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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 15 February 2024

The quality of film festivals varies from year-to-year but most would agree the 2023 Official Selection at Cannes was a top-notch vintage.  The top two prize winners, Anatomy of a Fall and Zone of Interest, have been nominated at the Academy Awards for best picture.  Perfect Days won the Asia Pacific Screen Award for best film.  The likes of May December and Asteroid City have appeared on critics’ top 10 lists across the globe.

The latest graduate from that class to be released in Australia is Fallen Leaves, an 81-minute dark comedy from Finnish writer-director Aki Kaurismäki (Le Havre).  It took home the Jury Prize at Cannes (awarded to a film which “embodies the spirit of inquiry”) and made the shortlist for best international feature at the Oscars (just missing out on a nomination).

I love the Valentine’s Day release here in Australia because it’s perfect for those who love a weird, wacky, offbeat love story.  Holappa (Vatanen) is an alcoholic construction-site worker going nowhere in life.  Talking to a friend, he humorously articulates his Catch-22-like problem – he’s depressed because he drinks… and that he drinks because he’s depressed.  Ansa (Pöysti) is a shy woman who lives alone and holds down a menial, low-paying supermarket job.  She has no television set, and spends her evenings eating expired meals and listening to news stories on her radio (the war in neighbouring Ukraine features heavily).

The pair meet at a bar and promptly go on a hilariously awkward first date.  It begins with Holappa making pointless small talk about the lack of rain, and it finishes with a trip to the local cinema where they watch a “classic” rescreening of the American comedy Zombieland.  There’s no immediate follow-up date because Holappa promptly loses Ansa’s phone number the minute he writes it down.

Hollywood has a way of making romantic comedies and we saw it recently with the extremely popular Anyone but You.  You cast good looking actors, write a joke-heavy script filled with zany scenarios, throw in over-the-top supporting players, and have the chatty leads fall in love with a few bumps along the way.  It’s a proven, successful formula.

They clearly have a different funny bone in Scandinavia because Fallen Leaves does not fit that mould.  Stars Alma Pöysti and Jussi Vatanen deliver their dialogue, and there isn’t much of it, in a dry, slow, monotone fashion.  That approach creates as much humour as the characters themselves.  In blending the laughs amongst the darker themes of poverty and alcoholism, Kaurismäki has created a movie which stands out from the pack.

It may not be for everyone but, in leaning into its quirky nature, Fallen Leaves offers one of the more interesting and authentic romances over the past year.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 28 January 2024

62-year-old director Todd Haynes has made some wonderful films – Velvet Goldmine, Far from Heaven, Carol – but May December may be his best yet.  I wouldn’t describe it as a true story (too many details have been changed) but it’s loosely inspired by the creepy tale of a 34-year-old schoolteacher who had a sexual relationship with a 12-year-old student in 1996, conceived two children, and subsequently served a seven-year prison sentence for child rape.  Upon release, she rekindled the relationship with the student, and they married a year later.

I like the film-within-a-film structure adopted by screenwriters Samy Burch and Alex Mechanik.  Set in 2015, the central character is a well-known actress, Elizabeth (Portman), who is tasked with playing the paedophile schoolteacher, Gracie (Moore), in a major movie due to start shooting in a few weeks.  Somewhat surprisingly, Elizabeth has been invited into the home of the now 59-year-old Gracie and 36-year-old Joe (Melton) to get a deeper understanding of the real-life person she will be depicting on screen.

If I tried to tally the number of questions asked by the characters in May December, I’d quickly lose count.  It’s power games aplenty as folks try to glean useful information for their own benefit.  Elizabeth uses her good looks and celebrity status to coax details from the family and connected townspeople.  Gracie tries to ascertain what the movie will focus on and how she’ll be portrayed.  There’s even a Q&A session (a great scene) where Elizabeth is invited to speak at the local high school and students pry into the world of a Hollywood starlet.

This is one of the best films of the year.  On one hand, it’s a thought-provoking drama about an unthinkable family unit.  How would you feel as one Gracie and Joe’s grown children (they have three in the film) knowing the way your parents first met?  You can sense the awkwardness throughout.  On the other hand, it’s an uncomfortable thriller about the way such stories are exploited for financial gain.  How genuine are Elizabeth’s intentions and does she care about any of the people she smooth talks?  What is the truth, and does it really matter?  A powerful moment involving the contents of a pink envelope reveals a great deal.

The music score of Brazilian composer Marcelo Zarvos (Wonder) establish the sinister tone and the cinematography of Christopher Blauvelt (First Cow) leaves its own impression.  There’s so many memorable conversations and long-takes – whether it be a simple scene applying make-up in front of a mirror, to more complex sequences where characters become highly emotional.  Oscar-winners Natalie Portman (Black Swan) and Julianne Moore (Still Alice) are cunningly sensational, but I like the advice of director Todd Haynes in describing it as Joe’s story above all else.  Charles Melton (Riverdale), in a career-launching role, skilfully portrays the character with a mix of passion and mystery.

Largely overlooked at this year’s Academy Awards (it received just a single nomination for best original screenplay), May December is as good, if not better, than other best picture nominees.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 12 February 2024

He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, he is credited by Time Magazine as creating the greatest album of the 20^th Century, and he was awarded a Peace Medal by the United Nations.  It was always a matter of when, and not if, a Hollywood movie would be made about the iconic Jamaican singer Bob Marley.  The actor tasked with the enviable role is 37-year-old Kingsley Ben-Adir who recently embodied another renowned figure, Malcolm X, in Regina King’s One Night in Miami.

Aside from a few quick flashbacks, the film avoids Marley’s upbringing and is focused on his actions and achievements in the second half of the 1970s.  There was much political unrest in Jamaica and while Marley hoped to stay and unite the country through his music, he ultimately travelled to London and created the album he will best be remembered for, Exodus.

Music biopics are a tricky-to-execute genre, and director Reinaldo Marcus Green (Monsters and Men, King Richard) has a battle on his hands with this material.  It’s delving into Jamaican culture and politics, it’s showing Marley’s creative process, it’s exploring the relationship with his wife (Lynch), and it’s highlighting his efforts to break down barriers and bring music to poor communities in Africa.  The film’s bottom line is something we already know – Marley was a gifted artist who should continue to be celebrated and remembered.

Bob Marley: One Love is not a bad film… but it’s not an eye-opening one either.  Without giving too much away, there’s a powerful photo of the real-life Marley holding hands with two men (at the start of the closing credits) and it made me realise how much more interesting the film could have been if focused on his time in troubled Jamaica instead of ho-hum England.  In going with formulaic subplots and artificial dialogue (“his guitar is his machine gun”), the four-person screenwriting team have played it too safe.

There are positives to be found.  I liked watching Marley as he searched for a “new sound” in crafting the Exodus album, and there’s a stand-out scene where he argues with a worried music studio executive over the new album’s cover art.  Ben-Adir does an admirable job in capturing the vibe of the chain-smoking Marley and imparting the character’s feel-good mellowness onto audiences.  We don’t see enough of James Norton (Nowhere Special) but he’s also noteworthy as an astute record producer.

I don’t know if Bob Marley: One Love will instil his music into a new generation (which Bohemian Rhapsody did despite its flaws) but, in recognition of one of music’s greats, I hope there are enough

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 28 January 2024

Drawing on his own family’s experience, writer-director Anthony Shim wanted to craft a film which showed the challenges of uprooting from one country and crafting a new life in another.  The topic has already been covered in wonderful films such as Minari, Brooklyn and The Namesake, but Riceboy Sleeps shows there is room for more.  In winning the best screenplay prize at the 2023 Asia Pacific Screen Awards, I’m not alone in describing this as a rich, beautifully-told tale.

The opening act takes place in 1990 where a single mother, So-Young (Seung-yoon), and her 6-year-old son, Dong-Hyun (Dohyun Noel Hwang), have emigrated from South Korea to Canada.  It’s a rough time for both.  The mum takes a dead-end factory job where she’s on her feet all day and subjected to workplace harassment.  The child, who can barely speak English, has to assimilate into a new school where he his teased about his background and appearance.

Shim wanted to highlight the lack of compassion and empathy that many have for migrants.  The film is set in Canada but, as we’ve seen in Australia with “love it or leave” taunts, the feelings exist all over the world.  There’s a powerful scene where Dong-Hyun is teased about bringing sushi to school (the kids have sandwiches) and so he tosses it in the bathroom bin so as not to attract further attention.  Not long after, a school teacher suggests to So-Young that she give her son a Western-sounding name to, once again, help him fit in.

These moments ask audiences to reflect on multiculturalism within our societies.  To what extent should immigrants adjust to fit with the country’s existing norms?  Riceboy Sleeps offers two interesting perspectives.  So-Young grew up in Korea and has that culture engrained within, whereas Doing-Hyun will grow up in Canada and become more Westerised.  This is on show in the film’s second act where we fast-forward to the year 1999 and see how things have changed for the two leads.  There’s tension between them.  Is this because of their different upbringings, or is it just because teenagers usually rebel in garnering a sense of independence?

Choi Seung-yoon is superb in portraying So-Young as the mum who is always putting the needs of others, particularly her son, ahead of her own.  It’s hard to believe this is her first feature film performance!  From the difficulties of grasping the English language, to the turmoil created from her pent-up emotions, she has created a complex character who audiences will care about.  We sympathise with her plight… while also questioning the decisions she makes (are they the right ones?)

It’s been over 16 months since Riceboy Sleeps had its world premiere at the 2022 Toronto Film Festival and it’s nice to see getting a small window in Australian cinemas.  It’s worth your time and money.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 05 February 2024

In the history of Australian-made cinema, only 16 films have grossed more than $20 million AUD at the local box-office.  Director Baz Luhrmann dominates with his lavish, big-budget productions (he has 5 films including the recent Elvis) but the list reminds us of the smaller flicks which wove their way into the record books through positive word of mouth.  These include Lion, Red Dog, The Dressmaker, and one of the big success stories of the COVID-impacted 2021, The Dry.  The Robert Connolly-directed feature featured a plethora of great performances and, in also being nominated for 11 AACTA Awards, rightly deserved its success.  See it if you haven’t already!

Journalist-turned-author Jane Harper has penned three novels centred on police detective Aaron Falk.  Eric Bana brilliantly brought the character to life in The Dry (loved the subtlety) and he reprises the role in this adaptation of Harper’s follow-up book, Force of Nature.  It’s marketed as “The Dry 2” to help with ticket sales but in reality, this is a fresh narrative with zero connection to the earlier movie.  The only returning character is Falk himself.

Another visible point of difference is the setting.  The Dry was set in a small, drought-stricken country town whereas Force of Nature takes place in one of the lushest places imaginable – a dense, wet, near-impenetrable rainforest.  It’s referred to in the film as the fictious Giralang Ranges but shooting took place at Victorian national parks known to many Aussies – the Otways, Dandenong Ranges, and Yarra Valley.

The story revolves around a middle-aged woman, Alice Russell (Torv), who has gone missing in the ranges while “building teamwork” on a multi-day, corporate hiking retreat.  The local police have enlisted a sizeable team to help with the search but Falk has involved himself because of a professional connection with Alice.  He suspects foul play and, along with his fellow detective (McKenzie), seeks to interrogate other employees on the retreat.  The more questions he asks, the more secrets spill into the open…

It’s not the smoothest flowing storyline.  As we saw with The Dry, director Robert Connolly juggles two main time frames – Falk solving a mystery in the present while haunted by something from his past.  The childhood flashbacks don’t add much and feel too convenient.  In terms of the current day material, there’s a degree of cinematic “stage managing” which is hard to shake.  Someone’s life is in immediate danger… and yet the interviews of key individuals take place over several days.  Doesn’t add up.

On the whole though, Force of Nature is a worthwhile trip to the cinema.  I loved the greyness to the characters and the difficulty in determining which players to root for.  Even the “nice guy” Falk has his flaws.  The whodunnit served up is also a good one and it’ll hold your attention for two hours as you look for signs of slippage in the probing conversations.  Kudos to the crew for highlighting the sights and sounds of the rainforest – it’s as much of a feature character as the actors themselves.

Featuring strong performances once again (it’s hard to pick a standout), Force of Nature should satisfy fans of The Dry, and fans of Australian cinema.