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Director Caroline Vignal has reunited with Cesar winning Laure Calamy for this dramedy about a woman looking to find herself sexually after she realises how stale her physical relationship has become with her husband; played here by Vincent Elbaz. I went into this film with high hopes, and whilst I enjoyed it, I was a little underwhelmed by the scripting which ultimately let down the brilliant leading lady.

I have really been enjoying Laure Calamy's evolution as an actor in recent years, and her turn as 'Antoinette' in 'My Lover, My Donkey & I' (also known as 'Antoinette in the Cevennes') won her hearts around the world, this character of 'Iris' feels like a bit of a step back. As always likable and relatable as Laure is in her movies (the actor is blessed with a warm, natural air about her), I wonder if she is a little limited range wise, as these morally fluid characters she has played several times now ('Les Cyclades' - aka 'Two Tickets To Greece' last year was another role in that vein), will get a bit thin, if the material is not sharp enough to carry her.

'Full Time' for which Laure was again Cesar nominated was terrific and she displayed a gritty and more serious side; so too 'Annie's Fire', but 'Iris & The Men' suffers from too many tonal shifts; making it hard to connect with our protagonist at times.

There is an inventive use of technology in this movie and some funny ways to convey the journey 'Iris' takes in getting to know herself sexually, but in the end, the conclusion and piece de resistance, feels somewhat contrived and therefore not earned.

But there is a lot to enjoy about Laure here. Her comedic tics and timing are well utilised. I just wish the material had been stronger, sharper and that the tone was a little more consistent. Depending on your own morality, you may like and endorse everything that 'Iris' instigates for herself. For me, I appreciated the journeys that Writer/Director Vignal and star Calamy took in the Cevennes more than the urbane Parisian ones taken here.

I am proudly the first to review this little gem. Filmed in 2018/19 but delayed due to the obvious, this Australian feature I came to view as part of the AACTA screening and judging process for the 2022 awards. I wouldn't have known it was filmed three years ago and its themes are quite timeless.

All I really want to say about 'Smoke Between Trees' is that unfolds delicately but with drama, and humour as it explores subjects as resonant as prejudice, race, family, grief and loss, love, and belonging. It carefully weaves its concerns through the journey of Tiriel Mora's character and he gives a career best performance.

Known for his comedic work on 'Frontline' and 'The Castle', Tiriel Mora is transformed during this movie and whilst he displayed his character's flawed humanity, he also depicted what it is to move through adversity and emerge altered. It is a really illuminating and soulful piece of filmmaking and shot in the picturesque Blue Mountains of New South Wales.

I was intrigued by the basic description of this movie but it has so many moving parts and I mean that structurally as well as emotionally. I hope plenty of other folks seek it out.

2021 has certainly seen its fair share of feature films about dementia. The brilliantly staged 'The Father', the intimately moving 'Supernova'; the yet to be released Australian movie 'Ruby's Choice' and the title reviewed here: 'June Again' starring Aussie acting legend Noni Hazelhurst.

With quite the mix of tonal shifts through its duration, 'June Again' also stretches believability and does cut corners at times, but its heart is absolutely in the right place and it gives Noni her best role in decades. I gather that the Writer/Director JJ. Winlove did research into the subject matter, and a short term respite from the ravages of dementia can occur in certain cases, but as the device used here to explore family and estrangement within relationships, it felt a little at odds with the veering from gravitas to comedic sequences and be tackling dementia.

'June Again' is made most enjoyable by the leading lady and Noni Hazelhurst gives a tour de force in the title role and reaffirms why she is a national treasure. Having won a pair of AFI awards for Leading Actress in the 1980's, this film gives her the opportunity to reach into her acting toolkit and creates a wonderfully vivid and inimitable figure; one that is sure to earn the showbiz veteran another prize.

Claudia Karvan and Stephen Curry give wonderful supporting turns as 'June's' offspring and both have some terrific scenes with the star as well as with one another. Notwithstanding some of my concerns about the construct of the movie, there is much to relate to in the family dynamics. Curry is especially good here.

There are some brilliantly written and directed sequences that effectively convey what must be the indescribable experience of losing one's cognitive functions. Having marveled at Anthony Hopkins in 'The Father', Noni Hazelhurst also gives a master class in facial and vocal expression to depict the tyranny of dementia. For this, the movie excels.

So a mixed bag for me, tonally, but there is no denying the cogency of the performances by the central trio, and the fact that the condition is so pervasive in contemporary life, stories like 'June Again' even with some credulity issues, are essential viewing.