In By the Sea, a couple retreats to a scenic ocean-side spot, their motivation as apparent as their baggage. Roland (Brad Pitt) is a writer struggling to put pen to paper, while Vanessa (Angelina Jolie Pitt) is a former dancer bearing emotional wounds from a past tragedy. Their individual troubles feed into a larger, common issue: the inertia in their marriage. The couple continue to look the part, but they're just going through the motions. He wears partially unbuttoned shirts, wanders around with a drink constantly in his hand, and spends more time with a local barkeep (Niels Arestrup) than with his wife. She smokes behind oversized sunglasses, stretches out on their balcony, and speaks as little as possible. They're not confronting their woes — they're avoiding them. Stepping behind the lens for her third stint as a director, Jolie Pitt explores the struggling state of a stale relationship in a script of her own making — and that she's taking on a starring role, alongside her actual husband, is by no means insignificant. Just don't expect an insight into the personal lives of one of the most famous couples on the planet. Instead, Jolie Pitt toys with the concept of being watched – something the real-life duo is no doubt familiar with, both on-screen and off. Vanessa finds a peephole into an adjacent room, discovers that she enjoys peering into the lusty bliss of a honeymooning couple (Melvil Poupaud and Mélanie Laurent), and eventually shares the experience with Roland. They gaze at the private moments of others, the audience observes them in turn, and more is seen than said. By the Sea convincingly conveys the unspoken elements of voyeurism; the forbidden becomes thrilling, whether spying on a neighbour or reading accounts of celebrity relationships. The film also shows how becoming invested in the life of someone else from afar can both mask and amplify the problems of those doing the looking, such as unhappiness and alienation. Indeed, while this may be the first time the couple have shared the screen since 2005's Mr. and Mrs. Smith, it's not just a case of lovers jetting off to a picturesque setting and sulking around a nice hotel. Jolie Pitt's feature is astute and incisive in its examination of the ebbs and flows of long-term bonds, and owes a debt to big screen melodrama and minimalism. The ghosts of great '70s European cinema – of character-based theatrics allowed to unfold slowly, and of pain rippling beyond composed faces and lavish surroundings – can be felt in every frame. Director of photography Christian Berger, a veteran of Michael Haneke's films such as Cache and The White Ribbon, certainly assists in evoking a throwback vibe and a sense of closeness. Nevertheless, it's the two leads who remain the true stars of the show. They weather some trying dialogue as well as an unsatisfying late revelation, and help the movie's repetition and tension become rhythmic and immersive. Their performances are also the reason that, even when the feature doesn't quite come together, it still remains hard to forget. In presenting a tale of intimacy and scrutiny, they're a pair no one can tear their eyes away from.
Staycationing in your own city? Heading interstate for a getaway? Either way, deciding which hotel to spend the night in can depend on a range of factors. Some are straightforward, such as location and price. Others span the broader experience, including amenities, facilities, ad onsite restaurants and bars — and whether the place you're bunking down in serves cocktails using spirits that it has barrel aged itself. Set to open in Melbourne's growing 80 Collins Street precinct in late March, Next Hotel Melbourne ticks the last box — and it's the first hotel in Australia to do so. It'll be home to a space called the Barrel Room, where it'll run a wood-ageing program for spirits, cocktails and herbal liquors. You'll be able to drop in, make your pick, see your choice decanted, have a taste and even make requests regarding what else should be barrel aged. Those tipples will also form part of Next Melbourne's own signature bottled cocktail lineup, which'll be stocked in the in-room mini-bars. Also on offer at the new Melbourne 24-storey spot: 225 guest rooms; design touches that span marble, eye-catching lighting and art by Jonny Niesche, Consuelo Cavaniglia and Julia Gorman; and in-suite espresso machines and cocktail-mixing stations. The site will also include a club area for working and meeting away from home, complete with its own food and drink selection, plus a fitness centre with on-call personal trainers. Overseen by Daniel Natoli and Adrian Li, Next Melbourne will feature dining and drinking venue La Madonna, too, which'll span across an entire floor. Also due to open in late March, it'll offer share plates at the bar, a lounge space for cocktails, and booth seating and large tables for meals — and it's where the Barrel Room will be located. On the site's ground floor, Ingresso by La Madonna is already open, serving up coffees to start the day, an afternoon aperitivo hour, and other drinks and bites to to either eat onsite or takeaway. Next Melbourne joins a much-talked about precinct, with 80 Collins Street also just welcoming Farmer's Daughters — and already home to opulent champagne bar Nick & Nora's and cafe Maverick. Find Next Hotel Melbourne in the 80 Collins Street precinct, with entry via 103 Little Collins Street, Melbourne, from late March.
Head to the Gallery of Modern Art until October and the works of two artists await: eX de Medici and Michael Zavros. The first exhibition is the most extensive retrospective to date on the Canberra-based creative and tattooist, spanning more than 100 works. The second covers 90-plus paintings, sculptures, videos, photos and performances by the Queensland artist. And, for two nights only this winter, they'll backdrop two big parties. Brisbane art lovers know that GOMA's exhibitions aren't simply dazzling to look at, whether pieces by David Lynch, Yayoi Kusama, Patricia Piccinini, Marvel or Chiharu Shiota are filling the venue's walls. For just a couple of evenings each, they usually provide a setting for ace after-dark parties surrounded by all of those creative works. Yes, the gallery's eX de Medici and Michael Zavros showcases are getting the Up Late treatment. Get ready to spend two August nights seeing everything from an original classic 90s Mercedes-Benz SL convertible with water to blood swabs — a large-scale mural depicting the Parthenon in Athens, too, plus musings on fragility, death, greed, power and conflict — while drinking, tapping your toes to DJs and listening to live music. A $42-per-night ticket gets attendees access to both exhibitions, as well as the fun. On the GOMA Up Late lineup: Lisa Mitchell and Banoffee doing the honours on the Friday, August 18, alongside DJ Zed Mero; and Nai Palm and The Riot taking to the stage on Saturday, August 19, plus DJ Neesha. The event's music component will take place on the Maiwar Green and outside GOMA's entrance. As well as art and tunes, there'll be multiple spots to grab a bite and drink around the place, including at the GOMA Bistro, Bodhi Tree Bar, River Room Bar and Bacchus Wine Room. Expect live immersive art experiences and workshops, too — including eX de Medici's temporary tattoo booth, drop-in still-life drawing, and pop-up art and opera with Panayiota Kalatzis — and, as is always the case whenever it's GOMA Up Late time, the kind of gallery visit you can't have via daylight. GOMA UP LATE — EX DE MEDICI AND MICHAEL ZAVROS LINE-UP: Friday, August 18 — Lisa Mitchell, Banoffee and DJ Zed Mero Saturday, August 19 — Nai Palm, The Riot and DJ Neesha Both nights: eX de Medici's temporary tattoo booth, drop-in still-life drawing, pop-up art and opera with Panayiota Kalatzis GOMA Up Late — eX de Medici and Michael Zavros takes place on Friday, August 18–Saturday, August 19 at the Gallery of Modern Art, Stanley Place, South Brisbane. For more information and tickets, head to the GOMA website. Michael Zavros: The Favourite and eX de Medici: Beautiful Wickedness display at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art, Stanley Place, South Brisbane from Saturday, June 24–Monday, October 2, 2023. For further details — or to find out more about the gallery's full 2023 slate — visit its website. Images: installation views of Michael Zavros: The Favourite and eX de Medici: Beautiful Wickedness, Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane, 2023. © Michael Zavros and eX de Medici / Photographs: Joe Ruckli © QAGOMA.
The realisation that eventually comes to everyone underscores Once My Mother, one that dawned slowly upon filmmaker Sophia Turkiewicz. She grew up listening to stories her mother, Helen, would tell of her life, but could only see as far as the intersection with her involvement. More immediate family history weighed upon Sophia, driving a desire for distance as she grew from a girl into a woman. Unforgiving about time spent in an orphanage, she also demonstrated an unwillingness to look past the emotional scars of her upbringing. It follows that Once My Mother takes a universal process — that of discovering the real personality of our parents, of understanding the true impact of their past not just upon their lives but our own, and of showing compassion for any missteps along the way — and relates it to the audience in the only way possible: as a personal journey. Turkiewicz's documentary is dedicated to dissecting Helen's resilience through decades marked by difficulties of destruction, discrimination and displacement; however, it is also shaped by a daughter's burgeoning awakening to things only age and experience could help her appreciate. Read our full review here. Once My Mother is in cinemas on July 24, and thanks to Change Focus Media, we have ten double in-season passes to give away. To be in the running, subscribe to the Concrete Playground newsletter (if you haven't already), then email us with your name and address. Sydney: win.sydney@concreteplayground.com.au Melbourne: win.melbourne@concreteplayground.com.au Brisbane: win.brisbane@concreteplayground.com.au https://youtube.com/watch?v=-fos7dm2inE
Artists might be born rather than made, and great art might be the product of all of life's experiences, but that doesn't mean the creatively inclined have to be in a hurry to put brush to canvas. Don't believe us? Well, late Bentinck Island artist and senior Kaiadilt woman Mirdidingkingathi Juwarnda Sally Gabori certainly wasn't. Gabori might be the subject of the Queensland Art Gallery's latest retrospective; however she only started painting in 2005 at the age of 81. Of course, every year of her existence infuses her bold, bright pieces — from large-scale collaborative works produced alongside other senior Kaiadilt women, to pieces on paper created toward the end of her life. Dulka Warngiid – Land of All showcases more than 50 of Gabori's efforts, as well as shining a light on the place — an island in the southern Gulf of Carpentaria, off north-western Queensland, in northern Australia — she was linked to. For those keen to know more, a schedule of tours and talks dives deeper into the exhibition, and into a fascinating, late-in-life art career. Image: All the fish, 2005, Synthetic polymer paint on canvas. Gift of Jim Cousins, AO and Libby Cousins through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program, 2013. Collection: National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne. © Mirdidingkingathi Juwarnda Sally Gabori. Licensed by Viscopy.
Bangarra Dance Theatre is celebrating its 25th anniversary with another masterful fusion of storytelling and contemporary dance. Building on one of the earliest collaborations between Aboriginal people and the new settlers, Patyegarang traces the relationship between a spirited young indigenous woman and an English astronomer. It's a little bit like Australia's own Pocahontas adaptation but with cutting edge choreography. As the colonial fleet arrived on Eora country in the late eighteenth century, Patyegarang befriended Lieutenant William Dawes and in a courageous display of trust, began teaching him her local language. Lifted from the pages of Dawes' notebooks and modelled into an endearing portrait of friendship and cultural exchange, this production encourages a more nuanced understanding of 'first contact.' It also enlivens the legacy of Patyegarang as a striking visionary and educator. Assured by the experienced hand (or foot) of artistic director Stephen Page, along with a deeply moving soundscape by David Page, this is Bangarra's first full-length Sydney story. Imbued with a spirit of optimism and collaboration, Patyegarang promises an electric tribute to our first people, excavating an overlooked historical tale and providing an opportunity to reflect on Australia's future as a new nation.
We're in the thick of summer festivals, and organisers of Splendour in the Grass and Falls Festival have launched a brand newie: Sydney City Limits. A sister festival for Texan mega-fest Austin City Limits, Sydney's version will be a one-day all-ages event full of music, food, art and market stalls aplenty. Gracing four stages in Sydney's Centennial Park will be a serious lineup of Australian and international artists. Over 30 huge names — including international acts Justice, Beck, Phoenix and Grace Jones, and local artists Gang of Youths, Tash Sultana, Vance Joy, Dune Rats and Allday — will converge on the inner-city park for the festival. Not a bad debut lineup. You'll also be nourished by a handful of Sydney's top chefs, restaurants and food trucks, all curated by the team behind Mary's and The Unicorn. And just like the festival's American counterpart, the creative arts will get a strong representation here, too. You'll be able to explore an openair art space that showcases snapshots of the city through painting, street art, photography, video and performance art by Sydney artists. There will also be artisan markets, with the opportunity to bring home fashion, jewellery, art and merchandise.
Usually when the Easter long weekend hits, music fans descend upon Byron Bay for five days of live tunes. Both in 2020 and 2021, that didn't happen — with Bluesfest cancelled last year when the pandemic began, then scrapped again this year after a new COVID-19 outbreak saw NSW Health issue a public health order to shutter the event. Thankfully for music lovers and festival devotees, the 2021 festival hasn't been ditched completely. More than a month after it was originally due to take place between Thursday, April 1–Monday, April 5, Bluesfest organisers have announced that it'll move to October instead. So, mark Friday, October 1–Monday, October 4 in your diary. That's another long weekend, although the rescheduled fest will be one day shorter than normal. Once again, the long-running festival will return to Byron Events Farm (formerly Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm) just outside Byron Bay. Originally, 2021's event was set to be headlined by Jimmy Barnes, Tash Sultana, Ocean Alley, Ziggy Alberts and The Teskey Brothers, but organisers haven't made any new lineup announcements yet. The fest will unveil its full new bill sometime next week, and revealed in a Facebook post announcing the new dates that it has "been adding more of Australia's absolute best talent". View this post on Instagram A post shared by Bluesfest Byron Bay (@bluesfestbyronbay) Bluefest also advised that season tickets for the festival will go on sale next week as well, with one- and three-day tickets available before that — but no specific dates were provided. Eager music fans can sign up for the waitlist now, and will be notified when tickets drop. Current ticketholders will be contacted by Moshtix with all the necessary information about the new dates, rolling your existing tickets over and getting a refund if you can no longer attend. And, because five-day passes were sold for the April dates, Bluesfest organisers are promising "something very special" for folks with those lengthier tickets during the October dates. Yes, that'll also be revealed sometime next week. Bluesfest 2021 will now run from Friday, October 1–Monday, October 4 at Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm, Byron Bay. The new lineup announcement is set to be announced sometime next week — to register for the ticket waitlist, head to Moshtix. Top image: Andy Fraser
They're basic: joy, sadness, fear, disgust and anger, that is, the five emotions that swirled inside human heads in Pixar's 2015 hit Inside Out. In nine-years-later follow-up Inside Out 2, that quintet of feelings isn't enough to cope with being a teenager, which is where anxiety, envy, ennui and embarrassment come in. The newcomers arrive with the onset of puberty, literally overnight. They have no time for simple happiness; they've levelled up some of the emotions adjacent to sorrow, fright, dismay and fury, too. Although its now 13-year-old protagonist Riley Andersen (Kensington Tallman, Summer Camp) isn't actively choosing how to manage her feelings because her feelings themselves are doing that for her, Inside Out was always an all-ages ode to mindfulness, as is its sequel — and discovering how to accept and acknowledge apprehension, unease and nerves is here, like in life, a complicated balancing act. In the Inside Out world, feelings are characters, led in Riley's noggin by the radiant Joy — who, with Amy Poehler (Moxie) shining with Leslie Knope-esque positivity in the voice-acting part, is one of Pixar's best-ever cast figures. In an ideal inner world, they all get along. But workplace comedy-style, getting viewers thinking about Parks and Recreation again, that's never the case. Joy, Sadness (Phyllis Smith, Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar), Fear (Tony Hale, Quiz Lady), Disgust (Liza Lapira, The Equalizer) and Anger (Lewis Black, The Last Laugh) have their routine down pat when Inside Out 2 kicks off. They can handle everything from high-stakes hockey games, complete with a stint in the sin bin, through to learning that Riley's best friends Grace (Grace Lu, Fight Krewe) and Bree (debutant Sumayyah Nuriddin-Green) will be going to a different high school. Then their status quo is upended by the Inside Out equivalent of new colleagues storming in. It's true IRL and in this family-friendly animated follow-up to 2016's Best Animated Feature Oscar-winner: when anxiety bubbles up, it pushes to the fore. This Anxiety (Maya Hawke, Stranger Things) has a firm plan for Riley 2.0 — and also Envy (Ayo Edebiri, Bottoms), Ennui (Adèle Exarchopoulos, The Animal Kingdom) and Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser, The Afterparty) by her side. Where Joy and the crew had to help their human navigate moving from Minnesota to San Francisco in the first film, Anxiety takes the reins at hockey camp, where impressing the coach (Yvette Nicole Brown, Act Your Age) that she's hoping to play for is just one concern. Facing being a new kid at a new school all alone again, Riley is also eager to befriend team captain Valentina (Lilimar, Batwheels). With Anxiety calling the shots, nothing else, not even old besties, matters. From the moment that the workplace setup clicks in your head — not Riley's, nor her mother (Diane Lane, A Man in Full) and father's (Kyle MacLachlan, Fallout), which the film also briefly dives into — it's impossible not to see how it shapes the franchise's character dynamics. As it told its coming-of-age story, the initial Inside Out used the scenario to provide an effective metaphor for how our emotions can jostle, which Inside Out 2 builds upon with its fresh faces. Pixar pictures have been for adults as much as kids since the debut Toy Story almost three decades ago. Aptly and knowingly, the June Squibb (Thelma)-voiced Nostalgia quickly makes an appearance here. Experienced Pixar storyboard artist and now first-time feature director Kelsey Mann knows the audience, clearly, as do returning screenwriter Meg LeFauve (My Father's Dragon) and new Inside Out scribe Dave Holstein (the creator of TV series Kidding). In telling a tale that acknowledges how calmly recognising one's feelings and thoughts, aka the mindfulness holy grail, is so deeply difficult, they put that dilemma in easy-to-relate terms that everyone that's ever had a job has encountered. At the company's finest, a Pixar flick works on all levels, speaking to reality's version of Riley as a kid, teen and — not that the Inside Out realm has gotten there yet in its narratives, but it no doubt will if more sequels happen — as a grown-up. Accordingly, as much as the job comparison, anxiety's influence and the mindfulness angle age Inside Out 2 up, and smartly and thoughtfully, it's never at the expense of the movie's playfulness or sense of adventure for its youngest viewers. The brain contains multitudes in Pixar's rendering, sending Joy and the OG gang out of headquarters again to trek through personality islands, discarded negative recollections, the parade of future careers, the memory vault and more, all of which break down the complex emotionally intelligent and psychological concepts that underpin the story into fun setpieces. One such inspired move, which is also a perfect encapsulation of how the mind and personalities change in adolescence: the sar-chasm, a ravine that changes the tone of innocuous comments to mockery and widens with each phrase uttered. Several times now including in 2020's Soul, which trades emotions for souls (as well as Poehler for her Saturday Night Live, Baby Mama, Sisters and Wine Country co-star Tina Fey), Pixar has achieved the careful, expertly fine-tuned balance that is grappling with weighty ideas in an accessible way. There's an unsurprising been-there sensation to Inside Out 2, though, as it hits similar beats to Inside Out, just scaled up for a slightly older character. That's art reflecting life, however; the years pass and more emotions spring up, but the chaos continues. And while this new stint with Joy and co immediately follows the also-comparable Elemental in the studio's filmography, the sense that Pixar is repeating itself is no stronger than has long lingered in the company's pictures as its whole "what if X thing had feelings?" scenarios — which everyone well and truly knows has underpinned its narratives since the beginning — have kept receiving a workout. When a movie is this heartfelt and astute in tandem, and when it's made by an outfit known for that winning combination again and again, it plays less like an echo of past glories and more like Pixar embracing what it does best. Inside Out 2's rainbow-hued animation is flawless, and also enchantingly engaging. Although not all of Inside Out's ace cast returned — Bill Hader (Barry) and Mindy Kaling (The Morning Show) are missed as Fear and Disgust — the still Poehler-led ensemble remains stellar guide to the intricacy of dealing with one's emotions. Hawke is especially excellent at conveying the always-on pressure of anxiety. Edebiri and Exarchopoulos nail how it feels to be driven by twinges of longing and listlessness, respectively. There's no need to learn to accept this sequel: its delights are instant.
UPDATE, February 10, 2021: News of the World is currently screening in Australian cinemas, and is also available to stream via Netflix from Wednesday, February 10. The first time that Tom Hanks was nominated for an Oscar, it was for munching on baby corn spears like they were full-sized cobs. His nod for Big stemmed from more than just that scene, but the way he handled the tiny vegetables perfectly illustrates how, at his best, he can make anything look and feel convincing. He didn't win for the 1989 comedy, and he hasn't taken home an Academy Award since he went two for two with 1994's Philadelphia and 1995's Forrest Gump; however that skill has remained a vital reason for his prolonged success. And, it applies equally to the silliest roles on his resume — early movies Splash, Turner & Hooch and The 'Burbs, for instance — and to the far more serious and subtle parts. Last year's Oscar-nominated performance in A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood typifies the latter, and featured Hanks in such exceptional form that it couldn't have been easier to see him as children's presenter Mr Rogers. His latest great film, western News of the World, also belongs in the same category. This time around, Hanks plays a Civil War veteran-turned-travelling newsman who becomes saddled with escorting a child back to her family, and he's as gripping and compelling to watch as he's ever been. Hanks' character, Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd, is a travelling newsman in the very literal and era-appropriate sense. He journeys from town to town to read newspapers to amassed crowds for ten cents a person, all so folks across America can discover what's going on — not just locally, but around the country and the world. Then, on one otherwise routine trip in 1870, he passes an overturned wagon. Only a blonde-haired ten-year-old girl, Johanna (Helena Zengel, System Crasher), remains alive. Kidd soon discovers that she had been abducted by the Kiowa people years earlier during a raid that saw her entire family slaughtered, and was then raised as one of their own, but she has now been left homeless after more violence. The wagon was transporting Johanna to her last remaining relatives and, in the absence of any officials willing to take over — or ensure her safety until they get around to setting off — Kidd reluctantly agrees to the task. Reading the news is still part of their trek, but so is avoiding the many dangers that plague their ride across Texas' golden-hued landscape. If the sight of a wearied Hanks donning a wide-brimmed hat, sitting atop a trusty horse and galloping across scrubby plains feels unfamiliar, that's because it hasn't happened before — with News of the World marking his first-ever western more than four decades after he made his acting debut. (No, his time voicing cowboy plaything Woody in the Toy Story movies doesn't count.) Hanks is a natural fit, unsurprisingly. The grounded presence he has brought to everything from Apollo 13 to The Post couldn't pair better with a genre that trots so openly across the earth, and ties its characters' fortunes so tightly to the desolate and wild conditions that surround them, after all. As a result, the fact that News of the World eagerly recalls previous western standouts such as The Searchers and True Grit doesn't ever become a drawback. Instead, this adaptation of Paulette Jiles' 2016 novel makes a purposeful effort to put its star in the same company as the many on-screen talents who've shone in — and strutted and scowled through — the genre. Hanks takes to the saddle like he's been perched upon one his entire career, of course, and takes to Kidd's lone-rider status with the same naturalistic air as well. Indeed, Hanks plays Kidd as an everyman, another key trait that's served him excellently for years — but the ex-soldier is also a wanderer for a reason. A handful of poignant scenes help shade in the character's painful past, and make it plain why his eventual connection with Johanna is perhaps a bigger deal for him than it is for her. They're an ideal match, actually, even if it doesn't instantly seem like it. He's quiet and stoic, she's unafraid to voice her displeasure, and a father-daughter rapport slowly springs. But Hanks isn't the only actor who ensures that this pairing works so disarmingly well, with his young co-star just as phenomenal. For anyone who saw Zengel's performance in 2019's System Crasher, which won the pre-teen the German Film Prize for Best Actress, that won't come as even the slightest surprise. Also pivotal to News of the World is filmmaker Paul Greengrass, who directs Hanks for the second time following Captain Phillips. Working with a script co-written with Australian screenwriter Luke Davies (Lion, Beautiful Boy, Angel of Mine), the United 93, 22 July and three-time Bourne franchise helmer opts for a more polished visual approach than he's known for — less frenetic and jittery, and noticeably so, but with imagery that still pulsates with emotion. When Kidd and Johanna find trouble along their trek, including from a shady trio with despicable intentions, Greengrass expertly ramps up the pace without ever letting the film's classic feel subside. With stellar assistance from cinematographer Dariusz Wolski (Sicario: Day of the Soldado) and editor William Goldenberg (an Oscar-winner for Argo), he ensures that the wagon chase and cliffside shootout that ensue are as tense and thrilling as they are exacting and meticulous. And, when his central duo arrive in a town where the local heavy (Thomas Francis Murphy, The Secrets We Keep) isn't keen on any news he doesn't approve of, he never overemphases the contemporary parallels with today's political cries against the media. Greengrass also fills News of the World with a top-notch supporting lineup, including Deadwood's Ray McKinnon, True Grit's Elizabeth Marvel, Hanks' Turner & Hooch love interest Mare Winningham and The Queen's Gambit's Bill Camp — a touch indicative of the film's finesse on every level. In fact, as perfectly cast and reliably great as Hanks is here, in the latest role that's likely to see awards nominations come his way, the empathetic and absorbing movie he's in meets him at every turn. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SG_EVA58P-g Image: Bruce W Talamon/Universal Pictures/Netflix.
If you love swimming in the sea but loathe getting sandy, Fitzroy Island will be paradise to you. Instead of sand, most of the island's beaches are covered in tiny pieces of coral. And while the coral is manageable to traverse, we recommend packing some light weight shoes like Tevas to keep your feet extra comfy if you plan on combing the beach for hours. To get there, take a 45-minute ferry ride from Cairns and enjoy a half or a full day exploring the island. Or, if that's not long enough, stay overnight at the campground or the island's resort. There's a picturesque hike to the island's lighthouse, incredible snorkelling right off the beach, scuba diving, standup paddle boarding, kayaking and more. And, if you're lucky, you might even catch a spectacular tropical storm rolling in from Cairns in the late afternoon. Images: Tourism Tropical North Queensland
The shock of unkempt hair, the Irish brogue, the misanthropic attitude: there's no mistaking Dylan Moran for anyone else. It was true in beloved British sitcom Black Books, when his on-screen alter ego abhorred mornings, ate coasters and claimed that his oven could cook anything (even belts). And it's definitely true of the comedian's acerbically hilarious live shows. Moran is no stranger to Australia, but if you haven't guffawed at his bleak wit live, he's coming back late in 2019 to give you another chance. This time around, expect the kind of deadpan gags, wine-soaked insights and blisteringly sharp one-liners that've kept him in the spotlight since 1996, when he became the youngest-ever winner of the Edinburgh Fringe's Perrier Award. From late October to early December, Moran will tour the country with his latest show, Dr Cosmos, bringing his grumpily lyrical musings on love, politics, misery and the everyday absurdities of life to 14 Aussie cities. Coming to QPAC for four nights in December, his upcoming visit marks his first Australian trip since 2015, when he was eliciting giggles with his Off the Hook tour. That mammoth effort took in a whopping 149 cities worldwide. As well as his stint as the world's worst bookshop owner in Black Books, Moran has popped up in films such as Notting Hill and Shaun of the Dead, should you been keen to get watching (or rewatching) before his new gigs. Nabbing tickets to his Dr Cosmos ASAP is recommended. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gy3C7cMNeg Image: Andy Hollingworth.
Because two brand new places to see live music are better than one, Fortitude Valley's Brunswick Mall has just welcomed its second new venue in less than seven months. Hot on the heels of Fortitude Music Hall's launch last July, newcomer The Sound Garden has opened right next door — not only serving up live tunes, but drinks and food as well. Operating as a bar, restaurant and music venue, the 770-person newcomer marks the latest venture from Mantle Group Hospitality — the folks behind The Charming Squire, Jimmy's on the Mall and the various Pig 'N' Whistle pubs littered around town. This time, they're inviting Brisbanites into a three-level site that features a seven-metre-tall ficus hillii tree in the centre, two bars spanning 13 metres and nine metres each, moody lighting, an atrium and booth seating. If you're keen for a few beverages, you'll find a hefty cocktail menu overseen by venue manager Davor Djuric and bar manager Shane Lucas, complete with negronis, old fashioneds, mojitos and six music-themed tipples. Wine is served both from bottles and on tap, and beer and spirits are on the menu as well — but opting for a Bohemian Raspberry (with vodka, blueberries, raspberries, lime and ginger beer), Smells Like Martini Spirit (vodka, gin, cranberry, lemon and Persian fairy floss) or Pretty Fly for a Mai Tai (rum, cointreau, orgeat syrup and lime) is perfectly understandable. In the kitchen, Head Chef Craig Watson has whipped up an all-day menu that heroes woodfired dishes and locally sourced ingredients — think lemongrass pork skewers to start; salmon cutlets and chicken mignons for mains; five types of burgers, sliders and pitas; and ten kinds of pizza. If you're eager to share your snacks, grab a plate stacked with haloumi and lamb koftas, arancini and snapper spring rolls, or calamari and woodfired beef in betel leaf. And, on weekends, you can choose from a brunch lineup that includes breakfast gnocchi (with bacon, mushrooms, spinach and poached eggs), grilled prawn tostadas and french toast topped with strawberries and caramelised peaches. Because music is the star of the show, you can listen to live tunes every night of the week here — and for free as well. The music lineup kicks off at around 5.30pm each night, except on Sundays when you'll be tapping your toes from 12pm. Find The Sound Garden at 312–318 Brunswick St, Fortitude Valley — open 11am–1am Mondays–Thursdays, 11am–3am Fridays, 9am–3am Saturdays and 9am–2am Sundays.
Next time you slather your hands with sanitiser, you could be covering them with your favourite booze as well. With alcohol a crucial ingredient in the now-essential product — especially sanitiser that's effective against COVID-19 — distilleries and breweries are doing their part to help boost supplies. To the delight of coffee liqueur lovers, that now includes Australia's much-loved Mr Black. While gin aficionados can splash their digits with Manly Spirits Co's gin-infused hand sanitiser and fans of distilled and fermented sugercane can disinfect with hand sanitiser from Queensland's Bundaberg and Beenleigh rum distilleries — and plenty of other boozy outfits are jumping on the trend, too — fans of caffeinated booze can look forward to freshening their fingers with their preferred tipple. Mr Black has whipped up its own sanitiser and is shipping it around the country. It's also donated a heap of bottles of its A-class sani to a bunch of charities, medical centres and COVID-19 testing clinics. You can grab a maximum of two 500 millilitre bottles, for $19.95 each, plus a $10 flat-rate national shipping fee. The hand sanitiser is made using a World Health Organisation recipe with 80 percent ethanol, and as bottles don't come with a pump they're designed to be used as refills. If you decide to invest in some actual coffee liqueur while you're on the site — the OG ($60), single-origin ($75) and amaro ($80) versions are all for sale, as is the most adorable 50-millilitre bottle ($5.99) — or some sweet merch, and spend over $100, you'll get free shipping. We think this hand sanitiser is going to sell out super fast, so head over to the website and order yourself a bottle quick smart if you're keen. Mr Black hand sanitiser is available for $19.95 per 500 millilitre bottle, maximum of two per person.
Here's what stuck with our critics. Top Five Movies - Rima Sabina Aouf, Editor-in-Chief Silver Linings Playbook Forget American Hustle; this January release was David O'Russell's big 2013 success. Not only is it funny and moving, it's a sensitive, generous portrayal of mental illness that means a lot to many people. The Act of Killing Your jaw just drops further and further with every minute of this documentary about the 1965-66 Indonesian genocide and the ongoing exaltation of its perpetrators. Upstream Color There is no filmmaker quite like Shane Carruth, and there is no forgetting the experience of watching Upstream Color, wondering what the fuck is happening and then letting go and running with it. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire It kicks so much arse. Short Term 12 The best Boxing Day release you've probably never heard of, Short Term 12 will make you feel all the feelings. Top Five Movies - Tom Glasson, Writer We Steal Secrets: The Story of Wikileaks A surprisingly sensitive inquiry into Wikileaks and the two men responsible for its overnight infamy. Complex and impressively even-handed, it's also far more compelling than last month's The Fifth Estate. Zero Dark Thirty People often forget (or simply don't realise) that Kathryn Bigelow directed Point Break. Fact is, she's arguably the best director of action right now, and Zero Dark Thirty was a sublime example, combining heart-pumping combat with deeply personal drama. Red Obsession Rightly described as a 'wine thriller', this documentary offered an enthralling, passionate and consistently amusing perspective on the extraordinary price boom of 2011, followed by its equally dramatic crash and China's growing obsession for the iconic Bordeaux reds. Moonrise Kingdom Perhaps the darkest of the Wes Anderson oeuvre, Moonrise Kingdom is also somehow his most romantic. Quirky, whimsical and wickedly funny, it's a delightful tale of young, forbidden love. The Gatekeepers Like the Shin Bet agents it scrutinised, this gripping documentary grabbed you by the throat from the opening scene and never let go. A remarkable and candid examination of one of the world's most secretive organisations. Top Five Movies - Lauren Carroll Harris, Writer Mystery Road Both bleakly beautiful and staunchly optimistic, and with an Indigenous cultural perspective that's rarely represented in the mainstream, I'm convinced that we'll look back on it as something important in Australian cinema. The Great Gatsby Luhrmann’s 21st-century bastard iteration of the sham-American-dream classic made me cry like a small child. I don't care how uncool it is to admit — this was the first version that made me feel the true tragedy of Gatsby (a perfect, shiny-eyed Leo DiCaprio) and Daisy's predicament. Behind the Candelabra Steven Soderbergh went beyond the cliches of both a 'gay film' and a biopic to deliver touching, if typically unsentimental, twin portraits: one, a dysfunctional, tragic relationship, and the other, a destructive American addiction to consumerism and celebrity. The Act of Killing A film that changed the documentary genre and terrified and transfixed audiences more than any fiction could. If it helps the victims of Indonesian war crimes achieve justice, it may even be one of the most effective documentaries. Top of the Lake Challenging, gorgeously shot, with difficult characters and deft observations of crimes against women and the relationship between childhood and adulthood — it had everything I expect from great film. It counts. *Tom and Rima would like to go on record with the actual no.1 film they've seen this year, Spike Jonze's Her. Unfortunately, it's not out till January 16. Look for it then, and on our 2014 lists.
Musical theatre fans just keep getting more reasons to celebrate Jonathan Larson. In the past few years, none other than Hamilton's Lin-Manuel Miranda took one of the composer, lyricist and playwright's works and turned it into a movie. After tick, tick…BOOM! hit screens, a stage production toured Australia as well. Next, Aussie audiences can catch the show that made him an icon: Rent. In 2024, it too will do the rounds Down Under, kicking off in Brisbane in January. Larson created and composed the smash-hit production. Also, his Rent journey comes with quite the heartbreaking behind-the-scenes story. In the 90s, Larson passed away at the age of 35 on the day that that now-huge show premiered its first off-Broadway preview performance. So, he didn't get to see the Tony Award- and Pulitzer Prize-winning phenomenon that it would become. Plenty of other people have — when it first hit Broadway, Rent ran for 12 years, making it one of the famed theatre district's longest-running shows. And among those prizes is the Tony Award for Best Musical and the Pulitzer for Drama, all for a tale about seizing the moment, facing adversity and finding one's community. Loosely based on Puccini's La Boheme, and written to include real-life locations and events, the rock musical will bring tunes including 'Seasons of Love', 'Take Me or Leave Me' and 'La Vie Bohème' to Brisbane's QPAC Playhouse, then head to Arts Centre Melbourne, the Civic Theatre in Newcastle, Perth's His Majesty's Theatre and Canberra Theatre. If you need a refresher on the story — or you're coming to Rent for the first time, having missed past performances and the 2005 film version — then prepare to step back to New York in 1991. Over the course of the year, as their neighbourhood is being gentrified and HIV/AIDS casts a shadow, a group of friends chase their dreams and strive for their place in the world. "With Rent, Jonathan Larson unleashed a phenomenon — it would be difficult to find someone who hasn't at least heard of it. Rent is the musical of the 1990s and the early-aughts but it has proved itself timeless," said producer Lauren Peters, announcing the new Aussie run. "The characters who live in the East Village of 1990s New York navigate that which resonates so deeply with us in Australia in 2024: cost-of-living pressures, the threat of preventable disease, the subtle feeling that all the ways in which we can now communicate belie our disconnection." "And all of this sounds terribly heavy but Rent somehow takes all this and turns it into a joyous celebration of connection, chosen family and life itself — and it's that joy in the face of all of life's adversity and opportunity that is perhaps best captured in its iconic number Seasons of Love, a song which has achieved the rarest of Broadway feats and transcended the show for which it was written," Peters continued. View this post on Instagram A post shared by RENT: The Musical (@rent_2024) RENT AUSTRALIAN TOUR 2024: Saturday, January 27–Sunday, February 11 — Playhouse, QPAC, Brisbane Saturday, February 17—Thursday, March 7 — Arts Centre Melbourne, Melbourne Friday, March 15–Sunday, March 17 — Civic Theatre, Newcastle Saturday, May 11–Sunday, May 26 — His Majesty's Theatre, Perth Saturday, June 7–Sunday, June 16 — Canberra Theatre, Canberra Rent will tour Australia in 2024 — head to the musical's website for further details and to sign up for the ticket waitlist, with Melbourne pre-sale tickets available from Monday, September 25 and Brisbane pre-sale tickets available from Tuesday, October 3. Top image: Team Dustizeff via Wikimedia Commons.
Are you the type of person who sits down at a restaurant and asks them to whip you up whatever takes their fancy? If you are — or if you wish you were, and want to see how it feels for an evening — then Good Food Month's special event Trust the Chef is your kind of meal. First, you pay between $99 and $159 depending on whether you'd like matched wines. Then, you sit back and let 85 Miskin St head chef Brent Farrell strut his stuff. Just what he'll cook is anyone's guess, but given how mouth-watering his dishes normally are, we're certain that the end result of the eight-course degustation menu are going to be delicious.
First in Sydney, then in Melbourne and now in Brisbane, the biggest show in musical theatre this century has finally been sharing its Tony-winning take on 18th-century American politics with Australian audiences. Since 2021, being in the room where it happens hasn't required a trip to the US — but you will need to be in Brisbane in March to be in the room where Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda himself will be in attendance in-person for a Hamilton fan event. For the first time during the blockbuster musical's Australian time — and likely the only time, given that the show will leave the country for a New Zealand run when it finishes its Sunshine State season at QPAC's Lyric Theatre on Sunday, April 23 — Miranda is heading Down Under. The exact date hasn't been revealed, but he'll hit the River City to meet the local company of the production, and also to take part in that event for Hamilton obsessives. [caption id="attachment_773737" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Hamilton filmed version courtesy Disney+.[/caption] "I have been waiting such a long time to come to Australia and I can't wait to be with the company down under in-person for the first time," Miranda said, announcing his visit. "I have heard such great things from friends and fans in Australia, it is going to be fantastic to be able to meet them and watch them perform." Just like exactly when in March Miranda will be in Brisbane, where the fan event will happen and what it will entail — and how folks will be able to attend — is yet to be revealed, with further details to come. Still, Brisbanites and Australians keen on a trip to the Queensland capital won't want to throw away the shot to see the man who made the game-changing, award-winning, rightly raved-about Hamilton what it is "Australian fans have been so patient waiting for Lin-Manuel Miranda's visit to Australia and we have something very special in store for them when he gets here," added Australian Hamilton producer Michael Cassel AM. [caption id="attachment_774807" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Hamilton filmed version courtesy Disney+.[/caption] The Broadway hit's Aussie production features a cast that currently includes Jason Arrow as Alexander Hamilton, Martha Berhane as Eliza Hamilton, Callan Purcell as Aaron Burr, Akina Edmonds as Angelica Schuyler, Matu Ngaropo as George Washington, and Victory Ndukwe as Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson. Sami Afuni plays Hercules Mulligan and James Madison, Wern Mak does double duty as John Laurens and Philip Hamilton, Elandrah Eramiha plays Peggy Schuyler and Maria Reynolds, and Brent Hill steps into King George III's robes. Haven't become a Hamilton obsessive yet? Not quite sure why it has been the most-talked about theatre show of the past six years? The critically acclaimed hip hop musical, for which Miranda wrote the music, lyrics and the book, is about the life of Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, as well as inclusion and politics in current-day America. In addition to its swag of Tony Awards — 11 in fact, which includes Best Musical — it has nabbed a Grammy Award and even a Pulitzer Prize. Until now, Brisbanites eager to see the show had to be content with trips south or watching the filmed version of its Broadway production, which started streaming via Disney+ in 2020 (and yes, it's as phenomenal as you've heard). And yes, the $10 ticket lottery has also hit the River City, offering Hamilton tickets for less than the cost of lunch. [caption id="attachment_870525" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Australian production of Hamilton by Daniel Boud[/caption] Hamilton's Brisbane season runs until Sunday, April 23 at QPAC's Lyric Theatre, South Bank, with tickets available via the musical's website. Details of Lin-Manuel Miranda's fan event are yet to be announced — we'll update you when more information comes to hand. Top image: Hamilton filmed version courtesy Disney+.
Spring is here, the sun is out, and everything is 500 times more whimsical. Now times that whimsy by infinity. Studio Ghibli is bringing a showcase to our shores in October and it's touring all over the nation's cinemas. Celebrating renowned filmmakers Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata, the Tale of Studio Ghibli showcase will feature four films and two documentaries that explore the intricacies and beauty of their craft. If you haven't had a chance to get acquainted with the work of these two cult favourites before, this will be the perfect opportunity to get up to date. Work your way through much-loved classics with screenings of both My Neighbour Totoro and Grave of the Fireflies. Then explore new terrain with The Tale of the Princess Kaguya and the critically acclaimed historical anime feature The Wind Rises. Though the Japanese animation studio has 20 feature films to its name, the Australian showcase will feature just these four — a refined look at the old versus the new. But this won't just be for the newbies. Seasoned anime pros can get an inside look into the craft with screenings of both Isao Takahta and His Tale of the Princess Kaguya and The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness. Though the documentaries have had separate screenings at local film festivals this year, this will be their first standalone showing on Australian screens. Either way, whether you're a diehard anime fanatic or have never even seen Spirited Away, there's always room in your life for a little whimsy and wonder. Get lost in the cinema for a few hours and discover an exciting new world. https://youtube.com/watch?v=9lDrkokymLQ
No matter where you are in Australia, you've probably spent the majority of the year in your own state (if not the majority of the year in your own bedroom), with many states and territories keeping their borders firmly closed. But, the last of the interstate restrictions are starting to ease. With the exception of WA (which is currently open to only the ACT, Queensland and the NT and Tasmania, but is set to open to NSW and Victoria from December 8) and SA residents (who are still unable to visit Queensland), Australians can pretty much visit anywhere in the country without quarantining. To celebrate, Virgin Australia is selling over 60,000 fares to destinations around the country, starting from just $75 a pop. Hang on, Virgin? Yes. The same airline that, just months ago, entered voluntary administration. It has since been sold to US private investment firm Bain Capital, launched a comeback sale in early July and its voluntary administration officially ended on Tuesday, November 17. The 12-hour Happy Hour flight sale kicks off at 11am AEDT today, Thursday, December 3, and runs until 11pm tonight — or until sold out. In the sale, you'll find cheap flights on 25 routes to destinations across the country, with travel dates between December 5 and January 19, 2021. If you've been waiting to book Christmas flights home — or a summer getaway — now might be the time. Discounted flights are economy and include seat selection and checked baggage. Some of the routes on offer include Melbourne to Newcastle from $75, Sydney to Brisbane from $95, Adelaide to Sydney from $109 and Hobart to the Gold Coast from $169. [caption id="attachment_743607" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Whitsunday Beach by Tourism and Events Queensland[/caption] The discounted flights are part of Virgin's relaunched weekly Happy Hour sale series, which will take place every Thursday for the foreseeable future. As we are still in the middle of a pandemic, flying is little different to normal. Virgin has introduced a range of safety measures, including hand sanitisation stations, contactless check-in and face masks provided to all passengers (but wearing them is not mandatory). Virgin is also waiving change fees and allowed unlimited booking changes between now and January 31, 2020. You can read more about its new flexible options over here. Virgin's Happy Hour sale runs from 11am–11pm AEDT on Thursday, December 3. Find out more about current interstate border restrictions over here.
When December hits, a whole month of eating and drinking to celebrate the merriest time of the year comes with it. So, as Easter approaches, doing the same but with chocolate isn't just understandable — if your sweet tooth loves any excuse for a treat, it's downright mandatory. Trust Cowch Dessert Cocktail Bar to serve up a month-long special menu just for the occasion, too, running from Wednesday, March 8–Monday, April 10 at its Morningside, Chermside, South Bank and Broadbeach venues. On the lineup: five decadent bites to eat, two OTT dessert cocktails and a shake. Whichever you choose, they'll get into the Easter spirit — sometimes with spirits. The chocolate-only dessert offering has been fittingly dubbed House of Chocolate, and includes a golden ticket chocolate bar (aka a chocolate mousse cake made with a crunchy wafer base, then layered with milk chocolate ganache, passionfruit gel, milk chocolate mousse and vanilla cream — and coated in chocolate), loaded brownies (which come topped with white chocolate gelato, fudge sauce, toasted mini marshmallows, brownie bites and crumble, then drizzled with milk and white chocolate) and a nutty gelato dish (featuring milk and white chocolate gelato balls with dark chocolate fudge centres, then dipped in dark chocolate and hazelnuts served with chocolate fudge sauce). Drinks-wise, the white chocolate margarita is made with white chocolate gelato, tequila, crème de cacao and white chocolate ganache, then garnished with a white chocolate and salt rim — and the fudge nut fantasy includes chocolate sorbet, Frangelico, vanilla vodka and fudge sauce, then topped with whipped cream and crushed hazelnuts. Prices vary from $12.99 for the honeycomb crunch shake — which is sans alcohol — through to $19.99.
UPDATE, March 16, 2021: Due to forecast wet weather, the Howard Smith Wharves Music Trail has moved from its original dates of March 20–21 to Saturday, March 27 and Sunday, March 28. The below information has been updated to reflect this change. A visit to Howard Smith Wharves can often incite a bout of indecisiveness. Where do you start? What do you eat and drink first? Which patch of grass by the river has your name on it? Expect those kinds of questions to keep coming on Saturday, March 27 and Sunday, March 28, because the inner city precinct is hosting the Howard Smith Wharves Music Trail — so you'll need to choose between more than 30 performers playing across eight stages. The likes of Yossa Haile, Matthew Armitage, Estampa, Soulergy, Trio Balanco, No Way Jose and Peaches & The Alphasonics will be crooning tunes, spanning funk, jazz, soul and Latin music — and more. Everyone heading along will receive a passport upon arrival, which you can get stamped at each performance spot. Collect 'em all, and you'll win a prize. Between 2–10pm each day, you'll also need to choose what to snack on and sip, with more than just the usual lineup of food and beverages on offer. Hit up the pop-up gin bar, head by the oyster shack (which'll also be serving champagne) or get a snag at the sausage sizzle. Greca will be doing loukoumades, Yoko is hosting a yakitori barbecue and Goodtimes Gelateria will be getting on its bike. Entry is free, but you'll obviously need your wallet for whatever tempts your tastebuds and quenches your thirst.
If Sufjan Stevens, The Dirty Projectors or the Wainwrights are on your list of favourite bands, then you might just enjoy The Rescue Ships as well. If live music, a relaxed atmosphere and nice drinks are some of your favourite things, then you might also enjoy seeing The Rescue Ships at Black Bear Lodge. The Rescue Ships combine folk, rock and pop to create a dazzling combination of complex and intimate songs, overlaid with breathtaking vocals. The duo have been name-dropped by fellow musical luminaries such as Josh Pyke and Missy Higgins, so if anything you have read here interests you, you might just have a good time this Thursday.
At last, there may be a way to put your otherwise life-crippling Facebook addiction to good use. Japan Tourism Agency is looking to hook up 10,000 ‘highly influential blogger-types, and others’ - aka social media junkies - with a free trip to Japan. All they require in return is that the lucky recipients do what they do best, and share their experience in cyber land. The tsunami-triggered nuclear disaster of March this year delivered a mighty suckerpunch to Japan’s tourism industry. The agency is prepared to spend 1.5 billion yen on their plan to kick start tourism with the round-trip tickets, once approved by Japan’s lawmakers. The plan could well pay off, with first-hand accounts offering a personal touch to sooth the security fears of would-be travelers unsettled by heavy media coverage of the 80,000 locals still displaced by radiation. But it also invests a lot of trust in their temporary marketers to document a positive experience. Fingers crossed they don't get food poisoning from too much raw fish or attacked by the notoriously-aggressive snow monkeys - whatever you do, don't look them in the eye - along the way. Golden ticket bearers will have to pay for their own accommodation and meals, but will save at least a grand on airline expenses. So if Facebook owes you one for all the hours it has robbed from you that could have been spent having real-life experiences, keep an eye out for the launch of a website by the Japan Tourism Agency to lodge your application once the Japanese government approves the initiative.
The Sydney Mardi Gras is almost upon us and, along with it, a feast of new queer cinema is about to descend upon the city. For 29 years now, the Mardi Gras Film Festival has added the latest LGBTQIA+ movies to Sydney's big celebration, and it's doing the same again in 2022 — but, as happened in 2021, it's going hybrid with both physical and online screenings. Accordingly, if you're a Sydneysider who's keen to get your big-screen queer film fix between Thursday, February 17–Thursday, March 3, you can, with the fest showing at Event Cinemas George Street, and holding one one-off sessions at Hayden Orpheum, Cremorne and Event Cinemas in Parramatta and Hurstville. But if you feel more comfortable watching from home during the current Omicron outbreak or you're a fan of LGBTQIA+ movies located elsewhere in Australia, you'll also be able to enjoy MGFF digitally as well. The fest's 2022 lineup spans 119 films from 37 different countries, covering 32 narrative features, 15 documentaries, four episodic screenings, a retrospective and nine programs of shorts — so yes, there's more than a bit to watch. That said, different flicks will play in cinemas and on-demand, as happens with hybrid fests, but more than half of the program will be available for those playing along at home and interstate. Opening the fest on the big screen is Wildhood, which is set in Canada's Atlantic Provinces and hails from MGFF's focus on First Nations filmmaking for 2022. In-cinemas only, it's joined by high-profile international film festival circuit highlights such as Great Freedom, an immensely moving drama about a man's experiences being imprisoned under Germany's former law criminalising homosexuality; and Benedetta, which follows a 17th-century nun who shocks her convent with visions, wild power plays and lesbian affairs, and happens to be the latest feature by Basic Instinct, Showgirls and Elle director Paul Verhoeven. Or, there's the Carrie Brownstein and St Vincent-starring mockumentary The Nowhere Inn, which has them both play versions of themselves, and The Novice, about a queer student on a university rowing team. Other standouts include Mexican magical realist drama Finlandia; documentaries about queer comic creators, lesbians in post-punk 80s London and American artist Keith Haring; and closing night's B-Boy Blues, which is based on the celebrated novel o the same name. Online, LGBTIQ+ cinema fans can also check out horror film The Retreat, which combines a cabin-in-the-woods setup with planning a queer wedding; Cannes-selected Taiwanese drama Moneyboys; the relationship-focused Ma Belle, My Beauty, about a long-term couple living in a scenic villa in the south of France; and Estonia's Firebird, which charts a romance against the backdrop of the Cold War. There's also documentary Coming to You, following two mothers fighting for LGBTQ+ rights in Korea; and As We Like It, an all-female version of Shakespeare's comedy As You Like It. Mardi Gras Film Festival 2022 runs from Thursday, February 17–Thursday, March 3 at Event Cinemas George Street, plus one-off sessions at Hayden Orpheum, Cremorne and Event Cinemas in Parramatta and Hurstville — and online nationally. For more information, visit the festival's website.
As anyone who has made use of the in-flight booze menu will tell you, beers tend to taste better at high altitude. But before you go quitting your day job and cashing in all your frequent flyer points, let's consider a more accessible and cash-friendly approach. We can't get you on the next flight out of Brisbane, but we can suggest a rooftop bar for your next night out — sure, they won't get you 35,000 feet in the sky, but it will take you up a couple of storeys at least. Brisbane's got a steady cohort of rooftops currently jostling for attention, so with the help of Heineken, we've rounded up the five best picks for a sky-high night out with friends.
Two decades after Hae Min Lee's murder, the Baltimore high school student's horrific plight continues to dominate the true crime landscape. After featuring on the first season of Sarah Koenig's grimly addictive podcast Serial, it's now the basis for a new documentary series, The Case Against Adnan Syed. The four-part HBO series picks up where everyone's 2014 obsession left off — the trailers promise to reveal 'a new chapter' — not only exploring 18-year-old Lee's death in 1999 and her ex-boyfriend Syed's conviction in 2000, but the latter's ongoing quest to have the extremely complex legal matter reassessed in the years since he was found guilty. Everything from Lee and Syed's relationship, to the original police investigation and trial, to the developments up until now feature, with the film gaining exclusive access to Syed, his family and his lawyers. While the show started airing on HBO in the US in March, Australians can now watch the series, too — it's after airing on SBS throughout April, the four episodes are now available on SBS On Demand. Check out the HBO trailers below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQaTa5eTxnk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VA1qzo2WEew The series couldn't come at a more crucial time for Syed, who was convicted of first-degree murder, sentenced to life in prison, and has been fighting his case through the courts ever since. While he was granted a new trial in 2016, that ruling was subsequently appealed by the State of Maryland — only for the Court of Special Appeals to agree to vacate Syed's conviction and finally give him that retrial last March. Earlier this month in Maryland's Court of Appeals, that retrial request was denied, but Syed's attorney has committed to keep battling. Splashed across the small screen, it's certain to make for compelling viewing — but if you think you've spent too much time mulling it all over across the past five years, filmmaker Amy Berg has you beat. Unsurprisingly given how complicated the matter is, the director has been working on the project since 2015. And, with her excellent doco background — with Berg helming 2006's Oscar-nominated 2006 Deliver Us from Evil, about molestation in the Catholic Church; examining the West Memphis Three's quest for freedom in 2012's West of Memphis; and tackling the sexual abuse of teenagers in the film industry in 2014's An Open Secret — her new venture is certain to be thorough. As they did for West of Memphis, Nick Cave and Warren Ellis provide the score. The Case Against Adnan Syed is now streaming on SBS on Demand. Image: SBS. Updated: May 2, 2019.
It may have been violent, sexist and brainless, but when Sin City hit theatres in 2005, it was like nothing we'd ever seen before. Adapted by Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez from Miller's pulpy anthology comic-book series, the lurid homage to hard-boiled noir stories was one of the first Hollywood movies to fully embrace digital technology — the directors filmed in front of a green screen using high-def digital cameras before converting to black-and-white in post-production. The content was still tasteless and juvenile of course, but at least it was interesting to look at. Nine years later, they've gifted us with a follow-up. Subtitled A Dame to Kill For, this part prequel, part sequel is certainly a fitting companion piece; equally stylised, equally sadistic and equally dumb. And had it come out in 2006 or 2007, it probably would have been embraced. But it didn't. Revolutionary a decade ago, digital cinematography and effects are now the norm, as are slavish graphic novel adaptations full of manufactured grit. Sin City 2 isn't a particularly inferior film to its predecessor. It's just that, after all this time, the novelty is no longer there. It also doesn't feel as though either Miller or Rodriguez have any interest in pushing the envelope further. Fleeting flashes of colour punctuate the vivid monochrome frame, looking every bit as striking as they did the first time. But the duo never attempts to really build upon the aesthetic of their original — and without the element of surprise on their side, the results are inevitably diminished. The same goes for script, again steeped in sex and vengeance but never actually covering any new ground. In the longest story, Mickey Rourke returns as brutish good guy Marv, who along with two-bit private eye Dwight (Josh Brolin), gets caught up in the machinations of a murderous femme-fatale (Eva Green, unfortunately camp). Then there's Johnny (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), a smooth-talking card-shark with a grudge against the vicious Senator Roarke (Powers Boothe). Roarke is also the antagonist in the final vignette, one that sees exotic dancer Nancy (Jessica Alba) out to avenge the honest cop who saved her life. It should go without saying that the stories are all varying degrees of stupid. If you're not willing to suspend your disbelief every time Johnny gets dealt an impossible poker hand, or when Nancy takes out an entire battalion of body guards, then the movie falls apart before it even begins. What's harder to accept is Miller's flaccid dialogue. Gordon-Levitt is an immensely talented actor, but no-one can make the word 'ambidextrous' sound cool. There's also no skirting around the movie's attitude towards women, which is unfortunately misjudged at best and flagrantly misogynistic at worst. There is not a single named female character in A Dame to Kill For who isn't either a stripper or a prostitute — and despite what Miller apparently thinks, giving a hooker a bazooka doesn't really mean she's empowered. For the most part, the film is just immature in a boring way. On this issue specifically though, it's genuinely quite unpleasant. https://youtube.com/watch?v=6iFdPcx0W2w
If you're a fan of Gelato Messina and its frosty sweet treats, the past year or so has been mighty kind to your tastebuds. The dessert chain has released all manner of one-off specials, launched a new range of chocolate-covered ice cream bars in supermarkets and dropped a new merchandise line, for starters. And, thanks to a boozy collaboration, it has also been taking care of your cocktail cravings. Teaming up with Cocktail Porter, Messina started serving up DIY drinks kits last year — and Easter this year, too — letting you make your own boozy beverages using Messina products. Unsurprisingly, these make-at-home packages have proven popular, so one has just become a permanent addition to Cocktail Porter's range: the dulce de leche espresso martini kit. Basically, it's the answer to a familiar dilemma. No one likes choosing between tucking into dessert or having another boozy beverage — so these kits combine the two. To enable you to whip at dulce de leche espresso martinis at home, you'll get a box filled with vodka, coffee liqueur, premium cold-drip coffee and Messina's dulce de leche topping, plus Messina's chocolate hazelnut spread and shaved coconut to go on top. Then, you just need to follow the instructions and get drinking. You can pick between two different-sized packs. A mini espresso martini kit costs $85 and serves up six drinks — or you can opt for the large for $149, which makes 18 dessert cocktails. Cocktail Porter delivers Australia-wide, if that's your winter drinking plans sorted. You can also sign up for a subscription, which'll see a kit sent to your door each and every month. To order Cocktail Porter's Gelato Messina cocktail kits, head to the Cocktail Porter website.
Can you feel a tingling in your toes as your feet start to defrost? That's the feeling of winter slipping away (or maybe you've been sitting cross-legged for too long) and with its demise comes the return of Australia's beloved Moonlight Cinema. Ahhh balmy nights on the grass, we have missed you. Heralding the coming of the warmer months, Moonlight Cinema is a summertime tradition and it always nails the balance between new releases and cult classics. The film program is yet to be announced, but we'll keep you updated as soon as it is. Nosh-wise, Moonlight Cinema will again let you BYO movie snacks and drinks (no alcohol in Brisbane, though), but the unorganised can also enjoy a plethora of snacks from food trucks — perfect, messy treats made for reclining on bean beds. Bean beds and snack trucks, is there anything better? This season includes screens in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane and Perth, running from November through to March. Get your pens out and jot down these dates. MOONLIGHT CINEMA 2019 DATES Sydney: Nov 28–Mar 29 (Centennial Park) Melbourne: Nov 28–Mar 29 (Central Lawn at Royal Botanic Gardens) Perth: Nov 30–Mar 29 (Kings Park and Botanic Garden) Adelaide: Dec 13–Feb 16 (Botanic Park) Brisbane: Dec 14–March 29 (Roma Street Parkland) The Moonlight Cinema kicks off on November 29. For more information and bookings here.
It's the combination of steeped warm beverages, cakes and pastries that everyone associates with England — that is, high tea. And it's probably the most appropriate way to treat yourself to a feast this Queen's Birthday long weekend. Trust the Regatta Hotel to do the honours, offering up a spread that includes sandwiches, quiches, tarts and mini scones, as well as champers, white wine and teapots filled with the good stuff. Places are limited, so booking in advance is a must. How else are you going to eat and drink like royalty? Image: Alisa Anton.
Maybe it's the twilight glow. Perhaps it's the stars twinkling above. Or, it could be the cooling breeze, the picnic blankets and beanbags as far as the eye can see, and just seeing a movie grace a giant screen with a leafy backdrop. When the weather is warm enough Australia-wide, a trip to the cinema just seems to shine brighter when it's outdoors. That's Sunset Cinema's whole angle, in fact, and it's returning for another season across the east coast. Over the summer of 2022–23 — and into autumn, too — this excuse to head to the flicks in the open air has seven stops on its itinerary: one in Canberra, three in New South Wales, two in Victoria and one in Queensland. In each, movie buffs can look forward to a lineup of new and classic titles, and a setup perfect for cosy date nights or an easy group hangs outdoors. NSW's run gets started on Friday, December 9 at St Ives Showgrounds, screening through till Saturday, January 28 with a lineup that includes box-office behemoths Top Gun: Maverick and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Disney's Strange World, Aussie drama Blueback and Olivia Wilde's Don't Worry Darling. Also on the bill: a heap of festive flicks leading into Christmas, such as Elf, Love Actually, Home Alone and The Nightmare Before Christmas; and three dog-focused films in January, spanning Marley & Me, Scooby-Doo and 101 Dalmatians. Sunset Cinema will also head to North Sydney Oval from Wednesday, January 11—Saturday, April 1, featuring the likes of 2022 hits The Menu and Everything Everywhere All At Once, Steven Spielberg's latest The Fabelmans, Whitney Houston biopic I Wanna Dance with Somebody, throwbacks such as There's Something About Mary and Crazy Stupid Love, and more. And, at the Wollongong Botanic Garden from Thursday, December 15–Saturday, March 11, the season covers many of the aforementioned titles — the Christmas lineup included — and also Mean Girls, Freaky Friday and The Parent Trap as part of a Lohan Fest. In Victoria, Mt Martha is first on the agenda, with Sunset Cinema hitting The Briars from Wednesday, December 21—Friday, January 20. Those festive films get a run here, too, as do classics Dirty Dancing and The Princess Bride — and many of the new titles showing at other venues. Melburnians don't miss out, however, thanks to a new St Kilda run from Friday, February 1—Saturday, March 4 at St Kilda Botanical Gardens. The lineup for that spot hasn't yet been revealed. And, in Brisbane, mark April in your diaries — with the exact dates, venue and program to be announced. At all stops around the country, BYO picnics are encouraged here, but the event is fully licensed, so alcohol can only be purchased onsite. Didn't pack enough snacks? There'll be hot food options, plus plenty of the requisite movie treats like chips, chocolates, lollies and popcorn. SUNSET CINEMA 2022–23 DATES: Canberra, ACT: Thursday, November 24—Saturday, February 25 at Australian National Botanic Gardens St Ives, NSW: Friday, December 9—Saturday, January 28 at St Ives Showgrounds Wollongong, NSW: Thursday, December 15–Saturday, March 11 at Wollongong Botanic Garden North Sydney, NSW: Wednesday, January 11—Saturday, April 1 at North Sydney Oval Mt Martha, VIC: Wednesday, December 21—Friday, January 20 at The Briars, Mt Martha St Kilda, VIC: Friday, February 1—Saturday, March 4 at St Kilda Botanical Gardens Brisbane, QLD — from April 2023, exact dates and venue TBC Sunset Cinema's 2022–23 season runs at various venues around the country from November 2022. Head to the Sunset Cinema website for further details.
Assuming you haven't been hiding away from the internet for the better part of 2015, you should be well aware of the work of Jon Ronson. Prior to this year, the Welsh journalist, author, filmmaker and radio presenter was perhaps best known for writing the book The Psychopath Test and co-writing the film Frank partly based on his own experiences. Then his latest publication, So, You've Been Publicly Shamed, was released, shedding light on the insidious side of our online behaviour. Seeing him chat, in the flesh, about his three years spent researching the worst of social media-facilitated public humiliation is a rare occasion — and if you want more pearls of Ronson wisdom, then check out his Brisbane Writers Festival 2015 opening address and discussion on the state of 21st-century investigative journalism.
In the world of photography there are few trends as divisive as the rise and rise of Instagram and Hipstamatic. Battle lines have been drawn between those who view the advent of such filter apps as a positive democratising force, spreading the artistry of photography to the masses, and on the other side, those who think they're just a refuge for teenage poseurs and their collections of cats. New York artist and photojournalist Benjamin Lowy has become an unintentional figurehead for the former, thanks to his stunningly evocative photographs of war-ravaged North Africa and the Middle East. Lowy, whose work has graced the cover of TIME Magazine (the first photo taken from a phone to do so) and been featured at London's Tate Modern, has spent the last five years making Afghanistan his second home, creating his first body of work made entirely with Instagram and his ever-resilient iPhone. For Lowy, the decision to use his iPhone was made more out of convenience than out of any great artistic or journalistic ambition. He found that the burden of lugging around his camera meant that his initial passion in photography was "losing some of its mystical wonder", and when he reverted to the phone, he found a fresh perspective on the world around him. "I've been shooting with my phone for years and posting it online. I didn't see it as art, it was just another form of self-expression," Lowy told us. "I started finding myself being able to express myself a little more viscerally and easily because [the camera] was in such a small package." As a wartime photojournalist Lowy found that the ubiquitous images of "raids, explosions, suicide bombers" had increasingly desensitised people to the horrors of war. When he first began using his iPhone, Instagram resembled more of a passing fad than a cultural mainstay, and Lowy thought that this brave new world of photography may go a long way in getting people to sit up and take notice. "When you think of Iraq or Afghanistan, people saw those same images day in and day out," he says, "and because people kept seeing those images all the time it was easier to tune them out. So my idea throughout the course of my career has been to constantly experiment with images and aesthetics in order to gain the public's attention." While these images are often filled with the explosive and dynamic moments of war, what is much more unique about these photographs is their depiction of everyday life in Afghanistan. They show us a foreign land that although ravaged and decimated by war is eerily familiar to our own world. "It is a different place from the place we all know and we all call home but at the end of the day people are all the same," Lowy said. "Our blood is all red, when we wake up in the morning we want to have our cup of tea or coffee and send our kids to school and live peacefully ... The simple things that make humans humans are all the same regardless of where you live." Lowy's iAfghanistan exhibition is on display in the State Library of NSW, Macquarie Street Foyer, from May 17 to July 22 as part of the Head On photo festival. We've featured a small selection of our favourites below. Images courtesy of Head On photo festival and © Benjamin Lowy.
Deerhoof’s members are evidence that it pays to take risks. In a post-modern world, where it can sometimes feel as though everything that can be said has been said, they continue to come up with arrestingly original ideas. Every album reveals another sonic surprise. Their twelfth self-produced release, Breakup Song, is no exception. This time around, Cuban rhythms fuel the San Francisco noise group’s unpredictable melodic adventures. According to drummer Greg Saunier, the album is about “just turning around a sort of bad mood and finding a way to turn it into a good mood.” As much as a Deerhoof record can definitely beat back the blues in the comfort of your lounge room, it doesn’t match up to the experience of seeing them live. Their edgy creativity takes on a whole new dimension in front of a crowd.
Pioneering pop art with Campbell's soup cans and Marilyn Monroe portraits helped make Andy Warhol a huge star, but that's only a fraction of his creative output. In fact, the above mightn't have come about if he wasn't so interested in photography — and if you'd like to learn more, an upcoming Australian exhibition has just the details, works and snaps. Running from Friday, March 3–Sunday, May 14, 2023, Andy Warhol & Photography: A Social Media will take over the Art Gallery of South Australia with an impressive exploration of Warhol's fascination with taking photos. It's the first exhibition in Australia on the topic, and it will display more than 250 works, including photographs. Warhol's experimental films will also feature, given the focus is on his talents with a camera; however, there will also be a selection of his screenprints and paintings. [caption id="attachment_872132" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Gerard Malanga, born 1943, No title (Andy Warhol), 1971, gelatin silver photograph, 33.7 x 22.6 (printed image), 35.6 x 27.8 cm (sheet); National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, Purchased 1973[/caption] So, you'll be able to see images that Warhol snapped himself, including AGSA's own collection of 45 Warhol photographs, which will be shown together for the first time. You'll also be able to check out some of those famous pop art portraits — Monroe's, unsurprisingly, as well as Elvis Presley's — with examining how Warhol's photos flickered through his other art a key focus. This is a wide-ranging survey that also peers at Warhol, however, complete with behind-the-scenes glimpses into his life. And, it will look into the lives of friends and other celebrities such as Muhammad Ali, Bob Dylan, Debbie Harry, Mick Jagger, John Lennon, Liza Minnelli, Lou Reed and Elizabeth Taylor. As a result, Warhol's works will sit alongside others by his creatives he collaborated with and contemporaries; think: Brigid Berlin, Nat Finkelstein, Christopher Makos, Gerard Malanga, Robert Mapplethorpe, Duane Michals and Billy Name. [caption id="attachment_872133" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Andy Warhol, born Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 1928, died New York City, New York 1987, Mick Jagger and Charlie Watts (photo shoot for the Rolling Stones 'Love You Live' album cover), 1977, New York, Polaroid photograph, 10.8 x 8.6 cm (sheet), 9.5 x 7.3 cm (image); V.B. F. Young Bequest Fund and d'Auvergne Boxall Bequest Fund 2018, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide, © Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. ARS/Copyright Agency[/caption] The exhibition's title nods to the social aspect of the showcase, hopping between Warhol, his pals and his peers. It also references his enduring influence in today's social media-heavy times. "Some 35 years after his death, this exhibition attests to Andy Warhol's enduring relevance as an artist and cultural figure in an era defined by social media. With cross-generational appeal, this is an exhibition of our times which begs the question, was Warhol the original influencer?" said AGSA Director Rhana Devenport ONZM, announcing the exhibition. [caption id="attachment_872134" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Andy Warhol, born Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 1928, died New York City, New York 1987, Bianca Jagger, Liza Minnelli and Jacqueline Onassis in Liza's dressing room, New York, no. 12 from the portfolio Photographs, 1978; published 1980, New York, United States, gelatin silver photograph, 30.0 x 42.3 cm (image), 40.9 x 50.5 cm (sheet); James and Diana Ramsay Fund 2020, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide, © Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. ARS/Copyright Agency[/caption] "Photography underpinned Warhol's whole artistic practice — both as an essential part of his working method and as an end in its own right," adds Julie Robinson, AGSA's Senior Curator of Prints, Drawings & Photographs, and also Andy Warhol & Photography: A Social Media's curator. "He took some 60,000 photographs in his lifetime. His candid images, which capture his own life as well as the lives of his celebrity friends, offer audiences a revealing insight into Warhol the person, taking viewers beneath the veneer of his pop paintings and persona." Andy Warhol & Photography: A Social Media forms part of the 2023 Adelaide Festival program, kicking off with the fest but running for a couple of months afterwards. That's plenty of time — more than the 15 minutes of fame that Warhol has become synonymous with — to make a trip to SA to see one of the year's certain Aussie gallery highlights. [caption id="attachment_872135" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Andy Warhol and Henry Gillespie, image courtesy Henry Gillespie[/caption] Andy Warhol & Photography: A Social Media will display at the Art Gallery of South Australia from Friday, March 3–Sunday, May 14, 2023. For more information or to buy tickets, head to the AGSA website. Top image: Oliviero Toscani, born Milan, Italy 1942, Andy Warhol, 1975, New York, United States of America, pigment print on paper, 32.0 x 46.0 cm (image), 40.0 x 50.0 cm (sheet); Public Engagement Fund 2021, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide, © Oliviero Toscani.
If you're the type of spirits aficionado who likes their tipples to taste exactly how they always have, then you probably aren't all that fond of creative booze flavours. You mightn't be a fan of bloody shiraz gin, for instance. You likely didn't even give lamington vodka a try. And, well, peanut butter whiskey isn't going to be your thing either. For anyone that's now wondering how to make a peanut butter and jelly cocktail, this latest flavour from Sheep Dog Whiskey is probably already having the exact opposite effect. Yes, peanut butter whiskey is now a real thing that exists, and can be sipped by fans of both peanut butter and caramel-hued spirits. And, after launching in the US, where it's made, it is now available in Australian bottle shops. Taste-wise, you can expect the obvious — so, peanut butter and whiskey — however, this tipple also apparently comes with notes of vanilla and caramel popcorn as well. And if you're wondering how to drink it, the brand suggests going neat — or adding it to your next espresso martini. Other options include combining it with grape liqueur so that you really can have a PB&J-flavoured tipple, or whipping up a peanut butter old fashioned. Naturally, if you're not fond of peanuts, this definitely isn't for you. Sheep Dog Peanut Butter Whiskey is now available in Australia for $55 RRP a bottle — from BWS, Dan Murphy's and First Choice.
Crap in a suitcase and you too might win an Emmy. Actually, don't try that at home. It worked well for Australian actor Murray Bartlett, though, after he just nabbed one of TV's most prestigious awards — and gave his mum back home Down Under a shoutout in the process — for the all-round phenomenal first season of The White Lotus. In 2022, the Emmy Awards did what the Emmy Awards always do: gave a heap of gleaming trophies to a heap of ace TV shows, and the folks who make them, of course. Oh, and it also had people dancing to the Law and Order theme, among other classic television tunes; enlisted Oprah to stress how massive the odds are of anyone ever winning; and paid tribute to the one and only Geena Davis as well. The winners, which included frontrunners Succession, The White Lotus, Ted Lasso and Squid Game, all showed that it really has been an exceptional time for TV lately. The nominees list illustrated that anyway — and even if Severance, Better Call Saul, Yellowjackets, What We Do in the Shadows,Only Murders in the Building, Barry, Station Eleven and Scenes From a Marriage didn't end up emerging victorious, they're all still among the absolute best shows that graced the small screen over the past year. That's the ceremony done and dusted. Looking for a rundown of how it all went down, as well as a list of winners? We've got that taken care of. Now, here comes the next part for all of us at home: celebrating all of the series that earned Emmy recognition this year by getting watching or rewatching. Here's ten you should check out ASAP. THE WHITE LOTUS With Enlightened, his excellent two-season Laura Dern-starring comedy-drama from 2011–13, writer/director Mike White (Brad's Status) followed an executive who broke down at work. When she stepped back into her life, she found herself wanting something completely different not just for herself, but for and from the world. It isn't linked, narrative-wise, to White's latest TV miniseries The White Lotus. The same mood flows through, however. Here, wealthy Americans holiday at a luxe Hawaiian resort, which is managed by Australian Armond (Murray Bartlett, Tales of the City) — folks like business star Nicole (Connie Britton, Bombshell), her husband Mark (Steve Zahn, Where'd You Go, Bernadette), and the teenage trio of Olivia (Sydney Sweeney, Euphoria), Paula (Brittany O'Grady, Little Voice) and Quinn (Fred Hechinger, Fear Street); newlyweds Rachel (Alexandra Daddario, Songbird) and Shane (Jake Lacy, Mrs America); and the recently bereaved Tanya (Jennifer Coolidge, Promising Young Woman). From the outset, when the opening scene shows Shane accompanying a body on the way home, viewers know this'll end with a death. But as each episode unfurls, it's clear that these characters are reassessing what they want out of life as well. In The White Lotus, a glam and glossy getaway becomes a hellish trap, magnifying glass and mirror, with everyone's issues and problems only augmented by their time at the eponymous location. In terms of sinking its claws into the affluent, eat the rich-style, this perceptive, alluring and excellently cast drama also pairs nicely with the White-penned Beatriz at Dinner, especially as it examines the differences between the resort's guests and staff. EMMYS: Won: Outstanding Limited Series, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series of Television Movie (Murray Bartlett), Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series of Television Movie (Jennifer Coolidge), Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie (Mike White), Writing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie (Mike White) Where to watch it: Binge. Read our review of season one. SUCCESSION Fans of blistering TV shows about wealth, power, the vast chasm between the rich and everyone else, and the societal problems that fester due to such rampant inequality, are living in a golden time. Just in the past 12 months or so, The White Lotus has fit the bill, as has Squid Game; however, Succession has always been in its own league. In the 'eat the rich' genre, the HBO drama sits at the top of the food chain as it chronicles the extremely lavish and influential lives of the Roy family. No series slings insults as brutally; no show channels feuding and backstabbing into such an insightful and gripping satire of the one percent, either. Finally returning in 2021 after a two-year gap between its second and third seasons, Succession didn't just keep plying its astute and addictive battles and power struggles — following season two's big bombshell, it kept diving deeper. The premise has remained the same since day one, with Logan Roy's (Brian Cox, Super Troopers 2) kids Kendall (Jeremy Strong, The Trial of the Chicago 7), Shiv (Sarah Snook, Pieces of a Woman), Roman (Kieran Culkin, No Sudden Move) and Connor (Alan Ruck, Gringo) vying to take over the family media empire. This brood's tenuous and tempestuous relationship only gets thornier with each episode, and its examination of their privileged lives — and what that bubble has done to them emotionally, psychologically and ideologically — only grows in season three. It becomes more addictive, too. There's no better show currently on TV, and no better source of witty dialogue. And there's no one turning in performances as layered as Strong, Cox, Snook, Culkin, J Smith-Cameron (Search Party), Matthew Macfadyen (The Assistant) and Nicholas Braun (Zola). EMMYS Won: Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series (Matthew Macfadyen), Writing for a Drama Series (Jesse Armstrong) Where to watch it: Binge. Read our review of season three. SQUID GAME Exploring societal divides within South Korea wasn't invented by Parasite, Bong Joon-ho's excellent Oscar-winning 2019 thriller, but its success was always going to give other films and TV shows on the topic a healthy boost. Accordingly, it's easy to see thematic and narrative parallels between the acclaimed movie and Netflix's highly addictive Squid Game — the show that's become the platform's biggest show ever (yes, bigger than everything from Stranger Things to Bridgerton). Anyone who has seen even an episode knows why this nine-part series is so compulsively watchable. Its puzzle-like storyline and its unflinching savagery making quite the combination. Here, in a Battle Royale and Hunger Games-style setup, 456 competitors are selected to work their way through six seemingly easy children's games. They're all given numbers and green tracksuits, they're competing for 45.6 billion won, and it turns out that they've also all made their way to the contest after being singled out for having enormous debts. That includes series protagonist Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae, Deliver Us From Evil), a chauffeur with a gambling problem, and also a divorcé desperate to do whatever he needs to to keep his daughter in his life. But, as it probes the chasms caused by capitalism and cash — and the things the latter makes people do under the former — this program isn't just about one player. It's about survival, the status quo the world has accepted when it comes to money, and the real inequality present both in South Korea and elsewhere. Filled with electric performances, as clever as it is compelling, unsurprisingly littered with smart cliffhangers, and never afraid to get bloody and brutal, the result is a savvy, tense and taut horror-thriller that entertains instantly and also has much to say. EMMYS: Won: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series (Lee Jung-jae), Directing for a Drama Series (Hwang Dong-hyuk) Where to watch it: Netflix. TED LASSO A sports-centric sitcom that's like a big warm hug, Ted Lasso belongs in the camp of comedies that focus on nice and caring people doing nice and caring things. Parks and Recreation is the ultimate recent example of this subgenre, as well as fellow Michael Schur-created favourite Brooklyn Nine-Nine — shows that celebrate people supporting and being there for each other, and the bonds that spring between them, to not just an entertaining but to a soul-replenishing degree. As played by Jason Sudeikis (Booksmart), the series' namesake is all positivity, all the time. A small-time US college football coach, he scored an unlikely job as manager of British soccer team AFC Richmond in the show's first season, a job that came with struggles. The ravenous media wrote him off instantly, the club was hardly doing its best, owner Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham, Sex Education) had just taken over the organisation as part of her divorce settlement, and veteran champion Roy Kent (Brett Goldstein, Uncle) and current hotshot Jamie Tartt (Phil Dunster, Judy) refused to get along. Ted's upbeat attitude does wonders, though. In Ted Lasso's also-excellent second season, however, he finds new team psychologist Dr Sharon Fieldstone (Sarah Niles, I May Destroy You) an unsettling presence. You definitely don't need to love soccer or even sport to fall for this show's ongoing charms, to adore its heartwarming determination to value banding together and looking on the bright side, and to love its depiction of both male tenderness and supportive female friendships (which is where Maleficent: Mistress of Evil's Juno Temple comes in). In fact, this is the best sitcom currently in production. EMMYS: Won: Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series (Jason Sudeikis), Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series (Brett Goldstein), Directing for a Comedy Series (MJ Delaney) Where to watch it: Apple TV+. Read our review of season two. ABBOTT ELEMENTARY The Office did it, in both the UK and US versions. Parks and Recreation did it too. What We Do in the Shadows still does it — and, yes, there's more where they all came from. By now, the mockumentary format is such a well-established part of the sitcom realm that new shows deciding to give it a whirl isn't noteworthy. But in Abbott Elementary, the gimmick is also deployed as an outlet for the series' characters, all public school elementary teachers in Philadelphia, to help convey the stresses and tolls of doing what they're devoted to. In a wonderfully warm and also clear-eyed gem created by, co-written by and starring triple-threat Quinta Brunson (Miracle Workers), that'd be teaching young hearts and minds no matter the everyday obstacles, the utter lack of resources and funding, or the absence of interest from the bureaucracy above them. Brunson plays perennially perky 25-year-old teacher Janine Teagues, who loves her gig and her second-grade class. She also adores her colleague Barbara Howard (Sheryl Lee Ralph, Ray Donovan), the kindergarten teacher that she sees as a mentor and work mum. Actually, Janine isn't just fond of all of the above — she's so devoted to her job that she'll let nothing stand in her way. But that isn't easy or straightforward in a system that's short on cash and care from the powers-that-be to make school better for its predominantly Black student populace. Also featuring Everybody Hates Chris' Tyler James Williams (also The United States vs Billie Holiday) as an apathetic substitute teacher, Lisa Ann Walter (The Right Mom) and Chris Perfetti (Sound of Metal) as Abbott faculty mainstays, and Janelle James (Black Monday) as the incompetent principal who only scored her position via blackmail, everything about Abbott Elementary is smart, kindhearted, funny and also honest. A second season is on its way, too. EMMYS: Won: Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (Sheryl Lee Ralph), Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series (Quinta Brunson) Where to watch it: Disney+. EUPHORIA From the very first frames of its debut episode back in June 2019, when just-out-of-rehab 17-year-old Rue Bennett (Zendaya, Spider-Man: No Way Home) gave viewers the lowdown on her life, mindset, baggage, friends, family and everyday chaos, Euphoria has courted attention — or, mirroring the tumultuous teens at the centre of its dramas, the Emmy-winning HBO series just knew that eyeballs would come its way no matter what it did. The brainchild of filmmaker Sam Levinson (Malcolm & Marie), adapted from an Israeli series by the same name, and featuring phenomenal work by its entire cast, it's flashy, gritty, tense, raw, stark and wild, and manages to be both hyper-stylised to visually striking degree and deeply empathetic. In other words, if teen dramas reflect the times they're made — and from Degrassi, Press Gang and Beverly Hills 90210 through to The OC, Friday Night Lights and Skins, they repeatedly have — Euphoria has always been a glittery eyeshadow-strewn sign of today's times. That hasn't changed in the show's second season. Almost two and a half years elapsed between Euphoria's first and second batch of episodes — a pair of out-of-season instalments in late 2020 and early 2021 aside — but it's still as potent, intense and addictive as ever. And, as dark, as Rue's life and those of her pals (with the cast including Hunter Schafer, The King of Staten Island's Maude Apatow, The Kissing Booth franchise's Jacob Elordi, The White Lotus' Sydney Sweeney, The Afterparty's Barbie Ferreira, North Hollywood's Angus Cloud and Waves' Alexa Demie) bobs and weaves through everything from suicidal despair, Russian Roulette, bloody genitals, unforgettable school plays, raucous parties and just garden-variety 2022-era teen angst. The list always goes on; in fact, as once again relayed in Levinson's non-stop, hyper-pop style, the relentlessness that is being a teenager today, trying to work out who you are and navigating all that the world throws at you is Euphoria's point. EMMYS: Won: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series (Zendaya) Where to watch it: Binge. HACKS In 2021, Hacks' first season quickly cemented itself as one of 2021's best new TV shows — one of two knockout newbies starring Jean Smart last year, thanks to Mare of Easttown as well — and it's just as ace the second time around. It's still searingly funny, nailing that often-elusive blend of insight, intelligence and hilarity. It retains its observational, wry tone, and remains devastatingly relatable even if you've never been a woman trying to make it in comedy. And it's happy to linger where it needs to to truly understand its characters, but never simply dwells in the same place as its last batch of episodes. Season two is literally about hitting the road, so covering fresh territory is baked into the story; however, Hacks' trio of key behind-the-scenes creatives — writer Jen Statsky (The Good Place), writer/director Lucia Aniello (Rough Night) and writer/director/co-star Paul W Downs (The Other Two) — aren't content to merely repeat themselves with a different backdrop. Those guiding hands started Hacks after helping to make Broad City a hit. Clearly, they all know a thing or two about moving on from the past. That's the decision both veteran comedian Deborah Vance (Smart) and her twentysomething writer-turned-assistant Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder, North Hollywood) had to make themselves in season one, with the show's second season now charting the fallout. So, Deborah has farewelled her residency and the dependable gags that kept pulling in crowds, opting to test out new and far-more-personal material on a cross-country tour instead. Ava has accepted her role by Deborah's side, and is willing to see it as a valid career move rather than an embarrassing stopgap. But that journey comes a few narrative bumps. Of course, Hacks has always been willing to see that actions have consequences, not only for an industry that repeatedly marginalises women, but for its imperfect leading ladies. EMMYS: Won: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series (Jean Smart) Where to watch it: Stan. Read our full review of season two. THE DROPOUT Dramatising the Theranos scandal, eight-part miniseries The Dropout is one of several high-profile releases this year to relive a wild true-crime tale — including the Anna Delvey-focused Inventing Anna, about the fake German heiress who conned her way through New York City's elite, and also documentary The Tinder Swindler, which steps through defrauding via dating app at the hands of Israeli imposter Simon Leviev. It also dives into the horror-inducing Dr Death-esque realm, because when a grift doesn't just mess with money and hearts, but with health and lives, it's pure nightmare fuel. And, it's the most gripping of the bunch, even though we're clearly living in peak scandal-to-screen times. Scam culture might be here to stay as Inventing Anna told us in a telling line of dialogue, but it isn't enough to just gawk its way — and The Dropout and its powerful take truly understands this. To tell the story of Theranos, The Dropout has to tell the story of Elizabeth Holmes, the Silicon Valley biotech outfit's founder and CEO from the age of 19. Played by a captivating, career-best Amanda Seyfried — on par with her Oscar-nominated work in Mank, but clearly in a vastly dissimilar role — the Steve Jobs-worshipping Holmes is seen explaining her company's name early in its first episode. It's derived from the words "therapy" and "diagnosis", she stresses, although history already dictates that it offered little of either. Spawned from Holmes' idea to make taking blood simpler and easier, using just one drop from a small finger prick, it failed to deliver, lied about it copiously and still launched to everyday consumers, putting important medical test results in jeopardy. EMMYS: Won: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series of Television Movie (Amanda Seyfried) Where to watch it: Disney+. Read our review. DOPESICK 'Eat the rich' dramas have been having their day across small screens and streaming queues (see: Succession, The White Lotus and Squid Game above), inescapably so. That said, shows in another big current trend are everywhere, too. Dramatised true tales just keep enlisting stacked high-profile casts to wade through murky IRL details, Dopesick included — which adapts Beth Macy's non-fiction book Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors, and the Drug Company that Addicted America. You don't need to have read that text to instantly know that it's about the impact of opioids throughout the US. Everyone has heard of painkiller OxyContin, which originated from US pharmaceutical company Purdue Pharma. Everyone now knows that it is highly addictive, and that that simple fact is the cause of too many woes. If you aren't aware of all the details — or even if you are — prepare for grim viewing via this eight-part affair. The names don't mirror real life, but the story is factual — and infuriating. Michael Keaton (Morbius) plays Samuel Finnix, a mining town doctor who is convinced by Purdue rep Billy Cutler (Will Poulter, Midsommar) to begin prescribing the then-new OxyContin to patients — such as Betsy (Kaitlyn Dever, Dear Evan Hansen), who has a back injury. Also covered: the legal efforts by assistant US attorneys Rick Mountcastle (Peter Sarsgaard, The Lost Daughter) and Randy Ramseyer (John Hoogenakker, Castle Rock) to make Purdue accountable, with the series never holding back about the ills that the drug has caused. The word for the end result: harrowing in oh-so-many ways and for oh-so-many reasons, and also empathetic towards the people affected by opioids. EMMYS: Won: Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series of Television Movie (Michael Keaton) Where to watch it: Disney+. OZARK In 2022, Julia Garner schemed her away into New York's upper echelons in the instantly addictive Inventing Anna, playing IRL faux socialite Anna Delvey — and won the unofficial award for wildest accent on TV, too. She didn't end up nabbing an Emmy for her part, despite being nominated; however, the acclaimed actress didn't go home empty-handed. The reason? Fellow Netflix series Ozark. Not for the first time, The Assistant star picked up the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series gong for the crime drama. Actually, this marks her third win, all for her blistering performance as Ruth Langmore. When the show started back in 2017, Garner wasn't in its top-two biggest names, thanks to Jason Bateman (The Outsider) and Laura Linney (Tales of the City), but she's turned her part into an absolute powerhouse. Ozark's focus: a financial advisor, Marty Byrde (Bateman), who moves from Chicago to a quiet Missouri town — yes, in the titular Ozarks region — after a money-laundering scheme goes wrong in a big way. That's a significant shift for his wife Wendy (Linney) and kids Charlotte (Sofia Hublitz, What Breaks the Ice) and Jonah (Skylar Gaertner, Daredevil), but it doesn't see Marty change his ways. Instead, more laundering is in his future, as well as crossing paths with Ruth, who hails from a criminal family. Across its four-season run, Ozark has always been lifted by its performances, which is unsurprising given that Bateman, Linney and Garner are all at the top of their games. It's a masterclass in tension, too, and in conveying a relentless feeling of dread. EMMYS: Won: Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (Julia Garner) Where to watch it: Netflix. Top image: Mario Perez/HBO.
Akmal is known for pushing a few buttons in his stand-up comedy routine. Outrageous, scandalous and hilarious are all words people are using to describe Akmal’s style of comedic performance. His brand new routine touches on Akmal’s upbringing as an Arabic immigrant, his experiences in Australia and his thoughts on religion, modern society and life itself. For nine nights over two weeks at the Brisbane Powerhouse, Akmal will make you laugh yourself silly with his award winning comedy. Since his humble career beginnings in 1990, Akmal has emerged as one of Australians best loved comedians - head to the Powerhouse to see why.
Dance and classical aren't music genres you'd usually find swirling around in the same basket — unless you have a particular bent for the orchestral 'Sandstorm' covers found in the depths of YouTube. Synthony — A Generation of Dance Music is here to prove that the disciplines go hand in hand. Touring Australia since 2019, the event is returning to Brisbane from 5pm on Saturday, March 25, 2023. It'll see a live orchestra join forces with a selection of DJs and onstage performers at the Riverstage, all to play the biggest dance tracks of the last 30 years — think tunes by Disclosure, Eric Prydz, Flume, Calvin Harris, Wilkinson and more. Expect the venue to take a few cues from the nightclub scene, with lights, lasers and mapped video all part of the experience — and a selection of dance floor bangers note-for-note. The lineup of talent includes Camerata, Queensland's Chamber Orchestra; conductor Sarah-Grace Williams; and Rogue Traders' Natalie Bassingthwaighte, The Potbelleez' Ilan Kidron, Thandie Phoenix, Cassie McIvor, Greg Gould, Matty O, Mobin Master and host Aroha.
Emporium's Piano Bar glitters every day of the year, all thanks to its cascading gold and crystal chandelier, as well as its sizeable array of shiny black mirrored surfaces. So, come special occasions, it doesn't need to do much decorating to sparkle as a result. Still, with the Ekka on at the moment — and finally back in-person this year — the luxe South Bank spot is serving up a special themed boozy beverage to get you in an extra-sweet mood. (And yes, if you head here, you can avoid the crowds at Brisbane Showgrounds.) Until Sunday, August 14, Brisbanites can mosey on in for a Sideshow Alley cocktail. It combines pink gin, chocolate liqueur, peach liquor, strawberry milk and hazelnut foam, and comes topped with fairy floss and dried rose petals, and it's the Ekka-related treat that you didn't know you needed until now. And if that's not enough Royal Queensland Show-themed sipping for you, upstairs at The Terrace — yes, 21 floors up, and with striking views over Brisbane to prove it — you have another choice. The Strawberry Fields turns the beloved Ekka strawberry sundae into a boozy concoction, as made with strawberry gin, sparkling rosé and more.
Lust For Life Tattoo is a venue showcasing huge potential. What a combination of goodness – a tattoo parlour, a gallery and espresso bar (which includes a micro bakery, producing tasty bagels and sweet treats) all in the one spot! On top of all this an amazing new exhibition of local artist, Glenn Brady’s work. Titled ‘Faktorei’ the exhibition explores the underbelly of suburban Australian life. It explores the juxtapositions that exist on the outskirts of Brisbane, where fuming factories sit alongside blocks of small wooden houses where children play in the streets. These are not paintings of grand places. Brady's work instead focuses on the often unnoticed local locations such as main roads, car yards, video shops and fast food joints of Brisbane. Through his work Brady often finds the story beyond the banal. Having been practicing art since 1993, Brady has had quite the journey. His career to date features his creative involvement in over twenty local and national exhibitions. Faktorei is the next major instalment in his journey. Catch him exploring strong themes in a bold style with his latest exhibition. Plus, you can grab an expresso while you're at it!
The Hamburg Ballet under the artistic direction of John Neumeier, bring their homage of Vaslav Nijinsky to the Playhouse for the annual Nijinsky Gala. With sophistication and poise that has seen them described as binding “stellar technique to dramatic expression” by the Los Angeles Times and of producing “dynamic, rich and gripping theatre” by The Washington Post the powerful ballet celebrates the life of the great Russian Vaslav Nijinsky, considered by many to be the greatest ballet figure of the twentieth century. As a dancer Nijinksy was famous for his legendary ability to perform leaps that seemed to ignore the very laws of gravity, and as a choreographer he established provocative new directions that saw him usher in a new age that pointed towards the modern era. Featuring music by Frédéric Chopin, Robert Schuman, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Dimitri Shostakovich, Nijinsky is a spectacular work, dealing with the issues of insanity and horror that plagued the man’s life, all of which are celebrated, honoured and demonstrated with extravagantly conceived costumes, high-drama lighting and intense, astonishing movement.
After a year of travelling inside our own states (and around our own apartments), the last of the interstate borders are finally opening. Apart from WA (which is still closed to SA) and Queensland (which is opening up to SA from Saturday, December 12), Australians can visit anywhere in the country without quarantining. To celebrate, ridesharing service DiDi is offering half-price rides to airports across the country from now all the way through till Sunday, January 31 2021. This is great news if you have trips home to see the fam or summer getaways planned. You can, of course, choose from Ola, Uber or DiDi. If you go with the latter, though — you'll get a much cheaper trip. The newer of the three, DiDi is offering every rider two half-price trips (with a max saving of $20 a trip) to eligible airports, which include Melbourne Tullamarine, Melbourne Avalon, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Newcastle, Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast airports. You just need to jump onto the app, use the code 'EXPLORE' and you'll get access to the discounted trips. DiDi has implemented a range of safety measures in a bid to reduce the spread of COVID-19, too, including two-person passenger limits in an Express and four in a Max, installing over 2000 in-car partition screens and distributing face masks to drivers. DiDi Chuxing launched in China in 2012 and has quickly become a huge player in the global ridesharing game — it has since bought out Uber's Chinese operations and has stakes in numerous companies, including Ola, Taxify, Lyft and Grab. To get your two half-price DiDi trips — from now until Sunday, January 31, 2021 — download the app (for iOS or Android) and use the code EXPLORE. Find out more about current interstate border restrictions over here.
The super adorable Finders Keepers Markets have been home to Brisbane's most creative and quirky designers for more than seven years. And keeping with tradition, the independent hip-fest is returning to their home at The Old Museum in Bowen Hills for 2016. The autumn winter edition of the market will take place over two days July — just in time for the snuggly season. The biannual, designer-centric, come-one-come-all mini-festival has managed to bridge the gap between local market and exclusive exhibition, creating a space for independent designers to engage with the wider community. You'll be able to nab some marvellous treats difficult to find anywhere else. From bespoke leather goods to bespoke stationery, unique neckties, artisan jewellery and all manner of cute and kooky knick-knacks, every stall will be a unique shopping experience that combines innovative design with grassroots feel-goodery. And even if you're a Finders Keepers regular, you'll be sure to discover something new — 30 percent of the stallholders will be brand new to Brissie. Local artists Lilly Piri and Mel Stringer will also be holding their first stall, selling their signature artworks as well as zines, stickers, badges, totes and cute wooden animals. As usual, there will be live music, a cafe and heaps of other Brisbanites celebrating independent art and design. Feeling a little overwhelmed? Finders Keepers are aware this cornucopia of new design can be a little large to navigate. So they've got their own app, with interactive maps to help you find out more info about stallholders, a personal itinerary tool, and notifications to keep you looped in to what's happening on the day. You can download the app from the App Store or on Google Play. Finders Keepers is open 9am-4pm on both Saturday, July 2 and Sunday, July 3. Entry is $2 for adults, and free for kids. Image: Bec Taylor.
The merriest time of the year is here, and getting festive is on everyone's agenda — and every market's around town, too. But only one will have Francophiles delighting: Le Festival's French Christmas Market, which returns for its second year after its 2021 debut. Running across Saturday, November 19–Sunday, November 20, this two-day affair will get you eating, drinking, shopping and feeling Gallic at West End's West Village. Think of it as Brisbane's usual midyear Le Festival but smaller — and filled with season's greetings. Red, white and blue lights will set the jolly tone, market stalls will sell all manner of French-inspired wares, and there'll be a French bar, too, because all that browsing and buying is thirsty work. Basically, it's the next best thing to heading to France for Christmas (all without the cost of an airfare). Images: Ange Costes
More than a quarter-century ago, a TV sitcom about six New Yorkers made audiences a promise: that it'd be there for us. And, as well as making stars out of Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Matthew Perry, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer and Lisa Kudrow, Friends has done just that. Sure, the hit series wrapped up its ten-season run in 2004, but the show has lived on — on streaming platforms, by sending an orange couch around Australia, by screening anniversary marathons in cinemas and in boozy brunch parties, for example. In news that was bound to happen someday — no pop culture entity truly comes to an end in these reboot, remake, revival and spinoff-heavy times — Friends is living on in a much more literal sense, too. First hinted at in 2019, officially confirmed in 2020 and just releasing its first teaser trailer (and announcing a US air date), the show is coming back for a reunion special on HBO's streaming platform HBO Max. Naturally, the whole gang is involved. Yep, it's 'The One Where They Get Back Together' — which is exactly how the trailer for Friends: The Reunion describes the special. That said, it's worth noting that the special is unscripted, which means that Aniston and company aren't literally stepping back into Rachel, Monica, Chandler, Joey, Ross and Phoebe's and shoes. Instead, the actors behind the characters will chat about their experiences on the show — all on the same soundstage where Friends was originally shot. And, let's face it, the fact that they'll all be on-screen at the same time in the same place celebrating the series that so many folks love is probably enough for fans. Aniston, Cox and the gang will have a few other famous faces for company. More than a few, in fact. The guest list is hefty, and spans folks with connections to the show and others that must just love it — including David Beckham, Justin Bieber, BTS, James Corden, Cindy Crawford, Cara Delevingne, Lady Gaga, Elliott Gould, Kit Harington, Larry Hankin and Mindy Kaling, as well as Thomas Lennon, Christina Pickles, Tom Selleck, James Michael Tyler, Maggie Wheeler, Reese Witherspoon and Malala Yousafzai. Initially slated to air last May — with those plans delayed due to the pandemic — the special will now stream via HBO Max in the US on Thursday, May 27. For folks Down Under, just when and where it'll surface hasn't yet been revealed; however, it's bound to be here for us sooner or later. Check out the trailer below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MedRN92V6lE Friends: The Reunion will be available to stream in the US via HBO Max on Thursday, May 27. It doesn't currently have an air date or streaming date Down Under — we'll update you when one is announced.
After the disrupted domestic-only ski season in 2020 — and with travellers from Australia permitted to enter New Zealand without quarantining from mid-April 2021 — thrill-seekers from both sides of the ditch could be hitting NZ's pristine slopes from as early as June. That means it's less than 70 days until NZ Ski's fields, including Coronet Peak and The Remarkables in Queenstown and Canterbury's Mount Hutt are up and running for winter. The operator has plenty going on this season, including opening the country's first eight-person chairlift and night skiing events. Mount Hutt is set to be the first to open from Friday, June 11–Sunday, October 17. It will be open seven days with capacity on the mountain increased thanks to the brand new Nor'west Express eight-seat chairlift. With a ride time of only two minutes, the lift will have capacity to carry up to 3000 skiers per hour. It also features a loading carpet to assist those who are new to using chairlifts. The field's full moon skiing event will also return. Coronet Peak will be open from Saturday, June 19 right through until Sunday, September 26. The ski field plans to operate its popular after-hours night skiing events every Wednesday and Friday from June 25 onwards. The 48th dog derby is also on the cards. Fellow Queenstown favourite The Remarkables will be open every day of the week from Saturday, June 26 through to Sunday, October 17. The mountain's Sugar Bowl development includes two brand new trails and a new snowmaking system mean better snow coverage on the Serpentine side of the mountain. Cardrona Alpine Resort's Olympic-sized superpipe will be open from Saturday, June 12 until Sunday, October 17.. The ski field is also adding another chairlift to its network, which opens up a new major section of skiable terrain on the southern face. Sibling ski field Treble Cone is scheduled to open from Saturday, June 26–Sunday, September 26, and for cross-country skiers and snow-shoers, Cardrona's Snow Farm is intending to open for the 2021 winter from Friday, June 18–Sunday, September 19. The largest ski area in the nation, Mt Ruapehu, is preparing to open its Happy Valley (Saturday, June 5), Turoa (Saturday, July 3), Whakapapa (Saturday, July 3) fields, too, which will give skiers and snowboarders access to the mountain's natural pipes, steep chutes and vertical drop of 722 metres. The alpine village says the opening will be subject to snow conditions. With the quarantine-free trans-Tasman travel bubble set to open from Sunday, April 18, a rise in visitor numbers is expected across all fields. All ski field 2021 season plans are dependent on snow conditions, as well as COVID-19 guidelines and expectations set out by the New Zealand Government. For more information about NZ's ski fields, head to the various websites for Mount Hutt, Coronet Peak, The Remarkables, Cardrona Alpine Resort, Treble Cone, Snow Farm and Mt Ruapehu. Images: NZSki.
Imagine you only see one film this year (because of e.g. extreme electricity rationing, extreme ADHD, etc). You'd want to make it one that would blow your freaking mind. So take some advice from sad parallel universe you and, in a year where you'll probably see many films, make one of them Upstream Color, the dreamy feature that emphatically puts paid to the idea that there are only seven (or nine, or twelve) stories in fiction. Upstream Color is only the second movie from writer/director Shane Carruth, whose indie time travel headspin Primer won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance in 2004 and a cult following soon after. The many fans of that film have since been hankering for another dose of Carruth's signature style. (If it seems unlikely a one-film wonder could have a 'signature style', you have not seen Primer.) However, it turns out festival success does not a Hollywood career ensure, and after some upsets (his much-talked-about feature A Topiary never came to fruition), Upstream Color finally exists in the world, having been written, directed, produced, shot, scored, edited and acted in by Carruth himself. The guy is a lesson in self-sufficiency. This gorgeous, unknowable, deeply affecting film makes Primer look almost conventional, given time travel is a genre filmgoers know a little something of. If Upstream Color had a genre, it'd be something like 'biological art sci-fi'. It starts with a worm. A worm found in the roots of a rare orchid stocked at an ordinary nursery. One of the nursery's customers (Thiago Martins) distills the worm into a drug, which we see, taken recreationally, allows its users to connect telepathically. This man, however, uses it to drug young professional Kris (Amy Seimetz) at a club, and through a complex process of manipulation lasting a week, rob her of her tangible assets. When Kris comes to, the worm is still in her body, wriggling about. Soon enough, a man (Andrew Sensenig) using infrasound lures her to a field, where he removes the worm from her body — and transfers it into a pig. In this world, or any other, a person does not bounce back from the experience lightly. Years later and convinced she's suffering a mental illness, Kris is still trying to piece her life back together. A man she connects with on the train, Jeff (Carruth), might be her shot at a real relationship. Meanwhile, Kris's pig goes back to life in its sty under the watch of the infrasound/surgery man, who also seems to indulge a sideline in field recording. Upstream Color is all this, but it's also not this. The effect is all in the way the story is layered, the way it cuts between these seemingly separate ecosystems, and the sensuous, organic cinematography throughout. It's not abstract — it is meticulously, concretely plotted — and yet the telling of it is open-ended and deliberately foggy as remnants of a dream. It moves like poetry but has the shape of quantum physics, conveying the beauty and pain of fate, as shaped by chance. It's a film you desperately want to piece together, and yet you know that piecing it together is not the point. (Though Carruth will spell it out for you if you want, and it won't disappoint a la Richard Kelly on Donnie Darko.) Sam Adams of the AV Club argues that we're mistaken in holding up puzzle-box movies with that perfect twist, like Memento or The Usual Suspects, as a cinematic holy grail when the rewards of a film like Upstream Color are greater, and he's right. You might solve the puzzle but it will open to reveal another. You might solve the puzzle but find the value was in the pieces. https://youtube.com/watch?v=SilYsr_3vrA
More Marvels, less Marvel: that could've, would've, should've been the path to making The Marvels more marvellous as it teams up Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel (Brie Larson, Fast X), Ms Marvel's Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani in her big-screen debut) and WandaVision's Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris, They Cloned Tyrone). Unsurprisingly for a Marvel Cinematic Universe movie that goes heavy on the first word in the ever-sprawling franchise's moniker, this 33rd cinematic instalment in the series has a glaring Marvel problem. Thankfully, as it proves fun enough, likeable enough and sweet, but also overly saddled with the routine and familiar, it never has any Captain Marvel, Ms Marvel or Monica Rambeau issues. When there's too much Marvel-ness — too much been-there-done-that formula, too hefty a focus on smashing pixels together over spending time with people and too strong a sense that this is merely another chapter in the saga's assembly line, and also dutifully setting up what's next — The Marvels struggles, even as the shortest MCU feature yet. When the main trio get the luxury of being together, just seeing them revel in and react to each other's company is a delight. When there's also singing, dancing, a hearty sense of humour and/or Flerkens involved, the film soars. Perhaps befitting a movie with three lead characters, this is a Goldilocks attempt at a picture that tries as overtly as a fairy-tale figure to get its balance just right. Filmmaker Nia DaCosta (Candyman) and her co-scribes Megan McDonnell (also WandaVision) and Elissa Karasik (Loki) can't quite find and keep their midpoint, however, due to all of the weight and demands that come after 15 years of the MCU, those 32 prior flicks, plus nine seasons of eight Disney+ TV shows since 2021 — and the many nods and references required in those directions. Marvel has cottoned on to how clunky this can be, and how exhausting to watch; the company is marketing streaming series Echo under the banner 'Marvel Spotlight' to signal that viewers can enjoy the story as a standalone experience without needing to have done copious amounts of MCU homework. If only The Marvels had been allowed to spin its tale the same way, even with Carol, Kamala and Monica's established histories across the franchise, and permitted to lean further into what makes it stand out from the rest of the Marvel crowd. One thing that audiences haven't seen elsewhere in the MCU: a wonderfully ridiculous sequence that riffs on herding cats, embraces those felines-with-tentacles that are Flerkens, makes an obvious-but-apt Andrew Lloyd Webber needle drop work and is up there among the most gloriously silly things that Marvel has ever put on-screen. Here's another: a planet where communicating via song, like life is one big Broadway musical, is the native language. And, the most crucial: a trio of female superheroes taking centre stage (2019's Captain Marvel, the 21st MCU flick, was the first to solely put a woman in the spotlight, while 2021's Black Widow is the only one since until now). The Marvels flits between two responses to the latter, though: not caring because it has the typical Marvel wheels to spin, then only caring about Carol, Kamala and Monica's camaraderie. Naturally, the second option is the entertaining and engaging winner. As anyone who has seen Ms Marvel will know going in and everyone else can glean swiftly (at 105 minutes, bloat doesn't blight The Marvels), Jersey City teen Kamala is the world's biggest Captain Marvel superfan. Having her own superhero powers hasn't curbed that Carol-worshipping enthusiasm. She's dreaming about joining forces with her idol when not just their respective light-based powers get entangled, but Monica's as well, causing the three women to switch places suddenly whenever they bust out their supernatural skills simultaneously. The reason for this body-swap comedy-esque occurrence: Kree warrior Dar-Benn (Zawe Ashton, The Handmaid's Tale), who is on a mission to save her home planet and seek revenge by destroying worlds. So, after awkward first meetings (Carol and Kamala) and reunions (Carol and Monica, the daughter of her 80s-era best friend Maria, as seen in Captain Marvel), The Marvels' three protagonists are a team on their own existence-in-peril space quest — with Nick Fury (Samuel L Jackson, Secret Invasion) running point, and Kamala's mother Muneeba (Zenobia Shroff, 7 Days), father Yusef (Mohan Kapur, School of Lies) and brother Aamir (Saagar Shaikh, Liza on Demand) worrying by his side. Regardless of whether Beastie Boys' 'Intergalactic' is on montage soundtrack duties just as the film's trailers teased, there's both spark and pace to Carol, Kamala and Monica's intermingled chaos — including when utter bedlam results, when they're training to work in sync and when they're fighting like a well-oiled machine. There's sincere chemistry, too, as bounces in comedic and dramatic moments equally. The Marvels screams to be a hangout movie, where seeing these characters spending time with each other, and getting everyone investing in their relationships, is more important than whatever the plot throws their way (especially when the storyline is so rote). That'd be Kamala's ultimate fantasy, and the infectiously charismatic Vellani plays it that way to excited perfection. That said, the MCU isn't in the business of making films about friendship, connection and kinship without facing villains and saving the universe. Long fond of layering different genres over its standard template — such as espionage with Black Widow, horror with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, heist capers with the first two Ant-Man movies, coming-of-age with the Spider-Man entries and martial arts with Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, to name just a few examples — Marvel is currently happy to fashion its output in the mould of other sagas. Where fellow 2023 release Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania wanted to be Star Wars, keeping things in the Disney family, there's more than a sliver of Star Trek to The Marvels as it navigates its planet-hopping, civilisation-rescuing narrative. Accordingly, the generic air that regularly pulses through the movie isn't just limited to cycling through MCU staples. Unconvincing CGI doesn't help, nor does the rushed feeling that seeps into the editing to keep the film to its concise length. The first Black woman to direct a Marvel feature, DaCosta clearly has corporate-enforced boxes to tick. Luckily, she also knows The Marvels' biggest assets: Larson, Vellani and Parris; their on-screen alter egos simply sharing space and time (while sometimes toying with it); and joyous mayhem. It mightn't be present everywhere else, but there's balance in how the feature's leads complement each other — how intimately DaCosta dives into their evolving bonds as well, with help from Sean Bobbitt's (Judas and the Black Messiah) perspective-shifting cinematography — and in what Vellani's abundant eagerness, Parris' warmth and smarts, and Larson's gradual cracking of Carol's hard-forged emotional facade bring out in each other. There's heart, liveliness and something rare in the MCU here, as caught in jump-rope sessions, hugs and reaction shots, but then all of the usual MCU elements come crashing in. The Marvels needs its own place-swapping gadgets to jettison out the overused blueprint. Instead, it makes the most of what it can, but leaves viewers pondering one of Marvel's favourite questions: what if?
