No. 008 - SFF 2025 Wrap Up Pt. 2

The Sydney Film Festival for 2025 is over, but here are a bunch of reviews from a bunch of cool people!

Eddington (2025, Ari Aster)
Watched by Brock Lake at Ritz Cinemas
Ari Aster shits and fucks in Eddington, kind of. The film twists and turns me around however it likes, through the cringe infested dirt of a 2020 America in terrarium. The film barrels itself down this esoteric and noided rabbit hole of the New Mexico town of Eddington with Sheriff Joe Cross’ (Phoenix). It follows his dodgy pursuit for election against Liberal Mayor Ted Garcia in May 2020, amidst the pandemic, BLM protests and alt-right conspiracies. This is a fantastic modern western, and a genius setting for the genre. I was glued nearly the entire way through, except for an overstayed ending which does not leave too much to chew on after besides, “Woah, he really did that?!”. But all in all, this film is a lovely bridge between Ari’s genre focused past works and the surreal epic-ness of “Beau is Afraid”, but this seems to me a transitional film in his catalogue. I never knew I needed an Ari Aster western, but I’d expect nothing less than this.

Sentimental Value (2025, Joachim Trier)
Watched by Matthew Donlan at the State Theatre
Trier reunites with Worst Person In The World lead Renate Reinsve in this personal, emotional and astounding film. Nora’s (Reinsve) estranged father, Gustav (Stellan Skarsgard), re-appears in her life after the death of her mother. He also comes with an offer. He would like Nora to star in his new film, a biopic about his own childhood and relationship to his mother. This offer, and the various stages of the film’s pre-production, push Gustav, Nora and her sister Agnes to confront familial tensions. Trier delivers an exceptionally moving story with career-best performances from the entire cast. It is tender, honest and raw tackling themes of grief, parental mistakes, generational trauma and communication through art.

The Life of Chuck (2025, Mike Flanagan)
Watched by Ryan J. Cruickshank at Ritz Cinemas
Mike Flanagan’s The Life of Chuck (adapted from the Stephen King short story of the same name) is an irresistibly charming, feel-good, sentimental romp backwards through the life of our titular character, Charles “Chuck” Krantz. It has a beautifully interesting structure and methodology of exploring this ideal that each person is their own “universe” and pushes a really important message forward on the sanctity and value inherent in every individual. To be completely honest, I didn’t quite “get” a relatively simple but key part of the film’s plot until my friend explained at the conclusion of the film’s “first” (but really third) act. Regardless, I’m going to chalk this up to a long day on set before the screening, rather than any fault of the film. I wasn’t mad about this either because I honestly started to tear up (again) when I finally “got” it, because damn…this is a really sweet movie!

Happyend (2024, Neo Sora)
Watched by Cameron Greenlees at the State Library
A charming yet perceptive debut from Japanese-American filmmaker Neo Sora, who portrays a subtle sci-fi Japan through clean, striking visuals and grounded, authentic characters. Happyend follows a group of high schoolers grappling with the uncertainty of their future, mirroring the national anxiety gripping Japan as it braces for the threat of a historically-devastating earthquake. This causes their school to implement an invasive surveillance system disguised as a safety precaution that monitors the student’s behaviour and deducts points when rules are broken. It’s a compelling premise that heightens the students’ sense of powerlessness and lack of control over their lives, however through this the film struggles to find its footing. The quieter, more intimate moments of teenage life resonates deeper than the broader sci-fi and political elements, many of which feel underdeveloped. Still, these feel like the growing pains of a debut feature and I’m eager to see what Sora delivers next.

Orwell: 2+2=5 (2025, Raoul Peck)
Watched by Helena Williams at the State Theatre
Raoul Peck’s Orwell: 2+2=5 utilises Orwell’s most famous texts and imposes them into today’s international current affairs, with particular focus on totalitarian leaders across the world. Peck uses footage from numerous films, including 1984 and Animal Farm, alongside Orwell’s most famous quotes like ‘war is peace’ to draw comparisons with today’s news feeds, exploring and exposing their frightfully Orwellian nature. The documentary has a clear structure and the political commentary is easy to follow. Engaging parallels are drawn from Orwell’s literature, however, the comparisons felt somewhat surface-level at times. Presumably appealing to a left-leaning audience, I feel Peck could have explored the examples further as they stand alone with no depth aside from their obvious reference to Orwell.

The Plague (2025, Charlie Polinger)
Watched by Boils at Dendy Newtown
What Carrie does for girlhood, The Plague does for boyhood. A gripping, nauseating, re-experiencing of the visceral reality of being a 12 year old boy. What starts off as a humorous journey into the social life of a group of teenage boys at a water polo school quickly descends into an anxiety-inducing psychological horror revolving around the eponymous ‘plague’ and the treatment of those ‘afflicted’. It is a must watch for anyone who has lived through being an adolescent boy, as it captures the cyclical nature of bullying. I found it more sickening than a more straightforward horror film could have captured. It brings the audience into that world and leaves us with a vulnerability that few films struggling with masculinity can capture. I hated every second of the experience, not because it is a bad film (just the opposite) but for how effective it was at capturing the experience of being 12 again. It is a film worth watching for those who have been bullied, bullied or done both.

Romería (2025, Carla Simón)
Watched by Matthew Donlan at Ritz Cinemas
The latest film from the Spanish director follows Marina, an eighteen year old orphan seeking answers about her parents through a visit to her extended family. Unfolding across five days, the film creates a strong feeling of memory through diary entries, voice over and camcorder recordings. It is a deeply personal and moving film that slowly builds to an astounding third act. One scene in particular, while on paper may seem like an Aftersun imitation, is a bold and devastating moment which captures the immense loss resulting from the AIDS crisis.

Editor’s Recommendation

This Friday is World Refugee Day and both Miya Miya and the State Library are recognising the day with film screenings. Head out to one of the screenings or consider donating to refugee charities to show your support.

Screenings: Thursday 19 June - Wednesday 25 June

Inner West Libraries Film Club
Days of Rage: The Rolling Stones’ Road to Altamont (2020, Tom O’Dell)
Thursday

Queer Screen
Pride Screenings and Market
Sunday

Miya Miya Film Club
The Staging Post (2017, Jolyon Hoff)
Friday (SOLD OUT - waitlist only)

VHS Fleapit
Miami Connection (1987, Y.K. Kim & Park Woo-Sang)
Tuesday

Spanish Film Festival | 19 June - 9 July
Samana Sunrise (2024, Rafa Cortes)
Opening Night
Thursday

El 47 (2024, Marcel Barrena)
Centrepiece Premiere
Sunday

State Library NSW
Goodbye Julia (2023, Mohamed Kordofani)
Thursday

Golden Age Cinema | selected highlights
Bring Her Back (2025, Danny & Michael Philippou)
Friday & Sunday

Universal Language (2024, Matthew Rankin)
Tuesday

Ritz Cinemas, Randwick | selected highlights

Robert Altman Retrospective (link)
The Long Goodbye (1973, Robert Altman)
Thursday

Cult Classics (link)
Sorcerer (1977, William Friedkin)
Saturday & Monday

Celluloid Film (link)
Psycho (1960, Alfred Hitchcock)
Friday

Classic Matinees (link)
Sabrina (1954, Billy Wilder)
Saturday & Monday

Make It Musical (link)
A Hard Day’s Night (1960, Richard Lester)
Sunday & Wednesday

Meet Cute (link)
Moonstruck (1987, Norman Jewison)
Tuesday

Dendy Newtown | selected highlights

Bring Her Back (2025, Danny & Michael Philippou)
Daily

Dangerous Animals (2025, Sean Byrne)
Daily

Night Shift (link)
Sorcerer (1977, William Friedkin)
Daily

Palace Cinemas | selected highlights

Bring Her Back (2025, Danny & Michael Philippou)
Daily

Cult Vault (link)
The Decline of Western Civilisation Part II (1989, Penelope Spheeris)
Monday

Matinee Memories (link)
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954, Stanley Donen)
Saturday

Museum of Contemporary Art
Dahomey (2024, Mati Diop)
Saturday

Sydney Film Festival | selected highlights
Death of an Undertaker (2025, Christian Byers)
Thursday

The Golden Spurtle (2025, Constantine Costi)
Thursday