The Sheep Detectives (2026), directed by Kyle Balda

George Hardy loves his sheep so much he names them all and reads them whodunnit tales every evening. When he dies suddenly they are determined to use all they have learned from their devoted shepherd to find out what happened, even if it means educating the local copper to do his job. Suspects include the local butcher, a neighbouring shepherd, an irascible innkeeper and George’s long lost daughter. A star-studded cast includes Hugh Jackman, Emma Thompson and Julia Louis-Dreyfus; they flock together to bring this shaggy tale to life, providing laughs all the way through. The life lessons and sentimentality towards the end are laid on a bit thick, but overall it’s a clever and entertaining film for all ages.

The Devil Wears Prada 2 (2026), directed by David Frankel

At the top of her game in journalism, Andy Sachs nevertheless finds herself in need of a job and back at Runway Magazine to rescue its reputation after a fast fashion scandal. Twenty years after the original, all the major players have reunited for this sharply funny sequel that softens the focus on fashion to depict the dire state of publishing. It also makes some digs at tech bros and media magnates along the way. Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt and Stanley Tucci clearly have fun with it, with Streep and Tucci looking not a day older than in the first outing while Hathaway and Blunt certainly don’t show two decades – that’s Hollywood. The star-studded cast includes innumerable celebrity cameos, including speaking roles for Donatella Versace and Lady Gaga. There is some interesting casting in smaller roles, including Lucy Liu as a white knight, Kenneth Branagh as Mr Miranda, Justin Theroux as a tech bro and Patrick Brammall, allowed to be Australian without explanation, as a love interest. The film attempts to show that no-one is a total villain or hero, as every human is flawed, but it is difficult to accept the blind loyalty commanded by Miranda Priestly when she is so awful most of the time. Her softer side doesn’t quite ring true, making her looking like a better option only because the alternative monsters are even worse. A case of better the devil you know?

Paddington in Peru (2024), directed by Dougal Wilson

Paddington 3 sees the Brown family head to Peru to visit Aunt Lucy in the home for retired bears. Along the way we discover the young bear’s origin story and encounter a colonial curse that puts the whole family in danger. Gentle underlying themes include dealing with an emptying nest, the importance of chosen family and judging risk versus reward. The story is monumentally silly with lots of laughs, especially towards the end, and the central joke is just lovely. Many well-known actors (like Hayley Atwell) bob up in tiny cameos, with major stars (Olivia Colman and Antonio Banderas) again hamming it up as heroic villains and villainous heroes. It’s warm family fun which, like the previous films, operates on multiple levels for wide appeal.

Barbie (2023), directed by Greta Gerwig

All is perfect in Barbie World, where every night is girls’ night, until stereotypical Barbie is suddenly besieged by dark thoughts and flat feet. She must travel to the real world to repair the damage or risk becoming a weird Barbie with major malfunctions. But patriarchy rules the real world, which is not what Barbie expected, and it gives Ken some really bad ideas to take back home. Mothers and daughters are at the heart of this film, which makes some nice points about feminism and patriarchy and has some very funny jokes. It also features some odd, unnecessary patches, such as an extended Ken dance sequence and Will Ferrell’s entire storyline as Mattel’s CEO. Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling are great as Barbie and Ken and the strong supporting cast features scene stealing performances from Michael Cera as Alan and Kate McKinnon as weird Barbie. Several of the talented cast of TV series Sex Education bob up, including Robbie lookalike Emma Mackey. Helen Mirren’s wry and knowing narration underpins the whole and the random insertion of actual discontinued Mattel toys, such as pregnant Midge and sugar daddy Ken is a hoot. The mood is uneven, with the fun at times threatening to veer off into mawkish sentimentality, while the off-beat ending is apparently there only to serve the final punchline.

How to Please a Woman (2022), directed by Renee Webster

Gina is 50-something, in a sexless marriage and taken for granted in her work. Her only joy is early morning ocean swimming with a group of girlfriends. They organise a stripper as a surprise birthday gift, but she gets him to clean her house instead and a business idea is born. There are a lot of laughs along the way, as Gina organises appropriate training for her workers and discovers a huge unmet need among her peers. But can she find a way to have her own needs met? The film makes some gently serious points about women being ignored and unappreciated as they age and how women should ask for what they want. Sally Phillips is perfect as Gina and she is supported by a group of fabulous women, including Hayley McElhinney, Tasma Walton and Caroline Brazier. Eric Thomson, Cameron Daddo and Alexander England lead the male supporting cast. Australian comedic films are often disappointingly lame, but this one delivers.

Cruella (2021), directed by Craig Gillespie

Billed as an origin story of the villain from 101 Dalmatians, the film starts by building sympathy for Estella, a bullied and different child who is orphaned and winds up on the streets of London in a small gang of petty criminals. But it’s difficult to maintain that sympathy when her inner Cruella takes over and in order to defeat her nemesis, the evil Baroness, she becomes just as monstrous. It’s good to see a film with two strong female leads - Emma Stone and Emma Thompson look fabulous and ham it up to the point of bacon. There is loads of OTT action, fabulous fashion and a great soundtrack, but while it’s clever and sometimes entertaining the film is too long and, despite playing for laughs, just not very funny. It’s a struggle to cheer for a psychopath who treats her friends and allies as badly as her enemies, especially when you know she will go on to be a mass dognapper with the aim of making fur coats. Joel Fry, Mark Strong and John McCrea provide diversity and strength in support, while Bluebell the chihuahua provides most of the few laughs.

Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga (2020), directed by David Dobkin

Lars has dreamed of representing Iceland at Eurovision since he was a young child and has honed his craft over decades, with his faithful collaborator Sigrit. Despite his dedication he is no closer to his dream until all other contenders are unexpectedly eliminated. Written with tongue firmly in cheek, this Netflix comedy would be a fabulously funny tribute to the Eurovision song contest if it weren’t for some serious miscasting. Rachel McAdam is a delight as Sigrit, Dan Stevens is great as the oily Russian competitor Alexander, even Pierce Brosnan is ok as grumpy dad. The problem is Will Ferrell as Lars, because he’s just not funny. It ‘s a pity because the silly OTT story is a perfectly joyous celebration of Eurovision, in all its diversity. There are great cameos from Demi Lovato, Graham Norton and many actual Eurovision performers and the supremely catchy and stupid songs could not be more appropriate. It is all an entertaining hoot except for Ferrell, who should really stick to behind the scenes.

The Flipside (2018), directed by Marion Pilawski

With her business in trouble and her mum at risk of eviction from her care home, Adelaide chef Ronnie is drowning in debt but she can’t seem to tell her very nice boyfriend about her woes. Former lover Henry, an egotistical actor, drops in on her life and seems to offer an escape from all that’s gone wrong, but Ronnie has been down that road before and he broke her heart. This is Emily Taheny’s film and her frazzled Ronnie carries it over a sometimes-limp script and unsubtle comedy. She has chemistry with an effectively low key Eddie Izzard as horrible Henry, which helps another wise unlikely pairing. Vanessa Guide and Luke McKenzie only just avoid tired stereotypes as their respective partners – French Sophie and terminal nice guy Jeff. Tina Bursill puts in a delightful small turn as Ronnie’s demented mum. This film has all the elements for success but its ultra lightweight treatment lets it down. It works best as a charming homage to Adelaide and surrounds, with suitably appealing shots of its many attractions.

The Breakerupperers (2018), directed by Madeleine Sami & Jackie van Beek

This low budget New Zealand film had the potential to be very funny but unfortunately is not. Best friends and business partners Jen and Mel do the dirty work of breaking up relationships that people are too gutless to do for themselves. And that’s about all there is to say. Australian comedian Celia Paquola has a nice supporting role. Too often the film goes for cheap laughs and ends up being, at best, mildly amusing and at worst mildly offensive. All in all, disappointing.

The Merger (2018), directed by Mark Grentell

The Bodgy Creek Roosters haven’t won a game in three years; they lack the players to make up a full team; and their asbestos-ridden clubrooms have been condemned. Troy Carrington was a local hero who made it to the AFL, but now he is hermit - regarded as a town killer after his activism resulted in closure of the timber mill. Can he really turn around the fortunes of the team and the town by involving the controversial refugee centre? It will come as no surprise to discover the answer is yes; the fun is in the journey Troy takes to arrive there. The messages of inclusivity and diversity are not subtle, but the film is nevertheless both heartwarming and funny as Troy forges a group of misfits and no-hopers into a true team. Comedian Damien Callinan adapted the screenplay from his own one-man play and stars as Troy. Some very familiar faces ably support him, including John Howard, Penny Cook, Kate Mulvaney and Angus McLaren, as well as newcomers Fayssal Bazzi and Rafferty Grierson. It is not often that the end credits of a film are greeted with an outbreak of applause. The Merger is a welcome addition to the ‘Aussie as’ genre.

Love, Simon (2018), directed by Greg Berlanti

In this high school comedy with a difference closeted teen Simon develops an email-only relationship with Blue, a fellow student who is also hiding his sexuality. Simon is delaying coming out until he goes to college but discovery of his secret by a schoolmate threatens this plan. Martin blackmails Simon into setting him up with a good friend. Low key and understated, the film is not terribly profound but that’s what makes it ground-breaking, because it treats a teen coming out story like any other high school story. There is a nice exploration of Simon’s imagination as he tries to figure out the identity of Blue, but some aspects of the story are not quite credible. It is hard to believe that with such a supportive family and good friends Simon would not have confided in a soul, particularly his best friend Leah and especially when the blackmail starts. Nick Robinson is suitably appealing as Simon, who learns that being his authentic self is the most important thing, especially with his friends. Australian actress Katherine Langford does a good job as the thwarted Leah. The secret of Blue’s identity is kept from everyone, including Simon, until the very end, providing an appropriate reward.

Spy (2015), directed by Paul Feig

All the elements are present for this send-up of the spy genre to work, but for some reason it raises only smiles rather than full-on laughter. Melissa McCarthy is on point as background girl Susan Cooper, who evolves into an awesome action woman when she is the only agent whose cover has not been blown. Jude Law is suitably smooth as the James Bond-type who is not half the agent Susan is. A strong supporting cast includes Rose Byrne as the villain, Jason Statham parodying himself as a rogue agent and Miranda Hart as another background girl made good. The problem probably lies in the script, which is often lame and predictable. Overall the movie is fun light entertainment, but it is hard to escape a feeling that it should have been funnier.

Pitch Perfect 3 (2017), directed by Trish Sie

Not as good as the first one but better than the second just about sums up this third outing of the a capella Bellas. Now graduated from college, the Bellas are finding the real world not so fun. A reunion sees them off on a tour to entertain US troops, along with a DJ, a country rock outfit and a badass girl group called Evermoist! The lame plot is punctuated by too few funny moments, but the saving grace is the music. The riff-offs particularly are always fun. It is somewhat bizarre that a tour to entertain US troops is in Spain, Italy and the south of France, rather than where troops are actually serving, but the rather important plot device of the super yacht wouldn’t really have worked in Afghanistan. The message of family first, whatever shape it comes in, is sweet but heavy-handed. A lowlight is John Lithgow’s awful Australian accent – like they couldn’t have found a real Aussie in Hollywood. Highlights include Rebel Wilson in full ninja mode and Ruby Rose performing Zombie. The Pitch Perfect franchise has contributed to the evidence that women-led movies can make lots of money. It has been a fun ride but it’s time to grow up and move on. Hopefully the talented troupe of singing actors will find more success and the studios will invest in more women-centred films.

Paddington 2 (2017), directed by Paul King

Absurd and very funny, this sequel sees the Peruvian marmalade-loving bear trying to earn enough money to buy his aunt a special gift for her hundredth birthday. Ben Whishaw is utterly convincing as the naïve bear, with Sally Hawkins a standout as his substitute mother Mrs Brown. Hugh Grant is in his element as the has-been actor Phoenix Buchanan, who stands in Paddington’s way and sets him up for a fall. Neat little cameos from the likes of Noah Taylor, Maggie Steed, Tom Conti and a host of British character actors add to the fun, along with a fabulous steam train. A charming tale with a lovely message of inclusivity, Paddington 2 is one of those family films that offers laughs on many levels, entertaining both kids and adults because of, rather than despite the ridiculous plot.

Ali’s Wedding (2017), directed by Jeffrey Walker

Overwhelmed by the expectations of family and community, Ali tells a lie that compounds into a situation that has him living that lie right up to and including his marriage. This very interesting glimpse of the Muslim experience in Australia gives a warts and all look at life in and around the mosque, with the less appealing aspects glossed over by playing them for broad laughs. Same same but different is the inevitable conclusion. Although warm, engaging and funny, this film does not quite live up to its hype. Some of the music is terrible, the swelling orchestra under every emotional scene overwhelming rather than underpinning the point. The postscript of photos from the real life of Osamah Sami, the film’s writer, producer and star, add a note of authenticity that elevates it beyond an average, if unusual, rom com.