Coming from HBO (who we are massive fans of as we briefly eluded to here), Ice On Fire is a documentary focusing on solutions to our escalating environmental crisis and is now streaming first on Showmax in South Africa, just months after its world premiere at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival. The documentary has a 90% critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes and “should be essential viewing for anyone who plans to carry on living on the planet,” to quote Screen International.

“My partners and I made Ice On Fire to give a voice to the scientists and researchers who work tirelessly every day on the front lines of climate change,” says DiCaprio. “We wanted to make a film that depicts the beauty of our planet while highlighting much-needed solutions across renewable energy and carbon sequestration. This film does more than show what is at stake if we continue on a course of inaction and complacency – it shows how, with the help of dedicated scientists, we can all fight back. I hope audiences will be inspired to take action to protect our beautiful planet.”

With sweeping cinematography of a world worth saving, Ice On Fire was filmed in nine countries across the globe, including Alaska, America, Costa Rica, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland.

Directed by Leila Conners, who also made The 11th Hour with DiCaprio, Ice On Fire emphasises the importance of an immediate, two-pronged approach to reversing the crisis: reducing carbon emissions through traditional renewable energy sources and new ones, like tidal energy, and implementing “drawdown” measures, focusing on methods for drawing down and sequestering carbon, including direct air capture, sea farms, urban farms, biochar, marine snow, bionic leaves and others.

“Science has long proven we have existing technologies that work, and they are already being implemented,” says DiCaprio in the documentary. “It’s just become a matter of political will and scale. We need a multitude of solutions moving forward simultaneously in order to solve this crisis.”

This one not only looks pretty cool but is also very meaningful, watch Ice On Fire first on Showmax in South Africa.

He is back this time with a more than tentalising prospect, it comes in the shape of Once Upon a Time In Hollywood starring a blockbuster cast headlined by Leonardo DiCaprio, Margot Robbie, Brad Pritt, Timothy Olyphant, Dakota Fanning, Al Pacino and more. We’ve been waiting for this one and thanks to Ster-Kinekor we were able to see if first during the opening of their revamped Cinema Nouveau at Rosebank Mall. A very classy and classic feel they have there now, we certainly approve of the changes made!

Cast – Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, Emile Hirsch, Margaret Qualley, Timothy Olyphant, Austin Butler, Dakota Fanning, Bruce Dern, Al Pacino

Director – Quentin Tarantino

Genre – Drama/Thriller

Running Time – 2h 45m

Officially his (Tarantino) ninth feature film, Once Upon a Time In Hollywood is a story that takes place in Los Angeles in 1969, at the height of hippy Hollywood. The two lead characters are Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio), former star of a western TV series, and his longtime stunt double Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt). Both are struggling to make it in a Hollywood they don’t recognize anymore. But Rick has a very famous next-door neighbor…Sharon Tate (Margot Robbie). We admit that the synopsis isn’t enough to drive excitement in anyone but if you are familiar with Tarantino and also look at the rich cast (and boy does this movie have this in abundance) then you would probably sense that there is something special about it regardless.

This is one weird and ridiculous movie, so yes classic Tarantino at his best. It may not be our fave work from him but it’s one he can be proud to have as part of his very overzealous but very impressive repertoire. It won’t be for everyone we can safely say that, you will either really like it or really dislike it (again, it’s as simple as that with no in between or middle). This was evident when not even midway through it some people started leaving the cinema and some remaining, staying right through to the end (us included).

The concept is something that has stuck with us and makes us wonder what goes on in Tarantino’s head and how he manages to come up with all of it. Some may call it madness, we call it genius. We keep on referring to him and less so on anything else mainly because it’s evident that this movie is him fulfilling his wildest edges. The movie is spread across with a very interesting way of shooting and cutting to different scenes. The performances are also fantastic, more so from the two leads, DiCaprio fully investing in the role (as he naturally does) and Pitt coming through in his cool and charming way (as he also naturally does).

Screening officially on 30 August 2019, Once Upon a Time In Hollywood is a very interesting ride that will appeal to a certain type of movie watcher who appreciates different concepts brought to life through film. It’s a ride that includes a ton of cool features as well as all kinds of comedy done so in a not so classical blatant manner. It validates why we are huge fans of Tarantino films and why he will forever be unique in what he does, he’s not for everyone but he’s definitely for us. His latest work gets a 7.5 out of 10 rating from us.

Our thanks to Ster-Kinekor for the very classy screening at their equally classy revamped Cinema Nouveau cinema at Rosebank Mall. If anything, go there to just experience that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvjeZt1fyIg

For those who aren’t aware, Tarantino is known for being one of the most eccentric movie directors around with a particular flair for the dramatic most evident in almost anything and everything he’s involved in…strangely, that’s part of the reason why we are huge fans of his. His movies are easily not to everyone’s taste but they do work and have been huge successes in the box office, some of these include Django Unchained, The Hateful Eight, Pulp Fiction just to name a few. With a director like that complete with a blockbuster cast, you would be crazy for not wanting to see this one. Once Upon a Time In Hollywood is set to hit cinemas on 26 July 2019.