A personal journal of film and documentary reviews, and reviews of anything else that intrigues me.
Australian and New Zealand Films
Christopher Kezelos, “Zero” (2011) A heart-warming little short that could have been a lot more than it was with a bigger budget and more ambition, “Zero”…
Ivan Ramadan, “Tolerantia” (2008) An animated 3D short made in Bosnia-Herzegovina in 2008, “Tolerantia” is a plea for religious tolerance. Set at the end of the…
Hiroyuki Yamaga, “Royal Space Force – the Wings of Honnêamise / Ôritsu uchûgun Oneamisu no tsubasa” (1987) A very visually handsome and often stunning film to…
Katsuhiro Otomo, “Steamboy / Suchimoboi” (2004) A decade in the making, Katsuhiro Otomo’s second full-length film is an epic cyberpunk fantasy that carries a message about…
Makoto Shinkai, “She and Her Cat” (1999) The debut animé film by Makoto Shinkai as director / animator / script-writer is a charming 5-minute morsel exploring…
Kazuchika Kise, “Ghost in the Shell: Arise – 1: Ghost Pain” (2013) First of a new four-part series in the Ghost in the Shell franchise, this…
Makoto Shinkai, “Garden of Words / Koto no ha no niwa” (2013) Makoto Shinkai is a new name to me and he has been billed as…
Wlodzimierz Haupe and Halina Bielinska, “The Changing of the Guard / Zmiana warty” (1958) A simply made stop-motion animation piece, this little film is a tragic…
Walerian Borowczyk and Jan Lenica, “Once Upon a Time / Byl sobie raz” (1957) An amusing little cartoon with a circus freak-show organ music soundtrack, “Once…
Franciszka and Stefan Themerson, “The Eye and the Ear / Oko i Ucho” (1944 / 1945) Abstract and experimental animation has a long and illustrious history…