Anderson (Simon Merrells) is an astronaut on the eve of a space mission. His mind is clouded by an obsession with finding out the circumstances behind the tragic loss of a female comrade who was lost out in space during a mission. He is hard-wired to think only in facts but the night before launch will have an indelible effect on that state of mind.

He lives in relative isolation with his partner Sam (Kemi-Bo Jacobs). She is an expert on AI and helped design a program that everyone calls Jay. Their night is interrupted by the arrival of Charlie (Hermione Corfield) a fellow person of science who helps the couple discover a bigger truth about Jay. This rocks Anderson’s world and changes many of his long-held beliefs.

Events play out in a very subtle manner and almost every scene has nuances that need to be paid attention to. It also asks audience members to decide in their mind if AI is a benign entity that we as humans control explicitly or does it have the ability to advance past human control. Depending on your take on this, A Million Days is either a wondrous science fiction yarn or an outright horror show.
Rob Hudson
www.facebook.com/eagleentertainmentaustralia

Herbert’s 1965 tale was originally serialized in the American magazine Analog (the first issue was published in 1930) and more than paved the way for Star Wars. The similar plot points are abundant but where the original Star Wars movie played it cute and cuddly, Villeneuve’s vision is dark, foreboding, and quite monochromatic. Life is harsh on Arrakis even for the ruling class.

Things play out in a slow burn fashion with tension never far below the surface. After being given the rule of Arrakis, patriarch of the Atreides family, Duke Leto (Oscar Isaac) does his best to balance his version of morality while ensuring he and his family’s future by keeping the production of Spice (a substance that imbues users with heightened vitality and expanded consciousness) at its peak.

Just like the effects of Spice, Villeneuve intends to expand the viewers’ perception of what life could be like on an alien planet and it’s not a pretty or comforting scenario. It features sights and sounds that may be new to our database but ones that get dragged down to our existing reality by a hierarchy system that limits life for all but the ruling class. Not unlike the one that has blighted things on earth for the millennial.

Rob Hudson
www.facebook.com/WarnerBrosAU/

‘The Western’ celebrates one of the most popular and enduring genres of cinema. Known for its images of lone cowboys, Native Americans, barren landscapes and elemental hardships, the genre has influenced the way filmmakers depict confrontations between man and nature, civilisation and freedom since its inception in silent cinema.

Inspired by the Wild West, the Western draws on a time of territorial expansion, bustling modernity and a burgeoning national identity. The genre reflects a mythic vision of the west, rather than the west itself, to create a world that embodies the ideals of honour, sacrifice, individualism and freedom.

‘The Western’ is a survey of the genre from its roots in silent cinema through to the present day. The program showcases enduring classics (Red River 1948, High Noon 1952) and popular titles (The Magnificent Seven 1960, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly 1966) alongside a selection of international Westerns (Yojimbo 1961, Aferim!2015) as well as films that invigorate the genre through their incorporation into action, comedy, science fiction, romance and noir cinema.

TALK: THE WESTERN AND THE HISTORY OF CINEMA
Sat 19 Sep, 11.00am | Cinema B

Dr David Baker, Lecturer, School of Humanities, Griffith University takes us on a journey through the genre of the Western since 1900, examining the way it can be seen to mirror the history of cinema more broadly.

LIVE MUSIC AND FILM
‘The Western’ showcases the important role played by silent cinema in the development of its frontier myths. Presented with a diverse selection of live musical accompaniment, this program of silent Westerns celebrate the volatile landscapes and rugged cowboys who inhabited them.

THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY + THE STORY OF THE KELLY GANG
13 September | 1.00pm | Cinema A
Live musical accompaniment by Brisbane-based contemporary chamber ensemble Nonsemble.

With its daring escapades, The Great Train Robbery 1903 launched the popularity of the Western genre. Screens with Australia’s celebrated bush ranger film The Story of the Kelly Gang 1906 and the silent epic The Invaders 1912.

THE DAUGHTER OF DAWN
27 September | 1.00pm | Cinema A
Live musical accompaniment by David Bailey on the Gallery’s 1929 Wurlitzer Organ.

Thought to have been lost for over 85 years, Norbert A Myles’ The Daughter of Dawn was restored in 2013 features an entirely Native American cast with members of the Comanche and Kiowa Tribes.

THE IRON HORSE
1 November | 12.00pm | Cinema A
Live musical accompaniment by Brisbane-based contemporary chamber ensemble Nonsemble.

John Ford’s silent masterpiece, The Iron Horse 1924 is lavish retelling of push into the West by the first Transcontinental Railroad.

LIVE FOLEY!
BUSTER KEATON GOES WEST
15 November | 1.00pm | Cinema A
From the clip-clop of hooves to the whistle of the steam train, this special performance screening playfully brings to life the sound effects to Buster Keaton’s silent comedy Go West 1925.

The Western
11 Sep 2015 – 15 Nov 2015
Australian Cinémathèque | Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA), Brisbane
www.qagoma.qld.gov.au

There is also the issue of the major name on the movie marquee being severely underutilized and contrary to the film’s trailer and ad campaign, Sir Ben Kingsley role is more cameo than leading. The film tries hard to cash in on lead actor Ryan Reynolds’ innate charm but the script gives him too little to work with. Elsewhere Matthew Goode’s icy menace is more effective.

The story line is structured to be more on the thriller side and as a results, the science of the story is very much underdeveloped. This approach leads to an action scene that is pivotal to the film’s success and its failure shows just how little imagination was used in its resolve.

It’s hard to place the blame upon any one person’s shoulders but the buck does eventually stop with the director and the film’s helmsman Tarsem Singh (The Fall, Immortals) might just have to chalk this one up to experience.

Rob Hudson
 www.selflessmovie.tumblr.com