Movies & Streaming Reviews

The latest movies & streaming reviews from Jim Schembri, professional film reviewer since 1980.

French veteran Claire Denis pleases her arthouse fans with ‘Stars at Noon’; Lame thriller ‘Avarice’ clocks in as yet another Aussie clunker

Lost lovers: Joe Alwyn and Margaret Qualley in ‘Stars at noon’. STARS AT NOON *** (138 minutes) MA Hot on ...
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Gory Christmas cheer in ‘Violent Night’; Fleeing oppression in taut chase thriller ‘Kompromat’

Naughty or nice?: David Harbour as Santa Claus in ‘Violent Night’. VIOLENT NIGHT ***1/2 (112 minutes) MA You have to ...
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REVIEW/INTERVIEW: ‘Surrogate’, another taut Aussie tale of terror; director David Willing discusses the film’s style and the disciplines of making a low-budget movie

Nice kid: A child medium (Ellie Stewart) helps out a haunted house in ‘Surrogate’. SURROGATE *** (95 minutes) M One ...
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‘Seriously Red’, a laughless, seriously bad Australian comedy

Dire duo: Krew Boylan and Rose Byrne belt out a number in ‘Seriously Red’. SERIOUSLY RED 1/2 (98 minutes) M ...
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REVIEWS ‘Glass Onion’, a fine whodunnit – but should you see a pre-stream release at the cinema?; ‘The Menu’, a half-baked black comedy; ‘Strange World’, another Disney dud that’ll put the family to sleep; ‘Splice Here’ a loving tribute to projectionists and old-school film

Cinema or stream?: Daniel Craig returns as detective Benoit Blanc in ‘Glass Onion’. GLASS ONION – A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY ...
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Director Luca Guadagnino nails it with ‘Bones and All’, a sweet coming-of-age romance with a juicy twist and a bit of bite

Dinner date: Taylor Russell and Timothée Chalamet in ‘Bones and All’. BONES AND ALL ***1/2 (131 minutes) MA We get ...
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Fab, top-notch musical comedy Christmas cheer in ‘Spirited’; ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ a sturdy, harrowing remake; Fine, sad period drama in ‘My Policeman’; ‘The Wonder’, a dull drama; ‘Orgasm Inc’ a documentary fail

From top left: ‘Spirited’; ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’; ‘My Policeman’; ‘The Wonder’. SPIRITED **** (127 minutes) PG Likely ...
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Mel Gibson misfires in the limp thriller ‘On the Line’; Kiwi drama ‘Millie Lies Low’ fails to fly

Bad call: Mel Gibson lets loose as a talkback DJ in ‘On the Line’. ON THE LINE * (104 minutes) ...
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REVIEWS: Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities; Blockbuster; The Good Nurse; The Stranger; Causeway

Squid game: Body horror is on show in Guillermo del Toro’s ‘Cabinet of Curiosities’. GUILLERMO DEL TORO’S CABINET OF CURIOSITIES ...
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Methodical and measured, ‘She Said’ clocks in as a very fine drama taking us into the investigation that helped take down Harvey Weinstein and give rise to the #metoo movement

Fact check: Carey Mulligan & Zoe Kazan (2nd, 3rd from left) play reporters on as hot story in ‘She Said’ ...
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