After a somewhat tumultuous history and an ever-shifting popularity over the decades, gin has fought its way back and into the glasses of today’s modern, sophisticated drinkers. It’s thanks, in no small part, to the well-loved and widely poured Bombay Sapphire. Uniquely crafted using the vapour infusion process, the spirit takes on broader, more balanced flavours, creating a complex drop that has changed the way we look at, and drink, gin. We caught up with Bombay Sapphire’s global brand ambassador, Raj Nagra, to find out about his work and to chat all things gin. How did you cut your teeth in the industry and what’s led you to your current role? When I finished school, I worked with some people that really led my interest into the industry with a bit more focus. Working at a Sheraton Hotel in Sydney, I met three very famous London bartenders and they really showed me the level of high-end cocktails. I worked in several Sydney bars in the '90s, went to London, then returned to help open Gas nightclub. I did some consulting in Dubai and Australia before Bacardi approached me with an Australian ambassador role, which I started in 2001. After that, I was given a full-time Asia-Pacific role, then moved to Miami seven years ago for a national role there, before I took on my current position. Talk us through some of the things that your work entails. Well, there’s a lot of travel, obviously. It can be anything from global competitions, going to various markets, supporting local activations to presenting at trade events, training programs and lots of PR-type stuff. So it’s a combination of many different aspects, but it’s really just speaking to any number of audiences on behalf of the brand. There’s a lot involved, so it keeps things interesting! How has Bombay Sapphire set itself apart from the rest? I think when Bombay Sapphire launched, it was singlehandedly responsible for gin’s modern renaissance. In the '90s we started to see a lot more style bars pop up, a lot more interest in drinking culture and Bombay was at the forefront of that. It really has led the modern gin charge that we have — it’s allowed modern gin to exist. How Bombay sets itself apart is the distillation process. The flavour infusion is really like the difference between steaming and boiling vegetables; what you end up with when steaming is a lot more expressive — more forward, more vivacious, a more engaging type of experience. As far as I know we’re the only gin company in the world to have a Master of Botanicals [Ivano Tonutti]. That’s quite unique to us — we have that interest in where our ingredients come from. What are some things people might not know about gin? It’s a lot more approachable than people might think and much more mixable than vodka, for example. It has a lot more to lend and it’s quite a refined taste. I think people are quite often surprised when they mix it, as to how palatable it really is. What excites you about Australia’s bar industry? Australia’s one of the leading cocktail markets in the world – it’s cutting-edge, it’s polished and it’s come such a long way. There are so many bartenders travelling globally and coming back with a lot of knowledge and experience — they’ve really pioneered an amazing array of bars. I think it’s a great showcase. Consumers are also a lot savvier these days and Australians like to go out and have fun, so there’s plenty of good drinking to be had. What has Bombay Sapphire got in store for us in the coming months? Well, Star of Bombay is just walking out the door now. It’s really one of the most incredible gins in the world, and I can say that, not just because I work for them! It’s a higher proof and we use a method called slow distillation where we slow down, and steam up and slow down the production process. Because we’re not boiling it, we have a lot more control over the aspects that we gain from the botanicals, so what you end up with is a full-bodied, textured, sipping style of gin which you can’t really find anywhere else. It’s bold, but it mixes in a lot of different ways. What are your favourite gin cocktails? At the moment I’m quite fond of the Clover Club. It’s a great classic, and a really approachable drink. I’ve also been getting into 50/50 martinis — half Bombay, half Noilly Prat Dry, with a dash of orange bitters and an orange twist. And of course, negronis. It’s not often I’m out and not drinking a negroni. Experience Bombay Sapphire in all its flavour at Project Botanicals. The pop-up will be open from June 24 to July 11 (Wednesday to Saturday) at 64 Sutton St, North Melbourne. Tickets $45pp (plus booking fee) via Eventbrite.
To hear the latest new tunes by Flume, you'll need to make a date with the Art Gallery of New South Wales' Volume music series when it returns for 2024. The Australian talent won't be performing at the event. There's no word of him popping up with Tkay Maidza, who is already on the festival's bill, following their 2023 single 'Silent Assassin'. But he has composed the soundtrack for a world-premiere installation in AGNSW's old Second World War oil tank that's been turned into a performance and art space. Featuring sound, projections, lighting and lasers, Every dull moment (EDM) hails from Flume and multidisciplinary artist Jonathan Zawada, and shows its inspiration right there in its name — EDM festivals, specifically. It has been designed for the unique site in Naala Badu, AGNSW's $344-million extension that opened in late 2022. Comprised of sequences spanning between ten and 90 seconds, the piece goes on continuously and randomly without repeating, paired with Flume's new compositions. It's also on the free portion of Volume's lineup. Not just Zimbabwean Australian singer-songwriter Maidza, but also André 3000's Australian-exclusive shows with his experimental jazz project André 3000 New Blue Sun LIVE, Sonic Youth's Kim Gordon and Ghanaian Australian talent Genesis Owusu were previously announced as the event's headliners — all at ticketed gigs. Now comes the rundown of events that won't cost you a cent to enjoy between Friday, July 5–Sunday, July 21. Every dull moment (EDM) has company from a heap of excuses to see live tunes for free, featuring more than 30 local and international artists in total. Another huge highlight: Blak Country, a celebration of Aboriginal country music which will take place during 2024's NAIDOC Week. On the bill: Roger Knox, Kyla-Belle Roberts, Loren Ryan, Frank Yamma, Jarrod Hickling and Kathryn Kelly, as well as a playlist from musical talents from incarcerated First Nations communities as part of the Songbirds project. [caption id="attachment_957075" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Matt Day[/caption] Volume is devoting another night, dubbed Extasis, to experimental sounds curated by Lawrence English, with Jim O'Rourke, Eiko Ishibashi and Hand to Earth among the artists featured. And, at Future Tilt, it'll spend an afternoon getting creative with salllvage, Lydian Dunbar, DeepFaith and more in experimental pop and electronic drone. Fennesz, amby downs, Jules Reidy, Seaworthy and Matt Rösner will be world-premiering new compositions across both AGNSW buildings — the new north building Naala Badu and the OG south building Naala Nura — in a program called Threshold, while Play on, play again, play forever will see musicians from Asylum Seeker Centre play tunes in response to the site's artworks each weekend. Volume initially premiered in 2023 with Solange and Sampa The Great taking to its stages. As the above lineup shows, the fest is using its 2024 program to build upon its first-year successes — and to give everyone plenty of motivation to experience the blending of music and art this winter. [caption id="attachment_957076" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Emma Luker[/caption] [caption id="attachment_957077" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Jim O'Rourke [/caption] [caption id="attachment_957078" align="alignnone" width="1920"] James Hadfield[/caption] Volume 2024 Lineup: Headliners: Friday, July 5–Saturday, July 6 — Genesis Owusu Saturday, July 13 — Tkay Maidza Thursday, July 18–Friday, July 19 — Kim Gordon Saturday, July 20–Sunday, July 21 — André 3000 New Blue Sun LIVE Free program: Saturday, July 6 — Future tilt Saturday, July 6—Sunday, July 21 — Threshold Sunday, July 7—Sunday, July 21 — Every dull moment (EDM) Wednesday, July 10 — Blak Country Wednesday, July 17 — Extasis Dates TBA — Play on, play again, play forever [caption id="attachment_954053" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Dexter Navy[/caption] [caption id="attachment_954055" align="alignnone" width="1920"] @trippydana[/caption] [caption id="attachment_954056" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Bec Parsons[/caption] Volume 2024 runs from Friday, July 5–Sunday, July 21 at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, with general ticket sales from 11am on Wednesday, May 22 — head to the festival website for further details.
The much-hyped 80 Collins Street dining precinct might be a good 320 kilometres away from Gippsland. But, even so, its newest resident Farmer's Daughters is dedicated almost entirely to celebrating and showcasing the region's finest produce and ingredients. Opening its doors on Thursday, January 28, the three-level restaurant is the work of acclaimed chef Alejandro Saravia (Pastuso), who is not only a longtime champion of the area, but the Official Food & Beverage Ambassador for Gippsland. With this homage to all things Gippsland, Saravia is out to take guests on a full-blown exploration of his favourite Victorian region, minus the four-hour road trip. On the first floor, you're greeted by a gourmet deli, food store and eatery, turning out share-friendly fare like beef cheek pastrami rolls and lightly poached fish from Baw Baw's Alpine Trout Farm matched with mountain pepper cream. Available to go, there's a strong curation of pantry items and food products, heroing both Gippsland and other renowned Victorian regions. [caption id="attachment_796665" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Thom Rigney[/caption] One storey above, the Farmer's Daughters restaurant plates up a more formal celebration of provenance, complete with an open kitchen fuelled by charcoal and wood. A sophisticated space by Agents of Architecture's Luke Hickman marries a nature-inspired colour palette of gentle greens and greys with tabletops made from reclaimed Gippsland timber. But it's the custom-made campfire kitchen at the dining room's heart that will really transport you — a high-tech piece of kit that'll allow Saravia to flex his impressive cooking skills. Expect a sprawling, seasonal menu, backed by a Gippsland-focused drinks list, showcasing drops from the likes of William Downie, Patrick Sullivan and Loch Brewery & Distillery, alongside other wines sourced from across Australia and Europe. Finally, there's the venue's crowning glory: the rooftop bar, where you can unwind against a backdrop of native mountain pepper trees and a lush herb garden. Up here, you'll find a botanical-driven cocktail list featuring the exclusive Farmer's Daughters Gippsland vermouth in many iterations, along with wines by the glass, a range of tap brews and the new Farmer's Daughters and Stomping Ground collaboration beer, Stringer's Creek Pilsner. Find Farmer's Daughters at 6/80 Collins Street, Melbourne (entry via Exhibition Street), from Thursday, January 28. The deli, restaurant and rooftop will all open Wednesday to Saturday. Images: Thom Rigney
Ahead of World Whisky Day this Saturday, May 20, The Bottle-O is here to ensure you have all the fun facts needed to bluff your way to being a whisky connoisseur — even if you've yet to take a sip. Whisky can be intimidating for some, but it's a versatile spirit with a style that's guaranteed to suit anyone and everyone. You could enjoy a bourbon on the rocks or a scotch neat, a ready-to drink flavour-laden can or a shot topping up a citrusy highball (which we have a standout recipe for). Or, maybe you'll like it sweet and cinnamon-spicy. Guaranteed: there's a dram for you. Now, where should your explorations start? What's with the barrels? Why are ice cubes called 'rocks'? And why, oh why, is it somehow correctly spelled both whiskey and whisky at the same time? Let's dive in. WHISKY 101 Let's start with the basics. Whisky is a spirit made with grain, water and yeast that's distilled in massive copper stills (essentially kettles) and then aged in barrels. But you can't just use any grain. You'd be hard-pressed to find a tipple made with oats, for instance. In Scotland, whisky is made from malted barley, whereas in the United States, they use a combination of corn, rye, wheat and barley. WOOD GIVES WHISKY ITS COLOUR AND FLAVOUR Did you know that when whisky comes out of the still it's totally clear and colourless? The colour of whisky comes from the oak barrels it's aged in. Oak barrels contain vanillin, which (as its name suggests) gives a vanilla flavour, but when toasted (literally charred on the inside with fire) the wood gives more caramel notes. As the temperature in the storeroom fluctuates — warmer in summer and cooler in winter — the spirit seeps into the wooden grain taking on the colours and flavours. American bourbon distillers use virgin barrels (read: never been used before), while Irish whiskey and other producers use secondhand bourbon or wine barrels to age their spirit. The longer a whisky spends in a barrel the more flavour it gains. This is why you might get cherry notes on an Irish whiskey, after being aged in a barrel that used to have sherry in it, and more honeycomb flavours from a bourbon like Jim Beam. The year on a whisky label tells you the number of years it's spent in a barrel. So, Glenfiddich 12 Year has spent, yep, 12 years in a barrel before being bottled and sent to the shelves of your local The Bottle-O. IT IS SPELLED BOTH WHISKY AND WHISKEY It's fairly common knowledge that whisk(e)y originated in Ireland and Scotland. The original Gaelic term — uisce beatha, pronounced ish-kah va-ha — was anglicised when the Brits took over, which resulted in the two different spellings. Simplified, Irish whiskey is spelled with the 'e' and Scottish without. This little trivia tip will help you work out where a whisky's distilling method or style originated from. For example, we've got our exceptional drops Down Under usually missing the 'e', indicating we learned our trade from the Scots. The Yanks, however, were trading with the Irish — so whiskey it is (as is seen on classic bourbons from Kentucky). 'ON THE ROCKS' MEANS EXACTLY THAT Fun fact: freezers weren't always around, making it easy for you to grab a few ice cubes to both keep your sip cool and take the bite out of the booze. So, what did the highlanders do to make their scotch more palatable? Simple, they would take cold rocks (like stones from a clear stream or spring) and put them in their cup before adding their whisky and diving in. Nowadays, we've moved on from actual rocks — although you can find fancy fake ice cubes made from rock if you want to be clever about it — but the phrase has lived on. WHISKY LIQUEURS AREN'T FLAVOURED WHISKIES Essentially, a whisky liqueur is a combination of a base whisky and other ingredients like herbs or spices. And flavoured whisky? It's made by adding ingredients to whisky during the ageing process. If you're in the mood for a sweet and spicy twist on whisky, one liqueur that fits the bill is Fireball. This Canadian spirit blends cinnamon and whisky for a fiery and flavourful drink that's perfect for sipping or mixing into cocktails. Whether you're a whisky fanatic searching for your next favourite dram, or you've only admired from afar up until now, now you've got five fun facts in your pocket to bluff your way through celebrating on World Whisky Day, Saturday, May 20. Now's the time to pick a bottle from your local The Bottle-O and discover its deliciousness. The Bottle-O is the independent store slinging your favourite boozy sips all over Australia — and a standout spot to nab your whisk(e)y of choice. Ready to dive in? Head to the website. Top image: Choochart Choochaikupt (first)
Did you turn green with envy when Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger played the ultimate scavenger hunt, aka hunting down horcruxes? Have you always felt that you could use your magical skills in the same way? The City of Melbourne understands and — given that it's already in the grip of wizard fever thanks to Harry Potter and the Cursed Child — it's giving Potter fans quite the Christmas present. On Sunday, December 15, the Magical Christmas Quest will take over the CBD. At 9am, the first clue will be revealed on the quest website — and at 10am, it's time to start 'accio'-ing your heart out. You'll search your way around the city, heading to six Melbourne locations, solving riddles and completing missions at each stop. And as you've probably guessed, you'll be getting into the Harry Potter and the Christmas spirit all at once. [caption id="attachment_674451" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Harry Potter and The Cursed Child by Manuel Harlan[/caption] Expect to be rewarded for your efforts, too. Sorry, you won't win a trip to Hogwarts — but the major prize-winner will nab a hefty haul. On offer is a VIP Harry Potter and the Cursed Child experience, which includes a pair of tickets to the both parts of the show, backstage access, a night's accommodation and a pre-show dinner for two at Sofitel Melbourne, plus a $500 Myer gift voucher (which you can use at the magical new Harry Potter store). We can't all be the Boy Who Lived — or the Person Who Wins the Quest, more accurately — but ten runners up will score a $100 Gift Finder voucher. You can play as a team or individually and dressing up as your favourite HP character is, of course, encouraged. Everyone who participates will go in the draw to win. The Magical Christmas Quest takes place on Sunday, December 15, with the first clue revealed at 9am that day on the quest website. Image: Harry Potter & The Cursed Child at the Princess Theatre.
Talk about a show that delivered on its promise the first time around: when a fresh-from-Russian Doll Natasha Lyonne teamed up with Knives Out and Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery filmmaker Rian Johnson on a whodunnit-of-the-week TV series, Poker Face did indeed prove a delight. A second season was quickly greenlit, in fact, and now it's on its way to your streaming queue. The sleuthing gem has also just dropped its full season two trailer. While the combination of Lyonne (Fantasmas) and Johnson was always set to be an ace, Poker Face gave the detective setup a particular spin. Protagonist Charlie Cale has a handy gift: being able to tell when someone is lying. In each weekly episode, she then worked her way through resolving a different crime, all while on the road in a Plymouth Barracuda. Then and soon, when season two kicks off on Thursday, May 8, 2025 Down Under — where it streams via Stan in Australia and TVNZ+ in New Zealand — Lyonne also has a heap of other well-known faces for company. Where season one boasted The Brutalist Oscar-winner Adrien Brody, to name just one high-profile figure, season two will feature fellow 2025 nominee Cynthia Erivo (Wicked) in multiple roles. If you're a fan of John Mulaney's wonderful Everybody's Live talk show, rejoice: not only Mulaney but also Richard Kind (Mid-Century Modern) are guest starring in Poker Face season two. From there, this season's roster also includes John Cho (AfrAId), Melanie Lynskey (Yellowjackets), Katie Holmes (Rare Objects), Awkwafina (Black Mirror) and Giancarlo Esposito (The Residence), as well as Alia Shawkat (Severance), BJ Novak (Lessons in Chemistry), Carol Kane (Between the Temples), Corey Hawkins (The Piano Lesson), Saturday Night Live pair Ego Nwodim (Mr Throwback) and Ben Marshall (Please Don't Destroy: The Treasure of Foggy Mountain), Sam Richardson (It's Florida, Man) and Margo Martindale (The Sticky). Then there's Cliff 'Method Man' Smith (Power Book II: Ghost), Haley Joel Osment (Blink Twice), Justin Theroux (Running Point), Kathrine Narducci (The Alto Knights), Kevin Corrigan (Deli Boys), Kumail Nanjiani (Only Murders in the Building), Patti Harrison (The Electric State), Sherry Cola (Nobody Wants This), Gaby Hoffmann (Zero Day), Simon Rex (Red Rocket) and more. As well as the stellar lead turn from Lyonne and the show's smart writing, part of the fun of Poker Face stems from seeing how the series weaves in such a dream supporting lineup. The above list follow in the footsteps of The Menu's Hong Chau and Judith Light, Lil Rel Howery (Deep Water), Danielle MacDonald (The Last Anniversary), Chloë Sevigny (Bones and All), Ron Perlman (Nightmare Alley), Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Pinocchio), Ellen Barkin (Animal Kingdom), Nick Nolte (The Mandalorian), Cherry Jones (Succession), Jameela Jamil (She-Hulk: Attorney at Law) and Stephanie Hsu (Everything Everywhere All At Once) in season one. And yes, you'll have two chances to get a mystery fix from Johnson in 2025, given that Wake Up Dead Man, the third Knives Out movie, is also on its way this year. It too boasts another stacked cast, this time surrounding Daniel Craig (Queer) with Josh O'Connor (Challengers), Glenn Close (Back in Action), Josh Brolin (Outer Range), Mila Kunis (Goodrich), Jeremy Renner (Mayor of Kingstown), Kerry Washington (The Six Triple Eight), Andrew Scott (Ripley), Cailee Spaeny (Civil War), Daryl McCormack (Bad Sisters) and Thomas Haden Church (Twisted Metal). Check out the full trailer for Poker Face season two below: Poker Face season two streams from Thursday, May 8, 2025 via Stan in Australia and TVNZ+ in New Zealand. Read our review of season one. Images: Sarah Shatz/PEACOCK.
UPDATE Monday, July 19: Lockdown 5.0 has inspired the return of Attica At Home, offering a selection of Ben Shewry classics for takeaway and delivery. Currently, the menu's available until Saturday, 24 July, though expect further dates to be added if the snap lockdown is extended. Enjoy dishes like the beef lasagne with garlic bread and salad ($60), or a set menu of Attica favourites ($95), in your own house. For more details on Victoria's current restrictions, see the Department of Health and Human Services website. The brainchild of New Zealand chef Ben Shewry, Attica lays claim to being one of Melbourne's best-known and most celebrated fine diners. And the buzz is certainly not unwarranted. Located behind an unassuming shopfront on Glen Eira Road, the restaurant is a regular amongst the annual World's 50 Best Restaurants list, taking out the 33rd position in 2016, landing 32 in 2017 and named 20th in 2018. Here, your culinary journey takes the form of an elegant multi-course set tasting menu ($320), served with a touch of theatre within a moody dining room space created by IF Architecture. The food lineup changes regularly, though what sticks firm is Shewry and his team's commitment to celebrating unique native ingredients wherever possible. Dishes bear simple, mysterious names that belie the considered, forward-thinking creations that arrive in front of you — think, 'Killer Salad, Lightest Touch', 'Reko and Ben's Picnic Caviar', 'Marron, Missed You Delicious Old Friend' and 'Croc Fat Caramel'. And of course, there's some great drinking to match, with a stellar curation of wine, beer and other clever libations also on offer. Like most, Covid times have seen Attica embracing the pivot and expanding on its signature offerings. The restaurant has hosted a pop-up bake shop in the space next door, launched a casual sibling venue in the Yarra Valley over last summer and has been slinging elevated takeaway fare to hungry locals during most of Melbourne's lockdowns.
In October 2023, Karen Martini's restaurant Hero suddenly closed its doors to the public. It was a shock for the industry. But the author and celebrity chef wasn't gone for long. She soon became Culinary Director of Johnny's Green Room, and then took charge of all things food at Saint George gastropub in St Kilda. The transformed venue (formerly The Saint Hotel) now includes two distinct drinking and dining spaces: The Tavern and The Grill. The Tavern is home to some classic gastropub eats like a fried fish burger and veal cotoletta, plus a few fun and more interesting dishes like the potato cake topped with whipped cod roe. But it's within The Grill where Martini is really showcasing her signature contemporary Italian culinary stylings. For one, it is where she is bringing back her much-loved bistecca alla Fiorentina (from when she worked at Melbourne Wine Room). A slew of antipasti dishes and handmade pasta also feature in this more refined part of St Kilda's Saint George. The drinks menu includes a quirky wine list, along with plenty of Italian-inspired cocktails and some local beers. The backdrop to the food and drink lineup is the newly designed Saint George. Chris Connell Designs has kept things simple, restoring the exposed brickwork, while placing simple black tables throughout the two spaces and injecting a bit of colour with pleasing earthy hues. A few wall-sized David Band artworks from Martini's personal art collection have also been recreated for the pub, adding to its sleek and contemporary feel. Martini is leaving her stamp all over the Saint George gastropub in St Kilda, and we are all for it. Images: Kristoffer Paulsen.
For wannabe wizards and witches, the most magical place in Australia right now is located in Victoria. After boasting the country's only run of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, then playing host to a natural history exhibition based on the Fantastic Beasts films, the state is now temporarily home to a new Harry Potter-themed experience. This time, you can walk around an illuminated woodland filled with nods to the Wizarding World, with Harry Potter — A Forbidden Forest Experience finally arriving Down Under. Accio joy, clearly. Think: Lightscape, which is returning to Melbourne in 2024, but all about the world that's sprung up around the Boy Who Lived on the page, screen and stage. So, with Harry Potter — A Forbidden Forest Experience taking over The Briars Community Forest in Mount Martha until mid-July, attendees can enjoy a nighttime stroll an hour out of Melbourne. Entering the Forbidden Forest is clearly the big attraction, as lit up with dazzling lights, all while also spying creatures from the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts movies. A hippogriff features, as do nifflers and unicorns. You also have the chance to pose for a photo mid-wand duel, and to summon up a patronus spell as well. Accordingly, visitors here aren't surrounded by all things Wizarding World after dark in a forest; they can be join in like every aspiring Hogwarts student has always wanted to. Sounds and special effects also help bring the experience to life, as aided by award-winning behind-the-scenes folks. Expect to spend around 90 minutes being immersed in the all-ages event — plus however long you need at the onsite shop afterwards buying merchandise. That's part of the village at the end of the trail, where you'll also be able to grab a bite and something to drink. Wands crossed for butterbeer, obviously. Harry Potter — A Forbidden Forest Experience has hit Australia after seasons in the UK, Europe, the US and Singapore, with Warner Bros behind it just like the films and upcoming Harry Potter TV series.
Only a 70-minute drive from Melbourne, Trentham is easy enough to get to — yet it's still most definitely a country town. At the heart of it all is The Cosmopolitan Hotel, with its 150-year history making it a chance for you to step back into the past. Renowned for serving up robust Australian pub classics, the pub's timber-clad building is perfect for a wintertime jaunt. The Cosmopolitan works with some of the region's top producers, including the highly respected Sher Wagyu, which supplies the pub's beef from the nearby community of Ballan. There's also a woodfired pizza menu, and you can end the meal with a cheese plate loaded with fruit loaf, quince paste and muscatels. If you're staying in the area, make sure you take a short hike up to Victoria's highest waterfall — Trentham Falls — which should be flowing heavily come wintertime. Images: Visit Victoria
Everyone could use a dose of big-screen escapism every now and then, whether you're an avid movie buff all-year-round, a casual cinemagoer or can't remember the last time you caught a flick at the pictures. That's on offer every day of the week at the Classic, Lido and Cameo cinemas, of course, but between Thursday, September 8–Wednesday, September 14 it'll only cost you $5. Yes, that's a mighty cheap price for a trip to the movies, and it means that you can even treat your bestie, date or mum to a flick and pay just ten dollars for both of you. Some of the films you'll be able to catch during the week include a few of the biggest titles around at the moment — such as Jordan Peele's creepy and clever Nope, Brad Pitt-starring action onslaught Bullet Train and the breathtaking Top Gun: Maverick (in case you haven't seen them yet). Also showing: Baz Lurhmann's stunning Elvis; Emma Thompson-starring sex comedy Good Luck To You, Leo Grande; big-screen must-see documentary Fire of Love, about a couple of volcanologists; and George Miller's Three Thousand Years of Longing. Yes, the list goes on. The $5 tickets are available at all regular sessions across the seven days — other than sneak previews, advance screenings, special events and retro films — and bookings open from Monday, September 5. To book your $5 tickets, just head to the Classic, Lido and Cameo cinema websites. And if you fancy becoming a member at the cinemas, that'll only cost you $1 across the seven days as well.
For the past two years, Melburnians have missed out on the globe-trotting fare of the Queen Victoria Market's legendary winter night market series, with the long-running event cancelled twice due to COVID-19. But the precinct is promising to help fill some of that void this December, with the return of another food-filled pop-up: Food Truck Stop. On Wednesday, December 1, 8 and 15, this summer edition of Food Truck Stop will serve up a weekly showcase of street eats from around the globe, courtesy of a hefty rotation of food vendors. It'll be the market's first nighttime activation since Melbourne emerged from its most recent lockdown. [caption id="attachment_832695" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Two Fat Indians[/caption] From 5pm each week, you'll be able to explore the global food truck lineup, feasting on goat curry and smashed samosas from Two Fat Indians, Vietnamese noodle bowls from Nem 'N Nem, Pasta Face's Tuscan-style beef ragu gnocchi, and traditional chicken and lamb yiros from The Greek Trojan Yiros. Elsewhere, there'll be lobster rolls, Texas barbecue, Jamaican jerk chicken, Tex-Mex street tacos, house-made gelato and more. If you find all that eating to be thirsty work, you can swing past the Beer Garden for a bev — the summer-themed pop-up is slinging an all-Victorian lineup featuring Mitchelton Wines, Brick Lane Brewing beers, Coldstream Brewery ciders and cocktails crafted on Antagonist Spirits. Entry to the pop-up is free, with food and drinks available to purchase. It all kicks on until 10pm each week. Catch Food Truck Stop at Queen Victoria Market, corner of Queen and Therry Streets, Melbourne, on December 1, 8 and 15.
Untitled Group — the same crew behind Beyond the Valley, Pitch Music & Arts and Ability Fest — is renowned for its high-energy day parties; though as you know those have been in pretty short supply these past two years. Thankfully, you're invited to dive right back into the fold this weekend, as the group gears up to host another of its famed openair music celebrations. Return of the Untitled Day Party will take over Burnley Circus Park on Saturday, January 29, with a stacked lineup of live tunes primed for grooving among the gum trees. Hitting the stage for an afternoon and evening of dance-friendly sonic treats, you can catch local acts like Willaris. K, Late Nite Tuff Guy, KLP, Torren Foot and Made in Paris. Originally sold out, the event's since released a few more tickets, but you'll want to be quick if you're keen to nab yourself one. Find them over here. The event will operate under strict COVID-19 safety plans — keep an eye on Untitled's social media channels for any updates or changes.
Something delightful has been happening in cinemas in some parts of the country. After numerous periods spent empty during the pandemic, with projectors silent, theatres bare and the smell of popcorn fading, picture palaces in many Australian regions are back in business — including both big chains and smaller independent sites in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. During COVID-19 lockdowns, no one was short on things to watch, of course. In fact, you probably feel like you've streamed every movie ever made, including new releases, Studio Ghibli's animated fare and Nicolas Cage-starring flicks. But, even if you've spent all your time of late glued to your small screen, we're betting you just can't wait to sit in a darkened room and soak up the splendour of the bigger version. Thankfully, plenty of new films are hitting cinemas so that you can do just that — and we've rounded up, watched and reviewed everything on offer this week. NOPE Kudos to Jordan Peele for giving his third feature as a writer/director a haters-gonna-hate-hate-hate name: for anyone unimpressed with Nope, the response is right there. Kudos, too, to the Get Out and Us filmmaker for making his third bold, intelligent and supremely entertaining horror movie in a row — a reach-for-the-skies masterpiece that's ambitious and eerie, imaginative and expertly crafted, as savvy about cinema as it is about spectacle, and inspires the exact opposite term to its moniker. Reteaming with Peele after nabbing an Oscar nomination for Get Out, Daniel Kaluuya utters the titular word more than once in Nope. Exclaiming "yep" in your head each time he does is an instant reaction. Everything about the film evokes that same thrilled endorsement, but it comes particularly easily whenever Kaluuya's character surveys the wild and weird events around him. We say yay to his nays because we know we'd respond the same way if confronted by even half the chaos that Peele whooshes through the movie. As played with near-silent weariness by the always-excellent Judas and the Black Messiah Oscar-winner, Haywood's Hollywood Horses trainer OJ doesn't just dismiss the strange thing in the heavens, though. He can't, even if he doesn't realise the full extent of what's happening when his father (Keith David, Love Life) suddenly slumps on his steed on an otherwise ordinary day. Six months later, OJ and his sister Emerald (Keke Palmer, Lightyear) are trying to keep the family business running; he does the wrangling, she does the on-set safety spiels, which double as a primer on the Haywoods' lengthy links to the movie industry. The first moving images ever presented, by Eadweard Muybridge of a galloping horse in the 1800s, featured their great-great-great grandfather as the jockey, Emerald explains. His image was immortalised, but not his name — and, although she doesn't say it directly, that's a fate she isn't eager to share. In fact, Emerald ends her patter by proclaiming that she's available for almost any Hollywood job that might come up. Unsurprisingly, OJ is horrified about the hustle. Her big chance is indeed tied to their ranch, but not in the way that Emerald initially realises either — because who'd predict that something would be lurking above the Haywoods' Agua Dulce property? Just as Get Out saw Peele reinterrogate the possession movie and Us did the same with doppelgängers, Nope goes all in on flying saucers. So, Emerald wants the kind of proof that only video footage can offer. She wants her "Oprah shot", as well as a hefty payday. Soon, the brother-sister duo are buying new surveillance equipment — which piques the interest of UFO-obsessed electronics salesman Angel Torres (Brandon Perea, The OA) — and also enlisting renowned cinematographer Antlers Holst (Michael Wincott, Veni Vidi Vici) to capture the lucrative image. Cue plenty of faces staring up in shock and wonder, as Steven Spielberg has made a mainstay of his films — and cue a movie that nods to Jaws as much as Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Peele makes smartly and playfully cineliterate flicks, which aren't content to merely wink and nudge, but instead say "yep" themselves: yep to all the tropes and symbols that the comedian-turned-filmmaker can filter through his own lens, and his determination to unearth the reality of living in America today, just as he did when he was making some of this century's best skits on Key & Peele. Indeed, Nope is keenly aware of the lure and power of spectacle, especially the on-screen kind, which also echoes through in the picture's other pivotal character. Ricky 'Jupe' Park (Steven Yeun, Minari) isn't involved in the Haywoods' attempts to snap upwards, but the former child star runs a neighbouring theme park called Jupiter's Claim, which cashes in on his big hit role in a movie called Kid Sheriff. He's known for short-lived 90s sitcom Gordy's Home, too, starring opposite a chimpanzee, and moments of the show also pop up in Peele's film. Read our full review. THE PRINCESS Finding a moment or statement from The Princess to sum up The Princess is easy. Unlike the powerful documentary's subject in almost all aspects of her life from meeting the future King of England onwards, viewers have the luxury of choice. Working solely with archival materials, writer/director Ed Perkins (Tell Me Who I Am) doesn't lack in chances to demonstrate how distressing it was to be Diana, Princess of Wales — and the fact that his film can even exist also underscores that point. While both The Crown and Spencer have dramatised Diana's struggles with applauded results, The Princess tells the same tale as it was incessantly chronicled in the media between 1981–1997. The portrait that emanates from this collage of news footage, tabloid snaps and TV clips borders on dystopian. It's certainly disturbing. What kind tormented world gives rise to this type of treatment just because someone is famous? The one we all live in, sadly. Perkins begins The Princess with shaky visuals from late in August 1997, in Paris, when Diana and Dodi Fayed were fleeing the paparazzi on what would be the pair's last evening. The random voice behind the camera is excited at the crowds and commotion, not knowing how fatefully the night would end. That's telling, haunting and unsettling, and so is the clip that immediately follows. The filmmaker jumps back to 1981, to a then 19-year-old Diana being accosted as she steps into the street. Reporters demand answers on whether an engagement will be announced, as though extracting private details from a teenager because she's dating Prince Charles is a right. The Princess continues in the same fashion, with editors Jinx Godfrey (Chernobyl) and Daniel Lapira (The Boat) stitching together example after example of a woman forced to be a commodity and expected to be a spectacle, all to be devoured and consumed. Listing comparable moments within The Princess' riveting frames is easy; they snowball relentlessly into an avalanche. Indeed, after the film shows Charles and Diana's betrothal news and how it's received by the press and public, the media scrutiny directed Diana's way becomes the subject of a TV conversation. "I think it's going to be much easier. I think we're going to see a change in the attitude of the press. I think that now she's publicly one of the royal family, all this telephoto lens business will stop," a talking head from four decades back asserts — and it isn't merely the benefit of hindsight that makes that claim sound deeply preposterous. Later, Perkins features a soundbite from a paparazzo, which proves equally foolish, not to mention a cop-out. "All we do is take pictures. The decision to buy the pictures is taken by the picture editors of the world, and they buy the pictures so their readers can see them. So at the end of the day, the buck stops with the readers," the photographer contends. The Princess isn't here to simplistically and squarely blame the public, but it does let the material it assembles — and the fact that there's so much of it, and that nothing here is new or astonishing even for a second because it's already been seen before — speak for itself. What a story that all unfurls, and how, including pondering the line between mass fascination and being complicit. Perkins eschews contemporary interviews and any other method of providing recent context, and also makes plain what everyone watching already knows: that escaping Diana has been impossible for more than 40 years now, during her life and after her death a quarter-century ago as well, but it was always worse by several orders of magnitude for Diana herself. The expressions that flicker across her face over the years, evolving from shy and awkward to determined and anguished, don't just speak volumes but downright scream. In the audio samples overlaid on paparazzi shots and ceaseless news coverage, that's dissected, too, and rarely with kindness for the woman herself. Read our full review. 6 FESTIVALS Three friends, a huge music festival worth making a mega mission to get to and an essential bag of goon: if you didn't experience that exact combination growing up in Australia, did you really grow up in Australia? That's the mix that starts 6 Festivals, too, with the Aussie feature throwing in a few other instantly familiar inclusions to set the scene. Powderfinger sing-alongs, scenic surroundings and sun-dappled moments have all filled plenty of teenage fest trips, and so has an anything-it-takes mentality — and for the film's central trio of Maxie (Rasmus King, Barons), Summer (Yasmin Honeychurch, Back of the Net) and James (Rory Potter, Ruby's Choice), they're part of their trip to Utopia Valley. But amid dancing to Lime Cordiale and Running Touch, then missing out on Peking Duk's stroke-of-midnight New Year's Eve set after a run-in with security, a shattering piece of news drops. Suddenly these festival-loving friends have a new quest: catching as much live music as they can to help James cope with cancer. The first narrative feature by Bra Boys and Fighting Fear director Macario De Souza, 6 Festivals follows Maxie, Summer and James' efforts to tour their way along the east coast festival circuit. No, there are no prizes for guessing how many gigs are on their list, with the Big Pineapple Music Festival, Yours and Owls and Lunar Electric among the events on their itinerary. Largely road-tripping between real fests, and also showcasing real sets by artists spanning Dune Rats, Bliss n Eso, G Flip, B Wise, Ruby Fields, Dope Lemon, Stace Cadet and more, 6 Festivals dances into the mud, sweat and buzz — the crowds, cheeky beers and dalliances with other substances that help form this coming-of-age rite-of-passage, aka cramming in as many festivals as you possibly can from the moment your parents will let you, as well. This is also a cancer drama, however, which makes for an unsurprisingly tricky balancing act, especially after fellow Aussie movie Babyteeth tackled the latter so devastatingly well so recently. Take that deservedly award-winning film, throw in whichever music festival documentary takes your fancy, then add The Bucket List but with teens — that's 6 Festivals. There's a touch of the concert-set 9 Songs as well, obviously sans sex scenes. Spotting the dots connected by De Souza and Sean Nash's (a Home and Away and Neighbours alum) script isn't difficult. That said, neither is spying the movie's well-intentioned aim. Riding the ecstatically bustling festival vibe, and surveying everything from the anticipation-laden pre-fest excitement through to the back-to-reality crash afterwards, 6 Festivals is an attempt to capture and celebrate the fest experience, as well as a concerted effort to face a crucial fact: that, as much as a day in the mosh pit feels like an escape and is always worth cherishing, it only sweeps away life's stark truths momentarily. The film's core threesome have their fair share of stresses; pivotally, 6 Festivals sticks with believable dramas. James faces his diagnosis, treatment and his mother's (Briony Williams, Total Control) worries, all while trying to recruit the feature's array of musical acts for his own dream event. Scoring backstage access comes courtesy of up-and-coming Indigenous muso Marley (debutant Guyala Bayles), who graces most of the lineups and shared a childhood with Summer, united by their respective mothers' struggles with addiction — and, now they've crossed paths again, offers to mentor her pal's own singing career. As for Maxie, his drug-dealing older brother Kane (Kyuss King, also from Barons) is usually at the same fests pressuring him into carrying his stash. They're the only family each other has, so saying no doesn't seem an option. Read our full review. If you're wondering what else is currently screening in Australian cinemas — or has been lately — check out our rundown of new films released in Australia on May 5, May 12, May 19 and May 26; June 2, June 9, June 16, June 23 and June 30; and July 7, July 14, July 21 and July 28, and August 4. You can also read our full reviews of a heap of recent movies, such as Petite Maman, The Drover's Wife The Legend of Molly Johnson, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Firestarter, Operation Mincemeat, To Chiara, This Much I Know to Be True, The Innocents, Top Gun: Maverick, The Bob's Burgers Movie, Ablaze, Hatching, Mothering Sunday, Jurassic World Dominion, A Hero, Benediction, Lightyear, Men, Elvis, Lost Illusions, Nude Tuesday, Ali & Ava, Thor: Love and Thunder, Compartment No. 6, Sundown, The Gray Man, The Phantom of the Open, The Black Phone, Where the Crawdads Sing, Official Competition, The Forgiven, Full Time, Murder Party and Bullet Train.
UPDATE: September 23 2020: A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood is available to stream via Amazon Prime Video, Google Play, YouTube and iTunes. Fred Rogers never made a splash in Australia. But watching A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood, it's easy to see why the ordained Presbyterian minister turned children's television host is so beloved in the US, even 17 years after his death — and why adults who grew up watching Mister Rogers' Neighbourhood still hold him in such high regard. This thoughtful, full-hearted film doesn't merely tell viewers that Rogers was universally adored, or show the widespread devotion among his fans. As she proved in both The Diary of a Teenage Girl and Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Marielle Heller is far too soulful and observant a filmmaker for such a blunt approach. Rather, in a sensitive and astute manner reminiscent of Rogers himself, this delightful movie explores his appeal by examining his impact on one reluctant and cynical man. If you're a newcomer to Rogers, or you're jaded or skeptical by nature, consider Lloyd Vogel (Matthew Rhys) your on-screen surrogate. A writer for Esquire in 1998, he's the fictional stand-in for journalist Tom Junod, whose article 'Can You Say ... Hero?' inspired the film. Known for hard-hitting reporting, Vogel is taken aback when he's assigned to profile Rogers. He's also nowhere near as enamoured with his subject as everyone else, including his starstruck wife Andrea (Susan Kelechi Watson). Indeed, he's still hesitant when Rogers (Tom Hanks) engages in a generous chat on the phone and appears genuinely interested in getting to know him. Taking its cues from Rogers' puppet-filled TV show in inventive ways, A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood begins by recreating Mister Rogers' Neighbourhood's opening. To the sounds of a gentle theme sung by Rogers, a model town fills the screen, before cutting to the show's star arriving home, popping on his famous red cardigan, swapping his dress shoes for sneakers and addressing the camera. Purposefully affable and inviting when watched by kids on weekdays for 33 years, it remains just as cosy here. To segue into the bulk of the film, Hanks' pitch-perfect version of Rogers says that he's going to tell a story about his hurt friend Lloyd — and while that might seem like cutesy gimmickry, it works perfectly in Heller's hands. With screenwriters Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster (Maleficent: Mistress of Evil), she understands that Rogers left such a lasting imprint on so many people because he made kids feel like he really saw them. Accordingly, treating Vogel in the same way isn't just a creative flourish — it's essential. The same idea applies to A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood's audience, who the film never forgets. This movie is well aware that viewers are experiencing the famed figure through Vogel's eyes — and it wants you to feel like you're in his shoes, being seen, welcomed and accepted by the kindly host as well. A new father struggling with issues with his own long-absent dad (Chris Cooper) that stem back to childhood, Vogel's backstory assists. While somewhat generic, it's also immensely relatable. Everyone has pain from the past they haven't fully processed, which was Rogers' whole remit. His show helped kids express their emotions and personalities in healthy ways, and tackle topics as dark as death, divorce and war. Even though Vogel is much, much older, it's a role Rogers is still eager to play for his new friend. Conveying that compassion, grace and sincerity is a task only Hanks could've mastered. It's a case of getting a beloved, benevolent icon to play just that — although Hanks ensures that Rogers is a person rather than a shining picture of perfection. This isn't a warts-and-all tell-all and, as 2018 documentary Won't You Be My Neighbour? demonstrated, that film will never exist. Instead, A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood remembers a man who considered himself ordinary while having an extraordinary effect on others. You could say the same about Hanks, which is what makes his casting so sublime. His is a superb, deservedly Oscar-nominated performance that's never an act of simple mimicry, but that he's as revered — and has been a reliable screen presence for decades, too — is never forgotten. Amidst cardboard backdrops recreating Mister Rogers' Neighbourhood, talking puppets and scenes of Rogers making adults wait so he can spend more time with his child fans, A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood doesn't completely or even primarily belong to Rogers. His influence looms large, but this is really Vogel's story — and that makes the film all the better. Rhys finds his character's world-weary centre, then allows it to slowly crumble as his bond with Rogers grows. In the process, the movie mirrors the way the TV host found a place in millions of children's hearts, and cracks the cloak of cynicism hanging over some of its own viewers, too. It's easy to think that a feature like this will be too sappy, kitschy or hokey, just as Vogel thought about Rogers — but a man brimming with empathy and this charmingly made movie about his impact are both the perfect antidotes to distrust and disillusionment. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CELbK9q_ZeA
Say ciao to an Italian summer at the Italian Summer on the Rooftop — Bottomless Brunch, where the Richmond Club Hotel's rooftop has been transformed into a rustic oasis, complete with mouth-watering food and drinks that will transport you straight to the heart of Italy — without the airfare. Every Saturday and Sunday from 12–2pm, the Bottomless Brunch will set you back just $55 per person. The cost includes a selection of drinks which are all perfectly paired with an antipasto grazing board that features a variety of mouth-watering Italian classics like burrata, arancini, focaccia and more. And what's on the drinks menu, you ask? We're talking frozen blood orange G&T, frozen lychee martini, pink hibiscus spritz, orange and mandarin Spritz, or a classic mimosa. Plus, with an impressive selection of tap beers and ciders, as well as house wine and sparkling, there's something for everyone. But it's not just the drinks and food that make this brunch so special — it's the rooftop setting itself. With sweeping views of Melbourne's skyline, this Italian oasis in the heart of Melbourne's bustling Richmond district is the perfect spot to soak up the sun and enjoy a fun arvo with mates or a romantic rooftop brunch date. To book a table at Richmond Club Hotel's Italian Summer on the Rooftop — Bottomless Brunch, head to the website.
The humble roast chook has plenty of fans across the country, but if you consider yourself a die-hard chicken aficionado, you'll feel like a winner (winner) when ordering your chicken dinner at this St Kilda eatery. Korr Jee Chicken is a casual dining venture from Will Tang (Vue de Monde, Bar Lourinha), a chef formerly specialising in fine dining fare. But at his lively and brightly coloured spot, Tang has set out to transform the picture conjured with the words "chicken shop" — instead showing that casual, quick dining doesn't have to compromise on freshness or care. Actually, the chickens whipped up here may have undergone as much prep than some of the world's finest steaks. According to the restaurant, every roast chicken goes through a 26-hour preparation process where it's brined in a selection of species, before being dry-aged and finally slow-roasted. The end result is a juicy, succulent chook — a far cry from the supermarket bagged chickens mum used to serve at home (which still have their place, of course). You can get your chicken in half ($18) or quarter ($11) servings, or share a whole one ($30) among a group. Or, sure, tackle it yourself. We're not here to judge. Alongside this crowning jewel of the table, diners can order a number of elevated sides, including a coleslaw constructed from freshly sliced cabbage, sauerkraut and charred corn in a house-made dressing ($11), oven-baked crusty garlic loaf ($8) or triple cooked hand-cut chips with house-made aioli ($9). They've even got their own peri peri sauce — a delicious twist on a well-known classic. The eatery may be casual but there's still an extensive beer and wine list, or you can opt for one of their speciality cocktails ($20) like their suze negroni, peach margarita, or a hot toddy to protect from winter's chill. Wednesdays see them slinging $1 wings, and on Fridays, $25 cocktail jugs see in the weekend in style.
This month is set to deliver the ultimate treasure hunt for local whisky fiends, as Japanese distillery Nikka teams up with some of the city's top watering holes for two weeks of exclusive tipples. Running from Friday, February 3–Sunday, February 19, Nikka's Discover the Hidden sees nine Melbourne venues each whipping up an exclusive sip crafted on one of the label's renowned products. And you're going to want to scout out every last one of them. There's a whisky-based drink in this lineup for every kind of palate — whether you like the sound of Bouvardia's Australia-meets-Japan concoction blending the Nikka Coffee Malt Whisky with wattleseed shoyu and fresh wasabi, or you're tempted by Eau de Vie's fusion of sherry, maraschino and absinthe. Whisky & Alement has created a cocktail made on Nikka's Yoichi Single Malt Whisky, coffee-infused muscat, whey and caramelised orange, while Lily Blacks' drink teams Nikka Whisky from the Barrel with strawberry shortcake, a strawberry and stout reduction, and strawberry and rhubarb bitters. Bar Margaux, Hats & Tatts, Madame Brussels, Whisky Den and Double Happiness are also joining in the fun. Best of all? The venues are located within walking distance of each other if you find yourself in the mood for a whisky-fuelled bar crawl. [caption id="attachment_511791" align="alignnone" width="2560"] Whisky & Alement[/caption]
The only resort on Daydream Island in The Whitsundays has finally reopened after being devastated by Cyclone Debbie back in March 2018. And, after a huge $100 million redevelopment, Daydream Island Resort is doing it in serious fashion — with a 200-metre living reef, three restaurants, a poolside bar and an outdoor cinema to boot. The exclusive resort reopened today — Monday, April 15 — with 277 fully refurbished suites that span ocean, garden and pool views. Those aren't any ordinary ocean views, either, with crystal clear turquoise waters surrounding every corner of this tiny oasis. And the massive, newly landscaped pool wraps throughout the resort's tropical gardens and links to its coral beaches, offering views of the Great Barrier Reef beyond. The resort's living reef has also been revitalised — it's a coral lagoon that spans 200 metres and surrounds the central building, with its 1.5 million litres of water housing over 100 species of fish, coral and invertebrates. Guests can learn from local marine biologists while helping to feed baby stingrays and explore the new underwater observatory that lies four metres below sea level. [caption id="attachment_716885" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Looking from from the pool.[/caption] Daydream Island will also boast three distinct restaurants and three bars, all of which feature seasonal and local produce. Fine-dining restaurant Infinity offers panoramic ocean views and a menu of Asian-fusion eats, along with a teppanyaki private dining room. Then there's Inkstone Kitchen and Bar, a modern Australian restaurant using native ingredients. Think crispy skin coral trout sourced from Bowen, served over squid ink linguine, and surrounded by thin slices of smoked crocodile and Australian caviar, too. For cocktails, you'll head over to the gin bar, Tonic. The third dining greenhouse-style option, Graze will open in the coming months, along with two other bars. An outdoor cinema will launch in June, too. While you're in the region, don't miss the chance to do a bit of exploring and check out the nearby Whitehaven Beach, which is listed as one of the best beaches in the world.Those keen to explore the Whitsundays further can book snorkelling, helicopter tours, sailing, jet-skiing and island-hopping experiences through the resort. Of course, all this doesn't come cheap. Rates start at $392 per night — and that's just for a standard room. Start saving now, or just daydream by having a scroll through the photos. Daydream Island Resort is now open. For more to see and do in the region, check out our Outside Guide to the Whitsundays.
As it continues in a push to produce more inclusive exercise gear, Lululemon has this week launched a new range of workout hijabs across selected international stores. The performance and lifestyle hijabs come in two styles available to buy now across New Zealand and Australia, with a third set to launch later this year. Each hijab is made using the buttery soft, sweat-wicking fabric Lululemon is famous for and offers a series of adjustable fits suited to the gym, a home workout or just those humid days of summer. The pin-free Performance Hijab ($55 AUD/$65 NZD) comes in both black and blue, and features an adjustable drawstring so it stays fitted into place while the user is working out — perfect for runners and HIIT lovers. The more traditional Scarf-Style Hijab ($49 AUD/$55 NZD) comes in soft jersey fabric and can be worn tied, twisted or tucked depending on preference. This one might be more suited to lower intensity styles, like pilates and walks. Lastly, the OTM Pull On Hijab ($49 AUD/$55 NZD) which is set to launch later this year, also has an over the head design and can be worn wrapped around the shoulders or tucked into the front of the shirt. Luluelmon certainly isn't the first activewear company to produce a hijab suited to exercise: Adidas has an option available to purchase online with its famous three stripe logo and Nike also has a monochromatic range. Under Armour also has an option with built-in headphone access. It would be great to see more brands follow suit, including locally made and designed options. The Lululemon performance hijab range launched Monday, June 6 and can be found now in select stores across Australia and New Zealand. For more information, head to the website.
Come summertime, the celebratory spirit is taking over the entire state, thanks to massive events like ALWAYS LIVE. For the third year running, this festival celebrates the diversity of music in Victoria, with a mix of international headliners and local musicians taking to stages statewide from Friday, November 22, to Sunday, December 8. Some of the unmissable (and exclusive) events in ALWAYS LIVE are taking place on the final weekend. One of those is Yerambooee, a unique celebration of First Nations culture and community. This free event on Saturday, December 7 at 7pm, is hosted by elders and performers from Wurundjeri, Woi-Wurrung and Yolgnu peoples. The stage will be a nine-metre sand circle laid down in Fed Square — representative of a meeting ground filled with river sand — for a gathering unlike anything else on the festival program. Beginning with a welcome from Aunty Joy Murphy, performers will take to the stage with song, dance and music for a celebration that encourages the audience to join in — with music inspired by Djarimirri (Child of the Rainbow) — the final work of the late Yolgnu musician Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu. Yeramboee will take place in Federation Square on Saturday, December 7. For more information, visit the Always Live website.
As COVID-19 continues to spread around the globe, travel is in no one's immediate plans — and the airline industry is responding accordingly. In Australia, that means a huge drop in the number of available flights, both overseas and within Australia, with Qantas announcing that it's grounding aircraft and slashing services for the foreseeable future. In a statement, the 100-year-old Aussie airline revealed that it will cut flights from the end of March until the end of May, at least. International flights will be cut by around 90 percent, while domestic flights will fall by approximately 60 percent. Both moves come in response to Australia's current containment and quarantine measures, including the requirement that all international arrivals into the country must self-isolate for 14 days — and, unsurprisingly, the steeply dropping demand for air travel both internationally and domestically. In total, around 150 aircraft will be taken out of service across both the Qantas and Jetstar brands. At present, the company will also stick to its previously announced reductions from late May to mid-September — with capacity cut by 25 percent by using smaller aircraft and reducing the frequency of flights — although that could obviously drop further depending on how the coronavirus situation develops in the next two months. While Qantas hasn't revealed exactly which routes will be affected by the huge 90-percent cut, it's sensible to assume that all of them will. Big changes already announced and operational include postponing the launch of the new Brisbane–Chicago route, sending all Sydney flights to London via Perth rather than Singapore (which, yes, means experiencing that whopping 17-hour non-stop trip from Perth–London), and completely suspending all flights from Sydney–Shanghai and Melbourne–Bangkok. Given the extent of COVID-19's impact, all other airlines are obviously in a comparable situation. While Virgin Australia hasn't updated its plans since March 13, it too has begun reducing services — by six percent overall, including by eight percent internationally. Worldwide, the scenario is the same. Air New Zealand is reducing its capacity by 85 percent overall, and its trips across the Tasman to Australia by 80 percent. Airlines in America, Britain, Europe, Asia and, well, basically everywhere are taking similar measures — as is to be expected as countries everywhere begin to close their borders. For more information about Qantas and Jetstar's reductions, visit the company's website. For further details about Virgin Australia's plans, visit its website. To find out more about the status of COVID-19 in Australia and how to protect yourself, head to the Australian Government Department of Health's website.
Following a successful debut year in 2020, Melbourne's citywide al fresco dining festival is returning for another blockbuster New Year's Eve celebration this year. Those looking to leave 2021 behind them and ring in the new year with good food and wine will be able to nab tickets to NYE feasts in one of eight dining precincts as part of the second edition of New Year Street Feasts. The event is a collaborative effort between the City of Melbourne and Melbourne Food & Wine Festival (MFWF) which has suffered a horror two years full of postponements and cancellations, with last year's New Year Street Feasts a bright spot among the tough times. "We can't wait to see people lining Melbourne's streets eating and drinking, and being cared for, by our world-class operators as we ring in the New Year," MFWF CEO Anthea Loucas Bosha said. Eight outdoor dining precincts will be created for the festival, appearing in top culinary spots like Flinders Lane, Russell Place and Little Collins Street, as well as Fed Square and Docklands. The festival brings nearby venues from each precinct together to serve up a jam-packed program of special menus and feasting experiences. Last year's festival included a six-course Indian feast at Jessi Singh's Daughter in Law, a Spanish-inspired Bomba dinner complete with heirloom tomato gazpacho and buttermilk-braised lamb shoulder, and a Bar Margaux soiree featuring champagne cocktails and roast duck. Diners at Dockland's New Quay Promenade may also be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of Australia's largest drone show which is lighting up the sky above Victoria Harbour twice on New Year's Eve. The swarm of 350 drones will rise for two seven-minute shows in conjunction with the 9.30pm and midnight fireworks as part of New Year's celebrations, before sticking around for twice-nightly shows throughout January. Tickets for New Year Street Feasts will be available via the Melbourne Food & Wine Show website, while tickets for viewing areas to watch the drone show will be available via a Ticketek ballot. More information on New Year Street Feasts and the full City of Melbourne New Year's Eve event lineup will be unveiled on Thursday, November 25. New Year Street Feasts will run at various locations across the city on Friday, December 31. Top image: Chin Chin on Flinders Lane
Something delightful has been happening in cinemas across the country. After months spent empty, with projectors silent, theatres bare and the smell of popcorn fading, Australian picture palaces are back in business — spanning both big chains and smaller independent sites in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. During COVID-19 lockdowns, no one was short on things to watch, of course. In fact, you probably feel like you've streamed every movie ever made, including new releases, comedies, music documentaries, Studio Ghibli's animated fare and Nicolas Cage-starring flicks. But, even if you've spent all your time of late glued to your small screen, we're betting you just can't wait to sit in a darkened room and soak up the splendour of the bigger version. Thankfully, plenty of new films are hitting cinemas so that you can do just that — and we've rounded up, watched and reviewed everything on offer this week. COUSINS Early in Cousins, lawyer Makareta (Briar Grace Smith, The Strength of Water) walks Wellington's streets, chatting to her cousin Missy (Rachel House, Baby Done) by phone about the latest threat to appropriate their family's land to build a highway. As they talk, a woman with a shrub-like bob of hair and a well-worn green coat almost crosses Makareta's path — and, unbeknownst to her, it's her long-lost cousin, Mata (Tanea Heke, Waru), that she's spent most of her years desperately looking for. In another movie, this near miss would be cutesy, convenient, and spark an onslaught of superficial wisdom about opportunities, coincidences and connections. Cousins isn't that film, thankfully. Here, Makareta and Mata come oh-so-close to finding each other because that's what life entails for a Māori woman who was taken from her family as a child. Stolen away by her white father, left with an uncaring guardian and schooled in a grim home for desolate children, Mata has spent too long at arm's reach from her nearest and dearest, as the film's fractured timeline loops back to explain. She's never all that far away physically — indeed, when she's allowed to stay with her relatives during one youthful summer, a much-younger Makareta (Mihi Te Rauhi Daniels) is shocked to learn that her cousin has been living locally — but by being stripped of her culture, her ties to the past and even the name her mother gave her, Mata may as well have been sent to the other side of the world. Based on Patricia Grace's 1992 book of the same name — and brought to the screen with exceptional performances, including from House, both Keyahne Patrick Williams and Hariata Moriarty (Savage) as younger versions of Missy, and Te Ao Marama Baker, Te Raukura Gray and Ana Scotney (The Breaker Upperers) as Mata at various ages — Cousins explores how Mata's removal from her family leaves a permanent mark. Following her years in institutionalised care and the abhorrent way she's treated by her guardian (Sylvia Rands, Top of the Lake) as well, it's a story and film about colonial trauma, systemic racism and the ills of history that have affected too many First Nations people in too much of the world, and it's a heartbreakingly moving and compelling piece of cinema. Co-directing as well as acting, Grace-Smith teams up with fellow Māori woman and Waru collaborator Ainsley Gardiner to tell a tale that's intimate, impassioned and unflinchingly brought to the screen. Cousins dives headfirst into the pain that removing Indigenous people from their land and culture sparks, and doesn't ever downplay how that hurt, loss, isolation and alienation causes ripples that never subside. And yet, with its calm gaze, as well as its penchant for lingering over brief but vibrant pops of colour and greenery, this is also a movie about fighting for what matters, valuing what you can when you can, and remaining both adaptable and resilient out of both necessity and unyielding fortitude. JOSEE, THE TIGER AND THE FISH With its eye-catching pastel hues and soul-stirring affinity for water, it'd be easy to accuse Josee, the Tiger and the Fish of following in Weathering With You, Children of the Sea and Ride Your Wave's footsteps — or in Ponyo's as well. But this charming and moving Japanese delight finds its origins in a 2003 live-action film of the same name, which itself was adapted from author Seiko Tanabe's short story. The new Josee, the Tiger and the Fish still slides in seamlessly beside its aforementioned anime peers, though. That isn't a criticism by any means. These movies aren't otherwise overtly connected, but Japan's affection for gorgeously animated tales of the heart, of hope and of H2O keeps giving rise to features that may as well be different volumes in a beloved series. Present here, too, is a clear sense of melodrama as two twentysomethings literally collide — physically, more than once, in fact — and try to work out what their futures might hold. Tsuneo (Taishi Nakagawa, Samurai Marathon) has always dreamed of becoming a marine biologist, while Josee (Kaya Kiyohara, Wish) has rarely been given room to think of anything other than the present. Once the pair's paths intertwine, though, they begin to find themselves in far more similar circumstances than either could ever have foretold. The meet-cute here is really a crash-cute: thanks to Josee's hurtling wheelchair and its speedy decline down a hilly Osaka street, she goes flying into his arms. Her grandmother (Chiemi Matsutera) invites him home, and then to join them for a meal — and while Josee is unhappy about the arrangement to the point of being outwardly rude, Tsuneo soon finds himself with a job offer to be her part-time caregiver. He also works in the local dive shop, as part of his studies and quest to earn a scholarship to Mexico. But even with his friend and coworker Mai (Yume Miyamoto, The Misfit of Demon King Academy) pining for him quietly, he's drawn to the impudent Josee. The film strands its titular character in her wheelchair, in peril and in need of help more than once, but Tsuneo is adamant that she needn't ignore her dreams or resign herself to escaping the world around her. Directing his first feature after credits on TV series such as Negima! Magister Negi Magi and Noragami, filmmaker Kôtarô Tamura tells not only a love story, but a tale about embracing life's chaos. His film celebrates the importance of understanding perspectives other than your own, and of fighting for your own choices. Add it to the list of sweet, charming, empathetic and heartwarming anime doing the same — although not one of them simply wades in familiar waters. HEROIC LOSERS Thanks to the vagaries of fate — and, of late, the havoc that the pandemic has played on cinema releases — films with similar elements sometimes brighten up the big screen at the same time. Heroic Losers is one of two movies debuting in Australian cinemas this week that unites a group of small-town locals around a shared cause (the other: Dream Horse; see below). It's also one of two features out this week that pits ordinary hardworking folks against the overwhelming forces making their lives more difficult (the second: Percy vs Goliath; again, see below). Heroic Losers also boasts much in common with the treasure trove of heist flicks that have come before it. Writer/director Sebastian Borensztein (Chinese Take-Out) even includes clips of 1966's How to Steal a Million, and has the 55-year-old classic influence some of its characters' antics, too. But, premiering in Argentina almost two years ago before hopping its way around the festival circuit, including at Australia's Spanish Film Festival, this affable movie ranks among the best kind of formulaic fare. It makes you remember what you love about the genres it warmly falls into, as well as the pictures it fondly recalls — and it never leaves its viewers merely ticking through all of its standard-issue inclusions, then wishing they were watching one of those other pictures instead. The ever-reliable, always charming Ricardo Darín (Everybody Knows) plays Fermín Perlassi, a retired ex-footballer who wants to reopen a grain storage cooperative that stumbled in his small-town home of Villa Alsina a decade earlier. It's 2001, and he manages to encourage his pals and locals to support his dream. Alas, just days after Fermín deposits their life savings — and is manipulated into putting them into an account, rather than in a safe deposit box —Argentina's financial crisis sees the country's banks and their funds all frozen. This isn't the last crisis involving their money, but the group comes up with a plan. Again, as mentioned above, How to Steal a Million helps. So does the eagerness of Fermín and his gang — including Verónica Llinás (So Long Enthusiasm) as his wife, Darín's own son Chino (The Queen of Spain) as his son, and Luis Brandoni (You Only Live Once), Rita Cortese (Wild Tales) and Marco Antonio Caponi (Nobody's Watching) as well — to take their destinies into their own hands. Unravelling their heist antics, Borensztein helms a lively and likeable film that pairs its affection for their efforts with a matching affinity for the characters themselves. It all turns out as anyone can predict, but the good-natured journey is rarely anything less than pleasant. DELIVER US FROM EVIL Whether he's on screenwriting duties or he's behind the camera, a film that involves Hong Won-chan is always worthy of attention. The South Korean filmmaker penned the scripts for Na Hong-jin's gripping The Chaser and The Yellow Sea, then made his directorial debut with the entertainingly savage Office — and now, both as a writer and a helmer, he's added engaging action-packed gangster thriller Deliver Us From Evil to his growing resume. A big box office hit on home turf, this kinetic, frenetic and exceptionally choreographed affair charts the failed last hurrah of cop-turned-hitman In-nam (Hwang Jung-min, The Wailing). In Tokyo, he pulls off his final job without a hitch, but it turns out that his yakuza target has an unhinged brother that his bosses forgot to mention. And, as well as being unhappy about this turn of events to the point of seeking bloody and ruthless revenge, said sibling Ray (Lee Jung-jae, The Housemaid) shares a past with In-nam. That's enough to derail the latter's plans to live the good life in Panama for the rest of his days; however, it's not the only drama that pushes him off course. In Bangkok, his ex-girlfriend has been killed in a bungled kidnapping and extortion scheme, but her nine-year-old daughter Yoo-min (Park So-yi, Pawn) still needs rescuing. Deliver Us From Evil isn't short on plot, but it isn't needlessly overcomplicated or convoluted, either. As a storyteller, Hong has always been efficient above all else. Indeed, when multiple storylines weave through his scripts — as they usually do — they're always unfurled with exactly the flair and detail each needs and deserves. Here, he threads together In-nam's search for Yoo-min and his attempts to evade Ray, and does so with the same precision his two main characters show in their gruesome work. In this 108-minute movie, not a scene or second is wasted, in fact. While much of the minutiae, narrative-wise, hardly reshapes Hong's chosen genre, he firmly knows the difference between blandly sticking to a formula and deploying familiar elements in their best and most spirited forms. His keen eye for dynamic, slick but never mindlessly over-the-top action helps, including in frenzied chase scenes and brutal fist-to-fist battles. His willingness to let the camera linger upon its person of focus a beat longer than usual — whether In-nam, Ray or the transgender Korean woman, Yui (Park Jeong-min, Time to Hunt), In-nam teams up with to locate Yoo-min — also gives the movie its own pace. And, in its casting, Deliver Us From Evil is first-rate. Lee gets the more cartoonish role, but no scene featuring his menace, Hwang's blend of determination and desperation, or both, could ever wear out its welcome. DREAM HORSE Life-changing conversations can happen in bars — as Jan Vokes well and truly knows. Played in Dream Horse by Toni Collette (I'm Thinking of Ending Things), the Welsh supermarket employee and pub barmaid overheard Howard Davies (Damian Lewis, Billions) chatting about his past success as a racehorse owner. In his beer-fuelled boasting, he doesn't discuss how it almost left him bankrupt and divorced, but Jan is still inspired to both follow his lead and enlist his help. Having bred whippets and racing pigeons before, and won prizes for doing so, she decides she'll turn her attention to horses. Husband Brian (Owen Teale, Game of Thrones) isn't initially convinced, but soon she's studying guides, finding a mare and then a stallion, and convincing her friends and neighbours to put away a tenner a week to pay for this little endeavour. The syndicate's focus: a foal they name Dream Alliance, who spends his early days being raised on the Vokes' allotment, and eventually ends up with racing hotshot Philip Hobbs (Nicholas Farrell, The Nevers) as its trainer. Dream Horse wouldn't exist if success didn't follow, and it leaves no doubt that that's the case; however, director Euros Lyn (The Library Suicides) and screenwriter Neil McKay (Mad Money) chart lows as well as highs, and always ensure their characters are their primary focus. Dream Alliance was always going to gallop into cinemas, of course — and not just via 2015 documentary Dark Horse: The Incredible True Story of Dream Alliance. His is a story too crowd-pleasing for filmmakers to ignore, especially given the UK's penchant for against-the-odds tales about motley crews of struggling salt-of-the-earth characters who band together over an unusual but swiftly shared interest that ends up revitalising their lives in more ways than one. That's the template Dream Horse plays to, even though it's based on a true tale and an actual horse. The Full Monty, Calendar Girls and similar feel-good flicks provide as much inspiration here as the actual real-life details, in fact. Accordingly, this is a movie that's easy to get caught up in. It's almost impossible not to, really. That said, it's also a film that wears its warmth, sentimentality and shameless heartstring-pulling as a badge of honour. As a result, it's also impossible to ignore the buttons the movie keeps gleefully pushing, and the parts of the tale that must've been smoothed out to elicit the desired cheer-inducing response — even around Collette's committed performance. But this happily mawkish feature and its characters are all doing it for the "hwyl", a Welsh term that means "emotional motivation and energy", and neither is willing to let that mission dwindle even for a second. PERCY VS GOLIATH Not once but twice in Percy vs Goliath, snippets of news footage utter the three words that no one needs to speak aloud. Given its title, no one needs to spell out that seed-saving Saskatchewan farmer Percy Schmeiser (Christopher Walken, Wild Mountain Thyme) is locked in a David vs Goliath battle with agriculture and agrochemical behemoth Monsanto. By the time the biblical face-off is first mentioned in this underdog drama, it's well and truly clear that this is the case — whether or not you're familiar with the real-life story, or you've seen the 2009 documentary Percy Schmeiser — David Versus Monsanto. But actor-turned-director Clark Johnson (Juanita) and screenwriters Garfield Lindsay Miller (The Devil You Know) and Hilary Pryor (Moosemeat & Marmalade) go there anyway. They make a plethora of choices that are just as blatant and unnecessary, and it robs their film of its potency. Unexpectedly accused of stealing Monsanto's Roundup-resistant canola seeds, and determined to do whatever it takes to demonstrate his innocence and fight for the rights of his fellow farmers, Schmeiser's tale is rousing enough without needing to resort to obvious cliches. Undoubtedly, his quest was described in such terms by media at the time, and definitely would've been since as well, but Percy vs Goliath's viewers don't need to be spoon-fed so forcefully to understand why his battle matters. Thankfully, this by-the-numbers movie has Walken at its centre, which is usually a smart choice. The veteran actor might've been poorly served by his past two big-screen roles — his Irish accent in Wild Mountain Thyme is awful, and the less said about the never-funny all-ages exploits in War with Grandpa, the better — but he's reliably compelling here as Schmeiser. His character's troubles begin when he's sent a letter demanding $15,000 in payment for his supposed unlicensed use of Monsanto's patented technology. Schmeiser's wife (Roberta Maxwell, Hungry Hearts) is initially sceptical about enlisting legal help, his son (Luke Kirby, The Marvellous Mrs Maisel) is steadfastly against it and even their chosen lawyer (Zach Braff, The Comeback Trail) recommends settling; however, this farmer doesn't take kindly to being told he's a thief when he isn't, or being bullied by the big end of his industry. He initially isn't too fond of the environmental activist (Christina Ricci, Around the Block) who pops up to crowdfund for his cause, either, but sometimes he needs her bigger-picture thinking. Yes, everything in Percy vs Goliath unravels as expected, and Johnson, Miller and Pryor's choices emphasis that unmissable truth. The film didn't need to be as routine and drama-free as it is, but Walken gives it far more spirit than it possesses otherwise. THE MEDDLER In The Meddler, it doesn't take long for German Cabrera to admit the obvious: he has an addiction. By day, the Guatemala City resident works as a mechanic, a trade he's keen to teach to his four sons. By night, he leaves his family at home while he trawls the streets until dawn, doggedly searching for whichever splashes of blood, crime and drama that he can capture with his always-recording camera. Cabrera is compelled to document the city's chaos so that he can expose it, he explains. As the block of text that opens the film notes, 2100 homicides were reported in Guatemala City in 2013, making it the 12th most violent place in the world. Cabrera records everything that he can — nightly fights, drunken behaviour, medical emergencies and dead bodies alike — with TV networks airing his footage, and even eventually dedicating an entire segment called The Night Watcher to his visuals. He's proud about the fact that he doesn't get paid for his efforts. As The Meddler watches him as he watches on, he seems to enjoy what he's seeing, too. In fact, Cabrera takes his role as a self-appointed observer to heart, simply standing by camera in-hand while scenes and events scream for someone's intervention, and often just recording anyone who happens to stumble into his view. Directed by feature first-timers Alex Roberts and Daniel Leclair, The Meddler has charged itself with a complicated task — because its subject and his actions and motivations are equally complex. When the documentary spends time driving around with Cabrera, peers at him while he's on the road and hears him talk about his desires to better the city, it purposefully brings Taxi Driver to mind. When it spies his eagerness to voyeuristically seek out and shoot Guatemala City's nocturnal chaos night after night, it summons up Nightcrawler as well. Neither comparison paints Cabrera in a favourable light, or a straightforward one. The Meddler thrusts him to the fore and its filmmakers don't interject in his monologues, question his statements or try to explain his choices; however, the doco's aesthetic and editing choices don't wholly land on his side, either. Indeed, this is a knotty character study that appreciates Cabrera's stated quest, and also acknowledges all of the thorniness that comes packaged with him and his after-dark hustle. When the film uses his footage, it's chilling and unsettling. When it forces viewers to contemplate his presence in the night and accompanying penchant for sensationalistic imagery, it's just as eerie. GREAT WHITE When a giant shark chomps its way through the cinematic ocean, audiences are meant to side with its scared human prey. But some creature features give viewers multiple reasons to do the opposite — and to find their own way to liven up a dull and formulaic movie. Perhaps the film's non-fish characters are woefully one-note or unlikeable, or both. Maybe the script is so simplistic, even in a well-worn genre, that a shark munching random keys on a typewriter probably could've written something better. Or, it could be that every plot development, performance, visual, and score choice is so overwhelmingly predictable that tension is as rare as a vegan great white. Actually, there's no maybes about any of the last three statements when it comes to horror's latest shark-centric outing, which turns Queensland's waters into a buffet for a ravenous critter. Great White marks the feature debut of director Martin Wilson, and only the second movie script for screenwriter Michael Boughen (Dying Breed); however, that its producers have 2010 Aussie shark film The Reef and its now-in-production sequel The Reef: Stalked on their resumes — plus homegrown 2007 crocodile flick Black Water and its 2020 sequel Black Water: Abyss — will surprise absolutely no one. Great White's setup will be familiar to anyone who has even heard of a shark movie before, let alone watched one. The twist: despite reassurances by marine biologist-turned-seaplane pilot Charlie (Aaron Jakubenko, Tidelands) that the time just isn't right for teeth-gnashing ocean predators to fill their empty stomachs, climate change seems to have changed the titular species' habits. So, on a lucrative charter gig that'll help keep his business financially afloat, Charlie, his girlfriend Kaz (Katrina Bowden, 30 Rock), their cook Benny (Te Kohe Tuhaka, Love and Monsters), and their paying customers Joji (Tim Kano, Neighbours) and Michelle (Kimie Tsukakoshi, The Family Law) find themselves under threat. They've headed to a remote island of personal significance to Michelle, and Joji is clashing with Benny before they even spot the resident great white's last victim. To ramp up the stakes, Kaz is telling Charlie that she's pregnant, too. Quickly, the quintet become the creature's next targets, including while cast adrift in a life raft that could use Life of Pi's Richard Parker for company. Just as speedily, Great White's audience will wish that something — anything — that hasn't previously graced Jaws, The Shallows, 47 Metres Down or even The Meg's frames would happen in this thrill-free bob into been-there, done-that waters. SPIRIT UNTAMED The first time that a Kiger Mustang named Spirit cantered across the silver screen, it was in 2002's Oscar-nominated Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron. Back then, the film marked just the sixth theatrical feature that Dreamworks Animation had brought to cinemas — following Antz, The Prince of Egypt, The Road to El Dorado, Chicken Run and Shrek — and if anything stood out, it was the movie's hand-drawn animation. Almost two decades later, Spirit Untamed returns the energetic and determined horse back to theatres. The movie he's in still looks gorgeous, even if computers have replaced pencils in bringing him to life. That said, this isn't actually the franchise's second step, with Netflix series Spirit Riding Free also telling the apple-loving animal's story across 78 episodes since 2017. In both look and feel, Spirit Untamed has more in common with its streaming counterpart than its big-screen predecessor, unsurprisingly. It's happy to primarily court the show's young audience, too. Indeed, while voice work by Jake Gyllenhaal (Spider-Man: Far From Home), Julianne Moore (Lisey's Story), Walton Goggins (Fatman), Andre Braugher (Brooklyn Nine-Nine) and Eiza González (Godzilla vs Kong) is designed to appeal to adults, there's little else but scant traces of nostalgia and pastel-hued imagery to keep anyone past their teens interested. Her vocals stem from a different actor — with Isabela Merced (Dora and the Lost City of Gold) doing the honours — but Fortuna Esperanza "Lucky" Prescott still sits at the heart of Spirit Untamed. Like Spirit Riding Free, the new film tells of Lucky's arrival in the frontier town of Miradero, her connection with Spirit and her efforts to save him from wranglers (led by Goggins). Also covered: her budding friendship with fellow horse-lovers Pru (voiced here by Little's Marsai Martin) and Abigail (Mckenna Grace, Annabelle Comes Home). They're the pals she needs when Spirit and his wild companions are snatched up by the nefarious rustlers, who plan to ship the horses off and sell them. Together, the pre-teen trio then sets off across the dangerous plains, determined to save the galloping animals and do the right thing. There's an obvious but still welcome and powerful message in Lucky's story, as she ignores her worried dad's (Gyllenhaal) warnings and her doting aunt's (Moore) fussing, choosing to follow her own heart and path instead. (Her father frets because her mother, voiced by González, worked as a horse-riding stunt performer and died during a show.) Similarly pleasing, even if the movie basically just remakes the TV show's first episode: that this all-ages wild west tale heroes women, although it pales in comparison to the recent Calamity, a Childhood of Martha Jane Cannary. If you're wondering what else is currently screening in cinemas — or has been lately — check out our rundown of new films released in Australia on January 1, January 7, January 14, January 21 and January 28; February 4, February 11, February 18 and February 25; March 4, March 11, March 18 and March 25; and April 1, April 8, April 15, April 22 and April 29; May 6, May 13, May 20 and May 27; and June 3. You can also read our full reviews of a heap of recent movies, such as Nomadland, Pieces of a Woman, The Dry, Promising Young Woman, Summerland, Ammonite, The Dig, The White Tiger, Only the Animals, Malcolm & Marie, News of the World, High Ground, Earwig and the Witch, The Nest, Assassins, Synchronic, Another Round, Minari, Firestarter — The Story of Bangarra, The Truffle Hunters, The Little Things, Chaos Walking, Raya and the Last Dragon, Max Richter's Sleep, Judas and the Black Messiah, Girls Can't Surf, French Exit, Saint Maud, Godzilla vs Kong, The Painter and the Thief, Nobody, The Father, Willy's Wonderland, Collective, Voyagers, Gunda, Supernova, The Dissident, The United States vs Billie Holiday, First Cow, Wrath of Man, Locked Down, The Perfect Candidate, Those Who Wish Me Dead, Spiral: From the Book of Saw, Ema, A Quiet Place Part II, Cruella, My Name Is Gulpilil, Lapsis and The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It.
The humble lamington has been given makeover after makeover by Tokyo Lamington — and the Sydney bakery is finally opening its doors in Melbourne. If you're new to the name, it's a big deal in lamington game, all thanks to Min Chai and Eddie Stewart. After starting life overseas, introducing places like Singapore and Tokyo to some innovative riffs on the humble lamington, the brand settled in Newtown and has been impressing Sydneysiders with its creative desserts ever since. And now, for the first time ever, it's setting up shop permanently in Melbourne. [caption id="attachment_774463" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tokyo Lamington x Koko Black collaboration[/caption] Yes, Tokyo Lamington popped up in North Melbourne earlier in 2022, in a collaboration with Le Bajo, but that was only temporary. Come Tuesday, October 18, however, the dessert legends will open a permanent bricks-and-mortar Carlton location, pumping out those lamingtons with a cult following — and more. Sweet-toothed Melburnians are in for a proper treat on Elgin Street, with an extensive vegan cookies range also on offer. That said, Tokyo Lamington's Melbourne digs will serve up onigiri, pies, quiches and sausage rolls, too. For caffeine addicts, it'll be pumping out coffee from Single O seven days a week as well. Fingers crossed for some more local collabs. In the past, primarily in Sydney, Tokyo Lamington has teamed up with the likes of By George, Circa Espresso, Stitch Coffee, Koko Black and KitKat. For Chai and Stewart, who also founded N2 Extreme Gelato, there are clearly endless ways to transform the Aussie favourite into something new and exciting. Get your tastebuds ready for what they dream up next, right here in Melbourne. Find Tokyo Lamington at 258 Elgin Street, Carlton, from Tuesday, October 18 — open 7am–3pm daily.
If you're the kind of person who orders the cheese plate for dessert, this limited-time Melbourne high tea experience is all for you. From now until Saturday, September 21, The Westin Melbourne's Allegro Restaurant is serving up High Cheese in collaboration with The Studd Siblings. For $105, you get a three-tiered selection of cheese-filled sweet and savoury bites, making for one brie-lliant afternoon of fancy feasting. Start off with cloth-aged cheddar and candied apple scones before diving into five different cheese-filled savoury treats on the middle tier, including a tomato tartare tart and welsh rarebit. You'll then finish with desserts like chocolate basque cheesecake and goat's curd panna cotta. There's no way you're going to be hungry after all this, although you might want a mint — this high tea will feature some fairly stanky cheeses. The price includes a glass of Scotchmans Hill wine, but the team can always provide more pairings as you navigate these cheesey tiers. The High Cheese experience is available from Wednesday–Saturday, and you'll need to book ahead as walk-ins aren't accepted.
Rose Street Market is the famed Melbourne gem — running every weekend in Fitzroy. But the market is packing up once a month — from Saturday, February 15–Saturday, July 19 — and setting up shop at Kensington's newly developed Younghusband precinct. From 10am–3pm, over 60 stallholders will be selling a curated mix of handmade art, ceramics, fashion, jewellery, and artisan goods like distilled gin and boutique pantry items. Kensington folks are in for a real treat with this huge pop-up artisan market, which has become somewhat of a Melbourne institution over in Fitzroy. It's a sign that this oft-forgotten suburb is finally getting the attention it deserves. Just make sure you get the dates right — February 15, March 15, April 19, May 17, June 14 and July 19.
Australia's cities are filled with must-try places for a bite, whether you're seeking out Sydney's very-best restaurants, Melbourne's top eateries or Brisbane's latest openings, but there's still nothing like a home-cooked meal. Alison Roman understands this. The Brooklyn-based food writer and chef may live in New York and have access to its thriving dining scene, but she's a big fan of eating in — and she has viral recipes such as #TheCookies, #ThePasta, #TheStew and #TheDip to prove it. Roman also has two cookbooks currently in bookshops, and possibly on your own shelves: Dining In: Highly Cookable Recipes and Nothing Fancy: Unfussy Food for Having People Over. Come April in Australia, Sweet Enough: Desserts for People Who Don't Do Dessert will join them. To launch the latter, and to make her first trip ever Down Under, Roman is hitting our shores on a three-city tour to get chatting about home cooking, those internet-famous dishes and why she adores her own kitchen. [caption id="attachment_894215" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Chris Bernabeo[/caption] The viral recipe queen and New York Times-bestselling scribe leads this year's Melbourne Writers Festival lineup, which is her first Aussie stop. She'll discuss her career and her journey to the dessert-focused Sweet Enough with Benjamin Law on Friday, May 5 at Melbourne Town Hall — plus her love of culinary imperfection. Next destination: a stint at Brisbane Powerhouse on Sunday, May 7, where she'll be in-conversation with Belinda Sweeney, touching upon everything from having her own CNN cooking show to releasing her first baking book. And, last but by no means least, Sydney Opera House will add Roman to its impressive list of 2023 guests — see also: Michael Sheen during Amadeus, Bikini Kill on their first trip to Australia in more than a quarter-century and the whole All About Women lineup — on Tuesday, May 9. In the Harbour City, she'll be talking with Melissa Leong, and expect her food newsletter A Newsletter and YouTube series Home Movies to also get a mention. "I was scheduled to come to Australia in March of 2020 but the world had other plans, so I am beyond thrilled to finally make it over," said Roman, announcing the tour. "A first-time trip to Sydney was already going to be special, but speaking at such a legendary venue as the Opera House is more than I could have dreamed of. I really, truly can't wait." ALISON ROMAN AUSTRALIAN TOUR 2023: Friday, May 5 — Melbourne Town Hall, Melbourne, as part of Melbourne Writers Festival Sunday, May 7 — Brisbane Powerhouse, Brisbane Tuesday, May 9 — Sydney Opera House, Sydney Alison Roman tours Australia in May 2023. For more information — and for tickets — head to the Sydney Opera House (for pre-sales from 8am AEDT on Thursday, March 23 and general sales from 9am AEDT the same date), Melbourne Writers Festival and Ticketek (from 9am AEST on Thursday, March 23) websites. Top image: Alison Roman by Chris Bernabeo.
Biannual art and design market The Finders Keepers is returning to the Royal Exhibition Building for its winter iteration, bringing shoppers the latest and greatest from its stellar lineup of Australia's most creative makers. From Friday, July 12–Sunday, July 14, the 270+ stalls, including 50 debut sellers, will be joined by a tasty range of food and beverage offerings as well as DJs playing throughout — all the makings of a prime opportunity to get out, chat with local artisans and support the creative industry. At the core of the conscious shopping space is a focus on helping you discover and connect with the next wave of independent and emerging artisans — specifically, local designers. So, you can expect to find everything from jewellery, fashion and ceramics to leather goods and body products. This seasons's Indigenous Program recipient is Bangerang Country-based Ochre Dough, which will be showcasing its natural playdough made from native bush tucker. Six other First Nations creative small businesses — including Narrm-based social enterprise Clothing The Gaps and contemporary artists Luruk-In and Alejandro Lauren — will also be showcasing their wares. Consider this a reminder that the market is completely cashless, so check (then check again) that you've got your digital (or plastic) payment methods at the ready — it would be a travesty to leave empty-handed.
My my, how can you resist this? MAMMA MIA! The Musical is bringing its Greek-set onstage party back to Melbourne in 2023 — and if you're a musical fan, an ABBA devotee or perennially keen to indulge in 70s nostalgia, you'll want to be there. By now, the hit production is well-known around the world, including from previous Aussie runs. It has spawned not one but two movies, too. And, its tale of a young bride-to-be's quest to find her father before her wedding will liven up Princess Theatre from Wednesday, October 4. Here we go again with this restaging of the popular 2017 production, which is filled both with romantic chaos and 22 ABBA tracks. It's one of the biggest jukebox musical hits of the past quarter-century, in fact, as seen by over 65 million people worldwide so far. And, for this run, Elise McCann will be playing Donna Sheridan, after she played Ali in the 2009 season. Sarah Krndija (9 to 5 The Musical, Cruel Intentions: The 90s Musical and Friends! The Musical Parody) steps into Sophie's shoes, while Martin Crewes (Handa's The Phantom of the Opera on Sydney Harbour), Drew Livingston (War Horse) and Tim Wright (New Amsterdam) play her three potential dads. The story, as theatre audiences have enjoyed since 1999, follows 20-year-old Sophie, who is about to marry her fiancé Sky on the fictional Greek island of Kalokairi. It's her dream for her dad to walk her down the aisle, but courtesy of her mother Donna's old diary, she learns that her father could be one of three men: Sam Carmichael, Bill Austin or Harry Bright. Calling all dancing queens, obviously — with that track, the titular number, and everything from 'Money, Money, Money', 'Thank You for the Music', 'Super Trouper' and 'The Name of the Game' to 'SOS', 'Does Your Mother Know', 'Waterloo' and 'Knowing Me, Knowing You' featuring (and 'Take a Chance on Me', 'The Winner Takes It All' and, of course, 'I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do', too). The new Australian run hails from producers Michael Coppel, Louise Withers and Linda Bewick, plus Helpmann Award-winning director Gary Young, choreographer Tom Hodgson and musical supervisor Stephen Amos. Images: James D Morgan / David Hooley.
Big names from Australia and overseas. A new stage dedicated to dance music. A health and wellness zone with guided meditation and ice baths. With the returning lantern parade, too, as well as Steven Bradbury hosting the Great Australian Pineapple Toss and the onsite ferris wheel offering a helluva view, that's how The Big Pineapple Festival is making the most of its 2025 event. Taking place on Saturday, November 1, the Sunshine Coast is marking its ten-year anniversary with Hilltop Hoods, The Cat Empire, The Jungle Giants and PNAU leading the bill, as well as Polaris, SIX60, Hands Like Houses, MKTO, Rum Jungle and Thelma Plum. Superlove Arena, that purpose-built haven for electronic tunes, will feature Baauer, Bushbaby, Anna Lunoe B2B Nina Las Vegas, KLP B2B Mell Hall, Little Fritter B2B Wongo, Paluma B2B Kessin, Shimmy and Raw Ordio. And Betty Taylor, Beckah Amani, HEADSEND and IVANA are also on the fest's lineup as well, all helping the event back up being named the Festival of the Year for the fourth time at the 2025 Queensland Music Awards. For those keen to dance in the shadow of a giant piece of tropical fruit — and one of Australia's most-famous big things — hitting Pineapple Fields in Woombye also comes with the option of camping, whether you'll be bringing your own tent, hiring one onsite or glamping. The Big Pineapple Festival 2025 Lineup Hilltop Hoods The Cat Empire The Jungle Giants PNAU Polaris SIX60 Hands Like Houses MKTO Rum Jungle Thelma Plum Baauer Bushbaby Anna Lunoe B2B Nina Las Vegas KLP B2B Mell Hall Little Fritter B2B Wongo Paluma B2B Kessin Shimmy Raw Ordi Betty Taylor Beckah Amani HEADSEND IVANA Select images: Claudia Ciapocha / Charlie Hardy.
Located at the top end of Melbourne's CBD, the Imperial Hotel offers some of the best city views from its lofty rooftop. And while summer is long gone, the pub is keeping things cosy with its boozy winter rooftop garden. Inspired by the rolling highlands, with comfy blankets, wooden furniture and back country greenery, the massive transparent rooftop marquee — equipped with a dozen new heaters — will keep the great city views without the winter chill. Keeping things toasty is a boozy cocktail selection offering an assortment of delicious winter-themed drinks and a special build-your-own hot chocolate menu. Create your own concoction, starting with a base of either Kahlúa, Baileys, red wine or choc-mint mezcal. Then, top it off with your choice of marshmallows, crushed nuts, choc mint, grated chocolate or chocolate syrup. Once you've got drinks sorted, dive into the winter food menu which includes a warm antipasto platter, loaded fries and a range of cob loaf dibs — think gooey camembert and mixed herb, lamb and rosemary or chilli pulled pork. Gazing out over Treasury Gardens, Parliament House and the city skyline, with a boozy hot chocolate in hand seems like the perfect winter choice. Imperial Hotel's winter rooftop will be open daily throughout winter, from 11am till late.
What's better than one major Australian structure proudly displaying the Aboriginal flag, hoisting it high for everyone to see on a permanent basis? Two, of course. Actually, watching that list keep on growing would be even better still — but for now, Melbourne's West Gate Bridge has joined the Sydney Harbour Bridge in making the Aboriginal flag an enduring fixture. As announced back on Monday, July 4 by the Victorian Government, the Aboriginal flag has taken up permanent residence upon the roadway, with permission from Traditional Owners. It was put in place last week for NAIDOC Week, and the decision was made to keep it there — rather than continue rotating it, as well as the Torres Strait Islander flag, when both Reconciliation and NAIDOC weeks pop up. "The Aboriginal flag signifies unity, identity and resilience for Aboriginal people. We are very proud that we can now fly this important symbol above Melbourne," said Victoria's Minister for Treaty and First Peoples Gabrielle Williams. "Flying the flag follows our ongoing partnership with the First Peoples of Victoria on our path to Treaty and truth." [caption id="attachment_860986" align="alignnone" width="1920"] A Canvas of Light via Flickr.[/caption] "The Aboriginal flag represents inclusiveness, recognition and respect and having it flown permanently atop the West Gate Bridge demonstrates this commitment to Aboriginal communities in Victoria," added Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation Chairperson Kelly Lehmann. "This is a significant first step, and we look forward to seeing ways in which the Torres Strait Islander flag can also be flown in the future." The Aboriginal flag joins the Australian flag on top of the West Gate Bridge and, yes, the Victorian Government is now looking into being able to fly the Torres Strait Islander and Victorian State flags there as well. It's currently exploring both the feasibility and the requirements, including current flag protocols, as well as the bridge's structural, safety and maintenance requirements. [caption id="attachment_840573" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Oliver Lupton via Wikimedia Commons.[/caption] Victoria's move comes at the same time that this exact conversation has been taking place in New South Wales, about flying the Aboriginal flag on the Sydney Harbour Bridge. NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet originally pledged to give it a permanent berth atop the country's most famous man-made structure back in February, then announced in June that it'd become a reality by the end of 2022 — before confirming on Monday, July 11 that the flag would stay hoisted above the harbour post-NAIDOC Week, too, like its Victorian counterpart. Also in Aboriginal flag news this year, the Australian Government unveiled a copyright deal at the end of January with Luritja artist Harold Thomas, who designed the symbol, to make it freely available for public use. The Aboriginal flag is now flying permanently on the West Gate Bridge, effective since Monday, July 11. Top image: Colin Campbell via Flickr.
Renowned Sydney-born gallery Sullivan+Strumpf launched its debut Melbourne outpost last spring, where it continues to do what it does best: championing the best of the contemporary art scene. And next up, that means throwing the spotlight on one of its regular muses, acclaimed Sydney-based Sri Lankan-born artist Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran. GQ Artist of the Year for 2022, Nithiyendran is hitting Sullivan+Strumpf's converted warehouse in Collingwood for his first solo Melbourne show since 2016. Undergod will run from Thursday, March 16–Saturday, April 22, showcasing twenty new sculptures — building on the artist's long-held fascination with multiplicity, plurality and the portrayal of deities. [caption id="attachment_892884" align="alignnone" width="1920"] 'Bi Warrior Figure', 2022, Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran[/caption] It's a broad-ranging collection of new and recent works that embrace various concepts of the mythological being. You'll find moveable figures, a series of large-scale bronze warrior sculptures and unglazed terracotta miniatures, alongside plenty of the boldly-hued ceramic pieces that have become Nithiyendran's signature. The artist guides audiences on a thought-provoking, yet often playful musing of the diverse histories of iconoclasm, with works displayed beneath colourful LEDS on plinths throughout the space. [caption id="attachment_892885" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Works by Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran. Installation view courtesy of the artists and Sullivan+Strumpf.[/caption] Top images: Mark Pokorny
As the country that gave the world Cate Blanchett, Nicole Kidman and Margot Robbie, to name just a few world-famous Aussie actresses owning the silver screen in recent years, Australia is no stranger to celebrating formidable women in cinema. It tracks, then, that the country's national centre devoted to moving pictures — aka the Australian Centre for the Moving Image in Melbourne — has curated a world-premiere exhibition dedicated to femininity across film history. Girls to the front at this six-month-long showcase, with Goddess declaring its affection for ladies of the screen right there in its name. Displaying from Wednesday, April 5–Sunday, October 1, it's both a massive and a landmark exhibition. More than 150 original objects, artworks, props and sketches will grace the Federation Square venue's walls and halls, all championing oh-so-many talented women and their impact upon cinema. [caption id="attachment_882188" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Britt Romstad, 2022, photo by Phoebe Powell. Costume: Kitty (Elaine Crombie) costume, Kiki and Kitty, Australia, 2017, designed by Amelia Gebler, courtesy of Jetty Distribution Pty Limited. Backdrop: Marilyn Monroe on the set of Some Like It Hot, photo by Don Ornitz, © Globe Photos / ZUMAPRESS.com. Image courtesy of ZUMA Press, Inc. / Alamy Stock Photo.[/caption] That lineup includes costumes that've never been displayed before, various cinematic treasures, large-scale projections and other interactive experiences. While exploring the female footprint upon film is an immensely worthy subject, Goddess will also chart how representations of femininity have changed over the years — not just in different eras, but in different places, too — and inspire a rethink of plenty of cinema's memorable female characters. Silent-era sirens, classic Hollywood heroines, unforgettable femme fatales and villains, Bollywood stars, women in China and Japan's cinematic histories: they're all being given the spotlight. Goddess will also dive into provocative on-screen moments from Hollywood's silent days through to today that've not only left an imprint, but also played a part in defining (and altering) what's considered the feminine ideal. Expect an interrogation of how women on-screen have helped to redefine fashion expectations, sparked a boundary-breaking genre and spearheaded the #MeToo movement — and to spend time thinking about how screen culture has shaped societal views of gender. [caption id="attachment_882194" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Blonde Venus, 1932, Marlene Dietrich. Image courtesy of PARAMOUNT PICTURES / Ronald Grant Archive / Alamy Stock Photo.[/caption] ACMI hasn't revealed the full slate of women highlighted, or films, or items that'll be on display, but the details revealed so far are impressive. Think: Marlene Dietrich in 1930's Morocco, Pam Grier's spectacular Blaxploitation career, Tilda Swinton in 1992's Orlando and the aforementioned Robbie via 2020's Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn). Plus, Mae West's sky-high heels from 1934's Belle of the Nineties, costumes worn by Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon in 1991's Thelma & Louise (1991) and Michelle Yeoh's fight-ready silks from 2000's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon will also feature. The list goes on, clearly, spanning Anna May Wong, Marilyn Monroe, Laverne Cox and Zendaya as well. And, expect everything from Glenn Close's Cruella de Vil in 102 Dalmatians to the Carey Mulligan-starring Promising Young Woman to get time to shine. [caption id="attachment_882191" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, 2000, Yu Xiulian costume.[/caption] "The women of Goddess are bold, rebellious and defiant. Their power is expressed in numerous ways — in what they wear, how they move and the stories they tell," said ACMI Director of Experience and Engagement Dr Britt Romstad, announcing the exhibition. "ACMI's exhibition honours their influence and daring, and explores how they have transformed the face and expectations of on-screen femininity for audiences, time and time again," Romstad continued. [caption id="attachment_882195" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Thelma and Louise, 1991, L-R Susan Sarandon, Geena Davis, © MGM. Image courtesy of Moviestore Collection Ltd / Alamy Stock Photo.[/caption] Goddess will pair its wide-ranging display with soundscapes by Melbourne-based composer Chiara Kickdrum, and also feature a sprawling events program complete with late-night parties, performances and talks — and film screenings, of course. The full program, including guests, will be announced in February 2023, which is when tickets go on sale. Unsurprisingly, the exhibition is ACMI's big midyear blockbuster — and its 2023 contribution to the Victorian Government's Melbourne Winter Masterpieces series, as Light: Works from Tate's Collection was in 2022. After showing in Melbourne for its premiere season, Goddess will then tour internationally, taking ACMI's celebration of women on-screen to the world. [caption id="attachment_882197" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Limehouse Blues (AKA. East End Chant), 1934, L-R Anna May Wong, George Raft. Image courtesy of Everett Collection Inc / Alamy Stock Photo.[/caption] Goddess will display at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, Federation Square, Melbourne, from Wednesday, April 5–Sunday, October 1, 2023. For more information, and to join the ticket waitlist, head to the ACMI website. Top image: Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn, 2020, Margot Robbie, © Warner Bros. Image courtesy of LANDMARK MEDIA / Alamy Stock Photo.
What's better than lamingtons? Free lamingtons, of course. And Tokyo Lamington, everyone's favourite purveyor of these delightful nostalgic treats, is giving away a heap of freebies for two days. If you head to Tokyo Lamington's Melbourne store between Friday, July 21–Saturday, July 22, you'll have the chance to try a new flavour of lamington for free. All you have to do is purchase an item from the store and you'll be given one of 1000 free chocolate lamingtons — a simple new addition to the chain's offerings as part of its nostalgic Lamington Originals range. You can also score a free Firecracker Oatly and Single O latte or batch-brew coffee as part of the promotion. If you're wondering what you can purchase at Tokyo Lamington in order to qualify for your free cake and/or coffee, well, you could get another lamington, of course. But there are also plenty of other delectable items available, including onigiri and mushroom kombu quiches. [caption id="attachment_873758" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tokyo Lamington Melbourne[/caption]
Daniel Craig might be done saying "Bond, James Bond" after bowing out of the 007-focused franchise with No Time to Die, but he hasn't finished playing Blanc, Benoit Blanc yet. After first stepping into the Southern investigator's shoes in 2019's Knives Out, then sliding back in in 2022's Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, he'll slip into the part again in 2025's Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery. Yes, every three years we get a Knives Out movie, or so the trend is playing out. The sleuthing saga's writer and director Rian Johnson announced both the new flick's name and that it'd release in 2025 via social media. "I love everything about whodunnits, but one of the things I love most is how malleable the genre is. There's a whole tonal spectrum from Carr to Christie, and getting to explore that range is one of the most exciting things about making Benoit Blanc movies," the filmmaker who also brought audiences Brick, The Brothers Bloom, Looper, Star Wars: Episode VIII — The Last Jedi and TV's Poker Face (which has been renewed for a second season) noted. The next Benoit Blanc mystery, the follow-up to Knives Out and Glass Onion, is called Wake Up Dead Man. pic.twitter.com/pdDXRDmwcI — Rian Johnson (@rianjohnson) May 24, 2024 That's all there is details-wise for now, however, with no news about the setting or who Blanc will be pointing the finger at — aka which famous names will play Wake Up Dead Man's suspects — unveiled as yet. And, exactly when in 2025 the flick will hit, and also whether it will reach cinemas before arriving on Netflix, also hasn't been revealed. But, the streamer is teasing that this will be Blanc's "most dangerous case yet". So far, Johnson has plunged his detective into a familiar scenario twice, but always ensured that the end result was anything but routine. His trusty setup: bring a group of people together in a family home, mode of transport or lavish vacation setting, then watch on when one thing that always occurs in a whodunnit happens. That'd be a murder, in a formula that Agatha Christie also loved, as book-to-film adaptations Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the Nile and A Haunting in Venice have shown. The author's play The Mousetrap and recent flick See How They Run, which riffs on it, make the same point. And, so does this clearly Christie-inspired franchise. The cast across Knives Out and Glass Onion has been impressive. Chris Evans (Pain Hustlers), Ana de Armas (Ghosted), Jamie Lee Curtis (Haunted Mansion), Michael Shannon (The Flash), Toni Collette (Mafia Mamma), Don Johnson (The Collective), Lakeith Stanfield (The Changeling), Christopher Plummer (Departure), Katherine Langford (Savage River) and Jaeden Martell (Mr Harrigan's Phone) all featured the first time around. In the second flick, Edward Norton (Asteroid City), Janelle Monáe (Antebellum), Kathryn Hahn (Tiny Beautiful Things), Leslie Odom Jr (The Exorcist: Believer), Jessica Henwick (The Royal Hotel), Madelyn Cline (Outer Banks), Kate Hudson (Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon) and Dave Bautista (Dune: Part Two) all co-starred. If you saw either — or any murder-mystery involving a motley crew of characters brought together in one location when someone turns up dead — then you'll know how this movie series works from there. There's a standout setting, that big group of chalk-and-cheese folks, threats aplenty and just as much suspicion. There's obviously no trailer yet for Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, but there is a video announcing the title, which you can check out below — alongside the trailers for Knives Out and Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery: Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery will release sometime in 2025 — we'll update you with an exact date when one is announced. Read our reviews of Knives Out and Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. Images: John Wilson/Netflix © 2022.
As Alfred 'Paper Boi' Miles in Atlanta, Brian Tyree Henry has been given plenty to utter. Across the hit Donald Glover-created series' three seasons so far, his rapper character has soared from up-and-comer to global star touring Europe, as chronicled with the show's banter-filled dialogue. But there's one thing that hasn't ever fallen into his remit in his best-known role, and is highly unlikely to in the fourth and final season that's set to arrive this September: obsessing over Thomas the Tank Engine. Henry might be as synonymous with Atlanta as Glover, complete with a 2018 Emmy nomination for his stellar performance, but his resume spans far further than the acclaimed series. In movies as varied as Widows, If Beale Street Could Talk, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Joker, Godzilla vs Kong and Eternals — and shows such as Boardwalk Empire, The Knick and This Is Us as well — he's kept proving a compelling presence. There's no Thomas the Tank Engine fixation among them either, though. Instead, waxing lyrical about blue British locomotives is the domain of Henry's part in action-comedy Bullet Train. He plays blonde-tressed assassin Lemon, half of a chalk-and-cheese killer duo with Aaron Taylor-Johnson's (The King's Man) Tangerine. Dubbed "the twins" but clearly brothers in friendship rather than blood, they're just two of the movie's many killers, as led by Brad Pitt (The Lost City) — all of which, fittingly for Lemon, find themselves speeding across a neon-drenched vision of Japan via the titular shinkansen. In other films, it's easy to predict how Henry's part would go. But, working with John Wick and Atomic Blonde filmmaker David Leitch, Henry was determined that Lemon would transcend tropes — and be a hitman that viewers cared about, even as he's using Thomas the Tank Engine to decide whether people are trustworthy or not and, obviously, as he's hopping around the train killing people. Ahead of the movie's local release on August 4, we chatted to Henry about Bullet Train, childhood favourites, busting tropes, gravitating towards banter, and a shoot that felt like "a bloody summer camp". ON 'THOMAS THE TANK ENGINE' AND CHILDHOOD FAVOURITES "Is anyone really a fan of Thomas the Tank Engine? It has always been a part of our childhood, right? He's just always been there… I think what's really great is that with this movie, we get to really go into the characters' details, because Lemon truly studied and loves Thomas the Tank Engine. And he's right about it. Every time that he says that somebody is a Percy or an Edward or a Diesel, he's right. So there is a little truth to the characters of Thomas the Tank Engine, for you to tell if somebody is trustworthy or not. But, when I was a kid, it came on after the good stuff. Like Thomas the Tank Engine kind of wrapped your day, and you were like 'where are the explosions? I want to see more stuff with candy.' I didn't do an in-depth Thomas the Tank Engine study when I got this part, but I did play the theme song on set though to really piss everybody off. I was like 'come on guys, we need this levity, let's listen to Thomas the Tank Engine'. Care Bears was my thing. Fraggle Rock, anything Muppet-related, I was all about it. I was a huge Jim Henson head, I mean anything that had Jim Henson on it, I was there for it. And I'm not going to lie, I still do, I still care a lot about anything Jim Henson-related." ON GOING BEYOND THE COMEDIC BLACK GUY TROPE "I got a call from David Leitch who said that he was making this movie, and my jaw kind of fell on the floor because I know David Leitch's repertoire and I was really excited — and I was also very suspicious. I loved Deadpool 2. I know he produced all the John Wicks which I love as well. I remember loving Atomic Blonde and these universes he created, but I was very much like 'where am I going to fit in this?'. And then he told me that there was a character named Lemon that was one half of a duo called Lemon and Tangerine. I read the script, and I did love it, but there were some parts that I really wanted to delve a little deeper into — because the first draft kind of seemed like Lemon was there to just be there for laughs, and I didn't want him to just be the comic foil. I wanted him to be cared about. There's usually a trap that happens sometimes when you're Black and doing action movies or any kind of certain genre, that you're the funny person and usually the first person that dies — you know all these weird, terrible, microaggressive tropes that are put on Black people. I didn't want that for this movie, and I pled this to him. I was like, 'look, if you are putting me in this atmosphere, being on Japan on a bullet train, I want people to care that I'm there — it's not like I can hide anywhere, it's not like people won't notice when I'm there'. This is also during 2020 when shit was hard. It was really hard in America, it was really difficult. We didn't know what this virus was, there was social injustice going on outside of our door, we were dealing with an election that would change our fate, and I was angry — and I hate saying that I was an angry man, but I was. And I was also very fearful of what was going on, and I had to find some trust to take this movie, and David reassured me, he was like 'we really want your voice in this'." ON PLAYING A KILLER PEOPLE WOULD CARE ABOUT "When I was paired with Aaron Taylor-Johnson, I was like 'this can play a few ways', because it says we're twins and we're clearly not. A sense of brotherhood can be there and that can be authentic, and I let David know that. Aaron and I both wanted to find the heart of who both of these characters are. Whenever we see these movies, where the tropes are a black man and a white guy coming together, it's all different kind of hijinks — and look these tropes have a place, and I admire them and the actors who played them, they have their own place in history. But if we were going to add to that, we wanted it to come from a different place. With most of these duos, you see these men coming from two different sides of the world, or two different walks of life, they come together and they form a partnership. But with our duo, we literally grew up together. And part of me was like 'maybe we were passed around in the foster care system together, maybe we were used to having each other to protect each other, to care about each other, and that just went on until we grew up?'. So that brotherhood was what was really important, because we wanted the audience to really believe that there was a brotherhood between the two of us. David heard that, and really allowed us to play with that — because I wanted the audience to care, I really did. I know that we're sociopathic killers, and yes we're funny and we have this banter that goes back and forth, but I wanted you all to care if we got separated. I wanted you all to care if one made it and one didn't. I wanted the audience to really care about these brothers, because they're the only assassins on the train that are a duo, that's a partnership — and I wanted people to care because I needed to figure out how to care again. I needed to figure out what a brotherhood meant with someone who didn't look like me, someone who wasn't from where I was. I needed to really find a way to feel a connection with somebody, and Aaron just brought his heart and brought his soul to this thing‚ and we instantly hit it off. And we gave David Leitch no choice but to kind of like accept that. Most of the things that we were doing were improv. Most of the things that we said, that we volleyed off one another were just off the top of our heads, and David Leitch was like, 'yeah, let's keep going with that' because he saw how close we were. It restored a kind of faith in me again when playing this role because I cared about Lemon so much, and I wanted people who were watching Lemon so much… I owe a huge thanks to David Leitch for hearing me out, hearing me say that I wanted these things and I wanted to play with Lemon this way, because he let me." ON ALL OF THOSE STUNTS — AND A SHOOT THAT FELT LIKE "A BLOODY SUMMER CAMP" "I remember going to Dick's Sporting Goods, and I was like 'kneepads, gloves, shorts, everything, because I'm going to do it all'. I was so ready to get ready for this movie. I really wanted to do all these crazy stunts that I'd seen David Leitch choreograph throughout his career. I really wanted to do wire work. I wanted to find different ways to kill somebody with a tray table. I wanted to really get in there. We couldn't go to studios like you would if you were trying to learn fight choreography, so they had to improvise and made this makeshift fight playground, basically, on the rooftop of a parking deck on Sony's lot. And it was the coolest thing I've ever seen. So you've got padded floors, boxes are that are the walls of the train, tables, fold-up chairs — and with the help of Greg Rementer, who is the stunt coordinator for 87 North [David Leitch's production company], we had the time of our lives. The collaboration that David Leitch has in his work is really fun. Especially, I think about the fight between Brad and I that is taking place on a quiet car. My character tells him that he needs to keep his voice low because it's the quiet car, and all the while I'm going to do what I can to kill him on this quiet car. So doing the fight choreography, to map out how we're going to do that, was like taking me to like a bloody summer camp. You're signing up to just go bash each other's faces in, but how how many different ways can we do that on a quiet car? How many ways are Brad and I going to be in a headlock and punching each other in the nuts? How many ways are you going to avoid a snake that's now loose on this train? It was some of the most therapeutic scene work I've ever done in my life, and it was incredibly fun." Bullet Train screens in Australian and New Zealand cinemas from August 4. Read our full review.
Time flies when you're obsessing over a big blockbuster fantasy TV series, as HBO's biggest hit of the past decade demonstrates. This April marks ten years since Game of Thrones first hit screens and became a pop culture phenomenon — broadening the world's awareness of George RR Martin's books, pointing out how often Sean Bean meets an untoward end on-screen and delivering more dragon-fuelled drama than anyone ever knew they needed. Keen to celebrate the occasion like you're in a Westerosi tavern? That's an option, all thanks to a new collaboration between Moon Dog Brewing and Warner Bros Consumer Products. The two have joined forces on a new line of GoT beers, so get ready to sip a Breaker of Chains imperial stout and a Watchers on the Wall imperial white ale. The former features chipotle chilli, vanilla and a chocolate finish, while the latter pairs white chocolate with orange and coriander. Winter might be coming, but these brews will be available this month — so, in autumn — with the Melbourne-based Moon Dog pouring them at its Abbotsford and Preston sites from Friday, April 16. The brewery is hosting a launch party in Abbotsford the day before, then dedicating the weekend of April 16–18 to all things GoT in Preston. An Iron Throne will also be onsite, because clearly Moon Dog couldn't pass up the opportunity to let folks sit on one of the most famous chairs there is. [caption id="attachment_744585" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Moon Dog World, Kate Shanasy[/caption] Lovers of both beer and G0T elsewhere in the country won't miss out on the brews, however, with the two beverages available via the brewery's online store and at craft beer retailers nationwide from Monday, April 19. If you decide to keep some in the fridge so that you can drink it when winter arrives, that's perfectly understandable. And if you're just excited about getting another chance to show your affection for the huge hit series — while you're waiting for the just-announced GOT stage production, and the many TV spinoffs and prequels in the works — that is, too. Moon Dog Brewing's Breaker of Chains and Watchers on the Wall beers will be available from its Melbourne venues from Friday, April 16, and online and in craft beer retailers nationwide from Monday, April 19.
Do you live in a dog-friendly house? Do you have some spare time on your hands? Do you fantasise about hanging around at dog parks with an actual dog? The good folk at Assistance Dogs Australia need you. They have an abundance of puppies running around the place at the moment, and they're in need of volunteers to raise them. In other words, they're giving away puppies — but you will need to give them back. If you put up your hand to become a puppy educator, you'll get a puppy for about a year — from around its eight-week birthday to when it turns turns between 12–16 months old. During that time, you'll be responsible for introducing the sights, sounds and smells it'll meet when it starts working as an assistance dog (and giving your new friend heaps of cuddles). Of course, it's not all just fun, games and cuteness. You'll have to be responsible enough to take care of regular grooming, house training and exercise, and be available to attend puppy classes. A fenced-in backyard or outdoor area is mandatory, too. In return, the organisation provides a strong support network, all food and supplements, training equipment, and flea, tick and worming treatment. Assistance Dogs Australia is looking for people in Sydney's North Shore and Sutherland shire, plus Wollongong and the Blue Mountains; in Melbourne's Mornington Peninsula area; and in Brisbane and on the Gold Coast. You'll also need to be home most of the time — so you won't be leaving the puppy alone for more than four hours a day — and to be able to put effort into training and socialising the pup. Once the pups reach 12-16 months old, they'll move on to their advanced training at Assistance Dogs Australia's national training school in Sydney. And, after they graduate, the four-legged companions will provide support to people with disability. Keen? You can apply online. And send pics please. For more information about Assistance Dogs Australia's puppy educators, and to apply for the volunteer roles, head to the organisation's website.
"Driving." That's one of the words that Justin Hurwitz uses to describe the sound of Babylon, with his score to Damien Chazelle's new Hollywood-set film after La La Land frequently thumping with a propulsive beat. An array of other terms come to mind while hearing the two-time Oscar-winning composer's latest effort kick in throughout the Margot Robbie (Amsterdam)-, Brad Pitt (Bullet Train)- and Diego Calva (Narcos: Mexico)-starring movie, including at party after party, too. It's urgent. It's infectious. It's as spirited as the liveliest of raucous shindigs. From go to whoa, a handful of quieter moments aside, it bustles with big and jazzy lose-yourself-to-dance energy. For the picture that just nabbed him his fourth Golden Globe, Hurwitz is soundtracking the City of Stars' Jazz Age, after all. And, as viewers of his and Chazelle's past features know — Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench, Whiplash and La La Land, with their fourth collaboration on First Man being the only exception — this pair doesn't just like but loves jazz. Babylon's score doesn't simply stick with the obvious, however. Exploring an era where giving oneself over to Los Angeles' star factory and its indefatigable shenanigans was all the rage in the movie's view, it takes its inspirations as broadly as Hurwitz can find them, all to help set a pace and vibe for a flick that throws almost anything it can at the screen — from glitz and glamour to copious amounts of drugs and body fluids — to paint its buzzing, pulsating portrait. [caption id="attachment_885697" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Alex J. Berliner/ABImages[/caption] Babylon follows its three central figures — Robbie's aspiring actor Nellie LaRoy, Pitt's established star Jack Conrad and Calva's industry jack-of-all-trades Manny Torres — as they weather everything that chasing their dreams thrusts their way. Given that the picture commences in 1926, that means traversing the Golden Age's wild highs and big changes alike, with the latter spanning the move from silents to synchronised sound from The Jazz Singer onwards, what that meant for actors now featuring in talkies, and shifting moral and societal standards of the period. Nellie parties herself into her big break, then gets saddled with the realities and contradictions of sudden fame. Even with his years of experience, Jack's ongoing lustre in the limelight is far from secure. And Manny does whatever he needs to to get jobs, turn them into better gigs, and keep climbing his way up. For all three, the successes are glorious, but the costs are significant. There's no reprieve from Tinseltown's relentlessness, or its allure, in Babylon. Hurwitz's earworm of a score is similarly persistent; having it lodged in your head long after watching comes with viewing the film. But what does it take to create that irresistible sound? To give a 1920s- and 1930s-set movie a unique but fitting soundtrack? To hark back a century ago, but interpret it with modern sensibilities? Ahead of Babylon's release Down Under on January 19, we chatted with Hurwitz about making a feature that it feels like he and Chazelle were fated to, his processes, the film's rock 'n' roll and modern dance music influences, and more. [caption id="attachment_885698" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Brad Pitt, Diego Calva and Director Damien Chazelle on the set of Babylon from Paramount Pictures.[/caption] ON GETTING JAZZY WITH DAMIEN CHAZELLE — AGAIN When you've teamed up with someone on five films, you clearly share a connection — and a wavelength. For Hurwitz and Chazelle, that started two decades back, when they both attended Harvard, met as freshmen and became roommates. And, before they were making movies, they were making music as early members of indie pop band Chester French. Yes, jazz was an influence. Chazelle was a jazz drummer, after all, and Hurwitz a pianist and percussionist. It's no wonder that the genre had an influence on their filmmaking; in fact, it'd be more surprising if it didn't. Still, while Babylon might seem like a dream for the duo, it's a long-in-the-works effort for Chazelle but a relatively new project for Hurwitz. "I didn't know about this film till 2018," he advises. "Damien told me that this was what he was writing. He'd been working on it for a long time, which I actually just learned — I learned a couple of days ago that he'd been thinking about this movie for like 15 years. I had no idea. So I guess it was part of his evolution somehow, from the other jazz movies he made." "For me, I didn't start thinking about this until a few years ago, and didn't start actually working on it till 2019. There's definitely some commonalities with the other things we've made, but I hope it's different — I hope the music sounds like its own thing." ON TURNING CHAZELLE'S SCRIPTS INTO MUSIC How does a composer start conjuring up the sound for a film, especially when it is intricately tied to a specific period of music history? For Hurwitz, it's "the script. I always start with the script". With Babylon, he says, "Damien sent me a script, and we started marking it up and talking about where is there going to be music and where won't there be music." "A lot of the music sequences were very complicated because there were a lot of performances, but also the same pieces of music had to then extend into other parts of the movie. You might have a little bit of a performance, or a little bit of Jovan's [Adepo, as a trumpeter Sidney Palmer] character playing, but then that music spills over into a montage into something else. So we had to think about what could serve the performance, but also what could serve the sequences dramatically." "You really start with asking 'what do we want to feel?' Just looking at the scenes, what do we want to feel? And then I sit down, I start writing music at the piano or using some samples, some virtual instruments, and just trying to create sounds that feel — whether it's an aggressive driving piece, if we really want to feel something that's pounding you in the face, or if we want feel something sweeter. Whatever it might be, I just start trying to noodle around and sketch in the melodies that have whatever mood we're trying to feel." ON DRAWING ON MORE THAN THE OBVIOUS MUSICAL INFLUENCES Jazz Age-set film, Jazz Age-adoring score, right? That might be the easy and obvious equation, but it wasn't Hurwitz's approach to Babylon. In its narrative, its visuals and its atmosphere, Chazelle is always pushing — as are his characters, and is Hollywood back at them. And, as tunes like 'Voodoo Mama', 'Call Me Manny' and 'Damascus Thump' make plain, so is Hurwitz. "I know certainly I was trying to push the music, ironically, a lot more contemporary than anything we've done — even though this movie is 1920s, and it's an earlier time period than anything we've done," he explains. "I was trying to push the music more modern, more aggressive, more inspired by rock 'n' roll and modern dance music. So for me it feel pretty new — like a new flavour." "I was really trying to stay away from music from the era, actually. I didn't want to listen to 1920s music, because we didn't want to have 1920s music in the movie really. So I was taking more inspiration from rock 'n' roll — imagining what it could feel like if you had rock 'n' roll riffs played on brass, played by a jazz band or a horn section. Or things that could easily be on a distorted guitar, but what if you give it to a couple of trumpeters? So that was a thought process." "I was listening to the Rolling Stones and AC/DC, and things like that. And also listening to a lot of electronic dance music, and getting inspired by the dance rhythms and dance hi-hat and driving, 808 kick-drum feels — and sort of risers and drops, and those sort of moments that build anticipation and then explode and get you wanting to mood. I was taking inspiration from modern dance music for that kind of feel." ON THE RANGE OF SOUNDS IN 'BABYLON' Hurwitz didn't just vary his influences when composing Babylon's music (one tune, 'Manny and Nellie's Theme', even sparks La La Land flashbacks). For a film that he describes as having "a lot of other weird stuff", he employed a wide range of instruments and noises. "There's a lot of circus and carnival sounds," he says. "I was recording kazoos and slide whistles, and party horns for some of the tracks." "There's erhu, which is a bowed Chinese instrument. There's a lot of world percussion. There's African percussion, Latin percussion, Asian percussion. There are very eclectic sounds in this movie, to match the very eclectic world of this movie — and of the 20s." "People were really thinking about far-off places of the world, so there was a lot of exoticism, even if it was campy exoticism. Like, you go to theatres [from then] in LA and it's Egyptian style and it's all a little campy — it's obviously not really Egyptian. But people were just interested in it back then, so we tried to bring in certain flavours. That's a very long way of saying that the influences were far and wide." Babylon screens in Australian and New Zealand cinemas from January 19. Read our full review.
Melbourne's latest lockdown ended more than a month ago, but the pandemic obviously isn't going away just yet. At present, new cases linked to Sydney's current cluster and lockdown have popped up in the Victorian capital — and that means that the city's exposure sites list is growing. Yes, again. At the time of writing on Wednesday, July 14, the list on the Victorian Department of Health website has 15 entries. The big one: the MCG. These days, going to the footy does mean that you might end up needing to get tested afterwards, and that's exactly what's happening regarding the Carlton versus Geelong match on Saturday, July 10. If you were at the game at all between 4–8pm, you need to monitor for symptoms. If you specifically spent some time on level two of the MCC members' reserve section during the same window of time, you need to now get tested urgently and self-isolate until you get a negative result. Also on the list: Craigieburn Central Shopping Centre, including the Coles in the centre, all between 5.28–6.28pm on Saturday, July 10. If you were at Coles at that time, you need to get tested immediately and self-isolate for 14 days regardless of the result. Not yet on the website, but named by Jeroen Weimar, Victoria's COVID-19 Commander, in the press conference today, Wednesday, July 14: Highpoint Shopping Centre. Anyone there on Friday, July 9 between 10am–2pm needs to get tested at present. The new exposure sites follow the news that seven more COVID-19 cases have been identified so far today — as part of two separate chains of transmission, Weimar advised. They're in addition to the one local case included in today's official numbers. As always, Melburnians can keep an eye on the local list of exposure sites at the Department of Health website — it will keep being updated if and when more sites are identified. For those looking to get tested, you can find a list of testing sites including regularly updated waiting times also on the Department of Health website. And, has remained the case throughout the pandemic, Melburnians should be looking out for coughs, fever, sore or scratchy throat, shortness of breath, or loss of smell or taste, symptoms-wise. For further details on the latest exposure sites and updated public health advice, see the Department of Health website.
UPDATE, July 10, 2023: On Monday, July 10, KFC is serving up $1 Zinger crunch twisters — and original crunch twisters. And on Tuesday, July 11, the $1 Zinger burger special is back for one day only. Who doesn't love to gift themselves a little treat meal on the weekend? Think: a pizza, a couple of scoops of gelato or a fried chicken burger. Well, KFC is here to facilitate just that last one with its ever-popular Zinger burgers available for just $1 for two hours on Saturday, July 1. The promotion is part of the chicken chain's 11 Days of Christmas, which will see it serve up a different finger-licking deal for the first week and a half of July. Kicking things off is the Colonel's classic burger for just a buck. If you want to claim your dollar Zinger Burger, just head to the KFC app and place your order between 3–5pm on July 1. So, what's in store for the rest of the month? $1 Twisters, 30 nuggets for $10 and a Double Zinger Feast featuring two burgers, ten nuggets and sauce for just $12. To check out each day's deal, just hit up the KFC app. Plus, the fast food chain's Christmas in July merch is also making a comeback. The viral ugly Christmas sweater, a KFC Christmas t-shirt, a corduroy bucket hat, socks, fingerless gloves and the line of matching pet sweaters — they're all available to purchase. Head to the KFC website to place an order.
In March 2024, things are really heating up at The Beast on Lygon Street, the official home of the Melbourne Chilli-Eating Championship. On Saturday, March 2, a bunch of brave souls will put their lives on the line in this searing-hot contest to find Melbourne's steeliest tastebuds. Firing up for its ninth edition, the competition will unfold throughout the afternoon, with things getting progressively spicier as the competition intensifies. Challengers will be consuming chillies that rank above two-million units on the Scoville scale, including the Trinidad scorpion, ghost chillis, the naga viper and the ever-so-feisty Carolina reaper. Participants can be eliminated by tapping out, passing out or unleashing a cheeky vomit — although, hopefully it doesn't come to that. If you want to partake, you'll need to visit The Beast and sample one of the chillies that'll be eaten on the day, or you can send in a video of yourself eating a chilli that has the equivalent or higher heat score of a habañero. You'll also have to sign a waiver, of course. Alternatively, you can simply watch on as these folks take their tastebuds to the edge. And be sure to stick around for the special celebrity round. Who will be participating hasn't been announced, but expect some Hot Ones energy. Backing up the championship is a whole afternoon of spicy fun. There'll be a special fiery food and drinks menu on offer, plus a sausage sizzle outside that'll be frying up spicy snags made just for the day. Into the night, the team will also host live band karaoke and DJs, and give out prizes for the best dressed — the theme is 'spicy Australiana' for all those wanting to really lean into the Melbourne Chilli-Eating Championship festivities. Images: Duncographic.
Christmas can often be a crazy time, and we can't think of anything worse than running around a shopping centre trying to sort out gifts. We all know the drill, and it's carnage, to say the least. Amazon is our go-to for simple gift ideas that you can pre-order from the comfort of your home, which means avoiding the carnage and taking your time to choose the right gifts. To get you started, we have ten gift ideas you can buy from Amazon right now. Whether you're buying for your impossible-to-buy-for teenage cousin, skin-care-obsessed auntie or for the kids in your life, we've got you covered. 1. Ottolenghi SIMPLE Perfect for any aspiring chef or summer entertainer — it's nearly guaranteed that everyone will love Ottolenghi SIMPLE, a cookbook and a great gift idea for someone you don't know too well or someone hard to buy for. The book features 130 of chef Yotam Ottolenghi's award-winning recipes that are easy enough to cook at home but turn out restaurant-quality (if cooked correctly). Better, if you're invited to a dinner party by whoever you gift the book to, you know you'll be in for a treat. 2. Ultimate Ears Boom 3 Portable Bluetooth Speaker Another easy gift idea that most people would be stoked to receive, the Ultimate Ears Boom 3 Portable Bluetooth Speaker is a great summer gift item, since it's completely waterproof that also floats. Who knows? Maybe you'll get to reap the benefits of this gift at some stage. It also comes in seven different colours, so you can find a good match for whoever you're buying for. You can thank us later. 3. Cocktail Set The silly season is the perfect time to drink cocktails at home or to host parties (obviously with a cocktail bar), hands down. And gifting this sleek, stainless steel cocktail set for Christmas may be the perfect timing. The set includes pourers, a strainer, a muddling stick, two Boston shakers and two bartender spoons. A great gift idea for any aspiring mixologists out there, whether they're a beginner or pro. 4. Crocs Jibbitz Shoe Charms If you haven't heard of Jibbitz, you've clearly managed to steer clear of the front page of social media. A trend that no one saw coming, having a few extra charms on your Crocs is now actually, well, elite. Great for kids or adults who love rocking their Crocs, Jibbitz is an easy way to personalise the classic shoes, with a variety of charms that pop into your shoes' holes, instantly making Crocs even cooler. 5. The Ordinary Skincare It seems that everyone is in their self-care era at the moment, which means skincare is a top priority. Gifting a friend or loved one with The Ordinary The Daily Set is bound to be a practical gift that actually gets used. The set includes three gentle and hydrating formulas suitable for all skin types across all seasons for daily use, including The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser, The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid with B5 and The Ordinary Natural Moisturizing Factors + HA. 6. LEGO® One of Amazon's top picks when it comes to gift ideas, the LEGO® Creator flatbed truck with a helicopter, fuel vehicle, hot rod SUV and car toys is one of the best simple gift ideas for kids, as well as big kids. LEGO® Creator 3 in 1 sets give the giftee a choice as well, since the pieces can be used to assemble three different sets. Timeless, ageless, genderless and always entertaining, you really can't go wrong with LEGO® as a gift. 7. Noise Cancelling Earbuds If you ask us, noise-cancelling earbuds are no longer a luxury but an essential. If you're trying to find a Christmas gift for your friend who is always travelling or listening to tunes, or you noticed a mate with ancient corded headphones, then the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Wireless Noise Cancelling Earbuds may be the way to go. They feature technology that analyses each ear and adapts sound so that the active noise-cancelling earbuds are custom-tailored, plus they come with nine soft ear tips and stability bands for ultimate comfort. 8. Mortar and Pestle Sometimes, the best gift is a simple one. Enter the granite Mortar and Pestle. There's no kitchen tool simpler than this. Made from solid granite, this kitchen staple is great for crushing herbs, spices, garlic, basil and whatever else you so desire. It's a great gift for those in your life who love cooking. And, if it turns out they don't like cooking, then it also makes for an aesthetic piece of decor on the kitchen bench, So it's a win-win. 9. Minecraft Board Game If we could place a bet on whether the kids in your life play Minecraft, we would confidently put money on it being a yes. They can't get enough, and gifting them with anything Minecraft-related is sure to be a hit. This Minecraft Board Game from Ravensburger is an easy-to-learn strategy board game where players explore the Overworld, mine resources, build structures, collect weapons and fight mobs. Perfect for Minecraft lovers, it's also fun even if you have never played Minecraft. 10. Fitness Tracker Do you have any fitness freaks in your friendship circle? Or maybe your old man is looking to get back in shape? Look no further than the Xiaomi Smart Band 9 Health & Fitness Tracker. This sleek little thing helps you track workouts and health metrics with over 150 sports modes, continuous heart rate monitoring, SpO2 measurement, and sleep analysis. It also looks cool and comes in a range of different colours. Images: Supplied by Amazon. Disclaimer: This article contains affiliate links, Concrete Playground may earn a commission when you make a purchase through links on our site.
In 2023, Australia's east coast joined New York, Hawaii, Mexico and Croatia as a host of Palm Tree Music Festival, the fest filled with folks hitting the decks that was co-founded by Kygo. With one of the event's guiding forces himself leading the lineup — and Tiësto also on the bill — the Down Under debut went down well, so much so that a second spin is on its way. Mark your calendars for December 2024, then, because the festival is returning for round two. 'Stole the Show', 'Here for You', 'Stay' and 'It Ain't Me' talent Kygo isn't on the lineup this time, but The Chainsmokers happily lead the charge instead, ready to bust out 'Closer', 'Something Just Like This' and more. The Grammy-winners' spot on the bill marks Drew Taggart and Alex Pall's first trip to Australia in five years — and get excited about the festival's rendition of 'Don't Let Me Down' because Daya is also on the Palm Tree Music Festival roster. For company, Swedish DJ and producer Alesso, the San Francisco-born Gryffin and Harlem's Austin Millz round out the first announcement of acts. Accordingly, everything from 'Words', 'Remedy' and 'If I Lose Myself' to 'Woke Up in Love', 'You Were Loved' and 'Cry' — and also 'Lovely Day', 'Inside Out' and 'Bad Behaviour' — could echo through Palm Tree Music Festival's three 2024 Aussie stops. Just as with its premiere run in Australia, the festival has a date with Melbourne, hitting up Sidney Myer Music Bowl on Sunday, December 8. With its holiday-friendly name, it should come as no surprise that Palm Tree Music Festival takes inspiration from Kygo's stints touring the world. Expect a cruisy vibe set to EDM's greatest and latest, too — this time with the bonus of a summer berth. Palm Tree Music Festival 2024 Australian Lineup: The Chainsmokers Alesso Gryffin Austin Millz Daya Images: Jared Leibowitz.
Big Paws Little Paws wants to celebrate dog mums and their furry families this Mother's Day, with a day of dog-friendly activities. Bring your fur baby along to an indoor dog playground in Ravenhall on Saturday, May 11, for a morning of crafts, socialising, gifts and giveaways. Be greeted with a Pawtini upon arrival before getting busy with a doggy glamour station, professional photoshoots, a craft station, Woof Wonderland Market and other activities. In addition, every ticket comes with a $10 voucher for Big Paws Little Paws services and a $2 contribution to Second Chance Animal Rescue. Check out Eventbrite for additional details and to purchase a ticket for $20 (doggos get free entry). Mama Paws will take place on Saturday, May 11, with two sessions from 10–11.30am and 11.30am–1pm.
Chef Brooke Nazzari from Cooking 101 shares a recipe for warm beer and bacon cheese dip, blended with James Squire Hop Thief 7 American-style pale ale. This smoky, gently beer flavoured dip is heavenly. Filled with three cheeses, fried free range bacon pieces, zesty mustard, smoky paprika and a decent splash of Hop Thief 7 American-style pale ale, it has all the winning ingredients for the perfect warm dip. I serve it with corn chips and veggie sticks, but warm crusty bread would be just as delicious. Ingredients 200gm free range bacon (diced into small pieces) 250g cream cheese ½ cup parmesan ½ cup shredded mozzarella 1tbs wholegrain mustard 1tsp ground dried paprika ½ cup James Squire Hop Thief American Pale Ale 2 x spring onion (diced finely) Salt and pepper to taste Method 1) Gently fry off the bacon pieces until they are golden brown. Remove from the heat and put it on some paper towel to absorb the fat while it cools. 2) Meanwhile, in a food processor blitz the cream cheese, parmesan, mozzarella, mustard, paprika and beer until it's all well combined. Stir in the spring onion, ¾ of the bacon, salt and pepper, making sure it's all mixed through well. 3) Spoon the mixture into an oven proof ramekin/dish, top with the remaining bacon and bake for 20-25mins in a moderate oven, until it's warmed through and deliciously gooey. Top image: Dollar Photo Club.
Come early 2021, the Gold Coast will boast yet another attraction, and it doesn't involve sun, surf, sand or theme park rides. Southeast Queensland's popular tourist destination will become home to a $60.5 million, six-level art gallery — the country's largest art gallery outside of a capital city. Currently under construction at Surfers Paradise's HOTA, Home of the Arts, the gallery will include a 1000-square-metre main exhibition space that'll be used for touring exhibitions, plus 900 square metres of permanent collection space across three levels, a children's gallery, and another 1000 square metres for storing works that aren't on display. Simply called the HOTA gallery, it's being built at the top of the site's new concert lawn, and will overlook HOTA's outdoor stage. View-wise, for those keen to gaze at something other than the pieces gracing the walls, the building's rooftop will also be open to the public — and, with a bar part of the plans, it'll serve up plenty of drinks to go with the 270-degree vantage over both the city skyline and natural vistas. Going in the opposite direction, a ground-floor restaurant will also feature. With linking with HOTA's outdoor grounds a key component of the site — with the gallery both spilling out onto the landscape and incorporating the garden into its internal spaces — the structure's design and construction is being overseen by Hansen Yuncken, who managed the same process for Hobart's Museum of Old and New Art (MONA). From late 2019, HOTA will also boast a brand new 130-metre green bridge over the Nerang River, connecting it with the rest of Surfer's Paradise via Chevron Island, and making it easier for pedestrians and cyclists to get to the arts centre. HOTA Gallery is set to open at HOTA, Home of the Arts, 135 Bundall Road, Surfers Paradise from early 2021. For more information, visit the HOTA website. Image: HOTA, Home of the Arts.
