Vivid might be turning off the lights in June, but Sydney's indoor galleries are turning on their own sparkle. Survey the current happenings in contemporary video art at the pop-up Sydney Film Festival Hub, see strip clubs meet geometric abstraction at Firstdraft and get a flash of '70s SoCal at Blender Gallery. Top image: Sydney Film Festival Hub.
Summer appears to finally be on its way (albeit a bit too slowly for most of our likings) and that means it's time to start thinking about which music festivals you want to head to in your best summery threads. Homebake is one such offering. This year the organisers have decided to go with a not-so-cheery doomsday theme and, breaking with tradition, have roped in a big-name overseas headliner for the festival's first global edition. Thrown in with acts including Kimbra, Jinga Safari, DZ Deathrays, Hilltop Hoods, Husky and Angus and Julia Stone (playing separately), the headliner this year is iconic American disco-pop outfit Blondie. At the time of writing, more acts are still to be announced. Not content with focusing just on tunes, Homebake also has a comedy stage (presented by the Sydney Comedy Festival), Cinema Pavilion (curated and produced by Kieran Darcy-Smith), and plenty of artiness thrown into the mix. Update: The full line up has since been announced, including Tame Impala, Tim Minchin, sonicanimation, Sticky Fingers and more. https://youtube.com/watch?v=WGU_4-5RaxU
Haymarket institution Golden Century has been serving up its famed Cantonese eats for three decades now, and the group has some big plans set for its 30th year in operation. First, it's announced it was opening a new sister restaurant called XOPP in Darling Square's Exchange Building this August. And now, it has suddenly unveiled a huge new wine bar on the top level of its long-standing restaurant. Golden Century Wine Bank features over 1500 drops of wine, a new wine cellar and a dedicated kitchen dishing up all of the restaurant's much-loved dishes. Design firm Paring Onions has looked after the interior, which takes cues from the group's other venue: The Century at The Star. The newly built level — which was previously the building's rooftop — seats an additional 180 people, with the venue now able to fit 650 all up. The space now boasts its own kitchen, plus several lounge areas where you can just drink. [caption id="attachment_725461" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Parker Blain[/caption] Sydney wine guru Jon Osbeiston (Bel & Brio, Ultimo Wine Centre) is leading the extensive wine programme, which features an insane 1000-label-strong wine list, an entire wall of high-end Vintec wine fridges and another 600 rare and vintage bottles down in the restaurant's new wine cellar — where diners can also store their own wines. And if that isn't enough, a larger-than-average list of international whiskies and spirits is also on offer. For eats, the venue's menu of authentic Cantonese dishes will be available upstairs, too, including its live seafood, famed XO pipis and garlic-buttered snow crab on egg noodles. Choose from a la carte or go all-in with the banquet menus, which range from $128–188. All to be enjoyed with a glass of wine in-hand, of course. Golden Century Wine Bank is now open at 393–399 Sussex Street, Sydney. It's open daily from noon–4am. Image of Billy, Linda and Eric Wong by Parker Blain.
Putting such stationary, non-bouncy arts venues as the Sydney Opera House to shame, Ark Nova is the world’s first-ever inflatable concert hall. The striking travelling structure, designed by Japanese architect Arata Isozaki and British artist Anish Kapoor, was created to act as a kind of morale boost for regions affected by the devastating 2011 earthquake and tsunami, where it is currently touring. Capable of seating 500 people, the structure is 18 metres tall and externally resembles a large, shiny eggplant (or a giant jelly donut, depending on your perspective). Spreading out across 720 square-metres, the hall features benches made from tsunami-damaged cypress trees and a large white helium balloon above the stage that acts as both a sound and light reflector. The venue is not the easiest structure to manage. It was difficult to get the acoustics right. Air needs to be constantly sent in through an external vent. There’s no temperature control and it’s pretty sensitive to wild wind and weather conditions. But its designers believe the challenge to keep it up and running is worth it. In a statement about the project, Kapoor said, “Music can give solace and bring community together and in so doing can help us to see we are not alone.” Via Spoon & Tamago.
Everyone's favourite non-alcoholic beer brand Heaps Normal is throwing a massive one-day music festival at The Great Club in Marrickville. Pulling together a stacked lineup of local talent, an exciting food and drink roster and a range of extra-curricular activities, the all-day event is offering something for everybody. The genre-bending lineup is headed up by hip hop supergroup 1300, alongside singer-songwriters Babitha and Annie Hamilton, rapper Ziggy Ramo, and punk and DIY rockers Gee Tee, Loose Fit and Research Reatorc Corp. Also on the lineup: Alex Cross, CK & the 45s, Germ Donor, JEP, Maanyung, Solo Career and Tired Girl, plus DJ sets from Body Type and Heartsville. P&V's Mike Bennie has been enlisted to curate the drinks menu. The festival encourages patrons to have fun their own way, with both alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks on offer including some of Bennie's favourite mid- to low-strength wines and plenty of Heaps Normal, of course. The drinks list will be accompanied by food from Rosso Antico. Outside of the music, there will be film screenings, illustration workshops from Luke John Matthew Arnold, flash tattoos from Tattoo Rosies, a mullet station and an embroidery station. NORMFEST will be taking over The Great Club from 3pm until midnight on Saturday, December 10. Tickets are $20 pre-sale or $25 on the door if the festival hasn't sold out. There are free tickets available for First Nations attendees if you email marketing@heapsnormal.com.
In the heart of Sydney city, you'll find the bright and bustling Haymarket: the epicentre of Asian culture and cuisine. The streets are alive with colour, movement and smells beckoning you from one restaurant to the next. Clusters of caligraphy-covered shops compete for space along the packed streets illuminated by glowing lanterns and neon lights. The smell of garlic frying and meats grilling wafts through the air, as dumpling carts emit a steamy haze. It's all very Blade Runner-esque — and just like that complex sci-fi it can, at first, be a little difficult to navigate. To one side, you'll see Paddy's Markets heaving with bargain hunters; the other, Dixon Street, full to the brim with cuisines from across Asia. But where should you start? Don't stress. Last year, we partnered with City of Sydney and spoke to chef Mori Higashida of tip-top ramen joint Gumshara about his favourite spots around the area. And now, we've teamed up with City of Sydney again to pull out ten essential spots for you to hit next time you're wandering around Haymarket. Read on, take note and make tracks to this inner-city culinary wonderland.
In A Real Pain, as two cousins make a pilgrimage to walk in their dearly departed grandmother's shoes, the concept of alternative possible lives arises. Jesse Eisenberg's second film as a writer/director after 2022's When You Finish Saving the World doesn't hop between timelines science fiction-style; rather, when different pasts or futures come up, it follows a relatable Sliding Doors-esque train of thought about the events and decisions that've shaped David (played by Eisenberg) and Benji Kaplan's (Kieran Culkin, Succession) existences. They're in Poland, where their Grandma Dory grew up, and where they might've too if the Holocaust hadn't occurred. On their guided tour, Benji muses with David about their parallel-universe selves, where they're Polish with beards and everything that they've ever known is completely different. A Real Pain itself is the product of a comparable journey; it could've been a different movie and, originally, it was meant to be. Eisenberg was endeavouring to bring another project to the screen, adapting a short story that he'd penned for Tablet magazine. It was about two friends, not cousins, and instead of Poland they were travelling to Mongolia together. But the Oscar-nominated The Social Network actor, not to mention star of everything from the Zombieland and Now You See Me movies through to TV's Fleishman Is in Trouble, had himself been to Poland. He'd paid tribute to his own family history, visiting the house that his aunt Doris had lived in. He'd also been inspired by that trip to write 2013's off-Broadway play The Revisionist, about a young American man with an older Polish cousin who had survived the Second World War. An ad for "Auschwitz tours, with lunch", which Eisenberg randomly spotted online, helped him pull together influences from all of the above — the screenwriting task that he'd actually set himself, his prior play, his personal experiences and history — into A Real Pain. Audiences should be grateful that it did. Awards bodies have been so far, including via four Golden Globe nominations (for Best Film — Musical or Comedy, Best Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Motion Picture — Musical or Comedy for Eisenberg, Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture for Culkin, and Best Screenplay — Motion Picture, again for Eisenberg), plus love from the Gotham Awards and Independent Spirit Awards. At Sundance, where A Real Pain premiered, the dramedy took home a screenwriting accolade. Eisenberg isn't just filtering elements of his family's past into the movie, or recreating a trip that he took with his now-wife two decades back. As he did with the Julianne Moore (May December)- and Finn Wolfhard (Saturday Night)-starring When You Finish Saving the World, he's also tapping into his own IRL anxieties. What he's digging into is right there in A Real Pain's name. As he tells Concrete Playground, "I'm trying to examine and ask the question that I ask myself every day: is my pain valid?". When there's such bigger struggles, troubles and atrocities haunting the world beyond the everyday woes of a person with a largely comfortable life, how can someone feel angst and hurt while also confronted with the bigger picture? In A Real Pain, David and Benji were born mere weeks apart and were almost inseparable as kids, and now make a chalk-and-cheese pair — as is immediately evident while the former leaves a series of messages about meeting up at the airport, where the latter has already been contentedly for hours — but both have their own tussles. In their interactions one on one and with others, one is a ball of tension and apprehension, while the other is laidback and charming. (Based on casting, it's easy to pick which is which before even watching, although Eisenberg initially planned to play Benji.) Where David has also settled into adulthood while grappling with his stresses, however, Benji is in a state of arrested development. Their grandmother's passing hasn't helped. At a pivotal moment, chatting over dinner with the pair's tour group — which includes Will Sharpe (The White Lotus) as their guide, plus Jennifer Grey (Dollface), Kurt Egyiawan (The Agency), Liza Sadovy (A Small Light) and Daniel Oreskes (Only Murders in the Building) as fellow travellers — while Benji is in the bathroom, David unburdens his feelings in a powerful torrent. "I love him and I hate him and I want to kill him and I want to be him," he notes, getting to the heart of the cousins' complicated relationship. Earlier, they'd been at Lublin's Old Jewish Cemetery. The next day, they'll visit the Majdanek concentration camp. A Real Pain sees its titular emotion in micro and macro, then, and knows how awkwardly that the two clash. Just as with questioning the legitimacy of routine trials versus all of the worse things in the world, Eisenberg drew that crucial monologue from his own emotions and experiences. "It's also the most-personal part of the movie — and this is a movie that is very personal," he told us. We also chatted with the Rodger Dodger, The Squid and the Whale, Adventureland, The Double, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Vivarium and Sasquatch Sunset star about how A Real Pain came together, working with Culkin — including Emma Stone's advice as one of the film's producers that he shouldn't play Benji himself — and what he makes of his career 25 years after his screen debut in TV series Get Real. On What Keeps Drawing Eisenberg to the Question of 'What Pain Is Valid?' as a Writer/Director, First in When You Finish Saving the World and Now in A Real Pain "I've been in the arts since I'm a kid, and I married somebody who works in social justice. And so anytime time I feel I'm doing well or something, I'm reminded that my wife is maybe working with people in more immediate need than I am. And my mother-in-law ran a domestic violence shelter for 35 years, and was unimpressed that her daughter had been married to somebody in movies. So in that first movie, Julianne Moore plays a woman who runs a domestic violence shelter, and she's kind of unimpressed with her kid, who's her family, not doing anything of social value according to her. And then in A Real Pain, the characters are experiencing this very personal pain. My character has OCD, but medicates it away. And my cousin's character has very dark, dark demons inside of him, but it's on an individual level. And so I thought it would be interesting to put these guys against the backdrop of real historical global objective trauma, like the Holocaust. Because in both movies I'm trying to examine and ask the question that I ask myself every day: is my pain valid? I live in a comfortable apartment with a nice wife and kid, and work, I have a nice job. But yet I still feel miserable all day. And why do I have those feelings? So both movies are exploring that exact question. Questions of privilege versus pain — questions about how is it possible that we could feel bad for ourselves when there are so many worse things in the world? In the case of the first movie, it's about domestic violence, and in the case of this movie, it's the Holocaust. And that's just my preoccupation, which just comes from a very self-centred question of 'why do I deserve to feel self-pity?'. On A Real Pain Coming Together From First Trying to Write a Different Film, Then Seeing an Online Ad for Auschwitz Tours "with Lunch", and Also a Past Off-Broadway Play, Plus Eisenberg's Own Personal History and Trip to Poland "It's funny, my friend and I, he's a writer too, we write next to each other at the library every day, and he always says 'once you're on the downslope of the script, you know it's going well'. 'The downslope' in our lingo is basically just once you get past the point of setting everything up and the things are in motion and everything feels right, kind of resolving everything or maybe it's not resolving anything, but that downslope to the end is really smooth. So the last ten pages of this movie, I wrote, I think, in like five minutes, because my wife was texting me I'm going to be late to pick up my kid, and I was like 'I know, but I know the ending, I just have to..'. [caption id="attachment_985500" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Photo by Agata Grzybowska. Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures © 2024 Searchlight Pictures All Rights Reserved.[/caption] So I just wrote it really quickly and all this great stuff came out about me hitting him in the airport, and then this just sad ending of me going home to my family and him stuck at the airport, and it just happened because everything had been set up. And it was in my mind, as you mentioned, throughout several other plays and short stories and stuff, and a real trip with my wife. So once I was at that point, where the dominoes were all falling, I knew, 'oh, this is a story that feels complete'. And then I sent it to my parents and they had no idea what they were reading, because I sent it to them, I don't write in screenwriting programs, so I sent them an e-mail with no names above the characters. Anyway, they said 'this is terrible, what did you what did you do?'. And then I made it more official." [caption id="attachment_985499" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Photo by Agata Grzybowska, Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures, © 2024 Searchlight Pictures All Rights Reserved.[/caption] On What Eisenberg Was Excited About with Working with Kieran Culkin — and Casting Him in a Role That He Was First Planning to Play Himself "I was originally thinking I would play the role of Benji. And our producer is Emma Stone, and she is obviously a very successful producer/actress, and she told me just it would not be a good idea to play a character like that, who's so kind of unhinged and spontaneous, while also trying to direct the movie where I had to be in my other side of my brain of managing a crew. So once I decided I wasn't going to play that role and I was thinking about who could play it, the only person that seemed to me — it's strange, because he's not a Jewish actor — but the only person that seemed to me of my ilk is Kieran. [caption id="attachment_985496" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images for The Walt Disney Company Limited[/caption] I don't know what it is, that we're both from New York and speak in this kind of way, and have an energy about us that is similar, but I needed somebody similar and different to me. And Kieran is like me in so many ways and then completely the opposite of me in so many ways. He doesn't feel anxiety about acting. He doesn't think about it. He just wants to get to the set and to just perform. He doesn't want to talk. He does want to analyse it. He doesn't even sleep the night before, and he never wants to rehearse. And he's just comfortable in his own skin. He's now winning, like today, he just won two major awards for the role. I think he doesn't even care. I sent him a congratulations message. He's never going to get back to me. He just takes care of his kids and doesn't care about ambition, fame, success, any money, anything. He lives a really unusual life and it's exactly what I needed for the character. So what we were experiencing on set as colleagues was quite similar to what they're experiencing on set in character." On Capturing the Relatable Dynamic of Loving Someone But Also Hating Them in a Powerful Monologue — and How Pivotal That Moment Was for Eisenberg "Oh, very strangely pivotal in the sense that I was so conscious of the fact that I, as the writer/director, have a monologue in the movie. And I was so panicked about filming it, because I thought I would screw it up, and then I thought 'I don't want the other cast to be sitting there all day while I do this shot of myself'. So the cinematographer and the producer Ali Herting [I Saw the TV Glow, The Curse] basically forced me into doing this long shot that pushes in. We did one take and I was too embarrassed to do it again, because it just seemed indulgent. It's the only take we got. And because I knew I only wanted to one take, I put all the eggs in the basket of it, and so it was very lived in, so to speak. It's also the most-personal part of the movie — and this is a movie that is very personal. We film the movie at my family's house in Poland and it's about my family's history, and yet the most-personal part of the movie is where I say that stuff. Because I guess what I'm talking about is just the way I've felt in my relationships with other guys growing up, just finding people that I'm in awe of — not just guys, also women and family members and all sorts of people — where I have these dual feelings of wanting to be them and kill them at the same time, and loving them and hating them at the same time. I'm living in the shadow of Benji, but in some ways my life has greater stability than his. In most ways, my life has more stability. And so I understand that I've created the life I want, and yet still every time I'm with him he brings up those childhood feelings of envy." On What Eisenberg Makes of His Path From His Screen Debut in TV Series Get Real 25 Years Ago to Everything That's Come His Way Since, Including Writing and Directing "When I was like 16, I got my first professional acting job, which was acting in this TV show. And I'll never forget the audition, all the executives were there, and I remember I was just trying to be funny in front of them. And I was not thinking of myself as a funny person at that point. I was trying to be funny, and people were laughing, like adults were laughing. And I thought 'oh, that's interesting, I wonder if I'm allowed to just be funny the way I want to be funny — it can translate'. I didn't have to be funny like Adam Sandler or something. I could just be funny like myself. So that TV show allowed me to explore, let's say, my own voice as an actor. So that was a really, really lucky experience that no one watched. And since then, I've been very lucky to play roles where I can bring myself to it or bring my own sensibility to certain things, especially in a movie like A Real Pain, which is like my story, and I'm always surprised that anybody likes it. Because when you think of something that's your own, and that's private or artful or creative or something that's funny in your head, you never expect to have any kind of public reaction. But now I've found myself in this very weird position where I get to write stuff and can produce it, and it just feels quite strange because it all still feels very personal." A Real Pain opens in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, December 26, 2024. Images: Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. © 2024 Searchlight Pictures All Rights Reserved.
Powerhouse Museum Ultimo is set to look a whole lot different thanks to a $500-million makeover — and the plan for the revamp has just been given the green light. The approval for the concept that won 2022's design competition is the latest step towards kicking off construction on the project. "Planning consent allows us to move into the next important phase of the project and to get on with the job of reinvigorating one of Australia's most revered museums, securing its future for many generations to come," Powerhouse Trust President Peter Collins AM KC said. "We will now continue to consult with the community and stakeholders as we refine the final design of the museum and ensure the community provides input into the renewal during the next phase of the planning process." If you'd like to have your say, you can participate in the consultation on the design by completing the online survey before Friday, March 10. Celebrating the current strengths of the building while providing it with a major transformation, the concept has been designed by Australian team Architectus, Durbach Block Jaggers Architects, Tyrrell Studio, Youssofzay + Hart, Akira Isogawa, Yerrabingin, Finding Infinity and Arup. This team's design was unanimously selected by the jury following a design competition. Included in the transformation are expanded exhibition spaces, a new urban space connected to the neighbouring Goods Line that will work as a public square, revitalised creative studios at the Harris Street end of the building and increased outdoor spaces throughout the museum. "The new building casts a reimagined lens on the heritage fabrics and cityscapes from multiple levels of this escarpment – from uses, circulation, terraces and gardens," said Design Director Camilla Block. "Respectful and immediate, the reimagined building lives alongside the Powerhouse core, a powerful embodiment of both geography and backdrop." Aesthetically, the renders reveal a new facade of concrete and red brick emerging from the heritage-listed elements of the museum. "Congratulations to the team for their deeply considered response to the Ultimo site, honouring the history and heritage of the Powerhouse museum whilst simultaneously reimagining how we can continue to engage our communities into the future," Powerhouse Chief Executive Lisa Havilah said. The revamped museum will also feature a new rooftop learning camp called Powerhouse Academy. This space will offer secondary and tertiary students from regional NSW and around the country the opportunity to come to Sydney and participate in immersive learning experiences. The project has undergone a rocky history to get to this point. Back in 2015, Powerhouse Museum Ultimo was earmarked for closure, as part of a move to shift the entire facility to Parramatta. Then, when that idea didn't prove popular, the New South Wales Government committed to revamping and revitalising the existing site, allocating $480–500 million to the makeover. The other Powerhouse Museum location will still be established in Parramatta and is under construction at the moment. Head to the Powerhouse Museum Ultimo's renewal homepage for all the information on the site's transformation. Images: Powerhouse Ultimo renewal concept design created by Architectus, Durbach Block Jaggers Architects, Tyrrell Studio, Youssofzay + Hart, Akira Isogawa, Yerrabingin, Finding Infinity and Arup.
With its sweeping Sydney views and good times vibes, Opera Bar remains a firm favourite among tourists and locals alike. And, now that the warm weather has (mostly) returned, the harbourside venue is giving you even more to love with the launch of In Bloom. Available till November 3, it's a new drinks menu dedicated to alcoholic soft serve and gin spritzes. Start off perusing the menu of five different Bombay Sapphire spritzes (all $18), served all day and late into the night. Varieties include the Summer Blush (cherry blossom and grapefruit), the Violet Fizz (white vermouth, violet and orange blossom) and the Tea Dreams (chai tea, hibiscus, ginger and lime). If you're feeling peckish, you can order something off the all-day bar menu, with snacks including Sydney rock oysters, tiger prawns, pizzas and fried chicken with jalapeño mayo. Dessert-wise, the new Bombay Sapphire-based frozen treats are the real drawcard. The gin soft serves are available in two flavours: tonic with lemon and cherry violet. They'll set you back $12 a pop and are the equivalent to about one standard drink. And, at sunset each day, live acts will take the stage to serenade you into the night. Opera Bay is open from Monday–Thursday, 10am–midnight; Friday, 10am–1am; Saturday, 9am–1am; and Sunday, 9am–midnight.
Brewskies, two-up and commemorating our brave veterans, our fallen and their descendants; it's a day of tradition of celebration, reflection and copious amounts of Tooheys Old. Anzac Day is likely to leave you with a fair hangover and empty pockets, so to make things easier on the wallet and the social planners, let Concrete Playground help you plan it out. Here's our round-up of the ten best things to do in Sydney this April 25, which at both the going down of the sun and in the morning, you will remember. 1. WAKE UP FOR THE ANZAC DAY DAWN SERVICE An Anzac Day tradition, Australians have been rising early since 1916 to commemorate military servicemen in the Dawn Service. Set your alarm and wake up early to commemorate both fallen and serving military men and women in the Anzac Day Dawn Service. Be at the Cenotaph in Martin Place before the 4:15am ceremony commencement; there's nothing like paying your respects as the bugle brings up the sun. 2. HEAD TO THE ANZAC DAY MARCH(ES) Medals are shined up and proudly donned as veterans, their descendants and serving personnel march through Sydney’s CDB for the annual Anzac Day Parade. Commencing at 9am sharp, the march will begin in Martin Place at Pitt Street, then head down George Street, turn at Bathurst Street toward Elizabeth Street before reaching the War Memorial (here's the map). The Last Post will ring out over Hyde Park at the commemorative services kicking off at 12:30pm beside the Pool of Remembrance. Right after the main Sydney march, Sydney’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community leaders are holding the eighth annual Anzac Day March and Commemorative Service in Redfern. With Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island people having served in the military since the Boer War, the Redfern Anzac Day March honours Australia’s unsung war heroes, beginning right after the Sydney march at 1:45pm. Commencing from Redfern Park, the march will head down Redfern, Lawson and Eveleigh streets to the Redfern Community Centre. 3. PLAY A NATIONAL SPORT: TWO-UP Take advantage of one of only two days a year where this national sport is legal and squeeze into one of many Sydney pubs hosting this beloved Anzac Day tradition. Make sure you convert those notes into gold coins, place your bets and watch those sacred two-up coins fall. We recommend hitting up one of Sydney's best pubs in The Rocks, Surry Hills or the Inner West for a spirited crowd and local craft beers on tap. Here's our picks for two-up hubs: The Rocks: The Morrison, The Glenmore or The Argyle. Surry Hills: The Forresters, The Norfolk or The Beresford. Eastern Suburbs: Watson's Bay Boutique Hotel. Balmain: Dick's, The Exchange or The Balmain. Newtown: Newtown Hotel or The Courthouse. Or save it all up for Sydney's biggest two-up game, further down our list... 4. WATCH A NATIONAL SPORT: NRL After a few Paddington brewskies, head to Allianz Stadium, Moore Park to watch the NRL's traditional Anzac Day clash between St George Illawarra Dragons and the Sydney Roosters. Cheering on these sporting warriors as they crash into each other for 80 minutes, channelling the Anzac spirit is a straight-up riveting way to spend the public holiday afternoon. 5. BUSH OLYMPICS AT FREDA'S Australia Day Bush Olympics at Freda’s (107-109 Regent St, Chippendale) proved to be such a hit that it’s happening all over again, in honour of the diggers. From 4pm, there’ll be true blue “Barnsey to Farnsey” ozploitation from live band Bad Jeep (pictured), original tunes from Newcastle underdogs These New South Whales, DJ sets from Smokey La Beef and Wild Sunset, $5 VB tinnies and two-up in the laneway. Turn up with a mullet and you’ll score a beer on the house. Really. Entry is free. 6. HEAD TO THE SUNSET SERVICE If you're not an early riser and want to pay your respects (or you want to add some symmetry to your day by ending it as it began), there's a sunset Anzac service at the Cenotaph in Martin Place. Make your way there for the 5pm start and the going down of the sun. Image credit: Greg O'Beirne 7. EAST SIDE MEETS WEST SIDE PARTY AT EASY TIGER If you’re looking for an alternative to the ubiquitous Tooheys and two-up, head along to Easy Tiger (106 Oxford St, Paddington) for an East Side meets West Side party, kicking off at 5pm. Young Henry’s Real Ale on tap will quench all thirsts while a locally-sourced live music programme is sure to instil a touch of national pride in punters. There’ll be sets from The Owls (pictured), Spirit Valley, Civilians and Steve Smyth, as well as vinyl DJ sets. All for free. 8. FOLLOW THE AUSTRALIAN DREAM AT STRICTLY BALLROOM I want to dance with you. I want to dance with you your way at the Pan Pacifics. Is there an Australian alive in the '90s who doesn't know the meaning of those immortal words? That paragon of multiculturalism, suburban sparkle and following your dream, Strictly Ballroom, not only launched the career of writer-director Baz Luhrmann but also implanted itself in our national consciousness as few films have. Now the team behind the movie have brought it to the stage as Strictly Ballroom: The Musical, and the big surprise? It's actually pretty damn good. Celebrate solid Australian talent at Lyric Theatre this Anzac Day. 9. KICK BACK AT THE MOVIES If you woke up early enough to make the Dawn Service, you might well be ready to kick back and spoil yourself at the movies by the afternoon. For those who find themselves thinking about international relations on Anzac Day, there’s Chinese Puzzle. On the other hand, for the more (sort of) patriotically inclined, there’s Captain America. 10. THE INNER WEST'S BIGGEST TWO-UP GAME – THE VIC To be part of the biggest two-up game in the inner west, hit The Vic (2 Addison Rd, Marrickville). Furnace and The Fundamentals, Handsome Young Strangers and Jay Katz will soundtrack your wins and your losses. Plus, if all that tossing works up an appetite, you’ll be more than provided for with a spit roast and Anzac biccies. Entry is free and diggers receive a complimentary drink. ONE MORE THING, TAKE A MINUTE'S SILENCE While you can hold your own moment of reflection to pay respects to the diggers, you could also help the RSL out. In a moment of performance art meets respectful fundraising, the RSL's Anzac Appeal this year are selling minutes of silence. An actual recording of soundless contemplation time, the Minute of Silence is raising funds to help returned service men and women. You can buy the recording by telephone, and even the cost of the call will help toward the RSL. To buy the Minute of Silence, phone 1902 250 414 for Victoria, 1902 250 415 (NSW & Qld), 1902 250 416 (Queensland), 1902 250 417 (South Australia & NT), 1902 250 418 Western Australia or 1902 250 419 (Tasmania). Or alternatively, text the word SILENCE and your home state to 1999 1234. Either way, make sure you take a quiet moment to remember amidst the brewskies and coin tossing. Words by Matthew Watson, Jasmine Crittenden, Rima Sabina Aouf and Shannon Connellan.
Good morning to 2022's newly minted batch of Academy Awards nominees, and to fantastic news for the past year's very best film. The Power of the Dog leads this year's list of contenders with 12 nods, including three for filmmaker Jane Campion — who is now the first woman in history to receive two nominations for Best Director (after also being nominated for The Piano back in 1993), and could become the second female filmmaker in a row to win the coveted field (after Chloé Zhao's 2021 win for Nomadland). The Power of Dog's cinematographer Ari Wegner is also just the second woman to be nominated in her category, while the film's main cast all scored nods — including a Best Actor nomination for Benedict Cumberbatch, a Best Supporting Actress nom for Kirsten Dunst, and Best Supporting Actor nods for both Jesse Plemons and Australian talent Kodi Smit-McPhee. For real-life couple Dunst and Plemons, they nabbed their first-ever Oscar nominations together. For Smit-McPhee, if he wins, he'll become the second-youngest actor to score the shiny statuette in his category. That's the power of The Power of the Dog, clearly. Following Campion's exceptional New Zealand-shot western at the top of the 2022 Oscar nominations list is Dune with ten, including for Best Picture — although the film must've directed itself, with Denis Villeneuve missing out. After the sci-fi epic sits Steven Spielberg's new version of West Side Story and Kenneth Branagh's black-and-white memoir Belfast with seven apiece, also including Best Picture slots in a field that spans The Power of the Dog (obviously), CODA, Don't Look Up, Drive My Car, King Richard, Licorice Pizza and Nightmare Alley as well. Inspired by Haruki Murakami's short story of the same name, Drive My Car is now the most-nominated Japanese film in history, thanks to its Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay nods for filmmaker Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, and its spot in the Best International Feature and Best Picture categories. Also making history: astonishing animated documentary Flee, which became the first movie to nab a spot in the Best International Feature, Best Animated Feature and Best Documentary Feature fields. Other standouts nods: Kristen Stewart's Best Actress nomination for playing Princess Diana in Spencer; Penélope Cruz's place in the same field for Parallel Mothers; Troy Kotsur's nod for CODA, becoming just the second actor who is deaf to be recognised by the Academy; both Olivia Colman (Best Actress) and Jesse Buckley (Best Supporting Actress) getting nods for sharing the same part in The Lost Daughter; Questlove earning some love for Best Documentary Feature for Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised); and The Worst Person in the World picking up places in the Best International Feature and Best Original Screenplay fields. Licorice Pizza's strong showing — including a Best Director spot for Paul Thomas Anderson — is also well-deserved, although the Oscars couldn't find room for Alana Haim's glorious lead performance. Oddities and omissions come with the territory every year, of course. The Academy went big for the average-at-best Being the Ricardos performance-wise, including nominating Nicole Kidman for Best Actress — and Don't Look Up's Best Picture nod probably at least means that filmmaker Adam McKay won't make a followup about how people ignored a movie that riffs on the response to climate change because they were more interested in better features. Also, despite a big public campaign, Spider-Man: No Way Home was only recognised in the Best Visual Effects category. That's a reflection of the film itself, though, and not of any supposed anti-superhero/supervillain flick bias, given that Black Panther scored seven nominations in 2019 and Joker picked up 11 in 2020. From all of this year's nominations, movie lovers will learn who'll emerge victorious on Monday, March 28, Australian and New Zealand time. And if it feels like we just went through all of this, that's because 2021's awards were held a little later than usual due to the pandemic — and because chatter about who's won Oscars and who'll win next, aka the sport of the film world, has become a year-round affair. The 94th Academy Awards will take place on Monday, March 28, Australian and New Zealand time. Here's the full list of nominations: OSCAR NOMINEES 2022 BEST MOTION PICTURE The Power of the Dog West Side Story Belfast Dune Licorice Pizza King Richard CODA Don't Look Up Drive My Car Nightmare Alley BEST DIRECTOR Jane Campion, The Power of the Dog Paul Thomas Anderson, Licorice Pizza Steven Spielberg, West Side Story Kenneth Branagh, Belfast Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Drive My Car PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE Olivia Colman, The Lost Daughter Nicole Kidman, Being the Ricardos Jessica Chastain, The Eyes of Tammy Faye Kristen Stewart, Spencer Penélope Cruz, Parallel Mothers PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE Will Smith, King Richard Benedict Cumberbatch, The Power of the Dog Andrew Garfield, Tick, Tick... Boom! Denzel Washington, The Tragedy of Macbeth Javier Bardem, Being the Ricardos PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE Ariana DeBose, West Side Story Kirsten Dunst, The Power of the Dog Aunjanue Ellis, King Richard Judi Dench, Belfast Jessie Buckley, The Lost Daughter PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE Kodi Smit-McPhee, The Power of the Dog Ciarán Hinds, Belfast Troy Kotsur, CODA Jesse Plemons, The Power of the Dog JK Simmons, Being the Ricardos BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY Licorice Pizza, Paul Thomas Anderson Belfast, Kenneth Branagh King Richard, Zach Baylin Don't Look Up, Adam McKay (story by McKay and David Sirota) The Worst Person in the World, Joachim Trier and Eskil Vogt BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY The Power of the Dog, Jane Campion The Lost Daughter, Maggie Gyllenhaal CODA, Sian Heder Dune, Jon Spaihts, Denis Villeneuve and Eric Roth Drive My Car, Ryusuke Hamaguchi and Takamasa Oe BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM Drive My Car (Japan) The Worst Person in the World (Norway) Flee (Denmark) The Hand of God (Italy) Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom (Bhutan) BEST ANIMATED FEATURE Encanto Luca The Mitchells vs the Machines Flee Raya and the Last Dragon BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) Flee Ascension Attica Writing with Fire BEST ORIGINAL SCORE The Power of the Dog, Jonny Greenwood Dune, Hans Zimmer Don't Look Up, Nicholas Britell Encanto, Germaine Franco Parallel Mothers, Alberto Iglesias BEST ORIGINAL SONG 'No Time to Die', No Time to Die (Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell) 'Dos Oruguitas', Encanto (Lin-Manuel Miranda) 'Be Alive', King Richard (Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and Dixson) 'Down to Joy' Belfast (Van Morrison) 'Somehow You Do', Four Good Days (Diane Warren) BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY Dune, Greig Fraser The Power of the Dog, Ari Wegner The Tragedy of Macbeth, Bruno Delbonnel Nightmare Alley, Dan Laustsen West Side Story, Janusz Kaminski BEST FILM EDITING Dune, Joe Walker The Power of the Dog, Peter Sciberras Don't Look Up, Hank Corwin King Richard, Pamela Martin Tick, Tick... Boom!, Myron Kerstein and Andrew Weisblum BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN Dune, Patrice Vermette and Zsuzsanna Sipos Nightmare Alley, Tamara Deverell and Shane Vieau West Side Story, Adam Stockhausen and Rena DeAngelo The Tragedy of Macbeth, Stefan Dechant and Nancy Haigh The Power of the Dog, Grant Major and Amber Richards BEST VISUAL EFFECTS Dune, Paul Lambert, Tristan Myles, Brian Connor, Gerd Nefzer Free Guy, Swen Gillberg, Bryan Grill, Nikos Kalaitzidis, Dan Sudick Spider-Man: No Way Home, Kelly Port, Chris Waegner, Scott Edelstein and Dan Sudick Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Christopher Townsend, Joe Farrell, Sean Noel Walker and Dan Oliver No Time to Die, Charlie Noble, Joel Green, Jonathan Fawkner, Chris Corbould BEST COSTUME DESIGN Cruella, Jenny Beavan Dune, Jacqueline West and Bob Morgan West Side Story, Paul Tazewell Nightmare Alley, Luis Sequeira Cyrano, Massimo Cantini Parrini and Jacqueline Durran BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Linda Dowds, Stephanie Ingram and Justin Raleigh Dune, Donald Mowat, Love Larson and Eva von Bahr Cruella, Nadia Stacey, Naomi Donne and Julia Vernon Coming 2 America, Mike Marino, Stacey Morris and Carla Farmer House of Gucci, Goran Lundstrom, Anna Carin Lock and Frederic Aspiras BEST SOUND Dune, Mac Ruth, Mark Mangini, Theo Green, Doug Hemphill and Ron Bartlett West Side Story, Tod A Maitland, Gary Rydstrom, Brian Chumney, Andy Nelson and Shawn Murphy No Time to Die, Simon Hayes, Oliver Tarney, James Harrison, Paul Massey and Mark Taylor Belfast, Denise Yarde, Simon Chase, James Mather and Niv Adiri The Power of the Dog, Richard Flynn, Robert Mackenzie and Tara Webb BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT Audible Lead Me Home The Queen of Basketball Three Songs for Benazir When We Were Bullies BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM Affairs of the Art Bestia Boxballet Robin Robin The Windshield Wiper BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM Ala Kachuu — Take and Run The Dress The Long Goodbye On My Mind Please Hold Top image: Netflix.
More than most games, Dungeons & Dragons thrives or dies based on the people rolling the dice, creating their own characters and casting spells. Whether Stranger Things' demogorgon-slaying teens are hunched over a table imagining up their fantasy dreams, or flesh-and-blood folks who aren't just part of a TV series find themselves pretending that they're fighters and clerics, an adventure or campaign is only as good as the party at its core. Writer/directors Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley understand this. The latter definitely should: the one-season TV great Freaks and Geeks, which gave him his start as an actor when he was just a kid, threw D&D some love, too. As filmmakers, Goldstein and Daley jump from Game Night to Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves with a clear mission: making the swords-and-sorcery flick's cast its biggest strength. This game-to-screen flick sports a stacked roster, starting with Chris Pine (Don't Worry Darling) as Edgin Darvis, a bard and former member of the Harpers who turned petty thief — complete with a Robin Hood-esque attitude — after his wife passed away. Since his daughter Kira (Chloe Coleman, Avatar: The Way of Water) was a baby, he's been co-parenting with his gruff best friend Holga Kilgore, a stoic exiled barbarian, who is played with exactly the stern look that Michelle Rodriguez (Fast & Furious 9) was always going to bring to the part. When Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves opens, however, Edgin and Holga have been in prison for almost two years thanks to a job gone wrong. Brought out of their dank dungeon to plead for their release, Edgin and Holga are determined to get free by any means necessary. And, once they're out, they're equally as committed to reuniting their makeshift family. Yes, a dungeon is indeed sighted within seconds of the film starting. Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves doesn't skimp on dragons when it's their turn to arrive, either. But there's more cast members to bring into the fray — and, handily, Edgin and Holga had a whole gang back in their escapade-heavy days. Rogue and con artist Forge Fitzwilliam (Hugh Grant, Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre) was one such party member. Simon Aumar (Justice Smith, Sharper), a sorcerer with hefty confidence issues, was another. These days, Forge has turned nefarious, seized guardianship of Kira, become Lord of Neverwinter, and gotten far too friendly with the fierce, fearsome and necromancy-loving Red Wizard of Thay Sofina (Daisy Head, Wrong Turn). Simon is still trying his magical luck, which is quickly needed, alongside help from tiefling druid Doric (Sophie Lillis, IT and IT: Chapter Two) and paladin Xenk Yendar (Regé-Jean Page, The Gray Man). As Dungeon Masters — co-scripting with Michael Gilio (Jolene), and working with a story by him and The Lego Batman Movie's Chris McKay — Goldstein and Daley thrust their various figures together, then shape a story around them. So, it's all classic D&D, just on-screen with copious amounts of special effects (some overdone in the usual CGI-dripping fantasy blockbuster fashion, some pleasingly looking more tangible, such as reanimated corpses voiced by Aunty Donna Down Under) rather than sitting around a board. Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves' tale couldn't be more straightforward, or fittingly episodic — with actions to complete, skills called upon and combat unleashed. There's no 20-sided die, but there is said bard and barbarian, and the sorcerer, druid and paladin with them, battling a rogue and wizard. And, straight out of the Monster Manual, owlbears, displacer beasts, red dragons and gelatinous cubes all make an appearance. Whether they first had everyone moving miniatures or mashing buttons, games are having a heap of big- and small-screen moments in 2023. The Last of Us is one of the year's very best new TV shows, a film about getting Tetris out of Russia and to the masses makes for a tense and entertaining streaming thriller, and The Super Mario Bros Movie gives the Nintendo favourite the animated treatment. A question lingers over all of them, though, and for fans and newcomers alike: would it be more engaging, and more fun, just to play? Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves answers by giving the act of watching the feel of playing regardless of whether you're a level zero or level 20 with its mythology — in its light, jovial and energetic tone, with the film taking itself earnestly but never grimly seriously; and in no small part thanks to its array of faces. Stranger Things has been helping broaden D&D's influence for nearing a decade now, but everything from E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Futurama and Community to Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The IT Crowd and Gravity Falls have nodded its way, too — and Goldstein and Daley also understand this. Their take on the game is welcomely accessible, while appropriately loving and still packed with nudges and references. That said, it's also padded and repetitive the more that it goes goes on. And Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves does go on, clocking in at 134 minutes. Some lengthy films make the time fly by — see: John Wick: Chapter 4, which could've lasted forever — but this one doesn't quite realise when a good time becomes an overly formulaic one. The fights and confrontations, the quips and character beats, the beasts and underground cells: after a while, a fantasy-101 feeling sinks in, especially in these days of ample worshipping thrown Game of Thrones, Lord of the Rings, The Witcher and company's ways. Mostly, Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves is enough of a romp — a romp with clear franchise-starting ambitions, even though there's already been three D&D movies dating back to 2000, but a romp nonetheless. Take out Pine and his on-screen pals, though, and it would've been all over the map. His charm is breezy, and his rapport with Rodriguez gives the film a likeable chalk-and-cheese duo. Page is as smooth as ever — yes, Bridgerton-level smooth — and Grant is visibly having a blast of a time getting villainous Paddington 2-style. Head, daughter of Buffy and Ted Lasso's Anthony Stewart Head, frequently shows up the pixel wizardry with just her glare and makeup. Yes, Dungeons & Dragons is all about the folks playing both on- and off-screen, and Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves' bunch makes viewers want to play along with them.
With October signalling the end to many of the COVID-19 restrictions we've all been living with, it's the perfect time for Sydneysiders to explore our fair city. Whether you're a southwest native or live further afield, there's a raft of pleasures to discover in the region that are well worth your time. Below you'll find a schedule for a packed day of fun in southwest Sydney that satisfies at every turn. From first-class food to adrenaline-inducing thrill rides to gorgeous scenery, the southwest really does have it all. You're sure to have a day that flies by in the blink of an eye no matter who you're sharing it with. START THE DAY WITH BREKKIE AT FOUR LITTLE FOXES IN MILPERRA They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so start your day well with a visit to Milperra favourite, Four Little Foxes. Currently open for takeaway only, this welcoming cafe has something for everyone on its exciting and varied menu — from classics like a bacon and egg roll to sweet options like french toast with passionfruit curd and maple mascarpone. And we can't go without mentioning the mouth-watering crowd-pleaser: eggs benedict with fried chicken and jalapeño hollandaise. Add the fact that the baristas are serving up coffee roasted by Deluca, and Four Little Foxes is a real treat to kick off the day's activities. TAKE A WALK THROUGH GEORGES RIVER NATIONAL PARK After loading up on brekkie, you'll want to walk it off. Luckily, Georges River National Park is less than ten kilometres away, so you can get your body moving with a view. Despite being inland, the park's location on the river means the picturesque Burrawang Reach will have you feeling like you're on the coast. And from there you can tackle the Ridge Walk — a trail that affords scenic lookouts along the water. It may be relatively short but it'll certainly get the blood pumping. Once you finish at Cattle Duffers Flat picnic area, either turn round and retrace your steps or follow the river's edge to work your way back to the start. GRAB A QUICK LUNCH IN BANKSTOWN Lunch means a trip to Bankstown and your choice of some of the finest Asian cuisine Sydney has to offer. Banh Mi Bay Ngo, located in Bankstown City Plaza, has been delighting southwest Sydney with its range of classic Vietnamese sandwiches for over three decades. The secret to their success? Everything is made in house. If Vietnamese isn't your jam, head on down to the Little Saigon Plaza. The ever-popular Papparich has all your Malaysian favourites, including laksa, nasi lemak and chicken rice. Alternatively, Soju Social offers a taste of South Korea if you need your fried chicken fix. [caption id="attachment_829707" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Christopher Woe[/caption] VISIT BANKSTOWN ARTS CENTRE For culture vultures in the southwest, you can't go wrong with Bankstown Arts Centre. Since its opening in early 2011, it has showcased thought-provoking exhibitions, provided classes and workshops for the community and worked toward breaking down barriers for people experiencing social exclusion — both artists and audience. During lockdown, the Arts Centre moved online, sharing artworks centred on the local area. Soon, patrons will be able to visit in-person again and experience the kinds of exhibitions the company is famous for, including a series of events to mark its tenth anniversary. SNACK ON LEBANESE SWEETS FROM AL AFRAH OR RABIEH SWEETS Nothing delivers that sugary hit quite like Lebanese confectionary. And, the suburb of Punchbowl has two top-quality emporiums dedicated to those mouth-watering delights. Al Afrah is the oldest Lebanese sweet shop in Australia and has a selection of baklava, pastries, petit fours and chocolates that taste as good as they look. And that's without mentioning the homemade gelato. Rabieh Sweets may be newer, but it's no less impressive. Its menu is packed with Middle Eastern treats that are sure to please the palate — whether they're a reminder of childhood or a first-time experience. [caption id="attachment_693299" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Stephanie Cook[/caption] GO TO SYDNEY INDOOR CLIMBING GYM Following its debut at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, the sport of climbing is sure to explode in popularity — even more so than it already has. Sydney Indoor Climbing Gym in Villawood offers both bouldering (low height, no ropes) and climbing (higher walls, safety ropes), and is the largest climbing gym in western Sydney. The numbers speak for themselves: 250 routes, 50 boulder problems and climbing walls up to 16 metres tall. Prices start at $20 for adult entry, but multi-visit passes and memberships are available, too. It's a worthwhile investment — once you get the climbing bug, you won't stop 'til you reach the top. [caption id="attachment_780383" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Cassandra Hannagan[/caption] DINNER AT AN RESTAURANT OR AL ASEEL After such a busy day, you deserve a cracking feed. Head back to Bankstown for the final meal of the day to pay a visit to An Restaurant, whose slogan — "So Pho So Good" — tells you nearly everything you need to know. Noodles and meat are the order of the day, with a range of cuts to suit every appetite. Or, if you're craving Lebanese food, head to Al Aseel in Bankstown Sports. The extensive menu features both cold and hot sharing items alongside grilled staples such as shawarma and meat skewers — and that's before you even get to its famous fattoush. DRINKS AT LADY BANKS A cocktail or three is the perfect way to round off a day experiencing the best this corner of Sydney has to offer. And, the recently opened Lady Banks at the top of the Flinders Centre in Bankstown is the ideal location to do just that. Sydneysiders love a rooftop bar — especially when the weather is warmer — and post-lockdown we're keen to spend as much time al fresco as possible. Surely one of the only places with panoramic views of both the CBD and the Blue Mountains, Lady Banks has an impressive selection of beverages. Try its signature cocktail (the Lady Banks, naturally) mixed with gin, elderflower liqueur and a spritz of lemon. To learn more about Lady Banks rooftop bar, visit the website.
Powerhouse Museum Ultimo is set to look a whole lot different thanks to $500-million makeover — and if you're wondering what that might entail, the venue has just unveiled a more extensive look at its proposed revamp. A development plan is currently on display via the NSW Government's website, outlining further details, in what proves the latest step in the venue's complicated recent history. Back in 2015, Powerhouse Museum Ultimo was earmarked for closure, as part of a move to shift the entire facility to Parramatta. Then, when that idea didn't prove popular, the New South Wales Government committed to revamping and revitalising the existing site, allocating $480–500 million to the makeover. Another Powerhouse Museum location will still be established in Parramatta, and is under construction at the moment. Back at Ultimo, its revamp plan is now on public exhibition until Thursday, July 21, revealing details about expanding the museum site, and also creating a comprehensive design outlet for local creatives. A renewed focus on design and fashion is central to the multimillion-dollar overhaul, with plans to bring the Powerhouse's local and international exhibitions to the forefront of its event programming. Another aim: for the Ultimo site to also increase opportunities for creative development, via subsidised studios and workspaces for creatives. [caption id="attachment_859231" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Powerhouse Museum corner of Harris Street and William Henry Street, NSW Planning Portal[/caption] Alongside general refurbishments and cosmetic upgrades, the new-look Powerhouse Ultimo is expected to connect seamlessly with The Goods Line, Darling Square and UTS in a bid to contribute further to the nighttime economy. While exact design proposals are still to come, the report pushes for a rejig of the building's orientation and public spaces at the museum in order to create entrances and courtyards flowing between the Powerhouse and surrounding infrastructure — such as the nearby light rail stop and The Goods Line. The report shows plans to expand the museum site on Harris Street and Macarthur Street, increasing both indoor and outdoor space and allowing "the Museum program to spill outside and engage with the Goods Line and public realm of Ultimo and Haymarket beyond." [caption id="attachment_811875" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Powerhouse Ultimo, Jordan Munns[/caption] "We will create a vibrant public square beside the Goods Line, and creative industries workspaces that will become home for Australian designers," Powerhouse Chief Executive Lisa Havilah said when the renewal was first announced. Following this stage of planning, an architectural competition will be held to establish the final design of the museum, as well as the firm that will work on it. As part of the renewal, a chunk of the Ultimo site's collection will also be relocated to Powerhouse Castle Hill in order to create space for the new design and fashion initiatives being planned for the renovated site. Sydneysiders keen for more detailed information can look through the application on the NSW Government website, or head to one of the drop-in sessions that Powerhouse Ultimo is hosting. The sessions will take place on the afternoons of Thursday, July 7 and 14, plus the mornings of Saturday, July 9 and 16. Powerhouse Museum Ultimo is located at 500 Harris St, Ultimo. For more information about the Powerhouse Ultimo renewal project, head to the museum's website.
Since 2008, it's been oh so quiet in Australia. Since the Big Day Out that year, Icelandic icon Björk hasn't toured the country to perform full shows, only coming to Sydney to do DJ sets at Vivid in 2016. But that'll change in 2023, all thanks to the singer's Cornucopia tour; however, if you're keen to check it out — which you should be — then you'll need to make sure you're in Perth. Perth residents, congrats — you're in for a treat, as every Björk show always is. Everyone else, heading to Western Australia should be on your must-do list on March 3, 6, 9 or 12, the dates that the star will take to the stage at Langley Park during 2023's Perth Festival. [caption id="attachment_875283" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Warren Du Preez and Nick Thornton-Jones[/caption] These will be Björk's only Aussie gigs, and take place in a purpose-built, 100 metre by 55 metre pavilion at the venue — which is being badged "a cybersonic Garden of Eden where nature and technology come together in perfect harmony" — that can host almost 5000 people per evening. Expect colours, futuristic screens, a whole lot of nature imagery, stunning costumes, Björk's tunes (obviously) and a multi-sensory experience all round. The musician's 2017 album Utopia is the focus of the Cornucopia tour and the production that goes with it, which debuted back in 2019 in Manhattan. Still, Björk has been playing a few songs from the rest of her career as part of the setlist, including 1993's 'Venus As a Boy', 1995's 'Isobel', and 2001's 'Hidden Place' and 'Pagan Poetry'. [caption id="attachment_875280" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Santiago Felipe[/caption] Fans of tunes like 'Army of Me', 'Hyperballad', 'It's Oh So Quiet', 'Violently Happy' and 'Big Time Sensuality' mightn't hear their favourite track, sorry — but the dazzling spectacle of the Cornucopia gigs, which is co-directed by acclaimed Argentinian filmmaker Lucrecia Martel (Zama) promises to be a sight to behold. The tour comes to Perth after previous other stops in Mexico City, Brussels, Luxembourg, London, Glasgow, Dublin, Oslo, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Los Angeles and San Francisco — and before two Tokyo gigs. Tickets go on sale from 12pm AWST on Thursday, October 27 (for pre-sales) and 12pm AWST on Thursday, November 2 (for general sales). As for the rest of the Perth Festival lineup — if you're looking for other things to do around Björk's shows, whether you're a local or plan to be a visitor — it's announced on Thursday, October 27. Bjork will play Perth Festival 2023, at Langley Park, 103 Birdiya Drive, Perth, on March 3, 6, 9 and 12, 2023. Ticket pre-sales start at 12pm AWST on Thursday, October 27, with general sales from 12pm AWST on Thursday, November 2. For more information, or to sign up for pre-sale access, head to the Perth Festival website. Top images: William Murray via Wikimedia Commons / Santiago Felipe.
Sydney music-lovers have a new house, disco and techno festival to add to their calendars this spring, as Output Festival prepares to drop-in to Goat Island on November 25. The boutique festival's Sydney debut sees the private island transformed into a one-day, bass-driven dance party, complete with three outdoor stages set up throughout the island. You'll be dancing your heart out on a private island, sipping craft beers and cocktails, and catching that sun set majestically over the harbour. As far as festival settings go, this one's downright epic. The inaugural festival was initially going to be held in the Sydney Harbour National Park, but, due to an overwhelming response, it was moved to Goat Island. As you need to catch a ferry to access the island, tickets now include a return water transfer from Darling Harbour. Organisers have dropped a cracker of a first round lineup too, featuring Glasgow dance duo Optimo, local legend Mall Grab and Melbourne favourite CC:DISCO!, alongside The Blue Mountains' Fishing and Northern NSW youngster Willaris. K. Tickets are $89 + booking fee and you can grab yours online. Image: Alison Klein via Flickr.
Crumpets are truly an underrated breakfast food. Crumpets are often overshadowed by their sweeter, more lavish counterparts, but they're exactly the type of warm buttery treats we all need right now to brighten up a morning at home during lockdown. Kepos Street Kitchen is looking to take your morning up a notch this Saturday and Sunday with these fluffy breakfast staples accompanied with all the trimmings. The Redfern mainstay is collaborating with local crumpet favourites Crumpets by Merna for a two-day pop-up across Saturday, July 31 and Sunday, August 1. The limited-time takeaway menu will feature six packs of Merna's crumpets for $15 as well as a fridge stocked with a whole heap of extras. Think Pepe Saya's butter, lemon curd, smoked labneh with za'atar, and tahini and date molasses. There will also be two special tea blends from Tea Craft on hand including a new blend created especially for Sydney's lockdown. The crumpets will be available from 8am–3pm or until sold out and it's important you wear a mask, socially distance and send along one person to collect all the goods for your household. And don't worry, if you can't make it to Redfern, you can still treat yourself to crumpets with Pepe Saya and Crumpets by Merna's luxe at-home breakfast boxes.
It's a crying shame we can't talk about Let Me In without discussing its Swedish forebear, Let The Right One In [Lat den ratte komma in], along with a predictable whinge about why people won't just read the damn subtitles. For on its own, the American adaptation is rather remarkable. It's an incredibly tense, artfully constructed and beautifully acted portrait of loneliness, nascent love and manipulation. Owen (Kodi Smit-McPhee) is the choice fodder for local school bullies, while on the home-front he must contend with an absent father and mother whose coping mechanism entails passing out with a bottle of wine. In a deft move, director Matt Reeves never shows the face of Owen's mum, nor do we ever meet the father. He is well and truly on his own, until late one night he spies a young girl and her father moving in to the apartment block. Owen soon encounters the decidedly different Abby (Chloe Moretz) and their fumbling attempts at a friendship are set against a growing number of mysterious murders in the neighbourhood. So, does Let Me In stand up to Let The Right One In? Does it matter either way? Yes, and, unavoidably, yes, but that's not to say fans mightn't end up impressed by Reeves' remake. For one it's superbly shot by up-and-coming Australian cinematographer Greig Fraser. After an impressive run last year with Bright Star, The Boys are Back and Last Ride, Fraser's talents have translated to Hollywood magnificently. His use of focus here is as striking as it is disturbing. Similar praise goes to fellow Aussie Smit-McPhee, who gives a deeply nuanced, achingly resonant performance as the lonely, then smitten Owen. Moretz doesn't fare quite so well in comparison, mainly because Reeves has her playing more sweet and girly than Lina Leandersson's darkly androgynous characterisation as the original Eli. Reeves' also folds in a Romeo & Juliet reference that isn't necessary, but is nonetheless nicely executed. He markedly fleshes out the policeman role, which allows Elias Koteas to lead the audience into the story and makes the climatic scene all the more affecting. And lastly, Richard Jenkins absolutely owns the role of Abby's 'father'. He is the very embodiment of resignation, loyalty and desperation. So, save for some surprisingly sub-par special effects (you expect more from the man behind Cloverfield), Let Me In is not only a worthy adaptation, but a touching treatise on burgeoning love that also manages to be utterly, viscerally haunting. https://youtube.com/watch?v=NyXBtJA9JJc
Since first making the jump from the page to the screen in 2019, The Boys has never been afraid to splash OTT violence — gory carnage, too — across its frames. The same proved true in 2020's second season and 2022's third, and also in college-set spinoff Gen V in 2023. That isn't changing in The Boys season four, which will hit streaming in June. But the show will reckon with why fights and frays (and killing as well) are always a solution for its characters, no matter whether they're meant to be good or evil. "Look, we've all done bad shit. What's insane is that our solution to every problem is murder," says Hughie Campbell (Jack Quaid, Oppenheimer) in the fourth season's just-dropped full trailer, which follows an initial teaser back in 2023. "Violence isn't brave," he continues. The counterpoint, coming from The Deep (Chace Crawford, Gossip Girl): "violence is power". Fans will know that Hughie is part of the show's titular crew, becoming a member after his girlfriend died at the hands of a superhero. The Deep sits among the caped crusaders and, specifically, The Seven. The latter is comprised of the superheroes that are placed above all superheroes in this vision of a world where superpowers are a regular occurrence, and therefore where the kinds of tales that Marvel and DC bring to cinemas and TVs are real. Chaos is still set to ensue, of course, as this new glimpse at season four makes plain. Cue: a supe-slaying virus and superheroes as "wrathful gods", for starters. The Boys' latest episodes will begin streaming Down Under from Thursday, June 13. The season will also see its world dealing with Homelander (Antony Starr, Guy Ritchie's The Covenant)-versus-Starlight (Erin Moriarty, Captain Fantastic) factionalism, and just being ready to tear itself apart in general. Victoria Neuman (Claudia Doumit, Where'd You Go, Bernadette) is getting closer to the Oval Office, too, with Homelander pulling the strings. Also on the way: no-nonsense Brit Billy Butcher (Karl Urban, Thor: Ragnarok) facing the fact that he's only got months left, and that he's no longer leading The Boys — aka the eponymous ragtag team intent on bringing down Vought International, Homelander, and the company's caped-crusader industry and dominance. And, there's a new face, with Jeffrey Dean Morgan (The Walking Dead) joining the cast, adding another Supernatural link after Jensen Ackles did the same in season three. The Boys has always stood out as an antidote to narratives about powerful folks who are supposedly better than most, by both parodying and questioning that very idea. Here, superheroes work for Vought. They're still the main form of entertainment, but they're real, the most famous celebrities there are and inescapable in daily life. While The Seven are the absolute top talent, most are hardly role models when the public isn't looking. That has made quite the change from the usual cinematic universes as the Prime Video show has kept notching up the seasons, all coming to the small screen from Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson's comics series of the same name. As well as Quaid, Crawford, Starr, Moriarty, Doumit and Urban, Jessie T Usher (Smile), Laz Alonso (Wrath of Man), Tomer Capone (One on One), Karen Fukuhara (Bullet Train), Colby Minifie (I'm Thinking of Ending Things) and Cameron Crovetti (Goodnight Mommy) all return — with Susan Heyward (Hello Tomorrow!) and Valorie Curry (The Lost Symbol) set to be season four newcomers. Check out the full trailer for The Boys season four below: The fourth season of The Boys will start streaming via Prime Video from Thursday, June 13, 2024. Read our reviews of The Boys season three and Gen V.
Whether you watched along during its original 2010–12 run, or you've been hooked to repeats of old episodes over the past nine years, there's no denying the joys of SBS game show Letters and Numbers. It celebrates clever contestants doing word and number puzzles, each episode has an engagingly low-key vibe — all while still remaining tense as competitors try to work out the right answers, of course — and it's very easy and immensely enjoyable to play along with from home. The show didn't use a new format, though, with the Aussie series taking its cues from both French TV's Des chiffres et des lettres, which dates back to 1965, and also from Britain's Countdown, which has been on the air since 1982. So, now that Letters and Numbers is coming back — which is obviously fantastic news — it's doing so with a twist that also takes inspiration from overseas. Get ready to spend your time watching Celebrity Letters and Numbers. Yes, the change of focus is right there in the title, with famous folks rather than everyday people battling it out — to make words out of nine randomly selected letters, to use six also randomly chosen numbers in equations to reach a set figure, and to rearrange a jumble of nine more letters into one lengthty word in the final round. There's a big emphasis on comedians this time around, too, so this is basically SBS's Aussie version of the great 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown (which SBS also airs, so it clearly knows that it's ace). Celebrity Letters and Numbers will start airing from 7.30pm on Saturday, October 2, with its twelve-episode first season dropping new instalments weekly on both SBS on TV and via SBS On Demand. You'll be getting twice as much puzzling this time, with eps running for an hour. Also, the series will air at least two seasons, with the second set to land in 2022. There is one other significant change, too, with comedian Michael Hing taking over hosting duties from Richard Morecroft. That said, Lily Serna will return to flip numbers and show off her maths skills, and David Astle will again tell contestants whether they've found real words or just made them up, all with his trusty dictionary in hand. And, if you're wondering who'll be competing, guests include Hamish Blake, Matt Okine, Merrick Watts, Jennifer Wong, Aaron Chen and Susie Youssef. They'll each be vying for a single book per episode, which is being sourced from a vintage 80s encyclopaedia collection that's been gifted by Michael Hing's parents (after they cleaned out their garage). Check out the trailer below: Celebrity Letters and Numbers will start airing on SBS and SBS On Demand from Saturday, October 2, with new episodes dropping weekly.
It has taken almost four decades to summon a Beetlejuice sequel; however, if a third film was to follow in the poltergeist bio-exorcist franchise, the initial two flicks have already told us what it should be called. First came 1988's Beetlejuice. Next arrives this year's Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. So, only Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Beetlejuice will do if the Juice gets loose again sometime in the future. For now, cinemagoers have simply Beetlejuice Beetlejuice to look forward to. Calls for this followup have been echoing since the 80s, with the sequel finally locked in in 2023, then dropping its first teaser earlier in 2024 and now unveiling its full trailer. And saying its eponymous figure's name three times is a part of this sneak peek, as Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder, Stranger Things) warns her daughter Astrid (Jenna Ortega, Miller's Girl) against doing. Of course, that advice isn't followed, and so in pops Michael Keaton (The Flash). In the first film, the ghost with the most turned life into chaos for the Deetz family — and for his big-screen return 36 years later, with the movie releasing in September, he has more mayhem to unleash. This time, for another dance with the trickster demon, there's three generations of Deetz women in Winter River. Schitt's Creek's great Catherine O'Hara (Argylle) is also back as matriarch Delia. Filmmaker Tim Burton also sits in the director's chair again, on what marks his first feature since 2019's Dumbo. He's no stranger to revisiting to his past work, as seen when he made two Batman movies in the late 80s and 90s, and when he adapted his short Frankenweenie into a full-length flick. He also loves collaborating with the same talent again and again, such as bringing in his Wednesday star Ortega. You don't need a Handbook for the Recently Deceased in your ghostly hands to get excited about Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, but you might spend time with folks with one, which is what happened with the original flick's Barbara and Adam Maitland (GLOW's Geena Davis and Dr Death's Alec Baldwin). In that movie, viewers also saw what happened when that pair started to suspect that they're no longer alive, a new family moved into their house and they decided they needed a bio-exorcist. In Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Keaton, Ryder, O'Hara and Ortega are joined by Justin Theroux (White House Plumbers), Monica Bellucci (Mafia Mamma), Arthur Conti (House of the Dragon) and Willem Dafoe (Poor Things), all newcomers to the franchise. Behind the lens, Burton is working with a screenplay by Wednesday's Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, with Seth Grahame-Smith (The Lego Batman Movie) coming up with the story by Gough. If you say "Beetlejuice" three times, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice won't arrive in cinemas quicker — but it is hitting the silver screen before the musical version of the first film finally makes its way Down Under in 2025. Check out the full trailer for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice below: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice will release in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, September 5, 2024. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice images: © 2024 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.
It hasn't been the greatest couple of years for dining out at fancy restaurants. But, when it comes to the World's 50 Best restaurant awards, the show must go on. After a COVID-driven break last year, the prestigious awards have named their 2021 picks for the greatest restaurants in the world. Taking out this year's top spot was the newest incarnation of Denmark's Noma, led by renowned chef René Redzepi. While no Aussie venues claimed a position among 2021's 50 Best list, two Victorian restaurants secured spots in the 51–100 lineup. Dan Hunter's Brae placed 57th — up from its 2019 ranking of 101 — and Ben Shewry's Ripponlea fine diner Attica came in at number 97, shuffling slightly from its previous position at 84. Both have been regular contenders in the awards for the past few years. [caption id="attachment_616539" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Dan Hunter and Ben Shewry[/caption] The 2021 World's 50 Best awards were unveiled at a glitzy ceremony held overnight in Antwerp, with the 51–100 lineup announced a couple of weeks earlier, on September 23. Coming in second place was another famed Danish diner, Geranium, while Spain's Asador Etxebarri retained its 2019 title of third best restaurant in the world. If you're planning any future overseas adventures based entirely around food, you'll be interested to know that both the USA and Spain cleaned up in this year's rankings, each with six restaurants earning spots among the top 50. Running annually since 2002, the World's 50 Best awards are chosen by a panel of over 1000 culinary experts, guided by a strict voting procedure. They're now hosted by a different country each year, with Melbourne playing host city back in 2017. Check out the full list of The World's 50 Best award-winners for 2021 over here. Top Images: Colin Page, from the cookbook 'Brae: Recipes and stories from the restaurant'.
On an international tour in 2009, Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu was asked to sing with Sting on a French television program. The song: The Police's 'Every Breath You Take'. As seen in archival footage in the documentary Gurrumul, Sting jokes around and makes clumsy comments about how strange it is to croon the tune with the Indigenous musician, given that the Australian has been blind since birth. The mood is as awkward as anyone would expect, but Yunupingu, when he's not singing, mostly stays silent. Nor does he react to the track's famous line, "I'll be watching you". In fact, before learning the words for the performance, he wasn't familiar with the 1983 hit and didn't even know who Sting was. Yunupingu remains a consummate professional throughout this encounter. Ultimately it's his music — often sung in the Gumatj, Galpu and Djambarrpuyngu languages of his Elcho Island home off the coast of Arnhem Land — that matters to him, not the circus that comes with it. In a documentary filled with moving moments, this segment with Sting speaks volumes. It's not the most mesmerising part of this exceptional and essential picture, which explores Yunupingu's life, work and legacy. It won't move audiences to tears like his tunes, and it won't incite cheers like his concerts. Rather, the scene encapsulates the everyday essence of a quiet talent with a powerful voice, while also outlining his approach to his career, in stark contrast with the industry around him. Make no mistake: as this thoroughly fascinating film makes plain, the late artist was a musician and a man utterly unlike anyone else. Making his first feature, director Paul Damien Williams charts Yunupingu's days from childhood to his passing, painting a captivating portrait of one of the nation's undisputed icons. Thanks to the wealth of materials at the filmmaker's disposal, Gurrumul watches a charming toddler grow up to become a reluctant star — although it doesn't journey from Yunupingu's birth to his death in a linear fashion. It's also a globe-trotting road trip, accompanying the artist as his career takes him well beyond the Northern Territory. All of the requisite details are accounted for, including the singer's early days in Yothu Yindi and Saltwater Band, his wariness about pursuing music solo, and the fame that echoed as loudly as his astonishing tenor. Any filmmaker could amass this kind of biography, however Williams' skill is that he doesn't craft an easy ode, but truly endeavours to understand the man at the centre of his movie. Sometimes, the documentary is happy to simply sit and watch as Yunupingu does what he does best: sing and play, his voice ringing out over the top of his own guitar or even paired with an orchestra. Sometimes, it delves deep into his clearly reclusive nature, whether he's keeping mum in interviews, preferring to stay at home, or failing to show up at the airport for what would've been a career-defining trip to America. What detail doesn't spring from Yunupingu's music and actions instead comes from those around him. His aunt Susan Dhangal Gurruwiwi provides personal stories, while producer and collaborator Michael Hohnen expands upon their work together, as well as their close bond. The end result is a dense and insightful documentary modelled in Yunupingu's image, proving as beautiful, intimate, layered and revelatory as the artist's remarkable songs. Unsurprisingly, one specific topic hangs over the film. It isn't discussed on-screen, but the documentary commences with two sorrowful messages. Firstly, it advises that the movie was approved by Yunupingu just three days before his passing in July 2017. Secondly, the movie explains that Yolgnu elders have lifted the usual ban that follows death in their culture, which dictates that the name and image of the deceased should no longer be used. Both serve as an important statement about the doco and Yunupingu, indicating the care that is evident in every frame, the reverence with which he's held by his own community, and the fact that the film forms a welcome part of Yunupingu's body of work. The musician's final album, the just-released chart-topper Djarimirri (Child of the Rainbow), might be his last recording, but Gurrumul is also one of his final gifts. A heartfelt, affectionate and admiring celebration of Yunupingu's success completely on his own terms, it's not a cinematic eulogy but rather a rare and haunting glimpse at one of the country's most significant music talents. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXa3gw3g4C4
Prepare to step inside the mind of a cinematic genius. It's a big call, sure, but when it comes to David Lynch, it's true. No one makes movies or TV shows quite like the man who brought us Eraserhead, Blue Velvet, Mulholland Drive and a little series called Twin Peaks, and we mean no one. Don't just take our word for it — experience his movie marvels for yourself as part of the Ritz Cinema's two-month-long season of all of his films. It's diving deep into his distinctive audiovisual catalogue, screening every feature he has ever made on Thursday nights between October 8–December 10. That means you can watch the sci-fi flick he took his name off of, Dune, before this year's remake hits; his Nicolas Cage-starring Palme d'Or winner, Wild at Heart; and his old-man-on-a-lawnmower tale, The Straight Story. And that's only the beginning of a very eclectic bunch of movies. Also on the agenda is Lynch's moving and thoughtful The Elephant Man to celebrate its 40th anniversary, the twisty thrills (and ace 90s soundtrack) of Lost Highway, and Inland Empire, aka the flick the director famously wanted Laura Dern to win an Oscar for so badly that he campaigned on Hollywood Boulevard with a live cow. And then there's the thing we've all been waiting for: no, not Twin Peaks the series, but the show's exceptional horror sequel/prequel Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me on the big screen. BYO damn fine cup of coffee. Sessions kick off at 7pm each week, and tickets cost $12 for members and $20 otherwise. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hyG0LqcdvU0 The Ritz Cinema's David Lynch retrospective runs every Thursday at 7pm from October 8–December 10.
Sydney's inner west is about to get in on the openair cinema action. Ben & Jerry's Openair Cinema has just announced they'll be opening their very first inner west cinema this summer, adding another location to their free ice cream-loving lineup of Bondi, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Melbourne, Canberra, Adelaide and Perth this November. Setting up on the lawns of Cadigal Green at the University of Sydney, Ben & Jerry's Openair Cinema will debut with new releases and cult classics including Joseph Gordon Levitt's Oscar tip The Walk, Robert De Niro and Anne Hathaway teaming up in The Intern, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg's Bridge of Spies, Kate Winslet's The Dressmaker in rural Australia and the Christmas rom-com to rule them all, Love Actually. Plus, there'll be a 25th anniversary screening of Thelma and Louise. The team are keeping their tried and true formula intact — live music and free ice cream nights. Local artists will hit the stage before the film for cruisy sets, including Nic Cassey, Angus Murphy and many more, and local DJs will spin a few for Aperol Sunsets — with free Aperol samples aplenty. There'll also be a fully-licensed bar, gourmet food stands, and lawn games aplenty, with putt putt and something called Giant Cow Jenga. Tickets for the Bondi Openair Cinema tend to sell out, so get in early. Earlybird tickets are just $15 online ($10 concession), until October 21. You can also hire deckchairs, beanbags and blankets, or go all in for a Volkswagen Polo Class ticket with reserved seating, blanket, cushion, beer or wine and a Ben & Jerry's ice cream included. Ben & Jerry's Openair Cinema will take over Cadigal Green, University of Sydney from November 19 to December 12, 2015. For the full program or to buy tickets, head to the website. Check out CP's roundup of Sydney's best openair cinemas over here. Image: Artof2 Designs.
It's no secret Sydneysiders love a bottomless brunch, and Surry Hills wine bar and Italian restaurant Mille Vini is throwing its hat in the ring with a boozy lunch that places a beloved citrus liqueur at the centre of its menu. Every Saturday, the Crown Street venue is kicking off your weekend with free-flowing limoncello spritzes alongside bottomless mimosas, and wines including prosecco, chianti riserva and porconero fiona. Available from 1pm, the lunch will set you back $99 per person and includes a five-course feast of Italian share plates. Start things off with bites like crostini puttanesca, zucchini flowers and fresh sourdough. From there you'll be served up share plates featuring creamy burrata with prosciutto and melon. The house pasta of the week will ensure you've got plenty of carby goodness to fuel up for the weekend ahead, and a serving of tiramisu will wrap up the decadent meal in style. Bookings for the two-hour service run up until 3pm each Saturday, making this the perfect excuse to round up some friends and celebrate the end of the work week with a few limoncello spritzes in hand. [caption id="attachment_829254" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Kitti Gould[/caption]
Named for the Creedence Clearwater Revival song, Fortunate Son is the small bar you never thought you needed but will be glad you've found across the road from the Enmore Theatre. It's full of juxtapositions: it's styled like an American dive bar but serves champagne, a premium spirits list and a vast menu of cocktails, including a whole page of martini options. There are also toy tab cars on the counter. Most of the space is taken up by the bar itself, with locals enjoying original cocktails and local brews like Young Henrys. On the cocktail front, there are two menus. One is the Fortunate Ones, full of classic cocktails like a smoked chilli margarita, mint julep or old fashioned. The second is dubbed Fortunate Son's and stars house specials like the champagne daiquiri made with Moet syrup, The Insomnia — a next-level espresso martini with blanco tequila — and the aptly named Smoke and a Pancake, made with Gentleman Jack bourbon and peaty Ardbeg scotch with banana liqueur, maple syrup and cocktail bitters. For something even more special, ask the bartender for the Ramos Gin Fizz. This not-so-secret tipple isn't on the menu but is one of the venue's signature drinks. The Ramos is made with gin, egg whites, cream, simple syrup, lemon and lime juice. It is shaken initially with ice and then without ice in the shaker for a whopping 15 minutes to create a thick, luscious foam. It's then poured into a chilled glass with soda and sprinkled with hundreds and thousands.
If Alanis Morissette was to describe this piece of news, she might say that it's like rain on your wedding day. She could note that it resembles finding a black fly in your chardonnay. Or, she might explain that it resembles hitting a traffic jam when you're already late, too. We all know where those lines come from, because we're all acquainted with her famed track 'Ironic'; however, if you were hoping to hear that song as part of 15-time Tony Award-nominated musical Jagged Little Pill in Sydney in September, there's been an unwelcome but unsurprising development. The acclaimed production was due to make its first trip beyond Broadway and head to our shores, locking in a run at the Theatre Royal Sydney — and reopening the venue five years after it closed its doors in 2016, in fact. But, due to Sydney's current COVID-19 outbreak and corresponding lockdown, that's no longer happening. Accordingly, instead of raising its curtains on Thursday, September 23, Jagged Little Pill has postponed its premiere Aussie season. New dates haven't yet been announced, though. "The decision to delay the Australian premiere of Jagged Little Pill was not taken lightly. The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns have caused havoc in the live entertainment industry in Australia. Jagged Little Pill will directly engage over 100 performers, musicians and crew; consequently, we are tirelessly working to minimise the impact of the delay on the production to get those talented people back to work and audiences back to enjoying live theatre as soon as possible," said the show's producers in a statement. Jagged Little Pill the Musical Broadway opening night curtain call, Bruce Glikas When it does reschedule its Sydney dates, Jagged Little Pill the Musical will weave a story around songs from Morissette's 1995 album of the same name. So yes, it's a jukebox musical like Mamma Mia!, We Will Rock You and Rock of Ages. Beloved tunes 'Ironic', 'You Oughta Know', 'Hand in My Pocket', 'Head Over Feet' and 'You Learn' all feature, in a production that boasts music by Morissette and her album co-writer and producer Glen Ballard, lyrics by Morissette, and a book by Juno Oscar-winner Diablo Cody. Songs such as 'Thank U', 'So Pure', 'That I Would Be Good', 'So Unsexy' and 'Hands Clean' all pop up as well, even though they hail from the musician's subsequent albums. And, narrative-wise, Jagged Little Pill the Musical tells the tale of the Healy family. They struggle their seemingly idyllic suburban lives after a troubling event in their community. Expect to hear Morissette's tunes — including two new songs written just for the show — used in a tale about social issues relevant to today, but with an overall message of hope, healing and togetherness. Jagged Little Pill the Musical's Australian premiere season will no longer play the Theatre Royal Sydney at 108 King Street, Sydney, from Thursday, September 23 — we'll update you when new dates are announced. For further details, head to the musical's website. Top image: Jagged Little Pill the Musical original Broadway cast, Matthew Murphy.
When you're looking for a change of pace, Queensland's outback reaches might just be the perfect place to take some time out and get into the wild. But where should you start exploring the seemingly endless expanse of red dirt and rolling hills? Located about 800 kilometres west of Brisbane, the charming community of Cunnamulla fits the bill. Boundless opportunities await for you and your travelling buddies to embrace this rural heartbeat of Australia, thanks to its enchanting river systems, soaring sand dunes and historic outback stations. Meanwhile, Cunnamulla also has just enough creature comforts to ensure a relaxing stay. In partnership with Wild Turkey, we've picked out seven ways to experience this fascinating rural region. [caption id="attachment_841312" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tourism and Events Queensland[/caption] VISIT A TRADITIONAL OUTBACK STATION AND EXPERIENCE LIFE ON THE LAND Whether you're a city slicker or certified survivalist, enjoying life on an outback station is an unforgettable experience. Fortunately, the areas surrounding Cunnamulla are home to a number of historic farmlands that welcome visitors for outdoor adventures and backcountry camping. One such example is Franc Villers Station, which features serene unpowered camping sites alongside a picturesque dam. Here, you're welcome to fish, swim or just relax in the country air. Meanwhile, Nulla Station offers camping along the Warrego River right beside a wildlife reserve, with a network of tributaries and rocky outcrops offering self-guided explorations. [caption id="attachment_841313" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tourism and Events Queensland[/caption] KAYAK, FISH OR SWIM IN THE MIGHTY WARREGO RIVER The Warrego River gives life to this dusty part of the country, stretching for more than 1000 kilometres and supporting the region's remarkable flora and fauna. Running through central northern New South Wales and southwest Queensland, this alluring intermittent river system is best experienced up close — and Cunnamulla is one of the best spots from which to do just that. Bringing along a kayak or canoe ensures you catch a glimpse of the shifting landscape, which traverses through wide-open plains and dense timber forests. The Warrego is also great for fishing, with freshwater species like silver perch and Murray cod known to inhabit the biodiverse waterways. [caption id="attachment_844554" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Elliott Kramer[/caption] GO SANDBOARDING ON NATURAL RED SANDHILLS Cunnamulla might be 850 kilometres from the nearest beach, but that doesn't mean you can't enjoy some of the country's best sandboarding adventures in the heart of the outback. While the climb to the top of these natural lofty dunes is a little tough, your efforts will be well rewarded with a thrilling ride down the slopes. A selection of local tour companies transport travellers to and from the nearby sand dunes, and also provide all the gear you need to surf these granular waves. Plus, the dunes offer awesome views of the surrounding landscape, ensuring you can fully appreciate the scale of the outback. TEE OFF AT THE CUNNAMULLA GOLF CLUB If you're planning to head to Cunnamulla, you don't have to leave your favourite set of clubs behind. The Cunnamulla Golf Club offers 18 challenging holes that ensure you practice your game overlooking the great outback expanse. However, don't expect the Augusta National when you arrive. This remote golf course is landscaped using dirt fairways and sandy 'greens', meaning you might have to give your swing some extra oomph. Sections of the course are lined with river gums and coolabah trees, so keep an eye out for local wildlife using the course as a thoroughfare from the nearby Warrego River. [caption id="attachment_844043" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Mark Gillow (Flickr)[/caption] TAKE A STROLL AND GO WILDLIFE SPOTTING AT THE CUNNAMULLA BUSHLANDS The Cunnamulla Bushlands are perfect for a relaxed wander that puts you amongst the region's incredible natural beauty. This site is divided into ten ecological sections, with a charming one-kilometre walk that ensures you experience each one. Right at the end, you're rewarded with a peaceful place to sit in the wetlands. Here, striking native animals also run wild. You won't have any problem finding kangaroos with Cunnamulla recognised as having one of the largest populations in Queensland. Plus, the area is also known as a great place to see emus taking a stroll. [caption id="attachment_841311" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tourism and Events Queensland[/caption] TAKE IN HISTORY AND CULTURE ON THE CUNNAMULLA HERITAGE TRAIL Cunnamulla and the surrounding Shire of Paroo are steeped in history with the land occupied by the Gunya people long before the township's foundation. Nowadays, you can explore this history through the Cunnamulla Heritage Trail, which documents tales about the characters and buildings that forged this captivating outback community. There's great insight into the town's folklore throughout the trail. For instance, the Robber's Tree was climbed by wannabe bandit Joseph Wells as he tried to escape the police after he attempted to pillage the Queensland National Bank in 1880. Meanwhile, the towering bronze figure of the Cunnamulla Fella captures the spirit of 1950s bush characters recounted in Slim Dusty's namesake tune. [caption id="attachment_841310" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tourism and Events Queensland[/caption] CAMP OUT AT CHARLOTTE PLAINS STATION AND COOL OFF IN ITS ARTESIAN SPRINGS Cunnamulla offers visitors a range of comfortable accommodation options. But if you're looking for a unique outback stay, resting up at Charlotte Plains Station will deliver something special. Spanning a mind-boggling 70,000 acres, this massive property offers endless ways to reconnect with nature. While hundreds of working sheep and cattle are dotted across the farm, parts of the property have been transformed into idyllic countryside retreats, with powered camping sites, bungalows and more. With guests invited to shear sheep, search for stunning wildlife and bathe overlooking an ancient bore, this outback experience is like no other. Top image: Tourism and Events Queensland
If Pedro Pascal wins an Emmy for The Last of Us, how charming will his speech be? From its whopping 27 nominations, how many trophies can the final season of Succession collect at Hollywood's TV night of nights? What will Jennifer Coolidge say when she beats out three of her co-stars from The White Lotus season two for the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series award? You'll now find out in January. Hollywood's big television celebration usually takes place in September, and has already announced its 2023 nominees. But, as expected since late July, this year's Emmys will delay anointing a new round of winners. Due the current film and TV industry strikes, with both writers and actors downing tools, the awards ceremony for the small screen-centric accolades has been postponed. The new date, as announced by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and FOX (which will air the event): Monday, January 15, 2024 in the US, which is Tuesday, January 16, 2024 Down Under. Accordingly, the entertainment industry's beginning-of-the-year awards rush will get even busier next year. When a new annual calendar ticks over, the Oscars, Golden Globes and more hand out their latest round of gleaming trophies, celebrating films and TV shows that've shone bright over the prior 12 months — and now the Emmys will join them. 2023's awards were due to take place on the night of Monday, September 18, 2023 in the US, which is Tuesday, September 19, 2023 in Australia and New Zealand. If the strikes are still ongoing on that date, however, actors and writers can't attend the ceremony — not the red carpet, nor the awards themselves — meaning that the bulk of the televised accolades wouldn't be able to be accepted by their recipients. Also, the shindig would look mighty empty. Cue the move to reschedule, holding off until the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers comes to an agreement with SAG-AFTRA and the Writers Guild of America. The Television Academy and FOX clearly hope that a January delay will be long enough. When the ceremony is held, the Emmys will likely give HBO plenty of love. In this year's nominations, the US cable network scored a massive 74 nods for just three series: Succession, The Last of Us and The White Lotus. TV's best case of family feud earned recognition for almost every actor who appeared in its fourth and final season in leading, supporting and guest roles. In the Best Actor category alone, Brian Cox, Jeremy Strong and Kieran Culkin are going head to head. The most spectacular game-to-screen adaptation yet nabbed 24 nominations in total, while vacation chaos brought about 23 nominations. The other show that racked up a comparable tally? Apple TV+'s Ted Lasso with 21 nods. Similarly in the running: everything from Andor, Better Call Saul, House of the Dragon and Yellowjackets (all in the drama fields) to Abbott Elementary, Barry, The Bear, Only Murders in the Building and Wednesday (the comedy categories), plus the likes of Beef, Daisy Jones & the Six and Fleishman Is in Trouble (limited series) as well. Hollywood talents are fighting against diminishing residual payments for performers, and to establish firm rules about the future use of artificial intelligence in the industry, among other improvements to working conditions. When they took action in mid-July, SAG-AFTRA's members joined their counterparts in the Writers Guild of America, who've been striking since May. The current strikes are affecting film releases, too, with Australian crime-thriller Force of Nature: The Dry 2 already ditching its planned August date with cinemas given that star Eric Bana a member of the striking SAG-AFTRA. It's also been rumoured that big blockbusters such as Dune: Part Two, Aquaman and The Lost Kingdom and The Colour Purple might also delay their releases, including until 2024; however, none have officially shifted their dates as yet. The 75th Emmy Awards will take place on Tuesday, January 16, 2024, Australian time. Check out the list of 2023 nominations, and head to the Emmys' website for further details.
Live your Lion King dreams at Symbio Wildlife Park. While the park's 16 acres of manicured gardens on the Illawarra escarpment are home to fearsome species like cheetahs, alligators and snakes, you'll usually be set up with a fluffier (and friendlier) playdate on a behind-the-scenes experience (starting from $125 per person). Meet rare and secretive Nepalese red pandas as they descend from the trees to pluck snacks from your hands and enjoy a belly rub. Or, learn about the complicated social lives of meerkats as the inquisitive mob scurries around your feet, ready for a feed. Fulfil a childhood dream by dedicating a full day to the animal kingdom and interacting with numerous zoo inhabitants while shadowing a zookeeper. You'll get to prepare food, clean habitats, provide animal enrichment toys and learn about each unique species as you explore the park. Images: Destination NSW
After much hype and anticipation, The Lansdowne is officially back in business. If you still haven't had a peek at the renovated space, swing by this evening to check out the new pool table, light-up dance floor, DJ booth and Playboy wall collages. Once you've had a poke around, grab a table and order the Mary's Pizza. Yes, you read right; The Lansdowne has taken Sydney's most iconic burger and done it in pizza form — with a crispy base topped with a beef patty, cheese, onion and pickles, then drenched in Mary's special sauce. Once you're satisfactorily stuffed, head downstairs for a go on the shiny new rock 'n' roll pinball machines.
It's time for ARCHIVE Space's Investible Contemporary Art Annual Fundraiser, or as everyone prefers to refer to it, their ICAA. Come along to the Newtown venue and for just $100, you can have your hot little hands on a piece of contemporary art created by an up-and-coming Sydney artist. Maybe one day it will be worth squillions. Maybe it will just look incredible on your wall. Either way, you win. There's a huge selection of exciting emerging talents featured, all of whom have kindly agreed for their work to be donated to the fundraiser. Money raised will be invested in the future running and hopeful expansion of the space in 2014. Definitely a worthy cause. If you're unfamiliar with what ARCHIVE does, it's a strictly non-for-profit artist-run shared space that officially opened in May. Basically it aims to help developing artists and curators by providing them with a location in which they can experiment, create and collaborate. The space plays host to exhibitions of emerging artists, typically two weeks long, such as this year's Into Thin Air, featuring the work of sisters Hannah and Lauren Carroll Harris. The fundraiser opens on Wednesday, December 18. However, don't despair if you can't make that night — it's running and until Saturday 21st.
Taco Bell, Wahlburgers, Five Guys and Wendy's all did it. Now, Chuck E Cheese is as well. Big-name American food chains keep making the leap to Australia, with this US restaurant-slash-entertainment centre brand first announcing its Down Under plans in 2024, and now backing it up by confirming that it'll launch in 2025. Yes, Charles Entertainment Cheese is heading this way, ready to delight kids, families and Australian adults who've always wanted the Chuck E Cheese experience. The children's birthday-party go-to is set to open its first Aussie venue in the coming months, in Perth. Exactly where in the Western Australian capital will be revealed in April. Chuck E Cheese's jump Down Under is a result of the WA-based Royale Hospitality Group signing a master franchise partnership for the country, adding to a stable that also includes Outback Jack's and Milky Lane. It's helping extend the chain as it closes in on five decades of existence — launching in 1977 — and as Asia and Europe also become a global focus. On offer: the place to eat slices, play games and watch animatronics that's been parodied in the likes of Five Nights at Freddy's and Willy's Wonderland, but obviously without the horror. And yes, that spans the company's characters. Yes, Charles Entertainment Cheese is Chuck E Cheese's mouse mascot's full name. Patrons can look forward to pizza, arcade games, climbing walls, an interactive dance floor and other play areas, plus VIP birthday party rooms and a space for parents to kick back sans kids. On the menu, smoothies and milkshakes will also be a feature, as will healthy options. "Perth has a strong culture for family entertainment, so bringing Chuck E Cheese to Australia is incredibly exciting — we can't wait for families to experience the fun, games and great food that have made it famous around the world," said Royale Hospitality Group General Manager Christian Beaden, announcing that Perth will play host to the chain's first Aussie store. If you live elsewhere around the nation, you'll need to keep waiting to find out when you'll be able to take your nieces and nephews to Chuck E Cheese in other Australian cities. Chuck E Cheese will start opening in Australia in 2025, starting in Perth, but exactly when and where hasn't yet been revealed — keep an eye on the chain's website, and we'll update you with more details when they're announced.
Summer isn't even here yet, and 2023's Meredith Music Festival hasn't happened so far either, but it isn't too early to start thinking about autumn 2024. The reason? That's when the Aunty team unleashes its other big annual festival at the same Victorian spot, with Golden Plains just announcing its packed lineup. Music lovers, next year's pilgrimage to the Meredith Supernatural Amphitheatre to dance among the autumn leaves will take place from Saturday, March 9–Monday, March 11, 2024. So, mark those dates in your diaries ASAP. Then, go enter the ticket ballot, as the second round is up and running until 10.16pm AEDT on Monday, October 23. This Golden Plains will mark the fest's sweet 16th, and comes with The Streets, Yussef Dayes, King Stingray and Black Country, New Road leading the bill. So, that means one of the defining voices of 00s-era Britain in Mike Skinner, Dayes' drumming and jazz prowess, a Yolŋu surf‑rock favourite that Aunty has been trying to get on the lineup for ages and one helluva post-punk band — and that's just the first four acts. Joining the above is everyone from Cymande, Charlotte Adigéry and Bolis Pupul, Wednesday and Regurgitator to Boris, RVG, Kutcha Edwards and WITCH (We Intend To Cause Havoc). The list still goes on from there, too. Catering to 12,000 punters each year across three days and two nights, Golden Plains has long proven a favourite for its one-stage setup, which skips the need for frantic timetabling. How does the Aunty crew describe 2024's fest? "Come as you fancy. Time and space to wibble. A soundtrack built for wobble. Autumnal autonomy. Two days and two nights at the Meredith Supernatural Amphitheatre, with controls set to premium mode," they advise. "The Sup' has been designed and refined over 30‑odd years for the sole purpose of hosting something truly remarkable. It's one of the best places on earth to spend a long weekend with friends and lovers — finding yourself, losing yourself and losing yourself again." GOLDEN PLAINS 2024 LINEUP: The Streets Yussef Dayes King Stingray Black Country, New Road Cymande Charlotte Adigéry and Bolis Pupul Wednesday Regurgitator Boris RVG Kutcha Edwards WITCH (We Intend To Cause Havoc) Braxe + Falcon MAVI Anz MJ Lenderman DJ Koco Sarah Mary Chadwick Elsy Wameyo Soju Gang Split System The Belair Lip Bombs Storytelling with Uncle Barry Golden Plains will return to the Meredith Supernatural Amphitheatre from Saturday, March 9–Monday, March 11, 2024. Head to the festival's website for further details, or to enter the ballot's second round before 10.16pm AEDT on Monday, October 23. Images: Benjamin Fletcher / Theresa Harrison.
Makers, rejoice. Marrickville has just scored an epic new space — and it's dedicated entirely to you. Named Makerspace & Co, the not-for-profit facility caters to pretty much any making style you can think of. So whether you're a metal caster who deals in flames, a welder who makes sparks fly, a thrower of pottery, an arranger of flowers, a sewer of textiles, a stitcher of leather or a wielder of power tools, you're covered. When we say epic, we mean it. We're talking a 1200-square-metre warehouse, offering not only masterclasses and special events, but also access to all the gear you need to keep going outside of school hours. There are classes and workshops for all levels, from newbies to professionals. And, once you've signed up to become a member, you can use the warehouse's studios and equipment as much as you'd like. In the works are a wood workshop, a printing studio, a blacksmith's forge, a photography studio (including a dark room) and a co-working office. The space comes from &company, a design studio and all-round creative powerhouse responsible for a slew of pop-ups, exhibitions and events. Founder and CEO Anna Lise de Lorenzo has spent four years planning MakerSpace after she successfully crowdfunded the project back in 2012. "We want to reconnect people with the simple joy of making through access to hand-making pottery, metalwork and woodwork," she says. "We're providing opportunities for people to make and repair things, to learn new skills and to collaborate — our agenda is to build a culture of innovation and excellence in Australian design, whilst strengthening the local community by bringing people together." Classes are up on the website, and are taking bookings. You just have to decide if you want to take up ceramics as a hobby, learn how to weld metals or try your hand at screen printing onto fabrics.
Feeling a little dusty on Sunday morning? Two words: Grumpy Donuts. There's no headache these spectacular conglomerations of perfect dough and sugary brilliance cannot handle. Check to see if there's a weekly special on for a chance to try a tasty, new creation, otherwise, count on a tried-and-tested favourite, such as The Buttered Toast (yep, that's brekkie and dessert right there). Once you're done devouring, pop down the road to The Lady Hampshire to laze away the day in the sun-speckled garden where you can catch the match of the day on a massive screen. And if you're feeling particularly ravenous today, take a peek at their pub grub menu reminiscent of that found at The Lady's beau, The Lord Gladstone. Image: @quinntessences / Instagram.
If there's one thing that's true in this life, it's that you've got to look forward to something. Maybe it's a nice sandwich you packed for lunch. Maybe it's a tropical getaway you've booked a couple of months down the track. Or maybe it's a slate of potential indie game releases over the course of the year, a constant drip feed of dopamine to last through to December. For this writer, as you may have guessed, the latter is the way to go. Before we dive in, it's worth reflecting on the nature of game development for a moment. While most of the following titles have set their sights on a 2024 launch (source: their Steam pages), and two have confirmed launches over the next few months, game release dates are notoriously slippery beasts. Sometimes teams just need a little extra time to squash bugs and polish – it happens, and it's for the best, but it makes writing lists like this a little fraught. So let's just say we're sending our best to all the developers and hope that they hit their launch windows without too much crunch. And now, without any further ado, here's 10 indie games you should wishlist and eagerly wait for. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCPIPieo-3c[/embed] PEPPER GRINDER Movement can make or break a platformer, so stepping out of the classic run-and-jump formula comes with risks and rewards. In Pepper Grinder, the upcoming title from Oregon-based team Ahr Ech, the payoff for breaking from tradition is, thankfully, huge. You play as Pepper, a swashbuckler washed up on the shores of a mysterious island. Your treasure has been stolen so you grab Grinder, your trusty conical drilling device, and set out to get it back. It won't be easy but it will be fun. The use of a drill for traversal is inspired, allowing you to essentially swim through terrain and perform dolphin-esque leaps and dashes as you fight enemies and collect your wayward riches. It's the type of movement that puts you in a flow state, supported by level design that rewards setting up perfect lines without punishing you too much when you stumble. Thankfully you won't have to wait too long to explore and excavate this bright tropical world, with a confirmed release date of March 28th for PC and Switch. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjGoS9rOSYw[/embed] ANOTHER CRAB'S TREASURE Ocean pollution is bad. That's not really something you can argue against. But… who's to say it can't lead to good things, such as Another Crab's Treasure? The sophomore game from U.S. dev team Aggro Crab has you scuttling around as Kril, a small hermit crab whose home has been repossessed from his back. You must don a variety of different pieces of rubbish as temporary shells, each with their own special strengths, and fight against the other denizens of the deep to find a treasure that will let you pay off your debt and reclaim your property. It's a Souls-like so prepare for unrelentingly difficult combat, unless you are a newcomer to the genre in which case there are a number of thoughtful assists available to help you on your journey. It has a confirmed release date of April 25th, so only a couple of months to go until you can battle across the bottom of the ocean on Xbox, PlayStation, Steam and Nintendo Switch. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6j0zKSXAFE[/embed] SKATE STORY Skateboarding has a long history in the realm of video games but, for such a radical sport, developers have generally played it fairly straight. That makes Skate Story, developed by NY-based solo dev Sam Eng, a big breath of fresh air in a genre seemingly locked in permanent X-Games adolescence. What really sets it apart is the narrative. You play as a demon made of glass and pain, to whom the Devil has given a skateboard and an impossible task: devour the Moon to earn your freedom. Already way more enticing than the standard 'get a high score to prove you're the raddest around'. So you set off through the Emptylands, grinding, flipping and ollieing to destroy demons and rescue lost souls on the way to your goal of cosmic consumption. With minimalist graphics depicting the Underworld as a moody, woozy space, and a soundtrack composed by mysterious indie outfit Blood Cultures, Skate Story is set to be a guaranteed GOTY list entrant for 2024 when it launches. Wishlist now on Steam [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T728E15XsMk[/embed] BROKEN ROADS The first Australian entry on this list, Broken Roads puts a uniquely Australian spin on the CRPG genre. Developed by Drop Bear Bytes out of Victoria, it's a post-apocalyptic trek across a desolate (well, more desolate) outback, searching out settlements, helping fellow travellers and tackling enemies both human and otherwise. CRPGs are currently having a moment (thank you Baldur's Gate 3), and while Broken Roads will definitely scratch your itch for turn-based combat, it's adding a new wrinkle to the genre with its Moral Compass system which shapes both your character and the wider story based on the decisions you make. No wussing out of an evil run with this mechanic in place. Fans of the early Fallout games, as well as the modern reincarnations of Wasteland, will definitely want to keep an eye out for the (hopefully imminent) release of this one. Wishlist now and play the demo on Steam [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTfZzwydEWQ[/embed] DEAD STATIC DRIVE The open road. The purr of the engine. The shrieks of eldritch horrors that are getting closer and closer in your rear-view mirror. This is the world of Dead Static Drive, a road trip simulator described as Grand Theft Auto meets the Cthulhu mythos. A journey to visit estranged relatives takes a sinister turn when it becomes apparent that the world is coming to an end, bringing forth all sorts of monsters. Sneak, steal and slaughter your way across a stylishly rendered version of 80s America. You can team up with people along the way but when the chips are down can they be trusted? Can you? It's been a long labour of love for the developers Reuben Games, based in Melbourne. Work started back in 2014, but with a projected release window of Q3 this year, the headlights at the end of the tunnel may be nearing. Wishlist now on Steam [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRLgwCslWsQ[/embed] BABY STEPS Walking is perhaps the most taken-for-granted mechanic in video games. You push your joystick/WASD keys and your character moves – simple, right? In Baby Steps, the script gets flipped and each wobbly footfall is taken at your peril. The game puts you in the bare feet of a onesie-clad schlubby failson called Nate, whose couch-bound existence is turned upside down when he is suddenly transported to a mysterious location in nature. The only way out is through, so you take charge of his feet and do your best to help him navigate the terrain as he hikes his way up a mountain. It's the product of a trio of developers – Gabe Cuzillo, Maxi Boch and Australia's own Bennett Foddy – who previously released the sublime Ape Out (seriously, stop reading this and go play it). There's shades of Foddy's viral hit QWOP in Baby Steps, along with the meditativeness of Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy, and a healthy dose of absurdism to boot. Wishlist now on Steam [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHF3WZOLN3g[/embed] JANET DEMORNAY IS A SLUMLORD (AND A WITCH) If you've had any dealings with the Australian rental market over the last few years, then firstly we see you and we're sobbing alongside you. Secondly, there's a game coming out this year that will definitely strike a chord. Janet DeMornay is a Slumlord (and a witch), developed by Australian duo Fuzzy Ghost, sees you setting up a queer-friendly share house in a Sydney terrace. There's mould, creaking pipes, decaying fixtures – the classic rental experience. There's also your landlord, Janet DeMornay, who just wants to pop by, why won't you let her pop by, it's her house, she has a right to know what you are doing in there, answer the door, why won't you let her in? From pedestrian beginnings blossoms an unsettling escape-room horror experience shot through with dark humour about the realities of tenant life in a society geared towards landlords. Special marks go to Janet's South African accent, a detail that will send chills down the spines of anyone who has tangoed with signing a lease in Sydney. Wishlist now on Steam [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXIX1GCZWGI[/embed] THE PLUCKY SQUIRE For many of us, children's storybooks were our first taste of the hero's journey. The Plucky Squire, by Brisbane studio All Possible Futures, puts a meta spin on these early forays into the battle between good and evil. You're Jot, the titular plucky squire who has been kicked out of his book by the villain Humgrump. And when I say 'kicked out', I mean literally - the protagonist is flung from the 2D pages into the surrounding 3D world. This obviously won't do, so you set out to reclaim your place as the hero. Jot's ability to leave the page gives the game scope to craft satisfying puzzles that involve manipulating the book itself, as well as setting off on genre-bending adventures with the objects on the surrounding desk. Mix in a truly delightful design aesthetic, and you've got a perfect experience for gamers both young and young-at-heart. Wishlist now on Steam [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-39kuBXyKWo[/embed] LITTLE KITTY, BIG CITY If you're a diehard dog person, you might want to skip to the next entry in this list. If, on the other hand, you're a feline fan, then the perfect game for you is set to release this year. The title Little Kitty, Big City has a does-what-it-says-on-the-tin straightforwardness – you are a small kitten who has tumbled from your owner's apartment into the streets of a big city. You have to make your way back home, an adventure that involves dealing with a plethora of other urban wildlife, completing tasks and generally being a cat. You'll hop in and out of boxes, pounce on birds, chase your tail, knock items off shelves and ledges, and wiggle into nooks and crannies to discover the many secrets of the neighbourhood. At this point, it would be remiss of us not to mention the hats. You can collect a number of different hats for your kitten to wear, from froggy bonnets to tiny top hats to sunflower manes. Honestly, that alone should have you smashing the wishlist button. Wishlist now on Steam [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EthfB4JjQ2k[/embed] THE RISE OF THE GOLDEN IDOL It was only two years ago that The Case of the Golden Idol was released, a sleeper indie hit that saw you solving strange mysteries about a gold statue and the chaos and corruption it caused during the 18th century. Now the Latvian team Colour Gray Games are back with a sequel, something that should put a smile on the dial of every pseudo-sleuth. Set during the swinging 1970s, The Rise of the Golden Idol has you hunting once more for the elusive relic, which has seemingly disappeared since the first game. Against a backdrop of disco, fax machines and TV chat shows, you'll need to solve 15 mysteries to crack the case, using the tried-and-tested 'madlibs'-style mechanic from the first game. The developers are playing things close to their chest in terms of details about the game, but it's worth noting the graphics, which have seen a big upgrade while maintaining the essence of pixelated grotesqueness of the first one. Wishlist now on Steam
So, you want to get a glimpse into life in another country, but you can't actually afford to travel anywhere? That's where film festivals come in, taking audiences on a cinematic journey without anyone needing to leave their comfy, movie theatre seats. This month, it's Germany's turn in the spotlight. Making its way around Australia from May 13–31, the Audi Festival of German Films delves into everything the country has to offer in the movie realm. That includes 50 new German-language films, spanning efforts as varied as action comedy Not My Day and twisted fairy tale The Bunker. It also includes an interesting schedule of panel discussions and themed evenings, if you want to do more than watch. Whatever your tastes or interests, there's certain to be something to tickle your fancy. Want to take a peek at an Alps-set western, laugh along with a hitman comedy or strap in for a time-travelling romance? Well, here you can. You can also delve into the history of cinema, and into a key figure in East Berlin's radical underground art world. For the full Audi Festival of German Films lineup, visit the festival website.
In what can only be described as an odd turn of events, Top3 was founded by Terri Winter after she saw a German cabaret show featuring a woman, a walrus and a trapeze artist. As it happens, these three acts were the best in their field — and this inspired Winter to translate the 'top three' concept into a retail store. As it turned out, it was a huge success. Now with four stores around the country — two in Melbourne, one in Sydney and one in Canberra — Top3's mission is to offer customers the best products based entirely on their design merits. The store stocks well over 1000 different products — but only three of each type — across homewares, clothing and travel accessories. You're bound to find something you need and/or want here. Images: Trent Van der jagt.
When John Carpenter gave the world the exceptional slasher flick that is Halloween, the iconic filmmaker also gave us all something to watch each and every October 31. No one wants to limit themselves to just one scary movie on the spookiest day of the year, though. And while the Halloween franchise has plenty of entries (some excellent, some terrible, some average), it's not the only thing worthy of your eyeballs while you're carving pumpkins, eating candy and dressing up in the most frightening costume you can conjure up. While 2020 has been unsettling all round for everyone, it has also served up a heap of unnerving flicks — especially (and fittingly) via streaming platforms. So if your idea of a perfect Halloween this year involves getting reacquainted with that groove on your sofa and binging your way through the latest and greatest horror movies that are currently offer, we've rounded up a ten-movie viewing list that'll do the trick. You'll need to supply the treats, obviously. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZHg9xcK83s THE MORTUARY COLLECTION When The Mortuary Collection begins with a kid on a bicycle making his way towards a creepy multi-level mansion in a remote part of a small town — a mortuary, as the title makes plain — you can be forgiven for thinking that it's about to step into Goosebumps or Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark-style territory. That firmly isn't the case, even though this horror flick serves up an anthology of unnerving tales all framed by an overarching narrative. In the bigger picture, as set in the 80s, Raven's End mortician Montgomery Dark (Clancy Brown, Billions) finds a young woman called Sam (Caitlin Custer, Teen Wolf) hovering around the house. She says she's enquiring about the 'help wanted' sign outside and, as they chat, he starts talking her through the histories of folks who've died in the town. Cue four separate segments that feature everything from tentacled monsters and sleazy frat boys to creepy corpses and escaped asylum patients. Each story within the bigger story tells a tale about bad choices leading to bad outcomes, and they're so richly staged that even the briefest still keeps viewers interested. Writer/director Ryan Spindell might be making his feature debut, but from his handling of the movie's equally ominous and entertaining mood to its well-executed lashings of gore, he has crafted himself quite the calling card. The Mortuary Collection is available to stream via Shudder. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Atqf47wM5Gg RELIC It's a recognisable setup: a remote house, a family haunted by decades-old troubles, a murky history that's still leaving an imprint and tension levels rising when, naturally, strange things start to happen. But Australian horror movie Relic has more than a few surprises up its sleeves as it follows three generations of women in a Victorian-based family. In fact, while the slow-burning affair is set in a nerve-shatteringly creepy house that's up there with many a horror great, and it serves up well-executed jumps, bumps and unnerving sensations, this smart, thoughtful and constantly disquieting film also uses its concept and plot to ponder the physical and emotional impact of ageing, including dementia. It all starts with the disappearances of the widowed and elderly Edna (Top of the Lake's Robyn Nevin). Her daughter Kay (Mary Poppins Returns' Emily Mortimer) arrives from Melbourne to join the search, with her own offspring Sam (Bloom's Bella Heathcote) in tow, but then Edna reappears suddenly without any explanation for her absence. In the assured feature directorial debut of Japanese Australian filmmaker Natalie Erika James, Kay and Sam still need to try to ascertain just what happened, though, and work out why Edna's house — and, increasingly, Edna too — seems so sinister. Relic is available to stream via Stan. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNZQ2GG833o SHE DIES TOMORROW When She Dies Tomorrow splashes Kate Lyn Sheil's face across the screen, then bathes it in neon flashes of pink, blue, red and purple, it isn't easily forgotten. It's a vivid, visceral, even psychedelic sight, which filmmaker Amy Seimetz lingers on, forcing her audience to do the same as well. Viewers aren't just soaking in trippy lights and colours, though. They're staring at the expression beneath the multi-hued glow, which seethes with harrowing levels of shock, fright, distress and anxiety. That's understandable; this is the look of someone who has just had the most unnerving realisation there is: that she is going to die tomorrow. Yes, that's the film's premise, with Sheil's Amy believing that her life will end the next day. But it's how the on-screen Amy copes with the apocalyptic news, and how it also spreads virally from person to person, that fuels this gloriously smart and unsettling thriller. Toying with surreal Lynchian moments yet always feeling disarmingly astute, She Dies Tomorrow follows the spread of that potentially paranoid, persecution-driven delusion like a contagion, with the haunting feature's cast also including Katie Aselton (Bombshell), Chris Messina (Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)), Josh Lucas (Ford vs Ferrari), Tunde Adebimpe (Marriage Story) and Jennifer Kim (Mozart in the Jungle). She Dies Tomorrow is available to stream via VOD on Google Play, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Amazon Video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQ8CCg1tOqc #ALIVE Train to Busan and Peninsula aren't the only recent films to wonder how South Korea might cope with a sudden zombie outbreak. The unrelated #Alive also explores the concept, focusing on a video game streamer as an unexplained disease turns most of Seoul's residents into members of the guts-munching undead. Holed up in the seeming safety of his family's apartment, Oh Jun-u (Burning's Yoo Ah-in) doesn't initially take the situation well. As shuffling hordes lurk outside, his dismal food supply rapidly declines, and he worries about the safety of his parents and sister, he attempts to survive — and to fight off the gnawing feeling that perhaps his struggle is futile. A box office hit when it released in South Korean cinemas this year, #Alive never feels as formulaic as its premise might suggest. In fact, this horror-thriller proves constantly tense, and not just because pandemic films have that effect at the moment. Making his first feature, writer/director Il Cho handles the zombie scenes with urgency and makes ample room for quiet moments; however, his best decision is casting the ever-watchable Yoo. #Alive is available to stream via Netflix. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RlfooqeZcdY THE PLATFORM Set in a series of confined spaces, stressing the immense disparities between the haves and the have nots, and watching as people fight over everyday items — food, in this case — The Platform couldn't be more relevant to 2020. That's a coincidence, of course, with this twisty Spanish thriller first screening at film festivals in 2019 before hitting Netflix this year. It all starts when Goreng (Iván Massagué) wakes up in a prison cell. He's on level 48 and, as his cellmate Trimagasi (Zorion Eguileor) explains, there are 47 storeys above and who knows how many below. He can see this for himself, however, because the concrete room has a hole in the centre of both the ceiling and floor. Through this opening, their daily meal descends on a platform, before moving to the lower levels. For the folks at the top, that means that a huge feast awaits. Alas, as the platform makes its way down level by level, each cell is faced with leftovers, scraps, bones and eventually nothing. Funny, furious, grim and violent all at once, The Platform is also impeccably staged and shot, stressing the claustrophobia of its setting as well as the dog-eat-dog mindset that quickly develops among its characters. The Platform is available to stream on Netflix. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNlKbqHqGcY HOST Not to be confused with Bong Joon-ho's creature feature The Host, nor with the terrible sci-fi romance of the same name based on a novel by Twilight author Stephenie Meyer, Shudder's engaging horror flick Host is relevant to the absolute minute. Indeed, it could've only been made this year. The setup: bored in COVID-19 lockdown, a group of British friends (Haley Bishop, Jemma Moore, Emma Louise Webb, Radina Drandova, Caroline Ward and Edward Linard) decide to spice up their weekly Zoom catchup by enlisting a medium to conduct an online seance. Obviously, anyone who has ever seen a scary movie before knows that this is a bad plan, and that things won't end well. It's not so much what happens here that serves up the film's thrills, however, but how director Rob Savage (Strings) unfurls this creepy, timely premise. Frightening and tense features solely set on computer and mobile phone screens are by no means new — see Unfriended, Searching and Profile, just to name a few recent examples — but this is a savvy, cleverly managed and suitably spooky addition to the genre. It'll also turn you off trying to summon the dead next time you jump on Zoom yourself. Host is available to stream via Shudder. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auVZKcxV7XQ SWALLOW Some films boast a stellar lead performance, so much so that you couldn't imagine the movie without it. Some find their strength in a clever, astute and engaging premise. Swallow ticks both boxes — and combines them with a mood and look that instantly make an imprint. In the feature debut of writer/director Carlo Mirabella-Davis, young housewife Hunter Conrad (Haley Bennett, The Devil All the Time) seems to have it all. She has married into a wealthy family, her husband (Austin Stowell, Fantasy Island) has a high-flying job, they've been gifted a lavish house surrounded by countryside and she's now expecting. But, when she isn't being left home alone day in, day out, she's expected to be dutiful and doting by her controlling new family. So, to regain a sliver of power over her life, Hunter starts swallowing strange objects. Bennett is phenomenal as a woman slowly awakening to her restricted reality, fighting to break free and coming to terms with her past, putting in a quiet, nuanced yet potent performance. And the film itself walks confidently in the footsteps of masterpieces such as Safe and Rosemary's Baby, while always following its own path. Swallow is available to stream on Stan. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeYWT7CnFK0 SCARE ME Written and directed by Josh Ruben, and starring him also, Scare Me doesn't just like scary movies — it flat-out loves scary stories. Indeed, this pared-back horror film understands that sometimes all that's needed to keep an audience on the edge of their seats is a great tale told well. Its characters, both writers, are all about unfurling creepy narratives. Fred (Ruben) falls into the aspiring category, while Fanny (You're the Worst and The Boys' Aya Cash) has an acclaimed best-seller to her name. With each taking time out in the mountains to get some work done, these two strangers end up in Fred's cabin telling each other disturbing stories when the power goes out (and trying to one-up each other, naturally). For its first two-thirds, Scare Me makes the most of that basic concept. Fred and Fanny perform their tales, sound effects and ominous lighting kicks in — it's a stormy night, of course — and the mood is suitably perturbing. The film also demonstrates its self-awareness, namedropping other genre titles with frequency and sending in a pizza from the Overlook. When this Sundance-premiering feature decides to ponder real-life horrors as part of its layered stories, however, it proves especially potent. Scare Me is available to stream now via Shudder. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJvKDp54YjM SPIRAL It shares its name with the next movie in the Saw franchise, which'll hit cinemas next year. But this Spiral gives a familiar premise a smart, topical and resonant twist. In the mid-90s, Malik (Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman, UnREAL) and Aaron (Ari Cohen, IT: Chapter Two) move to a small town with the latter's teenage daughter Kayla (Jennifer Laporte, iZombie), seeking a quieter, happier life away from the city. They're initially greeted warmly by neighbours Marshall (Lochlyn Munro, Riverdale) and Tiffany (Chandra West); however, in general territory traversed by many a horror film before this, things aren't quite what they seem. Indeed, when Malik comes home one day to find a homophobic slur graffitied on their living room wall, he starts to get suspicious about the cliquey community they're now calling home — fears that Aaron doesn't share. There is clearly much about Spiral that fits a template, but director Kurtis David Harder and writers Colin Minihan and John Poliquin do an shrewd job of moulding this unsettling movie into a timely statement. The result: a feature that's as much about spooky terrors as societal ones, and that possesses a considerable bite. Spiral is available to stream via Shudder. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nj6JIzrIzxk BLACK BOX Blumhouse, the filmmaking company started and run by producer Jason Blum, has quite a number of horror flicks to its name. It's responsible for Get Out, Happy Death Day, the latest Halloween and this year's version of The Invisible Man, with that list only continuing — and in 2020 it has launched a movie anthology series on Amazon Prime Video as well. Black Box is one of the flicks in the Welcome to the Blumhouse franchise, and it's the best of the four released so far. Written and directed by feature first-timer Emmanuel Osei-Kuffour Jr, the Black Mirror-esque sci-fi/horror hybrid focuses on photographer Nolan Wright (Mamoudou Athie, The Front Runner), who is struggling to regain his memory after a traumatic car accident. Then he's given the opportunity to try an experimental new treatment by brain specialist Dr Lilian Brooks (Phylicia Rashad), and this film starts toying with identity, loyalty and ethics. There aren't all that many surprises, narrative-wise, but Athie is excellent, Osei-Kuffour Jr maintains a sense of intrigue and, more often than not, the movie hits an emotional note, too. Black Box is available to stream via Amazon Prime Video.
For 353 days each year — 354 days in leap years — Sydney's State Theatre doesn't operate as a cinema. The CBD isn't short on movie-going options, but you can't head to the glorious Market Street spot to get your film fix whenever you like. Understandably, that makes trips to the nearly 100-year-old venue for the Sydney Film Festival all the more special. Sinking into the cavernous auditorium, being surrounded by its gorgeous gothic and art deco architecture, watching movies that may never grace its big screen again — it's the cinephile version of a religious experience. Prepare to worship, Sydney movie lovers. From Wednesday, November 3 till Sunday, November 14, the Sydney Film Festival is back — in person. It's been a difficult couple of years for the prestigious event, after being forced to move online in 2020, and then shift its 2021 dates not once but twice; however, the time for losing yourself in the State Theatre — and other darkened rooms in picture palaces all around Sydney — is finally here. As it does every year, SFF has the lineup for the occasion. What starts with an anthology drama that tells eight tales by Western Sydney writers, then ends with Wes Anderson's latest? That'd be the fest's 2021 program. They're just the bookends, with Festival Director Nashen Moodley's full selection of flicks overflowing with other highlights. The entire bill spans 233 titles, in fact, so we started our festival viewing early — and here's ten exceptional SFF highlights that we've seen, reviewed and eagerly recommend. FLEE When Flee won the World Cinema Documentary Grand Jury Prize at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, it added its first accolade to its name. The wrenchingly moving animated documentary has nabbed others since, and has plenty more coming its way — and it's already been selected as Denmark's Oscar submission in next year's Best International Feature category as well. Mere minutes into the film, it's easy to see why it keeps garnering awards and attention. Pairing animation with factual storytelling is still rare enough that it stands out, and writer/director Jonas Poher Rasmussen (What He Did) has created one of the best instances of this combination yet. As his subject, Afghani refugee Amin, shares his story, Rasmussen brings every detail to life not just with eye-catching imagery, but with visuals that ripple with empathy at every moment. Flee doesn't tell an easy tale, or a unique one — sadly — but it finds its an immense wealth of power in its vivid, expressive and humanistic approach. Its protagonist, who uses a pseudonym here, is a friend of Rasmussen's; however, no one, including the filmmaker, has ever heard him step through the events that took him from war-torn Kabul to seeking asylum in Copenhagen as a teenager, or to househunting with his boyfriend now. That journey, via Russia, is one of struggle and acceptance. So is an interlude in Sweden which gives the movie its most stunning sequence, as soundtracked to Daft Punk's 'Veridis Quo'. Flee uses its music cues bewitchingly well, actually, but that description also applies to every second of this poignant and shattering film. THE CARD COUNTER Another Paul Schrader film, another lonely man thrust into the spotlight as he wrestles with the world, his place in it and his sense of morality. The acclaimed filmmaker has a resume filled with such characters, and such tales — from his screenplays for Martin Scorsese's brilliant Taxi Driver and Bringing Out the Dead, through to his own directorial efforts such as Light Sleeper and First Reformed. You can't accuse Schrader of always making the same movie, however. Instead, his films feel more like cards from the same deck. Each time he deals one out, it's always part of its own hand, as gambling drama The Card Counter demonstrates with potency, smarts and a gripping search for salvation. The film's title refers to William Tell (Oscar Isaac, Scenes From a Marriage), who didn't ever plan to spend his days in casinos and his nights in motels. But during an eight-year military prison stint, he taught himself a new skill that he's been capitalising upon modestly now that he's back out in the world. Anchored not only by Schrader's reliably blistering probing, but also by Isaac's phenomenal performance — a portrayal that's quiet, slippery and weighty all at once — The Card Counter unpacks the storm brewing behind Tell's calm facade. His status quo is punctured by fellow gambler La Linda (Like a Boss' Tiffany Haddish, in a career-best performance), and also by the college-aged Cirk (Tye Sheridan, Voyagers) and his quest for revenge; however, as the movie delves into Tell's murky history, it also lays bare America's rot and emptiness. COW As its name so clearly explains, Cow devotes its frames to one farmyard animal — and it's one of the most haunting films of the year. It's the third feature to take its title from a four-legged critter this year, after the vastly dissimilar Pig and Lamb. It's also the second observational documentary of late to peer at the daily existence of creatures that form part of humanity's food chain, following the also-exceptional Gunda. And, it also joins 2013's The Moo Man in honing its focus specifically upon dairy farming, and in Britain at that. But the key to Cow is Andrea Arnold, the filmmaker behind Fish Tank, Wuthering Heights, American Honey and the second season of Big Little Lies. She sees Luma, her bovine protagonist, with as much affection and understanding as she's ever seen any of the women who've led her projects. Starting with the birth of Luma's latest calf — and, in the beginning, taking detours to see how it's faring as well — Cow unfurls with the rhythm of its agricultural setting. It's the rhythm of Luma's life, too, as she's milked and fed, moos for the offspring that's taken away too quickly, and is soon impregnated again. There's no doubt where the documentary is headed, either. There's simply no shying away from the fact that Luma and cattle like her only exist for milk or meat. Without offering any narration or on-screen explanation, Arnold stares at these facts directly, while also peering deeply into its bovine subject's eyes as often as possible. The result is hypnotic, inescapably affecting, and also features the best use of Garbage's 'Milk' ever in a movie. MEMORIA It's a match made in cinephile heaven: Thai filmmaker Apichatpong Weerasethakul, the director behind the Cannes Palme d'Or-winning Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives and the just-as-lyrical Cemetery of Splendour, and the on-screen force of nature that is Tilda Swinton. With Memoria, the former directs — and makes his English-language debut, as well as his first feature outside of Thailand — while the latter stars. Yes, they prove a beautiful pairing. Weerasethakul makes contemplative, meditative, visually poetic movies, after all, and Swinton's face screams with all of those traits every single time it graces a film. They're both devastatingly precise in what they do, and also delightfully expressive. They both force you to pay attention to their every choice, too. Swinton (The Personal History of David Copperfield) plays Jessica Holland, a British expat in Colombia who starts hearing a very specific noise. She can describe it in exquisite detail to sound engineer Hernán (Juan Pablo Urrego, My Father), who tries to recreate it for her, but only she can hear it. At the same time, her sister Karen (debutant Agnes Brekke) is a Bogota hospital with a strange ailment. Also, there's word of a curse that's linked to a tunnel being built over a burial ground. No plot description can ever do Weerasethakul's films justice, but Memoria doesn't even dream of linking its various threads in an obvious or straightforward way — and unlocking its puzzles by soaking in every exquisite, patient shot and exacting sound is a mesmerising cinematic experience. GREAT FREEDOM Great Freedom begins with 60s-style video footage captured in public bathrooms, showing Hans Hoffmann (Franz Rogowski, Undine) with other men, and with court proceedings that condemn him to prison purely for being gay. That was the reality in West Germany at the time due to Paragraph 175, which criminalised homosexuality — and, when he's incarcerated at the start of this equally tender and brutal Austrian film, Hans isn't surprised. He's been there before, as writer/director Sebastian Meise (Still Life) conveys almost like he's chronicling time travel. It's a canny touch, as relayed in the movie's cinematography, editing and overall mood. The minutes, days, hours, weeks and more surely move differently when you've been locked up for being who you are, and when being in jail is the better alternative to being in a concentration camp. Meise jumps between Hans' different stretches, exploring the imprint all that time behind bars leaves, the yearning for love and freedom that never dissipates, and his friendship with initially repulsed fellow inmate Viktor (Georg Friedrich, Freud). In the process, Great Freedom resounds with intimate moments and revealing performances, as anchored by another stellar turn by Rogowski. The German talent has had an outstanding few years thanks to Victoria, Happy End, Transit, In the Aisles and Undine. He's as absorbing as he's ever been here, too, in a movie that stares his way so intently — and with such a striking sense of light and shade — that it could be painting his portrait. Friedrich is just as impressive, too, in an outwardly thorny part. RIVER Some actors possess voices that could narrate almost anything, and Willem Dafoe is one of them. He's tasked with uttering quite the elegiac prose in River, but he gives all that musing about waterways — the planet's arteries, he calls them at one point — a particularly resonant and enthralling tone. Australian filmmaker Jennifer Peedom (Sherpa) knew he would, of course. She enlisted his vocal talents on her last documentary, Mountain, as well. Both films pick one of the earth's crucial natural features, captures them in all their glory at multiple spots around the globe, and waxes lyrical about their importance, and both make for quite the beguiling viewing experience. Thanks to writer Robert Macfarlane, Dafoe has been given much to opine in River, covering the history of these snaking streams from the planet's creation up until today. He hones in on their importance to human civilisation — in making much in our evolution possible, in fact, and also the devastation we've wrought in response since we learned to harness all that water for our own purposes. That said, River could've simply paired its dazzling sights with its Australian Chamber Orchestra score and it still would've proven majestic and moving. The footage is that remarkable as it soars high and wide across 39 countries, and peers down with the utmost appreciation. Here, a picture truly is worth a thousand of those Dafoe-uttered words, but the combination of both — plus a score that includes everything from Bach to Radiohead — is something particularly special. BLUE BAYOU Blue Bayou isn't Justin Chon's first film as an actor, writer, director or producer, but it's a fantastic showcase for his many talents nonetheless. It's also a deeply moving feature about a topical subject: America's complicated and often punitive immigration laws. Worlds away from his time in all five Twilight movies, Chon plays Antonio LeBlanc, a Korean American who has lived in the US since being adopted as child. That doesn't stop the casual or the overt racism often directed his way, however, or the deportation proceedings that spring after he's accosted in a supermarket by New Orleans police officers Denny (Emory Cohen, Flashback) and Ace (Mark O'Brien, Marriage Story). The latter happens to be his pregnant wife Kathy's (Alicia Vikander, The Green Knight) ex and father to her daughter Jessie (Sydney Kowalske, Doom Patrol), and that run-in has heartbreaking repercussions. There's a sense of inevitability to Blue Bayou, but by design; the path that Antonio's life is forced down isn't filled with surprises, but it overflows with feeling. Indeed, Chon has helmed a stirring and empathetic yet precise and intricate film, especially when it comes to the emotional toll weathered not only by Antonio, but also by Kathy and Jessie. At every moment, Blue Bayou plunges viewers into their whirlwind. That's true in every shimmering sight, including the movie's fondness for water and water lilies. It's evident in the urgent, bustling pacing, too, and in its key performances. Chon is terrific on-screen and off, while Vikander and scene-stealer Kowalske make just as much of an impact in a feature that hits its points hard, but isn't easily forgotten. WHEEL OF FORTUNE AND FANTASY One of two films by Japanese filmmaker Ryûsuke Hamaguchi that are doing the festival rounds this year — the other, Drive My Car, also screens at SFF — Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy gives three tales about romance, desire and fate a spin. These three stories all muse on chance, choice, identity and echoes as well, and focus on complex women reacting to the vagaries of life and everyday relationships. Coincidence plays a role in each of the trio, too, and commonalities ebb and flow between each dialogue-heavy narrative. In other words, this is a smart, astute and savvily layered triptych from the director behind Happy Hour and Asako I and II, as brought to the screen with excellent performances, a canny knack for domestic drama and piercing long shots in each and ever chapter. In the first part, model Meiko (Kotone Furukawa, 21st Century Girl) discovers that her best friend Tsugumi (Hyunri, Wife of a Spy) has just started seeing her ex-boyfriend Kazuaki (Ayumu Nakajima, Saturday Fiction), and grapples with her complicated feelings while pondering what could eventuate. Next, college student Nao (Katsuki Mori, Sea Opening) is enlisted to seduce Professor Sagawa (Kiyohiko Shibukawa, Tezuka's Barbara) as part of a revenge plan by her lover Sasaki (Shouma Kai, Signal 100). Finally, in a world where the internet has been eradicated due to a virus, Natsuko (Fusako Urabe, Voices in the Wind) and Nana (Aoba Kawai, Marriage with a Large Age Gap) cross paths — thinking that they went to school together decades ago. LIMBO What happens when a group of refugees are sent to await the results of their asylum applications on a Scottish island? That's the question that Limbo ponders. There's no doubting why this second feature from writer/director Ben Sharrock (Pikadero) has been given its moniker; for Syrian musician Omar (Amir El-Masry, Star Wars: Episode IX — The Rise of Skywalker) and his fellow new arrivals to Scotland, there's not much to do in this void between the past and the future but wait, sit at the bus stop, check out the children's playground and loiter near the pay phone. That, and navigate the wide range of reactions from the locals — veering from offensive to thoughtful — and, in Omar's case, feel the weight of his prized possession. He's brought his grandfather's oud with him, which he rarely let go of, but his own musical dreams are in limbo as well. A film can be heartbreaking, tender, insightful and amusing all at once, and Limbo is indeed all of those things. It's both dreamlike and lived-in, too, a blend that suits its title and story — and also the mental and emotional state shared by Omar and his fellow asylum seekers as they bide their time on an island that feels like another world. A movie can be both heavy and light simultaneously as well, which is another of Limbo's strengths. Sharrock sees both seriousness and levity in his narrative, his characters and their plights, and recognises the nightmarish and the beautiful in tandem. The latter especially applies to the feature's haunting cinematography, which lenses a landscape that keeps Omar pals physically in limbo with a probing eye. HONEY CIGAR Forget the awkwardness that typically loiters in coming-of-age movies (the familiar approach: like character, like film). Honey Cigar charts the same kind of narrative, focusing on a 17-year-old French Algerian woman in the 90s, and yet does so with a mood and sense of assurance that couldn't be more candid and confident. This is a feature that feels at home in its own skin at every turn. It flows across the screen with determination and poise, too. It should; in her feature filmmaking debut, writer/director Kamir Aïnouz draws upon what she knows, telling a semi-autobiographical tale — one that isn't just about crossing the chasm from childhood to maturity, but also weaves in Algeria's political landscape during its chosen period. When Honey Cigar begins, Selma (Zoé Adjani, niece of French acting great and recent The World Is Yours delight Isabelle Adjani) is about to dive headfirst into business school. In doing so, she's abiding by her lawyer father (Lyes Salem, Abou Leila) and gynaecologist mother's (Amira Casar, Call Me By Your Name) wishes, with education paramount in their household. But Selma is also a teenager who's just getting in touch with her own desires — something that sits at stark odds with her parents' growing interest in her marriage prospects, especially when she starts seeing classmate Julien (Louis Peres, Mental). A film about agency and control on multiple levels, Honey Cigar also explores multiple generations of women battling traditions and expectations, and finds as much room for adolescent awakenings as hard-earned understanding. Looking for more SFF recommendations? We've already taken a look at a few other films screening at the festival. So, you can also check out our reviews of Petite Maman, The Drover's Wife The Legend of Molly Johnson, Drive My Car, The Worst Person in the World, Zola, Bergman Island, Undine, Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn and Blind Ambition — and I'm Wanita, Strong Female Lead and A Fire Inside, too. The 2021 Sydney Film Festival takes place in Sydney cinemas between Wednesday, November 3–Sunday, November 14. For further information, head to the festival website.
When it comes to musical families it doesn’t get much more talented than Kitty, Daisy and Lewis Durham. This sibling trio's live shows cover everything from R&B, swing, jump blues, country and western, blues, Hawaiian, and good old fashioned rock 'n' roll, so get ready to fly from one genre to the next. On top of this, the Durhams are multi-instrumentalists, who easily move between guitar, piano, banjo, lapsteel guitar, harmonica, double bass, ukulele, drums, trombone, xylophone and accordion throughout their sets. Singles ‘No Action’ and ‘Don’t Make A Fool Out Of Me’ are straight-up excellent tunes to get sassy to, so do yourself a favour and drop in on these guys while they’re in town for Splendour.
Every year is a big year for movies, but 2023 is set to be downright explosive, all thanks to one of the most-anticipated films of the year. That feature: Christopher Nolan's latest, and his first flick since Tenet. It just explores a little thing called the atomic bomb, focusing on J Robert Oppenheimer. "They won't fear it until they understand it. And they won't understand it until they've used it," says the titular figure in the just-dropped full Oppenheimer trailer. Played by Nolan regular Cillian Murphy (see also: The Dark Knight, Inception, The Dark Knight Rises and Dunkirk), the "father of the atomic bomb" narrates the new sneak peek with plenty of such telling comments. Here's another: "I don't know if we can be trusted with such a weapon, but we have no choice". Yes, Nolan is going back to the Second World War again, focusing on the eponymous American physicist, aka the man who helped develop the first nuclear weapons as part of the Manhattan Project. Also earning the director's attention: the fact that Oppenheimer needed to risk destroying the world to save it. Charting his life, his part in birthing the atomic bomb and how it changed the world — and the fallout — should make for gripping viewing, although viewers will need to wait until July 20, 2023 Down Under to find out. The new trailer follows a brief teaser in mid-2022, and provides a bigger glimpse of what's in store. Oppenheimer's story also includes heading up Los Alamos Laboratory — and observing the Trinity Test, the first successful atomic bomb detonation in New Mexico on July 16, 1945 — as this latest bit of footage shows. Nolan is always in serious mode, but this is a solemn affair even by the Memento, Interstellar and Dark Knight trilogy filmmaker's standards. And, it looks like a spectacle, in no small part thanks to being shot in IMAX 65mm and 65mm large-format film photography, including sections in IMAX black and white analogue photography for the first time ever. Based on Kai Bird and Martin J Sherwin's Pulitzer Prize-winning book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the film boasts an all-star cast, including Emily Blunt as the physicist's wife, biologist and botanist Kitty (reteaming Blunt with Murphy after A Quiet Place Part II) — plus Matt Damon (The Last Duel) as General Leslie Groves Jr, director of the Manhattan Project; Robert Downey Jr (Dolittle) as Lewis Strauss, a founding commissioner of the US Atomic Energy Commission; and Florence Pugh (The Wonder) as psychiatrist Jean Tatlock. Also set to pop up: Josh Hartnett (Wrath of Man), Michael Angarano (Minx), Benny Safdie (Stars at Noon), Jack Quaid (The Boys), Rami Malek (No Time to Die) and Kenneth Branagh (Death on the Nile). Oh, and there's Dane DeHaan (The Staircase), Jason Clarke (Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty), Olivia Thirlby (Y: The Last Man), Alden Ehrenreich (Solo: A Star Wars Story) and Matthew Modine (Stranger Things) as well. Check out the full trailer for Oppenheimer below: Oppenheimer will release in cinemas Down Under on July 20, 2023. Images: © 2022 Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.
Amy Winehouse would have turned 32 on September 14. To celebrate her birthday, the Soda Factory is dedicating the sixth edition of its popular Covers for a Cause series to her. A bunch of the Soda Factory's favourite resident acts will get together to jam on Winehouse's hit tunes, from 'Tears Dry on Their Own' to 'Valerie'. Entry is free and, for every dish or drink you buy on the night, a gold coin will be donated to Headspace, a national foundation committed to helping young people with mental health issues. The usual dinner menu — with its crave-worthy mix of home-cooked burgers, pulled pork, gourmet hot dogs, southern fried chicken and so on — will be available. And there'll be a couple of special, Winehouse-inspired additions to the drinks menu: The Winehouse Sour (raspberry, red wine, vanilla, egg white, lemon, vodka) and Valerie’s Secret Sangria (citrus fruits, cointreau, cinnamon, red wine). Doors open at 5pm.
Back in 2020, Lord Howe Island was picked as one of the best places to visit on the planet. The 11-kilometre-long, two-kilometre-wide expanse just a two-hour flight east of Sydney is also one of Australia's most incredible islands, clearly. Now, it's being recognised for boasting the best hotel in the South Pacific — beating out resorts in Fiji and Bora Bora, which is quite the feat. The latest acclaim being showered Lord Howe Island's way comes courtesy of Tripadvisor, which has surveyed its users' review data and unveiled its Best of the Best Hotels list as part of its 2023 Travellers' Choice Awards. Open since around 1895, Pinetrees Lodge earned the top spot in the South Pacific rankings, and also came in at number 25 on the best all-inclusive hotels list, which details the top spots where everything you need is all in one place. [caption id="attachment_901975" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Pinetrees Lodge[/caption] Joining Pinetrees Lodge among the Aussie highlights in the South Pacific are six other accommodation destinations. The Reef House Adults Boutique Tropical Escapes in Palm Cove came in second, The Remington Muswellbrook ranked fourth, RACV Torquay Resort sits in fifth, Brisbane's Kingsford Smith Motel at sixth and Element on Coolum Beach at seventh, then Little National Hotel Sydney in tenth. Filling the gaps between them: Fiji's Tokoriki Island Resort in third spot, then Outrigger Fiji Beach Resort at eighth and The St. Regis Bora Bora Resort in ninth position. That's quite the handy rundown of local and local-ish places to spend a night or several on your next vacation or staycation — and all seven Aussie hotels obviously took the top seven berths in the Australia-only top 25 as well. That lengthier list spans everywhere from Sovereign Park Motor Inn in Ballarat and MACq 01 Hotel in Hobart to Laneways by Ovolo in Melbourne and the Four Seasons Hotel Sydney. [caption id="attachment_901976" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Rambagh Palace[/caption] Sadly, there was no Aussie showing in Tripadvisor's top ten hotels in the world, with the number-one spot going to Rambagh Palace in Jaipur, India. As all these kinds of rankings offer, the rest of the placeholders comprise an impressive travel bucket list, pinballing from Ozen Reserve Bolifushi on Bolifushi Island in the Maldives to the Shangri-La The Shard in London, plus Ikos Dassia in Greece, Padma Resort Ubud in Puhu in Indonesia and more. In various subcategories, other hotels given some love include Dromoland Castle Hotel in Ireland, a 16th-century castle that's been named the best hotel for sleep; The Ritz-Carlton in Hong Kong, aka the newly dubbed best hotel with a spa; and the yurts of Patagonia Camp in Chile, which were anointed the best out-of-the-ordinary hotel. Or, there's The Toulson Court in England as the best B&B or inn — a field that Yarra Gables in Victoria came in third in worldwide — and White House Hotel in Istanbul as the best small hotel. [caption id="attachment_901973" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Ozen Reserve Bolifushi[/caption] TOP TEN HOTELS IN THE WORLD 2023: 1. Rambagh Palace — Jaipur, India 2. Ozen Reserve Bolifushi — Bolifushi Island, Maldives 3. Hotel Colline de France — Gramado, Brazil 4. Shangri-La The Shard, London — London, United Kingdom 5. The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong — Hong Kong, China 6. JW Marriott Marquis Hotel Dubai — Dubai, United Arab Emirates 7. Romance Istanbul Hotel — Istanbul, Türkiye 8. Ikos Dassia — Dassia, Greece 9. Ikos Andalusia — Estepona, Spain 10. Padma Resort Ubud — Puhu, Indonesia [caption id="attachment_901978" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Tokoriki Island Resort[/caption] TOP TEN HOTELS IN THE SOUTH PACIFIC 2023: 1. Pinetrees Lodge — Lord Howe Island, Australia 2. The Reef House Adults Boutique Tropical Escapes — Palm Cove, Australia 3. Tokoriki Island Resort — Tokoriki Island, Fiji 4. The Remington Muswellbrook — Muswellbrook, Australia 5. RACV Torquay Resort — Torquay, Australia 6. Kingsford Smith Motel — Brisbane, Australia 7. Element on Coolum Beach — Coolum Beach, Australia 8. Outrigger Fiji Beach Resort — Sigatoka, Fiji 9. The St. Regis Bora Bora Resort — Bora Bora, French Polynesia 10. Little National Hotel Sydney — Sydney, Australia [caption id="attachment_901977" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The Reef House Adults Boutique Tropical Escapes[/caption] TOP 25 HOTELS IN AUSTRALIA 2023: 1. Pinetrees Lodge — Lord Howe Island, NSW 2. The Reef House Adults Boutique Tropical Escapes — Palm Cove, Qld 3. The Remington Muswellbrook — Muswellbrook, NSW 4. RACV Torquay Resort — Torquay, Vic 5. Kingsford Smith Motel — Brisbane, Qld 6. Element on Coolum Beach — Coolum Beach, Qld 7. Little National Hotel Sydney — Sydney, NSW 8. Zagame's House — Melbourne, Vic 9. Sovereign Park Motor Inn — Ballarat, Vic 10. Mansi on Raymond — Sale, Vic 11. Quest South Perth Foreshore — South Perth, WA 12. Quest Orange — Orange, NSW 13. Emporium Hotel South Bank — Brisbane, Qld 14. MACq 01 Hotel —Hobart, Tas 15. Julie-Anna Inn — Bendigo, Vic 16. Majestic M Suites — Adelaide, SA 17. Alcyone Hotel Residences — Brisbane, Qld 18. Laneways by Ovolo — Melbourne, Vic 19. Quest Echuca — Echuca, Vic 20. Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat — Tallebudgera, Qld 21. Quest Warrnambool — Warrnambool, Vic 22. Korte's Resort — Rockhampton, Qld 23. Novotel Brisbane South Bank — Brisbane, Qld 24. Four Seasons Hotel Sydney — Sydney, NSW 25. Adina Apartment Hotel Adelaide Treasury — Adelaide, SA For more information about Tripadvisor's 2023 Travellers' Choice Awards, head to the service's website. Feeling inspired to book a getaway? You can now book your next dream holiday through Concrete Playground Trips with deals on flights, stays and experiences at destinations all around the world.
If you like music and skiing, Snow Machine has served up a winning combination of the two since 2020. It takes place in chilly climes. It enlists a heap of top-notch talent to provide the tunes. And, as it soundtracks a snow-filled week, it plays out like a massive frosty party. For Australians, it also boasts another huge drawcard: getting you to take an overseas alpine holiday. When Snow Machine first debuted its savvy mix, it did so in Japan. Then came an expansion to Queenstown in New Zealand in 2022, where it's still going strong and will return come September 2024. Thinking ahead to the colder weather in the northern hemisphere in 2025, the fest has not only locked in its plans for Hakuba, its OG home, but is expanding to Niseko as well. Snow Machine has also unveiled the lineup for its two next Japanese dates, with Hakuba first up from Tuesday, March 4–Sunday, March 9, then Niseko from Monday, March 10–Saturday, March 15. Chase & Status leads the bill in both locations, with Action Bronson, Hot Chip doing a DJ set, Melanie C, A-Trak and Ken Ishii among the other names. Attendees will catch a club set from Bob Moses as well, plus DJ sets from each of Jungle and Sbtrkt. The roster of talent keeps going from there with Claptone, Cyril, Dillon Francis, DJ Kentaro, DJ Nobu & Wata Igarashi, Horse Meat Disco, Jimi the Kween, Monorochrome and Riton — plus Vintage Culture in Niseko only. Snow Machine Japan might next return when autumn will be kicking off Down Under, but it's one helluva excuse for a getaway during Japan's snow season. No matter where it's taking place, this is the hottest festival for the colder months, treating festivalgoers to action-packed days on the slopes, après ski events and its hefty lineup of international acts against an idyllic backdrop. And, because this is Japan, onsen trips, sake aplenty and yakitori bites are usually also on offer. Other than the wintry setting, one of the things that sets Snow Machine apart from other music fests is being able to book your entire getaway with your ticket. Packages span five or seven nights of accommodation, and include a festival ticket across the entire event, plus a four-day lift pass for Goryu & Hakuba 47, Tsugaike, Iwatake, Happo, Norikura and Cortina in Hakuba — and Niseko United in Niseko. A word of warning: unsurprisingly, the packages are popular. Although the Snow Machine Japan 2025 lineup has only just been announced, packages are already 70-percent sold out. If you're keen to take care of your own place to slumber and just nab a festival ticket, that's an option as well — via both day and four-day passes. Snow Machine Japan 2025 Locations and Dates: Tuesday, March 4–Sunday, March 9 — Hakuba Monday, March 10–Saturday, March 15 — Niseko Snow Machine Japan 2025 Lineup: Chase & Status A-Trak Action Bronson Bob Moses (club set) Claptone Cyril Dillon Francis DJ Kentaro DJ Nobu & Wata Igarashi Horse Meat Disco Hot Chip (DJ set) Jimi the Kween Jungle (DJ set) Ken Ishii Melanie C Monorochrome Riton Sbtrkt (DJ set) Vintage Culture (Niseko only) Snow Machine Japan 2025 will be held across Tuesday, March 4–Sunday, March 9 in Hakuba and Monday, March 10–Saturday, March 15 in Niseko. For more information and tickets, visit the festival's website. Images: Pat Stevenson. Feeling inspired to book a getaway? You can now book your next dream holiday through Concrete Playground Trips with deals on flights, stays and experiences at destinations all around the world.
