Protecting the American Opium Empire: opium as a tool and fuel for US imperialism
Carlton Meyer, “Protecting the American Opium Empire” (Tales of the American Empire, 9 July 2020)
Australian and New Zealand Films | Chinese and Chinese-language Films
The Secret Armada: North Korean ghost ship phenomenon covered in a superficial way
“The Secret Armada” (Foreign Correspondent, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 14 July 2020) Despite the spine-tingling thrill
Australian and New Zealand Films
The Silver Brumby: a subdued and unexciting film of human greed and obsession
John Tatoulis, “The Silver Brumby” (1993) Notable mainly for featuring a very young Russell Crowe
Lab Rat: an investigation into what it means to be human
Nour Wazzi, “Lab Rat” (2019) Initially the plot seems familiar to the point of banality:
Eve: choosing between freedom, compassion and responsibility makes an android more human than humans
Josh Bowman, “Eve” (2019) A character-driven sci-fi story with good acting and a strong visual
Satori [Awakening]: post-apocalypse film very much asleep under character stereotypes and a boring plot
Adam K Batchelor, “Satori [Awakening]” (2020) An original and ambitious idea of an Earth re-engineered
End of Decay: pulpy body-horror adaptation of Frankenstein story
Christopher Todd, “End of Decay” (2017) A pulpy body-horror update on Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein; or,
Lucid: horror sci-fi dealing with cyber-addiction, escapism and technology shaping human psychology
Jamie Monahan, “Lucid” (2018) The film’s title refers to so-called lucid dreams in which the
Australian and New Zealand Films | Northern European Films
The Swedish Model: a shallow and unedifying view of Sweden’s no-lockdown COVID-19 strategy
“The Swedish Model” (Foreign Correspondent, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 30 June 2020) In March 2020, when
Outpost: a skimpy plot redeemed by skillful acting, good sets and an uplifting theme of hope and love
Justin Giddings, Ryan Welsh, “Outpost” (2020) On the very edge of the known universe, the