Movie reviews of David Nagle

There’s a place for remakes, a place that brings something new, interesting or different. But Downhill doesn’t go there. Another case of the original is best. Review

Along with its environmental themes, and the protagonist’s contrasting ideologies, this makes it a beautiful, haunting encapsulation of our times. Review

It’s a beautiful, challenging film that harks back to Malick’s great works of the last few decades: The Thin Red Line or The Tree of Life. Review

That dissonance exists for the movie too – Nazis can be both ridiculous and dangerous; it can be both flippant and serious. That’s a line that I think Waititi balances, while indulging his inclination to switch tones as suits the scene. Review

Charming, funny, a more than pleasant way to spend a couple of hours, Fisherman’s Friends is comfort filmmaking. Review

Intent and effort count for a lot but, unfortunately for Promised, it can’t make up for the numerous flaws that reduce this Melbourne production to a rookie-like level that doesn’t do justice to the skills of those involved. Review

Fleischer is in his element in the balance of action and comedy (which wasn’t quite there in last year’s Venom), and he has nice control of the pacing throughout, smartly avoiding the bloat that most films suffer from right now, running at a lean 93 minutes. Review

It’s interesting to see scenes that play out as little vignettes and have them slowly fold into each other, but when the time for answers come, this all slips away. Review

Gemini Man could have been some high concept action sci-fi fun like Face/Off or Demolition Man. Instead it’s a bland, tax break-driven continent hop that’s too hung up on the technology to remember all the other things that make a film tick. Review

It leaves absolutely no doubt about what exactly this is all meant to be about and is the film’s biggest weakness. It’s all unnecessary. These are things we can uncover from the visuals, from story, from Pitt’s restrained, excellent performance. Review

Even though the jokes get a bit one note, it’s the emotional heart that makes this one of this year’s better comedies. Review

The film delves into the personal problems, jealousy, pressure and loneliness of Peter Sellers, but don’t get the wrong impression from the title, this isn’t really a film about him. Soundtracked to a score of nostalgia and melancholy, this is a film about the effect that artists like him can have on people, and the ripple effects of their influence even after their deaths. Review

Told through interviews with the founders and followers, the film skillfully reflects the early artwork style of the church in its use of found sounds, clip art, and montaged archival material. Review

If you’re patient with the pace, the philosophical musings, and the sometimes difficult to hear audio quality from the candid handheld shots, there’s real filmmaking insight to be found. Review

You could sit down and pick it apart, but it’s much better to just sink it, let it play, and let it be. Review

But that’s all it is, fine. You never sense any real point to it all. Review

The Night Eats the World primarily suffers from having running time as bloated as a forgotten corpse – disappointing when there’s enough for what could have been a tightly wound, smartly spun survivor yarn focused on how and why we survive when society is falling down around us. Review

You might see some of the turns coming and might have been on similar routes before, but that doesn’t mean this isn’t a fun ride in excellent company. Review

Another case of Cameron and Rodriguez being more interested in the technical challenges of a project rather than those other crucial aspects, like character, story or performance. Review

Arctic is lean, stripped back, grounded storytelling anchored by a rock-solid performance from Mikkelsen. It doesn’t take us into unknown territory, but Penna still makes the journey worthwhile. Review

There are missteps but with humour as dark as a Norwegian winter, knowing nods to its own absurdity, and an ability to both mock and indulge in its machismo, Cold Pursuit is more than just the standard revenge fantasy film. Review

Surprising in the intimacy of its story and its shots, surprising in its focus on the depths inside humanity rather than in space. Review

Lower your expectations and there’s still great moments of fun to be had here, but this is like a handgun to the original’s laser cannon. Review

A totally forgettable piece of generic, uninspired filmmaking... Review