Film Reviews by Richard Phillips
Balibo: A war crime exposed
By Richard Phillips, August 17, 2009
Balibo tells how five young reporters working for Australian television were murdered in East Timor by the Indonesian military in the lead-up to the invasion of the tiny country in 1975.
Sydney Film Festival 2009—Part 5
Several movies well worth revisiting
By Richard Phillips, July 17, 2009
This is the last in a series of articles on the 56th Sydney Film Festival. Parts 1, 2, 3 and 4 were posted on July 9, 10, 13 and 14 respectively.
Sydney Film Festival 2009—Part 1: Courage and audacity sadly lacking
By Richard Phillips, July 9, 2009
The quality of new work screened at this year’s Sydney Film Festival was patchy and generally undemanding, with critical human issues largely unexplored.
“To show the beauty of this reality”
Film director Sergey Dvortsevoy speaks with WSWS
By Richard Phillips, May 6, 2009
Sergey Dvortsevoy, director and co-writer of Tulpan, spoke with the World Socialist Web Site during his recent visit to Australia.
Tulpan: Poverty and unrequited dreams on the Kazakh steppes
By Richard Phillips, May 6, 2009
Documentary filmmaker Sergey Dvortsevoy’s Tulpan is a gentle but engaging drama about shepherds in southern Kazakhstan.
55th Sydney Film Festival—Part 6
Deborah Kerr: an actor with genuine subtlety and integrity
By Richard Phillips, September 23, 2008
This is the last in a series of articles on the 2008 Sydney Film Festival. Part 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 appeared on September 16, 17, 18, 19 and 22 respectively.
55th Sydney Film Festival—Part 5
Yung Chang speaks with WSWS about Up the Yangtze
By Richard Phillips, September 22, 2008
This is the fifth in a series of articles on the 2008 Sydney Film Festival. Part 1, 2, 3 and 4 appeared on September 16, 17, 18 and 19 respectively.
55th Sydney Film Festival—Part 4
Contemporary dramas from Israel, Australia and South Africa
Jerusalema
By Mile Klindo, September 19, 2008
This is the fourth in a series of articles on the 2008 Sydney Film Festival. Part 1, 2 and 3 appeared on September 16, 17 and 18 respectively.
55th Sydney Film Festival—Part 3
Noteworthy documentaries—from Australia and Canada
By Richard Philips and Ismet Redzovic, September 18, 2008
This is the third in a series of articles on the 2008 Sydney Film Festival. Part 1 appeared on Tuesday September 16 and Part 2 on Wednesday September 17.
55th Sydney Film Festival—Part 2
Socially meaningful, but limited
Rain of the Children
By Richard Phillips and Ismet Redzovic, September 17, 2008
This is the second in a series of articles on the 2008 Sydney Film Festival. Part 1 was posted on September 16.
55th Sydney Film Festival—Part 1
A few intelligent movies, but lost in an increasingly industry-oriented event
Serious work
By Richard Phillips and Ismet Redzovic, September 16, 2008
This year’s Sydney Film Festival from June 4-22 screened 55 documentaries, 117 feature films, and 45 short films, one of the largest programs mounted by the 55-year-old event. It also inaugurate...
Racism and small-town bigotry
Australian Rules, directed by Paul Goldman
By Richard Phillips, September 19, 2002
Australian Rules, directed by Paul Goldman and based on Phillip Gwynne’s semi-autobiographical novel Deadly, Unna? is a compassionate exposure of racism and small-town bigotry and its tragic consequ...
