It's not every day that a veteran of Andy Warhol's Factory comes to Brisbane. Or a contemporary of Patti Smith and Debbie Harry. Or New York's queen of the underground. Penny Arcade earns all those titles, and she's here to tell us about it for WTF 2016. Actually, her latest stand-up show touches upon the stupidity of the modern age, as intertwined with pop culture soundscapes. However, with a performer this passionate and satire this sharp, you won't get her exuberant insights without a peek at her dynamic and diverse past.
Whether it's half a capsicum or a few slightly withered mushrooms, we're probably all guilty of throwing away perfectly good food. But collectively, food waste costs Australians up to $10 billion each year. To put that in perspective, about one third of what is produced ends up in landfill. Given 2 million people still rely on food relief, this is pretty baffling. Think.Eat.Save. will see Oz Harvest team up with the United Nations Environment Program to tackle the problem and advocate more sustainable solutions. On July 21, some of the nation's top chefs, politicians and celebrities will be donning aprons and dishing up a delicious free meal to thousands of members of the public. Made from surplus food, it should inspire you to switch on socially and get creative with those odds and ends at the back of the fridge. With an increasing global population and the effects of climate change expected to reduce agricultural yield by up to 5 percent in some areas, it's time to start thinking collectively and enhance efficiency. Check the website to find out where your city's free food hotspot will be.
If there's one consistent complaint amongst both filmgoers and critics these days, it's that movies are far too long. The data, however, does not support the case and, if anything, the opposite may be true. At an average of 2 hours 10 minutes, today's big budget offerings are no longer in length than the movies of the 1960s, and it was only during the 80s and 90s that run-times actually dropped back some (and, even then, only by around ten minutes). Instead, what may be at play is that while film lengths haven't changed, the art of storytelling has, resulting in a succession of threadbare plots no longer capable of filling the space provided. But then comes along a film like The Dark Tower, clocking in at a far more appealing 95 minutes. Given it's also based on the famed eight-book series by Stephen King – and built around a world as richly detailed, expansive and diverse as only a series of that length can create – you'd expect the inverse to be true, in that there'd just be too much story to fit in. As it happens, you'd be wrong. Somehow the creative forces behind this hotly-anticipated film have managed to take a sprawling, steam-punk-western-sci-fi-fantasy-adventure and sap it of almost all semblance of story. It's the cinematic version of being jack of all trades, master of none, jumping so regularly between worlds and times and characters that none has the opportunity to take hold. Just think how the Harry Potter universe – similarly grounded in the tale of an ordinary yet extraordinary young boy thrust into an unseen war in an unknown world – might have collapsed upon itself had it received the same treatment. The young boy in this instance is 11-year-old Jake (Tom Taylor), a troubled, earth-dwelling soul whose constant nightmarish visions turn out to be inklings of a nascent psychic power called 'the shine' (remember, this is a Stephen King story). Jake's abilities make him a critical component to the storied warriors on both sides of a centuries-old conflict waged between the light and the dark. On one side stands Roland Deschain (Idris Elba), a mystical gunslinger with a heavy-handed cowboy aesthetic. Against him stands the dark sorcerer Walter (Matthew McConaughey), whose dapper black ensemble makes him seem less wizard and more court-side seats at a Wizards game. Like Obi-Wan to Luke Skywalker, Roland takes Jake under his wing and begins to teach him both the ways of his psychic abilities and how to wield the ancient and more elegant weapons of a bygone age. Actually, yes…it's really like Star Wars. Together they must confront the forces of evil to protect the all important tower, lest theirs and many other worlds fall into ruin. Performance wise, The Dark Tower relies entirely upon Elba and McConaughey to keep its head above water. Neither are given a great deal of material worthy of their talents, but find enough soul in Roland and playful villainy in Walter to keep audiences engaged. Interestingly, for a story about a young boy immersed in strange and distant worlds, the film's best moments arise when the opposite occurs and Roland finds himself on earth. Regrettably, though, The Dark Tower focuses too much on Jake – an entirely dull and annoying character whose presence induces that familiar dragging feeling despite the film's shorter run time. As a consequence, The Dark Tower represents a sad conclusion to the decade-long attempt to see it made; a bland and lifeless recreation of a world that was anything but. The series may yet have life in it, but it'll take a monumental effort to bring it back from where it currently sits. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GjwfqXTebIY
When Toy Story hit cinema screens back in 1995, the Oscar-winning movie made history as the first entirely computer-generated feature-length film. The huge Pixar hit also made audiences everywhere fall hard for a bunch of loveable playthings, because you're never too old to find a friend wherever you need it. It's completely okay if you're feeling a little wistful and teary just thinking about it. Nine years after the last Toy Story movie, the animation studio is counting on that very sentiment — and that viewers everywhere just aren't ready to farewell these animated pals. While 2010's Toy Story 3 was pitched as the final flick in the series, this film franchise could reach to infinity and beyond. For now, it's just unveiling its next chapter. Releasing on the big screen in June, Toy Story 4 sees the return of Woody, Buzz Lightyear and the gang (and the return of Tom Hanks, Tim Allen and company as voice talent). Given that Andy, the protagonist from the original three flicks, has given away all of this toys, the group are now the proud property of Bonnie — and a new adventure awaits, as does a new homemade buddy called Forky (Tony Hale). Keegan-Michael Key, Jordan Peele, Christina Hendricks and none other than Keanu Reeves also join the voice cast — the latter playing a daredevil character called Duke Kaboom, and likely saying "whoa!" more than once. Check out the full trailer below, and prepare to get mighty nostalgic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmiIUN-7qhE Toy Story 4 releases in Australian cinemas on June 20, 2019.
If you're a science-fiction fan — and a lover of 2008's Cloverfield and its 2016 follow-up 10 Cloverfield Lane, specifically — then you might want to cancel your plans for tonight. With barely a few hours notice, Netflix is now streaming the third film in the franchise. Yes, today. No, that's not a typo. Previously called God Particle, it's now going by the name The Cloverfield Paradox, and it's now available worldwide (yes, even on Australian Netflix) via the streaming platform the moment the New England Patriots and the Philadelphia Eagles walk off the field. Haven't even heard of the flick, even though it stars Black Mirror's' Gugu Mbatha-Raw, The IT Crowd's Chris O'Dowd, Inglourious Basterds' Daniel Brühl, Selma's David Oyelowo, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon's Zhang Ziyi and Aussie actress Elizabeth Debicki? That's okay — the first trailer for the movie only aired during the game, bearing the words "only on Netflix tonight" at the end. The news that it'd be available via Netflix rather than in cinemas is a recent development, too. Initially, it was set to release in theatres last year, before being moved to February 1 this year and then later this year. In fact, up until a few minutes ago, we still had the film in our review schedule for April. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8brYvhEg5Aw&feature=youtu.be In taking on a star-filled, decent-budget movie that was originally made to be viewed in cinemas, then releasing it for all the world to see with very little warning, Netflix is in uncharted territory. If this was another sci-fi saga, we'd say they're boldly going where no one has gone before. It's great news for film buffs eager to watch something when and where they want — and not be at the mercy of different release dates around the world — but it's also indicative of a new trend. Paramount, the studio originally behind The Cloverfield Paradox, did something similar with fellow sci-fi title Annihilation, the latest effort from Ex Machina's Alex Garland. As The Hollywood Reporter noted in December last year, it decided to find another avenue for the film after worrying it was "too intellectual" and "too complicated" for viewers. If you think that sounds a little patronising, you're not alone. The Atlantic ran through some of the worries behind the strategy, but, in short, it could be a sign of not-so-great things to come. At a time when cinemas are filled with endless Star Wars instalments and multiple superhero cinematic universes — not that there's anything wrong with that, either — movies like The Cloverfield Paradox and Annihilation are becoming increasingly rare. Not just sci-fi flicks, but anything that doesn't fit into an existing franchise, remake/reimagine/reboot a recognisable property or star The Rock (or, sometimes, all of the above). And while they're frequently the films that do extremely well at the box office, audiences do want to see other things too. We don't just want our cinematic candy — bright, loud, comfortable and familiar — but fare that's are different, intriguing, unusual and unexpected as well. Of course, the Cloverfield franchise has a history of surprise reveals, keeping things close to its chest and doing things differently. The first film, a found-footage monster effort, gave very little away before the movie hit cinemas. The second, which focused on Mary Elizabeth Winstead in a bunker with a possibly hostile John Goodman, only released its first trailer and confirmed that the movie even existed a month before it was released. Netflix's plan of attack with The Cloverfield Paradox makes that seem positively slow. But, when you're settling down to watch the flick from today onwards, here's hoping that you'll still be able to see movies like this on the big screen in the future. The Cloverfield Paradox is now streaming on Netflix here.
This winter, you won't be chasing the sun and soaking in a European summer. But, thanks to eased domestic border restrictions and the trans-Tasman bubble, you can spend the chilliest part of the year surrounded by snow. Of course, whether you're planning to ski, snowboard or just build a snowman, you'll need to rug up — and whatever is currently in your wardrobe mightn't do. Each year — except 2020, for obvious reasons — Aldi hosts a big sale on snow gear, offering good quality gear at almost ridiculously low price points. It's back in 2021, so mark Saturday, May 22 in your diary. That's when you can head to your nearest Aldi supermarket to pick up everything from snow jackets and boots to face masks and beanies. Available at stores across the nation, and made to withstand extreme weather conditions, 2021's range of gear includes six different varieties of snow jackets, which start at $39.99 for something light and go up to $119.99 for windproof and waterproof numbers; four types of snow pants, including one style with adjustable leg and waist cuffs for $99.99; and ski fleece sets, featuring a hoodie and a pair of pants, for $19.99. Boots for both kids and adults start at $19.99, helmets will cost you between $19.99–$24.99, and you'll be spending between $4.99–$34.99 for masks, beanies, neck warmers, cabin socks, gloves and balaclavas. Kids clothing is part of the deal, too, if you'll be travelling with younger skiers — ranging from $19.99–$34.99. Once you're all kitted out, you're certain to stay toasty if you're making the trip to Perisher Valley, Thredbo, Falls Creek, Hotham or anywhere else local where snowy peaks are a feature. If you're hopping across the ditch instead, you'll find plenty of items to stop you getting frosty up at New Zealand's ski fields.
Australia loves music festivals all year round, but this sunny country flatout adores them in summer. So, plenty of them pop up. And, a whole heap of them arrive at the same time, as one year ends and the next begins. Also, they all usually have a swag of acts in common. Accordingly, if you're in Brisbane and you've been noticing the lineups for Beyond The Valley and Field Day elsewhere around the nation, and then you saw that Wildlands is returning, you might've put two and two together. That maths would've been correct in a number of cases, too — including RÜFÜS DU SOL, Central Cee and Peggy Gou. All three artists are headed to all Brisbane for Wildlands, alongside A$AP Ferg, The Jungle Giants and G Flip. [caption id="attachment_913128" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Fifth Legend via Wikimedia Commons.[/caption] Also on Wildlands' bill: Sub Focus doing his live show CIRCULAR SOUND, and everyone from Destroy Lonely, LUUDE, Jayda G, Romy and COBRAH to Ewan Mcvicar, Taylah Elaine, Conducta b2b Notion, dameeeela and STÜM. It's been four years since Brisbane first welcomed Wildlands to the city, with the teams behind Victoria's Beyond The Valley and Perth's Origin Fields fests giving the Sunshine State a big new summer party. Fast-forward to 2023, and the event returns again, heading to Brisbane Showgrounds on the biggest night there is for celebrations: New Year's Eve. WILDLANDS 2023–24 LINEUP: RÜFÜS DU SOL Central Cee Peggy Gou A$AP FERG The Jungle Giants G Flip Becca Hatch Forest Claudette Sub Focus presents CIRCULAR SOUND Destroy Lonely LUUDE Jayda G Romy Ewan McVicar Conducta b2b Notion Taylah Elaine STÜM COBRAH Boo Seeka Blanke dameeeela Miss Kaninna Anna Lunoe Wildlands images: Jordan Munn / Mitch Lowe.
12 days. 28 shows. 132 performances. That's what's on offer at this year's huge Bleach* Festival — the event's biggest lineup yet, and all the proof you need that there's more to the Gold Coast than the trio of sun, surf and sand. That said, when Bleach* returns from Wednesday, April 17 to Sunday, April 28, the fest's 2019 program doesn't forget the Goldie's biggest attraction. Instead of simply sunbathing and splashing around at the beach, attendees can watch a tidal-influenced contemporary dance piece on the shore thanks to Dancenorth's Tectonic or peer up at The Cleaners' performance installation, which takes place seven metres above the ground. At the festival's beachside hub at Burleigh, there'll also be live music, a pub choir session and a bar on the sand. Or, you can listen to the sounds of a hand-operated, multi-octave fire organ. It's free, and it really is driven by a furnace. With festivities taking place all across the coast, the list of shows goes on — whether you want to see a dark staging of Verdi's Requiem, enjoy the mesmerising sights of Limbo Unhinged, catch a grindhouse cabaret about this sprawling country of ours in Terror Australis, or watch street dancers face off in Between Tiny Cities. You can also go for a swim as part of Landing, where folks will take part in a continuous watery relay that covers the distance between Manus Island and Australia, or sit in your car for Throttle, aka a live-action drive-in. And the visual arts spread also delivers too, with an exhibition dedicated to surfers who make art (and surf culture in general) an obvious standout. Image: Scott Belzner
It's safe to say that Australia's COVID-19 vaccination rollout hasn't been all smooth sailing. Nor has it come without its (unfair) share of highly divided opinions. But, we can all agree that getting back to a world where we're all able to do the things we love would be very nice, indeed. For many, the arts industry is one of the biggest things we've sorely been missing in the last 18 months, and it's also one of the sectors that has been hit the hardest by the pandemic. This was the catalyst for the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra's compelling new ad campaign aimed at overcoming vaccine hesitancy in Australia. The Performance of a Lifetime was created with the help of a diverse cast of local artists and arts organisations in order to encourage audiences to get on board and get vaccinated when they're eligible. Its message? The sooner people play their part and get their jab — aka the performance of a lifetime — the sooner we can all get back to doing what we love. Best of all, it ditches any alarmist chat in favour of clear, straightforward messaging and a hopeful outlook. Musical comedy trio Tripod, who appeared in the ad, summarised the sentiment nicely in a media statement: "The sooner everyone mucks in and gets the jab, the sooner the arts community can get back to what we do best — providing a focal point for communities to gather, so we can all share our joy at being alive on this big, stupid planet." The two-minute-long ad features a rollcall of other familiar faces from Melbourne's music, theatre, dance and performance communities, including iconic entertainer Rhonda Burchmore OAM, composer and soprano Deborah Cheetham AO, and actress Virginia Gay. You'll also spy appearances from members of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Theatre Company, The Australian Ballet and national Indigenous opera company Short Black Opera. As comedian and songwriter Tim Minchin said in a statement, "Get vaccinated Aussies…as soon as you possibly can. Let's show this fucking bug the door." You can check out the full 'Performance of a Lifetime' ad video here on YouTube.
In the opening seconds of Ema, on a seemingly ordinary night in the Chilean port city of Valparaíso, a traffic light flickers with flames. The inky evening streets are silent and still otherwise, save for the film's eponymous protagonist (Mariana Di Girólamo, Much Ado About Nothing) — but Pablo Larraín (Jackie) well and truly starts his eighth feature as he intends to continue. Ema peers on from just a few paces away, her platinum blonde hair slicked behind a protective visor, a flamethrower strapped to her back and a nozzle in her hand. She's ready and eager to set her world alight. She's positively bursting to torch everything that's holding her back, in fact. Figuratively more than literally, she won't stop until she's watched the status quo burn. Anchoring a movie about trauma, power, family, restriction and freedom, she'll swiftly prove a blazing force, as well as an unforgettable central figure in one of Larraín's very best movies so far. Before 2021 comes to an end, the Chilean filmmaker will have given the world Spencer, a new biopic about Princess Diana featuring Kristen Stewart as the royal figure. Also on his hit list this year: Lisey's Story, a Julianne Moore-starring TV adaptation of a Stephen King book that has been scripted for the screen by the author himself. But with the release of the phenomenal piece of cinema that is Ema, he's already gifting viewers something exceptional — and something that'll be hard to top. A new project by Larraín is always cause for excitement, and this drama about a reggaeton dancer's crumbling marriage, personal and professional curiosities, and determined crusade to become a mother rewards that enthusiasm spectacularly. That it stands out amongst the director's already impressive resume is no small feat given he's the filmmaker behind stirring political drama No, exacting religious investigation The Club and poetic biopic Neruda, too. For the first time in his career, Larraín peers at life in his homeland today, rather than in the past — and, in the smouldering interrogation that results, he may as well be holding the flamethrower himself. Ema is filled with gleaming, dazzling and glowing sights like the image it first splashes onto the screen, with Larraín's now six-time cinematographer Sergio Armstrong (Tony Manero, Post Mortem) lensing an exquisite-looking picture. When its lead is first seen dancing for the company overseen by her choreographer partner Gastón (Gael García Bernal, Mozart in the Jungle), she stands before a giant blue fireball. It's a projection on a screen, but even just five minutes into the movie, it comes as no surprise when the eye-catching backdrop soon turns vibrant hues of red, orange and pink. Little else about Ema is that predictable, though, including its persistent penchant for glaring at its namesake as intently as it can. Faces and bodies fill the feature's frames, a comment that's true of most movies; however, in the probing patience it directs its protagonist's way, the intensity of its lingering shots that continually place her at the centre of the image and the kinetic fluidity of its dance sequences, this feature brilliantly, blisteringly and evocatively surveys and stares. There's much to take in, all sparked by Ema's struggles after an attempt at motherhood goes awry. With Gastón, she adopted a child — an older boy, rather than a baby — but something other than domestic bliss eventuated. Following a devastating incident and the just-as-stressful decision to relinquish the child back to the state's custody, Ema is scrambling to cope. But, in a script by Larraín, Guillermo Calderón (The Club, Neruda) and Alejandro Moreno, this isn't a situation she's simply willing to accept. Social services won't give her another chance, or even let her see the boy she still calls her son. Things with Gastón have changed irrevocably, too. To combat both, to rally against the oppressive rules and expectations thrust her way, and to reclaim her sense of self emotionally and in her career, Ema makes a series of bold decisions that reshape and reignite her existence. Unspooling its narrative like a mystery to be pieced together one enigmatic and melodramatic moment at a time, Ema is many things. Most potently, it's a portrait of a woman who is willing to make whatever move she needs to, both on the dance floor and in life in general, to rally against an unforgiving world, grasp her idea of true liberty and seize exactly what she wants. Impeccably cast as the unflinching dancer, and acting with internalised cool, control and command, the magnetic Di Girólamo exudes perseverance from her pores, as well as allure — two traits that couldn't be more crucial to Ema's plans. Whether she's showing off her best reggaeton moves against a vivid backdrop, staring pensively straight at the camera or being soaked in neon light, the film's star is hypnotic. Like the brightest of flames, she's impossible to look away from. One of Larraín's regular players, Bernal also leaves an imprint, perfecting a thorny role that ties into the film's interrogation of Chile's class and cultural divides. That said, so much of his performance involves responding to Di Girólamo that everything about Gastón would be completely different without her presence. Larraín has always had a knack for casting (see: each and every one of his movies listed above). His skill as both a visual- and emotion-driven filmmaker shines here as well, and that too isn't new. The experience of watching Ema almost feels like dancing through it alongside its titular figure, because that's how mesmerising each stunning image proves, especially when paired with an intoxicating soundtrack that sets the beat and tone all at once. Nothing about this movie fades quickly; not its ideas, inimitable protagonist, or rousing exploration of trauma, shock and their impact. Little feels like anything else in Larraín's filmography, and yet it's always still evident that he's behind the camera. Add it alongside Gaspar Noé's Climax in the list of dynamic dance movies that romp, swirl and gyrate to their own electrifying rhythm. That comparison can't paint the full picture, though, because a cinematic light this strong and scalding sparks in nobody's ashes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COrqRKMZ2KM
As attempts to combat COVID-19 ramp up around the globe, venues and organisations everywhere are temporarily shutting down. New York's Metropolitan Opera is one of them; however, it's not letting its fans spend their self-isolating days without their beloved artform, announcing nightly live-streamed opera performances from its collection. From Monday, March 16 US time (Tuesday, March 17, Down Under), the NY institution is streaming a different opera each evening. Called Nightly Met Opera Streams, the program kicked off with high-profile shows such as Bizet's Carmen, Puccini's La Boheme, Verdi's Il Trovatore and La Traviata, Donizetti's La Fille du Régiment and Lucia di Lammermoor, and Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin — streaming each for 23 hours from 7.30pm New York time each night. Other highlights included, Nico Muhly's Marnie, Verdi's Aida and Borodin's Prince Igor. On Monday, May 4, Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro is streaming, followed by Thomas's Hamlet on May 5, Saariaho's L'Amour de Loin on May 6 and Strauss's Capriccio, plus a double bill on Sunday, May 10 featuring Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana and Leoncavallo's Pagliacci. And, if you missed Puccini's celebrated La Boheme, you can catch it again on Friday, May 8. https://youtu.be/afhAqMeeQJk Even better — Nightly Met Opera Streams is free, so you can enjoy world-class opera recorded live (and streamed in HD) without either paying a cent or leaving your couch. Nightly Met Opera Streams commence on Tuesday, March 17, Australian and New Zealand time, with a new show live-streamed every day and available for 23 hours afterwards. For further details, visit the Met Opera website. Top image: Bengt Nyman via Wikimedia Commons. Updated May 5.
When Bong Joon-ho makes a new movie, the world takes notice. It has never paid quite as much attention as it has to Parasite, though. Since premiering at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, the twisty Korean thriller has picked up the Palme d'Or, the Sydney Film Festival Prize, a Golden Globe, plenty more awards and nominations, rave reviews and an enormous cult following. And rightly so. It's best movie of the past year — a call we don't make lightly. It seems that no one can get enough of this dark and devious film, its class war between rich and struggling families, and the scathing mayhem that follows. Case in point: more than six months after the film first released in Australian cinemas, it's still showing on big screens around the country. And in the near future, Parasite will be flickering across small screens, too — not just via DVD or streaming, but adapted into a new limited TV series for HBO. As revealed by The Hollywood Reporter, the US network is set to join forces with Bong to turn Parasite into a television show, winning the rights over Netflix. Bong will adapt and executive produce alongside Adam McKay — the director of Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, its sequel and a heap of other Will Ferrell-starring comedies, who then made the jump to more political and topical fare with The Big Short, Vice and TV's Golden Globe-winning Succession. The final deal on HBO's iteration of Parasite hasn't been done as yet, so there's no word on whether it'll be an English-language remake or a Korean-language follow-up to the film. Casting and timing haven't been revealed either. Parasite marks the second of Bong's stellar flicks to earn a small-screen version, with an American TV show-based Snowpiercer due to hit screens this year — although Bong himself isn't involved with that adaptation. Need a reminder of Parasite's greatness? Check out the film's trailer below or go see it in cinemas. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEUXfv87Wpk Via The Hollywood Reporter.
Every year, the folks at Bacchus Brewing Co. brew up something special for Christmas. That'd be their choc cherry stout Bo Jangles, aka the ideal beverage for feeling festive. 'Tis the season for drinking and feeling merry, and all that. And each year, the folks at The Scratch serve up this Yuletide blend — this year is no different. In fact, they'll have 100 litres flowing through their taps, with the concoction in question featuring quite the mix of six- and 18-month barrel-aged elements, as well as raspberry and spiced rum flavours. The word you're looking for is yum.
UPDATE, November 25, 2021: Due to the weather forecast, BrisStyle Twilight Christmas Market has been postponed from Saturday, November 27 to Friday, December 3. This article has been updated to reflect that change. You might have thought King George Square looked pretty fine during the day and maybe a tad finer at night, but it's at twilight City Hall really shows off its colours. And what better backdrop when you're shopping the evening away — especially when the King George is filled with some of Brisbane's best designers and makers, and you're looking for Christmas presents, The festive offshoot of the regular Brisbane Twilight Market, this event will show off a sizeable array of stalls — more than 80, in fact — all staffed by some pretty nifty and talented local artists. Expect an eclectic selection of items, so prepare to browse and buy. You'll be perusing everything from handmade clothing, accessories and leather goods to paper goods, homewares, art and ceramics (and more). And seasonal gifts, obviously. This market is all about sound, smell and sales — so live music will provide a soundtrack to the evening, and expect to be hit with that spring flowerbed smell that always lingers when there's a soap stall around. Food trucks are also on the agenda, with the market running from 4–9pm on Friday, December 3. So take along some cash and stock up on all things crafty. [caption id="attachment_666947" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] BrisStyle[/caption] Top image: Brisbane City Council.
If you like cake and you live in Brisbane, you likely know Alphabet Cafe. Its range of treats — doughnuts, cookies, muffins, slices, brownies and cherry cheesecake brioche all included — first popped up in Brissie's best cafes for years, and then started tempting tastebuds to the brand's very own spot on West End's Boundary Street, too. That's all well and tasty, but now you've got another reason to tuck into these delicious desserts and pastries: to help a worthy cause. Joining the list of businesses and events throwing some love towards folks affected by Brissie's floods, Alphabet Cafe is hosting a Farmer Flood Relief Bake Sale on Friday, March 11, kicking off at 7am. We all know how bake sales work, so you'll be buying and eating up a cake, sourdough and pastry-filled storm to help Loop Growers in Samford and Neighbourhood Growers in Oxley. The two Brissie urban farms have been flooded in the catastrophic weather, and Alphabet is directing all proceeds from the sale to them. Also lending their support: Coffee Supreme, Grown, Lucky Duck, Mongrel, Pasta Club, Sprout and Vvaldmeer. That's your sweet-treat brekkie, morning tea or lunch taken care of for one day — all while doing an immensely great deed. Images: Savannah van der Niet.
We download movies onto tiny laptop screens and watch them hunched over in our beds, spilling Red Bull on the keyboard when Ryan Gosling says sexy things like 'Hey' and switching over to check Gmail when he's not onscreen. It's sad, it's solitary, and the suspension of disbelief is, at most, fleeting. What happened to the glory days of yore, when moviegoing was an event? When you were truly transported? Sensing the aching pit in your soul, on December 11-14, World Movies is bringing its Secret Cinema event to a mystery location in Brisbane, in association with the inaugural Brisbane Asia Pacific Film Festival. You don't know what film you'll be seeing, and the location is revealed by text the day of the screening. Secret Cinema pushes a traditional medium into a new level of experiential entertainment. Live performance as well as themed food and drinks tie in with the world of the film. Examples of performative screenings from overseas have included London's 2010 version which re-created LA's Chinatown in 2019 for Bladerunner (two actors dangled from the ceiling during the climactic 'tears in rain' scene) and a 1950s Algerian casbah for The Battle of Algiers. In Sydney, Secret Cinema moviegoers were conveyed by ferry to Goat Island and subjected to a series of 'survival games' before seeing Japan's cult classic Battle Royale, forerunner of The Hunger Games. That event sold out in 15 minutes and drew a crowd of hundreds. Even bigger things were planned for Sydney's most recent event, though it ultimately had to be cancelled after issues with the venue, meaning this Brisbane incarnation marks a bit of a comeback for the WMSC team. What type of venue theming will be going on in Brisbane? This one's a classic: Roaring Twenties. Go back to the decadent and dramatic days of the pre-stock market crash 1920s. Tickets to World Movies Secret Cinema are $55 from qtix, but thanks to World Movies, we have one double pass to give away. To be in the running, subscribe to the Concrete Playground newsletter (if you haven't already), then email us with your name and address at win.brisbane@concreteplayground.com.au.
Stretch out your after-work stresses, or sip them away? It's an age-old problem, and one hardly helped by the fact that both make you feel great. Doing one and then the other is certainly a solution — but doing both at the same time is better. Behold: beer yoga. Yes, The Flying Cock is getting in on the blissful boozing trend (or, finding a way to make drinking even more delightful, you could argue). Whether you're a yoga fanatic who also likes a tipple or vice versa, you won't find a better way to indulge your two loves, or clear your mind. Tickets cost $20 — and yes, that includes a brew, of course, as well as a mat if you need one. Booking ahead is recommended, partially because it's bound to be popular, and partially because your future self will thank you. Sure, you mightn't think you need this at the beginning of the week, but as it comes to a close, you know you will.
Another year, another Archibald Prize forced to adapt to these pandemic-afflicted times. After the 2020 award was delayed due to COVID-19, this year's gong was handed out as normal — but now the Art Gallery of NSW exhibition that always follows has been impacted by Greater Sydney's current lockdown. So, the folks at AGNSW have released a virtual version of the popular showcase, which means both at-home Sydneysiders and folks around the rest of the country can view 2021's top portraits from their couch. The 360-degree experience lets you tour the exhibition at your own pace, and see its works as they appear within the gallery space. You can learn more about the pieces along the way as well, thanks to clickable hotspots that provide information about each artwork. Every year for the past century, the Archibald Prize has recognised exceptional works of portraiture by Australian artists. In 2021, from a field of 52 finalists, the coveted award has gone to Melbourne-based artist Peter Wegner for Portrait of Guy Warren at 100. A unanimous decision by this year's judges, Wegner's portrait of the centenarian and fellow artist obviously won the gong in a fitting year. "Guy Warren turned 100 in April — he was born the same year the Archibald Prize was first awarded in 1921," Wegner said. "This is not why I painted Guy, but the coincidence is nicely timed." Wegner's win came after an equal number of works from both male and female artists made the finalists list for the first time in Archibald history — all of which you can now scope out from home, alongside entries and winners for the Wynne and Sir John Sulman prizes, too. Across the three prizes, 2144 entries were received this year, which is the second-highest number ever after 2020. And, the three prizes received the highest-ever number of entries from Indigenous artists. If you don't agree with the judges, you can also cast your own vote for the People's Choice Award before 5pm on Sunday, August 29. [caption id="attachment_814784" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Archibald Prize 2021. Peter Wegner, 'Portrait of Guy Warren at 100'. Oil on canvas, 120.5 x 151.5 cm. © the artist. Photo: AGNSW, Felicity Jenkins. Sitter: Guy Warren.[/caption] Top image: Archibald Prize 2021 finalist. Kirsty Neilson, 'Making noise'. Oil on linen, 50.1 x 60.1 cm, © the artist. Photo: AGNSW, Felicity Jenkins.
UPDATE, November 13, 2020: The Front Runner is available to stream via SBS On Demand, Google Play, YouTube Movies and Prime Video. A true tale of scandal on the election trail, The Front Runner is inspired by events from three decades ago. The book that it's based on — non-fiction tome All the Truth Is Out: The Week Politics Went Tabloid — was published in 2014, while columnist-turned-author Mat Bai started the ball rolling with a profile in 2003. And yet, this is a film blatantly begging to be made in the current political climate. Adultery, cover ups, a media firestorm, and debates about the ethics of news coverage and what's even newsworthy all fill the movie's frames. Sound familiar? When Gary Hart's (Hugh Jackman) private life makes the headlines, with a young woman (Sara Paxton) who isn't his wife (Vera Farmiga) seen leaving his Washington DC townhouse, the US politician's response is simple. He might be the Democratic party's leading contender for the 1988 presidential nomination, but he believes that what happens behind closed doors is nobody's business. He's the young, handsome, idealistic hotshot with a real chance of mobilising the masses — the beloved midwestern senator with real policies and real momentum. He's about as far away as you can get from sitting American president Ronald Reagan and likely Republican candidate George HW Bush, and he's certain that his professional deeds matter more to voters than his personal peccadillos. Call Hart naive, call him optimistic or call his judgement incredibly poor; when first asked about his alleged womanising ways, he even dares one Washington Post reporter (Mamoudou Athie) to follow him around. Whichever description you choose, there's one thing that you can definitely call Hart: caught in interesting times. In the thick of the 80s, JFK's rumoured affairs were old news, Bill Clinton's impeachment was still to come, and everything that Donald Trump has brought to the presidency couldn't have been dreamed up. Forced to fight for his political life as stories keep circulating and reporters keep chasing, Hart's situation proves a time capsule of sorts. Unfaithful politicians are splashed across the news with frequency today, but we no longer live in a world where a highly publicised extramarital affair (or worse) precludes someone from becoming America's commander-in-chief. Is that the right outcome or the wrong one? Without overstating the parallels between then and now, The Front Runner successfully shows just how much has changed. That said, the movie also leans heavily on Hart's chief rebuttal to his attackers — that exposing his indiscretions cheapens political discourse. Initially shot and packaged with jaunty, fast-paced flair reminiscent of Aaron Sorkin's political dramas, or of writer-director Jason Reitman's own Thank You For Smoking and Up In The Air, the film doesn't always find a comfortable position. It wants viewers to condemn the current status quo, feel for Hart, experience the deflating effect the controversy has on his loyal staffers, and realise that, without this incident, history could've been very, very different. They're not always compatible ideas, even in a movie that knows how complicated the scenario is. More than that, they're not always given the depth they need by Reitman, Bai and Jay Carson's screenplay. Never lacking in complexity is Jackman, whose performance is charismatic without being smooth and serious without being sombre. Hart isn't the greatest showman, but rather a great believer in the power of elected office — and someone who believes he should get his chance to ascend to the top job. It's the kind of layered portrayal that hasn't featured on Jackman's resume that often of late. Beyond its leading man, however, The Front Runner is well-served by its entire cast. Paxton is never simply the stereotypical other woman, and nor is Farmiga just the bland, dutiful wife. JK Simmons, alongside Paranormal Activity alum Molly Ephraim, convincingly rides the ups and downs that come with working for the senator. But, worlds away from his work in Patti Cake$ and The Get Down, it's Athie who threatens to steal the show. Playing a young journalist trying to do what's right even when he's told that it's wrong, the actor provides the film's conflicted centre. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-R-vFH_G0V4
Like Underworld's 90s anthem 'Born Slippy', Brisbanites will be shouting "lager, lager, lager, lager" at Howard Smith Wharves for three days across the long weekend of Saturday, September 30–Monday, October 2. The reason? The arrival of Lagerpalooza, Felons Brewing Co's new gift to fans of, well, lager — aka a three-day outdoor booze festival by the river that'll hero one type of beer, pouring 34 different varieties from 16 breweries. Felons' own Crisp Lager will feature, of course, but it's also celebrating tipples from fellow beermakers locally, across Australia and internationally. Range, Revel and Heads of Noosa are among the other Queensland outfits set to serve up their top lagers. Hop Nation, Stomping Ground and Wayward are on the Aussie list, too. Eagle Bay joins in from Western Australia, and Lost & Grounded from Bristol in the UK. Felons' riverside location in the HSW precinct means taking over a grassy patch and a waterside perch, with the event hosting five sessions: 11am–4pm and 5–10pm runs on both the Saturday and Sunday, and a public holiday event from 11am–6pm on the Monday. Attendees can opt for a $20 ticket that includes their first fill, or a $90 pass that covers all tastings, plus a festival tote and access private al fresco area. While lager is the drink in the spotlight across the entire event, there'll also be gluten-free beers, non-alcoholic sips and cocktails to enjoy. Food-wise, attendees can look forward to barbecued meats fresh from an eight-metre Argentinian grill, as well as rotisserie chicken rolls, artisanal cheese, and a seafood range that goes big on local catches — and the almost-obligatory oysters, too. Live tunes and roaming performers will help set the cruisy mood — and if it sounds big, Felons have advised that it's both Australia's largest lager party and the first fest of its kind.
Over a hot, tumultuous summer, a group of teenagers struggle with love, sex and betrayal. Like an artsy Australian version of an episode of Skins, writer-director Rhys Graham's debut feature Galore is an earnest and technically confident piece of filmmaking but noticeably lacking in stakes. Like so many other tales about teens behaving badly, the overblown drama on which the movie hinges never really seems that important. Lush cinematography and natural performance ultimately make little difference when you just don't care about the story. The film takes place around the outskirts of Canberra, a few weeks before the devastating 2003 bushfires. Puberty Blues star Ashleigh Cummings plays 17-year-old Billie, whose voiceover bookends the film. Her best friend is Laura (Lily Sullivan), an aspiring writer and the girlfriend of skater boy Danny (Toby Wallace). She's thinking about giving Danny her virginity, and goes to her life-long BFF for advice. What Laura doesn't know is that Billie is already sleeping with him. In short, it's exactly the kind of angst-ridden rubbish that makes you glad you're no longer in high school. Petulant and manipulative, Billie treats life like a sordid little soap opera in which she's the tragic star. The reality of the situation is far less kind, not to mention a whole lot less interesting. The movie's dramatic inflation of Billie's selfish behaviour may strike a chord with teenage audiences, although they'll probably be bored by the film's deliberate pacing. Adults, on other hand, will just want to throttle her. The poor plotting is unfortunate, because in other areas the film is quite strong. Despite Cummings being saddled with a deeply unsympathetic character, both her and Sullivan give intensely authentic performances. The same is true of newcomer Aliki Matangi as Isaac, a troubled but good-natured youth who gets caught up in Billie's drama. The weak link is Wallace as the mopey, uncharismatic Danny, whose blandness makes the love triangle that much more difficult to comprehend. Graham also deserves credit for his graceful visual direction. While handheld camerawork and sun-dappled cinematography aren't exactly new tricks for an Australian made indie, there's no discounting the beauty of the film's setting, nor the elegance with which Graham, a Canberra local, brings the sleepy location to life. But the skill all comes to naught in the service of such an uninvolving narrative. Both Graham and his cast likely have bright futures ahead of them, sure to be filled with far more accomplished projects. Go and see them, but give Galore a miss. https://youtube.com/watch?v=iRWbh_TOLdw
There's no shortage of ways to send your love to your nearest and dearest, though sometimes an emoji, a surprise bunch of flowers or even a hardy succulent just doesn't cut it. Similarly, showering those close to you in sweet treats is far from difficult — but Australia's new chocolate company wants to provide another option. Combining taste, style and heartfelt messages, Good Measure Co is offering up the country's newest personalised artisan chocolate delivery service, not only ferrying their cocoa-based delicacies around the nation in attractive packaging, but letting you write your own tender missive to go along with them. You pick what goes inside and on the outside, choosing from gourmet dark and milk chocs in blueberry, milk and honey, dark raspberry, chocolate noir and signature salted caramel flavours — or Champagne truffles — plus four styles of box and whatever nice words you can dream up. Those eager to tailor their choccie selection for their special someone can expect to pay $50 for a box of 12, and $75 for 24. Boxes with a range of pre-written statements are also available for the same price, ranging from "chocolate for my favourite" to "it's time to celebrate". And, the cost includes free delivery, arriving the same day in Sydney for orders placed before 11am, and the next day if ordered afterwards. The company was created by Pete and Hannah Craggs, who "wanted to reimagine the humble chocolate box, and create a new way to share the joy of chocolate with friends and family in a simple and easy way," Pete explains. Continues Hannah, "we've tapped into the same sense of occasion and excitement you'd get from giving and receiving flowers, but with high quality, gourmet chocolate instead." For more information, visit Good Measure Co's website.
Bunnings Warehouse is supercharging its usual sausage sizzle to support a few Aussie communities that are doing it pretty tough right now. On Friday, March 11, all of the hardware giant's stores will host a special pre-weekend edition of the chain's legendary snag sessions, raising coin for those across Queensland and New South Wales that've been impacted by the recent floods. All of the day's sausage profits will go to the Givit Storms and Flooding Appeal. So, on Friday, grab a snag in bread and show those in need some love — the sausage sizzles will run from 9am–4pm across all Bunnings Warehouses in Queensland (and the country). There'll also be donation tins at Bunnings registers, if you don't have time for a snag while you shop for hardware. And, if you can't make it along at all, you can also chuck a few dollars into the Givit collection tin online.
UPDATE, May 14, 2021: American Utopia is available to stream via Amazon Prime Video, Google Play, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Amazon Video. There may be no catchier lyric in music history than "same as it ever was", the five words repeated in Talking Heads' 1981 single 'Once in a Lifetime'. As uttered again and again by the band's inimitable frontman David Byrne, it's a looping phrase that burrows into your skull and never leaves. It's a line that, apropos of nothing, starts echoing through your brain at random moments as well. It's also the type of lyric that, when the above situation happens, no one protests. So when American Utopia opens with the musician sat at a table holding a brain and talking about what its various parts do, it feels as if Byrne is acknowledging what everyone already knows in the deepest recesses of their consciousness: that Byrne long ago got cosy in our craniums and has been nattering away to us ever since. As he stares at grey matter while wearing a grey suit — a perfectly fitting one, unlike the famed big number he wore in iconic 1984 Talking Heads concert film Stop Making Sense — Byrne has something else on his mind, though. American Utopia starts with the part of our bodies where we all mentally reside, but slowly and smartly evolves from the cerebral to the communal. It segues from one man alone on a stage lost in his own thoughts to 12 people singing, dancing, playing instruments and connecting, and also pondering the state of the world and how to better it in the process. And it takes its titular concept seriously along the way, confronting America's political and social divisions in Byrne's witty, wise and impassioned between-song chats, but never satirising the idea that the US could be improved to the benefit of everyone. American Utopia is a concert film like its predecessor; however, as that masterpiece proved, the whole notion means more to Byrne than merely standing in front of a camera and busting out well-known hits. From the sublimely soothing 'This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)' to the punchier 'Burning Down the House', plenty of Byrne's best-known songs do grace American Utopia. 'Once in a Lifetime' is among them, of course, as are 'Road to Nowhere' and 'Everybody's Coming to My House', with the film's playlist spanning his career with Talking Heads and solo. Across a range of styles and tempos, each track is a wonder, and not just in the way that fans already know. As should be obvious from the fastidious fashion in which Byrne has conceptualised this stage performance — which he toured in 2018, then adapted for Broadway in 2019, and has now turned into this standout movie directed by Spike Lee — this is a meticulously crafted work. Basking in the glory of Byrne and his band is inevitable and would happen regardless, but soaking in everything that American Utopia does is another marvel entirely. It shouldn't be so striking to notice that Byrne and his colleagues are doing their thing completely untethered, for instance. The stage they stand on is bare except for a shimmering grey chainmail curtain that wraps around three sides, and their instruments and microphones are powered by packs so there are no pesky cords all over the place. Even percussion instruments are strapped to the folks playing them, with absolutely nothing touching the floor other than dancing (and in Byrne's case, bare) feet. It's freeing, not just for Byrne and his band, but to watch. Every move made is immaculately choreographed, but without all the wires and big equipment that's usually part of every concert experience, the performers can simply interact. And as they do, the audience engages on a deeper lever as well. Stop Making Sense devotees, which should include everyone given that it's the best concert movie ever made, will spot that Byrne has reversed his strategy from that earlier film. There, he walked onto the stage with a tape deck, pressed play, grabbed the microphone and kicked off by singing 'Psycho Killer'. When it came time for the next song, another bandmate joined him with their instrument of choice. The cycle repeated with the next track, and the next as well. It was a playful and also probing approach to the genre that made viewers confront its literally staged nature, which American Utopia achieves in the opposite manner and with broader aims — because, other than Byrne's presence, nothing is the same as it ever was here. Before Byrne forces you to do so, you probably won't have realised how enlivening, wondrous and cathartic it is to see the act of connecting so firmly thrust to the fore. It takes an incredible amount of work to make something so tightly constructed seem so loose and natural, and that's just one of the reasons that American Utopia is yet another of the star's masterpieces. The other sizeable factor: Lee, who is on quite the hot streak via BlacKkKlansman, Da 5 Bloods and now this. Like Byrne, he doesn't just want to plonk the performers in front of a lens, with his energetic directorial choices designed to complement the show and make the audience feel as if they're in the room. American Utopia, the stage production, already celebrates intimacy. At its core, it features a dozen people turning a semi-enclosed cube into an inviting space for collaboration and togetherness. Sometimes peering down on the action from above, sometimes weaving between band members, Lee and his 11 camera operators find the exact right shot for the exact right moment in every instance — and prove inventive and creative as they're doing so, too. Although it comes early in the film, when Byrne sings "home is where I want to be", another of his earworm lyrics, everything about what's easily the most joyous cinematic experience of the year instantly makes you feel that he's talking about exactly where he's standing at that very second. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97nnV0fNd30&feature=youtu.be
It is a truth universally acknowledged that the alternative music scene that came before is unquestionably better than the scene right now. It's something we've all grown up crowing (no matter if we said the same thing a decade ago). So we know that the tendency towards nostalgia and a willingness to make heroes out of drunken twenty-year-olds who only released two records is damn near irresistible. For the semi-autobiographical film Lucky Them, this kind of nostalgia is both the target and the appeal. Loosely based on the experiences of screenwriter Emily Wachtel in the New York music scene, the film is set in Seattle, the birthplace of grunge, and spends equal time exposing nostalgia and falling right into its trap. Lucky Them tells the story of an aimless music journalist, Ellie Klug (Toni Collette), as she searches for an acclaimed Seattle musician, who supposedly died years earlier. Ellie is initially reluctant to uncover the whereabouts of her former lover and music idol, and she struggles to find closure, while her ex-boyfriend Charlie (Thomas Haden Church) films an amateur documentary about her efforts. While the film supposedly runs close to Wachtel's own personal experiences, in taking on the mythology behind Seattle's music history (where director Megan Griffiths lived for many years), the film manages to feel like a broader story of music nostalgia. The character of the lost musician, Matthew Smith, makes references to the early deaths of Pacific Northwest music idols Kurt Cobain and Elliott Smith, and the whole film is layered with Seattle alt-rock nostalgia. The soundtrack that plays over the sweeping shots of the wet, dreary landscape hints at riffs from Nirvana's 'All Apologies', and memorabilia lent to the film by the iconic local record label Sub Pop line the walls of almost every scene, from original Mudhoney posters to gold records from the Shins and Postal Service. These pleasant hometown references make Seattle feel like an extra character in the film. Alongside this, Church gives an excellent comic performance as the eloquent but music-illiterate Charlie and the fantastic Oliver Platt appears as Ellie's editor Giles, the surprisingly patient, ageing pot-smoker forced to deal with shareholder demands that he boost circulation in a fading print music journalism industry. All this makes it easier to stick with Ellie, whose relentlessly immature decisions, alongside the uncomfortably petulant tone Collette uses, make it difficult to connect with her. Although there's a surprise cameo that manages to be charming rather than distracting from the story, it's a shame that Lucky Them finishes in almost rom-com cliche terrain. It's enough to make you wish you were watching Charlie's fictional documentary instead, like the real nostalgia junkie that you are.
Thirty years, hundreds of films and thousands of minutes spent staring at the silver screen: that's what the Alliance Française French Film Festival is celebrating in 2019. Three decades since first launching in Australia, the event is marking its mammoth milestone with a particularly huge festival. And like all of the best big birthday bashes, the fest has assembled quite the on-screen guest list. When AFFFF starts touring the country from March 5 — kicking off in Sydney before heading to heading to Melbourne, Canberra, Perth, Brisbane, Hobart, Adelaide, Avoca Beach, Parramatta and Byron Bay — it'll not only screen 54 movies across a six-week period, but also showcase a heap of French acting greats. Think Juliette Binoche, Audrey Tautou, Isabelle Adjani, Vincent Cassel, Catherine Deneuve, Charlotte Gainsbourg and Mathieu Amalric, plus Vanessa Paradis and her daughter Lily-Rose Depp. The list goes on (obviously). With acclaimed French directors Claire Denis and Jacques Audiard each making their English-language filmmaking debuts over the last 12 months, this year's AFFFF also boasts a bit of Hollywood star power. Robert Pattinson and André Benjamin (aka André 3000) join the aforementioned Binoche in Denis' stellar dystopian space effort High Life, while Joaquin Phoenix, John C. Reilly and Jake Gyllenhaal star in Audiard's western, The Sisters Brothers. Both titles have been gathering praise on the international festival circuit since late last year, and will hit Aussie screens for the first time at AFFFF. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtOwfo1ypOw From opening film The Trouble with You to closing night's Kiss & Tell — both comedies — the full lineup boasts plenty of other features to get excited about. Intimate drama A Faithful Man steps into the complications of romance, with Louis Garrel both in front of and behind the camera; César award-nominee Amanda follows a twentysomething forced to bond with his niece; and doco fans can get a fashion fix with both Celebration: Yves Saint Laurent and Jean-Paul Gaultier: Freak & Chic. Elsewhere, famed director François Ozon returns with By the Grace of God, which comes our way after premiering in Berlin in February, and Olivier Assayas is back with his thoughtful latest offering, Non-Fiction. While the trio of The World Is Yours, Knife + Heart and Sorry Angel have already played on Australian screens, specifically in Melbourne last year, they're also worth looking out for — the crime caper, campy slasher and queer romance all made our best of MIFF list for a good reason. Finally, if you're keen on both old and new French talents, they're both in the spotlight in a considerable way. The former comes courtesy of a restored screening of Alain Resnais' classic 1961 effort Last Year at Marienbad, and a dedicated program strand highlights the latter, including emerging filmmakers such as Coralie Fargeat (Revenge), Cécila Rouaud (Family Photo) and Dominique Rocher (The Night Eats the World). The Alliance Française French Film Festival tours Australia from March 5, screening at Sydney's Chauvel Cinema, Palace Norton Street, Palace Verona, Palace Central and Hayden Orpheum Picture Palace from March 5 to April 10; Melbourne's Palace Balwyn, Palace Brighton Bay, Palace Cinema Como, Palace Westgarth, Kino Cinemas and The Astor Theatre from March 6 to April 10; Perth's Palace Raine Square, Cinema Paradiso, Luna on SX, Windsor Cinema andCamelot Outdoor Cinema from March 13 to April 10; and Brisbane's Palace Barracks and Palace James Street from March 14 to April 14. For more information and to buy tickets, visit the AFFFF website.
Minions: they’re cute, yellow and mostly unintelligible — and they’re everywhere. Off screen, it certainly feels that way, with every store seemingly filled with brightly coloured merchandise. On screen, it definitely feels that way in their first stand-alone film. That's the point, though. Those mumbling, bumbling critters first sighted in Despicable Me and its sequel are inescapable, both in the antics they cause, and to audiences. In fact, minions aren't just prevalent in every frame of the movie that shares their name; as the film makes plain, the overalls-and-goggles-wearing fellows have always been here. An amusing introduction big on revisionist history and narrated by Australia's own Geoffrey Rush charts their evolution from the sea to swarming around a host of bad guys — dinosaurs, pharaohs, Dracula and Napoleon included. Those with short memories might need reminding that the titular figures are the ultimate henchmen, living to serve villainous masters. That's what they seek in 1968, and wreak havoc across several continents to find. After bad luck with their previous horrible bosses, and centuries spent holed up in an icy Antarctic cave as a result, leader Kevin, teddy bear-clutching Bob and guitar-playing Stuart (all voiced by co-director and Despicable Me veteran Pierre Coffin) trundle back to civilisation to find a new scoundrel to trail. At a convention for rogues and rascals, they team up with the scheming Scarlett Overkill (Sandra Bullock), who tasks them with stealing the crown of Queen Elizabeth II (Jennifer Saunders). To say things don't go smoothly is an understatement. Soon, the trio is fleeing from their would-be overlord and her inventor husband (Jon Hamm). Expect slapstick hijinks aplenty, with much of the mayhem designed with the minions' adorable nature in mind and little else. In general, the golden, rounded figures don't make that much sense, so it follows that neither does the madcap movie and its frantic array of gags. Eschewing logic, abandoning emotional awakenings and avoiding imparting a message add to the delight of the film in this day and age of lesson-centric all-ages affairs. As they flit across the screen to a period-appropriate soundtrack of the Rolling Stones, the Doors, the Who and the Beatles, the sidekicks turned stars simply enjoy revelling in silliness and anarchy. That's what Minions is: chaotic, amusing fun, albeit of the slight, sweet and ultimately disposable variety. In what amounts to an origin story, Coffin and his crew never take anything too seriously, including shoehorning in as many nods to other genres as they can — such as superhero flicks, of course, as well as royal comedies and even monster movies. They also never forget that, in their first two big screen outings, the minions were the primary source of comic relief. No doubt they'll be fulfilling that role again in Despicable Me 3, due out in 2017, but for now, they do just fine lapping up the limelight all by themselves.
Consider yourself reminded – Valentine's Day is just around the corner. But don't fear if you've forgotten to organise a fancy table for you and your SO, bestie or group of pals – with A Table to End Hunger you can secure that last minute booking, while also supporting an important cause. A Table to End Hunger has already made reservations at 140 of Australia's best restaurants, which come inclusive with a dinner and drinks package to ensure your night goes off without a hitch. All you have to do is place the winning bid on any one of the many high-flying restaurants, and you'll get the spot. Plus, your winning bid will also help end world hunger by 2030, as 100% of the proceeds go straight to The Hunger Project. And going one step further, if the winning bid is paid with an eligible American Express Card, Amex will donate an additional 15% of the bid value. No matter what part of the country you live in, there are loads of participating restaurants in your state. Feel like some Spanish tapas overlooking Melbourne CBD? Place a bid on Bomba. Or, if stylish Italian is more your game, stake your claim on Double Bay's Matteo. If you're in Brisbane, snag a table at newcomer Little Big House. There's pretty much every type of atmosphere, cuisine and location you could need, so head over to the A Table to End Hunger auction page and spread the love this Valentine's Day. Online bidding is happening right now and will close on Sunday February 11, 2018 at 9pm AEDT. Terms and conditions apply. Image: Nikki To.
Looking back on the last 24 years, the fashion world really hasn't changed all that much. Outfits are still outrageous, trends are as cyclical as the tides, and the pomp and puffery of the PR machine is as condescending and self-aggrandising as ever. In that sense, fashion's immutability makes it just as ripe for parody now as it was back in 1992, when Absolutely Fabulous first aired on the BBC. On the other hand, that the fashion world really hasn't changed all that much means that any parody done now risks feeling banal and familiar. Hence, the challenge of breathing new life into something old proves just as relevant for any pastiche as it does for the fashion world itself. It's here that we find ourselves presented with Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie. The notoriously precarious production road of TV adaptations has seen a lot of traffic of late. In just the past few years, programs that have graduated to the big screen include The A-Team, 21 Jump Street, Entourage, The Equaliser, GI Joe and The Man From U.N.C.L.E, plus a whole bunch of Mission Impossibles and Star Treks as well as a Baywatch film currently in post-production. More often than not these films fall short of the mark, tending to feel like two and a half episodes stuck together, or one longer episode struggling to justify its expanded scope and budget. The best are more like reinterpretations, taking the idea of the TV series and using that as the base for an entirely new adventure (21 Jump Street and Star Trek: Into Darkness being the best of the recent bunch). Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie attempts to follow that trend, throwing its stars Edina Monsoon (Jennifer Saunders) and Patsy Stone (Joanna Lumley) back into the limelight of the fashion PR milieu. The theme of the movie, appropriately, is relevance, with its two leads fighting to stay part of the conversation in a world that has all but left them behind. Physically that means morning rituals of self-applied botox, suction tubes and foetus-blood facial transfusions, while professionally it means trying to land a client who still means something to people (sorry Lulu). The solution presents itself in the form of fashion icon Kate Moss (who cameos), but when an attempt to lure her business ends in disaster, Eddie and Patsy find themselves pariahs of the fashion world and fugitives from the law. Does it all come together as a film? In parts, perhaps, but overall the feeling is one of overreach and superfluity. If anything, Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie is more like a reunion episode than a film, bouncing from scene to scene with barely a plot in sight, even fewer laughs, and a series of fleeting walk-ons from characters you kind of, sort of, maybe remember from back when you watched the show. Barbs about gender reassignment and mixed-race families fizzle by without any real substance, and the drunken stumbling/falling routine that defined so much of the original series now seems sadder than it does funny. That's all part of the point, of course, that the desire for the party to go on forever will, over time, only serve to make fools of its disciples. But the delivery fails to resonate for much of the film's first hour. Where the film does shine is when it returns to its absolute core: pushing in tight on intimate, whispered conversations between its two outstanding leads as they heap red-hot private vitriol on everyone else in the room. Eddie's scatterbrained solipsism and Patsy's unwavering sex-bomb confidence are as funny now as they were two decades ago – making the film's insistent focus on slapstick and buffoonery all the more frustrating. Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie opened number two at the UK Box Office, where it will surely find its homegrown audience more than dutiful to the cause. Even so, it's hard to see this film resonating with either international audiences or moviegoers under the age of 40. When Saunders declared an end to the original TV series after just three short seasons, she did so proudly declaring that it was better to go out on top rather than to overstay your welcome until you're politely asked to leave. Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie might well have heeded such wisdom. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dj3ZWhlmexw
With filmmaking in her blood, Alice Englert makes her directorial debut with a movie about a mother and daughter with cinema similarly pumping through their veins. The creative force behind Bad Behaviour is the offspring of Oscar-winner Jane Campion (The Power of the Dog) and fellow helmer Colin Englert (The Last Resort), but here focuses on actor Lucy (Jennifer Connelly, Top Gun: Maverick) and stunt performer Dylan (Englert herself). There's a knowing, winking vibe to this New Zealand-shot dramedy, then, including in the Labyrinth-starring Connelly playing a former child star, as she is; Campion popping up for a memorable cameo; and Bad Behaviour's writer/director taking on the progeny-to-a-household-name part. The internet ensures that avoiding Englert's family ties is impossible, so she wryly leans into everywhere that life can and does inspire art; however, this bold and involving spiritual retreat-set feature isn't about nudges and nods, or even built on them. When there's evident parallels between what's on-screen and reality, a question springs: take all those links away and does the film still hit its marks? The answer for Englert's first stint behind the camera after acting in Ginger & Rosa, Beautiful Creatures, Campion's Top of the Lake, Them That Follow, Ratched, You Won't Be Alone and more is a resounding yes that could be shouted from the mountaintops. Bad Behaviour savvily satirises the wellness and enlightenment industry with the look of the also Aotearoa-made Nude Tuesday, but with a finely balanced understanding of its indulgences and its meaning to attendees. There's a glorious slice of The Lobster to the picture's tone, and not just because Ben Whishaw (Women Talking) features in both. Englert also constructs two phenomenal character studies, all while never being afraid to take wild turns that push everyone out of their comfort zones on- and off-screen. Open to splashing cash but closed to almost everything except her own pain, Lucy is Loveland Ranch's latest arrival, hitting the Oregon venue seeking what everyone is paying for: bliss, peace, reassuring words, kindly ears, shoulders to lean on, a renewed sense of self and the knowledge that all is well. If Lucy also decamps to the remote spot amid towering ranges to escape her own complications, that won't be on the itinerary. A phone call en route teases what loiters elsewhere, with strain echoing down the line as she tells Dylan — who is in NZ working on a big film — where she's going. It takes time and a shocking-but-earned twist to get Lucy and Dylan in the same space in Bad Behaviour's second half, when they're each weathering their own mayhem while also sifting through shared baggage, and the tension and anxiety between them seethes with a lifetime's worth of fractures and fraying. At Loveland, new-age sessions run by guru Elon Bello (Whishaw) are meant to get spiky, process trauma and demand hard work. That's even more true with its latest attendee, her dripping cynicism and her immediate distaste for self-obsessed model Beverly (Dasha Nekrasova, Succession). Everyone lapping up Elon's teachings has woes to wade through, with Lucy's distress at the path her life has taken since her heyday — she mentions a "warrior princess" role — just one problem put to the group. She's trying yet she's also igniting in a place where platitudes are doled out as wisdom and no one truly wants to do anything but hog the limelight. That the camp insists on silence between therapy chatter is an astute comic touch from Englert: the facility's customers gleefully believe that it'll help, purchasing the privilege of being told so and also struggling to comply; as scripted and portrayed, they'd also genuinely benefit from stopping to think through rather than natter about their emotions. As Lucy is stuck in agonising mother-baby role-play classes that go as well as anyone would expect — although in Englert's hands, nothing plays out as anyone could anticipate — Dylan is on set. There, plying her trade, getting bruises for her efforts and sporting a crush are her daily minutiae. Penned with precision, both of Bad Behaviour's threads tease out details about its two central women, whether unpacking Lucy's unhappiness, guilt and contempt, or exploring why Dylan seeks peril professionally and personally alike. A mother-daughter reckoning is always coming, though. Englert not only makes the build-up and the fallout equally knotty, revelatory and compelling — she commandingly establishes the ins and outs of her two protagonists beyond the most important relationship in their lives. More than four decades after her first-ever screen credit and two since winning the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for A Beautiful Mind, Connelly remains a reason to seek any project out. While she isn't Bad Behaviour's sole highlight, she's that good. Of late, she's been stellar in the TV version of Snowpiercer as well (also navigating uneasy parental bonds), but this film boasts one of her next-level performances. Stepping into Lucy's shoes is a go-for-broke effort to dive into the character's many complexities and conflicts, and Connelly is not only excellent but rivetingly raw and deeply resonant. She's also delightfully funny in the film's wry way. Englert has cast herself well, too, showing off her wit and empathy as an actor in a feature with no weak on-screen links, Whishaw, Ana Scotney (Millie Lies Low), Beulah Koale (Dual) and Marlon Williams (Sweet Tooth) among them. References to Englert and Connelly's pasts aren't all that Bad Behaviour wears proudly, clearly; thorniness is embraced just as strongly and ambition gleams bright. There's no doubting that this picture is the product of someone who knows what she wants to dig into, shower around, contemplate, excavate, call out and laugh at — and that it's made by a filmmaker who is as certain of how she wants her feature to look and feel at every moment. As cinematographer Matt Henley (Coming Home in the Dark) takes in the surroundings, it isn't difficult to spot New Zealand standing in for Bad Behaviour's American half, although there's a fitting air to that to that move in this movie. Perspective is a core part of this emotionally lingering flick, as is seeing intricacies in multiple lights as Englert shines the torch.
Sure, you've dreamed of flying like a bird — but have you ever wanted to flock like one? You might not be able to take to the skies, but you can use sound, movement and mass choreography to mimic the natural behaviour of our feathered friends while running around New Farm Park. That's the experiment that is Aeon, aka WTF's interactive, inexpensive, outdoor component. It's also a chance for Performing Lines to premiere their latest effort in a work-in-progress performance. Here, you won't just experience an immersive production. After the show is over, you'll also be asked to take part in a feedback session.
More than just that patch of grass and trees at the edge of the CBD, the Brisbane City Botanic Gardens boasts a whole heap of wonders — gorgeous greenery, ponds filled with cute turtles, free exercise classes and more. From Friday, May 10 to Sunday, May 19, it's also the site of Brissie's returning major outdoor contemporary art exhibition: Botanica. For ten days, the gardens will come alive with artworks, talks, walks, workshops and more, including an installation of mirrors located in the northwest lagoon and a series of pop-up glasshouses. Or, stop by after 5pm on May 10–12 and 17–19 for Beats and Eats, which will involve all of the above plus food trucks and live music. On May 10 and 17, special Botanica by Night sessions will also include guided tours, plus artists on hand. If you missed the first one last year — or if you went along and loved it — 2019's event promises a whole heap of new garden wonders. Either way, prepare to roam through the centre of Brisbane and see its natural splendour in a whole new way.
More than just that patch of grass and trees at the edge of the CBD, the Brisbane City Botanic Gardens boasts a whole heap of wonders — gorgeous greenery, ponds filled with cute turtles, free exercise classes and more. From Friday, May 7–Sunday, May 16, it'll also be the site of Brissie's returning major outdoor contemporary art exhibition, Botanica. And this time, it's happening after dark. For ten days, from 5pm onwards, the gardens will come alive with artworks, talks, installations and microprojections — plus talks, workshops, guided tours, a live drawing performance, spoken word events and a poetry slam evening. Also on the bill: live music, food trucks and a pop-up bar on the fest's two weekends. The full program will drop in early April, but you can pencil in seeing nine dazzling new outdoor pieces from artists Hiromi Tango, Simone Eisler, Georgie Pinn, Esem Projects, Charlotte Haywood, Jenna Lee, Kellie O'Dempsey, Paul Bai and Georgia Hillas. If you missed the first two fests in 2018 and 2019 — or if you went along and loved it — 2021's event promises a whole heap of new garden wonders. Either way, prepare to roam through the centre of Brisbane and see its natural splendour in a whole new way.
Forget ocker comedies and downbeat dramas — when it comes to Aussie cinema, there's a new trend in down. Sure, plenty of titles have made the leap from theatre to film during the country's movie-making history, but with Ruben Guthrie, Holding the Man, Last Cab to Darwin and Spear all hitting cinemas within the last year, the nation appears to be in the middle of a stage-to-screen renaissance. Next comes The Daughter, with actor and playwright turned filmmaker Simon Stone leading the charge. After treading the boards with his own take on Henrik Ibsen's 1884 work The Wild Duck, he now turns the tale into an Australian-set feature film. When Christian (Paul Schneider) returns to the mountainous outskirts of New South Wales after years spent in the US, his homecoming stirs up mixed emotions. His father Henry (Geoffrey Rush), is pleased to see him, but Christian has more than a few reservations about his dad's impending marriage to the much younger Anna (Anna Torv). And while his reunion with childhood best mate Oliver (Ewen Leslie) proves happy, the more time Christian spends with his pal, his wife Charlotte (Miranda Otto) and teenage daughter Hedvig (Odessa Young), the more troubles start to emerge. Some characters know things they shouldn't, others are hiding details they're trying to forget, and everyone gets caught up in the chaos when certain truths are exposed, making secrets and lies The Daughter's primary currency. There's more than a little bit of melodrama at play, though there's not much in the narrative that's unexpected. Even if you're not familiar with the source material or Stone's previous theatre version, it's not hard to see where the soapy story is going. That's disappointing in terms of delivering real twists, turns and mysteries, but it does showcase the movie's true focus: its characters and performances. Corralling an impressive, mostly Australian cast — a scene-stealing Sam Neill among them — Stone hones in on the actions and emotions of a close-knit group struggling with the weight of past and present deeds. Accordingly, the tension that bubbles throughout the feature stems from their reactions, rather than the many not-so-surprising revelations. Whether frozen with shock, arguing with anger or crying in pain, their response to the situation always feels real. Take the figure of Hedvig, the titular daughter, for example. She seethes with a blend of confidence and vulnerability not often seen in teens on screen, with Young giving her second great performance, behind Looking For Grace, of the year so far. It certainly helps that Stone, as a director rather than a writer, favours an empathetic, subjective approach in his stylistic choices. With a colour scheme that reflects the characters' moods, and camera angles that mirror their perspectives, he crafts a movie that looks as intimate as the age-old issues it trifles with. The end result may be obvious and histrionic, story-wise, yet it's still for the most part engrossing. As such, The Daughter doesn't just bring the stage to the screen, but the messy nature of life as well.
If there's one thing everyone needs this Christmas, it's food. And if there's one thing that makes grocery shopping two days before the biggest eating day of the year bearable, it's heading to a farmers' market that's also a music festival. That's where The Gap Farmer's Market Christmas Twilight Music Festival comes in — that is, the only place you want to be gathering supplies from on December 23. From 3pm, more than 100 stalls will be selling their freshest fruit, vegetables, meat, seafood, eggs, pasta, cheese, breads, juices and more, while a host of bands provide the perfect soundtrack. If you've ever been to The Gap Farmer's Market before, you'll know that their festive edition is your one-stop shopping destination. And if you haven't, here's your chance to check them out. Yes, you'll be able to pick up arts, crafts and artisan gifts, should you have more than a little last-minute scrambling to do.
Something delightful has been happening in cinemas in some parts of the country. After numerous periods spent empty during the pandemic, with projectors silent, theatres bare and the smell of popcorn fading, picture palaces in many Australian regions are back in business — including both big chains and smaller independent sites in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. During COVID-19 lockdowns, no one was short on things to watch, of course. In fact, you probably feel like you've streamed every movie ever made, including new releases, Studio Ghibli's animated fare and Nicolas Cage-starring flicks. But, even if you've spent all your time of late glued to your small screen, we're betting you just can't wait to sit in a darkened room and soak up the splendour of the bigger version. Thankfully, plenty of new films are hitting cinemas so that you can do just that — and we've rounded up, watched and reviewed everything on offer this week. SCREAM Twenty-six years ago, "do you like scary movies?" stopped being just an ordinary question. Posed by a wrong-number caller who happened to be a ghostface-masked killer with a fondness for kitchen knives, it was the snappiest and savviest line in one of the 90s' biggest horror films — a feature filled with snappy and savvy lines, too — and it's now one of cinema's iconic pieces of dialogue. It also perfectly summarised Scream's whole reason for being. The franchise-starting slasher flick didn't just like scary movies, though. It was one, plus a winking, nudging comedy, and it gleefully worshipped at the altar of all horror films that came before it. Wes Craven helmed plenty of those frightening features prior to Scream, so the A Nightmare on Elm Street and The Hills Have Eyes director was well-equipped to splash around love for the genre like his villain splashed around entrails — and to eagerly and happily satirise all of horror's well-known tropes in the stab-happy process. If you've seen the 1996 film or its three sequels till now, you've bathed in all that scary movie affection. You might've gleaned the horror basics from their rules and references; the OG film even had its characters watch Halloween and borrows the 70s classic's stellar score for key scenes. Geeking out over spooky cinema is the franchise's main personality trait, to the point that it has its own saga-within-a-saga, aka the Stab movies, and its fifth entry — also just called Scream — wouldn't dream of making that over. The famous question gets asked, obviously. Debates rage about the genre, enough other horror films are name-checked to fill a weekend-long movie marathon, cliches get skewered and dissected, and there's a Psycho-style shower scene. 'Elevated' horror standouts The Babadook, It Follows, The Witch and Hereditary earn a shoutout as well, but Scream itself just might be an elevator horror flick. It isn't set in one, but it crams in so much scary movie love that it always feels like it's stopping every few moments to let its nods and nerding-out disembark. In other words, you'd really best answer Scream's go-to query with the heartiest yes possible, and also like watching people keep nattering about all things horror. Taking over from Craven, who also directed 1997's Scream 2, 2000's Scream 3 and 2011's Scream 4 but died in 2015, Ready or Not's Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett task their next generation of slasher fodder with showing their devotion with all the subtlety of a masked murderer who can't stop taunting their prey. That'd be Ghostface, who terrorises today's Woodsboro high schoolers, because the fictional spot is up there with Sunnydale and Twin Peaks on the list of places that are flat-out hellish for teens. The same happened in Scream 4, but the first new attack by the saga's killer is designed to lure home someone who's left town. Sam Carpenter (Melissa Barrera, In the Heights) hightailed it the moment she was old enough, fleeing a family secret, but is beckoned back when her sister Tara (Jenna Ortega, You) receives the feature's opening "do you like scary movies?" call. Soon, bodies are piling up, Ghostface gives Woodsboro that grim sense of deja vu again, and Tara's friends — including the horror film-obsessed Mindy (Jasmin Savoy Brown, Yellowjackets), her twin Chad (Mason Gooding, Love, Victor), his girlfriend Liv (Sonia Ammar, Jappeloup), and other pals Wes (Dylan Minnette, 13 Reasons Why) and Amber (Mikey Madison, Better Things) — are trying to both survive while basically cycling through the OG feature again, complete with a crucial location, and sleuth out the culprit using their scary movie knowledge. Everyone's a suspect, including Sam herself and her out-of-towner boyfriend Richie (Jack Quaid, The Boys), and also the begrudging resident expert on this exact situation: ex-sheriff Dewey Riley (David Arquette, Spree). The latter is the reason that morning show host Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox, Cougar Town) and initial Ghostface target Sidney Prescott (Skyscraper) make the trip back to Woodsboro again as well. Read our full review. KING RICHARD In King Richard, Will Smith does more acting than expected with his back to the on-screen action. He does more acting in general — while the Ali and Concussion star can be a transformative performer, here he feels like he's overtly playing a part rather than disappearing into a role — but the way his eponymous figure handles his daughters' matches instantly stands out. Richard Williams is a tennis parent who despises the usual tennis parent histrionics. At the time the film is set, in the early 90s, he has also coached Venus (Saniyya Sidney, Fences) and Serena (Demi Singleton, Godfather of Harlem) since they were four years old, and penned a 78-page plan mapping out their futures before they were born. He's dedicated his life to their success; however, he's so restless when they're volleying and backhanding that he can't bring himself to watch. These scenes in King Richard are among Smith's best. He's anxious yet determined, and lives the feeling like he's breathing it, in some of the movie's least blatantly showy and most quietly complex scenes as well. The Williams family patriarch has wisdom for all occasions, forged from a tough childhood in America's south, plus the hard work and hustle of turning Venus and Serena into budding champions, so he'd likely have something to say about the insights gleaned here: that you can tell oh-so-much about a person when they're under pressure but nobody's watching. If he was actively imparting this lesson to his daughters — five of them, not just the two that now have 30 Grand Slam singles titles between them — and they didn't glean it, he'd make them watch again. When they see Cinderella in the film, that's exactly what happens. But his courtside demeanour is teachable anyway, recognising how all the preparation and effort in the world will still see you tested over and over. King Richard mostly lobs around smaller moments, though — still life-defining for the aforementioned trio, matriarch Oracene (Aunjanue Ellis, Lovecraft Country) and the rest of the Williams brood, but before Venus and Serena became women's tennis superstars. It unpacks the effort put in to even get them a game, set or match and be taken seriously in a sport that's whiter than the lines marking out its courts, and the chances, sacrifices and wins of their formative years. From cracked Compton courts and homemade hype videos to seizing every hard-earned opportunity: that's the tale that King Richard tells. But, despite making a clear effort to pose this as a family portrait rather than a dad biopic, it still shares an approach with Joe Bell, director Reinaldo Marcus Green's prior film. It bears one man's name, celebrates him first and makes him the centre of someone else's exceptional story. In screenwriter Zach Baylin's debut script, Richard's aim is simple: get Venus and Serena to racquet-swinging glory by any means. His DIY tapes are bait for a professional coach, but attracting one is easier said than done for a working-class Black family without country club connections facing America's inbuilt racism and class clashes, and tennis' snobbery — even if Richard knows his daughters will reach their goals. A turning point comes when, after strolling into a practice match between Pete Sampras and John McEnroe, Richard convinces renowned coach Paul Cohen (Tony Goldwyn, Scandal) to watch his kids play and take on Venus for free. While she's swiftly impressing on the junior circuit, her dad becomes concerned about her psychological and emotional wellbeing, so he next works his persuasive act on Florida-based coach Rick Macci (Jon Bernthal, The Many Saints of Newark) — with a strict no-competition rule. Read our full review. LIMBO Describing a dance and a state of uncertainty alike, limbo is one of those always-intriguing words. Many terms boast multiple meanings, but this one skirts two ends of the spectrum — the party-fuelled joy of a parade of people trying to pass under a bar while bending over backwards, and the malaise of being stuck waiting and not knowing. Both require a degree of flexibility, though, to either complete physical feats or weather the fickleness of life (or, in limbo's religious usage, of being caught in an oblivion between heaven and hell). It's no wonder then that British writer/director Ben Sharrock chose the word for his second feature, following 2015's Pikadero. His Limbo lingers in a realm where men are made to contort themselves, biding one's time anticipating a decision is the status quo and feeling like you've been left in a void is inescapable. The fancy footsteps here are of the jumping-through-hoops kind, as Limbo ponders a revelatory question: what happens when refugees are sent to a Scottish island to await the results of their asylum applications? There's zero doubting how telling the movie's moniker is; for Syrian musician Omar (Amir El-Masry, Star Wars: Episode IX — The Rise of Skywalker) and his fellow new arrivals to Scotland, there's little to do in this emptiness between the past and the future but wait, sit at the bus stop, check out the children's playground and loiter near the pay phone. That, and navigate the wide range of reactions from the locals, which veer from offensive to thoughtful. Everything about the situation demands that Omar and his companions make all the expected moves, but it also forces them to potter around in purgatory and stomach whatever is thrown at them to do so. In Omar's case, he's made the trip with an actual case — physically, that is, thanks to his prized possession. He's brought his grandfather's oud with him, which he rarely lets slip from his grasp, and so he feels its weight where he goes. It's a canny part of Limbo's script in two ways. Whatever they're fleeing in search of a better life, every refugee has a case to be welcomed into safer lands that they carry around with them, but Sharrock manifests the idea in a tangible sense. With Omar's musical dreams, which the beloved oud also represents, in limbo as well, the ever-present instrument additionally acts as a constant reminder of the sacrifices that asylum seekers make in leaving their homes, even when there's no other option, and the costs they pay when they're met with less-than-open arms, then left waiting for their new existence to begin. Just as the term limbo means so much, so does that oud — and so does the feature it's in. A film can be heartbreaking, tender, insightful and amusing all at once, and Limbo is indeed all of those things. It's both dreamlike and lived-in, too, a blend that suits its title and story — and also the mental and emotional state shared by Omar and his other asylum seekers as they eke out their hope and resilience day after unchanging day, all while roaming and roving around an island that may as well be another world. The Scottish landscape around them looks like it could grace a postcard, and Sharrock has cinematographer Nick Cooke (Make Up) box it into an almost-square frame to make it resemble vacation snaps. That choice of 1.33:1 aspect ratio also confines the movie's characters in another fashion, of course, offering a blatant visual flipside to the holiday-perfect splendour; being trapped anywhere is bleak, even if it appears picturesque. Read our full review. GOLD Gold's title doubles as an exclamation that Australian filmmakers might've made when Zac Efron decamped to our shores at the beginning of the pandemic. Only this outback-set thriller has put the High School Musical, Bad Neighbours and Baywatch star to work Down Under, however, and he definitely isn't in Hollywood anymore. Instead, he's stuck in "some time, some place, not far from now…", as all-caps text advises in the movie's opening moments. He's caught in a post-Mad Max-style dystopia, where sweltering heat, a visible lack of shelter, a cut-throat attitude, water rationing, and nothing but dirt and dust as far as the eye can see greets survivors navigating a rusty wasteland. But then his character, Man One, spots a glint, and all that glisters is indeed gold — and he must guard it while Man Two (Anthony Hayes, also the film's director) seeks out an excavator. Exactly who stays and who goes is the subject of heated discussion, but Gold is an economical movie, mirroring how its on-screen figures need to be careful about every move they make in such unforgiving surroundings. As a filmmaker, helming his first feature since 2008's Ten Empty, Hayes knows his star attraction — and he's also well-aware of the survivalist genre, and its history, that he's plonking Efron into. Almost every male actor has been in one such flick or so it can seem, whether Tom Hanks is talking to a volleyball in Castaway, Liam Neeson is communing with wolves in The Grey or Mads Mikkelsen is facing frosty climes in Arctic. Although Gold purposefully never names its setting, Australia's vast expanse is no stranger to testing its visitors, too, but Hayes' version slips in nicely alongside the likes of Wake in Fright, The Rover and Cargo, rather than rips them off. The reason such tales persist is pure human nature — we're always battling against the world around us, even if everyday folks are rarely in such extreme situations — and, on-screen, because of the performances they evoke. Efron isn't even the first import to get stranded in sunburnt country in 2022, after Jamie Dornan did the same in TV miniseries The Tourist, but he puts in a compellingly internalised performance. Man One's minutes, hours and days guarding an oversized nugget pass with sparing sips of H20, attempts to build a shelter and altercations with the locals, including of the two-legged, canine, insect and arachnid varieties, and the toll of all this time alone builds in Efron's eyes and posture. His face crackles from the sun, heat and muck, but his portrayal is as much about enduring as reacting, as both Efron and Hayes savvily recognise. Writing with costumer-turned-scribe Polly Smyth as well as directing solo, Hayes puts more than just survival on Gold's mind, though: when the titular yellow precious metal is involved, greed is rarely good. Here, staying alive at any cost is all about striking it rich at any cost, and also about the paranoia festering between two new acquaintances who've randomly stumbled upon a life-changing windfall — as heightened by the film's stark, harsh, post-apocalyptic setup. When a third person (Susie Porter, Ladies in Black) enters the scenario, Gold grimly lets its life-or-death and lucky break elements keep clashing, but also pairs Man One's desperation with the mental decline that blistering in the sun, being parched with thirst and starving with hunger all bring. Greed proves perilous in a plethora of ways in the film's frames, including inside its main character's head. Read our full review. THE 355 They're globe-hopping, ass-kicking, world-saving spies, but women: that's it, that's The 355. When those formidable ladies are played by a dream international cast of Jessica Chastain (Scenes From a Marriage), Lupita Nyong'o (Us), Penélope Cruz (Pain and Glory), Diane Kruger (In the Fade) and Fan Bingbing (I Am Not Madame Bovary), the tickets should sell themselves — and Chastain, who suggested the concept and produces, wasn't wrong for hoping that. Giving espionage moves the female-fronted spin that Bond and Mission: Impossible never have isn't just this action-thriller's quest alone, of course, and nothing has done so better than Atomic Blonde recently, but there's always room for more. What The 355 offers is an average affair, though, rather than a game-changer, even if it so evidently wants to do for its genre what Widows did for heist flicks. The film still starts with men, too, causing all the globe's problems — aka threatening to end life as we know it via a gadget that can let anyone hack anything online. One nefarious and bland mercenary (Jason Flemyng, Boiling Point) wants it, but the CIA's gung-ho Mason 'Mace' Browne (Chastain) and her partner Nick Fowler (Sebastian Stan, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier) head to Paris to get it from Colombian intelligence officer Luis Rojas (Édgar Ramírez, Jungle Cruise), who's gone rogue and is happy to sell; however, German operative Marie Schmidt (Kruger) is also on its trail. The French connection goes wrong, the two women get in each other's ways, but it's apparent — begrudgingly to both — that they're better off together. They need ex-MI6 cyber whiz Khadijah Adiyeme (Nyong'o) to help, while Colombian psychologist Graciela Rivera (Cruz) gets drawn in after making the trip to stop Luis going off the books. No stranger to covert affairs or formidable women after penning Mr and Mrs Smith, but helming only his second movie following the awful X-Men: Dark Phoenix, director/co-writer Simon Kinberg spreads the action across several continents — including a foot chase in Marrakesh and an auction in Shanghai, which is where Lin Mi Sheng (Fan) joins the story. Scripting with TV veteran Theresa Rebeck (Smash), his big setpieces all play with the film's gender focus, mostly dissecting how women are so often overlooked in various situations; the indifference given wait staff, the invisibility of women in male-dominated societies and the way they're meant to be pure eye candy at black-tie occasions all earn the movie's ire. But these sentiments, like everything else in the feature, are blatant and straightforward at best. The mood the movie vibes with: "James Bond never had to deal with real life," as Cruz is given the misfortune of uttering. The 355 should be better — with its dialogue, clearly; with its girl-power, girl-boss, girls-can-do-anything messaging; and at celebrating more than five women, or even showing them. (If you were going to pick five ladies to do the job, though, this casting is spot-on.) It could use a sense of style and charm beyond Nyong'o's suits and the gang's personality-matched auction outfits, and its over-edited action scenes put Kinsberg two for two with tanking a crucial part of his directorial efforts to-date. Women can star in mediocre action movies as well, however. That isn't meant to be the picture's big push for gender parity, but The 355 is also exactly what seemingly millions of bland men-led actioners have been serving up for decades upon decades. It packages it up in an Ocean's 8-meets-Bourne approach, or a more self-serious Charlie's Angels, but these run-of-the-mill flicks have long been everywhere, just without as much oestrogen. The Bond and Mission: Impossible franchises have their own, too. Read our full review. If you're wondering what else is currently screening in Australian cinemas — or has been lately — check out our rundown of new films released in Australia on September 2, September 9, September 16, September 23 and September 30; October 7, October 14, October 21 and October 28; November 4, November 11, November 18 and November 25; December 2, December 9, December 16 and December 26; and January 1 and January 6. You can also read our full reviews of a heap of recent movies, such as Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised), Streamline, Coming Home in the Dark, Pig, Big Deal, The Killing of Two Lovers, Nitram, Riders of Justice, The Alpinist, A Fire Inside, Lamb, The Last Duel, Malignant, The Harder They Fall, Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain, Halloween Kills, Passing, Eternals, The Many Saints of Newark, Julia, No Time to Die, The Power of the Dog, Tick, Tick... Boom!, Zola, Last Night in Soho, Blue Bayou, The Rescue, Titane, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn, Dune, Encanto, The Card Counter, The Lost Leonardo, The French Dispatch, Don't Look Up, Dear Evan Hansen, Spider-Man: No Way Home, The Lost Daughter, The Scary of Sixty-First, West Side Story, Licorice Pizza, The Matrix Resurrections, The Tragedy of Macbeth, The Worst Person in the World, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, House of Gucci, The King's Man and Red Rocket.
The place: earth in the near future. The situation: a frozen planet chilling at a frosty -119 degrees celsius, as caused by humanity's attempts to combat climate change. The only solution: a constantly hurtling 1001-car train that plays host to the world's only remaining people. But, instead of banding together on the speeding locomotive, the residents of Snowpiercer have transported society's class structure into the carriages of their new home. That's the story that drives Snowpiercer — on both the big screen and on TV. First came Bong Joon-ho's 2013 film, which marked the acclaimed South Korean writer/director's first English-language film, and one of the movies that brought him to broader fame before Netflix's Okja and 2019's Cannes Palme d'Or-winning and Oscar-winning Parasite. Then, unsurprisingly, came a US-made television series, which was first announced back in 2016, and then finally started speeding across screens — including Down Under, where it's available via Netflix — from May this year. In both forms, Snowpiercer boasts a smart, immersive and all-too-timely concept — and unpacks its underlying idea in a thrilling and involving manner. While the TV version isn't as great as Bong's film (because, honestly, how could it be?), it takes the same dystopian concept, heightens the suspense and drama, and serves up both a class warfare-fuelled survivalist thriller and a murder-mystery. Think constant twists, reveals and reversals, cliffhangers at the end of almost every scene, and a 'Murder on the Snowpiercer Express' kind of vibe. Indeed, it's rather addictive — and, after just wrapping up its first season, the show has dropped its first teaser for its second batch of episodes. Once again, Hamilton's Tony Award-winning Daveed Diggs leads the charge, playing an ex-detective who has spent seven years in the tail end of the train and is dedicated to overthrowing the status quo to achieve equality for all. Also aboard is Jennifer Connelly as the engine's all-seeing, ever-present head of hospitality, with the likes of Frances Ha's Mickey Sumner, Slender Man's Annalise Basso and The Americans' Alison Wright all part of Snowpiercer's new world order as well. And, in the new trailer, they're all facing a significant change. They're also about to meet a new adversary, as played by none other than Game of Thrones' Sean Bean. Just when Snowpiercer's second season will arrive is yet to be revealed — although it's safe to say it won't start dropping until 2021 at the earliest. Just how long Bean will survive in his latest role, well, that's something you can start pondering right now. Watch the Snowpiercer season two trailer below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xEFQpBc3Nc Snowpiercer's second season will hit Netflix Down Under at a yet-to-be-revealed date — we'll update you with further details when they come to hand.
A Noel Coward play, a series of Haydn string quartets, a concert by Clannad — wait, is this Melbourne Festival? It is, but it's the new-look Melbourne Festival, now in its first year under new artistic director Josephine Ridge. Ridge's goal with her first program has been to broaden the festival's appeal. While there will as always be a range of offerings on the weirder side of wonderful, from an epic dramatisation of a verbatim phone conversation (Nature Theater of Oklahoma's Life and Times), to an artist who makes playable musical instruments out of disarmed assault weapons (Pedro Reyes), the 2013 program is also aiming to draw in audiences who may normally have seen Melbourne Festival as not their thing. An expanded music program is a big part of that, bringing an eclectic range of acts from pop bands such as British India and Polyphonic Spree to a celebration of ska, a classical program put together with the help of the Australian Chamber Orchestra’s Richard Tognetti and a concert in the dark by blind artists Amadou and Mariam. This year also sees a greater focus on commissioned works, both from local artists such as Eddie Perfect and Daniel Schlusser and from big international names such as British choreographer Hofesh Shechter. Other guests of note include much-loved Indigenous singer Archie Roach, who will be playing in a grand welcome to country to kick the festival off, Hollywood legend John Landis and celebrated French ballerina Sylvie Guillem. There’s plenty for free and even if you can’t get yourself to a single film screening, gallery exhibit, concert or performance, the art will be coming to you anyway, via a series of decorative 'art trams'. Ridge has just come from nine years working on the Sydney Festival, an event which she says seems to draw more emotional engagement from its audience, compared to the intellectualised response typical of Melbourne. She’s hoping this year to bring a bit of that passion south, with a program that truly gets into Melbourne's heart. Tickets for the Melbourne Festival are on sale on Friday, 16 August. For tickets and the full program, see the festival website.
If you live in Brisbane and you're into theatre, you've probably heard about the city's venue problem. During busy times when all the usual locations are already booked, some shows can't tread our boards because there's nowhere for them to perform. That's where Anywhere Theatre Festival comes in, transforming unlikely places into lively performance spaces since 2011. If any event proves that anywhere and everywhere can host theatre, comedy, dance, music, magic and poetry, it's this. In 2016, 63 productions and 420 performances will grace gaols, reservoirs, rural railway stations, old skate rinks, pubs, people's homes and more — including these ten shows, our pick of the bunch.
Nineties kids, Disney fans and everyone who's ever cried over a lion cub that just couldn't wait to be king, it's time to climb onto a rock and yell your lungs out. The circle of life has struck again, and The Lion King is back. It's in live-action form this time around, and another new teaser for the movie has just dropped. While it's not the first teaser or trailer to drop — we've been blessed with not one, not two, but three already — this time we finally get to hear Nala voiced by Queen Bey herself. Yep, if you didn't already know, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter will be voicing Nala, while Donald Glover is Simba and James Earl Jones is his dad. Other big names attached include Chiwetel Ejiofor as Scar, John Oliver as Zazu, and Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen as Timon and Pumbaa. Elton John is back working on the soundtrack with Tim Rice, as they both did on the first film. They'll reportedly have some help from Beyoncé, naturally, while The Jungle Book's Jon Favreau is in the director's chair for the entire production. If you're anxious about how it might turn out, it's worth taking Timon and Pumbaa's advice at this early stage — although this initial look should help get rid of your worries for the rest of your days. Here's the new teaser with Beyoncé as Nala: https://youtu.be/CQCUnDjYn50 The Lion King hits Australian cinemas on July 17, 2019.
While Australians are practising social distancing in a bid to contain COVID-19, Federal Education Minister Dan Tehan wants people to "binge on study" rather than "bingeing on Netflix". And the government is helping you do just that by slashing the prices of some online short-course degrees and diplomas. Hosted by "world-class universities and private providers", the reduced-price courses will start in early May and run for six months. They'll allow unemployed Aussies to retrain in "national priority areas", such as nursing, teaching, health, IT and science — areas in which the country is going to to need trained workers "as we emerge from the coronavirus pandemic", Tehan said in a statement. The price of the courses will be cut significantly, too, with Tehan telling SBS that "the cost of these courses has been reduced by over 50 percent, and in some instances up to 74 percent." In an interview with ABC Radio on Monday, April 13, Tehan revealed that six-month courses in nursing, teaching, counselling, English, maths, foreign languages and agriculture will be $1250, while allied health, other health, IT, architecture and building, science engineering, medical science and environmental studies will set you back $2500. Similarly to other university courses, you'll be able to get a HELP loan, which you'll then repay when you start earning above a certain threshold. There'll be two types of short-courses available, according to Tehan: graduate certificates with some prerequisites and diploma certificates that require no prior learning. "You could either use them to reskill, or you can use them to change careers, or just to start learning," Tehan said in the interview. To enrol in one of these six-month courses, you'll need to apply directly to a university — but you may need to wait a couple of weeks. As Tehan told ABC Radio, "courses [are] being developed as we speak, which will be ready to go in the early weeks of May". Swinburne University, which already has a range of online teaching courses, says in a statement on its website that it's "working with the Federal government and developing short courses in the priority areas of teacher education, health, mental health and counselling, aged care and information technology" and more information will be available in coming weeks. The cheap courses are part of the Federal Government's higher-education relief package, which also includes $18 billion in domestic student payments (regardless of enrolments) and $100 million in regulatory fee relief and six-month exemptions of loan fees associated with Fee-Help and VET Student Loans for students. In NSW, TAFE has already begun offering 21 fee-free short courses to help people diversify their skills during COVID-19. Six-month online courses in 'national priority' areas are to be offered at public and private universities across the country from early May. To enrol, you'll need to apply directly to a university.
If you've ever watched a U.S.-made Christmas movie (or several), you've probably come to a surprising realisation. While Christmas Day is the main festive event in Australia, our American friends are much more focused on the evening prior. That's when families come together and share a meal, and that's exactly when The Stamford Plaza encourages you to do the same. Of course, their night-before food fun features not only roasts and dessert selections aplenty, but a seafood buffet as well — because some Aussie traditions just can't be beaten. They're also serving up another feast on December 25, in case you just can't bring yourself to break with convention.
When the clock strikes midnight this Good Friday, where are you going to be? We know, we know — Easter isn't really like New Year's. But if you're heading to one particular Brisbane party, timing is important. Pubs and clubs can't operate as normal, which means anyone looking for some fun has be to a bit more creative. The folks at Oh Hello have done just that, starting their Easter Rave as Friday night officially becomes Saturday. Expect DJs spinning your favourite electronic tracks, plus all the UV lights, a laser show, glow sticks and smoke machines you could want. If you're keen to dress up like a glow-in-the-dark rabbit and dance the early hours of the morning away, this is the place to be. Image: Oh Hello.
It has been twenty years since Kylie Minogue crooned "they called me the wild rose" and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds released one of their best albums. However, you can't just shower affection on something as haunting and evocative as Murder Ballads any old way. You have to do it justice. A bunch of musicians and singers plan to do just that for Wonderland 2016 — and while it might seem as though they'll just be offering up their version of the record, there's surely a reason that this one-off performance has been dubbed music theatre. There's more than a little theatricality in Cave's lyrics and the band's songs, of course, but we think audiences should expect something extra special.
Music and movies go hand in hand, even if the current crop of cinema releases haven't been too subtle about stressing that connection (yes, we're talking about your obvious needle drops, Suicide Squad and War Dogs). There's something special about the way a song, played at the right moment, can transform an entire scene — or the way a musician, whether fictional or actual, can truly come to life on a big screen. When the recognisable beats of Prince's 'When Doves Cry' start thumping in Purple Rain, the first scenario couldn't be more apparent. And whenever Oscar Isaac starts crooning folk ditties in Inside Llewyn Davis, the latter could't, too. They're just two of the films on offer in Get What You Want: Music Cinema, the Gallery of Modern Art's month-long celebration of the magic of sound and vision via a selection of music-focused docos and features. Whatever style takes your fancy, you'll find it in the 28-title program — particularly if you're a Nick Cave, Amy Winehouse, Nirvana, Madonna, Bob Marley or Miles Davis fan. The Punk Singer's portrait of riot grrrl pioneer Kathleen Hanna and fan-shot Beastie Boys concert flick Awesome; I Fuckin' Shot That are also among the lineup's highlights. Yep, this is toe-tapping cinema.
A new bar and bistro is under construction in Fortitude Valley and while this may not be particularly groundbreaking, the fact that it’s going up in the bones of Bubbles Bathhouse, a seedy underground casino and ‘massage parlour’ from the late '80s, certainly is — steered by Brisbane hospitality heavyweight Damian Griffiths. Although Brisbane seems like an innocuous city at times, some might remember an Underbelly-esque period during the late '80s when police and governmental corruption was rampant and the inquiry into said corruption brought down the Bjelke-Petersen state government. Bubbles Bathhouse was allegedly a notorious hangout for corrupt cops and sleazy politicians, but its new owners are hoping to clean up its reputation. Although it has a pretty racy history, it’s the perfect setting for a themed bar and bistro. And the kicker? There's going to be a 15-person spa bath in-house because some things never change. The as-yet-unnamed site (tentatively called ‘Bubbles’ in the press) will open in September and buck the trend of old-school style American diner fare with a basic but authentic Gallic menu executed by chef Norman Harvey. Mark our words — the next big thing in dining is steak and French fries and this new eatery will have both in large quantities. The venue has been unused for some months and prior to that housed a pretty lacklustre Vietnamese restaurant. Griffiths, the owner of Alfred and Constance, Limes Hotel, Kwan Brothers and Doughnut Time, hopes the redevelopment will breathe life into an oft forgotten but charismatic corner of the Valley. Via Good Food. Images: Limes Rooftop, Stingray Finn.
Some film festivals take audiences to corners of the globe they won't visit in the multiplex, shine a spotlight on different cinematic voices, and showcase the wealth of talent working beyond the English-speaking realm. That's not the British Film Festival's remit. Here, you'll find recognisable names and faces aplenty as the best new movies Old Blighty has to offer embark on a tour of the antipodes. Taking place between late October and early November at Palace Barracks and Palace Centro, this year's lineup includes Andrew Garfield and Claire Foy in opening night film Breathe, which marks the directorial debut of The Lord of the Rings star Andy Serkis, as well as Nicole Kidman and Elle Fanning in the eagerly anticipated How to Talk to Girls at Parties. The former tells a true tale of a couple striving to overcome a death sentence from polio, while the latter is a queer sci-fi rock-punk comedy based on a Neil Gaiman short story and directed by Hedwig and the Angry Inch's John Cameron Mitchell. Yep, this program might speak the same language as Australians, but it's serving up a variety of stories. If you're going to put one flick to put on your must-see list, make it The Death of Stalin. It's the latest from The Thick of Itand Veep creator Armando Iannucci, and features everyone from Steve Buscemi to Jeffrey Tambor to Michael Palin. Other highlights include Fanning again in Mary Shelley, a biopic about the writer behind Frankenstein that's helmed by Wadjdadirector Haifaa Al-Mansour, as well as England is Mine, with Dunkirk's Jack Lowden playing none other than Morrissey. Elsewhere, Saoirse Ronan stars in On Chesil Beach, her latest Ian McEwan adaptation after coming to fame in Atonement, while true story 6 Days recreates the 1980 storming of the Iranian embassy in London with Mark Strong, Jamie Bell and Abbie Cornish. BFF also boasts docos about Manolo Blahnik and Eric Clapton, a biopic about AA Milne and the genesis of Winnie the Pooh, and one of the last films to feature the late John Hurt in That Good Night. Looking back as well as forward, a selection of Agatha Christie adaptations round out the lineup. Timed to coincide with the new version of Murder on the Orient Express, the program includes the 1974 take on the same tale, plus three other classics.
Whether this year has been a good or bad one for you, one of the enduring downsides to 2020 has been this feeling that every day is on repeat. Whether you work from home or commute every day, there's a certain sameness to our routines right now. To help you shake off that Groundhog Day vibe, we've teamed up with Oporto to help you build some little wins into your working day — from virtually escaping the office to literally submerging yourself into a cool body of water. These quick, easy-to-action things to do will make you feel like you did something different with your break, and will hopefully boost your mood, too. [caption id="attachment_782787" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Charlie Bliss[/caption] MONDAY: TAKE A TOUR OF NORTHERN TERRITORY ART It's the beginning of the week, and maybe you've got a stack of emails to wade through before lunchtime — but don't let that stop you from having time 'away' from the inbox. If you have a desk-bound job, or five minutes spare with your phone in hand, you have time for a trip to the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory (MAGNT). It's not easy to cross the border right now (and it certainly wouldn't be advised on your lunch break), but you can explore an exhibition of artworks by 65 First Nations artists in the 2020 National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Art Awards exhibition. Click through to each virtual room to discover a burial pole painted with the image of a serpent by Paul Namarinjmak Nabulumo, a tribute to the dying Great Barrier Reef by Torres Strait Islander artist Jimmy K Thaiday and an biographical work by South Australian multidisciplinary artist Nyurpaya Kaika Burton. It'll feel like a mini holiday from your Monday. [caption id="attachment_783137" align="alignnone" width="1920"] 'Rebecca': (L to R) Lily James as Mrs de Winter, Kristin Scott Thomas as Mrs Danvers. Courtesy Kerry Brown/Netflix[/caption] TUESDAY: CATCH UP ON MOVIE TRAILERS If you're WFH, you can sometimes miss out on that office banter about what your 9-to-5 buddies are watching, reading or listening to right now. And if it's been half a year since you visited the cinema, maybe you're feeling out of touch with the latest film trailers. Well, use that half an hour in the middle of your day to play catch up. Have you seen Timothée Chalamet and the giant sandworm in the latest and highly anticipated adaptation of Dune? How about the ominous first trailer for Netflix's take on the psychological thriller Rebecca? It stars Lily James, Armie Hammer and Kristin Scott Thomas and hits your screens from October 21. And, if those have you fired up for seeing films on the big screen, why not book into a showing tonight at Cineplex? Tickets are just $8.50 on any night of the week. Or, at Dendy's Bargain Tuesdays you can see a flick for $12.50. Here are our picks of what's on at the cinemas right now. [caption id="attachment_703464" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Bunya River Crossing[/caption] WEDNESDAY: GO FOR A DIP Is there anything more rejuvenating than a swim? When you've hit hump day and need a reward for your efforts so far, seek out one of these outdoor swimming pools in Brisbane. The central Spring Hill Baths are open year-round and they're heated when the weather's not on your side. For wilder spirits, you could take a drive to one of these rivers and float upstream as you wash away your cares. Then, for the most adventurous of lunchtime dips, check out these ten unusual swimming holes — from saltwater pools to lakes with healing powers. You'll feel refreshed and ready to tackle that to-do list when you return. Or, cash in some of that annual leave and make an afternoon of it. THURSDAY: HAVE A WATERSIDE LUNCH The benefits of a walk in the sunshine are well documented, and though we know it's good for us, the week can often fly by before we've even considered stepping out the door during lunch. If you've made it to Thursday and haven't stretched your limbs before 6pm on any of your working days so far, make today the day. We suggest planning ahead to order one of Oporto's new Rappas — such as the Vegan Rappa, which includes a pea and herb patty, mixed lettuce leaves, slaw, fresh tomato, avocado and a tomato and capsicum relish in a warm pita bread wrap — then pick it up from one of Oporto's city outlets and take it to Brisbane City Botanic Gardens or Roma Street Parklands. Either way, you'll have a beautiful body of water to sit by and admire. For more ideas, check out these picnic spots around Brisbane. FRIDAY: BUST OUT OF A VIRTUAL ESCAPE ROOM If the daily grind is not stimulating your mind as much as it should, flex your brain power on something altogether more thrilling, without leaving your screen. The Sydney Opera House has launched a virtual escape room which challenges you to bust out of the iconic landmark in the middle of the night. You will navigate your way around backstage areas, like the orchestra pit, costume department and props room, to find clues and ultimately escape. You'll need a pen and paper handy, so you can write down the passwords you discover along the way. Start playing Trials of Wisdom here. Or, try more virtual escape rooms from Strike and The Escape Game. Check out Oporto's full Rappa Range here, then make tracks to your closest store — or order online. Top image: Roma Street Parklands by Brisbane Marketing, courtesy Tourism and Events Queensland
It has been nearly two years since streaming platform Shudder — and AMC Networks, the American company behind it — told scary movie fans in Australian and New Zealand exactly what they wanted to hear. Back in October 2018, it was announced that the dedicated horror service would make its way Down Under; however, as anyone who likes unsettling flicks and spine-tingling TV shows will have noticed, that hasn't actually occurred — until now. In a case of better late than never, Shudder has finally launched to Aussie and New Zealand viewers — joining an ever-growing streaming landscape, but also providing a very specific lineup. Forget anything that doesn't cause goosebumps, chills, thrills or a generally unnerving, suspenseful feeling, as it doesn't belong here. Instead, you can watch your way through new and classic horror movies, as well as horror-focused television programs. Yes, Shudder takes its chosen genre very seriously. Film-wise, that includes retro favourites such as Hellraiser, several Halloween movies and Maniac Cop; newer releases like It Follows, New Zealand horror-comedy Housebound and creative Japanese zombie film One Cut of the Dead; and fresh platform exclusives such as The Beach House and Host. On the TV front, expect to binge your way through the TV adaptation of The Dead Lands, a new anthology series based on 1982 film Creepshow and a self-explanatory five-part documentary series called Cursed Films. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4LZBEVlSXA If you already have a Netflix, Disney+ and/or Apple TV+ subscription and you're wondering whether you really need to add another, rest assured that Shudder's selection continues — so whether you want to revisit Swedish great Let the Right One In, check out Aussie slasher The Furies, or hear from George Lucas, Christopher Nolan and Ridley Scott in James Cameron's Story of Science Fiction, you'll be covered. Shudder's curated collections also handily compile films on certain topics or themes, should you really love monster movies, tales of possession or haunted house flicks, or want to watch more horror features by female filmmakers. In terms of price, Shudder is offering a seven-day free trial for new subscribers. After that, you'll pay either $6.99 if you opt for a month-by-month account or $69.99 if you sign up for a year. For more information about Shudder — and to sign up — visit the streaming platform's website.
