Back in 1993 when McConaughey starred in Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused as the twenty something loser David Wooderson, few would have imagined an Oscar in his future but the almost complete transformation of both his appearance and acting skills in Dallas Buyers Club is nothing short of amazing. From rom-com lite to serious leading man.

His character in DBC, Ron Woodroof is a homophobic rodeo cowboy past his prime who contracts HIV from heterosexual contact with a lady of the night and thus begins his transformation. He finds the medical hypocrisy in regards to the drugs used for treatment at that time (mid-eighties) overwhelming and starts his own importation and distribution company. His transition into a more understanding and humane person is handled in a timely and incremental way and this really helps in the film’s believability.

The Dallas Buyers Club is a film that is not always easy to watch but it gets under your skin and stays in your memories long after the final credits have run. Its key performances redefine its main actors roles in the Hollywood hierarchy and the story is one of importance. In a year gone by of stand out performances, the accolades given in this case are entirely justified.

Rob Hudson
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Plus – click here to check out our Wonder Park review.

WONDER PARK in cinemas NOW!
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June has created an imaginary place called Wonder Park. It’s a place she and her mother (Jennifer Garner) share together. When her mother becomes ill, the script is unafraid to go to a dark place to give the storyline some dynamic range.

The drama this creates informs the first half of the film. In the second half, through circumstance, June finds herself alone in the woods, where she actually finds a dilapidated version of the fun park. She sets out on a path to bring it back to its full glory.

During this quest, June learns to come to terms with the sadness her mother’s illness has created. This lesson is subtly told while the screen pops with wild flights of fancy and brilliant colours that explode off the screen. The film doesn’t try to impart excessive slices of real life and lives comfortably in the world of imagination.

Rob Hudson
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June soon discovers the park came from her imagination and she’s the only one who can fix it, so she bands together with the animals to save this magical place and bring back the wonder in Wonderland.

Wonder Park stars Jennifer Garner, Matthew Broderick, John Oliver, Mila Kunis, Norbert Leo Butz, Brianna Denski, Ken Hudson Campbell with Fitzy & Wip and is in Australian cinemas this April school holidays!

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Wonder Park stars Jennifer Garner, Matthew Broderick, John Oliver, Mila Kunis, Norbert Leo Butz, Brianna Denski, Ken Hudson Campbell with Ryan Fitzgerald and Michael Wipfli – and is in Australian cinemas April School Holidays!
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But for seventeen-year old Simon Spier it’s a little more complicated: he’s yet to tell his family or friends he’s gay and he doesn’t actually know the identity of the anonymous classmate he’s fallen for online.

Resolving both issues proves hilarious, terrifying and life-changing. Directed by Greg Berlanti (TV’s Dawson’s Creek, Brothers & Sisters), written by Isaac Aptaker & Elizabeth Berger (TV’s This is Us), and based on Becky Albertalli’s acclaimed novel, LOVE, SIMON is a funny and heartfelt coming-of-age story about the thrilling ride of finding yourself and falling in love.

Love, Simon is in Australian cinemas 29 March!
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I’ve not read the book (other than a few sample pages courtesy of Amazon.com) but I imagine, as was the case with Where the Wild Things Are, that the book is a much more economic and elegant tale than the resulting feature film. The film appears to be riding the coat tails of the recent Diary of a Wimpy Kid films (which do a very good job of translating its literary source to the silver screen) but where the Wimpy Kid films riff neatly on the familiar misfortunes and fears of our youth, the hijinks presented in the Alexander film are so outlandish as to be highly unlikely.

These tremendously contrived events no doubt sat fine within the confines of a picture book but in the context of a hammy live action feature film they feel phony and forced. As a result, much of the proceedings are excruciating to watch as one unbelievable misfortune is piled upon the next.

Naturally, the film redeems itself with its central theme that as long as you have your family, things can’t be too bad, but there’s no escaping the feeling throughout the movie that Diary of a Wimpy Kid is so much better than this.

Stuart Jamieson
www.disney.com.au