We're midway through the Sydney Film Festival and I thought it'd be a good idea to get a sense of what film critics are thinking of the program so far. I asked a few freelance colleagues to give me a snapshot of what they've seen so far - the simplistic but oh so convenient star system - and compiled the result in a table. Click on the image below to see the full-sized chart.
Echoes I've been getting so far speak of a strong program, with a surprising absence of stinkers (disagree? Let us know in the comments!). The Girls 24/7 retrospective of films made by women in the 60's and 70's is proving particularly popular. There also seems to be a consensus that the Australian films this year are particularly strong. Disgrace, Last Ride, The Burning Season, Prime Mover and Van Diemen's Land, Yes Madam Sir and A Good Man have all impressed by their execution.
Our panel of critics write for a variety of publications including The Australian, Time Out, 3D World, The Brag, Samesame.com.au, infilm.com.au, SBS.com.au and some are regulars on the Worse Addictions podcast. I'll publish a full chart at the end of the Festival, with feedback on even more titles from a larger pool of critics.
Read more from on the Sydney Film Festival from the panel:
- Josh reviews Van Diemen's Land, Tony Manero, Blind Loves & more at 5 Sprockets.
- Alex, Matt, Josh & Scott review Bronson, Van Diemen's Land, 500 Days of Summer & more in their Worse Addictions podcast.
- Scott reviews Last Ride at Dark Habits.
- Dee reviews Looking for Eric, The Maid, Altiplano & more at The Brag.
- Alice links to her reviews of Disgrace, The Maid & Last Ride at The Plot Thickens.
- And you can read my reviews of Still Walking, Bluebeard, The Girlfriend Experience & more right here at Last Night With Riviera.
What did you think of the films you've seen so far? Let us know in the comments!
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8 comments:
notice you've rated Che as one film
I'd give each part 4 stars. The chapters can be watched independently but each really achieves its full potential when seen in the light of the other.
Nice work, Matt! Having chatted to some of these people after the films (including yourself of course), it's fascinating to see how their opinions translate into ratings.
For my money, I'm reticent to hand out 5 Stars, but we'll see how I go with the remaining films.
I totally shouldn't have knocked Burma VJ down to 3 stars, it really ought to be 4. I'm feeling bad about that right now.
As far as stinkers go, I really didn't care for Paper Soldier, but I think that as a native Russian speaker, I can be much more critical of Russian-language films than others. It's hard to tell when a dialogue is wooden and unnatural when you're reading subtitles, and people tend to assume the best.
My highlights so far have been Liza with a Z and The Fox and the Child. Will be seeing my first Aussie film of the festival (The Cedar Boys) tomorrow, have high hopes for that one.
Great stuff, Matt. I find collations like this quite useful when trying to work out what to prioritise. Some of these films will make it to MIFF. FWIW, I saw Disgrace on Monday and agree with Scott's rating. I also agree with yours and Scott's rating for Three Monkeys. I'd give Daisies (24/7 retro) 3 stars.
BTW, what does the blue back-grounds indicate?
Now I know I've asked you this question (and I'm revealing my absent-mindedness here), but I can't remember if it was this year or last: are you coming down for MIFF?
The blue ones are the films in competition.
Yep I think I'm going to come down for opening weekend.
Did anyone see 'Paranormal Activity'? It was one of the most extraordinary horror films I've ever seen!!
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