The horrors of the Holocaust are seen through an unusual lens in Nuremberg, an outstanding, thoroughly captivating drama about the post-war trials of the Nazi high command.
The film’s intriguing premise examines the relationship between U.S. Army psychiatrist Douglas Kelley (Rami Malek) and Hermann Göring (Russell Crowe), the Nazi chief who was second-in-command to Hitler.
Far from being the personification of evil, Göring presents himself to Kelley as an honourable officer with a family and a deep love of country who claims that what went on in the concentration camps was not his fault.
Kelley’s challenging task is to assess Göring in preparation for the landmark trials that established the legal concept of war crimes. The process has him feeling sympathy for Göring, a man accused of overseeing the murder of millions.
The politics behind the trials provide plenty of heated drama and crucial historical context as the fact-based story explores just how fuzzy the line between good and evil can appear to be.
Performances throughout are top-notch, with Crowe bringing humanity to a deeply despised Nazi. If there’s any justice in Hollywood he should get some Oscar love for his sterling work here.
But a warning: the film features graphic footage of what the Allied troops saw when they liberated the camps. Still hard to believe such atrocities actually happened.
Way over at the other end of the movie spectrum is Zootopia 2, Disney’s winning, very funny sequel to the 2016 animated hit.
The novelty might be gone but the film still delivers heaps of family fun as cop buddies Judy Hopps (a rabbit) and Nick Wilde (a fox) investigate the truth behind the city’s origin.
Part of Disney’s road to recovery, Zootopia 2 is full of charm and proves two big rules of Hollywood: (1) Animation is a money printer, and; (2) Any movie that takes a billion dollars automatically gets a sequel!
For a romantic comedy with a refreshing fantasy twist form an orderly queue to Eternity, one of the most delightful surprises of the year.
Killed by a lethal pretzel, an elderly man enters the afterlife as a younger version of himself (Miles Teller) where he can choose which personal paradise to spend eternity in.
He opts to wait for his cancer-stricken wife to die so they can spend forever together.
Sounds sweet, only when she arrives as her younger self (Elizabeth Olsen) she discovers her handsome first husband (Callum Turner) has been waiting for her since his death in the Korean war.
The tone for most of the film is light and breezy before things wisely get serious as the three face the hard truths about loyalty and dealing with loss.
The leads are aided by a funny supporting cast, including two “afterlife counsellors” who constantly snipe at each other.
A lovely idea, very well done.
Twiggy celebrates the life and work of the iconic British supermodel, a working-class schoolgirl who emerged in the 1960s and inadvertently took the worlds of modelling and high fashion by storm.
Replete with archival footage and new interviews with most of the main players in her dizzying career, Twiggy – born Lesley Hornby – remains somewhat amazed at the blessed run she’s enjoyed, her marriage to an alcoholic actor being the main stumble in her life.
A terrific serving of nostalgia, the film’s comic highlight is Twiggy’s encounter with a young Woody Allen who ends up with egg on his face when he discovers she’s not just a pretty face.
Following Knives Out and Glass Onion comes Wake Up Dead Man, an enjoyable and engaging murder-mystery comedy as heavily accented southern detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) investigates the death of a pushy, loud-mouthed priest (Josh Brolin) in a picturesque small town.
Presently playing in cinemas, the strong advice is to catch this Netflix film when it streams on 12 December. Watching it from the comfort of the couch will certainly make the 145-minute running time more palatable, thanks to the immortal pause button.
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