Articles & Commentary - Jim Schembri

With ‘Ambulance’ action-movie supremo Michael Bay unleashes another hyper-kinetic boom-crash opera with no room for rest breaks

Brothers in arms: Jake Gyllenhaal and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II in Michael Bay’s ‘Ambulance’. AMBULANCE ***1/2 (136 minutes) MA However frenetic ...
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Swift, frenetic ‘Sonic 2’ serves up more of the same and then some, including a revved up Jim Carrey and a rival scene stealer

Scene stealer: Jim Carrey returns for more cheesy overacting in ‘Sonic 2’. SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 2 ***1/2 (122 minutes) PG ...
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Oscars 2022: A shakedown of the show including the winners, the presentation and, of course, a full debrief of the already infamous Will Smith Incident – including footage of the slap that shook everybody

Giving voice: Best Supporting Actor Troy Kotsur gave a stirring speech for his film ‘CODA’. Though it was predicted here ...
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OSCARS 2022: Some notes on who will, who won’t, who should and who shouldn’t win at Hollywood’s rapidly diminishing Night of Nights

Long shot: The odds are against it, yet low-budget drama ‘Coda’ could deliver an upset. There are lots of grand, ...
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Set in a Washington D.C. that looks suspiciously like Melbourne, the latest Liam Neeson action pic ‘Blacklight’ is a mediocre offering

Run, run, run: Liam Neeson and Emmy Raver-Lampman in ‘Blacklight’. BLACKLIGHT * (104 minutes) M There is obviously a powerful ...
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‘Rifkin’s Festival’ reworks many of Woody Allen’s favourite themes in a witty comedy about an old grouch in a crisis over his dying marriage

Death becomes him: Wallace Shawn and Christoph Waltz star in Woody Allen’s ‘Rifkin’s Festival’. RIFKIN’S FESTIVAL *** (92 minutes) PG-13 ...
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Predictable with so-so action, ‘The 355’ is lifted by its female leads

Watch out world: Four-fifths of the glamourous lead cast in action film ‘The 355’. THE 355 **1/2 (122 MINUTES) M ...
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Finally, what you’ve all been waiting for: The Ultimate ‘I’m A Celebrity’ all-purpose review that covers the entire show for all time

The Jungle Calls: The famous fight it out and learn life lessons in ‘I’m A Celebrity…etc’. Wow, what an absolutely ...
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With a raft of stunning aerial acts, the live spectacle ‘Oracle’ offers a sensory and sensual experience for the eyes and ears

Up in the Air: One of the stunning aerial acts in the stage show ‘Oracle’. ORACLE: Playhouse; Arts Centre Melbourne; ...
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The Year That Almost Wasn’t: A survey of 30 films that tell the story of film in 2021 as Covid ravaged the rapidly changing movie world

Killer portrait: ‘Nitram’, by far the best film of 2021. To state the obvious, it was another bumpy year for ...
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