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FilmFest Australia · 2012

FilmFest Australia 2012

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Programme

9 films · 7 reviews

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Any Questions for Ben?

A chance meeting with an old school pal prompts a commitment phobe to re-evaluate his life.

(Country: Australia; Year: 2012; Director: Rob Sitch; Writer: Santo Cilauro, Tom Gleisner, Rob Sitch; Stars: Josh Lawson, Rachael Taylor, Daniel Henshall, Felicity Ward, Christian Clark, David James, Jodi Gordon, Ed Kavalee, Alan Brough, Rob Carlton, Tracy Mann, Lachy Hulme, Chantelle Raleigh, Liliya May, Tom Carmody)

The Eye Of The Storm

Review preview for The Eye Of The Storm

The thematic links are remarkable, because they reveal and conceal simultaneously.

Anne-Katrin Titze · 4 out of 5
A dying mother is determined to manipulate her family to the very end.

(Country: Australia; Year: 2011; Director: Fred Schepisi; Writer: Judy Morris, based on the book by Patrick White; Stars: Geoffrey Rush, Charlotte Rampling, Maria Theodorakis, Jamie Timony, Judy Davis, Bob Marcs, Alexandra Schepisi, John Gaden, Helen Morse, Robyn Nevin, Jane Menelaus, Bille Brown, Simon Stone, Nikki Shiels, Louise Siversen, Colin Friels)

Full review

A Few Best Men

Four Brit lads head to the Australian outback for a wedding.

(Country: Australia, UK; Year: 2011; Director: Stephan Elliott; Writer: Dean Craig; Stars: Laura Brent, Xavier Samuel, Kris Marshall, Kevin Bishop, Tim Draxl, Solveig Walking, David Sullivan, Elizabeth Debicki, Olivia Newton-John, Rebel Wilson, Jonathan Biggins, Oliver Torr, Steve Le Marquand, Angela Bishop, Alan Cinis)

Goddess

Review preview for Goddess

The domestic setting has a decent ring of truth and Kelly's high energy and Keating's winsome smile will go a long way with Mamma Mia fans.

Amber Wilkinson · 3 out of 5
A stressed-out mum, who sings by the sink, becomes an internet sensation.

(Country: Australia; Year: 2013; Director: Mark Lamprell; Writer: Mark Lamprell, Joanna Weinberg; Stars: Laura Michelle Kelly, Ronan Keating, Magda Szubanski, Dustin Clare, Hugo Johnstone-Burt, Tamsin Carroll, Corinne Grant, Pia Miranda, Natalie Tran, Cameron Lyon)

Full review

The Hunter

Review preview for The Hunter

While the script wraps up its ambiguities a little too neatly in the end, the themes it wrestles with are sensitively handled for the most part and resonate long after the credits have rolled.

David Graham · 3.5 out of 5
A biotech company hires a hunter to track down the last Tasmanian tiger.

(Country: Australia; Year: 2011; Director: Daniel Nettheim; Writer: Wain Fimeri, based on the novel by Julia Leigh.; Stars: Willem Dafoe, Sam Neill, Frances O'Connor, Finn Woodlock, Morgana Davies, Sullivan Stapleton, Callan Mulvey)

Full review

Life In Movement

Review preview for Life In Movement

This carefully crafted and wonderfully edited documentary stands as a warm and absorbing tribute to Tanja Liedtke's work, her impact on the dance scene around her and as a testimony to the joys of creativity itself.

Amber Wilkinson · 4 out of 5
A look back at the career of a talented dancer and choreographer tragically killed at the age of just 29.

(Country: Australia; Year: 2011; Director: Bryan Mason, Sophie Hyde; Stars: Tanja Liedtke) , Official site

Full review See: Interview with Bryan Mason about Life In Movement for Film Fest Australia

Not Suitable For Children

Review preview for Not Suitable For Children

The premise sounds like a playpen for vulgarity but Michael Lucas's script is smarter than that.

Amber Wilkinson · 3.5 out of 5
When a Sydney playboy discovers he's about to be rendered infertile by testicular cancer, the heat is on to become a dad.

(Country: Australia; Year: 2012; Director: Peter Templeman; Writer: Michael Lucas; Stars: Ryan Kwanten, Sarah Snook, Ryan Corr, Bojana Novakovic, Laura Brent, Susan Prior, Lewis Fitz-Gerald, Kathryn Beck, Belinda Bromilow, Zoe Carides, Alice Parkinson, Lulu McClatchy, Daniel Henshall, Andrew Ryan, Sam North, Apollo Kanakis) , Trailer

Full review

Swerve

Review preview for Swerve

Despite a solid cast and good use of location, we really have been here many times before, regardless of how many twists Lahiff compounds to get us there.

Anton Bitel · 3 out of 5
Thriller, sees the paths of a drug dealer, a dissatisfied wife, a straight up ex-soldier and a psychotic cop collide.

(Country: Australia; Year: 2011; Director: Craig Lahiff; Writer: Craig Lahiff; Stars: David Lyons, Emma Booth, Jason Clarke, Travis McMahon, Vince Colosimo, Robert Mammone, Chris Haywood, Greg Stone)

Full review

Toomelah

Review preview for Toomelah

Sen does not flinch from showing a community plagued by misguided models of masculinity, but offsets this hopelessness with a qualified optimism for a different kind of cultural continuity.

Anton Bitel · 4 out of 5
In a remote Aboriginal community, 10-year-old Daniel aspires to be a gangster.

(Country: Australia; Year: 2011; Director: Ivan Sen; Writer: Ivan Sen; Stars: Michael Conners, Daniel Connors, Dean Daley-Jones, Christopher Edwards)

Full review