Geek of Oz

With 2019 winding down, film fans everywhere get to engage in the annual pointless exercise which is compiling our top films of the year lists. Oh the stress! What if we put something at 3 instead of 7?! What about this or that?! You put that there?! YOU MONSTER!! You get the idea. Now my only rule when compiling any end of year list is that these are just my favourite films. I’m not saying they’re the “best” of the year by any means. These are the films I can’t stop thinking about, even long after I caught them. Some linger longer than others, so that’s basically how I rank them. My biggest regret is that i didn't see enough foreign films this year. I kind of dropped the ball on world cinema despite the fact four non-english films are in my top 10. I’d really love to hear what your favourite films of the year were. Remember there’s no right or wrong in this game. All that matters is your relationship with the films you’re consuming. We all have no idea as much as e...

After more than thirty years of service as one of the Navy’s top aviators, Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Tom Cruise) is where he belongs, pushing the envelope as a courageous test pilot and dodging the advancement in rank that would ground him. When he finds himself training a detachment of Top Gun graduates for a specialized mission the likes of which no living pilot has ever seen, Maverick encounters Lt. Bradley Bradshaw (Miles Teller), call sign: “Rooster,” the son of Maverick’s late friend and Radar Intercept Officer Lt. Nick Bradshaw, aka “Goose”.  Facing an uncertain future and confronting the ghosts of his past, Maverick is drawn into a confrontation with his own deepest fears, culminating in a mission that demands the ultimate sacrifice from those who will be chosen to fly it. TOP GUN: MAVERICK IN CINEMAS JUNE 25, 2020

Following the deadly events at home, the Abbott family (Emily Blunt, Millicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe) must now face the terrors of the outside world as they continue their fight for survival in silence. Forced to venture into the unknown, they quickly realize that the creatures that hunt by sound are not the only threats that lurk beyond the sand path. A QUIET PLACE PART II IN CINEMAS MARCH 19, 2020

A British drug lord tries to sell off his highly profitable empire to a dynasty of Oklahoma billionaires. The Gentlemen heralds Guy Ritchie's return to his well trodden tropes of fast-talking, well-tailored British gangsters and for me it worked to great effect. Your mileage may vary on Ritchie as a director, but you can’t deny that over the years he has cranked out some real bangers. Now let me be very clear, The Gentlemen is loosely based on the model which made his other gangster films successful. And when I say loosely based, it’s probably safer to say it’s the exact same model. The only real key difference is the pacing, which is considerably slower than his usual offerings. I admired the sense of restraint on display, for me it showed Ritchie’s growth as a storyteller. The quick editing and frantic action, has been replaced with a more methodical way or wandering through the narrative. For the most part, the film centres around street-savvy journo Fletcher...

Set in a suburban fantasy world, “ Onward ” introduces two teenage elf brothers, Ian and Barley Lightfoot (voices of Tom Holland and Chris Pratt), who embark on an extraordinary quest to discover if there is still a little magic left out there. Also featuring the voice of Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Ian and Barley’s mom, Laurel Lightfoot, and Octavia Spencer as the voice of the Manticore, Pixar Animation Studios’ all-new original feature film is directed by Dan Scanlon and produced by Kori Rae—the team behind “ Monsters University .” Onward in Australian cinemas April 2, and New Zealand cinemas April 9. #PixarOnward

Jane Austen’s beloved comedy about finding your equal and earning your happy ending, is reimagined in this delicious new film adaptation of EMMA. Handsome, clever, and rich, Emma Woodhouse is a restless queen bee without rivals in her sleepy little town. In this glittering satire of social class and the pain of growing up, Emma must adventure through misguided matches and romantic missteps to find the love that has been there all along. Emma hits cinemas February 13

1917 has the best opening act of 2019. To be blunt, it’s cinematic a masterclass. Sadly despite the obvious craft on display, my mind wandered as the film progressed. After some wrestling with my thoughts, I’ve been able to confirm why this is; the film is touted as a “one shot film”, meaning that it is presented as if there are no cuts or editing and we follow the action in real time. Which isn’t in fact the case, because there are subtle cuts and edited moments. My issue isn’t so much the authenticity of the one shot claims, it’s that I find the technique distracting and instead of immersing me in the action, has almost the complete opposite effect. The film follows two young British soldiers in World War 1 given the unenviable task of crossing enemy territory, in order to hand deliver a message which will save the lives of hundreds of fellow soldiers. The film serves as a testament to the sacrifice and bravery displayed by thousands of soldiers who paid the ultimate price ...