‘Shayda’

An initimate 1990s Melbourne-set drama and based on director Noora Niasari’s personal experiences as a child, a migrant Iranian woman flees domestic abuse with her six year-old daughter.

Escaping the abusive marriage, Shayda (Zar Amir Ebrahimi) finds refuge in a Melbourne Womens Shelter. But she’s never certain of safety with her husband (Osamah Sami) given access to Mona (Selina Zahednia) by the courts and the majority of the local Iranian community siding with tradition. Shelter manager Joyce (Leah Purcell) is the main support as Shayda navigates the Nowruz (New Year) holiday season and attempts to provide a level of normalcy for her confused daughter.

In her feature film debut, Noora Niasari creates a powerful mood piece as Shayda looks to piece her life together, aware of the judgement of other migrants, fearful of being followed. In focusing predominantly on the mother/daughter relationship, Shayda is a tale of tender vulnerability.  

Rating: 69%

Director: Noora Niasari (Antunez House)

Writer: Noora Niasari

Main cast: Zar Amir Ebrahimi (Holy Spider, Tatami), Leah Purcell (The Drover’s Wife, Lantana), Selina Zahednia

‘The New Boy’

A meditative allegory, two cultures are forced together in 1940s outback Australia as a nine year-old indigenous boy is delivered to a remote Mission at the dead of night.

The home to a handful of (Stolen Generation) boys, renegade nun Sister Eileen (Cate Blanchett) runs the Mission having kept secret the death of the Priest a year earlier. ‘Sister Mum’ (Deborah Mailman) is the only other nun with George (Wayne Blair) the live-in handyman. It’s a closed world of little joy, routine and few words – the semi-naked New Boy’s arrival upsets the balance. An extraordinary realism from newcomer Aswan Reid is caught between two cultures. With his own spiritual powers and connectivity to place, he becomes fascinated by Catholic spirituality and its heavy symbolism. But there’s an inevitablity that the one can never accept the other.

It’s a quiet, stunningly shot feature from Warwick Thornton with a haunting soundtrack from Nick Cave and Warren Ellis. Little happens in its arguably elusive 100 minute running time, yet The New Boy is a compassionate exploration of ritual, faith and colonialism. 

Rating: 70%

Director: Warwick Thornton (Samson & Delilah, Sweet Country)

Writer: Warwick Thornton (Samson & Delilah, Sweet Country)

Main cast: Cate Blanchett (Little Fish, Blue Jasmine), Aswan Reid, Deborah Mailman (Bran Nue Dae, Rabbit Proof Fence)

‘Of An Age’

A touching, beautifully crafted tale of first love as 17 year-old Kol experiences an intense 24-hour romance with a friend’s older brother.

A panicked Kol (Elias Anton) discovers his school ballroom dancing partner Ebony (Hattie Hook) is wasted and on the other side of the city. Their final year presentation is only three hours away. A few phone calls later, Ebony’s older brother Adam (Thom Green) offers to drive with Kol to collect her. As they drive through Melbourne’s suburbs, the two talk with gentle teasing flirtation knowing Adam is leaving to live in Buenos Aires the next day. A decade later the two, both based overseas, meet for the first time since that fateful 24 hours.

A sensitively written narrative impeccably performed by the two leads, a wistful Of An Age is nuanced and romantic with writer/director Goran Stolevski beautifully capturing the awkwardness of uncertainty.

Rating: 72%

Director: Goran Stolevski (Housekeeping for Beginners, You Won’t Be Alone)

Writer: Goran Stolevski (Housekeeping for Beginners, You Won’t Be Alone)

Main cast: Thom Green (Downriver, TV’s Dance Academy), Elias Anton (Sunflower, TV’s Barracuda), Hattie Hook (TV’s Savage River, Ten Pound Poms)

’Talk to Me’

A captivating and quietly shocking Australian horror feature that goes against genre type in the building of character within a group of teenagers.

Still coming to terms with the loss of her mother, Mia (Sophie Wilde) reluctantly attends a small party with best friend Jade (Alexandra Jensen). Jade’s younger brother Riley (Joe Bird) to whom Mia has a close affinity tags along. Turns out the party is a form of seance – Hayley (Zoe Terakes) has come into possession of an embalmed hand from which spirits can be conjured. The gang are hooked – and Mia looks to talk to her mom. But she goes too far, allows Jade to have a go – and unleashes terrifying, uncontrollable forces.

Directors Danny and Michael Philippou, twin brothers, expertly ramp the tension and existential dread. As the families of the teenagers attempt to deal with the consequences, Mia’s addiction to the need to know answers from her mother grows. The moments of horror, though brief, are deeply shocking, adding to the sinister complexities of the unfolding narrative.

Winner of 8 AACTA Awards in 2023 including best film, director, actress and script

Rating: 76%

Director: Danny Philippou (TV’s RackaRacka) Michael Philippou (TV’s RackaRacka)

Writer: Danny Philippou (TV’s RackaRacka), Bill Hinzman

Main cast: Sophie Wilde (The Portable Door, TV’s Boy Swallows Universe), Alexandra Jensen (The Moogai, TV’s The Messenger), Miranda Otto (The Daughter, War of the Worlds)

‘Snowtown’

Intense, raw, gritty and based on true events, 16 year-old Jamie finds himself in the thrall of his mother’s new boyfriend and neighbourhood vigilantes.

Life in the margins as Elizabeth (Louise Harris) and her four sons live in run down housing in northern Adelaide. The arrival of her latest boyfriend, John (Daniel Henshall) provides a level of stability and sense of family. But John’s sense of self-righteousness and bigotry influences the boys, Jamie (Lucas Pittaway) in particular as a level of hero-worship develops. As time passes, with the disappearance of several people, Jamie finds himself drawn into the world of violence, retribution and murder.

A dour, bleak feature in director Justin Kurzel’s film debut, Snowtown nevertheless remains a compelling, expressionist menace of a narrative underscored by superb, naturalistic performances.

Rating: 76%

Director: Justin Kurzel (Nitram, True History of the Kelly Gang)

Writer: Shaun Grant (Nitram, True History of the Kelly Gang)

Main cast: Lucas Pittaway (The Faceless Man), Daniel Henshall (The Royal Hotel, TV’s Defending Jacob), Louise Harris (The Turning, TV’s Wentworth)

’Foe’

A slow burn partial dystopian tale as, 50 fifty years from now, with the Earth becoming less and less habitable, explorations are being made to identify a new world.

A secluded farm has been in the family of Junior (Paul Mescal) for generations. As he and wife Hen (Saoirse Ronan) struggle through the long drought, a struggle that has impacted on their relationship, so the arrival of Terrance (Aaron Pierre) with an unexpected offer sends their lives into turmoil.

A Southern Gothic tale as Terrance moves into the rambling old farmhouse to support the couple through his unexpected offer. It’s a claustrophobic world of tension and unexpected twists as the marital drama unfolds with the philosophies of science fiction and technological advancement impacting the narrative. Fans of planetary vistas and futuristic wizardy will be disappointed in what in reality is an intense exploration of the human condition and the concept of love.

Rating: 60%

Director: Garth Davis (Lion, TV’s Top of the Lake)

Writer: Ian Reid (I’m Thinking of Ending Things), Garth Davis – adapted from the novel by Ian Reid

Main cast: Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn, The Lovely Bones), Paul Mescal (Aftersun, All of Us Strangers), Aaron Pierre (Old, TV’s The Underground Railroad)

‘The Royal Hotel’

Running short of cash whilst on a working holiday, two female Canadian backpackers take a job at the remote Royal Hotel in the Australian outback. Trapped, the two find the attentions of the virtually all male clientele insufferable.

Partying in Sydney, Liv (Jessica Henwick) discovers her credit card maxed out and convinces Hanna (Julia Garner) to take well-paid jobs at the remote Royal Hotel. Warned it could be a challenge, the two very quickly discover it’s far, far worse than they imagined and the level of drunkeness unbearable. Mind games aplenty are played with the two as owner Billy (Hugo Weaving) struggles to pay bills and wages whilst Hanna is not sure just how much she can trust the larrikin Matty (Toby Wallace). Both women agree they need to steer clear of the creepy Dolly (Daniel Henshall).

Based on real events, The Royal Hotel as directed by Kitty Green is a slow-burn hybrid of suspense, horror and drama in exploring, in a low-key, almost everyday setting, toxic masculinity.

Rating: 61%

Director: Kitty Green (The Assistant, Ukraine is Not a Brothel)

Writer: Kitty Green (The Assistant), Oscar Redding (Van Diemen’s Land, TV’s Cop Hard)

Main cast: Julia Garner (The Assistant, TV’s Ozark), Jessica Henwick (Glass Onion, The Gray Man), Hugo Weaving (The Dressmaker, Priscilla – Queen of the Desert)

‘Seriously Red’

Quirky, off-kilter Australian story as Red, an unfocussed drifter dipping in and out of life struggling with low esteem, determines to make a career as a Dolly Parton impersonator.

Living at home in her mother’s converted garage, Red (Krew Boylan) is drifting through aimless, dead end jobs and hanging out with best mate Francis (Thomas Campbell). The one thing she does take seriously is her love of Dolly Parton. A chance encounter results in Red discovering a club run by Wilson (Bobby Cannavale) and the world of tribute artists and impersonators. Himself a former successful Neil Diamond, Wilson teams Red up with ‘Kenny Rogers’ (Daniel Webber) for the Islands in the Stream residency in Hong Kong. Success and love follow – but for how long?

Irreverent and lightweight, directed by Gracie Otto, Seriously Red is a try-too-hard comedy that doesn’t quite pay off. Self and identity may be at its core but Krew Boylan’s self-scripted star vehicle feels too contrived and forced.

Rating: 43%

Director: Gracie Otto (Under the Volcano, TV’s The Clearing)

Writer: Krew Boylan

Main cast: Krew Boylan (TV’s Sando, Molly), Daniel Webber (Escape From Pretoria, TV’s 11.22.63), Rose Byrne (Spy, Bridesmaids), Bobby Cannavale (Blue Jasmine, Ant-Man), Thomas Campbell (MaveriX, Love & Monsters)

‘Limbo’

A cold-case murder investigation is reopened in Ivan Sen’s gritty and potent narrative as the outback is the setting to revisit indigenous trauma and attempt to respectfully redress injustice.

With his own personal demons, Travis Hurley (Simon Baker – Breath, The Devil Wears Prada), a jaded detective, arrives in the strange outback mining town of Coober Pedy. Initially finding it difficult to connect with family members of the young female victim, Hurley slowly makes inroads as he unearths ignored statements and truths from the previous investigation.

Fractured families, racism and inequality are ever present in writer/director Ivan Sen’s (Mystery Road, Beneath Clouds) thoughtful yet strangely detached noir tale. Stark black and white photography accentuates the almost lunar terrain, remnants of opal mining, providing the intriguing backdrop for the quiet potency of a very Australian story. On paper a police thriller, Limbo is, in its own limited scope, as much an investigation into the losses and injustices continually faced by First Nations Australians as it is an investigation into a murder of twenty years earlier.

Rating: 71%

‘The Proposition’

Violent, gruesome yet interlaced with moments of great visual beauty, The Proposition is an Australian outback tale circa 1880s as an attempt to bring an end to violence results in more bloodshed.

Looking to bring order to the outback town and surrounds, Captain Stanley (a magnificent Ray Winstone – The Departed, Sexy Beast) makes a proposition to the captured Charlie Burns (Guy Pearce – Memento, L.A. Confidential), a member of the notorious Burns gang. Kill your psychopathic brother Arthur (Danny Huston – The Constant Gardener, Hitchcock) or younger brother Mike (Richard Wilson – The Loved Ones, Birthday), currently in chains, will be executed. He’s given nine days to ride off into the remote landscape – with Stanley left to justify to the townsfolk and his wife (Emily Watson – Gosford Park, On Chesil Beach) the decision to release the outlaw.

The Proposition as directed by John Hillcoat (Lawless, Triple 9) is primal and volatile. Written by Nick Cave (who also provides with Warren Ellis the hypnotic soundtrack), malevolence begets malevolence as the characters contrast against an equally unforgiving landscape. Extreme it certainly is but also haunting, very poetic and very Nick Cave. An underrated Australian classic.

Rating: 84%