TheAussieCritic

Bottoms is a mediocre, paint by numbers, high school comedy satire from Emma Seligmann, Rachel Sennott and Ayo Edebiri. It will be championed by those who feel "seen" and completely ignored by everyone else, ultimately being just another movie from the 2020s no one cares about in a decade or two. But! I also found it enjoyable and think it's a fine film to spend an evening watching for a bit of fun. Ayo is phenomenal and definitely the MVP of the film. Her banter with Rachel was a real highlight and the film would have worked better if they'd focused just on these two going about their day in a high school. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

The Continental: From the World of John Wick has delivered a very disappointing first episode. It was ninety minutes long with about twenty minutes of great stuff and then nothing but filler. Lots of tedious dialogue and set ups that will be used to turn this into the story of a girlboss instead of Winston himself. A lot of money has been spent here and everything looks good. Colin Woodell and Mel Gibson do a fine job as Winston and Cormac, the antagonist, but ultimately the picture falls apart because it is drawn out and unfocused. I think you should give this a miss or wait till a Butcher's Cut is released and just watch that. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

No One Will Save You may just be a gnostic parable masquerading as a genre film about aliens. Could be crazy, but that's how I'm seeing it and I think it's a cool idea. Unfortunately, there are issues at play with this film that hold it back from greatness. Brian Duffield is a very capable writer and is really coming in to his own as a director (this is his second feature after Spontaneous). His biggest flaw though is he likes to rush into the good stuff instead of building everything up to a big climax. Where is my Oh face, Brian? You got yours... Kaitlyn Dever delivers the goods here and firmly establishes that she can act, act. Not just act act. You know what I mean? Her role requires her to convey everything nonverbally with the exception of one line of dialogue, and that doesn't prove to be an issue. Overall, No One Will Save You is a very fun film and I do recommend you check it out. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

Ari Aster's third film, Beau is Afraid, is exceptional. A truly brilliant film that deserves to be watched and rewatched, and which I have no doubt will be talked about for years to come. He's outdone himself after a strong debut with Heriditary and the so-so Midsommar, to establish that he is a genuine talent. Joaquin Phoenix delivers a performance that would be impossible for most, if not all, actors to achieve, and continues to illustrate just why he is head and shoulders about other great actors. Zoe Lister-Jones, playing the younger version of Beau's mother, Mona, is absolutely terrifying and displays a range which I don't believe any of her other roles have afforded her. This is a masterful work about matriarchy and its corrosive power on a man's soul. I highly recommend you go see it and thank you for watching. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

Netflix finally produced an anime adaptation which wasn't complete trash. How is this possible? Their inability to adapt such works was supposed to be as reliable as the sun rising every morning. Are we in the end of days? Because One Piece is genuinely good fun! The show is led by Inaki Godoy who delivers a star making performance as Monkey D Luffy and rounded out by a host of strong actors, well cast, and delivering the goods in this vast ensemble show. Marc Jobst gets the season off to a good start with solid direction and visual panache using wide angled lens. The rest of the team follow that up with consistent work. The writing team, overseen by Steven Maeda and Matt Owens, create a tight, enjoyable, eight episode run that seems to be loyal to the source material. All up, it's a fun show with a lot of heart, and if you've got the spare time then there are far worse things to watch than One Piece. Like Ahsoka. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie Want to see a grown man die inside because of Ahsoka? Check it out here: https://youtu.be/ppprAsZfmt0

I could've been a doctor. But I chose to make YouTube videos. So now instead of looking at the innards of an obese man, I gaze upon the eldritch horrors of Disney Lucasfilm's latest abomination, Ahsoka. Rosario Dawson is a wonderful actress who has been served a heaping pile of mediocrity. And she is unable to make it appetising. Dave Filoni could be trusted when George Lucas was the captain, but he's incapable of producing brilliance under the Kennedy Regime. Mary Elizabeth Winstead should retire from acting and consider a career as an OnlyFans model. The actress playing Sabine Wren is so intolerable I'm not even going to Google her name to put it in this description. I should have chosen a different profession. Now all I do is cry, and smoke. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie Oppenheimer is Overrated: https://youtu.be/YCWHO-vnlBI

Does anyone enjoy DC films? Blue Beetle is a generic and fun superhero film which could have fit nicely in a phase two MCU. But alas it's DOA. A certified flop! What caused this? The big failing is that it insults white people. It's extremely obnoxious and on the nose with its, ahem, "commentary" and this will result in atrocious word of mouth, on top of an atrocious opening. Xolo Maridueña does a good job as the titular hero, but nothing can save this film as Ángel Manuel Soto has no right to be making such a big budget picture. His jump from the indie space to the mainstream was rushed, and it shows. If you'd like to learn more about this then check out my video here: https://youtu.be/f6sF9x6-8sk Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg have created a very generic but lighthearted and entertaining Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film. Mutant Mayhem has an overdose of meta quips and an overdone moral message but is also, at its core, trying to entertain without any real political position or malevolence bubbling under the surface. The voice actors all do a good job and the teenagers who voiced the Turtles deserve a lot of praise for being extremely likeable. The story is a tight 90 minutes. See it, Skip it, doesn't really matter. This is a disposable but fun film. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

Everything has already been said about how great and influential William Friedkin was as a filmmaker. A genuine iconoclast who had an exceptional ability to move across genres and outshine other filmmakers seemingly with great ease. My favourite of his films is Sorcerer and so today I thought I'd do a review on it in his memory. If you haven't already then I highly recommend you check out this film with Roy Scheider in the lead. It is engrossing, pulse pounding and, right where it counts, experimental in the best sense of the word. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

Australian cinema isn't known for its consistency. For every Mad Max, we get a hundred crapshows that fade into oblivion the day they're released. Danny and Michael Philippou of RackaRacka fame seem to have broken free from this curse with a very engaging and mature debut horror film, Talk to Me. A24 wisely snapped up this tight picture at Sundance which boasts breakout performances from Sophie Wilde and Joe Bird. The story is smart, editing tight and above all, the sound design is impeccable and definitely elevates the experience in a theatre. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

Christopher Nolan is one stubborn man. He refuses to address the flaws in his scriptwriting, I presume due to the money his films make, and so we continue to get the same issues everytime. Exposition instead of characterization. Disjointed editing as part of some lame mind game instead of a solidly crafted picture. Good, but shallow performances which are never given time to breathe. Cillian Murphy and a vast supporting cast all do a good job. But the Nolan-esque approach to this subject matter ultimately holds the film back from being truly great upon careful examination. What went wrong and what went right? Watch and find out more. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

This is it! All our sorrowful days are coming to an end and we´ll soon bathe in rivers of milk and honey. Barbie and Oppenheimer. A battle of gods with one outcome for certain. Everyone who loves going to the movies is going to have a blast! Will, Margot Robbie, the middest chick you know, win out over, Cillian Murphy, the character actor from that show everyone memed? Does Christopher Nolan still have the juice needed after Tenet flopped to trounce on the young upstart Greta Gerwig? Cronos vs Zeus. Black and White vs Pink. Both films have an existential crisis at their heart, though, so in many respects they are the yin and yang this world needs right now. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

Tom Cruise is back as IMF super secret special agent Ethan Hunt! This time he must battle an artificial intelligence called the Entity and a religious zealot named, Gabriel, played by Esai Morales. Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning tells a wild story with exciting set pieces and death defying stunts. All the usual stuff you´ve come to expect from a Mission Impossible film. The IMF team are together again with Simon Pegg, Ving Rhames and Rebecca Ferguson doing a good job, though they´re not given much to work with. Lastly, we are introduced to international thief, Grace, played by Hayley Atwell, who steals every scene she´s in! Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie Check out an earlier video on the movie star image: https://youtu.be/dDYu7cwLGs8

Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning is on the horizon and it´s a great time now to take a step back and look at the last living movie star: Tom Cruise. How does he create and maintain this image in an age where the heroes of old are being mocked in their own franchises? What can we learn from this as cinephiles or even actors ourselves? Whether it´s Tropic Thunder, Top Gun or any of the prestige films that Cruise has starred in, he´s consistently able to demonstrate status and superiority. He has become more than a man, a Superman if you will, an idol the audience can worship in the cineplex. A return to the old ways is a must for Hollywood to thrive once more. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie Tom Cruise Supercut: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ujlr0ANKp3o Leonardo DiCaprio Supercut: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zpa1Xg2wvSY Cary Grant Supercut: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRxcoU1mgu8 Eternals Compilations: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpK5EdN87QE

The Walking Dead, much like a zombie, just keeps on keeping on. I don´t know how many spinoffs this series has had but the new one, Dead City, is good fun! Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Lauren Cohan lead the show and do a good job, though I have no idea what´s going between these two! Apparently, Neegan is a bad guy who turned good? I dunno. Check it out. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

Wes Anderson: Pretentious? Solipsistic? Overrated? Genius? Asteroid City is the latest film from a man we can all agree is an auteur and I highly recommend it! I have quibbles and concerns, but overall I found this to be a very enjoyable and thought provoking picture which was worth the time. The entire cast and crew deliver the Wes Anderson goods and Tom Hanks in particular does a wonderful job after replacing Bill Murray. Scarlett Johansson and Jason Schwartzman are great as the ostensible leads of this ensemble cast. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

Here´s a great idea! Take everything we love about Indiana Jones and throw it out. Then give the paying customer his superior and obnoxious goddaughter who will go on great adventures with the old bag of bones tagging along. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is a crime against pop culture. Harrison Ford is a shell of the man he once was and Phoebe Waller Bridge will never fill his shoes. How James Mangold ever thought he was doing a good job on this CGI crap fest is beyond me. It´s another Lucasfilm/Kathleen Kennedy character assassination. I hate it. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie The Indiana Jones Supercut: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Dce2cAMhgI

The Bear season 2 is an absolute delight! A perfect season of television from beautiful start to gripping finish. I highly recommend you watch it and am already eagerly awaiting the next season. FX have achieved something truly great by working with Christopher Storer, Jeremy Allen White and Ayo Edibiri, plus the rest of this great cast. Everyone does a note perfect job, the actors, writers, directors all the way through to extras. In a sane world, this would be the biggest show on television. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

Talk about a massive letdown. Secret Invasion came onto the scene with a lot of excitement and quickly proved itself to be another MCU cluster. Samuel L Jackson is a good actor but has little material to work with here. Olivia Coleman is great as usual, but the rest of the cast are barely trying! The writing is clunky and stuffed with exposition, while the direction is competent at best. A very disappointing first episode made worse by the AI produced credits being the best part! Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

Extraction 2 is a really fun action film on Netflix. Chris Hemsworth does a good job as Tyler Rake and the overall experience was enjoyable with very compelling action set pieces. I definitely think you should check it out, though I must say I don´t consider it to be as good as the original and the film sags at times as they try to lay the foundation for an action franchise. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie Sisu Review: https://youtu.be/jGu-8shJQXs

The Flash, DCEU´s penultimate film, is absolute dog shite! Truly, no one in their right mind could watch this "film" and think, yes, yes, this is worth the price of admission. Ezra Miller was bad casting under Zach Snyder and poorly utilized in Andy Muschietti´s version of the character. The story literally doesn´t matter and does not need to exist. The CGI is atrocious and everything about this film will be forgotten very shortly for it is complete and utter trash relying entirely upon nostalgia bait to get butts in seats. Don´t think of Ezra Miller´s crimes! Think of Michael Keaton´s Batman... Good normie, just like that. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

Shockingly, it turns out that leftists don´t have the greatest ability to think several steps ahead. The latest actions from the WGA look good in the short term but setup a hostile environment in the long term that will hurt writers (and everyone else in the industry). Follow me on Twitter: Hollywood Reporter Article: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/writers-shut-it-down-strategy-1235503828/

The victim narrative is very appealing to those who are mediocre. But it´s easily disproven when you look at filmmakers of colour who made the right choices at each twist and turn in their career and walked away very wealthy. Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie The Spielberg Supercut: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TdivJ-vWFc

Unsurprisingly, the Japanese once again prove their the only great storytellers left on Earth. Drops of God is genuinely good TV! Who would have thought that a manga adaptation about oenology would be this compelling and insightful? Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie

The Idol is the latest TV series from Sam Levinson, with co-creator credits to the Weeknd, starring Lily Rose Depp and promoting itself as a provocative and satirical dark romance set in the entertainment industry. Episode one is out and it´s a genuine mess! There´s very little of value here, and yet, somehow, I´m thinking I´ll stick around for another go... Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CriticalAussie