to be found within this double dose of The Doctor are Earth-centric.

We begin with a look back at the long-gone days of black and white television, when this long-running franchise was still in its infancy. The Gunfighters sees the original incarnation of The Doctor (the late William Hartnell) accompanied by his companions Steven Taylor (Peter Purves) and Dorothea ‘Dodo’ Chaplet (Jackie Lane) to the Wild West in search of a dentist to rid him of his recent toothache. In the process, he ends up getting caught in the historical gunfight at the OK Corral as he tries to prevent Doc Holiday from being murdered by the Clanton Family.

The acting on show is passable and the visual effects are standard 1960′s TV fare, but once you get past that, this is a reasonably enjoyable four-part story – and the only still-intact one from that era, to boot -  that history buffs in particular will no doubt get a kick out of. And don’t be surprised if you find yourself singing “The Ballad Of The Last Chance Saloon” when all’s said and done. It gets played often enough.

The second offering, hailing from the 80′s and featuring Peter Davison’s Fifth Doctor, is called The Awakening. Clocking in at only two parts (undoubtedly a record for a Classic Who story), this serial sees the Doc and the TARDIS crew – Turlough (Mark Strickson) and Tegan (Janet Fielding)  hoping to spend a little R&R at the village where Tegan’s grandfather lives. Unfortunately, their vacation time is cut short by an evil psychic force that stirs up all manner of trouble including bringing projections of 17th Century folk to life.

I admittedly carry a bit of a soft spot for Peter Davison’s Doctor, in large part because the first story I saw when revisiting the show on DVD was one of his. Aside from that, however, I find his youthful vigor and willingness to step down and follow others once in a while quite refreshing in comparison to his much older and more authoritative predecessors. Indeed, the Doctor he portrays comes across as being that much more human, and I appreciate him for that. On top of that, I find Davison’s acting to be a saving grace when the usually strong supporting cast, narrative and visual effects have hit their lowest points.

Is this set worth a look? I would say yes, if only for the rarity that is a complete First Doctor story. And of course, there are special features attached to each of the discs, including – but not limited to – episode commentaries and a featurette detailing the highs and lows of William Hartnell’s time on the show.

Caley Bethune

Take the racing action of a movie like ‘The Fast And The Furious’ and add it to the brutality of ‘Death Race’ and you’re on the right track of understanding what new Anime film ‘Redline’ is like. One of the better Anime films to surface this year I really get the feeling that this a film that I am going to watch over and over.

‘Redline’ is set in the future where cars no longer go on land but instead fly, but for one group of racers land is where they enjoy to race their hotted up ‘cars’ (although spaceships would be a more accurate description). One of these drivers is JP, a young racer who was once arrested for race fixing. When he is invited to take part in the prestigious Redline race (mainly due to his popularity with the fans) he isn’t expected to play a major part in the race. And it’s not just the rough style of racing that will put JP at risk, he has to battle against the organized crime and militaristic goverments that threaten the race, while he himself is distracted as he has fallen in love with one of his competitors.

This is one Anime that does truly suck you in. The animation looks amazing and while it does take a little while to get used to the fact that in this universe there are dog-like aliens that just seem to co-exist with humans and robots, you do eventually get a good take on it. Some good script work means that you become a ‘fan’ of JP from the start and even though car-racing is the main theme you get a good feel for his (and his love interest, Sonoshee) characters… now that’s something that actual car-racing films could learn something from.

It has hard to believe that an Anime that is as visually spectacular as ‘Redline’ has a first time director at the helm… but that is exactly what Takeshi Koike is. He obviously learnt a lot when he was working as a key animator on films such as ‘The Animatrix’ because he does an amazing job here. Little touches like having characters that you can tell are based on Paris Hilton bring an air of familiarity to the film, while my only gripe is that Koike allows the ‘advertisement’ section in the middle of the film to run a tad too long.

Some Anime purists will be a little annoyed that Koike steers away from the standard Anime art and brings a more Western look (think ‘Heavy Metal’) to the film but for me this has quickly arrived on my list of fave Anime films. Add all this to a pumping soundtrack and you have the perfect Anime on your hands.

Year: 2009

Director: Takeshi Koike

Stars: Takuya Kimura, Yu Aoi, Tadanobu Asano

Classification: M

Runtime: 101 mins

Rating:

Out on DVD from 14th December, 2011

Dave Griffiths

Allow me to preface this review by saying that as someone who knows of the Doctor Who franchise largely through the 2005 revamp, I usually find myself thrown off-kilter when watching episodes from the original series. Not to say I don’t enjoy them, but more often than not, it takes me a while to settle in and really get immersed. I’m not sure what it is exactly, but I think it could very well be that I’m just not quite used to the multi-part episode format that “Classic Who” built itself upon.

Originally aired in October of 1987 and finally released to DVD on September 1st 2011, Paradise Towers sees the seventh incarnation of The Doctor (Sylvester McCoy – whom I had the pleasure of meeting in person at Melbourne’s recent Armageddon Expo) drawn into this latest adventure when he visits the titular establishment at the insistence of his red-headed companion Melanie Bush (Bonnie Langford), who seeks to go for a nice refreshing swim. Unfortunately for them, their expectations are shattered when they arrive to find not the pristine palace the tourist videos described, but instead a dank, graffiti-covered mess of a place. And if that wasn’t bad enough, things gradually worsen for the pair as they run afoul of a triad of primary-color-clad street gangs called the Kangs, as well as the Caretaker militia, whose leader (Richard Brier) keeps watch over the towers.

Just another run-of-the-mill day in the life of the Time Lord.

The quality of acting on show here is a mixed bag. Sylvester McCoy seems to be getting more comfortable in his role as the Doctor, following on from his debut serial Time And The Rani. Bonnie Langford, on the other hand, continues to emphasize the wrong syllable in almost every sentence, gets stuck with a side-plot that’s only mildly interesting (encountering various hiccups in her quest to find the pool), and – in what are sadly her most memorable moments in this entire story – gets a few chances to showcase the ear-splitting scream for which her character is famous among the fandom. However – as tends to be the case with many Classic Who stories, especially from this particular point in time – the supporting cast helps to keep things amusing, though not nessecarily for the best of reasons. The Kangs admittedly carry a certain level of charm to them, due more-so to their hilarious lingo than their tacky outfits, and Richard Brier’s Cheif Caretaker is deliciously hammy on-screen, chewing up so much of the scenery I was surprised there was anything left for the cast to use. That said, the character of Pex (Howard Cooke) – a self-appointed policeman – comes across as a mentally-underdeveloped man-child rather than the sympathetic soul he was clearly written as. Suffice to say, I found myself chuckling quite a lot here.

The soundtrack is synthesized, as one would expect from most 80′s-era productions. Keff McCulloch provides a wonderfully off-beat version of the Doctor Who theme, but his incidental music is lackluster and does little to really set the mood, being more of a distraction for me than anything else. The visual effects are more of a highlight, however. As horribly dated as they may be by today’s standards, they carry a B-movie charm to them that I always love to see in these classic serials. The indoor areas of Paradise Towers also deserve special mention, since – considering the budget – the production crew did a reasonable job of making them look appropriately degraded and disgusting.

Doctor Who: Paradise Towers is – fittingly enough – a real trip back in time to a wildly different era of Doctor Who, when the stories were more about setting the atmosphere and concentrating on the characters. Was there action? Any glitzy and glamorous special effects? Of course! But like a nagging itch that refuses to stop, the budget was a huge restriction on those factors even in Classic Who’s final years. At least now the opening sequence graces us with some computer-generated imagery that – for 1987 – actually looks quite slick.

Any fans who – like me – were introduced via the modern Doctor Who series and are seeking to backtrack, may do well to give this DVD a glance. All four parts of the story have been digitally remastered, the disc itself houses its fair share of special features including isolated music tracks, a making-of featurette, and my personal favourite of the bunch: a trio of former stars – Sarah Sutton (Nyssa), Janet Fielding (Tegan) and Sophie Aldred (Ace) – discussing what it was like to be a “Who Girl” in the 80′s.

Caley Bethune

Don’t be put off by the ‘let’s read a good movie’ sub-titled nature of this Swedish trilogy. If you dismiss films just because they’re not in English, you are missing out on an entire world (literally) of fine cinema and excellent entertainment, and this series is a prime example.

The series is based very closely on the books by Swedish novelist Steig Larsson. It centres around the misadventures of the movies’ title character, a Swedish girl in her mid twenties called Lisbeth Salander (played brilliantly in all three films by Noomi Rapace), a skilled computer hacker whose shady and violent past creates a troubled and quite anti-social individual. Despite this, investigative journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist, who is fully prepared to play second fiddle to Rapace’s almost psychotic performance) falls in love with her whilst they investigate together a serial killer in the first movie, and the pair become entangled in a plot of crime, intrigue and blackmail that more than sustains the interest over three lengthy movies.

These are not movies for the faint of heart. Their tone is unrelentingly dark and there are explicit scenes of rape, torture and violence peppered across the three films. They are also fairly intricately plotted, with many characters, storyline twists and turns and quite complex dialogue (which remember, you have to read) to keep up with, so strict concentration on the movies is advised. Frivolous, background entertainment these movies are not, but be patient and persist with them and the rewards are great, as all three movies are very entertaining and involving in their own right.

It is with trepidation that one reads that Hollywood is re-making the first movie, with James Bond (ie Daniel Craig) in the role as Mikael. The re-make is to be released in December, and you can only hope that they do original justice. Only time and viewing the film will tell.

That aside, the original three part Swedish made series comes highly recommended. And make the most of them, for aside from a questionable Hollywood re-make, there is very unlikely to be any more in this series. Stieg Larsson died in 2004, apparently leaving only sketches of what was apparently intended to be a ten book extravaganza. One can only hope that they actually leave it at a tasteful three, and don’t attempt to milk it further.

Rod Whitfield

With the releases of Face To Face and Red Dog, this year has really proved to be one of the best years for Australian film for a long, long time. Now comes Surviving Georgia, a film that shows that the Victorian indie film-making circuit is also alive and well. Like the previously mentioned films Surviving Georgia is another Australian film that certainly shouldn’t be missed.

Filmed in St Kilda and Warbuton Surviving Georgia tells the story of two sisters, Heidi (Pia Miranda – TV’S Sea Patrol & The Jesters) and Rose (Holly Valance – Big Mamma’s Boy, Luster) who were abandoned by their mother, Georgia (Caroline O’Connor – TV’S Lowdown, Moulin Rouge!) as teenagers. Since, then Heidi has been making ends meet working in a glass factory while Rose has been bringing up her son, Albie (Toby Wallace – Underbelly Files: The Man Who Got Away, Lucky Country). When their mother’s lawyer, Frank (Andrew Martin – TV’S City Homicide & John Safran’s Race Relations) tells them that their mother has died and left them a Milk Bar they travel back to ‘the mountain’ where they start to uncover secrets while also discovering romance. Rose catches the eye of local copper Johnnie O’Rourke (Shane Jacobson – Charlie & Boots, Cactus) while Heidi is pursued by her boss, James (Spencer McLaren – A Love Story, TV’S All Saints).

Hollywood could stand to learn a thing or two from screenwriter, Sandra Sciberras’ (Caterpillar Wish, Max’ Dreaming) screenplay for Surviving Georgia. She really knows how to write a romantic drama, her characters are truly believable (certainly not one dimensional like most Hollywood’s romance films) while the story is enough to really captivate the audience. Her characters are so believable that you can’t help falling for Heidi and Rose, and you really do want them to find happiness. Together with co-director, Kate Whitbread (Out Of Order), Sciberras really has created a beautiful film, and that beauty is only further enhanced by some amazing shots of Warburton.

The other thing that makes Surviving Georgia so special is its amazing cast. Pia Miranda and Holly Valance are sensational in the lead roles, and this is the movie that really shows Valance’s true acting ability. She brushes aside the negativity of Big Mamma’s Boy with a performance that really does show the world that she is a brilliant actress. She makes Rose so natural and believable that at times you feel you are watching a docco. Equally as good is Shane Jacobson and Spencer McLaren. McLaren reminds Australia why he is one of our finest actors while Jacobson shows that he is capable of more than just comedy. And while I’ll admit that I was skeptical of having Jacobson and Valance as love interests before seeing the film, I can say now that their relationship is believable and is one of the highlights of the film. And I know that I said the same thing after I saw Lucky Country but Toby Wallace is a young actor that has a big, big future ahead of him.

Surviving Georgia is an amazing film that Australia should be proud of. With an excellent story, fine cinematography and terrific acting this is one film that shouldn’t be missed.

Year: 2011

Director: Sandra Sciberras, Kate Whitbread

Stars: Pia Miranda, Holly Valance, Caroline O’Connor, Spencer McLaren, Shane Jacobson, Toby Wallace, Andrew Martin

Classification: M

Runtime: 86 mins

Rating:

Out on DVD from 15th December, 2011

Dave Griffiths

Only a little while into ‘Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale’ and you know that you have stumbled upon a little gem that is guaranteed to become a cult classic… and has just possible made the Hollywood list of films that should be re-made sometime soon.

This is also possibly one of the hardest films to actually classify into a genre. While it’s mostly a thriller there is also a healthy dose of horror mixed in with some black comedy, and to his credit writer/director, Jalmari Helander (‘Zero Deux’, ‘Fakiiri’) actually does the unthinkable and ties these three genres together in a way that truly makes the film memorable… although the sight of 100 nude elderly (mostly out-of-shape) men running towards the camera at the end of the film is also pretty difficult to get out of your head (okay I’ll be honest it’s burnt onto my retinas) as well.

The story works remarkably well and gets it point across like a velvet-sledgehammer. In the 1930s Coca Cola invented the nice and cuddly Santa that we know today, but when a group of archaeologists dig up the burial site of Santa they discover a severely demonic Santa that reeks havoc on the nearby residents, especially on a young boy (that knows the truth about Santa), Pietari (Onni Tommila – ‘Last Cowboy Standing’) and his father, a reindeer hunter, Rauno (Jorma Tommila – ‘Priest Of Evil’,’ The Cradle’)… and that’s not including the havoc that his eleves manage to create as well.

It’s surprising that this film works because it is almost as if Helander sets the film up to fail. When you think about the fact that the audience has to feel sorry for a group of reindeer hunters, killers of an innocent animal that most people seem to love, you straight away think the script is the bottom of a big hill and will struggle to get off the ground. But believe it or not Helander makes the characters so likeable you simply can’t help but feel yourself barracking for them. Secondedly, Helander takes Santa, one of the world’s most beloved characters and tries to get us to see him as something demonic… something again that surprisingly he manages to pull off. The elves and Santa in this film are so demonic and evil that I left the cinema wanting to punch the next apartment store Santa I see… in the head.

In fact the only thing that lets down this film is a bit of a weak ending. The set-up is all there but the ending comes about far too easily, and in such away that it actually pushes  Pietari down into the precocious-child bin, a place he certainly doesn’t deserve to be. The bad ending also makes the film feel way too long… a huge worry considering the film is only 80mins in length.

While the weak ending takes some of the shine off ‘Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale’ it does ultimately become a great little cult classic that is certainly worth the ticket price for. One of the few comedy-horrors that actually works, a must for anyone that loves their film on the quirky side.

Year: 2010

Director: Jalmari Helander

Stars: Onni Tommila, Jorma Tommila

Classification: M

Runtime: 83mins

Rating:

Available on DVD from 7th December, 2011

Dave Griffiths