Three orphaned sisters break out of their foster home for a day at the beach, only to be swept out to sea on the back of a surfboard and marooned on a rocky island full of seals. This premise, for … Continue reading CHIFF: The Island of Lost Girls (2022)
A mermaid princess named Ariel (Halle Bailey) goes against the wishes of her father Triton (Javier Bardem) to investigate the world of humans, only to fall in love with the dashing Prince Eric (Jonah Hauer-King). To go on land to … Continue reading REVIEW: The Little Mermaid (2023)
Two women climb a 600-metre abandoned television tower, only to get stuck at the top with no way of getting back down. There is something nice about these human-versus-nature stories, which by their very construction use a minimum of locations, … Continue reading REVIEW: Fall (2022)
I think there is a point at every trip to the funfair when you take one too many rides on the rollercoaster, and wind up vomiting your hot dog and soda onto the pavement. The rides were great, and you … Continue reading REVIEW: Fast X (2023)
One of the most valuable film distributors in Australia is Via Vision who, via Madman Entertainment, release a superb range of classic and foreign features to bluray – oftentimes films that have never even had a local DVD released before. … Continue reading REVIEW: Arabian Nights (1942)
There are many good films released around the world every year. Masterpiece celebrates the best of the very best: genuinely superb works of cinema that come with FictionMachine‘s very highest recommendation. If we had our own Criterion Collection, these are the films we … Continue reading MASTERPIECE: Zodiac (2007)
In Emily the Criminal, a modest crime drama gets mixed with strong character work and a savage social critique of American society. The overall effect is superb: had I managed to see the film last year it likely would have … Continue reading REVIEW: Emily the Criminal (2022)
Four years after their unexpectedly massive Netflix hit, Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston are back with the COVID-delayed follow-up Murder Mystery 2. It picks up protagonists Nick and Audrey Spitz some time after their original adventure, having tried to establish … Continue reading REVIEW: Murder Mystery 2 (2023)
Oh, it’s fine. Universal and Nintendo’s animated collaboration brings the venerable Super Mario Bros videogame series to cinemas for the first time since 1993’s abortive live-action effort starring Bob Hoskins. Directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic (Teen Titans Go) the film presents a … Continue reading REVIEW: The Super Mario Bros Movie (2023)
I have been an enormous fan of director Baz Luhrmann ever since his 1992 debut Strictly Ballroom. I have always found him a fascinating artist, because he trained in theatre – Strictly was a play before it was a film – yet works in … Continue reading REVIEW: Elvis (2022)
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