The Wackness
A 90210 joke here, a Boyz II Men comment there, some RIP Kurt Cobain street art for good measure, and hey presto: it's 1994! Welcome to director Jonathan Levine's THE WACKNESS.
This earnest, urban melodrama is hardly Spike Lee. When white guy Luke (Josh Peck) falls in love with white girl Stephanie (Olivia Thirlby), the warm fuzzies aren't exactly dumbed down, but there's no brain-breaking politics either.
Outrageous Fortune
I may sound like a terrible turncoat, but lets face it, New Zealand is punching well above its weight. So much good stuff comes out of the place; THE CLEAN, BAD TASTE, way more stuff than you expect from our trans-Tasman cousins.
Now you can add TV show OUTRAGEOUS FORTUNE to the list. It's kind of like THE SOPRANOS if they were petty, go-nowhere criminals living in the suburban shit hole that is West Auckland and trying to get clean.
SBS, just watch it OK
Forget for a second that you could probably watch both these shows online right now.
There is no better way to embrace the inevitability of middle-aged conservatism than having a regular television-viewing schedule. And what better way to settle into a routine than tuning in to the new series' of THE BOOSH and SOUTHPARK?
An added bonus is that you'll never feel left out of the water-cooler chat at your funky, creative, hard working yet relaxed office - because you'll have seen the latest episode too.
Not Quite Hollywood
It's ironic that some of the most recognisable faces in NOT QUITE HOLLYWOOD are American. Why does Quentin Tarantino know more about Australian genre cinema than we do? A nationwide awkwardness about our own film history has distracted us from this stash of glittery fool's gold for far too long.
This Melbourne-produced celebration of the glory days of '70s and '80s Australian trash film captures the devil-may-care gleefulness of its subject matter.
Bob Shirt
One half of Izrock is obsessed with skateboarding (maybe a bit more than half). This means I am often 'wasting my time' and being 'too old for that', but getting older and still skateboarding is the best. All the pressure and angst you felt as a kid is gone. What remains, is the joy of learning old and daggy tricks that are easier and more rewarding.
The Square
THE SQUARE follows in the well-worn footsteps of classic noir, and like its predecessors BLOOD SIMPLE and SHALLOW GRAVE, it knows the giddy thrill of throwing forbidden love and easy money at men until they destroy themselves.
Even though it's a first feature, THE SQUARE is an assured enough debut to avoid beating the audience silly with explanations.
The Dark Knight
Chances are you've already decided if you're interested in seeing THE DARK KNIGHT, so I'll keep this short.
This is pure pop-mythology. That doesn't mean it's lightweight - masks and costumes mean it's bigger, even deeper, than real life, and it earns every heavy second of its epic running time. It's almost awkward at first, but these jitters are exactly the point.
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