Welcome to the Film Pie! Brisbane based film critic Matt Toomey has reviewed thousands of movies since 1996. See what's out now, or browse the review archive.

Respect (out Aug 19) is a long overdue biopic that covers a 20-year span in the career of iconic singer Aretha Franklin (played by Jennifer Hudson). I walked out of the cinema asking myself – did I learn anything new about Franklin? It skirts tricky issues (like her pregnancy as a 12-year-old) and spends too much time on feel-good elements like song development. Forest Whitaker is the pick of the cast as Franklin's controlling father. Grade: B-.