March 13th 2025
Mickey 17
No Other Land (streaming)
Birrarangga Film Festival
More from the French Film Festival
It's all happening this week. A terrific First Nations film festival, the French Film Festival continuing, the Academy Award-winning documentary streaming, and a fun new release that's funny and satirical.
Mickey 17
Dir: Bong Joon Ho
Length: 137 mins
 |
© Universal - plenty to laugh at and
plenty to think about with a great perf
from Robert Pattinson |
Mickey Barnes (Robert Pattinson) and his pal Timo (Steven Yeun) are being chased by debt-collectors. What better thing to do than apply to go off-world and be one of the founding members of a new colony on the planet of Niflheim? Trouble is, Mickey doesn't read the disclaimer carefully, and ends up being an "expendable" - a scientific guinea pig who dies over and over, but is simply reprinted the next day, with his personality and memories intact. The messianic leader of the space expedition, Kenneth Marshall (Mark Ruffalo), and his wife Yifa (Toni Collette), have great aspirations for the new colony (and their own power), but first must get control of the native inhabitants, a sort of armadillo-shaped, tentacle waving, but highly intelligent creature. This may not be as bitingly satirical as Bong's award-winnning Parasite, but it has a very funny and pointed dig at so many negative aspects of today's world, its politicians and the human species overall. The film is a mish-mash of many genres: sci-fi, satire, at times veering into slapstick, but the imaginative scripting makes it never less than highly engaging. Of course it also makes us think of what damage humans seem to do wherever they go, which is ultimately quite depressing. Regardless, this timely film will give you a terrific laugh, while enjoying Pattinson's impressive performance.3.5 - well recommended
No Other Land
Dir: Yuval Abraham, Basel Adra & Hamdam Ballal
Length: 92 mins
Streaming only on DocPlay
 |
© DocPlay - an Israel/Palestine story
you won't get every day in the news |
You've heard plenty about Gaza, but probably not much about Masafer Yatta, a collection of more than a dozen tiny villages near Hebron in the occupied West Bank. Its residents are mostly farmers and herders, people who have lived there for decades. Israel doesn't want them there and has been systematically destroying their homes and meagre farms, so as to put IDF training facilities in, or to allow settlers to build on the land. Basel Adra is a Palestinian journalist and lawyer (though he has no work) who has become an activist and filmaker, documenting over years the attempts of Israel to displace his people. Yuval is an Israeli investigative journalist who speaks Arabic and has teamed up with Basel to bring this story to the world. On one level they have succeeded, as the film has more than 100 wins and nominations to its name, including the big one, Best Documentary Feature at this year's Oscars. It's hard to describe the emotional clout a film of this nature has; at once upsetting, infuriating, but with a tiny shred of hope. The sorts of criminal acts committed by soldiers against the villagers are beyond belief - people shot for trying to prevent their building tools from being taken, their cars stolen by the IDF, water wells being filled with concrete, along with the endless bulldozers demolishing the modest homes. Despair is everpresent, alongside tenacity. The tiny ray of hope comes from two brave men from "opposite sides" of the conflict, demonstrating that there can be room for collaboration, friendship understanding, and the courage to stand against injustice.4.5 - wholeheartedly recommended
Birrarangga Film Festival
March 13-23
Various cinemas throughout Naarm (Melbourne)
Curated by Tony Briggs, the writer of hit film The Sapphires, this festival celebrates Indigenous film from around the world. The films explore strength, resilience and the environment in relation to First Nations peoples, and many of them demonstrate the strong similarities between various Indigenous cultures worldwide. More than 150 feature films, short films, and immersive experiences will be presented from countries as diverse as Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Finland, Peru and many more. Some films have already had cinematic releases, so this makes a great opportunity to catch up with what you've missed. Many others are fresh off the cutting room floor.
Worthy of mention are:
Singing Back the Buffalo: We call them bison, the Cree peoples of the Great Plains call them buffalo. Either way this noble beast which once roamed the plains, and was so important to Indigenous culture, was almost wiped out by the white man. This doco looks at how the tribespeople have managed to bring back the great herds. There's quite a bit of voice-over philosophy and spirituality, giving an insight into how important the land and its creatures are to the Indigenous Americans.
Before the Sun: Logan Red Crow is a young woman of the Siksika tribe. She has grown up around horses and competes in what is possibly the world's most dangerous horserace - the bareback relay at the Calgary Stampede. This exciting doco traces her aspirations to be a top rider, competing in a male-dominated world. It also beautifully documents the way her father and brother support her dreams. For people who love horses and want to see some of the glorious scenery surrounding the horse ranches (not to mention the stunning horses themselves), this is a fine film to see.
The Tundra Within Me: The Sami come from what
used to be known as Lapland, the far northern regions of Finland, Sweden,
Norway and Russia. They are traditionally reindeer herders, with men mostly
being the top dogs in the business. The low-key, gentle story is about
Lena, a Sami woman, once a herd manager, who left her homeland years ago to
become an artist in Norway. She returns for a time to do a
gender-focused project about women in reindeer management. When she meets
herder Mahtte, and they start a relationship, she needs to decide what
direction her life will take. A tender love story, with a telling look at
gender roles in a traditional society, this is worthwhile viewing.
Limbo: Detective Travis Hurley (Simon Baker)
is sent to the outback opal mining town of Limbo to investigate a 20-year-old cold case of Charlotte, an indigenous girl who went missing. The police hadn't cared, and when
they finally investigated had tried to pin the blame upon local First Nations
men, even implicating Charlotte's brother, Charlie . If you missed this finely crafted, haunting film when it had its mainstream release, here's your chance to catch it. Director Ivan Sen shoots in black and white creating a
noir feel. The setting location of Coober Pedy is perfect and Baker is compelling as the world-weary Hurley. There is
much pain in the story - that of fractured families and a justice system that
continually ignores or mistreats the First Nations people.
Ka Whawai Tonu: Movies in Maori language are rapidly gaining in popularity. This latest film uses as its historical basis the Battle of Orakao in 1864, a bloody
affair, as two traditionally warring Maori tribes team up to slug it out with
the Brits. Fictional characters bring a more personal focus to the tale. Two teenagers who feel alienated from their people try to survive and rescue
others in the face of the brutal slaughter. One feels the pain of individuals and the
Maori people at large, however some of the violent battle scenes tend to overpower. Heavyweight NZ actors Cliff Curtis and Temeura
Morrison bring their talents to bear, the two young leads are strong, and
like many First Nations stories, this one throws light on an important
chapter of a dark history.
More from . . .
Alliance Francaise French Film Festival
Melbourne : Until April 9
Venues: Palace cinemas
I've previewed more and they are indeed to be recommended.
When Fall is Coming: Sublime! There's no other word for Francois Ozon's latest film, dealing with three generations and the resentments of the past. The film is suffused with secrets, recriminations, chances to start anew and the love and kindness between an ageing grandmother and her beloved grandson Lucas. Set in the idyllic countryside of Burgundy it is the story of Michelle, who spends her languid days foraging for mushrooms with her best friend Marie-Claude. But when daughter Valerie turns up with Lucas, and a tragic mistake is made, old enmities are rekindled. When Marie-Claude's son Vincent gets out of prison, Michelle sees a new purpose in her life. Intertwining friendships are the heart of this, underpinned by an exceptional lead performance from Helene Vincent. You'll need some tissues for this one!
The Divine Sarah Bernhardt: Sandrine Kiberlain gives a mesmerising performance as the woman once considered to be the finest stage actress in the world. In this lavish production we first meet Sarah near the end of her life, in the Paris of the 1920s. It was a decadent era, filled with Bohemian artists, and Sarah was their darling. The film's timeline moves back and forth through the years to portray a most volatile and flighty personality, along with the most scandalous episodes in her life. Her undying love for fellow actor Lucien Guitry (Lauren Lafitte) is a central part of the story, along with the countless sycophants and decadent characters that waft in and out. Settings and costumes are absolutely sumptuous.
Saint Exupery: This is the true story of the author of the famous children's book The Little Prince. Antoine Saint Exupery (Louis Garrell) flies planes in Argentina for France's Aeropostale. After he flies too high over the Andes and crashes into the sea, he is rescued by his best friend Henri (Vincent Cassell). So when Henri goes missing over a high mountain range, Saint Ex defies common sense to head off to try to rescue him. This is an inspiring story of friendship and bravery, with absolutely breathtaking sweeping cinematography shot on location in Patagonia. There's also plenty of heart-stopping plane action. Diane Kruger adds romantic interest as Henri's devoted wife, and overall this makes for seriously entertaining viewing.
