Your workday is about to get a whole lot more bearable, courtesy of the marketing department at Uber. Starting from midday today, the ridesharing service is teaming up with Purina's Pets at Work mission to deliver puppies to offices around Australia. We'll give you a minute to process that information. UberPUPPIES will be available in the Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Canberra, Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast CBDs. All you need to do is log into the Uber app at noon, hit the 'puppies' button (squee!), and a four-legged friend will be whisked to your place of work for 15 minutes of quality cuddle time. It'll run you up a bill of $40, so you might want to go in with a few of your co-workers. Either that, or try and convince your boss it'll be good for employee morale. Which, to be fair, it most definitely will be. Money raised will be used to support local animal shelters. Each puppy will also be accompanied by a shelter representative, who'll be all too happy to accept any additional cash donations. And in case you form an extra special connection, all UberPUPPIES are available for permanent adoption. UberPUPPIES is the latest in a string of awesome Uber promotions, with the company having previously delivered everything from kittens to ice cream to backyard cricket umpires. Fair warning though: these things tend to generate a lot of demand, so make sure you're hovering over the Uber app come 11.59am. The puppies will be cruising around town until 4pm.
Peter Bibby might be based in Melbourne, but this spinner of VB-soaked yarns calls Perth home. Having recently returned from the USA (seems like Americans have a thing for earnest, self-deprecating Aussie guitarists at the moment — see Courtney Barnett), the hugely hyped crooner is about to kick off his first national tour. You can expect a damn fine show from the 'Hates My Boozin' singer — not for nothing has he played Sydney Festival, Laneway and SXSW already. Releasing his debut album Butcher/Hairstylist/Beautician in November last year, Bibby named his first release for a hidden Perth gem that brings all three businesses under one roof. So we thought we'd put his local knowledge to the test, asking Bibby to unearth five hidden treasures only Perth locals would be able to recommend. From pubs filled with kangaroo regulars to go-to guitar shops and super glam petrol station cafes, let's take a bonafide Bibby tour through Perth. MOJOS BAR "The best bar in Australia in my opinion, besides maybe Dan's Pub in Tasmania. Pool, beverages and live music on offer every night of the week." 237 Queen Victoria St, North Fremantle STRUMMERS GUITARS "To my knowledge, the best second-hand guitar dealer/repair shop anywhere near Perth. Huge range of rare guitars and equipment at very reasonable prices and run by two very lovely fellows." 811 Beaufort Street, Mount Lawley MIDLAND GATE SHOPPING CENTRE "Everything you could ever hope for in a shopping centre. Likely to see some of Midlands finest scumbags on every visit." 274 Great Eastern Highway, Midland JOHN FORREST TAVERN "This little tavern is a great place to get a bit merry before you walk around a pretty beautiful part of the world. They have a resident kangaroo and there is usually native birds just hanging out inside the pub. It’s pretty legit." Park Rd, Glen Forrest VIBE CAFE "Situated on Charles Street in North Perth, the Vibe Cafe offers a range of fine delicacies at affordable prices. You can also buy petrol there." 427 Charles Street, North Perth Peter Bibby is currently touring in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane this week and next. By Jessica Surman and Shannon Connellan. Top image: Matt Sav. Images: Mojos, Strummers, Caputi Enterprises, Publocation, Vibe.
Seasonal change is finally settling into Melbourne and with it comes one of the NGV's best annual exhibitions: the Winter Masterpieces series. This year, it's no secret they've snagged a true master, Vincent Van Gogh, the poster boy for post-impressionism and dramatic self-mutilation. Set to open on April 28 and running until July 19, blockbuster exhibition Van Gogh and the Seasons has been years in the making, and is expected by NGV to draw one of the gallery's biggest audiences yet. Curator Sjraar Van Heugten has fine-tuned a thematic exhibition after Van Gogh's own heart, an exploration of the seasons in over 60 works. "In the seasons, he [Van Gogh] has perceived infinity, something larger than humanity. The seasons represent ongoing life," he says. Inside the exhibition, you'll find a fascinating investigation into Van Gogh's life, alongside some of his best naturalist pieces. The artist's character, and his fluctuating mental health, often receive as much attention as his best works. The story of his life — and his death — are expounded wonderfully (and sensitively, snaps for not stigmatising mental health) through quotes, correspondence and essays. Although the collection itself doesn't feature his most famous works, you'll leave with a window into the artist's true persona and an understanding of the sheer breadth of his talent. Structurally, Van Gogh and the Seasons is broken into (you guessed it) the four seasons, that masterfully weave a narrative through the artist's life. The NGV has produced a short accompanying film, narrated by David Stratton and David Wenham, that's worth a watch before you proceed through the exhibition, as it explains the structure of the exhibition and sets the mood. Feeling overwhelmed? We've put together five works to see at the exhibition. Images: Tom Ross.
Think enjoying a pint and making a difference are mutually exclusive activities? Think again. Thanks to The Good Beer Co., the next drink you knock back could help save the world — or at least the Great Barrier Reef. The Good Beer Co. is Australia’s first social enterprise beer company, with a mission to match nice drinks with nice deeds. The company aims to pair the nation's top craft brewers with worthy causes — as their maiden beverage demonstrates. That'd be the aptly named Great Barrier Beer, as brewed in Bundaberg by the local legends at the Bargara Brewing Company. Once it hits the shelves, they'll donate 50% of the profits to the Australian Marine Conservation Society. To get to that point, though, The Good Beer Co. needs your help, which is why they're launching a crowdfunding campaign. You can assist them with brewing, distributing and promoting the Great Barrier Beer, and with startup costs to get established and roll out the idea to other great causes. Backers will enjoy the warm and fuzzy feeling of supporting something good, as well as the chance to taste the tipple before anybody else. You'll also get the opportunity to have a say in future recipes, labels and causes. So if you like beer and are keen to help the planet, it really is a win-win situation. After all, who doesn't want to put their beverage consumption to good use? For more information about The Good Beer Co, visit their website. Image via Dollar Photo Club.
Deck the halls and unpack the plastic tree — the festive season is well and truly upon us. And while that whole Christmas tradition stuff is nice, we're not going to deny what we're most excited about: a whole stocking-load of new films. Along with the cricket and stampeding through shopping centres, going to the movies is one of our favourite Boxing Day traditions. After all, what better place to recover from your post-Christmas food coma than in a nice, dark, air-conditioned cinema? Of course, not all of the end-of-year titles measure up. That's why we're reporting in with our annual Boxing Day Battle Royale, to ensure that you get maximum bang for your Kris Kringle gift voucher buck. From critically claimed indie flicks to an epic blockbuster about a man who can talk to fish, you're guaranteed to find something to enjoy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvPkDdFeTk8 COLD WAR We give it: 5 stars With Cold War, writer-director Pawel Pawlikowski achieves a plethora of astonishing feats. Constrained within 4:3 frames, his sumptuous black-and-white imagery immerses audiences in an intimate and complicated tale, with the filmmaker painting every possible emotion across the screen. The talent behind Oscar-winner Ida also turns his parents' own story into a heart-wrenching romance, and crafts a snapshot of Polish life as the Second World War gave way to the Cold War. Last by no means least, he gifts audiences with astoundingly intricate performances from actors Tomasz Kot and Joanna Kulig. The duo plays a couple who are desperate to be together, but live in a world that cares little about their desires — or about them at all. – Sarah Ward https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYb-wkehT1g THE FAVOURITE We give it: 4.5 stars One queen, two women vying for her attention, and nearly two hours of acerbic and perceptive black comedy. That's The Favourite, a historical drama that looks like a lavish period picture, but boasts a savage wit — and savage insights into human behaviour — that's far from standard for the genre. The key is The Lobster filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos. Not only does he again showcase his winning ways with stilted conversations and his fondness for skewering social expectations; he also exhibits a knack for political comedy and even slapstick. Lanthimos is aided by his fantastic cast, including top awards contender Olivia Colman as Queen Anne, Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone as her bickering offsiders, and Nicholas Hoult as the wannabe leader with his own conniving plans. – SW https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaiR3zdv5cU THE WILD PEAR TREE We give it: 4 stars After Once Upon a Time in Anatolia and Winter Sleep, Nuri Bilge Ceylan crafts another slow-burning affair that combines probing insights into human behaviour with sublime imagery. A tale of dreams and disappointments both mundane and life changing, The Wild Pear Tree sprawls and spreads in its everyday drama and perceptive dialogue. The movie's protagonist is Sunan (Dogu Demirkol), a new graduate returning home with qualifications but no job, and with a manuscript but no means to publish it. Across the movie's 188 minutes, the aspiring writer walks the town's dusty farmland and quiet streets seeking financial help, while his father's (Murat Cemcir) gambling debts continue to mount. The result is a picture that fits firmly into the acclaimed Turkish filmmaker's exceptional oeuvre. – SW https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDkg3h8PCVU AQUAMAN We give it: 3 stars The latest film in the DC Cinematic Universe is far from perfect. Its plot is a mess and its leading man, a roguish surfer-dude turned superhero (Jason Mamoa), is criminally underused. Despite these issues, it's also, for the most part, wildly entertaining. With dazzling visuals that, at their best, feel like Blade Runner (and, at their worst, The Phantom Menace), Aussie director James Wan never lets things slow down for too long, aided by a thumping electro soundtrack reminiscent of Daft Punk's work on Tron: Legacy. Amber Heard, Willem Dafoe, Patrick Wilson and Nicole Kidman help round out a stellar cast, albeit one that commands far too much time away from the true star, Mamoa. Nevertheless, it's safe to say that DC is slowly, painfully but ever so positively clawing its way back to credibility with each new film not directed by Zack Snyder. In the wake of the enormously successful Wonder Woman, Aquaman represents another small foot forward for the franchise. – Tom Glasson https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSGFt6w0wok VICE We give it: 3 stars Sporting a hunch and a paunch, speaking in gravelly grunts and side-eyeing everyone around him, Christian Bale turns in another committed, transformative performance in Vice. His vision of former US Vice President Dick Cheney is a sight to behold, and with Amy Adams suitably steely as Lynne Cheney, Sam Rockwell in laidback mode as President George W. Bush and Steve Carell obnoxiously slippery as Donald Rumsfeld, he's in good company. But, as written and directed by Adam McKay in the same slick, jam-packed fashion as his previous film The Big Short, Vice never completely lives up to its performances. It's impassioned, amusing, designed to get audiences angry and stuffed with stylistic tricks to an almost overwhelming extent. However it also merely states the obvious rather than offers any new or deep insights. – SW https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8mdIB1WxHI KUSAMA: INFINITY We give it: 3 stars How do you capture the enigma that is Yayoi Kusama in a single 85-minute film? The short answer: it's impossible, but Kusama: Infinity gives the task an affectionate try. Unsurprisingly filled with dots and pumpkins, this documentary celebrates the Japanese artist and showcases her work, however it doesn't break the mould the way that Kusama always has across her seven-decade career. What the movie does do well is explore the battles that the nearly 90-year-old artist has faced again and again, both as a woman in Japan and as a foreigner abroad. For those new to Kusama's story — people who've marvelled at her infinity rooms but haven't delved any further — writer-director Heather Lenz also provides a Kusama 101 lesson. – SW https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BcYBFC6zfY WRECK-IT RALPH 2: RALPH BREAKS THE INTERNET We give it: 2 stars A shadow looms over this Disney sequel — and, despite his hefty size, it doesn't stem from Wreck-It Ralph (voiced by John C. Reilly) himself. Rather, in taking the loveable video game character and his racer best friend Vanellope (Sarah Silverman) out of the arcade and into the online world, the film brings one of 2017's worst movies to mind. Wreck-It Ralph 2: Ralph Breaks the Internet fares better than The Emoji Movie, but its efforts to both literalise and satirise cyberspace just keep falling flat. Worse: its straightforward vision of the internet instantly feels dated. With product placement and a pixel-thin emotional journey the flick's other main components, this pop culture-heavy affair proves visually lively but lacklustre overall. – SW
For many a traveller, Singapore means three things: shopping centres, strict rules and stopovers. But, break out of the predictable itinerary, and you'll discover a more exotic side to this five million-strong island state. Beyond the CBD, tree-lined streets lead to diverse neighbourhoods, and each home to a distinctive culture. From beachside Katong, where Peranakan chefs serve up fiery laksa among heritage-listed architecture, to Little India, which is infused with incense, strung with flower garlands and draped with hand-woven silks, there's plenty more to be discovered beyond the aforementioned three S's. Here's Concrete Playground's less obvious guide to exploring Singapore. [caption id="attachment_571546" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Village Hotel Katong[/caption] STAY There's no better recovery from a long flight than a long soak. And with an oversized bathtub next to your bed (and within full view of a 46-inch LED TV) in a Peranakan Club room at the 229-room Village Hotel Katong (a 15 minute drive west of Changi Airport) you can do just that. When you're done, prowl about in 41 square metres of cool, white and blue space, splashed with Peranakan-patterned furnishings, including feature tiles and an enormous floor rug. There's also a roomy outdoor pool, a gym and a restaurant, serving up marathon multicultural buffet breakfasts and dinners. (Peranakan, by the way, refers to the descendants of Chinese people who moved to the Malay archipelago between the 1400s and 1600s and developed a famously rich culture, combining Chinese, Malay, Indian, Arabic and European influences.) [caption id="attachment_573954" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Village Hotel Albert Court[/caption] For a stay full of character on the edge of Little India (about 30 minutes west of Changi), check into Village Hotel Albert Court. The airy, marble-lined lobby is a step back into the colonial era. Order a martini and take a seat on a plush red lounge in the front bar, and you'll feel like you're in a James Bond film. The pre-war feel continues in the greenery-filled, sculpture-dotted courtyards and the classic rooms, furnished with dark wood and fitted with shutters. Some are arranged around a spectacular sunny atrium, and if you're staying above ground level, you'll be travelling via an external, glass-walled, Willy Wonka-style lift. Need to reenergise after a long, steamy day? Smash out some kilometres in the gym and relax in the twin jacuzzis — one warm and one cool. Ask about the 'Far More Perks' package for a bunch of extras, like free cocktails and canapes, private lounges, late checkout, city tours, laundry and access to a Changi Airport lounge. DO A stay at either hotel lets you in on some pretty special cultural experiences, which allow you to see Singapore through a local's eyes. If you're in Katong, it's well worth getting on the Village Hotel's heritage walking tour — if not just to get your bearings. A fun, friendly guide will lead you through nearby Joo Chiat neighbourhood. Once a coconut palm-filled seaside retreat, Joo Chiat is now full of colourful, ornate shophouses and, as of 2011, is protected as Singapore's first Heritage Town. A hawker food court, an eatery advertising 'sexy desserts', a dog-friendly cafe and an eatery dedicated to chocolate are all en route, with your journey finishing with a visit to a Peranakan heritage home and a dumpling-making workshop. Alternatively (or in addition), the Little India walking tour covers little-known Hindu temples, hidden-away street art and secretive alleyways. [caption id="attachment_574235" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Southern Ridges Walk by Kimon Berlin via Flickr[/caption] Once you've dosed up on heritage, get your art fix at the new Singapore National Gallery, which became Asia's biggest visual arts institution when it opened on November 24, 2015. It occupies a whopping 64,000 square metres across two monumental buildings — the former Supreme Court and City Hall — joined by a 'canopy' of fine metal mesh, supported by giant columns resembling tree trunks. Eight thousand Singaporean and Southeast Asian artworks are shared between two permanent galleries, and there's oodles of space left over for international travelling shows. Check out the fire truck-red grand piano in the atrium. For an island that has a reputation for being built-up, Singapore has a heck of a lot of parks. The 156-year-old, 182-acre Singapore Botanic Gardens stay open until midnight and are home to the largest orchid collection in the world. There's even one particularly delicate species named after Margaret Thatcher. At HortPark, in the southwest, you'll wander through 21 themed gardens, including one filled with butterflies. For a longer walk, take on the ten-kilometre Southern Ridges hike, an adventure through coastal panoramas, lush rainforest canopy, a 36-metre high undulating bridge called Henderson Waves and Singapore's second highest peak, Mount Faber. EAT AND DRINK At the 2013 Hawker Heroes Challenge, no amount of swearing could change the results when chef Gordon Ramsay lost to 328 Katong Laksa, a tiny joint decked with plastic seats just a stumble away from the Village Hotel Katong. Yet, while Ramsay sells at Michelin-starred prices, a few bucks will still buy you a huge bowl of steaming deliciousness here. After all, laksa was created by the Peranakans, as a fusion of their Chinese and Malay cooking. To get the low-down on where else locals queue for food, jump on the hotel's Makan Bus Culinary Tour. At a diverse array of tucked-away eateries, you'll sample numerous tasty and eye-opening morsels; try everything from fried chicken and frogs' legs to soup at the rather charmingly and perhaps too-honestly named Pig Organ. Surprisingly, vegetarians can be catered for at every stop. Back in Little India, the island's most flavoursome curries are served beneath Banana Leaf Apollo's chandeliers. Headliners include fish head, butter chicken and mango prawn, all of which wash down tidily with an icy cold beer — or a mango lassi. For the finest chilli crab in the land, grab a table at Wing Seong Fatty's. Founded in 1936, it's been a favourite with international pilots since World War II and, these days, is run by father-son team, Fatty and Skinny. Fatty's been trying to retire for years, but just can't leave the wok alone. Finally, head to Indochine's rooftop bar for a relaxed pre- or post-dinner bev. Despite being in the touristy Marina Bay area, it's worth a visit — firstly, because it's on top of one of Singapore's chronically Instagrammed Supertrees and, secondly, because the epic views across the city are like a scene out of Blade Runner. [caption id="attachment_574226" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Kai Lehmann via Flickr[/caption] LET'S DO THIS; GIVE ME THE DETAILS Singapore is around an eight to eight-and-a-half hour flight from Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. A number of airlines fly to Changi Airport, with return fares with QANTAS starting at $800. Jasmine travelled to Singapore as a guest of Far East Hospitality. Top image: JUJUlianar via Flickr.
Multisensory cooking, auto suggestion and a robotic desserts trolley: these are just a few of the things diners can expect when famed chef Heston Blumenthal restarts service at his three-Michelin Star restaurant The Fat Duck later in the year. After undergoing extensive renovations — during which time Blumenthal popped up in Melbourne's Crown Casino — the original Fat Duck in Bray, Berkshire, England is set to reopen this October. Interviewed by The Observer restaurant critic Jay Rayner, Blumenthal dropped a number of tasty tidbits as to what has changed. "The move to Australia was a great opportunity to question what the Fat Duck is," Blumenthal told Rayner. "In the sense that we cook food and it’s served to people, we’re a restaurant. But that’s not much, is it? The fact is the Fat Duck is about storytelling. I wanted to think about the whole approach of what we do in those terms." In addition to consulting with Billy Elliot writer Lee Hall on the idea of turning the menu into a story — complete with introduction and chapter headings — one of the most intriguing/terrifying things Blumenthal mentioned in the interview was that he had spoken with mentalist Derren Brown, star of Derren Brown: Mind Control, about ways of extracting information about his customers "without them being too aware", and using auto suggestive techniques in order to convince diners they're getting what they most desire. Yeah, that doesn’t sound sinister at all. The Fat Duck (along with other destination restaurants) has apparently long been in the habit of Googling guests in advance, but such prosaic sleuthing is no longer enough to sate Blumenthal. Other features of the "maturing" Fat Duck include a £150,000 robotic sweetshop shaped like a dollhouse and a new online booking system to help sort through the more than 30,000 table requests per day. You can, naturally, expect the prices to go up too — although considering the tasting menu was £220 a head before the renovations, that might keep you, and your suggestive mind, out of Blumenthal's orbit. Via The Observer..
If there's one thing Michael Madrusan and his team have a knack for, it's creating strong characters. The founders of hospitality group Made In The Shade nailed a distinctly elegant vibe with award-winning cocktail bar The Everleigh, and followed up with the wild child party animal that is Russell Street's Heartbreaker. And in 2019, Michael, alongside wife Zara and the rest of the crew, turned his hand to yet another personality-fuelled venue, taking cues from the french brasseries of The Big Apple for the effortlessly sophisticated Bar Margaux. It's a long-discussed concept for which the team finally found the perfect home in a CBD basement — complete with very handy 24-hour licence. Rocking a sprawling underground space on Lonsdale Street, Margaux is one of Melbourne's finest places to go to for wining, dining and late-night good times. The vibe was pitched somewhere in between her two siblings. "She's a wild horse, she's got that wild late-night feel," says Zara. "It's going to be fun, it's going to be casual. A bar before a restaurant, but also a bit glamorous and sophisticated." Here, the fun kicks on till midnight weekdays and 3am Fridays and Saturdays (a rarity with venues of this sort in the CBD), with a substantial supper menu of classic French fare on offer right through to close. It's also the Madrusans' biggest dive into the culinary game yet. Sophisticated, comforting French fare is the schtick — the lineup of escargot, seafood gratin, duck frites and bavette steak are very similar to what you'd find in one of New York's well-loved brasseries. But, while Bar Margaux's key culinary focus might be on those classic French flavours, it's also out to deliver Melburnians a top-notch late-night offering. Shift workers and hospitality night-walkers can now tuck into the likes of steak frites, poached salmon with caviar or a decadent cote de boeuf, right through until 3am on Fridays and Saturdays. The rest of the week is also a win for late-night appetites, with the kitchen plating up until midnight. [caption id="attachment_743072" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Kate Shanasy[/caption] Then, there's the specials. Bar Margaux's 'Golden Hour', which runs daily from 10pm until close, promising eats and drinks at wallet-friendly prices. You might pop in for a burger matched with a glass of Burgundy, or perhaps a serve of oysters, steak tartare and Champagne when you decide to feed your late-night munchies in the most luxurious way possible. Of course, with this team at the helm, the drinks list was always going to be gold as well. Madrusan's biggest cocktail list yet features a choose-your-own-adventure 'This & That' section, a solid spread of lower ABV creations and some longtime owner favourites, like the stout-infused Black Velvet, and a classic Irish coffee. Throw in a strong list of European beers, French wines and an impressive selection of Champagne and you'll be very glad this place kicks on late. Venue images: Parker Blain. Food images: Gareth Sobey. Appears in: The Best Bars in Melbourne for 2023 The Best French Restaurants in Melbourne for 2023
Located at 80 Collins Street, Lillian Brasserie is situated within Society — a multifaceted dining experience opened by renowned restaurateur Chris Lucas. The venue includes the Society Dining Room and Lounge, but it is Lillian, its French brasserie, which really sets this place apart. The interior is all sweeps and curves, with private booths and fringed overhead lamps sending the eye this way and that as the highly skilled waiters weave in and around their guests without any fuss. In the evenings, with the lights dimmed and the conversation humming, the room gives off the air of a classic Parisian dining room — with all the frivolity and joie de vivre centred around the various dishes. Lillian Brasserie's menu is heavily seafood focused, and begins with an offering of shucked oysters and prawns. The snacks include hand-cut potato chips and lobster and leek croquettes with a fresh herb emulsion. For an entree, try the cured salmon with house pickles and the burrata with pickled figs and walnuts. The pasta menu is vegetarian friendly with the parmesan gnocchi served with pumpkin, zucchini and ricotta being a huge hit. For a main, try the confit duck with cassoulet for a truly French offering, or the spiced pork sausage with smoked bacon and lentils for something a little heartier. The woodfired grill is where Lillian Brasserie really flexes its muscles, and the grass-fed sirloin with pink pepper bordelaise is the pick of the menu. If you're looking to share with a few sides, look no further than the spice roasted whole crown of chicken, pairing it with some woodfire roasted greens and potato chips. The wine list is impressive too, with over 10,000 bottles in the Society cellar. This is the kind of Melbourne French restaurant you visit when you're really looking to treat yourself. Appears in: The Best French Restaurants in Melbourne for 2023
One of Australia's most redeeming qualities is its ability to give good afternoon sun. There's something about its familiar glow that almost demands casual drinks – whether it's cracking open a cold beer after a day out, heading to the pub after a long day of work, or deciding on a whim that your backyard is perfect for having friends over. We love summer afternoons, so we've spoken to a few of our favourite chefs, musicians and artists, to get their insights on creating the perfect balmy afternoon. And what's better than a barbecue? For advice, we asked the boys from Three Blue Ducks. Mark LaBrooy specifically — he's one of the co-founders of the restaurant-cafe hybrid that was born in Bronte but ended up being so popular it expanded to Byron Bay and, most recently, Rosebery. He and the team at Three Blue Ducks have made working with barbecue flames and smoke a priority at their venues. At their Rosebery location, there's a barbecue, a wood-fired oven and an outdoor charcoal pit. They're experts in barbecue. And more than that, they're experts in taking the standard barbecue fare you usually whip up to the next level, and LaBrooy has shared some tips so you can do the same. He's also given us some recipes, for a burrata salad, a seafood prawns main, and a charred pineapple dessert. "They're all about spring and summer flavours," he says. "Inspired by warm weather and catching up with friends." The burrata salad is a green (but hearty) vegetarian option for your barbecue friends who don't eat meat, while the prawn dish is "light, and great for entertaining because it's not rocket science to prepare". The pineapple recipe is LaBrooy wanting you to try something a little different by charring your fruit. "People should experiment more with fruit on the barbecue, vegetables too," he says. He says the first thing to think about when you're cooking is that produce is key to a good barbecue. He suggests going elsewhere than the supermarket to grab your ingredients. "Go to a real butcher, not a supermarket. Go to the fish markets to get your prawns, and a local organic growers market for your fruits and vegetables." Let the ingredients lead you — if the produce is good, just put it on the barbie and see what happens. "Like a whole bunch of Dutch carrots or something, just give them a wash, put on some good quality olive oil, salt and pepper and char it up. Don't be shy — the hotter the better." "Barbecuing is the cooking technique that fits in best with us," he says. "It's connected to the environment and there's something really intimate about using the fire — it's inconsistent, there's a real element of maintenance and care in the cooking process." When finished, all three dishes will look incredible, but don't get too caught up with perfection when you're hosting a barbecue. Part of the fun is that barbecue-ing isn't always pretty. "It's a bit ugly and charred," he says. "You can get those really aggressive, black tones in the appearance and colouration of your cooking." Follow these three recipes and transform your afternoon barbecue into one that's worthy of being on the menu at Three Blue Ducks. BURRATA WITH CHARRED ZUCCHINI AND SPRING ONIONS Ingredients: 4 pieces of burrata (about 100 grams each) ¼ bunch parsley ¼ bunch basil 1 clove garlic 100ml virgin olive oil 1 tsp Dijon mustard 1 lemon zest and juice salt and pepper 1 bunch spring onion 3 zucchini cut in ¼ 100g toasted hazelnuts roughly chopped Method: Make a nice coal fire on the grill side of your barbecue. Char off the zucchini and the spring onions after giving them a good season and a splash of olive oil. When the zucchini and spring onions get some good colour, take them off the heat and start plating up. Take a food processor and place the herbs, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, zest and Dijon inside. Give it a good whizz until a bright green paste forms. Season well and set aside. Take a plate or bowl and arrange the zucchini and spring onions around the outside, making a well for your burrata to sit in. Flick in a few teaspoons of the herb puree, place the burrata in the centre and sprinkle over some hazelnuts. Season the burrata and drizzle a bit of olive oil if you feel you need it. Squeeze a bit of extra lemon juice over everything to finish off. CONFIT GARLIC AND CHILLI BBQ PRAWNS WITH BUTTERMILK AVOCADO AND RADICCHIO Ingredients: 1 bulb garlic peeled 3 long red chillies deseeded 1 cup olive oil 16 large king prawns cleaned and butterflied 3 avocados 1 lemon juice and zest 2 tablespoons olive oil 100ml buttermilk 1 large radicchio with the outer leaves pulled off and cut in ¼ Salt and pepper Method: Take the chillies and garlic and place in a small saucepan. Add the cup of olive oil and cover with foil. Bake at 160-degrees for 1-30 mins, then place in a food processor and give it a whizz. Using a pastry brush baste the prawns just before grilling on the barbecue. Take your food processor and add the avocado, olive oil, lemon juice and zest and the buttermilk, give it a whizz and set aside for when your plating up. Grill your prawns and radicchio on super high heat, season well and brush with olive oil. This should only take a few minutes. Give a good whack of buttermilk avo purée. CHARRED PINEAPPLE WITH CASHEWS, THAI BASIL AND LEMONGRASS GRANITA Ingredients: 1 pineapple skinned and cut into quarters 1 tablespoon brown sugar For the granita: 350ml water 180g sugar 3 stalks lemongrass, roughly chopped 2 chillies roughly chopped 80g ginger roughly chopped 100ml lemon juice 100g yogurt 1 vanilla bean scraped and deseeded ¼ bunch Thai basil 80g toasted and salted cashews Method: The granita needs to be made the day before and set in the freezer over night. To serve all you have to do is scrape it with a fork or give it a quick whizz in a food processor. Make sure you put the bowl in the freezer first so you don't melt the granita too much. Take a medium sized pot and add the sugar, lemongrass, chilli, and water. Bring to the boil and then set aside and let it cool down on the bench, then strain and add the lemon juice, and put in the freezer to set overnight. Sprinkle the pineapple with brown sugar and place on the grill on high heat. You're looking to get some good colour and charring on the pineapple, cooking it at the same time. Cut into chunks and set aside. Take a small bowl and add the yogurt and the vanilla give it a good mix. To plate up, arrange the pineapple on the base of the plate and a few dollops of the vanilla yogurt. Take a large spoon of granita and place in the centre, then sprinkle with cashews and Thai basil. Images: Kimberley Low.
Ah vino. Best paired with a fine cheese or a hearty meal, or enjoyed around the fireplace with your oh-so-classy friends. Or at least, that's how it works in your mind. In reality, we're more likely to be inhaling a $6 vintage straight from the goon sack, or using the discarded bottle as a microphone in our solo rendition of 'All By Myself' – all before stumbling woozily off to bed. Hopefully your experience lies somewhere in the middle of those two scenarios. But the reality is that, for every bona fide sommelier out there, a large portion of the rest of us are more likely to pick our poison based on the price and how nice the label looks, as opposed to things like acidity, provenance or bouquet. And something about tannins. Those are a thing, right? Embracing this fact, VinePair co-founder Adam Teeter (which is an excellent surname for a wine buff, by the way) has teamed up with illustrator Jeff Licciardo to produce 26 hypothetical wine labels that better reflect the average wine drinker's true experience. Forget about drinking to forget: these vintages know you better than you know yourself, offering everything from handy pairing suggestions ("drink me with post-break-up anger and takeaway") to positive affirmations ("yes, you're definitely on key") to nuggets of brutal honesty ("you're turning into your mother"). Look, somebody needed to tell you. At least this way you can get drunk immediately after hearing it. For more honest wine labels, visit VinePair. Via BuzzFeed.
The world is a very strange place. While you might think your love of fried chicken reigns supreme or that you can scoff M&Ms like no one else, there are people out there who take this food obsession to the next level and erect shrines to honour the One True Foodstuff. Recently, New York opened the sensory-focused Museum of Food and Drink, where you can taste the exhibits. But there are more specific foodie shrines for you to sample. Whether you worship at the altar of the noodle or at the temple of ice cream, there is a motherland somewhere for you to pilgrimage. Come with us now on a bizarre journey to the best and strangest food museums from around the world. IDAHO POTATO MUSEUM The potato may be the subject of much internet derision and meme-ification, but it is a staple in some of the tastiest foods of all time, including — but certainly not limited to — fries, potato chips, mash, rosti, wedges, potato skins, potato gratin, poutine and baked spuds. All hail the mighty potato. And where better to celebrate the potato than the potato state? Idaho is home to a very Napoleon Dynamite-esque potato museum, which features a potato hall of fame and a giant potato statue that would even leave Australia, the land of big things, suitably impressed. The gift shop sells potato sack dresses among some of the dorkiest merchandise we've ever seen, which actually seems befitting of the potato aesthetic. Idaho Potato Museum, 130 Northwest Main Street, Blackfoot, Idaho, USA. RAMEN MUSEUM Ramen is a universal divider, no matter where you're from. In Japan, people pledge allegiance to their regional ramen the way we pledge allegiance to our sports teams. While history thinks that ramen may have originated in China, Japan has adopted the dish so completely, it doesn't even know it's adopted. So it makes sense that Tokyo hosts the Shin-Yokohama Raumen Museum, which they describe as the world's first food-themed amusement park. The park is made to look like a '50s Japanese street straight out of a Studio Ghibli film, and goes into the extensive history of ramen — that is, the breakdown of ingredients, toppings and broths, and the regional variations. And you'll be pleased to know that once you've nailed the theory of ramen, you can try steamy taster bowls from eight different regional stalls. Shin-Yokohama Raumen Museum, 2-14-21 Shinyokohama, Kohoku-ku, Yokohama-City, Japan. INSTANT RAMEN MUSEUM And of course, because Japan has a ramen museum, it must also have an instant ramen museum. Instant ramen is, after all, the lifeblood behind historically important struggling artists and students. Momofuku Ando is the genius behind our favourite just-add-water lunch option, which he invented in 1958 after spending a solitary year spent working on just four hours sleep a night. While the ramen museum is traditional in every way, the instant ramen museum is contemporary and clean. It features a CUPNOODLES park for children, a chicken ramen factory where you can invent and make your own instant noodles by hand, and an Instant Noodles History Cube (we could not say exactly what a history cube is, but that's all part of the fun). Momofuku Ando Instant Ramen Museum, 2-3-4 Shinko, Naka-ku, Yokohama, Japan. ICE CREAM CITY After you've checked out all the ramen museums, head to Ice Cream City, also in Japan. Ice Cream City and its Cup Ice Museum can be found in 'Namja Town', a theme park housed inside the Sunshine City shopping complex in Tokyo's Toshima area. Yes, it's all very confusing, but a 500 yen ticket will grant you access to all the bizarre food areas of Namja Town. Ice Cream Town has a smorgasbord of bizarre ice cream flavours to sample — some you would never have imagined in your wildest dreams. Think corn, chicken wing, powered pearl, squid, cheese risotto, sake, silk, charcoal, salt and soybean. You know it's worth a visit. Namja Town, Sunshine City World Import Mart, Toshima, Ikebukuro, Japan. Image: istolethetv via Flickr. CURRYWURST MUSEUM It should shock no-one that Germany has a currywurst museum in Berlin — or that the mascot is a terrifying, anthropomorphic sausage man with a maniacal smile. This kind of lunacy is completely expected of the sausage-lovin' European country, along with sausage-shaped couches and currywurst-themed dress up competitions. The currywurst is a delicious fast food treat that's not easy to get your hands on outside of Germany, unless you head to speciality restaurant. Simply, it's a fried pork sausage served with curry ketchup and topped with curry powder. And obviously, it's delicious. Plus, it pairs well with German beer and is totally worthy of having an entire museum (with merchandising) dedicated to it. Currywurst Museum, Schützenstraße 70, 10117, Berlin, Germany. MCDONALD'S #1 STORE MUSEUM Unfortunately, the first McDonald's restaurant was demolished because short-sighted Americans didn't appreciate the longevity of the Big Mac. But if your love for the golden arches goes beyond McLovin' a greasy wad of 'food' after a bender, there are many famous installations in America for worshipping Ronald the terrifying clown. There's the oldest operating McDonald's in Downey, California (it's been running since 1953), the rock and roll McDonald's in Chicago, or the McDonald's #1 Store Museum in Des Plaines, Illinois. The latter chronicles the history of Mickey Dee's through its early days — and yes, don't worry, there is a fully operational McDonald's across the road to complete the experience. McDonald's #1 Store Museum, 400 N. Lee Street, Des Plaines, Illinois, USA. JELL-O MUSEUM Jell-O is so much more than the worst dessert served on an airplane, or an erotic lubricant for wrestling. You might not know or care, but Jello-O has a long history as America's most famous dessert. The Jell-O Gallery in New York (the state, not the city) has chronicled this rich history in their museum. They also share some questionable Jell-O based wartime recipes such as olive relish: a lime Jell-O, olives, pickles, celery and vinegar concoction to fortify gallant American infantrymen against the Axis Powers. The Jell-O Gallery is quaint and also offers some of the most legitimately post-ironic cool Jell-O themed merchandise we've ever seen. Jell-O Gallery, 23 E Main St, Le Roy, New York, USA. KIMCHI FIELD MUSEUM The Kimchi Field Museum first opened in Seoul 1986 as South Korea's only food museum at the time — a testament to the nation's love of the fermented vegetable dish. The museum offers up valuable insight into not only the history of kimchi, but also its significance to South Korean culture. There's also kimchi-making courses that vary in complexity and cost (between $18-$65), and you get to take the kimchi home. Score. Kimchi Field Museum, 35-4 Insadong-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea. Image: ecodallaluna via Flickr. FRIETMUSEUM Frites is the OG name for the most universally successful of all the deep fried delights: the french fry (or, as we say in the Antipodes, hot chips). But did you know that frites are the national food of Belgium? Or that they originated in Peru ten thousand years ago? These facts, life-sized serves of chippies and many fry-related puns (including the 'eye on the fries' gift shop) await you at the Frietmuseum in Bruges, as well as actual, edible fries. So, until you head to Bruges and try the originals, you can't claim that Maccas make the best chips. At least, not with a clear conscience. Frietmuseum, Vlamingstraat 33, 8000, Bruges, Belgium. Top image: Guilhem Vellut via Flickr.
Anyone who takes it upon themselves to 'make coffee for the city that loves to drink it' is setting themselves up for a challenge. But it's come as a walk in the park for Market Lane Coffee, which has established an enviable presence in Melbourne and, with it, has reeducated the public about what an excellent cup of coffee truly looks like. Since 2009, the self-professed bad multi-taskers behind the helm of this specialty coffee roastery have spread themselves across the city with an arsenal based on creating an obscenely good product. Originating out of a humble lane at Prahran Market — the roastery's flagship store — this dynasty now includes northside outposts at Therry Lane in the CBD, Faraday Street, Carlton and the Dairy Produce Hall at Queen Victoria Market. The Market Lane philosophy is all about high-quality coffee. Simple as that. Careful roasting, attentive brewing and having the right tools at hand shine brightly, with the roastery only serving seasonal blends. It shows — find yourself with a cup, and, before you realise you're doing it, you'll be contemplating the origins in hand. Such emphasis on coffee means that you'll find only basic food accompaniments upon visiting, but with serious coffee accoutrements littering each location, your attention will be taken to starting your own little brewing station at home. Best of all, knowledgeable, passionate staff make for an approachable discovery, whether you're an expert or a beginner. Our hot tip: visit the Faraday Street outpost and grab yourself a loaf of bread and cheeky pastry from Baker D. Chirico, right next door, while you're at it. Right down to the minimal, sleek fit-outs by Hearth Studio, this experience is seamless. Whether you're a purist or a no-frills drinker, Market Lane's philosophy is likely to excite or perhaps even alienate. Whatever your opinion, though, these guys make no apologies: it's all about the coffee. Appears in: Where to Find the Best Coffee in Melbourne
Melburnians rejoice! Our time has come to put on our red shoes and dance the blues. David Bowie Is, the most talked about exhibition all year, has graced us with its almighty presence. Now you can all stop complaining that you only just missed it when it was in London, and get to ACMI ASAP. The exhibition features a whole heap of Bowie-related items, including costumes, sets, lyrics, album artwork, rare footage and obviously, music. Really, you had us at 'Bowie Exhibition'. You could charge $20 to come and view just one sequinned shoulder pad, and we’d still be running one-another down to get to the entrance. But before you rush too quickly out the door, you might want to prepare yourself for the onslaught of aggressively competitive Bowie fanatics who'll be lining up and no doubt loudly exclaiming various facts and quotes to out-Bowie each other. You know, the kind who will be all, "That’s not even David’s correct blood type..." So to help you stand your ground, we've put together this list of pointers. Consider this your David Bowie homework. WATCH (OR REWATCH) LABYRINTH First and foremost, rewatch Labyrinth. Or, at the very least, get your fix through one of the greatest, most terrifying moments from everyone’s childhood that is the clip above. Bask in the glory of Bowie as he dances around with a large swarm of tiny alcoholic goblin puppets. It truly is something to behold. Extra fun fact: Toby Frouder, the actor who, as a baby, quite convincingly played the baby in Labyrinth, is now a puppeteer himself. A goblin puppeteer, in fact. It's true and it's amazing. HAVE SOME BOWIE MERCHANDISE TO FLASH Drunkenly purchase yourself some Bowie merchandise in the wee hours of the morning. Not speaking from experience at all, but when your new Aladdin Sane queen-size bed set arrives in the mail, you'll thank your past boozed-out self. Take a snap on your phone and set it as your background so when you waltz around the exhibit, you can be like "lol, I’m sleeping with Bowie tonight lol lol." Everyone will love you for it and think you are hilarious and original. They will. BRUSH UP ON YOUR BOWIE CAMEOS Remember that time Bowie starred as Pontius Pilate alongside Willem Dafoe’s Jesus in The Last Temptation of Christ? Yeah. That happened. Well, just in case someone quizzes you on that, you can memorise the full scene from here (but don’t, because it’s not great.) In fact, Bowie has a habit of popping up in unexpected places, everywhere from Zoolander to Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwdORJVw3-o[/embed] GET THE LIVE(ISH) EXPERIENCE There’s a million videos of Davey B killing it on stage, but our personal favourite is this performance of ‘Under Pressure’ featuring Annie Lennox at the Freddie Mercury tribute concert in 1992. Unfortunately Bowie and Mercury never performed the song together live (can you actually imagine how incredible that performance would have been?), but it’s fair to say Lennox did a pretty phenomenal job. The dress, the three-piece green suit, the long loving embrace. It’s all too much. MEMORISE AT LEAST ONE BIT OF OBSCURE BOWIE TRIVIA When he was 13, Bowie was punched by his mate George Underwood over some mix-up with a girl (cuuute), and was left with a permanently dilated pupil. This story is relatively well-known and won’t earn you any Bow-n-ie points amongst aficionados. But what you may not know is that Underwood continued being one of Bowie’s best mates. Not only that, he's responsible for two of Bowie’s album covers, in Hunky Dory and The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars. This proves that Bowie's a forgiving gentleman and all-round top bloke, just like we always knew he was. David Bowie Is will be at ACMI until November 1. See the full program of exhibition-related events at www.acmi.net.au/bowie. Top image: Masayoshi Sukita, The David Bowie Archive.
Pinot Noir by crackling fireplaces, misty mountaintops and landscaped gardens that look straight out of Downton Abbey — Bowral is your go-to weekender when you don't have the time or cash for a mid-year trip to Europe. You'll find the 12,000-person town an easy, 90-minute drive southwest of Sydney, among the string of villages known as the Southern Highlands. Spend your stay cosying up in a 19th century hotel room staring at rolling hillsides, or get out and about, tasting wines, visiting waterfalls and feasting at hatted restaurants. However you play it, here are our tips for a couple of days in Bowral. [caption id="attachment_580846" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Bendooley Vineyards.[/caption] EAT AND DRINK Let's get coffee out of the way first. One of the best caffeine-hits in town is at boutique roastery Rush. Go for the house blend or take your pick of a single origin from Brazil, Sumatra or Nicaragua. Alternatively, slip into pint-sized Flour Water Salt and match your coffee with a freshly-baked, organic-flour pastry. This mini-chain is a big hit with people south of Sydney and now has three outlets — in Bowral, Milton and Kiama. Their trick, as the name suggests, is to keep things simple. Come lunch, hide away from the main street in the quiet, leafy courtyard of The Red Tree Café. Here, the agenda is classics with tasty twists. Setting yourself up for an action-packed day? Dig into the Big Red Tree Breakfast: free-range eggs, roasted tomato, mushrooms, pancetta, chipolatas and potato rosti on organic sourdough. [caption id="attachment_580847" align="alignnone" width="1280"] @biotadining.[/caption] Another option is to jump in the car and make tracks to Bendooley Estate. Not only will you land yourself a fireplace and idyllic farmlands with your meal, you're also in for a read. Bendooley is home to the Berkelouw Book Barn — Berkelouw's official headquarters — so tables are interspersed with shelves of beautifully-kept, second-hand titles. Also worth a drive is McVitty Grove, a restaurant set on an acreage, just 20 minutes from Bowral, with an emphasis on sustainability and local produce. Tuck into the chef's own beef sliders or the organic Portuguese chicken with Dauphinoise potatoes and roasted tomato. Up for a fancier adventure? Reserve a table at Biota Dining. Chef James Vile's two-hatted restaurant is another champion of eco-friendly eating. Should time be on your side, settle into a tasting menu. Otherwise, there are loads of seasonally-driven, al carte choices. And do say yes to a cocktail based on handcrafted botanicals, like the 'Autumn Leaves' (jammy persimmon, cinnamon, calvados and citrus). If you're not able to commit to a meal, you're welcome to stick to drinks and snacks in the bar (which is where you'll find the fire). [caption id="attachment_580850" align="alignnone" width="1483"] Eling Forest Estate.[/caption] DO Although we did give you permission to do absolutely nothing, we recommend a bit of an adventure. Winos should be sure to hop on the Southern Highlands wine trail. For the most part, the region is 600 metres above sea level, so cool climate varieties, like Pinot Noir and Riesling, fare well. At Tertini (one of NSW's best cellar doors), you'll be sampling a consistently excellent bunch of small-batch, boutique, multi-award winning drops. And, if you like to know your wine habit isn't killing the environment, swing by Eling Forest Estate, where the Tractorless Vineyard wines are made biodynamically. A Hampshire Down sheep breed, imported from England, takes the place of machines and pesticides, by eating the weeds around the grape vines. [caption id="attachment_580788" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Bjenks[/caption] With a bottle or three under your arm, it could well be time for a waterfall-side picnic. The area's three biggest falls are Fitzroy, Belmore and Carrington, and visiting all of them makes for a fun, circular road trip. If you're keen to combine your falls with a walk, conquer the steep, two-kilometre Erith Coal Mine track in Morton National Park, which combines a disused coalmine with cascades you can stand under. Epic views of Bowral and Mittagong are on offer at the Mount Gibraltar Reserve. At 863 metres, it's the highest point between Sydney and Canberra, and there are three lookouts, each giving you unique perspectives: Bowral, Mittagong and Jellore. In need of an art fix? In the vast spaces of The Milk Factory, you'll find changing contemporary exhibitions, as well as a cute gallery shop, selling resin jewellery and blown glass. And, within the Springetts Arcade, is Ten Thousand Paces, a self-described 'hybrid shop, gallery, art projects and regional wine hub'. [caption id="attachment_580795" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Airbnb.[/caption] STAY There aren't many places in this world where you can rent out an entire 19th century former coach house, but Bowral is one of them. And you'll find it on Airbnb (where else?). This six-bedroom Italianate mansion, which was once a home for some wealthy estate owner's coachman and horses, sleeps up to 13 people, and is situated on Bowral's outskirts — within walking distance of both town and wild places. Not travelling with a big party? Leaving your Clydesdales at home? A cosier option is the Woodland Retreat Guest Studio, also an Airbnb offering. Splashed with art and run by two warm, friendly locals, it sleeps up to four and a locally-sourced breakfast is included. [caption id="attachment_580853" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Milton Park.[/caption] If you're in the market for a hotel, there's Peppers Craigieburn. For those not planning on going anywhere, there are plenty of rooms with views of the 36-hectare surrounding garden, as well as guest lounges with open fires, a billiards room, tennis courts, a restaurant and an onsite spa. Yep, pretty much everything you need to stay put. Another lush, albeit pricier option, is the Milton Park Country House and Spa. Here, you'll be lolling about in five-star decadence on the property's tucked away, forest-covered hilltop. Just how luxe you go is your call. There are rooms overlooking gardens and fountains, and suites with their very own fireplaces and jacuzzis. Meanwhile, among the grounds, you'll stumble across a heated indoor pool, floodlit tennis courts and a wellness spa. Should you ever have wondered what it's like to be an English duke or duchess, this is your chance to experiment. Top image: Bendooley Vineyards.
Looking for a pet-friendly apartment? A new Melbourne high-rise will do you one better. Opening at 5 Elgar Court in Doncaster next year, GardenHill Apartments will become the first residential apartment block in the country with its own private off-leash dog park. Construction on the 11-storey building is set to begin in September, but if you and your four-legged friend are interested, you might want to get in quick. 80 percent of the 136 one- and two- bedroom apartments have already been snapped up, at a cost of between $380,000 and $745,000. The dog park will be located on the ground floor, enclosed by secure fencing, and will include seating, a drink station and a clean-up station. Development director Adelene Teh told Domain, "By offering our Gardenhill residents a designated place they can take their dogs for exercise, socialisation or even mental stimulation, we're encouraging responsible pet ownership and, hopefully, paving the way for other developers to follow suit." Teh also confirmed that the dog park had been a drawcard with purchasers. A number of apartment blocks in the United States already boast on-site dog parks — and it's easy to see why the concept would be popular with tenants. Dogs and small apartments aren't exactly natural bedfellows, which can be a real bummer for animal lovers. Sure, you could get a goldfish, but they just don't offer the same level of affection. And don't get me started on cats. Via Domain.
From the team behind A Minor Place, Wide Open Road on Brunswick's Barkly Street offers much more than the unassuming shop front suggests. With the subtle signage and brick finish, the place comes to life as soon as you enter the door. Wide Open Road certainly has space on its side. With a large bar area, white-painted brick walls, big communal tables and spacious thoroughfares, you won't feel like your neighbour is staring down at your breakfast. Designed by Nicky Adams, it keeps the minimalist vibe inside. On top of the cafe space, Wide Open Road has its own roastery, cupping room and green bean storage. While it focuses on creating beautiful roasts for its own cafe, it also sells retail to the general public and a handful of wholesale customers. It uses its Bathysphere blend as the everyday pour with single origin, drip, filter and iced varieties on offer. Coffee is a serious business, and it does it incredibly well. When it comes to the food menu, the venue puts its own stamp on popular brunch fare. Sugar seekers should go for the croissant french toast with cinnamon butter, stewed rhubarb, vanilla mascarpone, pecan crumble and cardamom maple, or perhaps the house banana bread. For something on the heartier side, go for the portobello mushrooms with garlic and herb butter, pine nuts, parmigiano reggiano and chargrilled sourdough, or the fried haloumi toastie with beetroot relish, avocado and pickled sumac onions. With coffee, breakfast and lunch sorted, Wide Open Road is a caffeinated oasis in suburban Brunswick. Appears in: Where to Find the Best Coffee in Melbourne
Remember when Big Poppa's head chef Liam O' Driscoll cooked us up a feast of epic proportions? We sure do. To celebrate the launch of the KitchenAid Mini in Australia, we created a Mini Dinners video series and asked two of our favourite chefs to throw a dinner party and cook up three courses of their favourite food. Obviously, O'Driscoll stayed true to his Big Poppa's menu and cooked three courses of simple, rustic Italian food. He's given us his recipes so you can recreate the dishes at home. The Big Poppa's food philosophy is all about using fresh, local produce and letting it speak for itself. You're not allowed to do anything fancy, because if the produce is great to begin with you won't need to. Make sure everything you cook with is of the highest quality. If you've sat down and dined at Big Poppa's upstairs restaurant you'll know this is a big deal. Treat these recipes with respect. HAND CUT TAGLIATELLE WITH GLOBE ARTICHOKE, PARMIGIANO-REGGIANO, PANGRATTATO AND SALMORIGLIO INGREDIENTS PASTA 500g '00' flour or plain flour plus a little extra for rolling 3 whole eggs 4 egg yolks 20ml olive oil pinch of salt ARTICHOKES 8 artichokes 2 lemons 2 cloves garlic sprig thyme PANGRATTATO 2 cup of home made bread crumbs (made from day old white ciabatta or sourdough) 2 cloves garlic finely chopped 1/2 bunch of parsley chopped 2 lemons zested SALMORIGLIO 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 3 sprigs rosemary chopped 1/2 bunch oregano chopped 1/2 bunch flat leaf parsley chopped 1 teaspoon salt zest of 1 lemon 2 garlic cloves, minced dash of freshly ground black pepper METHOD PASTA Place all ingredients into the bowl of the KitchenAid Mini with the dough hook attachment and mix on speed setting 4 for around 4 minutes, or until dough starts to form a ball Remove dough to a lightly floured bench and knead until dough comes together and has a uniform consistency (the dough should spring back a little if pressed with thumb) Wrap tight in cling film and place in fridge for 30 min Remove from fridge and rest dough for 20 min Unwrap dough a cut into 4 pieces On a lightly floured bench roll each piece out with rolling pin Take 1 piece of rolled out dough and feed through the KitchenAid Mini pasta rolling attachment on setting 10, continue to feed dough through roller decreasing the setting 1 mark at a time, until you reach the 0 setting, Lightly dust finished pasta sheet at set aside Repeat process till all sheets are rolled out. Stack sheets on top of each other and slice with a sharp knife into 2cm strips Set cut pasta aside covered with tea towel until ready to cook ARTICHOKES Snap back tough outer leaves until you begin to expose the pale yellow ones. Trim top off and pare down the leaves which cover the base of the heart and trim stem down till the pale yellow is showing Cut Artichokes in half lengthways and with a spoon scoop out the choke and place artichokes in water mixed with a small amount of vinegar or lemon juice to stop oxidisation In a large pot of cold water place the lemons that have been cut in half, garlic, thyme and artichokes, simmer until the base of the artichokes can easily be pieced with knife Strain and set aside, when cooled slice each half in two PANGRATTATO Bring 1/2 cup oil to medium heat in heavy based frypan, add bread crumbs and toast a light golden colour. At this stage add garlic, lemon zest and parsley, and continue to toast until golden brown Remove pangrattato from pan using a slotted spoon on to a baking try lined with paper towel, and let drain of excess oil and cool SALMORIGLIO Place all ingredients in the KitchenAid Mini food processor attachment and blitz BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHER Bring large pot of salted water to the boil and add pasta, cook for 2 min, add artichokes to water with pasta and cook for a further minute, strain and place in large mixing bowl with the salmoriglio, season with salt and pepper and mix Divide between 4-6 bowls and grate parmigiano-reggiano over each portion Top with pangrattato FLAT IRON STEAK TAGLIATA WITH CONFIT GARLIC BUTTER, TREVISO AND POTATO AL FORNO INGREDIENTS 1 kg flat iron steak, if unavailable flank or thick skirt can be substituted 1.5 kg waxy potatoes 2 heads of treviso or radicchio 3 sprigs rosemary 2 lemons 250g unsalted butter 1 head garlic 1 cup veg oil 1/4 cup chopped parsley salt pepper good quality Australian extra virgin olive oil METHOD BUTTER Place peeled garlic cloves in small pot with vegetable oil and heat at a low temperature until garlic is soft and starting to caramelise. Strain garlic and let cool In the KitchenAid Mini beat butter with paddle attachment and some salt until soft and pale in colour, add garlic and and parsley and mix until combined Take a sheet of foil and place a sheet of baking paper over this, spoon butter onto paper and then roll into a log twisting both ends until tight and butter feels firm Place butter log in fridge or freezer until firm Remove from fridge, unwrap and cut into 2cm wheels THE REST With are sharp knife thinly slice the potatoes into rounds and place slices overlapping each other into an oiled, deep, heavy based ceramic or glass baking dish. Drizzle with oil and season with salt and pepper and add water but do not cover potatoes with liquid Bake in oven at 200 celsius for 30 min Add rosemary leaves and continue to bake for a further 15min or until potatoes are cooked and golden brown Slice treviso lengthways into quarters and place on baking tray, drizzle with oil and season wit salt and pepper, roast for 10-15 min Season steak and bring a non-stick frypan up to smoking with a little oil, cook steak for approx 3-4 minutes on each side till a nice crust forms Remove steak and rest for 3min before slicing across the grain and serving on plate or board with butter crumbled on top and lemons cheeks, and treviso on side TORRONE SEMIFREDDO WITH DOLCE LATTE INGREDIENTS 2 cups heavy cream 1/4 cup good quality honey 225g hard hazelnut or almond torrone, finely chopped (Torrone is an Italian nougat made with honey, egg whites, sugar and nuts) 1 can of sweetened condensed milk METHOD In a deep pot place the can of condensed milk, cover the can with water and bring to a steady simmer for 3-4 hours. (Be sure to keep an eye on water level and top up pot to avoid water level dropping below the top of the can. The cans may explode if not fully submerged). After 3-4 hours remove can with tongs and set aside In a large bowl, whip the cream with the honey until firm. Fold in the chopped torrone. Transfer the mixture to a large, deep plastic container and press a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface. Freeze until firm. Spoon semifreddo into bowls and open the can of condensed milk. Thanks to science it will have magically transformed into delicious caramel. Spoon caramel over semifreddo and enjoy Images: Samantha Hawker and Bodhi Liggett.
Melbourne-based artist Adnate was just a kid when his obsession with graffiti took over. "I had my first tag when I was eight years old," he says. "So, it's something I've always been into." Since then, his obsession has grown into a full-time occupation. He spends his days on the road, painting mural after mural around Australia and overseas, and has become famous for his enormous, realistic portraits, which are influenced by the great Renaissance artists, like Caravaggio. Just outside Sydney's Chinese Gardens, on Harbour and Goulburn Streets, you'll find his epic impression of Jenny Munro, who founded Redfern's Aboriginal Tent Embassy. In partnership with Sonos, we visited Adnate's colourful North Melbourne studio to find out a little more about his work. Explore the multi-room space where he finds inspiration and gets in the zone by playing his music loud and clear. GRAFFITI, STREET ART, WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE? "Once I was a teenager and started visiting friend's houses, I saw the huge amount of amazing work being done on Melbourne's train lines, especially the Hurstbridge line. I discovered people like WCA [Wild Child Artists]," he said. Ten years of feverish graffiti art followed, until Adnate reached a point where "he wasn't feeling stimulated anymore". So, he thought he'd try his hand at portraiture. As it turned out, it wasn't as far removed from graffiti as you might think. "With lettering, you try and put a lot of expression, style and subconscious emotions into what you do. It wasn't too hard to transition to portraiture because, in some ways, it's easier to put expression into a face than into letters." In 2012, he painted his first Indigenous portrait in Fitzroy. And the public reaction was a "big turning point". "I wasn't sure about it, but as soon as I painted it, it created a massive dialogue," Adnate says. "I started seeing it on the Internet, people were coming down and taking photos, and it was creating excitement and pride in Indigenous communities in Victoria. It was then I realised I'd done something really powerful." ON PAINTING INDIGENOUS CULTURE RESPECTFULLY Today, you'll find Adnate's portraits as far afield as the Frog Hollow in the East Kimberley, Singapore and New York City. Among his subjects have been Adam Goodes and the 14th Dalai Lama. "Every year, I have more incredible experiences, make stronger connections and travel to more amazing places. Half the fun of my work is getting to meet the people I paint … It has been a really powerful journey and I feel very much inspired by it." Along the way, Adnate is learning more and more about Indigenous history and culture. "You don't learn much at school, so when I started out, I didn't have much knowledge … I met a cultural advisor in Melbourne, Kimba Thompson, and she quickly and strongly told me what was right and wrong … It's important to be culturally sensitive, follow protocols and be respectful to local communities. Many people think that Indigenous culture is very similar – from Melbourne to the Top End – but it's massively different. We're talking about a distance that's as far as from Spain to Germany." THE MUSIC THAT INSPIRES HIM Right now, Adnate is in Dubbo, working on a 15-metre by 8-metre high mural. Even though he works both outdoors and indoors, he has long favoured painting in the streets, with the sun on his back and music blaring in his ears. "I can't paint without music," he says. "It puts me in the zone — in a meditative state — and helps me block out everything else. My music tastes are very eclectic. I grew up listening to all forms of electronic music and hip hop." At the moment, he's listening to Kiasmos, a minimal, experimental techno duo based in Iceland. When he's at home in his studio, music is even more important. His Sonos speakers tune themselves to the environment of his spacious studio, so whether he's painting in his garage or sitting at his desk doing admin, the sound is loud and clear. He plays his music loudly for inspiration — it's integral to his artistic work. WHEN HE'S OUTSIDE THE STUDIO Adnate's next stop is Townsville and then Tahiti. Even though he occasionally misses having "his own space", having spent just three weeks in Melbourne since June, he is living the dream. He said, "It's always been a great dream of mine, to travel and paint." And for anyone who aspires to the same, here's his advice. "Don't stop. Keep painting. Everything's worth doing – whether you're painting a chicken for a chicken shop or graffiti letters for yourself. Everything teaches you something different. Nothing's not going to benefit you, as long as you have a pencil or paint brush in your hand … Eventually, it all starts making sense, though, at the same time, it doesn't always make sense to me. I'm still learning." Get studio-level sound in your home with multi-room speakers by Sonos. You can walk from one room to another and hear the same song in perfect quality. Powered by wifi, easy to tune, controlled by the Sonos app — in two steps you're ready to go. Images: Olga Rozenbajgier.
It’s been 22 years since the first Jurassic Park movie aired, which — incidentally — is also how long it’s been since the last good Jurassic Park movie aired. Now, though, we’ve reason to be cautiously optimistic. Earlier today the second full trailer for Jurassic World landed in our news feeds and, after several repeat viewings, we see plenty to be hopeful about. CHRIS PRATT IS THE VELOCIWHISPERER When the first trailer dropped back in November of last year, the internet went into Dennis Nedry-like digital chaos over what looked like Chris Pratt’s character taming some velociraptors. It seemed like a pretty hokey idea, but Trailer #2 seems to have settled that concern somewhat, with his character, Owen Grady, explaining: “It’s not about control, it’s a relationship based on respect,” while he stands eye-to-eye with three of them. That, or he’s doing some extreme tai-chi. Either way, ‘respect’ is the key word here, because it means the raptors haven’t been reduced to domesticated turkeys; they could still kill him at any moment. THE NEW DINO IS A BLOCKBUSTERSAURUS We already knew the ‘villain' in Jurassic World was to be a genetically engineered dino of such scale it would make the T-Rex look like a pug, and now it has a face. Sporting the name ‘Indominus Rex’, it’s got the head of a dragon and the jaw span of a Steven Tyler. Our relief here stems from the fact that it looks entirely plausible. It’s a hybrid dinosaur in the sense that it’s got spliced DNA with other animals, not spliced DNA with lasers or a BMW for some tier 1 brand placement. INDOMINUS HAS A VERY PARTICULAR SET OF SKILLS Let’s start with the smarts. Indominus is crafty. Really crafty. If Jurassic Park’s gamekeeper Robert Muldoon saw Indominus, he'd say, well, nothing, because raptors tore his stomach open and ate him alive back in 1993. But he’d want us to say “clever girl”, because this manmade man-eater tore out his own subcutaneous electronic tracker so that the humans wouldn’t know where it was (aside from being able to spot a giant lizard in the middle of a theme park). The reason we like this is because it takes the franchise to a new place rather than sticking with ‘dinosaur big, dinosaur scary’. Bourne Legacy did the same thing three years ago, realising the only way to stay fresh was to find someone better than Bourne, not just different. NATURAL BORN KILLERS First there’s the smarts, then there’s the disposition, because it seems Indominus isn’t like other dinosaurs. As Grady explains in the trailer, other dinosaurs are thinking: “I’ve got to eat. I’ve got to hunt,” but Indominus, “she's killing for sport”. First the franchise ups the stakes, then it changes the game. What makes both Jaws and The Ghost and the Darkness such compelling tales isn't the ‘killer beast’ plot; it’s the fact that they’re creatures baring the uncomfortable human quality of killing for reasons other than survival. Killing for sport isn’t just unnatural, it’s evil. We can only presume Ricky Gervais is tracking down Indominus’s Twitter handle as we speak. LEMME HEAR YOU SAY GRRRRNNNNNRRRROOOOARRRRR Indominus, aka ‘the D-Rex’ can talk to the animals. Not in a 'Dr Doolittle meets Aaron Sorkin witty repartee' kind of way, but enough to get Pteranodons to help it out in killing tourists. We like this because it adds an alliance feel to the plot, almost as though sides are forming in a prehistoric battle. With the introduction of each new dinosaur, you’ll find yourself wondering: “And whose side are you on?" Jurassic World hits Australian cinemas on June 11, so get ready to hold onto your butts.
Every time you enter a darkened cinema to spend a few hours gazing at the silver screen, you pay tribute to French movies. More than a century ago, the European nation was at the forefront of the medium — its filmmakers are not only responsible for the oldest surviving film in existence, but also the 46-second piece considered the first true film ever made, as well as many influential early efforts. They're still helping shower audiences in movie delights today, of course, with Australia's Alliance Francaise French Film Festival providing an annual snapshot of just how busy and bustling the French film industry remains. When you're selling more than 212 million cinema tickets to eager audiences in a single a year, as the country did in 2016, you need plenty of great flicks to show them. As far as our slice of Gallic cinema in Australia is concerned, the numbers keep coming: reaching its 28th year, the 2017 festival will screen 45 films in nine different cities and towns, and will try to exceed its 168,000 admissions from its last outing. That all adds up to a great problem for a cinema lover to have: being spoiled for choice. Should you opt for watching many a French movie star? Exploring many an intriguing tale? Or try to combine both? Let us help steer you in the right direction with our ten must-see picks of the fest. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQ-y_3mquoc THE ODYSSEY When The Odyssey starts relating the tale of Jacques Cousteau, you can be forgiven for expecting to see Billy Murray's face, hear Brazilian versions of Bowie tracks and laugh at Wes Anderson's sense of humour. We all love The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, which comically paid homage to Cousteau — but, taking to the seas for a biopic of the famous French oceanographer, director Jérôme Salle favours a much more traditional approach. With Lambert Wilson playing the man in question and Audrey Tautou co-starring as his wife, expect more than a few waves to result as the film examines Cousteau's professional and personal lives. The Odyssey opens this year's Alliance Francaise French Film Festival with a splash, which is exactly how you want things to kick off. View sessions here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bu3OdZ8RJd4 BEING 17 It's okay if Being 17 sounds familiar — it has been doing the rounds of Australia's major film festivals over the past year. However, one of the great things about the AFFFF is the opportunity to catch up with movies you might've missed elsewhere. And, if you haven't put this vibrant coming-of-age flick in front of your eyeballs just yet, make sure you rectify the situation. The story itself makes a certain impact as it charts two teenage boys exploring their feelings for each other, then grappling with the uncertainty that follows, as told with sensitivity and insight by Girlhood director-turned-Being 17 screenwriter Céline Sciamma. View sessions here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAOVBV670XM DAGUERROTYPE Japanese director Kiyoshi Kurosawa is well known for dwelling in horror territory — in fact, his last movie screened at the Japanese Film Festival late last year. Here, he makes the jump to France to tell a Gothic ghost tale, enlisting the help of actors Tahar Rahim and Mathieu Amalric. At the centre of the film sits the titular form of photography, which involves capturing images on a silver surface, and requires those getting snapped to sit still for hours on end. The film moves similarly slowly; however, it doesn't take long for its Gothic charms to work their magic. View sessions here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnp0f9xoAfM IN BED WITH VICTORIA When it premiered at last year's Cannes Film Festival, In Bed With Victoria earned comparisons to Trainwreck. So if that's your kind of film, get excited. Yes, that means you should expect an account of a woman's quest for romantic success, relayed in both a frank and funny fashion. It also means you'll be falling for an engaging lead performance, with Up for Love's Virginie Efira more than handling the task of playing a Parisian lawyer and single mother trying to navigate the ups and downs of life, dating and finding happiness. View sessions here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5dh7UWbSZI IT'S ONLY THE END OF THE WORLD Prepare to question your life choices. In the last nine years, French-Canadian writer/director Xavier Dolan has made six films, five of which have screened at Cannes. He'll turn 28 this month, and he's currently working on his seventh effort, his English-language debut starring Kit Harington, Jessica Chastain, Natalie Portman, Thandie Newton, Kathy Bates, Susan Sarandon and Room's Jacob Tremblay. That's quite the accomplishment — and while his most recent movie, It's Only the End of the World, has received mixed reviews, there's still plenty of emotion-dripping French family drama and eye-catching visuals to enjoy. Gaspard Ulliel, Nathalie Baye, Léa Seydoux, Vincent Cassel and Marion Cotillard star, with the film taking out Cannes' 2016 Grand Jury Prize. View sessions here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H96Qxp-3ssc A JOURNEY THROUGH FRENCH CINEMA We've already told you that France and cinema go hand-in-hand, but there's no need to simply take our word for it. Trust the Alliance Francaise French Film Festival to screen just the movie that'll teach you everything you ever needed to know about French filmmaking, with veteran writer/director Bertrand Tavernier's A Journey Through French Cinema an informative and engaging guide. Be warned: because there's plenty to cover, you can expect to get comfy for more than three hours. And remember to clear your schedule for months afterwards, because you're going to want to spend every waking moment delving into as much French movie history as possible. View sessions here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmPTQdW79Tg PLANETARIUM With a title like Planetarium, writer/director Rebecca Zlotowski will have you thinking about stars — and seeing them as well. Expect to be dazzled not by the shining lights above or a place dedicated to them, but by the talents of Natalie Portman and Lily-Rose Depp (yes, Johnny's daughter). The two combine to bring a pair of American sisters to life on a stylish journey through pre-war Europe, complete with seances and other paranormal phenomena, as well as the process of bringing supernatural magic to the movies. View sessions here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elM9HxIlDnQ THINGS TO COME Come on, admit it: we were all hoping that Isabelle Huppert's name would be read out at the Oscars this year. Alas, there was no envelope mix-up in the best actress category. Elle wasn't the only astonishing performance that the French actress gave in 2016 though, with her work in Things to Come just as moving and revelatory. Under the affectionate direction of Eden's Mia Hansen-Løve, Huppert is once again at her best as a philosophy professor forced to reassess her life. And, if you can't get enough of all things Isabelle, she also pops up in fellow festival effort Souvenir. Double feature, anyone? View sessions here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRgjsnadqOA THE INNOCENTS Cinema has made a habit of following those in habits, pondering faith and exploring the space where religious beliefs and the realities of life meet. Add The Innocents to the contemplative pile, as a young French doctor visits a Benedictine convent to tackle the one scenario that's not supposed to happen: several pregnancies. Set at the end of the Second World War, Anne Fontaine's film proves all the more compelling by taking its tale from a true story. No wonder it got audiences talking when it screened at last year's Sundance, and no doubt it'll do the same again at the Alliance Francaise French Film Festival. View sessions here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=FWaf830692s TOMORROW After wowing audiences as one of film's most memorable cinema owners in Inglourious Basterds, Mélanie Laurent hasn't just continued to pop up on-screen — she has stepped behind the lens as well. In fact, the Alliance Francaise French Film Festival gifted Australian audiences with the chance to see her last fictional feature, Breathe, and they're coming through again. This time, Laurent turns documentarian with co-director Cyril Dion to dive into today's environmental issues, and just what they might mean for tomorrow. If that sounds powerful, it should. It also won the duo the Cesar award for best documentary at France's top film awards. View sessions here. The Alliance Française French Film Festival will visit Sydney from March 7 to 30; Melbourne from March 8 to 30, and Brisbane from March 16 to April 9.
Back in July, we told you about the opening of a booze-free bar in Auckland, whose owners hoped to tackle New Zealand's serious drinking obsession and simultaneously capitalise on council alcohol regulations that saw all city watering holes closed by 4am. It seemed like a nice idea in theory, but punters clearly didn't agree, and now just five weeks after opening, Tap Bar has shut its doors. Co-owner Grady Elliot admitted defeat to the New Zealand Herald, telling the paper, "We gave it a shot and Auckland drinking culture just didn’t tie in with the dry bar." Or, to put it another way, "No one showed up." Guys, this might be a reaaaaaal good time to start thinking about our relationship with alcohol. New Zealand's first and presumably last dry bar, Tap (briefly) served a mix of alcohol-free beer, wine and mocktails starting from around NZ$5. The absence of alcohol meant they could stay open all night, but according to Elliot, what few patrons they did get mostly stuck with the free water. The NZ$15 entry fee probably didn't help matters either. Perhaps the most depressing thing about this story is that Elliot was clearly well prepared for failure, and has already applied for a liquor licence for the location, which will reopen as a more traditional nightclub as soon as possible. Talk about sticking to your guns. On the plus side, now he'll be able to drink to forget about that pesky oversight. Meanwhile, the operators behind London's recently opened alcohol free bar Redemption are presumably rolling beer kegs in through the back door. Just in case. Via The New Zealand Herald. Image: Dollar Photo Club.
Imagine that you could spend an entire week or so at an overseas film festival. If time and money wasn't a concern, and you could put your everyday life on hold, which movie bonanza would you go to? Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Toronto: they're all good choices. If you're after new indie flicks, you're probably already thinking about packing your bags for Sundance. Of course, Robert Redford's annual Utah event isn't the only early-in-the-year American film festival worth dreaming about. Come March in Texas, there's another fest making movie buffs envious. Since 1987, South by Southwest has proven a launching pad for music and technology — and, from 1994, for indie flicks, too. On the film front, SXSW's 2016 program keeps the good stuff coming with 137 features, including 89 world premieres and 52 efforts by first-time filmmakers. Alas, here at Concrete Playground we're watching from afar between March 11 to 20, rather than hopping on a plane to Austin. To soothe our jealousy, we've put together a list of the ten films from SXSW we're hoping will come to Australia. If we can't go to them, fingers crossed that they can come to us. DON'T THINK TWICE If you saw Sleepwalk With Me back in 2012, you're probably a fan of Mike Birbiglia. The comedian's first directorial effort, based on his one-man off-Broadway show and accompanying book of the same name, offered a breezy but insightful look at the problems of relationships, careers and planning for the future. His next film effort sounds just as subtly charming, with an improv troupe at its centre. Birbiglia stars again, joined by Keegan-Michael Key and Gillian Jacobs, should you need any more reasons to get excited. COLLECTIVE:UNCONSCIOUS Five filmmakers. Five dreams. Five attempts by the former to make movies out of the latter. Cinema is often called dreamlike, but collective:unconscious takes that description to another level. In stories involving the Grim Reaper hosting a television show and a sports class taking place inside of a volcano, among others, the group of indie directors doesn't just bring their own nocturnal imaginings to their screen. Instead, Lily Baldwin, Frances Bodomo, Daniel Patrick Carbone, Josephine Decker and Lauren Wolkstein attempt to make movies out of each other's unconscious musings. BEWARE THE SLENDERMAN You might've heard of the Slenderman. The very thin, very tall creature started popping up online in 2009, and was rumoured to stalk, abduct and generally terrorise and terrify people, particularly children. Slenderman was actually the creation of an online forum user, who created the figure as part of a Photoshop contest. That didn't stop two 12-year-old girls from killing their best friend in the hopes of meeting the faceless man, with documentarian Irene Taylor Brodsky dissecting their story, the impact of the darker side of cyber space, and how an internet meme inspired a murder. UNDER THE SHADOW We might've left Under the Shadow off of our Sundance list, but we won't make the same mistake twice. There's a reason that the Farsi-language film from Jordan, Qatar and the United Kingdom is playing a US festival again so soon after its world premiere in January, after all. Compared to The Babadook, Babak Anvari’s feature debut tells of a mother and daughter who begin to suspect that they’ve been targeted by evil spirits. Netflix has the rights to the frightening flick, but this sounds like something that really needs to be seen on the big screen. MY BLIND BROTHER Admit it: even the most serious film fans out there can't resist the lure of an impressive cast. Getting a group of great actors together doesn't always pay off, but when it does, it's magic. Here's hoping that's the end result for My Blind Brother, which stars Adam Scott, Nick Kroll and Jenny Slate. Yes, the fact that they've all either starred or popped up on TV sitcom Parks and Recreation is part of their appeal, but they're not the movie's only drawcards. Director Sophie Goodhart might be a first-time feature filmmaker; however she's adapting her own short film of the same name, which screened in competition at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival. TOWER Sadly, mass shootings in US schools are a much-too-common occurrence — but it wasn't always this way. In 1966, when an ex-Marine sniper turned University of Texas engineering student started gunning down people from a tower looming over the tertiary institution's campus, no one had ever contemplated the possibility of such horrors occurring at a place dedicated to learning and education. Keith Maitland's documentary explores this bleak chapter in American history, albeit in an unusual fashion. Telling the previously untold stories of the witnesses, heroes and survivors, he not only delves into archival footage, but combines it with surreal, animated recreations. THE TRUST Two words: Nicolas Cage. We have more words to share about The Trust than that, of course — but we'd be lying if we didn't confess that the man who can be either the world's best or worst actor, depending on the film, wasn't the main attraction. With Elijah Wood, he plays a cop who stumbles upon a mysterious bank vault. If the combination of Cage and the storyline doesn't pique your curiosity, this might: writer/directors Alex and Ben Brewer are better known for their music video work, including winning an MTV Video Music Award for working with Justin Bieber. Yes, really. KARAOKE CRAZIES Karaoke and cinema go hand in hand. Plenty of movies feature everyone's favourite form of amateur singing; however surprisingly few make it their main focus (and yes, we're ignoring Gwyneth Paltrow vehicle Duets for a reason). In Karaoke Crazies, Korean filmmaker Kim Sang-Chan sets his feature in a karaoke bar, lets a serial killer loose, and makes the latter obsessed with the former. If that's not an ingenious idea for a movie, well, we don't know what is. IN A VALLEY OF VIOLENCE Ti West has played with satanic panic in The House of the Devil, and toyed with found footage and religious fanaticism in The Sacrament. He also charmed Aussie audiences in person when he visited the Melbourne International Film Festival in 2011 to present his haunted hotel effort, The Innkeepers. In his next film, In A Valley of Violence, West swaps scares for revenge and horror for the western genre. Ethan Hawke and John Travolta tag along for the ride, stalking through a small town in the 1890s, and playing a drifter and marshal, respectively. EVERYBODY WANTS SOME Okay, okay, so Richard Linklater's latest film — and his first after the awarded and applauded Boyhood — is one of the titles we know for certain will grace Australian cinema screens. That doesn't make us any less enthused about Everybody Wants Some, which has the honour of opening SXSW's film lineup, and has been called a spiritual sequel to his 1996 effort Dazed and Confused. Don't expect a sleazy Matthew McConaughey trying to hit on high school girls, this time around. Do expect another wild series of events, this time set over a weekend in college in the '80s.
Master of all smooth tunes and poster child of Melbourne's enduring obsession with beards, Chet Faker has just announced a huge national tour for 2015. And we really do mean huge — this local legend is returning from a string of massively successful European and American shows to play Sydney's Hordern Pavilion, Melbourne's Palais and the freakin' Brisbane Convention Centre. His shows are officially pulling the same numbers as the G20. This is no doubt welcome news for those that missed out on his national tour earlier this year. With Hordern Pavilion holding roughly 4,000 more people than the Enmore where he played in June, tickets will be much easier to come by. In Brisbane that difference will be even more pronounced. The Brisbane Convention Centre can host a whopping 8,000 rampant Chet lovers. All this hype comes after a stellar run of critical acclaim for the Melbourne musician. He's been nominated for a spectacular nine ARIA awards this year including Best Male Artist and Best Breakthrough Artist — and he's already won three, including Producer of the Year at the ARIA Artisans. His much-loved debut album Built On Glass is also a hot tip for winner of Australian Album of the Year at the J Awards. However this arena setting is sure to affect the show itself too. Specialising in croony electronic ballads and music that makes you feel all warm and gooey inside, it's hard to see how Chet will translate well to the big stage. How are we supposed to snug up and get a little intimate around the stage where Barack Obama talked just a few months prior? Melbourne, on the other hand, may get treated to a rare glimpse of this intimacy. His show at the Palais — assuming it's still standing by then — will actually be smaller than when he played the Forum earlier in the year. Get ready for some hometown lovin' — after he picks up all of the ARIAs he'll probably be graduating to Rod Laver Arena. Tour dates: Wednesday, February 11 – ANU Bar, Canberra Friday, February 13 – Hordern Pavilion, Sydney Saturday, February 14 – Convention Centre, Brisbane Friday, February 20 – Chevron Gardens, Perth Festival Saturday, February 21 – Chevron Gardens, Perth Festival Friday, February 27 – Palais Theatre, Melbourne Saturday, February 28 – Thebarton Theatre, Adelaide Tickets go on sale 9am, November 20. To find out more about about Chet Faker and his killer debut album check out our interview from earlier in the year.
We're just days out from one of the Mornington Peninsula's most hotly anticipated launches, with the team behind Pt. Leo Estate announcing the cultural and culinary haven will open to the public on Wednesday, October 25. Gracing 134 hectares at the Peninsula's southern tip, the multifaceted family-owned property will boast a 110-seat restaurant, an enormous cellar door and a sprawling sculpture park, pegged to be the most significant of its kind in the country. With panoramic Western Port Bay views as the backdrop, the sculpture park will debut with over 50 large-scale works from both Australian and international artists and is set to evolve and grow over the years. Meanwhile, the semi-circular cellar door and restaurant is the work of acclaimed Melbourne architects Jolson, taking pride of place at the property's highest point and featuring sweeping views across the vineyard, the sculpture park and the Bay. The eatery's menus, created by Culinary Director Phil Wood (ex-Rockpool and Eleven Bridge) will centre around seasonal, regional produce, kicking off with dishes like a beetroot pancake with salmon roe and lemon curd, and a wallaby pie. Meanwhile, a central woodfired oven will work magic with quality local proteins like duck and beef. The restaurant's pitched as a comfy, casual venue, with a second more intimate dining space slated to open towards the end of the year. Pt. Leo Estate will open at 3649 Frankston-Flinders Road, Merricks, from Wednesday, October 25. For more info, visit ptleoestate.com.au. Images: Anson Smart.
By now, you're probably very familiar with the World's 50 Best Restaurants. Perhaps because of Chef's Table, or because Melbourne is set to host the revered awards next week. But before the world's best chefs arrive in Australia to host a series of talks (in both Melbourne and Sydney) and attend a ceremony whereby the top 50 are dramatically announced, the governing food body's second 50 best restaurants is revealed — that is, restaurants number 51 through 100. Ranking in this list — which, while not the main event, is certainly nothing to be scoffed at — is Sydney's Quay, which came in at number 95. It's the harbourside restaurant's ninth consecutive year in the top 100, and sees it move up three spots from number 98 last year. The highest ranking it achieved was number 26 back in 2011. Apart from that, no other Australian restaurants were named in the 51-100 slot, which leads up to predict that we could have two placing in the top 50. Melbourne's Attica is bound to get a place (last year it was number 33) and it looks like Brae, which is located in regional Victoria, might too (last year it was number 65). Other honourable mentions include New York's Momofuku Ko, which has risen to number 58, and Slovenia's Hiša Franko — chef Ana Roš was the subject of a season two Chef's Table episode and has also been named Best Female Chef for 2017. The main ceremony will take place on Wednesday, April 5 at Melbourne's Royal Exhibition Building. It's only the second time the awards will be held outside of London — and that's just the start of it. The ceremony will be just one part of a seven-day program of events, which will bring some of the world's best chefs, restaurateurs, sommeliers and other people of food influence to Melbourne. Running from April 1-7, the program will coincide with 2017's Melbourne Food and Wine Festival and include a series of masterclasses, the Chef's Feast (just for chefs though, sorry) and a smattering of satellite events. We'll let you know who places in the top 50 once the ceremony has taken place. Image: Nikki To.
Beloved Aussie rockers Tame Impala are suing their ex-record label Modular for over half-a-million in unpaid overseas royalties. A month ago, Kevin Parker hinted in a Reddit AMA that the band was feuding with Modular and, until recently, hadn’t received a single dollar from overseas royalties. “I may never get that money,” he lamented “Someone high up spent the money before it got to me." If we're reading between the lines, this means that if you supported Tame Impala outside of Australia, your money actually went to line the pockets of Modular label founder Stephen Pavlovic. And a lot of you did. According to The Australian, Parker’s new label BMG is suing Pavlovic for $US450,000 (AUD$588,150). That’s a lot of dough. Modular is also being accused of ignoring a 'cease and desist' letter regarding their distribution of Tama Impala material. Modular's not exactly rolling in it right now. The Music reports that most of Modular’s big names (including Pond, Architecture in Helsinki and Wolfmother) have moved on to other labels and distribution channels. At the end of the day, this isn't the first time an artist has chased their own unpaid royalties. In his AMA, Parker went on to explain (in a frankly chill way for someone who has been duped out of hundreds of thousands of dollars) that basically, the music industry is fukt. Let's be honest, when you pay money for an album instead of downloading it illegally for free — a decision usually made out of respect for the artist — the majority of that money is likely finding its way into the wallet of a third party. Parker cut right through the bullshit, saying "As far as I'm concerned the best thing you can do for an artist is LISTEN to the music...fall in love with it.......talk about it.........get it however you can get it....Let the corporations pay for [it]”. Right on, brother. Pavlovic is yet to comment on the situation and is unlikely to soon, considering the legal battle ahead. Via Tone Deaf and The Australian. Image: End of the Road.
Forget about the upcoming movie. Fans of Goosebumps need to get their butts to London, where a live, immersive theatre show based on R.L. Stine's popular children's stories will have its world premiere in April next year. Written and directed by acclaimed participatory theatremaker Tom Salamon, the show is a collaboration between London-based arts and theatre venue, The Vaults, and the book series' publisher, Scholastic. Audience members will be taken deep into the abandoned tunnels beneath Waterloo railway station, where performers will recreate bloodcurdling scenes from some of the series' best-known titles — including Night of the Living Dummy, Say Cheese and Die! and One Day at Horrorland. Just as long as there's nothing from Monster Blood. We don't need those childhood nightmares coming back, thank you very much. The series' original illustrator Tim Jacobus will create artwork for the production, while cult London music trio The Tiger Lillies will provide the score — the show they did at the Biennale of Sydney a few years back was creepy enough. Goosebumps will run for an initial six-month season and is aimed primarily at older audiences, although there will also be a child-friendly version that runs on weekends and during the school holidays. "Immersive events have become the lifeblood of London culture... and Goosebumps is perfectly suited to the genre," The Vaults' director Kieron Vanstone told The Guardian. "These stories were made to be experienced up close, with every shiver, sound and unsettling sight." Via The Guardian. Image: jozerC (Flickr CC).
For the uninitiated who visit Din Tai Fung Emporium, the sight of ten or so people encased in what seems like a hermetically sealed, glass-walled prison may be slightly disconcerting at first. Upon closer inspection though, the glass walls serve only as a screen, displaying the precision and artisanal care that Din Tai Fung's dumpling masters put into what you are soon to devour. From the stacked, steaming bamboo baskets that greet you on the way through the door to the abrupt hospitality that says we know we're good — so hurry up, eat and leave, you will feel as though the bustling streets of Taipei are right outside the entire time. For the regulars — particularly those that love to display their cultural prowess to the world — the opportunity to teach someone the ways of eating xiao long bao without losing the encased nectarous soup (or severely burning their mouth) is enough to allow a foodie to die happy. While it is easy to be distracted by the perennial favourites, it's important to keep your mind (and stomach) open to options. The crispy chicken with egg fried rice, spicy shrimp and pork wonton and the simple water spinach with garlic are unmissable additions to your table. All the usual liquids are on the menu, but if you're feeling like a refreshing palate cleanser, one can't go past the lychee mint freeze. And if, after all this, you find yourself wanting more, the golden lava mini buns — a.k.a. custard buns — are a perfect finish. The mango pudding is a delightful way to wrap it all up. If you're yet to step over the threshold of this Taiwanese native, it's time you did. You can even order your meal while you wait for that elusive table — just find yourself a clipboard and menu on the podium at the door and place your order on the checkbox menu form. Then, through the magic that is Din Tai Fung Emporium, your meal will likely arrive at your table at the same time you do.
As if the fruits of the crowdsourcing revolution weren't clear already (hello Uber, hello Tinder) the new 'land-sharing' service, Hipcamp, is going even further and actually adding value to our environment — while finding you the perfect camping spot. Currently operating in the US (with eventual worldwide aspirations), Hipcamp is a service that connects campers with private land owners, meaning previously inaccessible, beautiful plots of land probably once flanked with "Trespassers will be shot, survivors will be shot again" signs are now available to camp on. You can camp on ranches, farms, vineyards and land preserves. Think of it as Airbnb for people who don't mind pissing in the woods. While campers are an important cog in the Hipcamp machine, it's actually the landowners who are the crux of the thing. Over 60 percent of America is privately owned and Hipcamp aims to make undeveloped land useful, even profitable, by facilitating back-to-nature style camping on private land. The site operates just like Airbnb, providing you with plenty of information on amenities and activities, photos, prices, reviews, availability and (most importantly) lots of S'mores recipes. As well as giving campers access to remote, previously private camp sites, Hipcamp lets you experience these locations with someone who's both got your back in an emergency and will make sure you leave the land as you found it — the environmentally-conscious land stewards. In order to sign up, Hipcampers have to read and engage with a Leave No Trace agreement, the main point of which is obviously to leave no trace of your trip at the camping spot (duh). So if you're planning a road trip around America and you don't want to spend your nights in a murder motel, this is the app for you. Images: Matt Lief Anderson. Via Lost at E Minor.
We all know that one day the singularity will be upon us and machines will rise up and take the planet. We know that. And yet when a super intelligent cooking robot wanders into our midst we welcome it with open arms — and that's probably because, even in the face of grizzly robot death, food is king. With that in mind, meet June the intelligent oven designed by a feisty gang of ex-Apple developers. June is incredibly advanced. Using image recognition technology, she can identify food types, weigh dishes and adjust cooking time to make sure your food is cooked perfectly (allowing you to have another wine and lose yourself in Game of Thrones without worrying about ruining dinner). She’s equipped with a touch screen with step-by-step instructions, a meal planner and recipe suggestions, a built-in digital scale, and push notifications. She also has (brace yourself) live HD video streaming from within the oven. Yep. We have a feeling that watching this fascinating live stream will become a household activity. And may opened-oven-door cakes never sink in the middle again. And although June looks like a wee microwave, she packs a powerful punch with the ability to preheat to approximately 180 degrees Celsius in four and a half minutes. And she has a NVIDIA Tegra K1 with 2.3 GHz quad-core processor, mostly likely making her more powerful than your laptop. Welp. The future is certainly now and we, for one, welcome our robot overlords. At least they know how we like our steak. Images: June Oven. Reserve your June oven here.
Health nuts have long been singing the praises of kombucha, a fermented Chinese tea with a litany of supposed health benefits. But the rest of us may soon be jumping on the bandwagon as well, now that an ambitious home-brewer has gone and made it alcoholic. The founder of Santa Fe’s Honeymoon Brewery, Ayla Bystrom-Williams has apparently found a way to increase the minute amount of alcohol in current kombucha brews (currently around 1 percent) to levels comparable to beer (around 5-6 percent). With patents currently pending, she’s been keeping mum on the exact details of her fermentation process, although she has revealed it was inspired by the openair process used to create Belgian lambics. Really though, what do you care how it’s made? The bottom line is that in the not too distant future you’ll be able to get drunk in a way that’s actually doing you good. Although we should point out that the benefits of drinking kombucha are still very much up in the air, as outlined in this recent article in the Washington Post. Bystrom-Williams is currently engaged in research that she hopes will bring an end to the ongoing debate and vindicate kombucha drinkers once and for all. Still, whether or not the beverage is actually good for you, there’s no denying that it’s been a massive hit. Analysts in the United States recently estimated that the industry could bring in more than half a billion US dollars in 2015, and that was before we heard about the alcoholic variety. Australian producers have tapped into the craze as well, with a number of different outfits competing in the market — one label even opened up their own dedicated Sydney bar. A notice on Honeymoon Brewery’s website currently alludes to an imminent Kickstarter campaign, with an eye to getting the Kombucha beer on shelves towards the end of the year. The bad news is that it looks like it’ll only be available in the United States. Fingers crossed it’s a hit, and that they think about expanding. Via The Guardian. Images: Mgarten Wikimedia Commons, Iris Photos via Flickr, Wild Kombucha.
Low restaurant lighting, basic plating and ineffective Nashville filters ruining your damn life? This social media-savvy restaurant knows your struggle. Israel establishment Carmel Winery have been working tirelessly against low-lit, poorly-composed foodstagrams, teaming up with Tel Aviv restaurant Catit to create special Instagrammable meals on tailor-made crockery. Available only on certain nights, the art project/gastronomy experience/publicity stunt is called 'Foodography' and is probably the most serious control we've ever seen a restaurant take over their social media presence. Created by ceramic design artist Adi Nissani, the Foodography dishes have been crafted to make your food look as good as it possibly could on Instagram. There are two types: This one comes with a little shelf to pop your smartphone into, to minimise pesky hand-created blur and give you that studio backdrop your poor dinner's been missing. Then things get truly crazy... It's like a Lazy Suzan, or the rotating pedestal they had Sofia Vergara perched on at the 2014 Oscars. 'The 360' allows you spin your food around to either get the perfect angle for your snap or take a weirdly hypnotic Vine of your dinner slowly rotating and let's be honest, probably getting truly cold. Look at it go! To be fair, that's some near-perfectly distributed sauce. It's not a cheap escapade of online whimsy; one Foodography session runs at $155 an hour. Yup. Granted, it's five epic-sounding courses (just the first course is bonito fish cured in red wine with grilled organic beetroots and carrots in salt and pomace crust dough, malt crumble, rhubarb jelly, red tune prosciutto, Uzbek apricots) and cheaper than a Blumenthal sitting — and obviously you'll take significantly superior Instagram photos — something that's only sort of acceptable and important with this level of food presentation. It gets better though. Because a bespoke studio setting doesn't make a primo foodstagrammer out of a novice. There are workshops (yep, workshops) on offer with leading Israeli food photographer Dan Perez to maximise your snapping wizardry. Although the concept isn't available in Australia as yet, Carmel Winery told BuzzFeed they were looking to expand internationally. Suck it, Nashville. You never truly work anyway. Via BuzzFeed. Images: Carmel Winery/YouTube.
If you've ever tucked gratefully into a hefty serve of Fancy Hank's BBQ at The Mercat, prepare to have your day made. The crew behind all that succulent, meaty goodness is expanding their empire and have announced plans to open a dedicated, two-storey barbecue joint on Bourke Street. The new venue will be (fingers crossed) open for trade in September — but don't expect a repeat of the Mercat offering. Fancy Hank's is upping the fancy for this one. Downstairs will feature seating for 100 patrons with table service and an updated (and expanded) menu. A snack deli with a range of old American-style cold cuts, preserves and pickles will serve you well while you wait for your meat to cook on the smoker. Co-owner Michael Patrick says the new menu will also feature a rotating vegetarian main, such as a smoked eggplant or sweet potato, as well as a few more surprises. "The sides will be a bit more considered as well — a bit more seasonal, a bit more made to order, a bit more interesting," he says. "And mains will be served up on platters, family-style — that's the way to go. We'll be adding a dessert cabinet too." While downstairs will resemble a bigger, better version of the Fancy Hanks you know and love, but upstairs will be a whole new entity altogether with a rooftop bar, fresh eats and local DJs soundtracking your summer nights. "The bar is going to have a separate identity, a different name and a new bar food offering," Patrick says. "We haven't locked down the concept for the rooftop yet; it'll have its own feel, but it'll be barbecue related, for sure". Meanwhile, The Mercat will still serve your beloved Fancy Hanks, but it'll be a more casual, sandwich-based menu as the big smoker is moving over to the new Bourke Street kitchen. Fancy Hanks is slated to open on September 1, 2016 at 1/79 Bourke Street, Melbourne. Keep an eye on their Facebook page for updates.
Every year in May, the biggest names in cinema descend upon the French Riviera for the Festival de Cannes. The glitziest and most prestigious film festival on the face of the planet, the 12-day event is a maddening mix of art, commerce and fantasy, where auteurs rub shoulders with A-list celebrities and masterworks light up the screen. This year's Cannes Film Festival featured a number of notable titles, including new efforts by some of the most fascinating filmmakers working in the medium today. Below, we've assembled a list of five exciting features we hope to see in Australian cinemas before too long. It's an eclectic mix, ranging from social realist dramas to violent thrillers set in the world of high fashion. And no, there's not a single superhero in sight. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLEPQ9FYU0U I, DANIEL BLAKE When making a list of must see movies out of Cannes, the winner of the Palm d'Or seems like a pretty good place to start. The award for the best film in competition this year went to I, Daniel Blake, an unaffected drama about working class people caught in the dysfunctional British welfare system that reportedly reduced much of Cannes to tears. Of course, even if it hadn't won, the fact that was directed by master filmmaker Ken Loach would be enough to earn it a spot on this list. The 79-year-old's movies are notoriously depressing, so consider yourself forewarned. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HH-srjX2H1c THE NEON DEMON Nobody shoots violence with quite the same lurid style as Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn. The man behind Drive and Only God Forgives, his latest film is being sold as a similarly bloody thriller about an aspiring model caught up in the cutthroat world of LA fashion. The cast is absolutely stupendous, with Elle Fanning supported by Jena Malone, Christina Hendricks, Bella Heathcote and Keanu Reeves. The trailers and promotional images, meanwhile, make the whole thing look utterly insane. Basically we're expecting either a work of genius or a hot mess. Either way, we can pretty much guarantee it won't be dull. IT'S ONLY THE END OF THE WORLD Anyone who saw Mommy knows that a new movie from Xavier Dolan is definitely worth getting excited about. It's Only the End of the World follows a terminally ill young writer as attempts to reconnect his family before he dies. The reviews out of Cannes have not been particularly strong. Actually, they've been kind savage. Still, after a run of great films that also includes Laurence Anyways and Tom at the Farm, we're willing to give the 27-year-old director the benefit of the doubt. Plus with a cast that includes Vincent Cassel, Lea Seydoux and Marion Cotillard, how bad could it possibly be? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-Rxj9-RfRs THE HANDMAIDEN The Handmaiden is the new film from South Korea's Park Chan-wook, the genre-bending genius behind Oldboy, Joint Security Area and Thirst. After making his English-language debut with Stoker, Park returns to his native tongue with this stylish sapphic thriller set in 1930s Korea, about a pickpocket posing as an heiress' maid in order to steal her fortune. As with Neon Demon, the film's trailer is both gorgeous and nuts, which of course just makes us want to see it more. Here's hoping we'll get the chance before too long. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-o5I5UWBh0 THE SALESMAN The final film on our list shapes up as rather more subdued, but that doesn't mean we're looking forward to it any less. The Salesman is the latest effort from Iranian filmmaker Asghar Farhadi, who won an Oscar for A Separation before travelling to Paris to shoot the similarly exquisite The Past. His new film sees him return to Tehran, and follows a couple whose lives are thrown into chaos after a seemingly random assault. Capable of weaving unbearable suspense from the simplest and most relatable of domestic situations – while at the same time shining a critical eye on issues of social inequality in modern day Iran – Farhadi is for our money one of the most gifted directors alive. Keep your eyes peeled for an Australian release date.
Picture this: a cosy, wooden structure somewhere remote, away from the hustle and bustle — and far, far away from mobile phone coverage — of your everyday life, perhaps with a fireplace and/or some kind of heated outdoor bathing fixture. You know the kind of place we're talking about. In fact, you're fantasising about it right now, aren't you? Take a coffee break and take a scroll through some of the world's most dreamy winter cabins that you can actually stay in. We've teamed up with NESCAFÉ to help you take the desk break you, as a hardworking human being, deserve. So start planning your worldwide cold weather escape — we promise none of them were featured in a Joss Whedon-written, Chris Hemsworth-starring horror movie. [caption id="attachment_580297" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Justin Muir[/caption] FOSSICKERS HUT, MARLBOROUGH, NEW ZEALAND Want to go off the grid? Well you've found your place. Fossickers Cottage is located just an hour from Nelson in NZ's Marlborough region, but it feels at least nine hours away from any kind of civilisation. The stunning early settler-style hut is the perfect perch in the middle of the bush right next to the amazingly clear water of the Wakamarina River. Along with a cosy kitchen room and bedroom (with a loft up top for a few extra mates), there's also a fire-heated outdoor bath. It doesn't get much better than that. LAKE O'HARA LODGE, CANADIAN ROCKIES, CANADA If you're looking for an old-school cabin that really does feel like it's in a movie (but sans scares), then Lake O'Hara Lodge is the place to be. This is the type of cabin that Parks and Recreation's Ron Swanson would be proud of — well, aside from the fact that it's in the Canadian Rockies. Constructed in 1926, it's the perfect spot for skiing in winter, hiking in summer, and enjoying the serenity of British Columbia's Yoho National Park all year round. Their one-bedroom lakeshore cabins are of the 'no muss, no fuss' variety, boasting little more than a queen bed for sleeping, a day bed for relaxing, and a deck for looking out at the world. It's just what you need after a long day revelling in the splendour of the site's surroundings. UFOGEL, NUSSDORF, AUSTRIA Whichever way you look at it, there's nowhere quite like Austria's unique Ufogel cabin. You can take that literally, given the mountain hideaway's inimitable design, or you can see it as a statement on the once-in-a-lifetime experience you're bound to have in the one-of-a-kind structure in the village of Nussdorf. Inside, expect wood as far as the eye can see; the entire compact building is completely made of it. Bring a few mates — the place can sleep up to five — and don't waste your time wondering about the name. It's a blend of UFO and vogel, the German term for bird, as inspired by the structure's distinctive appearance. CHALET JEJALP, MORZINE, FRANCE Who hasn't fantasised about a snowy sojourn holed up in a chalet? If you like wintry sports, it's the ideal break: you'd hit the slopes when the sun is shining, and then enjoy the facilities inside looking out over the frosty valley of an evening. Chalet Jejalp is the exact place you want to get snowed in; the house includes a double-height glass wine cellar, bar, pool table, gym, sunken jacuzzi, sauna, cinema room, and on-site chef and chauffeur. Yep, this is the kind of place you need to win the lotto to stay in — but you know it'd be totally worth it. MOONBAH HUT, NEAR JINDABYNE, AUSTRALIA If you stay local, prepare to do some driving to get your Aussie cabin fix. But if you're willing to commit, the rewards really are stunning. Moonbah Hut is located on private frontage on the Moonbah River, the Snowy Mountains' cleanest, most unspoilt home for trout. Give your fishing muscle a flex from your front doorstep, while keeping an eye out for wildlife, from wombats to deer to brumbies. Or bunker down inside, with a huge, stone open fireplace for company. Previous guests have taken the experience next level and invited personal chefs along for an evening. Spanish chef Miguel Maestre is among those to have done the honours. LION SANDS GAME RESERVE, SABI SANDS, SOUTH AFRICA Cabins come in all shapes, sizes and heights — and suited to all climates, too. Your idea of a winter cabin might involve snuggling up by the fire; however if you head to Lion Sands Game Reserve in South Africa, it could involve hanging out in a treehouse, spotting wild animals and gazing at the stars as you nod off to sleep. Constructed out of wood and glass, their Kingston treehouse is designed to welcome visitors all-year-round, so there's no need to worry about any inclement weather. And if that's not enough to tempt you, how about this: it comes complete with a wooden drawbridge. Yes, really. EAGLE BRAE LOG CABINS, SCOTTISH HIGHLANDS, SCOTLAND That ideal image of a wood log cabin you've been dreaming about? Well, that's what you'll find at Eagle Brae. Their seven two-storey open-plan dwellings have been hand-built using massive western redcedar logs sourced from the forests of Canada. And although it's cold, the cabins feature log-burning stoves to keep you warm. Indeed, if there's ever been a place tailor-made for staying indoors and snuggling up, this is it — though there's plenty to see outside, of course. That's where you'll find out just how the Scottish Highlands got their name, spot plenty of wildlife, and maybe even go salmon fishing as well. AZUR LUXURY LODGE, QUEENSTOWN, NEW ZEALAND Talk about a room with a view — and a bed and a bath too. If it's a private villa with stunning lake and mountain sights available from every available floor-to-ceiling window that you're after, then Azur Luxury Lodge has you covered. So it's not exactly a 'cabin', but when you're hanging out by the fire with a glass of wine, you're not going to concerned with specifics. Plus, for those who just can't unplug from the outside world completely, the Queenstown resort offers the best of both worlds, with all the mod cons like Wi-Fi in the middle of a gorgeous natural setting. BODRIFTY ROUNDHOUSE, CORNWALL, ENGLAND Centuries ago, in Celtic villages in the Iron Age, chiefs slept in thatched roundhouses. Seeing one is quite a sight, particularly since there's only a handful of replicas littered throughout the world — but spending a night in one? Well, that's something else. At Bodrifty in Cornwall, you can do just that. As well as marvelling at the experimental architecture, you can set up camp inside and stoke the open firebowl as well. And while it might appear as though you're stepping back in time, expect a touch of luxury when it comes to sleeping, as visitors will relish the modern comfort of a four-poster bed. POST RANCH INN, BIG SUR, USA Perched atop the cliffs of Big Sur in California, Post Ranch Inn provides several riffs on the cabin experience. Everyone wants a bit of rustic charm — and you'll get that here in a variety of accommodation types, including circular houses inspired by redwood trees and stand-alone treehouses. Choose from mountain or ocean views, and enjoy a dip in two infinity pools, a spot of fine dining and everything from yoga to nature walks while you're there. Okay, so this one's a modern interpretation of a cabin — but hey, who doesn't want to try that at least once? Words by Sarah Ward with Jasmine Crittenden. Top image: Justin Muir.
As commuters left the Bondi bubble for the day (if they managed to snag a bus), the fashion set descended on the Sydney paradise by the sea for MBFWA 2017. Crowding into where else but Icebergs Dining Room and Bar, journalists, photographers and the always salient 'influencers' soaked up those morning rays, as Icebergs' Maurice Terzini and partner Lucy Hinkfuss showed the Vertical Stripes collection of their unisex, streetwear label, Ten Pieces. This season, the label also partnered with The Woolmark Company to create ten more pieces in burnt orange merino jersey, balancing out the label's signature black and white. A show of only 20 looks snaked through Icebergs to a Nicky Night Time score, showcasing what we've dubbed 'beamo' — no, not that cute little console from Adventure Time, but beach emo. Your favourite hoodie of yore has taken new shape losing its sleeves or growing them extra long. It's become a full-length dress, a type of slouchy robe you'd actually wear out of the house. And all was brought back to the surrounding surf vibes with zippered Ugg-style Sharpie Boots. But where does the emo come in? Well, you'd be missing the mark if you weren't pairing these pieces with a big sook, smudgy eyeliner and ratted out hair — or even better, a next-level mullet. [caption id="attachment_622671" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia, Brendon Thorne/Getty Images.[/caption] The Vertical Stripes collection also brought things full circle for the Icebergs Dining Room and Bar entrepreneur. Inspired by architecture and landscapes, the white silhouettes were marked with one thick black line reminiscent of the iconic pool below — we were wondering why the pool had been emptied, all the better to see those influential lane stripes. Over black and white canapés, above the black and white emptied pool below, among the black and white (and burnt orange) streetwear, Fashion Week was fully immersed in Ten Pieces style — monochromatic, extremely comfortable and undeniably cool — though we're still not sure how we feel about those long shaved party mullets. Images: Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia, Brendon Thorne/Getty Images.
Gardening has recently enjoyed a resurgence of popularity, resulting in a cavalcade of young green thumbs. Keeping a lush garden, whether it's indoors or outdoors, is a viscerally satisfying accomplishment. And the benefits of a well-tended garden are manifold: fresh produce (that actually tastes like it should, instead of a pale, near-death supermarket imitation), flavoursome herbs, clean air and a whole swathe of green babies to greet you when you walk through the door. This is not to mention the mental health benefits of gardening, which have been well-documented and even used to rehabilitate young people with serious behavioural or mental health problems. But where do you start when you've never so much as looked at a scoop of soil before? And where can you turn for help? Eschew Bunnings with a firm hand and head on down to these local boutique nurseries for solid advice, rare finds and an abundance of crazy plant-lovin' folk. CERES NURSERY Part the not-for-profit sustainability reserve on Merri Creek, CERES Nursery is the spot to go for all your herbs and produce. While you're there you might want to pick up some non-toxic fertilisers too, because you don't want to be ingesting anything nasty when you finally harvest your produce. The nursery also stocks basic indoor and outdoor plants as well as a hefty range of natives. A trip to CERES Community Environment Park in Brunswick East is the perfect starting point for anyone looking to get into gardening as the centre, which extends way beyond the nursery, is a living, breathing, thriving example of the benefits of ethical agriculture. They also sell their organically grown fruits and veggies at the CERES Organic Grocery Market — and wouldn't you know it, it all tastes like it should. SOUTH MELBOURNE MARKET The South Melbourne Market is the perfect place for a spot of weekend plant hunting as you can graze your way through the food and coffee stalls at the same time. This is a good spot for intermediate plant parents. There are several plant retailers you can haggle with to secure the best price — and if you know what you want (and you vaguely know how to keep it alive), you'll be able to back your car up and quickly fill the boot with all the fiddle leafs and rubber plants to your little heart's desire. Some of the retailers are knowledgeable and willing to field questions, but if in doubt you can always turn to this nifty little online community for all the plant info you could ever need. [caption id="attachment_562299" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Lil'scapes[/caption] FITZROY MARKET The Fitzroy Market is a monthly affair (the third Saturday of every month, to be exact) and has been running for six years. While the stalls change month-to-month, and the focus is mostly on clothes and homewares, it's also an absolute gem for bulk buying succulents and cacti. Some vendors sell succulents as cheap as $1. Make sure you have a plan of attack before heading in though, otherwise you'll be overwhelmed and leave with an armful of mismatched plants. Plan a multi-species succulent tray or have a terrarium ready so your new plant children have somewhere to settle in. MR KITLY If your interest in gardening is for the purposes of home-beautification, Mr Kitly in Brunswick is the shop for you. Hidden away in an upstairs studio, it's a mecca for plant people, boasting a large range of rare and reasonable indoor plants alongside darling ceramics, chic plant stands, weird crafts and beautiful artwork. Owner and operator Bree Claffey has even written a book named Indoor Green: Living with Plants (punctuated by beaut photography by Lauren Bamford), so you can trust that the Mr Kitly crew know their stuff. LOOSE LEAF Last — but by no means least — is Loose Leaf. You may know of them from their prolific Instagram following but it's more likely that you've wandered into the Loose Leaf studio expecting a retail space and found anything but. Their approach to gardening is almost spiritual and an inspiration to anyone wondering what a little greenery could add to their home. The studio specialises in commercial installations and workshops ranging from terrarium building to bouquet arrangement. They're also currently writing and photographing a book. This is the place to come to track down any uncommon plants you've set your heart on (Chinese money plant, we're looking at you) but they also stock plants for all levels of expertise, as well as some sweet ceramic planters that go beyond your stock-standard ceramic pot.
Throw those GoPros, bubble bottles and novelty gumboots in your rucksack, Splendour in the Grass is returning to North Byron Parklands for another year of festival merriment. After a fake lineup posted was 'leaked' prior to the official triple j announcement to catfish all us suckers eagerly awaiting the list of acts that will be appearing, the details for Splendour 2016 are finally here. In what is the best news we've heard this year, The Strokes (The Strokes!!!) will be Splendouring for their only Australian show. It also seems the predictions for The Cure were incredibly, amazingly correct — meaning that we'll be seeing both The Strokes and The Cure this July. It's almost too much to handle. Joining them is one heck of a lineup that includes The Avalanches — who haven't played a gig (that wasn't a DJ set) in over ten years. Fingers crossed the show coincides with new music. Iceland's Sigur Rós and Irish artist James Vincent McMorrow will also being doing one-off Australian shows at the festival, Courtney Barnett will make her first appearance at Byron, while James Blake and At the Drive-In will return, as will locals Flume and Sticky Fingers. Anyway, we know what you're here for. We'll cut to the chase. SPLENDOUR IN THE GRASS 2016 LINEUP The Strokes (only Aus show) The Cure Flume The Avalanches (only Aus show) James Blake At The Drive-In Violent Soho Hermitude Band of Horses Sigur Ros (only Aus show) Santigold Matt Corby Sticky Fingers Boy & Bear Courtney Barnett Jake Bugg The 1975 Leon Bridges Duke Dumont (DJ set) James Vincent McMorrow (only Aus show) The Kills The Preatures What So Not Years And Years Gang Of Youths Illy Peter, Bjorn & John Golden Features Crystal Fighters Ball Park Music Tegan & Sara DMA'S Jack Garratt Hayden James City Calm Down Snakehips Mark Lanegan Michael Kiwanuka Jagwar Ma King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard The Jungle Giants The Internet Motez Marlon Williams Lido Emma Louise Kim Churchill Nothing But Thieves Lapsley Kacy Hill Slumberjack Robert Forster (10 Years On) Beach Slang Urthboy Little May Boo Seeka Ganz Spring King Melbourne Ska Orchestra Fat White Family Total Giovanni Methyl Ethel Slum Sociable L D R U In Loving Memory of Szymon Blossoms High Tension Roland Tings Sampa The Great The Wild Feathers Harts Ngaiire montaigne Tired Lion Green Buzzard Jess Kent Gold Class Lucy Cliche Opiuo Mall grab Dom Dolla Paces Just A Gent Dro Carey Running Touch Wafia World Champion Suzi Zhen Remi Nicole Millar Dreller Feki Kllo Banoffee Plus... Moonbase Comander The Meeting Tree Twinsy Purple Sneaker Djs Human Movement Panete Swick Amateur Dance Ribongia Splendour will return to North Byron Parklands on Friday 22, Saturday 23 and Sunday 24 July. Onsite camping will once again be available from Wednesday, July 20. Tickets go on sale Thursday, April 21 at 9am sharp AEST. More info will soon be available at the official Splendour In The Grass site. Image: Bianca Holderness.
Ponyfish Island has delivered few big changes in the decade it's spent atop the Yarra, beneath the Evan Walker Bridge. Until now. The legendary bar reopened last week, showing off the results of a long-planned revamp, which came to fruition during Melbourne's latest lockdown. Owners Jerome Borazio (Laneway Festival, Back Alley Sally's), DJ Grant Smillie (Melbourne City Brewing Co, and LA's EP & LP) and Andrew Mackinnon (from marketing communication agency The Taboo Group) opened the boozer ten years ago to the month. But the unique set of challenges that comes with such an unconventional location have meant a makeover's been on the wishlist for almost half that time. Bags of ice and bottled drinks had to all be lugged in by hand, and powering appliances often managed to black out half of nearby Southbank. "We realised the business itself wasn't broken, so it was a risk saying 'start again'," Mackinnon tells Concrete Playground. "But the only way to fix it, to make it more efficient, was to strip the whole thing down...and start again." The guys have worked with Adelaide's Studio Gram on multiple makeover plans over the past few years, but various delays kept putting renovations on hold. It wasn't until COVID-19 lockdowns struck that the timing fell into place and this latest design iteration was able to be brought to life. "We were running Ponyfish right up until that week hospitality venues were told to close and it was about that exact week we'd always planned to close," remembers the co-owner. "And so building was allowed to continue." Of course, construction wasn't without its own challenges, requiring a barge to be sent up the Yarra just to move building materials to and from the bar. But now, Ponyfish Island's new look is finally complete, ready for a balmy riverside summer. Julia Sansone "We were really focused on improving the aesthetic, instead of being that shanty shack, dive bar in the middle of the Yarra," explains Mackinnon. "I think we've challenged what people would expect, it's a bit more modern, more Miami," he says of Studio Gram's newly chic space full of curves and terrazzo. There are now additional bathrooms and extra seating, bumping up capacity to 150 (outside of restrictions), while custom-made adjustable shade paddles rise artistically above the bar's al fresco section. Much of the space is reserved for walk-ins, though there are three green-cushioned booth set-ups available to book. For the first time, the venue's got its own cool room, ice machines and beer lines, the latter pouring a concise range of tap brews that includes a recreation of the Ponyfish lager. Elsewhere on the drinks list, you'll find some bottled beers, an Aussie-led wine selection and a handful of summer-inspired cocktails — ranging from a share-friendly rosé sangria, to the Ponystar Martini crafted with passionfruit liqueur and mango syrup. Meanwhile, a vastly bigger kitchen will be making its debut in the coming weeks, turning out a secret menu from what Mackinnon hints is some "exciting" chef talent. Images: Julia Sansone
The cities of the future won't be built. They'll be printed. Or at least that seems to be the idea, after Dubai unveiled its first office building created using a 3D printer. Located near the Emirates Tower complex, the 250 square metre building, dubbed The Office of the Future, was printed in just 17 days at a cost of around US$140,000. Now they just need to convince people it won't collapse around their ears. The building was constructed out of special cement mixture, using a custom-made printer measuring 6m by 36m by 12m in size. Only a single supervisor was required to oversee the actual printing process, although seven installers and ten electricians were needed to fit-out the structure once it had been assembled. Even so, the process represents an enormous saving in terms of labour cost, with the Dubai government saying it cut the total bill in half. "We implement what we plan, and we pursue actions not theories," said UAE Vice President and Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum at the building's official opening. "The rapidly changing world requires us to accelerate our pace of development, for history does not recognize our plans but our achievements." Via PSFK.
UPDATE: MAY 24, 2018 — Brisbane City Council has officially approved plans for BrewDog's proposed development, meaning that construction will start on a the $30 brewery in July this year. If all goes to plan, construction should be finished by the end of the year, and the first Brissie-brewed beers will be pouring within the first few months of 2019. Watch this space for more information as we get closer to the opening. Brisbane's craft beer scene just scored itself a very high-profile new addition, with legendary Scottish brewer BrewDog announcing it'll build a state-of-the-art $30 million brewery in Murarrie. The city nudged out Newcastle to be chosen as BrewDog's first Australian home, following six months of public submissions, location scouting trips and feasibility studies. And the plans for these new riverside digs are nothing short of grand, incorporating a 3000-square-metre brewing and canning facility, as well as a visitor centre, taproom and restaurant. The brand's first brewery outside of the USA and the UK, the Brisbane operation will be crafting all of BrewDog's core beers — like the Dead Pony Club pale ale, the Jet Black Heart and the Punk IPA — alongside a selection of small-batch creations designed especially for local beer drinkers. It'll also showcase plenty of locally grown hops, from across Australia and New Zealand. "Australians are some of the most passionate and informed beer drinkers on the planet," said BrewDog co-founder James Watt. "I'm glad our Australian fans at home and in the diaspora were relentless in pushing for a brewery, and I look forward to sharing my first can of Aussie brewed Punk IPA with them." Construction on BrewDog Brisbane set to kick off in July 2018, with the first of the label's locally brewed beers slated to hit shelves in early 2019. For updates, visit brewdog.com.
Art has prevailed in the battle to fill a Melbourne rooftop with naked people. Spencer Tunick has staged his latest mass nude photography work on the top of a car park in Melbourne's inner southeast. Seventeen years after assembling 4500 naked volunteers for a snap near Federation Square as part of the 2001 Fringe Festival and eight years after he photographed around 5000 nude people in front of the Sydney Opera House during the 2010 Mardi Gras, the polarising artist amassed another contingent of naked (and pretty brave — it was less than ten degrees in Melbourne this morning) folk for a new work titled Return of the Nude. The shoot saw a few hundred Melburnians grace the rooftop covered in nothing by sheer red sheets — from a distance, the participants looked like a little like hooded handmaids. Footage from the shoots shows the subject standing underneath the sheet and lying naked on top of it. This is what it looked like: A post shared by Will Pristel (@wpristel) on Jul 8, 2018 at 3:43pm PDT A post shared by C A R L (@car.carrr) on Jul 8, 2018 at 7:05pm PDT A post shared by Chapel Street (@chapelprecinct) on Jul 8, 2018 at 8:10pm PDT A separate shoot over the weekend saw people painted blue, yellow, orange, red, green, pink and purple. Tunick's newest work has had quite the tumultuous journey — first the New York artist was given permission to hold a mass nude photoshoot on top of the Prahran Woolworths car park as part of Chapel Street Precinct's Provocaré Festival of the Arts. But then the store said that it wouldn't like to participate. The supermarket then reversed its decision a week later after a petition spearheaded by the Chapel Street Precinct Association (CSPA), the festival's host organisation, gained some momentum in the community. The official photographs of the shoot is yet to surface, but are expected to be be released by Tunick soon. Images: Munich by Spencer Tunick; Melbourne by Provocaré Festival.
For those of you who don’t know/have more important things to worry about, the Pirelli calendar is a yearly project by the Pirelli Tyre company that collates sexualised photos of the world’s 'hottest' models (shot by the world’s 'hottest' — read: mostly male — photographers) into a calendar, so that you can feel strange arousal every time you glance at your schedule for the month. This year however, they’ve taken a different tact and we don’t think it’s too much to burl yasssss queen! from every balcony we can find. The 2016 calendar features figures from the other 99.99% of the population that aren’t supermodels but are damned fine, including Amy Schumer (patron saint of the everywoman), Serena Williams, Patti Smith, Tavi Gevinson and Fran Leibovitz among others — and yes, they could choose to be clothed (what a world we live in). The portraits have been making headlines not just for the obvious departure from Pirelli calendar tradition but because the images themselves, shot by none other than Annie Leibovitz, are powerful and refreshing in a mediascape of so often saturated in airbrushed Kardashians. Beautiful, gross, strong, thin, fat, pretty, ugly, sexy, disgusting, flawless, woman. Thank you @annieleibovitz pic.twitter.com/kc0rIDvHVi — Amy Schumer (@amyschumer) November 30, 2015 Amy Schumer is grabbing headlines for her choice to get raw and nekkid. Schumer posted her images to Twitter with the caption “Beautiful, gross, strong, thin, fat, pretty, ugly, sexy, disgusting, flawless, woman.” The general Internet consensus has been one of frenzied, supportive agreement. Serena Williams also opted to go nude, probably to show off the fact she could break your neck (and heart) with her general power. Other women featured include Yoko Ono, film mogul Kathleen Kennedy, Melody Hobson, Yao Chen, Agnes Gund and Sadie Rain Hope-Gund, artist Shirin Neshat, director Ava DuVernay and Natalia Vodianova. Pirelli has been applauded for celebrating ‘real’ women this year, but corporeal semantics aside, the overwhelming response to the calendar has been positive: a joyful celebration of women of all ages, races, religions and professions and we simply cannot wait to get out hands on one. Via SMH.
We've all been there: you're interested in a movie, check Rotten Tomatoes to see what the critics thought, and disagree with the consensus. That's exactly what Suicide Squad fans are going through at the moment. Unhappy at the far-from-positive word the comic book adaptation has been receiving (especially on the popular online review aggregator), these fans don't just want to get on a soapbox — they want to shut down the whole site. In fact, Suicide Squad defender Abdullah Coldwater was so angry that took to Change.org to mobilise his fellow aficionados. Yes, really. At the time of writing, that petition had 17,614 signatures protesting against the site, motivated by the film's paltry 31 percent Tomatometer rating and the large number of negative reviews. Anyone who has caught a glimpse of similar backlash in recent times — take, for example, the huge response when reviewers dared to like the female-focused take on Ghostbusters — won't be surprised, because this type of behaviour is becoming all-too-familiar. A highly anticipated movie comes out, critics reveal their thoughts, and the online masses react. The next big title comes out, and the cycle repeats. But there's excitement about an upcoming movie, and then there's this. We see it all the time. Just read the Facebook comments on Concrete Playground's own take on Suicide Squad — many readers voiced their displeasure at our negative review, which is how it should be. Our critic didn't love, or even like, or find much of merit in the film. Scrolling through the responses provides just a glimpse of the general social media outrage swirling around the David Ayer-directed, Margot Robbie, Will Smith and Jared Leto-starring entry in the DC Comics movie. Sure, this might just be a storm in a teacup. But the worrying part of this move isn't just the instantly-attacking mindset of fans upset that someone — or more than a few someones — doesn't think the flick they've been counting down the days to watch isn't the best film ever made. Agreeing to disagree doesn't always happen on the internet, we know, but there's also the matter of timing. Given that Suicide Squad didn't start releasing around the world until today, most of those in the distressed camp — like Coldwater — haven't seen the film yet. Coldwater has since changed his tune, with the last post on the petition page noting that it was supposed to be "just for fun". After grabbing plenty of headlines with his action — something that he calls a victory in an earlier post — he has now deemed it pointless. "The only thing that it does is spreading a speech of hate and online fighting among the supporters and objectors," he writes. He's right.
