Madeleine McRae interrogates blockbuster filmmaking through the legacy of Star Wars and reckons with its Disneyfied future.
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Let’s Fix ‘Cats’!
Eliza Janssen knows how to make 2019’s biggest critical failure less of a cat-astrophe.
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Rough Cut’s Best of the Decade (2010-2019)
To mark the end of the decade, the Rough Cut crew reveal their favourite films of the 2010s.
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Pedro Almodóvar and Quentin Tarantino: A Tale of Two Directors
Bina Bhattacharya reflects on two of her favourite directors’ latest films, and finds unlikely parallels between their filmmaking styles.
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Yesterday Is Gone: Sondheim in ‘Marriage Story’ and ‘Lady Bird’
The music and lyrics of Stephen Sondheim mean something to both Noah Baumbach and Greta Gerwig – Claire White figures it out.
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Cinemascopes: Sagittarius
They’re breathtaking, they’re elegant, and they’re everywhere.
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Disney Princesses and the Women Who Made Them
Tansy Gardam searches for a fairytale ending in Disney’s first century of female animators and characters.
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A Reflection on Pain and Glory
Sophie Gibson ponders Pedro Almodóvar’s latest in a series of gentle and personal reflections.
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Cinemascopes: Scorpio
It’s the spookiest, sexiest, silliest time of the year.
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Why The Boss Still Works
In the past year, Bruce Springsteen’s music has been the subject of four films ― what is it about The Boss that still resonates with audiences today?
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Guide to The Great Astor Spooktacular of 2019
From psychosexual body-horror filth to satanic panic frights, Jamie Tram steps through the line-up of Melbourne’s most anticipated Halloween filmgoing event.
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Video Essay: Big Duck Richie
A celebration of those times when a guy just comes into your workplace and dances.
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Ride Like a Girl is an Affront to Feminism
Rachel Griffiths’ Melbourne Cup biopic ignores the cruelty through which its female protagonist achieves her so-called ‘success’.
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Pubic Hair and Other Lies: The Farewell
Amidst the noise of diversity and representation discourse, filmmaker Hyun Lee reflects on why she loved The Farewell.
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Cinemascopes: Libra
Keep your ego in check, and stand up for your beliefs (if you can decide on them).
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Cinemascopes: Virgo
Get organised, team up, and listen to your instincts this season.
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Video Essay: Hae-Mi Monroe
Ivana Brehas presents a side-by-side comparison of two pivotal dance scenes from Burning (2018) and The Misfits (1961), finding parallels between characters decades and continents apart.
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And Then We Danced: A Facebook Chat
Claire White and George Kapaklis reflect on the highlights of a tender, queer love story set in Georgia.
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Baby, or The Politics of Performance and Pain
Kai Perrignon challenges the state of political art in the age of cancel culture.
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Cinemascopes: Leo
The sun is in Leo, so get glowing and dress the part.
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Huge Ackman: The Curious Case of Hugh Jackman’s Career
Sam Twyford-Moore delves beneath the shiny surface of one of Australia’s most beloved yet ‘bifurcated’ entertainers.
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Melbourne International Film Festival 2019: Top Picks
The Rough Cut team pick out the weird, the compelling, and the essential out of this year’s 375-strong MIFF catalogue.
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Scarlett Johansson: A Tree is Born
André and Jack unpack ScarJo’s tree-related acting catalogue, past, present, and future.
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Parasite: A Group Chat
Rough Cut contributors, Zach, Michael, and Claire discuss this year’s witty, biting, and wildly unpredictable Palme d’Or winner.
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Populism Projected in The Brink and Reason
Faraaz Rahman examines truth and accountability in two documentaries charting the rise of populism.
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Mother Knows Best: I Am Mother, and Searching For Non-Sexualised AI
The AI at the heart of Netflix’s latest sci-fi plunge opens up provoking questions of femininity and motherhood.
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Cinemascopes: Cancer
Be the Mom and embrace your sensitivity this season.
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Merchant of Melodrama: Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s Traumatised Characters
Zach Karpinellison examines the timeless brutality of Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s cinema.
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Cinemascopes: Gemini
Get weird, embrace your duality, and lighten up this season.
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Sydney Film Festival 2019: Top Picks
The Rough Cut team are here to help you compile the must-sees of the Sydney Film Festival, which have unveiled their biggest program yet.
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