When Fortitude Valley restaurant Agnes hosted bakery pop-ups during Brisbane's lockdowns, it quickly became one of the city's favourite pastry spots. The sole problem: it only served up its baked goods while we were all stuck at home. Yes, that's why there was often a line stretching around the block. Making stay-at-home stints brighter — and tastier — is a worthy cause, which Agnes Bakery has championed multiple times now. Giving Brisbanites all the pastries they're hankering for all-year-round is just as great an aim, though. So, Agnes is now spinning out its bakery to its own site on the corner of James and Harcourt streets in Fortitude Valley, with the doors opening on Thursday, October 21. Making its new home in a heritage-listed cottage, Agnes Bakery will serve up a range of different sourdoughs and other pastries, spanning both sweet and savoury options. And, while the full menu hasn't been revealed as yet, it's also bringing over a few dishes from Agnes restaurant — so diners can enjoy them in a far more casual setting. Here, the Agnes team is keen is to keep exploring the art of cooking with fire — and how that specifically applies when you're working with grains. Coffee from a yet-to-be-revealed local roster will also be on the menu, with Agnes Bakery operating from 7am–2pm Wednesday–Sunday. Design-wise, Agnes Bakery's eye-catching home has been given an interior revamp by local architects Richards and Spence. The pastry spot joins not only the OG Agnes — which is located in an old brick warehouse at 22 Agnes Street, hence the name — but also a growing list of venues by the same crew, with the team of Ben Williamson, Tyron Simon, Bianca Marchi and Frank Li also behind Same Same, Honto and Bianca. Find Agnes Bakery at 85 James Street, New Farm, from Thursday, October 21 — open from 7am–2pm Wednesday–Sunday.
Brisbanites, if your flight routine involves checking in, going through security, stocking up on snacks and then having a cheeky pre-flight drink, you now have a new place to do the latter. Newstead Brewing Co has just set up shop inside Brisbane Airport's domestic terminal, launching its new taphouse on the facility's second level — and giving you a new excuse to say cheers to your next trip. The airport venue marks Newstead Brewing's third site — after its original location in Newstead, obviously, and its second home in Milton. Originally due to open in 2020, but delayed due to the pandemic, the domestic terminal bar sprawls across 300 square metres near gate 38, and has room to welcome in 120 pre-departure beer-lovers. While you're sipping a brew from the 12 taps, you'll look out over the runway. That's what airport bars are all about, after all. Here, you'll be able to choose from Newstead Brewing's core range, or knock back pints of its exclusive airport beer — the fittingly named Tailwood Ale. The site will also pour the brewery's limited-release brews as they pop up. If you're feeling hungry before hopping onboard, the taphouse's pub-style food menu spans Moreton Bay Bug rolls, chicken parmigianas, burgers and pizzas, plus a range of vegetarian, gluten-free and vegan dishes. And, decor-wise, Newstead Brewing has stuck with the same industrial look as its other sites, bringing a touch of the brewery aesthetic to the new venue. Opened in partnership with Airport Retail Enterprises — who are also behind the onsite Coffee Royal, Graze Grill & Bar, Merlo Caffee, Mezze Za Za, Seeds by Bruno Loubet and New Farm Confectionery stores — the Newstead Brewing taphouse forms part of Brisbane Airport's $40 million revamp of the domestic terminal.
Running from October 16 through January 31, 2021, the annual Tarnanthi program brings together the best of contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art from around the country and showcases it across multiple Adelaide venues — with the largest exhibition taking centre stage at the Art Gallery of South Australia. The guiding theme for this year's edition is Open Hands, which pays tribute to the role of senior artists who share cultural knowledge with the younger generations; it also calls attention to the unseen cultural work of women in Indigenous communities. Including works from 87 artists, the exhibition features mother-daughter collaborations, grand installations, talks and tours — all of which aim to fully immerse visitors in the rich culture of Australia. Online art sales and other AGSA activations are on the docket, too. [caption id="attachment_792442" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Saul Steed[/caption] Images: Tarnanthi: Open Hands installation by Saul Steed
When Bisou Bisou opened its doors in 2021, the Fortitude Valley restaurant brought a taste of French fine-dining to Brunswick Street. Taking over the ground level of Hotel X, which also launched the same year, the eatery was all about letting patrons pretend that they were on the other side of the world. Two years later, change is afoot, with Ghanem Group revamping the venue's focus — and a more casual French experience is the end result. Your tastebuds are still largely being spirited away to Europe, but the hospitality outfit behind Iris Rooftop upstairs in the same building — plus Byblos Bar and Restaurant, Blackbird Bar and Grill, Boom Boom Room Izakaya and Donna Chang elsewhere around Brisbane — is out to show that French restaurants aren't just for swanky outings. Steak frites remains on the menu, of course, and the freestanding rotisserie is still a big feature. Indeed, the brasserie is now heroing those kinds of French staples. Accordingly, opt for rotisserie chicken — whole or half, or whatever the special is that day — and you'll be able to pair it with classic French sauces like bearnaise and beurre noisette. Or, tempt your tastebuds with another big standout dish: pot-cooked mussels, which come in half- and one-kilo serves accompanied by a baguette, and also with a range of sauces. Bisou Bisou remains an all-day eatery, with catering for breakfast — especially if you're slumbering in the hotel — as well as lunch, dinner, snacks over drinks and just beverages all on its lineup. If you're just heading by for a bite, the new menu has exactly that in mind with its salted cod and herb croquettes with saffron aioli, whipped goat's curd and vegetable crudites, and chicken liver parfait with prune jam and toasted brioche. Or, you can choose any of those options as a starter before a main if you're settling in for the long haul. Other food highlights to say bonjour to include warm custard-filled cronuts, loaded croissants, banana crumpets and croques both monsieur and madame on the brekkie lineup; charcuterie and ocean trout rillettes among the snacks; bacon cheeseburgers and pork schnitzel from the mains menu; and sorbet, dark chocolate mousse, and watermelon and strawberries in sparkling pinot shiraz for dessert. Drinks-wise, the wine and spirits list remains hefty, and tap beers are poured from behind the lobby bar. The cocktail selection will change seasonally; however, taking cues Harry's New York Bar in Paris is a drawcard with Bisou Bisou's takes on the sidecar, boulevardier and French 75. Find Bisou Bisou inside Hotel X at 458 Brunswick Street, Fortitude Valley — open from 6.30am–late daily. Images: Markus Ravik.
Not content with selling sweet and savoury treats from their James Street base, Brisbane's favourite bread, cake, pastries and provisions providers are spreading the love this festive season. If you're fond of the amazing array of edible items that Jocelyn's Provisions bakes up and you're in the city's east, then you'd best put on your stretchiest pants and hightail it over to their Camp Hill pop-up. Until December 21, expect scrumptious wares aplenty at Jocelyn's temporary digs at Camp Hill Marketplace on Samuel Street. Whether you're keen on a caramel, pear and pecan cake, chocolate swirl cheesecake or trusty lemon tart — to name a just a few items from their menu — it's the stuff food lover's dreams are made of. Feasting on all of the above until the big day is completely understandable — and to be expected, really. Drop on by from Monday to Friday between 10am and 5pm, or on Saturday from 9am to 4pm.
Next time you sip gin, you could be hanging out in a double-decker bus in scenic surroundings — and either enjoying free tastings of strawberry eucalyptus-flavoured gin on the vehicle's bottom level, or heading upstairs to work your way through a three-drink cocktail flight. Thanks to Brisbane Distillery, this very experience is now on the menu, with the West End-based spirits company launching its new True Spirit of Brisbane bus. Debuting at the Riverside Markets in the City Botanic Gardens on Sunday, May 9, the True Spirit bus sports a blue exterior, serves samples out of the window and features booth seating under the pop-up roof on the top deck. For those happy with a tasting (or several), you'll be able to choose from Brisbane Distillery's Game of Eucalyptus Gin, Queensland Dry Gin and Brown Snake Rhum. You'll also be able to buy bottles to take home with you, too. Fancy hanging for a bit longer? The cocktail flights cost $24.99, and feature three beverages, each coming in at half a standard drink. Two different flight menus are available — both starting with a G&T, of course. From there, you can opt for a tomato-flavoured tipple and a citrusy drink called Parks and Recreation. Or, you can channel your inner Paddington with a marmalade cocktail, then follow it with a pink concoction. Brisbane Distillery will be taking the True Spirit Bus on the road, so expect future market pop-ups. If drinking on a stationary bus sounds like your kind of party activity, the vehicle can also be booked for weddings, birthdays, markets, promotions and other events. When it makes its first appearance, it's doing so on Mother's Day — so if you still haven't nabbed your mum a last-minute gift, or made a restaurant booking for a nice meal, you now have another option. Brisbane Distillery's True Spirit bus will debut at the Riverside Markets in the City Botanic Gardens on Sunday, May 9, and then host sessions every Sunday. For further details and to book tickets, head to the distillery's website.
Way before The Wiggles were ever hopelessly convincing us to eat fruit salad, Peter Combe was telling us to throw caution to the wind and wash our faces with orange juice. His crazy lyrics and unforgettable tunes carried us Gen Yers through early childhood and evidently dominated Australian children’s music. That was, until Peter disappeared into oblivion, leaving us to clutch onto our Juicy Juicy Green Grass dreams, wondering if he'll ever come back (chorus: will you come ba-ack?). Each night of his pub and club tour, Peter has seen crowds of over 18s crowd-surfing and stage diving to childhood faves “Newspaper Mama” and “Mister Clinkety Cane”. For those still a bit foggy, I doubt you've forgotten the words to Spaghetti Bolognese if you can accurately remember every word to Britney Spear's Hit Me Baby One More Time. The point of the matter is that even though it may have been 20-odd years since you've heard these songs, there is every chance your brain has retained their sheer awesomeness and is ready and willing to crack them out at an opportune moment. Obviously no better than this Saturday night, where you can see Peter Combe make your young dreams come true at the Globe.
Willing to head off the beaten track to find a quality swimming hole? Then head a couple of hours north of Cairns to beat the heat at Emmagen Creek. You'll bounce down an unsealed road to reach this picturesque pool located five kilometres north of Cape Tribulation in the Daintree National Park. From the carpark, head toward the Emmagen Creek road crossing and take the track on the left-hand side to the swimming section of the creek located a few hundred metres upstream. If the water is high, consider plonking yourself in the clear rainforest water via the rope swing. Or, clamber down the twisting tree roots to enter the freshwater swimming hole slowly and try to spot a cassowary from the creek. [caption id="attachment_829633" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tourism and Events Queensland[/caption]
When it comes to art exhibitions, second chances aren't common. A big-name showcase may display at several places around the world, but it doesn't often hit the same venue twice. French Impressionism is about to become an exception, then, when it returns to the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne in 2025 after initially gracing the institution's walls in 2021. When it was first announced for that debut Australian run, French Impressionism was set to be a blockbuster exhibition — and with 100-plus works featuring, including by Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Edgar Degas, Mary Cassatt and more, it's easy to understand why. But 2021 wasn't an ordinary year, like 2020 before it. Accordingly, when this showcase of masterpieces on loan from Boston's renowned Museum of Fine Arts opened Down Under, it was forced to close shortly afterwards due to the pandemic. [caption id="attachment_977038" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Camille Pissarro, French (born in the Danish West Indies), 1830–1903, Spring pasture, 1889, oil on canvas, 60 x 73.7 cm, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Deposited by the Trustees of the White Fund, Lawrence, Massachusetts, Photography © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. All Rights Reserved.[/caption] Cue another season in this part of the world four years later, thankfully, with French Impressionism returning to NGV International from Friday, June 6–Sunday, October 5, 2025. This is one of the largest collections of the eponymous art movement to ever make its way to Australia, complete with works that've never been seen here before. The exhibition's Australian comeback is the result of "long dialogue and negotiation with the MFA Boston", Dr Ted Gott, NGV's Senior Curator of International Art, tells Concrete Playground. "I think both parties, the NGV and the MFA, realised what a tragedy it was that this fantastic show closed after just a few weeks in 2021 due to COVID." [caption id="attachment_977037" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Pierre-Auguste Renoir, French, 1841–1919, Woman with a parasol and small child on a sunlit hillside, c. 1874–76, oil on canvas, 47.0 x 56.2 cm, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Bequest of John T. Spaulding Photography © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. All Rights Reserved.[/caption] "It's just extraordinary that it was sort of stuck here in aspic for months with the doors locked, because COVID also froze all the flights, so it couldn't go back automatically. So we had this bizarre situation where the whole exhibition was sealed up inside the NGV, and not even staff were allowed in to have a look at it," Gott continues. "Those who saw it in those first few weeks were amazed, and word of mouth got out very quickly that it was an extraordinary show, so we had really good numbers for those first few weeks." [caption id="attachment_977035" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Claude Monet, French, 1840–1926, Grand Canal, Venice, 1908, oil on canvas, 73.7 x 92.4 cm, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Bequest of Alexander Cochrane Photography © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. All Rights Reserved.[/caption] Again part of the Melbourne Winter Masterpieces exhibition series, French Impressionism isn't short on gems, especially given the array of artists with pieces on display, which also includes Camille Pissarro and Berthe Morisot. But one certain must-see is the presentation of 16 Monet pieces in one gallery, all in a curved display to close out the showcase — and focusing of his scenes of nature in Argenteuil, the Normandy coast and the Mediterranean coast, as well as his Giverny garden. In total, there's 19 Monet works in French Impressionism from the Museum of Fine Arts' collection (Water Lilies among them), and that still leaves the US gallery almost as many to display in Boston. Another section digs into early works by Monet and his predecessors, such as Eugène Boudin — and Renoir and Pissarro's careers also get the in-depth treatment. As the exhibition charts French impressionism's path across the late-19th century, visitors will enjoy three never-before-seen-in-Australia pieces, with Victorine Meurent's Self-portrait one of them. Ten-plus Degas works, as well as two pieces that were part of the very first exhibition of French Impressionism that took place in 1874, also feature. [caption id="attachment_977042" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Claude Monet, French, 1840–1926, Water lilies, 1905, oil on canvas, 89.5 x 100.3 cm, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Gift of Edward Jackson Holmes Photography © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. All Rights Reserved.[/caption] "People just feel excited and uplifted when they look at a glorious impressionist painting, and I think that's why they haven't lost their perennial fascination and value," notes Gott. If you made it along to the showcase's first trip Down Under, you will notice changes, with the exhibition design reimagined for its latest presentation. "I'm sure that those who saw it in 2021 will come back again, and we want them to have a completely different experience. Also, we just didn't want to do the same thing. That's too easy," says Gott. "So we've completely reimagined the design of the show, and also the catalogue has been redesigned. So it'll be completely fresh, and the design is going to be absolutely sumptuous — and that will also make people feel warm and fuzzy inside." [caption id="attachment_977040" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Vincent van Gogh, Dutch (worked in France), 1853–90, Houses at Auvers, 1890, oil on canvas, 75.6 x 61.9 cm, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Bequest of John T. Spaulding Photography © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. All Rights Reserved.[/caption] French Impressionism will display at NGV International, St Kilda Road, Melbourne, from Friday, June 6–Sunday, October 5, 2025. Head to the NGV website for more details and tickets. Top image: excerpt of Claude Monet, French, 1840–1926, Grand Canal, Venice, 1908, oil on canvas, 73.7 x 92.4 cm, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Bequest of Alexander Cochrane Photography © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. All Rights Reserved.
Already the home of Kabuki Teppanyaki, and enticing in travellers and locals alike, Brisbane's riverside Stamford Plaza has expanded its culinary range. Diners can now mix up their Japanese feasts with a trip to La Boca, the hotel's new Argentinian eatery that takes ample advantage of the site's prime CBD location. As well as that riverfront perch, Argentinian grilling and cooking techniques are the star of the show at La Boca Bar and Grill, which also joins sibling venues in Sydney and Adelaide. At Brisbane's outpost, those South American culinary methods are unleashed upon local Queensland produce — much of which the ends up on the parrilla grill. La Boca opened its doors over summer, and does breakfast, lunch and dinner service seven days a week — all with that Argentina-meets-Australia blend. Here, you can pair short ribs with pecan- and toffee-stuffed dessert empanadas, and sip Argentinian sangria and mango chilli margaritas. Or, opt for grilled octopus with potato salad, a half-split grilled spring chicken, and burnt Basque cheesecake with strawberry gelato. The lunch lineup heroes sweet corn and cheese empanadas, grilled chorizo in chargrilled flatbread topped with pico de gallo salsa, and wagyu rump with truffle fries. Come dinner, seafood is a hefty focus, including Moreton Bay bugs with paprika and garlic, and grilled rock lobster with butter and lime. Or, there's a citrus-heavy red emperor dish, and two barramundi options. Also a highlight: the asador menu, where you can choose your pick of meat — pork belly, dry-aged lamb shoulder, wagyu shoulder blade and grain-fed scotch fillet — to be slow-cooked over the wood fire pit. And, La Boca also does meat- and seafood-stacked platters to share (one including asador dishes and saltbush lamb sausages, the other mixing the ocean's finest in chilled and parrilla-grilled forms), serves up Australian and Argentinian wines, and features orange espresso cocktails and roasted sugarcane daiquiris among its drinks selection. Find La Boca Bar and Grill at the Stamford Plaza Brisbane, corner of Margaret and Edward streets, Brisbane — open daily from 6.30–10.30am for breakfast, 12–2pm for lunch and 6–9pm for dinner.
It's a shot favourite with lemon and salt. There's a surf instrumental track that shares its name. Just thinking about it likely gets the early-90s hip hop cover of that tune stuck in your head. Although it's a famous spirit, tequila isn't always the best-appreciated tipple. Head to Carmen, James Street's newest bar and Mexican eatery, however, and the latter might change. Running through Fortitude Valley and New Farm, this stretch of road has long had Brisbanites flocking to the city's inner north for a sip and a bite to eat, adding dining and drinking options aplenty over the two decades since it rebadged its industrial stretch into an urban precinct. The new reason to head is this 80-seater tequileria from aka Potentia Solutions Leisure, joining a hospitality stable that also features rooftop joints Lina and Soko. While Carmen is an eatery, bar and lounge in one, tequila- and agave-heavy drinks take pride of place on the menu. Standout sips include the El Tigre, which is made on Patron Reposado, plus grapefruit bitters, agave and dehydrated grapefruit; Sueno de Sandia, a citrusy number featuring Patron Silver, watermelon juice, lime, agave and basil syrup; and the Aventura, a mix of The Lost Explorer Espadin, Grand Marnier, St Germain elderflower, lime, lemon and raspberries. In addition to cocktails, plus a hefty list of tequila and agave in general — including a focus on small-batch mezcals — Carmen boasts Coronas, naturally, plus a premium wine list ready for the swilling. Australian vinos get ample attention, as do New Zealand, French and Italian drops. Food-wise, patrons can tuck into poached lobster tacos, Mexican popcorn chicken, charred corn rillettes, kingfish ceviche with fermented pineapple and wagyu steak crudo tostaditos, as well as dulce de leche cheesecake and Patron tequila sorbet. Other dishes also glean their influences from elsewhere around the world, as seen with Sydney rock oysters and beef short rib rendang. Seafood is a big feature, as tends to be the trend no matter what style of cuisine is on offer in Brisbane. Also, sustainability is a hefty focus across both the food and drinks spread. Carmen is working towards a zero-waste cocktail list, setting itself a goal to achieve waste-free tipples — but launching with a menu that's as close as possible in the interim. As Soko does, Carmen is collaborating with the One Tree Planted program, too, donating a portion of funds from some drinks to support global reforestation. And in terms of decor, visitors will find the space decked out in neutral tones amid white walls and curved archways. Find Carmen Tequileria at 70 James Street, Fortitude Valley — open 4pm–late Monday–Tuesday and 12pm–late Wednesday–Sunday. Images: Fortem Media.
So far, 2020 has dished up some tough times all round and you're probably busy hunting for ways to up your quota of good days. Sydney couple Jacob Leung and Sarah-Jane Ho certainly were, but they've now landed on the answer. The pair has dreamt up a nifty cure for the pandemic blues with their new feel-good online gift store, Good Day People. This local-loving business is reimagining the humble gift hamper, swapping out the standard bath soaps and boring bickies for fun, quality goodies, and finishing it all off with some bright, mood-boosting packaging. It's serving up a smart edit of gifts and themed gift packages you'd actually want to receive, heroing small Aussie businesses and doing some good for the environment at the same time. If you're forever left stumped by that fussy friend who's 'impossible to buy for', consider this a treasure trove. You'll find 36 different hampers at the moment, including one for 'Gourmet Greg' — packed with Drunken Sailor relish, Maya Sunny honey, a bottle of local wine, Olsson's sea salt and some Bramble & Hedge nougat — and, for 'Perky Pam', an assembly of Bottl(ed) cocktails, Grandvewe sheep whey gin, a pack of cowhide coasters from Mr and Mrs White and Hey Tiger Fairy Wings vegan milk chocolate. The 'Casual Clare' curation comes stocked with some Wondaree macadamias, Poor Toms gin and bottles of Strangelove tonic; while other hampers might star the likes of Noble's luxe maple syrup, batched negronis, Mayde teas, boozy treats from Love Can, a Horse watch, or Hey Bud's moisturising hemp facial mask. There's even a pack for 'Pregnant Polly' including some all-important booze-free rosé. With this lot, it's a safe bet you'll be making someone's day a very good one. Prices start from an easy $49, ranging up to $359 for the top-of-the-line collection. You can say goodbye to the cardboard box and cellophane situation, too. These gift hampers come packaged in your choice of five funky printed cans, splashed with bold colours and cheeky messaging. And as an added bonus, Good Day People also carbon offsets its deliveries, so that ol' planet of ours can have a good day as well. Check out the Good Day People online store to shop the full range of hampers.
Watching I Hate Suzie Too isn't easy. Watching I Hate Suzie, the show's first season, wasn't either back in 2020. A warts-and-all dance through the chaotic life, emotions and mind of a celebrity, both instalments of this compelling British series have spun as far away from the glitz and glamour of being famous as possible. Capturing carefully constructed social-media content to sell the fiction of stardom's perfection is part of the story, as it has to be three decades into the 21st century; however, consider this Stan- and Neon-streaming show from Succession writer Lucy Prebble and actor/singer/co-creator Billie Piper, and its blood pressure-raising tension and stress, the anti-Instagram. I Hate Suzie's unfiltered focus: teen pop sensation-turned-actor Suzie Pickles, as played with a canny sense of knowing by Piper given that the 'Honey to the Bee' and Penny Dreadful talent has charted the same course. That said, the show's IRL star hasn't been the subject of a traumatic phone hack that exposed sensitive photos from an extramarital affair to the public, turning her existence and career upside down, as Suzie was in season one. In episodes named after emotions — shock, denial, fear, shame, bargaining, guilt, anger and acceptance — the eight-part initial go-around stepped through the fallout, as unsurprisingly frenzied as it was. Suzie's professor husband Cob (Daniel Ings, Sex Education) reacted with fury and selfishness; their young son Frank (debutant Matthew Jordan-Caws), who is deaf, got swept up in the tumult; and manager and lifelong friend Naomi (Leila Farzad, Avenue 5) endeavoured to save Suzie's career. As I Hate Suzie's name makes plain, sentiment didn't often flow Suzie's way — from Cob, the media, everyone pulling the strings behind her professional opportunities, and also the world at large. In I Hate Suzie Too, she has a new manager Sian (Anastasia Hille, A Spy Among Friends) and a new chance to win back fans, returning to reality TV after it helped thrust her into the spotlight as a child star to begin with. Dance Crazee Xmas is exactly what it sounds like, and sees Suzie compete against soccer heroes, musicians and more. But when I Hate Suzie Too kicks off with a ferocious, clearly cathartic solo dance in sad-clown getup, the viewers aren't charmed. In fact, instantly damaging her already fragile self-esteem, Suzie is the first celebrity voted off. Although arriving a couple of years later, season two takes place six months after the first, which ended with Suzie all over the papers — again — and facing another life-changing development. Spanning three episodes, I Hate Suzie Too is a chronicle of a comeback that isn't quite allowed to be, because that's the relentlessness of being in the public eye when you're a woman who's deemed to have erred. Suzie herself simply wants to work to be able to share custody of Frank, the fight over which is cruel and demanding at the hands of the still-vicious Cob. She wants to dance, too, because that was always her first love. What she gets is the unceasing pressure to be flawless, as dictated by everyone else around her, but with zero interest in what'd truly make her content, safe, secure and fulfilled. Fearless, audacious, honest, dripping with anxiety, staggering in its intensity, absolutely heart-wrenching, always unflinching: with Prebble and Piper reteaming not just after season one, but also 2007–11 series Secret Diary of a Call Girl, all of these terms fit. This is a head-in-your-hands dark dramedy, a reaction incited by everything that comes Suzie's way as well as the choices she makes in response. The demands and decisions don't stop. Everyone always needs something, and needs Suzie to make a call. In this season, that still includes her mother (Lorraine Ashbourne, Bridgerton), father (Phil Daniels, House of the Dragon) and younger sister (Elle Piper), who are now joined by Suzie's first ex-husband Bailey Quinn (Douglas Hodge, The Great), plus former footballer-turned-streamer Danny Carno (Blake Harrison, The Inbetweeners) — both fellow Dance Crazee Xmas contestants, and reasons that the press' attention hones in again and again. With its claustrophobic cinematography constantly staring Piper's way — and, more than that, usually getting closer than anyone would feel comfortable with — I Hate Suzie Too apes what Suzie's fans and detractors are always doing: surveilling intently. No one performs well under such meticulous examination, with the series pondering the exacting standards placed upon well-known figures and the hypocritical reactions when they don't handle the scrutiny faultlessly. Steely eyed but empathetic, it's an exploration of mental health as well, and the fraying space that takes over when the world's wants take precedence over your own. "The team are choosing between you looking needy and you looking miserable,' Suzie is told about Dance Crazee Xmas' behind-the-scenes footage, to which she replies "well, those are my two states". I Hate Suzie Too shows how untrue that comment is, and how deeply it has been internalised. When she starred in a 2016 UK stage production of Yerma, Piper won six Best Actress awards for her performance — all six that she could — but, on-screen, she's never been better than she is in I Hate Suzie's two seasons. All that up-close peering at Suzie's face is revelatory, conveying every twitch of thought and emotion as she navigates the persistent onslaught of everything everywhere all at once, and attempts to package and repackage herself to be all things to all people. The focus and adaptability required on Piper's part is stunning, especially given I Hate Suzie Too's fondness for long, unbroken shots onstage and careening through backstage corridors. She's equally phenomenal whenever Suzie does snatch a quiet moment to herself, usually brimming with uncertainty, and she's heartbreaking when she's just trying to be a mum to her son. Like Suzie, Piper benefits from her own popstar background in I Hate Suzie Too, with Dance Crazee Xmas' dance numbers — for an audience and in rehearsals alike — proving the powerhouse centre of the series' latest run. Spectacularly choreographed and performed, and incisively paired to Suzie's inner state like a musical, they almost tell this season's tale without anything else needed around them. And, they help emphasise that this story isn't Suzie's alone. Too many women in the spotlight, and in general, have been held to unrealistic ideals, then pilloried for not meeting them. Much lingers when I Hate Suzie Too comes to an end in a whirlwind of distress, that fact included. Check out the trailer for I Hate Suzie Too below: I Hate Suzie Too streams via Stan in Australia and Neon in New Zealand.
Now, you can't talk about the top hotels in Brisbane without fawning over the Emporium Hotel South Bank. Up until a few years ago, if you were looking for the Emporium, you'd need to head to Fortitude Valley. But, after a bout of musical chairs among the city's accommodation providers, the hotel can now be found at South Bank. And this spot is pure opulence. Starting from the top – you've got their much-loved and often photographed 23m rooftop infinity pool with insane views over the city. You can even book a poolside cabana suite for extra easy access to the pool life. Moving on down the Emporium Hotel South Bank, the rooms are larger than you'd expect, and each comes with all the best amenities including marble and bronze finishings, mirrored TVs and in-suite wine fridges (they even have a pyjama menu for those who forgot to bring their own). Then move from the Piano Bar (where you get great live jazz throughout the year), to the main dining room or The Terrace before visiting the Belle Époque where you just have to try the afternoon tea experience. This contemporary hotel aims to stand out – boldly showing off all its luxury features.
In a year that's brought news that more Ted Lasso is on the way and is also delivering a 29-years-later sequel to Happy Gilmore, Stick is the right series for the right moment. There's no American in the UK at its core. None of its characters would prefer to be playing ice hockey, either. It's a golfing underdog story about attempting to score a pivotal tournament spot, however, and hails from the streaming platform that made the world now think of soccer whenever Jason Sudeikis pops up. Stick also knows that warmhearted, big-feeling comedies about the supportiveness of found families make for must-see viewing when they find the right swing — and, with that task, it hits the TV equivalent of a hole in one. The show's namesake is Pryce 'Stick' Cahill, a professional golfer-turned-golf store salesman — and a figure with the type of laidback yet vulnerable demeanour that Owen Wilson (Loki) excels at. He's not the person trying to make it into the sport's big leagues, though. Pryce has been there and done that, reaching number 18 in the world until his career ended unceremoniously with an on-the-green meltdown. Little has looked up for him since, and he starts the series mid-divorce from but still yearning for Amber-Linn (Judy Greer, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever) while living in their old shared home. Then, at a driving range, Pryce spies teenager Santi (Peter Dager, Insidious: The Red Door) smashing golf balls off the turf with pure raw talent. Stick, the show, now has its prodigy. Stick, the character, has a mission to help him unlock his talent. Initial roadblocks come courtesy of Santi's disinterest in Pryce's plan, the latter's fondness for a hustle, and needing to convince the 17-year-old's doting single mother Elena (Mariana Treviño, Caras Vemos) that the three of them should take to the road to chance a shot at getting into the amateur championships. Requiring wheels, Pryce then enlists his gruff ex-caddy Mitts (Marc Maron, The Order) to join them, RV in tow. Soon, this quartet adds a fifth member as well, when Santi befriends golf-club bartender Zero (Lilli Kay, Yellowstone). What appealed to Wilson about starring in Stick? "I really liked the idea of a second chance and the idea of needing people to believe in you. And Santi needs that, but Pryce certainly needs it," he tells Concrete Playground. "I find that a moving dynamic and something that I really believe in in real life, that people benefit so much when somebody has some confidence in them. And I just see that — even learning to drive, my dad was uptight and I was more likely to make a mistake with my dad driving because I could feel his energy. And then sometimes you have somebody like my grandmother, just loved me and I could do no wrong, and you'd sometimes do better with that. So I just like that part of the story." Series creator Jason Keller, who also co-penned the screenplays for films Mirror Mirror and Ford v Ferrari, has described Pryce as being at "a place in his life where the story he tells himself no longer works anymore". Wilson quickly came to mind for the part — as did Maron for Mitts — but as the former flags, he's not the only one in need of a new start in Stick. Accordingly, this ragtag crew's journey shares a key commonality with the path of every ball hit on a green: trying to find where they fit. Grief, loss, disappointment, unreasonable expectations and life's unfair twists have haunted this group, leaving them searching for their own niche. Stick is also about caring, even if that means that sometimes that heartbreak or other negative emotions arise as a result. Greer's only experience of the show's main sport going in was "watching my father come home after playing golf in the worst mood I've ever seen a man be in in his life", and so would think to herself "as a child, 'why would anyone do this to themselves? Why?'," she explains. Wilson has the perfect take on that. "Is it that thing of 'it's better to feel bad than not feel anything at all?'. So, rather than just being kind of an automatron, like sometimes we can get into, maybe feeling terrible is good?" he notes. "Because the idea that you care about something, that something has the ability to make you feel that way — because if it can make you feel that bad, well, there's going to be a day where you do connect and it's going to make you feel really good." That insight is indicative of a series lead who Maron notes is "a collaborative guy" and "always willing to work with you and elevate the scene", Treviño describes as eager to "engage emotionally and in the level of comedy that we had to do it, but also on the human level" — and who Dager, who secured the part of Santi via a self-tape audition after the producers had looked at around 600 other actors, advises that he learned from in a similar way that his character does from Pryce. We also spoke with Wilson, Dager, Maron, Treviño and Greer about everything from Dager's pivotal casting to golf's lessons (and golfing lessons), underdog stories, RV life, intergenerational tension and more. On What It Meant to Dager to Score Such a Key Role in Stick Peter: "I couldn't quite believe it. I still remember the day — I got cast the day after my 21st birthday. I was with my dad and I got the call from Jon and Val [Ruby Sparks and Battle of the Sexes' Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris], the directors and executive producers, and I just really couldn't believe it. But it was such a long audition process. I think there were six rounds. And so by the time I had finished the audition process, I'm like 'I know I did good work. If it goes my way, it does. And if it doesn't, I did what I could'. And so I was also just, when I got it, I was kind of like 'okay, cool'. I couldn't believe it, but then there was another part of me that was like 'cool, I feel like I earned this one, and they saw what they needed to see'. And I was excited to get started. I was so excited to get started, really, more than anything." On How Wilson Approached Portraying Someone Who Is at a Place in His Life Where the Story He Tells Himself No Longer Works Anymore Owen: "You know, Jason didn't say that exactly to me, but that sounds really nice, and I feel it when you say it. And I don't know — I know that initially I was sort of nervous about playing a golfer, because my dad was a good golfer, I'd never learned the game and 'oh, how do you make it seem kind of real?'. But of course, golf's just the backdrop for the story and Jason really had a lot of faith in me that gave me confidence that maybe I could do it and play the character. And there's a lot of stuff with Pryce that I could kind of relate to — that wanting a second chance or feeling that you need somebody to believe in you, that you can't do it alone. I think that's a powerful message. And so I really like that part of the story, because I find it funny and also moving." On Maron Being Thought of Quickly as Stick's Ideal Mitts Marc: "I think I have a fairly varied and broad personality, but I think one of the more compelling elements is my ability to be pretty cranky and irritated. And I think people find that entertaining. So he clearly locked in on that. But I do think he also sensed that there was a depth to it, in that I was able to handle the emotional side of this guy, along with being my cranky self. And I appreciate that. But I'm not as cranky as Mitts. I'm not." On What Dager Was Excited to Bring to the Role of Stick's Teenage Golf Prodigy Peter: "I think the first thing that I really was excited to dive into was the idea of greatness and playing a prodigy — playing somebody who's spoken about as the next Tiger Woods, somebody with all this potential and all this talent. And so the idea of what greatness is and what it takes, the sacrifices you make to achieve it, the negative impacts that it can have once obtained — all of that was super interesting to me. And so I started to examine my own life and see the similarities, what I could take. The rest, I had to imagine. And then beginning to study golf, and the likes of Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson and Jack Nicklaus and all the greats, that was just so exciting. And then the rest of it, everything else that came after that was a plus — meeting everybody, meeting Owen, Lilli, Marc, Mariana, Tim [Olyphant, Havoc]. But at first, the exciting thing was the idea of greatness — playing somebody great." On What You Learn About Not Just Golf But Life When You're Trying to Pick Up the Sport Owen: "Oh gosh, we were joking — we've joked a lot today about golf being a metaphor for life. And I think doesn't it seem like everything that you say is a metaphor for life is always something hard, and is frustrating and challenging? And so I think that it's a game that you can't seem to master — so someone like Tiger Woods, as great as he was, can still feel that he needs to redo his swing. And so it's like chess — you can't kind of ever totally figure it out. And the thing for me was learning that this thing, this sport that I was kind of intimidated by, that I actually can do it. But it's two steps forward, one step back — or one step forward, two steps back — because there's some days where I just can't do it. But it's definitely something that I will be playing the rest of my life. And so I'm so happy that I learned for this show." On the Keys to Portraying Determination for Treviño When That's Such a Pivotal Character Trait for Elena Mariana: "I think it's just the force that is with a mother that wants to make her son go in the right path — to save the family, and to save and to keep moving. I think they're in kind of a desperate moment when the show starts. Maybe not desperate, but they're a little stuck and stagnant because they don't know where to pull after a big loss that they had as a family. So I think that the mother's instinct just says 'this is not right, we are not living as we should and he's not owing up to a talent, the natural-given talent that he has'. So I think that determination is not even rational with Elena. It just is a force working inside of her, just because she has her son's best interest in heart and she's going to do whatever — even if she doesn't understand, if she doubts what she's doing is right, the determination is stronger than her doubts, and it's what makes this force of movement, and to embark on this journey and this adventure of self-discovery." On What It Takes to Believably Portray a Phenomenal Golfing Talent, to the Point of Doing Golf Scenes Yourself, When You've Never Played Before — and Only Had Baseball Experience to Go On Peter: "It took a while. It took a while. I don't think I felt — I don't think I saw my progress until maybe three weeks in. And it wasn't because I was hitting the ball good, because I would go out and play with my first trainer named Beau Lardner. It was moreso because I felt the swing feel comfortable. I felt it becoming a fluid motion. And it wasn't always there. I was still going outside in, instead of inside out, but I was getting the rhythm of the swing, the club speed. So three weeks into it, I was starting to see the progress. But I didn't feel ready up until maybe two months into it, so we had already started filming. But by the time we get to episode five, six and seven — and really eight and nine, where you see Santi playing golf for two whole episodes — a lot of those shots are my own because that was done with like five months of training, four months of training. And by then, my club speed was up, the striking distance was sort of increasing and I felt really good with my swing. And yeah, actually a lot of the baseball, that sort of inside out that you have naturally when swinging a baseball bat, it really lends itself to the process of swinging a golf club." On Why Sports-Centric TV Comedies Telling Underdog Stories Keep Popping Up on Maron's Resume Marc: "No, I didn't seek out any of it. GLOW was this a random audition that I put on my phone. I think those two guys are slightly different types of cranky. I think that Sam in GLOW had no real self-awareness around his swagger, his ridiculous swagger, and he wasn't really neurotic at all. And I think that Mitts is a very reflective guy, and a guy who sits in a certain amount of sadness. But I guess they are of the same spectrum of bravado on some level — of kind of slightly futile bravado, you know." On How Dager Learned From His Co-Stars Like Wilson, Greer, Maron, Treviño and Kay Peter: "Everybody has their own process with acting, which was really cool, because I have my own — and I can think it's so special, and you're like 'oh my god, they don't work like I do', but everybody's different process and encountering it and being around it for four months straight, it's a lesson in perspective. And you start to really question your own process, and you see the benefits of other people's. So you learn a lot without even having conversations about it. You just learn a lot by watching these people who have worked for so long approach the work the way they approach the work. But yeah, then there were moments with Owen specifically, where that Pryce-Santi relationship really became real off camera. Especially early on when — Owen's a great leader, he knew exactly when to give me a talk, and it always felt natural because he wanted to. He was compelled to. It never felt forced. And he wasn't absent either. It was a sort of perfect mix of both. Yeah, him especially, it was truly a treat to work with him because of that, that mentorship." On What Treviño Learned From Working with Dager Mariana: "A lot. Of course, as an actor, we're always constantly learning from each other. It doesn't matter your experience, your age, because it's a human interchange of emotions and contents that sometimes you're not even very conscious of. So many things come into play when you are making a scene come alive that it's really beyond what you think of experience. It is about experience, because it's the contents of your soul that are being exchanged and shaped into this reality. But Peter, he's a lovely young man. He's super mature. He's very outspoken. He has a wonderful, joyful personality. And he's really, really smart — and he was really keen into getting into something with all his heart. He played golf all the time while we were in Vancouver. His determination as an actor to get it right — to not play confidence, but to experience it doing golfing himself — I love that. So I learned that from him, among many other things. And how you have to be very approachable, because you don't know where the exchange is going to happen. And he's like that — he's a very approachable person and actor, he's very open, and that I think sometimes it's important for things to be discovered." On How Wilson Worked Through the Emotional Journey of Playing Ex-Spouses with Greer Owen: "I know that Judy and I, that we had no problem connecting — just we were sort of on the same wavelength with sense of humor. And I think when you're on the same wavelength sense of humour-wise, it means that you're also same wavelength sensitivity-wise. And so I think it was easy for us — or not easy, but when we had to do some of the emotional stuff, because I'm clearly still in love with her, she's kind of moved on, it was easy for me to feel those things and to see that in her. So it was just, for us, lucky casting that we had Judy doing it." On Dager's Task Juggling the Many Facets of Santi, Including His Talent, Growing Up Fast, Being Temperamental and His Coming-of-Age Journey Peter: "I think it's just taking the moment as it is. Being in each moment, exploring that moment to your fullest as an actor, just finding everything you can in that moment. And with TV and film, it's a luxury because you get to repeat the moment, so you find things and you can find a way to put them into the next take. But rather than worrying about a general story arc, if you just can concentrate on the moment that you're trying to execute and explore and bring to life, you've just got to hope and pray that when you see the final cut, every moment was explored to its possibility, and when they're all cut together you see the whole thing pan out. But yeah, that's the sort of mindset I would approach it with, focusing on the moment rather than feeling 'man, I have to play with all these things and have a balancing act'. Now, there are things that you have to remember that you've said in other scenes, but that's more than nitty gritty and very specific moments. But focusing on the moment is the more general approach that I had." On Stick's Intergenerational Tension — and Why That Clash Is Such a Go-To On-Screen Owen: "Well, with working with Peter and with Lilli, who play Santi and Zero, I think it's that familiar generational argument — that one generation thinks the other generation doesn't get it, had it too easy, and so that plays out with how I am struggling to connect with Santi. And with Zero. And I think it's hopefully funny, their inability to connect. And then I think there's some moving stuff when any human beings try to connect. And so that's certainly there, and that struggle for us that we have to kind of connect — and that's good." Judy: "I think it's always funny to watch two different generations duke it out, and argue with each other and try to decide who is more right. I don't know why. I just think that's universal comedy to me." On the RV Having Such a Pivotal Part in the Series Marc: "I feel like just the idea of a confined space with people who were relative strangers brought up the stakes of their ability to connect and interact — and overcome minor obstacles, because you are in this space. And I think the RV, for my character, carried a lot of emotional weight. And I think that the nature of the RV as a character was really taking Mitts out of his grief. There's a lot of reference to it being a mausoleum to his wife, who passed away. I don't think that spoils anything. So it was pretty loaded for Mitts. But it was also like it was an adventure, and you were being taken to all these different places and all these different environments. So it was a fairly complex character in the show." Mariana: "And it's also the idea of the moving home. These characters decide to embark on this journey in this car that is really becoming a home for them. And that is like a tiny home — they all sleep there, they cook. So it becomes, without them knowing, their place of safety and comfort during this whole journey. And it becomes a home for this new found family that is being created. And so of course it's a really important character, a really important presence in the show, because of the symbolic meaning of this — the idea that even if you're out there in the wilderness, you can find a family and they will all unite with a common purpose. And they become your allies in this confined space. All of a sudden we're all here — and you see that on top of the RV, we're allies, and outside we become allies, too." Stick streams via AppleTV+.
When the ABC announced that Spicks and Specks would return in 2024 after sitting 2023 out, it was big news, as anything to do with the hit Australian take on the UK's Never Mind the Buzzcocks always is. IRL, here's something just as exciting: the Brisbane-born and -based Not on Your Rider is also back for this year, although it didn't take a year off. On the agenda: playing a music quiz show filled with well-known faces live not just in the River City, but also in Sydney and Melbourne as well. And yes, the audience gets to play, too. You'll be peering at a stage, rather than a screen. You'll be answering questions, of course. And if it has you thinking about pub trivia nights, they don't include The Creases' Aimon Clark — who is also behind Isolation Trivia — hosting, or Patience Hodgson from The Grates and Jeremy Neale from Velociraptor captaining the two teams, let alone a heap of entertainment-industry guests. At past events, guests have included Murray Cook from The Wiggles, Broden Kelly and Mark Samual Bonanno from Aunty Donna, Boy Swallows Universe author Trent Dalton, Agro, Cal Wilson, Ben Lee, Steven Bradbury, Kate Miller-Heidke, Robert Irwin, Ranger Stacey, Craig Lowndes and Tim Rogers. Among the other musicians who've featured, Powderfinger, Dune Rats, DZ Deathrays, Ruby Fields, Ball Park Music, The Jungle Giants and The Go-Betweens have all had members take to the stage. Brisbane's 2024 season kicked off in mid-February, and now has seven more dates locked in for the rest of the year, all at The Triffid. Yes, given there's a Thursday, October 31 event, you can probably expect another Halloween celebration. And, come Thursday, December 19, a Christmas show as well. In Sydney and Melbourne, Not on Your Rider has a show in each city locked in. For the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, it's popping up on Thursday, April 18 at Brunswick Ballroom. And at Sydney's equivalent, head to Factory Theatre on Sunday, May 5. Here's how it works: Not on Your Rider takes something that everyone loves — showing off their music trivia knowledge — and dials it up a few notches. While the two on-stage teams are always filled with musos, comedians, drag queens and other guests, anyone can buy a ticket, sit at a table and answer questions along with them. The quiz element is accompanied by chats about the music industry, plus other mini games involving attendees. Not on Your Rider 2024 Dates: Brisbane: Thursday, April 4 — The Triffid Thursday, May 9 — The Triffid Thursday, June 13 — The Triffid Thursday, August 1 — The Triffid Thursday, September 12 — The Triffid Thursday, October 31 — The Triffid Thursday, December 19 — The Triffid Melbourne: Thursday, April 18 — Brunswick Ballroom Sydney: Sunday, May 5 — Factory Theatre Not on Your Rider's 2024 season runs on various dates until Thursday, December 19 at The Triffid in Brisbane, and on one-off occasions in Sydney and Melbourne. For more information or to buy tickets, head to the Not On Your Rider website. Images: Dave Kan / Bianca Holderness.
A Brisbane market favourite since 2015, Le Fromage Yard has made the jump to a bricks-and-mortar shop, opening its first permanent base on Wynnum Road in Morningside. That means that dairy lovers can pick up more cheese more often, thanks to a real-world version of its popular online cheese room. Or, you can combine the two — ordering your favourite truffle brie or whisky cheddar from the website, and then collecting it in person. Cheese is the main attraction, obviously, but Le Fromage Yard is also expanding its remit. It already has its central ingredient covered, and custom-made cheese towers, too — however, every gooey slice of camembert and crisp sliver of pecorino needs something go with it. That means meats, pâté, terrine, olives, sweet garlic, crackers, pastes and honey, with the Morningside location designed as a one-stop destination for all things cheesy and all its accompaniments. That said, if you're after breads and baked goods to go with your feast, owners Stephanie Stevenson and Pierre Lantourne recommend heading a few stores down to much-loved Morningside mainstay Flour & Chocolate. If picking up the gouda stuff is a firm part of your market-going routine, don't worry — Le Fromage Yard will still continue to pop up at markets as well. Find its stall at regular berths in Queen Street, Brisbane Powerhouse, Kevin Grove, Mitchelton and Manly. Le Fromage Yard is now open at 7/611 Wynnum Road, Morningside. It's open from 9.30am–5.30pm Tuesday and Wednesday, 9am–6pm Thursday and Friday, and 7am–2pm Saturdays.
Since it premiered at the 2024 Venice International Film Festival, earning Nicole Kidman the event's Best Actress prize in the process, two scenes from Babygirl have received the internet's ample and avid attention. In one, intern Samuel (Harris Dickinson, The Iron Claw) orders CEO Romy Mathis (Kidman, The Perfect Couple) a glass of milk, unprompted on her part, in a public bar at after-work drinks with their colleagues, keeping his eyes affixed in her direction from across the room as she sips it. In another, George Michael's 'Father Figure' soundtracks a slinky hotel-suite dance — a romp that's equal parts seductive and awkward — that's given by Samuel as Romy watches on. As it charts the duo's heated affair, and the yearning for satisfaction that's driving it so deeply, Babygirl is filled with moments that linger. It's teeming with sequences that other movies to follow are bound to nod to, remake, covet and wish that they had conjured up first, too. It starts with one, with Romy and her theatre-director husband Jacob (Antonio Banderas, Paddington in Peru) getting intimate at home in bed, then Romy rushing to another room to finish the job alone. Another pivotal scene arrives early, as the picture's central pair initially meet on a New York City street. They're both headed to the same place — it's Samuel's first day at Romy's robotics automation company, in fact — but before she knows who he is or that he's working for her, she's spellbound by how he calms down a dog that lunges her way. With her third feature behind the lens — her debut, 2019 Dutch drama Instinct, inspired Kidman to get in touch; 2022's Bodies Bodies Bodies, her second, saw the filmmaker give horror-comedy a delightfully entertaining spin — writer/director Halina Reijn clearly knows how to get viewers to submit. Watching Babygirl means surrendering swiftly to a smart and savvy exploration of desire, identity, control and vulnerability. It means being plunged into Romy and Samuel's thorny relationship, and all of the emotions that it swirls up, as Kidman and Dickinson turn in magnetic, raw and fearless performances. It also means being taken in by a reimagining of the erotic thriller with an unyielding female gaze. And yes, Reijn is well-aware, as viewers also should be, that a film like this, that addresses the orgasm gap and follows a woman seeking sexual fulfilment, mightn't feel so bold and rare in a perfect world where more such movies existed. Part of Babygirl's complexity is the dynamic of submission and domination between Romy and Samuel. Often daring, confident, assertive and brazen, he's largely in the latter role, but he can also be vulnerable and uncertain. At the office, in their professional realm, at the business that she founded and now leads, she has the power. One thing is certain chatting with Reijn and Dickinson, however: making a picture that's not just an erotic thriller, but a comedy of manners in its own way, a clear fantasy, a relationship drama, a kinky romance and a workplace thriller as well, they both happily submit to Kidman worship. When he chats with Concrete Playground, Dickinson has his pile of discs from the Criterion Closet, aka every cinephile's dream location, within reach. Taking us through his picks, he holds each DVD up: "one of them is our dearest Nicole," he beams with To Die For in his hand. Reijn's admiration for Kidman started as an actor herself, with her performing career dating back to the 90s. For challenging theatre parts, the Black Book and Valkyrie star would think about the Aussie talent, and attempt to channel her bravery. "She's god," Reijn tells us. Dickinson's role in Babygirl joins a resume that features one of the all-time great big-screen debuts, with his also-hypnotic turn in 2017's Beach Rats instantly marking him as a certain star. His filmography since constantly proves that true; after parts in TV's Trust and as a Disney prince in Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, the 2020s have kept him busy. See: everything from franchise entry The King's Man and the page-to-screen Where the Crawdads Sing to whodunnit See How They Run, Palme d'Or-winner Triangle of Sadness, Emma Corrin (Nosferatu)-led TV must-see A Murder at the End of the World and the World War II-set Blitz. With Beach Rats, The Souvenir: Part II, Scrapper and now Babygirl, he's also enjoyed a stellar run working with female filmmakers. "I've always been really lucky with the films that have come my way and the directors that have come my way, and a lot of them being women, and I've just been grateful for that," Dickinson advises. "Whether it's coincidence or not, I think that a lot of these women you're talking about have a deep access to a certain sensitivity, and an understanding and a humour, that maybe other people don't have. I guess I'll go where they go — and I'll go where they lead me." A couple of trends pop up with Babygirl for Reijn as well. Kidman sits at the heart of them. Casting her female lead in a New York-set, and Christmas-set, erotic thriller about a complicated marriage, Reijn sees the film as a female-skewed response to Eyes Wide Shut, which ticks all of the same boxes. As Australian viewers can't avoid noticing, there's more than just one Aussie touch to Babygirl, too, with Talk to Me's Sophie Wilde playing Romy's assistant Esme and 'Never Tear Us Apart' by INXS on the movie's soundtrack. "It is coincidental, but I don't think it is coincidental," Reijn notes. How did the writer/director shape Babygirl from hearing from a story about another woman from a friend? How did she purposely invert the status quo of 80s and 90s erotic thrillers — and also approach juggling her movie's eager mix of tones? Why was Dickinson initially a little reluctant to sign on, and what did he tap into as Samuel? What goes into a great dance scene for him? We also spoke with Reijn and Dickinson about all of the above, plus much more. On How Babygirl Evolved From Reijn Hearing From a Friend About a Woman Who Had Been Married for 25 Years Without Orgasming with Her Husband Halina: "Honestly, what happened was my response to it. Which was 'what, that's insane!' — something like that. And I went home and I was like 'wait, why did I react like that?'. It was almost like I was judging it. I was like 'no, that can't be true'. Then I started to think about my own experiences that I often had thought about in the past, that it took too long for me to orgasm at the hands of a man — and that I was very insecure, and that I had faked it on occasion just to make him feel better or to just get it over with, or because I was so ashamed and I didn't dare to really ask for him to change the way he was doing it or whatever. Then I started to talk to other women. I was losing it because I was so afraid to do it, but I just forced myself to talk to my girlfriends, to ask them like this, like 'can I ask you something?'. And then it turned out that a lot of my friends had similar stories. Then I started going online to research it, and then I just found out there's a huge orgasm gap. And we're not talking about it. Not enough, not in Hollywood movies. And part of the problem is that the stories that we see, for all the pornography that we see, but also the Hollywood movies — TV is a little bit ahead of us — Hollywood movies are letting women have orgasms in ways that are not possible physically. Even movies that are arthouse, even movies that are supposed to be half produced by women. So I felt it was time to really talk about that — and as a symbol for women in general, for women not orgasming or women not daring to ask for what they want on a deeper existential level, and women not having space enough to even explore themselves." On the Run of Projects That's Led Dickinson to Babygirl — and What It Means to Enjoy Such a Diverse Range of Work Harris: "It's been just a dream, and I've been so lucky that people have let me do this as a job still. I pinch myself every day with the realisation that I get to act and play all these different people, and get to do it with people that I admire. Triangle of Sadness was a huge thing for me. Being part of that was a real turning point. And same with Scrapper and The Iron Claw — all of those things you mentioned are just all in such different worlds. That's the goal for me, is to step into really different, unusual worlds that challenge me as a performer and force me into new versions of myself as well — new skins. Not to sound pretentious, but that's all I ever wished for, is just to have a versatile set of experiences and roles. And I've really been able to, I've been offered that, so I'm grateful." On How Reijn Fleshed Out Babygirl's Narrative Around a Woman in a Sexually Unfulfilling Long-Term Marriage Halina: "I think it all came from the question that I had, because I felt as women, we are so conditioned to become what others — or what we think others — want, and want us to be. So what society expects of us: that we should be perfect mothers and perfect career women and perfect daughters and perfect lovers, and have a perfect vagina and a perfect face. And look young. I felt that all of that, and the idea that we're playing all these different roles and that we're performing all of these different roles and forget to be our authentic self, that made me ask the question: is it possible to love all the different layers of myself? Because if I would accept the darker sides of myself, I would maybe be able to be more my authentic self and let go of all these ideas of perfection. So that is where all the ideas came from. I just thought 'what is the best profession, then, for her to have?'. It's all about chaos and control, really, and so I thought it would be very appropriate for her to be a CEO of a robotics company. Because she's a product of the sexual revolution, she grew up in cults and communes, she was named by a guru — and her whole life is an answer to that, which is the white picket fence, total control. And I thought it's kind of like the beast against machine, if you want to exaggerate it. And the whole movie is informed by that contradiction between control, surrender — the beasts, the civilised layer of ourselves." On What Dickinson Drew Upon to Play a Character Swinging Between Control and Surrender Harris: "Everything. Insecurity and pain and anger and love, it's all part of it, isn't it. It all boils down to what it means to be a human — and I think just normal everyday stuff as well. But the stakes for them, the stakes for them were higher. The stakes of the relationship and the affair, they were high. Confusion as well. Navigating something that you don't understand. Navigating feelings of your own that you don't understand." On How Reijn Knew That Dickinson Was Babygirl's Samuel Halina: "The moment that Nicole said 'I want to do this', first I couldn't sleep for joy and I was overexcited and full of adrenaline. But the next thing is, of course, who's going to play that young man opposite her? Who's going to be able to not only be challenging her as an actor, but be dominating her in these scenes? Someone like her, a total icon and one of the best actors on the planet, how are you going to find a young person to be able to match that? And then, weirdly, during that time I saw Triangle of Sadness. And I had never seen him before. I was so intrigued. And then I went home, and that night I saw Beach Rats, and I was mesmerised. Already Triangle of Sadness had me completely intrigued. But Beach Rats — and then I just saw all of his work, anything he did, the shortest movies, the old movies, everything. I a) got obsessed — and then I also found out that he was very tall, which might sound weird, but it is very important me. As an actress, I've had so many scene partners where I didn't feel that I could show my full strength because I was afraid that they couldn't hold it, not only physically but also emotionally. And so I felt 'this is just a perfect guy, he is the perfect age'. I was lucky enough to get a Zoom with him after he read the script, and and that only made me more confident that I had to have him. But it took me a couple of conversations with him because he was quite — he's very British, he's a very strong-willed person, and I really had to convince him that my movie would be an exploration of consent and power and surrendering control in a layered, complex way, and it was not going to be 50 Shades of Grey. And then he said 'yes', and both me and Nicole knew, even without — she didn't even meet him — we both knew it was going to work out. They met at the most-crazy place, they met at the Met Gala, because they were both there. I texted them both, I was like 'try to find each other'. And I was like a mother sitting here in my apartment — 'aaah, I hope it's going to work out'. Then they both texted me that they felt the other person was amazing, and then we were off to the races." On What Convinced Dickinson After His Initial Reluctance — and What He Was Keen to Explore Harris: "I think it was that initial fear that made me want to do it. And Halina, Halina, I trusted Halina, talking to her and understanding her vision for it and her approach. It made me trust her. It made me intrigued. I wanted to be in her world. I think the character itself was really complex. The opportunity to play someone that was kind of unreliable in their approach, they share information that is unreliable, I liked that. I liked that there was unanswered questions around who he was and where he came from and how he got there. I enjoyed those ambiguities. Also his manner and his directness, and his chameleon-like capabilities. They were all qualities that intrigued me about him. And getting to have fun within those scenes, play the humour and play the embarrassment, I thought it was all very nuanced and human stuff — so always exciting for an actor to jump into." On Reijn Casting Her Long-Held Source of Inspiration in Kidman Halina: "She contacted me after my first movie and that was, of course, a moment of total insanity for me. I thought I was having a psychosis when she contacted me, because I literally carried her around in my heart for so long as a torch against fear. Because I was part of a theatre group that made very, very radical theatre, so I had to do very scary things and I would always channel her. So it was insane to me when she called me. And then we just immediately hit it off, because I think what really connects us — and I mean, for me she's god, so I would never compare myself to her — but what is similar is that we both, however, in life we all have ego, we all have fear, we all have vanity, we all have all these worries about small things, but when she starts to act, or when she embarks on a creative journey, her vanity and ego is at the door; I think that is for me exactly the same. So whatever I am in my daily life, which is a totally a flawed, weird clown, when I start to be creative, there's ego death. There's complete ego death. And that is what connects us and makes — it's almost like a twin soulmate feeling. She calls it sometimes that we communicate through telepathy. And so working together became this really strange, almost-spiritual experience, in which we both just felt such an urgency to tell this story, and such dedication — and also to the humour of it and the playfulness of it and the lightness of it. And to bring warmth to this story, and to hopefully inspire women to liberate themselves a little bit more. That's what I think connects us." On What Excited Dickinson About Collaborating with Kidman Harris: "She's just got such an incredible body of work. She's so impressive. And everything that she's done, she's worked with some of our finest directors. I just was massively excited to get to watch her work, but also work alongside her and really get a chance to be close to that as a performer. But separate to that, she's just a lovely person. She makes everyone around her feel very encouraged and collaborative and creative, and that's just all you could ever ask for in this scenario. It's a difficult subject and it's some vulnerable stuff, and you want someone that's going to go there all the way with you." On Reijn's Embrace of the Eyes Wide Shut Connection, Knowing That Audiences Would Bring Their Knowledge of Kidman's Filmography to the Movie Halina: "When she came onboard, when she said 'I want to play this character' — and what also happened, so first of all, that, of course that it was going to be her, but then the strike happened. And I wrote the whole movie for summer, so I wrote that the second home is going be in The Hamptons, and they were going to be swimming in the ocean. It was completely, in that sense, a very different energy field. Then, because of the strike, we had to reschedule to Christmas. And A24 called me and said 'after the strike, the moment the strike ends, you need to rewrite, you need to rewrite the whole thing. It needs to be Christmas'. And then, of course, I thought Eyes Wide Shut, because it's the best Christmas movie ever. [caption id="attachment_652177" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Eyes Wide Shut[/caption] But I also thought about Eyes Wide Shut that it was funny that, if you look at Eyes Wide Shut, of course it has a lot of similar themes about midlife crisis, about sexual exploration, about monogamy versus polygamy, and all of these things — but she only tells him her fantasy, then we go on the whole journey with him, almost as a revenge, as a kind of Pandora's box is opened and now he has to go on this journey. It's an amazing journey but what is her journey? We don't know. We don't go there. We just hear her talk about it. We get some flashes. So I thought it is actually an answer in a way, but I only thought this after the fact, to be honest with you — it's an answer to Eyes Wide Shut. It is a female's journey into what is sexuality, what is monogamy, what do I really want and how hard is it to talk about that in an intimate, very long-term relationship, and how easy, weirdly, is it to be with a stranger and to reinvent myself with this young, strange man? That paradox is amazing to me. I am very grateful that there is some sort of strange magical connection between those movies." On How Dickinson and Kidman Brought Both Chemistry and Awkwardness — and Attraction and Uncertainty — to Romy and Samuel Harris: "Well, we didn't do loads of work. We had some rehearsals, but we really tried to focus on just getting the reality there and finding the nuance. But mostly it just came from not discussing stuff and just trying it. And we didn't talk a bunch. We didn't get to know each other loads. We just did it and tried it and didn't get in the way of ourselves too much, and I think that ended up working out for the best." On the Babygirl's Tonal Balancing Act Harris: "It's always tricky figuring out the tone, what kind of thing you're in. But it starts to fall into place, especially when you have a very strong, assertive voice with a director like Halina — you end up just trusting them and trusting their vision for it, and you fall into place. And it becomes the film it's supposed to be. All of that stuff that you try, it gets mixed up into the pot and then the dish gets made. You throw it all in, you throw the ingredients and you see which ones come out the other side." Halina: "I thought it was incredibly hard to — I really, as an actress, I'm retired now, but I got so many scripts in my life that I didn't understand the tone. It was like 'what do they want?'. So I felt it was my duty to make it very clear, especially because I take this challenge of 'oh, I'm going to make my own genre' —well, then you better know what you put on the page. So I really try to capture the tone in my writing — and on purpose, because this is how I feel. This is where we stand, I feel, as women. We just got the right to vote. Until 1987, we had to have a male guardian with us to get a business loan. It's still proven that if we lose ten pounds of weight, that we get a promotion in our work easier than if we get a master's degree. We're nowhere. So I wanted to show that in how I use genres. So I start out with these very masculine sexual thriller references,of the 90s. And then I venture into a world where everybody turns out to be ambiguous, and it's way more relatable and human and complex and nuanced. I'm using, on purpose, I'm swapping gender — like the scene in 9 1/2 Weeks where Kim Basinger is stripping to a Joe Cocker song and Mickey Rourke is sitting there watching her, I wanted to really copy that scene, but then reverse the gender, swap the gender, where Nicole is sitting there and he's dancing to 'Father Figure'. And all these little Easter eggs, so that you can continually be confused about who has the power, who's chasing who, who's blackmailing who — and is the woman in control, or is she the mascochist, or is her masochism super dominant? And that is where the comedy of manners element steps in and it becomes more of a fable and a fairy tale. And yes, what was hard about it is that I wanted it to be funny. And sex and humour is not always easy to connect, just like horror and humor in Bodies Bodies Bodies was a hard balancing act. But I just love that kind of challenge. Not everybody gets it, because some people feel that when people are laughing in the audience at Babygirl, they feel they don't want that. They want people to not laugh about it because they take it so seriously. But it's meant to make you laugh. It's meant to show you how we're all helpless as humans. We're just trying to control the chaos, but we can't. And that's what my movie is about, it's about pure vulnerability. So it was a balancing act, but I really enjoyed it." On What Goes Into a Memorable Dance Scene, Such as Babygirl's Seductive-Yet-Awkward Hotel Moment, for Dickinson Harris: "Well, I think you said it: seductive, awkward. You don't want it to be too rehearsed. You want it to be silly. You want it to be meaningful. You want it to be awkward. You don't want to be like some Magic Mike planned thing — it's got to feel authentic to the character. But also, I think in that particular scene – well, there's the two dance scenes. There's the rave, which is something different, that's just total hedonism. And then in the hotel, it's almost like a little mating call. He's feeling it out. He's performing to her a little. He's embarrassed. But he's also kind of enjoying the freedom of it. It's like a little bit of liberation for him as well. So there was a lot a lot going on in that scene." Babygirl opened in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, January 30, 2025.
Woolloongabba isn't short on places to enjoy a drink, especially on game days, but only one craft beer pub and brewery sits directly opposite the Gabba. Brisbane's famed football and cricket ground literally casts a shadow over Easy Times Brewing Co. Stop in for a pre-match brew, and you won't have to venture far to get into the stadium. Heading by on a regular day, during the venue's Wednesday–Sunday operating hours, is welcome as well. Open since 2020, Easy Times is a laidback addition to the Logan Road precinct. The name gives that away, obviously. Here, you can sip beers made onsite, with 20 taps pouring different varieties — or, there's a wine and spirits selection for those after something not-so-yeasty. With two levels and two street frontages, patrons can pick their view, including onto Stanley Street. When it comes to food, you'll be selecting from a SoCal-inspired menu. Pair pints of Gabba Draught, Hazy Times IPA and Sunshine State of Mind pale ale with five different types of tacos, including pulled pork with pineapple salsa verde, braised beef with salsa roja, drunken mescal beans, barbecue chicken with corn guacamole, and grilled saltwater barramundi with pickled slaw — or, opt for four kinds of tortas, nacho boxes and burrito bowls. To spice things up, the venue makes two hot sauces in-house, too, so you can hop out the door with an extra spring in your step. On Sundays, Easy Times also hosts live tunes — and for weekday lunches, it does $20 beer and taco deals. Top image: Darren Ward.
Towards the river end of Bulimba's Oxford Street (past the main cluster of restaurants and cafes) stands local favourite Thai Legend. Not a fine dining or even a family dining establishment, Thai Legend is strictly a takeaway affair, and their prices reflect this. The most expensive dish on the menu is $18, and there is also a page-long list of budget items ranging from $6.70 to $12.50. When it comes to the food itself, do not underestimate this modest suburban takeaway shop. Staples like pad Thai, tom yum goong, red duck curry, jungle curry and coconut rice are first rate but the entrees are in a different league altogether. All of the entrees at Thai Legend (curry puffs, steamed sago balls, tod mun pla and more) are excellent, but the stuffed eggplant (eggplant stuffed with minced chicken and herbs, crumbed and fried) must be tasted to be believed. Though this dish takes a little longer to prepare, it is very generously portioned and exceptionally delicious. A restaurant with no dine-in option may discourage those who live far away, but if you find the time to stop by, it's unlikely you'll be disappointed.
It's the market equivalent of one of cinema's new favourite gimmicks — instead of all your favourite superheroes jumping into one film, two of Brisbane's markets are joining forces for one day. At Carseldine's Christmas in July Markets on Saturday, July 25, the weekly northside market is teaming up with the folks at Love Handmade Markets and focusing on all things crafty and handmade. And Christmas-themed too, because this market mash-up is pretending it's five months down the track for some extra fun (and, given the year we've all had so far, a much-needed distraction). You could always browse, buy and go home with all your gift shopping taken care of well in advance — or that's what you could tell yourself, at least, while you tuck into some festive bites to eat. There'll be Brisbane's biggest array of local handmade artists and makers, as well as Carseldine's usual 150-plus food, flower and fresh produce stalls. The market opens as normal at 7am, entry is free and it all runs until midday. [caption id="attachment_776684" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Carseldine Markets[/caption] The Carseldine Christmas in July Markets run from 7am–12pm on Saturday, July 25. Image: Carseldine Farmers & Artisan Markets.
The year was 1992. Aladdin, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, Batman Returns, Lethal Weapon 3 and A Few Good Men ruled the international box office. Slipping into a habit and sliding in next on the list, becoming the sixth-biggest hit of the year: Sister Act. The film about singing nuns spawned a sequel, with word of a third movie floating around for years since — and, as everything from Mean Girls and Muriel's Wedding to Groundhog Day and Beetlejuice has also done, it inspired a stage musical as well. The theatre take on the Whoopi Goldberg (The Color Purple)-led film franchise debuted in California in 2006, then hit West End in 2009 and Broadway in 2011. Now, it's finally Australia's turn — including in Brisbane. After seasons in Sydney and Melbourne, Sister Act has locked in a stint at QPAC's Lyric Theatre in the River City from Saturday, February 8, 2025. The first movie was filled with songs like 'Rescue Me', 'My Guy' and 'I Will Follow Him', ensuring that its soundtrack was a smash, too, so the film was always primed to tread the boards. The Sister Act musical features original tunes, with Alan Menken (The Little Mermaid) doing the honours. Among the show's rewards so far: five Tony Award nominations and six Olivier Award nominations.Story-wise, the production follows Deloris, who witnesses a murder and has to go into protective custody. Her hideout: a convent. It's there that the nightclub singer finds a struggling choir, which she begins to help. For the Australian run, Casey Donovan (& Juliet) is leading the cast, while Genevieve Lemon (Billy Elliot) co-stars as Mother Superior. Images: Daniel Boud.
Street artist Rone has a well-documented knack for taking on unexpected spaces as canvases for his distinctive large-scale works. In 2017, he staged an immersive installation in an abandoned weatherboard house for The Omega Project, while last year saw him reimagine the deserted Art Deco Burnham Beeches mansion for sell-out installation Empire. Now, the celebrated artist returns to his hometown of Geelong to transform Geelong Gallery into an immersive, experiential exhibition. Featuring the first comprehensive solo survey of Rone's long-running career, Rone in Geelong captures the artist's fascination with the concepts of beauty and decay. Visitors will be treated to a sprawling collection of street art, early stencil works and photographs from the many abandoned spaces he's reimagined as temporary art installations over the years. One of these past exhibitions will be reborn with a specially commissioned 3D recreation, while an exclusive new installation will see Rone overhaul the precinct's historic Douglass Gallery into a derelict space decked out with plenty of his signature painted murals. Exploring the inevitability of decay, he'll play on the room's grand architectural features with help from interior stylist and longtime collaborator Carly Spooner. A haunting soundtrack by Nick Batterham will bring the installation to life. Throughout the exhibition, you'll also catch plenty of references to Rone's youth and his own connection to the Geelong Gallery, from glimpses of portraits to pieces capturing the region's distinctive landscape. Initially set to take place in winter 2020, the exhibition has — thanks to the pandemic — been rescheduled for summer 2021. It's now set to run from Saturday, February 27 to Sunday, May 16 — and tickets are on sale now. [caption id="attachment_762250" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Rone, Powerhouse Geelong (2014). Photo by and copyright of Rone.[/caption] Geelong Gallery is open from 10am–7pm daily. Top image: Rone, 'I've seen fire and I've seen rain' (2016) from the Empty series, Geelong Gallery. Purchased with funds generously donated by Geelong Contemporary, 2019. Copyright Rone.
Street art, public art, towering murals, creativity, urban transformation, outdoor works that liven up the River City: at Brisbane Street Art Festival, they're all in the spotlight. Each year for ten years now, this festival has splashed around a celebration of literally painting the town. In 2025, it's marking that milestone with nine days of installations, exhibitions, demonstrations and workshops — and by adding new art around the Queensland capital. Leans, Carley Cornelissen, Fintan Magee, Sofles, Dean Tyson, Rossella RZ and Simon Degroot are among the artists who are using their talents across Brisbane — some of whom have joined the festival before — with this year's BSAF taking place between Saturday, May 10–Sunday, May 18. If you're keen to see how their mural work will give Brissie a new coat of paint, you'll be wanting to head to Northshore, Spring Hill, the CBD, Fish Lane and DFO Brisbane. At Northshore, Superordinary is again acting as a base for the fest, and will gain a number of new pieces — while also hosting the Aussie return of Meeting of Styles across Saturday, May 10–Sunday, May 11. This is the first time that the graffiti initiative has hit Brisbane, with 40 local and international artists taking part. Think of it as a fest within the broader fest, complete with live painting, revelling in the art of spray painting and passing on skills. [caption id="attachment_848397" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Sheep Chen and Adnate by Joshua Taten.[/caption] The first-ever Brisbane/Meanjin Paste Up Festival also falls into both BSAF and Meeting of Styles — also at Superordinary. Here, paste-up as a form of street art gets some love, giving it recognition that it doesn't always receive as a type of public art, and acknowledging the format's many guises from single posters to both intended and unintentional collages. BSAF overall commences with a party, again at Superordinary — and again also celebrating Meeting of Styles — on Saturday, May 10. If you're keen to up your knowledge among watching the festival's talents make art, sessions span aerosols, graffiti lettering, sticker art, calligraphy, collage and brushwork. Or, if you'd like to appreciate Brisbane's street art while cycling around the city, you can take one of two tours — the first starting at Howard Smith Wharves, the second kicking off at Fish Lane. [caption id="attachment_848405" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Cam Scale.[/caption] Top image: Drapl and Treazy by Aimee Catt.
A cucumber is more or less responsible for Andrew Mowbray's obsession with the gourd. Wandering around his garden one fateful morning, he made a rather unusual discovery. Between his fence and a tree, a cucumber was growing, but as a result of being squashed on both sides, it looked more like a hard, green pancake - 'pressed flat with rounded edges and completely trapped'. Finding the form 'formally interesting' and 'architecturally amazing', he started thinking about how he might be able to re-create it in a manner that would not be threatened by decomposition. Research led him to the Lagenaria gourd, which won't come as a surprise to those acquainted with the robust plant. When people initially came up with the idea of cultivating plants, the Lagenaria gourd was one of the first with which they experimented. Once dried, it becomes as tough as wood, making for a trusty container, bottle, ladle or birdhouse. The West Africans were the first to transform it into an instrument, and the concept soon spread through Asia, the Americas, the Caribbean and the Pacific Islands. The gourd is one of the few plants that we grow for aesthetic and practical purposes, rather than to feed ourselves. Now, Mowbray is taking its functionality to new heights, by transforming the gourd into a building block. He grows each one in an acrylic container, which is cubic, with semi-circular depressions enabling the development of 'nubs or buttons'. A modular unit' can be created by locking several of them together. At the same time, he is exploring the sculptural potential of the gourd's form, through emulation with plaster, cement and other materials. [VIA Inhabitat]
Wave your hand, see a massive roster of musicians behind the microphone across the Harbour City: that's the SXSW Sydney Music Festival setup. The live tunes part of the event lets you wander between more than 200 performances on 25 stages over seven days if you have a wristband, and the 2024 lineup just keeps expanding. After a successful Australian debut in 2023, SXSW Sydney is back for a second year from Monday, October 14–Sunday, October 20 — and the program announcements continue to drop. This time, the festival's music strand has added over 25 acts, plus a heap of speakers. When you're not dancing to China's Berlin Psycho Nurses, Indonesia's KATHMANDU and mindfreakk, YONLAPA from Thailand and Sydney's own 2touch making their live debut — and also the likes of Touch Sensitive, Heno., dogworld, GIMMY and Kurilpa Reach — you'll be hearing from Academy Award-winning composer AR Rahman as the man behind the Slumdog Millionaire score gets chatting. SXSW Sydney 2024 started revealing its lineup details back in May, and has kept growing it since. A further announcement arrived in June, then not one, not two, but three more in July — and also another, focusing on the free hub at Tumbalong Park, at the beginning of August. Accordingly, no one can say that they don't have anything to see when the fest makes its comeback this year, especially if the music bill gets your toes tapping. Other fresh additions span Arky Waters, Bakers Eddy, Big Sand, Charm of Finches, Dave Kent, Elizabeth M Drummond, Holiday Sidewinder, Hydra Fashion Week, Ivoris, Kinder Bloomen, Majak Door, Nao Yoshioka, overpass, Rub Of Rub, Tim Hicks, YAHYAH and Yawdoesitall among the folks taking to the stage. Joining the speakers: Priyanka Khimani, who was named one of the top music lawyers by Billboard; veteran bookers Marty Diamond and Larry Webman; A&R Island Records head Marihuzka Cornelius; and plenty more. In one of those aforementioned July drops, 2024's SXSW Sydney Music Festival also added 40-plus talents, such as the UK's Jorja Smith on the 'Be Honest' musician's Australian tour — and also Canada's Aysanabee, Thailand's PYRA, New Zealand's Brandn Shiraz and XUZZ, and the UK's Submerse. Aussies Brazen Barbie, Jamahl Yami, Kitschen Boy and Special Feelings scored a spot as well. And prior to that, the 2024 program already confirmed human rights lawyer Jennifer Robinson, author Johann Hari, Australian race car driver Molly Taylor, pianist Chad Lawson, Westworld's Luke Hemsworth hosting a session about the Tasmanian tiger, Aussie astronaut Katherine Bennell-Pegg, TikTok marketing head Sofia Hernandez, Heartbreak High star Ayesha Madon, cricketer David Warner, Mortal Kombat director Simon McQuoid and documentary Slice of Life: The American Dream. In Former Pizza Huts, about the new uses of former Pizza Hut buildings across America — and that's barely scratching the surface of the lineup specifics announced so far. SXSW Sydney 2024 will run from Monday, October 14–Sunday, October 20 at various Sydney venues. Head to the SXSW Sydney website for further details. Images: Peter McMillan, Jordan Kirk, Jess Gleeson and Ian Laidlaw.
Last year, the two distinct festivals Mould and Pinot Palooza teamed up for the first time, showcasing — as you can probably guess — the best of Australian cheese and wine. Well, the combined experience was such a hit, this crowd-pleasing duo is running it back once more, bringing together a massive celebration of fromage and fermentation. Presented by Revel, Mould x Pinot Palooza is touching down in five capital cities, including Adelaide for the first time and Sydney after an 18-month hiatus. Meanwhile, the 2026 program will also run four sessions over three days, adding Sundays to the lineup at every leg of the tour. That gives you even more opportunity to explore over 100 Australian cheeses and wines ready to be paired and savoured. On the cheese front, expect the full spectrum of flavours, from funky blues to creamy bries and plenty of stinky samples, accompanied by a huge selection of pinot. So far, the confirmed names for 2026 include festival favourites Milawa Cheese and the bold flavours of Rub-a-Dub, alongside low-intervention innovators Ohkela Wine and sustainable Victorian standouts Mulline Vintners. Beyond the cheese and wine, bars spread throughout each venue will pour top-notch beers, spirits and cocktails, while a host of food producers will be on-site offering ready-to-eat bites, pantry staples and grazing essentials. "Cheese and pinot naturally belong together, and this format gives people the freedom to explore both at their own pace, talk directly with producers, and enjoy the experience without it feeling over-programmed or precious," says Head of Revel, Jess Audus. Mould x Pinot Palooza 2026 Dates: Brisbane: Friday, May 22–Sunday, May 24 at John Reid Pavilion, RNA Showgrounds Sydney: Friday, June 12–Sunday, June 14 at The Hordern Pavilion, Moore Park Melbourne: Friday, July 3–Sunday, July 5 at Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre Perth: Friday, August 7–Sunday, August 9 at Silver Jubilee Pavilion, Claremont Showgrounds Adelaide: Friday, August 28–Sunday, August 30 at The Queens Theatre
We all joke about pulling a 'don't you know who I am' card on a joint, but when Big Time rockers pull it on a tiny, tiny Seattle cafe there's some dramatic head-shaking to attend to. After finishing a gig this weekend in Seattle, Rage Against the Machine's guitarist Tom Morello attempted to skip the queue at Seattle's 5 Point Cafe — to no avail. According to Grub Street, 5 Point was at capacity when the Rage legend waltzed up to the front of the line and demanded entrance, after the cafe team "who's told bigger rock stars than him no," gave him the ol' hell no. Like any self-respecting, hospitality-burned celeb, Morello decided to get on his 4am Twitter soapbox. Having long supported worker's rights and wage raises, Morello thought now was the perfect, out-of-context time to drop this rant: Five Point restaurant in Seattle is the WORST. Super rude & anti-worker. Shittiest doorman in the Northwest. Prick. Spread the word. — Tom Morello (@tmorello) September 27, 2014 After his early-morning "so, ner" went rampaging online for a spell, restaurant owner David Meinert didn't let the guitarist have the last say, taking to Facebook with a response to the "tweet from our pal": "For the record Tom Morello — The 5 Point is totally pro-worker. We try to pay more than any other small restaurant, and on top of the higher pay, we offer health insurance, paid sick days, paid time off, retirement and profit share. Sorry if you had an issue with our staff, but typically our staff is awesome, and when they are not, it's usually a reflection of the customer. Act like a prick = get treated like a prick. "I have to say, your attacking a small business without knowing anything about it, or addressing your problem with them directly before you go on a public rant, pretty much sucks. Just lost a ton of respect for you, and I've been a fan for years, both of your work in Rage and your work for workers rights since. "PS — rock stars don't get special treatment at The 5 Point. We couldn't give less of a shit. Sorry. "And PSS — I'm the owner of the 5 Point and have worked to raise the minimum wage in Seattle and support the same nationally, worked to get paid sick days law in Seattle, and am supporting a City sponsored retirement plan for employees of small businesses. I hope you do the same for your employees on the road..." "PSSS — turns out he and his crew didn't get let in as the place was at capacity and there was a line. No one was being let in. According to our doorman who I totally trust, Tom and his crew were all totally rude. Quote from the door guys "I knew who he was, we had no room, his whole party was being rude. He wanted a special room in the back. Clearly had no ideas what it is like inside. I've told bigger rock stars than him no." Since his kneejerk reaction, Morello had time to come up with some kind of 'forgiveness' — with conditions. Willing to forgive the Seattle Evil (Egg) Empire 5 Points Cafe doorman powertrip if good guy owner D Meinert fully embraces #15Now min wage — Tom Morello (@tmorello) September 29, 2014 Meinert has somewhat relented and offered this on Facebook an hour ago: "Hey all, about this Tom Morello thing... I think Tom was in the wrong, and his tweet was offensive and pissed us off, BUT, Tom stands up for workers and uses his fame for some very good causes, almost always for those most in need. Yes he's very rich, yes he was on a big corporate record label. But every other interaction I've had with him has been cool. I would far rather people be enraged about the issues Tom is trying to bring up than wish Tom ill. So if you want to get pissed, be pissed that companies like iHop or Darden are spending millions to fight raising the minimum wage, and are supporting politicians who want to oppress women, minorities and workers, in order to get higher corporate profits. If everyone spent as much time posting about these issues as they have about Tom, we'd all be better off." Pancake Gate update: Luv&respect the workers.Glad to sit down w/owner next time in Sea, happy about his commitment to pay raise for workers — Tom Morello (@tmorello) September 30, 2014 So Morello's put his manners back in and Meinert's smoothed things over. And we can absolutely get behind Morello's famously Damn The Man activism, any day of the week. Perhaps next time ranting about workers' rights and equality is best done when you're not rock-starring your way past a queue? Via Grub Street and Stereogum.
Returning for its fourth iteration, The Fork Festival sees top restaurants across the country offering sit-down meals for up to half the usual price. Yep, that's a nice discount off your total food bill, folks — think of it as the proverbial carrot luring you out of the house. Up and running as of Friday, April 22, the offer is a blessing for those feeling a little light-pocketed after Easter — or thanks to the spate of long weekends we're currently enjoying. For Queenslanders, however, you've got just one spot to snag a 30-percent-off meal: TGI Fridays at Robina. So, next time you're down the coast, you just need to make a reservation through The Fork website or app for a lunch sitting from Monday–Friday during the six-week period. On the set menu, which is the only part covered by the deal: burgers, salad, chicken tenders, wraps and a drink — for $17.90 with soft drink and $20 with a beer or wine. And yes, there's ample time to squeeze in a fair few discounted feasts before the festival wraps up on Sunday, May 29. Images: TGIF Robina.
A great meal should satisfy your tastebuds and your stomach. When Vertigo opens in Brisbane, it'll also get your blood pumping and pulse racing. A brand-new addition to the River City's iconic Brisbane Powerhouse, this soon-to-launch eatery is joining the sky-high ranks, but with a difference: it isn't just located on top of the riverside New Farm venue, but hangs off of the site's industrial facade. Forget just living on the edge — this is dining on the edge, and literally. Obviously, the views will be spectacular. Given that you'll be climbing out to your seat while donning a safety harness, then eating four stories (and 17 metres) up, so will the thrills. An Australian-first vertical dining experience, Vertigo will start serving up — and levelling up — dinner with a view from October, with bookings now being taken for dates from Thursday, October 12 onwards. Once open, it'll operate four nights a week, from Thursday–Sunday, welcoming in tables of two. The one caveat: naturally, this adrenaline-pumping restaurant will be at the mercy of the weather, which will certainly play a factor over Brisbane's stormy summers. If it's only lightly raining, however, the night's sitting will still go ahead. The other key point: if you're not fond of heights, this won't be for you. But if you're fine with towering not just atop but over the side of an old power station-turned-arts precinct that dates back to the 1920s — whether you're a Brisbane local or a tourists — you'll be in for quite the unique experience. A third caveat: you can't head up if you've been drinking, with everyone breathalysed first and required to return a 0.00-percent blood alcohol reading. Brisbane Powerhouse's Bar Alto downstairs will be providing Vertigo's food across its eight tables — and each reservation's two-hour sitting — with the two-course menu featuring local ingredients to go with what's certain to become a local attraction. Unsurprisingly, a visit here won't come cheap, costing $250 per person. While you need to be sober to climb over the edge, a matched glass of wine will be served with dinner. You'll also get a post-descent champagne, beer or soft drink. To make the evening even more dramatic, diners can also choose to come back to earth post-meal via dropline down the facade. Or, if that's too much adventure for you — especially after eating — you can just head back to the ground through the venue. "Vertigo is unlike anything else in the world, it is an unexpected combination of adventure tourism and fine-dining on a heritage site," said Brisbane Powerhouse CEO/Artistic Director Kate Gould, announcing the restaurant. "Stepping off the roof of Brisbane Powerhouse to take a seat suspended at your table, four stories above the ground, will be the ultimate thrill. Experience silver service dining — albeit one with unbreakable crockery and cutlery attached to the table!" [caption id="attachment_850754" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Atmosphere Photography[/caption] "We are creating a uniquely Brisbane dining experience, at height. You will be on the edge of your seat in the open air before descending via an unforgettable exit," added Riverlife creator and co-founder John Sharpe, with the outdoor tour operator partnering with Powerhouse on the venture. "Vertigo will inspire fear but with the knowledge that safety is the priority of our experienced team of adventure tourism guides." If star chef Luke Mangan achieves his dream of setting up a restaurant on the Story Bridge, too, Brisbane might need to rename itself the Sky-High City. [caption id="attachment_776880" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Kgbo via Wikimedia Commons[/caption] Vertigo is set to open at Brisbane Powerhouse, 119 Lamington Street, New Farm, Brisbane from Thursday, October 12 — head to the venue's website for further details and bookings.
The days of the midnight Macca's run may be well and truly over, with news of Australia's first 24-hour health food cafe. Liquefy has long been a kingpin on the Brisbane health food scene, and now their Mount Gravatt outlet has extended its trading hours to serve up guilt-free pleasures around the clock. The idea behind Liquefy, started by lawyer and health enthusiast David Dowd, is to indulge Brisbane with food and drink that is as good on tastebuds as it is for the body, even when the sun goes down. They’ve got plenty of locations around the city — check them out here — though it’s only the new Mount Gravatt outlet that’s offering a 24/7 service. For now. So what’s on Liquify’s menu at three in the morning? A whole lot of guilt-free goods. Liquify prides itself on a menu that is 100 percent organic or biodynamic with no sugar, and everything, except the bread, is made on site. The cold pressed juices provide the nutrients of between 1-1.5 kilograms of fruit and vegetables, and their smoothies are blended on house-made almond milk and fresh-from-the-source Thai coconut water. So they're a tad healthier than a Hungry Jacks Frozen coke. Outside of Brisbane’s Paw Paw Cafe family and Paleo Cafe chains, there are few cafes under a health-food banner that can serve up dishes that are legitimately filling, or take less than half an hour for service. Liquefy shows off a hearty selection of dishes that can appease even the fussiest of eaters, and all their juices are conveniently bottled, cold and ready for the taking. You can grab midnight dry and activated kale and sweet potato chips, quinoa or cauliflower sushi or one of four wild foraged salads, and guzzle it down with a green smoothie. The menu is what health food devotees' dreams are made of. An online Liquefy store is currently in the works, and Dowd has leased further sites in Brisbane and the Gold Coast to expand his healthy business. Now only one question remains: who is sober enough for a kale smoothie run? Liquefy is at 24 Carrara Street, Mount Gravatt.
It's happening again: every now and then, Jetstar gives travellers a mighty fine reason to head to Japan (if the country's long list of existing drawcards, including its food scene, teamLab's digital art gallery and Studio Ghibli's very own theme park, to name a mere few, aren't enough already). When the Australian airline drops discounted fares to Tokyo and Osaka, they get snapped up quickly, too. If a getaway to either city is exactly what you need before 2025 is out, then, take note. The Australian airline usually has a sale of some description on offer at any given time; however, this one is only about discounted fares to Japan. This isn't among the carrier's return-for-free sales, but prices start at $249 one-way, still nabbing you a considerable bargain. Whichever of Tokyo and Osaka that you decide to fly into, Jetstar's new special will take you there while being nicer to your bank balance. The sale kicks off at 12pm AEST on Monday, May 19, 2025 for Club Jetstar members and at 12am on Tuesday, May 20, 2025 otherwise. Then, you've got until 11.59pm AEDT on Friday, May 23, 2025 to book, unless the discounted flights are sold out earlier. This round of bargain fares covers direct flights from Cairns, Brisbane and Sydney, plus connecting flights out of Melbourne (Tullamarine) and Adelaide. The cheapest price will get you from Cairns to Osaka, while Cairns to Tokyo costs $279. Brisbane fares start at $309 to Osaka and $429 to Tokyo, while Sydney's are $339 and $394 to the same cities. Melbourne's prices are $377 and $407, and you'll pay $394 and $424 from Adelaide. While travel dates vary, early October through to mid-December 2025 is among them. The normal Jetstar caveat applies, of course, as well as the standard advice to pack light: as is usually the case with airline, checked baggage is not included. Jetstar's Japan sale kicks off at 12pm AEST on Monday, May 19, 2025 for Club Jetstar members and at 12am on Tuesday, May 20, 2025 otherwise, running until 11.59pm AEDT on Friday, May 23, 2025 — unless it's sold out earlier. Feeling inspired to book a getaway? You can now book your next dream holiday through Concrete Playground Trips with deals on flights, stays and experiences at destinations all around the world.
2024 is set to be a huge year for Australia's most-inclusive music festival, with the Dylan Alcott-founded Ability Fest not only playing Melbourne but also hitting up Brisbane for the first time as well. Expanding is a massive achievement for the event. Also hefty: the lineup, with Ocean Alley, King Stingray, Cub Sport and Bag Raiders leading the bill. In Queensland, Ability Fest will head to Victoria Park/Barrambin in Brisbane on Saturday, October 26. As for what'll get you moving to the tunes, attendees will also see Asha Jefferies, Boone, Brenn!, Dewbs, Eliza Hull and jamesjamesjames, alongside Jordan Brando, Jordz, Kita Alexander and a triple j Unearthed winner. From there, Brisbanites will can catch Middle Kids, Cheq, Eves Karydas, Mikalah Watego, Moss, Neesha Alexander and Xeimma as well. Ability Fest is splitting its musicians across two stages, one for bands and one for DJs. The fully accessible event, which launched in 2018, has been carefully designed from the get-go. It features ramps and pathways for easy access, Auslan interpreters working alongside the artists, and elevated platforms to give everyone a shot at seeing the stage. Plus, there's also quiet zones, dedicated sensory areas and accessible toilets. The Brisbane festival will cater to around 5000 people, and Ability Fest is committed to being financially accessible during the current cost-of-living crisis in both of its stops. Accordingly, tickets will only cost $60 plus booking fee, and carers will receive complimentary entry. The fest is also lowering the age of admission to 16 so more folks can head along. While dishing up primo live tunes and music experiences to Aussies of all abilities, the not-for-profit fest also raises money for the Dylan Alcott Foundation, with 100-percent of its ticket proceeds going to the organisation. [caption id="attachment_963996" align="alignnone" width="1917"] Chloe Hall[/caption] Ability Fest 2024 Lineup: Asha Jefferies Bag Raiders Boone Brenn! Cub Sport Dewbs Eliza Hull jamesjamesjames Jordan Brando Jordz King Stingray Kita Alexander Ocean Alley triple j Unearthed winner Brisbane only: Cheq Eves Karydas Middle Kids Mikalah Watego Moss Neesha Alexander Xeimma Top images: Ian Laidlaw, Chloe Hall and Jayden Ostwald.
For cheese fiends, there's only one suitable way to tuck into the beloved dairy product: all the time, or at least as much as possible. That's an idea that Australian cheese festival Mould not only understands but encourages, and has since 2017. In 2023, those cheese dreams will be continuing as well. Because you can never have too many occasions to eat cheddar, brie, camembert, raclette or whatever other cheese takes your fancy, Mould is back for another year, letting dairy lovers to explore and devour the mild, hard and soft bites that Australia's best cheese wizards have to offer. The event hails from Bruny Island Cheese Co cheesemaker Nick Haddow and the organisers of Pinot Palooza, and will hit up the John Reed Pavilion at Brisbane Showgrounds from Friday, May 12–Sunday, May 14. There won't just be a few cheeses on the menu. In 2023, more than 100 artisan cheeses from around the country will be ready and waiting for you to devour, spanning dairy from 25-plus producers. This year's lineup includes Grandvewe, Section 28, Coal River, La Cantara, Long Paddock Cheese and Vannella — and Bruny Island Cheese Co is usually involved, naturally. Also, past years have featured Milawa Cheese, Yarra Valley Dairy and Stone & Crow, as well as Red Cow Organics, Nimbin Valley Cheese, Dreaming Goat and Second Mouse Cheese. Alongside unlimited tastings of Australia's best cheeses — snacking on samples and purchasing slices and slabs to take home with you — the fest features cooking demonstrations, masterclasses and talks. 2023's fest will span Mount Zero olives, artisan honey from Bee One Third, and small-batch preserves from Women's Work to sample, too. And it wouldn't be a cheese festival without beverages to wash it all down with, so expect a bar serving Aussie wines, whisky, vodka, gin, beer, cider, cocktails and sake, all of which match nicely to a bit of cheese. Archie Rose, Hartshorn Distillery and Brick Lane Beer will all be doing the honours, as will a Pinot Palooza Wine Bar — and the Picolo Bar for no- and low-alcohol options. Unsurprisingly, Mould is mighty popular. In 2022, 10,000-plus attendees tucked into a six tonnes of artisanal dairy across the fest's three cities. So, if this the kind of event that your cheese dreams are made of, you'll want to nab a ticket ASAP. Sessions run from 5–9pm on the Friday, 11am–3pm and 4–8pm on the Saturday, and 11am–3pm on Sunday. Updated March 10.
The best dining experiences combine great food, interesting company and a wonderful setting. Sadly, we can't help if your dinner date is a little dull, but we can point you in the direction of fantastic restaurants in prime positions. From mountaintop views to waterside hotspots, these special locations flaunt Brisbane's diverse beauty. Watt Restaurant Watt is located downstairs inside the Powerhouse and nestled well and truly in New Farm park, so pre or post-entertainment options are sorted. Take your pick from the chic inside or cool outside dining areas, both of which have spectacular views of the river and across to Hawthorne. Our favourite from the menu is the chicken breast wrapped in prosciutto, pea puree and preserved lemon basil risotto ($30). The welcoming and attentive staff are happy to accommodate children, as well as park go-ers with their puppies and push bikes. 119 Lamington Street Newfarm, 4005 The Cliffs Cafe Climb to the top of the heritage-listed Kangaroo Point Cliffs and you'll be greeted by a pretty stunning outlook. It takes a few minutes to properly soak up the spectacular view of sprawling city skyscrapers, the lush botanic gardens and flowing river. But, let's face it, an amazing scene won't ease that rumbling in your tummy or quench your thirst – this is where the team at Cliff's Cafe come in. The combination of a picturesque location and platefuls of pleasing food make this spot a Brisbane gem. 29 River Terrace Kangaroo Point, 4169 Pony At any of the restaurants and bars located in this bustling corner of the city you will be greeted with views of the river and Story Bridge. One such restaurant is Pony. Although it's smack-bang in the middle of the CBD, its dark and rustic interior gives a homely feeling of peace from the surrounding hustle and bustle. Satisfy your hunger with spinach and potato gnocchi while you feast your eyes on the stunning view. Eagle Street Pier Eagle Street, 4000 Summit Restaurant and Bar Make the trek up the winding road to the top of Mt Coot-tha. After you catch your breath head to the Summit Restaurant and prepare yourself for a knockout view. This Brisbane icon guarantees gorgeous panoramic views of the city and surrounds. Why not impress your dinner partner and choose from the sunset dinner menu before venturing back into our city below. 1012 Sir Samuel Griffith Drive Mt Coot-Tha, 4066 Byblos Byblos is in prime position for catching a welcomed breeze in summer and a lip-smackingly good cocktail. Squeeze the last bit of fun out of your weekend at this hotspot as their killer drinks menu and DJ sets make for a great Sunday sesh. Why not make your weekend extra special and sip on the aptly named Long Weekend cocktail ($16) as you enjoy some of Brisbane's best waterside dining. Portside Wharf Hamilton, 4007 Customs House Head North and dine in style at the elegant Customs House. Savour their quality food in the open dining area accompanied by a spectacular view of the Brisbane River and Story Bridge. We recommend their High Tea sitting, after all a stunning view deserves a little bit of extravagance. Otherwise, watch the bridge twinkle at night while indulging in a cheese platter with wine in hand – perfect. 399 Queen St Brisbane, 4000 The Balfour Kitchen Tired of water views? Then slip into a tropical oasis at The Balfour Kitchen where you can while away the evening overlooking sprawling views of residential New Farm and Brisbane city. The exotic feel of the restaurant is reflected in their Asian-influenced menu, try the wild barra with asparagus, leek and pea risotto and tomato pinenut salsa ($30). 37 Balfour Street New Farm, 4005
The most magical place in Brisbane right now is the Gallery of Modern Art, where the venue's massive Fairy Tales exhibition is filling the walls and halls until late April. Fancy wandering through an indoor woodland? Saying "dance magic dance" to a costume that David Bowie wore in Labyrinth? Stepping inside huts, peeking into mirrors, spying otherworldly creatures and peering at gorgeous gowns, too? It's all on offer here all day, every day — and, on two dates only in March, for two nights. Falling down the rabbit hole that is GOMA's exhibitions usually means not only scoping out its pieces while the sun is shining, but getting a couple of chances to party inside the gallery — and surrounded by stunning art — after dark. That's the Up Late format, and it's back for Fairy Tales, taking place on Friday, March 15–Saturday, March 16. Accordingly, when you get a glimpse of chariots, glass slippers, pieces by Yayoi Kusama and Patricia Piccinini, and more — including wandering through the site-specific installation by Henrique Oliveira, with the Brazilian artist has transformed the exhibition's first room into a stunning gnarled and twisted forest that you won't want to leave — you can do so by evening and with a drink in your hand. Your ticket includes access to the exhibition, live tunes and other entertainment. You will need to pay extra for anything you're keen to eat or sip, however. On the Friday, ZZADE, Elizabeth, Maple Glider and DJ Hol Hibbo are on the bill. Come Saturday, attendees can enjoy Auslan-interpreted performances by Methyl Ethyl and Tjaka, as well as DJ Aunty Stan on the decks. Both nights will feature Once Upon a Chime, aka Patience Hodgson, Joel Woods and Lake Kelly, singing fairy tale-inspired tunes — plus A Villain's Tale, which is told by a misunderstood villain; a drop-in workshop where you'll create a self-portrait while giving yourself animal attributes; and a photobooth with whimsical props. In addition to all of the above, there'll be multiple spots to grab a bite and drink around the place, including at the GOMA Bistro and Bacchus Wine Room. Fairy Tales also includes a film program called Fairy Tales Cinema: Truth, Power and Enchantment, which is weaving its screening of Spanish silent film Blancanieves into the Up Late lineup as well. GOMA's Fairy Tales Up Late Lineup: Friday, March 15 — ZZADE, Elizabeth, Maple Glider, DJ Hol Hibbo Saturday, March 16 — Methyl Ethyl (Auslan interpreted), Tjaka (Auslan interpreted), DJ Aunty Stan Both nights: Once Upon a Chime and A Villain's Tale pop-up performances, drop-in workshop 'Animal Attributes', access to Fairy Tales GOMA's Fairy Tales Up Late takes place on Friday, March 15–Saturday, March 16, 2024 at the Gallery of Modern Art, Stanley Place, South Brisbane. For more information and tickets, head to the GOMA website. Fairy Tales displays at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art, Stanley Place, South Brisbane until Sunday, April 28, 2024. For further details, visit its website. Images: Henrique Oliveira, Brazil b.1973 / Corupira 2023, commissioned for 'Fairy Tales', installation (detail), Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) Brisbane 2023 / Plywood, tapumes veneer and tree branches / Courtesy: Henrique Oliveira / © Henrique Oliveira / Photograph: C Callistemon © QAGOMA. Anish Kapoor, India/England b.1954 / Red and Black Mist Magenta 2018, installed in 'Fairy Tales', Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA), Brisbane 2023 / Stainless steel, lacquer / Collection: The artist / © Anish Kapoor. DACS/Copyright Agency, 2023 / Photograph: C Callistemon © QAGOMA. And installation images by Sarah Ward.
If someone was to ask you to imagine a dinosaur, and to picture one type only, it's likely that the Tyrannosaurus rex would come to mind. The towering ancient creature is just that fascinating to kids and adults alike, and not solely because it's rarely far from screens. Head to any museum with a T. rex fossil on display and you'll be surrounded by crowds, whether or not they've seen King Kong, a Jurassic Park movie or Night at the Museum. Head to Melbourne Museum from Friday, June 28–Sunday, October 20, 2024 in particular and expect to have plenty of company, then. Thanks to the Victoria the T. rex exhibition, that's when the fossil of Tyrannosaurus rex Victoria will make its Australian debut in the state with the absolute best name for the occasion. The specimen dates back 66 million years, and is one of the world's largest and most complete T. rex skeletons. Showing exclusively at Melbourne Museum, it's also marks the first time that a real T. rex has ever been on display in Victoria. How big is big? Found in South Dakota in 2013, Victoria is comprised of 199 bones, including a skull that weighs 139 kilograms. The fossil reaches 12 metres in length and 3.6 metres in height. And, because the skull is so heavy, it has to be displayed separately as it can't be mounted upon Victoria's body. Victoria the T. rex will also feature interactive elements, such as multi-sensory installations that'll let you experience how the Tyrannosaurus rex saw and smelled, plus dioramas and a section where you can make your own customised 3D T. rex. Welcome to... the cretaceous period, then. The informative side of the showcase will step through recent palaeontological findings, so that you'll get an idea of what Victoria's life was like all that time ago — and also find out what brought about her end. If that's not enough dino action to make you feel like David Attenborough — or his brother Richard in Jurassic Park and The Lost World — Victoria the T. rex will display alongside Triceratops: Fate of the Dinosaurs, which has been open at Melbourne Museum since 2022. The latter permanently features Horridus, the world's most complete Triceratops fossil, and entry to both exhibitions is included in one ticket. At IMAX Melbourne, 45-minute documentary T.REX 3D will also be showing — complete with footage of Horridus — from Friday, June 21. Images: Neon Global.
Beloved camping music festival Beyond the Valley returns to its regular programming this year, set to ring in the new year at Barunah Plains, west of Melbourne, from December 28, 2022–January 1, 2023. And it's got a stacked lineup to celebrate, too, headlined by none other than the legendary Nelly Furtado — the Canadian singer behind 'I'm Like a Bird', 'Turn Off the Light', here for a one-off Aussie-exclusive performance. Joining her on the eclectic bill: Denzel Curry, Dom Dolla, Kaytranada, BENEE, Yeat, Flight Facilities, Honey Dijon, Lime Cordiale, Patrick Topping, Charlotte De Witte, Diplo and more. That includes Bicep, which'll come as no surprise if you saw the video earlier in the year announcing the fest's return, which was set to the sounds of 'Glue'. The fest's sprawling new Barunah Plains home comes complete with a 100,000-square metre-natural amphitheatre, playing host to its three usual stages (main stage, dance tent and multi-level dance spot Dr Dan's), as well as a new podcast stage featuring live and interactive recordings. The 2022 instalment will also include a beach club for swims; a small space that's only accessible via secret entrance called Schmall Klüb; and the Poof Doof 'pride patrol'; plus speed-dating, yoga, pilates, meditation, open mic sessions and a fortune teller. Beyond the Valley has released a range of ticketing options, including single-day passes and multi-day entry — though you'll want to be quick as they're all expected to sell out. [caption id="attachment_866660" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Mackenzie Sweetnam[/caption]
Despite also serving up everything from all-day vegan breakfast to ice cream sandwiches, we still think that fries are the best thing about Lord of the Fries. It's right there in the name, after all. The chain's chips are particularly tasty — as made with Australian potatoes and cooked in a cottonseed sunflower oil blend. There is one thing better than Lord of the Fries' titular dish, however. That'd be free shoestring fries from the chip-loving establishment. And on Wednesday, July 13, the vegan fast food joint is giving away just that. Free. Fries. Yes, really. To snag free fries on Wednesday, you'll need to head to your chosen store in between 4–5pm and you'll be gifted a serving of shoestring deliciousness. You don't even have to purchase any vego nuggets to redeem them. There is a limit of one freebie per person, though, so take that into consideration if you're feeling particularly peckish. You'll get your choice of classic sauces, too. This is clearly great news for anyone who like fries, aka everyone. Folks in Sydney can head to Newtown, Melburnians can choose between ten different stores, and Brisbanites can flock to Fortitude Valley (or Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast). Also, people in Adelaide can hit up Hindley Street and Glenelg, with Perth residents can visit Northbridge. And if you're wondering why, that's because it's National Fry Day. Of course it is. There are a few caveats, as is always the case with this kind of giveaway. So, the freebies span one Lord of the Fries stickered cup of shoestring fries and one classic sauce, with the latter popped directly on top of the former. Again, you can only get one per person, and only in-store. And, it's only for shoestring fries — not the classic, chunky or sweet potato versions. Lord of the Fries is giving away free fries from 4–5pm on Wednesday, July 13 at all of its Australian locations. To find your closest store, head to the chain's website.
Once, getting festive in Brisbane didn't involve taking to the greens to putt your way through Christmas trees, decorations and all things seasonal under twinkling lights. Thankfully, that hasn't been the case in the River City now for years. When the end of the year hits, Victoria Park's mini-golf course marks the occasion in the possible best way: by giving itself a jolly makeover. Now that Victoria Park's Halloween course has been and gone for 2024, festive cheer, bells, bows and more are taking its place from Friday, November 8, 2024–Thursday, January 2, 2025. The seasonal makeover will deck the greens with merriment all round, which usually means baubles, lights, mistletoe, foliage both green and white, and more. This is the excuse that you need to swap the backyard cricket for 18 holes this summer — and to battle your loved ones for supremacy in a different kind of sport when the holidays hit. In past years, the course has also sported holly, giant candy canes, gingerbread houses, elves, toy soldiers, polar bears, snow men and everything else festive that it can think of. Reindeers and Santa are usually involved, too, and different sections of the 18-hole site tend to be designed around ideas like Chrissy Down Under, Santa's mailroom and Christmas morning — plus there's even been a festive feast fairway, The North Pole and a 'deck the halls' hole. Find out whether you're naughty or nice while swinging a club from 6am–10pm Sunday–Thursday and 6am–11pm Friday–Saturday — which means that you can stop by on your way to work, during your lunch break or after quittin' time as well. If you drop by post-6pm, you'll take to the green beneath Christmas lights, naturally. If vying for mini-golf glory while getting merry also feels like an occasion for a beverage, boozy tequila slushies will be on offer. Also, the course lets you order drinks and snacks as you play. Christmas Putt Putt takes over the Victoria Park Putt Putt Course at 309 Herston Road, Herston from Friday, November 8, 2024–Thursday, January 2, 2024, operating 6am–10pm Sunday–Thursday and 6am–11pm Friday–Saturday — with tickets costing $23 for adults. For more information, head to the venue's website. Images: Stephanie Adams Photography.
Sometimes you want a date night to last longer than the time it takes to scoff down a meal at your local. The most romantic nights are often spent lapping up each other's company, trying a new drink or dish, and creating an atmosphere that makes it feel like you and your partner are the only people in the world. One way to turn an average date night into a romantic weekend to remember is by booking a city staycation. At The Star Brisbane, you can turn an evening out into an all-in-one romantic escape. From sky deck views, set menu dinners, and a hotel that'll make you feel like you're nowhere near home, here's how to add some spark and rejuvenation to your Brisbane date weekend. [caption id="attachment_1023299" align="alignleft" width="1920"] The Star Brisbane[/caption] Stay the night Why cut the night short after activities conclude? The Star Grand hotel offers an elevated staycation option for Brisbanites. The five-star hotel features a slate of luxurious rooms where you can turn a single evening into a getaway for the ages. Enjoy views of the Brisbane River and South Bank, swimming pools, gym and a 24-hour reception. You'll leave with your romance cup filled. Movies under the stars Whether you decide to stay the night or not, the Skyline Cinema at The Star Brisbane offers openair screenings every Wednesday evening. Tickets for the variety of classic movies start at $5 per person, and you can book your own bean bags for maximum comfort. Otherwise, bring along a picnic blanket and buy some snacks for a low-key, cosy date night. [caption id="attachment_1021006" align="alignleft" width="1920"] Cicada Blu[/caption] Wow factor Cicada Blu is The Star Brisbane's bar that's perfect for pre- or post-dinner drinks. Featuring panoramic views of the Brisbane River and a unique cocktail menu, Cicada Blu will give your date night the 'wow' factor to impress. Enjoy the Golden Hour Fizz cocktail 100 metres above the CBD and cheers to a romantic date night. [caption id="attachment_1023301" align="alignleft" width="1920"] Cucina Regina[/caption] Italian romance Looking for a relaxed, romantic date night pick? Cucina Regina is The Star Brisbane's destination for elevated Italian comfort food. During the Brisbane Festival period, Cucina Regina is offering three share plates and two Aperol Spritz for $49, making it a budget-friendly choice as well. From hand-stretched pizzas and homemade pasta to tableside tiramisu and cocktails, Cucina Regina adds a helping of warm Italian hospitality to any date night. [caption id="attachment_1023307" align="alignleft" width="1920"] Aloria[/caption] Something elevated Aloria is for couples looking to take their relationship to the next level. Literally. Situated on The Star Brisbane's Sky Deck, the rooftop restaurant offers wines handpicked to pair with each course, a European-Australian menu, and sunset cocktails. The restaurant is currently offering a romantic deal. It includes a three-course menu paired with champagne on arrival, for $300 per couple. Executive Chef Shayne Mansfield has curated an indulgent menu that highlights seasonal flavours and culinary artistry. As an extra special touch, couples will receive a keepsake photo to remind them of their romantic evening. [caption id="attachment_1023306" align="alignleft" width="1920"] Sokyo[/caption] A touch of boldness Sokyo is where the date night takes a bolder turn. The Japanese-Australian fusion restaurant is for couples seeking bold flavours and a sensory-driven dining experience. Between theatrical dish presentation, unexpected flavour combinations and moody lighting, Sokyo feels effortlessly stylish. With dishes including sashimi and spicy tuna on a bed of crispy rice, you and your date will be competing over who gets the last bite all night long. Sokyo is the dining choice for those who like a little drama over their dinner. From an array of dining options to plush beds and openair cinemas, The Star Brisbane makes it easy to dial up the romance—staycation or otherwise. Want to discover more venues at The Star Brisbane? Check out the website here. Over 18's only. Drink responsibly. BET WITH YOUR HEAD, NOT OVER IT. Lead image: The Star Brisbane
Aunty Donna fans, we're living in a golden time for the sketch comedy group's jokes making their way from skits to IRL. Obviously, everything is still a drum and always will be. On top of that, though, Mark Samual Bonanno, Broden Kelly and Zachary Ruane are making a sitcom about whipping up morning browns, have dropped an Always Room for Christmas Pud picture book and are releasing a $30 bottle of wine literally called $30 bottle of wine. If you're already giggling at all of the above, then you know the skits that they all spring from — and, when it comes to the new vino, you're ready to chug-a-lug. First, though, you'd also best be prepared to aerate the wine by pouring it into a decanter, then wait an hour before drinking. Then, you'll need to swirl, sniff, maybe find a cupcake in your glass, spit some wine out to explore the flavours and just generally feel like a fancy rich type. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Built To Spill Wine (@builttospill.wine) Saying that it costs $30 a lot, and respecting it because it costs $30, are also essential. So is singing the Home and Away theme song, apparently. Obviously, you don't have to take Aunty Donna's $30 Bottle of Wine skit as actual instructions, but watching said clip while drinking is definitely recommended. The $30 bottle of wine — which isn't just any bottle of wine, of course — hails from a collaboration with Built to Spill. The wine label was started by Tai Tate (ex-Porteno, Mary's, P&V) back in 2020 and has built itself up a following since, with this collaboration coming after Tate was introduced to the world of Aunty Donna by tattoo artist called Sanchez. The latter has now done the honours with the bottle's label, in fact, and yes, the words "$30 bottle of wine" feature prominently. Tate advises that the wine, which retails for $29.95 and ships from Monday, November 28, is probably worth more than $30. A natural shiraz from Macedon by Trutta Wines, it features bright red fruits and cacao, plus notes of cranberry and wild cherry. Go on, give all that a mention as you're sipping — you have to, it's the $30-bottle-of-wine way. Built to Spill is selling Aunty Donna's $30 bottle of wine solo, and in a bundle with Always Room for Christmas Pud. Ace Christmas present alert, clearly. All that's left now is to revisit the sketch that started it all, because you can never watch it too many times. Check it out below: For more information about Aunty Donna's $30 bottle of wine, head to the Built to Spill website. Orders are open now, and bottles ship from Monday, November 28.
Once you see the wallpaper in Decision to Leave, it's impossible to forget it. That patterned surface, nodding to both the mountains and the sea, isn't why Park Chan-wook's film is the best of 2022 — except that it is in a way. The level of detail shown, how perfectly it encapsulates and expresses almost everything about the immaculate and evocative thriller, the stunning shots that rove over it: this is masterful, powerful, sensual and sensational cinema. This is filmmaking at its greatest, too. As every year does — sans worldwide shutdowns and lockdowns, of course — 2022 saw hundreds of movies make their way to cinemas Down Under. Some were downright terrible. Oh-so-many were average. But more than a few were truly exceptional, like Decision to Leave. This year's cream of the cinematic crop spanned everything from spectacular music documentaries through to multiverse madness, and included volcano love stories and a cannibalistic Timothée Chalamet as well. Formidable talents doing what they do best, beloved veterans getting astonishing showcase roles, the best action-musical of this and many other years, not one but two ace Colin Farrell flicks: they're all included as well. Here's our overview of the year's silver-screen wonders — aka 2022's 15 best movies. DECISION TO LEAVE When it's claimed that Decision to Leave's Detective Hae-joon (Park Hae-il, Heaven: To the Land of Happiness) needs "murder and violence in order to be happy", it's easy to wonder if that statement similarly applies to Park Chan-wook, this stunning South Korean thriller's filmmaker. The director of Oldboy, Thirst, Stoker and The Handmaiden doesn't, surely. Still, his exceptional body of on-screen work glows when either fills its frames — which, in a career that also spans Joint Security Area, Sympathy for Mr Vengeance, Lady Vengeance and English-language TV miniseries The Little Drummer Girl, among other titles, is often. To be more accurate, perhaps Park needs to survey the grey areas that loiter around death and brutality, and surround love, lust, loss, and all matters of the brain, body and heart that bind humans together, to find cinematic fulfilment. Certainly, audiences should be glad if/that he does. In Decision to Leave, exploring such obsessions, and the entire notions of longing and obsession, brings a staggering, sinuously layered and seductively gorgeous movie to fruition — a film to obsess over if ever there was one. In this year's deserved Cannes Film Festival Best Director-winner, reserved insomniac Hae-joon is fixated from the outset, too: with his police job in Busan, where he works Monday–Friday before returning to Ipo on weekends to his wife (Lee Jung-hyun, Peninsula). That all-consuming focus sees his weekday walls plastered with grim photos from cases, and haunts the time he's meant to be spending — and having sex — with said spouse. Nonetheless, the latest dead body thrust his way isn't supposed to amplify his obsession. A businessman and experienced climber is found at the base of a mountain, and to most other cops the answer would be simple. It is to his offsider Soo-wan (Go Kyung-Pyo, Private Lives), but Hae-joon's interest is piqued when the deceased's enigmatic Chinese widow, the cool, calm but also bruised and scratched Seo-rae (Tang Wei, The Whistleblower), is brought in for questioning amid apologising for her imperfect Korean-language skills. Read our full review. MOONAGE DAYDREAM Ground control to major masterpiece: Moonage Daydream, Brett Morgen's kaleidoscopic collage-style documentary about the one and only David Bowie, really makes the grade. Its protein pills? A dazzling dream of archival materials, each piece as essential and energising as the next, woven into an electrifying experience that eclipses the standard music doco format. Its helmet? The soothing-yet-mischievous tones of Ziggy Stardust/Aladdin Sane/The Thin White Duke/Jareth the Goblin King himself, the only protective presence a film about Bowie could and should ever need and want. The songs that bop through viewers heads? An immense playlist covering the obvious — early hit 'Space Oddity', the hooky glam-rock titular track, Berlin-penned anthem 'Heroes', the seductive 80s sounds of 'Let's Dance' and the Pet Shop Boys-remixed 90s industrial gem 'Hallo Spaceboy', to name a few — as well as deeper cuts. The end result? Floating through a cinematic reverie in a most spectacular way. When Bowie came to fame in the 60s, then kept reinventing himself from the 70s until his gone-too-soon death in 2016, the stars did look very different — he did, constantly. How do you capture that persistent shapeshifting, gender-bending, personal and creative experimentation, and all-round boundary-pushing in a single feature? How do you distill a chameleonic icon and musical pioneer into any one piece of art, even a movie that cherishes each of its 135 minutes? In the first film officially sanctioned by Bowie's family and estate, Morgen knows what everyone that's fallen under the legend's spell knows: that the man born David Jones, who would've been 75 when this doco hit screens if he was still alive, can, must and always has spoken for himself. The task, then, is the same as the director had with the also-excellent Cobain: Montage of Heck and Jane Goodall-focused Jane: getting to the essence of his subject and conveying what made him such a wonder by using the figure himself as a template. Read our full review. THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN In The Banshees of Inisherin, the rolling hills and clifftop fields look like they could stretch on forever, even on a fictional small island perched off the Irish mainland. For years, conversation between Padraic Súilleabháin (Colin Farrell, After Yang) and Colm Doherty (Brendan Gleeson, The Tragedy of Macbeth) has been similarly sprawling — and leisurely, too — especially during the pair's daily sojourn to the village pub for chats over pints. But when the latter calls time on their camaraderie suddenly, his demeanour turns brusque and his explanation, only given after much pestering, is curt. Uttered beneath a stern, no-nonsense stare by Gleeson to his In Bruges co-star Farrell, both reuniting with that darkly comic gem's writer/director Martin McDonagh for another black, contemplative and cracking comedy, Colm is as blunt as can be: "I just don't like you no more." In the elder character's defence, he wanted to ghost his pal without hurtful words. Making an Irish exit from a lifelong friendship is a wee bit difficult on a tiny isle, though, as Colm quickly realises. It's even trickier when the mate he's trying to put behind him is understandably upset and confused, there's been no signs of feud or fray beforehand, and anything beyond the norm echoes through the town faster than a folk ballad. So springs McDonagh's smallest-scale and tightest feature since initially leaping from the stage to the screen, and a wonderful companion piece to that first effort. Following the hitman-focused In Bruges, he's gone broader with Seven Psychopaths, then guided Frances McDormand and Sam Rockwell to Oscars with Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, but he's at his best when his lens is trained at Farrell and Gleeson as they bicker in close confines. Read our full review. DRIVE MY CAR Inspired by Haruki Murakami's short story of the same name, Drive My Car's setup couldn't be simpler. Still recovering from a personal tragedy, actor and director Yusuke Kafuku (Hidetoshi Nishijima, Silent Tokyo) agrees to helm a stage version of Chekhov's Uncle Vanya in Hiroshima — but the company behind it insists on giving him a chauffeur for the duration of his stay. He declines, yet they contend that it's mandatory for insurance and liability reasons, so Misaki (Toko Miura, Spaghetti Code Love) becomes a regular part of his working stint in the city. Friendship springs, slowly and gradually, but Murakami's name is one of the first signs that this won't follow a standard road. The other: Japanese filmmaker Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, who makes layered, thoughtful and probing reflections upon connection, as seen in his other efforts Happy Hour, Asako I & II and Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy. Drive My Car doesn't hurry to its narrative destination, clocking in at a minute shy of three hours, but it's a patient, engrossing and rewarding trip. It's a gorgeously shot and affectingly performed one, too, whether taking to the road, spending time with its central pair, or chronicling Yusuke's involving auditions and rehearsals. Another thing that Hamaguchi does disarmingly well: ponder possibilities and acceptance, two notions that echo through both Yusuke and Misaki's tales, and resonate with that always-winning combination of specificity and universality. Drive My Car is intimate and detailed about every element of its on-screen voyage and its character studies, and also a road map to soulful, relatable truths. Read our full review. PETITE MAMAN Forget the "find someone who looks at you like…" meme. That's great advice in general, but it's mandatory if you've ever seen a film by Céline Sciamma. No one peers at on-screen characters with as much affection, attention, emotion and empathy as the French director, with her talent for truly seeing into hearts and minds shining again in Petite Maman. In Sciamma's latest delicate and exquisite masterpiece after Tomboy, Girlhood and Portrait of a Lady on Fire, she follows eight-year-old Nelly (debutant Joséphine Sanz) on a trip to her mother's (Nina Meurisse, Camille) childhood home. Nelly's grandmother (Margot Abascal, The Sower) has just died, and the house needs packing up. While her parents work, the curious child roves around the surrounding woods — and discovers Marion (fellow newcomer Gabrielle Sanz), who could be her twin. Sciamma is exceptionally talented at many things, creating richly detailed and intimately textured cinematic worlds high among them. She doesn't build franchises or big fantasy realms, but surveys faces, spaces, thoughts and feelings — exploring them like the entire universes they are. That approach pulsates through every frame of Petite Maman like a heartbeat. The film itself resembles a gentle but soul-replenishing breeze in its rustic look and serene pacing, but it thrums with emotion and insight at every moment. It's a modern-day fairy tale, too, complete with a glorious twist, with this radiant, moving, smart and perceptive movie musing deeply on mothers, daughters and the ties that bind. Read our full review. EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE Imagine living in a universe where Michelle Yeoh isn't the wuxia superstar she is. No, no one should want to dwell in that reality. Now, envisage a world where everyone has hot dogs for fingers, including the Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon icon. Next, picture another where Ratatouille is real, but with raccoons. Then, conjure up a sparse realm where life only exists in sentient rocks. An alternative to this onslaught of pondering: watching Everything Everywhere All At Once, which throws all of the above at the screen and a helluva lot more. Yes, its title is marvellously appropriate. Written and directed by the Daniels, aka Swiss Army Man's Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, this multiverse-hopping wonder is a funhouse of a film that just keeps spinning through wild and wacky ideas. Instead of asking "what if Daniel Radcliffe was a farting corpse that could be used as a jet ski?" as their also-surreal debut flick did, the pair now muses on Yeoh, her place in the universe, and everyone else's along with her. Although Yeoh doesn't play herself in Everything Everywhere All At Once, she is seen as herself; keep an eye out for red-carpet footage from her Crazy Rich Asians days. Such glitz and glamour isn't the norm for middle-aged Chinese American woman Evelyn Wang, her laundromat-owning character in the movie's main timeline, but it might've been if life had turned out differently. That's such a familiar train of thought — a resigned sigh we've all emitted, even if only when alone — and the Daniels use it as their foundation. Their film starts with Evelyn, her husband Waymond (Ke Huy Quan, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom's Short Round and The Goonies' Data) and a hectic time. Evelyn's dad (James Hong, Turning Red) is visiting from China, the Wangs' daughter Joy (Stephanie Hsu, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) brings her girlfriend Becky (Tallie Medel, The Carnivores) home, and IRS inspector Deirdre Beaubeirdra (Jamie Lee Curtis, Halloween Ends) is conducting a punishing audit. Then Evelyn learns she's the only one who can save, well, everything, everywhere and everyone. Read our full review. NOPE Kudos to Jordan Peele for giving his third feature as a writer/director a haters-gonna-hate-hate-hate name: for anyone unimpressed with Nope, the response is right there. Kudos, too, to the Get Out and Us filmmaker for making his third bold, intelligent and supremely entertaining horror movie in a row — a reach-for-the-skies masterpiece that's ambitious and eerie, imaginative and expertly crafted, as savvy about cinema as it is about spectacle, and inspires the exact opposite term to its moniker. Reteaming with Peele after nabbing an Oscar nomination for Get Out, Daniel Kaluuya utters the titular word more than once in Nope. Exclaiming "yep" in your head each time he does is an instant reaction. Everything about the film evokes that same thrilled endorsement, but it comes particularly easily whenever Kaluuya's character surveys the wild and weird events around him. We say yay to his nays because we know we'd respond the same way if confronted by even half the chaos that Peele whooshes through the movie. As played with near-silent weariness by the always-excellent Judas and the Black Messiah Oscar-winner, Haywood's Hollywood Horses trainer OJ doesn't just dismiss the strange thing in the heavens, though. He can't, even if he doesn't realise the full extent of what's happening when his father (Keith David, Love Life) suddenly slumps on his steed on an otherwise ordinary day. Six months later, OJ and his sister Emerald (Keke Palmer, Lightyear) are trying to keep the family business, which dates back to the 1800s, running. The presence lurking above the Haywoods' Agua Dulce property soon requires just as much attention, though. Just as Get Out saw Peele reinterrogate the possession movie and Us did the same with doppelgängers, Nope goes all in on flying saucers. So, Emerald wants the kind of proof that only video footage can offer. She wants her "Oprah shot", as well as a hefty payday. Soon, the brother-sister duo are buying new surveillance equipment — which piques the interest of UFO-obsessed electronics salesman Angel Torres (Brandon Perea, The OA) — and also enlisting renowned cinematographer Antlers Holst (Michael Wincott, Veni Vidi Vici) to capture the lucrative image. Read our full review. BONES AND ALL To be a character in a Luca Guadagnino film is to be ravenous. The Italian director does have a self-described Desire trilogy — I Am Love, A Bigger Splash and Call Me By Your Name — on his resume, after all. In those movies and more, he spins sensual stories about hungry hearts, minds and eyes, all while feeding his audience's very same body parts. He tells tales of protagonists bubbling with lust and yearning, craving love and acceptance, and trying to devour this fleeting thing called life while they're living it. Guadagnino hones in on the willingness to surrender to that rumbling and pining, whether pursuing a swooning, sweeping, summery romance in the first feature that put Timothée Chalamet in front of his camera, or losing oneself to twitchy, witchy dance in his Suspiria remake. Never before has he taken having an insatiable appetite to its most literal and unnerving extreme, however, but aching cannibal love story Bones and All is pure Guadagnino. Peaches filled with longing's sticky remnants are so 2017 for Guadagnino, and for now-Little Women, Don't Look Up and Dune star Chalamet. Biting into voracious romances will never get old, though. Five years after Call Me By Your Name earned them both Oscar nominations — the filmmaker for Best Picture, his lead for Best Actor — they reteam for a movie that traverses the American midwest rather than northern Italy, swaps erotic fruit for human flesh and comes loaded with an eerie undercurrent, but also dwells in similar territory. It's still the 80s, and both hope and melancholy still drift in the air. The phenomenal Taylor Russell (Lost in Space) drives the feature as Maren, an 18-year-old with an urge to snack on people that makes her an unpopular slumber-party guest. When she meets Chalamet's Lee, a fellow 'eater', Bones and All becomes another sublime exploration of love's all-consuming feelings — and every bit as exquisite as Guadagnino and Chalamet's last stunning collaboration. Read our full review. RED ROCKET It might sound crazy, but it ain't no lie: Red Rocket's *NSYNC needle drops, the cost of which likely almost eclipsed the rest of the film's budget, provide a sensational mix of movie music moments in an all-round sensational picture. A portrait of an ex-porn star's knotty homecoming to the oil-and-gas hub that is Texas City, the feature only actually includes one song by the Justin Timberlake-fronted late-90s/early-00s boyband, but it makes the most of it. That tune is 'Bye Bye Bye', and it's a doozy. With its instantly recognisable blend of synth and violins, it first kicks in as the film itself does, and as the bruised face of Mikey Saber (Simon Rex, Scary Movie 3, 4 and 5) peers out of a bus window en route from Los Angeles. Its lyrics — "I'm doing this tonight, you're probably gonna start a fight, I know this can't be right" — couldn't fit the situation better. The infectiously catchy vibe couldn't be more perfect as well, and nor could the contrast that all those upbeat sounds have always had with the track's words. As he demonstrates with every film, Red Rocket writer/director/editor Sean Baker is one of the best and shrewdest filmmakers working today — one of the most perceptive helmers taking slice-of-life looks at American existence on the margins, too. His latest movie joins Starlet, Tangerine and The Florida Project on a resume that just keeps impressing, but there's an edge here born of open recognition that Mikey is no one's hero. He's a narcissist, sociopath and self-aggrandiser who knows how to talk his way into anything, claim success from anyone else's wins and blame the world for all his own woes. He's someone that everyone in his orbit can't take no more and wants to see out that door, as if *NSYNC's now-22-year-old lyrics were specifically penned about him. He's also a charismatic charmer who draws people in like a whirlwind. He's the beat and the words of 'Bye Bye Bye' come to life, in fact, even if the song wasn't originally in Red Rocket's script. Read our full review. AFTER YANG What flickers in a robot's circuitry in its idle moments has fascinated the world for decades, famously so in Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Blade Runner and Blade Runner 2049. In writer/director/editor Kogonada's (TV series Pachinko) After Yang, one machine appears to long for everything humans do. The titular Yang (Justin H Min, The Umbrella Academy) was bought to give Kyra (Jodie Turner-Smith, Queen & Slim) and Jake's (Colin Farrell, The Batman) adopted Chinese daughter Mika (Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja, iCarly) a technosapien brother, babysitter, companion and purveyor of "fun facts" about her heritage. He dotes amid his duties, perennially calm and loving, and clearly an essential part of the family. What concerns his wiring beyond his assigned tasks doesn't interest anyone, though, until he stops operating. Mika is distressed, and Kyra and Jake are merely inconvenienced initially, but the latter pledges to figure out how to fix Yang — which is where his desires factor in. When a feature so easily recalls other films and television shows, and so emphatically — Ex Machina and Black Mirror also come to mind here — it isn't typically a positive sign. That isn't the case with After Yang. Adapting Alexander Weinstein's short story Saying Goodbye to Yang, Kogonada crafts a movie that resembles a dream for the overwhelming bulk of its running time — it's softly shot like one, and tightly to focus on interiors rather than backgrounds — and that makes it feel like a happily slumbering brain filtering through and reinterpreting its wide array of influences. Another picture that leaves an imprint: Kogonada's own Columbus, his 2017 wonder that also featured Haley Lu Richardson (The White Lotus), who pops up here as a friend of Yang's that Jake, Kyra and Mika know nothing about. It isn't the shared casting that lingers, but the look and mood and texture, plus the idea that what we see, what we choose to revel in aesthetically and what makes us tick mentally are intertwined; yes, even for androids. Read our full review. HAPPENING It's hard to pick which is more horrifying in Happening: the graphic scenes where 23-year-old literature student Anne Duchesne (Anamaria Vartolomei, How to Be a Good Wife) takes the only steps she can to try to regain control of her life, or the times she's repeatedly told by others, typically men, to accept a fate that only ever awaits her gender. Both hit like a punch, by design. Both are wrenching, heart and gut alike, and neither are surprising for a second. Also leaving a mark: that few care that Anne's future is now threatened in this 2021 Venice Film Festival Golden Lion-winner, because that's simply a consequence of having sex for women in France in 1963, the movie's setting. There's another truth that lingers over this adaptation of author Annie Ernaux's 2001 memoir of the same name, which uses her own experiences at the same age, time and in the same situation: that in parts of the world where pro-life perspectives are entrenched in law or regaining prominence, Happening's scenario isn't a relic of the past. Late in the movie, Anne describes her circumstances as "that illness that turns French women into housewives". It's a blunt turn of phrase, but it's accurate. It also speaks to how writer/director Audrey Diwan (Losing It) and co-scribe Marcia Romano (Bye Bye Morons) approach the film with the clearest of eyes, declining to indulge the idea that forcing unwanted motherhood upon young women is a gift or simply a duty, and likewise refusing to flinch from showing the reality when the personal freedom to choose is stripped away. This is a feature made with the fullest of hearts, too, compassion evident in every boxed-in Academy ratio frame that rarely leaves Anne's face. It spies the appalling options before her, and sees the society that's okay with stealing her choices. And, it stares deeply at both the pain and determination that've understandably taken up residence in Anne's gaze. Read our full review. THE STRANGER No emotion or sensation ripples through two or more people in the exact same way, and never will. The Stranger has much to convey, but it expresses that truth with piercing precision. The crime-thriller is the sophomore feature from actor-turned-filmmaker Thomas M Wright — following 2018's stunning Adam Cullen biopic Acute Misfortune, another movie that shook everyone who watched it and proved hard to shake — and it's as deep, disquieting and resonant a dance with intensity as its genre can deliver. To look into Joel Edgerton's (Thirteen Lives) eyes as Mark, an undercover cop with a traumatic but pivotal assignment, is to spy torment and duty colliding. To peer at Sean Harris (Spencer) as the slippery Henry Teague is to see a cold, chilling and complex brand of shiftiness. Sitting behind these two performances in screentime but not impact is Jada Alberts' (Mystery Road) efforts as dedicated, determined and drained detective Kate Rylett — and it may be the portrayal that sums up The Stranger best. Writing as well as directing, Wright has made a film that is indeed dedicated, determined and draining. At every moment, including in sweeping yet shadowy imagery and an on-edge score, those feelings radiate from the screen as they do from Alberts. Sharing the latter's emotional exhaustion comes with the territory; sharing their sense of purpose does as well. In the quest to capture a man who abducted and murdered a child, Rylett can't escape the case's horrors — and, although the specific details aren't used, there's been no evading the reality driving this feature. The Stranger doesn't depict the crime that sparked Kate Kyriacou's non-fiction book The Sting: The Undercover Operation That Caught Daniel Morcombe's Killer, or any violence. It doesn't use the Queensland schoolboy's name, or have actors portray him or his family. This was always going to be an inherently discomforting and distressing movie, though, but it's also an unwaveringly intelligent and impressive examination of trauma. Read our full review. CRIMES OF THE FUTURE It takes a brave filmmaker to see cancer and climate change, and think of art, evolution and eroticism in a possible future. It takes a bold director to have a character proclaim that "surgery is the new sex", too. David Cronenberg has always been that kind of visionary, even before doing all of the above in his sublime latest release — and having the Scanners, Videodrome and The Fly helmer back on his body-horror bent for the first time in more than two decades is exactly the wild and weird dream that cinephiles want it to be. The Canadian auteur makes his first movie at all since 2014's Maps to the Stars, in fact, and this tale of pleasure and pain is as Cronenbergian as anything can be. He borrows Crimes of the Future's title from his second-ever feature dating back 50-plus years, brings all of his corporeal fascinations to the fore, and moulds a viscerally and cerebrally mesmerising film that it feels like he's always been working towards. Long live the new flesh, again. Long live the old Cronenberg as well. In this portrait of a potential time to come, the human body has undergone two significant changes. Three, perhaps, as glimpsed in a disquieting opening where an eight-year-old called Brecken (debutant Sotiris Siozos) snacks on a plastic bin, and is then murdered by his mother Djuna (Lihi Kornowski, Ballistic). That incident isn't unimportant, but Crimes of the Future has other departures from today's status quo to carve into — and they're equally absorbing. Physical agony has disappeared, creating a trade in "desktop surgery" as performance art. Also, a condition dubbed Accelerated Evolution Syndrome causes some folks, such as artist Saul Tenser (Viggo Mortensen, Thirteen Lives), to grow abnormal organs. These tumours are removed and tattooed in avant-garde shows by his doctor/lover Caprice (Léa Seydoux, No Time to Die), then catalogued by the National Organ Register's Wippit (Don McKellar, reteaming with Cronenberg after eXistenZ) and Timlin (Kristen Stewart, Spencer). Read our full review. FIRE OF LOVE What a delight it would be to trawl through Katia and Maurice Krafft's archives, sift through every video that features the French volcanologists and their work, and witness them doing their highly risky jobs against spectacular surroundings. That's the task that filmmaker Sara Dosa (The Seer and the Unseen) took up to make this superb documentary about the couple's lives — although, as magnificent as this incredibly thoughtful, informative and moving film is, it makes you wonder what a sci-fi flick made from the same footage would look like. There's a particular sequence that cements that idea, set to the also-otherworldly sounds of Air, and featuring the Kraffts walking around against red lava in their futuristic-looking protective silver suits. The entire enchanting score springs from Air's Nicolas Godin, and it couldn't better set the mood; that said, these visuals and this story would prove entrancing if nary a sound was heard, let alone a note or a word. For newcomers to the Kraffts, their lives make quite the tale — one of two volcano-obsessed souls who instantly felt like they were destined to meet, then dedicated their days afterwards to understanding the natural geological formations. More than that, they were passionate about analysing what they dubbed 'grey volcanos', which produce masses of ash when they erupt, and often a body count. Attempting to educate towns and cities in the vicinity of volcanoes, so that they could react appropriately and in a timely way to avoid casualties, became a key part of their mission. This isn't the only doco about them — in fact, German director Werner Herzog has made his own, called The Fire Within: A Requiem for Katia and Maurice Krafft — but Fire of Love is a gorgeous, sensitive, fascinating and affecting ode to two remarkable people, their love, their passion and their impact. It also benefits from pitch-perfect narration, too, courtesy of actor and Kajillionaire filmmaker Miranda July. Read our full review. RRR The letters in RRR's title are short for Rise Roar Revolt. They could also stand for riveting, rollicking and relentless. They link in with the Indian action movie's three main forces, too — writer/director SS Rajamouli (Baahubali: The Beginning), plus stars NT Rama Rao Jr (Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava) and Ram Charan (Vinaya Vidheya Rama) — and could describe the sound of some of its standout moments. What noise echoes when a motorcycle is used in a bridge-jumping rescue plot, as aided by a horse and the Indian flag, amid a crashing train? Or when a truck full of wild animals is driven into a decadent British colonialist shindig and its caged menagerie unleashed? What racket resounds when a motorbike figures again, this time tossed around by hand (yes, really) to knock out those imperialists, and then an arrow is kicked through a tree into someone's head? Or, when the movie's two leads fight, shoot, leap over walls and get acrobatic, all while one is sat on the other's shoulders? RRR isn't subtle. Instead, it's big, bright, boisterous, boldly energetic, and brazenly unapologetic about how OTT and hyperactive it is. The 187-minute Tollywood action epic — complete with huge musical numbers, of course — is also a vastly captivating pleasure to watch. Narrative-wise, it follows the impact of the British Raj (aka England's rule over the subcontinent between 1858–1947), especially upon two men. In the 1920s, Bheem (Jr NTR, as Rao is known) is determined to rescue young fellow villager Malli (first-timer Twinkle Sharma), after she's forcibly taken by Governor Scott Buxton (Ray Stevenson, Vikings) and his wife Catherine (Alison Doody, Beaver Falls) for no reason but they're powerful and they can. Officer Raju (Charan) is tasked by the crown with making sure Bheem doesn't succeed in rescuing the girl, and also keeping India's population in their place because their oppressors couldn't be more prejudiced. Read our full review. Looking for more 2022 highlights? We've picked plenty. Check out our thoughts about 15 exceptional films that hardly anyone saw in cinemas in 2022, add 30 other 2022 big-screen highlights to your catch-up list and see which 15 straight-to-streaming movies were this year's best. From 2022's TV offerings, we've also thrown some love towards the 15 best returning TV series of the year, 2022's 15 best new shows and 15 other excellent TV newcomers from the past 12 months that you might've missed.
If you've watched anything in the Jurassic Park and Jurassic World franchise, or streamed David Attenborough's Prehistoric Planet, you'll know that dinosaurs spanned a range of shapes and sizes — but plenty were big. Huge, even. Massive, in fact. We all think of the Tyrannosaurus rex when we think of hefty dinos, but it was nowhere near the largest. Scientists believe that that title went to the Patagotitan — that it was the largest-known land animal, in fact, and reached 37 metres in length. Yes, that's giant, and visitors to Queensland Museum will be able get a glimpse for themselves thanks to the South Brisbane venue's upcoming Dinosaurs of Patagonia exhibition. Displaying fossils from South America from Friday, March 17–Monday, October 2, 2023, Dinosaurs of Patagonia will feature 13 dino species — including the behemoth that is Patagotitan, which also weighed 70 tonnes and was first discovered in 2008. Also sizeable: the six-tonne Tyrannotitan, which is considered one of the most ferocious predators of the Cretaceous period. [caption id="attachment_872664" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tyrannotitan[/caption] "The sheer size of the dinosaur skeletons in Dinosaurs of Patagonia is something you truly have to see for yourself to get an understanding of these massive, majestic creatures which once roamed the Earth," said Queensland Museum Network CEO Dr Jim Thompson, announcing the exhibition. "Dinosaurs have always been hugely popular at the museum, and this incredible exhibition brings together original dinosaur fossils dating back millions of years, full-scale casts of dinosaurs and new discoveries," Dr Thompson continued. [caption id="attachment_872662" align="alignnone" width="1920"] First femur of Patagotitan found at La Flecha farm.[/caption] Dinosaurs of Patagonia isn't just looking at giant critters, however, even though they're an enormous feature in multiple senses. At the other end of the scale, the Manidens condorensis will also be on display, with the small herbivore dino measuring 75-centimetres tall and among the smallest known to-date. Overall, the focus is on creatures that roamed the earth during the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods — so between 252–66 million years ago. Coming to Queensland after its about-to-finish current run in Western Australia, the exhibition also spans 16 skeleton casts, plus 3D animations and video of dinosaurs and digs — and lets attendees peer on like they're palaeontologists themselves, as well as seeing impressive fossils such as a real 2.4-metre Patagotitan femur. [caption id="attachment_872665" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tyrannotitan[/caption] Dinosaurs of Patagonia will display at Queensland Museum, corner of Grey and Melbourne streets, South Bank, South Brisbane, from Friday, March 17, 2023–Monday, October 2, 2023. For more information, or to join the wait list for tickets, head to the exhibition's website. Top image: Patagotitan, MEF. Museo Paleontológico Egidio Feruglio. D Pol.
Whether on screens big and small, when an audience watches a Steven Soderbergh project, they're watching one of America's great current directors ply his full range of filmmaking skills. Usually, he doesn't just helm. Going by Peter Andrews and Mary Ann Bernard — aliases from his parents' names — he shoots and edits as well. And he's prolific: since advising that he'd retire from making features after Side Effects, he's directed, lensed and spliced nine more, plus three TV shows. Among those titles sit movies such as Logan Lucky, Unsane, Kimi and Magic Mike's Last Dance; the exceptional two seasons of turn-of-the-20th-century medical drama The Knick; and now, streaming on Binge from Thursday, July 13 and Neon from Friday, July 14, gripping New York-set kidnapping miniseries Full Circle. Soderbergh will always be the filmmaker who won Cannes Film Festival's Palme d'Or at 26 for Sex, Lies and Videotape. He's the talent who earned two Best Director Oscars in the same year for Traffic and Erin Brockovich, winning for the former, too. He brought the Ocean's franchise back to cinemas in 2001, and eerily predicted the COVID-19 pandemic with 2011's Contagion — and he's in his element with his latest work. Six-part noir-influenced thriller Full Circle reunites Soderbergh with Mosaic and No Sudden Move screenwriter Ed Solomon, boasts a starry cast, involves money and secrets and deception, and proves a twisty and layered crime tale from the get-go. It also couldn't feel more relevant to now, both in its understanding of how pivotal technology is to daily life — Soderbergh shot the aforementioned Unsane, plus High Flying Bird, solely on iPhones, after all — and its unpacking of today's attitudes on class, race, power and capitalism. Full Circle starts with a murder, then a revenge plot, then a missing smartphone. As the show's name makes plain, these early inclusions all tie into an intricate narrative that will indeed demonstrate inevitability, cause and effect, the repercussions of our actions, and decisions looping back around. The pivotal death forms part of a turf war, sparking a campaign of retaliation by Queens-based Guyanese community leader and insurance scammer Savitri Mahabir (CCH Pounder, Avatar: The Way of Water). She enlists freshly arrived teens Xavier (Sheyi Cole, Atlanta) and Louis (Gerald Jones, Armageddon Time) to do the seizing under her nephew Aked's (Jharrel Jerome, I'm a Virgo) supervision; one of the newcomers is the brother of the latter's fiancée Natalia (Adia, The Midnight Club), who is also Savitri's masseuse. The target: Manhattan high-schooler Jared (Ethan Stoddard, Mysteries at the Museum), son of the wealthy and privileged Sam (Claire Danes, Fleishman Is in Trouble) and Derek Browne (Timothy Olyphant, Daisy Jones & The Six), and grandson through Sam to ponytailed celebrity chef Jeff McCusker (Dennis Quaid, Strange World). Savitri is convinced that this is the only way to stave off the curse she's certain is hanging over her business — a "broken circle", in fact — but, much to the frustration of the US Postal Inspection Service's Manny Broward (Jim Gaffigan, Peter Pan & Wendy), his go-for-broke agent Melody Harmony (Zazie Beetz, Black Mirror) is already investigating before the abduction. As a filmmaker frequently obsessed with heists — see: not just Ocean's Eleven, Ocean's Twelve and Ocean's Thirteen, but Out of Sight, Logan Lucky and No Sudden Move — Soderbergh is well-versed in the reality that little about stealing and swindling goes smoothly. Full Circle's kidnapping is quickly botched, the Brownes' attempts to pay the $314,159 ransom become a mess and everyone from the perpetrators to law enforcement makes questionable choices. Soderbergh and Solomon also know how to toy with tropes and expectations, as illustrated so devastatingly and delightfully in their staging of the suspense-dripping snatching itself. Viewers think they're seeing clearly what's happening, only to then discover what's actually occurred, and also how cleverly Full Circle has stitched together the whole incident to comment on perception, misdirection, mistruths and people acting without gleaning the full picture. This is an intelligent and precise series in every detail, making connecting the dots both addictive and satisfying — for viewers, that is, but rarely for the show's characters. None of Full Circle's key figures are ever being completely honest, and each time that truth is revealed, more arcs appear, questions are posed and tangents sparked. There's a savvy statement echoing, too, about how everyone who thinks they're intelligent and precise, be it a detective, crime matriarch, business leaders, famous folks, rebellious teens, people chasing a dream or those endeavouring to do the right thing, so rarely are. Again, it's right there in the title that all of these complications will come full circle — and, visually and within the narrative, Soderbergh and Solomon find shrewd ways to play up the spherical motif — but less expected is the emotional weight that spins along with the labyrinthine storyline. That Full Circle is terrifically performed isn't a surprise for a second; Julia Roberts and Benicio del Toro both won Oscars in the same year for different Soderbergh films, and the director's way with actors has been a hallmark of his work since the 80s. Here, there's no weak link, even among stars who remain in comfortable territory. Danes and Olyphant's involvement is dream casting for that very reason — she just played highly successful and highly stressed in Fleishman Is in Trouble, and is equally as stunning in this; whether in Deadwood, Justified or Santa Clarita Diet, he's always excellent at weathering and navigating crumbling facades. Jerome seems worlds away from I'm a Virgo, and Pounder from The Shield, and Beetz from Atlanta, yet each brandishes some of their best traits in those projects and now: yearning and desperation, potency and determination, and wiliness and playfulness, respectively. An intriguing premise, astute scripting, admirable actors, outstanding filmmaker: combine them and an all-round superb series results. There's a circular element to the way that each of these core aspects feeds the other; without Soderbergh's virtuoso craftsmanship in everything from probing closeups to sharp editing, or the cast's commitment in examining complex characters and their motivations, or a knotty script that might just owe a debt to Akira Kurosawa's High and Low, Full Circle mightn't have swirled so rivetingly. The one query that it leaves viewers with, particularly those outside of the US: why the postal service needs cops? Of course, that's a minor concern in a taut, tenseand intoxicating major must-see. Check out the trailer for Full Circle below: Full Circle streams via Binge from Thursday, July 13 and Neon from Friday, July 14.
Coles, Woolworths and Aldi could be in for some stiff competition, as German supermarket giant Kaufland announces plans to open Down Under. Having launched way back in 1984, the chain's owned by the Schwarz Group, which takes out the title of the fourth largest retailer in the world. Now, with close to 1300 international stores under its belt, Kaufland wants a piece of the Aussie pie and it's revealed the locations of its first three local one-stop supermarkets. Set to drop a cool $459 million in initial investment, the group's scored planning approval to build stores in Dandenong, Chirnside Park and Epping in Victoria. Each site will be around 4000 square metres, with its own butcher, bakery and bottle shop, and an assortment of small businesses — such as nail salons, sushi bars and cafes — adjacent, too. Kaufland has also kicked off construction work on a mammoth, state-of-the-art distribution centre in the northern suburb of Mickleham. Taking up around 115,000 square metres — or the size of six MCGs — this building will be the largest of its kind in the country. Three further local retail sites are currently waiting on approval, with plans to open a stack more across the country after that. Kaufland is also planning to base its Australian headquarters in Melbourne and says it will source local products to stock its stores wherever possible. Kaufland's website states it's out to 'disrupt the Australian retail sector', delivering competitive prices across a hefty range of food and non-food items. Kauflands are slated to open at 592–594 High Street, Epping; 266 Maroondah Highway, Chirnside Park; and 1–5 Gladstone Road, Dandenong. We'll let you know as soon as opening dates are announced.
If you're a caffeine fiend who spends your weekday hours in the CBD, you've probably hit up Industry Beans Adelaide Street for your daily cuppa. After launching its first Brisbane cafe, Melbourne's beloved specialty coffee outfit Industry Beans has set up its second Sunshine State location right in the thick of it. There's one crucial difference between the brand's 150-person Newstead digs and this inner-city spot, however. This cosy ten-seat newcomer places a hefty focus on takeaways — no matter how you like your caffeine hit. Using beans roasted at its other site, it's serving up all the Industry Beans mainstays, including milk-based espressos coffees and its beloved cold brews. Yes, that means that the tapioca pearl-filled specialty bubble coffee and the wattleseed Fitzroy Iced are both on the menu. Also getting plenty of attention on Adelaide Street: beans to purchase, including a rotating lineup of single origins for both espresso and filter (which are obviously also available in your cuppas as well). Or, you can buy ready-to-drink cold-brew cans, specialty coffee pods and coffee equipment. You'll be doing all of the above within Industry Beans' usual minimalist decor. Pastries and other small bites to eat are available, too, in case you need a snack with your coffee.
