For those who thought they had Darren Aronofsky’s films sussed out, they will not know what hit them with Caught Stealing. This over-the-top nineties period piece is wild and crazy in a most fun manner. Those are words not often attached to his work, but after a long and illustrious filmography of very assertive works, we can forgive him for just wanting to have a little fun.

Hank Thompson (Austin Butler) is just a dude tasked with looking after his neighbour’s cat, Bud. Said resident, Russ (Doctor Who’s Matt Smith), is a mohawked punk rocker who has to travel back to England to visit his ailing father. Hank is completely unprepared for the shite show that is coming his way from this bit of neighbourly assistance.

Thrown into a world inhabited by crazy Russian Mobsters, coke-snorting barkeeps and two absolutely bonkers Hasidic brothers, Lipa and Shmully Drucker, who are played by an almost unrecognisable Liev Schreiber and Vincent D’Onofrio. These two turn Hank’s world upside down. The bros are absolute sociopaths and believe in a scorched-earth policy when it comes to conflict resolution.

Based on a book of the same name by Charlie Huston, Caught Stealing is set in a time frame that reflects a pivotal time in Aronofsky’s life. It’s less than hyper realistic in contrast to most of his earlier work, and the absurdest sense of humour on display might hint that he has some fond memories of that time. Taken in the context of his collected works, it’s a welcome side step.
Rob Hudson
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A lot of your enjoyment of Eddington will be based on how much you’ve recovered from that undeniably bleak period of time. The film successfully ties in so many elements of the wildness that swept the world then. These include conspiracy theories, government over governance and the big bad that lurks behind all unexplained plot points in films such as this. It’s an intoxicating medley.

Set in a small, downwardly mobile town in New Mexico, Eddington has seen better days. The current mayor, Ted Garcia, played against character by Pedro Pascal, has high hopes of bringing the town back to life by building a massive tech centre out in the scrub. His COVID mandates and the impact the centre will have on the community have divided the population. The uncertainty of the times has also created a militant attitude among the local teens.

The film mines so many of the extremes of that period of time, it would seem to struggle to have a unified theme, but as things progress, it trades sense for overkill and just gets more and more extreme. This gives Phoenix the platform to do what he does best and match the mania, note for note. The ironic ending when it lands feels just about right, filtered through the sensibilities of our current state of the world.
Rob Hudson
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Hank Thompson (Austin Butler) was a high-school baseball phenom who can’t play anymore, but everything else is going okay. He’s got a great girl (Zoë Kravitz), tends bar at a New York dive, and his favourite team is making an underdog run at the pennant.

When his punk-rock neighbour Russ (Matt Smith) asks him to take care of his cat for a few days, Hank suddenly finds himself caught in the middle of a motley crew of threatening gangsters. They all want a piece of him; the problem is he has no idea why. As Hank attempts to evade their ever-tightening grip, he’s got to use all his hustle to stay alive long enough to find out…

Caught Stealing is directed by Academy Award® nominee Darren Aronofsky, screenplay by Charlie Huston, based on his book of the same name. The film stars Austin Butler, Regina King, Zoë Kravitz, Matt Smith, Liev Schreiber, Vincent D’Onofrio, Griffin Dunne, Benito A Martínez Ocasio, and Carol Kane
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EDDINGTON stars Joaquin Phoenix as small-town sheriff Joe Cross, who runs for mayor when progressive incumbent Ted Garcia (Pedro Pascal) attempts to modernize their dusty hamlet by attracting a new artificial-intelligence data center. Aster’s fourth feature takes the form of a classic showdown between two opposing forces over the future of Eddington, New Mexico (population 2,345), as spiraling conspiracies and standoffs derail a citizenry pushed to the brink.

Featuring an ensemble supporting cast of townspeople grappling with a changing world, EDDINGTON also stars Emma Stone, Austin Butler, Luke Grimes, Deirdre O’Connell, Micheal Ward, Clifton Collins Jr., William Belleau, Amélie Hoeferle, Cameron Mann, and Matt Gomez Hidaka.

More than anything, the film is driven by the absurdity of everything that came out of that summer and the five years that followed. EDDINGTON frequently plays out as a dark comedy, be- cause after all, if you can’t laugh at today’s American circus, you’ll surely cry.
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When his punk-rock neighbour Russ (Matt Smith) asks him to take care of his cat for a few days, Hank suddenly finds himself caught in the middle of a motley crew of threatening gangsters. They all want a piece of him; the problem is he has no idea why. As Hank attempts to evade their ever-tightening grip, he’s got to use all his hustle to stay alive long enough to find out…

Caught Stealing is directed by Academy Award® nominee Darren Aronofsky, screenplay by Charlie Huston, based on his book of the same name. The film stars Austin Butler, Regina King, Zoë Kravitz, Matt Smith, Liev Schreiber, Vincent D’Onofrio, Griffin Dunne, Benito A Martínez Ocasio, and Carol Kane
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Many say that this was also the perfect storm that helped to reinforce the toxic male energy that has blighted our society in the decades since. While this may be an oversimplification, it has had an undeniable impact on male behaviour since. As in all things that are created in an environment of excess energies, these clubs even though they started with the best of intentions became corrupted and changed to suit certain individual needs or desires.

In this context, the allure of criminality doesn’t seem so far-fetched and nowhere was this better exemplified than in biker clubs. The Bikeriders tells the tale of one such club that started simply but eventually ran completely off the rails. The key performances in the film by Austin Butler and Tom Hardy are underplayed to the point of narcolepsy and seem an attempt by the filmmakers not to fall guilty of ramping things up to the soap opera level of shows like The Sons Of Anarchy.

Driven by actor Jodie Comer’s narration (one that could rival Frances McDormand’s vocal heroics in Fargo), what starts as a brotherhood is doomed to be consumed by vice and greed. The level of understatement used to tell the tale makes the violence pop but leaves the audience under-informed as the almost complete lack of back story hinders true understanding. Historical context helps but it all falls short of providing the jolt needed to make this work a transformative experience.
Rob Hudson
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After a chance encounter at a local bar, strong-willed Kathy (Jodie Comer) is inextricably drawn to Benny (Austin Butler), the newest member of Midwestern motorcycle club, the Vandals led by the enigmatic Johnny (Tom Hardy).

Much like the country around it, the club begins to evolve, transforming from a gathering place for local outsiders into a dangerous underworld of violence, forcing Benny to choose between Kathy and his loyalty to the club.
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Seen through the lives of its members, the club evolves over the course of a decade from a gathering place for local outsiders into a more sinister gang, threatening the original group’s unique way of life.

Starring Austin Butler, Jodie Comer, and Tom Hardy, Michael Shannon, Mike Faist, with Norman Reedus is coming to cinemas July 4!
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Substitute oil for spice and the fiefdoms in the books are not that far thematically from the ones that dot the Middle East in current days. The military aggression in that part of the world to keep American cars filled with dead dinosaur juice is also somewhat of a parallel. Herbert who died in 1986 was on to something.

Adding Director Denis Villeneuve to the cinematic versions of the books was an astute choice. No one in Hollywood can create more arresting environments on screen. His hard-won clout also allows him to hand-pick a cast that is representative of the most high-profile actors of the current time. This adds a substantial amount of sizzle as the cast reads like a who’s who.

The action in Dune: Part Two is intense and somewhat impenetrable for those who haven’t seen the first instalment of the series or read one of Frank Herbert’s Dune books. The film also demands the biggest screen and best sound system in town to fully deliver the impact it’s capable of delivering. The sound design by Richard King, (who also works with Christopher Nolan) is spectacular. It’s a true epic but one that is enhanced by a small amount of preparation.
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DUNE: PART TWO explores the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a path of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family.

Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.
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