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QPIX STUDENTS ARE TROPFEST FINALISTS
Graduates of QPIX’s 2011 Diploma of Production course have won their way into the finals of TROPFEST, the world’s largest short film festival, with their student production PHOTOBOOTH. Set in the Afghanistan conflict, PHOTOBOOTH is one of a sequence of...
'Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu' Out February 10
(Nationwide)
Over The Fence Comedy Film Deadline
(Nationwide)
Rottofest 2012: Call For Entries Now Open!
(Nationwide)
latest news
Geoffrey Rush Joins Tropfest
The acclaimed actor and newly-crowned Australian of the Year, Geoffrey Rush, will be a key player in 2012’s Tropfest activities.
Naomi Watts To Play Princess Diana
The Aussie actress is set to play the people’s princess in an upcoming film that chronicles the final two years of Diana’s life.
Sullivan Stapleton Signs On To ‘300’ Prequel
The Aussie actor has beat out the competition to land a role in the upcoming blockbuster.
James Cameron Loses Long Time Australian Collaborators
Producer Andrew Wight and cinematographer Mike deGruy lose their lives in a helicopter crash.
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Wild Thing I Think I Love You
Zombieland, Paranormal Activity and Where The Wild Things Are...
Ever since Woody Harrelson played Mickey Knox in Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers the madness glinting in that hillbilly smile became apparent to those previously dazzled by his country boy charm in Cheers. It lurked around the edges of his No Country For Old Men cameo, was employed to great effect in this year's special effects blockbuster 2012 where he played a nutty DJ specialising in conspiracy theories, and is on show in the perfect vehicle for a man with a knack for incipient insanity; the ZOMBIE MOVIE!
Zombieland is being called the best zombie comedy since Shaun of the Dead and, just like all Arnie movies must include the line, "I'll be back," all zombie movies must include new and more gross ways to kill zombies. Zombieland does not disappoint! See it with someone who can laugh at dismemberment.
Paranormal Activity has been getting loads of hype but let me ask you this: Would you want to watch The Blair Witch Project again? Ever? No? Then don't bother with Paranormal Activity. Unless you're a young filmmaker looking for instructional insights into how to make a low-budget multiplex movie, this is mostly an exercise in lost opportunity. They could've put so much more characterisation in there - just one laugh, perhaps? But the two actors Katie Featherston and Micah Sloat are charmless and I'd be surprised to see much more of them in future.
The big film out that you need to see is the long-awaited, much-anticipated Where The Wild Things Are. Directed by Spike Jonze and shot for the most part in Victoria, this film is an adaptation of the classic children's storybook by Maurice Sendak.
Is it a kid's film?
I'm not sure. My infant daughter used to make me read the book over and over until I was hoarse. Taking her along as a now-7 year-old felt wild and special and we both cried! It may surprise viewers by taking them to sad and complex places they didn't expect from the book. It surprised us.
The story centres on Max, a young boy who's wrestling with feelings of isolation and abandonment. He's the younger brother and still very much a child while his sister has moved into teenagehood and his parents' marriage has collapsed. Everything that plays out in the place where the Wild Things are has its metaphorical roots in Max's real world. The two Wild Things that Max tries desperately to help, Carol and KW (voiced brilliantly by James Gandolfini and Lauren Ambrose), are just like his parents and no amount of desperate effort can solve their issues.
Depending on your commitment to the allegory, Where The Wild Things Are can actually be a pretty heartbreaking film. It's also terrific entertainment. Original music is by Karen O from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and the legendary composer Carter Burwell (who does all the Coen Bros films).
I guess the film surprised me - I've been seeing all the Hollywood children's movies for the past seven years and they have in common an unwillingness to acknowledge the sadness and dirtiness of the world. They're kind of like the kindergarten teacher with the permanent fake smile and the baby voice, smiling, smiling through gritted teeth. This film, even though it's sort of meant for adults, allows itself a long and heaving sigh, a deep and serious frown, and gives children the chance to ask, "Is death scary?" and "Why does everything have to be so messy?"
As we left the cinema I told my daughter, "That's the first grown-up film you've seen." She's probably going to remember it for the rest of her life.