Usually, Wednesdays are the best day to wear pink — if you wish that 00s-era Lindsay Lohan was your best friend, write in a burn book, and worship a certain high school-set classic flick that's based on a self-help text and boasts Tina Fey as a screenwriter, that is. But on Monday, October 3, Cinema Nova wants you to bust out your best pale red, rose and salmon hues. If you're a fan of Mean Girls, you should already know the reason why. Yes, Mean Girls Day is upon us for another year, and the Carlton cinema is celebrating in the appropriate fashion: with a screening of the film, obviously. And, if you're decked out in your favourite not-quite-red shades at the 7pm session, you can nab a 'You Can't Sip With Us' cocktails for just $10. Not donning pink? You'll pay $15 instead. Not being there would be social suicide, clearly. Revisiting the correct usages of 'fetch', 'grool' and 'ESPN' is just part of the fun too, as is channelling your inner queen bee. Naturally, pretending it's the Spring Fling is also encouraged. Mathlete or plastic, tickets to the movie itself cost $10 as well. Plus, as a souvenir, limited-edition collector's badges will be given away. What day is it indeed.
Perhaps the greatest trick the devil ever pulled — the devil that is time, the fact that we all have to get out of bed each and every morning, and the sleep-killing noise signalling that a new day is here — was to create alarm clocks in a variety of sounds. Some are quiet, soft, calming and even welcoming, rather than emitting a juddering screech, but the effect always remains the same. Whatever echoes from which device, if your daily routine is a treadmill of relentless havoc, that din isn't going to herald smiles or spark a spring in anyone's step. The alarm that kickstarts each morning in Full Time isn't unusual or soothing. It isn't overly obnoxious or horrifying either. But the look on Laure Calamy's face each time that it goes off, in the split second when her character is remembering everything that her day will bring, is one of pure exhaustion and exasperation — and it'd love to murder that unwanted wake-up siren. That expression couldn't be more relatable, as much in Full Time is, even if you've never been a single mother living on the outskirts of Paris, navigating a train strike, endeavouring to trade up one job for another for a better future, and juggling kids, bills, and just getting to and from work. At the 2021 Venice International Film Festival, Antoinette in the Cévennes and Call My Agent! star Calamy won the Best Actress award in the event's Horizons strand for her efforts here — and while the accolade didn't come her way for a single gaze, albeit repeated throughout the movie, it easily could've. Mere minutes into Full Time, it's plain to see why she earned herself such a prize beyond that withering gape, however. Calamy is that phenomenal in this portrait of a weary market researcher-turned-hotel chambermaid's hectic life, playing the part like she's living it. In our own ways, most of us are. The first time the alarm sounds, Julie Roy (Calamy) is already lethargic and frustrated; indeed, writer/director Eric Gravel (Crash Test Aglaé), who won the Venice Horizons Best Director gong himself, charts the ups and downs of his protagonist's professional and personal situation like he's making an unflagging thriller. In fact, he is. Julie is stretched to breaking point from the get-go, and every moment of every day seems to bring a new source of stress. For starters, her job overseeing the cleaning at a five-star hotel in the city is both chaotic and constantly throwing up challenges, and the hints dropped by her boss (Anne Suarez, Black Spot) about the punishment for not living up to her demands — aka being fired — don't help. Julie has put all her hopes on returning to market research anyway, but getting time off for the interview is easier said than done, especially when the French capital is in the middle of a transport strike that makes commuting in and out from the countryside close to impossible. Also adding to Julie's troubles is well, everything. The childcare arrangement she has in place with a neighbour (Geneviève Mnich, Change of Heart) is also precarious, thanks to threats of quitting and calling social services. Having any energy to spend meaningful time with her children at the end of her busy days is nothing but a fantasy, too. Trying to get financial support out of her absent ex is a constant battle, especially given he won't answer the phone — and the bank won't stop calling about her overdue mortgage payments. It's also her son Nolan's (J'ai tué mon mari) birthday, so there are gifts to buy, plus a party to organise and throw. Julie is so frazzled that having a drink with her best friend is a luxury she doesn't have time for, because some other task always beckons. And when a father from her village, the kindly Vincent (Cyril Gueï, The Perfect Mother), helps her out not once but twice, she's so starved of affection that she instantly misreads his intentions. All of this might sound mundane, and like the kind of thing that plenty of people deal with — and that's partly the point. Full Time hones in on the rush, hustle and bustle to impress how fraught this vision of normality is, and how draining. It isn't by accident that the film is nerve-wracking and sweat-inducing to watch. Gravel shows why that tired stare when the alarm goes off is the only thing that someone in Julie's situation can possibly sport. With the marvellous Calamy proving indefatigable at playing fatigued, the filmmaker truly sees his central character, her stresses and that she's at her wits' end, and he makes his audience feel every aspect of her struggle. One such tactic, as straightforward as it is, couldn't be more effective: for Calamy and for the frames that capture her alike, there's simply no rest. Every sharp, cold, tourism-flouting shot by cinematographer Victor Seguin (Gagarine) ripples with tension and drips with anxiety, including extreme closeups of Julie slumbering and hurtling almost-chase sequences as she flits around; her plight, and the nonstop slog, is inescapable. That keeps ringing true as she scrambles everywhere — her rustic cottage, which she'd clearly like to spend more time in; the route to her local railway station, even though the trains are barely running; and her workplace, where she's at her most composed in her pristine maid's uniform, although it can't mask her inner turmoil. On the Parisian streets, she's frequently sprinting; calling the movie Run Julie Run instead would've fit. Visually, every image that graces Full Time adds to the bubbling, broiling pressure cooker, so much so that feeling like only a tragic end can come — and desperately hoping and praying otherwise — ramps up the intensity for viewers. Calling the end result frenetic and kinetic still doesn't completely capture what a blood pressure-raising experience Full Time is, while remaining devastatingly empathetic and insightful; if The Worst Person in the World met Uncut Gems, it might look like this. The rhythm amplified by editor Mathilde Van de Moortel (Mustang) doesn't give up, and the score by first-time composer Irène Drésel earns the same description. A wealth of feelings and ideas linger along the way — the ever-swirling array of roles that Julie has to play, which makes Calamy's performance all the more remarkable; the intimate and sensory dive that Gravel takes, ensuring that the full brunt of Julie's experiences is unavoidable; and how the character's tussles and vulnerabilities, and the strike for better working conditions, run in parallel. One of the great feats that Full Time achieves: making all of this linger, and this exceptional feature in general, the next time that your own alarm goes off.
Patience is somewhat of a virtue with The Forgiven. It would be in it, too, if any of its wealthy white characters hedonistically holidaying in Morocco were willing to display the trait for even a second. Another addition to the getaways-gone-wrong genre, this thorny satirical drama gleefully savages the well-to-do, proving as eager to eat the rich as can be, and also lays bare the despicable coveting of exoticism that the moneyed think is an acceptable way to splash plentiful wads of cash. There's patently plenty going on in this latest release from writer/director John Michael McDonagh, as there typically is in features by the filmmaker behind The Guard, Calvary and War on Everyone. Here, he adapts Lawrence Osborne's 2012 novel, but the movie that results takes time to build and cohere, and even then seems only partially interested in both. Still, that patience is rewarded by The Forgiven's stellar lead performance by Ralph Fiennes, playing one of his most entitled and repugnant characters yet. Sympathies aren't meant to flow David Henninger's (Fiennes, The King's Man) way, or towards his wife Jo (Jessica Chastain, The Eyes of Tammy Faye). Together, the spiky Londoners abroad bicker like it's a sport — and the only thing fuelling their marriage. Cruelty taints their words: "why am I thinking harpy?", "why am I thinking shrill?" are among his, while she counters "why am I thinking high-functioning alcoholic?". He's a drunken surgeon, she's a bored children's author, and they're venturing past the Atlas Mountains to frolic in debauchery at the village their decadent pal Richard (Matt Smith, Morbius) and his own barbed American spouse Dally (Caleb Landry Jones, Nitram) have turned into a holiday home. Sympathy isn't designed to head that pair's way, either; "we couldn't have done it without our little Moroccan friends," Richard announces to kick off their weekend-long housewarming party. But when the Hennigers arrive late after tragically hitting a local boy, Driss (Omar Ghazaoui, American Odyssey), en route, the mood shifts — but also doesn't. The wicked turns of phrase that David slings at Jo have nothing on his disdain for the place and people around him, and he doesn't care who hears it. His assessment of the desert vista: "it's very picturesque, I suppose, in a banal sort of way". He drips with the prejudice of privilege, whether offensively spouting Islamophobic remarks or making homophobic comments about his hosts — and he doesn't, nay won't, rein himself in when Richard calls the police, reports the boy's death, pays the appropriate bribes and proclaims that their bacchanal won't otherwise be disturbed. The arrival of Driss' father Abdellah (Ismael Kanater, Queen of the Desert), and his request that David accompanies him home to bury his son, complicates matters, however. While David begrudgingly agrees, insultingly contending that it's a shakedown, Jo helps keep the party going, enjoying time alone to flirt with hedge fund manager Tom (Christopher Abbott, Possessor). John Michael McDonagh hasn't ever co-helmed a feature with his filmmaker brother Martin, but actors have jumped between the duo's respective works, with Fiennes — who starred in Martin's memorable In Bruges — among the latest. The siblings share something else, too, and not just a knack for assembling impressive casts; they're equally ace at fleshing out the characters inhabited by their dazzling on-screen cohorts via witty and telling dialogue. The Forgiven plays like it's in autopilot, though, but having Fiennes, Chastain, Smith and Jones (who appeared in Martin's Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) utter its lines is a gift. Indeed, here it's the attitudes captured while they're speaking, and the behaviours and mannerisms made plain in how they're speaking, that add layer upon layer to this murky affair. That'd ring true even if Driss, Abdellah and the tense journey with the latter to inter the former weren't even in the narrative. That's one of the issues with The Forgiven: although David and Jo's lives inescapably change due to the accident, it and everything that it sparks almost plays as an aside. The aftermath is given ample attention, more so than the party, but the film frequently feels as David unshakeably does, like it too would rather be immersed in the revelry. Of course, that's much of the point, especially in Jo's parts of the story from there — and Richard, Dally and Tom's, plus everyone else still living it up (including Jack Ryan's Marie-Josée Croze as a French photographer, Operation Mincemeat's Alex Jennings as a British Lord and Old's Abbey Lee as an Australian party girl, complete with a Coles shopping bag holding her belongings). The Forgiven keeps skewering this fact, with McDonagh attempting to do just that every which way he can, but some of his efforts to mirror what's occurring on-screen through the feature's tone just don't land. When The Forgiven does hit its marks, it's weighty and knotty, and given depth and heft by Fiennes — and, during David's trip with Abdellah, by the powerful Kanater, plus the charismatic Saïd Taghmaoui (John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum) as the grieving patriarch's offsider and intermediary. It's savvy as a satire, too, albeit obvious, but when the balance tips the better, more compelling, more meaningful way, it's a far more potent picture. Empathising with David still isn't the tale's point, thankfully, and neither is a simplistic life lesson-filled pilgrimage that sees an affluent man learn the error of his oppressive tendencies against the less fortunate. Unsurprisingly, The Forgiven is at its best when it's as complex as its desert-swept cinematography (by The Guard and Calvary's Larry Smith) is gleaming. It's not quite right to say that McDonagh brings all of the movie's pieces together in the end — again, it's not exactly accurate to say that he always seems to want to — but Fiennes brings the film home. This is one of his finest performances, which is no small feat given the array of excellent portrayals that dot his resume, including his Oscar-nominated work in Schindler's List and The English Patient, as well as his awards-worthy turn in The Grand Budapest Hotel. It's no minor achievement given the loathsome, boozy, reckless and curmudgeonly figure he's playing, either. The rest of the feature's big names leave an imprint, from the well-cast Chastain playing it sharp but loose, to the appropriately shadowy Smith and catty scene-stealer Jones, but never with the same film-defining impact.
Sometimes, a bar asks the questions you didn't know you had. When it comes to wild and wonderful margarita flavours, that bar is usually El Camino Cantina. The Tex-Mex chain loves swirling around different kinds ritas, so much so that limited-edition varieties frequently grace its menus — and for three weeks from Monday, July 18–Sunday, August 7, it's giving its signature drinks a Long Island iced tea makeover. What's better than choosing between sipping a margarita or a Long Island iced tea? Drinking a fusion of the two cocktails. That's what's on offer thanks to the brand's Long Island iced tea rita series, and in seven flavours. Yes, as well as splashing together to different kinds of boozy beverages, El Camino Cantina is pouring them in different varieties as well. So, you can choose between cherry, strawberry, passionfruit, mango, lychee, sour melon and lagoon Long Island iced tea ritas. In Melbourne, you'll find them tempting your tastebuds as part of the chain's National Tequila Day celebrations in Fitzroy. In an added bonus, there's a limited-edition tacos range to go with them, costing $7–8 each and $2 on Tuesday. Fancy marinated chilli prawns, crispy bacon and cheddar on a taco? Smoked barbecue brisket with coleslaw? Beef mince with pickles, onions, cheese and secret burger sauce? Nacho-crumbed chicken tenderloins with pico de gallo? They're just some of the special options.
Buy the ticket, take the ride, strap in for an onslaught of frenetic locomotive-bound fights: that's high-octane action-comedy Bullet Train on- and off-screen. Set on a shinkansen hurtling from Tokyo to Kyoto, in as stylised a vision of Japan that anyone not named Quentin Tarantino has ever thought of, this neon-lit adaptation of Kōtarō Isaka's 2010 page-turner Maria Beetle couldn't be more onboard with its central concept. That premise isn't snakes on a plane, but rather assassins on a train — plus one snake, one of nature's hitmen, actually. Cramming all those killers onto a single engine sparks mayhem, banter and bodies, not to mention chaotic frays in the quiet car and almost every other space. And when it works, with John Wick and Atomic Blonde's David Leitch steering the show, Tarantino and Guy Ritchie alum Brad Pitt as his main passenger, and a lifetime's worth of references to Thomas the Tank Engine slotted in, Bullet Train is as OTT and entertaining as it overtly wants to be. It doesn't always completely work, however; every journey, zipping along on a high-speed train or not, has its dips. Still, there are plenty of moving parts trying to keep the movie in motion — and plenty of plot, for better and for worse in both instances. In his second 2022 action-comedy after The Lost City, Pitt plays Ladybug, who is back riding the hired-gun rails after a zen break packed with new-age self-help platitudes. That's what he spouts to his handler (Sandra Bullock, The Unforgivable) by phone, in-between rueing his bad luck, as he tries to carry out what's supposed to be an easy job. All that Ladybug needs to do is take a briefcase, then disembark at the next station. But that piece of luggage is being transported by British assassin double-act Tangerine (Aaron Taylor-Johnson, The King's Man) and Lemon (Brian Tyree Henry, Atlanta), as they escort a Russian mobster's son (Logan Lerman, Hunters) home. To up the hitman ante, the shinkansen is also carrying The Prince (Joey King, The Princess) and Kimura (Andrew Koji, Snake Eyes: GI Joe Origins), who have their own beef, as well as the revenge-seeking Wolf (Benito A Martínez Ocasio aka Bad Bunny, Fast and Furious 9). As is always the case whenever anyone asks "are we there yet?" IRL, there's more: more twists and turns to the narrative, more bickering, more familiar names facing each other down, and a mass of flashbacks to events minutes, hours, days and months earlier, most of which make the leap from the page via Zak Olkewicz's (Fear Street: Part Two — 1978) screenplay. Wondering if the scribe and Leitch have seen Kill Bill, or the Pitt-starring Snatch, or the 90s attention-grabbers that were Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels as they bring Isaka's novel to the screen is thoroughly pointless. But, after The Gray Man, Bullet Train is the second big, star-studded, midyear action flick that's pieced together from familiar components, only to boast the cast and visual spectacle to carry it off more often than not. What a treat Pitt is, and has been for more than three decades — because that's how long it's been since Thelma & Louise thrust him to fame. Bullet Train draws upon his Ocean's Eleven brand of chattering, casual, happy-go-lucky charisma, even with Ladybug grappling with an existential crisis over his chosen profession. Pitt is comic, but never reaches Burn After Reading's goofiness. Amid the navel-gazing and bromides, he's still calm, collected and supremely capable at holding his own, but never to a Once Upon a Time in Hollywood extent. Although Leitch doesn't give Pitt his own John Wick or Atomic Blonde, it's as crucial a piece of casting. Neither of those two flicks would be the gems they are without their specific stars, and Bullet Train similarly wouldn't have hit the marks it does without its bucket hat-wearing biggest name and his detailed performance. While they fill their scenes trading words and blows, the best of Pitt's co-stars inspire the same reaction — including Hiroyuki Sanada (Mortal Kombat) as a veteran yakuza, Michael Shannon (Nine Perfect Strangers) as a pivotal powerbroker, and Taylor-Johnson and Henry particularly. A visually mismatched pair who quip and sling crosstalk with every breath, the latter duo have cookie-cutter comedic-relief supporting roles on paper, yet bring flair, scene-stealing commitment, and a genuine rapport and weight to their characters. It's thanks to Henry as the blonde-topped Lemon that popular culture's most famous train among pre-schoolers not only plays such a sizeable part, but becomes a life-guiding creed. That's a bit taken directly from the source material and, yes, it could've proven both clunky and cringey on-screen. Bullet Train isn't concise at 126 minutes, and giving its Thomas gags a bit too much steam is just one of its repetitive touches, but that whole gambit would've derailed fast in other hands. Leitch knows banter, and how to direct it; see also: Deadpool 2. While he also knows how to overdo a winking, nodding, smirking vibe that overflows with references to entertainment elsewhere — see also: Deadpool 2 — Bullet Train never feels like it's merely and smugly laughing at its own jokes. And, although not every gag lands, or even the tone from station to station, it's gleeful about how silly it can skew, as its impressively choreographed and inescapably ridiculous action scenes show. Leitch also knows stunts, given that's where he famously started out. In Fight Club, Spy Game, Ocean's Eleven, Troy and Mr and Mrs Smith, he was Pitt's double. It's little wonder that the dynamic confrontations — which involve everything from that key briefcase, laptops and water bottles through to knives, guns, swords and the snake — bounce across their train-bound setting, and the screen, as vividly lensed by Leitch's regular cinematographer Jonathan Sela (Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw). Bullet Train's highlights gleam and flow, just like the film's sleek look and feel, but even when you're happily strapped in, bumps can bubble through. There's never a moment where it isn't a lot, which it's well aware, although luckily — the audience's, and Ladybug's — it's never having less than a hyperactive, cartoonish blast with everything it throws at the screen. Henry's Atlanta co-star Zazie Beetz, playing another of the feature's killers, deserves a better, more fleshed-out character, and more screentime. The ideas of family, trauma and fate at the story's core are often just scaffolding around the repartee and setpieces. Spotting the picture's influences is as plain to see as Tokyo's twinkling lights, and as blatant as the Japanese covers of 'Stayin' Alive' and 'Holding Out for a Hero' on the soundtrack. Buy the ticket, take the ride, settle into the movie's rhythm, let Pitt be your guide: that's still Bullet Train, though, too.
The 90s were great. That shouldn't be a controversial opinion. Whether you lived through them or have spent the last couple of decades wishing you did — aka binging on 90s pop culture — this late-night shindig at Brunswick's Stay Gold will indulge your retro urges. Drinks, tunes, fashion — expect all of the above at the No Scrubs: 90s and Early 00s party from 11pm on Saturday, May 8. Of course, it's up to you to make sure the clothing side of thing is covered, and to get into the spirit of the party. If you want to use Mariah Carey as a style icon, it'd be fitting. Expect to unleash your inner Spice Girl and Backstreet Boy too. TLC, Destiny's Child, Savage Garden, Usher, Blink-182, No Doubt — we'd keep listing artists, but you all know what you're getting yourselves into. Tickets are $15.15 online, with the fun running through until 3am. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8WEtxJ4-sh4
Moonee Ponds newcomer Holmes Hall is already pretty lush, with its impressive collection of indoor foliage and all those forest-hued walls. But, this weekend, the venue is doubling down on the green theme, as it throws open the doors to host a huge plant sale with the expert green thumbs at online store, The Plant Runner. Taking over the sprawling bar from 12–5pm on Saturday, March 20, and Sunday, March 21, this Crazy Plant People party is destined to be grand — not just because it marks The Plant Runner's first pop-up plant sale for 2021, but because the crew's also celebrating its third birthday. The team will be bringing along a hefty assortment of leafy green delights for you to browse and buy each day, with every purchase over $60 also coming with a free bottle of the brand's signature Plant Food. In between shopping up a storm, you can hit the bar to try a few of the weekend's exclusive floral-inspired cocktail creations, or settle in to eat some leafy specials from the kitchen. Crazy Plant People sale runs from 12–5pm.
Sparked by the pandemic, lockdown films aren't just an exercise in adapting to stay-at-home conditions — or a way to keep actors, directors and other industry professionals busy and working at a challenging time. The genre also provides a window into how the creatives behind its flicks view everyday life and ordinary people. Arising from a global event that's placed many of the planet's inhabitants in similar circumstances, these features tell us which stories filmmakers deem worth telling, which visions of normality they choose to focus on and who they think is living an average life. With Malcolm & Marie, a hotshot young director and an ex-addict were the only options offered. In Language Lessons, which premiered at this year's virtual Berlin Film Festival, a wealthy widower and a Spanish teacher were the movie's two choices. Now Locked Down directs its attention towards a CEO and a courier, the latter of which stresses that he's only in the gig because his criminal record has robbed him of other opportunities. Yes, these movies and their characters speak volumes about how Hollywood perceives its paying customers. That's not the only thing that Locked Down says. Verbose to a farcical degree — awkwardly rather than purposefully — this romantic comedy-meets-heist flick is primarily comprised of monologues, Zoom calls and bickering between its central couple. Well-off Londoners Linda (Anne Hathaway, The Witches) and Paxton (Chiwetel Ejiofor, The Old Guard) are weeks into 2020's first lockdown, and their ten-year relationship has become a casualty. Whether chatting to each other or virtually with others, both commit a torrent of words to the subject. Linda has decided they're done, which Paxton has trouble accepting. She's also unhappy with her high-flying job, especially after she's forced to fire an entire team online, but gets scolded by her boss (Ben Stiller, Brad's Status) for not telling her now-sacked colleagues they're still like family. Tired of driving a van, Paxton is willing to do whatever his employer (Ben Kingsley, Life) needs to climb his way up the ladder. That said, he's still tied to the road, with the ex-rebel's decision to sell his beloved motorbike — a symbol of his wilder youth, and its fun, freedom and risks — hitting hard. As Linda and Paxton argue about their past together and future potentially apart, vent frustrations about their locked-down present, and chat with co-workers (including Late Night's Mindy Kaling, The Father's Mark Gatiss, Jojo Rabbit's Stephen Merchant and The Last Vermeer's Claes Bang) and family members (Ballers co-stars and real-life couple Dulé Hill and Jazmyn Simon), at no point do they resemble real people. Rarely does anything that comes out of their mouths sound like something that someone might actually say, either. And, while the stresses of working remotely, being unable to leave the house and having normality put on hold should be relatable — we've all been through it — every aspect of Locked Down's script feels forced. That includes its relationship insights, which are hardly romantic, comedic or wise, even when showing that the most devoted of couples can find their patience tested when the days never seem to end. When Linda and Paxton's professional worlds collide, tasking her with removing a £3 million diamond from Harrods, him with ferrying it to safety and the pair with possibly stealing it for themselves, the plot development smacks of screenwriting laziness and convenience. Steven Knight does the scripting — and although Locked Down arose in a hurry, this isn't the first time that the screenwriter has penned something dull, grating, contrived and often ridiculous. When he's at his best, TV series Peaky Blinders, the Ejiofor-starring Dirty Pretty Things, David Cronenberg's Eastern Promises and Tom Hardy one-man-show Locke are the end results. At his worst, he pumps out the abysmal Hathaway-starring Serenity — a movie so awful that it almost defies belief — and now this. Locked Down's missteps are many, and plenty stem from the script. It repeatedly mistakes more dialogue for more drama, for instance. When it isn't insulting everyone who isn't a CEO, it's whining about pandemic restrictions, with its complaints outdated a year ago and ancient now. But director Doug Liman can't escape responsibility for Locked Down's many struggles. Fresh off of the long-delayed, also-terrible Chaos Walking, the filmmaker who shot banter so engagingly in Swingers, Go and even Mr and Mrs Smith just seems happy to let the camera keep rolling here. The man who made Edge of Tomorrow also treats his big Harrods heist as if he was Richard Linklater filming a walk-and-talk for a Before Midnight sequel called During Lockdown. Perhaps Liman expected his two leads to shine so brightly that they'd carry the two-hour film. They're asked to, but no one could sparkle with this material. Hathaway yells into pillows, swans around in colourful pyjama pants and dances to Adam and the Ants' 'Stand and Deliver' like she's on a stage trying to emote to people in the street outside the theatre. While Ejiofor fares slightly better — when he's not waxing lyrical about a hedgehog he's named Sonic (of course), licking opium from the couple's townhouse garden or airing stale stay-at-home grievances — the existential angst that's baked into his performance gets swallowed by the movie's overall listlessness. You could generously read Locked Down's tedium and monotony as intentionally reflecting the malaise of the last 15 months, but every choice that Liman and Knight makes refutes that idea. There's smugness and pompousness to this never-funny film instead, and it screams of its key creatives thinking they know what COVID-19-era life is like, and that they can turn the situation into something witty and thrilling. They don't and they can't, at least in this feature. Visually, the movie brightens at Harrods, but its third-act wander through the famed department store really just shows what could've been. A far shorter picture with less repetitive griping and more of absolutely anything else mightn't have made viewers feel as if they too are stuck home with someone they hate, for example. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TG-Mxzl88Q&feature=youtu.be
If you know even the slightest thing about the circumstances surrounding Jamal Khashoggi's death, it's impossible to watch The Dissident without feeling angry. That's most viewers' starting mood, given that the Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist's assassination has garnered ample media attention — and Oscar-winning director Brian Fogel (Icarus) is well aware of how much coverage the subject has received, and of how the world feels about the situation. Indeed, his thorough and exacting documentary both feeds upon and fuels that shock and ire. The mood is tense, the commentary is pointed and the prevailing sentiment is savage. Both rage and outrage permeate each frame, unsurprisingly so, as the film lays bare the brutal facts surrounding Khashoggi's murder, its lead-up and its aftermath. No other tone would be acceptable. Nothing other than dismay, abhorrence and anger would be either. When you're making a movie about a man who entered his nation's embassy to obtain paperwork so that he could get married, then left it in dismembered pieces while his bride-to-be waited outside, how could anything other than fury, horror and alarm eventuate? Although the details have already been well-documented since October 2, 2018, they're still reassembled in The Dissident. Accordingly, the doco tells of Khashoggi's visit to the Saudi consulate in Istanbul just over a year after fleeing his country, after which he was never seen alive again. He wanted to marry academic Hatice Cengiz, his Turkish fiancée. To do so, he needed a document certifying that he was no longer wed to his prior wife. He'd first sought that necessary certification from the embassy just a few days earlier, so they knew that he'd be returning — and once he stepped inside once more, he was ambushed, attacked and killed by a newly arrived team of Saudi agents. Cengiz contacted the authorities when the man she thought she'd be spending the rest of her life with didn't surface, but the Saudi government claimed that the exiled reporter had left via a back entrance. It didn't take long to ascertain the truth, as was suspected from the moment he failed to reemerge. The official story changed several times, and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman denied any knowledge of a premeditated plot, but the fact remains that Khashoggi was slaughtered by operatives from his homeland. Nothing about Khashoggi's plight has been easy to face over the past three years; however, confronting this true tale is essential. Even if the soundtrack to his film needlessly overstresses the emotive highs and lows, Fogel is clearly aware of just how important his task is here, and does his part to help ensure that these specific events aren't allowed to fade in anyone's memories. He charts the tough-to-stomach minutiae, knowing that ignoring and forgetting the grim intricacies isn't that much different from excusing or accepting them. Crucially, he also provides a wealth of context, including by chronicling Khashoggi's career from the 80s onwards. Initially, the journalist had a congenial relationship with Saudi's monarchy and government, but that shifted as he called them out in article after article — and as he continued to speak the same truths to the same powers, and to the world, after leaving for Washington DC in 2017. Also earning the attention of Fogel and his co-writer Mark Monroe (The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart): Omar Abdulaziz. Another Saudi exile, the now-Canada based vlogger was friends with Khashoggi, and recounts their connection throughout the film. Early on, Abdulaziz says that the fate of his pal weighs heavily upon him, but it takes The Dissident time to fully explain why — beyond the normal bounds of grief and past the anger that everyone aware of Khashoggi's assassination feels, that is. While Fogel could be accused to trying to add extra intrigue, urgency and mystery to a movie that largely deals in known facts, his documentary is already gripping anyway; rather, he's further fleshing out the background to a heinous crime. The intimate details explored and exposed throughout the film, including a wealth of surveillance footage, phone calls and WhatsApp messages, and even audio transcripts of the murder taking place, all evoke a strong reaction, of course. But so does seeing the bigger picture, including gleaning the feature's insights into how some countries can work ruthlessly and in a highly orchestrated manner to silence dissenting voices, and understanding the role that both technology and money play in such targeted activities. Whether recounting the grisly reality of Khashoggi's final minutes, conveying the callous disregard directed his way by his assassins and their government, hearing from Turkish police and prosecutors, listening to Abdulaziz or spending time with Cengiz, The Dissident never loses sight of its core focus. This is a movie about one of the utmost political atrocities of the past five years — and about the fact that few repercussions have come Saudi Arabia's way since, with the last US President even claiming that the situation was too ambiguous — but it's also a film about Khashoggi above all else. Here, he isn't just a martyr. He's not simply a name splashed across news headlines, and repeated again and again in broadcasts. And, he's definitely never the type of figure that's discussed and detailed yet always remains a remote presence. Some of The Dissident's most stirring moments feature the journalist being himself and trying to find happiness again, in fact, all after being forced to start his life anew. That's part of this equally chilling and moving doco's power. Truly coming to terms with how Khashoggi's life came to an end involves seeing not just a man given the titular label, or someone killed for speaking out, but a person who sought a better future for himself and for his homeland, only to have his existence cruelly extinguished instead. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wnmC7uLTNQ
Spring is always a period of renewal — the days get longer, the nights get warmer, and venturing out and about is a welcome prospect once again. And, while there's never a dull moment in Melbourne, this city of ours always ups the ante in its events offering at this time of year. Like Saturday, September 7 and Sunday, September 8, for example. The Craft & Co. — Collingwood's restaurant, cafe, brewery, distillery and workshop — is holding a two-day market dedicated to gin. Across three sessions each day (11am–1pm, 1.30–3.30pm and 4–6pm), some top-notch bottles of gin will be cracked open in the venue's event space. Great Ocean Road Gin, Bathtub Gin Co, Poor Toms, Alchemy and Imbue Distillery will be a few of the gins you can try and, if you're impressed, take home a bottle of. Your $10 ticket includes tastings, as well as a $5 voucher to use at the market. And if you want to sit down and enjoy your gin of choice, you'll be able to do that too. The eatery and bar downstairs will be operational, and you'll be able to buy some of The Craft & Co.'s gin cheese on the day as well.
If you've moseyed past the corner of Elizabeth and La Trobe streets over the past few months, then you've probably noticed Ella. A sizeable new entertainment and food precinct, it's home to a range of eateries, a live music venue and even an art gallery. The site has been opening in stages since May, adding everything from ramen to sweets to wine — and, now that it's almost in full swing, it's throwing a week-long celebration. Or cellabration, because clearly no one can pass up the opportunity to make that pun. Running between Monday, August 19 to Sunday, August 25, Ella's Cellabration Week will give Melburnians what they want: free food and vino, obviously. Different Ella tenants will be unleashing their wares on different nights, meaning that you'll be able to nab a bottle of malbec or chardonnay from Blackhearts one day, a hefty serving of pad thai from Son in Law the next, and Chilli Everest's spicy chicken and goat pieces later in the week. On weeknights, head along from 6–10pm, when Lomah will be giving away falafel trays, Sam Sam will doing boneless Korean fried chicken and Pick a Stick will be slinging grilled meats on skewers on various evenings. If you're dropping by between 3–7pm on Saturday, make a beeline for Reverie's delicious desserts — and, on Sunday, you can slurp up the good stuff from Ajisen Ramen or get a bento box from Sushi Club. Numbers for each giveaway are limited, ranging between 100 to 600, so arriving early is recommended. ELLA CELLABRATION WEEK LINEUP Monday — Lomah: 300 lamb or falafel trays; Blackhearts: 200 bottles of wine Tuesday — Son In Law: 200 pad thai Wednesday — Sam Sam: 300 boneless chicken Thursday — Pick A Stick: 600 skewers and 100 sweet potato snack boxes Friday — Chilli Everest: 200 sekuwa Saturday — Reverie: 300 cakes Sunday — Ajisan: 200 ramen; Sushi Club: 200 bento box The giveaways run from Monday–Friday 6–10pm and Saturday–Sunday 3–7pm or until sold out.
Mexican food and margaritas share a specific quality. No matter how many tacos you eat and salt-rimmed drinks you sip, you always want more. Given that El Camino Cantina specialises in both, it's easy to indulge your hankering at the lively bar — and even easier at its new Tex-Mex Fiesta. For $50, you'll tuck into a share-style feast of food. You'll start with buffalo wings with blue cheese mayo and mango chilli sauce, then move onto loaded nachos — with the latter coming topped with melted cheese, black beans, chilli con carne, smoked barbecue brisket, pico de gallo, sour cream and guacamole. Then, it's time for chargrilled chicken fajitas (which feature house-made tortillas, pico de gallo, sour cream, cheese, seasonal veggies, melted butter and sauteed onions), before wrapping things up with hot churros drizzled with chocolate and caramel sauce. That's the food side of the deal. If you're feeling thirsty, you can get drinking for an extra $29. That'll nab you two hours of bottomless margaritas, with the cocktails served in four flavours, and either frozen or on the rocks. You'll also get free-flowing house beer and wine as well. El Camino Cantina's Tex-Mex Fiesta is available all-day Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays weekly at the chain's store in Fitzroy.
UPDATE: July 13, 2020: The Goldfinch is available to stream via Netflix, Foxtel Now, Google Play, YouTube and iTunes. A best-selling, Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. A filmmaker fresh from directing another literary adaptation to three Oscar nominations. A cast of high-profile faces spanning Nicole Kidman, Jeffrey Wright (Westworld), Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things) and Ansel Elgort (Baby Driver). Regardless of whether screenwriter Peter Straughan counts as a strength or a weakness — he scripted the excellent recent version of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, but was also responsible for the horrendous The Snowman — The Goldfinch definitely doesn't lack in pedigree. Alas, as based on Donna Tartt's 2013 book and directed by John Crowley (Brooklyn), the result is a curious film. It's easy to see how this neo-Dickensian coming-of-age tale about a traumatised teen, an explosion, a stolen painting and the chaos that follows could enthral on the page; however it's just as easy to remain distanced from it on the big screen. When viewers first meet Theo Decker (Elgort), he's a suave, drug-addicted twentysomething in Amsterdam. How he got there, why he's so stressed and strung out, and why he's muttering about an artwork called The Goldfinch are all soon relayed via flashbacks. At the age of 13, Theo (Oakes Fegley, Pete's Dragon) visits the Metropolitan Museum of Art with his mother, survives a bombing that claims her life, and leaves with a ring he's asked to return to an antiques dealer (Wright) — as well as the famed 1654 piece by Carel Fabritius that gives the movie its name. When he's happily bunking down with the wealthy family of one of his private school classmates, and hoping that their matriarch (Nicole Kidman) will adopt him, Theo hides the stolen painting. As he's struggling through a strained Las Vegas reunion with his compulsive gambler dad (Luke Wilson) and bartender girlfriend (Sarah Paulson), the portrait haunts him. And, after he's all grown up, back in New York and trading in antiques himself, the picture remains out of sight but never out of Theo's mind. While The Goldfinch takes its moniker from the beloved masterpiece and tasks its protagonist with fixating on it, the priceless artwork means more here as a symbol than as an object. A knowledge of art history will help audience members, but the film does eventually explain the painting's fascinating background, its parallels with Theo's journey, and why it represents the enduring nature of beauty in shaping both individual and collective memories. That said, on a narrative level, the piece is hardly crucial — especially given the hectic wave of unlikely events that keep befalling Theo both as an adolescent and as an adult. Indeed, as their lead character befriends a rebellious Ukrainian (Wolfhard), obsesses over a flame-haired fellow survivor (Ashley Cummings), reignites old acquaintances and gets immersed in shady dealings on opposite sides of the world, Crowley and Straughan can't be accused of skimping on plot. Story-wise, there's rarely an empty moment. What the feature lacks, however, is the space to truly value anything of importance — and space to appreciate why its namesake is so emotionally and thematically pivotal. Much of The Goldfinch's troubles stem from its on-screen structure, which, ditching the novel's linear timeline, flits back and forth between the younger and older Theo. While it's an expressive choice, designed to convey the adrift and uncertain inner state plaguing its central figure, it largely plays as needlessly convoluted. As a result, the movie feels simultaneously laborious, rushed and distracted across its 2.5-hour running time — like it's packing as much as possible onto its large canvas in a purposeful, painstaking way, then devoting its time to watching paint dry rather than soaking in the details. In the film's visuals and performances, there's still something to relish. It helps immensely that The Goldfinch has enlisted one of the best cinematographers in the business, with Roger Deakins as talented at making his peach and gold-tinted frames resemble great art as he was at navigating a neon-hued futuristic world (and winning an Academy Award, too) in Blade Runner 2049. Fine-tuned portrayals by Kidman, Wright and Fegley also assist, although Elgort comes across as opaque rather than conflicted, Wolfhard is blighted by his cartoonish accent, and Wilson and Paulson seem like they've stepped in from another movie entirely. What ultimately lingers, though, is an unfortunate comparison. It's an obvious one, as happens whenever a movie calls attention to a far superior work, and it doesn't serve Crowley's film well. It never escapes attention that Fabritius' painting depicts a creature capable of flying high, but firmly stuck in place — a feat that, despite seemingly boasting all the right elements, The Goldfinch mirrors in all the wrong ways. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_nRqgk1HgM
Sometimes, a trip to the movies is all about escapism. Sometimes, it's a thought-provoking and eye-opening experience. You won't forget the world's troubles at the Environmental Film Festival Australia, but you will find out more about them — especially as they relate to the state of this planet we all call home. As its name makes plain, EFFA shines a spotlight on cinema that puts the environment in firmly focus. Across a lineup of 44 feature-length, short, experimental and kid-friendly films screening between Thursday, October 24 and Friday, November 1, eco-conscious cinephiles can explore the struggles and splendours of the natural world — by watching a mother and daughter's efforts to save a bee colony in Swarm Season, spending time with a polar bear and her cubs thanks to Queen Without Land, and seeing the fight against deforestation in France in The Time of Forests. Other highlights include Grit, which delves into a catastrophic mud tsunami; This Mountain Life, about the first female duo to trek through the Coast Mountains in Canada and Alaska; and Into the Jungle, which follows the efforts to save an endangered tree kangaroo in Papua New Guinea. Fans of German filmmaker Werner Herzog are in for a double treat, with his latest documentary, the partially Australian-shot Nomad: In the Footsteps of Bruce Chatwin, playing alongside his Oscar-nominated, Antarctica-set classic Encounters at the End of the World. Screening at Cinema Nova, Palace Westgarth, IMAX Melbourne and Kaleide Theatre — with in-conversation sessions taking place at the State Library for those who want to hear more about EFFA's topics of interest — 2019 marks the fest's biggest year to date. That's rather timely, given the ongoing climate protests that have been taking place across the country this year. If you're keen to see more on the subject, doco The Hottest August explores different views on global warming as shared by everyday New Yorkers.
If it's good enough for Toto's 'Africa' in Brisbane, then it's good enough for Smash Mouth's 'All Star' in Melbourne. Because Australia sure does love a trend, another bar is picking a particular tune and cranking it out on repeat for an entire evening. Perhaps somebody once told them it was a great idea. Our apologies that you now have the 1999 hit stuck in your head, but consider it good practice for Saturday, November 2. From 11pm, Stay Gold is gonna roll you with their Smash Mouth 'All Star' Appreciation Night. Prepare to hear that song — and only that song — all evening to celebrate its 20th anniversary. It doesn't make sense not to live for fun, after all. We know exactly what you're thinking: get your game on, go play. Or, you could be thinking that perhaps all that glitters isn't really gold. Either way, you're set for a repetitive retro night — but we can't promise that listening to the track over and over and over again won't take its toll.
Whether it's a dog in a superhero costume or a cat wearing, well, whatever you can manage to get a cat to wear, animals donning outfits ranks among the cutest sights your eyes can ever see. Puppers popping on floral bandanas and posing for portraits might just raise the adorable stakes beyond previous levels, however — and it's not only on offer on Sunday, November 10, but you can also take a souvenir home with you. If your pet pooch deserves to be the on the front of this year's Christmas card, march on down to Collingwood's Easey Street between 10am–4pm. That's when Dog Photog will be snapping pics of your four-legged furball as part of its one-day pop-up. If you missed out last time, or missed their scouts-themed, then you'll want to be there. Bookings are essential, and getting a gorgeous portrait of your cute canine will set you back $45 — or $70 if you have two dogs in the same household. You'll receive a 15-minute session, plus a screen-resolution jpeg per dog. And if you'd like to order a print to hang on your wall, you can do so on the day.
Ever wondered what goes on deep under the ocean, after dark? This month, you'll get to find out, when Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium keeps its doors open late for an after-dark session, uncovering all the murkiest of deep-sea secrets. Running on Thursday, February 20, from 6–9pm, the adults-only event will show off the aquarium's new multimillion-dollar Ocean Invaders exhibition in a whole new light (or lack thereof). Spread across 300 square metres and three multi-sensory zones, and featuring thousands of jellyfish from a range of species, this new zone has a special focus on its luminous, venomous and gelatinous residents. Marine experts will chat about the many facts (and myths) circulating around jellyfish, discussing mortality, painful stings, antidotes and urine. You'll also get to meet everything from blubber jellies to moon jellies and even upside jellyfish. Tickets will set you back $25 a pop, with drinks (and more snacks) available to purchase on the night, too. Jellies 101 runs from 6–9pm.
Across one weekend in July, if you're in the Geelong region and hankering for a glass of wine, then you'd better like Shiraz. Unsurprisingly given its name, that's the varietal in the spotlight at the Winter Shiraz Weekend Festival, which comes to the area's vineyards and wineries on Saturday, July 7 and Sunday, July 8. It's a choose-your-own-adventure kind of fest, with wine producers in the Bellarine, the Moorabool Valley and Surf Coast all taking part — so pick your favourites and head on by. Keep an eye on the event website for the full program; however you can expect to pair your glasses of Shiraz with delicious dishes, chat with winemakers and — because it's the perfect weather for it — enjoy a tipple or several by the fire. If you head on down a night early, Friday night tastings will also be taking place at a selection of Geelong retailers. And, while you can expect parts of the lineup to be ticketed, the sampling is free — as is entry to the various wineries.
There's always some sort of party going at Welcome to Thornbury, and doggos are always welcome, the venue's Tiny Dog Festival will see the space swarmed by pups of the super small variety. If it's an adorable little barking creature, it'll be in the spotlight — so bring your own or prepare to pat plenty of others. And, while the site's food trucks and bars including Mr Burger, Connie's Pizza and Nem N' Nem will be catering to humans, the dog market will cater to your pooch's every need. Plus, there'll be beer (for you) and bone (for your four-legged friend) deals on offer. As part of the all-round celebration of pint-sized pooches over a few pints, the fest will also feature a tiny dog race and a best-dressed tiny dog competition. If your pupper is speedy or has great style, then you'll want to take part. Plus, Welcome to Thornbury also wants to find the inner north's tiniest adult dog, so prepare to spend a day staring at cute pooches that could fit in your pocket and wonder how you can get them in there without their owners noticing.
On the corner of Tucker and Patterson Roads in Bentleigh there used to be a rundown convenience store. But, in March, it was gutted and transformed into a pink and breezy cafe dubbed Good Times Milk Bar. Until recently, it had just been open during the day, serving up pastrami eggs benedict, crumpets and some standout shakes (including Golden Gaytime and lamington). Now, the eatery is adding burgers — and nights — to its repertoire, launching Good Times Burgers. Kicking off this Thursday, June 28, Good Times' old-school takeaway burger window will be slinging seven different creations, alongside sides and shakes, from Thursday to Sunday, 4pm–9pm. On the menu, you'll find the Classic (with a beef patty, American cheese and a pickle), the Seaside (with battered fish, wasabi peas and Kewpie mayo), a vegetarian option and seven different sides — including potato gems, onion rings, slaw and jumbo pickles. You'll also be able to get the aforementioned shakes at night, too. To celebrate the launch of its new offering, Good Times is giving away free burgers this Saturday. From 4–5pm, you can have any burger off the menu — for free. It is, however, limited to one per person. Good Times Burgers launched on Thursday, June 28. The free burger giveaway will run from 4–5pm on Saturday, June 30. Images: Jake Rodan
When the working week is done, Melburnians just want to get a drink and enjoy free tapas while they're doing so. And have fun, obviously. At least, that's what Messer is betting on, and you know that they're right. On Fridays in August, the Fitzroy spot will be serving up free tapas with every drink purchased. It'll also be slinging cheap tipples, making your cheap afternoon even cheaper — think $6 beers, selected wines at $9 a glass and Cava at $11 a glass too. Given that Messer's menu changes daily, just what they'll be serving up remains a tasty surprise, though we're guessing it won't just be pots of olives. Plus, if you're keen on a boozy lunch or can sneak away from the office early (or both), then you're in luck, with Free Tapas Fridays running between 12–6pm.
Haven't yet feasted your eyes on Wes Anderson's latest flick, the stop-motion animated delight that is Isle of Dogs? Loved it and want to see it again? It was one of our picks from this year's Berlinale, where it opened the fest and won best director, so we understand. The film is returning to the Astor Theatre for one night only — and, even better, you can bring your own pupper. The screening will kick off at 7.30pm on Wednesday, August 29, and is bound to turn the cinema's art deco lobby into an isle of dogs — just without the water. There'll also be prizes on offer, so you and your pooch might score more than just a night at the movies. If your dog is called Spots, then you have to go. The film follows a boy's visit to the titular land mass to find his beloved Spots, after all. The adventure that follows features the voices of a host of Anderson regulars and other ace talent — think Bill Murray, Jeff Goldblum, Bob Balaban, Greta Gerwig, Tilda Swinton, Bryan Cranston, Scarlett Johansson, Edward Norton and Frances McDormand — and proves as gorgeous as you'd expect. You'd be barking mad to miss it.
When The Incredibles first leapt onto cinema screens 14 years ago, it earned its title several times over. Exploring the exploits of a super-enhanced family trying to live a normal life, the movie served up an all-ages superhero story with smarts and heart. Moreover, the savvy Pixar flick successfully predicted two things. Back in 2004, when no one had even heard of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man was played by Tobey Maguire and Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy hadn't yet made its mark, The Incredibles pre-empted society's current love of caped crusaders. Indeed, that film began at a time where spandex-clad folks like Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson), Elastigirl (Holly Hunter) and Frozone (Samuel L. Jackson) are constantly seen, heard and talked about. But it also foresaw the flipside to this obsession, recognising that the public's love of costumed crime-fighters has its limits. In the world of the movie, everyone listing 'saving the world' as their occupation was banned when the world had had enough. If you've been caught up in superhero fever over the past decade, only to catch a case of superhero fatigue as more and more comic book heroes soar across our screens, you can surely recognise all of the above. In fact, blending fantastical elements with relatable components was one of The Incredibles' greatest super powers. Caped crusaders are just like us, the picture made clear – attempting to juggle their personal and professional lives, battling to achieve their dreams, and fighting for their place. And while long-awaited sequel Incredibles 2 repeats the same basic premise, the franchise's canny ability to combine cartoon antics with cutting societal commentary ensures this is no mere rehash. Picking up where the first film left off, Incredibles 2 sees its central family — Mr. Incredible aka Bob Parr, Elastigirl aka Helen, and kids Violet (Sarah Vowell), Dash (Huck Milner) and Jack-Jack (Eli Fucile) — trying to fend off burrowing, bank-robbing villain The Underminer, then coping with the aftermath. No one is happy about their efforts, and the fact that people with enhanced abilities are still illegal means a life without crime-fighting awaits. Enter telecommunications company head Winston Deavor (Bob Odenkirk) and his sister Evelyn (Catherine Keener), with a plan to restore the heroes to their former glory. With Elastigirl leading the charge, the siblings have masterminded a rebranding campaign designed to make super folk popular again. And, thanks to body cameras and media appearances, this revolution will be televised. Drama comes in the form of an incredibly apt nemesis: Screenslaver, who interrupts Elastigirl's broadcasts with mind-controlling signals and raves about humanity's reliance on screens. Accordingly, Incredibles 2 slings statements about today's social media saturation, the valuing of appearances, and the fact that we live in a society where someone is always watching — for better or worse. It's a movie about the power of perception, one that rallies against making, filming or viewing something simply because you can. They're all observations that apply to the picture's specific story, to the broader superhero realm, and just to life in general. Plus, thanks to a subplot following Bob's attempts to hold the fort at home while Helen is off championing the caped crusader cause, the film also has plenty to say about gender equality and the role of women. Still, none of this would mean anything if returning writer-director Brad Bird didn't pair his story with engaging action, a playful tone and genuine emotion. Although not for people who are sensitive to flashing lights, an early strobe-lit confrontation ranks among the most inventive scenes in a superhero flick — animated or live-action — while an altercation between Jack-Jack and a racoon is just as memorable. Filled with both zippy battles and quiet character moments, Incredibles 2 mostly gets the balance right, even if it does feel a little padded towards the end. Interestingly, Bird (whose CV also includes The Iron Giant, Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol and Tomorrowland) is the only person in Pixar history to assume total control for scripting and helming any of the company's features without any co-writers or co-directors. The result is not only one of Pixar's original standout movies, but its best sequel in nearly a decade. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5qOzqD9Rms
The start of winter is always a period of adjustment — the days are shorter, the nights are icier and summer schedules are thrown all out of whack. Luckily, when the weather gets cooler, Melbourne always ups the ante in its events offering, meaning you have plenty of options that aren't going straight home when you leave the office every evening. Like this Thursday, for example. The Craft & Co. — Collingwood's restaurant, cafe, brewery, distillery and workshop — is holding an after-work market dedicated to gin. From 6–9pm, some Australia and New Zealand's best bottles of gin will be cracked open in the venue's event space. Four Pillars, Patient Wolf, Poor Toms, Anther and Cedar Fox will be a few of the gins you can try and, if you're impressed, take home a bottle of. If you want to sit down and enjoy your gin of choice, you'll be able to do that too. A G&T lounge will be set up and the kitchen will be putting together some charcuterie boards that are specifically designed to be enjoyed with gin.
This winter, the seaside town of Queenscliff will be anything but sleepy. Playing host to the inaugural Low Light Festival, the Victorian spot will be brought to life across a month-long feast for all of the senses. A celebration of music, food, art and culture delivered by a huge lineup of homegrown and international talent, the event takes place over four weekends, running from June 22 to July 14. If anything's going to pull you out of hibernation and down to the beach in the heart of a frosty Melbourne winter, it's this. Teaming up with the Icelandic Dance Company, along with local groups the Lighthouse Arts Collective and Bellarine Lighthouse Films, Low Light is set to screen exclusive Aussie premieres of three exciting new films. Catch the hypnotic ÖRÆVI or Life in the Undergrowth, with music by the legendary Sigur Ros, as it's screened under the stars, or immerse yourself in Gabríela Friðriksdóttir's compelling film Des Irae. Or, enjoy the goddess tale Union of the North, a collaboration between Matthew Barney, Valdimar Jóhannsson and Erna Ómarsdóttir. Music lovers will find their festival happy place within the Queenscliff Town Hall, as it hosts a series of one-night performances from the likes of folk-pop four-piece All Our Exes Live In Texas, and American alt-country star Justin Townes Earle. A tasty program of one-off food events will also feature throughout the festival, with highlights including a Bastille Day dinner with a French musical twist, and a four-course progressive feast showcasing the region's best produce and chefs. And you'll get even more of a taste for this charming corner of the world with a series of local art exhibitions, creative workshops, gin and whisky tastings, and heritage walks. Low Light events feature Friday through Sunday across each week of the festival: June 22–24, June 29–July 1, July 6–8 and July 13–15.
For its 2018 edition, Melbourne's Human Rights Arts and Film Festival is starting as it intends to go on: with a topical film about an important subject that's certain to get audiences talking. The movie in question is After the Apology, an Australian documentary that explores the aftermath of Kevin Rudd's apology to the country's stolen generations — and the fact that forcible removals of Indigenous children have increased in the years since. Leading a lineup that spans more than 50 movies and events, it's just one of HRAFF's eye-opening features from a program that casts its eyes across a broad spectrum of human rights issues. Other films of note include closing night's Last Men in Aleppo, which earned an Oscar nomination for its examination of life in Syria; local effort Guilty, an intimate portrait of the final 72 hours of Myuran Sukumaran's existence before his execution; and global festival favourite A Better Man, a personal doco from a woman coming to terms with domestic violence. Or, viewers can ponder women's reproductive rights courtesy of the US-focused Jackson, witness the on-the-ground reaction to the Brexit vote in Brexititannia, step through war-torn Africa in This is Congo and tackle food waste in Food Fighter. Panels, shorts, exhibitions and a selection of movies for younger audiences also form part of this year's fest, which screens at ACMI, Cinema Nova, Lido Cinemas and The Sun Theatre from May 3 to 17.
Elsternwick's Classic Cinemas are back, bigger and better than ever. And we mean that quite literally — the complex has had a hefty revamp that's added four new screens and an entire third level of the building. To celebrate, it's slashing the price of movie tickets to all regular film sessions this Sunday, May 20 down to the bargain price of $5. The new cinemas each boast luxurious wide seating for about 45 to 70 moviegoers to match the new bar and street-facing box office. Having started out life in 1911 as The Elsternwick Theatre, the family-owned Classic is the state's longest continuously operating cinema. This beefed-up offering will make way for an even larger screening program as it continues to cement its place in the hearts of movie buffs across Melbourne.
Melbourne winters mightn't be known for their ice and snow (just yet, anyway), but that doesn't mean you can't slide across a frozen surface in the centre of the city. From June 22 to July 15, the corner of Acland and Barkly streets will become a winter wonderland thanks to the return of the Skating At St Kilda Festival. With the event back for another year, all of the frosty fabulousness Melburnians know and love is back, too: ice skating, obviously, but also music, food and more. It's the next best thing to heading to Europe when Melbourne's at its iciest. Entry to the area is free, but you'll have to pay for all of the fun stuff, with the fest open from 9am–9pm Monday to Wednesday and 9am–10pm Thursday to Sunday. The lineup of events includes not only regular ice skating, but a romance-themed 'date and skate' night each Tuesday, plus an 'Ice Ice Baby' disco evening every Thursday. And if you're not in St Kilda, you can head along to the CBD's rink instead.
If your pre-Christmas routine involves watching as many festive flicks as possible, then you might want to head to Cinema Nova between Thursday, December 13 and Monday, December 24. Every evening across the almost two-week period, the picture palace is projecting an Xmas great onto one of its big screens — and letting cinephiles get very merry indeed. There'll be 12 movies over 12 nights, with the whole program called 12 Nights of Christmas. No matter what type of Christmas film takes your fancy, you'll find it here. Say yippee ki-yay to the season with Die Hard, which kicks off the whole event; delve into the madcap mind of Tim Burton with The Nightmare Before Christmas, his gorgeous stop-motion animation effort; and, of course, revisit the rom-com that everyone either loves or hates, aka Love Actually. Other movies on the bill include zombie comedy musical Anna and the Apocalypse, perennial favourite It's a Wonderful Life and the 80s fun of Gremlins — plus the Will Ferrell-starring Elf, 90s-style superheroes in Batman Returns, party flick Go and the film everyone adored as a kid, Home Alone. Or, of course, you can say "bah humbug!" to it all with Bad Santa and Scrooged.
Playing a 13-year-old in Atonement, Saoirse Ronan changed lives with a series of lies. As a twenty-something newlywed in On Chesil Beach, she slings the truth, but its piercing impact is just as sharp. Both roles stem from the pen of British author Ian McEwan and, while Ronan's career hasn't lacked highlights during the 11 years between the two, both demonstrate the depth of her talents. In the Brooklyn and Lady Bird star's hands, the two distinctive yet relatable characters are much closer than they might initially seem: a petulant, misguided teen misconstruing the facts as a way of coping with her own feelings, and a kind, exacting woman sharing what's really in her heart in an effort to do the same. Mere hours after saying "I do", Ronan's Florence has her whole married life in front of her. It's 1962, she's honeymooning by the pebbly shore of Dorset with her new husband Edward (Billy Howle), and when to have dinner seems like the duo's biggest worry. And yet, before darkness falls on their first night away, their wedded bliss will prove short-lived. First, they're playfully disagreeing about music choices. Next, they're trying to stay polite around interrupting wait staff. Soon, they're awkwardly trying to consummate their nuptials — which, instead of bringing the couple closer together, only drives them apart. Where romantic splendour becomes matrimonial sorrow, that's where On Chesil Beach finds its story. With a bittersweet mood painted across its frames, the film burrows into the heart of a fresh but fraught relationship — one that's just getting started, but is already saddled with heavy expectations and weighty complications. That said, this isn't a simple case of opposites attracting and then imploding, or of two besotted paramours following their feelings instead of their thoughts, although both ring true in some fashion. Classical violinist Florence is sweet and driven, from a middle-class family, and has a very clear view of her future. Edward is an English graduate with no set career path, harking from a much more modest background, and fond of rock and roll. What plagues the couple, however, is a dilemma that everyone faces at some point in their lives: the consequences of truly being honest with each other. As Florence and Edward's marriage wilts faster than the flowers that Florence undoubtedly carried down the aisle that same day, an intimate tale begets an intimate picture. Indeed, it's fitting that On Chesil Beach heralds the filmmaking debut of theatre and television director Dominic Cooke, with conversation — and the gaps between the sometimes passionate, sometimes tentative chatter — reigning supreme. Still, marking just the fourth time that prolific novelist McEwan has adapted his own work for the screen, the movie benefits from one of the writer's trademarks. Conveyed here through flashbacks to various points during the couple's courtship, On Chesil Beach never forgets that every single moment, act and discussion is the culmination of a lifetime's worth of desires, woes, emotions and experiences. Unsurprisingly, the resulting film is filled with complex characters not only navigating a difficult situation, but brandishing intricate histories. Meticulously and delicately directed by Cooke with an eye for the blandness of routine British life, the scenic glory of the movie's titular location, and the growing space between his protagonists, On Chesil Beach is also a film that's vastly improved by its stars. As astute and insightful as McEwan's narrative is, it's the performances that give texture to a tale that otherwise works better on the page — including in its ending. That Howle more than holds his own against three-time Oscar-nominee Ronan is no minor achievement, and together they make this thorny fictional romance seem devastatingly real. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9ChbMk1e6Y
Bursting with energy, eager to get active, but find your motivation flagging part way through your workout? Perhaps you just don't have the right scenery. Forget whatever happens to be on TV at the gym, or even staring out over the splendour of nature — working up a sweat in Melbourne's galleries ought to do the trick. Created by New York City's Monica Bill Barnes & Company, and first performed at the Metropolitan Museum, The Gallery Workout invites you bend, stretch and undertake a series of choreographed dance-inspired moves in spaces normally reserved for quietly viewing and watching. Over 50-minute sessions, you'll take exercise your way through Arts Centre Melbourne and the NGV. Yep, it's the kind of tour — and fitness class — that you definitely won't take every day. No one will shooshing you here — and there's a suitably pumping soundtrack of course, as well as instructors wearing formal attire. Part of Melbourne's MEL&NYC Festival that's taking over the city until the end of August, the sessions run on Thursday, Friday and Saturday mornings at 7am and 8.30am until August 18.
Mindfulness practice — achieving the mental state of focusing on the present moment — is gaining popularity as people attempt to regulate their stressful lives. People have turned to everything from meditation to colouring books to achieve mindfulness, but perhaps few people would think of doing a triathlon to achieve inner peace. Take three activities that promote mindfulness — specifically running, yoga and meditation — and you've got yourself a 'mindful triathlon'. Wanderlust 108 has been running these triathlon festivals since 2014, and the standard day has a few main components. First, there's the five kilometre run, although the site reassures you that you can walk instead of running — or even "prance, skip, stroll or strut" — as long as you reach the finish line. After that, theres 75 minutes of yoga accompanied by a DJ set, and finally 30 minutes of meditation to round out the whole-group activities. Once the structured section of the day has wrapped up, participants can also head to activities such as aerial yoga, acroyoga and hooping, or to lunch. It's part exercise, part dance party, part fest — and 100% focused on helping attendees feel great inside and out. Also on the agenda: walking meditation, essential oil classes and the Kula Markets, which will help you take your new blissed-out state home with you.
A good film festival gives attendees a little of everything, and that's certainly the case at the returning Korean Film Festival in Australia. For its ninth year, the touring event jumps from the drama of opening night's A Taxi Driver, to the comedy of Midnight Runners, to the scares of Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum. The first was this year's Korean submission to the Oscar's foreign-language category, the second serves up Korean's take on the buddy cop storyline, and the third haunts and thrills in the found-footage mould. They're just some of the titles on the lineup for 2018's festival, which comes to ACMI from September 6 to 13. Other highlights include Little Forest, the kind-hearted tale of a woman leaving city life behind to head back to her small home town; The Vanished, a psychological thriller that has been compared to Alfred Hitchcock's work; and Believer, a slick crime flick about a determined detective on the case of a drug cartel that's also a remake of acclaimed Chinese-Hong Kong effort Drug War. In total, 16 films will screen across KOFFIA's eight-day Melbourne run, with the fest coming to an end with closing night's Microhabitat. It's about an ageing housekeeper who just wants to make enough money for her cigarettes, whiskey and boyfriend, and it's the acclaimed first effort from female filmmaker Jeon Go-woon.
Sometimes, after a long day at work, you don't feel like cooking. You just want to eat endlessly without any effort. And, that's why Oriental Teahouse invented its unlimited yum cha sessions. Running across two nights — Tuesday, August 7 (at the South Yarra store) and Friday, August 17 (at the CBD store) — the restaurant is serving up endless dumplings and snacks for $45 a pop. Two two-hour sittings will be held each night, at 6pm and 8pm, and we suggest you arrive hungry. They'll be serving up san choi baos, rice paper rolls, barbecue pork buns, shredded steak, Chinese broccoli, salt and pepper calamari and chicken ribs. Oh, did we forget the dumplings? You'll have endless access to prawn dumplings, shu mai, roast duck dumplings, chilli wagyu dumplings, chilli pork dumplings, and, yes, dessert dumplings — including white chocolate dumplings and custard buns. We did recommend you arrive hungry. On the Friday night, at the CBD store, you'll also be able to add unlimited wine to your meal for only $25. Unlimited Yum Cha will be held on Tuesday, August 7 at 455 Chapel Street, South Yarra and on Friday, August 17 at 378 Lt Collins Street, Melbourne. To book, head to the website.
It's Australia's annual slice of Italian cinema, and it's back for 2018 in its usual jam-packed fashion. That'd be the Italian Film Festival, which not only returns for its 19th year, but does so with a hefty touring lineup of 37 features and two short films, including 33 Australian premieres. It heads to Melbourne's Palace Cinema Como, Palace Westgarth, Palace Balwyn, Palace Brighton Bay, Kino Cinemas and The Astor Theatre from September 13 to October 7. Bookending the festival are two movies that couldn't be more timely, one delving into a media tycoon who becomes a world leader (no, not that one), and the other a stone cold horror classic that has just been remade by one of today's best Italian filmmakers. Exploring the scandals surrounding former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, Loro kicks off this year's fest with an epic, nearly two-and-a-half hour drama from The Great Beauty and The Young Pope's Paolo Sorrentino. Then, at the other end of the event comes Dario Argento's original 1977 giallo masterpiece Suspiria — just weeks before the new Tilda Swinton and Dakota Johnson-starring version from Call Me By Your Name's Luca Guadagnino hits cinemas. Elsewhere, IFF also boasts three of the biggest Italian flicks doing the rounds of this year's international festival circuit, courtesy of Dogman, Happy as Lazzaro and Daughter of Mine. A diverse trio from a diverse range of Italian talents, the first sees Gomorrah's Matteo Garrone spin a story about a criminal who loves dogs (winning this year's Palm Dog Award at Cannes for its canine cast), the second unravels a time-bending fable from The Wonders' Alice Rohrwacher, and the third offers a devastating look at two mothers and the daughter they share courtesy of Sworn Virgin's Laura Bispuri. Other highlights range across the entire spectrum of Italian offerings — think comedies based on off-Broadway plays, such as My Big Gay Italian Wedding; underworld dramas like Boys Cry; and an amusing mystery about an inspector investigating the death of a local prosecco wine maker, as aptly called The Last Prosecco. Or, there's also detective thriller The Girl in the Fog, based on the best-selling novel and starring Italian veteran (and Loro actor) Toni Servillo; plus Italian box-office hit Couples Therapy for Cheaters, which focuses on exactly the narrative you think it does. And, looking back at cinema history as film festivals crucially do, this year's IFF retrospective will showcase the work of Italian-Turkish filmmaker Ferzan Özpetek. If his name sounds familiar, that's because he had a hand in movies such as Naples in Veils, Facing Windows and Ignorant Fairies — and if his name doesn't ring any bells, here's your chance to discover his celebrated filmography.
If you enjoy scouting out fresh, local design talent and, of course, shopping up a storm, The Melbourne Collective's seasonal market is probably already one of your favourites. But it's about to get even better, with the next edition also hosting its own 100 percent plant-based sister market. Setting up shop at Deakin Edge in Federation Square, just around the corner from the original, the Melbourne Collective Vegan Market is set to feature a tidy curation of organic, plant-based and ethically made goodies for every aspect of your life. Find edible treats from the likes of Tiramisu' Lift Me Up, Hopper Waffles, Manny's Donuts, Ace Cookies and even Wings Of Glory — they'll be dishing up their must-try vegan chicken wings. There'll also be a range of ethical fashion from labels like Sometimes Sundays and Moral Fibre, alongside body products, accessories, health and wellness products and gourmet pantry goods. As always, the design market will feature live tunes and DJ sets to enjoy while you shop. Images: The Melbourne Collective.
If jungle vibes inside a Melbourne warehouse sounds like your perfect outing, head along to the Jungle Collective's indoor plant sale on Saturday, January 19 and Sunday, January 20. It's the first greenery-filled market for 2019 from The Jungle Collective, a Melbourne nursery that stocks all kinds of weird and wonderful species. Whether you're after a hanging pot plant, some palms for the garden or a giant Bird of Paradise, chances are you'll find it here. Have a reputation for killing your cacti? Overwatering your ferns? Don't worry — there'll be horticulturalists onsite to give you advice and chat through any questions you might have. With the party and sale taking over a space in Abbotsford, you can be inspired by greenery aplenty and learn to incorporate plants into your home and living spaces, all while browsing and soaking up some tunes. Best get in quick though — these markets are always popular, with more than 150 different species usually on offer. The sale will be running all day on Saturday (9am–4pm), with leftover stock available at discounted prices for just one hour on Sunday (5–6pm). The Jungle Collective will be posting photos of the plants up-for-grabs on its event page. Plus, given that the Jungle Collective likes to theme its sales, this one is all about rare plants and (surprise) jungles. There'll be lots of hard-to-find green babies for sale this time round and if you dress up in your best jungle-printed attire, you'll get $5 off your purchase. Images: Alexandra Cohen.
In 2011, in this very country and galaxy, a pop culture favourite gained a singing, stripping burlesque parody. It's the mash-up that was bound to happen. Who hasn't looked at George Lucas' space opera, its sprawling drama and ample spectacle, and wondered what a steamier, funnier version with more visible butt cheeks would look like? Russall S. Beattie clearly did, and had a good feeling that other people would give it a shot. The Empire Strips Back was the end result. It became a hit around Australia, then took itself overseas to much acclaim. Now it's returning home for a 2019 tour — once again showing local audiences that lightsabers aren't the hottest thing in the Star Wars galaxy. The saucy show promises "seriously sexy stormtroopers, a dangerously seductive Boba Fett, some tantalising Twi'leks, a delightfully lukewarm Taun Taun, a lady-like Skywalker [and] the droids you are looking for", according to its website. Apparently Yoda doesn't get the sexed-up treatment, but there is plenty of song, dance, acrobatics and — because it's burlesque — the removal of clothing. A dancing Chewie and Han is just the beginning of this cheeky take on Star Wars cosplay. Given that it's got an upbeat soundtrack, the costumes are extremely detailed and the show throws out lots of references to George Lucas' original plot, it's not surprising that local audiences — presumably the same ones that pack out Star Wars parties and large-scale screenings with a live orchestra — have latched onto the production. Heading to the Palais on Friday, January 18, The Empire Strips Back sits alongside Dame of Thrones in Beattie's pop culture parody stable — so if you've already seen one of your fantastical screen obsessions get the burlesque treatment, then you know what you're in for. If you're super keen, you can also nab a Wookieerotica magazine online: a 116-page, 70s-style men's mag, just casually featuring all of your favourite jedis, siths, ewoks and other Star Wars characters. Either way, it could be a great introduction to burlesque or Star Wars, depending on which way you're coming at it. Images: Jon Bauer, Leslie Liu and Josh Groom.
What a difference a few drops of water can make. In The Insult, a spurting drainpipe sparks an altercation across religious and cultural lines, a highly publicised court case, and a probing look at Lebanon's volatile political climate. There's more to Ziad Doueiri's Academy Award-nominated drama, including the heated exchange of words that gives the film its title. But at the movie's heart, a simple situation embodies the tensions in the writer-director's fraught, fractious homeland. Just as right-wing Christian mechanic Tony Hanna (Adel Karam) is watering the plants on his Beirut balcony, Palestinian construction crew foreman Yasser Salameh (Kamel El Basha) walks underneath. Annoyed about getting wet and eager to do a good job around the neighbourhood, the latter knocks on the former's door and advises him to fix his drainage. When Tony refuses in an overt display of belligerence, Yasser takes matters into his own hands, repairing the pipe himself. Still irate, Tony then smashes Yasser's handiwork to pieces. In response and in obvious frustration, Yasser calls Tony a "fucking prick". Despite the film's moniker, that's not the only insult hurled throughout the course of the narrative, or the only display of violence. Whether the central duo are tussling on the street, facing off in Tony's workshop or watching their respective lawyers (Camille Salameh and Diamand Bou Abboud) duke it out in court, The Insult hinges upon exchanges steeped in anger, as well as the unrest ignited by a society simmering with division. Indeed, from the moment that Doueiri opens the movie with a Christian political party protest, he doesn't shy away from the broader context that's so pivotal to his plot. And while the filmmaker doesn't avoid emotive touches either — Tony has a heavily pregnant wife (Rita Hayek) as well as a tragic background, while Yasser has been a refugee in the country for decades — every aspect of the storyline helps flesh out the movie's many complexities. Doueiri's approach should feel familiar, and not just because he traversed comparable thematic terrain with terrorism drama The Attack back in 2012. Using a specific scenario as a stand-in for the Middle East's wider troubles is hardly a new cinematic tactic, as Iranian director Asghar Farhadi continually illustrates — and comparing The Insult to the likes of Farhardi's A Separation and About Elly is certainly a compliment. Like his fellow filmmaker, Doueriri possesses a way with words, both in slinging them between characters and in understanding their importance in trying circumstances. He similarly has an eye for nuanced performances, as El Basha demonstrates with a fine-tuned, lived-in portrayal that won him the Best Actor award at the 2017 Venice Film Festival. Furthermore, Doueriri knows how to unpack a moral quandary, sometimes bluntly but always effectively. If there's another filmmaker that The Insult also owes a debt to, it's a seemingly unlikely one: Quentin Tarantino. Doueriri was the first assistant camera operator on Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction and Jackie Brown, and clearly learned a few lessons in visual storytelling from all three movies. There's much greater restraint evident in his work with cinematographer Tommaso Fiorilli, of course, however movies so focused on searing dialogue rarely feel as fluid and energetic as this. A picture doesn't speak a thousand words here, given that so much conversation is flung about. But each frame lends weight, power and a crackling atmosphere to this riveting exploration of both everyday and historical conflicts. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Fd6gDd2f2k
Vegans, rejoice — whether you're looking for an alternative to your usual meat-free fare or you have an occasion you need to celebrate, Congress has the answer across two nights in September. Sure, it might sound like the Collingwood eatery is serving up exactly what you eat every night — aka vegetables for dinner — but you can trust that they're putting a delicious spin on the concept. From 6.30pm on Monday, September 24 and Tuesday, September 25, the restaurant is teaming up with Fitzroy's Northside Fruit & Veg for a five-course cruelty-free feast. Dishes include salt-baked beets with cashew cream and horseradish, as well as sticky rice cake with mushrooms and black garlic. There's also rye wholewheat sourdough slathered in whipped macadamia butter, radishes sourced from Congress' own community garden paired with sunflower tahini and chickpea wafers, and chocolate and wattle-seed mousse for dessert. Even better — each course comes with matched wines, with the entire dinner costing $90 per person. Bookings are essential, in what's turning out to be a bi-monthly events series at Congress. Their last dinner, a beer-focused menu in collaboration with Stomping Ground, sold out. Image: Morgan Higginbotham.
The event that floods Instagram feeds with thousands of vibrant flowers has returned to the Dandenong Ranges. Now in its 64th year, the annual Tesselaar Tulip Festival features over a million tulips planted across 25 acres of farmland. If the stunning sight of a million (yes, it's literally a million) of the bulbous flowers isn't quite enough for you, you'll be happy to know there's heaps of stuff happening at the tulip farm throughout the month, which sits on the cusp of the Dandenong Ranges and the Yarra Valley east of Melbourne. For the food enthusiastic, we would highly recommend pencilling the Food, Wine & Jazz Weekend (September 28–30) into your eating plans. Boasting locally-brewed beer, wine and a drool-worthy selection of fresh food from area, you can expect warm, buttery fire-baked scones, artisanal ice cream and wood-fired pizzas among the tulips. If you're still not convinced, entry includes complimentary wine and beer tasting. Similarly, the Dutch Weekend (September 21–23) will showcase the best that Holland has to offer – other than tulips — with music, markets, unique crafts (wooden tulip-making, anyone?) and Dutch available inside the festival. Or, head by on the Irish Weekend (October 5–7), where Irish pipers and dancing will perform (and plenty of Guinness and Kilkenny-drinking will take place) around the site's floral rainbow The Tesselaar Tulip Festival runs from Saturday, September 15 through to Sunday, October 14. Tickets are available at the farm, but you can buy them online in advance to skip the queue.
If come January you find yourself stuck in the city battling the inevitable post-holiday blues, consider Sunset Sounds one of your summertime saviours. Launching its sixth season, the free concert series will once again feature a program of gigs hosted at parks across the Stonnington area throughout the month. Returning for three all-ages Sunday sessions from January 6, Sunset Sounds is set to dish up a cracking mix of up-and-coming homegrown musical talent, best enjoyed from the comfort of your picnic blanket. Prahran's Victoria Gardens helps to kick-start the 2019 season in style, with explosive pop act Vaudeville Smash supported by seven-piece party band The Seven Ups. Zimbabwean-born singer-songwriter Thando headlines the January 13 edition, gracing Central Park in Malvern East with help from groove and soul act The Meltdown. And the fun wraps up on January 20 at Malvern Gardens, as dance duo The Twoks take the stage, followed by New Orleans-style brass band Horns of Leroy, with special guest Shannen Wick (lead singer of Fulton Street) in tow. Each concert runs from 6-8pm, with a lineup of food trucks on hand — just in case you forget your picnic basket — to back the open-air tunes and barefoot dance moves.
UPDATE, September 24, 2020: Arctic is available to stream via SBS On Demand, Google Play, YouTube Movies and iTunes. Whether stranding Sandra Bullock in space in Gravity, casting Robert Redford adrift in All Is Lost or pitting Liam Neeson against wolves in The Grey, survival thrillers rise and fall on the strength of their performances. You can now add Mads Mikkelsen to the list of actors testing their mettle against the elements — and add him to the ranks of stellar near-solo portrayals as well. His character, Overgård, is trapped in the Arctic Circle. Snow and rock stretch out as far as his weary eyes can see, the remnants of a crashed plane provide his only shelter, and greeting each morning relies on his wits and will. As a result, much of Arctic involves looking at his weathered, determined face, and it paints a compelling picture. Details are hard to come by in Arctic, which thrusts viewers into the thick of Overgård's plight from its opening frames. He's first spied scraping away at the ground to create a giant SOS sign, then tending to his icy fishing holes, and then cranking the transmitter he hopes will attract the attention of any aircraft that happen to fly nearby. The specifics of his situation — why, when, how — aren't offered, and they aren't important. All that matters is his dogged fight to survive. Before long, however, he's not the only person trying to endure oppressively frosty climes. A helicopter appears like something out of Overgård's dreams, but then it swiftly crashes, leaving an injured and unconscious woman (Maria Thelma Smáradóttir) in his care. While the scenario might sound familiar, The Mountain Between Us this isn't. Arctic is concerned with survival and nothing more, with no rosy backstories or blossoming romances. Writer-director Joe Penna and his co-scribe Ryan Morrison understand the most crucial aspect of their chosen genre: that there's nothing more powerful than watching a tale of life and death play out in the actions and expressions of a desperate protagonist. Faced with challenge after challenge — finding food, abiding the cold, attending to injuries, contending with polar bears, staving off frostbite and more — Overgård becomes the ultimate everyman. The circumstances he's navigating might be nightmare fuel for most, but the mechanics of soldiering on when the world is sparse, conditions are harsh and a disaster could wipe you out are both potent and relatable on an existential level. The key, unsurprisingly, is Mikkelsen. The Danish star has played a grimy drug dealer in crime franchise Pusher, a suave Bond villain in Casino Royale, a persecuted teacher in The Hunt and a cannibalistic sociopath in TV series Hannibal, amassing a hefty resume and becoming one of the finest actors working today. Monopolising the screen in Arctic, he's at his best as a man confronting his worst experience and persevering by any means necessary. His performance is one of loaded silence and telling physicality; of saying more by saying nothing. The exertion as Overgård battles the inhospitable conditions, the care as he treats a stranger's wellbeing like his own, the desolation as he thinks his quest will never end — Mikkelsen ensures that viewers always share the ride on his character's emotional rollercoaster. Indeed, when there's a talent like Mikkelsen leading the charge, it's easy to overlook Arctic's generic moments. Much about the film fits the survivalist playbook, yet it never feels routine — just recognisable. And when the movie's star isn't stealing the show, Brazilian first-timer Penna and his cinematographer Tómas Örn Tómasson have the ideal substitution, with Iceland's frozen vistas telling their own intricate tale. As lensed with an awareness of the landscape's stark beauty as well as its evident dangers (and often viewed in wide and aerial shots that emphasise its enormous size), Arctic's vast expanse of ice and snow perfectly reflects Overgård's inner state. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjlJm_SJc3Y
We're closing in on that time of year when the Virgin Australia Melbourne Fashion Festival (VAMFF) sweeps through town and leaves us all inspired to up our style game. And this time around, riverside spot Fatto Bar and Cantina is helping to dish up a few of those fashionable fixes, with a spritz and nail art pop-up on Thursday, March 7. The nail art masters at Richmond's Trophy Wife will be on hand from 5–8pm, offering fresh paint jobs and nail designs to any customer who purchases one of Fatto's signature $14 Fashion Festival spritzes. Choose from blends like the Honey, I'm Home, featuring pear liqueur, melon purée, soda and prosecco; and the English Summer Rain, crafted on elderflower liqueur, cucumber and mint. You'll find Aperol spritzes, too, as well as the blueberry-spiked Purple Haze. Can't make it? While the finger pampering is a one-night-only affair, the bar will be slinging all six spritz creations for the duration of VAMFF, from March 1 to 10.
You saw the huge Fyre Festival social media campaign, featuring every Instagram celebrity imaginable cavorting on a scenic Bahamas island. You witnessed the massive fallout when the fest didn't turn out as planned — how could you have missed it?. And in just the past month or so, you watched Netflix's revealing Fyre doco, which details the whole mess. You might've even watched it more than once, because it's that mind-boggling and compelling. Now, you can head on over to The Mill House, listen to tunes by acts who were supposed to play the event, and help those who were left high and dry in the aftermath. That's Fyre Melbourne, which takes over the Flinders Lane venue from 8pm on Saturday, March 2. Fyre Fest itself didn't happen, but you can bet this party will (and that it'll be must better organised, obviously). Tracks by Major Lazer, Disclosure, Migos, Blink 182, Lil Yachty and more will provide the soundtrack, tropical cocktails will set the mood, and a portion of bar sales will go to Exuma locals affected by the failed event. There might also be some cheese sandwiches and Evian on offer, too. Image: Netflix.
The last weekend of summer deserves a big ol' seafood feast and the crew at Harry and Larry's are more than happy to oblige. Footscray's own urban general store is turning on the southern charm, for the return of the Low Country Boil, on Saturday, February 23. The long-running, seafood-fuelled fiesta will this year take over neighbour and sister events venue The Line, for a generous long table lunch that'll transport you all the way to South Carolina. Pull up a seat at one of the big communal tables and prepare to get messy with the mountain of food on top, tucking into an unlimited feast of mussels, prawns, sausage, corn and potatoes, along with tasty sides and starters. There'll be plenty of liquid treats to match, too, including Squealing Pig rosé, a saison from fellow western legends Two Birds, classic Brooklyn Lagers and Capi soft drinks. Tickets to the bottomless feast will set you back $98 a pop.
For its latest event, Welcome to Thornbury is celebrating a popular pairing: seafood and sparkling. One comes from the ocean, the other spans everything from Champagne to prosecco to bubbling rosé, and they each make the other taste even better. Free to attend from midday Saturday, November 17, the Seafood & Sparkling Festival might have an obvious name, but its lineup won't fall into the same category. Mexican faves Mamasita will be getting its seafood hat on, and it'll be joined by a heap of others slinging oysters, mussels, calamari and fish finger burgers. If you're really keen on your sparkling, there is the option to go bottomless for three hours: $45 for prosecco, $75 for a more fancy sparkling and $145 for bottomless Veuve (and a dozen oysters). Otherwise, sparkles will be available to buy by the glass.
In Joel Edgerton's second film as director and sixth as a screenwriter, the actor-turned-filmmaker also takes a role in front of the camera, as the head therapist at a Christian facility. Sporting a trim moustache and a prim-and-proper look that'd make Ned Flanders proud, Boy Erased's Victor Sykes claims to be able to make teens pray the gay away and embrace heterosexuality. The counsellor expresses little sympathy for his charges. He may also have personal experience with his field of interest, but belittling the kids in his care — and forcing them to unearth family skeletons to apportion blame for their sexuality — is his technique. Sykes is the unmistakable villain of the piece, and rarely more than one-note. And yet, the film he's in thankfully doesn't share the same overall obviousness. Gay conversion should be condemned. It's a horrific and inhumane practice that's somehow still part of life in the US as well as Australia. Worlds away from his filmmaking debut The Gift, Edgerton may paint his character in the most glaring of terms (and do a fine enough job doing so), but Boy Erased itself is much more evenhanded. In the second movie about the subject this year after The Miseducation of Cameron Post, the film directs its quiet but palpable anger towards those humiliating and persecuting queer teenagers in a misguided attempt to turn them straight. For anyone that seeks such services, it offers empathy. In a story about a college kid sent away by his preacher father and dutiful mother, that distinction is important. Based on Garrard Conley's memoir, just with the names changed, Jared Eamons (Lucas Hedges) is the well-rounded son of Arkansas pastor Marshall (Russell Crowe) and his wife Nancy (Nicole Kidman). Soon, he's also an unhappy attendee at the Love In Action therapy centre. After a horrific incident at school forces him to come out, his Baptist parents — and his dad, specifically — deem conversion the only option. Just what Jared and his fellow participants (including singer Troye Sivan and filmmaker Xavier Dolan) endure will threaten both his sense of self and his relationships. Edgerton may write, direct and act in Boy Erased, but one of his biggest achievements stems from how he treats the film's main characters. This is a sensitive, earnest, sombre and understated movie that's shot in neutral tones, and wants to explore what motivates folks like the Eamons. Rather than judge them, it tries to understand these people who clearly love their son yet still send him to a conversion camp. With Jared, the film doesn't shy away from the impact of his experience, the conflict it causes or the difficulties of being a gay teen in general. He's hurt and uncertain, and also defiant and determined. He wants his parents' love, but not the emotional torture he's put through with their approval. Eventually, he also wants to stop self-censoring his identity to please others. Of course, these characters aren't just creations on a page, jumping from Conley's recollection to Edgerton's dramatic script. Edgerton's other big coup with Boy Erased is evident in the portrayals that he nurtures out of his core trio of actors. Crowe grapples with the intersection of Marshall's faith and being a good father, while Kidman helps convey the punishing patriarchal constraints of religion, with both playing their parts in a textured and thoughtful manner. And as he proved in Manchester by the Sea and Lady Bird as well, the supremely talented Hedges excels at internalised performances. Indeed, his work here encapsulates Boy Erased at its best. If Edgerton's own near-cartoonish part represents the movie at its most blatant and furious, then Hedges embodies the complex emotions that swell in almost every scene. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBZQ5F5T51I
If the name alone hasn't already got your attention, this next part will. Psychedelic music has been known for some pretty insane visual accompaniments, but for this performance, you'll see nothing at all. In complete darkness at The Toff you'll experience a live and improvisational gig from emerging producers and artists Dark Space Project, Hextape and James Teague. But, prepare yourself for the climax. In true psychedelic style, right at the end you'll be brought out of the dark by video synthesisers and lasers. Think of it as one of the more meditative shows on the Melbourne Music Week program.
Revving up the bikie drama genre and ramping up the bloodshed and brutality, 1% is a shiny new ride made from familiar parts. It's ostensibly Australia's big-screen answer to Sons of Anarchy, with that comparison both a curse and a blessing. The two share so much in common narrative-wise that, if you've seen the American TV series, it's impossible not to think about it while you're watching 1%. That said, Stephen McCallum's directorial debut still offers an engaging West Australian-set and -shot take on leather-clad brotherhood — one that never feels like its motoring down a new path, and yet never feels like it's blindly sticking to the expected route either. The story falls firmly into the first camp, but the film's energy falls into the second. Dwelling in Perth's seedier side, 1% steps into the world of the Copperheads Motorcycle Club. For the past three years, vice president Paddo (Ryan Corr) has overseen the gang with his ambitious girlfriend Katrina (Abbey Lee), trying to steer the club down a legitimate road. He wants to stop the outlaw life and start making cash they're actually able to splash around, but two things threaten to derail his plans. Firstly, his brother Skink (Josh McConville) gets on the wrong side of a rival motorcycle gang, with its leader (Aaron Pedersen) demanding that the two crews start laundering money together — or there'll be deadly consequences. Secondly, Copperheads president Knuck (Matt Nable) is released from prison and, helped by his wife Hayley (Simone Kessell), is quick to throw his weight around. Both within the club and within WA's broader gangland underbelly, conflict roars louder than a two-wheeled chopper down an open highway. So too does a term that's often bandied about when bikie battles get serious on-screen: Shakespearean. Across its seven seasons, Sons of Anarchy moulded its mayhem in Hamlet's image, throwing in a bit of Macbeth for good measure. Each rears their heads here as well — and while nodding to the Bard can signal that a film or TV series is trying to bulk up otherwise routine material, 1%'s violent clashes, grim power struggles and testosterone-soaked atmosphere all prove suitably tense and tragic. Also adding bulk is the film's cast, a roster of talent that fires on all cylinders. Bringing depth, nuance and authenticity to characters that might've seemed one-note in the hands of other actors, Corr and Nable are memorable as two leaders striving for the same thing in different ways, while McConville fleshes out Skink to become more than merely a plot device. Lee and Kessell ensure that 1% isn't just a boy's club, even if the idea of scheming women standing behind their men is far from a new one. Indeed, if there's a disappointment in this department, it's a matter of screen time rather than performance. One of Australia's best contemporary talents, Pedersen makes his presence known, however his part falls firmly in the supporting category. Nable also wrote the script, his second after jumping from playing rugby league to making movies. Perhaps he's the Sons of Anarchy fan? Or perhaps he's simply fond of a genre that has enjoyed plenty of entries, including 1970s Aussie classic Stone. Either way, exploring male-dominated realms has proven his recurrent fascination — whether featuring in front of the camera in Underbelly, Son of a Gun and Hacksaw Ridge, or penning 2007's The Final Winter, which was set in and around a football club. Given visual grit by McCallum, Nable's latest story fits his usual mould, and does enough to leave an impression. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nva4s76JW_o
