One of Australia's most in-demand circus companies is joining forces with musicians and acrobats from India for an explosive new show at the Arts Centre Melbourne. On stage for just three nights plus a Sunday matinee, One Beautiful Thing will see the acclaimed team at Circa work with artists who specialise in Mallakhamb, a traditional sport that dates back hundreds of years and combines pole and rope work with stunning displays of gymnastic prowess. The practice had all but died out, before a group of dedicated performers committed themselves to ensuring its survival. The epic collaboration, which is part of this year's Asia TOPA festival, aims to bring Indian and Australian culture 'face-to-face', showcasing our differences and similarities as artists from disparate backgrounds strive to create 'one beautiful thing'.
Get your fix of non-fiction filmmaking at ACMI this February. As summer comes to a close, the Fed Square cinema will showcase a trio of critically acclaimed documentary films that pose bold questions about our relationship with art and technology. Screening from February 11-27, Goodnight Brooklyn – The Story of Death by Audio chronicles the nine-year history of the eponymous New York music venue, as director Matt Conboy combines concert footage with interviews featuring indie music legends. In a one-week-only engagement from February 15-22, Lo and Behold: Reveries of the Connected World sees master filmmaker Werner Herzog — a man who, by is own admission, doesn't even own a mobile phone — explore the weird and wonderful world of the internet. Funny and moving, it's a must-see for fans of Herzog's unique and esoteric style. Rounding out the season, from February 23-March 15, Cameraperson offers an intimate look at the work of acclaimed documentary cinematographer Kirsten Johnson, whose 25 year career has taken her all around the world.
If you missed out on a Brazil or Chile trip this year, fear not — the folks at Lady Carolina are serving up the next best thing. Over the course of one lively evening, the Brunswick East venue will take guests on a culinary trek across South America and Mexico, as executive chef Hugo Diaz puts his own spin on some iconic, Latin American dishes. Tickets to this one-off Good Food Month event include five vibrant courses, matched to Latin American wines and a surprise feature spirit.
Georgia O'Keeffe, the artist often described as the mother of American Modernism, along with her Australian contemporaries Margaret Preston and Grace Cossington Smith, will be the subject of a four-month exhibition at the Heide Museum of Modern Art. Running from mid October through to mid February at the gallery in Bulleen, O'Keeffe, Preston, Cossington Smith: Making Modernism has been curated by the team at Heide along with Santa Fe's Georgia O'Keeffe Museum, the Queensland Art Gallery, and the Art Gallery of New South Wales, and will feature more than 30 works by each of the three women created across the length of their respective careers. In doing so, it will showcase both the distinctive styles developed by the artists, as well as the similarities in their subject matter, technique and the ways in which they viewed the world.
Some of the biggest names in Australian comedy will take part in coast-to-coast benefit gigs this month in order to draw attention to a very unfunny problem. For one night only on Friday, October 14 in capital cities across the country, local stand-ups will stand up for the victims of domestic violence. In Sydney, the event will be headlined by Celeste Barber at the Harold Park Hotel in Forest Lodge; in Melbourne, Dave Thornton at the Athenaeum Theatre in the CBD; and in Brisbane, Anne Ferguson-Howe at the Kedron-Wavell Services Club in Chermside. Each city will also feature a number of supporting acts, as well as smatterings of live music and other surprises. Tickets to each gig cost $49, with all proceeds being used to pay for the funerals of women who have lost their lives to domestic violence. Image: Oscar Keys.
A season of Serbian cinema will light up the silver screen at the latest edition of Australia's Serbian Film Festival. On offer at select Hoyts Cinemas around the country until early November, this year's program includes a quartet of contemporary Serbian productions that between them showcase the versatility of the nation's under-seen cinematic output. Selected as this year's opening night film, A Stinking Fairytale tells the story of the unlikely romance between Ema and Moma, who live homeless on the streets of Belgrade. Another standout title is Nikola Ljuca's Humidity, which premiered at the Berlin Film Festival earlier this year and has been described by The Hollywood Reporter as "a cryptic thriller about the morally vacant lifestyles of the rich and shameless". On a lighter note, Double Trouble is a comedy about a pair of estranged brothers who find themselves on a collision course. Rounding out the program is The Black Pin, a dark comedy about a misanthropic priest at odds with his superstitious parishioners.
The Australian Centre for the Moving Image has announced its latest filmmaker retrospective. Setting their sights on the movie classics crafted by Roman Polanski, ACMI will screen a special program of his work from November 5-20. Plus, they've also teamed up with Palace Cinemas to take the eleven-film lineup to Canberra, Sydney and Brisbane after its Melbourne stint. ROMAN: 10 X Polanski will feature ten of the Franco-Polish director's features, ranging from his Polish New Wave debut, Knife in the Water, to his 2010 political thriller, The Ghost Writer. In between, the showcase will also give audiences a chance to see masterpieces such as the film noir-infused Chinatown and supernatural horror Rosemary's Baby on the big screen, which is no mean feat. Plus, it'll step through the British-made likes of Repulsion and Cul-de-sac, as well as the European-set The Tenant, Frantic and Bitter Moon — and present his co-starring role, alongside his late second wife Sharon Tate, in undead spoof The Fearless Vampire Killers. As for that eleventh title we mentioned, it comes in the form of Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired, which is clearly the retrospective's way of addressing the director's infamy beyond his helming career. Any celebration of Polanski's work can't ignore his well-publicised flight from the United States in 1978 after being charged with sexually assaulting a minor, aka the main topic of Marina Zenovich's 2008 documentary. Polanski has still worked steadily and even won an Oscar for 2002's The Pianist in the nearly four decades since; however championing his filmmaking prowess is bound to cause some discomfort, even if the touring season does try to put the movies, rather than the man behind them, front and centre. Single session tickets are $10 for ACMI members and $17 for everyone else, with three-session and six-session passes available as well.
Hail, Caesar! takes place on a Hollywood lot during the early nineteen fifties. As such, viewer are given a glimpse at a number of films in production, including a folksy Western, a toe-tapping musical, a lavish costume drama and a sweeping biblical epic. It's fitting that these pictures cover such an array of genres, since the film in which they're found is itself a bit of a jumble. Hail, Caesar! is a mystery, a farce, a treatise on religion and a sly interrogation of cinemas so-called golden age masquerading as the ultimate Hollywood love letter. In lesser hands, such a mishmash of ideas and influences could have been a disaster. In the hands of writer-directors Joel and Ethan Coen, it's one of the funniest, most thought-provoking films to hit cinemas in quite some time. It's also got Channing Tatum tap-dancing in a sailor suit, which quite frankly is worth the price of admission alone. The film follows a day in the life of Eddie Mannix, played by Josh Brolin on top of his game. Head of Physical Production at the fictional Capitol Pictures, Mannix is charged with ensuring everything runs smoothly behind the scenes, from keeping movie shoots on schedule to diffusing potential scandals before they hit the press. But our protagonist is thrown a curveball when the studio's biggest star, Baird Whitlock, is kidnapped by a communist syndicate known only as 'The Future' who want $100,000 for the actor's safe return. Whitlock is played by George Clooney, who brings to the role the same boneheaded swagger he did to O Brother, Where Art Thou? and Burn After Reading. Hail, Caesar! is not the first time the Coens have turned their lens on Hollywood, although compared to the anxious existential drama of 1991's Barton Fink, their latest feels much more playful. Whether it's a director (Ralph Fiennes at his urbane best) growing increasingly frustrated with his ill-suited leading man (the absolutely adorable Alden Ehrenreich), or Mannix dodging the inquiries of rival gossip columnists Thora and Thessaly Thacker (Tilda Swinton in dual roles and increasingly ridiculous hats), the film's absurdist sense of humour fits right in with the Coen canon. At the same time, the mean streak of movies like Fargo or A Serious Man is nowhere to be found. Perhaps it's for this reason that some critics have described the film as lightweight or inconsequential. Respectfully, we think they're missing the point. Hail, Caesar! may seem like one of the Coen's more frivolous efforts, but there's still plenty of subversive stuff going on beneath its glossy surface. For all the affection with which the pair recreate and pay tribute to the films of the era, these moments are undercut by repeated reminders that everything Capitol creates is fundamentally fake. Gossamer fantasies both on screen and off belie a far less glamorous reality, one in which starlets carry on affairs with married directors and underpaid screenwriters fill their scripts with communist propaganda. And while these thinly-veiled references to actual LA scandals are mostly played for laughs, they also suggest that the Coen's see Hollywood as deeply, spiritually hollow. The film's wicked masterstroke is the way it equates the film biz with religion, presented here as the glossiest fantasy of them all. Whitlock's communist captors decry the studio as part of a capitalist machine designed to exploit "the little guy", a description that brings to mind the famous quote by Karl Marx about religion being the opiate of the masses. Mannix himself is depicted as deeply Catholic, visiting the confessional with comical regularity. Yet his true place of worship is Capitol Pictures, where God is conspicuously absent. Half-completed footage from Whitlock's forthcoming biblical epic features not a chorus of angels, but instead a placeholder card with the words "divine presence to be shot." Later, while shooting the film's climactic finale, Whitlock delivers a rousing speech about the power of Christ, only to flub his final line. The word he forgets? Faith. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMqeoW3XRa0
It all started with a purchase and a push. In the early 1970s, playwright Alan Bennett (Alex Jennings) bought a house in London's Camden Town, and helped the elderly Miss Shepherd (Maggie Smith) move her broken-down vehicle. She was far from the area’s favourite inhabitant, with few others willing to offer such assistance, but little could he know what his one act of kindness would bring. Shepherd wouldn’t just stay in the suburb for nearly two decades: she'd park the van she lived in in Bennett’s driveway. The story of The Lady in the Van might sound like the type of tale that could only be cooked up by a couple of screenwriters, but Nicholas Hytner's film is based on the real-life Bennett’s actual experiences. Well, mostly. The movie version of the award-winning theatre production of the same name has fun with the concept of art capturing life, throwing an extra Bennett — a duplicate to do his writing, while he lives his life — into the mix. Other winking meta-textual nods to Bennett himself, and to Bennett and Hytner's previous stage-to-screen effort, The History Boys, also feature. Accordingly, both Bennetts peer out their window as the eccentric, cantankerous Shepherd yells at recorder-playing children, repeatedly paints her various cars a very distinctive shade of yellow, and generally shakes up the otherwise quiet and friendly neighbourhood over the years. Always complaining about her many illnesses but refusing any help, she’s a force to be reckoned with, as well as a woman with a backstory spanning ambulance driving, time in a nunnery, a musical past and a brush with the law. As her unlikely friendship with Bennett blossoms, she's also the film’s most convincing element. While Bennett has clearly worked with the material before, and Hytner directed the initial stage version, Smith’s interpretation of Shepherd is the main attraction. In fact, the English actress is another Lady in the Van veteran, receiving an Olivier Award nomination for playing the role in the original 1999 theatrical production, and also resuming the part in the 2009 radio adaptation. Like the charming acting treasure she is, she ensures Shepherd is more than just a victim of sympathy or mockery — or a means for changing Bennett's perspective of the world. For an actress with so many iconic performances to her name, including Harry Potter and Downton Abbey in recent years, it's a testament to her efforts that this ranks among her most memorable on-screen work. Smith's prominence does highlight the feature's struggles in other areas, though. TV-style images give the movie a standard, almost bland look, while too-timid pacing makes it seem much longer than its 104-minute running time. That the film began its life as a play is obvious. Never the less, the film's quirky story and Smith's compelling performance more than make up for any minor issues.
Get your fill of the best vegan food in town at the fourth annual Vegan Day Out. This weekend in Sydney and Melbourne, The Cruelty Free Shop is putting together a walking tour of vegan cafes, restaurants and retailers, many of which will be offering discounts, deals and free samples to anyone who stops by. On March 5 and 6, socially conscious eaters can stop by The Cruelty Free Shop on Glebe Point Road in Sydney or Brunswick Street in Melbourne and grab a map outlining their route. Whether you're a dyed in the wool vegan or just giving it a go, you'll find a whole world of retailers catering to animal-free eating, offering meal deals, two-for-ones, complimentary coffee, wine tastings and savings on vegan groceries. The Cruelty Free Shop will also be running its own tastings throughout the day, as well as offering discounts on more than 400 different products.
From fake wedding receptions to wartime-era dances, The Boon Companions have made a name for themselves with their immersive theatre experiences around town. For the Festival of Live Art 2016, they present Dance Magic Dance: Cast Party, an after-dark shindig with the cast of a seventies musical theatre production. There'll be booze, music and explosive backstage drama, as actors and audience members mingle on the dancefloor. Slip into character, and get ready to party. Things are going to get wild.
It's official. Soft serve is a thing. No longer stuck in the realm of 50 cent cones at McDonald's, soft serve has well and truly made it to the Melbourne mainstream with the likes of Tuck Shop Take Away pumping out inventive flavours like Redskin, Froot Loops and jam doughnut and the just-gone Pierre's summer pop-up at Green Park. And now, a soft serve international heavyweight is getting in on the game. Meet Milkcow, Korea's all-organic, all-natural soft serve ice cream chain. With 60 stores worldwide, Milkcow has landed in Melbourne for their first ever Australian pop-up. Instead of committing to permanent digs straight-up, it's popping up for just two months in Driver Lane at The Strand in the space that once belonged to Cacao Lab. Running for two months from April 1 until May 31, the pop-up is open from 11.30am until 10pm daily — so get down there anytime between then to try a bunch of exotic flavours and epic add-ons. You might want to start with one of Milkcow's three signature creations: the Milky Way, which is pure, milky ice-cream, without any extras; Milky Honey, swirled with 100% organic honey; or Milky Cube, laced with honey swirl and honeycomb wedges. All of their soft serve is made with locally-sourced, organic milk, which is churned on-site every morning. For something a little more decadent, try the sweet-yet-salty Black Pearl, the tropical-inspired Santorini or the affogato-like Avalanche, which is topped with coffee beans, fairy floss and a double espresso. And these are just the tip of the ice cream berg. You can top your soft serve with anything from fairy floss clouds and macarons to caramel popcorn and a shot of espresso. Milkcow has worked with BrandWorks and props atelier Amanda May Lee to turn the pop-up into a visual adventure. Look out for giant paper soft serve cones and a living, breathing forest. What's more, Naked Truth Chocolates and the Sensory Lab are also on-site, serving up addictive confectionery and quality coffee.
Have a good hard think at NGV Friday Nights, thanks to a pop-up thoughtography lab courtesy of the brainiacs at La Trobe University. Open to the public every Friday evening from now through to April 22, this sensory experiment is part of the ongoing Andy Warhol | Ai Weiwei exhibition. Visitors simply slip on a headset and hey presto — their brainwaves are transformed into vibrant works of art. Okay, so it's a little bit more complicated than that. Thoughtographs are created via electrical impulses in your brain, as measured by a dry electrode electroencephalogram (EEG) headset. As you browse a selection of images from the Andy Warhol | Ai Weiwei exhibition, the apparatus reads your reaction and generates different coloured lines. The harder you think, the thicker the lines. The end result is a unique piece of art that you can take home as a permanent souvenir. Pretty rare that you get to walk out of a gallery with a piece of art under your arm — let alone one you technically created yourself.
It's a tale as old as time: feuding siblings, an envy-fuelled rivalry, and an attempt to survive in harsh conditions. All three elements drive Icelandic effort Rams, as do the titular animals. Yet there's little about this perceptive examination of the bonds of blood, the struggles of farming life, and the importance of finding hope and humour in even the bleakest of circumstances, that feels routine or overly familiar. Perhaps focusing on the woolly creature's importance to rural townships helps, with the feature's narrative following brothers Gummi (Sigurður Sigurjónsson) and Kiddi (Theodor Juliusson) as they operate neighbouring sheep farms. Perhaps the measured pace, meticulous detail and observational atmosphere does as well, all stemming from writer/director Grímur Hákonarson's documentary background. Indeed, though Rams is a work of fiction, in exploring the hardships of working the land it seems ripped straight from reality. After entering their prized beasts into an annual competition, Kiddi emerges victorious, but a bitter Gummi is convinced that something is awry. Secretly inspecting the winning critter, he spies signs of a highly contagious disease that could wipe out Kiddi's flock, infect his own and cripple the entire village's livelihood. The duo hasn't spoken in four decades, exchanging messages via sheepdog to communicate when needed. However only by working together can they hope to save their animals and their community. While compromise might be called for within the story, as the bickering brothers are forced to unite to fight a shared cause, the movie itself prefer to dwell upon contrasts rather than find common ground. Hákonarson doesn't try to soften the difficulties he depicts, even when he's giving them the quirky comic treatment. Instead, he endeavours to present both tough times and happy moments, and demonstrate the importance of taking the good with the bad. Accordingly, Rams becomes not just an empathetic tale of striving to triumph over adversity, but an intricate exercise in balance. The film shows amusing attempts to outwit the agricultural authorities one minute, and the fearsome impact of the unforgiving Icelandic environment the next. But it never lets the former overpower the latter or vice versa. Of course, when a feature revolves around squabbling siblings, more than a bit of to-ing and fro-ing is to be expected. What makes the film soar isn't its determination to delve into opposing sides, but the way in which it embodies those underlying divides in everything from its visuals to its performances. Cue images that jump between vast sights and intimate interiors, and portrayals that similarly pit bold and subtle traits against each other. In Hákonarson's hands, the many juxtapositions prove not just effective in conveying the story, but insightful as well. Here, the extremes of existence exist as part of a continuum, constantly coming into conflict and yet still managing to coexist. That's the core of Rams, and the secret to making a film feel both immediate and timeless.
If you're a devout follower of the Church of Bey, you'll be pleased to know there's a twice-weekly service at LuWOW in Fitzroy. The tiki-style bar hosts hour-long Bey Dance classes on Thursday and Friday nights from 6pm. Each class focuses on a different song or dance, so you can pick and choose your Bey best-of, or worship across the board. They cover everything from the Destiny's Child years all the way up to her recent singles and Super Bowl performances. Thankfully, for those among us who are more Chris Martin than Beyonce or Bruno Mars, fear not — Bey Party is a judgement-free safe space. There are no mirrors, no lurking cameras, no dance divas just trunk-junk jiggling, just fun times and Yonce-inspired attire (think spandex, glitter and knee-pads). Bey Party is ideal for limbering up before a big night of dancing — and where else can you grab a tiki cocktail straight after a good workout?
Sommeliers, scientists, psychologists, perfumers and perhaps even a troupe of performers — these are just some of the unexpected folk you might find in the kitchen at Lûmé in 2016. Home to some of the fanciest looking food in town, the high-end South Melbourne restaurant has recently announced a series of collaborative dining events designed to push their creative boundaries. The first event is set to take place on Monday, April 18, and will see Lûmé's executive chef Shaun Quade team up with chef Daniel Puskas of Sydney's acclaimed Sixpenny. Think emu tart with warm fig leaf milk and mountain pepper, aged duck with witlof and quince, and mead vinegar custard with frozen fruit. Pretty damn fancy – although, at $180 a head before booze, you shouldn't expect anything less. To book a table visit the Lûmé website, and stay tuned for more information about future collaborative events.
Tony Blair, Oedipus Rex and the almighty Lord God himself are just a few of the colourful characters you can expect to get a mention in English comedian Sara Pascoe's 2016 Melbourne International Comedy Festival show. As smart as she is forthcoming, Pascoe's the kind of stand-up who'll actually make you learn something even as you're rolling on the floor laughing. Her new act, Animal is described as "a show about empathy and its limitations". Colour us intrigued.
In the opulent palace of a merciless dictator, four women exchange pleasantries as civil war draws near. There's the First Lady, her best friend, a foreign journalist and a translator, each of whom bring their own unique perspective to this operatic tale about the perilous nature of power. First performed in Edinburgh more than a decade and a half ago, Splendour was written by playwright Abi Morgan, whose resume has since been bolstered by critically acclaimed screenplays such as Shame, Suffragette and The Iron Lady. Yet even in this early work, it would seem her feminist credentials were on full display. The Red Stitch production, which marks the play's Australian premiere, will be directed by Jenny Kemp, and stars company regulars Rosie Lockhart and Olga Makeeva alongside newcomers Belinda McClory and Olivia Monticciolo. The March 31 performance will also be followed by a Q&A.
The brand new Jurassic World exhibition at the Melbourne Museum isn't the only place you can see dinosaurs this week. For when a VHS copy of Jurassic Park goes missing just before a screening at the Lyme Regis Community Centre, it falls upon the Park family to recreate the movie themselves. A sell-out hit at Edinburgh Fringe and now in Melbourne for the International Comedy Festival, Dinosaur Park is a tale of family dysfunction and epic adventure inspired by Steven Spielberg's iconic film. Who needs a $100 million special effects budget when you've got three comedians running around the stage like dinosaurs?
Celebrated choreographer Stephanie Lake presents an electric new dance work at the Northcote Town Hall. Fresh from its world premiere at this year's Sydney Festival, Double Blind is inspired by the infamous Milgram experiments, in which subjects were asked by scientists to electrocute people in another room in order to test how far they would go before rebelling against an authority figure. Lake's hour-long show sets out to explore this notion — questioning the limits of obedience and morality — through movement that is both anarchic and carefully staged. "This idea of the conflict between a personal morality and our relationship with those in positions of authority was the seed of the work and something I feel to be relevant to our time," says Lake. The show, which will run for just six evenings, features four world-class dancers, along with original musical accompaniment from audio-visual artist Robin Fox.
Miranda July is on her way to Melbourne. The acclaimed writer, filmmaker, actor, artist and entrepreneur will speak at Melbourne Town Hall on Monday, March 7 about her eclectic body of work. And to celebrate, ACMI are screening her critically acclaimed dramatic comedy The Future, alongside her short film Getting Stronger Every Day. Originally released in 2011, The Future is July's second feature film, and follows a 30-something couple (played by July and Hamish Linklater) whose decision to adopt a wounded cat (voiced by July) triggers an existential crisis of epic proportions. Whimsical and affecting, the film is a must for anyone who likes their movies a little out of the ordinary. ACMI will screen the film twice, at 7pm on Friday, February 26 and 5pm on Saturday, March 5.
It wouldn't be Midsumma without a good old-fashioned drag show. That being said, there's nothing old-fashioned about this immersive virtual reality production from artists Allison Bennett, Megan Beckwith and Mark Payne. Using their combined skills in photography, digital media, choreography and animation, the trio have produced 3D scans of local drag performers. Plug in and prepare yourself. This probably isn't exactly what the creators of the Oculus Rift had in mind — but to be honest, we don't really care. One week only at the Testing Grounds in Southbank.
What happens when director and choreographer Dave Coombs teams up with four of his fellow graduates from the National Institute of Circus Arts? The result is Uncovered, a tale about coming out set to a soundtrack of popular songs, with strobe lighting, smoke and a little bit of nudity thrown in. This steamy, high-energy circus-dance hybrid has been developed specifically for this year's Midsumma Festival in partnership with Gasworks Arts Park and AfterDark Theatre. Five shows only, beginning Wednesday, January 27.
Smith Street eatery, Son in Law, is your destination for a cheap and cheerful Thai fix throughout Good Food Month. Head in on one of six specified nights to feast on the kitchen's authentic fare on the cheap. A $20 note will get you one small plate, one large and a serve of rice, plus for an extra $7, they'll mix you a punchy Mae Khong Sour cocktail. Make a booking by calling (03) 9410 0399.
The title of this film is probably the least strange thing about it. The third part of a thematic trilogy by Swedish filmmaker Roy Andersson 15 years in the making, A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence consists of a series of deadpan tragicomic vignettes ostensibly ‘about being a human being’. Sexually aggressive dance instructors, a pair of morose travelling salesman and the long dead King Charles XII are just a few of the bizarre characters who inhabit this esoteric comedy, one that had us scratching our head in bafflement as often as it had us laughing.
Using sound as her artistic weapon of choice, New Zealand-born, Brussels-based artist Kate McIntosh playfully balances experiment and entertainment. Using everyday objects to build up her soundscapes, McIntosh explores the notion of being a part of a crowd and also being an individual within that crowd, as sounds of paper being ripped and glasses toppling over are recorded and played back during the performance. There is an undeniable scientific element to McIntosh’s art form, as she gathers sound like evidence in her exploration of humanity and togetherness. However, it’s not so cut-and-dry, as her work contains an off-beat humour that draws in her audience. McIntosh is a founding member of the artist-run production and research platform SPIN, based in Brussels. It very well could be a while before we see her around these parts again, so dive head first into this sonic experience.
“Can you play 'Drunk in Love'?” is the question that keeps hounding 23-year-old Cole Carter (Zac Efron) when he DJs at nightclubs and parties. Sometimes he says no, and sometimes he finds a way to politely sidestep the request, but he's never really pleased about being asked. That obvious unhappiness stems from his main aim — not just to make it big doing what he loves but to do so with authenticity. Pressing play on the hot song of the moment isn't what he's into. Instead, Cole believes that he can have an impact on more than people's feet, and that all he needs is a laptop, some talent and one new track that resonates on the dance floor to see his dreams become a reality. With his fellow San Fernando Valley-dwelling friends Mason (Jonny Weston), Ollie (Shiloh Fernandez) and Squirrel (Alex Shaffer), he promotes parties, scrounges for gigs and tries to do just that. Working for a shady real estate mogul (Jon Bernthal) helps him make cash to keep afloat. Becoming friends with one of his idols, James (Wes Bentley), also assists in moving him in the right direction; however, falling for James's assistant and girlfriend, Sophie (Emily Ratajkowski), doesn't. Every generation — or every couple of years, really — a film comes along that makes an effort to reflect the teenage and twenty-something lifestyles of the day, touch upon their hopes and aspirations, and wrap it all into a heavily stylised, soundtrack-focused party movie. Prominently featuring the 2006 Justice vs Simian song that gives the feature its title, We Are Your Friends is the latest formulaic attempt, though it is founded upon good intentions. Mia Hansen-Love’s similarly themed Eden from earlier this year aside, a film about the electronic dance music scene might seem an unlikely candidate to provide a soul-searching look at forging a creative career and remaining true to yourself in the process, but that's what Catfish TV series co-host and cameraman turned first-time feature writer/director Max Joseph, with co-scribe Meaghan Oppenheimer, endeavour to do. Cole's struggle to find his sound and his way feels genuine, even if everything around it — distancing himself from his mates, the romantic subplot, a crisis of conscience and the incursion of tragedy — feels much too calculated and convenient in following the typical coming-of-age format. Efron, still toiling valiantly to parlay his High School Musical fame into meaty film roles, also comes across as earnest in an effort that is sleek and superficial otherwise. The underrated actor might always look the stereotypical part, complete with headphones hanging around his neck and the requisite shirtless scene, but he's the force that makes the story matter without ever really seeming like he's trying to. Alas, he is stranded in an overly flashy music video aesthetic that grates against any real sentiments the film attempts to conjure — large text on screen, an overuse of slow motion and ample shots of pretty young things included. Indeed, the disconnect between the film's emotion and its method of delivery just can't be shaken, nor can its template, even if the pulsating beat tries to offer a distraction.
The Czech and Slovak Film Festival is heading back to ACMI, ushering in ten straight days of central European cinema that you can't see anywhere else. Now in their third straight year, the CaSFFA team have once again split their program between recent releases and classic older films — including one silent gem that's close to 100 years old. Simply put: if you're looking to sure up your film buff credentials, then this is the festival for you. Modern highlights include '80s-set sports drama Fair Play, fantasy musical Three Brothers and hard-hitting Czech/French co-production The Way Out. Those looking for a more retro experience, meanwhile, can check out any one of four feature films by influential director and animator Karel Zeman, whose work also provides the inspiration for the festival's Spirit of Adventure art exhibition. Alternatively, you can catch 1919's The Cathedral Builder at Melbourne Town Hall, complete with a live score performed on the historic Grand Organ, the largest instrument of its kind anywhere in the Southern Hemisphere. For the full CaSFFA program, visit the festival website.
Throw on your tattered old Union Jack coat and get down to Federation Square. Hosted by the diamond dogs at ACMI, Total Bowie is a weekend-long festival inspired by the music and style of the genre-defying Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, and the latest event in Melbourne's ongoing Bowie obsession. Expect talks, performances and Labyrinth back on the big screen. And make sure you come in costume, because there will be prizes for best dressed. Musical guests on the Total Bowie program include rock cabaret performer Geraldine Quinn, DJ Mz Rizk, and Bowie inspired ukulele trio The Thin White Ukes. In between performances you can catch talks from the likes of pop-culture journalist Mel Campbell and ACMI curator Fiona Trigg, or get your face painted like Ziggy Stardust. And if you haven't already, you'll want to spend a good few hours in the David Bowie is exhibition downstairs. We've been three times already, and it does not get old.
Have you heard all the buzz around the new show at North Melbourne Town Hall? Frankly, it seems kind of hard to ignore. Presented by Arts House, this live musical performance asks us to consider our relationship with the natural world, combining the talents of composer Martin Friedel, a trio of pianists and the vocalists from the Astra Choir. But they'll all likely be overshadowed by the true stars of the production: a gigantic swarm of honey bees. The insect ensemble will be enclosed within a giant glass hive, with their every movement projected via video. Their buzzing should provide a unique aural backdrop for the music of their human collaborators, which will range from "soundscapes to intense virtuosic arrangements, punctuated by semi-improvised sonic excursions". It's on for three nights only, so grab your tickets quick – otherwise you'll end up feeling stung.
To be perfectly honest, we knew we wanted to preview this show the moment we saw the title. The latest off-the-cuff production from improv music troup Impromptunes, Puppets! The Musical throws out the script completely, with the performers relying on the audience and each other to conjure up the material for their all-singing, all-dancing show. As if that wasn't challenging enough, they've gone and thrown puppets into the mix – and as everyone knows, puppets are terrible at thinking on their feet. Expect forced rhymes and big laughs. This event is one of our top ten picks of the Melbourne Fringe Festival. Check out the other nine here.
Melbourne Museum knows better than anyone that learning can be a heck of a lot of fun, and that a spot of vino can't hurt while you're at it. Their monthly after-hours event SmartBar provides plenty of insight into our natural world and the creatures that inhabit it. The incredibly (and obviously) intelligent people who work at the museum take the time to present fascinating talks on preservation and conservation of our national fauna in an informal setting. Covering topics such as taxidermy and extinction, you’re bound to go home with a few tips, tricks and decent amount of knowledge on the world as we know it. The adults-only events feature demos, drinks, talks and some digital media thrown in for good measure. Get along and get schooled in the best way possible.
When Chinese restaurant Lee Ho Fook made the move from Collingwood to the CBD last month, there was suddenly a vacancy at their original location on Smith Street. Next year the old owners will reopen the site as Goldfish, a new casual dining endeavour overseen by head chef Victor Liong. Until then, the space has been handed to a pair of award-winning sommeliers, who have transformed it into an impressive looking pop-up wine bar. Hey, it sure beats an empty storefront. Fittingly christened Semi-Permanent at 92 Smith (no relation to the design conference), the temporary venture begun trading yesterday and is expected to occupy the site until Christmas Eve. Running the show are Liz Carey and Paul Guiney, previously of MoVida and The Town Mouse, respectively. Customers can expect a large, rotating wine list, with Carey telling Gourmet Traveller the selection would be "constantly changing, international, accessible ... wine from people who make really good booze, and wine that likes food." They'll also be serving sake, because why not? Food will be handled by chef Tanya Bertino, who Carey and Guiney recruited from the Gem in nearby Wellington Street. The focus will be on simple, rustic food that compliments the wine, such as terrines, rillettes, cheeses and sliced meats. They'll also welcome a number of guest chefs for special pop-up dinners, including O Tama Carey in October and Christine Manfield in December. Once they shut up shop to make way for Goldfish, Carey and Guiney hope to find a permanent home for the wine-bar — although presumably at that point they'll have to change the name. For trading hours visit their website. Via Gourmet Traveller and Good Food.
Step into some of the most dangerous places on earth. Screening at ACMI as part of this year's Melbourne Writers Festival, Textures of Conflict is a program of five documentaries that showcase the power of the still image, as captured by photojournalists in conflict zones around the world. The films will screen at the Fed Square cinema throughout the week beginning Monday, August 24. Shooting Robert King chronicles the photographer of the same name, as he journeys from Bosnia to Chechnya and Iraq. Likewise, McCullin follows legendary English photographer Don McCullin, while the simply titled War Photographer concerns the exploits of American James Nachtwey. Under Fire: Journalists in Combat takes a broader view of war zone journalists, whose job has never been more dangerous than it is today. Rounding out the program is Wim Wenders' recent Oscar-nominated doco Salt of the Earth, about photographer Sebastiao Salgado, who has recently turned his lens from human conflict to the environment.
The AICE Israeli Film Festival is back for 2015, showcasing a selection of features, documentaries and shorts from some of the region's leading filmmakers. Curated by incoming festival director Richard Moore, previously of the Brisbane and Melbourne International Film Festivals, this year's program is split into six distinctive sections, each of which aims to explore a different facet of Israeli cinema. 'Blast from the Past' showcases titles from years gone by, while 'Queer Spot' includes films that reflect the experiences of Israel's LGBT community. 'Culture Corner' contains films that concern Israeli culture more broadly, across mediums such as theatre, music and poetry. 'Questions of Faith' features films with a religious angle; 'First Course' showcases the best of the festival's short film program; while 'On The Edge' is reserved for the most hard-hitting stories, including those that deal with hot-button political issues facing the Israeli people today.
When Timothy Conigrave wrote Holding the Man, it was clearly a work of great personal significance. The year was 1994, he was 34, and his memory was fading as a result of HIV-related complications. The narrative he committed to paper wasn't just his own memoir, but his way of recalling his life-long lover, John Caleo. Alas, Conigrave would succumb to his condition before his book was published, but his words, their romance and their plight have persevered to touch the hearts of many. In fact, after more than two decades of reader devotion plus several stagings of theatre productions based on the text, Holding the Man comes to cinemas with the weight of considerable history. Others, including Walking on Water director and Conigrave's friend Tony Ayres, have previously tried and failed to bring the tale to the screen. That filmmaker Neil Armfield and writer Tommy Murphy — who also wrote the play — succeed is no mean feat. That they do the story and their subjects justice in a tender and touching film isn't, either. Conigrave (Ryan Corr) and Caleo (Craig Stott) first met as Melbourne schoolboys in the late '70s, the former an aspiring actor treading the boards in a class version of Romeo and Juliet, the latter running around football fields as an emerging Aussie Rules star, and both raising more than a few eyebrows for pursuing their relationship. Weathering the many storms wrought by the disapproval of their respective parents (played by Guy Pearce and Kerry Fox, and Anthony LaPaglia and Camilla Ah Kin), Australian society's intolerant attitudes, and the outbreak of the AIDS epidemic, theirs was not an easy romance, but until health issues cut short their time together, it was an enduring one. Making his first film since 2006's Candy, Armfield doesn't take the linear approach to Conigrave and Caleo's love as he flits from their early to later years. He jumps between important moments with the affectionate recollection of someone assembling their thoughts — which is how Conigrave's experience is framed. Sometimes the feature is clumsy and clunky as a result, particularly in trying to relate teenage antics and in spouting dialogue that sounds a little too theatrical. Sometimes, it hits the mark perfectly; just witness the hospital-set scenes, and try to keep your eyes from misting over. Of course, much of the emotion springs not from the warm colours the movie is painted in or from the period-appropriate rock soundtrack — both often overdone — but from the two lead performances. Even though they struggle with selling the characters' younger guises, Corr and Stott shine in conveying their opposites-attract pairing, as well as in showing the necessary growth and change as they traverse the trials, tribulations and troubles of being gay men in the 1980s. Indeed, the central duo's efforts in embodying the real-life figures they play with authenticity and intimacy is what makes the film linger long after viewing. Holding the Man's outcome might be known, but its lasting impact in telling one of Australia's great tragedies still offers many a surprise, perhaps none more so than its heartbreaking combination of the sweet and the sorrowful.
It’s been a solid five years of non-stop national tours for Melbourne six-piece, Northeast Party House. Rather than taking any sort of break, they’ve decided to pack up their gear and embark on their first tours of the USA, UK and Europe in October. NPH’s ‘Later ‘Straya’ tour will be fanging it up and down the East Coast before their departure, and if it’s anything like their ‘Double Darts’ tour they smashed out earlier this year, it’s sure to be a doozy. The lads have spent a considerable amount of this year in the studio creating their follow up album to Any Given Weekend, and are using this opportunity to debut a few of their latest tracks in some of the biggest venues they’ve played at to date before the head off OS. If that wasn’t enough to get excited about, they have cherry picked some of their favourite Australian acts to join them for one more hurrah, including the likes of The Shakes, Gold Fields DJs and The Pretty Littles for their Melbourne stint. Check out their latest single ‘Perfect Lines’ and immediately catchy tracks like 'The Haunted' and send the boys off in style.
Melbourne's new home of high-end Japanese, Toko, knows how to throw a party. Case in point: on New Year's Eve, they're inviting you to graze from a shared tasting menu that looks almost too good to be true. Feast on freshly shucked oysters, venison carpaccio with nashi pear and potato airbags, seared wagyu beef with eschallots and chives, and soft-shell crab with wasabi mayonnaise. And make sure you leave room for the dark chocolate mousse with mixed berries and passionfruit. The $175 per person sitting also includes beer and red, white and sparkling wines. To book a table, call (03) 9521 3155 or email events@toko-melbourne.com.
David O. Russell clearly knows when he's onto a good thing. Over the last few years, the writer/director has found a formula that works and it seems like he's sticking with it. He casts actors Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper and Robert De Niro, tells stories of ordinary folks trying to escape dysfunction and chase better lives; and adopts a tone that shifts between harsh reality and fairytale. First Silver Linings Playbook. Then American Hustle. Now, his latest effort, Joy. This time around, Russell offers up a fictionalised account of the rise of a real-life home shopping network star. In the early 1990s, Joy Mangano (Lawrence) was a Long Island divorcee coping with caring for her two young children while living in a house with her daytime TV-loving mother (Virginia Madsen), ailing grandmother (Diane Ladd), singer ex-husband (Edgar Ramirez) and thrice-married father (De Niro). Then, while cleaning up spilled wine, she came up with the idea for the first-ever self-wringing mop. Enter an Italian investor (Isabella Rossellini), and, eventually, a television executive (Cooper). Yes, Joy is a rags-to-riches tale of a battler trying to improve herself and her situation; however it's also something more. It wrestles Russell's current patterns and preferences into a canny character study, watching on as a woman fights for agency and control, despite constantly being told that she should take care of others and reign in her go-getting ways. Weaving in surreal soap opera segments — and at its best when it's following its protagonist on the small screen or in the studio — the film becomes an astute and engaging dissection of the power of selling a fantasy. Of course, the latter works so well because that's exactly what the movie does, with Joy's success never in doubt (the film notes at the outset that it's inspired by stories of brave women, including one in particular). Indeed, Joy sells its namesake's journey from domestic unhappiness to business domination by making everything seem equally authentic and fanciful. The movie casts a dream-like sheen over crumbling interiors, proceeds at a lively pace through tough moments, and favours an upbeat soundtrack, all to create a purposefully wavering mood. In doing so, it manages to remain sincere, not satirical. That's where Lawrence proves pivotal too. When the going gets tough, she's determined rather than defeated; when everything appears to be coming together, she never patches over Joy's struggles. Her co-stars mightn't all fare as well, particularly De Niro's disapproving dad. Still, Madsen and Rossellini have their comic moments, and Ramirez and Cooper benefit from less chaotic roles. Besides, such a mix of performances feels fitting. Joy pairs a filmmaker's usual tricks and tendencies with a mostly-true tale of tenacity, serving up amusement and insight in the process.
Celebrating feminism and the mighty off and onscreen power of ladies, Girls on Film Festival have created yet another outstanding program featuring women who kick some serious butt. Inspired by Riot Grrrl culture, GOFF brings together a three-day program of zines, live gigs and of course, stellar films (with a little activism thrown in for good measure). Films in this year’s program include cult classics, underrated gems and feminist favourites. Roller derby fans will get a kick out of the Drew Barrymore-directed Whip It and documentary In The Turn, or if soccer is more your jam, hit up British favourite Bend It Like Beckham. Classics like Thelma and Louise, Romy and Michelle’s High School Reunion, and Desperately Seeking Susan will be making an appearance, and if you’re after some solid activism docos, check out Black Panther Woman and She’s Beautiful When She’s Angry. There are honestly too many great films to list here, so check out their program for more info.
You'll be stocking up on soundtracks after Projections of Dance, a new late night film program at the Astor Theatre in St Kilda. Presented by alternative dance music media collective 6am at the Garage, the inaugural calendar features a trio of titles that chart the history and influence of electronic dance music. Screenings take place on select Tuesday evenings, beginning on October 20 with Berlin Calling, about a Berlin DJ, played by musician Paul Kalkbrenner, who is institutionalised for drug abuse. Next up on November 24 comes Shut Up and Play the Hits, the acclaimed documentary about the final days of LCD Soundsystem. Finally on December 15, Mia Hansen-Love's Eden chronicles the rise and fall of a pioneering DJ over a twenty year period against the backdrop of the exploding house movement in France. All three screenings will be preceded by sets from local DJs — and naturally, the Astor Bar will be open all night. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drdf8OeBUUM
Two words immediately spring to mind while taking a detour through Learning to Drive: modest pleasures. They’re what the film's characters seek, whether they're sitting behind the wheel or walking along the footpath. They’re what the amiable, affectionate and earnest movie does as well. A later-in-life attempt to hit the road gets the feature gently motoring along, with Wendy (Patricia Clarkson) the initially unlicensed party in question. The Manhattan-dwelling literary critic hadn’t previously had a reason to join the commuting masses; however, separating from her adulterous husband (Jake Weber) and seeking to visit her college-age daughter (Grace Gummer) inspires her to reassess her priorities — you're never too late to try something new, and all that. Enter the kindly Darwan (Ben Kingsley), an Indian Sikh working as both a taxi driver and a driving instructor. He has his own personal problems, including his desire for matrimonial happiness with his arranged bride (Sarita Choudhury), as well his efforts to avoid the prejudice that follows his every move. Of course, he's also the wise teacher Wendy needs, even if she doesn't yet know it. That this odd couple will cross paths isn’t a surprise in this introspective effort, nor is the friendship that reluctantly but eventually springs. Wendy and Darwan find commonality despite their differences, learn some obvious life lessons from each other and gain an appreciation of the little things that make their days worth enduring. In fact, everything about Learning to Drive screams standard — and yet it's warm, sweet but never too saccharine too. Director Isabel Coixet, who has worked with both her leads before on the 2008 film Elegy, enjoys spending time in predictable yet thoughtful territory while contemplating well-fleshed-out characters. There's a reason she has enlisted Clarkson and Kingsley again for this task, as based on an autobiographical New Yorker article by essayist Katha Pollitt. As often proves the case in most things either pops up in (witness this year's Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials and Self/Less, for example), they're a pleasure to watch. The former is gifted a role with more shades of complexity than the latter, but both offer rounded portrayals that span well beyond their alternatingly tentative and playful banter. Though plenty of their dialogue serves up road references that cheesily double as nuggets of general life advice — reading the signs, taking in everything around you, and so on — their performances help brighten up a film that's largely confined within a car (and as visually constrained as that sounds). The scenery isn't the point, but the people looking at it. Yes, that's just another of Learning to Drive's modest pleasures.
In the guise of her character Jess, Drew Barrymore is crying when Miss You Already starts — and the audience likely will be when the film finishes. Tissues are necessary for what overwhelmingly and shamelessly qualifies as a weepie. Expect tears from a movie that knows how to wring them out of you. Expect to know that's exactly what it is trying to do, too. Barrymore's American in London is the more down-to-earth life-long BFF of outlandish Brit Milly (Toni Collette), their friendship as firm as it is frenetic. They've been there for each other since meeting in primary school, but when Miss You Already opens, Jess is in labour and yearning for her pal before talking viewers through their shared history. That colourful past takes a turn for the catastrophic when Milly is diagnosed with breast cancer, much to the distress of Jess; Milly's rock 'n' roll-roadie-turned-family-man husband, Kit (Dominic Cooper); and their two young children. At the same time, Jess is struggling with trying to get pregnant through fertility treatment with her partner Jago (Paddy Considine). As has constantly happened throughout their years of closeness, when it comes to life-changing drama, Milly's situation trumps her own. If the combination of gal pals, a potentially terminal condition and baby craziness hasn't already given it away — and it should've — Miss You Already is solidly aiming for sometimes gently funny, often waterworks-inducing chick flick territory. That the film stems from the real-life experiences of actress and writer Morwenna Banks (perhaps best known for TV's Saxondale and Skins) helps ensure that its sentiment and depiction of illness doesn't feel fake, even if it comes on thick and paints by the numbers. Indeed, director Catherine Hardwicke moves on from the teen-focused fare of Thirteen and the first Twilight film to offer up an account of the ups and downs of female friendship, with the latter prominent when trouble and tragedy strikes. Her approach is brightly shot to look like fondly Instagrammed memories, though it also barely lingers on anything but the obvious as it flits between Vine-like vignettes. Heartstrings are tugged across the usual moments — news both good and bad, hospital visits focused on life ending and beginning, a road trip to Yorkshire's Moors, and fights and fancy occasions among them — yet every new occurrence seems like the filmmaker is ticking off a checklist. With no hunks in sight here, what the film boasts instead is chemistry between the two leads. The plot points might be routine, but the bond the talented duo of Barrymore and Collette cultivate comes across as authentic. In fact, none of the cast puts a foot wrong, including a brief but well-played appearance by iconic actress Jacqueline Bisset as Milly's TV star mother. They're Miss You Already's most effective element, other than using all the life, death, love, loyalty and friendship pressure points to manipulate salty moisture into streaming from your eyes.
Experience the very best that the city's fine dining scene has to offer at Taste of Melbourne in partnership with Electrolux. Taking over Albert Park in mid-November, this four-day culinary cornucopia offers foodies the chance to mingle with chefs, pick up new recipes and sample dishes from some of the top restaurants in town. Bon appetit! Taste of Melbourne is split into six sessions, each one lasting roughly four hours. During their allotted time, ticketholders will be able to purchase tapas-style tasting plates prepared by the teams from Circa, Gazi, Luxembourg, Mamasita, MoVida, Pastuso, Pei Modern, Royal Mail Hotel, San Telmo, South Africa’s Five Hundred, Supernormal, Gladioli, Milk the Cow and Saké Restaurant & Bar. Once guests have eaten their fill, other attractions on the Taste of Melbourne program worth checking out include live cooking demonstrations in the Electrolux Taste Theatre, a showcase of South African wine and cuisine in the South African Garden and masterclasses on everything from creating your own gin with Bass & Flinders to going freestyle with Lurpak. You can also swing by the Artisan Producers Market and pick up a few goodies for your pantry, or kick back and relax in the Audi Brighton Platinum Lounge with live music and an open bar. Concrete Playground readers can grab discounted entry for Taste of Melbourne. To get two general entry tickets for $45 (SAVE $15*), simply enter the code PLAY at checkout. *Savings based on door price and excludes booking and transactions fees.
After a successful debut in 2014, tilde: Melbourne Trans and Gender Diverse Film Festival is back for its second year. Moving across town from Carlton's Bella Union to the Lithuanian Club in North Melbourne, the festival's sophomore program will once again showcase contemporary features, documentaries and shorts made by trans and gender diverse filmmakers, alongside films featuring trans and gender diverse content and characters. The festival, which runs from November 13-15, begins with Canadian comedy-drama Two 4 One, about a trans man named Adam whose life is thrown into turmoil with the reappearance of an ex-girlfriend. Other standouts include The New Man — a documentary co-production between Uruguay and Chile about a trans woman living in poverty in Montevideo — and Something Must Break, a Swedish coming of age film about a romance between two young people on the fringes of society. The program is bolstered by a lineup of fiction and documentary short films. For the full tilde program, visit their website.
Israel's Batsheva Dance Company returns to the Melbourne Festival with a pair of shows by acclaimed artistic director Ohad Naharin. Straight from its world premiere in Tel Aviv, Last Work is described as "an exploration of motion and emotion", complete with a dancer running on the spot for the duration of the performance. The second piece is the most recent update of Naharin's Decadance, wherein the choreographer reimagines pieces from Batsheva's back catalogue — creating what is essentially a live highlights package from the company's five plus decades on stage. This event is one of our top ten picks of the Melbourne Festival. Check out the other nine.
The Intern is one of those films that’s not easily labelled. It absolutely feels like a romcom, especially with writer/director Nancy Meyers at the helm (responsible for the likes of Father of the Bride and It's Complicated), but there’s not really any romance in it to speak of. It’s also a funny film, though you’d fall short of calling it a comedy, and it consistently packs in the feels, only there are too many lighter moments for it to be an out-and-out drama. Ultimately, whether by chance or design, The Intern's indeterminate status actually offers us a neat reflection of the story within it, for this is a story about two individuals — the ‘retiree’ and the ‘working mum’ — both grappling with the expectations and misconceptions that accompany those characterisations. De Niro, the retiree, is a 70-something widower without a purpose. Intelligent, polite and openly uncomfortable with inaction, his character Ben Whittaker applies for (and secures) a place in a senior’s intern program at fashion tech startup About the Fit. Anne Hathaway, the ‘working mum’, is the company’s 30-something founder and CEO, Jules Ostin. Passionate and driven but overworked, Jules is fending off shareholder insistence that she hire a ‘proper’ CEO while simultaneously struggling to keep her family together on account of her relentless schedule and the restless ‘stay-at-home dad’ (another unhelpful label) waiting at home. When De Niro is assigned to be Hathaway’s personal intern, their initially uncomfortable partnership soon develops into an indispensable friendship: he the calming influence on her, and she his newfound sense of purpose. The early scenes in The Intern are enough to give serious pause. De Niro’s ‘old guy in a young person’s tech world’ shtick had the potential to be incredibly hammy, and moments like not knowing how to wake up his laptop or use a USB did not augur well for avoiding the tired ‘analog meets digital’ cliche. Hathaway’s character, too, was immediately unlikeable, wearing her wireless headset and riding her fixed-gear bicycle through the office from meeting to meeting. Thankfully, though, neither concern plays out for long. De Niro’s reserve — that trademark smile and gentle nod that has traditionally masked violent intent — works perfectly as a juxtaposition to the madness of the Gen Y workplace around him. His old-school approach to both work and life endears him to all, as he offers advice from fashion and accessories through to putting down the phone and actually talking to people. Similarly, as soon as Hathaway’s pristine veneer reveals its vulnerabilities, she becomes at once an entirely sympathetic character and a surprisingly cogent representation of the unresolved workplace gender debate. In many ways, The Intern plays out like an adaption of Annabel Crabb’s The Wife Drought or Unfinished Business by Anne-Marie Slaughter, the first female director of policy planning at the US State Department and author of the controversial ‘Why Women Still Can’t Have It All’ essay in the Atlantic. Both these texts highlight the difficulties and hypocrisies surrounding successful women in the workplace, including why we never hear the label ‘working dad’, and — at its heart — this is what The Intern ultimately concerns itself with. There are plenty of laughs along the way, as well as some admittedly saccharine scenes, but mostly this is a heartwarming tale of friendship and a constructive engagement with feminism and gender inequality.
The strengths and weaknesses of Legend can be summed up via two of its key scenes. The first comes about halfway through the film, when infamous London gangster Reggie Kray (played by Tom Hardy) does a flawless impersonation of his twin brother Ron. The thing is, Ron is also played by Tom Hardy in one of those Social Network Winklevae situations. It's just that Hardy's performance is so strong and each character is so defined, you genuinely think of the Krays as two entirely distinct humans played by two very different actors. It's a powerhouse performance showcasing Hardy's imposing abilities, both physically and dramatically. The second scene comes a little earlier. The Krays are lured to a neutral pub under the auspices of negotiating a truce with their gangland rivals, only to discover themselves surrounded and grossly outnumbered. Where most would cower, the Krays respond with a mix of nonchalance and outrage: Reggie pulls himself a beer while Ron storms out, complaining of a half-arsed gunfight without any guns. Seconds later, of course, he returns unseen and together with his brother lays waste to the entire group of thugs. The problem with this second scene (and, in turn, much of the film), is that it’s terrifically entertaining. The music, dialogue, performance and direction all play it light and whimsical — even flippant — despite its confronting savagery (the Krays employ a brutal combination of hammers and brass knuckles). Under certain circumstances, the juxtaposition of violence and comedy in film is defensible, even appropriate, so long as the genre fits (think Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, or Pulp Fiction). Here, though, it’s wildly misplaced. Yes, it successfully conveys the Krays’ character and composure, but this isn’t fiction. The Krays brutalised and murdered their way to the top in real life, and the duty of a biopic is to tell a story as it was, not to glorify it as some might have wanted it to be. And that, in short, is Legend: a film defined by its spectacular performances and misfiring direction. Alongside Hardy, the supporting cast of Emily Browning, David Thewlis and Christopher Eccleston does a decent job despite the middling script, but the overall feeling is one of dullness and disappointment.
See great movies in the great outdoors at Melbourne's newest openair cinema. A free initiative of the City of Boroondara, Summertime Cinema will be popping up in parks around the eastern suburbs on Saturday evenings in the lead up to Christmas. Gather your friends, pack up a picnic basket and find yourself a spot on the grass. The season begins this Saturday, December 5 with a screening of Labyrinth at Greythorn Park in North Balwyn, closing out a year of total Bowie obsession. The following week, Riversdale Park in Camberwell will showcase the classic Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers musical Shall We Dance, complete with pre-show entertainment from the Hawthorn Band. Finally, it's back to the '80s at Central Gardens in Hawthorn, where the program wraps up with Girls Just Want to Have Fun.
Dance combines with visual art in the latest work from the troupe at Chunky Move. Premiering this week, Miss Universal is the latest entry in the company's annual Next Move series, which is designed to showcase brand new works by young Australian dancemakers. In this instance, the dancemaker in question is Atlanta Eke, who has teamed up with artist Claire Lambe for a work that questions notions of universality within contemporary social structures. Running from December 3-12 at Chunky Move Studios in Southbank, Miss Universal will see Atlanta joined by a trio of dancers who will journey "through a landscape of images, sculpture and transformative material". In addition to Lambe, collaborators include composer Daniel Jenatsch, who previously worked with Eke on her earlier Chunky Move piece The Fountain.
