S.I.D.E.S. by Alice Merton, the overlooked sophomore effort from the same starlet that blessed us with the one hit No Roots a couple of years back, is a great romp through a relationship gone awry.

Where the Crawdads Sing is a unique take on the who-dunnit genre, and though it lacks the punch of a satisfying conclusion, it still leaves a lasting impression.

Surprisingly funny, while at the same time using nuance as a blunt-force weapon, delivering crushing sadness, The Phantom of the Open subverts a typical focus.

Come one, come all! Readers rejoice for it is time to kill two birds with one stone as we rest our weary heads atop the mountains of education and entertainment. If you don’t know what you want to watch at the Melbourne Documentary Film Festival yet, please allow me to fill up your whole month with my personal 15 picks for knowledge worth gaining.

For a short movie, at roughly 80 minutes, the amount of carnage that is sewn into the lives of those who love Neil is barely a blip on the radar as he freewheels from beach to beach, beer to beer, and nap to nap.

Elvis isn’t a movie, it’s an event.

Set in the swingin’ 60’s, yet again following the hijinx of the minions after finally finding their purpose at the close of Minions, they immediately lose Gru again and retread the American countryside, this time to San Franbisco. 

Lightyear is an absolute feat of digitised filmmaking and some of the best animation I’ve ever seen.

Everyone I asked about The Bob’s Burgers Movie didn’t know it existed, and I’m ashamed to say this slipped under my radar up until its release as well. If it is destined for hidden gem status, it will fit right in with the show’s legacy in this truly underrated franchise.

A testament to the quality of this film and its handling of suspense […] is that although there are missiles and all manner of other Fast and Furious-esque set pieces, nothing is more thrilling than a low-fi, nostalgic dog fight using nothing more than bullets and mean words. 

A peak behind the Iron Curtain exponentially aided in submerging myself into the story, one that relished in exploring the different ways people learn to accept themselves. Some just don’t, which leads to one of the most frustrating, yet compelling, revelations Firebird presents to its audience.

I haven’t seen a movie juggle the human range of emotions with such ease in years, although I can recall one movie that did it pretty well not too long ago: Paddington [1].

Featuring four of Spain’s most exciting young film and TV stars, first-time director Carol Rodríguez Colas’ Girlfriends is a fresh, sincere depiction of what it means to come to terms with who you are.

The debut fiction feature from director Macarena Astorga, The House of Snails is a slow burn psychological thriller filled with twists and turns that will have you on the edge of your seat.

The kids had fun, I had fun and most importantly the Earth had fun. For at its heart, Trash with a Porpoise is a show with a purpose. Not content with the schooling system to educate our youth, performers Jemima, Joseph and Julia will not rest until every child in the metro-Melbourne area washes the hard plastic containers strawberries come in.

I’m sure some comedians spend ages preparing for one of the biggest comedy festivals in the world. With Ross, I honestly couldn’t tell where the script ended & the improv began. That factor increased my immersion with his runaway gags tenfold […]

Bikinis were not the dress code at this event, but the queen was on full display for the whole hour during this subdued take on self-acceptance. 

I could imagine this movie disappointing many crowds: the hardcore lore-centric fans, people who loved the first one and didn’t want change, people who didn’t like the first one even least a little bit, etc. But I can assure you of two crowds that really enjoyed this movie: children (because Jim Carrey seemingly resurrected The Grinch in this performance), and me. 

The man captivated the room’s attention for the full Power Hour and really at a comedy show can I ask for more? He kept on a strict beat, whether it was half-time when he plugged his merch, 15 minutes before the show ended when he plugged his merch, or when the show ended as he plugged his merch. 

The critic game is a dirty business. Us movie reviewer types are bought off, blackmailing, career-ending mafiosos behind the scenes. Watching Lost Illusions, the wall was shattered, and the gig was up.