Movie buffs in Melbourne's west are getting a new cinema to call their own, with a 12-screen complex on its way to Moonee Ponds. Due to open on busy Puckle Street in 2019, the theatre will be owned and operated by arthouse chain Palace Cinemas. The space will include three 'platinum' screens as well as an outdoor cinema space, and will presumably feature the same extensive bar offerings as other Palace locations. The cinema will be just one aspect of a new retail, leisure, hospitality and residential development from Giancorp Property Group, which will also boast a 50-room residential hotel and a rock-climbing wall. "We have longed for a home in Melbourne's west for a while now," said Palace CEO Benjamin Zeccola in a statement announcing the new venture. "Our audiences had expressed that there was a real market gap in cinemas delivering a premium experience and offering quality film in that area, so when the opportunity arose to be part of a stylish new development in Puckle Street, it was perfect." The Moonee Ponds site is one of two new Melbourne locations currently in the works for Palace, with the company also set to open a 15-screen complex inside Coburg's former Pentridge Prison, also in 2019. Footscray, meanwhile, is getting an eight-screen cinema courtesy of the team behind Yarraville's iconic Sun Theatre.
Grief. Love. The desire to protect one's family. Nothing is sacred in the films of Yorgos Lanthimos, and nor should it be. The ringleader of Greek cinema's so-called weird wave, the writer-director is adept at exposing the pretence and routine at the foundations of our society, and revealing the transactional side of modern-day life. While completely his own distinctive creations, Lanthimos' absurd, audacious movies recall the work of auteurs like Stanley Kubrick, David Lynch and Michael Haneke, as he strikes at the very heart of what it means to be alive. Driven by needs and wants, and self-serving to a truly horrifying degree, his vision of humanity as seen in The Killing of a Sacred Deer is unmistakably bleak. When cardiologist Steven Murphy (Colin Farrell) and teenager Martin (Barry Keoghan) meet for a meal, their conversation is distant but well-meaning. They're not close, though the right sentiments appear to be in place — a kindly adult looking out for a somewhat wayward youth. But before long, Martin's demand for Steven's attention increases, intruding into the doctor's professional and domestic bliss. The boy comes over for dinner, and meets Steven's ophthalmologist wife Anna (Nicole Kidman), and children Bob (Sunny Suljic) and Kim (Raffey Cassidy). Soon after, Steven dines at Martin's house, fending off some obviously orchestrated advances from his mother (Alicia Silverstone). Then Bob mysteriously falls ill — and Martin issues an ominous warning. The awkwardness you feel when someone answers a question a little too brusquely: that is Lanthimos' domain. So too is the sense of unease that lingers when you know, deep down, that you're just going through the motions with your loved ones, friends and colleagues. Like Dogtooth, Alps and The Lobster before it, the filmmaker's latest is filled with examples that show how automatic, insincere responses, designed to help us get what we want with minimal fuss, comprise most of our daily encounters. That said, The Killing of a Sacred Deer also comes with a particularly chilling twist. As conveyed through the twisting narrative as well as Lanthimos' aesthetic trademarks — glossy visuals, an icy mood and purposefully stilted performances — the leap from pleasantries and small talk to making tragic, life-altering decisions is a very short one indeed. Of course, there's more to the movie than the plot laid out above — one which, at the thematic level, smartly and savagely toys with accountability, sacrifice and revenge, and is partially inspired by Greek mythology. But discovering where Lanthimos takes this dark, discomforting tale is part of the unsettling joy of watching. There's not only tension and intrigue in the film's terse exchanges and increasingly brutal stakes, but ample black comedy as well. The Killing of a Sacred Deer presents a moral quandary that turns commonplace interactions into a map of how ludicrous, cruel and calculating our existence can be, while also laying bare the costs and consequences of our actions. Faced with that reality, the audience can do little more than laugh. Thankfully, the cast couldn't be better suited to guiding viewers through this uniquely unnerving, often amusing experience. At times, Lanthimos shoots them from a distance, dwarfed by picture-perfect hospital hallways and suburban houses. In other moments, they're so close that you can almost feel the rapid beating of their pulse. Like their director, Farrell, Kidman and Keoghan all find the sweet spot between detached and invested, as though they're navigating a hazy waking nightmare. Still, as fantastic as the work of the two big-name stars may be, viewers will want to keep their eyes firmly on the young man from Dunkirk. Mixing menace and vulnerability with near-alarming precision, Keoghan is undoubtedly a star in the making — and here, he will chill you to the bone. You won't forget his performance easily, nor the jaw-dropping film in which it's found. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVeYmGliO4Y
Each winter Vivid draws Sydney out of hibernation with a festival of light installations, talks, workshops and performances. Now in its tenth year, the festival is bigger and brighter than ever. From the illumination of major city landmarks to international acts and challenging ideas, there's a lot to pack into the 23 nights. With the help of our friends at YHA Australia, we've put together a rundown to help you navigate the festival. From what to see and do and to where best to eat and drink. [caption id="attachment_670002" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Sydney Harbour YHA rooftop[/caption] STAY With so much to see and do during Vivid, you'll want to be close to the action. Sydney Harbour YHA in The Rocks is the perfect home base; it's just a stone's throw away from the installations in The Rocks and walking distance to Circular Quay and the Botanic Gardens. It's also right in the thick of some of the most historic pubs in Sydney. The building combines modern comfort with the heritage of the area — it's set above archaeological remains of colonial Sydney. Choose from private or dorm rooms and head to the rooftop balcony to treat yourself to one of the best views in Sydney. From this bird's eye vantage point, you'll have an uninterrupted view stretching from the Harbour Bridge to the Sydney Opera House, Customs House and city buildings, all lit up for the festival. Grab a drink and settle in to soak it all up. If you'd prefer to stay a touch further away from the heaving Circular Quay, YHA also has locations in Sydney Central and Railway Square. Here, you'll be in walking distance of Haymarket (and its many dumplings, noodles and 30c cream puffs), Spice Alley and Darling Harbour's stunning light installations. All three YHAs are offering 20-percent-off during Vivid, too. [caption id="attachment_625341" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Bodhi Liggett.[/caption] EAT You'll need to keep your energy levels up in order to fit in everything in during the festival. Luckily, there are heaps of great food options around. Start the day with quality coffee and a beautiful, picturesque breakfast at The Grounds of the City. If you're short on time, though, you can grab a cup of joe and a brekkie burger, bowl or muffin from the takeaway window. For lunchtime refuelling, head to La Renaissance Patisserie for house-made pies, baguette sandwiches and pastries. The tree covered courtyard is a sweet little place to retreat from the crowds for a little while. In The Rocks Centre behind Kendall Lane, you'll also find the Fine Food Store serving up sandwiches, salads and winter warmers like soups and stews. When the sun goes down, check out the new Bar Patrón by Rockpool for authentic Mexican eats, margaritas and views of the Vivid lights. Alternatively, head to The Morrison, located between The Rocks and Wynyard, for a mean sirloin steak or the $1 oyster happy hour from 6–7pm each Wednesday. And if you've really got cash to splash and a burning desire for views with some top eats, head to Cafe Sydney. Found above Customs House (which will be covered in a Snugglepot and Cuddlepie light show), this place serves up Australian haute-cuisine with a killer view. The restaurant also has a dedicated vegan menu for those looking for some fine dining that considers their dietaries. For another prime spot with more casual eats, head next door to Gateway — home to Neil Perry's Burger Project, Din Tai Fung, Four Frogs Creperie and Gelato Messina. DRINK The Rocks area is heaving with pubs — in fact, two of them, The Lord Nelson and The Fortune of War, lay claim to being Sydney's oldest. The best way to fit them all in is to head on a pub crawl — starting at The Lord Nelson, making tracks to the potentially haunted Hero of Waterloo, heading up to The Glenmore rooftop for excellent harbour views, passing by The Fortune of War and finishing up at the newly refurbished Orient. If you're after something more sedate and refined, hit Henry Deane, the rooftop bar at Hotel Palisade which boasts incredible views of the harbour and the lights of Vivid. Otherwise, check out Bulletin Place for intricately crafted cocktails, or cosy up at The Doss House, a new underground whisky bar set in an incredible heritage building in The Rocks. [caption id="attachment_624496" align="alignnone" width="1920"] James Horan.[/caption] SEE The projections onto the Sydney Opera House have been the crowning glory of the Vivid light display since the festival's inception. This year the sails will feature the work of artist Jonathan Zawada, blending everyday objects with the pictures inspired by the Australian environment. Meanwhile, Skylark makes use of the high rises around Circular Quay, featuring a custom-built laser atop the Harbour Bridge projecting onto buildings in a stunning light show every half hour. The Southern Pylon of the bridge will be lit with Bangarra Dance Company's Dark Emu, melding dance and art and paying homage to the agricultural knowledge of Indigenous Australians. [caption id="attachment_623212" align="alignnone" width="1920"] James Horan.[/caption] See bacteria writ large at Beautiful and Dangerous in The Rocks. The work takes you under a neon microscope to explore some of the deadliest diseases facing mankind and what's being done to curb them. While you're in the area, look skyward and see A Little Birdie Told Me — a work depicting the threat to many of our native bird species. The festival of light also makes full use of the glorious Botanic Gardens, with installations dotted throughout. Impressions shows a time-lapse of flora captured from the garden throughout the day, displayed across five huge canvases. Check out The Bloom, a giant metallic flower covered in LED pixels. And hanging in a canopy of trees is Hyperweb, a giant web combining light and soundscape. DO With so many artists and thinkers in town, you might want to extend your stay to fit more in. Top of the ticket is Solange, performing at the Sydney Opera House. Her shows are sold out, but festival organisers recommend checking the website daily for last-minute releases. Also in town are Grammy award-winning singer St Vincent and legendary rapper Ice Cube. There are heaps of local acts to check out too, including No Mono, Middle Kids and Stonefield. For one night only Heaps Gay will host a fabulous, not-to-be-missed fancy dress party, Qweens Ball, at Town Hall. Plus for a change of pace, this year's festival also includes a jazz series for the first time. [caption id="attachment_574541" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Bodhi Liggett.[/caption] Vivid Ideas will get your mind bubbling about the big issues. There are talks on everything from building a sustainable future and the threat to democracy to the art of creativity and understanding consciousness. For podcast nerds, the Audiocraft Podcast Festival features a line-up of industry heavyweights in a series of talks and workshops. If you're headed to Vivid this year, YHA is offering 20% off stays for Concrete Playground readers during the festival. The offer applies to all rooms (private and multi-share) at Sydney Harbour YHA, Sydney Central YHA and Railway Square YHA. Use the code VIVID to claim the discount when you book online, valid Sunday to Thursday between Sunday, May 27 and Friday, June 15. More info about the offer and other weekend discounts here. Image: Destination NSW.
Thursday, May 13 marks World Cocktail Day, so Monkey Shoulder is bringing its tipples to Welcome to Thornbury. The scotch brand has created Australia's biggest cocktail mixer truck called Monkey Mixer, which looks a little like a cement mixer truck, but shiny — and it'll be serving up free cocktails from 6pm. The giant orange and silver truck will hit the venue as part of a Guinness World Record-breaking attempt to mix up the most cocktails in one minute. The current record sits at a whopping 18; however, Melbourne bartenders and mixologists are invited to try to beat it. While they're shaking and stirring, the audience will sip free beverages. So, you'll get a drink and you'll be entertained. You'll be knocking back cocktails made in the Monkey Mixer, not by the competitors — but the price will be right, obviously.
Sake has really blown up in Australia over the last decade, with more and more bars able to access Japan's national drink. Of course, we're not sake masters — there are so many more varieties of rice wine that we haven't had the chance to experience yet. Enter Nihonshu Australia, an association of sake importers, who are aiming to change that once and for all. Presented REVEL — who organise boozy events including Pinot Palooza and Game of Rhones — the Sake Matsuri festival was first held in Sydney last year, and now it's coming to Melbourne for the first time. Taking over 524 Flinders Street on Saturday, June 9, there'll be more than 60 types of sake on offer, each representing the drink's different styles, serving temperatures and prefectures of origin in Japan. For $60 (or for a $50 early bird ticket before May 13), punters will get access to unlimited tastings plus a free Plumm glass valued at $35. The event is split into two sessions, so you can sip sake by day (from 11am-4pm) or night (5-9pm). Japanese craft beer will also be on offer, along with a selection of Japanese-style bites to eat from Maker & Monger and more.
Pop-up bars are no stranger to Melbourne's streets — but none deliver a message quite as blatant as Trash Tiki. It's operating waste-free and travelling the world showing customers and bar owners how to do it too. In the hopes of drawing attention to over-consumption and single-use ingredients in the craft cocktail industry today, UK bartenders Kelsey Ramage and Iain Griffiths have designed the pop-up to be a launchpad for a conversation on waste. After a brief stint in Sydney last year, Trash Tiki will set up at The Beaufort for a whole two weeks from January 22 to February 3. The drinks selection will be themed around junk, including Young Henrys Junk Ale — it's a brown ale made from spent and surplus malt, mash and hops from other brews that are usually put straight in the bin. Also on offer: Tiki cocktails, plus their Citrus Off Cut Soda with bush honey and eucalyptus, as made in collaboration with Sydney's PS40 bar. Melbourne is the 27th stop for the globe-trotting pop-up. It's travelled Europe, Asia, South America and the US, with plans to head to Brisbane too. During their stay, the gang won't just be whipping up zero-waste drinks, but also throwing punk karaoke and trivia nights and hosting a kitchen takeover by Smith & Daughters' Shannon Martinez, as well as an all-day and -night Hottest 100 party and a hip hop-fuelled sustainable wine night with the Bar Liberty crew.
If you're a Queenslander with a trip to Melbourne in your future — or vice versa — the pandemic has just interrupted your plans. With the Victorian capital currently in day one of a snap five-day lockdown in attempt to contain the Holiday Inn COVID-19 cluster, the Sunshine State has declared the area a coronavirus hotspot. And, as a result, Queensland has closed its borders to the city. The change was announced yesterday, Friday, February 12, and came into effect at 1am today, Saturday February 13. It specifically applies to Greater Melbourne, with 36 Local Government Areas in the region all now considered hotspots by the Queensland government. Accordingly, folks who've been in Greater Melbourne are no longer be permitted to enter Queensland, unless they receive an exemption and then go into government quarantine for 14 days. The border will be closed for at least the next fortnight, and affects anyone who has been to Greater Melbourne in the past 14 days or since Tuesday, February 9 — whichever is shorter. Noting that some folks from Melbourne will already be in Queensland — and some Queenslanders who've visited the city and then returned home recently, too — the state government is also asking anyone who has been to Greater Melbourne since Friday, February 5 to get tested immediately and isolate until they receive their results. And, if you've been to a venue named by the Victorian government as an exposure site, you're asked to get tested and then go into self-isolation for 14 days, regardless of whether you're showing any symptoms. Queensland has brought back its Border Declaration Pass for anyone who has been in Victoria in the past fortnight, too, as announced earlier in the week. That also came back into effect at 1am today, Saturday, February 13. https://twitter.com/AnnastaciaMP/status/1359674995878727681 Queensland joins the rest of the country's states and territories in introducing new requirements for Greater Melbourne residents and, in some cases, folks from all of Victoria as well. New South Wales has placed everyone returning from Victoria from Saturday, February 13 into the same five-day lockdown; Western Australia completely closed its border to anyone who has been in Victoria, effective 6pm on Friday, February 12; and South Australia also did the latter from 12.01am on Saturday, February 13. Tasmania has similarly shut its border to Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory requires non-residents to obtain an exemption and go into lockdown and the Northern Territory has brought back 14 days of quarantine for Victorian arrivals. For more information about southeast Queensland's COVID-19 border restrictions, or about the status of COVID-19 in the state, visit the Qld COVID-19 hub and the Queensland Health website. For more information about COVID-19 in Victoria and the state's current restrictions, head over to the Department of Health and Human Services website.
Federation Square will be busting out the pierogi at its annual Polish Festival, helping you to celebrate Polish culture and forget about all your mates and their mid-year jaunts through Europe — at least momentarily. As well as being the 14th iteration of the festival, Poland is also celebrating the 100th anniversary of Polish independence after 123 years of partition, so this year's festivities look set to be particularly big. Expect hearty food like bigos (hunter's stew), and kielbasa (sausage), as well as heaps of traditional cakes and pastries. While the traditional dishes won't extend to the vodka variety, you can always move onto a bar later in the day once you've downed a couple of plates of pierogi. Live music and dance will also feature, as will folk-inspired art and piano music accompaniment, raking in the points for old-world charm. Kids will find interactive music shows, wianki (wreath) making, as well as DIY crafting masks of Smok Wawelski (a famous dragon in Polish folklore). Come for the pierogi, stay for learning about the history and legends of Poland. Image: Anna Torun.
If anyone knows how to live la dolce vita, it's the Italians. And Melbourne owes much of its famous food culture to the country of pizza, pasta, salumi and formaggi. We may have been a little slow to catch on, but we've also inherited an essential part of the Italian lifestyle: aperitivo. Comprised of an aperitif, usually Aperol, vermouth or a negroni, paired with little snacks known as cicchetti, it's the Italian way to shake off the post-work blues and prepare your appetite for the fare to come. Whether you're catching up with pals or bonding over booze with workmates, any of these Melbourne haunts will offer good vibes, killer drinks and moreish snacks.
The back-to-work blues have hit us all pretty hard this year — especially as summer took its time to shine. If you're like us, you're already yearning to escape the office or your current work-from-home situation. And this loved-up time of year (yup, Valentine's Day is coming) offers up a great excuse to book a trip away with your partner. With this in mind, Virgin Australia has launched the Bring on More in Adelaide sale, offering up to 30% off flights to the City of Churches — with prices as low as $89 one way from Melbourne. You may not know it, but Adelaide is a mighty romantic city. It's home to spectacular wine, chocolate and fresh oysters — all aphrodisiacs — alongside a huge variety of activities made for loved-up couples. So, this year, swap the usual Valentine's Day staycation for an unforgettably romantic (and discounted) trip to Adelaide. Here's some inspiration to get you love birds started. [caption id="attachment_886121" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tommaso Cantelli[/caption] JOIN AN OYSTER TOUR There are stacks of reason why oyster tours are great for dates. First off, there is the aphrodisiac element (if you believe all that), but it's also a unique way to feel swanky while enjoying the outdoors. Few places compare to the famed Coffin Bay, located on South Australia's picturesque Eyre Peninsula. Here, you and your partner can don some arguably unsexy waterproof waders to frolic in the clear blue waters and learn a little about oyster farming. You'll then head back to the beachside Salt Water Pavilion where you can dine on freshly caught oysters while sipping on local wines. EXPLORE VAST WINE REGIONS Speaking of wine, Adelaide is surrounded by several world-famous wine regions. And you really don't have to go far to visit them. You've got the Adelaide Hills located just a 30-minute drive from the CBD, McLaren Vale at 45 minutes, and the Barossa (where Two Hands Wines, pictured above, is located) and Clare valleys around 1.5 and two hours away, respectively. Pick one, book a driver (so one of you doesn't have to miss out) and explore as many cellar doors as you can — possibly opting for private tours and tastings to make it all the more romantic. STAY IN A LUSH HOTEL A romantic getaway is incomplete without a luxurious place to rest your heads — or get Ade(laid)e. One of our favourite CBD stays is the undeniably cool Hotel Indigo (pictured above), which boasts large luxurious rooms and an outdoor pool overlooking the city. If you can't make it to Paris but you're looking for a chic French-style getaway, book a stay at Sofitel Adelaide. This glamorous five-star hotel has a huge array of rooms and suites as well as its own wine bar and French fine dining restaurant. It's also hard to overlook the old-school glamour of The Playford. Unwind in the spa and sauna after a long day of exploring Adelaide before returning to your opulent art nouveau suite to order room service to your bed. [caption id="attachment_777850" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Sia Duff[/caption] PARTAKE IN EXCEPTIONAL DINING Heading to Adelaide means heading to a deliciously diverse range of restaurants and bars — most championing local produce with incredibly tasty and creative dishes. As a strong start, there's the much-adored Africola (pictured above), where North African dishes are backdropped by art-covered walls and an energetic buzz. Over on Peel Street, Southeast Asian street food meets natural wine at Gondola Gondola, the upstairs Bread and Bone plates up woodfired burgers, steaks and ribs, and the appropriately named Peel St features a menu of refined yet simple fare made from quality local ingredients. Alternatively, you can amp up the romance with one of the best meals you'll likely ever have — book a table at Restaurant Botanic, the winner of Australia's Restaurant of the Year award for 2023, to experience modern Australian dining at its absolute finest. [caption id="attachment_785247" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Adam Bruzzone via South Australian Tourism Commission[/caption] DISCOVER UNIQUE DATE DESTINATIONS The City of Churches is far more than its places of worship — there are countless things for loved-up couples to do here. First off, as we are talking romance, we highly recommend a trip to the Haigh's Chocolate factory — for Adelaide is the birthplace of this beloved chocolate maker. Here, you can taste all its best creations and go on a special behind-the-scenes tour to see how this all-too romantic treat is created. But if you want to get out in nature, you can try a dolphin sanctuary kayak tour, paddling about with your partner in tow. Moreover, a day spent wandering around the Art Gallery of South Australia is aways a win, while a sunset cruise along the coast is what Valentine's Day is made for. You're clearly spoilt for choice. Take advantage of Virgin Australia's latest travel deal, booking discounted flights to Adelaide here. But hurry, the sale ends on Monday, February 6. Top image: Skillogalee courtesy of South Australia Tourism.
There are just a few months left before our city's culinary obsession switches to overdrive and we're gripped hard by Melbourne Food And Wine Festival fever. And this year's program promises as hearty a celebration as ever, with a star-studded lineup of culinary legends and a heady offering of feasts, masterclasses, pop-ups and parties. From a locally focused meat-free feast in a winery to a dinner showcasing Quebec's finest, here are our top picks for MFWF 2019.
It's been just over six months since Melbourne scored its last offering from renowned chef Jessi Singh. Last June, he opened colourful, unconventional Indian joint Daughter In Law and, the year before that, his eatery Don't Tell Aunty landed in Sydney's Surry Hills. Now, the restaurateur — who originally co-founded other hits including Horn Please, Kyneton's Dhaba at The Mill and Babu Ji in Melbourne and NYC — has opened a new wine bar and boutique booze store on Flinders Lane. Sticking with the family theme, this latest venue has been named Mrs Singh. It feels a little more grown up than its siblings — but it just as playful. Sporting a mix of textures and colours, diners are met with a heady vision of orange panelling, blue marbled flooring, rich reds, green velvet, a terrazzo-topped bar and striking gold accents throughout the 65-seat space. Singh fans will be familiar with the soundtrack of party jams and rotation of retro Bollywood flicks projected on the wall. [caption id="attachment_759088" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The Coco Bunny[/caption] Drinks are the main game here, led by a 300-strong wine list from award-winning sommelier Dheeraj Bhatia (Sydney's Est.). A produce-driven cocktail lineup stars sips like the signature Mrs Singh — a fusion of mezcal, beetroot, Aperol, agave, lime and black salt — and the Coco Bunny which, with carrot juice, turmeric, ginger and gin, is basically boozy breakfast juice. A roving champagne trolley amps up the luxury and there's even a retail selection of beers and wines available to take home, complete with suggested picks. On weekdays, the bar is open for lunch, serving a simple menu of two $25 thalis: one vegetarian and one with butter chicken, rogan josh and goat curry. After work, though, the menu opens up to a longer list of drinking-optimised plates after-hours. You might find yourself tucking into flaky paratha bread with mango, chilli and 15-month comté, a lobster roll teamed with curry chips, or some sweet and spicy cauliflower. Scallop ceviche is done with lashings of coconut and chilli, and the tandoor oven pumps out serves of chicken, prawn and paneer. Or you can always settle in with the chef's selection menu for an easy $75 per person and free up more time to spend on that drinks list. Images: Peter Tarasiuk.
Guillermo del Toro hasn't yet directed a version of Frankenstein, except that he now has in a way. Officially, he's chosen another much-adapted, widely beloved story — one usually considered less dark — but there's no missing the similarities between the Nightmare Alley and The Shape of Water filmmaker's stop-motion Pinocchio and Mary Shelley's ever-influential horror masterpiece. Both carve out tales about creations made by grief-stricken men consumed by loss. Both see those tinkerers help give life to things that don't usually have it, gifting existence to the inanimate because they can't cope with mortality's reality. Both notch up the fallout when those central humans struggles with the results of their handiwork, even though all that the beings that spring from their efforts want is pure and simple love and acceptance. Del Toro's take on Pinocchio still has a talking cricket, a blue-hued source of magic and songs, too, but it clearly and definitely isn't a Disney movie. Instead, Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio is an enchanting iteration of a story that everyone knows, and that's graced screens so many times that this is the third flick in 2022 alone. Yes, the director's name is officially in the film's title. Yes, it's likely there to stop the movie getting confused with that array of other page-to-screen adaptations, all springing from Carlo Collodi's 19th-century Italian children's novel The Adventures of Pinocchio. That said, even if the list of features about the timber puppet wasn't longer than said critter's nose when he's lying, del Toro would earn the possessory credit anyway. No matter which narrative he's unfurling — including this one about a boy fashioned out of pine (voiced by Gregory Mann, Victoria) by master woodcarver Geppetto (David Bradley, Catherine Called Birdy) after the death of his son — the Mexican Oscar-winner's distinctive fingerprints are always as welcomely apparent as his gothic-loving sensibilities. In del Toro's third release Down Under this year, following Nightmare Alley and horror anthology series Guillermo del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities — something else that unswervingly deserved his name in the moniker — the Pinocchio basics are all accounted for. This isn't an ordinary edition of the story, though, or a wooden one (for that, see: the recent Mouse House live-action remake of its 1940 animated hit). Co-helming with feature first-timer Mark Gustafson, co-writing with Patrick McHale (Adventure Time), using character designs by author and illustrator Gris Grimly, and boasting The Jim Henson Company among its producers, this Pinocchio still takes liberties with the original plot, without being beholden to Disney as its guide. Two big leaps: using wartime Italy under Mussolini as the movie's setting, and reinterpreting what it truly means to be "a real boy". Also a visible departure: how Pinocchio himself looks, with his forest origins never sanded or polished away, or clothed over like a doll (or a flesh-and-blood child, for that matter). He cuts a rustic, thorny and whittled figure, complete with stick-thin legs, twisted nails protruding from his back, swinging joints and a branch-like nose with leaves snaking in all directions whenever he fails to tell the truth. No doubt aided by Gustafson's stop-motion background, including working as animation director on Wes Anderson's Fantastic Mr Fox, the end result looks so knotty, gnarled and textured that wanting to touch it is a natural reaction. Pinocchio's entire visuals do, as lensed by cinematographer Frank Passingham (Kubo and the Two Strings) — and as befitting a story that's inherently tactile anyway. (Being about a hand-carved puppet that comes alive will naturally do that.) Sebastian J Cricket narrates, putting Ewan McGregor's (Obi-Wan Kenobi) melodious voice to good use as the talkative insect, and starting the film's star-studded cast. He chats through Gepetto's bliss with Carlo (also voiced by Mann), the recklessly dropped World War One bomb that took the boy's life and the booze-fuelled desolation that festers during the woodcarver's decades of mourning. It's while drunk that the latter whips up Pinocchio, who is then visited by the Wood Sprite (Tilda Swinton, Three Thousand Years of Longing), and embraces the next morning walking, talking and being thoroughly mischievous. Alas, the puppet isn't quite embraced in return to begin with — with his shocked papa constantly comparing him to his lost boy, the village priest (Burn Gorman, The Offer) demanding he's sent to school and the local Podestà (Ron Perlman, Don't Look Up) seeing military uses, wanting to ship Pinocchio to war with his own son Candlewick (Finn Wolfhard, Stranger Things). Telling the curious, cheeky, chaotic and selfish timber tot what to do at all is a tricky task anyway, but he listens to one person: Count Volpe (Christoph Waltz, No Time to Die). The carnival master entices Pinocchio to his circus with help from his monkey sidekick Spazzatura (Cate Blanchett, Tár), promising treats and fun, but only really seeing lira and adoration for himself. Del Toro's choice of period gives not just this but the whole tale a grimmer spin, with never being afraid to confront history's horrors — and life's — even when getting fantastical always one of the director's great moves. As in The Devil's Backbone, Pan's Labyrinth and Hellboy, it works beautifully; Pinocchio is as tinged with personal and universal sorrow and violence as it is gleefully sprouting with eccentricities. (On the page, too, Collodi's creation has always been weirder and more wondrous than Disney gave it credit for, as the 2019 version by Gomorrah's Matteo Garrone also recognised.) Surreal, tinged with sadness, bittersweet, beautiful: that's the film that del Toro has chiseled. It's also caught between a stunning dream and a macabre nightmare, and oh-so-aware that life is only as remarkable and precious as it is because death casts a shadow over every moment for all of us. The usual moral flutters at its heart as well, like this movie's cricket inside Pinocchio's cavernous wooden chest, but the added darkness and pain gives the idea of becoming a genuine person through kindness, love and connection extra weight and depth. This iteration tinkers with the mechanics and meaning behind that 'real boy' quest, however, to utterly heartwarmingly results. In fact, the only less-than-glorious move del Toro makes in his Pinocchio-by-way-of-Frankenstein is keeping in songs — his movie is magical enough without them. Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio screens in cinemas from Thursday, November 24, then streams via Netflix from Friday, December 9.
After almost two weeks in lockdown again in a bid to stop another COVID-19 outbreak — including an initial five-day snap lockdown, and a second week to keep cases under control — Victoria emerged from stay-at-home conditions at 11.59pm on Tuesday, July 27. Gone are the five reasons to leave your home, as well as the travel radius — which means that you can now head out of the house whenever you like, for whatever reason you like and to go wherever you like. Still, the list of restrictions can be a bit overwhelming, so we've broken down just what you can and can't do. This information is correct as of Wednesday, July 28. For what reasons am I allowed to leave the house? Remember those five reasons announced back at the beginning of July? They're no longer in effect. So, after almost two weeks of only being able to leave home to purchase groceries and other essentials, for care and caregiving, for permitted work, for outdoor exercise and recreation, and to get vaccinated, you can now leave for any reason you like. For how long can I leave the house? The two-hour limit on time spent out of the home has now been lifted. You may now leave your house for any amount of time — and for any reason — as long as you're abiding by all other restriction. Is there a curfew this time? No, there is no curfew. You are allowed out of your house at any hour — and for any reason and for as much time as you like, too. Do I still have to wear a mask? Yes, masks or face coverings are still compulsory whenever you leave home. Masks must still be worn both indoors and outside whenever you're anywhere other than your own home. And, you must always carry a mask with you, too. How far can I travel? You can travel as far away from your home as you like. Unlike the rules that have followed lockdowns in the past, there's no travel limit in place this time. Of course, the state's border rules, and those of other parts of Australia, may hamper your trip if you're planning on heading interstate. Can I see friends and family? Yes, but there are a few caveats, so bear with us. You can catch up with up to ten people, but only outside of your home. You can exercise with them, have a picnic — socially distanced, of course — or do whatever else you like, but not at anyone's house. Inside your home, the "single social bubble" rule is still in place — allowing a single person living alone or a single parent with children under 18 to nominate one person to be in their bubble. You are allowed to have this nominated person over to your home and you can go to their home. You can also stay overnight. The same rule still applies for intimate partners, too. Can I have a session with a personal trainer in a park? Yes, groups of ten — plus the trainer — are allowed to meet up for personal training and bootcamp sessions. [caption id="attachment_784754" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Visit Victoria[/caption] Can I have a picnic in a park? Yes, as long as it's with up to ten people (including yourself). Here are some of our favourite spots. Can I go to the beach? Yes, you can only go with up to ten people (including yourself). Can I drive to a park or beach? You most certainly can. Can I go to a pool? Indoor? Yes. Outdoor? Also yes. Up to 100 people may swim in an indoor pool and 300 outdoors, but there's a one person per four-square-metre capacity limit at both. So, you'll want to check out the pool's website before throwing on your togs. Not sure where to head for a splash? Check out some of our favourites. Can I visit a regional town? All of Victoria, including regional areas, are under the same restrictions — so you can travel wherever you like within the state. You can't visit someone's home though, unless they're in your "social bubble" or they're your intimate partner. Can I go shopping? For any reason, yes. But some shops may have altered hours, so check before you head off. How about to a restaurant or cafe? Yes, you can head to a hospitality venue, but capacity and density restrictions are in effect. Only 100 people are allowed indoors per venue and 300 outdoors, with a one person per four-square-metre capacity limit. And, the maximum group size is ten. Can I go to gyms or other recreational services? Yes. Both indoor and outdoor sports and recreation facilities can open with a one person per four-square-metre capacity limit — and a 100-person cap indoors, and a 300-person limit outdoors. How about a movie? Yes, indoor seated venues such as cinemas can reopen — and have up to 100 people per space. If you're interested in heading to a different type or entertainment venue, if they don't have seats, they can reopen with a density requirement of one person per four-square-metres — and the same 100-person cap per space. Can I attend a funeral? Yes, however funerals are limited to 50 mourners, plus those required to conduct the funeral. Can I attend a wedding? Yes, however weddings are limited to 50 people, including the couple and two witnesses. The celebrant and photographer don't count in the cap. If you have more questions, the Victorian Government has an extensive rundown on its website. Top image: Visit Victoria.
Update 4/10/16: After a few delays, the downstairs of The Rose Hotel is set to reopen on Thursday April 14, followed by the upstairs wine bar the following week. Original story below. Fans of Fitzroy's venerable old pub The Rose may want to get their fill of the place before December 21, when it will shut for a few months to undergo extension renovations. The Rose — famous for their bangin' street parties and being a top-notch place to watch the footy — has been bought by Tim Hogan and John Tennent, who also own Port Melbourne's greatest wine bar, Harry and Frankie. The pair have big plans for The Rose, but Fitzroy locals need not fear the destruction of their natural watering hole as the reno will stay mostly true to the essence of the original pub. Speaking to Good Food, they reassured locals that they intend to give the venue a facelift "without turning it into a yuppie bar or gastropub". Finally, someone's addressing what we're all thinking: let's keep Fitzroy un-fancy. They'll close 'er down on Monday, December 21 and plan to have her back up and running sometime in February. The front bar will retain the classic TV setup for watching a game and enjoying that classic Aussie pastime: a pot and a parma. The back room will be transformed into a family-friendly dining space. However, upstairs will see the most change. It's slated to become a Fitzroy version of the popular wine bar, complete with a separate entrance. The focus will be on wine with a light charcuterie and tapas menu to accompany the drops, and a walk-in wine cellar for diners to pluck their wine of choice fresh from the shelves. The upper renovations are expected to take a little longer and will hopefully be operational by Easter. In the meantime, get down to The Rose to give the old girl a proper bon voyage. We sure will miss her over the summer — but no doubt she's gonna come back, better (and more boozy) than ever. Via Good Food.
For all of you who've been obsessing over the case of Steven Avery, you might now have the chance to get the answers you crave. Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos, the filmmakers behind the addictive and highly frustrating Netflix true crime series Making a Murderer, have just been announced as a last minute addition to the Spectrum Now Festival talks program. The pair, whose ten-part series has become a cultural phenomenon since premiering on Netflix in December, will travel to Sydney for an hour-long interview and audience Q&A session with festival ambassador and The Weekly host Charlie Pickering. Set to take place at 7pm on Thursday, March 10, tickets for the event will cost $49.90 and go on sale on Wednesday, February 24 (or you can sign up to their newsletter to access the pre-sale one day earlier). If you've been living a nomadic lifestyle out in the bush for the past few months and thus haven't heard, Making a Murderer follows the infuriating case of Wisconsin native Steven Avery, who served 18 years in prison for a crime he did not commit, only to be arrested and tried for murder shortly after he was released. If you've got a spare ten hours, you can binge watch it on Netflix right now. Just don't expect to finish with your faith in humanity intact. "We always wanted Making a Murderer to start a dialogue around important issues in our criminal justice system," say directors Ricciardi and Demos. "We are thrilled that so many people all over the world are responding to the concept of fairness and equality, and we can’t wait to come to Australia to continue this discussion." Making a Murderer: In Conversation with Charlie Pickering will take place at 7pm on Thursday, March 10 at The Star Event Centre as part of Spectrum Now Festival 2016. For more information and to buy tickets, visit their website.
Because conquering the pizza world isn't enough, 400 Gradi also has its own gelateria. Zero Gradi is home to traditional Neapolitan-style gelato. Classic and rotating flavour specials include pistachio, salted caramel and espresso, and they have Nutella and chocolate taps if you want to kick things up a notch. And the store regularly does special flavours — last year it even did a scoop of Aperol spritz. Good luck narrowing your choices down to just one. Granita, Italian pastries, cakes and coffee are also on offer. Image: Shannyn Higgins.
After the hard fought battle and eventual closure of the Palace in May, Melbourne has been crying out for a replacement venue. Thankfully, Melbourne music fans could have a solution to this problem sooner than anticipated. The Melbourne Pavilion in Flemington will undergo a major refit and find new life under the name Pavilion Live. While Melbourne has plenty of top notch smaller venues, bandrooms and bars in the CBD, the need for larger venues for touring international and prominent Australian musicians is undeniable. "Melbourne is well served by a brilliant collection of well-operated small venues and venues of the 900-1500 capacity," says spokesperson for the Pavilion Live, Andrew Watt. "But there is a definite need for a venue that is the next step up from there – a venue that is large enough to accommodate national level touring bands but still offers a more intimate experience than a stadium-type venue." Patrick Donovan, CEO of Music Victoria, also sees the Pavilion Live as a necessity. "While Melbourne has a rich tradition of live music venues we cannot afford to take that for granted," he says. "It’s great news when a venue decides to open its doors to live music — especially one the size of Melbourne Pavilion, which will fill a gaping hole left by the closure of the much loved Palace. I’m sure the industry and Melbourne’s legions of music lovers will embrace the venue with open arms." The Melbourne Pavilion is a heritage-listed art-deco building currently used for weddings and corporate events, with a capacity of up to 1500. The owners are looking to increase the capacity to 2250, hoping to relaunch the venue as Pavilion Live by the end of September. The first bands to be booked to play the revamped venue could be as early as late October, with the first shows likely to begin early 2015. The opening of a new medium-sized venue is great news for lovers of live music in Melbourne. The announcement has timed itself alongside the Melbourne City Council’s approval of the Melbourne Music Strategy. It’s very possible this is just the first step of many to improve Melbourne’s live music scene and strengthen the reputation of Melbourne as Australia’s music capital. Or it could just be a new place to party. Either way, it’s a win for touring musicians and fans alike. Via Beat, Tone Deaf and SF Media.
The dazzling sights and insane aromas of Nepal's annual Holi festival of colour and love are coming to the Coburg Velodrome. For three days across March 23 to 25, Momo Fest will celebrate Nepalese culture, Nepalese music and — perhaps most importantly — Nepalese food. The free event will feature more than 30 different varieties of momo (that is, Nepalese dumpling), over three days with distinctive themes: momo dinner with movies, the main event and momo brunch. There'll also be live music across two different stages, including a performance by internationally acclaimed Nepalese folk band Kutumba. Entry into the event won't cost you a penny, but you should still register to ensure your entry. You're also encouraged to bring along a gold coin donation for the MIT Group Foundation's projects in Nepal, building schools and establishing hospitals in remote areas.
Over the past few weeks, Victoria's COVID-19 situation has changed rapidly, resulting in the reintroduction of strict stay-at-home orders for all of metropolitan Melbourne and Mitchell Shire. As part of reimplemented lockdown rules currently in place for at least six weeks, residents of both areas can only leave their homes for one of four reasons: for work or school (if you can't do this from home), for care or care giving, for daily exercise, or for food and other essentials. And, if you do venture out for one of these reasons, you'll now be required to wear a face mask. Since Friday, July 10, the Victorian Government has advised that Victorians living in metro Melbourne and Mitchell Shire should wear masks when leaving home and where physical distancing is not possible. Now, on Sunday, July 19, Premier Daniel Andrews has advised that everyone over the age of 12 in those areas now must wear facial coverings in the above situations. To give folks time to purchase or make face coverings, the rule will only be officially enforced from 11.59pm on Wednesday, July 22; however, the government asks that "for those who can, please start wearing yours immediately". Specifically, metro Melbourne and Mitchell Shire residents will be required to don facial coverings if "you are out of your home for one of the four permitted reasons", Premier Andrews explained, while also announcing that the state has recorded 363 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours. "Just as you remember to take your keys when you leave the house, you need to remember to take something to cover your face — to help keep you and our community safe". He stressed that it needn't be a mask, with scarves, bandanas and other pieces of fabric also sufficient. "This is on the advice of the Chief Health Officer that it's a relatively simple thing, but it's also about embedding behaviour which I think is just as important on the other side of this second wave as it is in bringing these case numbers down," Premier Andrews continued, advising that adhering to the new requirement is an important step to hopefully avoid further lockdown conditions. "If we see people wearing masks, so all of us when we're out and about for those four lawful reasons are wearing masks, then that will mean it is less likely we have to move to things like only doing that daily exercise, for instance, in your own local postcode. Or things like saying you can only go shopping within a certain radius or certain distance from your home." The new mandate regarding masks is compulsory and will be enforced from the aforementioned date — so you will be fined $200 if you don't comply from 11.59pm on Wednesday, July 22. That said, Premier Andrews also noted that "common sense will be the rule here". He provided examples: "if you're out running, part of your daily exercise, then it may not be practical to wear the mask while you are running. But you should bring the mask with you and you should wear it before and after you have gone for your run. There'll be some other environments, for instance, where you're going into a bank, then you would need to take your mask off. If you worked at a call centre, then it may be very challenging for you to perform your duties wearing a mask". If you're now wondering which type of face mask is best, where to get them or how to make your own, the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services website has put together a guide — as well as instructions on how to whip up masks at home. You'll also find information about how to wear a mask correctly, how to take it off, and when to wash and replace it. For more information about wearing face masks, and the Victorian Government's advice for metro Melbourne and Mitchell Shire residents, head to the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services website.
Greville Street has scored itself a dapper new meat destination in Angus & Bon, a New York-inspired steakhouse that's set up shop in the former Prahran Post Office. The brainchild of Liam Ganley (who brought you Lemon Middle and Orange, and Freddie Wimpoles), along with former Rockpool chef Declan Carroll, the offering here is all about heroing the kitchen's woodfire grill. It'll be used across an unpretentious menu of veggie, fish and meat dishes, though the steak selection is set to be the indisputable star of the show. Alongside plates like confit lamb ribs and pork croquettes, there's a truly hefty array of beef options; choose from quality cuts like a 30-day aged rib eye on the bone, or a grass-fed scotch fillet, teamed with a range of classic sauces and sides. The wine list proves a worthy match, with plenty of choice by the glass and a special focus on local pinot noir varieties. You'll also spy an exciting collaboration with former Rockpool sommelier Wiremu Andrews. Meanwhile, weekends will see punters swapping steak knives for Champagne flutes, with bottomless brunches offered each Saturday and Sunday. Head in between noon and 2pm to enjoy an endless parade of bloody marys, mimosas, bellinis and spritzes, for $39 per head. The space itself is both stylish and comfy, the work of Melbourne studio Bergman & Co. The front bar and streetside areas are primed for summertime sipping sessions, while the back restaurant space tempts long, lazy dinners with its luxe banquettes and moody lighting. Angus & Bon is now open at 168 Greville Street, Prahran. For more information, visit the Facebook page.
This month, one of the west's best-loved drinks destinations is transforming itself into an immersive party playground, dishing up a high-energy evening of tunes, food, booze and frivolity. On Saturday, January 22, you're invited to let your hair down and blow off some post-holiday steam at Mr West's inaugural block party, Good Fest. Setting the tone is a diverse lineup of local musical acts, including Ausecuma Beats, Chilean Australian songstress Elaura, producer and DJ Amin Payne, and emerging DJ star Petra. They'll keep you grooving from 4pm through until 9pm. To fuel your evening's adventures, there'll be flaky pastry treats from Footscray's own Pie Thief, as well as Tex Mex eats courtesy of A Dingo Ate My Taco food truck. And of course, with Mr West's experts in the driver's seat, you can bank on some top-notch libations, too. Namely, the Fancy Free crew will be running a pop-up outdoor cantina bar in collaboration with new local drinks brand Homegrown, slinging native-heavy bottled cocktails alongside a solid range of craft beer and natural wine. [caption id="attachment_839277" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Amin Payne, by Moor Music Events[/caption]
Across one big spring weekend, Werribee Park's Victoria State Rose Garden blooms bright for the annual State Rose & Garden Show. But this is a whole lot more than just a festival of flowers. While the sprawling six acres of rose gardens come alive with a riot of colour and over 5000 different floral displays, there'll also be pop-up nursery stalls selling a wide range of plants, pots and homewares. You can even hone your green thumb with a program of guided tours and plant care demonstrations. In between exploring the blooms, you'll be treated to live tunes, eats and drinks, courtesy of a couple of brand-new State Rose & Garden Show pop-ups. On Saturday, head to the beer garden for American-style smokehouse fare from Bluebonnet Barbecue and sweet treats from the Scone Sampler, matched with a selection of wine, craft beer, cider and Chirping Bird Wines' spritzers. Sunday follows with a rose-inspired high tea from the High Tea Mistress. You'll need to book into a 60-minute session at 10.30am, 12.30pm or 2.30pm (for either $30 or $45) if you're keen. Expect, refreshing sips from Mrs Bakers Gin and the Prosecco Van, cushy vintage lounges and a parade of sweet and savoury bites, all enjoyed al fresco. Entry is free to the rose show, though any gold coin donation goes to supporting the garden's hard-working volunteers. State Rose & Garden Show is open from 10am–4pm.
Footy, drinking VB and not understanding the importance of moisturiser does not maketh a man in this modern day and age. But if not, what does it mean to be a gentleman, post millennium? This Saturday's Festival of Steve, held at the usually members only Kelvin Club, attempts to shed some light by presenting a number of modern men, equipped with skills, talents and most importantly, a willingness to share, all with the aim of helping confused gents everywhere feel a little more comfortable talking feminism and fancy liquor. Comedian, writer for The Tonight Show, performer of One Man Debate and self-proclaimed feminist Simon Taylor will be holding court, billiard pro Kelvin Small (who knows his way around a pool cue) will be giving lessons on how to be more impressive around a pool table, Bar Americano's head mixologist Hayden Lambert will offer tips on how to whip up something a little fancy via the liquor cabinet and Embiggen Books will showcase a carefully curated collection of books (because everybody knows reading is far sexier than football). Image courtesy of Simon Taylor.
Maybe you jumped on the Saltburn bandwagon early, catching Promising Young Woman filmmaker Emerald Fennell's second feature when it was in cinemas. Perhaps you saw the Barry Keoghan (The Banshees of Inisherin)- and Jacob Elordi (Euphoria)-starring thriller when it hit streaming over Christmas. Either way, once you watched the movie, you were probably as obsessed as Oliver Quick is about Felix Catton — and after you've ordered your Jacob Elordi's bathwater candle, you can hit up a party that's all about paying tribute to the instant cult-favourite flick. A series of shindigs is touring Australia, including to Melbourne. Mark your calendars for Saturday, February 3, when you'll be heading to Ballers Clubhouse from 10pm. What does celebrating one of 2023's best movies at a boozy party entail? Dressing like it's Oliver's birthday party, for starters. From there, you'll enjoy a 'Murder on the Dancefloor' sing-along — even though you won't be dancing naked around a mansion — as well as crooning karaoke and hearing 'Mr Brightside', all while sipping Bathtub Brew, Grave Grinding Gulp and Felix's Fangirl Fizz drink specials. If you're keen to add some sparkle to your look while you're there, there'll be a free glitter bar. And the best-dressed attendee at each shindig will win a prize. Tickets start at $26.74.
Enter the words 'true crime' or 'serial killer' into Netflix and something thoroughly unsurprising results: a hefty list of shows and movies to watch, dramas and documentaries alike, because the streaming platform sure does love this niche. In the future, those searches will throw up two more results, with 2022 newcomer Monster set to return for another couple of seasons. Monster's debut run came with the unwieldy full title DAHMER — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. While exactly what season two and three will be called hasn't yet been revealed, they will need to switch that moniker up. For the show's return, it'll turn into an anthology series, creating "two more instalments that will focus on other monstrous figures who have impacted society", the service announced on social media. Following the record-breaking success of DAHMER - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, Ryan Murphy & Ian Brennan will create two more installments that will focus on other monstrous figures who have impacted society. A second season of The Watcher has also been greenlit! pic.twitter.com/NmFdj6soJj — Netflix (@netflix) November 7, 2022 Who'll those monstrous figures will be also hasn't yet been unveiled, but Netflix is expanding its true-crime remit either way — and creator and prolific TV producer Ryan Murphy is adding another anthology series to his resume after American Horror Story and American Crime Story. In its ten-part first season, which dropped in September, Monster starred WandaVision, Mare of Easttown and American Horror Story actor Evan Peters as the titular IRL murderer. Dahmer's story is particularly gruesome, as the series conveyed; between 1978–1991, he murdered and dismembered 17 boys and men — and there's more to his crimes, including cannibalism. Yes, getting well-known faces to play horrific killers is also part of Netflix's true-crime trend so far — which, if you watched Zac Efron play Ted Bundy in Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile a few years back, you'll already know. Netflix might've stopped adding new Mindhunter episodes to our streaming queues, sadly, but the platform has served up everything from The Serpent and the Conversations with a Killer series to The Stranger and The Good Nurse since. Also included: fellow recent series The Watcher, also produced by Murphy, which is now getting a second season as well. Check out the trailer for DAHMER — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story below: DAHMER — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story is available to stream via Netflix. We'll update you with release date's for Monster's second and third seasons when they're announced.
A glimpse and a whiff of Clover Flower's vibrant, considered designs, and it's hard not to feel instantly buoyed. Margaret Ransfield's CBD store has become a go-to for its expertly-curated arrangements and colourful bouquets, ranging from the bold and romantic, to the petite and whimsical. Here, you'll find statement pieces destined to wow — just check out the aptly named Heartbreaker — along with timeless posies of seasonal blooms that are perfect for imparting some instant warm and fuzzy feels. And, if you're shopping the online store, you can pimp out your order with a swag of extras including vases, chocolates and other sweet gifts.
Whenever you're in a traditional art gallery, reaching for your camera can result in serious pangs of guilt. You know it's wrong, but you just want to take a little memento home with you. Next thing you know, the security guard is hauling you out the door by the collar and your photograph appears in the gallery blacklist. Well, it's not always that bad. But Canadian artists Brad Blucher and Kyle Clements aren't fans of the taboo against taking photos of artworks. Their project Take a Picture seeks to change the way audiences interact with art. Blank canvases on the surface, the artworks use a series of LED lights to create simple images invisible to the human eye. The paintings can only be unlocked for the viewer when photographed by a digital camera device. The artists explain that the series "explores the relationship between the ubiquity of digital cameras and social media, which encourages all aspects of daily life to be documented and shared, and the culture of art museums and galleries, which strictly prohibits photographing works of art." https://youtube.com/watch?v=810DLIu0uBg [Via PSFK]
You could say that humans and space got fairly chummy in 2012 as they reconnected in many new and exciting ways. It was a fantastic year for NASA. As many new discoveries and advancements were made with the planet Mars, we have extended our view of space and said goodbye to a space legend. Through highs and lows, Earth has become but a dot in our ever-increasing knowledge of the universe, and these moments have significantly increased potential for space exploration in the future. Perhaps the worlds of Futurama, Star Trek, or Total Recall are really not that far away after all. Here are 10 of the most remarkable space moments from BBC News that occurred in 2012. 10. The Supermoon Once a year, a cosmic event occurs in which the full moon appears 14 percent larger and 30 percent brighter than in other months. 2012's 'Supermoon' occurred in May and produced some truly spectacular photographs. 9. First Triathlon in Space NASA astronaut Sunita Williams became the first person to run, bike, and swim her way through a triathlon - in space. The US commander of the Expedition 33 crew on the space station 386km from Earth completed the Nautica Malibu Triathlon held in California along with her fellow athletes. She completed the course using exercise equipment: a stationary bike, a treadmill, and a strength-training machine specially formulated for weightlessness. 8. 26 New Alien Planets in 11 Solar Systems In January 2012, NASA announced that its Kepler telescope discovered 11 previously unknown solar systems, within which there were 26 alien planets, known as exoplanets. The size of these planets ranges from 1.5 times larger than Earth to even bigger than Jupiter, with their orbital periods ranging from 6 to 143 days and all of them located closer to their stars than Venus. This find almost doubled the quantity of planets discovered by Kepler in its two-year history and reinforces the exponential number of planets, particularly exoplanets, that exist in our universe. 7. The Earth Sings The Earth really gained a voice as NASA's Radiation Belt Storm Probes mission managed to capture radio waves emitted by energetic particles of the Van Allen belts in the magnetosphere and rendered them into an audio recording. This 'chorus' apparently sounds similar to a whale's song. 6. Space Shuttle Endeavour's LA Trek Endeavor was the fifth and final spaceworthy shuttle to be used in NASA's space shuttle program. The retired orbiter conducted 25 space missions during its 19-year career from 1992 to 2011. In October, the 155,000 pound Endeavor made its final mission, trekking the 12-mile journey from the Los Angeles International Airport to the Californian Science Centre, avoiding trees, utility poles, and the mass of stunned onlookers. 5. SpaceX Dragon attaches to the ISS The Dragon is a reusable spacecraft developed by SpaceX, a private American space transportation company, that in May became the first commercial spacecraft to be successfully attached to the International Space Station. The Dragon delivered a series of cargo shipments, which brought 20 metric tons of supplies into space. This advancement brings the possibility of private space flight significantly closer to reality. 4. Space Jump Breaking the world record for not only the highest jump from a platform (128,100 feet), the longest distance freefall (119,846 feet), and the maximum vertical velocity (833.9 mph), stuntman Felix Baumgartner also broke the YouTube record for the most concurrent views ever on livestream (8 million viewers). This Austrian daredevil really took record-breaking to new heights. 3. Farthest Ever View into the Universe This view captured by the Hubble Space Telescope depicts thousands of galaxies within the constellation Formax, billion of light years away. The composite image from 10 years of telescopic views shows planets so far away that they don't even exist anymore. The title eXtreme Deep Field feels highly appropriate here. 2. Goodbye to a Space Pioneer and Legend The end of an era arrived when the world bid farewell to Neil Armstrong, the first man to set foot on the moon in 1969. The world renowned astronaut passed away at 82 after complications from a heart bypass surgery but will forever be remembered for his incredible feat. 1. Curiosity Rover Makes History on Mars The most impressive advancement to occur in the space arena in 2012 was the Curiosity Rover's incredible experiences on the red planet. Since making her landing on August 5 — an event so tense it was deemed 'the seven minutes of terror' — the rover has discovered an ancient streambed where water once flowed, analysed soil, rock and atmospheric samples on the planet, been the first machine to 'check in' on Mars, and snapped an incredible self-portrait that would leave even MySpace users flabbergasted. And her trip has only just begun, with 20 more months to go before her return.
Sedonia's stylish array of products are hand-picked by founders Nicola and Inge, who have curated a collection of items from Australian and international artists, designers and studios. Dotted throughout the vibrant shop, you'll find an extensive list of gifts, homewares, clothing and items for kids, with more products arriving each week from around the world. There's a lot to choose from, but the duo clearly admire the work of Finnish home and design company Marimekko, while another standout favourite is the fine linen woven by Melbourne's own Bedouin Societe.
So, you want to save some money. Perhaps you're looking to finally put a deposit down on your first home. Or maybe your ol' clunker of a car is on its last kilometres. Or do you simply want to treat yourself to that pair of Gucci sunnies you know you don't actually need but you can't stop thinking about? Often, while we're in savings mode, we switch to totally denying ourselves the things we love, making ourselves miserable in the process. But the good news is you don't have to give up everything. Save smarter, not harder. And have fun doing it. To help get you started, we've partnered with Great Southern Bank to come up with some easy ways to save without having to live a totally joyless existence. From chopping your weekly food bill to a banking hack that'll have you adding to your savings without even noticing, these tips will keep you on track. BECOME YOUR OWN BARISTA We know, we know. You need your caffeine fix. We're not saying to cut that double-shot oat milk latte altogether, but buying one or two a day adds up really quickly. Keen to crunch some numbers? Let's say your average coffee costs $4 and you buy two every day — that's $2920 spent on java every year. Add that up over five years and it's a whopping $14,600. Instead, invest in a bit of kit to get your coffee hit at home. Proper espresso machines are great, but also pricey. Keep an eye out for a secondhand one and you might be able to score a bargain. Alternatively, get a good percolator and some quality beans. You can score a percolator for as little as $12 (that's three coffees) that'll last for years to come. For beans, you can get your fix from top Aussie coffee roasters. While price varies due to blends, beans and all sorts of things, beans from local roasters will usually cost somewhere between $15–23 for 250 grams (about 35 cups worth). You might even want to throw a milk frother into the mix, then you'll be whipping up deluxe coffee at home in no time. Best of all, you can do it all in your dressing gown. Then, once a week or so, treat yourself to the real deal at that local cafe with the cute barista. You're only human, after all. DITCH THE CROWDED COMMUTE This one is kind of a no-brainer for inner-city dwellers. Why go through the hassle of being packed onto hot and crowded public transport, especially in the age of social distancing? The same goes for driving — nobody wants to waste time (and petrol) sitting in traffic. Even if it means starting half an hour sooner than you would normally, walking to your destination means you're getting exercise and saving money. For longer trips look into getting a bike, scooter or skateboard (again, secondhand bargains are everywhere). If you have to travel quite the distance, electronic bikes are a godsend. Whether you're already in the office or are going back when restrictions further ease, ditching the public transport life even once or twice a week is better for the bank, the environment and your physical and emotional wellbeing. MEAL PREP LIKE A PRO Meal prepping: it sounds tedious at first, but once you get into the swing of it, it's really not that much of a hassle. And, spoiler alert, it can actually be fun — or, at least, it'll give you a sense of achievement on an otherwise unproductive Sunday. If you're a novice, start simple: try roasting a whole chook with veggies. You'll easily get a couple of dinners out of it, and the leftover meat can be used for sandwiches, salads and burrito bowls. Oh, and don't bin the carcass — it'll make a great homemade stock that you can portion out and freeze for later. Don't eat meat? Dust of that slow cooker and make a huge dhal for an easy-yet-nourishing feed. The more prep you do, the better and more inventive you'll get with it. Soon your homemade lunches will easily surpass that underwhelming $18 toastie you ordered on Uber Eats. FOLLOW THE SEASONS Now that you're on the way to becoming a whiz in the kitchen, you'll want to know how to cut down that grocery bill. It's just simple supply and demand, really. Shopping seasonally means that if you're buying something that's readily available the price is lower as there are fewer costs going into acquiring it. We're incredibly fortunate in Australia to have amazing fruit and veg available all year round, but certain things grow in abundance in summer rather than winter and vice versa. So, embrace shopping and cooking seasonally. You'll eat well and expand your repertoire while saving so that it feels almost natural. [caption id="attachment_737580" align="alignnone" width="1920"] SWOP Clothing Exchange, Trent van der Jagt[/caption] GET THRIFTY Thrift shops, Salvos, Vinnies, Depop, Facebook Marketplace — there's no end to the bargains and unique pieces you can find without the hectic price tags. More often than not, op shops are located near other op shops so you can make a day of traversing a few and seeing what you can find. Pro tip: go to affluent suburbs, where you're more likely to uncover some rare gems in top condition. And while you're mindlessly doomscrolling on your phone at night, try browsing on Depop. You'll be surprised and delighted by the great designer pieces you can find from the likes of 3.1 Phillip Lim, Acne Studios, Zimmermann and more. EMBRACE THE GREAT OUTDOORS Spring is here, so it's time to get outside and enjoy some fresh air and sunshine. And it'll be lighter on the wallet than a night on the town. Pack a picnic and head to the park for a long-awaited catch-up with your mates. If you're lucky, you'll be able to snag a public barbecue to have a cook-up and embrace the simple pleasures of a DIY outdoor feast. Toss a frisbee or a football, challenge your buds to a game of Finska, and stuff sausages into your pockets so all the dogs come to play with you. Okay, maybe not that last one, but you get the idea. BANK BETTER Knowing where your money is and why you're choosing to put it there is important in terms of goals and improving your overall financial literacy. If you're clamouring to get your first home, choose a bank that maximises your saving potential, such as Great Southern Bank. Great Southern Bank is empowering young Aussies with their banking to get them to their savings goals faster. Whether you're saving for a house deposit or just want to develop better banking habits, Great Southern Bank has a number of smart tools and features to get you there. One is The Boost, where you can set a predetermined amount (between $0.01 and $5) from your everyday transaction account to be automatically transferred to your savings account every time you make a purchase. That means every sambo, short black and schooner is subtly boosting your savings. Once you've got that all set up, you'll want to keep your savings fund from shrinking. For instance, if you get a bit tap happy when you're out having a good time (who doesn't), your bank balance can take quite the hit. This is where having a spending cap on your account can come in handy. Be realistic about how much you'll need depending on the activity. And, here's the tricky part: don't transfer more. You'll thank yourself later. Great Southern Bank is empowering Aussies to get clever with their banking. Whether you want to stick to your savings goals with The Boost or hide your house deposit fund from yourself with The Vault, Great Southern Bank helps you get there. For more information on savings tools and home loan options, head to the Great Southern Bank website. Top image: SWOP Clothing Exchange, Trent van der Jagt
Roll into Footscray Station every Thursday night in November for food, live entertainment and handmade trinkets galore. Melbourne's newest night market is welcoming vendors from the area, who'll showcase the best of what the western suburb has to offer. Conveniently located in the Footscray Station Forecourt on Irving Street, the market will run from 4–8.30pm every Thursday night until the end of the month. Food will come courtesy of some of the area's best restaurants, including Sekai Japanese, Viet Soup Kitchen, Roti Road, Burger Business, To's Bakery and many more. You'll also be able to hunt for a bargain, with various stallholders selling unique homewares and custom-crafted jewellery. Music and entertainment, meanwhile, will be provided by students from Victoria University. Image: Roti Road.
Every July, the Melbourne International Film Festival unleashes a wealth of cinematic wonders upon the city's cinephiles. Every March, however, the Melbourne Queer Film Festival gets there earlier. Since kicking off in 1991, the showcase of LGBTIQ stories on screen has been shining a spotlight on the best, most interesting, and all-round latest and greatest queer movies, with its 27th event promising all of this and more once again. Taking place at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, Kino Cinemas and Cinema Nova from March 16 to 27, MQFF has plenty of films helping it fulfil its mission this time around — 135, in fact. Stats-wise, viewers can expect 47 features, 15 documentaries and 73 shorts from 30 countries, including six Australian premieres, 35 Melbourne premieres and ten special event screenings and forums. It's going to be a busy 12 days — and that's without even delving into the specifics of the lineup. First, the Franco in the room — as in James, of course. He keeps proving a favourite of Aussie fest programmers, and pops up in not one but two titles in this year's MQFF schedule, starting with opening night's I Am Michael. There, starring opposite Zachary Quinto, he plays a real-life queer theorist and gay activist, who then became an anti-gay Christian pastor. It's quite a different role for his second appearance in the program: as a porn producer in King Cobra, which makes its way to Melbourne after screening at Sydney's Mardi Gras Film Festival. Don't worry, MQFF boasts more than just the seemingly busiest actor in the world, including local indie fantasy Pulse's tale of sci-fi-laced transformation for those after a homegrown fix. Also on the intriguing stories front, Cannes Film Festival Queer Palme recipient The Lives of Thérèse explores the work and impact of French activist Thérèse Clerc, while fellow documentary Real Boy charts a trans musician's quest for acceptance. Some non-Franco star power arrives in the form 2016 Sundance duo Other People and The Intervention, the former starring Molly Shannon at her best, and the latter marking the directorial debut of actress Clea DuVall. Elsewhere, Stranger Things' Charlie Heaton features in '90s-set teen mystery As You Are, 1:54 delves into bullying with Mommy's Antoine-Olivier Pilon, Brazilian sci-fi The Cult ponders a bizarre future, and Fursonas examines the folks who like to role-play in furry costumes. Basically, film fans can expect to be spoiled for choice — including at MQFF's many special events, which spans the return of festival favourite Movie Matchmaking and a discussion on the work of John Waters. Plus, recognising that even the biggest movie buffs can only see so many movies in a short period of time, the program also features a heap of great queer-centric films that audiences might've missed at MIFF last year, such as the Riley Keough-starring Lovesong, vogueing doco Kiki, true crime biopic I, Olga Hepnarova and applauded French effort Being 17. MQFF screens at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, Kino Cinemas and Cinema Nova from March 16 to 27. For more information and to buy tickets, visit the festival website.
Julie — the hatted bistro in the Abbotsford Convent — is getting a helping hand through the cold weather. Each month in winter, a different chef is taking over the restaurant, bringing unique and, most importantly, comforting dishes to the menu. In May, Canadian chef Emmanuelle Leftick was in charge. Now, it's Diana Desensi, who'll be running the show throughout June. She's worked with a bunch of Melbourne's top chefs, including Karen Martini and Matt Wilkinson, and was a key player in the opening of Saint George in St Kilda. At Julie, Desensi is bringing a five-course feast to the table. Start with house-made ricotta and agrodolce alongside fresh focaccia, before moving onto bacalao croquette and Zio's salumi with persimmon relish. Next comes Desensi's favourite — the pasta — in the form of cacio tortelli with radicchio and milk sauce. The main is lamb abbacchio with Reggiano, served with sides of Roman beans with olive and lemon, and garden leaves dressed in anchovy and lemon. Finish up with amarena cherry and chocolate torte. Desensi will be at Julie from Thursday, June 5–Sunday, June 29th. In July, chef Harriet Tomlinson will take the reins. Top image: Marie-Luise.
Both big air and big bands are on the agenda for Australia's newest festival offering. This August, the global Air + Style Big Air Competition is set to make its southern hemisphere debut, descending on The Domain for three huge days of snow sports, live music, culture and fashion. And it's being headlined by none other than Irish/Scottish alt-rockers Snow Patrol and US artist Flo Rida, each heading to town for their first Aussie shows in over five years. From August 3 to 5, the 34-hectare space on the edge of Sydney's CBD will be sporting a very different look than what locals are used to, featuring a 16-storey snow-covered ramp and multiple music stages. More than 60 of the world's best snowboarders and skiers will land here, to compete as part of the 2018 Air + Style Global Tour. Plus, the event has quite the pedigree — three-time Olympic gold medallist and all-round champion snowboarder Shaun White has been the majority shareholder since 2014. But let's not forget about the equally tempting music component. Previous incarnations of Air + Style in the likes of Beijing, Los Angeles and Austria's Innsbruck have drawn big-name artists such as Flume, Major Lazer, Portugal. The Man and Kendrick Lamar. The Sydney outing promises to follow in their footsteps, with Snow Patrol and Flo Rida just the first of many acts to be announced. Both single day tickets and multi-day passes are available, starting at $150. The Air + Style Big Air Competition comes to The Domain, Sydney from August 3-5. Head to the festival website for tickets and further information.
For most of us, bringing the outdoors inside is interior decorating speak for putting a few plants around your apartment. For artist Doug Wheeler, it has been a life-long ambition. Growing up in Arizona and spending time standing in the US state's vast desert landscape, he conceived of an idea for a group of installations that would mimic that experience — and, almost five decades after he put his plans down on paper, one has finally become a reality. Inside New York's Guggenheim Museum, Wheeler has transformed the gallery into an abstract synthetic dessert. Don't just take our word for it — PSAD Synthetic Desert III is the name of the piece. After moving through a number of chambers that can only be unlocked by staff, visitors walk into a room filled with sound-absorbing foam pyramids as far as the eye can see. A platform sits in the middle, ensuring everyone who enters is surrounded by the eye-catching structure, with lighting and sound design also crafted to make the space as immersive as possible. Indeed, because Synthetic Desert "is best experienced with as few extraneous sounds and distractions as possible," according to the Guggenheim website, only five people can enter the free exhibition at any one time. Visits are limited to either ten or twenty minutes of gazing into the sea of white shapes and ponder space, landscape and whatever else pops into your mind when you're sitting in silence in a room filled with foam spikes. After first turning his vision into sketches back in 1968, and spending much of his career contemplating light and space, Wheeler piece aims to "produce a hermetic environment based on a radical reduction of optical and acoustical sensation" in order to "heighten our understanding of perceptual experience." Anyone that happens to be in New York between now and August 2 is advised to book in advance, with entry free with museum admission, because this unique and beautiful installation is certain to be popular. Via Artnet. Image: David Heald
When tired old Dymocks just won't cut it for that special someone with wild bookish tastes, look no further than the quaint shelves at Perimeter. Browsing this bookshop and art space is a delight — as well as breathing in the aroma of paperbacks, you'll enjoy running your fingers over the stacks of independent small press books from international and local publications on art, photography, design and architecture.
Cast your eyes on the YouTube diary of Canada Space Agency astronaut Chris Hadfield and you will never be impressed by the notion of man placing a flag on the moon again. Canada's first commander of the International Space Station has been furiously tweeting and video blogging live from Expedition 35 for the past five months, creating the closest thing the world has seen to the Big Brother diary room in outer space in the process. While the CSA website lists the mission's objectives as "to carry out scientific experiments" and "perform robotic tasks", Renaissance man Hadfield has also managed to produce the astronaut's answer to Cindy Crawford's Buns of Steel and show his tender side in an attempt to find out what happens to tears in space (hint: not the same as what happens in heaven). Most recently, Hadfield has been busy staging a music video of 'Space Oddity' by David Bowie. Turns out Bowie's understanding of outer space is pretty bang on — the clouds look very different up there, Hadfield floats in a most peculiar way and while planet Earth is blue, there's nothing left to do, hence the Soyuz capsule is set to touch down to Earth tomorrow. Via Slate.
ANZAC Day commemorations are set to take shape a little differently this year, thanks to those now very familiar restrictions in place to help curb the spread of COVID-19. With group gatherings off-limits, tradition is taking a bit of a backseat, and the usual parades and dawn services honouring our soldiers have had to be cancelled. But there are still plenty of ways you can show your support for the ANZACs, while sticking to social-distancing directives. From driveway memorials, to ANZAC bickie baking sessions, here are some top ideas for getting involved with ANZAC Day 2020, virtually. [caption id="attachment_665411" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Melbourne's Shrine of Remembrance via Flickr[/caption] PAY YOUR RESPECTS WITH A LIVE-STREAMED DAWN SERVICE While ANZAC Day services across the country usually involve hundreds of punters gathered at dawn to pay their respects, social-distancing measures mean things will be drastically downsized this year. But even without the crowds, you'll still be able to tap into that sense of solidarity, as many of Australia's landmark sites take their regular ANZAC commemorative services online. Melbourne's Shrine of Remembrance is set to live-stream its Dawn Service for all to watch on Facebook, kicking off at 6am on Saturday, April 25. Meanwhile, the ABC will have all the proceedings from the Australian War Memorial in Canberra streamed live from 5am, across its radio, TV and online channels. Expect to hear The Last Post played at around 6am. If you can't make it to a screen for one of these dawn sessions, RSL NSW is also streaming a closed service at 10am, hosted in Sydney and available to watch live via its Facebook page. And RSL Queensland has created a short ANZAC service of its own — download the audio from the website and tune in whenever suits. The organisers of the annual Coloured Diggers March, Babana Aboriginal Mens Group will also be hosting Zoom gathering at 11am to remember the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples who served. 'LIGHT UP THE DAWN' FROM YOUR DRIVEWAY Social gatherings are currently a no-go, but on April 25, Aussies across the country will be bringing the ANZAC spirit to the end of their driveways — or balconies, front porches or living rooms — instead. RSL clubs nationwide are encouraging locals to mark the occasion with an at-home show of respect, inviting us all to 'light up the dawn' from 6am on ANZAC Day. You can pledge your support to the initiative online, then honour the ANZACs from wherever you call home, taking a moment to remember those who've served our country, perhaps while streaming a live service on your device. Many folks will light candles, others will have shrines and wreaths on display, and there's sure to be plenty of red poppies around, all in tribute to our armed services personnel. Share your personal ANZAC service with the tags #StandTo #ANZACspirit and #lightupthedawn [caption id="attachment_768400" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Australian War Memorial via Travis/Flickr[/caption] CREATE YOUR OWN ONLINE TRIBUTE The Australian War Memorial is drumming up some virtual support for our ANZACs by inviting Aussies to create their own online tribute, as part of its new #ForTheFallen initiative. To get involved, simply record a video of yourself reciting the 'Ode if Remembrance', or document your own ANZAC project, then pop it on social media tagged with #ForTheFallen. If you need a little memory boost, the lines to the section of Laurence Binyon's classic poem For the Fallen go like this: "They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old; Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning We will remember them." DONATE TO THE ANZAC APPEAL The RSL's long-running ANZAC Appeal will still go ahead this year, though it's had to face a few logistical changes given the current pandemic situation. There won't be any of the usual streetside collections — instead, most of the fundraising efforts will take place online, inviting financial donations to be used to support veterans and their families. You can help provide servicemen past and present with much-needed things like crisis accommodation, emergency financial help, and physical and mental health support, by donating via the website. This year's appeal is running right through the month, up until April 30. GET INVOLVED IN THE WORLD'S BIGGEST MEAT TRAY RAFFLE This ANZAC Day, you can give back to Aussie veterans, support a bunch of local businesses and be in with a shot at winning the ultimate meat tray prize — all at the same time. Kicking off this week across Australia, the inaugural World's Biggest Meat Raffle is out to beat the Guinness World Record for the greatest amount of meat-trays ever won in a single competition. This meaty movement's being headlined, of course, by legendary 'lambassador' Sam Kekovich, and will raise much-needed funds for Swiss 8: a veteran-founded non-profit focused on mental health support. The charity's work is especially important during these uncertain times we're all facing. Organiser The Village Co has joined forces with local butchers all over the country to create the mega prize haul of 10,000 meat trays, which equates to a whopping 2000 kilograms of snags, steaks, burgers and more. The major winner will score a whole year's worth of weekly meat trays, both for themselves and eight lucky mates. Grab your tickets here. JOIN AN ONLINE ANZAC BISCUIT BAKING SESSION There's no doubt the tastiest part of any ANZAC Day commemoration is the bickies. And those oat biscuits are set to get just as big a workout this year as ever before, thanks to all the new-found kitchen skills that have been honed in isolation. If you're keen to spread the ANZAC message via a few homemade baked goods, you can even join others from across Australia and New Zealand for a huge online ANZAC biscuit bake-off. Hitting Zoom at 2pm AEST on April 23, you'll find the Bake Together: ANZAC Biscuits Live baking session hosted by culinary historian and cookbook author Allison Reynolds. You can follow along with Reynolds as she guides you through her method, or simply tune in while using your own go-to recipe. And you'd better have the kettle on standby as there'll be plenty of time for questions and conversation. [caption id="attachment_683489" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Cybele Malinowski[/caption] TUNE INTO AN ANZAC DAY CONCERT WITH SOME AUSSIE MUSIC LEGENDS Paul Kelly, Jimmy Barnes, Delta Goodrem and The Wiggles are just some of the artists coming together (virtually) for this year's ANZAC Day concert Music from the Home Front. Screening on channel Nine from 7.30pm, the concert will see 16 music legends from Australia and New Zealand come together to celebrate the two countries, pay respects to those who've served and also thank front-line workers during COVID-19. Also on the lineup: Courtney Barnett, Marlon Williams, Kevin Parker from Tame Impala, Missy Higgins, The Rubens and Vance Joy. Top image: Dee Why RSL
Hear it on the grapevine in the Victoria this November. For one day only, Mickleham's Grapevine Estate is pairing some great drops with a music lineup that'll make your head spin. Irish indie rock band Two Door Cinema Club and Aussie electro duo Flight Facilities are two of the big acts tapped for Grapevine Gathering 2019, the latest shindig from the team behind Hot Dub Wine Machine. They'll be joined on the winery stage by Crooked Colours, Mallrat, Jack River, Touch Sensitive, Late Night Tuff Guy, Kira Puru, Lovebirds and Big Words. It's going to be a big day of tunes, folks. In addition to the tunes, punters will have access to an array of first-rate food options, including gourmet burgers, woodfired pizzas and slow-cooked smoked treats. And that's to say nothing of the drinks list, which will feature craft beers, cocktails and summery beverages. Oh, and a heap of wines, of course. The gates open at midday, and to help make commuting to-and-from Mickleham a little easier, the festival has organised return buses from Federation Square, Ringwood, Frankston and Geelong. You'll just need to add a (slightly pricey) bus pass to your ticket. Pre-sale tickets drop at 6pm on Tuesday, June 11 (you can sign-up for those here) with general tickets going on sale at midday on Wednesday, June 12.
Every music festival has its own distinctive traits and drawcards, no matter who happens to be hitting the stage in any given year. Held on the banks of the Murray River, Strawberry Fields is no different. Fancy escaping into nature to listen to live and electronic acts, wander through art installations and hit up a bush spa? That's all on this fest's bill. Taking place across the weekend of Friday, October 28–Sunday, October 30 in Tocumwal, New South Wales, this year's Strawberry Fields has just unveiled its lineup, and it's full of impressive names. The Pharcyde, Massive Attack founder and DJ Daddy G, Acid Pauli, Moodymann, Barkaa and Jesswar are just some of the talents on the list — and yes, it goes on. Also exciting: being able to soak away your stresses, not that you should have any at a music fest, at the bush spa; the Moroccan Bedouin lounges and tea ceremonies in the festival's Mirage Motel space; and the glamping options, given that you'll want to make a weekend of it. For the fourth event now, Strawberry Fields is also implementing a low-income ticket program, which helps open up the festival to more punters — regardless of income. Applicants are assessed on a case-by-case basis, after providing supporting documentation, and receive 50-percent off the standard entry ticket rate. Also, if you happen to be born on this year's festival dates, you can also register to score a free ticket. Happy birthday to you indeed. Strawberry Fields 2022 will also add two new stages — and if you're wondering what's on the arts, workshops and performances lineup, or what food, drink and market stall options will be available, the fest is taking applications for those now, with details to be announced closer to the fest. STRAWBERRY FIELDS 2022 LINEUP: Acid Pauli Ash Lauryn Barkaa Bumpy CINTA Claire Morgan Daddy G (Massive Attack) DJ set DAVI DJ PGZ DJ Python EFFY Egyptian Lover FLEWNT Gioli & Assia Glass Beams Henry Wu Horse Meat Disco IN2STELLAR Janus Rasmussen Jesswar Julian Belbachir Kamaal Williams Kiasmos (DJ set) La La Mella Dee Merve Millú Mindy Meng Wang Moodymann Moontide Ensemble NO ZU Omar S Paramida Pjenné Roy Blues Roy Rosenfeld Roza Terenzi Sassy J Sebastien Leger Soju Gang SQL & Child Tamikrest The Pharcyde Tijuana Cartel Wayne Snow Strawberry Fields takes place at Tocumwal, New South Wales, from Friday, October 28–Sunday, October 30. Tickets go on sale at 9am on Friday, July 28 — head to the festival website for further details. Images: Duncographic.
After the turbulent year that has been, summer is finally here and it's time to celebrate. One of the easiest ways to do that is with an epic (socially responsible) house party. House parties are the places where friendships are forged, dancefloors are formed and memories are made, and summer is the primo time to make use of your own house and host your friends for a knees-up. With fun in mind, we've joined forces with Hennessy for this foolproof guide to making sure your party has all the elements needed for success. Stay up to date with the developing COVID-19 outbreak in Sydney's northern beaches and current restrictions at NSW Health. FIRST, ORDER THIS HOUSE PARTY PACK No one likes to socialise when they're hangry, so sorting out food should be your first port of call. That's why Hennessy has partnered with three different restaurants to create a series of collaborative feasts. Each comes with a limited edition bottle of Hennessy, ginger ale and a fun snack pack. In Sydney, fried chicken purveyors Butter will supply you and three friends with chicken wings, corn on the cob, mash and ramen-broth gravy, slaw and rolls for $180. In Melbourne, Japanese hot spot Mr Miyagi will sort you and three mates out with pork belly bao, peking duck nori tacos, fried chicken and spiced tuna tartare crackers for $250. And in Brisbane, party people can get around a feast for ten of spring rolls, chicken karaage bao and spiced chicken wings with gochujang aioli from Mr Mista for $230. Each pack also includes party cups, balloons, a deck of cards and a disposable camera to capture all the good times you'll be having. MAKE SUPER-SIMPLE COCKTAILS FOR WELCOME DRINKS Some of the best cocktails are ones you don't even need a recipe for, and the ginger mule is exactly that. Simply pour 40ml of Hennessy into a highball glass and fill the glass with ice. Top up with around 100ml of ginger ale and garnish with a lime wedge or slices of fresh ginger. Voila! Drinks are sorted. You could also consider batching these cocktails in larger quantities for easy serving. Find this recipe and more on Hennessy's website. [embed]https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1CzIHMGk079iUL3947oYnr[/embed] OPT FOR A READYMADE PLAYLIST Instead of fussing about with aux cords or searching for artists, leave the party soundtrack responsibilities to Hennessy. Yep, the cognac brand also has a surprisingly good selection of packed-out playlists for four different moods. Head to the aptly titled House Party curated by music maestros Cool Accidents. It's filled with party-starting anthems from Hello, DMX, Missy Elliott and N.W.A. Or, try out the Beach Club, Sunset Sessions and Pre-Party Mix playlists, which will have you sorted with progressive mixes of slinky house, hip hop and R&B. [caption id="attachment_786101" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Cottonbro[/caption] SET UP SOME PARTY-STARTING GAMES AND ICEBREAKERS Now you've got food, tunes and drinks sorted, it's time to set up some party-starting games and social icebreakers. Putting a little bit of thought into some easy-to-execute games can result in some serious fun. Whip out old-school Twister from the cupboard or try a few rounds of celebrity heads (which you can do with just pieces of paper and pens). Outdoor games are also simple to set-up — borrow a Finska set from a friend or set up some classic backyard cricket. CONSIDER HOW TO TRANSFORM YOUR SPACE Now you've got all the essentials sorted, it's time to think through the flow of the space and decorations. You don't have to go all-out, but considering how people will move and groove through your house is a worthwhile exercise. Set up a designated dancefloor (the playlist will help out with this) and hire some disco lights or smoke machines. Make sure there's seating areas, too, and not placed in thoroughfares. Your guests will pick up what you're putting down and they'll move about the space as you've intended. Hennessy's House Party Packs are available takeaway now till stocks last. To order from Butter in Sydney, head here. To order from Mr Miyagi, head here. And to order from Mr Mista, head here. Top image: Inga Seliverstova
Something delightful has been happening in cinemas in some parts of the country. After numerous periods spent empty during the pandemic, with projectors silent, theatres bare and the smell of popcorn fading, picture palaces in many Australian regions are back in business — including both big chains and smaller independent sites in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. During COVID-19 lockdowns, no one was short on things to watch, of course. In fact, you probably feel like you've streamed every movie ever made, including new releases, Studio Ghibli's animated fare and Nicolas Cage-starring flicks. But, even if you've spent all your time of late glued to your small screen, we're betting you just can't wait to sit in a darkened room and soak up the splendour of the bigger version. Thankfully, plenty of new films are hitting cinemas so that you can do just that — and we've rounded up, watched and reviewed everything on offer this week. TOP GUN: MAVERICK As dripping with jingoism, machismo, militarism and sweat as cinema gets — and there really was oh-so-much sweat — 1986's Top Gun was a dream of a recruitment ad. The US Navy's aviation program couldn't have whipped up a stronger enlistment campaign in its wildest fantasies. Even if it had, getting Hollywood's gloss, a star who'd still be box-office catnip four decades later and Kenny Loggins' second-best movie tune (slipping in behind Footloose, of course) probably would've felt like a one-in-a-billion longshot. But all of the above, plus a lurid sheen and homoerotic gaze, didn't make Top Gun a good film. Loggins' 'Danger Zone' remains an earworm of a delight, but the feature it's synonymous with took a highway to the cheesy, cringey, puffed up, perpetually moist and aggressively toxic zone. The one exception: whenever Tony Scott's camera was focused on all that flying, rather than a smirking, reckless and arrogant Tom Cruise as a portrait of 80s bluster and vanity. Gliding into cinemas 36 years after its predecessor, Top Gun: Maverick is still at its best when its jets are soaring. The initial flick had the perfect song to describe exactly what these phenomenally well-executed and -choreographed action scenes feel like to view; yes, they'll take your breath away. Peppered throughout the movie, actually shot in real US Navy aircraft without a trace of digital effects, and as tense and spectacular as filmmaking can be in the feature's climactic sequences, they truly do make it seem as if you're watchin' in slow motion. Thankfully, this time that adrenaline kick is accompanied by a smarter and far more self-aware film, as directed by TRON: Legacy and Oblivion's Joseph Kosinski. Top Gun in the 80s was exactly what Top Gun in the 80s was always going to be — but Top Gun in the 2020s doesn't dare believe that nothing has changed, that Cruise's still-smug Maverick can't evolve, and that the world the movie releases into hasn't either. Early in the film — after Harold Faltermeyer's famous Top Gun anthem plays, text on-screen explains what the titular elite pilot training program is all about, a montage of fighter planes kicks in and then 'Danger Zone' sets an upbeat tone; that is, after the flick begins exactly as the first did — Captain Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell (Cruise, Mission: Impossible — Fallout) is given a dressing-down. Still as rebellious as his call sign makes plain, he's just wantonly disobeyed orders, flown a ridiculously expensive hypersonic test plane when he's not supposed to and caused quite the fallout. "The future is coming and you're not in it," he's told, and Top Gun: Maverick doesn't shy away from that notion. As its opening moments show, along with a touch too many other nostalgia-steeped touches elsewhere this sequel hasn't wholly flown on from the past; however, it actively reckons with it as well. Still hardly the navy's favourite despite his swagger, megawatt smile, gleaming aviators and unfailing self-confidence — well, really despite his need for speed and exceptional dogfighting skills in the air — Maverick is given one last assignment. His destination: Fightertown USA, the California-based Top Gun program he strutted his way through all those years ago. There's an enemy nation with a secret weapons base that needs destroying, and his talents are crucial. But, to his dismay, Maverick is only asked to teach. Given a squad lorded over by the brash Hangman (Glen Powell, Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood), and also including Coyote (Greg Tarzan Davis, Grey's Anatomy), Payback (Jay Ellis, Insecure), Fanboy (Danny Ramirez, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier), Phoenix (Monica Barbaro, Stumptown), Bob (Lewis Pullman, Outer Range) and the frosty Bradley 'Rooster' Bradshaw (Miles Teller, The Offer), he's tasked with training them to fly like he does, navigate a Star Wars-style impossible path that zips speedily at perilously low altitudes and, ideally, still survive the supremely dangerous mission. Read our full review. THE BOB'S BURGERS MOVIE Across its 12-season order to-date, the best episodes of Bob's Burgers have always resembled exactly what they should: a delicious serving of the meat-and-bread combination that shares the hit sitcom's name. There's a knack to a great burg — to a tastebud-thrilling, so-appetising-I-need-more-now example of this extremely accessible culinary art — and it's all about perfecting the absolute basics. No matter what else gets slotted in (and plenty of other ingredients can), every burger's staples should be the stars of the show. Indeed, a top-notch burg needn't be flashy. It definitely mustn't be overcomplicated, either. And, crucially, it should taste as comforting as wrapping your hands around its buns feels. On the small screen since 2011, Bob's Burgers has kept its version of that very recipe close to its animated, irreverent, gleefully offbeat heart. Unsurprisingly, the show's creators whip up the same kind of dish for The Bob's Burgers Movie, too. It's a winning formula, and creator Loren Bouchard knows not to mess with it while taking his beloved characters to the big screen. Co-helming with the series' frequent supervising director Bernard Derriman, and co-writing with long-running producer Nora Smith, he experiments here and there — in filmic form, Bob's Burgers is a tad darker, for instance — but he also knows what keeps his customers a-coming. That'd be the goofy but extremely relatable Belcher clan, their everyday joys and struggles, and the cosy little world that sprawls around their yellow-hued Ocean Avenue burger joint up the road from seaside fairground Wonder Wharf. Bouchard also knows that if you make something well enough time after time — be it a burger or a TV show that's spawned a movie; both fit — it'll be warmly, reliably and welcomingly familiar rather than just another helping of the same old nosh. As always, the action centres on the film's namesake — the diner where patriarch Bob (H Jon Benjamin, Archer) sizzles up punningly named burgs to both make a living and live out his dream. And, as the show has covered frequently, financial woes mean that Bob and his wife Linda (John Roberts, Gravity Falls) have more to worry about than cooking, serving customers, and their kids Tina (Dan Mintz, Veep), Gene (Eugene Mirman, Flight of the Conchords) and Louise (Kristen Schaal, What We Do in the Shadows). Their solution: a burger, of course. But their bank manager isn't munching when they try to use food to grease their pleas for an extension on their loan. That mortgage also involves their restaurant equipment, leaving them out of business if they can't pay up. As their seven-day time limit to stump up the cash ticks by, Bob sweats over the grill and Linda oozes her usual optimism — only for a sinkhole to form literally at their door. As trusty as Bob's Burgers gets, and still refreshingly committed to depicting the daily reality of its working-class characters, that above setup is the movie's buns. Layered inside are tomato, lettuce, cheese, pickle and beetroot, aka the narrative's well-balanced fillings. First comes a murder-mystery ensnaring the Belchers' eccentric landlord Calvin Fischoeder (Kevin Kline, Beauty and the Beast) and his brother Felix (Zach Galifianakis, Ron's Gone Wrong). Springing from there is Louise's determination to solve the crime to save the diner and prove she isn't a baby just because she wears a pink rabbit-eared hat. Then there's Tina's quest to make her crush Jimmy Jr (also voiced by Benjamin) her summer boyfriend; Gene's need to get The Itty Bitty Ditty Committee, the family band, a gig at Wonder Wharf's Octa-Wharfiversary celebrations; and Bob and Linda's attempt to sell burgs at the amusement park using a barbecue on wheels MacGyvered up by number-one customer Teddy (Larry Murphy, The Venture Bros). Read our full review. ABLAZE A documentary that's deeply personal for one of its directors, intensely powerful in surveying Australia's treatment of its First Peoples and crucial in celebrating perhaps the country's first-ever Aboriginal filmmaker, Ablaze makes for astonishing viewing. But while watching, two ideas jostle for attention. Both remain unspoken, yet each is unshakeable. Firstly, if the history of Australia had been different, Wiradjuri and Yorta Yorta man William 'Bill' Onus would be a household name. If that was the case, not only his work behind the camera, but his activism for Indigenous Aussies at a time when voting and even being included in the census wasn't permitted — plus his devotion to ensuring that white Australians were aware of the nation's colonial violence — would be as well-known as Captain Cook. That said, if history had been better still, Bill wouldn't have needed to fight so vehemently, or at all. Alas, neither of those possibilities came to a fruition. Ablaze can't change the past, but it can and does document it with a hope to influencing how the world sees and appreciates Bill's part in it. Indeed, shining the spotlight on its subject, everything his life stood for, and all that he battled for and against is firmly and proudly the feature's aim. First-time filmmaker Tiriki Onus looks back on his own grandfather, narrating his story as well — and, as aided by co-helmer Alec Morgan (Hunt Angels, Lousy Little Sixpence), the result is a movie brimming with feeling, meaning and importance. While Aussie cinema keeps reckoning with the nation's history regarding race relations, as it should and absolutely must, Ablaze is as potent and essential as everything from Sweet Country, The Nightingale and The Australian Dream to The Furnace, High Ground and The Drover's Wife The Legend of Molly Johnson. As the last filmic ode to a key Indigenous figure within cinema also did, aka My Name Is Gulpilil, Ablaze has a clear source of inspiration beyond the person at its centre. Appearing on-screen, Tiriki begins with two discoveries that put him on the path to making the movie: finding a suitcase filled with Bill's belongings, which included photographs of Indigenous boys in traditional paint peering at a film camera; and learning that the National Film & Sound Archive was in possession of footage of unknown origin that it believed to be linked to Bill. Accordingly, Ablaze is as much a detective story as it is a tribute, with Tiriki puzzling together the pieces of his grandfather's tale. Structuring the film in such a way is a savvy decision; even viewers coming to Bill with zero prior knowledge will want to sleuth along to solve the feature's multiple mysteries. Connecting the dots starts easily, after Tiriki spies the boys in Bill's photos in the NFSA's nine-minute reel — footage from which it's an enormous treat to see in Ablaze. From there, though, the what and why behind the material takes longer to tease out. So too does exactly why Reg Saunders and Doug Nicholls — the first Aboriginal officer in the Australian Army and the famed Aussie rules footballer-turned-pastor, respectively — appear in Bill's silent footage. Also an opera singer, Tiriki guides Ablaze's viewers through the answers, while delivering a biographical documentary-style exploration of Bill's existence along the way — from being born in 1906 at the Cummeragunja Aboriginal Reserve, on the Murray River in New South Wales, through to his passing in 1968 following the successful 1967 referendum on counting Indigenous Australians as part of the population, for which he spearheaded the campaign. Read our full review. HATCHING If you had only ever watched five horror movies in your life, odds are that one would've covered being careful what you wish for, and another would've focused on not messing with nature. It's equally likely that growing up being hell, motherhood being even more nightmarish and grappling with the terrors of the human body would've popped up as well. These all rank among the genre's favourite concepts, alongside haunted houses, murderous forces, demonic influences and the undead — and, making her feature filmmaking debut with the savvily sinister-meets-satirical blend that is Hatching, Finnish writer/director Hanna Bergholm knows this. She's also innately aware that something unique, distinctive and unnerving can still spring from stitching together well-used notions and now-familiar parts, which, on- and off-screen, is her bold and memorable body-horror, twisted fairy tale and dark coming-of-age thriller in an eggshell. Hatching begins by unpacking a fallacy as fractured as Humpty Dumpty after the nursery-rhyme character's fall — and that still keeps being lapped up anyway. In suburban Finland, among homes so identical that the song 'Little Boxes' instantly pops into your head, 12-year-old gymnast Tinja (debutant Siiri Solalinna), her younger brother Matias (fellow first-timer Oiva Ollila), and their mother (Sophia Heikkilä, Dual) and father Jani Volanen, Dogs Don't Wear Pants) are living their best lives. More than that, as the soft lensing and music that helps open the movie establishes, they're also beaming that picture of pink, white and pastel-hued domestic perfection to the world. Tinja's unnamed mum is a vlogger, and these scenes are being captured for her cloyingly named blog Lovely Everyday Life. Naturally, showing that this family of four's daily existence is anything but enchanting is one of Bergholm's first aims. The initial crack comes from outside, crashing through the window to ruin a posed shot alight with fake smiles and, of course, being filmed with a selfie stick. Soon, broken glass, vases and lamps are strewn throughout a lounge room so immaculately arranged that it looks straight out of a supermarket-shelf home-and-garden magazine — and the crowning glory, the chandelier, has descended from a luminous pièce de résistance to a shattered mess. A garden-variety crow is the culprit, which Tinja carefully captures. She hands it to her mother, thinking that they'll then release it outside. But her mum, placid but seething that anything could disrupt her manufactured picture of bliss, ignores that idea with a cruel snap and instructions to dispose of the animal in the organic waste. Watching the source of her own life snuff out a bird's because it temporarily disturbed the faux, performative idyll is understandably a formative moment for Tinja, and one of several early splinters. The girl is clearly nowhere near as enthused about gymnastics as her mum is about having a star gymnast for a daughter, even before Tinja is forced to train until her palms are torn and bloody. She's also unsettled when she sees her mother kissing handyman Tero (Reino Nordin, Deadwind), then justifies having a "special friend" because he satisfies her in ways Tinja's dutiful dad doesn't. So when Tinja finds the crow's egg in a nest outside, she's quick to take it into her care — both because of and despite her mum. She nurtures it tenderly, placing it inside a teddy bear for safe keeping. She gains her own little universe to dote over. Then the egg keeps growing, and a human-sized chick emerges. Read our full review. INTERCEPTOR Four decades back, Interceptor would've happily sat on a crowded video-store shelf alongside a wealth of other mindless, machismo-fuelled action thrillers. It would've been the epitome of one of the genre's straight-to-VHS flicks, in fact. Don't just call it a throwback, though; instead of testosterone oozing from every actor within sight, except perhaps a token wife worrying at home, this nuclear attack movie from Australian author Matthew Reilly focuses on a woman making waves in a male-dominated world. That's firmly a 2022 move, reflecting today's gender politics. So too is the fact that said protagonist, US Army Captain JJ Collins (Elsa Pataky, Tidelands), has just been reassigned after putting in a sexual harassment complaint against one of her past superiors. Don't go thinking that Interceptor doesn't tick every other box its 80s counterparts did, however. It couldn't lean harder on all of the cliches that've ever been involved with world-in-peril, military-driven movies, and with action fare at its most inane in general. A global success for his airport novels, writer Reilly doesn't just turn screenwriter here — with assistance from Collateral, Tomorrow, When the War Began and Obi-Wan Kenobi's Stuart Beattie — but also jumps behind the lens for the first time. Alas, his directorial instincts prove as flat and by-the-numbers as Interceptor's wanly boilerplate plot, as well as its clunky-as-clunky dialogue. And, that storyline really couldn't be more formulaic. In her new post on a remote platform in the Pacific Ocean, Collins soon finds herself under attack by terrorists led by the grating Alexander Kessel (Luke Bracey, Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan). Her sea-surrounded station is one of two sites, alongside Alaska's Fort Greely, that can intercept a nuclear warhead launch on the US. Naturally, Kessel and his men have already taken out the other one, and have also pilfered nukes from the Russians in their possession. Cue a run-of-the-mill single-setting good-versus-evil face-off — at best — that sees the cartoonishly sinister Kessel try to shoot, blast and fight his way into the platform's control room, while the devoted and dutiful Collins does everything she can to keep him out. Cue monotonous standoffs, frays and arguments that aren't enlivened for a second by the routine cinematography, and certainly not by Interceptor's oh-so-serious tone. It's only when Chris Hemsworth (Men in Black: International) shows up in an extended cameo that's given far too much attention that the film shows even the faintest traces of a sense of humour. That said, winking at and nudging the audience about Pataky's real-life husband is as far as any comedy or self-awareness goes; no, Interceptor isn't so bad and cheesy that it's entertaining, either. At the beginning of her English-language career, before her appearances in four Fast and Furious franchise flicks from Fast & Furious 5 onwards, Pataky featured in Snakes on a Plane. Terrorists on an Army Sea Platform isn't as catchy a title, and aping his star's earlier comedy definitely isn't the vibe that Reilly is going for — but when you're making something this derivative, that level of silliness would've been a better option. No one adds a highlight to their resumes with this bland affair, although Pataky shows that she deserves a better star vehicle. Around her, the Australian-shot film fills out its supporting cast with mostly local faces, including Aaron Glenane (Home and Away), Zoe Carides (Pieces of Her), Colin Friels (Total Control) and Rhys Muldoon (New Gold Mountain), none of whom manage to stand out for the right reasons. If you're wondering what else is currently screening in Australian cinemas — or has been lately — check out our rundown of new films released in Australia on February 3, February 10, February 17 and February 24; and March 3, March 10, March 17, March 24 and March 31; April 7, April 14, April 21 and April 28; and May 5, May 12 and May 19. You can also read our full reviews of a heap of recent movies, such as Belfast, Here Out West, Jackass Forever, Benedetta, Drive My Car, Death on the Nile, C'mon C'mon, Flee, Uncharted, Quo Vadis, Aida?, Cyrano, Hive, Studio 666, The Batman, Blind Ambition, Bergman Island, Wash My Soul in the River's Flow, The Souvenir: Part II, Dog, Anonymous Club, X, River, Nowhere Special, RRR, Morbius, The Duke, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Fantastic Beasts and the Secrets of Dumbledore, Ambulance, Memoria, The Lost City, Everything Everywhere All At Once, Happening, The Good Boss, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, The Northman, Ithaka, After Yang, Downton Abbey: A New Era, Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy, Petite Maman, The Drover's Wife The Legend of Molly Johnson, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Firestarter, Operation Mincemeat, To Chiara, This Much I Know to Be True and The Innocents.
You've seen the movies countless times and maybe even scored tickets to the stage production, but even diehard fans won't have experienced Harry Potter quite like this. Imagery inspired by hit play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child will take on an energy of its own, as it's splashed, larger than life, across the facade of the Old Treasury Building during White Night Reimagined. You'll spy captivating designs by English artist and illustrator Peter Strain, nodding to that famed fictional Patronus Charm (Expecto Patronum!). So expect to see ethereal stags, does, otters and even Jack Russells float across the historic building. The DAE White Night creative team has teamed up with large-scale projection experts The Electric Canvas to capture the movie-inspired magic for this one-night event. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child will run from 7pm–2am.
It's a time-travelling romantic dramedy shot in the desert on the cheap, but what The Infinite Man lacks in size it makes up for in brains and heart. In that way, the film is a lot like its protagonist: the jumpy, obsessive, hopelessly romantic Dean (Josh McConville). A scientist of non-specific genius, Dean wants desperately to give his girlfriend, Lana (Hannah Marshall), the perfect anniversary weekend. Instead, his controlling behaviour ends up driving her back to her ex (Alex Dimitriades). Not to worry though. Dean can just casually invent a time machine and give the holiday another go. And another. And another. And another. Supported by the same South Australian funding initiative that helped pay for 52 Tuesdays, The Infinite Man is the rare sort of film that feels invigorated, rather than hamstrung, by its obvious financial constraints. Limited to just three cast members and a single, isolated location — an abandoned desert motel — first-time writer-director Hugh Sullivan has very few crutches to fall back on, and is instead forced to draw on a deep well of creativity to ensure his movie is a success. The Infinite Man is showing at Sydney's Dendy Newtown and Melbourne's Cinema Nova from September 18. Thanks to Infinite Releasing, we have ten double in-season passes to give away. To be in the running, subscribe to the Concrete Playground newsletter (if you haven't already), then email us with your name and address. Read our full review of The Infinite Man here. Sydney: win.sydney@concreteplayground.com.au Melbourne: win.melbourne@concreteplayground.com.au
Dear readers, you can’t say that we at Concrete Playground don’t do things for you. You were probably curious about Teleny. Maybe you’ve seen the posters or the Facebook ads; all bare skin and sultry eyes. Maybe you’ve heard of the novel it's adapted from — a 19th century porno frequently, if questionably, attributed to Oscar Wilde and his circle of literary friends. What would this possibly be like on stage? Dare you go? Well we went to see it for you, we sat through all of it, all three and a half hours of it, so now you don’t have to. Seldom has so little drama been extracted from such sensationalist material. The story has a torrid gay love affair between a young Parisian and an exotic pianist, a Bacchanalian all-male orgy, sex on a piano, a mother sleeping with her son’s boyfriend, murder, rape, suicide, drug use, blackmail, you name it. One thing it should not have been was dull. However, the show plodded along, weighed down with long-winded monologues by the protagonist Camille (Tom Byers), as if the writer had not realised adapting a novel for theatre meant more than simply speaking the novel to the audience. Camille spoke over the top of everything, including ruining an almost effective love scene by turning away from his lover (Jackson Raine as Teleny) and breaking into a detailed description of what they had for dinner. For what was supposedly intended as erotica, there were very few sexy moments, although the cast did come alive a bit when they all got to be naked for the orgy scene. The acting at least was of authentic porno standard throughout, mostly stilted but occasionally over the top. The running time could probably have been slashed simply by reducing the number of dramatic pauses, which were applied both excessively ("I… could… never… love… a… WOMAN!") and pointlessly ("I… will… have… a… champagne… and a BISCUIT!") It had the kind of ridiculous staging where characters would climb onto a table for no reason other than to be dramatic, pop up cartoonishly from behind a chaise longue or throw themselves randomly to their knees, including one scene where Camille does this onto the keys of a piano. It was meant to be in Paris, though the accents were all over the place: some tried French, some went for Cockney, one guy opted for both in the same character. There was even a "comtesse" (Jonathan Duffy) doing a reedy drag American. The snippets of attempted French scattered through the script were, ah mon dieu, truly horrible. At the end of the gruelling two-hour first act, a good half of the audience bailed. The second act was when we got the big gay orgy, the officer being buggered with a bottle and the cross-dressing doctor, so those quitters missed out. As should you, if you’re wise. Look, if the play was a normal length, Teleny could possibly claim a so-bad-it’s-fun kind of appeal but three-and-a-half hours (which, be advised, is its actual running time not what's advertised) is too much time just to get a few giggles when it tries to be sexy or dramatic. We sat through every second to save you from it, dear readers, please don’t let our sacrifice be in vain. Photo credit: Dushan Philip.
There's just something about Australiana that, when done well, triggers those warm and fuzzy feels. South Yarra's now-dead Sweetwater Inn (RIP) nailed the whole outback-corrugated iron-damper-and-tin-cups thing, and it's hard not to love a tribute to the times of bushrangers, some well-loved Aussie larrikin or even a throwback to those glorious days of the school tuck shop. So Dingo's, the newest addition to Smith Street's ever-booming bar scene, looks bound to make friends quickly when it opens its doors next Friday, October 21. Paying homage to our colourful colloquial culture, the self-described Australiana bar is promising an equally vibrant drinking destination, where the colour palette is '80s retro, and the cocktail list is laced with nostalgia. Expect Alf Stewart references, Cottee's-inspired creations and even a cheeky tribute to your old friend, Passion Pop. Meanwhile, in the kitchen, chef Louie Green and brother Joel (both of Richmond's Tofu Shop International) are getting creative with some suburban favourites, serving a tofu version of the classic pie alongside other vegetarian treats. Even the original Barbecue Shapes look set to make an appearance on the snack menu. The space itself is a comfy one, with vinyl tunes and kitsch aplenty. Plus, they've got an excellent courtyard for sinking Coopers longnecks in the sun. Dingo's will open on Friday, October 21 at 310 Smith Street, Collingwood. Help them celebrate their launch at the bar's opening party from 8.30pm. For more info, visit dingosbar.com.au.
By 2023, Victoria will finally to introduce a container refund scheme, so you'll be able to swap your tinnies for cash. But that's not the only tactic in the state's war on waste that's due to come in effect over the next few years, with a ban on single-use plastics just announced. The Victorian Government has revealed that 2023 will also mark the end of plastic straws, cutlery, plates and stirrers, as well as polystyrene food and drink containers. Not just limiting the phase-out to items you eat with, it'll also scrap plastic cotton bud sticks. Crucial to the plan is the existence of already-available alternatives — whether they're reusable, in the case of cutlery and plates, or 100-percent compostable, as seen with paper straws and stirrers. Some areas won't be affected, including the use of these single-use plastic items in medical or scientific equipment, emergency services and other activities that require them for health and safety reasons. And, before anything official is put in place, the state will undertake consultation with the community, businesses and various stakeholders, including the aged care sector and people with disability. For the latter group, some alternative products to plastic — such as bamboo, paper and metal straws — aren't always a viable option. From February 2022, the Victorian Government will start by banning the products from its own departments and agencies, a move that's already been started by Melbourne Museum, the NGV, Victoria's TAFEs and Zoos Victoria. As for when the ban will kick in 2023 for cafes, restaurants, bars and other organisations in Victoria, an exact date hasn't been revealed. Obviously, it's hoped that the move will significantly reduce the use of disposable plastics across the state — where the government says each Victorian is responsible for approximately 68 kilograms of plastic waste ending up in landfill every year. "Single-use plastic items — like straws and plastic cups — make up about one third of Victoria's litter. We need to change this, so we're getting rid of them," said Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change Lily D'Ambrosio. Similar laws are also coming into effect in South Australia, Queensland is working towards implementing a single-use plastic ban as well and, as a nation, Australia has floated banning all non-recyclable packaging by 2025. And, that's on top of smaller-scale initiatives, not only including bag bans and container schemes, but the phasing out of single-use plastics in various guises at the company level, with Coles, McDonald's, IKEA, Coca-Cola Amatil and Qantas among those making steps in the plastic-free direction. You can read more about the Victoria's single-use plastic ban on the government's website.
