Shame ***+
February 9, 2012 by James Berardinelli - Reelviews
Spoiler warning: In discussing the movie, I have revealed more about the plot than I normally do, including a brief, oblique reference to the ending. Although Shame is not narrative-driven, those who want a “pure” experience may wish to read no further than the first paragraph before seeing the film. Read more
Book Review: LaKol Z’man
February 3, 2012 by Katja Grynberg
Katja Grynberg reviews LaKol Z’man – A Time For Everything by Yossi Huttler. This tiny book of tiny poems takes the reader through the year, month by month, on a journey of changing emotions and spirituality. Read more
Shir Madness Lineup
January 29, 2012 by Geoff Sirmai
Shir Madness has announced the artists who will appear at its second Jewish music festival to be held in Sydney in March. Read more
Geoff Sirmai as Shylock
January 28, 2012 by Agencies
Well known Sydney actor and community personality, Geoff Sirmai is to star as Shylock in a Sydney production of Shakespeare’s controversial classic The Merchant of Venice. Read more
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy ***
January 19, 2012 by J-Wire
For decades, the spy thriller has been dominated by one name: Bond. 007’s trappings, which include pyrotechnics, high-octane chases, death-defying stunts, gorgeous women, and the like, have come to define the genre. While it’s unquestionable that Ian Fleming’s superspy has left an indelible impression on movies and novels, it would not be reasonable to apply Bond-generated expectations to the grounded endeavors of John le Carré and Len Deighton. Both authors began writing in the early 1960s with the primary purpose of creating “anti-Bond” protagonists. For Deighton, it was Harry Palmer (played in three films by Michael Caine). For Le Carré, it was George Smiley. Physically unprepossessing, meek in manner, emotionally cool, and antisocial, Smiley’s primary weapon is his mind not a gun. He is a master tactician of the Cold War, matching wits against the best the KGB has to offer.
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is regarded by critics as being among the best of Le Carré’s yarns. A faithful adaptation (which this is) has two requirements: the narrative must be dense and the pace must be slow. Le Carré’s stories have no room for mindless action; they are heavily plot-driven, which makes them a challenge to adapt. Two hours is probably too short. The condensation required to cram the essence of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy into a feature film of reasonable length is likely to result in less attentive audience members becoming lost along the way. Even a quick trip to the bathroom could be a viewer’s undoing. And, although the pacing is slow, events move rapidly. A lot happens, but little is explosive.
The Muppets *** 2011
January 12, 2012 by James Berardinelli - Reelviews
The Muppets is a rare family film likely to appeal more to parents than to their offspring. Although it’s true that most kids today know a thing or two about Jim Henson’s creations (the movie’s premise – that they have vanished into obscurity since the early 1980s – is an exaggeration), the Muppets are ingrained in the older generation’s DNA. It’s hard to imagine anyone between the ages of 35 and 50 who didn’t grow up with the loveable puppets, either on Sesame Street or The Muppet Show, or in the early movies. Technically, The Muppets is classified as a “musical comedy,” but this is essentially a 97-minute exercise in nostalgia. It’s the Muppets as they haven’t been since Jim Henson died, a throwback to the time when their TV show was popular and their first movie, 1979’s The Muppet Movie, was a bona fide hit. Kids today will have the same kind of fun at The Muppets they have at all films of this kind. Adults, however, will connect in a deeper way.
The storyline, as has always been the case with the Muppets, is an excuse for singing, dancing, witty exchanges, high-profile cameos, and the magic that happens when the old school felt-and-fuzz creatures come together on screen. Like the television program, this is more variety show than traditional narrative, and it has been assembled with obvious affection by all those involved. Despite the passage of decades, the Muppets have not noticeably changed. Advances in technology have not impacted them. They have not been “enhanced” by the use of CGI. And, although two of the original “voices” are no longer participants (Henson having died and Frank Oz having retired from puppeteering), Kermit, Miss Piggy, Fozzie, and the rest of the gang sound pretty much the same. The Muppets proves that sometimes the best approach is not to tinker with a successful formula.
 
Hugo ***+ (Jan 2012)
January 12, 2012 by James Berardinelli - Reelviews
With Hugo, Martin Scorsese has accomplished what few in Hollywood are willing to try: make a movie for adults that arrives without sex, violence, or profanity and earns a PG-rating. It’s a fairy tale for mature viewers, but the airy exterior hides emotional depth. Hugo is appropriate for young viewers, but it’s questionable how much they will derive from the experience and, because the pace is more leisurely than frenetic, it’s likely the average child’s attention will wander.
The style is nothing like what we have come to expect from Scorsese. The whimsical approach with its Dickensian overtones and interludes of magical realism recall Terry Gilliam and Jean-Pierre Jeunet. For at least one film, Scorsese has left behind much of his baggage and accomplished what David Lynch did with The Straight Story and David Mamet did with The Winslow Boy – use his considerable behind-the-screen prowess and apply it to a different kind of story. The result is often magical.
Tower Heist **
December 21, 2011 by Arts Editor
Whether suffused with tension or laced with humor, the heist movie has enjoyed enduring appeal since the heyday of film noir. Good heist movies proceed according to an established template that includes meticulous attention to the details of the scheme both in the planning stage and in its execution. The twists – there are often many but always at least one – are ingenious and the screenplay is often referred to as “smart” and “cunning.” Unfortunately, few (if any) of these characteristics apply to Brett Ratner’s Tower Heist, as sloppy a heist movie as I can remember. It is redeemed, at least to a degree, by the comedic performances of lead actor Ben Stiller and supporting player Eddie Murphy. The pace, emphasized by Christophe Beck’s relentless score, is so fast that viewers might miss some of the king-sized plot holes (although not all of them). But the caper is a dud – so stupid and implausible from beginning to end that it’s impossible to take it seriously for even the briefest of moments.
Watch the trailer
The SSO @ The Opera House
February 14, 2011 by J-Wire
Dates for your diary from the Sydney Symphony… Read more
Sasha Misrachi Presents….
November 2, 2010 by Geoff Sirmai
Due to popular demand, after its stellar preview season at the Sydney Fringe Festival, Devil May Care’s acclaimed production of Songs of Grace and Redemption returns to Sydney in November for a limited season at the TAP Gallery Theatre, Darlinghurst. Read more
New home-grown musical opening this week
September 12, 2010 by Henry Benjamin
A brand new musical will open at Sydney’s Parade theatre this week…the brainchild of one of Sydney’s Jewish showbiz personalities. Read more
New musical by Sydney writer/composer
August 18, 2010 by Geoff Sirmai
Joanna Weinberg has written a new musical about kids’ football…Every Single Saturday opens in Sydney next month. Read more
Israeli-born artist premieres in Adelaide
August 14, 2010 by J-Wire
Avital Sheffer’s award-winning ceramics are being exhibited in Adelaide….her first exhibition in the South Australian capital. Read more
Sydney lawyer’s 10th play…
August 1, 2010 by Geoff Sirmai
Jewish eastern suburbs writer/lawyer Tony Laumberg’s latest comedy opens 5 August….and this time national security is at stake! Read more
Apr-20 Melbourne: Australian Jewish Music Ensemble in concert
April 18, 2010 by J-Wire
The Australian Jewish Music Ensemble performs at the Bennetts Lane Jazz Club. Read more
Seven Jewish Children fails to win award
March 14, 2010 by Geoff Sirmai
The controversial Caryl Churchill short play Seven Jewish Children went empty-handed at the Gala Awards Final of Short+Sweet play festival at NIDA’s Parade Theatre on Saturday night. Read more
Controversial play in Sydney drama final
March 3, 2010 by J-Wire Staff
The controversial play “Seven Jewish Children” which spans Israel’s history from the Holocaust to the 2008/9 Gaza War seen from the perspective of children is one of twelve finalists in this year’s Sydney’s Short+Sweet drama festival. Read more
Shutter Island ***
February 19, 2010 by J-Wire
Spoiler Alert: Although every effort has been made to limit the revelations in this review, it’s difficult to provide a coherent discussion of Shutter Island without giving away something, so readers are hereby placed on alert. If you’re familiar with the book, however, there’s no reason to stop here…
What’s wrong with Shutter Island? This has been the question ever since Paramount Pictures elected to move the Martin Scorsese-directed thriller from its comfortable pre-Oscar position to the wastelands of February. It turns out that there’s nothing wrong with Shutter Island – except perhaps that it’s not Oscar worthy material. An atmospheric mind-twister of a thriller, this movie delights in playing games with the audience’s perceptions and has been crafted with such competence that it rises above the somewhat generic storyline that forms the basis of Dennis Lehane’s novel. The strength of the film, like the book, is that it never allows the viewer to feel comfortable with what he is watching. That’s because Shutter Island is presented from the perspective of an unreliable narrator and, as such, the lines between fantasy and reality sometimes blur so strongly that it’s easy to become unanchored in trying to distinguish between what’s real and what isn’t. A case can be made that the movie is so enamored with this aspect of its approach that it fails to connect on an emotional level. Shutter Island addresses some powerful, disturbing concepts but, despite effective performances by the leads, the movie’s psychological impact is minimal. It doesn’t pack the powerhouse punch one has come to expect from Scorsese. Still, the director’s consummate skill has lifted what might otherwise be a middling endeavor into something compellingly watchable. It’s another Cape Fear.
Law Abiding Citizen **
February 11, 2010 by James Berardinelli - Reelviews
The premise of Law Abiding Citizen – angry father seeks revenge on the system when his daughter’s murderer gets off with a light sentence – probably sounded great in the pitch meetings but, as with all high concept motion pictures, the devil’s in the details. For a while, F. Gary Gray’s thriller works on a purely visceral level, offering a degree of guilty satisfaction to viewers as one sleazy individual after another gets eliminated in a gruesome, Saw-esque manner. Unfortunately, Law Abiding Citizen isn’t content to be a Death Wish for 2009. It wants to be bigger and bolder. So it takes a simple revenge fantasy and uses it as the core of an elaborate high-stakes game that, in shooting for “inventive,” ends up hitting “preposterous.” The more Kurt Wimmer’s screenplay reveals about the lead character’s scheme, the more difficult it is to believe that Law Abiding Citizen is intended to be taken seriously.
Read more on Law Abiding Citizen
Melbourne’s Jewish Museum comic book art exhibition from Paris
March 31, 2009 by J-Wire Staff
Superheroes & Schlemiels – Jews & Comic Art Read more
