Awards season is drawing close. Trailers are beginning to emerge for some of the biggest name contenders for the coming competitions. Last week we had the Coen Brothers with True Grit. It looks like once again they’ll be squaring off against the legendary Clint Eastwood (Invictus, Gran Torino), as he brings us [...]

Indian spiritual leader Mahatma Gandhi got his own Hollywood biopic. So did legendary French heroine Joan of Arc, gay rights politician Harvey Milk, sporting great Muhammad Ali, Cuban revolutionary Che Guevara…heck, even gangster rapper 50 Cent got one.

So why is it that Nelson Mandela — a man who served a 27 year jail sentence in South Africa before being elected President of the nation that imprisoned him – gets his Hollywood biopic thrown in with a sports movie? Are you trying to tell me his story wasn’t quite inspirational enough?

Worst of all, Invictus isn’t even a good sports film. Like the pseudo biopic on Mandela, the rugby half is both shallow and generic, qualities echoed by the horrendously mawkish theme song ‘Colorblind’ that is enough to make this seem like a parody of an inspirational film. It’s hard to believe that the man responsible for this unmitigated disaster is none other than American film icon Clint Eastwood (Million Dollar Baby, Gran Torino).

So why is it that Nelson Mandela — a man who served a 27 year jail sentence in South Africa before being elected President of the nation that imprisoned him – gets his Hollywood biopic thrown in with a sports movie? Are you trying to tell me his story wasn’t quite inspirational enough?

Worst of all, Invictus isn’t even a good sports film. Like the pseudo biopic on Mandela, the rugby half is both shallow and generic, qualities echoed by the horrendously mawkish theme song ‘Colorblind’ that is enough to make this seem like a parody of the inspirational film. It’s hard to believe that the man responsible for this unmitigated disaster is none other than American film icon Clint Eastwood (Million Dollar Baby, Gran Torino).

So why is it that Nelson Mandela — a man who served a 27 year jail sentence in South Africa before being elected President of the nation that imprisoned him – gets his Hollywood biopic thrown in with a sports movie? You’re telling me his story wasn’t quite inspirational enough already?

Worst of all, Invictus isn’t even a good sports film. Like the pseudo biopic on Mandela, the rugby half is both shallow and generic, qualities echoed by the horrendously mawkish pop song ‘Colorblind’ that insisted on ruining the best part of the film; the credits. It’s hard to believe that the man responsible for this unmitigated disaster is none other than American film icon Clint Eastwood (Million Dollar Baby, Gran Torino).

 In the eyes of industry renowned French cinephile Pierre Rissient, liking a movie is not enough if you don’t like it for the right reasons. If you so happen to disagree with Rissient’s opinions on a film he has championed, then he will be the first to tell you that your opinion is wrong. Simple as that.

This week, three films are opening across Australia in wide release:Changeling, Pride and Glory and Transporter 3.

Continue reading for a complete run-down of these films!