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Reposted by Dr Luke Buckmaster

Flicks @flicks.bsky.social · 2d

While this bumpily plotted ride is far from a masterpiece - with a couple of scenes (including a soapy epilogue) deserving of immediate deletion - it’s got fun ideas and several surprises, says @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social

How Tron: Ares reimagines the Tron universe

Tron: Ares reinvents the iconic science fiction franchise, bringing its burningly bright virtual world crashing into ours. There are some surprises – and lots of “look, shiny!”

go.weareflicks.co

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · 2d

The question at the heart of this four-part series is problematically vague; no nation can be reduced to a single unifying idea. My thoughts on The Idea of Australia

The Idea of Australia review – an ambitious but overstuffed series that will make you shout ‘slow down!’

Marcia Langton, Bruce Pascoe, Grace Tame and Kerry O’Brien are among more than 60 names wrestling with the national identity in this frenetic SBS series, presented by Rachel Griffiths

www.theguardian.com

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · 2d

Handsome cinematography and beautiful landscapes can’t revive this dreary film – and where on earth is Richard Roxburgh’s accent from? My review of the NZ zombie movie Forgive Us All

Forgive Us All review – a dead-boring zombie film? That’s unforgivable

Handsome cinematography and New Zealand landscapes can’t revive this dreary movie – and where on earth is Richard Roxburgh’s accent from?

www.theguardian.com

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · 6d

It's rare to have this many cracking action movies premiering in the same month. Here's five adrenaline-charged new releases - from fiery rescues to criminal capers and nuclear terror.

October is a cracking month for action movies

Action movie lovers, rejoice! This month a handful of adrenaline-charged movies light up our screens—from fiery rescues to criminal capers and wartime terror.

www.flicks.com.au

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · 8d

The new film from veteran director Bruce Beresford feels old-fashioned and simplistic, and while it’s told from the heart, sentiment smothers the story. My review of The Travellers

The Travellers review – sentiment smothers Bruce Beresford’s heartfelt film

Bryan Brown, Luke Bracey and Susie Porter give great performances in this story about a theatre-maker returning home to Australia from Europe to farewell his dying mother

www.theguardian.com

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · 9d

The “school of hard knocks” drama must deliver students in need of help; a more interesting question is what to do with the teachers. Me on Netflix's excellent new film Steve

Netflix drama Steve breathes new life into the ‘school of hard knocks’ genre

Cillian Murphy burns slow and bright in Steve, a bruising but cathartic portrait of care, chaos, and collapse inside an English reform school—now streaming on Netflix.

www.flicks.com.au

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · 13d

Matthew McConaughey plays a school bus driver barrelling through hell-on-earth wildfire in The Lost Bus, a pulse-pounding disaster movie from director Paul Greengrass. Here's my review

The Lost Bus is a terrifyingly immersive disaster movie

Matthew McConaughey steers through an inferno in this pulse-pounding film, which showcases the intense, famously restless style of director Paul Greengrass.

www.flicks.com.au

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · 16d

Mark Wahlberg sneaks, shoots, and connives in Shane Black’s twisty new heist thriller—an action flick that thrives on flipping expectations. My review

Play Dirty is exactly what you want from a Shane Black action movie

Mark Wahlberg sneaks, shoots, and connives in Shane Black’s twisty new heist thriller—an action flick that thrives on flipping expectations.

www.flicks.com.au

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · 17d

There’s the old saying “never meet your heroes.” But what about “never piss off your heroes”? Me on the time I upset one of my favourite directors www.flicks.com.au/features/the...

The time I accidentally pissed off Paul Thomas Anderson

There’s the old saying “never meet your heroes.” But what about “never piss off your heroes”? Luke Buckmaster remembers the time he upset one of his favourite directors.

www.flicks.com.au

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · 21d

Did This Is Spinal Tap accidentally give us Donald Trump? Just kidding. Kind of. Here are my thoughts on their new movie—and the tangled extension cords of pop culture

Spinal Tap’s geriatric comeback rocks harder than expected

Spinal Tap II: The End Continues reunites rock’s most pathetic legends – who are now older, slower, but more endearing than ever.

www.flicks.com.au

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · 24d

Ah yes: the opportunistic city slicker who exits the fast lane and rediscovers the important things in life. My review of new Australian film Kangaroo

Kangaroo review – furry family feature is hard to hate

Made by the director of Looking for Alibrandi and co-written by Melina Marchetta, this children’s film gets a little cheesy – but it’s also full of very cute joeys

www.theguardian.com

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Reposted by Dr Luke Buckmaster

Flicks @flicks.bsky.social · 25d

There’s an electric energy to Paul Thomas Anderson’s #OneBattleAfterAnother, says @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social, who calls it "an exhilaratingly well-made, teeth-gnashing action thriller that unfolds on the ground, close to the gutter"

The electric energy of One Battle After Another

Violent, funny, and unnervingly real, Paul Thomas Anderson’s exhilerating new film crafts a jittery vision of America unraveling.

go.weareflicks.co

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · 25d

Critic like me simply must grumble about the glut of sequels and spin-offs clogging up our screens. But I’ll always have time for new adventures from outback sleuth Jay Swan.

Mystery Road: Origin season two review – outback sleuth Jay Swan’s latest outing is classily executed but a little hackneyed

It’s as though Mark Coles Smith has always played the role – the highest of compliments given that he’s filling Aaron Pedersen’s very big cowboy boots

www.theguardian.com

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · 26d

Every frame is like a painting in Kogonada’s beautiful romantic drama. But, do we really feel this work, or admire it from behind glass? My thoughts

The perilous prettiness of A Big Bold Beautiful Journey

Every frame is like a painting in Kogonada’s beautiful romantic drama. But, asks Luke Buckmaster, do we really feel this work or admire it from behind glass?

www.flicks.com.au

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · 28d

The title "Australia 3D" brings to mind two equally terrifying possibilities. The first: a smorgasbord of stereotypical Australian images. The second: another version of a terrible Baz Luhrmann movie. Thank god this film is neither.

Australia 3D review – the world’s most majestic tourism ad

This Imax documentary features stunning landscapes and images of Australia’s varied fauna – that wouldn’t be out of place on the back of a plane seat

www.theguardian.com

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · 29d

The great irony about this film is that its characters save the world by using the devil’s music. I put my fingers in my ears and attempt to understand its phenomenal popularity

The terrible irony at the heart of KPop Demon Hunters

Flicks lead critic Luke Buckmaster puts his fingers in his ears and tries to comprehend the incredible success of KPop Demon Hunters, which is now Netflix’s most streamed movie.

www.flicks.com.au

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · Sep 15

The hollowness of AKA Charlie Sheen feels almost fitting - as if the show is conceding that in Hollywood, spectacle is its own reward. My review of Netflix's entertaining tell-all

AKA Charlie Sheen delivers what we want: pure, uncut debauchery

From tiger blood to 18 hour nosebleeds, AKA Charlie Sheen serves unfiltered chaos and indulgence. It’s spectacle over substance, but very entertaining.

www.flicks.com.au

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Reposted by Dr Luke Buckmaster

Flicks @flicks.bsky.social · Sep 12

Blurred reality and redefined storytelling - @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social travelled to Venice Immersive, a haven for virtual and mixed reality enthusiasts held annually as part of the Venice Film Festival.

An island of other realities: the magic of Venice Immersive

Venice Immersive – recently visited by Flicks critic Luke Buckmaster – is part of the Venice Film Festival, devoted to virtual and mixed reality experiences. It showcases art that blurs reality and re...

go.weareflicks.co

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · Sep 11

Blur is an amazing mixed reality and immersive theatre experience telling a cautionary tale about the dangers of genetic mutations. I experienced it at this year's Venice Immersive

Blur review (Venice Immersive)

This hybrid mixed reality and immersive theatre experience from co-directors Craig Quintero and Phoebe Greenberg is a cautionary tale about the dangers of genetic mutations and the human desire to tra...

www.thevrcritic.com

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · Sep 10

My review of ghost movie Went Up the Hill - one of those stiff, formally austere productions that critics feel obliged to describe as “meditative” or “cerebral” www.theguardian.com/film/2025/se...

Went Up the Hill review – icy ghost story feels a little empty

Dacre Montgomery and Vicky Krieps star as a pair of strangers tethered by a late mutual relative who begins to inhabit their bodies. It’s deadly serious – too serious

www.theguardian.com

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · Sep 10

Are mixed reality headsets the future - or A future - of live theatre performances? The implications for set design, staging etc are massive. Read my piece on L'Ombre, a wild cross-reality musical I saw in Venice

L'Ombre review (Venice Immersive)

L’ombre is an hour-long mixed reality dance experience combining a handful of live performers, and a percussionist, with countless virtual extras and all sorts of incandescent digital scaffolding. It’...

www.thevrcritic.com

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · Sep 5

My passion for virtual reality brought me to Venice as a guest of the Venice Film Festival. I spent most of my time on a tiny island, which lies dormant until it becomes Venice Immersive - an entire island of virtual and mixed reality experiences. There's nothing else in the world like it.

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · Sep 2

The original The Running Man is a messy, neon-soaked joyride, but its flaws give Edgar Wright’s upcoming remake plenty of room to improve.

How the new The Running Man can improve on the original

The original The Running Man is a messy, neon-soaked joyride, but its flaws give Edgar Wright’s upcoming remake plenty of room to improve.

www.flicks.com.au

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · Sep 1

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Dr Luke Buckmaster @lukebuckmaster.bsky.social · Sep 1

🤣 Yes, many things, but no films. The focus of my visit is the Venice Immersive section of the program. The curators invited me there as a special guest of the festival, after I launched The VR Critic. What they have done is incredible. An island dubbed Immersive Island, devoted to VR/AR

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