"David Stratton: A Cinematic Life", a documentary about Australia's greatest movie critic

Review by Antony Cirocco - 10-06-2025

“David Stratton: A Cinematic Life” directed by Sally Aitken is a historical, reflexive documentary and character study rolled into one. It’s a film directed by Sally Aitken, quite possibly one of Australia’s most experienced and celebrated documentary makers. This is a film about an Australian, for Australians. David Stratton is Australia’s preeminent film critic and this film is about him and his journey through time and the unique cultural landscape of Australian Cinema. It features a range of Australian acting greats, Nicole Kidman, Judy Davis, Russell Crowe and Jack Thompson, to name a few. Some of Australia’s greatest directors also make an appearance also, George Miller, Baz Luhrmann, PJ Hogan and Warwick Thornton etc. It’s a stellar lineup of talent ready to speak about Stratton's Stellar career, the centre piece of which was his tenure as the Director of the Sydney Film Festival from 1966 until 1983.

David Stratton: A Cinematic Life movie poster

This film is an excellent viewing experience and the audience will walk away smarter, wiser, and wanting more Australian Cinema and knowing more about the person that has set the conversation around cinema for the last 50 years. Back to why I am writing today thou, this is a review of the documentary, and so my question is, is this documentary film good? Is it worth watching? You will have to read on to find out…ha!

There is no real discernible story structure here, it’s a bit more like a cinematic road movie of sorts. It’s quite a journey though, connecting with authentic voices along the way. This is where Aitken comes in, she is an incredibly articulate story teller, entrenched in the Australian Cinema landscape for decades, she has collated the best possible narrators available to tell the story of our cinema and our critical voice, David…

Aitken not only documented the history of Australian Cinema here, through David’s eyes but also the deep sense of the art and craft of the best of Australian Cinema, no easy feat. Much of the world's view of Australian Cinema is vetted through the lens of films like “Crocodile Dundee” and “Australia”. Bringing together, in the edit, a beautiful, nuanced, cinematic experience to a documentary was no easy feat, but it has been achieved here. 

The production quality throughout this documentary, yes, it leans on the cinematic snapshots we see, but the interviews are beautifully lit and demonstrate the best of documentary cinematography in Australia.

Aitken brings together archival footage, old films, expertly shot interviews, sound design from multiple sources, and brings energy and excitement to the mix, which is engaging and rewarding, and dare I say educational. The editing is rhythmic without being in your face. This documentary is a complete package. It’s a producer's dream.

The approach to the narrative of this film shows a deep understanding of Australian Cinema and Audiences alike. In the mainstream, David was most known as a critic who argued weekly with Margaret Pomeranz on “The Movie Show” on SBS. This documentary film has an offering here for mainstream cinema audiences making the leap from “The Movie Show” to this film, and on that level, it doesn’t disappoint. It’s for all Australians. For a hardened Sydney Film Festival crowd, this is a must watch. If you have ever looked in on Australian Cinema outside our land girt by sea and wondered about that culture that brought the world, “Gallipoli’, “Mad Max” and “Picnic at Hanging Rock”, you will be quietly impressed by the through line of quality and eclecticism that is films made in Australia. This film highlights that quality.

This film is symbolised by the journey, the journey undertaken by David, by the audience, by the history of Australian Cinema that is not the responsibility of one city or cultural group but the product of a diverse and widespread nation of filmmakers in every city and country town. It’s an cinematic road movie that spans time, place and people.

The film’s only shortcoming is that there are no real alternative voices only Margaret disagreeing with David, and it’s only ever in jest. There is some talk about racism in Australian cinema, but the overwhelming interviewee faces seen are not realistically diverse and don’t address the absence of First Nations leadership on film projects until recently. There could have been a discussion about representation in cinema, or lack thereof in relation to First Nations people. This could have been addressed in more depth and detail, as this is a pivotal subject when discussing a true and balanced snapshot of Australian Cinema.

This documentary is brilliant, almost a perfect snapshot of Australian Cinema. It’s a fitting testament to the career of Australia’s most prolific movie critic David Stratton. Ironically, he has done more to put Australian Films in front of Audiences than he has done to find critique them which is a testament to his character and love for cinema. 

The impact of this film is significant, it’s the first quality telling of the history of Australian Cinema from the “The Story of Kelly Gang” in 1906 through to the modern day, spotlighting the best films made along the way that are all a part of David’s journey. For fun, you could look many of them on your favourite streaming service and watch them. David’s taste in films is impeccable after all, how else would he have remained the Director of the Sydney Film Festival for all those years. 

This is an excellent documentary and well worth a watch 4 out of 5.

Review by Antony Cirocco

Check out the trailer