Welcome to MUFF 15 folks!
This year has been a real struggle, juggling my own busy film career and running this festival – but, hey, no rest for the wicked, right?
First, I’m here to spread the good news! The Rebel Film Festival par excellence The Melbourne Underground Film Festival is back. Sept 12 to 19 at Backlot Cinemas – our great new venue – and future home (we hope!). We are laying on you wild new Indy Cinema – features and shorts – from both here and abroad. We aim to put the Free Spirit back in to the Contemporary Cinema scene. The Theme is Evolve or Die – the Evolution of the New Cinema – out of the Death of Film and the old paradigm – and that’s what we are about. Times are tough but through innovation great things can happen. Though we still LOVE Film, of course, and applaud the efforts of Quentin Tarantino, Martin Scorsese and others who protect it’s flame.
But for now -MUFF 15 coming at you
A bit about us: MUFF is an independent film festival running since 2000 that supports Indy, Guerrilla, micro budget, underground and avant garde cinema. It has a nationalist focus on local Australian movies with some overseas material and tries to foster a Second Renaissance in Australian independent cinema – like that of the 1970’s. It applauds genre, transgressive and aggressive genre film making, embracing controversy and flying in the face of Political Correctness at times.
We have a great selection of films that speaks for itself. From Chris Mitchell’s wonderful Start Options Exit on Opening Night through to Stuart Simpson’s confronting and innovative Chocolate Strawberry Vanilla on Closing Night. With over 50 other films in between. So get in to it!
Best Regards,
Richard Wolstencroft
MUFF Festival Director
P.S. The MUFF Retrospectives of cult and genre cinema of the past – that we normally program – will happen at Earthcore 2014 at a Special Outdoor Cinema from Nov 27 to Dec 1 – therefor happening outside the body of the main festival. We have a truly mad, mind bending and wild selection of cinema we’re arranging – incl past MUFF hits from our whole 15 years. The Earthcore/MUFF Special Event Program will be on the MUFF website soon – and will be a must see movie marathon and great addition to this years Earthcore Event.
The Rover by David Michod Reviewed
August 30, 2014
on The Rover by David Michod. A complete misfire Apocalyptic musing movie from Michod after the somewhat impressive local crime drama Animal Kingdom. Guy Pearce is uber grim as a completely unlikeable main character, basically, trying to get his car back in a sad sack Mad Max universe that’s filled inexplicably with lots of Asian outback extras. Guy Pearce’s part is one dimensional and dreary – but at least he can act his part and carry it. He is joined by Robert Pattinson in an excremental role of a semi retarded American hick side kick – who for some reason is in the Aussie outback – being forced to go with Pearce. Normally just wooden, Robert Pattinson is bordering on the embarrassing in this film as his overwrought attempts at acting chew the scenario and his put on accent grates the ears and nerves. The nondescript script is also somewhat weak and meanders all over the place. Has a few nice moments of grim violence and nihilism and a new take on a local Apocalypse – but that fails to hold together and redeem this rather dull and bleak film.
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