A 40-year passion project brought to life with over $120 million of Francis Ford Coppola’s own money, giving him complete creative control, and a cinematic spectacle that demands to be seen on the big screen, this ambitious sci-fi epic, deeply inspired by the Roman Empire, not to mention The Fountainhead, Shakespeare, and Dickens, tells the story of New Rome, a futuristic city plagued by corruption.

Adam Driver stars as an architect striving to build a utopian society, alongside a stacked cast including Giancarlo Esposito, Nathalie Emmanuel, Aubrey Plaza, Shia LaBeouf, Jon Voight, Laurence Fishburne, and Dustin Hoffman.

“After a thirteen-year absence, a great American director returns with an ambitious vision of a world in need of renewal.” – New Yorker

“He’s done it again, and perhaps exceeded himself. Megalopolis might be the craziest thing I’ve ever seen. And I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy every single minute of it.” – Vulture

“Francis Ford Coppola’s wild and delirious fever dream inspires new hope for the future of movies.” – Indiewire

Megalopolis – Preview Screening with Special Live Component
Wednesday, September 25 @ 6:30PM
Dendy Cinemas Coorparoo, Brisbane
www.coorparoo.dendy.com.au

Following the rise of Aretha Franklin’s career from a child singing in her father’s church’s choir to her international superstardom, RESPECT is the remarkable true story of the music icon’s journey to find her voice.

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RESPECT stars Jennifer Hudson, Forest Whitaker, Marlon Wayans, Audra McDonald, Marc Maron, Tituss Burgess, Saycon Sengbloh, Hailey Kilgore, Tate Donovan, Heather Headley, Skye Dakota Turner, and Mary J. Blige and will be released in cinemas 2021!
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Amy Adams is Dr. Louise Banks, a linguist expert that the government recruits to help communicate with one of the alien entities that have arrived at twelve points around the globe. She is the soul of the story. Joining her is Jeremy Renner as Ian Donnelly, a theoretical physicist with a very well developed sense of wonder about the world.

The story is told in a non-linear manner and subsequently every scene must be paid attention too. The film is also shot with a very subdued colour palate and it adds to both its creepiness and the requirement to remain aware. The cast is quite small; so all the players are given a lot to do.

For a genre that is so hit or miss on the big screen, Arrival only looses its footing on rare occasions. There are a few bits of dialogue that could have easily been left on the cutting room floor and the film somewhat squanders a perfect point to end by overstating a point already made succinct. These are minor squabbles as overall the film is story telling as a very high level.

Rob Hudson
www.facebook.com/roadshow

Ms. Franklin landed over 100 singles in the Billboard charts, including 17 Top 10 pop singles and 20 No. 1 R&B hits, winning 18 Grammy Awards and was the first female to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Franklin’s reinvention of Otis Redding’s “Respect” as a feminist anthem transformed her into an icon of the civil rights and women’s movements. Her cultural impact was felt throughout her career, from her singing at Dr. Martin Luther King’s memorial service to performing at three presidential inaugurations.  In addition to “Respect,” her countless hits including “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” “Do Right Woman – Do Right Man,” and “Think” were beloved around the world and will be featured in the motion picture.

Starring as Aretha Franklin is Academy Award winner Jennifer Hudson (Dreamgirls, Sing, Cats). The film will be the directorial debut of Tony nominated stage director Liesl Tommy and will be produced by Scott Bernstein (Straight Outta Compton) and Harvey Mason Jr (Executive Music Producer on Sing, Pitch Perfect 3, Fifty Shades Freed) . from a script by Academy Award winner screen-writer Callie Khouri (Thelma and Louise).

Respect will be released in Australian cinemas October 29, 2020!
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The film also provides further proof (if any more is actually needed) on how fine an actor Jake Gyllenhaal has become. His take on the lead role, that of boxer Billy Hope is absolutely mesmeric. His time in the gym and time spent training to learn the techniques of boxing have paid real dividends.

Gyllenhaal fills the screen with electricity and menace and he makes the most out of what is a rather pedestrian screenplay. Sutter’s ability to plumb the depths of emotion is slight in this instance but as populist entertainment it hits most of the right marks.

This isn’t a story that challenges the viewer but one that can be completely enjoyed by the transformative nature of the performances. Don’t miss this film even if you are not that much of a fan of boxing. As an insight into the human will as told through superlative acting it is throughly engaging.
Rob Hudson
www.southpawfilm.com

As a screen superstar, Mills (played so far by Liam Neeson) ticks a lot of the requisite boxes: former secret operative (CIA, SAS, you pick the acronym), possessor of superlative hand to hand combat skills and an intellect that is always one step ahead of the baddies. All of this is cinema gold.

What lets the side down with Mills though is the lack of strong story lines and a rather thin overall concept. The first Taken film featured a far from unique storyline but the overall product was appealing with it bold action scenes and a flow of screen deaths that comically strained credibility.

Part two of the franchise was even thinner in regards to storyline and now with edition number three, it’s almost nonexistent. This doesn’t mean the film is without its share of thrills, it’s just so dumbed down as to live in that overcrowded realm where a film’s action is its only real selling point.

Action films based on much loved books have always had an advantage in the market place with an already existing audience and sometimes a wealth of potential storylines (the Bond and Bourne books are a great illustration of this). If the Taken series hopes to have any real future, the screenplay writers are going to have to step up their game. Until then the Taken series will just be empty fun.

Rob Hudson
www.foxmovies.com