Bohemian Rhapsody
Director: Bryan Singer (though fired before completion)
Stars: Rami Malek, Lucy Boynton, Gwilym Lee
There are justifications for the poor critical response to this film, but the overwhelming audience response is the one to trust. It is hard to see how you could really fail in a movie built around the Queen oeuvre, and there are enough good scenes, and several powerful ones amidst them, to justify the audience ignoring the critics.
I tend to the view this film as surprisingly modest and subtle if you are open to it - and many critics are seeking answers when the point of this, as realised by the cast, is to pose questions. Rami Malek is uncannily Freddie in the performance pieces and appropriately enigmatic. Plenty to contemplate if you want to and you probably should – since Freddie’s message is not to be bound by something as limiting as your “identity”, or you can just enjoy the soundtrack if that suits. Very easy to recommend.

Hunter Killer
Director: Donovan Marsh
Stars: Gerard Butler, Gary Oldman
This is highly watchable trash, and unlike another of Gerard Butler’s recent efforts, Geostorm, actually hits the “so bad it’s good” standard it appears to be aiming for.
Anyone with the faintest clue about subs, the Russian military, or special ops will be stunned by this. It is to modern warfare what 300 was to ancient warfare. Only 300 actually was a comic book, and meant to be mythical.
Butler plays his stereotypical part to perfection (not kindly meant) with weak tributary echoes of Crimson Tide and Hunt for Red October. Gary Oldman has always admitted he sees some acting as work and is like a British Gene Hackman - a genius prepared to accept any healthy pay cheque. Michael Nyqvuist (the Scandi version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) who died over a year ago, looks like he was tricked into a contract based on number of words spoken, and then asked to stand quietly communicating by blinking in Morse.
My favourite part was the Russian destroyer captain wearing a bad rug and one of those shipboard dress uniforms that look like a cast off from a Pirates of Penzance, fully reflective of circa 1970s Soviet “style”. Heady stuff.

A Star is Born
Director: Bradley Cooper
Stars: Bradley Cooper, Lady Gaga, Sam Elliot
This film should be required to have a Lifeline notification at the end. Eros and Moros, this is Greek tragedy.
Not all the songs are winners, but there is a reason the soundtrack is Number 1 ARIA, and Number 1 Billboard. Gaga and Cooper are good with genuine chemistry (strangely absent from their press appearances) and Cooper could hardly have hoped for a better directorial debut.
Long, and some of the minutes of the final act should have been given to the first, as Gaga's Ally hits Jack's stage a little too fast, but quibbles aside this lives up to the hype, and the trailers.

Venom
Director: Ruben Fleischer
Stars: Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, Riz Ahmed
Not quite MCU, just made by Sony (Columbia) in conjunction with Marvel, this was a fairly solid comic book based film. Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams and Riz Ahmed provide the acting chops in a small cast. This is in stand -alone territory, so no need to be familiar with any other character or film.
At first glance the visual effects look good and the whole symbiote entering and leaving bodies shtick is complex and impressive, especially in some of the later fight scenes. For mine the film got stronger and funnier as it progressed and if you groove on the genre then catch this. As always with material based on comics there is an open text upon which you can project a few more complex philosophical ideas if you are so inclined.

The Girl in the Spider's Web

Director: Fede Alvarex

Stars: Clair Foy, Sylvia Hoeks, Lakeith Stanfield, Sverrir Gudnason, Stephen Merchant

Stieg Larsson died before his Millennium novels were published, but became first a Scandinavian and then a global publishing phenomenon with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, and its two sequels. Movies followed, and Claire Foy becomes the third actress to play the eponymous Girl, Lisbeth Salander. Given this is based on a novel continuing the series not written by Larsson, this film can be seen as an attempt to turn Salander into a 21st century Bond-esque franchise.

If you know the books then you know the first one was a catchy yet highly believable thriller with a couple of very memorable characters. You also know that the follow ups went off the deep end of conspiracy theories about far-right misogynist networks and infiltration of government security services, and to an extent were somewhat immature revenge porn. However, Salander was established as a purveyor of justice with a face full of metal and an incredible skill set built around computer hacking. Having previously defeated her father, now Salander has to deal with her sister - as revealed in the trailers.

Consequently, it is difficult to watch this without a consciousness of its thoroughly commercial nature and its constant genuflections to the genre. If you are familiar with even just the Bonds of the last 20 years then you have seen this all before - the super weapon software, the remorseful creator of the super weapon, the super villain with deadly henchmen, the questionable members of the legitimate intelligence world, the amazing underground hackers - with a few nods to bisexuality, piercings and, for those of you not into extreme sex practice, an intro to the vacuum bag concept (without the sexual context).

On the other hand, it is a well-executed action flick with good pacing, and it does better than many recent examples of the genre. Foy as Salander manages to evoke, with minimal effort, some of the complexity of her relationship to journalist Mikael Blomkvist (played by the Borg of Borg vs McEnroe, Sverrir Gudnason) that was one of the better features of the original books. Since she is also currently showing in First Man you have a great opportunity to juxtapose the two, and evaluate her beyond The Crown.

Juddy keeps busy consuming cultural media thus shirking real work, while posing as a student at a major Sydney university. He hosts pub trivia, and tutors at said university, for beer and book money.