Vagrant Rant M o v i e s . G a m e s . M u s i c . "L i f e".

We are fully back to our regular schedule of movie-watching! Getting to the ten new releases mark when April has barely begun – without having to scrape around on streaming services – feels a bit like coming home if I’m honest. While you can probably say I started that journey in earnest last year, 2022 so far has largely brought my friends’ enthusiasm for the big screen back as well, so I’ve been having a better time watching as a result. That might have affected how positive I feel looking back at this batch of cinematic morsels, but who knows; they might just actually be decent viewing.

Well, with one or two exceptions.

The Aussie film release calendar is about to get properly packed, too – here’s hoping a good start leads to a good year!

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Death on the Nile

“Mystery hits different after Knives Out, but this film’s gorgeous.”

Uncharted

“Viewed as alternate–universe homage, it’s a surprisingly fun outing.”

A little later than usual perhaps, but these are the first ten films I’ve been able to give a look so far this year.

It feels particularly weird to be a movie fan in Australia right now – like we’ve been a constant mirror of our American friends in 2021 when it comes to cinematic availability. Cross-referencing streaming services with big screens one moment and twiddling our thumbs in lockdown while theatres slam shut the next, some movies have been a bit frustrating to pin down; but I’ll get to most of them by the end of the year. In the meantime, here’s a spicy mix of up-and-down celluloid quality.

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Demon Slayer: Infinity Train

“The anime movie that forever changed how anime movies work.”

Boss Level

“Fun, silly premise; unfortunately everyone commits except the lead actor.”

Well, this was tricky.

For obvious 2020-specific reasons, it’s quite difficult to see any fresh films right about now. Cinemas are not exactly prime real estate at the moment, and quite a few movies on my to-see list have been delayed either several months or indefinitely. After tearing through seven new release movies in six weeks, it took me a full two months to see my eighth. Then, thanks to the help of one or two major movie studios and digital entertainment platforms, I reached the ten you see here. Who even knows whether I’ll get to twenty this year.

Even before the current global health crisis began to gather steam, I was struggling with whether some of these films counted as 2020 releases, but that became less of an issue once our bigger problems emerged. At the very least, all ten of these movies got their wide mainstream releases in Australia this year.

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The Gentlemen

“Hunnam, Grant, Farrell dominate the screen. Ritchie’s best since Snatch.”

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1917

“Utterly spectacular on a technical level but don’t expect optimism.”

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