"Space movie mashup" isn't the best name for a film, but in Passengers' case, it would've fit. So would've the much too wordy "intergalactic love story with a predictable twist". Let's try a third one on for size: "attractive actors find a way to pair up…as they're hurtling towards another galaxy". The formula is simple, with Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence the good-looking talent in question, a spaceship heading to a new planet their setting, and both sparks and conflict flying. Here's how Passengers starts out: mechanical engineer Jim Preston (Pratt) wakes up on board the starship Avalon, only to discover that he hasn't quite reached his destination yet. Thanks to a hibernation pod malfunction, he's up and moving 90 years too early — and, among the 5000 folks snoozing on board, he's the only living soul wandering the vessel's many decks, rooms, basketball court, dance floor and pool with an intergalactic view. Android bartender Arthur (Michael Sheen) pours a mean drink but is no substitute for real human company, and soon loneliness and despair begin to set in. Much to Jim's relief, pretty young writer Aurora Lane (Lawrence) eventually joins him; however their romantic bliss isn't exactly what it seems. With The Imitation Game's Morten Tyldum directing a script that was actually written a decade ago by Doctor Strange scribe Jon Spaihts, what follows is as standard as it sounds, even with the aforementioned twist. Indeed, while Passengers' big plot development isn't divulged in the film's trailers, it's not at all difficult to guess. Moreover, while the eventual revelation drives much of the movie's drama, it's really just a way to bring the two characters together, tear them apart, and leave the audience waiting for a reunion. The end result is an interstellar effort that veers into creepy territory; a film that recognises the moral dilemma at its core, but doesn't take more than a cursory moment or two to really explore it. The same can be said for its broader existential leanings, both when Jim is alone and when Aurora awakens. You won't find Moon's musings on isolation, Solaris' pondering of love and loss, or Sunshine's psychological complexity here. Still, it's hard not to make the comparison — and before long you may find yourself wishing you were watching one of those films instead. Passengers does its best to coast through the cinematic realm fuelled by star power and shiny surfaces, boasting enough of both to keep your eyes engaged, but not your heart or mind. Pratt and Lawrence are in fine, charismatic form, even if they never particularly sell their rapport. Sheen, meanwhile, is sadly underused as the only other actor with a significant speaking role. All in all, the movie may look the space-bound part, but it ends up feeling far too generic.
Something delightful has been happening in cinemas across the country. After months spent empty, with projectors silent, theatres bare and the smell of popcorn fading, Australian picture palaces are back in business — spanning 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, comedies, music documentaries, 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. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0T4GIqEYyNk&feature=youtu.be RAYA AND THE LAST DRAGON Featuring a vibrant animated spectacle that heroes vivid green and blue hues, a rousing central figure who is never a stock-standard Disney princess and lively voice work from an all-star cast, Raya and the Last Dragon boasts plenty of highlights. Directed by Don Hall (Big Hero 6) and Carlos López Estrada (Blindspotting), co-directed by Paul Briggs and John Ripa (both Disney art and animation department veterans), and penned by Qui Nguyen (Dispatches From Elsewhere) and Adele Lim (Crazy Rich Asians), the Mouse House's new all-ages-friendly release also embraces southeast Asian culture with the same warm hug that Moana gave Polynesia and Pixar's Coco sent Mexico's way — and it's always detailed, organic, inclusive and thoughtful, and never tokenistic. But perhaps its biggest strength, other than the pitch-perfect vocal stylings of Awkwafina as the playful, mystical half of the film's title, is its timing. Disney first announced the feature back in August 2019, so the company can't have known what the world would suffer through from early 2020 onwards, of course. But a hopeful movie about a planet ravaged by a destructive plague and blighted by tribalism — and a feature that champions the importance of banding together to make things right, too — really couldn't arrive at a more opportune moment. COVID-19 has no place in Raya and the Last Dragon; however, as the picture's introductory preamble explains, a virus-like wave of critters called the Druun has wreaked havoc. Five hundred years earlier, the world of Kumandra was filled with humans and dragons living together in harmony, until the sinister force hit. Now, only the realm's two-legged inhabitants remain — after their furry friends used their magic to create the dragon gem, which saved everyone except themselves. That's the only status quo that Raya (voiced by Star Wars' Kelly Marie Tran) has ever known. Her entire existence has also been lived out in a divided Kumandra, with different groups staking a claim to various areas. With her father Benja (Daniel Dae Kim, Always Be My Maybe), she hails from the most prosperous region, Heart, and the duo hold out hope that they can reunite the warring lands. Alas, when they bring together their fellow leaders for a peaceful summit, Raya's eagerness to trust Namaari (Gemma Chan, Captain Marvel), the daughter of a rival chief, ends with the Druun on the rampage once again. A movie about believing not just in yourself, but in others, Raya and the Last Dragon doesn't shy away from the reality that putting faith in anyone comes with the chance of peril and pain — especially in fraught times where the world has taken on an every-person-for-themselves mentality and folks are dying (or being turned to stone, which is the Druun's modus operandi). If the narrative hadn't been willing to make this plain again and again, including when it picks up six years later as Raya tries to reverse the devastation caused by Namaari's actions, Raya and the Last Dragon wouldn't feel as genuinely affecting. Raya and the Dragon is screening in Australian cinemas from Thursday, March 4, and will also be available to view via Disney+ with Premier Access (so you'll pay $34.99 extra for it, on top of your usual subscription fee) from Friday, March 5. It'll hit Disney+ without any extra fee on June 4. Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSFpK34lfv0 NOMADLAND Frances McDormand is a gift of an actor. Point a camera her way, and a performance so rich that it feels not just believable but tangible floats across the screen. That's true whether she's playing overt or understated characters, or balancing those two extremes. In Fargo, the first film that earned her an Oscar, McDormand is distinctive but grounded, spouting midwestern phrases like "you betcha" but inhabiting her part with texture and sincerity. In Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, her next Academy Award-winning role, she's an impassioned mother crusading for justice and vengeance, and she ripples with deep-seated sorrow mixed with anger so fiery that it may as well be burning away her insides. Now, in Nomadland, McDormand feels stripped bare and still a commanding force to be reckoned with. She's tasked with a plucky but struggling part — defiant and determined, too; knocked around by life's ups and downs, noticeably; and, crucially, cognisant that valuing the small pleasures is the hardest but most rewarding feat. It'll earn her another Oscar nomination. It could see her nab a third shiny statuette just three years after her last. Along with the attention the movie received at the Golden Globes, both are highly deserved outcomes because hers is an exceptional performance, and this was easily 2020's best film. Here, leading a cast that also includes real people experiencing the existence that's fictionalised within the narrative, she plays the widowed, van-dwelling Fern — a woman who takes to the road, and to the nomad life, after the small middle-America spot where she spent her married years turns into a ghost town when the local mine is shuttered due to the global financial crisis. A slab of on-screen text explains her predicament, with the film then jumping into the aftermath. Following her travels over the course of more than a year, this humanist drama serves up an observational portrait of those that society happily overlooks. It's both deeply intimate and almost disarmingly empathetic in the process, as every movie made by Chloe Zhao is. This is only the writer/director's third, slotting in after 2015's Songs My Brothers Taught Me and 2017's The Rider but before 2021's Marvel flick Eternals, but it's a feature of contemplative and authentic insights into the concepts of home, identity and community. Meticulously crafted, shot and performed, it truly sees everyone in its frames, be they fictional or real. Nomandland understands their plights, and ensures its audience understands them as well. It's exquisitely layered, because its protagonist, those around her and their lives earn the same term — and Zhao never forgets that, or lets her viewers either. Nomadland screened in Australian cinemas during a two-week preview season in 2020, starting Saturday, December 26. From Thursday, March 4, 2021, it's back on the big screen for its general release season. Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ICPoXlmTO0 CHAOS WALKING Adapted from the book series of the same name, Chaos Walking has weathered a difficult path to cinemas. The tedious and generic space western releases ten years after the rights to turn Patrick Ness' novels into films were first acquired, four years since the movie was originally shot and two years after major reshoots following unfavourable test screenings. It went through a plethora of rewrites, too, with I'm Thinking of Ending Things' Charlie Kaufman on scripting duties at one point, and Ness (A Monster Calls) and Spider-Man: Homecoming's Christopher Ford getting the final credit. Navigating such a mess rarely bodes well for a movie, so the fact that Chaos Walking proves dull and derivative shouldn't come as a surprise. Even with its cast filled with impressive talent, and with Edge of Tomorrow filmmaker Doug Liman begin the lens, it's hard to see how it might've fared better, with its premise an instant struggle. Set in 2257, the film follows colonists from earth on a planet called New World, who are plagued by a strange phenomenon. A multi-coloured haze hovers around men's heads — and only men — showing their every thought. The sensation has been dubbed 'the noise', and experiencing it while watching sure is rackety. Indeed, 'noise' is the absolute right word for the entire movie. In his pioneer village, teenager Todd (Tom Holland, The Devil All the Time) can rarely control his noise. While the Mayor (Mads Mikkelsen, Another Round) is able to filter the words and images that project from his mind — and also rock a furry red coat and wide-brimmed hat far better than anyone should — few others have the same ability. Seeing what everyone is thinking is a tricky way to live at the best of times, and it applies to the entire population, because women have been wiped out in a war attributed to the planet's original inhabitants. But Todd's troubles multiply when he discovers a spaceship, as well as Viola (Daisy Ridley, Star Wars: Episode IX — The Rise of Skywalker), its sole surviving occupant. The mayor and his followers don't take kindly to the first female in their midst for years; however, supported by his adoptive fathers Ben (Demian Bichir, The Midnight Sky) and Cillian (Sons of Anarchy creator Kurt Sutter), Todd isn't willing to surrender the only girl he's ever seen to an angry mob. Cue a tale of toxic masculinity that dates back to 2008, when first instalment The Knife of Never Letting Go hit bookshelves, and feels timely in the current social, political and cultural climate. That said, this isn't a complex, layered or thoughtful film. Instead, it's content to stress its themes in such a broad and easy manner that getting Holland to hold up a sign saying "the patriarchy is bad" would've been more subtle. Indeed, Chaos Walking really just uses these notions as a backdrop for a predictable and formulaic dystopian story, and as a handy reason to motivate its conflicts, in a movie that plays like a hodgepodge of far better sci-fi and western fare. Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCvQzzKdgV4 ABOUT ENDLESSNESS The latest feature from acclaimed and always distinctive Swedish auteur Roy Andersson (Songs From the Second Floor, You, the Living, A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence), About Endlessness plays like the filmmaker's response to an oft-used — and overused — piece of worldly wisdom. Relishing the little things has become a greeting card-level piece of advice that's trotted out far too frequently and easily, but this vignette-fuelled drama contentedly peers at and contemplates everyday occurrences, flitting from one snippet of story to another across its brief 78-minute duration. It sees the happy moments, and the bleak ones. It has time for inconsequential instances, for clear flights of fancy and for real-life events that changed the shape of history. It spies the magical, the mundane, the merciful and the menacing, gives them all their time in the spotlight, and weaves them into a moving catalogue of the human condition. And, although the writer/director remains in his comfort zone, he crafts this latest treatise on merely existing into a movie that cuts deeply and feels bold rather than familiar. With Andersson's renowned eye for the sublime and the absurd, the film sees the juxtaposition at the heart of living. It knows that, in some shape or form, life is bound to continue on forever. It's also aware that individual lives are inescapably finite. When pondering mortality, these two truths can be hard to reconcile, especially given that the minutiae that makes up each and every day lulls us into a false sense of feeling as if it'll never end — and About Endlessness embraces all of this thorniness and complexity in its own way. Via poetic parcels of narration that declare "I saw a man begging to be spared", "I saw a woman who had a problem with her shoes" and "I saw a man who wanted to save the honour of his family, then regretted it" — plus other such short descriptions — About Endlessness works through instance after instance of people searching for meaning, happiness, and a reason to see their existence as anything more than a parade of breaths and heartbeats. The voice offering such narration is female, proves choosy about which scenes she decides to comment on, but is clearly affected by everything that plays about before her all-seeing vision. When it comes to anything approaching an explanation, though, Andersson remains sparse and careful. And yet, this is a detailed film that overflows with intricacy, intimacy and emotion, and with glorious artistry in every single frame. Every shot looks both naturalistic and staged, as is the filmmaker's custom, which evokes the feeling that you're stealing glimpses of life that are equally rich and routine in tandem. Whether a dictator, a man of faith or someone crying on public transport takes temporary pride of place (or, in the latter's case, if a fellow passenger is asking why he can't just be sad at home like everyone else), these short moments have a cumulative effect that's striking and profoundly insightful. Take, for example, an oh-so-short clip of young women spontaneously dancing outside a cafe, which is delightful, instantly touching and speaks firmly to the fact that life is as consistent in its joys as it is in its woes. If you're wondering what else is currently screening in cinemas — or has been lately — check out our rundown of new films released in Australia on November 5, November 12, November 19 and November 26; and December 3, December 10, December 17, December 26; and January 1, January 7, January 14, January 21 and January 28; February 4, February 11, February 18 and February 25. You can also read our full reviews of a heap of recent movies, such as The Craft: Legacy, Radioactive, Brazen Hussies, Freaky, Mank, Monsoon, Ellie and Abbie (and Ellie's Dead Aunt), American Utopia, Possessor, Misbehaviour, Happiest Season, The Prom, Sound of Metal, The Witches, The Midnight Sky, The Furnace, Wonder Woman 1984, Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles, Nomadland, Pieces of a Woman, The Dry, Promising Young Woman, Summerland, Ammonite, The Dig, The White Tiger, Only the Animals, Malcolm & Marie, News of the World, High Ground, Earwig and the Witch, The Nest, Assassins, Synchronic, Another Round, Minari, Firestarter — The Story of Bangarra, The Truffle Hunters and The Little Things.
A favourite at this year's Sundance and on our critics' best list from last month's Sydney Film Festival, you may have heard about A Ghost Story — the film where Casey Affleck stands around underneath a sheet. Reuniting this year's Manchester by the Sea best actor Oscar winner with his Ain't Them Bodies Saints co-star Rooney Mara and writer/director David Lowery (also of Pete's Dragon), Affleck's character dons the sheet after he is killed — but, despite that, it's still one of the best movies of the year so far. Moody and minimalistic (as a costume anyone could make gives away), the film breathes new (after)life into the idea of haunted houses in a thoughtful and emotion-filled manner. As Affleck's ghost lurks, the movie offers up an astute understanding of how mourning and memories linger over time, and remain forever intertwined with certain places. https://youtu.be/ui92Scs8Mns [competition]630133[/competition]
Perfectionism is often a vice for budding artists, but for Mr Penfold it is his edge. His obsessions with exactness have lead to the creation of many hand-painted works that look as though they were designed by electronics and produced by a printer. His latest exhibition Part Time Technophobe is an example of his latest offerings; the title offers an explanation of how the paintings came to be. A student of the technological age, Penfold discovered the capabilities of the program Adobe Illustrator, and promptly taught himself how to use it. After the basics were securely under his belt, he realised that what he wanted to create was a tangible product, something that he created with his hands directly, a something that was flawless by talent, not by design. Brisbane’s taste of this remarkable body of work will be for one night only, before it moves to Melbourne for its extended showing. Be sure to catch a glimpse while you can; paintings without a human fingerprint are a rare treasure, a new realm of human production.
Located within Ovolo The Valley, Za Za Ta Bar & Kitchen already serves up a cruelty-free menu, with the restaurant switching to plant-based dishes back in 2020. For one night during this year's Brisbane Good Food Month, it's also welcoming in one of Australia's best-known names in the vegetarian space for an evening of vegetable-focused Middle Eastern cuisine. Owner of Melbourne's Smith & Daughters and Smith & Deli, and also the creative culinary partner at the Victorian capital's new Lona Misa restaurant, Shannon Martinez has built up quite a name for herself — and she's bringing her skills to Brissie for one night on Wednesday, July 28. Alongside Za Za Ta's Israeli-born executive chef Roy Ner, Martinez will be overseeing a plant-based dinner — paired with drinks, naturally — with tickets costing $160 per person. [caption id="attachment_802683" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Shannon Martinez[/caption]
In the fleeting game of fashion, it is hard to find or create a brand that is consitent, on trend and sustainable. Noticing the need for some environmentally concious clothing, Undress Brisbane emerges as a brand which proves sustainability, and should be celebrated. Undress Brisbane are hosting Australia’s biggest sustainable fashion show. Indulge in an evening of entertainment: runway shows, design exhibitions, music and organic cocktails, all hosted in the (re-usable) venue of the Chinatown car park. There will be three runways to catch throughout the evening – swimwear and lingerie, day wear, and evening wear and accessories. Continue the celebrations late into the evening, with the after party congregating at Oh Hello after 10pm, directly across the road on Ann Street. Head to the event website to see the full list of designers whose talents will be on display during the evening. Attendants are encouraged to act responsibly throughout the celebrations, which includes donning your own sustainable garments for the show.
When it was first published in 2011, A Discovery of Witches swiftly became a bestseller. Thankfully for readers instantly enamoured with Deborah Harkness' supernatural novel, there was more where that came from. The book was just the first instalment in the All Souls trilogy, with its follow-ups arriving in 2012 and 2014 — and, since 2018, fans have been able to watch a TV adaptation starring Australian actor Teresa Palmer as a Yale University historian and witch, as well as Downton Abbey's Matthew Goode as a biochemistry professor and vampire. Palmer plays Diana Bishop, with A Discovery of Witches chronicling her story after she finds a bewitched manuscript and gets reluctantly drawn back into the magical world. Where the show's first season charted her initial efforts to protect the enchanted text, known as Ashmole 782, the currently screening second season kicks off with a jump back to London more than four centuries ago.
When The Westin opened in Mary Street, finally filling the CBD's giant hole in the ground, it brought with it Brisbane's first swim-up watering hole within a body of water. That was great news for everyone planning a luxe staycation — and now it's great news for everyone, with Nautilus Pool Bar opening to the public from Friday–Sunday between October 11 and February 9. The luxe hotel is turning weekend afternoons into a pool party, which is a mighty apt way to spend a few hours at this time of year. Cool off with a dip and a drink, with rosé, frosé, wine and cocktails on offer. There'll also be food stalls serving up bites, as well Nautilus' usual array of poolside snacks. Then, all you need to do is lounge around on the daybeds while you're sipping and eating — and between splashes — too. On weekends from 2–5pm, live tunes will also provide a soundtrack. The Westin Pool Party runs from 3pm on Fridays, and from midday on Saturdays and Sundays. Tickets cost $20 if you buy online in advance, or $25 at the door. Image: The Westin. Updated December 24.
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.
CHiPS is an extraordinarily annoying film. Annoying, because it's 85 per cent predictable, homophobic rubbish, but also 15 per cent genuinely funny. The quality of those few jokes that do land hence raises the question: was the writer, director and star Dax Shepard just lucky on those rare occasions? Or was he simply lazy on all others? Given the movie is merely the latest in a long line of old TV show reboots, laziness seems the more likely contender. This hypothesis gains further credibility when you consider the comedic chops of Shepard's cast, which includes Michael Peña, Kristen Bell and Maya Rudolph, among others. Hell, Shepard himself is no mug when it comes to making us laugh; how he, or anyone else, could possibly think this script was strong enough to move into production may forever remain a mystery. The plot of CHiPS is at once hideously convoluted and entirely predictable. Peña plays Frank "Ponch" Poncherello, an FBI agent going undercover into the California Highway Patrol in order to expose a gang of corrupt officers suspected of carrying out a series of armoured car robberies. He's partnered up with probationary officer Jon Baker (Shepard), a former X-Games motorcyclist whose body is now in a state of such ruin it's comparable to that of Lloyd Bridges' Admiral Benson in Hot Shots. Addicted to pain killers and determined to win back his adulterous trophy-wife Karen (played by Shepard's actual wife Kristen Bell), Baker is an Owen Wilson-esque modern age man forever discussing the closure of issues and expressing concern for Peña's presumed homophobia. Together, Ponch and Baker cycle around California, occasionally doing police work, but mostly just swearing, masturbating and blowing things up until the movie just sort of ends. The funny bits are funny – a moment involving a hit and run with paparazzi, for example, elicited actual applause from our audience. But successful gags are so few and far between that it makes the exercise of discovering them feel like too much for too little. Vincent D'Onofrio does a solid job imbuing his gang leader character with at least some degree of complexity when all other characters around him are merely caricatures. But it's not nearly enough to save this otherwise decidedly dull and frequently downright cringeworthy affair. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IfqqUTW-i4
Trust Good Food Month to combine two of Brisbane's favourite things: degustation dinners and Luke Nguyen. And with the celebrity chef's celebrated Queensland signature restaurant Fat Noodle the city's pride and joy, there's only one place this alchemy can happen. You'll not only eat ten courses that showcase Nguyen's acclaimed cooking skills — you'll also watch him make them. And, afterwards, he'll join you for more chats at the dinner table. With all that on offer, $79 actually seems a small price to pay.
There's one thing that all wine festivals have in common: vino, and plenty of it. But this returning rosé fest hosted by Brisbane's inner-city winery adds something extra to the mix — because, when it takes over West End market space Westoria on Sunday, April 2, you'll be able to help make rosé between knocking back glasses of the pink stuff. At 2023's Rosé Festival by City Winery, stomping and pressing grapes is one of the big attractions. And, the results of all that jumping up and down will be bottled for the company's rosé release for the year, too. So, down the track, you'll be able to grab one, add it to your wine rack and know that you had a hand — or two feet — in making it. If you'd rather just sip the rosés already on offer, that's obviously also part of the festival. Bands and DJs will provide a soundtrack while you're tasting your way through different drops, and there'll be masterclasses and workshops to help up your knowledge on the topic as well. And, expect food trucks to setup shop around Westoria as well, helping to line your stomach. Also, because of the change of venue, expect this fest to be bigger than ever, too. The fun kicks off at 2pm and runs till 8.30pm, with tickets starting at $29.
It's one of the reasons everyone loves Easter: the long weekend that's even longer than usual. Not having to go to work on Monday morning is your dream and ours, and that dream becoming a reality is rare indeed. This Monday, nothing but laziness beckons for most, which sounds like as good a reason as any to find a funky spot to spend your Sunday. You can settle in for a fun day and a big evening — and if that's your plan, Alfred and Constance have you covered. From midday until late, their Easter Sunday House Party is the place to be, with live music followed by DJs playing all your favourite tracks. Iconic Brisbane band the Jungle Giants are also stopping by to spin some tunes on the decks — and take over A&Cs Vanguard Deck — so you know it really is going to be something special. Long live the long weekend!
When International Women's Day rolls around, the Regatta's underground speakeasy The Walrus Club celebrates the occasion in the best way it can: with an all-female bar takeover. But in 2022, the weather has other plans. So, the Toowong spot is throwing in a second takeover and shifting its Women in Walrus event to Friday's Riverside. Head by the other waterside spot from 5pm on Sunday, March 6 to find a talented crew of ladies mixing up the best beverages they can — featuring gin heavily. If you need something else to say cheers to, there'll also be a Four Pillars-sponsored cocktail showdown (hence the big gin focus), plus live music. Entry is free, you'll pay for whatever you drink and eat as the afternoon and evening roll by, and Friday's usual food menu will be on offer. While women will be in the spotlight, anyone can attend and mark the occasion. And, reservations aren't necessary.
When Quandamooka Festival returns for 2024, it'll begin with a Welcome to Country and traditional smoking ceremony. The celebration of First Nations music and culture will also enjoy a homecoming. It's been two years since the event was last held on Minjerribah/North Stradbroke Island, after popping up at Wynnum Fringe instead in 2023. This will be its first full-scale event since 2022, then, and only the second time since 2019 that the fest has returned to Country. Accordingly, the tribute to the Quandamooka Peoples, the Traditional Custodians of the Quandamooka Estate that have ties to Minjerribah dating back 20,000 years, will feel even more meaningful. Of course, no one should ever need a specific excuse to honour and embrace Australia's Indigenous culture, but Quandamooka Festival offers one anyway, this time in the form of a two-day event across Friday, August 30–Saturday, August 31. On the agenda: heroing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art, music, dance, food, stories and more via live performances, Kunjiel (corroborees), arts and crafts, movies, panel discussions, cuisine and tours. The complete lineup hasn't yet been revealed, but Quandamooka Festival has dropped the first three names to look forward to. Gumbaynggirr/Bundjalung woman and QMA Indigenous Artist of the Year 2022 Jem Cassar-Daley will headline the Friday night, while Uncle Joe Geia and Quandamooka musician Sachem are also on the bill. On the Saturday, traditional dance will be the focus, as will the drive in-style first-ever Quandamooka Film Festival featuring the work of locals on the silver screen. "Quandamooka Festival is a great opportunity to bring the whole community and visitors together to celebrate culture and the arts, and learn more about Quandamooka Country — the sands, seas, sacred lakes, creeks, catchments and creatures found across the Redlands/Moreton Bay islands from the Quandamooka Peoples perspective," said Quandamooka Yoolooburrabee Aboriginal Corporation Chair Cameron Costello. Entry to the event at QYAC campus Minjerribah Gunaba on East Coast Road is free, kicking off at 4pm on the Friday, but registration to attend is mandatory and opens on Tuesday, July 9. Quandamooka Festival 2024 runs from Friday, August 30–Saturday, August 31 on Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island). For more information, or to buy tickets, head to the festival's website.
Festival season is well and truly upon us, with the Woodford Folk Festival the latest event to announce its program. If you fancy seeing out 2019 and welcoming in 2020 while catching a heap of bands, wandering between arts performances and getting a little muddy across a grassy patch of southeast Queensland, the fest has you covered for its whopping 34th year. Taking place at Woodfordia about 90 minutes north of Brisbane, this year's event will be held for six days between Friday, December 27, 2019 and Wednesday, January 1, 2020 — with Amanda Palmer, Lior, Horrorshow, The Herd, Kate Miller-Heidke, Electric Fields, Emma Louise, Archie Roach with Paul Grabrowsky, and Kasey Chambers among its high-profile talent. In total, over 2,000 artists will put on more than 1600 shows across the festival's 25 stages, all in venues that range from a 25,000-seat amphitheatre to chilled-out hangout spots. With the lineup featuring everything from music, art, circus and cabaret to yoga, dance and comedy, there's plenty of other highlights — including a spoken word, comedy and performance program that tasks American Gods and Stardust author Neil Gaiman with reading from his work as the sun sets on the first day of the new year. Elsewhere, Woodford's 2019–20 bill spans arts, dance and meditation workshops, plus a heap of circus and cabaret shows. And, if you're bringing littlies, the event's Children's Festival within the broader fest is also returning. Or, you can explore Woodfordia's rainforest plants on a guided tour, eat a feast of bush foods, play a real-life fantasy game and soak in the flames at the fest's annual closing fire ceremony. Fancy celebrating New Year's Eve with an Elton John sing-along? Woodford won't go breaking your heart, because that's on the agenda also. While the annual Queensland festival has weathered an uncertain future in recent years, it remains a staple of the state's end-of-year calendar — and visit will also boast a whole heap of stalls around the grounds (195 in 2018–19), turning the site into a mini-village for its duration. That includes everything from bars, cafes and restaurants, to an on-site doctor's surgery and two general stores. As always, camping is available at one of the fest's multiple campgrounds, or you can nab a ticket just for the day. Either way, expect to have company, as around 132,000 people attend each year. The 2019–20 Woodford Folk Festival runs from Friday, December 27, 2018 and Wednesday, January 1, 2019 at Woodfordia on the Sunshine Coast. To view the program and buy tickets, head to woodfordfolkfestival.com Images: Woodford Folk Festival via Flickr.
With the FIFA World Cup kicking off shortly, Nike Football has released part three of its #riskeverything campaign. The film – "The Last Game" – is a five-minute animated feature starring some of the world's greatest footballers, on a mission to save football from the hands of a villainous mastermind, The Scientist. Let the games begin.
Drop into almost any fitness class you feel like, without worrying about gym contracts? That's the idea behind Esquared, a new app that lets you find and book your chosen workout session regardless of where it's held (and, crucially, regardless of whether you're a member at the venue in question). Aiming to add some extra flexibility to your fitness routine, Esquared is all about hooking you up with the right class in the right place, giving you control of when and where you work out. Need to go for a spin on one side of the city one day, and hit the barre on the other side over the weekend? Not sure where your schedule will take you, but still keen to fit in a training session when and where you can? Esquared has you covered. Drawing upon a range of participating gyms, the app allows you to pick the session, timeslot and venue that suits you, pay in advance and then walk right in. And, with data displayed in real time, you can select classes on the same day, the next day or any time in the next 30 days. Founded in the UK by former accountant turned pro-athlete Eleni Plakitsi, Esquared will jump from London to Sydney on Monday, September 3, with more than 50 partner gyms already onboard — spanning everywhere from CBD and Surry Hills spots, to the likes of Bondi, Manly, Double Bay, Newtown and North Sydney as well. It's offering a $40 credit to everyone that signs up in advance and, once it's up and running in Australia, will give users access to classes and gym floors across its participating venues. The no-strings-attached, on-demand approach to heading to the gym is also slated to roll out in Melbourne and Brisbane later in the year, with dates yet to be announced. For more information, keep an eye on www.esq2.com.au.
Six Brisbane artists will be coming together as part of Poly Gone Cowboy's latest exhibition, MIX TAPE ink. Shayne Smith, Kelly Green, Michael Forrest, Seff Mudge, Lauren Goudie and Steven Mewett will be showing off their latest work in a series that explores the connection between music and musician. The artworks explore the styles, genres and qualities of the music industry, and the characteristics of certain musicians that become reflected in their music. The sole medium of sketch and drawing becomes key in stimulating a unique conversation between art and music. MIX TAPE ink exhibits from 26 February to March 11. Opening night is 26 February at 6pm. Image: Michael Forrest.
There's something oh-so-relaxing about staring at the sea, even if you're feasting your eyes on the water via the big screen. That's the concept behind the Ocean Film Festival Australia. You can't always spend all your time at the beach, by the river or in a pool — but you can spend an evening peering at the next best thing in a cinema. From Tuesday, February 28–Friday, March 3, the festival will unleash a cinematic feast of water-focused wonders onto the silver screen at Brisbane Powerhouse. Sessions screen at 7pm each night. [caption id="attachment_840734" align="alignnone" width="1920"] John Kowitz[/caption] Film-wise, viewers will spend time both above and below the ocean's surface thanks to a compilation of shorts from around the world. Expect to chase big waves, explore a range of sea life and get a hefty ocean rush, plus a heap of other sea adventures. The program is united by a love of the ocean, an appreciation of the creatures who dwell in its waters and a curiosity to explore the substance that comprises more than two-thirds of the earth. It's the next best thing to diving in, all without getting wet.
Spending time with your loved ones, exchanging gifts with your nearest and dearest, enjoying hearty feasts and the boozy sips that go with them, decking the halls with boughs of holly, singing jolly carols: they're all tried-and-tested ways to celebrate the festive season. But sometimes, you just want to get tap, tap, tapping around a mini golf course, competing against your date, mates and/or family for putt-putt supremacy — and you want it to be Christmas-themed, too. Across the merriest part of 2022, the above situation is about to become a reality at Victoria Park's mini golf course. As it has done in previous years, the venue is giving its greens a temporary seasonal makeover, pairing swinging a club at a ball with plenty of festive cheer, decorations and sculptures. Head along from Friday, November 11–Tuesday, January 3, where you'll find bells, bows and twinkling lights. In past years, the course has also sported holly, giant candy canes, gingerbread houses, elves, toy soldiers and everything else festive that it can think of. Reindeers and Santa are usually involved, too, and different sections of the 18-hole site will be designed around ideas like Chrissy Down Under, Santa's mailroom and Christmas morning — plus there'll be a festive feast fairway, The North Pole and a 'deck the halls' hole. Find out whether you're naughty or nice at Christmas Putt Putt from 6am–10pm Sunday–Thursday and 6am–11pm Friday–Saturday — which means that you can stop by on your way to work, during your lunch break or after quittin' time as well. If you drop by post-6pm, you'll take to the green beneath Christmas lights, naturally.
If one person's trash is another man's treasure, then a trunk full of junk may as well be a treasure chest. Suitcase Rummage gets that when it comes to shopping, secondhand reaps the best bang for your buck. For years, it has been hosting regular events around town — and, although the past few years have been a bit chaotic, it's still going strong in 2023. Next unpacking its bags from 12pm on Sunday, October 1 and Sunday, October 15 — then on Sunday, November 5 and Sunday, November 19 as well — at Reddacliff Place, Suitcase Rummage will feature a crowd of open suitcases filled with the type of clothes, knick-knacks and craft you probably don't need but definitely deserve. [caption id="attachment_653944" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Yan Chen[/caption] If you can't make it now, try again on the first and third Sundays of each month. And, if you've got a pile of unwanted bits and pieces that someone else could love, you could always take your own suitcase along. Those who wanting to sell their wares must register — and it'll cost $33 for a 'stall'. You can bring up to three suitcases, so you can lug in all those shoes you've been promising to wear but certainly will not. [caption id="attachment_885725" align="alignnone" width="1920"] tcfairyqueen via Flickr[/caption] Top image: Suitcase Rummage. Updated September 19.
You've heard about starting something as you intend to continue, whether it's the day, week or year. But how about ending the weekend as you'd just generally like to live all the time? If bottomless margaritas sounds like your idea of heaven, then make a beeline to $35 Margarita Sundays — where you'll sip as many cocktails as you'd like for two hours. Two tacos are also included in the price, because every sensible drinking session needs to start with a bit of food, with vegetarian options available. As for the main attraction, you can expect Patron margaritas to quench your thirst with a blend of tequila, orange liqueur, lime juice and salt. $35 Margarita Sundays hits The Defiant Duck every week until the end of February, with the endless booze served from 3–5pm. Bookings are recommended by contacting the venue — and if you need a live soundtrack to this Sunday fun, The Vibe Creative will take care of that.
Ever been to a comedy fest, hopped between amusing folks tickling your funny bone, and wished you could also catch some live tunes in the middle? Or, maybe you've done the reverse — spent a day seeing band after band, but felt like giggling and guffawing to break up the music? Either way, Brisbane festival Super Fun Day wants to get you dancing as well as laughing, combining comedy and music on the same bill. The event debuted in 2022, enjoying its first-ever outing in March at Eatons Hill Hotel across two stages, both indoors and outside. And, it had such a good time of it, it's making the shindig an annual event. Mark Saturday, March 18, 2023 in your diary and get ready to enjoy a heap of talent — including headliners Dune Rats and Patti Harrison. [caption id="attachment_879216" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tonje Thilesen[/caption] Brisbane's own Dunies will top the music bill, heading home during a European tour to do the honours. As for Harrison, she'll make her Australian premiere on the comedy lineup, hitting the stage after appearing in The Lost City, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, A Simple Favour, High Maintenance and Search Party, and writing for I Think You Should Leave and Big Mouth. Also taking to the stage: FIDLAR, Ruby Fields, Pale Waves, Beach Bunny, Ocean Grove and The Reytons. More acts are set to be announced closer to the fest and, if it brings back everything from last year, you'll be able to play giant games while you're there, too, including Jenga, Connect Four and Noughts and Crosses. SUPER FUN DAY 2023 LINEUP: Dune Rats FIDLAR Ruby Fields Pale Waves Beach Bunny Ocean Grove Patti Harrison The Reytons Dan Rath Danielle Walker Frenchy & The Talent Hevenshe Hot Department John Cruckshank Juno Late November The Moving Stills Karaoke with Shaggy Knees
Pull out that old Discman, break out the cargo pants and start practising your smoothest early noughties dance moves — the pop tour of your wildest teenage dreams is hitting Aussie shores this summer and it's got more stars than a TV Hits sticker collection. This February, the inaugural So Pop festival is set to deliver a huge serve of nostalgia to stadiums across the country, pulling together an extra juicy lineup of old-school icons, headlined by none other than Aqua and Vengaboys. Eatons Hill Hotel will be transported back to the 90s and 00s for one afternoon, playing host to the pop-drenched soundtrack of your youth. Heading up the show are Danish group Aqua, who promise to leave tunes like 'Barbie Girl' and 'Doctor Jones' firmly wedged in your head, and from the Netherlands, Vengaboys, with party-starting smash hits like 'Boom Boom Boom Boom!!' and 'We Like to Party! (The Vengabus)' — and none other than Lou Bega with, of course, 'Mambo No.5'. Relive more of the glory days with sounds from Irish legends B*Witched — who gifted us with the likes of 'C'est La Vie' and 'Rollercoaster' — UK heroes Blue, of 'All Rise' fame. Italy's Eiffel 65, dance pop act Mr. President ('Coco Jambo'), the USA's Outhere Brothers and The Netherlands' 2 Unlimited ('No Limit', 'Get Ready') round out the throwback showdown.
Pucker up, fans of 90s teen flicks — whether you were the exact right age at the time, have discovered them since or found yourself looking backwards thanks to recent films like Do Revenge. After finally bringing its song- and dance-filled take on one of the most influential movies of the era to Australian stages this year, Cruel Intentions: The 90s Musical is making a comeback along Australia's east coast in 2023. It seems that we can't get enough of this bittersweet symphony. We can't stop praising it, either. This time, audiences in southeast Queensland will get a second chance to get nostalgic — at HOTA, Home of the Arts on the Gold Coast from Friday, January 20–Saturday, January 28. To answer the most crucial question, yes, the musical's soundtrack is filled hits from the period, including The Verve's 'Bittersweet Symphony' and Placebo's 'Every You Every Me'. In fact, Cruel Intentions: The 90s Musical is a jukebox musical, so it's overflowing with a heap other tunes from that late 90s–early 00s time. Think: *NYSNC's 'Bye Bye Bye', Britney Spears' 'Sometimes', No Doubt's 'Just A Girl', Jewel's 'Foolish Games', Christina Aguilera's 'Genie In A Bottle' and Sixpence None the Richer's 'Kiss Me', for starters. The story remains the same, just without Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, Reese Witherspoon and Selma Blair (and Joshua Jackson's blonde locks). If you've seen the movie — the original, not the direct-to-video 2001 and 2004 sequels, one of which starred a very young Amy Adams (Dear Evan Hansen) taking over Gellar's role — then you'll know how it goes. Based on 1782 novel Les Liaisons dangereuses, which was also been adapted in the 1988 film Dangerous Liaisons with Glenn Close, John Malkovich, Michelle Pfeiffer and Uma Thurman, Cruel Intentions follows step-siblings Sebastian Valmont and Kathryn Merteuil. Manipulating each other's love lives is their main hobby, a pastime that levels up a few notches when Kathryn places a bet on whether Sebastian can sleep with Annette Hargrove, the headmaster's daughter at their exclusive prep school.
Brisbanites, get ready to laugh. Get ready to party, too. Marking its tenth year in 2019, Brisbane Comedy Festival is back with a mighty huge month-long lineup — and it's ready to celebrate, obviously. A lengthy list of hilarious folk will be heading to Brisbane Powerhouse, Brisbane City Hall, SUNPAC and both of Newstead Brewing Co.'s beer-fuelled sites, spanning famous names, old favourites and new discoveries alike. Ross Noble, Danny Bhoy, Felicity Ward, Ronny Chieng, Dave Hughes, Nazeen Hussain, Tom Ballard, Becky Lucas, Mel Buttle, Paul Foot and Tim Ferguson are just some of the talents that'll tickle your funny bones across the four weeks, with the fest running from Friday, February 22 until Sunday, March 24. It all kicks off with an opening gala hosted by Charlie Pickering, and features a heap of other notable events — think after-hours gigs on weekends, surprise acts in a brewery, a chance to have a boozy lunch with comedians and a Frocking Hilarious night that's all about raising awareness for women's rights. Other highlights include women taking on male-sung pop tracks in Lady Sings It Better, an evening dedicated to Queerstories, and the worldwide smash that is Shit-faced Shakespeare. Want more? How about Evil Dead 2 reinterpreted through the songs of Elvis Presley, plus a fangirl look at Game of Thrones? If you know some littlies that like comedy too, this year's fest also boasts a number of shows for younger comedy lovers as well.
If you're a music, theatre or comedy fan and you live in Brisbane, then you've probably become accustomed to missing out. Whether it's a band touring the country but leaving our fair city off of its itinerary, a comedian skipping straight to Sydney and Melbourne, or the latest acclaimed stage production bypassing our venues, plenty of big names don't make it to town — or if they do, like The Book of Mormon, it's after a hefty wait. For years, the city's lack of theatres has been highlighted as an issue, and calls for a new venue date back just as far. In 2018, the Queensland Government announced a solution: a new 1500-plus seat addition to the Queensland Performing Arts Centre, upping the South Bank site's spread to five theatres. Now, the first designs have been released. Architecture firm Blight Rayner + Snøhetta has won the tender for the new theatre, which has been dubbed the New Performing Arts Venue (NPAV) for now. Replacing the grassed area currently known as the Playhouse Green, glass features heavily in the external design, letting Brisbanites see into the transparent foyer from the corner of Grey and Russell streets. The overall look takes inspiration from the nearby Brisbane River and ties into QPAC's original heritage-listed decor, but still makes its own impression. Costing $150 million to build, with the State Government committing $125 million to the project, the NPAV will also boast two new studio spaces below street level, which'll also be visible from the outside spaces. As far as the main space goes, it'll include a single-balcony auditorium. Expect it to be busy, hosting around 260 performances and welcoming approximately 300,000 per year. Just when construction will start hasn't been set as yet, with shortlisted contractors still being considered after a tender process — however, a rough date of 2020 has been floated. If you're eager to walk through the gleaming doors, take a seat and see a show that might've passed Brissie by otherwise, NPAV is working towards a 2022 opening. When it does lift the curtain, NPAV will herald a huge change to the South Bank spot. QPAC first launched to Brisbanites in 1985 after ten years of development, and more than 26,000 performances have graced its stages and spaces in the 34 years since then. The New Performing Arts Venue is set to open at QPAC, on the corner of Grey and Russell streets, in 2022. For further details, visit the project website.
Just over a decade ago, Noomi Rapace was The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo — The Girl Who Played with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, too. After starring in the first film adaptations of Steig Larsson's best-selling Millennium books, the Swedish actor then brought her penchant for simmering ferocity to Alien prequel Prometheus, and to movies as varied as erotic thriller Passion, crime drama The Drop and Australian-shot thriller Angel of Mine. But Lamb might be her best role yet, and best performance. A picture that puts her silent film era-esque features to stunning use, it stares into the soul of a woman not just yearning for her own modest slice of happiness, but willing to do whatever it takes to get it. It also places Rapace opposite a flock of sheep, and has her cradle a baby that straddles both species; however, this Icelandic blend of folk-horror thrills, relationship dramas and even deadpan comedy is as human as it is ovine. At first, Lamb is all animal. Something rumbles in the movie's misty, mountainside farm setting, spooking the horses. In the sheep barn, where cinematographer Eli Arenson (Hospitality) swaps arresting landscape for a ewe's-eye view, the mood is tense and restless as well. Making his feature debut, filmmaker Valdimar Jóhannsson doesn't overplay his hand early. As entrancing as the movie's visuals prove in all their disquieting stillness, he keeps the film cautious about what's scaring the livestock. But Lamb's expert sound design offers a masterclass in evoking unease from its very first noise, and makes it plain that all that eeriness, anxiety and dripping distress has an unnerving — and tangible — source. The farm belongs to Rapace's Maria and her partner Ingvar (Hilmir Snær Guðnason, A White, White Day), who've thrown themselves into its routines after losing a child. They're a couple that let their taciturn faces do the talking, including with each other, but neither hides their delight when one ewe gives birth to a hybrid they name Ada. Doting and beaming, they take the sheep-child into their home as their own. Its woolly mother stands staring and baa-ing outside their kitchen window, but they're both content in and fiercely protective of their newfound domestic happiness. When Ingvar's ex-pop star brother Pétur (Björn Hlynur Haraldsson, Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga) arrives unexpectedly, they don't even dream of hiding their new family idyll — even as he's initially shocked and hardly approving. Jóhannsson isn't one for telling rather than showing, as Lamb's sparse dialogue ensures. That said, he doesn't unveil Ada a second before he needs to, either. While Maria has a little lamb and its fleece is as white as snow, the film spends much of its first half revelling in how the creature's arrival drastically alters the household's mood. Lamb is firmly a tone poem, in fact, living, bleating and breathing in its titular critter's wake. Something sinister still dwells — and recurrent shots of Iceland's towering surroundings still ripple with foreboding — but Maria and Ingvar have eagerly snatched up what bliss they can. Smartly, when the revealing shot comes, and also when Ada keeps being seen in all her human-animal glory (courtesy of live animals and children, plus CGI and also puppetry), Jóhannsson's winning mix of anticipation and playfulness isn't shorn away. It's easy to spy another picture from this part of the world with an ovine focus and think of Rams (the original, not the 2020 Australian remake). Recalling A White, White Day's musing on grief and its stunning use of wintry landscapes is just as straightforward as well. Throw in the fact that Lamb frolics forth from US distributor A24 — home to fellow folk-horror hits The Witch and Midsommar, the nightmarishly atmospheric Hereditary and The Lighthouse, and the dark and discomforting The Lobster and The Killing of a Sacred Deer, with the company's moniker now accepted in filmic circles as shorthand for a particular type of indie flick — and believing you know what's in store is equally understandable. But like Robert Eggers, Ari Aster and Yorgos Lanthimos, the directors behind those aforementioned features, Jóhannsson has made a disquieting and dazzling movie that couldn't be more distinctive. Indeed, just as Ada is her own creature, Lamb is its own singular film. Nursery rhyme nods and fairy tale-like touches add extra layers to Lamb's contemplation of parenthood, loss and all the stress that comes with each; however, the movie's religious symbolism is less effective. Christmas songs echo, placing the film at a time of year already loaded with meaning. A manger obviously exists on the farm, too. Also, having a woman called Maria embrace motherhood after a miraculous birth clearly isn't an accidental move on Jóhannsson and co-screenwriter Sjón (an Icelandic poet and frequent Bjork collaborator's) behalf. What rings loudest among these inclusions is the notion of grasping onto whatever you need to in order to understand and endure all that life throws your way. Lamb is also a movie about nature versus nurture, so brooding over the impact of choices both overt and innate cosily resides in the same paddock. Enticing, surreal and starkly unsettling all at once, Lamb also benefits from exceptional animal performances — it won the Cannes Film Festival's Grand Jury Prize for Palm Dog, the prestigious event's awards for best canine acting — and its own savvy. It nabbed Un Certain Regard Prize of Originality at Cannes as well, but the movie's shrewdness isn't limited to its standout concept. Each patient shot that roves over the hillside, peeks through the fog, and soaks in the strain and pressure is just as astute. Each rustle, huff and jangle in the film's soundscape proves the same. Every aesthetic decision paints Lamb in unease and uncertainty, in fact, and lets its lingering gaze towards the steely Rapace, affecting Guðnason and their four-legged co-stars unleash an intense and absurdist pastoral symphony of dread and hope, bleakness and sweetness, and terror and love.
UPDATE, Thursday, February 27, 2025: Drake was also scheduled to play Brisbane on Tuesday, March 4, but that gig has been postponed to a yet-to-be-confirmed future date. Here's the headlines: Drake is coming to Australia in 2025; it's his first trip this way since 2017; and you're now going to have 'Hotline Bling', 'Too Good', 'Passionfruit', 'Nice for What', 'In My Feelings', 'One Dance' and 'Laugh Now Cry Later' stuck in your head again. The Canadian artist is bringing his Anita Max Win tour Down Under, including to Brisbane in February and March. The five-time Grammy-winner is hitting the Sunshine State capital for two shows. Drake will play Brisbane Entertainment Centre on Monday, February 24–Tuesday, February 25. The Degrassi: The Next Generation star last took to the stage in this neck of the woods on his Boy Meets World tour, which means that eight years have passed between those gigs and his 2025 visit. The platinum-selling singer is fresh off his 2023–24 It's All A Blur Tour, which saw him chalk up over 80 soldout shows in North America. On that prior trip, Drake had four studio albums to his name: 2010's Thank Me Later, 2011's Take Care, 2013's Nothing Was the Same and 2016's Views. He's doubled that since, so expect tunes from 2018's Scorpion, 2021's Certified Lover Boy, 2022's Honestly, Nevermind and 2023's For All the Dogs, too. Images: The Come Up Show via Flickr.
To be a character in a Luca Guadagnino film is to be ravenous. The Italian director does have a self-described Desire trilogy — I Am Love, A Bigger Splash and Call Me By Your Name — on his resume, after all. In those movies and more, he spins sensual stories about hungry hearts, minds and eyes, all while feeding his audience's very same body parts. He tells tales of protagonists bubbling with lust and yearning, craving love and acceptance, and trying to devour this fleeting thing called life while they're living it. Guadagnino hones in on the willingness to surrender to that rumbling and pining, whether pursuing a swooning, sweeping, summery romance in the first feature that put Timothée Chalamet in front of his camera, or losing oneself to twitchy, witchy dance in his Suspiria remake. Never before has he taken having an insatiable appetite to its most literal and unnerving extreme, however, but aching cannibal love story Bones and All is pure Guadagnino. Peaches filled with longing's sticky remnants are so 2017 for Guadagnino, and for now-Little Women, Don't Look Up and Dune star Chalamet. Biting into voracious romances will never get old, though. Five years after Call Me By Your Name earned them both Oscar nominations — the filmmaker for Best Picture, his lead for Best Actor — they reteam for a movie that traverses the American midwest rather than northern Italy, swaps erotic fruit for human flesh and comes loaded with an eerie undercurrent, but also dwells in similar territory. It's still the 80s, and both hope and melancholy still drift in the air. Taylor Russell (Lost in Space) drives the feature as Maren, an 18-year-old with an urge to snack on people that makes her an unpopular slumber-party guest. When she meets Chalamet's Lee, a fellow 'eater', Bones and All becomes another sublime exploration of love's all-consuming feelings — and every bit as exquisite as Guadagnino and Chalamet's last stunning collaboration. First seen newly arrived in a small Virginia town, Maren sneaks out to attend that aforementioned sleepover, which there's zero chance her strict single dad (André Holland, Passing) would've allowed her to attend. Following a swift, grisly chomp on a freshly manicured finger, it's clear why, and evident why Maren's exasperated father doesn't want to stay around in the aftermath. He moves her to Maryland first, leaving her with a cassette spouting backstory, including that her bloodthirsty tastes date back to her toddler days, and to munched-on babysitters — plus a birth certificate bearing her mother's (Chloë Sevigny, Russian Doll) name. So springs a road trip to Minnesota, searching for that estranged mum and more answers. Then, travelling through Ohio brings Maren to the creepy yet earnest Sully (a memorable Mark Rylance, The Phantom of the Open), who shares her hankerings and says he could smell her from blocks over. Next, in an Indiana supermarket, she crosses paths with Lee. Sporting confidence aplenty — "when you weigh 140 pounds wet, you gotta have a big attitude," Lee tells Maren — Chalamet makes an imprint from his first scene. Indeed, that initial moment with Russell leaves an imprint itself, too, resembling Andrea Arnold's American Honey as much of Bones and All does. Inverting the dynamic that worked so well for him in Call Me By Your Name, the internet's boyfriend isn't the thirsty newcomer. Instead, he's the seasoned hand, one half of Bones and All's dreamy but dangerous couple, and always second to Russell's astonishing work as Maren. Both actors turn in subtle, evocative and rousing performances that sting with rawness, naturalism and deeply stomached pain while soothing through their chemistry amid the gristle. As a result, whenever they're together, they're as inviting a treat as the feature serves up. Still, in yet another powerful performance, Russell repeatedly shows why her exceptional breakout turn in Waves wasn't a one-off. As Guadagnino and his now three-time screenwriter David Kajganich (A Bigger Splash, Suspiria) adapt Camille DeAngelis's award-winning 2015 novel, Russell and Chalamet also navigate a coming-of-age search for belonging — an outsider story with actual teeth, and one that isn't afraid to use them. When Maren first gets chewing, she's making a rare friend, only for her world to dissolve by being herself. After her meat-cute with Lee, then seeing his unapologetic approach needing to eat, she finally starts to feel like she fits in. Yet whether she's facing the reality of killing to feed or getting queasy over a fireside encounter with a perturbing eater (Call Me By Your Name's Michael Stuhlbarg) and someone who has willingly chosen the cannibal life (Halloween Ends director David Gordon Green), she keeps grappling with who she is. Maren yearns to connect — and does with Lee, although unsurprisingly shies away from Sully's too-keen offer of companionship — but also has to learn to deal with her appetite, the stark realities of her situation, and the line between predator and prey, none of which she can ignore. If 70s classic Badlands met teen vampire tale Let the Right One In while driving across middle America under the magic-hour sky — and with Duran Duran, Joy Division and New Order as a soundtrack — Bones and All would be on that exact road. Visually, it adores the former, as gorgeously and expressively lensed by cinematographer Arseni Khachaturan (Beginning). The atmospheric score by Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor and his film-composing partner Atticus Ross (Academy Award-winners for The Social Network and Soul) has a nervy and layered feel reminiscent of the latter, however. Combining such sumptuous imagery with the affecting score might seem like a stark contrast. Mixing the feature's aesthetics with the narrative's innate horrors, because there's no escaping the gruesome subject matter, blood and all, might appear the same, in fact. But Bones and All's pieces always swirl together in a vivid, affecting, like-you're-there fashion. That's another Guadagnino trademark, as seen most recently in his teens-in-Italy series We Are Who We Are. Bones and All's precise premise hardly matches anyone's lived experience but, even with the film rippling with a tense and disquieting air that never subsides at its headiest and most lyrical of moments — yes, a movie can be tender, a thriller and queasy at once — its underlying feelings couldn't be more relatable. Guadagnino and his committed cast consistently make their decisions with that in mind, tearing into the universal, unavoidable truth that to be human is to wrestle with primal needs and wants. Raw, Fresh, Yellowjackets and The Neon Demon have all sunk their gnashers into cannibalism on-screen in recent years, and well, but Bones and All proves the kind of picture that truly makes you understand the term haunting. Intense, impassioned, frantic and fragile all at once — because teenage love always is, and life in general — it's a flick so rich, lingering and piercing in its emotions, characters and ideas that it gnaws on you after viewing.
In 2010, director Matthew Vaughn gave us his tongue-in-cheek take on the superhero genre with the hyperactive action-comedy, Kick-Ass. Five years later, he turns his attention to the spy movie, with similarly electrifying results. Adapted, as was Kick-Ass, from a graphic novel by Mark Millar, Kingsman: The Secret Service is popcorn entertainment at its finest: funny, exciting and immaculately paced, never once bogged down by grit or self-importance. Colin Firth crackles as Agent Harry Hart, a gentleman spy for a privately run espionage agency operating “at the highest levels of discretion”. After the death of a colleague, Hart finds himself on the trail of nefarious billionaire Richmond Valentine (a lisping Samuel L. Jackson), whose plan to save the planet may come at the expense of the people living on it. At the same time, Hart also finds himself mentoring teenaged hoodlum Eggsy (Taron Egerton), in whose defiant eyes he sees a glimmer of Kingsman potential. Vaughn shoots the film with the giddiness of a 12-year-old, one who just stepped out of his very first spy movie with dreams of saving the world. The antithesis of the Craig-era Bond flicks, Kingsman never tries to justify its own absurdity, but rather rockets along with such irreverent energy that you can’t help but get caught up in all the fun. Explosions of over-the-top violence dominate the second half, although it’s all far too cartoonish to cause any serious offence. The action is propelled by a rousing orchestral score, courtesy of regular Vaughn collaborators Matthew Margeson and Henry Jackman. The movie’s cast is excellent across the board. Firth could play a suit-clad toff in his sleep, but he also makes for a surprisingly convincing action hero — and listening to him drop F-bombs while dispatching thugs with his umbrella is a singular pleasure no other film can provide. Jackson is a job as the villain of the piece, while young Egerton has the makings of a star. Mark Strong and Michael Caine round out the ranks of the secret service, although it’s a shame that the latter isn’t given a little bit more to do. After a January packed with high-minded Oscar films, Kingsman: The Secret Service is a much needed blast of fresh air. If you’re looking for a fun night out at the movies, don’t hesitate to pick up a ticket.
January might be in full swing and the memories of your summer holiday may be fading, but that doesn't mean you have to stop celebrating — and saying cheers to the new year. Your latest excuse comes courtesy of Pint Palooza Part II, The Osbourne Hotel's returning four-day beer festival, which is serving up brews and more from Thursday, January 26–Sunday, January 29. A constant across the whole event: beer, obviously, with Stone and Wood doing the honours at a pop-up bar at the Fortitude Valley venue. You'll be able to sip the brewery's small-batch brew beer of the month, play games and even win prizes, all while listening to tunes. On Saturday, January 28, the fest includes two Hottest 100 countdowns: music, thanks to Triple J; and the Gabs Hottest 100 Craft Beer Countdown. The lineup also spans live performances from 3–7pm on the Thursday afternoon, 4.30–11pm on the Friday and 3.30–7.30pm on Sunday — and games such as air hockey, ping pong and Connect Four. Entry is free, but contacting the venue in advance to book a table is recommended.
It's not often that a new Brisbane eatery delivers a taste of New York and a nod to the Gold Coast all at the same time, but that's what Joe's Deli is now serving up on Albert Street in the CBD. The Italian American-style street-food diner takes its culinary cues from Big Apple, and its vibe as well. But before the brand set up shop in the River City, it cemented itself as a favourite down in Broadbeach. Joe's Deli's expansion to Brissie was announced midway through 2023. Since Saturday, September 2, it has been up and running in its second digs — and serving up meatball subs, cubans, hoagies, tempura prawn po' boys and Italian flatbreads, plus pickles and chips as sides as well. In spreading not just sandwich fillings but its footprint, the Glitter Strip favourite isn't just for the weekday lunch crowd. Midday meals are definitely on the menu; however, this isn't solely a midday haunt. All those sandos — and Joe's Deli's 90's hip hop playlist and NY-inspired booth seating — now grace an 80-seat eatery that's also a bar, boasting an extended booze offering. Accordingly, along with the chain's newest meat slicer getting to work, the venue is going big on beers and ciders from local breweries, plus organic wines, seltzers, Soda& mixers and pre-mixed margaritas. The Albert Street store also features laneway dining, as well as the brand's newest merchandise and clothing range. Fancy a Joe's Deli t-shirt, hat, bag or beer mug? That's the current line, and it's getting a boost. Food-wise, the selection there has also received a revamp, with hot dogs now sticking around permanently. Where the sangas range includes both Sicilian and Southern fried chicken, the hot dogs lineup covers Brooklyn-style, sloppy joe and chilli dogs. A fish 'n' chips option with beer-battered snapper also graces the menu, plus a lobster roll. Whether you now know where you'll be spending your lunch breaks or you have a new after-work go-to in mind, the dessert lineup with cookie sandwiches and two-tone, liquid Nutella and brûlée marshmallow cheesecakes has hit Brisbane, too. Find Joe's Deli at Shop 7, 123 Albert Street, Brisbane CBD — open from 11am–9pm daily.
Hollywood loves an awards ceremony, and boasts a regular lineup of statuette-bestowing occasions to prove it. Stellar television shows and the folks who make them can win everything from an Emmy and a Golden Globe to a Screen Actors Guild Award and a BAFTA — and more — because cinema isn't the only screen format that likes rewarding its best and brightest at glitzy occasions with lengthy speeches and shiny trophies. Awards ceremonies are also a handy source of information for TV fans. They're fun to watch, but they can also help you work out what else you should be watching. So many television shows vie for everyone's eyeballs each year, so knowing that something has scored a few gongs (or even more than a few) might help rocket it to the top of your must-see list. Streaming platform Binge features quite a number of award-winners in its catalogue, for example, if you're not quite sure what you should marathon your way through next. In collaboration with the service, we've taken a look and picked five of our accolade-receiving favourites that you can check out now — including via a 14-day free trial for new customers.
When you think of luxury shopping in Brisbane, the CBD's Queen Street Mall probably comes to mind. Now, there's even more reason to mark the CBD as your go-to destination for designer labels with Brisbane's very first Christian Louboutin store now open. The brand-new Louboutin store is located at Shop 15, 215 Queen Street with a stunning collection of shoes and leather goods for folk across the gender spectrum. Alongside the brand's iconic styles, you'll also find the latest designs from the Fall/Winter 21 collection. Plus, there'll be three styles to swoon over that are exclusive to the Brisbane shop. The store itself takes cues from Louboutin's eclectic aesthetic. The white wood walls that hug the interior are an homage to his beloved Egyptian houseboat and provide a sense of serenity within. But don't expect a neutral pallet to reign supreme here. Oh no. The centre consoles are awash in deep blue tones that contrast against the iconic and dramatic Louboutin red carpet. Brisbane's first Christian Louboutin boutique is open now. For more information and to check out the incredible designs, call the store on 07 3707 5777.
Winner of the 2011 Lord Mayor's Photographic Awards, Amy Carkeek, brings to the Brisbane Powerhouse her latest project, Even our Dreams are Fake. In a world where image is a dominant form of communication and value, this exhibit aims to highlight why such imagery presents a fragmented representation of society. As members of the western world, we are the greatest witnesses to the dominant nature of the image in popular culture, and Carkeek's exhibit aims to challenge such influence. The exhibit features a number of photographs that confront hyperreal imagery used in our contemporary consumer society. By juxtaposing them against the weird and uncanny, Carkeek's showcase is a unique collection of art that challenges our existing western values, to expose what lies beneath such artificial perceptions. This free exhibit will be at the Brisbane Powerhouse for two weeks, and promises a unique insight into the perception of the images we witness everyday.
It's been almost four years since El Camino Cantina first opened in Queensland, bringing its now-signature vibe — think: loud, bright and filled with giant cocktails, rock 'n' roll jukeboxes, free sombreros and other Tex Mex fare, plus the requisite food and drink menu — to Bowen Hills in Brisbane. Since then, the chain has been getting comfortable around the state's southeast, including at Chermside and South Bank in the River City, and also Robina on the Gold Coast since 2020. None of those venues have beach views, though. It's true when you're on holidays, kicking back in far-flung locations with a drink in your hand. It's true if you're a Brisbanite heading down to the Gold Coast for a day, weekend or short getaway, or if you're a coast local as well. That unfaltering reality? That everything tastes better when it's paired with ocean sights. So, El Camino has combined that idea with its tacos and OTT margaritas, launching in Surfers Paradise's revamped Paradise Centre. First revealed in late August, and now slinging its wares seven days a week, the new chain boasts all the usual El Camino's components — plus the sea breeze and a vantage out over the waves while you eat. Skulls, crosses, cacti and lightning bolts still feature heavily, alongside a corrugated iron bar decorated with flame graffiti, and a custom-designed Ben Brown mural featuring a surfing skeleton. Indoors, El Camino's Surfers Paradise seats 220 patrons — with booths, high-top tables for large groups and swing-style seats all on offer — while there's room for 30 in the al fresco dining space. The menu sticks with all the favourites, spanning fiery buffalo wings, sizzling fajitas, plump burritos, and soft-shell tacos loaded with punchy flavour combinations. A key difference? This is the brand's first to also serve up breakfast, with brekkie tacos coming packed with grilled sirloin and scrambled egg, refried black beans and queso fresco, and streaky bacon with jalapeno and cheddar. Also on the lineup: El Camino's signature specials, including $2 tacos on Tuesdays and ten-cent wings on Wednesdays. Slushie machines, a popular feature at the chain's other venues, are part of the fitout as well. Cue big nights and brain freezes. El Camino's margaritas come in multiple sizes and renditions — such as a tropical Red Bull flavour, which really says it all. Other options include a host of beers from near and far, and a sizeable collection of mezcals and tequilas. Until mid-October, the new spot is also hosting a margarita festival. Called Ritapalooza, it's serving up those frosty, boozy beverages in 24 different flavours. On the limited-edition menu: Wizz Fizz, Jelly Belly, Skittle, fairy floss and grape Nerd varieties, as well as Hubba Bubba, marshmallow and fairy bread. And yes, El Camino has plenty of company in the Paradise Centre. First, axe-throwing bar Maniax announced that it was branching out to the venue, setting up shop there at the beginning of August. Then TGI Fridays revealed the same, although exactly when in the coming months that chain will open its new venue — its Australasian flagship and first-ever beachside venue, in fact — is yet to be revealed. And, Mark Wahlberg's Walburger's chain is also on its way sometime soon with its first Queensland outpost. Find El Camino Cantina on level one in the Paradise Centre, 2 Cavill Avenue, Surfers Paradise.
If jungle vibes inside a Brisbane warehouse sounds like your perfect outing, head along to the Jungle Collective's indoor plant sale on Saturday, March 2 and Sunday, March 3. It's the latest greenery-filled Brissie market from The Jungle Collective, a Melbourne nursery that stocks all kinds of weird and wonderful species. Yes, it's trucking its way up north again for another Queensland venture. Whether you're after a hanging pot plant, some palms for the garden or a giant Bird of Paradise, chances are you'll find it here. Have a reputation for killing your cacti? Overwatering your ferns? Don't worry — there'll be horticulturalists onsite on the night to give you advice and chat through any questions you might have. At a Moorooka warehouse, you'll be inspired by greenery aplenty — and learn to incorporate plants into your home and living spaces — all while browsing and soaking up some tunes. Best get in quick though, as these markets are always popular. With more than 150 different species usually on offer, of course they are. Due to expected demand, the sale will be held in four sessions on both days (8-10am, 10am-noon, 12-2pm and 2-4pm), and attendees will need to register for free tickets from noon on Monday, February 26. Plus if you dress up in a Hawaiian shirt to fit the tropicana theme, you'll get $5 off your purchase.
If jungle vibes inside a Brisbane warehouse sounds like your perfect outing, head along to the Jungle Collective's indoor plant sale on Saturday, January 19 and Sunday, January 20. It's the third greenery-filled Brissie market from The Jungle Collective, a Melbourne nursery that stocks all kinds of weird and wonderful species. Yes, it's trucking its way up north again for another Queensland venture. Whether you're after a hanging pot plant, some palms for the garden or a giant Bird of Paradise, chances are you'll find it here. Have a reputation for killing your cacti? Overwatering your ferns? Don't worry — there'll be horticulturalists onsite to give you advice and chat through any questions you might have. With the party and sale taking over a space in Moorooka, you can be inspired by greenery aplenty and learn to incorporate plants into your home and living spaces, all while browsing and soaking up some tunes. Best get in quick though — these markets are always popular, with more than 150 different species usually on offer. Due to the expected demand, the sale will be held in four sessions on both days (8-10am, 10am-noon, 12-2pm and 2-4pm), and attendees will need to register for free tickets from noon on Monday, January 14. Plus, given that the Jungle Collective likes to theme its sales, this one is all about doggos. If you bring your pet pupper in a bag — like you're riding the New York subway — you'll get $5 off your purchase.
Don't just grab a drink. If you're heading out for a sip with a date or mate, you want it to feel like an occasion, even if there's nothing particularly special to celebrate. Located inside the W Brisbane hotel, Living Room Bar understands that train of thought. Even better — it keeps trying to make knocking back cocktails within its walls stand out via creative collaborations and installations. In 2022, the venue teamed up with top Barcelona bar Paradiso, aka the third-best bar on the World's 50 Best Bars list for 2021, on a special menu featuring the Spanish spot's globally acclaimed beverages. Now, for at least six months across the second half of 2023 and the beginning of 2024, Living Room Bar is pairing its latest cocktail offering with an immersive light, sound and art setup. The watering hotel has dubbed its latest excuse to drop by Sensory Sips, with art and design studio Loose Collective taking care of everything that patrons see and hear. On offer: bespoke work all around the North Quay bar, including mesmerising lighting effects, audiovisual sculptures, motion graphics, and patterns projected across the floor, roof and even the bar itself. In one especially eye-catching piece called Light Lines, 400 lit-up vines made from medical-grade silicon look like they're floating. That's what Sensory Sips has opened with. The idea is for this dazzling setup to not just let cocktail lovers feel like they're escaping, but for it evolve over its stay, which started in August 2023 and will run until mid-February 2024 at the earliest. So, that means that Brisbanites have plenty of motivation to head along more than once — and ample time to do so. As for the drinks, the event's nine cocktails are made with Brown-Forman spirits, with each concoction designed to also engage the senses just like the installations around the bar (and given names such as The Hypnotist, The Heist and Mystique to match). Among the highlights, The Illusionist goes floral and colourful with gin, violet-flavoured liqueur, white chocolate bitters, hibiscus, coconut, lemon and butterfly pea ice — and, crafted to appear as if it is floating, The Magician combines whisky, Frangelico, cocoa nibs and bloody mary drops. If you opt for the Cirque Du Fizz, you'll be sharing your sips with at least one other person (minimum: two) while tasting vodka, butterscotch bitters, marmalade cordial, sage, lychee and Australian Daintree tea. Not hitting the hard stuff? The Ballerina is Sensory Sips' non-alcoholic option, as made with a lemon marmalade and hibiscus non-boozy wine, zero-alcohol dry gin, lemon and lychee foam. And, when it's served, it comes with a light projection showing stars. Images: Markus Ravik.
The King has risen. Head out to Parkes in January and you would be forgiven for thinking you're in Graceland — if there's anything this town is known for (apart from the iconic Dish, of course) it's the Parkes Elvis Festival. Pull on your blue suede shoes and get ready to find yourself a hunk, a hunk of burning love. The festival takes place over five days during the second week of January to coincide with the King's birthday (January 8, as if you didn't already know). Over 25,000 visitors flock to the town to see international and national Elvis tribute artists battle it out to be named the Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist. There's also a Miss Priscilla competition, rock 'n' roll dancing, busking, a midnight show and a finale concert. The Parkes Elvis Festival is officially endorsed by the King's estate, Elvis Presley Enterprises Inc., so you know it's legit. Stop talking about it, and just do it this year. A little less conversation, a little more action.
It's new year time, again, and Fortitude Valley's The Lanes precinct is celebrating. To mark the Year of the Pig, Bakery and California Lanes are throwing together a heap of festivities from 6pm on Saturday, February 9. All of the bases are covered, so expect a double lion dance moving through both laneways, complete with roving musicians; plenty of food, including Fat Dumpling's finest and MisFortune Cookies getting into the appropriate cookie game; and themed cocktails — lychee martini, anyone? — from The Stand Cocktails and Desserts, King Tiki and TSO Lounge and Dining. If you'd like to get into the spirit of the date and learn a new skill, you can also drop by earlier in the day, with tea meditation workshops happening at 11.30am and 5.30pm. While attending the general shenanigans is free, you'll need your wallet for the food and drink side of the fun. And, to take part in the meditative bliss, which costs $30.
Beer halls aren't just for drinking brews, at least where Felons Brewing Co is involved. The Howard Smith Wharves mainstay regularly puts its barrel hall to a range of other uses, whether by hosting movies or markets — or the Seasonal Fruit music festival. On Saturday, March 2 from 4pm, the latter is on the agenda for its autumn 2024 edition, with this riverside fest curated by Jet Black Cat Music. Here's one way to start the new season: with a sultry lineup of international and local acts taking to the stage over one afternoon. Leading the bill: The Beths from New Zealand, plus Wednesday and MJ Lenderman from the US — as well as Surprise Chef, The Belair Lip Bombs, Eggy, Enola and Arugula. And for the sips? Well, you will be in a brewery after all, with Felons' beers on offer. Doors open at 4pm, tickets cost $73.20 for the gig, and you'll pay for your beverages on top. Summer Fruit — Autumn Edition Lineup: The Beths Wednesday Surprise Chef The Belair Lip Bombs MJ Lenderman Eggy Enola Arugula Images: Darcy Goss Media.
Self-sufficiency is not simply an environmental goal but an all-consuming way of life for Spanish design company, Elii Studio. With their brilliant new invention — the Jane Fonda Kit House — these Mediterranean innovators have created an experimental home powered almost entirely through that most futuristic of technologies: human movement. The concept itself is startlingly simple. The house, which resembles something between a DIY greenhouse and an M.C. Escher design, is fitted with a number of low-tech exercise devices hooked up to some pretty high-tech generators. Every time you punch out some sit-ups, jump on the exercise bike or even water the plants, these generators convert your kinetic energy into energy that can be used to power your household appliances. Thus, the fitter you get get yourself, the more episodes of Game of Thrones you can watch. While JF-Kit may certainly isn't for everyone, if you're the kind of person who likes to put their fitness first and likes to keep energy expenses to a minimum, then this might just be future-you's perfect home. Via Inhabitat
Imagine starting the day with a spot of yoga and one of the best views of the city. That's the new weekly promise at Eleven Rooftop Bar, with the Ann Street venue adding a spring and summer season of sky-high wellness sessions to its lofty repertoire. And each class is free. From 6am every Tuesday between October 17 and December 12 — other than Melbourne Cup day on November 7 — early risers can stretch their limbs at a great height with yoga and Pilates sessions, or get the blood pumping with some boxing or circuit training. With all of that on offer, you'll probably want to take the lift up to the 11th-floor rooftop — best save your energy for working out while staring at the city below. The appropriately named Rooftop Wellness at Eleven is a collaboration between the Fortitude Valley spot and The Cove Workplace, with Facilities Fitness, Studio Pilates Newstead and Eka Shakti Yoga all pitching in as well. Registration is required, and if you'd like to hang around afterwards, an optional breakfast session will serve up juice and a chia bowls after each class for $17. Rooftop Wellness at Eleven takes place on Tuesday mornings from 6am to 7am between October 17 and December 12, apart from Melbourne Cup day on November 7. For the detailed schedule, head to the event website.
In 2018's Skate Kitchen, filmmaker Crystal Moselle let audiences air and ollie through New York, with the entrancing and often dreamlike teenage drama stepping inside an all-female skateboarding crew. Even better: it was based on a real-life group of the same name, and starred its members. Now, because this story just keeps getting better, the director has brought all of the above back for TV spinoff Betty. You don't need to have seen the film to enjoy this slice-of-life look at these girl skaters' lives, however. All you need is a couple of hours to watch these young women hit their boards, navigate the normal adolescent experiences, and cope with all the ups and downs of trying to literally glide through a male-heavy realm. And, to simply enjoy spending time with these friends — because Moselle is particularly skilled at making her viewers feel like they're part of the gang.
Located on the ground floor of the Royal on the Park Hotel, The Walnut is old school territory — when you imagined fancy dinners as a kid, this is the kind of place you were dreaming of. Wooden panelling, white leather seats and gold finishes coupled with views of the City Botanic Gardens create a calm, sophisticated vibe, but that's just the beginning. There are two reasons to get cosy in the restaurant's surrounds: the faultless service, which'll make you feel like you've suddenly become a celebrity; and the exceptional food, which turns even the most familiar menu items into something truly special. You can have the twice-cooked pork belly as an entree, but we recommend saving it for the main course when it accompanies the chargrilled 180-gram 100-day grain fed eye fillet steak. Instead, opt for pan-seared scallops or a selection of oysters (served three ways: natural, Mornay and Kilpatrick). Other mains on offer are the smoky slow cooked beef short rib, spanner crab spaghettini and confit chicken maryland. On to desserts and old favourites — including bombe Alaska and crème brûlée — shine. The Walnut also has a fab breakfast menu and an afternoon tea experience — think crustless finger sandwiches, freshly baked scones, an assortment of small desserts as well as sparkling wine, teas and coffee. Sure, you've had most of these dishes before, but you haven't had them while feeling like the most important person in the city.
If there's a live gig-shaped hole in your life right now, Indigenous Australian hip hop artist Ziggy Ramo is here to fill that void with a night of hard-hitting tunes. This Saturday, August 29, he'll take to the hallowed stage of the Sydney Opera House for an exclusive live-streamed performance, complete with striking visuals and a ten-piece band in tow. Beaming live and loud to a device near you, Ramo is set to play his debut full-length album Black Thoughts. The much-lauded work was completed in 2015 before being shelved for a few years, and has now been reborn in light of current conversations around race and colonial history. Expect a powerful performance incorporating strings and brass, brought to life alongside newly commissioned artworks by 2018 WA Young Person of the Year, Indigenous Australian illustrator Kamsani 'Kambarni' Bin-Salleh. Spiritually charged rap meets traditional Songlines to deliver a captivating musical journey, touching on collective trauma, racial discrimination, vulnerability and spiritual renewal. Got plans Saturday night? All good — the full performance will also be available on-demand after the initial live stream. While the Sydney Opera House is still closed to the public, it's running a Digital Season with full-length archival performances and live recordings. You can can check out the final lineup over here. [caption id="attachment_720224" align="alignnone" width="1920"] A gig at Sydney Opera House during Vivid by Daniel Boud[/caption] Top image: Emma Pegrum
