Movie reviews of Eric Hillis

The movie develops into a well-meaning look at a young man trying to make the most of his life but it's rather pedestrian in how it conveys this. Review

Inheritance tells its story with machine-tooled precision, but it's recognisably human in its emotional messiness. Wilson, James and Garces have left an impressive calling card with this zippy but sensitive tale of familial strife. Review

The film's one asset is Kirk, who fully commits to the part and as she previously displayed in The Lair, is every inch the convincing action heroine. Review

Hennig and Murphy will no doubt get more work from this, but the audience is left to wonder how they might fare with more substantial material. Review

As Bernard, Nelson delivers a knockout performance, the sort that would prompt a boxer to immediately retire because they suspect they'll never be this good again. Review

There's barely enough material here to hold our interest for a 20 minute short, making Divinity a largely insufferable experience. Review

Sometimes we might feel like we want to retreat to some metaphorical home planet, that maybe there's another world that's a more comortable fit, but we're stuck here on Earth with humans and all their flaws. The only way to survive is to make peace with the fact that sometimes hell is other people, but other people can also be heavenly. And sometimes they make movies as endearing as Sky Peals. Review

It won't develop a Reservoir Dogs or Usual Suspects cult following, but as a rare post-Tarantino ensemble crime thriller that plays its scenario with a straight face, Detained is worth interrogating for 97 minutes. Review

What makes the film's later scenes so devastating is the intoxicating nature of the early scenes as Owen and Maddy bond over their favourite show. Review

The Weak and the Wicked is strongest when observing the quotidian details of life behind bars for women. There are grim moments that remind us of what a cruel era this still was despite progressive efforts at reforming the prison system. Review

The sets are the only artifical aspect of Thompson's film, which portrays its world so vividly you can almost smell the uncollected garbage... Review

Springall is captivating as a child grappling with the fact that her father might be a monster, but the movie does her performance a disservice by making everything clear from the start to both Willow and the audience. Review

It's a dynamic we've seen in countless movies where maverick cops give their chiefs ulcers with their dogged determination, but here it's tied directly to '90s communist China's obsession with keeping up appearances. Review

The Echo's realm is palpably elemental, a vividly portrayed existence of dirt, water and flame, visually culminating in the trifecta of a lightning storm. A languid and poetic representation of an unsung society. Review

Thelma has a similar setup to the recent Dale Dickey headlined thriller The G, but where that movie traded in gritty realism, Thelma opts for a light comic approach. Review

By embracing the simplicity of their setup, Mulholland and the Kohnens have crafted a comic thriller that recalls the b-westerns of the '50s and the rugged, bloodsoaked action movies of the '70s, all while keeping its tongue lodged firmly in its tobaccy chewin' gums. Review

Twister was no masterpiece but its sequel is so devoid of anything that might hold our attention that it plays as though a tornado has swept through the 1996 movie and laid waste to most of the elements that almost made it work. Review

Matthew Herbert's score swells with ethereal wonder in moments of horror, reminding us that while we may recoil from what we're seeing, for Richard and Juliette it's a spiritual rebirth. Review

I'm all for surrealism and ambiguity, but for both to work requires a focussed vision from a filmmaker, something Roy fails to demonstrate in her misformed and frustrating debut. Review

While McCarthy's films nod to clear influences, they're filled with moments of gob-smacking originality. Review

Unfortunately all of Perkins' good work in building this almost suffocating sense of dread is derailed when Cage's Longlegs eventually takes centre stage. The actor is horribly miscast it's disappointing to see him fall back once again on his over-the-top schtick. Review

It's a shame Maxxxine is such an empty experience as it's anchored by a tremendous performance by Goth as the sort of determined '80s woman who views Madonna's 'Material Girl' as a philosophical tract. Review

With its impenetrably murky picture and over-reliance on dialogue, The Last Breath might as well be an audio drama. Review

While there's a surprising amount of pathos here, it's interwoven organically with the action and comedy. Review