ESSAYS


A brief rundown of the differences between the 1987 Steven Spielberg film and the novel by J.G. Ballard.


Many believe the mid-eighties to be the halcyon days of cinema, but are we just looking at the past through nostalgia goggles?


Is Gallipoli (1981) and Star Wars IV: A New Hope (1977) the exact same movie? This comparison reveals some startling similarities.


John Cusack has appeared in over 70 films, many of which as the main character. So what makes him so special? What exactly is the appeal of John Cusack?


The 'making of', the collector's magazine and the storybook were the DVD special features of my youth. In this article, I examine some examples of these, including Giger's Alien and the 60s' Bond film magazines.


The top 10 all-time most memorable, memory inducing film songs from the 80s.


Although the covers and titles changed, the novels that Die Hard and Blade Runner were based on remained the same. This article highlights some of their discrepancies.


Film can sometimes form a kind of time capsule, existing as archives of a time and place in history. The Breakfast Club is one such film.


The top 5 most cringe worthy, eye rolling scenes in Kevin Costner's The Postman.


Mad Max: Fury Road is generally considered one of the greatest films of the past decade, yet Mel Gibson was nowhere to be seen. Did his absence help the film, or hinder it?


Which movies, if any, will this current generation get nostalgic over in 30 years?


Is George Lucas, Luke Sywalker and Anakin Skywalker the same person? Probably not.


Dewey Finn: insulting stereotype or paradigm of inquiry-based teaching and learning?


Adrian Lyne's 1990 film tries very hard to avoid the standard cliches of hell, and for the most part, (spoiler alert), achieves that goal.


The Karate Kid is a good movie - some might even say a perfect movie. The Karate Kid Part II? Not so much.


Is Nostalgia Bad?
Is nostalgia unhealthy, or is it merely a side effect of getting old? And what does any of that have to do with David Fincher's Fight Club?

Harrison Ford: Absent Father
Han Solo, Indiana Jones and Rick Deckard - iconic anti-heroes, homogenised for the 21st century.

 The Bleak, Dystopian Future of Men's Fashion
The costume design of Blade Runner 2049: prophetic vision of men's fashion, or missed opportunity?

The Terrible Tragedy of Tonari no Totoro
My Neighbour Totoro is not an emo suicide death fantasy, despite what the internet would have you believe.

Beards in Film
Got a beard? Then there's something wrong with you - according to movies, that is.

Star Wars and the Post-Jedi World
It's time for the Jedi to end. But what about all that cool 'JEDI IN TRAINING' merchandise?

View-Master Mock-Up: True Romance
Did comic book nerd Clarence Worley imagine the events of Tony Scott's 1993 film, True Romance? Maybe this imaginary View-Master reel set will shed some light on the topic.

E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial: A Novelisation to Film Comparison
A comparison between the William Kotzwinkle novelisation and the Steven Spielberg film from 1982.

Eyes Wide Shut: Masterpiece or Meh?
Is Stanley Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut a work of genius? An indictment of marriage, celebrity and Tom Cruise? Or is it the last ditch effort of an old man to stare at some boobs?

How to Make a Belated Sequel
T2 Trainspotting and Doctor Sleep are sequels to iconic movies from decades ago. They also both star Ewan McGregor.

Eccentric recluses? Genre defining geniuses? The similarities between Stanley Kubrick and Kate Bush will astound you!

In Full Metal Jacket, Private Pyle's character arc stands alone in Kubrick's filmography as, potentially, his one and only screenplay flaw.

A comparison of Chuck Palahniuk's novel and David Fincher's 1999 adaptation.

Paul Atreides in Frank Herbert's Dune is very similar to Paul McCartney, Beatle and Knight of the Realm. Coincidence or not coincidence? You decide.
 
Still think Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome is the weakest movie in one of the greatest film franchises of all time? These custom trading cards might convince you otherwise.

The Milk Bar was once plentiful throughout suburban Melbourne, and was a mecca for all things pop culture before pop culture was a thing. 

Something For Kate never made a music video in the style of seminal TV series, M*A*S*H. If they had, it might have looked like this. 

The opening of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade is full of Easter eggs, callbacks and foreshadowing - most notably during the circus train chase.

Was Emily St John Mandel inspired by Kate Bush's 1985 concept album, The Ninth Wave, when she wrote The Glass Hotel in 2020? All signs point to yes.
 
Glenn Richards is a poet ... and his poetry can be found throughout the music of Australian indie rock band Augie March. Here are some of his best, most poetic tracks. 

Is Steven Soderbergh's 1999 thriller, The Limey, the final act of a trilogy which includes David Lynch's Mulholland Drive and Ken Loach's Poor Cow? Sure, why not?

Is Rose Byrne's character in Two Hands a manic pixie dream girl, or does she possess agency and aspirations of her own?

A synopsis of Encanto, in which Abuela Madrigal is a mutant with supernatural powers, not the recipient of a magical candle from a godlike benefactor.

In Clash of the Titans (1981), Perseus rises from fisherman to king in a week, due to his courage, diligence ... and a little help from his dad.

The prequel to George Miller's Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.
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