Movies

What’s On: Sydney Film Festival, 5-16 June 2013, announces new film in 2013 program: Behind the Candelabra

Sydney Film Festival announces a new film in the 2013 program, Behind the Candelabra by Steven Soderbergh, to be screened on Tuesday 11 June at 9:45pm at Event Cinemas George Street (EV4) and Friday 14 June at 8:00pm Event Cinemas George Street (EV9).

Direct from its premiere In Competition at Cannes, Sydney Film Festival brings you a special screening of one of the most talked-about films of the year: Behind the Candelabra. With the help of a high-powered cast, Hollywood maverick Steven Soderbergh brings a tempestuous chapter in the life of one of the 20th century’s most famous superstars to the screen. Virtuoso pianist and flamboyant star of stage and television, Liberace (Michael Douglas) embraced a lifestyle of excess. In 1977, young stranger Scott Thorson (Matt Damon) walked into his dressing room at the Las Vegas Hilton and, despite their differences in age and background, the two embarked on a secretive five-year love affair. Behind the Candelabra is a stylish and highly entertaining look at their relationship from its beginnings to their bitter and public breakup. The Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw calls the film “mesmeric, riskily incorrect, outrageously watchable and simply outrageous.” The phenomenal supporting cast includes Dan Ackroyd, Scott Bakula, Rob Lowe, Tom Papa, Paul Reiser and Debbie Reynolds.

Sydney Film Festival celebrates its 60th anniversary this 5-16 June, bringing a packed program of screenings and special events to even more venues across Sydney. For tickets and full up-to-date program information please visit http://www.sff.org.au.

ABOUT SYDNEY FILM FESTIVAL
Sydney Film Festival screens feature films, documentaries, short films and animations across the city at the State Theatre, Event Cinemas George Street, Dendy Opera Quays, the Art Gallery of NSW and the Hayden Orpheum Picture Palace Cremorne. The Festival is a major event on the New South Wales cultural calendar and is one of the world’s longest-running film festivals. For more information visit http://www.sff.org.au

Sydney Film Festival also presents 12 films that vie for the ‘Official Competition’; a highly respected international honour that awards a $60,000.00 cash prize based on the decision of a jury of international and Australian filmmakers and industry professionals. Previous Sydney Film Festival Official Competition winners include: Alps (2012); A Separation (2011) – which went on to win an Academy Award®; Heartbeats (2010); Bronson (2009); and Hunger (2008).

The 60th Sydney Film Festival is supported by the NSW Government through Screen NSW, the Federal Government through Screen Australia, and the City of Sydney. The Festival’s Strategic partner is the NSW Government through Destination NSW.

What: Sydney Film Festival
When: 5-16 June, 2013
Tickets & Info: 1300 733 733 http://www.sff.org.au

Film 101: The Hangover 3

As we’ve mentioned before, we’re very excited about this one! Released across Australia on 30th May 2013!!!

The Hangover Part III, the third and final film in director Todd Phillips’ record-shattering comedy franchise. This time, there’s no wedding. No bachelor party. What could go wrong, right? But when the Wolfpack hits the road, all bets are off. The Hangover Part III reunites Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis and Justin Bartha as Phil, Stu, Alan and Doug. Returning to the ensemble are Ken Jeong, Heather Graham, Jeffrey Tambor and, as the guys’ long-suffering wives, Gillian Vigman, Sasha Barrese and Jamie Chung. John Goodman joins the cast as well.

Here is a look back over the first two films to get you in the mood…

http://youtu.be/-SQmt8ziEcg

Film Review: The Place Beyond the Pines

Since writing for Sydney Social 101 I have always reviewed action, comedy or sci-fi so it was a nice change to see a drama for once.

The film follows two families from two very different backgrounds. Ryan Gosling plays ‘Luke’ who is a motorcycle stunt rider who works in a travelling circus. The circus comes back to a town and where he quickly finds out that he had got Eva Mendes ‘Romina’ pregnant and now has a child. He does the right thing to quit, stay in the town and get a job to help pay for his son. Obviously walking back in Romina’s life isn’t going to be as easy as he thinks. To bring the money in quicker he turns to bank robbing, using his motorcycle skills to escape.
The second family belongs to Bradley Cooper ‘Avery’ who also has a young son and a much better upbringing . Avery is a rookie cop and without any spoilers he comes in to contact with Luke due to his bank robbing. His story looks in to the corrupt police force in his town. Ray Liotta is one of the cops and puts in his usual performance.

The film seems to be split in to three sections. Luke’s story, Avery’s story and 15 or so years on. Between the first two sections, the main characters rarely come in to contact and it does feel like three separate films. Though it is great how the film ends and seems to come full circle.

Ryan Gosling is fantastic as Luke. It is really hard deciding weather to like or hate his character but Ryan gives an awesome performance. It was great to see Bradley Cooper play a serious part for once and I am sure he will now be given many more opportunities.

Be prepared for a very early shock in the film. You wont believe when it happens but it nicely sets the scene for the rest of the film. It is a moving film and does make you think a lot about relationships within your own family.

SydneySocial101 gives ‘The Place Beyond The Pines’ 7.5/10. Syrus Wynne attended the screening on behalf of Sydney Social 101.

Film Review: The Call

The Call stars Halle Berry as ‘Jordan Turner’, who works as a 911 call operator. It seems to be a normal day until she receives a distress call from a girl whose house is being broken in to. Jordan does what she can to help calm the girl while the police are on their way. You quickly find out that the intruder is there to kidnap her. Due to some wrong decisions by Jordan the girl is taken. Jordan is left with the last words of the intruder down the phone.

It is 6 months later and due to her trauma and guilt, Jordan is now a 911 call trainer. Soon though she finds herself taking a similar call from Casey played by Abrigail Breslin. This time Casey and already been taken!

Halle Berry as always puts in a solid performance. I have only previously seen Abigail Breslin in Zombieland so it was good to see her in a lead role. Both characters connected well together.

I thought that the film was fast paced and the tension constantly built as the police were getting closer to find casey. There were a couple of times where I thought the film could be near the end but then it turned a new corner. Much of the movie is Casey on the phone to Jordan from the trunk of her car. It did remind me a lot of the movie Buried. But luckily not as claustrophobic.

To be honest their isn’t much to The Call and it did seem rather short at 96 minutes. I am not sure if I would have liked the film as much if I didn’t see it in the cinema. But I did enjoy it. The Call has been released at similar times as some big budget films like Star Trek 2, Iron Man 3, Hangover 3 and Oblivion. I think it may get lost behind these.

SydneySocial101 give ‘The Call’ 6/10. Syrus Wynne reviewed the movie on behalf of Sydney Social.

Film Review: Olympus Has Fallen

When I was invited to the screening of Olympus Has Fallen, i have to admit that I didn’t know anything about the film. As alway I like to keep away from trailers and any spoilers. I could tell from the poster that it was going to be an action film, but I wasnt expecting this pleasant surprise.

The film starts out with Aaron Eckhart, as President Benjamin Asher, who is getting ready for a big party with his wife and son. He is protected by his national security team, led by Gerard Butler as Mike Banning. You can see straight away that they have a tight friendship. Not spoiling the film, cue a big incident that leads Mike to end up one of the team.

It is a couple of years later and the Prime Minister of Korea comes to visit the president in the White House. Codename ‘Olympus’. Suddenly there is an attack in one awesome scene. Lots of action and explosions which are all intiated by something really cool. Again I wont spoil it. There is a very early twist in the film, but like me I am sure you will see it coming.

The President is captured in the White House and is held hostage by Koreans. They want America to move their troops out of Korea. Mike Banning is not gonna let this happen and begins his one man assault on the White House to save the President. You have definetly seen before in different forms. The hero is completely outnumbered but is able to take on the whole army and save the day. Arnie was great at it and so was Bruce Willis. Butler easily steps in to their shoes. If anything this reminded me a lot of Die Hard 1. Yes we have all seen it before but it has not been as good as this for a long time.

The film also stars Morgan Freeman as Speaker of the House and Angela Bassett as Secret Service Director.

The film is very patriotic with the American flag seen a number of times in slow motion. This did receive a lot of laughs from the non American audience. The film has been released in good timing with real life Korean events heating up.

With Gerard Butler in the lead role along with Aaron Eckhart, there is something for the girls. But this is a true boys action film at heart and I highly recommend it!!

Sydneysocial101 give ‘Olympus Has Fallen’ 8/10. The review was written by Syrus Wynne.

No words needed…

THE GREAT GATSBY will release in Australian cinemas on 30th May 2013… We may be a little bit excited about this one!!!

Movie Review** THE INCREDIBLE BURT WONDERSTONE REVIEW

I had seen the same trailer for this film a number of times, each time I got more excited to see the final product. I hoped this would be a funny film that reached the same level of comedy as Anchorman or 40 Year Old Virgin. Did it live up to my hopes??

The film is about two lonely young boys who become best friends over a love of magic. Years later they grow up to become Burt Wonderstone, (Steve Carell) and Anton Marvelton, (Steve Buscemi).

Their shows become bigger and bigger until they finally have centre stage in the grandest casino in Vegas. All is not well as they two start to drift apart over their repetitive boredom of the same tricks each night and Burt’s big headedness. In the meantime there is a new street magician Steve Gray, (Jim Carey), who is performing daring street magic. Soon the friendship breaks and they need to find a way back to the top.

It is obvious that Burt and Anton are taking off Siegfrid & Roy, while Steve Gray is meant to be Chris Angel. There are other nods to magicians like David Blaine. Carell and Buscemi are a great double act even if they don’t look like a great pairing. Carey is back to the Carey we all know, and some may love, with other the top acting, after all that’s what he is best for. He does steal the show with some outrageous over the top tricks, which I wont spoil. The first one will turn a few stomachs. The main characters are back by Olivia Wilde, Burt & Anton’s assistant (Amazing), and Alain Arkin, Burt’s magician mentor. Both characters add a lot of humour outside of the main three.

A lot of the film is predictive but most are in this genre. It is the constant jokes that you would expect from comedians of this calibre that keep the film going. I’ve noticed with a lot of comedy films recently that the jokes start to slow down about half way through as if they are out of steam, not here!!

If anyone is a fan of Steve Carell or Jim Carey, then this is them at their best and you wont be disappointed. No its not an Anchorman or 40 Year Old Virgin, but this is definitely a film I would love to see again for an abundance of funny stand out moments. I haven’t heard a cinema audience laugh out loud for so long.

Sydney Social 101 gives The Incredible Burt Wonderstone 8/10. It was reviewed by Syrus Wynne, Sydney Social’s resident critic!

Movie trailer** The Hangover Part III

Hands up if you like The Hangover… No not the dreaded morning after feeling of fear and sickness… The amazing Hangover movies of course!

Here at Sydney Social 101 we’re HUGE fans!

As we’re lovely and kind folk, we thought we’d share the trailer with you, our loyal fans to give you a glimpse of what’s to come!

We can confirm that we are just a smidge *insert a LOT* excited about this one!

You’re welcome

The Soda Factory Announces – Pulp Kitchen // Every Wednesday

Have you ever wanted to taste a film? The Soda Factory have, and they wanted to taste Pulp Fiction: they wanted the taste of Uma’s iconic fringe and the taste of dress shoes twisting on the diner floor.

Join us in this gastro-cinematic multi-sensory special for Pulp Kitchen every Wednesday featuring Vincent and Mia’s favourites The Royale with Cheese, The Big Kahoona Burger, The $5 Shake (alcoholic), french fries & mayo and of course, fried chicken… and everything on the menu is only five bucks!

Head to The Soda Factory on Wednesday nights for this to celebrate all things delicious and all things Tarantino – and bring your dancing shoes, because there will be Tarantino soundtracks playing all night as well as acoustic sets from local bands.

Don’t forget that the delicious deals and cinema appreciation continue throughout the week at The Soda Factory with your favourite flicks on Movie Mondays every Monday at 7:30pm, and ridiculously cheap sausages at Dollar Dogs every Tuesday. I know well be checking it out!!!

Silver Linings Playbook Tops Aussie Box Office – Its a great week for girl crush Jennifer Lawrence!!

Australians have rushed to see Jennifer Lawrence in her Oscar winning performance, resulting in Silver Linings Playbook claiming the #1 spot at the Australian box office, four weeks after its opening. Here at Sydney Social 101 we have to admit that we’re not only a big fan of the film, but a HUGE fan of Oscar Winner Jennifer Lawrence… Did you see her press room interview??? We’re in love!

Silver Linings Playbook was the first film in 31 years to be nominated in all four acting categories and has grossed in excess of $9 million dollars at the Australian box office to date.

Pat Solatano (Bradley Cooper) has lost everything — his house, his job, and his wife. He now finds himself living back with his mother (Jacki Weaver) and father (Robert De Niro) after spending 8 months in a state institution on a plea bargain. Pat is determined to rebuild his life, remain positive and reunite with his wife, despite the challenging circumstances of their separation.

All Pat’s parents want is for him to get back on his feet – and to share their family’s obsession with their favourite Philadelphia football team. When Pat meets Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence), a mysterious girl with problems of her own, things get complicated. Tiffany offers to help Pat reconnect with his wife, but only if he will do something very important for her in return. As their deal plays out, an unexpected bond begins to form between them, and silver linings appear in both of their lives.

A family drama, comedy and love story based on the bestselling novel by Matthew Quick, written and directed by David O. Russell (The Fighter, Flirting with Disaster). Starring Bradley Cooper (Hangover; Limitless), Jennifer Lawrence (The Hunger Games, X-Men First Class), Robert De Niro (Limitless, Meet The Parents), Jackie Weaver (Animal Kingdom), Anupam Kher (Bend It Like Beckam), and Chris Tucker (Rush Hour, Jackie Brown).

Rounding out the cast are Julia Stiles, John Ortiz, Shea Whigham, and Dash Mihok. Masanobu Takayanagi is the director of photography, Judy Becker is the production designer. Mark Bridges is the costume designer, and Jay Cassidy and Crispin Struthers are the editors. Silver Linings Playbook is produced by Donna Gigliotti, Bruce Cohen and Jonathan Gordon. Bob Weinstein, Harvey Weinstein, George Para, Michelle Raimo and Bradley Cooper are the Executive Producers.

Silver Linings Playbook is rated M and was released in Australian cinemas nationally on January 31st.