
Last night I attended the Australian premiere of The Amazing Spider-Man 2, and because it won’t be released in the US for another two weeks, I had to hand in my phone. My phone’s my only way of telling the time, and during the movie, I constantly felt like grabbing for my phone to check how late it was. The movie felt like it was taking forever.

Last week, I got to interview Lorna Suzuki for FilmInquiry. Lorna is the author of the Imago Chronicles, a fantasy series, and recently got her books optioned for a film adaptation by a pretty grand film production team. This is especially exciting because Lorna is an indie author – the Imago Chronicles are self-published.

The Quiet Ones documents a university professor and his team of students in 1974 as they attempt an “experiment” on a young psychiatric patient, which uncovers dark and dangerous forces. Claiming to be inspired by true events, the movie revolves around the hypothesis that the supernatural is a “manifestation of what’s already in the mind” and by using the scientific method to provide evidence, the patient can be cured. Starring in this film are Jared Harris and Sam Clafin, both of whom are notable British actors.

Last weekend I attended a screening of Jim Jarmusch’s latest production, Only Lovers Left Alive, at the Luna Leederville Cinema here in Perth (which, by the way, is a beautiful original 20’s art deco cinema). While I’ve only seen two of Jim Jarmusch’s movies (Coffee and Cigarettes and Dead Man), Only Lovers Left Alive has Jarmusch’s distinctly recognizable style: it’s dark, pretty, it’s gritty, and very witty (how’s that for rhyming?

Wes Anderson can be an acquired taste. Settling on gathering enjoyment from his films can come after much deliberation as to whether he’s serious about the utterly finicky nature he employs in his chosen colour palettes, set construction, camera movements and scrupulous plot details. But his films carry far more value than the kind of hipster magnetism that seemingly oozes out of them.