huigh Reviews

Macbeth (I) (2006)

Shakespeare for the Tarantino generation

[8/10 · 17 September 2006]

Saw this at a preview screening today. I have never seen the Director's most famous film, Romper Stomper, and know it only by reputation. My guess is this very graphic and bloody version will satisfy his fans and many others. Doubt I would recommend it to anyone who was unfamiliar with the play but, taken simply as a film, I believe it is excellent. Superb cinematography and great sound track back up a 'reading' of the play that seems to me to have real integrity.

I note the current average rating on IMDb is a fraction over 3/10. Assuming the vast bulk of those are votes by the illiterate and inexperienced voters with a mental age of 12 who usually bulk out the meter, that probably bodes well for what is quite an exceptional film. If you don't know the play, for god's sake read it and don't send your ignorant comments to this forum.

Dad and Dave: On Our Selection (1995)

Classic Australian comedy on our pioneers

[8/10 · 22 December 2003]

A superb dramatisation of a small classic of Australian literature with an outstanding cast of actors who effortlessly portray their characters.

Definitely not a film for the ignorant US teenager who neither knows nor cares that there is a world beyond the U.S. and history as well. For those with more open minds and some curiousity about the world, and who are ready for a good laugh about human foibles, this is a very entertaining romp.

Incidentally, if it hasn't been mentioned elsewhere, Dame Joan Sutherland who plays Mother in this, is one of the world's greatest operatic sopranos. Her career spanned over 30 years and she was the undisputed coloratura soprano of her time. This film is just a little something she knocked up in her retirement!