It's Groundhog Day The Musical — and it's finally making its way to the Australian stages ten years after it was first announced. Back in 2014, Australian comedian, musician, actor and writer Tim Minchin (Upright) revealed that he was making a song-filled onstage version of the Bill Murray-starring classic comedy. Then, the end result premiered in London in 2016. Next came Broadway in 2017, with 2024 marking Australia's turn. Prepare for plenty of déjà vu in Melbourne from January. Feeling like you've been there and seen this comes with the territory with this production, of course, given that that's what the story is all about. Obviously, you've probably seen the film. In fact, you've likely done so more than once. Still, when Groundhog Day The Musical hits Princess Theatre from Wednesday, January 24–Sunday, April 21, 2024, this'll be Aussie theatregoers' first chance to catch the stage show on home soil. The tale remains the same, with Pittsburgh TV weatherman Phil Connors tasked with travelling to Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania to cover the annual Groundhog Day event — and none too happy about it, oozing cynicism as everyone else around him embraces the occasion. After a cantankerous day, he wakes up the next morning to find that everything is repeating again. And, that's how every day continues, no matter what he does or how he tries to tinker with the cycling routine. On the big screen (and on VHS and streaming queues since), the result proved hilarious, and also one of Murray's best-ever roles. For the stage iteration, Minchin teamed up with screenwriter Danny Rubin — who originally co-wrote Groundhog Day's movie script and won a BAFTA in the process — plus Minchin's Matilda The Musical director Matthew Warchus. Their theatre efforts earned Groundhog Day The Musical Tony Award nominations, as well Olivier Award wins for Best New Musical and Best Actor. Yes, Groundhog Day The Musical's Australian-premiere season runs across Groundhog Day itself, aka February 2. Yes, you can listen to Sonny and Cher's 'I Got You Babe' on repeat now to celebrate. And yes, like the musical version of Matilda, this'll likely return to the big screen at some point — but after the Melbourne season. Groundhog Day The Musical comes Down Under exclusive to the Victorian capital — and if you're wondering who'll step into Murray's (Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania) shoes, and Andie MacDowell's (Maid) as Phil's producer Rita Hanson, too, the cast for the show's Australian run hasn't yet been announced. "I have waited seven years for this moment! Groundhog Day The Musical, like Matilda The Musical, has a unique mixture of darkness and light, of head and heart, and of complexity and joy, and I've been convinced since its first iteration that Australians will love it!" said Minchin, announcing the Aussie premiere. "I'm so excited that the run is going to be in Melbourne, the city I lived in when I wrote my breakout comedy shows, and the place where — when things weren't going so well — I learned how important it is to find the beauty and hope in the day to day." "Following its celebrated run at London's Old Vic Theatre, where it broke all box office records, I couldn't be happier to be bringing Tim Minchin and Danny Rubin's musical masterpiece to the Princess Theatre in Melbourne (coincidentally, the very venue which was home to Matilda back in 2016)," added Warchus. "Groundhog Day The Musical, I know, will surprise many people. Perhaps the most joy-filled show I have ever directed, this magical tale of redemption somehow manages to be both a truly hilarious romantic comedy and a profoundly moving and inspiring message of hope. I love the original movie and I love this adaptation. It inspires us to be the best possible versions of ourselves, to break free of our repetitive gloom and to learn how to love life. All that plus a rodent who predicts the weather... what more could you ask for?" Check out the trailer for Groundhog Day The Musical below: Groundhog Day The Musical will premiere at Princess Theatre, 163 Spring Street, Melbourne from Wednesday, January 24–Sunday, April 21, 2024, with tickets on sale from 9am on Friday, October 6 — head to the production's website for further details and to join the ticket waitlist.
Ryan Matthew Smith doesn't just cook and eat food - he spills its, throws it, sets it on fire and then shoots it with a sniper rifle to make sure. He's also a photographer, and has documented these sick culinary experiments in a 2,400 page tome on the subject, Modernist Cuisine: the Art and Science of Cooking. From collating several individual exposures for one delectable cutaway shot of hamburgers on a grill to shooting a lineup of eggs with a sniper rifle at 6200 frames per second, Smith shot 1,400 images for the cookbook/artwork. Despite little experience in studio work, Smith explains in an interview with Feature Shoot that his extensive portfolio of nature and architecture photography helped prepare him for the task. "Having a strong artistic sense towards photography in general can easily transfer through any of the disciplines from advertising all the way to fine art," he says. [via Coolhunting]
Ignite your imagination at IAC 2025 Space Day as LEGO PLAY transforms Darling Harbour into a free intergalactic wonderland on Friday, October 3. Inspiring adults and kids alike to look to the stars and beyond, expect a free, family-friendly festival of space exploration and curiosity. Equipped with myriad building blocks alongside curious characters, ranging from spacewalking astronauts to shape-shifting mutants, guests can spend the day building rovers, shuttles and space stations primed to take a minifig on an interplanetary adventure. Meanwhile, the program is jam-packed with fascinating encounters. Moonwalk into Martin Place to snap a selfie with a 10-metre-tall inflatable astronaut, then take remote control of Roo-Ver — an Aussie-built rover destined for the lunar surface as part of NASA's Artemis campaign. There's also the chance to meet and greet astronauts, including Australia's first female astronaut, Katherine Bennell-Pegg, alongside a host of other international space leaders. With loads more to explore, IAC 2025 Space Day is ripe for all things celestial fun.
Let's be honest, interstate trips are the perfect budget-friendly breather. You get all your well-deserved downtime, without the fuss of long-distance flying and complicated international travel requirements. These Airbnbs are perfect for just that — with breathtaking views of cities across Australia for the perfect getaway. If you're eagerly planning day trips, weekend getaways and luscious week-long vacations, check out some of the best Airbnbs for the perfect vacation — or staycation — across Australia. Tamarama Panorama, Sydney In keeping with the beachside neighbourhood's "glamarama" reputation, the views from this home's floor-to-ceiling windows are dazzling. You can walk down your outdoor staircase to the beach, or just lay out on the balcony chairs and enjoy the ocean views from up above. From $700 a night, sleeps six. Harbour Hideaway, Sydney The views from this beachfront apartment and its gorgeous porch are hard to beat. If viewing the golden sand and blue water from above wasn't quite enough, the pad also has beach access. From $500 a night, sleeps two. Opera House Views, Sydney Whether you've lived in Sydney your whole life or you're just popping in for the weekend, this condo's jaw-dropping outlook over the city skyline will make you feel like you're seeing it for the first time. From $258 a night, sleeps four. Bondi Beach Ocean View, Sydney Only steps away from Sydney's most famous beach, this condo is close to not only Bondi Beach but also many nearby restaurants, bars and cafes. But its views will probably have you wanting to stay in. From $400 a night, sleeps two. Single-Bedroom Luxury Apartment, Melbourne Perfectly positioned near The Crown in the heart of Melbourne, you can take in pretty much all of the CBD from the floor-to-ceiling windows in this high-rise apartment. From $160 a night, sleeps two. Melbourne Spaceship Penthouse, Melbourne With windows on the walls and ceilings resembling a spaceship cockpit, enjoy an unmatched 270-degree view of Melbourne. From $258 a night, sleeps two. Breathtaking CBD Views, Melbourne Also conveniently located in Melbourne's CBD, the views from this apartment's bedroom are absolutely breathtaking. From $143 a night, sleeps four. Stylish Waterfront Apartment, Melbourne With utilities such as a gym, swimming pool and BBQ area all available, this property is a peaceful waterfront oasis — and only a free tram ride from Melbourne's bustling city centre. From $150 a night, sleeps two. Million Dollar Views, Brisbane Surprisingly, the real selling point of this high-rise apartment isn't its central location or its nice interior finishings, but the view from the apartment complex's rooftop pool. From $221 a night, sleeps four. Stylish One Bedroom, Brisbane Centrally-located and modern, the skyline views from this apartment and its roof will make even Brisbane locals feel like they're on a luxury vacation. From $189 a night, sleeps two. Riverview 29th Floor Apt, Brisbane Located in the heart of South Brisbane, treat yourself to stunning city views from the apartment, balcony, or rooftop infinity pool. From $205 a night, sleeps three. City View, Perth Slide open the glass doors after a long day exploring the city and enjoy the sunset over Perth from your living room. From $200 a night, sleeps two. Cottesloe Beach View, Perch Just steps from one of the most popular beaches in Western Australia, the ocean views are the star of this apartment. From $410 a night, sleeps four. French Farmhouse, Perth Craving a nature immersion? This pad is for the traveller whose ideal vacation involves forgetting about the outside world altogether. With a foliage-covered courtyard outside its windows, this rustic townhouse will help you forget about the existence of the city centre a mere five minutes away. From $200 a night, sleeps four. Glenelg Beachfront Apartment, Adelaide With arguably the best waterfront views on this list, this apartment gets up-close and personal with Glenelg Beach. But, just in case you get tired of the unrestricted views, there is plenty to do nearby in Adelaide's CBD. From $405 a night, sleeps four. Pearl, Adelaide A cosy and bright beachfront cottage, this recently renovated designer property boasts a sea view that can be enjoyed from the open lounge and kitchen or stone patio that leads directly onto the dunes. From $336 a night, sleeps four. Asri Garden Studio, Adelaide For secluded garden views, check out this tranquil studio inspired by Japanese and Balinese design. It's all about nature: nestled into a secluded garden and designed to incorporate natural materials and natural light. From $200 a night, sleeps two. View Studio, Hobart The best way to end an action-packed day in Hobart? Taking in the epic views of the city's lights from the bath in this Airbnb's master suite. From $235 a night, sleeps two. Tiny House Tasmania, Hobart For those looking to experience the tiny home craze, a trip to Hobart may be the perfect opportunity. This home overlooks the Derwent River and notably features an outdoor bathtub perfect for a relaxing evening after a day spent exploring. From $195 a night, sleeps two. Mountain View Retreat, Hobart If you prefer to get your outdoor fix in the mountains, this cosy mountainside retreat is only minutes away from Hobart — but has stunning views. From $140 a night, sleeps two. Marina Views, Darwin Enjoy this property's stellar view of the marina from its all-day shaded balcony, to keep you out of Darwin's heat. From $180 a night, sleeps four. Harbourfront Escape, Darwin This apartment right on Darwin's harbour will give visitors the perfect taste of Darwin's coastal life: explore during the day — or night — and then returning to the complex's outdoor pool and sunset views. From $189 a night, sleeps two. Opulent Ocean View Townhouse, Darwin Nestled in a quiet cul-de-sac, this townhouse boasts waterfront views in a prime location in Darwin's Stuart Park. Suitable for families or for a private getaway, you can switch off in this spacious stay and soak in the gorgeous sunrises — or sunsets — by the pool. From $481 a night, sleeps eight. FYI, this story includes some affiliate links. These don't influence any of our recommendations or content, but they may make us a small commission. For more info, see Concrete Playground's editorial policy. Images: courtesy of Airbnb
Two locally acquired cases of COVID-19 have been identified in Sydney, involving a man in his 50s and his wife — and, as a result, the New South Wales Government is bringing back a number of restrictions in the Greater Sydney region. Come 5pm today, Thursday, May 6, Sydneysiders will need to scale back their at-home gatherings, and also wear masks in indoor settings. In addition, singing and dancing indoors will be off the cards again. Announced this morning by NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian, the changes only apply to the Greater Sydney area, which includes the Central Coast, Wollongong, the Blue Mountains and the region down to Illawarra. The new rules will be in effect until 12am on Monday, May 10 morning, too — and the Premier has advised that anyone who can adopt the new restrictions before 5pm today should do so. Within homes in Greater Sydney, only 20 people will be allowed, including children. "We know that transmission in the family home is a high risk," said Premier Berejiklian. She continued: "I appreciate that it's Mother's Day, but we also appreciate that 20 people within the home is manageable for people to celebrate that important day." Outside of the house, masks will be mandatory again in all indoor spaces. That includes public transport, supermarkets, retail stores, theatres and any indoor events. It also applies to workers in the hospitality industry — so, while no space, capacity or patron restrictions are being implemented in cafes, restaurants, pubs and bars as part of these new changes, folks will need to wear masks in hospitality venues for the next three days. And, if you're having a beverage in a bar, you're being asked to sit down. So yes, vertical drinking at pubs, clubs, restaurants and the like has been scrapped again, too. Plus, although dancing has only been back on the cards since late March, it'll be banned in indoor venues once again until Monday. Singing will be as well. At weddings, dance floors will still be able to operate, but they'll only be able to accommodate 20 people at once. https://twitter.com/NSWHealth/status/1390115056969404421 Premier Berejiklian said that the NSW Government isn't asking people to change their weekend plans. "Enjoy Mother's Day. Do what you would normally do. This is the opposite approach. We're saying to businesses to keep doors open," she advised. The restrictions are being put back in place after the two new NSW cases occurred in people who haven't been overseas recently, and don't work in hotel quarantine, border or health roles. NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said that the sequence from the new case matches a case in a returned overseas traveller, but NSW Health hasn't been able to directly connect the two people as yet. "What we're concerned about is that there is a missing link — that there is someone, because there is no direct contact that we've been able to establish yet, between the cases," Dr Chant noted. Sydneysiders are also asked to continue to frequently check NSW Health's long list of locations and venues that positive coronavirus cases have visited over the past week — and, if you've been to anywhere listed on the specific dates and times, get tested immediately and self-isolate for 14 days after your visit. In terms of symptoms, you should be looking out for coughs, fever, sore or scratchy throat, shortness of breath, or loss of smell or taste — and getting tested at a clinic if you have any. For more information about the status of COVID-19 in NSW, head to the NSW Health website.
Since opening its original store in Granville in 1998, El Jannah has earned cult status for its Lebanese-style charcoal chicken and finger lickin'-good garlic sauce. Now, the legendary chicken joint has an impressive seven outlets under its belt — and counting. El Jannah has won plenty of fans for its charcoal chicken — you can order a whole bird, a half or a quarter, all of which come with pickles and bread. Oh, and that garlic sauce — so irresistible that it's almost single-handedly responsible for El Jannah's rise to Sydney stardom. Elsewhere on the menu, you'll find Middle Eastern skewers and shawarma plates, plus chicken burgers and rolls. Sides include bowls of hummus, baba ghanoush, tabouli and fattoush. You'll find EL Jannah Granville in our list of the best fried chicken in Sydney. Check out the full list here. Appears in: The Best Fried Chicken in Sydney for 2023
Pecans, pretzels, chocolate chip cookie crumbs, both chocolate and caramel syrups, whipped cream, cherries and rainbow sprinkles — and no less than 16 scoops of icecream. 'MUUUUURICA. Yours for a cheeky $100, the 'Kitchen Sink' sundae is the latest monstrosity from New York City joint Bubby's High Line. Apparently this mountainous beast's supposed to serve eight to ten hungry humans (but more likely to be ordered by groups of four max), this behemoth confection is next level indulgence and almost guaranteed cardiac arrest. But wait, no sparklers? If you're not feeling the whole 16-scooper, there's a $50 'Little Kitchen Sink' with half the scoops. That's still 50 nuggets for basically ice cream and a cute little flag. Seriously, if I'm going to throw down a pineapple for an out-of-the-punnet dessert, it'd better be scientifically-crafted into a freakin' Messina mushroom. Disney World's not going to be happy with Bubby's High Line, as the theme park's Beaches and Cream parlour has been churning out a colossal and literal 'Kitchen Sink' sundae since the '90s. These are the ingredients for Disney's WTF best-seller: ½ cup fudge topping, warmed ½ cup butterscotch topping, warmed ½ cup peanut butter topping, warmed 1 medium banana 1 cinnamon spice cupcake, quartered 1 angel food cupcake, quartered 2 scoops vanilla ice cream 2 scoops chocolate ice cream 2 scoops strawberry ice cream 1 scoop mint chocolate chip ice cream 1 scoop coffee ice cream 3 tablespoons chocolate syrup ¼ cup marshmallow crème ¼ cup strawberry topping ¼ cup pineapple topping 1 can dairy whipped topping 1 brownie, quartered 1 regular-sized chocolate bar, quartered 4 chocolate cookies with cream filling 1 tablespoon sliced toasted almonds 1 tablespoon dark and white chocolate shavings 1 tablespoon chocolate cookies with cream filling, crushed 1 tablespoon chopped jellied orange slices (approximately 2 large slices) 1 tablespoon milk chocolate chip morsels 1 tablespoon peanut butter chip morsels 1 tablespoon chocolate sprinkles 1 tablespoon rainbow sprinkles ½ cup drained maraschino cherries America aren't the only ones crafting gargantuan messes on the dessert menu. Max Brenner's recent menu change includes the 'Chocolate Mess to Share', a nostalgic party served in a nanna-like cake tin (that comes with a cooking spatula 'serving tool') in which devil's food cake, about five scoops of ice cream, whipped cream, rainbow sprinkles and that MB chocolate sauce hang out waiting for you to make poor (read: top notch) life choices. Or if you're into the oversized, Big Ol' Mess dessert industry, order anything from Paddington's beloved Micky's Cafe. Their 'sundae cake' can be made to order for bookings of over six (just six people needed) for just $5 pp. Devour layer upon layer of meringue, ice cream, rocky road, strawberries, housemade honeycomb, their infamous chocolate fudge. Eh. Screw it. Via Grub Street.
If clothes make the man, the beard defines the attitude. Whether it's a sharp stubble, a neat fade or a bold statement moustache, the right grooming routine can elevate your whole look. That's where the Philips OneBlade 360 comes in. This all-in-one tool is built to trim, edge and shave any length of hair with precision and ease, thanks to a flexible 360-degree blade that follows the contours of your face, a five-in-one adjustable comb and a fast-moving cutter that can deal with hair of any length. To show what it can do, we've teamed up with Joe Kurdyla from Melbourne barbershop Kings Domain to walk us through four trending facial hair styles that you can nail at home with the Philips OneBlade 360. Short stubble Effortless and universally flattering, a tidy five o'clock shadow is an easy way to look put-together without appearing as though you've tried too hard. Keep it sharp by using the adjustable guard to maintain your preferred length, and let the 360-degree blade do the heavy lifting. Neat beard A short-to-medium beard with faded sides and defined edges is a low-maintenance way to enhance your face shape and jawline while still looking professional. No fuzz, no fuss. The OneBlade's precision trimmer lets you clean up the neckline and cheeks in seconds, keeping things fresh between barber visits. Full beard Bold, rugged and full of character, a full-length beard is a surefire way to make a statement. Use the OneBlade to shape and edge around the beard, especially around the cheeks and neckline, so it stays strong rather than scruffy. Retro moustache Throwback alert: whether you're going for the retro Tom Selleck look or prefer a neater, cleaner look (think: Nathan Cleary), the OneBlade's dual-sided blade helps you define edges with total control. Ditch the guard, tidy the stubble around your mo and let the whiskers take centre stage. For more information on the Philips OneBlade 360, head to the brand's website.
Step into the 1950s in The Dairy Bar. Hidden down a laneway off Berry's main drag, this old-school milk bar is the new offshoot of The Treat Factory, which has been doling out sweet goodness for years. Its home is an 1895 factory that was the first in New South Wales to turn cream into butter. Grab a seat on the shady verandah overlooking Irish-green farmlands and dig in. Every dairy dish on the menu comes from local milk, sourced from farming cooperative South Coast Dairy. That includes the gelato, which is made daily. Try tried-and-trusted classics, like vanilla, Belgian chocolate and pistachio — or go for something more adventurous, like lemon cheesecake. There's also a bunch of OTT sundaes if you want to kick things up a notch. The S'more is a tower of vanilla and chocolate gelato, layered with Graham Cracker crumbs, chocolate pâté and a piping hot s'more (that's a Graham cracker sandwich, packed with chocolate and marshmallows). Meanwhile, the Apple Pie is a mountain of stewed and fresh apple, vanilla gelato, cinnamon almonds, waffle crumbs, caramel sauce and cream.
Before the pandemic, when a new-release movie started playing in cinemas, audiences couldn't watch it on streaming, video on demand, DVD or blu-ray for a few months. But with the past few years forcing film industry to make quite a few changes — widespread movie theatre closures will do that, and so will plenty of people staying home because they aren't well — that's no longer always the case. Maybe you haven't had time to make it to your local cinema lately. Perhaps you've been under the weather. Given the hefty amount of titles now releasing each week, maybe you simply missed something. Film distributors have been fast-tracking some of their new releases from cinemas to streaming recently — movies that might still be playing in theatres in some parts of the country, too. In preparation for your next couch session, here are seven that you can watch right now at home. Dune: Part Two Revenge is a dish best served sandy in Dune: Part Two. On the desert planet of Arrakis, where golden hills as far as the eye can see are shaped from the most-coveted and -psychedelic substance in author Frank Herbert's estimation, there's no other way. Vengeance is just one course on Paul Atreides' (Timothée Chalamet, Wonka) menu, however. Pop culture's supreme spice boy, heir to the stewardship of his adopted realm, has a prophecy to fulfil whether he likes it or not; propaganda to navigate, especially about him being the messiah; and an Indigenous population, the Fremen, to prove himself to. So mines Denis Villeneuve's soaring sequel to 2021's Dune, which continues exploring the costs and consequences of relentless quests for power — plus the justifications, compromises, tragedies and narratives that are inescapable in such pursuits. The filmmaker crafts his fourth contemplative and breathtaking sci-fi movie in a row, then, after Arrival and Blade Runner 2049 as well. The vast arid expanse that constantly pervades the frames in Dune: Part Two isn't solely a stunning sight. It looks spectacular, as the entire feature does, with Australian cinematographer Greig Fraser (The Creator) back after winning an Oscar for the first Dune; but as Paul, his widowed mother Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson, Silo), and Fremen Stilgar (Javier Bardem, The Little Mermaid) and Chani (Zendaya, Euphoria) traverse it, it helps carve in some of this page-to-screen saga's fundamental ideas. So does the stark monochrome when the film jumps to Giedi Prime, home world to House Harkonnen, House Atreides' enemy, plus Arrakis' ruler both before and after Paul's dad Duke Leto (Oscar Isaac, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse) got the gig in Villeneuve's initial Dune. People here are dwarfed not only by their mammoth surroundings, but by the bigger, broader, non-stop push for supremacy. While there's no shortage of detail in both Part One and Part Two — emotional, thematic and visual alike — there's also no avoiding that battling against being mere pawns in an intergalactic game of chess is another of its characters' complicated fights. Dune: Part Two streams via YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review, and our interview with Greig Fraser. Immaculate Add screaming to the ever-growing list of things that Sydney Sweeney can do spectacularly well. Indeed, thanks to Immaculate, which gets the Euphoria and The White Lotus star putting her pipes to stellar bellowing use, the horror genre has a brand-new queen; long may she reign if this is what audiences have to look forward to. This film about a nun who moves to a convent in the Italian countryside, then mysteriously becomes pregnant without having had sex, isn't just a job for Sweeney. She auditioned for the movie a decade back, it didn't come to fruition, but she strove to make it happen now. She stars. She produces. She enlisted Michael Mohan, who she worked with on Everything Sucks! and The Voyeurs, as its director. The passion that drove her quest to bring Immaculate to viewers is just as apparent in her formidable performance, too, including echoing with feeling — and blistering intensity— when she's shrieking. No one should just be realising now how versatile an actor that Sweeney is. Her portrayal of Sister Cecilia, who found her way to becoming a bride of Christ after a traumatic near-death incident in her younger years, is exactly what the film's title suggests: immaculate. It's also a showcase of a role that requires her to be sweet, dutiful, faithful, ferocious, indefatigable, vengeful and desperate to survive all in the same flick — and she kills it — but adaptability, resourcefulness and displaying a multitude of skills has been her on-screen wheelhouse beyond just one movie. Take Sweeney's last four cinema releases, for instance, all of which hail from 2023–24. Reality, Anyone But You, Madame Web and Immaculate couldn't be more dissimilar to each other, and neither could the actor's parts in them. Throw in her Saturday Night Live hosting stint, and she's firmly at the "is there anything that she isn't capable of?" stage of her career. Immaculate streams via YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review, and our interview with Michael Mohan. The Zone of Interest Quotes and observations about evil being mundane, as well as the result when people look the other way, will never stop being relevant. A gripping, unsettling masterpiece, The Zone of Interest is a window into why. The first film by Sexy Beast, Birth and Under the Skin director Jonathan Glazer in more than a decade, the Holocaust-set feature peers on as the unthinkable happens literally just over the fence, but a family goes about its ordinary life. If it seems abhorrent that anything can occur in the shadow of any concentration camp or site of World War II atrocities, that's part of the movie's point. It dwells in the Interessengebiet, the 40-square-kilometre-plus titular area that comprised and surrounded the Auschwitz complex, to interrogate how banal genocide was to those in power; commandant Rudolf Höss (Christian Friedel, Babylon Berlin), even gloats that his name will be remembered and celebrated for its connection to mass extermination. Höss was a real person, and the real Nazi SS officer overseeing Auschwitz from 1940–43. His wife Hedwig (Sandra Hüller, Anatomy of a Fall) and five children are similarly drawn from truth. But The Zone of Interest finds its way to the screen via Martin Amis' fiction novel of the same name, then hones its interest down from the book's three narrators to the Höss family; a biopic, it isn't, even as it switches its character monikers back to reflect actuality. This is a work of deep probing and contemplation — a piece that demands that its viewers confront the daily reality witnessed and face how the lives of those in power, and benefiting from it, thrived with death not only as a neighbour but an enabler. Camp prisoners tend the Höss' garden. Ashes are strewn over the soil for horticultural effect. Being turned into the same is a threat used to keep the household's staff in line. All three of these details, as with almost everything in the feature, are presented with as matter-of-fact an air as cinema is capable of. The Zone of Interest streams via YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review. How to Have Sex Movies don't have pores, but How to Have Sex might as well. Following a trip to Greece with three 16-year-old best friends who want nothing more than to party their way into womanhood — and to get laid, too — this unforgettable British drama is frequently slick with sweat. Perspiration can dampen someone when they're giddily excited about a wild getaway, finishing school and leaving adolescence behind. It can get a person glistening when they're rushing and drinking, and flitting from pools and beaches to balconies and clubs. Being flushed from being sozzled, the stickiness that comes with expending energy, the cold chill of stress and horror, the fluster of a fluttering heart upon making a connection: they're all sources of wet skin as well. Filmmaker Molly Manning Walker catalogues them all. Viewers can see the sweat in How to Have Sex, with its intimate, spirited, like-you're-there cinematography. More importantly, audiences can feel why protagonist Tara (Mia McKenna-Bruce, Vampire Academy) is perspiring, and the differences scene to scene, even when she's not quite sure herself. How to Have Sex also gets those watching sweating — because spying how you've been Tara, or her pals Em (debutant Enva Lewis) and Skye (Lara Peake, Halo), or lads Badger (Shaun Thomas, Ali & Ava) and Paddy (Samuel Bottomley, The Last Rifleman) in the neighbouring resort unit, is inescapable. Walker has been there herself, with parts of her debut feature as a writer and director drawn from her own time as a Tara, Em or Skye while also making the spring break and Schoolies-like pilgrimage from England to the Mediterranean. When the movie doesn't lift details directly from her own experience, it shares them with comparable moments that are virtually ripped from western teendom. One of the feature's strokes of genius is how lived-in it proves, whether Tara and her mates are as loud and exuberant as girls are when their whole lives are ahead of them, its main character is attempting to skip her troubles in a sea of strobing lights and dancing bodies, or slipping between the sheets — but not talking about it — is changing who Tara is forever. How to Have Sex streams via YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review, and our interview with Molly Manning Walker. Bob Marley: One Love There's no doubting who Bob Marley: One Love is about, but the Reinaldo Marcus Green (King Richard)-directed biopic also brings two other big-screen portraits of music superstars to mind. There's always a dance through a legend's history flickering somewhere, or close to it, with the initial dramatised look at the reggae icon arriving after Bohemian Rhapsody and Elvis both proved major hits in recent years. Where the first, which focused on Freddie Mercury, had Live Aid, Bob Marley: One Love has the One Love Peace Concert. Both are gigs to build a movie around, and both features have done just that. Baz Luhrmann's portrait of the king of rock 'n' roll wanted its audience to understand what it was like to watch its namesake, be in his presence and feel entranced by every hip thrust — and, obviously without the gyrating pelvis, Bob Marley: One Love also opts for that approach. Enter Kingsley Ben-Adir as Bob Marley, in a vital piece of casting. Although it may not earn him an Oscar as Bohemian Rhapsody did Rami Malek (Oppenheimer), or even a nomination as Elvis scored for Austin Butler (Masters of the Air), the British actor turns in a phenomenal performance. He's worlds away from being a Ken in Barbie. He isn't in wholly new territory seeing that he played Malcolm X in One Night in Miami and Barack Obama in TV series The Comey Rule. He's also magnetic and mesmerising — and, in the process, expresses how and why Marley was magnetic and mesmerising. Ben-Adir's vocals are blended with Marley's. Accordingly, you're largely listening to the singer himself. But there's a presence about Ben-Adir in the part, perfecting Jamaican patois, getting kinetic and uninhibited in his movement while he's behind the microphone, radiating charisma, but also conveying purpose and self-possession. It's a portrayal that's as entrancing and alive as the music that's always echoing alongside it; with Marley's discography, that's saying something. Bob Marley: One Love streams via YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review, and our interview with Kingsley Ben-Adir, Lashana Lynch, James Norton and Reinaldo Marcus Green. Riceboy Sleeps When Riceboy Sleeps charts the passage of time from 1990 to 1999 partway into the movie, the Canadian film does so with Dong-hyun at its centre. As a six-year-old (played by debutant Dohyun Noel Hwang) navigating his initial taste of school from behind his large round glasses, he's shy, sensitive, and constantly reminded that he's different by teachers and classmates. As a 15-year-old (Ethan Hwang, The Umbrella Academy) with bleached-blonde hair and faux blue eyes, he's adopted a coping mechanism: trying to blend in. Riceboy Sleeps isn't just about Dong-hyun, who takes the anglicised name David in his attempts to assimilate. It's as much about his mother So-young (fellow feature first-timer Choi Seung-yoon), who relocates him from South Korea to North America after his soldier father's suicide. Writer/director Anthony Shim's sophomore release after 2019's Daughter hones in on the act of seeing, too — gleaning what's around you, who, why, the past that lingers, the stories that echo — as Dong-hyun and So-young survey where they are, where they've been, and how their history keeps dictating their present and future. In that aforementioned time jump, Shim — who helms, pens, edits and acts — and cinematographer Christopher Lew (Quickening) make eyes the focus. When Riceboy Sleeps dwells in the first year of the 90s, Dong-hyun's spectacles are frames within the frame, giving the boy his own windows to the world that he fidgets with, seems burdened by and, in an act of bullying by his peers, has dinged up and taken away. When the movie hits the end of the decade, Dong-hyun is putting in his contacts, therefore making the lens with which he perceives his existence invisible. Semi-inspired by his own childhood as a South Korean arrival to Vancouver Island in the 90s, including attending a school where he was the only Asian student, Riceboy Sleeps is this thoughtful at every level. The movement, and later lack thereof, of Lew's camerawork is just as loaded with meaning: in Canada, it's restless in long wide shots, careening around gracefully but noticeably and finding points to fixate on; back across the Pacific Ocean in the picture's bookending segments, it's still but just as observational. Riceboy Sleeps streams via YouTube Movies, iTunes and Prime Video. Read our full review. The Boys in the Boat The Social Network isn't a rowing film, but the Henley Royal Regatta sequence in David Fincher's (The Killer) 2010 triumph quickly became one of cinema's most-famous oar-sweeping moments. Prestige, money, tradition, opulence, power, competition, determination: they all wash through the tightly shot segment, which gleams with the water of the River Thames, the sweat on the crew's faces and, just as importantly, with status. Definitely a rowing film, The Boys in the Boat paddles into the same world; however, a commentator's line mid-movie sums up the focus and angle of this old-fashioned underdog sports flick. "Old money versus no money at all" is how the usual big and rich names in the field and the University of Washington's junior varsity team are compared. George Clooney's (The Tender Bar) ninth feature as a director doesn't just spot the class-clash difference there — his entire picture wades into that gulf. Drawn from 2013 non-fiction novel The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by Daniel James Brown, reuniting Clooney with his The Midnight Sky screenwriter Mark L Smith in the process, The Boys in the Boat is about the UW's rowing efforts, rower Joe Rantz and coach Al Ulbrickson, too — plus an against-the-odds quest, bold choices, the struggles of the Great Depression, the reality of an Olympics held under the Nazi regime and the looming shadow of war. But thrumming at its heart like a coxswain is setting the pace is the mission to keep afloat one stroke at a time, and not merely in the pursuit of glory and medals. What rowing means to Rantz (Callum Turner, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore), the character at its centre, as well as to the classmates-turned-crewmates catching and extracting with him under the guidance of the stoic Ulbrickson (Joel Edgerton, I'm a Virgo), is pure survival first and foremost. The Boys in the Boat streams via Prime Video. Read our full review, and our interview with Joel Edgerton. Looking for more viewing options? Take a look at our monthly streaming recommendations across new straight-to-digital films and TV shows — and fast-tracked highlights from January, February and March 2024 (and also January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November and December 2023, too). We keep a running list of must-stream TV from across 2024 as well, complete with full reviews. And, we've also rounded up 2023's 15 best films, 15 best straight-to-streaming movies, 15 top flicks hardly anyone saw, 30 other films to catch up with, 15 best new TV series of 2023, another 15 excellent new TV shows that you might've missed and 15 best returning shows.
Sydney nightlife precinct YCK Laneways is making the most of the month of August with a four-week music, art, food and drink festival celebrating women in creative industries and hospitality. As part of YCK Front & Centre, more than 50 individual events will take place across 15 CBD venues. The culmination of the festival will be across the August 26 weekend with a three-day marquee event titled Front & Centre presents: Live at YCK. Throughout the days, attendees will be treated to masterclasses from hospitality veterans including a spirits distilling workshop from Women of Australian Distilling, a Cornersmith-led pickle your own vegetable masterclass and a truffle grading and tasting experience with Ganymede Truffles. Come nighttime, live music and entertainment will take over with a stacked lineup including sets from the likes of Jaguar Jonze, JOY, Bella Hatch, Kilimi and Pirra. Across the 15 venues, there is a tonne of other highlights. Over at PS40, the bar will be running its regular chef collaboration series with a female-led lineup; Esteban will be hosting live art from Nanami Cowdroy; plus female and non-binary DJ collective Pho the Girls will be taking over Since I Left You among the dozens of events popping up across the laneways. Rounding out the program is a series of limited-edition cocktails inspired by Moulin Rouge! The Musical which has been rolled out across the venues for the entire 31-day program.
We love an old-school Sydney pub and the Friend in Hand Hotel, with its affordable fare and charmingly quirky decor — model planes and trains, old photographs, surfboards and other oddities plaster every single bit of wall space — is a great one. This stellar pub is also home to one of the city's longest-running comedy spots, the Mic in Hand. For just a tenner, you can chortle away all the week's stresses courtesy of the city's best up-and-coming comedy talent. If you're lucky, you might even catch one of the more famous comedy stars who drop in from time to time.
Whether you're a Melburnian or an upcoming visitor to the city, if your early winter plans involve heading out for a meal, the Victorian Government and the City of Melbourne want to give you an extra incentive. As initially announced at the beginning of May, the two government bodies have teamed up on a new dining scheme that'll offer 20-percent rebates for eating out in the CBD, Chinatown, Lygon Street, Docklands, North Melbourne, Kensington and Southbank. Originally called the CBD Dining Experiences Scheme, and now dubbed 'Melbourne Money', the initiative will kick off on Friday, June 11. It'll cover food and drink purchases in-store at restaurants, cafes and pubs, as well as bars, clubs, breweries and distilleries. The rebate applies to transactions between $50–500 (including GST), meaning that you'll get as little as $10 and as much as $100 back. The big caveat: you do have to purchase something to eat, with your drinks only covered if you're buying food. Another important thing to take into consideration: it works on a first in, first served basis. So, heading out as soon as the scheme starts — which happens to be on the Queen's Birthday long weekend — and submitting your claim for a rebate immediately afterwards is recommended. Both residents of and visitors to the City of Melbourne can get their cash back after they've been to a hospitality venue, received an itemised receipt at the time of payment, then taken a photo of it and uploaded it to the Melbourne Money website. Within five working days, you'll then score 20 percent of the bill's total via a transfer to your bank account. Melbourne Money forms part of the Victorian Government's next $107.4 million million in spending to revitalise the city, which is included in the 2021–22 Victorian Budget. The Victorian Government is providing $7.4 million towards the scheme, with the City of Melbourne kicking in another $1 million. The dining initiative is the latest scheme to help the state recover from the pandemic, following vouchers for travel to both regional areas and the CBD — and it adapts an idea that's already been rolled out in New South Wales (and, before that, in the UK as well). The Melbourne Money scheme kicks off on Friday, June 11. For more information, head to the City of Melbourne website. Top image: Josie Withers, Visit Victoria.
There are so many incredible vistas to enjoy throughout the Northern Rivers region, but you don't have to bust a gut to experience some of the best. The easygoing North Head walking track, located on the edge of town in the Brunswick Heads Nature Reserve, is a 30-minute trail guiding you through the coastal rainforest. As you break through the canopy and look down upon the Brunswick River, you'll find several spots perfect for unfurling a picnic rug and basket. Once you're back on your feet, the trail leads you through fascinating wildlife habitats and eventually out to the ocean beach. Head to the website for visitor info. Image: Elliot Kramer
Sydney Science Festival is blasting off for a special space-themed edition this spring. Presented by Powerhouse Museum, the festival will run from Saturday, September 27 to Saturday, October 4 as part of the 76th International Astronautical Congress (IAC) for IAC 2025 Space Week — the world's largest annual space gathering, which is landing in Sydney for the very first time. The program will bring the global space community to the Harbour City for a week of free and ticketed talks, workshops, interactive experiences and family-friendly fun. From recording your very own message to be broadcast in space to meeting real-life astronauts, these are the must-attend events that'll give you a chance to explore the final frontier, no rocket required. HUMANS Deep Space Message In 1977, NASA's Voyager spacecraft carried the first Golden Records into deep space as a time capsule to communicate information about Earth and its inhabitants, sent in case they were ever found by intelligent extraterrestrial life. Fifty years on, you can help create the next chapter in that story. The Humanity United with MIT Art and Nanotechnology in Space project — or HUMANS — invites people from around the world to record their own short message for a new deep-space broadcast scheduled for 2027. Whether you want to share a message of hope, a cultural insight or just say g'day to the cosmos, you can add your voice at Sydney Science Festival events at ICC Sydney or Parramatta Town Hall — or online from anywhere on Earth. Space Now What does the future of space missions look like — and why does it matter here on Earth? Space Now brings together three global leaders in the field to unpack the innovations shaping the new space age, from lunar rovers to next-gen spacesuits. Katherine Bennell-Pegg (Australian astronaut at the Australian Space Agency), Hannah Ashford (Co-Founder of The Karman Project, a non-profit that promotes peace and security in space) and Sami Raines (Senior Engineer at ELO2, Australia's first lunar rover consortium) will share their insights on collaboration, technology and exploration in a rapidly changing space landscape. Astronauts Forum Ever wondered what it's like to live and work in space? Katherine Bennell-Pegg (pictured above), Australia's first qualified astronaut, will host an unmissable conversation with spacefarers from NASA, the Australian Space Agency, the European Space Agency, AXIOM, SpaceX and more. Expect stories of zero-gravity science, life aboard spacecraft and what it feels like to return to Earth after orbit. Lunar Horizons in Fortnite You won't need a spacesuit for this mission. Lunar Horizon invites you to explore a realistic moon landscape in a custom Fortnite mission created by Hassell, Epic Games and the European Space Agency. At this interactive blend of gaming, architecture and science, you'll be able to gather resources to build a lunar habitat as you traverse a realistic lunar landscape and chat with astronauts, all while learning about real-life missions and the future of human space exploration. This event is recommended for ages 15+. Science of Space There's something for all ages at this full day of fascinating talks that look at how space science is shaping life on Earth. Leading experts and creatives will explore breakthroughs in space food, commercial spaceflight, cosmic art and automation, as space nutritionist Dr Flávia Fayet-Moore, AI pioneer Michael Kemeny, visionary designer Dr Nelly Ben Hayoun-Stépanian and commercial astronaut Dr Chris Boshuizen unpack the future of our cosmic frontier. Sydney Science Festival, presented by Powerhouse, will take place across various Sydney venues from Saturday, September 27 to Saturday, October 4. For more information and full program details, head to the Sydney Science Festival website.
Baker Bleu Double Bay is under new management, if you can call it that, as the Melbourne-born bakery's partnership with renowned Chef Neil Perry and his wife Sam has come to an end. Now, Baker Bleu founders and directors Mike and Mia Russell will take over full ownership of the location. Launched in 2022, Neil had previously described Baker Bleu's output as the "best bread in Australia," becoming part of a joint venture to lead the bakery's expansion beyond Melbourne. Yet Neil and Sam will now renew focus on their neighbouring hub of restaurants — Margaret, Gran Torino and Next Door. "Sam and I are very proud of the role we've played in Baker Bleu's growth and in making the Double Bay store the success it is today. As Mike and Mia look to expand and take the business in a new direction, we've decided to part ways and focus on our restaurants in Double Bay," said Neil Perry. "We are grateful to Neil for bringing us to Sydney in 2022," adds Mike. "During this time, we created something truly magical with Neil and Sam, and we feel privileged to continue to be in the neighbourhood alongside their world-class restaurants." With all other Baker Bleu locations owned by Mike and Mia Russell — Caulfield North, Cremorne and Hawksburn — the Double Bay location now joins the fold, as well as any future stores. That also includes the soon-to-launch South Yarra location, arriving in late September. Situated in a prime position opposite the Royal Botanic Gardens, this takeaway-only outpost has moved into the former home of Baker D Chirico. Open daily, visitors can expect the full Baker Bleu range, from sourdough breads to hand-rolled bagels, alongside Market Lane coffee and pantry staples like cultured butter and small-batch jams. Baker Bleu Double Bay is open daily from 7.30am–3pm at 2 Guilfoyle Ave, Double Bay. Head to the website for more information.
Movies can sometimes stick to a formula. Picture palaces showing them can do the same thing. At Moonlight Cinema, one of Australia's summer staples, that means playing Christmas films in December and romantic classics in February, for instance. Celebrating Oscar contenders in March is also on the itinerary, as the just-dropped last lineup for the event's 2023–24 season locks in. We can't know right now who'll emerge victorious at Hollywood's night of nights on Monday, March 11 Australian time, but plenty of nominees are showing throughout the month. Whether you're team Oppenheimer or Barbie, they're both on the program. So are Poor Things, The Holdovers and Martin Scorsese's Killers of the Flower Moon. Perth gets Maestro, too, while Sydney and Melbourne can get drawn into the compelling drama of Palme d'Or-winner Anatomy of a Fall. While Moonlight Cinema hits up five locations each year, it winds up in Brisbane and Adelaide in February, hence the March bill is only playing in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth. The details vary per city, but each will also enjoy a range of recent big-screen favourites, too, such as the Mean Girls musical, Sydney-shot rom-com Anyone But You and the sweet Timothée Chalamet (Bones and All)-led treat that is Wonka. Matthew Vaughn following up the Kingsman movies with new spy caper Argylle, Kingsley Ben-Adir (Secret Invasion) playing a reggae icon in Bob Marley: One Love and wrestling drama The Iron Claw will also get a whirl. For some retro fun, The Goonies, The Princess Bride and the OG Mean Girls are on the lineup as well. And, of course, the movies are just one part of the Moonlight Cinema experience. The setting — at Centennial Parklands in Sydney, Royal Botanic Gardens in Melbourne, and Kings Park and Botanic Garden in Perth — is just as important. Also on offer: an official Aperol spritz bar, which is new for 2023–24. Nosh-wise, the event lets you BYO movie snacks and drinks, but the unorganised can enjoy a plethora of bites to eat onsite while reclining on bean beds. There's also a VIP section for an extra-luxe openair movie experience, plus a platinum section that levels up a night at the movies even further in Sydney and Melbourne. A beauty cart is handing out samples, too. And, dogs are welcome at all sites except Perth — there's even special doggo bean beds, and a snack menu for pooches. Moonlight Cinema 2023–24 Dates: Sydney: until Sunday, March 24, 2024 in Centennial Parklands Perth: until Sunday, March 24, 2024 in Kings Park and Botanic Garden Melbourne: until Saturday, March 30, 2024 in Royal Botanic Gardens Moonlight Cinema runs through until March 2024 in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth, with dates varying per city. For more information and to buy tickets, visit the cinema's website.
Already in 2023, streaming viewers have watched Sam Richardson get spiteful in one of the most kindhearted sitcoms in recent years, and get nominated for his second Emmy for it. They've witnessed him host oh-so-silly game shows, too. It isn't just Ted Lasso and I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson that've been keeping him on-screen, but also rom-com Somebody I Used to Know and voicing Shaggy in new Scooby Doo take Velma. Only The Afterparty, which returned to Apple TV+ for season two on Wednesday, July 12, has him playing buddy cop with Tiffany Haddish, however. Actually, The Afterparty has the ever-busy Richardson playing a wealth of roles, but only stepping into one character's shoes. Aniq Adjaye is a wedding guest, doting boyfriend and eager-to-please potential future son-in-law. He's the guy who finally made good on his high-school crush at his reunion in season one, after getting accused of murder when a classmate would up dead at, yes, the afterparty. And, he's whatever his fellow revellers see — because this murder-mystery comedy from Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, 21 Jump Street and 22 Jump Street, and The Lego Movie's Christopher Miller is a whodunnit about perspective. The clever, inventive and entertaining twist? Every episode not only takes a different character's viewpoint, but filters their recollections through a parody of a different genre. Sometimes, then, Richardson dives into a romantic comedy within the ensemble murder-mystery comedy. That's what the show's two Aniq-centric episodes — the opening chapters of both 2022's season one and now 2023's season two — have delivered, and delightfully. Richardson is the series' lead no matter which on-screen figure's memories guide each instalment, though, teaming up with Haddish's (The Card Counter) Danner to interrogate his fellow partygoers. So, sometimes Richardson is also plunged into the world of action. Or, he's whisked into a musical, a teen drama or police procedural. In season two, the list includes a Jane Austen-style period romance, both Hitchcockian and erotic thrillers, Wes Anderson's aesthetic and film noir. The Afterparty's second go-around takes Aniq and his other half Zoe (Zoe Chao, Party Down) to her younger sister Grace's (Poppy Liu, Dead Ringers) nuptials to the wealthy-but-awkward Edgar (Zach Woods, Avenue 5). After the ceremony, then the reception, then the post-proceedings, there's a body, a winery full of suspects and questions to ask. There's also Richardson proving as versatile as ever, a skill that's served him exceptionally on everything from underseen Tim Robinson-costarring comedy Detroiters to stealing scenes upon scenes as Veep's Richard Splett — plus a six-episode run on The Office, cinema stints as varied as Spy and Promising Young Woman; and Werewolves Within and Hocus Pocus 2 as well. With The Afterparty season two now streaming, Richardson chatted us through the joy of the show's comedic layers, his odd-couple dynamic with Haddish, living the murder-mystery dream as a big fan of the genre, how he'd respond if one of the series' situations crossed over to his real life, I Think You Should Leave's unhinged reactions and more. ON MAKING A MURDER-MYSTERY COMEDY THAT'S ALSO A ROM-COM, AN ENSEMBLE COMEDY AND A SPOOF OF EVERY GENRE IT CAN FIT IN "There's so much that I love about all these things. I'm a big fan of a murder-mystery — Sam Richardson is. I'm a big fan of a rom-com. And I'm a big fan of an ensemble comedy. So the show is all three of those things. So I got to do that the first season, and then the second season we get to heighten all of that. Now Aniq is investigating not just to protect himself, but to try to figure out actually who the murderer is with him outside the gaze of suspicion. He's now trying to solve this mystery, and also his retelling of the story is a rom-com sequel. So now everything's all heightened when he's telling the story — big setpieces and big physical-comedy bits. That's a really fun thing for me to do, and to get to work with the new cast — everybody's so funny —and all these new genres." ON MAKING A BUDDY-COP COMEDY WITH TIFFANY HADDISH, TOO "They're an unlikely pair [Aniq and Danner], but it turns out they're good partners. One balances the other. And getting to perform with Tiffany — she's so funny. So it's good to play off of that dynamic and that energy. It was such a great thing to do and to get to play with. The two of them — her methods are unorthodox at first, and then his methods are maybe a little sloppy. So together they're able to get through this thing, but [make] an unlikely pair." ON TICKING MURDER-MYSTERY OFF THE ACTING BUCKET LIST "There's nothing more fun than being the one to get to put the pieces together at the end of the mystery — that sort of monologue that Sherlock Holmes has where he explains all the pieces that he's seen, that you've seen as the audience, but now I'm giving you the grand thing, the Colombo sort of speech, the "one more thing, you thought I didn't know this, but ha!". Getting to be in that role is a dream come true for me." ON THE CHALLENGES AND FUN OF JUMPING BETWEEN GENRES FROM EPISODE TO EPISODE "It's definitely both, because you are getting pulled in a bunch of different ways. But that is the fun of it, because you get to explore your character and these genres from all these different perspectives. As an acting exercise, and as a challenge to an actor, you get to say not only 'what is the perspective of this character whose story I'm in, the person who's telling the story, what's their perspective on me?' but also 'what is the trope of this genre?'. 'What is this character in a film noir? And who who is the person within that trope? Who is this person in this Jane Austen story? What is that person in this trope?' But then also at the same time, 'what does the character telling the story think of me? Does this person think I'm untrustworthy? Do they think that I'm a weak person? Do they think that I'm more maybe more bold than I am? Do they think that I'm behaving surreptitiously?'. So that's a fun thing to explore in a show like this." ON THE BEST GENRE TO DIVE INTO SO FAR — AND A DREAM PICK FOR THE FUTURE "I really do love the the big rom-com sequel that I got to do this season — big set pieces and physical comedy. I also really enjoyed the Wes Anderson-style episode, the costumes of the Jane Austen [episode]. Each one has it's [merits] — it's so hard to pick one. But if there was another genre that I would want to do, it'd would be a kung-fu movie. That would be so much fun." ON PLAYING OLD HIGH-SCHOOL BUDDIES WITH SEASON ONE'S CAST — THEN STRANGERS AT A WEDDING WITH SEASON TWO'S "The first season, the cast, and getting to play with that cast, was terrific. And then also the idea that you have this shared history and so you're looking back on these relationships that you've had — but what's the dynamic now? — was such a great thing to get to do. So in this season, there are some dynamics that have existed before. But for Aniq especially, he's meeting so many people for the first time. And so getting to be introduced to these characters, and then to get to work with some of these actors for the first time as well, it was such a great fertile playground for reactions. You're absorbing these people for the first time — whereas on the other side of the coin, you get to fall back on 'oh, this guy behaves like this and I know they do'; this time, you get to be like 'this guy behaves like this, what are they doing?'. So it's two sides of the coin, but the coin is still 25 cents." ON HOW RICHARDSON WOULD REACT IF HE WAS LIVING A MURDER-MYSTERY IRL "I fear that day happening greatly. But I do wonder how I would react, because you want to hope that you'd be bold and be like 'no, it has to have been this'. And you'd answer all the things. I myself, I do like to solve things. So I really would be trying to look at things objectively and be like 'well, no it couldn't have been this because these three people were here at this time, that person was there, and I know they were, and they said that before'. That's kind of how I approach things anyway, so I think if somebody got murdered in my high school, I'd figure out who it was." [caption id="attachment_903580" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Netflix © 2023[/caption] ON WHAT RICHARDSON LOOKS FOR IN A ROLE "Good money. I look for, you know, does it pay my insurance? I am entirely joking — but also not. I really just like characters who have very fun wants, and characters who are able to react to things. So for I Think You Should Leave — I Think You Should Leave is its own sort of thing. That's my best friend's show, and it's sketch, and I very much love sketch and I love playing these characters who have wants that are a little bit unrealistic, and then the reaction to not getting those wants is also unhinged. That's a fun thing to get to do. But then with with shows like Detroiters, the wants there are to spend time with your best friend and represent your city in the best way. I think it ultimately comes down to wants — the interestingness of what characters want, and getting to see how these characters go about trying to achieve them, is what I look for most." Season two of The Afterparty streams via Apple TV+ from Wednesday, July 12. Read our full review of season two.
One of 2024's cinema trends has a very specific number in mind: 45. It was four-and-a-half decades ago that the Mad Max franchise first rolled onto the big screen, with creator/writer/director George Miller bringing it back this year for its fifth instalment via Furiosa: A Mad Max Story. It was also 45 years ago that no one could hear you scream in space, as Ridley Scott's OG Alien advised — and it too has a new movie reaching silver screens in 2024. The latter: Alien: Romulus. While watching both the initial teaser and just-dropped full trailer for the latest entry in the franchise, can anyone hear your shouts? The answer to that question depends on where you are and who you're with, of course — we're presuming that you're not in space — but the sneak peeks themselves firmly aim to unsettle. Across the two glimpses, there's an eerie derelict space station, dark hallways aplenty, screaming and a heap of blood. There's also plenty of facehuggers, chestbursters and xenomorphs. Behind the lens, albeit producing rather than directing, Scott (Napoleon) remains involved. The seventh Alien film, and the ninth including the Alien vs Predator movies, Alien: Romulus arrives in August seven years since Alien: Covenant gave the seriesf its last entry. While Scott originated the space-thriller saga back in 1979, then returned to it with 2012's Prometheus and 2017's Alien: Covenant, now Evil Dead, Don't Breathe and The Girl in the Spider's Web filmmaker Fede Álvarez is on helming duties — clearly taking his cues from Scott's work, though, right down to specific mirrored shots. The setup: when space colonisers go a-scavenging through an abandoned space station, they get more than they bargained for. Given Álvarez's background in horror, it comes as no surprise that he's tapping into the genre for his Alien effort, just as Scott did with his. Álvarez also wrote the screenplay, reteaming with Rodo Sayagues, who he worked with on Evil Dead and Don't Breathe — and who directed Don't Breathe 2. Priscilla and Civil War's Cailee Spaeny leads the group of folks doing battle with vicious extra-terrestrials, starring alongside David Jonsson (Rye Lane), Archie Renaux (Shadow and Bone), Isabela Merced (Madame Web), Spike Fearn (Aftersun) and feature first-timer Aileen Wu. Separate to Alien: Romulus, the Alien franchise is also expanding to TV, with a new series from Fargo's Noah Hawley in the works, as set three decades before the events of the first film. Featuring Sydney Chandler (Don't Worry Darling), Alex Lawther (Andor), Essie Davis (One Day) and Timothy Olyphant (Justified: City Primeval), it isn't expected until 2025. With all things Alien set to stalk across both the big and small screens over the next couple of years, staying away from this saga isn't in anyone's futures. Check out the full trailer for Alien: Romulus below: Alien: Romulus releases in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, August 15, 2024. Images: courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.
Elizabeth Bay House is reviving the excitement and 1940s glamour of World War II's Victory in Europe (VE) Day with the Historic Houses Trust's GI Dance. On May 8, 1945 WWII finally came to an end; 67 years later, that victorious moment comes alive again at the harbourside estate of Elizabeth Bay House. Join the party dressed in your best retro attire, and ladies, stop by the in-house salon for festive 'victory curls' and pin-up-perfect makeup. Then hit the dance-floor to the tunes of the era, all while sipping vintage cocktails and mingling with dashing American GIs. Stop by the kitchen for a 1940s cooking tutorial with colonial gastronomer Jacqui Newling or sneak a peek at burlesque pin-up Foxtrot India, posing for a bedroom portrait. Tickets tend to sell out well before the night itself, so if you're thinking of going, book soon.
Political cartoons capture the social atmosphere of a moment. Contained in a few drawings and perhaps a witty phrase or two is the overwhelming attitude of, if not a nation, at least a faction of it. Looking back at the best political cartoons of 2011 is to contextualize and review the thoughts and fears of Australians over the past year. Each cartoon is a snapshot, revealing the particular events and personalities which influenced the cartoonist. Behind the Lines: The Best Political Cartoons of 2011 allows attendees to review the year's political happenings while celebrating the art of political cartooning as a whole. Gathered from newspapers, journals, and websites, these cartoons allow Australians to contemplate the state of Australian politics as it stood in 2011, and as it stands today. The Riverside opens 9-5 Monday to Friday, 9.30-1 on Saturdays and an hour before performances. Image by Andrew Marlton
Chinese Architecture is renowned for being highly avant-garde and unorthodox, but some designs can only be described as outright peculiar. From fish shapes, to huge bottle of alcohol, giant rings and God-sculpture-buildings, Chinese structures cover a lot of bases on the quirky scale. These odd designs attract a large amount of tourism to the various regions of China and are also an important aspect of the Chinese history and culture, while simultaneously demonstrating their radical modern shift in architectural design. Ranging from company headquarters to hotels, or watchtowers, here are ten of the quirkiest and most outrageous building designs throughout China. Fushun Shen Fu New Town 'Circle of Life' This 50 floor panoramic structure fitted out with 12,000 LED lights and with a diameter of 157m took a massive 3000 tons of steel and a casual billion dollars to make. Despite remarks that the dome is a ridiculous and unnecessary, the local government maintains that it is a unique and distinctive architectural design. Center of Bashu Culture Art Found in Chongqing at the Guotai Art Center, this quirky structure with needle-like protrusions is set to be finished later this year. Yichuan Northern Gate Another expensive and obscure construction, the Northern Gate currently under construction will provide a gate to the city of Yichuan in the Henan province. Although it has been likened to a belt, a trap and a bow, the gate is hoped to be a welcoming door to guests from afar with beautiful curves and rich ties to the region's history, spirituality and culture as well as being representative of Yichuan's economic development. Beijing Olympic Watchtower Consisting of five 'pins' of varying heights, this unorthodox tower is located in China's capital and is still yet to complete construction. With the highest point reaching 244.35 metres, this foreboding structure is not your average Olympic watchtower. Fangyen Mansion This building appears in the Shenyang Finance and Trade Development Zone, and attempts to resemble a coin, for fairly obvious reasons. Unfortunately the design didn't go down too well with the CNN, who in January of this year placed in the top ten ugliest buildings in the world because it apparently tries to unsuccessfully merge Western and Eastern style. Cuiping Wuliangye, Yibin city Believe it or not, this giant bottle is a Chinese liquor-producing company's factory located in Sichuan Province. Hotel of the Emperor At 41.6 metres high this hotel in Hebei, Yinjiao features in the World Guinness Book of Records as the 'largest pictographic building', aka the largest structure in the world which is both a building and a sculpture. The hotel showcases three Ancient Chinese Gods Fu, Lu, and Shou, who are known as the three wise men, symbolizing happiness, prosperity, and longevity. Sheraton Huzhou Hot Spring Resort This unique, idiosyncratic building will open its 321 rooms on the first day of the new year in 2013. Located on the edge of the stunning Lake Taihu in Zhejiang, this upmarket hotel will provide a relaxing yet unconventional stay for those bedding within its walls. Linda Hai Square The design of the Linda Hai Square on Dongsi Ring mirroring the shape of a fish was not all that well received by the Chinese people. Perhaps this one slightly overstepped the border from eccentric to just plain weird. Phoenix Island Real Estate Situated in the prime location of Sanya, Hainan Island, apartments on this corner of the world will set investors back almost $14,000 per square metre. You'd surely expect some spectacular waterfront views at a price like that.
NIDA's October season is here again. It's our opportunity to catch NIDA's graduating talents in action before they head off to win over Hollywood hearts. Five performances will showcase some of the nation's best and brightest in the fields of acting, costume, design, production and properties. The season kicks off with Enda Walsh's dark journey through urban decay and self-destruction, Sucking Dublin. Then there's Jane Bodie's new play, Hinterland, about the discovery of an ancient civilisation of which only four members remain. Meanwhile, ex-STC Associate Director Tom Wright will take on Shakespeare's romantic comedy Cymbeline and Imara Savage will direct an adaptation of Georg Buchner's Woyzeck, featuring music and lyrics by Tom Waits and Kathleen Brennan. Dennis Kelly's Osama the Hero, a provocative exploration of fear and dissent, is set to wrap up proceedings. At the same time, NIDA's EXPO 2013 will display the year's finest theatrical creations, in the way of costumes, props, rendering, model boxes and audiovisual works, and Writers 2013 will introduce the next generation of playwrights. Image: Woyzeck, photo by Lisa Maree Williams.
When the first John Wick film burst into cinemas with a finessed flurry of fantastic action scenes and all-round Keanu Reeves awesomeness, it let its star utter a particularly memorable and telling line. "Yeah, I'm thinking I'm back," the inimitable actor announced — but while the highly enjoyable movie helped remind audiences of his excellence, Reeves himself hadn't really gone anywhere. A staple on screens for decades, Keanu boasts quite the resume, spanning cult comedies, poignant takes on Shakespeare, ace sci-fi franchises and sappy romances. There's also the time that he tried to save a bus that couldn't slow down, and his stellar stint as a surfing FBI agent. All of the above are on the lineup at the Ritz Cinemas event that every Reeves fan will want to head to: a seven-week Keanu Reeves-A-Thon. Every Friday night at 9pm between November 1 and December 13, the theatre will work through a selection of the star's hit flicks in chronological order. Start with Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, take a trip through My Own Private Idaho, hit the waves with Point Break, and get fast and furious with Speed — before entering The Matrix, visiting The Lake House and saying hello to John Wick.
Asian food is everywhere in Australian culture, and it's about to experience another twist in the form of Sens-Asian, a showcase conjured by Luke Mangan. Think of it as a warehouse party with an Asian street market vibe, cocktails and great food. Katherine Sabbath, Black Star Pastry and N2 Gelato. You've seen their creations on Instagram; you've probably double-tapped those creations. They'll be there producing delicious Asian-inspired desserts. Mangan and MOJO head chef Wayne Lee will be holding down the savoury fort and dishing up things like Taiwanese fried chicken and soft shell crab po'boys. We wish we had a third hand to hold a Singapore Sling. Food starts at $15. A live DJ will be providing tunes, and to top it all off, Sydney street artist JUMBO will be there completing a large-scale piece on the warehouse roller doors.
When a beloved TV show ends, it doesn't always say goodbye forever. We live in a golden age of revivals, spinoffs, sequels and remakes on both the big and small screens, after all — and when a television series is a big hit, it rarely goes away quietly. Take Game of Thrones, for instance. Before it even came to an end back in 2019, HBO was looking at spending more time in Westeros. According to George RR Martin, however, the US cable network might be scaling down the future of the GoT franchise. In an end-of-year update posted to his blog to farewell 2022, the author who gave the world Game of Thrones to begin with — and who has been working on the sixth novel in the A Song of Fire and Ice series for more than a decade — announced that HBO has currently scrapped some of the floated GoT spinoffs. Mentioning "several of the other successor shows that we're developing with HBO" as part of a list of things he's working on in 2023, Martin said that "some of those are moving faster than others, as is always the case with development. None have been greenlit yet, though we are hoping… maybe soon". He continued: "a couple have been shelved, but I would not agree that they are dead. You can take something off the shelf as easily as you can put it on the shelf. All the changes at HBO Max have impacted us, certainly." That's all very vague, but plenty has been happening at HBO and its US streaming platform HBO Max since parent company WarnerMedia merged with Discovery in 2022. Previously renewed shows have been cancelled, such as Minx. Films already shot and nearing release have been axed, like Batgirl. And, HBO Max's online catalogue has also been getting smaller, even removing HBO series. Martin didn't reveal which potential Game of Thrones spinoffs aren't presently going ahead, although one is clearly safe: House of the Dragon. One of 2022's must-see and most-talked-about shows, it's been renewed for a second season, and that episode order looks likely to stick. Given that chatter about expanding Game of Thrones' on-screen world has been going for more than half a decade, and how many different new shows have been put forward over that time, needing a refresher on what could be in the works anyway with is understandable. That list includes a Jon Snow-focused spinoff with Kit Harington (Eternals) reprising his famous role, novella series Tales of Dunk and Egg and an animated GoT show. Beyond that, it's also been reported that another three prequels have been under consideration. Whichever of the above don't end up coming to fruition, our days of watching fiery fights between famous Westerosi names — and games over who gets tot sit on the Iron Throne — are still far from over. Game of Thrones was that much of a hit, and House of the Dragon has proven the same so far. Until House of the Dragon season two hits, or any other on-screen dances with dragons are confirmed, check out the season one trailer below: House of the Dragon streams Down Under via Foxtel and Binge in Australia, and SoHo, Sky Go and Neon in New Zealand. Images: HBO.
Everybody loves treehouses. Don't let anyone tell you that timber structures in branches are just for kids — living in your own sky-high hideaway amongst the greenery is an urge that you never grow out of. Thankfully, from plane-shaped buildings to entire apartment blocks to Australia's finest treetop spaces, there's no shortage of spots to climb up to. And while they all come with great views, Italy's latest addition to the fold is taking the concept up a few notches. Located in the Dolomites, the two Pigna treehouses overlook the alpine range from their lofty spot — and look like they've always been there. Suspended ten metres above the ground, and measuring eight-and-a-half metres in height and six in width, the cosy, three-level holiday homes are built to resemble pinecones, using larch shingles made from wood from Central Europe's Alpe-Adria region. Inside, those spending the night will find 360-degree vantages over the gorgeous scenery, a living area with a kitchenette, and a top-floor bedroom complete with a skylight. Nestled into fir trees, the treehouses are accessible by individual bridges, with every aspect designed to provide "a journey to discover the sounds, smells and scenery of nature." The project, which was finished this year, was originally conceived by architect Luca Beltrame as part of the ArchTriump competition in 2014. Via Dezeen. Images: DomusGaia / Malga Priu Ugovizza / Luca Beltrame + Laura Tessaro.
When January 2022 arrives, it won't just mark the welcome start of a brand new year after the past couple have been so chaotic. Also rolling around when 2021 slinks off into the past forever: the return of Sydney's beloved Westpac Openair Cinema. Come Thursday, January 6, Mrs Macquaries Point will once again play host to the most spectacular big screen in the city — and to quite the impressive list of flicks that'll play with panoramic views of the city, the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge as their stunning backdrop. At the beginning of November, Westpac Openair confirmed its 2022 summer dates — and now the event has locked in all the movies that'll be showing across its 48-night season until Tuesday, February 22. Big names, big potential award-winners and big recent favourites are all set to flicker across the outdoor cinema's 350-square-metre screen, kicking off with a preview screening of the Will Smith-starring biopic King Richard, where he plays the father of tennis champions Venus and Serena Williams. Other brand-new highlights include advanced screenings of Spencer, with Kristen Stewart stepping into Princess Diana's shoes; Guillermo del Toro's Nightmare Alley, his first film after making such an award-winning splash with The Shape of Water; and Pedro Almodovar's Parallel Mothers, aka the movie that won Penelope Cruz the Best Actress prize at the 2021 Venice Film Festival. There's also the Australian premiere of Death on the Nile, which sees Agatha Christie's famed detective Hercule Poirot return to the big screen in the follow-up to Murder on the Orient Express — and, as well as playing the sleuth, Kenneth Branagh also has his latest directorial effort Belfast, as based on his own childhood, hitting Westpac Openair as well. On Valentine's Day, the latest film adaptation of Cyrano de Bergerac — this time just called Cyrano, and starring Peter Dinklage — will screen, while other sneak-peek sessions include the Javier Bardem-starring The Good Boss, C'Mon C'Mon with Joaquin Phoenix, and stellar Australian revenge drama The Drover's Wife The Legend of Molly Johnson. Or, if you haven't yet caught new Bond flick No Time to Die, it's showing multiple times. Plus, other films that'll play Westpac Openair after hitting regular cinemas include Wes Anderson's The French Dispatch, Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence-starring comet comedy Don't Look Up, sci-fi spectacle Dune, Jane Campion's exquisite western The Power of the Dog, fashion drama House of Gucci, Steven Spielberg's new version of West Side Story, Paul Thomas Anderson's Licorice Pizza and the fourth Matrix flick The Matrix Resurrections. Because the films and the location are only part of the fun here, Westpac Openair will also be slinging cocktails, serving up food by Kitchen by Mike and its chef Mike McEnearney — this time with a Mexican barbecue twist — and enlisting FBi radio's DJs to spin pre-film tunes. Tickets always go fast for the outdoor cinema's season, so getting in quick when they go on sale in early December is recommended. Across the summer of 2018–19, more than 40,000 tickets sold within the first two days of pre-sale — so put it in your diary ASAP. Westpac Openair 2022 runs from Thursday, January 6 –Tuesday, February 22. Tickets go on sale from 9am AEDT on Wednesday, December 8, with pre-sales from 9am AEDT on Monday, December 6–5pm AEDT Tuesday, December 7. For more details, head to the event's website. Images: Fiora Sacco
Squid Game is a "remember when" show. We all remember when we first saw the South Korean Netflix series, became obsessed, couldn't binge it fast enough, and talked about it and nothing else for days, weeks and more. If you watched it when it initially debuted, that was back in 2021 — and we've been waiting for more ever since. 2024 is finally set to deliver, with Netflix advising shareholders as part of its fourth-quarter earnings review that Squid Game will be back this year. There's no other new details so far, but the series is set to return before 2025 rolls around, alongside season three of Bridgerton and season two of The Diplomat. One of the best new TV programs of 2021, Squid Game was such a huge smash that Netflix confirmed at the beginning of 2022 that a second season was on the way, and also dropped a teaser trailer for it the same year. And, it turned the show's whole premise into an IRL competition series as well, which debuted in 2023 — without any murders, of course. Squid Game: The Challenge has already been picked up for a second season. After getting the world seeing marbles, hopscotch and tug of war as far more than ordinary, innocent activities that everyone enjoyed when they were kids, the streaming platform also revealed in 2023 exactly who'll be playing Squid Game season two. Lee Jung-jae (Deliver Us From Evil) returns as the show's protagonist Seong Gi-hun, while Lee Byung-hun (The Magnificent Seven) will be back as the masked Front Man as well. They'll be joined by Wi Ha-joon (Little Women) as detective Hwang Jun-ho, plus Gong Yoo (Train to Busan) as the man in the suit who got Gi-hun into the game in the first place. A show about a deadly competition that has folks battling for ridiculous riches comes with a hefty bodycount, which means that new faces were always going to be essential in Squid Game season two. Yim Si-wan (Emergency Declaration), Kang Ha-neul (Insider), Park Sung-hoon (The Glory) and Yang Dong-geun (Yaksha: Ruthless Operations) will all join the series. If you somehow missed all things Squid Game when it premiered, even after it became bigger than everything from Stranger Things to Bridgerton, the Golden Globe- and Emmy-winning series serves up a puzzle-like storyline and unflinching savagery, which unsurprisingly makes quite the combination. It also steps into societal divides within South Korea, a topic that wasn't invented by Parasite, Bong Joon-ho's excellent Oscar-winning 2019 thriller, but has been given a boost after that stellar flick's success. Accordingly, it's easy to see thematic and narrative parallels between Parasite and Squid Game, although Netflix's highly addictive series goes with a Battle Royale and Hunger Games-style setup. Here, 456 competitors are selected to work their way through six seemingly easy children's games. They're all given numbers and green tracksuits, they're competing for 45.6 billion won, and it turns out that they've also all made their way to the contest after being singled out for having enormous debts. Check out Netflix's Squid Game season two cast announcement video below: Squid Game's first season is available to stream via Netflix — we'll update you with an exact 2024 release date for season two when one is announced. Images: Netflix.
Located in the sleepy backstreets of Rosebery, The Cannery is a hub of butchers, bakers, coffee roasters and world-class restaurants. It houses Sydney favourites like Archie Rose, Three Blue Ducks and Black Star Pastry. Now, just in time for the holiday season, the inner-city retail and dining centre is bringing back its old monthly markets that have sadly been missing from the majority of 2020. There will be plenty of local businesses on hand to support. If you're looking for unique presents you'll find handmade candles, jewellery, Christmas cards and artwork. If your sweet tooth gets the better of you, Christmas pudding, vegan macarons and Thicc Cookies will satisfy any festive cravings. Of course, a market at The Cannery wouldn't be complete without a tasting from some quality wineries and distillers. Never Never Distilling, Château Les Mesclances and Frerejean Frères will all be conducting tastings over the course of the weekend, Saturday, December 12 and Sunday, December 13. Plus, you can snag a sample of Blue Mountains Grown Gin, which is raising money for regeneration efforts at the Blue Mountains Botanic Gardens. While you're there you can also explore The Cannery's regular stores and vendors, or stick around for dinner at one of its many restaurants. The Cannery Christmas Market are open from 10am–3pm.
Sydney's much loved LGBTIQ+ party collective and publisher Heaps Gay is celebrating four years of being a major thing with an all-day banger of a party on Saturday, November 18. Presented by FBi Radio, the event — which will be decked out like a big gay wedding party — will kick off at Sydney Portuguese Community Club from 1pm and feature musicians and DJs like GlamouRatz and Haiku Hands. There'll also be art, Portuguese chicken, vegan nosh, and potentially even puppies (well, probably not — but organisers are working on it). Beyond Heaps Gay's stellar rep for throwing rowdy parties, the site has established a formidable online presence spotlighting the brilliant work of Aussie LGBTIQ+ folk, such as playwright Charles O'Grady, sex worker and lyric prose Instagram caption master Tilly Lawless and former pro-surfer turned filmmaker Cloudy Rhodes. The party falls on the weekend after the marriage equality result is announced, so bring your love and celebrate the hell yes outcome or — and we're hoping this isn't the case — come commiserate in a safe, inclusive, glittery space.
Strap yourself in for a creative feast of fusion flavours at Darlinghurst's modern Asian eatery Restaurant Moon. Like its contemporaries, Chin Chin and Long Chim, Restaurant Moon has moved beyond the cheap and cheerful format to create a more refined offering. In this case, it's European meets Thai with a moon dust sprinkling of molecular gastronomy. For an entree, start of with a serving of house smoked ocean trout pate with duck fat and crispy breads or cooked scallops on cows cows perl with nori, mushroom, garlic chips and Thai kom kha veloute. The crab fried rice with shallots and bean sprouts and pickled chilli sauce is the perfect complement. If you thought that dish was daring, wait until you try the Surf and Turf — a sirloin and confit baby octopus stir-fry. Like a ring around a planet, the dish sees a soft fried egg surrounded by a halo of beef strips and tender tentacles, topped with crispy holy basil leaves. Puncture the yolk and fold all the lusciousness together. A cross between a chilli basil stir-fry and a steak tartare, the flavours and textures actually come together nicely. The diamond clams are another must have, with siracha cream, raw amaebi prawns and salmon roe. Desserts are inventive and visually stunning. For a refreshing finish, go the matcha mousse with vanilla cream and chocolate and passion fruit sorbet, which is light, sweet and cooling to the palette. It may not be what you're used to, but an exploratory mission to Restaurant Moon is sure to be rewarded.
Sydney, it's time get your glam rock on. We're talking about dusting off your favourite Ziggy Stardust jumpsuit, striking your hottest Debbie Harry pose and practising your disco dance moves. This Friday, February 28, brand new '70s-inspired live music meets live art as Easy Tiger opens its doors underneath The Unicorn Hotel, with a massive launch party titled 'When Bowie Met Blondie'. While you sip on free cocktails (available between 6pm and 8pm), street artist Mike Watt and illustrator Jo Ley will create Bowie- and Blondie-themed murals before your very eyes. Meanwhile, disco experts Midnight Pool Party will deliver a live soundtrack, bringing their funky keyboard sounds, groove-driven guitar licks and infectious choruses to the '70s repertoire and related originals. Tickets are available on the door, but you can RSVP via Easy Tiger's Facebook event page. When Bowie Met Blondie is sponsored by G'Vine Gin.
It is not easy to reference, much less celebrate, the work of Dada artists. By its very nature the Dadaist art movement self-destructs at the mere hint of mainstream acceptance. And yet here is Going Gaga for Dada – a dedication to the Dadaist chaos, nonsense and whimsy – so compelling and so deliciously relevant, it reminds the viewer that there is still plenty to be protesting about. Dada, the artistic and literary manifesto of nonsense, originated in Europe during World War I as a protest against the atrocities the war was bringing to the artists’ front doors. Out of disgust for a seemingly senseless war, the likes of Duchamp and Tzara created works intended to be provocatively absurd, as a metaphorical thumbing of the nose, if you like. Here, curator and Dada scholar Akky van Ogtrop seeks to, like the Dadaists, define the undefinable, with contemporary mixed media such as collages, books, zines, posters and sculpture. And while the Dadaist references in colour, composition and typography are frank and fierce, this exhibition still feels fresh, germane and utterly evocative. Here, the iconic, horrifying iron of Dada is manifested (Richard Tipping, the Gift) and is joined by an ironing board (Dianne Beevers, Bristling) as absurdly inoperable at the iron itself. Dianne Longley’s ceramics are wicked: the placement of Tim Burton-like baddies on the domesticity of plates is nightmareishly good. A giggle at the Chicken Tank (Will Coles) will lead your mind to questions of power in politics, and the anxiety of Rochelle Summerfield’s tumultuous cityscapes will evoke the words of Dadaist Hugo Ball who lamented that “words emerge, shoulders of words, legs, arms – Dada is the heart of words.” In support of the exhibition, there will be a zine fest at Brenda May on Saturday August 31 and Sunday September 1, with a talk by MCA curator Glenn Barkley. Image: Bristling by Dianne Beevers.
"When you've got it, flaunt it," the song goes — and when it comes to Australian movies, filmmakers have taken that advice. What they've got is a stunning outback setting, and they certainly know how to show it off. The latest example: Strangerland. A tale about missing children, arguing parents and the many factors that have caused both states of affairs, Strangerland has plenty of other things going for it. There's the high-profile cast of Nicole Kidman, Joseph Fiennes and Hugo Weaving, for one. There's the simmering mood of melodrama, for another. There's never any doubt, however, that this is a movie defined by its location. The Parker family — pharmacist Matthew (Fiennes), his wife Catherine (Kidman), teenager daughter Lily (Maddison Brown) and younger son Tom (Nicholas Hamilton) — has moved to the country town of Nathgari, laying low and hiding from past troubles. It's the kind of place where the locals know each other by name, and where there's little to do but complain about the heat, which the newcomers do plenty. It's also the kind of place where kids wander and adults wonder, as happens when Lily and Tom disappear into the night, leaving Matthew and Catherine looking for answers. A determined cop (Weaving) investigates the case, his detective work uncovering family surprises, marital tensions and deep-seeded disharmony, while a dust storm complicates his search. A remote town turned ugly and a scenic setting brimming with complexity fuel Strangerland, recalling the likes of Wake in Fright, Picnic at Hanging Rock and Mystery Road. They're comparisons first-time feature director Kim Farrant seems happy to conjure, leaning heavily on the oppressive nature of the landscape as she does. Her film lingers, both lovingly and a little too long, on aerial shots of the rock, dirt and scrub, making the harshness of the Australian desert evident. In fact, postcard-worthy pictures of the nation's interior receive almost as much screen time as the actors. That's not to say that the cast doesn't have much to do, just that they're often dwarfed by their background — and that rings true not just visually but in the story. Kidman carries the weight of past tensions in her performance, one of her best of late, as a woman trapped on several levels. In contrast, Fiennes doesn't fare as well at expressing his character's inner turmoil, leaving his on-screen wife the star of the show. The third point in their tussle, the ever-welcome Weaving, makes the best of a stock-standard part. Indeed, stock-standard describes the majority of Strangerland as it sticks to the 'atmospheric Australian drama' playbook. What sets the movie apart from other efforts, however, is its refreshing consideration of female sexuality — a rarity in films of this and other ilk. It seems that the women at the feature's core have also heeded guidance about flaunting what they've got, their desire and desperation proving gripping viewing. Strangerland is at its most powerful when contrasting Lily's blossoming youth with Catherine's need to connect, and coping with the crises that spring from both. The space between the two is the real mystery unfolding in the outback.
Whatever else the past couple of years have served up, it has been an impressive time for folks who like staring up at the sky. 2016 ended with a huge supermoon that had everyone looking to the heavens, then 2018 began with an extremely rare super blue blood moon (a supermoon, a blue moon and a total lunar eclipse all at once). Next, at the end of July, an epic lunar eclipse will mark the next notable celestial happening. In fact, the Saturday, July 28 event will be longest lunar eclipse of this century — with the penumbral eclipse lasting just shy of four hours (236 minutes, to be exact) and the total lunar eclipse spanning 103 minutes. If you're wondering what the difference is between the two (because we're all more familiar with The Mighty Boosh's take on the moon than actual lunar terms, aren't we?), a penumbral eclipse is when the earth's outer shadow falls on the moon's surface, while a total lunar eclipse involves the moon passing directly into the earth's actual shadow. During the main event, which is expected to kick off at 5.30am local time, the moon will also turn a blood-red shade thanks to sunlight that's filtered and refracted by the earth's atmosphere. So yes, as well as a total lunar eclipse and a full moon, it'll be a blood moon as well. Australians will be able to spy the penumbral eclipse from 3.14am and the partial eclipse from 4.24am, before the full thing at 5.30am, with the maximum eclipse occurring at 6.21am. We won't be able to see the end of it, however, as the moon will be below the horizon when the full, partial and penumbral eclipses end (at 7.13am, 8.19am and 9.28am local time, respectively). While it's a great excuse to go stargazing, the 103-minute total eclipse only just pips the 100-minute event that took place on June 15, 2011 — and falls just short of the 108-minute event on July 16, 2000. Still, when the super blue blood moon did come around earlier in 2018, its full eclipse only lasted 72 minutes. If you miss it, 102-minute total lunar eclipses are expected in 2029, 2047 and 2094 — but nothing this long will occur again this century. Via Space.com and timeanddate.com.
If you've ever jumped in the ocean, headed on a camping trip or rugged up for a night of stargazing in the middle of winter, we're going to hazard a guess and say you like the cold. No, you unabashedly love it. Ticking some boxes for you? Then you'll find plenty of excuses to head outdoors during the new winter event series Sydney Solstice. Running from Tuesday, June 8 till Sunday, June 20, Sydney Solstice is taking over the harbour city with a series of pop-ups, gigs and dazzling light shows that'll help you make the most of the chillier months. We've teamed up with NSW Government via Destination NSW to round up nine Sydney Solstice adventures you can have this winter — from moonlight kayaking sessions to pop-up ice rinks and dance floors tucked away in laneways.
This isn't new news to anyone, but 2020 has been a big year for television. With everyone spending more time indoors due to the COVID-19 pandemic, TV has been a trusty go-to to help while away the hours, days and months — whether it's beamed into your home the old-fashioned way or streamed to your chosen device. If you've spent the past few months bingeing your way through a dark superhero tale, stepping back to 50s and 60s-era New York and watching a media mogul's personal and professional dramas, it seems that this year's Emmy Awards are on the same wavelength. Announcing the nominees for the 2020 ceremony, the Television Academy showered plenty of love on Watchmen, The Marvelous Mrs Maisel and Succession, which notched up 26, 20 and 18 nods respectively. Also doing well was Ozark, which scored 18 nominations — while The Mandalorian, Saturday Night Live and Schitt's Creek all earned 15 nods apiece. From there, everything from The Crown, Westworld and The Handmaid's Tale to Unorthodox, What We Do in the Shadows and even Tiger King earned a mention. It's worth noting that the Emmys hand out a hefty number of awards, with its full nominee list spanning 61 pages — and Netflix picking up a huge 160 nominations across the entire spectrum — so odds are that your favourite show popped up somewhere. Notably for talent from Down Under, Hugh Jackman was recognised for Outstanding Actor in a Limited Series or Television Movie, for Bad Education; Cate Blanchett received a nomination for Outstanding Actress in the same category for Mrs America; and Toni Collette nabbed a Outstanding Supporting Actress nod, also in the same field, for Unbelievable. Plus, Succession's Sarah Snook earned a nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series, Hannah Gadsby's Douglas picked up noms for Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded) and Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special, and Taika Waititi scored an Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance nod for The Mandalorian. Both on the local front and in general, there were snubs, too. It wouldn't be a list of newly revealed award nominees without them. Russell Crowe's performance in last year's The Loudest Voice went unrewarded — and the fact that Better Call Saul's Bob Odenkirk, Rhea Seehorn and Jonathan Banks were ignored for their exceptional work isn't just surprising, but astonishing. This year's nominations did recognise The Good Place's Ted Danson and William Jackson Harper, though, as well as Brooklyn Nine-Nine's Andre Braugher. So, like all awards nominations from all awards bodies every single time they're announced, it's a mixed bag. [caption id="attachment_756726" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Succession[/caption] The 72nd Emmy Awards will take place on Monday, September 20, Australian time. Here's a rundown of the major nominations — and you can check out the full 61-page list of nominees on the Emmys' website: EMMY NOMINEES 2020 OUTSTANDING DRAMA SERIES Better Call Saul The Crown The Handmaid's Tale Killing Eve The Mandalorian Ozark Stranger Things Succession OUTSTANDING COMEDY SERIES Curb Your Enthusiasm Dead to Me The Good Place Insecure The Kominsky Method The Marvelous Mrs Maisel Schitt's Creek What We Do in the Shadows OUTSTANDING LIMITED SERIES Little Fires Everywhere Mrs America Unbelievable Unorthodox Watchmen OUTSTANDING TELEVISION MOVIE American Son Bad Education Dolly Parton's Heartstrings: These Old Bones El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs The Reverend OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES Jason Bateman, Ozark Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us Steve Carell, The Morning Show Brian Cox, Succession Billy Porter, Pose Jeremy Strong, Succession OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES Jennifer Aniston, The Morning Show Olivia Colman, The Crown Jodie Comer, Killing Eve Laura Linney, Ozark Sandra Oh, Killing Eve Zendaya, Euphoria OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES Anthony Anderson, Black-ish Don Cheadle, Black Monday Ted Danson, The Good Place Michael Douglas, The Kominsky Method Eugene Levy, Schitt's Creek Ramy Youssef, Ramy OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES Christina Applegate, Dead to Me Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs Maisel Linda Cardellini, Dead to Me Catherine O'Hara, Schitt's Creek Issa Rae, Insecure Tracee Ellis Ross, Black-ish OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR TELEVISION MOVIE Jeremy Irons, Watchmen Hugh Jackman, Bad Education Paul Mescal, Normal People Jeremy Pope, Hollywood Mark Ruffalo, I Know This Much Is True OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR TELEVISION MOVIE Cate Blanchett, Mrs America Shira Haas, Unorthodox Regina King, Watchmen Octavia Spencer, Self Made Kerry Washington, Little Fires Everywhere OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES Giancarlo Esposito, Better Call Saul Bradley Whitford, The Handmaid's Tale Billy Crudup, The Morning Show Mark Duplass, The Morning Show Nicholas Braun, Succession Kieran Culkin, Succession Matthew Macfadyen, Succession Jeffrey Wright, Westworld OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES Laura Dern, Big Little Lies Meryl Streep, Big Little Lies Helena Bonham Carter, The Crown Samira Wiley, The Handmaid's Tale Fiona Shaw, Killing Eve Julia Garner, Ozark Sarah Snook, Succession Thandie Newton, Westworld OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES Andre Braugher, Brooklyn Nine-Nine William Jackson Harper, The Good Place Alan Arkin, The Kominsky Method Sterling K. Brown, The Marvelous Mrs Maisel Tony Shalhoub, The Marvelous Mrs Maisel Mahershala Ali, Ramy Kenan Thompson, Saturday Night Live Daniel Levy, Schitt's Creek OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES Betty Gilpin, GLOW D'Arcy Carden, The Good Place Yvonne Orji, Insecure Alex Borstein, The Marvelous Mrs Maisel Marin Hinkle, The Marvelous Mrs Maisel Kate McKinnon, Saturday Night Live Cecily Strong, Saturday Night Live Annie Murphy, Schitt's Creek OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING IN A LIMITED SERIES OR TELEVISION MOVIE Dylan McDermott, Hollywood Jim Parsons, Hollywood Tituss Burgess, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs The Reverend Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Watchmen Jovan Adepo, Watchmen Louis Gossett Jr, Watchmen OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR TELEVISION MOVIE Holland Taylor, Hollywood Uzo Aduba, Mrs America Margo Martindale, Mrs America Tracey Ullman, Mrs America Toni Collette, Unbelievable Jean Smart, Watchmen Top image: Watchmen, Mark Hill/HBO
Next time you have a great idea while making a cup of coffee, it could spark a hit comedy flick. That's what happened to Jackie van Beek, New Zealand comedian and one half of the writing/directing/acting duo behind The Breaker Upperers. "I was literally just wandering aimlessly around my kitchen, and I was just thinking about all those conversations that we've all had with friends about that horrible moment when you realise that you have to break up with your partner, and that feeling of dread," she explains. "And I just thought, "gosh, how much money would somebody pay to not have to do that themselves?". And I thought it'd be quite a lot of money, and I know a lot of people that would pay to get out of that responsibility." To answer the obvious question, van Beek never considered setting up a business to end other people's relationships for cash. Instead, she called fellow NZ comedian and actress Madeline Sami, and they started working on what would become 2018's best comedy. That was back in 2013. The script took years to perfect between other jobs, and the film shot across 22 days in 2017, with a cast that included Boy's James Rolleston and Rosehaven's Celia Pacquola. This year, The Breaker Upperers premiered its tale of best friends Jen (van Beek) and Mel (Sami), their love-busting business, their various life woes and their Celine Dion karaoke singalong at SXSW, and then opened the Sydney Film Festival. "It has been a whirlwind few months," Sami observes. "I didn't really have any expectations on how it would do. You spend so long editing the film, making it, and then you're just kind of relieved to have finished it. Then it comes out, and then all of these other people see it and take it into their hearts, and it's just overwhelmingly lovely." Indeed, while The Breaker Upperers is all about helping others when love has faded, there's plenty of love blossoming for this smart, funny film, with audiences both overseas, in New Zealand and in Australia reacting warmly. With the movie now releasing around Australia, we sat down with van Beek and Sami to chat about real-life break-ups, smashing rom-com conventions and working collaboratively in a Kiwi comedy scene that also includes the film's executive producer, Taika Waititi. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-phMlkRiWIg ON CREATING ROLES FOR THEMSELVES THAT DIDN'T EXIST OTHERWISE Sami: "We wanted to write characters that were fucked up women in their thirties, and that didn't have to settle down. That was the big, big point for us. Otherwise it's so unrealistic and so much pressure for women, and I hate that." van Beek: "And so exclusive. We've of course got so many friends that are single, in their early forties and are not going to have a baby now. What about happy endings for those guys? So it was very important that — we love rom-coms, but it was very important for us that we buck the convention and that we didn't end with a double church wedding with two women and two men tying the knot and talking about children." Sami: "We definitely thought about it in drafts and played with the idea, and it just never sat right. And we were just like, this is really a story about being okay with who they are, and accepting that and not having to bow to society's expectations — and the movies' expectations — of what your life should be like. It's really the movies. The movies tell us that we need to have all this shit together, especially for women. I think the pressure on women in movies — just the damsel in distress thing, it goes right back to Snow White. Or in all the Disney stuff. There's a princess who's stuck in a tower or she's in a coma, which is fucking dark, and she needs to be saved. And that same thing is in rom-coms today — a woman who's…" van Beek: "All befuddled." Sami: "And needs to be saved. And it's like, no we don't. We're cool. Just chill." van Beek: "We can figure out our own mess. It doesn't have to involve a man." Sami: "And also, a happy ending doesn't have to be what we've always been told what a happy ending is. It doesn't always have to be that conventional, settle down thing. It can just be 'well you're just not as dark and fucked up as you were at the beginning of the movie'." ON DECIDING TO NOT ONLY WRITE AND STAR IN THE BREAKER UPPERERS, BUT TO DIRECT IT, TOO van Beek: "It was always on the table." Sami: "We were scared." van Beek: "Were we scared? I wasn't scared." Sami: "There was a fear that it would take the fun away from the acting, which is what the whole reason we wanted to do it. It wasn't like scared to do it — it was just whether we were going to give ourselves too much of a workload." van Beek: "Yeah that's right. We knew that if we got too stressed, and we're on screen doing improvised comedy, it's just not going to be fun for us or the audience — so the stakes were quite high in making that decision." Sami: "And then we just like, we can't think of anyone who could fulfil this vision for us that we are planning in our own heads, so why don't we just do it? Take the gamble, and make sure we surround ourselves with really talented, experienced people so that we're supported. And that's what we did." van Beek: "People who are confident at improvisation, so we could all get there. And Taika was helpful." Sami: "Taika, we've worked with a lot — and he would've been a wonderful director for this film. But we knew that we were never going to get Taika because he was on Thor and was committed to that for years. But he shares our sensibility, we've worked with him — he directed the first series of a TV show that I'd made in New Zealand called Super City, and we had a lovely time when we worked together in that way. And he'd definitely get it. But he wasn't available, so we were the ones." van Beek: "But we got Jemaine Clement, who is an old friend of ours as well, he came up for three or four days of pre-production when we wanted to stand up and start exploring the characters ourselves. He'd come into the rehearsal room, and we'd do rewrites with him, and so it was all really..." Sami: "Collaborative." van Beek: "Supportive." Sami: "We've got so much amazing talent around us in New Zealand. There's so many amazing comedians coming up, and writers, that it was just really important for us to be energised by them. So we'd just keep them around us all the time, just everyone 'come in, add a joke in here if you want, yeah that's a good idea.' Just keep it fresh for ourselves, especially because we'd been writing for four-five years, so at a lot of points in that time, when you're right in it — especially towards the end, towards pre-production — you can't see. You're really close to it." ON SEEING NEW ZEALAND COMEDY FINALLY GET RECOGNITION OVERSEAS van Beek: "With Taika's films, and Flight of the Conchords and Rhys Darby having done so well internationally — we were over at SXSW with our film, and people were saying after the screening 'that's New Zealand' humour. They were identifying it. 'We love New Zealand humour! We love you guys.' It was quite exciting that people identify it, and many thanks to Taika who brought that New Zealand comedy voice into the mainstream with Thor." Sami: "When there's a bunch of people, and when there's support — the New Zealand Film Commission have really made an effort to get in behind New Zealand comedy over the last ten years probably. And because we've had success internationally, then there's more support back home. And it's kind of like with the Danish thrillers. All of a sudden the world loves Danish thrillers, and it's just the people making them are making them really well. I guess coming out of New Zealand right now, we've got a lot of great comedy, and it's just a time where it's just being recognised for what it is." van Beek: "Long may it last." Sami: "It's exciting. It's really just, I think, the world getting to know that New Zealand comedy a bit — and it started with Flight of the Conchords. There's an awkwardness to the comedy we make. So yeah, who knows how long that will last. But it's exciting that we don't have to explain our accent any more. People can start to tell the difference a little bit [between Australian and New Zealand accents]. We'll see Americanss try to do a Kiwi accent rather than just going 'oh, I can do a Kiwi accent — g'day mate'." van Beek: "Now they do Flight of the Conchords." Sami: "Yeah, 'Brett'. Or they do, 'oh hi, I'm Korg,' [from Thor: Ragnarok] or stuff like that. They're showing that they know the difference." van Beek: "By mocking us in a different way." Sami: "I loved being mocked." ON FINDING INSPIRATION FOR THE FILM'S MANY BREAK-UP SCENES Sami: "I've never been two-timed by someone, and then found out that... aah, I think I have." van Beek: "You have?" Sami: "Maybe I have." van Beek: "There's always going to be a bit of crossover." Sami: "There's just a bit of subconscious stuff — for me, the break up scenarios, everything you see in the film, nothing is specific to anything but everything is influenced by stories we've heard or things we've experienced. But there's no one like, 'yeah, I had this terrible breakup and this is exactly how the story went'." van Beek: "Or 'yeah, my boyfriend pretended to be in a coma and then died.' That all came from our imagination, but it was more like — definitely I've been through phases in my life when I've been a bit more like Jen, and just been in denial. I've been heartbroken and not wanting to grow up." Sami: "We did have a lot more scenarios and they got a lot more extreme. Obviously some were cut for time, and we didn't shoot all of them — a lot of them we just weren't going to be able to. To shoot someone falling off a speedboat in the middle of Auckland of harbour and taking an underwater scuba to an island and then sailing off, that would've been the whole budget of our film probably, just for that one day." van Beek: "We spent a bit of time writing it though." Sami: "It was a lot of fun writing and thinking out the ways people might choose to break up with each other." The Breaker Upperers is now screening in Australian cinemas.
When the term 'direct-to-video' was uttered in decades gone by, it was rarely used in a positive way. 'Direct-to-DVD' wasn't either, when the switch from VHS to discs hit — but shaking up the idea that a film that skips cinemas can't also be exceptional is one of the many consequences of the streaming era. Every week — every day, it sometimes seems — brand new movies join the seemingly endless array of streaming platforms. That's been especially handy during 2021, which saw us all spend more time at home than usual (yes, again), and also delivered plenty of straight-to-streaming highlights. Indeed, some of this year's finest movies didn't flicker across the silver screen. Some were meant to, others were never destined to, but they're all exceptional either way. Here are the 12 best films that should've made their way to your streaming queue in 2021 — and if you haven't watched them yet, you can remedy that at the click of a few buttons. THE GREEN KNIGHT Mesmerising and magnetic from its first moments till its last, The Green Knight is a moving musing on destiny, pride, virtue, choice, myths and sacrifice, all wrapped in a sublime spectacle. The medieval fantasy hums with haunting beauty and potency as it tells of Arthurian figure Gawain (Dev Patel, The Personal History of David Copperfield), nephew to the King (Sean Harris, Mission: Impossible — Fallout), and the only man who accepts a bold challenge when the eponymous figure (Ralph Ineson, Gunpowder Milkshake) — a mystical part-tree, part-knight — demands a duel one Christmas. The catch: whichever blows the eager-to-prove-himself Gawain inflicts on this towering interloper, he'll receive back in a year's time. So, when this initial altercation ends in a beheading (and with the Green Knight scooping up his noggin and riding off), Gawain faces a grim future. Twelve months later, that bargain inspires a quest, which The Green Knight treats as both a nightmare and a dream. There's an ethereal look and feel to every inch of this stunning movie, where the greenery is verdant, and the bloodshed and battlefield of skeletons just as prominent. Playing a man yearning for glory yet faced with life's stark realities, Patel is in career-best form — and the latter can also be said of writer/director/editor David Lowery. Every film he makes has proven a gem, from Ain't The Bodies Saints and Pete's Dragon to A Ghost Story and The Old Man and The Gun; however, The Green Knight is a startling and riveting feast of a feature that's as as contemplative as it is visionary. The Green Knight is available to stream via Amazon Prime Video. THE VELVET UNDERGROUND Excellent filmmakers helming exceptional documentaries about music icons just might be 2021's best movie trend. It isn't new — see: Martin Scorsese's filmography as just one example — but any year that delivers both Edgar Wright's The Sparks Brothers and Todd Haynes' The Velvet Underground is a great year indeed. Both docos are made by clear fans of the bands they celebrate. Both films find creative and engaging ways to approach a tried-and-tested on-screen formula, too. And, both movies will make fans out of newcomers, all while delighting existing devotees. They each have killer soundtracks as well, obviously. They're each tailored to suit their subjects, rather than leaning on the standard music bio-doc template. As a result, they each prove the kind of rich, in-depth and electrifying features that only these two directors could've made. With The Velvet Underground and Haynes, none of this comes as a surprise. As well as the astonishing Carol and the just-as-devastating Dark Waters, he has experimental short Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story, glam-rock portrait Velvet Goldmine and the Bob Dylan-focused I'm Not There on his resume, after all. Here, he makes two perceptive choices: splitting his screen Andy Warhol-style to show both archival materials and new interviews simultaneously, and avoiding the allure of giving the late, great Lou Reed all his attention. The result is an inventive, impassioned and wide-ranging doco that charts the band's story and impact; captures the time, place and attitudes that gave rise to them; and proves as dazzling as The Velvet Underground themselves. The Velvet Underground is available to stream via Apple TV+. PROCESSION For filmmaker Robert Greene, it started with a press conference, where six sexually abused men sought justice — and publicly so — for the horrors they endured at the hands of the Catholic Church. After reaching out to their lawyer Rebecca Randles, and also bringing drama therapist Monica Phinney onboard, Procession started to take shape — a film that tells their stories like no other documentary would've. Anyone who's seen Greene's also exceptional Kate Plays Christine and Bisbee '17 will know that he sifts through trauma via re-enactments, an approach used to interrogate dark incidents and abhorrent moments. Here, it's deployed as a healing technique, too. To watch Tom Viviano, Joe Eldred, Ed Gavagan, Michael Sandridge, Dan Laurine and Mike Foreman participate in Procession is to watch them not just grapple with what was done to them, but to try to undercut its power. Talking-head interviews still litter the documentary, but Procession is far more interested in the short films that Viviano, Eldred, Gavagan, Sandridge, Laurine and Foreman conceive and make — starring child actor Terrick Trobough as all of them — based on their own experiences. Greene captures the behind-the-scenes process, and also presents the finished product, both of which trawl through memories that none of his subjects will ever forget. Unsurprisingly, this isn't an easy movie to watch. It's essential and unforgettable viewing, though, examining heartbreakingly awful acts, the men who've spent a lifetime trying to cope, the cathartic nature of art and the resilience needed to soldier on. Procession is available to stream via Netflix. ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI Pondering the conversations that might've occurred between four pivotal historical figures on one very real evening they spent in each other's company, One Night in Miami boasts the kind of talk-heavy concept that'd obviously work well on the stage. That's where it first began back in 2013 — but adapting theatre pieces for the cinema doesn't always end in success, especially when they primarily involve large swathes of dialogue exchanged in one setting. If Beale Street Could Talk Oscar-winner and Watchmen Emmy-winner Regina King doesn't make a single wrong move here, however. The actor's feature directorial debut proves a film not only of exceptional power and feeling, but of abundant texture and detail as well. It's a movie about people and ideas, including the role the former can play in both bolstering and counteracting the latter, and the Florida-set picture takes as much care with its quartet of protagonists as it does with the matters of race, politics and oppression they talk about. Given the folks involved on-screen, there's clearly much to discuss. The film takes place on February 25, 1964, which has become immortalised in history as the night that Cassius Clay (Eli Goree, Riverdale) won his first title fight. Before and after the bout, the future Muhammad Ali hangs out with his equally important pals — activist Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir, High Fidelity), footballer Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge, The Invisible Man) and musician Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr, Hamilton) — with this equally meticulous and moving Oscar-nominee ficitionalising their time together. One Night in Miami is available to stream via Amazon Prime Video. NO SUDDEN MOVE Up until late August, No Sudden Move couldn't have sat on this list. The latest film from prolific director Steven Soderbergh (Unsane), it was scheduled to release in Australian cinemas; however, then lengthy lockdowns hit Sydney and Melbourne, and its theatrical run was sadly canned across the country. This crime thriller would've looked dazzling on a big screen, and for a plethora of reasons. Soderbergh is no stranger to helming capers — he has Ocean's Eleven, Ocean's Twelve and Ocean's Thirteen on his jam-packed resume, plus both Out of Sight and Logan Lucky — and No Sudden Move is as energetic as the rest of his heist fare. Here, he also revels in period details, with this Ed Solomon (Bill & Ted Face the Music)-scripted tale unfurling in the 1950s. As he's known to do, Soderbergh both shot and edited the movie himself, too, and that exceptional craftsmanship is another of this playful neo-noir's many delights. Spinning an engaging story steeped in Detroit's crime scene, No Sudden Move has something to say as well. Don Cheadle (Space Jam: A New Legacy) in is career-best form as Curt Goynes, who gets out of prison, then gets enlisted for a job by a middleman known as Jones (Brendan Fraser, Trust). That gig? With two colleagues (The French Dispatch's Benicio Del Toro and Succession's Kieran Culkin), he's tasked with babysitting the Wertz family (Archenemy's Amy Seimetz, A Quiet Place Part II's Noah Jupe and debutant Lucy Holt), all so the Wertz patriarch (David Harbour, Black Widow) can steal a document from his work. There's no shortage of plot — No Sudden Move keeps twisting from there — but capitalism's worst consequences also bubble prominently underneath. Soderbergh and Solomon savvily tease out the details, though, keeping their audience guessing as much as their characters. No Sudden Movie is available to stream via Google Play, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Amazon Video. BO BURNHAM: INSIDE Watching Bo Burnham: Inside, a stunning fact becomes evident — a life-changing realisation, really. During a period when most people tried to make sourdough, pieced together jigsaws and spent too much time on Zoom, Bo Burnham created a comedy masterpiece. How does he ever top a special this raw, insightful, funny, clever and of the moment? How did he make it to begin with? How does anyone ever manage to capture every emotion that we've all felt about lockdowns — and about the world's general chaos, spending too much time on the internet, capitalism's exploitation and just the general hellscape that is our modern lives, too — in one 90-minute musical-comedy whirlwind? Filmed in one room of his house over several months (and with the growth of his hair and beard helping to mark the time), Inside unfurls via songs about being stuck indoors, video chats, today's performative society, sexting, ageing and mental health. Burnham sings and acts, and also wrote, directed, shot, edited and produced the whole thing, and there's not a moment, image or line that goes to waste. Being trapped in that room with the Promising Young Woman star and Eighth Grade filmmaker, and therefore being stuck inside the closest thing he can find to manifesting his mind outside his skull, becomes the best kind of rollercoaster ride. Just try getting Burnham's tunes out of your head afterwards, too, because this is an oh-so-relatable and insightful special that lingers. It's also the best thing that's been made about this pandemic yet, hands down. Bo Burnham: Inside is available to stream via Netflix. BARB AND STAR GO TO VISTA DEL MAR Throughout 2021, on screens big and small, few films have been as fun as Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar. Nothing has been as ridiculously, hilariously, gleefully silly, either — as you'd expect of a movie about a titular twosome who obsess over culottes, and where Jamie Dornan (Synchronic) kicks sand on the beach while singing a prayer to seagulls. A talking crab features, too, as do dance remixes of Celine Dion tunes, because this is the delightfully entertaining comedy that has it all. The setup: middle-aged Soft Rock residents Barb (Annie Mumolo, Queenpins) and Star (Kristen Wiig, Wonder Woman 1984) head to Florida for a holiday, despite their apprehension to break up their routine, while nervous, lovesick henchman Edgar Pagét (Dornan) also makes the same trip, but to help nefarious villain Sharon Fisherman (also Wiig) with her plan to kill everyone. Wiig and Mumolo also wrote Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar, as they did Bridesmaids. This time, though, they've piled in enough glorious absurdity to fill several beaches. From its throwaway gags to its big musical numbers — and including its character details — there's nothing too goofy for this infectious frolic. Sometimes the film is a Romy and Michele's High School Reunion-style ode to female friendship, sometimes it's a kooky world-domination comedy, and it's also a fish-out-of-water satire and a goofy holiday flick as well. It wouldn't work quite as well if its cast weren't so committed to their parts, and to the offbeat sense of humour — and if director Josh Greenbaum (New Girl) didn't ensure that every element of the movie goes all-in on every single joke. Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar is available to stream via Google Play, YouTube Movies and iTunes. BURNING "This could be the new normal," a snippet from a news report comments early in Burning. The reason for the statement: Black Summer, the Australian bushfire season of 2019–20 that decimated large swathes of the country, sent smoke floating around the world and attracted international media attention. Australians don't need a documentary to confirm how horrific the situation was, and this is now the second in months — after the gripping first-person accounts in A Fire Inside — but this powerful film from Chasing Asylum's Eva Orner also lays bare all the factors that coalesced in the tragic events of just two years ago. Accordingly, this is a doco about inaction, government indifference to the point of failure, and the valuing of fossil fuels over their destruction of the environment. It's a movie about climate change as well, clearly, because any film telling this tale has to be. Orner, an Oscar-winner for producing 2007's Taxi to the Dark Side and an Emmy-winner for 2016's Out of Iraq, takes a three-pronged approach: providing context to the bushfires, including charting the Australian government's choices before and after; amassing expert and experienced testimonies, spanning activists and those on the ground alike; and bearing witness. Facts — such as the three billion animals killed — sit side by side with personal recollections and devastating images. The latter includes not only the fires and their ashy aftermath, but political arguing and Scott Morrison's Hawaiian holiday; all hit like a punch to the gut. The result is urgent, important and stunning — and absolutely essential viewing. Burning is available to stream via Amazon Prime Video. I CARE A LOT She didn't end up with an Oscar for her efforts, but Rosamund Pike's Golden Globe win for I Care a Lot was thoroughly well-deserved. The Radioactive and Gone Girl star is stellar in a tricky part in a thorny film — because this dark comic-thriller isn't here to play nice. Pike plays Marla Grayson, a legal guardian to as many elderly Americans as she can convince the courts to send her way. She's more interested in the cash that comes with the job, however, rather than actually looking after her charges. Indeed, with her girlfriend and business partner Fran (Eiza González, Bloodshot), plus an unscrupulous doctor on her payroll, she specifically targets wealthy senior citizens with no family, gets them committed to her care, packs them off to retirement facilities and plunders their bank accounts. Then one such ploy catches the attention of gangster Roman Lunyov (Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones), who dispatches his minions to nudge Marla in a different direction. She isn't willing to acquiesce, though, sparking both a game of cat and mouse and a showdown. Dinklage makes the most of his role, too, but I Care a Lot is always the icy Pike's movie. Well, hers and writer/director J Blakeson's (The Disappearance of Alice Creed), with the latter crafting a takedown of capitalism that's savagely blunt but also blisteringly entertaining. I Care a Lot is available to stream via Amazon Prime Video. CODA When CODA screened at the Sundance Film Festival back in January, it made history. Film distributors always clamour to snap up the event's big hits, and this four-time award-winner — which received the fest's US Grand Jury Prize, US Dramatic Audience Award, a Special Jury Ensemble Cast Award and Best Director — was picked up by Apple TV+ for US$25 million. Even though the sophomore feature from writer/director Sian Heder (Tallulah) remakes 2014 French hit La Famille Bélier, that's still a significant amount of money; however, thanks to its warmth, engaging performances and a welcome lack of cheesiness, it's easy to see why the streaming platform opened its wallet. Fans of the earlier movie will recognise the storyline, which sees 17-year-old Ruby Rossi (Emilia Jones, Locke & Key) struggle to balance her family commitments with her dreams of attending music school. She's a talented singer, but she's only just discovered just how skilled she is because she's also the child of deaf adults (hence the film's title). At home, she also plays a key part in keeping the family's fishing business afloat, including by spending mornings before class out on the trawler wither her dad Frank (Troy Kotsur, No Ordinary Hero: The SuperDeafy Movie) and older brother Leo (Daniel Durant, Switched at Birth). Heder helms this still sweet and moving feature with a distinct lack of over-exaggeration, which plagued its predecessor. The fact that Kotsur, Durant and Marlee Matlin (Entangled), the latter as the Rossi matriarch, are all actors who are deaf playing characters who are deaf really couldn't be more important. Their portrayals are naturalistic and lived-in, as is much about this rousing but gentle crowd-pleaser — including tomboy Ruby's blossoming romance with fellow wannabe musician Miles (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, Sing Street). CODA is available to stream via Apple TV+. THE ELECTRICAL LIFE OF LOUIS WAIN If there's a real-life figure that needs to be brought to the screen, call Benedict Cumberbatch. He's done just that in The Imitation Game, The Current War and The Courier, and also in everything from The Other Boleyn Girl and Creation to 12 Years a Slave and The Fifth Estate as well. The Electrical Life of Louis Wain sees the British actor add another such role to his resume; however, while it steps through its eponymous artist's life and career, this biopic instantly stands out from the rest of the pack. The key: a fabulous decision by director Will Sharpe (Flowers) to style this poignant and lively film after its subject and his work. When he came to fame in the late 19th century, Wain was known for his surreal cat paintings, after all — and while this is a movie that also tracks his sorrows, as well as his struggles with his mental health, it does so with a winning mix of energy and sincerity. Indeed, it'll come as no surprise that The Electrical Life of Louis Wain was shot by Erik Wilson, the same cinematographer who added such a whimsical look to both Paddington and Paddington 2. Animals abound amidst these entrancing visuals, too, but none of the cats that Wain (Cumberbatch, The Power of the Dog) becomes obsessed with eat marmalade. That feline fixation stems from a frowned-upon romance with Emily Richardson (Claire Foy, The Girl in the Spider's Web), the governess to his younger sisters — and it, just like Richardson, changes his life. Playing an eccentric artist who firmly took his own route, and was also just as fascinated with electricity as adorable mousers, Cumberbatch finds both the enchanting and the melancholy sides to Wain, while the rest of the stellar cast even includes Olivia Colman (The Lost Daughter) on narration duties, plus Richard Ayoade, Taika Waititi and Nick Cave in cameos. The Electrical Life of Louis Wain is available to stream via Amazon Prime Video. SLAXX Ask any style guru for their opinion on denim, and they'll all likely give the same answer. Everyone needs a pair of killer jeans, after all — the type that fit perfectly, flatter every inch of your lower half, and that you just don't want to ever take off. In Slaxx, CCC is the store aiming to make all of the above happen. Already priding itself on its eco-friendly, sustainable, sweatshop-free threads, the chain is set to launch a new range of denim that moulds to the wearer's body, with the company's buzzword-spouting CEO (Stephen Bogaert, IT: Chapter Two) certain that they'll change the fashion industry. On the night before the jeans hit the shelves, employees at one store are tasked with making sure everything goes smoothly; however, as new hire Libby (Romane Denis, My Salinger Year), apathetic veteran employee Shruti (Sehar Bhojani, Sex & Ethnicity) and their over-eager boss Craig (Brett Donahue, Private Eyes) soon learn, these are killer jeans in a very literal sense. Quickly, the ravenous pants start stalking and slaying their way through the store. It's a concept that'd do Rubber's Quentin Dupieux proud and, in the hands of Canadian filmmaker Elza Kephart (Go in the Wilderness), the results are highly entertaining. Slaxx wears its equally silly and savage attitude like a second skin, smartly skewers consumerism and retail trends, and possesses stellar special effects that bring its denim to life — and, although never subtle (including in its performances), it's exactly as fun as a film about killer jeans should be. Slaxx is available to stream via Shudder. Looking for more viewing highlights? You can also check out our list of film and TV streaming recommendations, which is updated monthly. Plus, we picked ten standout new straight-to-streaming movies and specials in the middle of the year, too.
Technology has changed the way we travel, and as the world gets smaller it's becoming an increasingly complex place to navigate. Where once we relied on the endorsements of friends and family to help shape our plans, we now treat the opinions of total strangers on TripAdvisor, Expedia and Stayz as gospel. As Lonely Planet roll out their trusty guide books in every digital format imaginable, niche publishers like Wallpaper and le cool are getting in on the act by creating city guides for people seeking experiences that complement their new Paul Smith socks. And what's more, social networking sites Facebook, Path and Google+, paired with photography apps like Instagram and Hipstamatic, let us share things as they happen and make us look like we actually know how to use our SLRs. But what generally lies at the heart of a traveller's wishlist is not the desire to micromanage every detail of their holiday, but to witness something truly beautiful. What these new technologies provide us with is rapid access to the places and people that capture the imagination. Here are 21 locations from around the world that do just that. Mount Roraima, Venezuela Wineglass Bay, Tasmania Multnomah Falls, Oregon, USA Preikestolen, Norway Paterswoldsemeer, Netherlands Blue Caves, Zakynthos, Greece Petra, Jordan Huangshan, China Skaftafell, Iceland Ebenalp, Switzerland Kawasan Falls, Philippines Anse Lazio, Seychelles Yi Peng Festival, Thailand Sagano Bamboo Forest, Japan Santorini, Greece Bora Bora, French Polynesia Moraine Lake, Alberta, Canada Soufriere, St Lucia Capilano Suspension Bridge, British Columbia, Canada Siminopetra, Greece Seljalandsfoss Waterfall, Iceland [Images via Coolhunter]
If seeing movies and TV shows you love pick up shiny trophies is your preferred form of sport, congrats — awards season is here for another year. We're never too far away from Hollywood's latest opportunity to celebrate itself, given that the Emmys were only a couple of months back. But the period between December and March tends to be the entertainment industry's version of Christmas (or until April in 2021, given that the Oscars happened later than usual). Accordingly, it's that time of year for the Golden Globes, which has just announced its latest batch of nominees. That said, if you're keen to actually watch a heap of people collect their accolades come Monday, January 10, Australian and New Zealand time, think again — the ceremony won't be televised due to multiple controversies surrounding the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the organisation behind the awards, and whether it'll stream somewhere (and if any celebrities will actually show up) hasn't yet been revealed. The list of films and series competing still spans plenty of 2021 favourites — covering both the big and small screens, because the Globes likes to have it both ways. Among the cinema fields, Jane Campion's phenomenal western The Power of the Dog leads the charge with seven nods, a feat only matched by nostalgic Kenneth Branagh-directed drama Belfast, which was inspired by the filmmaker's own childhood. And in the TV categories, Succession picked up five nominations, Ted Lasso and The Morning Show nabbed four, and a heap of shows — including Squid Game — picked up three. The Power of the Dog received Australian funding — and from New Zealand, too — so there's a local tie to this year's nominees. Campion also scored a nod for Best Director for the film, and Aussie actor Kodi Smit-McPhee earned a spot among the Best Supporting Actor nominees. Still staying local, Nicole Kidman is a Best Actress in a Drama contender in the cinema fields for playing Lucille Ball in Being the Ricardos, while Succession's Sarah Snook scored a Best Supporting Actress nomination in the TV categories. A heap of other excellent flicks and shows earned some love as well — including a Best Drama nod for Dune, a Best Comedy nomination for Paul Thomas Anderson's Licorice Pizza, acting recognition's for the latter's first-timers Alana Haim (yes, of Haim) and Cooper Hoffman (son of the Philip Seymour Hoffman), plus a trio of nominations for The Great, Hacks and Only Murders in the Building. Other highlights span the Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical nod for Annette's Marion Cotillard, Lupin's two showings, and Jennifer Coolidge's recognition for The White Lotus. Plus, after making history in 2021 for nominating three women for Best Director for the first time ever — after only ever nominating seven other female filmmakers in the Golden Globes prior 77-year run — the awards have given not only Campion but also The Lost Daughter's Maggie Gyllenhaal some love this time around. If you're wondering what else is in the running, here's the full list: GOLDEN GLOBE NOMINEES: BEST MOTION PICTURE — DRAMA Belfast CODA Dune King Richard The Power of the Dog BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE — DRAMA Jessica Chastain, The Eyes of Tammy Faye Olivia Colman, The Lost Daughter Nicole Kidman, Being the Ricardos Lady Gaga, House of Gucci Kristen Stewart, Spencer BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE — DRAMA Mahershala Ali, Swan Song Javier Bardem, Being the Ricardos Benedict Cumberbatch, The Power of the Dog Will Smith, King Richard Denzel Washington, The Tragedy of Macbeth BEST MOTION PICTURE — MUSICAL OR COMEDY Cyrano Don't Look Up Licorice Pizza Tick, Tick … Boom! West Side Story BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE — MUSICAL OR COMEDY Marion Cotillard, Annette Alana Haim, Licorice Pizza Jennifer Lawrence, Don't Look Up Emma Stone, Cruella Rachel Zegler, West Side Story BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE — MUSICAL OR COMEDY Leonardo DiCaprio, Don't Look Up Peter Dinklage, Cyrano Andrew Garfield, Tick, Tick … Boom! Cooper Hoffman, Licorice Pizza Anthony Ramos, In the Heights BEST MOTION PICTURE — ANIMATED Encanto Flee Luca My Sunny Maad Raya and the Last Dragon BEST MOTION PICTURE — FOREIGN LANGUAGE Compartment No. 6 Drive My Car The Hand of God A Hero Parallel Mothers BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN ANY MOTION PICTURE Caitríona Balfe, Belfast Ariana DeBose, West Side Story Kirsten Dunst, The Power of the Dog Aunjanue Ellis, King Richard Ruth Negga, Passing BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN ANY MOTION PICTURE Ben Affleck, The Tender Bar Jamie Dornan, Belfast Ciarán Hinds, Belfast Troy Kotsur, CODA Kodi Smit-McPhee, The Power of the Dog BEST DIRECTOR — MOTION PICTURE Kenneth Branagh, Belfast Jane Campion, The Power of the Dog Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Lost Daughter Steven Spielberg, West Side Story Denis Villeneuve, Dune BEST SCREENPLAY — MOTION PICTURE Paul Thomas Anderson, Licorice Pizza Kenneth Branagh, Belfast Jane Campion, The Power of the Dog Adam McKay, Don't Look Up Aaron Sorkin, Being the Ricardos BEST ORIGINAL SCORE — MOTION PICTURE Dune Encanto The French Dispatch Parallel Mothers The Power of the Dog BEST ORIGINAL SONG — MOTION PICTURE 'Be Alive', King Richard 'Dos Orugitas', Encanto 'Down to Joy', Belfast 'Here I Am (Singing My Way Home)', Respect 'No Time to Die', No Time to Die BEST TELEVISION SERIES — DRAMA Lupin The Morning Show Pose Squid Game Succession BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES — DRAMA Uzo Aduba, In Treatment Jennifer Aniston, The Morning Show Christine Baranski, The Good Fight Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid's Tale MJ Rodriguez, Pose BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES — DRAMA Brian Cox, Succession Lee Jung-jae, Squid Game Billy Porter, Pose Jeremy Strong, Succession Omar Sy, Lupin BEST TELEVISION SERIES — MUSICAL OR COMEDY The Great Hacks Ted Lasso Reservation Dogs Only Murders in the Building BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES — MUSICAL OR COMEDY Hannah Einbinder, Hacks Elle Fanning, The Great Issa Rae, Insecure Tracee Ellis Ross, Black-ish Jean Smart, Hacks BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES — MUSICAL OR COMEDY Anthony Anderson, Black-ish Nicholas Hoult, The Great Steve Martin, Only Murders in the Building Martin Short, Only Murders in the Building Jason Sudeikis, Ted Lasso BEST TELEVISION LIMITED SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION Dopesick Impeachment: American Crime Story Maid Mare of Easttown The Underground Railroad BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR A MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION Jessica Chastain, Scenes From a Marriage Cynthia Erivo, Genius: Aretha Elizabeth Olsen, WandaVision Margaret Qualley, Maid Kate Winslet, Mare of Easttown BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR A MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION Paul Bettany, WandaVision Oscar Isaac, Scenes From a Marriage Michael Keaton, Dopesick Ewan McGregor, Halston Tahar Rahim, The Serpent BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES, LIMITED SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION Jennifer Coolidge, The White Lotus Kaitlyn Dever, Dopesick Andie MacDowell, Maid Sarah Snook, Succession Hannah Waddingham, Ted Lasso BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES, LIMITED SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TV Billy Crudup, The Morning Show Kieran Culkin, Succession Mark Duplass, The Morning Show Brett Goldstein, Ted Lasso Oh Yeong-su, Squid Game The 2022 Golden Globes will be announced on Monday, January 10 Australian and New Zealand time. For further details, head to the awards' website. Top image: The Crown, Des Willie/Netflix.
Not all that long ago, the idea of getting cosy on your couch, clicking a few buttons, and having thousands of films and television shows at your fingertips seemed like something out of science fiction. Now, it's just an ordinary night — whether you're virtually gathering the gang to text along, cuddling up to your significant other or shutting the world out for some much needed me-time. Of course, given the wealth of options to choose from, there's nothing ordinary about making a date with your chosen streaming platform. The question isn't "should I watch something?" — it's "what on earth should I choose?". Hundreds of titles are added to Australia's online viewing services each and every month, all vying for a spot on your must-see list. And, so you don't spend 45 minutes scrolling and then being too tired to actually commit to anything, we're here to help. We've spent plenty of couch time watching our way through this month's latest batch — and, from the latest and greatest through to old and recent favourites, here are our picks for your streaming queue in December. BRAND NEW STUFF YOU CAN WATCH IN FULL GLASS ONION: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery opens with a puzzle box inside a puzzle box. The former is a wooden cube delivered out of the blue, the latter the followup to 2019 murder-mystery hit Knives Out, and both are as tightly, meticulously, cleverly and cannily orchestrated as each other. The physical version has siblings, all sent to summon a motley crew of characters to the same place, as these types of flicks need to boast. The film clearly has its own brethren, and slots in beside its predecessor as one of the genre's gleaming standouts. More Knives Out movies will follow as well, which the two so far deserve to keep spawning as long as writer/director Rian Johnson (Star Wars: Episode VIII — The Last Jedi) and Benoit Blanc-playing star Daniel Craig (No Time to Die) will make them. Long may they keep the franchise's key detective and audience alike sleuthing. Long may they have everyone revelling in every twist, trick and revelation, as the breezy blast that is Glass Onion itself starts with. What do Connecticut Governor and US Senate candidate Claire Debella (Kathryn Hahn, WandaVision), model-slash-designer-slash-entrepreneur Birdie Jay (Kate Hudson, Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon), scientist Lionel Toussaint (Leslie Odom Jr, The Many Saints of Newark) and gun-toting, YouTube-posting men's rights activist Duke Cody (Dave Bautista, Thor: Love and Thunder) all have in common when this smart and savvy sequel kicks off? They each receive those literal puzzle boxes, of course, and they visibly enjoy their time working out what they're about. The cartons are the key to their getaway to Greece — their invites from tech mogul Miles Bron (Edward Norton, The French Dispatch), in fact — and also perfectly emblematic of this entire feature. It's noteworthy that this quartet carefully but playfully piece together clues to unveil the contents inside, aka Glass Onion's exact modus operandi. That said, it's also significant that a fifth recipient of these elaborate squares, Andi Brand (Janelle Monáe, Antebellum), simply decides to smash their way inside with a hammer. As Brick and Looper also showed, Johnson knows when to attentively dole out exactly what he needs to, including when the body count starts. He also knows when to let everything spill out, and when to put the cravat-wearing Blanc on the case. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery streams via Netflix. Read our full review. KEVIN CAN F**K HIMSELF Not once, not even jokingly, does Annie Murphy utter the words "ew, David" in Kevin Can F**k Himself. She's never ever just a little bit Alexis, either. Murphy is just as exceptional and awards-worthy here, however, in a superb show that's a clever and cutting dark comedy — and, perhaps more accurately, offers a clear-eyed unpacking of what sitcoms usually mean (Schitt's Creek excluded, obviously) for women. In its first season in 2021, Kevin Can F**k Himself cast its star as Allison Devine-McRoberts, wife to the manchild of a titular figure (Eric Petersen, Sydney to the Max), and clearly in the kind of TV show about obnoxious husbands and their put-upon spouses that've been a small-screen mainstay for far too long. In those segments of the series, the lights glow, the McRoberts home looks like every other abode in every other program of its ilk, multiple cameras observe the action and viewers can be forgiven for expecting Kevin James to show up. Also, canned laughter chuckles — always unearned. Consider the above setup Kevin Can F**k Himself's starting point, though, because the show itself does. From there, creator Valerie Armstrong (Lodge 49) exposes what life is truly like for Allison — who is considered Kevin's wife first and foremost by almost everyone around her — including by switching looks, hues and camera arrangements whenever its namesake isn't around. The visible change is smart and effective, with this two-season show keeping digging into Allison's bleak situation from there. In the spirit of the series' title, she's trying to rid herself of her horrible marriage, including with help from neighbour Patty (Mary Hollis Inboden, The Righteous Gemstones). Alas, as this second and sadly last batch of episodes shows — as its first did as well — nothing is ever that easy. In a better world, Kevin Can F**k Himself would've had more time to unfurl and interrogate its story, but in this world it doesn't put a foot wrong with the time it's been given. Murphy and Inboden make one of TV's best duos, too; fingers crossed that someone reteams them again sometime soon. Kevin can F**k Himself streams via AMC+. Read our full review of 2021's season one. LADY CHATTERLEY'S LOVER Neither Emma Corrin's nor Jack O'Connell's resumes lack past highlights — The Crown for the former, and Skins, Starred Up, '71 and The North Water among the latter's — but the two actors scorch up the screen in Lady Chatterley's Lover. There'd be a problem if they didn't, given that the film adapts DH Lawrence's famously steamy and even banned 1928 novel. (In Australia, even a book about the British obscenity trial that the tome inspired was censored.) To tell this tale about an upper-class wife, her unfulfilling marriage to a Baronet injured in World War I, and the sexual and emotional yearning she quenches with the family property's gamekeeper, chemistry has to drip from the images, sparks need to fly so furiously that the movie's frames almost ignite, and a feverish and all-encompassing mood is a must. Along with actor-turned-director Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre (The Mustang), Corrin and O'Connell bring all of the above to the latest take on Lady Chatterley's Lover, and help the sumptuous erotic period drama itself not just bubble but boil. As lensed with a sensual eye by cinematographer Benoît Delhomme (At Eternity's Gate), this achingly romantic film sees its titular Lady Connie (Corrin, My Policeman) meet her also-eponymous paramour Oliver Mellors (O'Connell, Seberg) following the war, after Clifford Chatterley (Matthew Duckett, A Confession) has returned paralysed and moved his bride into his stately estate. Talk of an heir remains — pre-injury, it was the first thing mentioned in their wedding toast — but Clifford's condition, as well as his focus on writing a novel and then modernising the local mine, prove obstacles. Connie could have a discreet affair for the sole purpose of getting pregnant, however, as Clifford suggests. But it isn't just a head-over-heels clandestine love that springs with Mellors, who's also a veteran. Connie and Oliver are bowled over by the kind of adoration, affection and lust that inspires frolics in the fields and stripping down in the rain, all while their romance also helps interrogate class clashes. As well as woozily heady, vibrantly performed and handsomely shot, Lady Chatterley's Lover also enjoys eating the rich; yes, that's sexy, too. Lady Chatterley's Lover streams via Netflix. NANNY In Nanny, Aisha (Anna Diop, Us) is haunted, both when she's asleep and awake. Her slumbers are disturbed by nightmares, but seeing rising waters and unwelcome spiders isn't just relegated to when the Senegalese woman in New York closes her eyes. A gut-wrenching sense of unease also lingers while she works, after securing a childminding job for rich Upper East Side residents Amy (Michelle Monaghan, Echoes) and Adam (Morgan Spector, The Gilded Age). Their five-year-old daughter Rose (Rose Decker, Mare of Easttown) adores Aisha — more than her parents, it often seems. And, the nannying gig helps Aisha distract herself from missing her own son, who she's desperately trying to bring over to the US. She's haunted by his absence, too, and by the stolen snippets of conversation she gets with him on the phone, constantly juggling the time difference. The supernatural disturbances plaguing Aisha and her feelings about leaving her child in Senegal to chase a better future for them both are clearly linked, although Nanny is atmospheric and insightful rather than blunt and overt. The first horror film to win Sundance Film Festival's Grand Jury Prize, this evocative effort hails from writer/director Nikyatu Jusu, who makes her feature-length debut with quite the calling card. 2022 isn't short on affectingly moody and evocative female-focused thrillers with a maternal bent — see: Resurrection, which also debuted at Sundance — but Nanny's addition to the fold is deeply steeped in Aisha's immigrant experience. Thanks to all that otherworldly water, it feels like it's always steeping, in fact, soaking in the troubles and struggles of trying to snatch even a piece of the American dream when you're not wealthy, white and originally from the so-called land of the free. Also prominent: the dispiriting minutiae of Aisha's day, aka exactly what she has to endure to even have a chance of gaining what comes easily and obliviously to her employers. Like its central figure, Nanny is haunted several times over, too. Nanny streams via Prime Video. COLIN FROM ACCOUNTS A girl, a guy and a meet-cute over an adorable animal: that's the delightful and very funny Colin From Accounts' underlying formula. When medical student Ashley (Harriet Dyer, The Invisible Man) and microbrewery owner Gordon (Patrick Brammall, Evil) cross paths in the street one otherwise standard Sydney morning, they literally come to an impasse. He lets her go first, she flashes her nipple as thanks, then he's so distracted that he hits a stray dog with his car. As these circumstances demonstrate, Colin From Accounts isn't afraid to get awkward, much to the benefit of audiences. There's a syrupy way to proceed from the show's debut moments, intertwining sparks flying with idyllic dates, plus zero doubts of a happy ending for humans and pooches alike. If this was a movie, that's how it'd happen. Then there's Dyer and Brammall's way, with the duo creating and writing the series as well as starring in it, and focusing as much on ordinary existential mayhem — working out who you want to be, navigating complex relationships and learning to appreciate the simple pleasure of someone else's company, for example — as pushing its leads together. Just like in the Hollywood versions of this kind of tale, romance does blossom. That Dyer and Brammall are behind Colin From Accounts, their past chemistry on fellow Aussie comedy No Activity and the fact that they're married IRL means that pairing them up as more than new pals was always going to be on the show's agenda. It's how the series fleshes out each character and their baggage — including those who-am-I questions, Ash's difficult dynamic with her attention-seeking mother Lynelle (Helen Thomson, Elvis), and the responsibility that running your own business and committing to care for other people each bring — that helps give it depth. Colin From Accounts lets Ash and Gordon unfurl their woes and wishes, and also lets them grow. Sometimes, that happens by peeing and pooping in the wrong place, because that's also the type of comedy this is. Sometimes, it's because the show's central couple have taken a risk, or faced their struggles, or genuinely found solace in each other. Always, this new Aussie gem is breezy and weighty — and instantly bingeable. Colin From Accounts streams via Binge. Read our full review. DREAMING WALLS: INSIDE THE CHELSEA HOTEL Part of Manhattan since the 1880s, the Chelsea Hotel is as much a New York City icon as the Statute of Liberty or the Empire State Building, and as influential over the cultural landscape as well. It's where 2001: A Space Odyssey was written by Arthur C Clarke and Stanley Kubrick, where Janis Joplin and Allen Ginsburg have resided — Patti Smith, Madonna, Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix and Leonard Cohen as well — and a key factor in the Andy Warhol co-directed 1966 film Chelsea Girls. It's the last place that poet Dylan Thomas stayed, and where Nancy Spungen, girlfriend of the Sex Pistols' Sid Vicious, was found dead. All of these details could fuel a documentary, or several, but that's not the approach that the Martin Scorsese-produced Dreaming Walls: Inside the Chelsea Hotel takes. As the building undergoes extensive renovations that've been happening for years, upending long-term inhabitants and transforming historic apartments, filmmakers Amélie van Elmbt (The Elephant and the Butterfly) and Maya Duverdier spend time with the people determined not to leave. Everyone who still calls the Chelsea home knows the ins and outs of its past; "the ghosts who haunt it," as one puts it. But Dreaming Walls considers those everyday dwellers — most linked to creative fields in one way or another, of course — the life and soul of the current joint. That might be easy when so much of the place, and its gorgeous gothic architecture, is a construction site in the documentary's frames. The contrast between stripped-bare walls and jam-packed apartments that've been occupied by the same people for decades is haunting as well. It's no wonder that this ethereal and evocative film is largely content to loiter, to listen and to bear witness to the folks who've been there, seen it all, heard what they didn't personally experience and aren't willing to simply move just because a boutique spot is poised to take over. Dreaming Walls: Inside the Chelsea Hotel streams via DocPlay. BUMP Time-jump alert: when Bump returns for its third season, four years have passed in this supremely bingeable Aussie dramedy's on-screen world. Oly (Nathalie Morris, Petrol) and Santi (Carlos Sanson, Sweet As) are no longer high schoolers, or even teenagers. They're also no longer the couple that took a big leap at the end of season two by moving into their own apartment, away from both of their chaotic families, while Oly finished her HSC, Santi started working full-time and both juggled all of the above with caring for baby J. Indeed, this new batch of Bump episodes begins with its central pairing taking the now almost five-year-old Jacinda (Ava Cannon) to her first day of kindergarten. All three are both excited and nervous amid the awkward co-parenting energy between the now-split Oly and Santi — and as Oly's mother Angie (Claudia Karvan, Moja Vesna) surprises them en route. Times and ages may have changed, and situations and appearances as well, but the warmth this series feels for its characters — and the complexity it works through in well-worn scenarios — steadfastly remains. We said it when the first ten-episode season dropped at the end of 2020, and we still stand by it today: Heartbreak High fans, Bump is for you, too. That isn't just because Karvan starred in The Heartbreak Kid, the movie that the OG Heartbreak High spun off from, but due to its dedication to chronicling the ins and outs of growing up and parenting in Sydney — yes, with school a focus as well. Bump has matured as Oly and Santi also have, however, even if the same can't always be said about Angie, Oly's dad Dom (Angus Sampson, The Lincoln Lawyer) and her older brother Bowie (Christian Byers, Between Two Worlds). A key theme in season three: what it means when life already hasn't turned out as planned when you still have so much of it left ahead of you. The show is called Bump, after all, and finds plenty of them paving everyone's paths. With the series also devoting its time to Santi's stepmother Rosa (Paula Garcia, Thirteen Lives) and best friend Vince (Ioane Saula, Preppers) among its broader look at Oly and Santi's support network, it also finds an array of ways to contemplate hopes, dreams, loves, losses, joys and disappointments. Bump streams via Binge from December 26. NEW AND RETURNING SHOWS TO CHECK OUT WEEK BY WEEK ABBOTT ELEMENTARY The Office did it, in both the UK and US versions. Parks and Recreation did so, too. What We Do in the Shadows still does it — and, yes, there's more where they all came from. By now, the mockumentary format is a well-established part of the sitcom realm. Indeed, it's so common that additional shows deciding to give it a whirl aren't noteworthy for that alone. But in Emmy-winner Abbott Elementary, which is currently streaming its second season, the faux doco gimmick is also deployed as an outlet for the series' characters. They're all public school elementary teachers in Philadelphia, and the chats to-camera help convey the stresses and tolls of doing what they're devoted to. In a wonderfully warm and also clear-eyed gem created by, co-written by and starring triple-threat Quinta Brunson (Miracle Workers), that'd be teaching young hearts and minds no matter the everyday obstacles, the utter lack of resources and funding, or the absence of interest from the bureaucracy above them. Brunson plays perennially perky 25-year-old teacher Janine Teagues, who loves her gig and her second-grade class. She also adores her colleague Barbara Howard (Sheryl Lee Ralph, Ray Donovan), the kindergarten teacher that she sees as a mentor and work mum. Actually, Janine isn't just fond of all of the above — she's so devoted to her job that she'll let nothing stand in her way. But that isn't easy or straightforward in a system that's short on cash and care from the powers-that-be to make school better for its predominantly Black student populace. Also featuring Everybody Hates Chris' Tyler James Williams (also The United States vs Billie Holiday) as an apathetic substitute teacher, Lisa Ann Walter (The Right Mom) and Chris Perfetti (Sound of Metal) as Abbott faculty mainstays, and Janelle James (Black Monday) as the incompetent principal who only scored her position via blackmail, everything about Abbott Elementary is smart, kindhearted, funny and also honest. That remains the case in season two, where Janine is newly single and grappling with being on her own, sparks are flying with Williams' Gregory and James' Ava can't keep bluffing her way through her days. Abbott Elementary streams via Disney+. LET THE RIGHT ONE IN Is every vampire film destined to become a television series? Where Buffy the Vampire Slayer, What We Do in the Shadows and Interview with the Vampire have already tread — the latter just this year, too — Let the Right One In now follows. Originally a devastatingly haunting Swedish novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist, then an entrancing 2008 film in its original language, then an American big-screen remake called Let Me In, this one just keeps drawing audiences in. In its present guise, it takes its tale to New York, where Mark Kane (Demián Bichir, Godzilla vs Kong) and his daughter Eleanor (Madison Taylor Baez, Selena: The Series) are trying to live as normal a life as they can when the latter is a member of the bloodsucking undead. Other changes abound, including the fact that Ellie has been blighted by her condition for just a decade; that NYC is being plagued by a series of brutal but strange killings; and that former pharmaceutical executive Arthur Logan (Željko Ivanek, The Last Duel), his estranged daughter Claire (Grace Gummer, Dr Death) and afflicted son Peter (Jacob Buster, Colony) factor into the narrative. Because everything is a murder-mystery of late — see: Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery above, and fellow recent streaming hits Only Murders in the Building, The Afterparty, Bad Sisters and Black Bird — so is Let the Right One In circa 2022 in its way. When Ellie befriends a boy, as has happened in every version of this tale so far, his mother happens to be a police detective investigating those aforementioned deaths. So, while the show chronicles Ellie and Isaiah Cole's (Ian Foreman, The Holiday Switch) affinity as outsiders, with the magic-loving neighbour kid bullied at school, it also charts his mum Naomi's (Anika Noni Rose, Maid) time on the job. And, this Let the Right One In is also a survival quest, chasing a cure for Ellie's predicament. In other words, creator and writer Andrew Hinderaker (Away) has taken the source material, filtered it through thoroughly 2022 obsessions, conjured up there requisite moody vibe and filled it with weighty performances. Sinking your teeth in is recommended. Let the Right One In streams via Paramount+. 2022 CINEMA HIGHLIGHTS WORTH CATCHING UP WITH AT HOME FLUX GOURMET Flickering across a cinema screen, even the greatest of movies only engage two senses: sight and hearing. We can't touch, taste or smell films, even if adding scratch-and-sniff aromas to the experience has become a cult-favourite gimmick. British director Peter Strickland hasn't attempted that — but his features make you feel like you're running your fingers over an alluring dress (In Fabric), feeling the flutter of insect wings (The Duke of Burgundy) or, in his latest, enjoying the smells and tastes whipped up by a culinary collective that turns cooking and eating into performance art. Yes, if you've seen any of his movies before, Flux Gourmet instantly sounds like something only Strickland could make. While it's spinning that tale, it literally sounds like only something he could come up with as well, given that his audioscapes are always a thing of wonder (see also: the sound-focused Berberian Sound Studio). And, unsurprisingly due to his strong and distinctive sense of style and mood, everything about Flux Gourmet looks and feels like pure Strickland, too. The setting: a culinary institute overseen by Jan Stevens (Gwendoline Christie, Wednesday), that regularly welcomes in different creative groups to undertake residencies. Her guests collaborate, percolate and come up with eye-catching blends of food, bodies and art — hosting OTT dinners, role-playing a trip to the supermarket, getting scatalogical and turning a live colonoscopy into a show, for instance. Watching and chronicling the latest stint by a 'sonic catering' troupe is journalist Stones (Makis Papadimitriou, Beckett), who also has gastrointestinal struggles, is constantly trying not to fart and somehow manages to keep a straight face as everything gets farcical around him. Asa Butterfield (Sex Education), Ariane Labed (The Souvenir: Part II) and Strickland regular Fatma Mohamed play the three bickering artists, and their time at the institute get messy and heated, fast — but this is a film that's as warm as it is wild, and stands out even among Strickland's inimitable work. Also crucial: riffing on This Is Spinal Tap. Flux Gourmet streams via Shudder. Read our full review. STREAMING HIGHLIGHTS FROM EARLIER IN THE YEAR WORTH CATCHING UP ON THE LAST MOVIE STARS Filmmakers adoring filmmakers is basically its own on-screen genre. Six-part documentary limited series The Last Movie Stars gives that idea a different spin: actors loving actors. Here, Ethan Hawke turns director, not for the first time — see: films Blaze, Seymour: An Introduction, The Hottest State and Chelsea Walls — to show his affection for the inimitable Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward. Unsurprisingly, he has a wealth of company, some chatting through their fondness for two Hollywood talents like no other and some contributing by giving voice to interview transcripts. For a memoir that didn't eventuate, Newman and Woodward compiled chats by a who's who of showbusiness during their careers; however, they also had the tapes destroyed. Cue George Clooney voicing Newman's chats, Laura Linney doing Woodward's, and everyone from Oscar Isaac, Sam Rockwell and Mark Ruffalo to Rose Byrne and Zoe Kazan also subbing in for other famous names. That's where The Last Movie Stars' audio comes from, echoing with insightful discussions given the emotion they deserve. Hawke also includes new zoom chats with his players, as well as with Martin Scorsese, his daughter and Stranger Things star Maya and more, but his engrossing and probing series is head over heels for pairing those recreated interviews with archival footage. Staring at Newman and Woodward is easy, as is celebrating them and their relationship. This isn't just a case of deserved worship, though, but shows its subjects as real people rather than just stars — all while exploring Hollywood at the time, stepping through their careers and contemporaries, and overflowing with clear-eyed warmth. Hawke doesn't avoid tricky traits or truths, and this in-depth doco is all the more enlightening and compassionate for it. Whether you already treasure Newman and Woodward or you've always wanted to know more about the two legends, this is a movie buff's pure and utter dream. The Last Movie Stars streams via Binge. MO For three seasons on Ramy, Mohammed Amer has played Mo, the diner-owning cousin to the show's namesake. For those three seasons, including 2022's batch of episodes, he's also been part of one of the best and most thoughtful shows currently streaming, especially when it comes to the immigrant experience and telling Muslim American stories. Instead of just co-starring in an art-imitates-life dramedy inspired by someone else's existence, however, Amer has taken a leaf out of Ramy Youssef's book with Mo — a show with the same underlying concept, as co-created by Amer and Youssef. This time, the pair draw upon Amer's background rather than Youssef's. So, Amer's on-screen alter-ego is a Palestinian living in America. He's a refugee, in fact, who fled the Middle East when he was a child and sought asylum with his family. His US home: Houston, Texas. IRL, every one of these points is drawn from Amer's existence, as fans of his Netflix standup specials Mo Amer: The Vagabond and Mo Amer: Mohammed in Texas will recognise. That's the history behind Mo, with the series' eight-episode first season honing in on its protagonist's attempts to gain US citizenship. Mo Najjar (Amer, Black Adam), his mother Yusra (Farah Bsieso, Daughters of Abdul) and brother Sameer (Omar Elba, Limetown) have been waiting two decades to have their cases heard — another detail ripped from reality — and trying to forge new lives while remaining in legal limbo has long since taken a toll. Spanning losing jobs, trying to find a new one as an undocumented American resident, the Najjars' family dynamic, pain from back home they haven't processed, the weight of cultural traditions and expectations, and Mo's relationship with Mexican and Catholic mechanic Maria (Teresa Ruiz, Father Stu), there's no shortage of detail and drama to Amer's passion project. Indeed, every second of the series feels as personal and authentic as it clearly is, and does far more than merely give Amer his own Ramy. Mo streams via Netflix. Need a few more streaming recommendations? Check out our picks from January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October and November this year. You can also check out our running list of standout must-stream 2022 shows as well — and our best 15 new shows of the year, top 15 returning shows over the same period, 15 shows you might've missed and best 15 straight-to-streaming movies of 2022.
For screen fiends who spend their winters indoors at their favourite picture palaces, there's one surefire way to know that better weather has hit: the arrival of outdoor cinema season. When Sydney's chillier temperatures give way to sunny days and warm nights, the city's spaces set up plenty of openair big screens showing flicks. One such spot: The Rocks Laneway Cinema. As you might know from past runs, this film-loving pop-up sticks around for close to half the year, screening movies every Wednesday night — and for free. After returning for the end of 2024 in November, it's screening until March 2024. Mark your diary for a date on Atherden Street. Also, get ready for different monthly themes. December will naturally showcase Christmas classics. On the lineup: 80s-era laughs thanks with Steve Martin (Only Murders in the Building) and the late, great John Candy in Planes, Trains and Automobiles, which screens on Wednesday, December 4; a dose of Dr Seuss via The Grinch Who Stole Christmas on Wednesday, December 11; and 90s favourite Home Alone 2: Lost in New York on Wednesday, December 18. Laneway Cinema's movies screen from 7pm each week — and although entry is free, bookings are recommended because seating is limited. Heading along also means helping a good cause, with the proceeds from every $2 bag of popcorn sold going to charity. The beneficiary changes monthly, too, with Plate It Forward receiving the funds in December. If you're the kind of cinemagoer that needs snacks and sips, the venues around laneway have plenty to eat and drink on offer. That means making a date with spots such as Caminetto Restaurant, Ribs and Burgers, Pancakes on the Rocks, Playfair Restaurant and more. Obviously, you'll need your wallet for whatever tempts your tastebuds. Images: Anna Kucera / Adam Scarf.
You might picture gold when the prospect of exploring the Bendigo region comes up, but you'll quickly discover that the city and its surrounding townships are full of contemporary cultural landmarks and unique places to visit. Whether you plan on taking a stroll along the Bendigo Artists Walk or want to pay a visit to the Buda Historic Home and Garden, you'll be happy to know that a host of incredible stays are waiting for you to rest your weary head at the end of the day. From the cutest country cottages to converted halls and glamping homesteads, we've teamed up with Bendigo Regional Tourism to bring you a list of the most distinctive places to stay and use as a launchpad to explore the best cultural hotspots of Bendigo, Castlemaine and beyond. [caption id="attachment_746467" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Mackenzie Quarters.[/caption] VISIT BENDIGO ART GALLERY AND STAY IN A 140-YEAR-OLD BENDIGO ICON Since undergoing a stellar facelift in 2014, the Bendigo Art Gallery has emerged as one of Australia's top regional art institutions. Having hosted some world-class contemporary art exhibitions throughout its esteemed history, the gallery's modern design draws in visitors from across Australia. In recent months, they've been coming in droves to gaze upon the showcase of influential fashion designer Cristóbal Balenciaga. After the exhibition closes on November 10, the gallery will welcome works from Gunditjmara/Yorta Yorta artist Joshua Muir — What's on your mind? will run from November 31–March 1, 2020. You can't stay much closer to the Bendigo Gallery than The Residence at Mackenzie Quarters. Mackenzie Quarters was built in 1877 as the deanery for the neighbouring school hall and was referred to as 'The Master's Residence'. It's located in the heart of the arts precinct, and cuts a striking figure, right across the road from the gallery. The residence has been lovingly restored to offer guests modern conveniences across five bedrooms, two bathrooms and multiple entertaining spaces. Come February 2020, there'll also be a sophisticated wine bar in the premise's basement. [caption id="attachment_746487" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Sandhurst Ridge Winery Bed & Breakfast.[/caption] EXPLORE THE GREAT STUPA AND FINISH THE DAY WITH WINE STRAIGHT FROM THE VINEYARD An absolute must-visit when in the region is the Great Stupa of Universal Compassion, an enormous Buddhist pagoda. Symbolising the path to enlightenment and providing a calm place to meditate, this (almost) 50-metre tall structure is the largest example of a stupa in the Western world. To continue the calming vibes, head to Sandhurst Ridge Vineyard for a relaxing bed and breakfast experience amid the greenery, or treat yourself to a luxurious stay at Balgownie Estate Winery Retreat. Choose from a self-contained cottage with views of Sandhurst's tranquil pond, vineyard and bushland, or one of 15 glamping tents dotted across the Balgownie Estate grounds. There's even a personal outdoor soaker tub on the deck of the safari-style tents on offer. [caption id="attachment_746947" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The Scout Hall, Harcourt.[/caption] WANDER AROUND CASTLEMAINE ART MUSEUM AND SPEND THE NIGHT IN THE OLD SCOUT HALL Founded in 1913, the Castlemaine Art Museum is one of regional Victoria's most striking cultural landmarks. The museum boasts a delightful art deco design with purpose-built galleries showing everything from historical artefacts to contemporary art, including the 2019 Experimental Print Prize exhibition, which opens December 7 and runs until May 2020. The leafy township of Castlemaine is located within the heart of the Victorian goldfields. It's little wonder this area is a hub for creative types — it's surrounded by quaint little towns and stunning bushland waiting to be explored for inspiration. Earn your explorers badge with a stay in nearby Harcourt at the old Scout Hall, which is complete with a stage for forcing your friends and family to watch you perform. The luxury self-contained apartment retains plenty of its original charm — including soaring ceilings, exposed arch beams and shiny wood floorboards — but has been upgraded so you get all the modern things you need like a nice kitchen and wifi. [caption id="attachment_746297" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Big4 Castlemaine Gardens Holiday Park.[/caption] CHECK OUT THE BUDA HISTORIC HOME AND SLEEP IN A LUXURY BELL TENT Once the legendary property of prominent Hungarian silversmith Ernest Leviny, today the Buda Historic Home and Garden provides a fully intact glimpse into the past with furniture, artwork and personal belongings remaining much the same as the home's heyday back in the 19th century. A visit to the property is a day well spent, with three acres of heritage garden to explore as well as a gift shop and plant nursery so you can take home a piece of the history. Continue the garden vibes of your getaway at the nearby Big 4 Holiday Park. Stay with us — this isn't your typical caravan park. Set on the edge of the Castlemaine Botanical Gardens, you can get yourself a luxury bell tent complete with a queen-size bed and exceptionally comfortable linen. You'll be glamping in style on a timber deck, perfect for kicking back with a bottle of vino, looking out to the greenery. [caption id="attachment_746549" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Fairbank House.[/caption] SPEND THE NIGHT IN A COTTAGE SURROUNDED BY GREENERY AND STOP BY CASCADE ART Set inside a former Gothic Revival church, Cascade Art is a stunning regional cultural landmark that any big city would be grateful to have. Led by long-term Maldon residents Kareen Anchen and Jeff Gardner, the place is more than just an art gallery — it also hosts regular creative launches, artist talks, workshops and pop-up events. It also supports emerging printmakers from across the region. Just across town, you'll find a cute Victorian cottage that's perfect for a weekend getaway. The stylish Fairbank House has plenty of entertaining spaces and lovely country garden vibes but is also conveniently located to explore the rest of Maldon, a picturesque town that has maintained much of its 19th-century architecture in tribute to rich gold rush-era history. [caption id="attachment_746305" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Pretty Cottage.[/caption] EXPLORE THE CENTRAL GOLDFIELDS FROM HISTORICAL TALBOT Presenting artwork inspired by the wonders of the Central Goldfields, Maryborough's Central Goldfields Art Gallery offers visitors a frequently changing lineup of exhibitions that draw from its vast permanent collection and a range of local creative talent. Home to works by seminal Australian artists such as Dean Bowen, Arthur Boyd and Ray Crooke, the space has everything from landscapes to textile art on display. While in the area, you can also visit Possum Gully Fine Arts Gallery. This bush gallery exhibits a unique collection of works from established Australian artists, covering disciplines including printmaking, painting, drawing, art glass and ceramics. If it's local history and creativity that interests you, the neighbouring town of Talbot is the perfect spot to make your home for the weekend. We found a particularly Pretty Cottage, which was built way back in the 1880s. The fully restored home and its quaint country garden will be all yours during your stay. [caption id="attachment_747414" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Learmonths Place[/caption] STEP INTO HISTORY AT WEDDERBURN'S COACH HOUSE GALLERY THEN ESCAPE TO A FARM For a brief moment in the 1850s, Wedderburn had a significant role in the Victorian gold rush. It only lasted a few years, but the tight-knit community continues to present travellers with a glimpse into the past. The Coach House Gallery and Museum is where to head to see the best work from local artists, while there's also a replica general store that harks back to a time more than a hundred years ago. If you're after a real getaway from city life, there's a 22-acre property on the Loddon River ready to act as your home away from home after a day of exploring Wedderburn and surrounds. Learmonths Place is a fully renovated family farmhouse, where you can breathe fresh country air and enjoy taking in the river views and starry nights. [caption id="attachment_747412" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Rostrata Country House[/caption] ANTIQUE SHOP 'TIL YOU DROP AND THEN RELAX IN NATURE If you're a lover of knick-knacks and collectables, you may have already known that Inglewood is a must-visit when it comes to searching for antique goods. Wander down Brooke Street and you'll soon discover everything from art, books and French furniture being sold in stores such as Fusspots at Inglewood, Sharps Bazaar and Inglewood Emporium. After all that shopping, you'll need somewhere to rest and rejuvenate, so why not escape to Rostrata Country House. Just a short drive from Inglewood through Tarnagulla (the town of churches), the farm stay lets you enjoy the quiet country life for as long as you like. The fully contained home has space for six, plenty of seating in the gardens, and bikes you can use to explore. To start planning your trip to Bendigo and to discover more cultural happenings in the region (and beyond), head to the Bendigo Regional Tourism website. Top image: Rostrata Country House.
If you've ever wanted to indulge in an immersive fine-dining feast onboard a luxe yacht, here's your chance. Acclaimed chef Nelly Robinson will be plating up a six-course sensory fare for this year's Vivid Sydney. NEL's founder and chef patron will take over the kitchen of superyacht The Jackson on Saturday, May 25, for what promises to be a colourful culinary journey backed by front-row views of the iconic Sydney Harbour. Robinson is known for his avant-garde and often kooky degustation menus, so prepare for the kind unbridled creativity that's been on display in his previous degustations, which span from Disney-inspired dishes and Christmas-themed festivities to a dedicated showcase of native Aussie ingredients and even a bold take on KFC. Upon boarding the multimillion-dollar cruiser, you'll be met with free-flowing sparkling for the first hour, as well as a selection of small bites including beetroot and tuna tarts, smoked oysters and a chicken and macadamia toastie. For the sit-down portion of the evening, you'll tuck into a lemon myrtle-infused poached salmon for entree, lamb shoulder with herb risotto for main and a banana-starring dessert. To finish the cruise on a high, head on upstairs for a boogie accompanied by a rose heart canapé. Tickets cost $325 per person, but you can add an additional $65 for a Tyrrell's Wine pairing to accompany your meal. At the end of the evening, you'll disembark at King Street Wharf where you can continue partying into the night. If you love fine food, immersive creative experiences and fabulous views, you best consider adding this to your list of must-book Vivid Sydney events. Head to The Jackson's website to purchase tickets to A Night with Nelly Robinson before they sell out.
There are a lot of similarities between Wild Nothing and fellow chillwave pioneers Toro Y Moi and Washed Out. All three are bedroom recordings by one-man bands, and all three men are from the southern U.S. Freaky! All make dreamy, lo-fi music with breathy vocals and steady beats that you can a) dance to at an underground disco, or b) listen to alone in your room while you stare at your posters of '80s indie bands. In the case of Wild Nothing's Virginia-born Jack Tatum, the posters he's staring at belong to The Cure, The Smiths and Simple Minds. Tatum puts a sunny disposition on their '80s gloom pop with chiming guitars and soothing vocals. You can chillax to his latest LP Nocturne in your room alone, or join some other shoegazers for a little boogie at Oxford Art Factory when Wild Nothing visits Australia for the first time in March. I hope he plays Chinatown. https://youtube.com/watch?v=zm636VSQXUU
Not all that long ago, the idea of getting cosy on your couch, clicking a few buttons, and having thousands of films and television shows at your fingertips seemed like something out of science fiction. Now, it's just an ordinary night — whether you're virtually gathering the gang to text along, cuddling up to your significant other or shutting the world out for some much needed me-time. Of course, given the wealth of options to choose from, there's nothing ordinary about making a date with your chosen streaming platform. The question isn't "should I watch something?" — it's "what on earth should I choose?". Hundreds of titles are added to Australia's online viewing services each and every month, all vying for a spot on your must-see list. And, so you don't spend 45 minutes scrolling and then being too tired to actually commit to anything, we're here to help. We've spent plenty of couch time watching our way through this month's latest batch — and, from the latest and greatest to old favourites, here are our picks for your streaming queue from November's haul of newbies. BRAND NEW STUFF YOU CAN WATCH IN FULL CAUSEWAY Trauma is a screenwriter's best friend. If on-screen characters didn't have past stresses to overcome or new hardships to cope with — usually both — then dramatic scripts would barely last a few pages. Neither would horror flicks, or thrillers, or plenty of comedies; however, few films are happy to sit with trauma in the way that (and as well as) Causeway does. Starring Jennifer Lawrence (Don't Look Up) as a military veteran sent home from Afghanistan after being blown up, working her way through rehab and determined to re-enlist as soon as she has medical sign-off, this subtle, thoughtful and powerful movie grapples with several stark truths. It knows that some woes do genuinely change lives, and not for the better. It's well aware that many miseries can't be overcome, and completely alter the person experiencing them. It's keenly cognisant that that simply existing can be a series of heartbreaks, and escaping that cycle can be the most powerful motivator in the world. And, when Atlanta and Bullet Train's Brian Tyree Henry enters the picture as a New Orleans mechanic with his own history, it sees the solace that can be found between people willing to face their tough realities together. When Causeway begins, Lawrence's Lynsey is freshly out of hospital, and learning how to walk, dress, shower, drive and do all other everyday tasks again. Even then, she still wants to redeploy. Directed by feature first-timer Lila Neugebauer (The Sex Lives of College Girls), and penned by fellow debutants Ottessa Moshfegh, Luke Goebel and Elizabeth Sanders, the film spies the determination in its protagonist's eyes — and the pain she's trying to bury after she goes home to stay with her mother (Linda Emond, The Patient), gets drawn into old unhealthy dynamics, but finds a friend in Henry's kind, eager but haunted James. There's no cross-country drive with a canine, if the similarly themed Dog comes to mind, but rather a willingness to steep in Lynsey and James' complicated emotions. Neugebauer has the perfect central duo for the movie's key parts, too; neither Lawrence nor Henry's resumes are short on highlights, acclaim or award nominations, but their respective textured, naturalistic and deeply felt performances in Causeway ranks among each's best work. Causeway streams via Apple TV+. CALL JANE Whenever Call Jane peers Elizabeth Banks' way, the look on her face doesn't just speak a thousand words — it screams a million of them, even while she's silent. That said, although first-timer filmmaker Phyllis Nagy (who last penned Carol's screenplay) directs the lens towards her star often, there's nothing quite like Banks' expression in an early pivotal scene. The Charlie's Angels and Brightburn star plays Joy, a happy Chicago housewife with a 15-year-old daughter (Grace Edwards, American Crime Story) and a baby on the way, until she learns that her pregnancy is causing a heart condition. If she remains in the family way, there's a 50-percent chance that she mightn't survive; however, this is 1968 in America, before the Roe v Wade decision that legalised abortion. In the scene in question, Joy is the only woman in the room, and yet the men around her talk about her life and potential death like she isn't even present. Worse: most of those male doctors are only concerned about whether the baby might make it to term. Joy seethes with pain, anger and heartbreak, then secretly takes a path that'll be familiar to viewers of 2022 documentary The Janes, contacting a clandestine service that helps women in such circumstances. As played with charm, warmth, depth and potency by Banks, Joy does more than merely pick up the phone. Soon, she's helping other women cope, alongside a team of ladies led by Sigourney Weaver (Ghostbusters: Afterlife) as Virginia. The latter is also canny casting, bringing both gravitas and understanding to the role — and the rapport between Call Jane's two central figures helps convey not only the urgency driving and importance behind the hotline's existence, but the crucial camaraderie. Still at home venturing decades into the past on-screen, Nagy and cinematographer Greta Zozula ensure that every second looks the rich, authentic period part, and a well-chosen soundtrack adds to the time-capsule feel. Of course, Call Jane isn't merely a look back. It'd be moving, sensitive and inspiring if the situation in the US hadn't changed this year via a Supreme Court ruling, once again putting women in Joy's situation, but now it acts as a cautionary tale as well, not to mention a reminder about banding together to fight back. Call Jane streams via Prime Video. WEDNESDAY It's a truth that Morticia, Gomez, Wednesday and Pugsley would treasure: nearly a century might've passed since The Addams Family first graced the pages of The New Yorker in the 1930s, but this creepy, kooky, mysterious and ooky brood will never die. America's first macabre family keeps entrancing and enchanting audiences, luring them in with their unflinching embrace of the eerie, the gothic, and the all-round dark and twisted. Forget bumps, jumps, screams and shrieks, however; this off-kilter crew might pal around with a severed limb and adore graveyards, but they also delight in a gloriously eclectic, eccentric, embrace-your-inner-outcast fashion, as the 1960s TV show, 1991's live-action film The Addams Family and its 1993 sequel Addams Family Values, and now new Netflix series Wednesday understands and adores. The Addams Family's latest go-around arrives stitched-together as so much is of late. Netflix's algorithm has accurately gleaned that viewers love cartoonist Charles Addams' horror-influenced creations. It knows that people like mysteries and teen coming-of-age tales, two of the platform's favourite genres. And, the service is well-aware that already-beloved big names are a drawcard. Throw in Tim Burton directing like it's his 80s and 90s heyday, current scream queen Jenna Ortega sporting the trademark plaits, 90s Wednesday Christina Ricci returning in a new part, and a supernatural school for unusual children complete with Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children-meets-Hogwarts vibes, and Wednesday's various pieces are as evident as the sewn-on limbs on Frankenstein's monster. And yet, while seeing why and how Netflix has crafted this series, and which levers it's pulling to electrify its experiment, is as easy as getting a killer glare from Wednesday's teenage protagonist, enjoying every second because it's astutely, knowingly and lovingly spliced together is just as straightforward — especially with Scream, Studio 666 and X star Ortega leading the show so commandingly and convincingly. Wednesday streams via Netflix. Read our full review. 1899 Before the Titanic collided with an iceberg, became one of modern history's most famous tragedies and inspired one of cinema's biggest box-office hits, a different cross-Atlantic liner sailed into chaos. So says Dark's Jantje Friese and Baran bo Odar, with the German pair's new — and wholly fictional — Netflix series 1899 taking place onboard the steamship Kerberos 13 years before the sinking that everyone knows about. This vessel is travelling from England to America with 1400 crew and passengers, filling everywhere from stately rooms to jam-packed halls. Among its number: Maura Franklin (Emily Beecham, The Pursuit of Love), a rare female doctor at the time; Kerberos' captain Eyk Larsen (Dark alum Andreas Pietschmann); and everyone from French newlyweds hardly in the throes of married bliss to a devoutly religious Danish family. Then the ship receives word of a missing craft. Owned by the same company, the Prometheus took the same route four months prior, and was thought to have disappeared without a trace until that distress signal beckons. Friese and bo Odar love a mystery, and 1899 has a hefty one right from the outset. Friese and bo Odar also love making labyrinthine puzzle-box shows that keep dropping clues, twists, and philosophical ideas about the meaning and point of existence in aid of the bigger picture — aka an approach that made 2017–20 German-language effort Dark such a massive and deserving success. Here, they ensure that sparks ignite twice by diving even deeper into their favourite themes, tactics and flourishes, and delivering a boatload of thrills, suspense and intrigue. With Friese and bo Odar pulling the strings, Dark and now 1899 instantly grab attention with their riddles, nightmarishly brooding mood and — as one series put right there in its name — their willingness to get and stay dark. Throw in the pair's penchant for existential musings, trippy setups and premise-shattering revelations, and both shows are catnip for mystery lovers. 1899 streams via Netflix. Read our full review. THE ENGLISH It tells of gold rushes, of brave and dusty new worlds, and of yellow frontiers stretching out beneath shimmering and inky blue skies; however, the true colour of the western is and always will be red. This isn't a genre for the faint-hearted, because it's a genre that spins stories about power and its brutal costs — power over the land and its Indigenous inhabitants; power-fuelled in-fighting among competing colonialists; and power exercised with zero regard for life, or typically for anyone who isn't white and male. It's a rich and resonant touch, then, to repeatedly dress Emily Blunt (Jungle Cruise) in crimson, pink and shades in-between in The English, 2022's best new TV western. She plays one instance of the show's namesakes, because the impact of the British spans far beyond just one person in this series — and the quest for revenge she's on in America's Old West is deeply tinted by bloodshed. In her first ongoing television role since 2005, in a stunning and powerful series from its performances and story through to its spirit and cinematography, Blunt dons such eye-catching hues as Lady Cornelia Locke. With a mountain of baggage and cash in tow, she has just reached Kansas when The English begins, seeking vengeance against the man responsible for her son's death. But word of her aims precedes her to this remote outpost's racist hotelier (Ciarán Hinds, Belfast) and, with stagecoach driver (Toby Jones, The Wonder), he has own mission. That the aristocratic Englishwoman arrives to find her host torturing Pawnee cavalry scout Eli Whipp (Chaske Spencer, Blindspot) is telling: the plan is to blame her end on him. Before the first of this miniseries' episodes ends, however, Cornelia and Eli have rescued each other, notched up a body count and started a journey together that sees them each endeavouring to find peace in a hostile place in their own ways — and started their way through one helluva show. The English streams via Prime Video. Read our full review. DEAD TO ME When Dead to Me's ten-episode first season came to an end back in 2019, it was with secrets being exposed, plus a growing list of both woes and deaths. In season two, which dropped another ten episodes in 2020, Jen Harding (Christina Applegate, Bad Moms 2) and Judy Hale (Linda Cardellini, Hawkeye), the chalk-and-cheese pair at the show's centre, had worked through the fallout. There's been plenty to deal with, including the hit and run that left Laguna Beach real-estate agent Jen widowed, Judy's tale about the loss of her fiancé Steve Wood (James Marsden, Sonic the Hedgehog 2) and the truth behind both — as well as the reality of having Steve's kinder, cornier twin brother Ben (also Marsden) around. This is a show about cycles and circles, so when its second outing finished, it was with another accident, this time with Jen and Judy as its victims. That's where season three's ten episodes pick up, with the two women in hospital weathering yet another aftermath to a significant event with yet another round of life-changing consequences. Finding solace in complicated bonds, the strength to confront life's challenges, and the savviness to know when to appreciate the small wins and big delights: that's Dead to Me season three's arc. It's the series' in general, and was long before it was announced that it would finish after a third and final run. Of course, now that it's coming to an end — a fitting one, that keeps recognising the gifts, shocks, joys and sorrows that greet everyone — farewells and heightened feelings frequently go hand in hand. Cue unexpected diagnoses, meddling cops (returnees Diana Maria Riva, Kajillionaire, and Brandon Scott, Goliath), sleuthing federal agents (series newcomer Garrett Dillahunt, Where the Crawdads Sing), old flames (Natalie Morales, The Little Things) and frustrating neighbours (Suzy Nakamura, Avenue 5). And, cue creepy rooms filled with twin dolls, plus outlaw names: Bitch Cassidy and Judy Five Fingers (who chooses which is obvious) as well. Yes, Dead to Me goes all in on as many more plot swings as it can fit in as it rides off into the sunset. In the process, the show's swansong evokes as many emotions as it can, too. Dead to Me streams via Netflix. Read our full review. THE GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY HOLIDAY SPECIAL Two words: Kevin Bacon. That's the festive gift that The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special gives audiences, aka the gift that always keeps on giving. Viewers of this ragtag crew's big-screen adventures so far — including 2014's Guardians of the Galaxy and 2017's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 — know that Peter Quill aka Star-Lord (Chris Pratt, Jurassic World Dominion) loves the Bacon. Rightly so, too. Accordingly, in what's an obvious but also delightful move, the gang's first small-screen special celebrates the holiday season by trying to give the iconic Footloose, Friday the 13th, Apollo 13 and Wild Things star as a present. New to Christmas and its significance to humans, and knowing that Quill is struggling after a big loss, Mantis (Pom Klementieff, Westworld) and Drax (Dave Bautista, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery) think that their plan is perfectly acceptable, but chaos ensues, including when the two discover Christmas decorations. The second of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's straight-to-streaming specials in 2022, and the second that's occasion-themed as well — following the Halloween-targeted Werewolf by Night — The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special is Marvel at its silliest and fluffiest. Getting gleefully goofy, and retro, has always been Quill and company's vibe, but this 44-minute affair takes that tone to another level. There's no missing how slight it all is, how much heavy lifting Bacon does just by being Bacon in an on-screen realm that worships Bacon, and the fact that it's a piece of marketing timed just when merchandise sales could double as gifts. Nonetheless, the gang's usual writer/director James Gunn (The Suicide Squad) still heartily embraces his brief. A big highlight, other than the vibe, the fun and poignancy that spring, and teenage Groot (Vin Diesel, Fast & Furious 9), is the range of alternative Christmas songs on the soundtrack — starting with The Pogues' 'Fairytale of New York' and including Julian Casablancas and The Smashing Pumpkins' merry contributions. The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special streams via Disney+. NEW AND RETURNING SHOWS TO CHECK OUT WEEK BY WEEK WELCOME TO CHIPPENDALES Scandals are to the true-crime genre like loose bills are to erotic dancers: virtually essential. On-screen stories about real life can exist without getting into ripped-from-the-headlines territory, of course, and performers who disrobe onstage can do their job without crumpled notes being thrust their way. Still, some synergies just work. In 2022, TV writer and producer Robert Siegel has happily mined sordid chapters of the past for two new streaming series, and how — first with the instantly watchable and engrossing Pam & Tommy, and now with the just-as-easy-to- Welcome to Chippendales. The second sees him survey the eponymous male stripping business, of course, showers of dollar notes and all. And for viewers who don't already know the details behind the world-famous touring dance troupe and its West Los Angeles bar origins, as started by Somen 'Steve' Banerjee back in the 70s and earning ample attention in the 80s, the full rundown has far more than scantily clad guys aplenty, lusty women, and bumping and grinding to an era-appropriate soundtrack. Kumail Nanjiani (Eternals) plays Steve, who rustles up the cash to start his own backgammon club by working in a service station for years. His dream place: cool, suave and sophisticated, and somewhere that Hugh Hefner might want to hang out. When a rush of patrons doesn't eventuate, the male dancer idea springs after a night at a gay bar with club promoter Paul Snider (Dan Stevens, Guillermo del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities) and his playboy model wife Dorothy Stratten (Nicola Peltz Beckham, Holidate). But as business partners change, choreographer and Emmy-winning producer Nick De Noia (Murray Bartlett, Physical) gives the troupe its crowd-pleasing moves, Steve kinds a kindred spirit in accountant Irene (Annaleigh Ashford, American Crime Story) and costume designer Denise (Juliette Lewis, Yellowjackets) comes on board, this twists into a tale of money, envy, squabbles over power and ultimately murder. And yes, both Nanjiani and Bartlett are riveting to watch — as are the dance routines De Noia conjures up. Welcome to Chippendales streams via Disney+. MYTHIC QUEST Starring in short-form ABC iView and YouTube series Content back in 2019, Charlotte Nicdao played a wannabe influencer who hoped that her online antics would bring her fame. Nicdao's career dates back almost two decades now, including past roles on The Slap, Please Like Me and Get Krack!n, but the Australian actor has certainly catapulted to stardom after her #Flipgirl days. In Mythic Quest, her character Poppy Li has also been seeking the spotlight. A gifted coder, as well as the technical force behind the hit video game that gives the series its name, she wants recognition and respect more than celebrity status, however. Three seasons in, she also wants her own hit title, rather than just always being stuck in creative director Ian Grimm's (Rob McElhenney, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia) shadow. So, they've branched out on their own, away from their big success, in what's supposed to be a true 50/50 partnership — if they can get it together. On-screen, this season is about breaking out of one's comfort zones and embracing new challenges, even if Ian and Poppy are just on a different floor of the same building as Mythic Quest's regular crew — such as neurotic executive producer David Brittlesbee (David Hornsby, Good Girls), his brusk assistant Jo (Jessie Ennis, The Flight Attendant) and disgraced ex-finance head (Danny Pudi, Community). The series itself isn't quite in the same situation, though, because it's still finding new depths to explore by focusing on its characters' relationships with each other. Throwing a motley crew together, watching them bounce around, seeing how they change and grow — if the characters in It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia were capable of significant change and growth, McElhenney's two shows would have plenty in common. They still do, including an incisive ability to satirise and reshape the genre they're each in, aka the workplace sitcom. As Mythic Quest keeps going, it also keeps getting sharper and funnier. Mythic Quest streams via Apple TV+. FLEISHMAN IS IN TROUBLE The title doesn't lie: when Fleishman Is in Trouble begins, its namesake is indeed struggling. He's also perfectly cast. If you're going to get an actor to play an anxious, unravelling, recently divorced man in his forties who's trying to navigate the new status quo of sharing custody of his kids, having a high-powered ex, and being initiated into the world of dating apps and casual hookups, it's Jesse Eisenberg. If his Zombieland character lived happily ever after until he didn't, or his Vivarium character was trapped into a different type of domestic maze, this book-to-screen series would be the end result. Fleishman Is in Trouble has Eisenberg play Toby, a well-regarded hepatologist who is passionate about being able to help people through medicine, but has spent more than a decade being made to feel inferior by Upper East Siders because his job hasn't made him rich enough. His theatre talent agent wife — now former — Rachel (Claire Danes, The Essex Serpent) had the exact same attitude, too, until she dropped their kids off at his place in the middle of the night, said she was going to a yoga retreat and stopped answering his calls. Written to sound like a profile — something that journalist, author and screenwriter Taffy Brodesser-Akner knows well, and has the awards to prove it — Fleishman Is in Trouble chronicles Toby's present woes while reflecting upon his past. It's a messy and relatable story, regardless of whether you've ever suddenly become a full-time single dad working a high-stakes job you're devoted to in a cashed-up world you resent. As narrated by the ever-shrewd Lizzy Caplan (Truth Be Told) as Toby's old college pal-turned-writer and now stay-at-home-mum Libby, Fleishman Is in Trouble dives into the minutiae that makes Toby's new existence such a swirling sea of uncertainty. At the same time, while being so specific about his situation and troubles, it also ensures that all that detail paints a universal portrait of discovering that more of your time is gone, your hopes faded and your future receded, than you'd realised. Everything from class inequality and constant social hustling to the roles women are forced to play around men earns the show's attention in the process, as layered through a show that's both meticulously cast and evocatively shot. Fleishman is indeed in trouble, but this miniseries isn't. Fleishman Is in Trouble streams via Disney+. THE SEX LIVES OF COLLEGE GIRLS That Chalamet family is everywhere. In cinemas, Timothée is currently taking a bite out of another yearning-filled romance — his specialty — in Bones and All. On streaming, The Sex Lives of College Girls starring his sister Pauline (The King of Staten Island) has just returned. After ranking among 2021's new highlights, this university-set comedy gets its second season off to just as charming and energetic a start, and with just as healthy a lashing of the kind of comedy that series co-creator Mindy Kaling is known for. If you watched The Office, The Mindy Project, Never Have I Ever and the TV Four Weddings and a Funeral remake, you know the vibe — but focused on four 18-year-olds navigating their freshman year at a prestigious Vermont college. And, while each one of that key quartet fits a type to begin with, including studious, sporty, posh and funny (yes, they're one short of the full Spice Girls), unpacking those first impressions sits firmly at the heart of the series. This time around, scholarship student Kimberly Finkle (Chalamet), aspiring comedy writer Bela Malhotra (Amrit Kaur, The D Cut), star soccer player Whitney Chase (Alyah Chanelle Scott, Reboot) and the wealthy Leighton Murray (theatre star Reneé Rapp) know what to expect on campus. When season two starts, however, they're persona non grata among the fraternities after season one's events. As well as humorously observing the antics of teenage girls discovering who they are, The Sex Lives of College Girls loves unfurling and interrogating obvious but loaded contrasts, like why its four smart protagonists feel drawn to the frat party scene to begin with. Also earning the show's focus in its latest batch of episodes, as examined with the same warmth, insight and hilarity as its first go-around: income inequality, busting preconceptions, coming out, relationship double standards and starting a comedy magazine. The Sex Lives of College Girls streams via Binge. 2022 CINEMA HIGHLIGHTS WORTH CATCHING UP WITH AT HOME PETITE MAMAN Forget the "find someone who looks at you like…" meme. That's great advice in general, and absolutely mandatory if you've ever seen a Céline Sciamma film. No one peers at on-screen characters with as much affection, attention, emotion and empathy as the French director. Few filmmakers even come close, and most don't ever even try. That's been bewitchingly on display in her past features Water Lillies, Tomboy, Girlhood and Portrait of a Lady on Fire, any of which another helmer would kill to have on their resume. It's just as apparent in Petite Maman, her entrancing latest release, as well. Now 15 years into her directorial career, Sciamma's talent for truly seeing into hearts and minds is unshakeable, unparalleled and such a lovely wonder to watch — especially when it shines as sublimely and touchingly as it does here. In Sciamma's new delicate and exquisite masterpiece, the filmmaker follows eight-year-old Nelly (debutant Joséphine Sanz) on a trip to her mother's (Nina Meurisse, Camille) childhood home. The girl's maternal grandmother (Margot Abascal, The Sower) has died, the house needs packing up, and the trip is loaded with feelings on all sides. Her mum wades between sorrow and attending to the task. With melancholy, she pushes back against her daughter's attempts to help, too. Nelly's laidback father (Stéphane Varupenne, Monsieur Chocolat) assists as well, but with a sense of distance; going through the lifelong belongings of someone else's mother, even your spouse's, isn't the same as sifting through your own mum's items for the last time. While her parents work, the curious Nelly roves around the surrounding woods — picture-perfect and oh-so-enticing as they are — and discovers Marion (fellow newcomer Gabrielle Sanz), a girl who could be her twin. Petite Maman streams via Stan. Read our full review. Need a few more streaming recommendations? Check out our picks from January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September and October this year. You can also check out our running list of standout must-stream 2022 shows so far as well — and our best 15 new shows from the first half of this year, top 15 returning shows over the same period and best 15 straight-to-streaming movies up until June.
Disney didn't need to add a new take on Peter Pan to its 2023 slate to tell audiences what we already know: the huge entertainment company doesn't want anyone to grow up. For further evidence, see its long list of live-action remakes of its animated hits, aka the films that filled our childhoods — a trend that will also see The Little Mermaid swim back into cinemas this year. Come May, the Mouse House's latest actor-led remake (see also: Alice in Wonderland, Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, Dumbo, Aladdin, The Jungle Book, The Lion King, Lady and the Tramp, Mulan, Pinocchio) will get Halle Bailey (Grown-ish) slipping into Ariel's scales and tail, and take a dip into the story of a mermaid pining for a different life. And, after dropping two sneak peeks before — one in 2022, one earlier in 2023 — the upcoming flick has finally unveiled its full trailer. Given that viewers already know and adore the original 1989 movie — there's a reason that The Little Mermaid-themed events such as screenings with live orchestral scores and cocktail experiences at aquariums keep proving popular — then we are all well aware how this tale goes. Ariel dreams of being human, and is willing to make a deal with a sea witch to see her wishes come true. That involves a trade, though: giving up her voice to get legs in return, which'll allow her to live above the water. Accordingly, as well as Bailey as Ariel, this new version of The Little Mermaid features Jonah Hauer-King (The Flatshare) as Eric, the human prince that Ariel falls for; Javier Bardem (Lyle, Lyle Crocodile) as King Triton, Ariel's protective and unimpressed father; and Melissa McCarthy (Nine Perfect Strangers) as Ursula, said sea witch. Also among the cast, on voice duties: Daveed Diggs (Snowpiercer) as Sebastian the crab, Jacob Tremblay (Doctor Sleep) as Flounder and Awkwafina (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) as Scuttle. Based on all three trailers so far, this take on The Little Mermaid from filmmaker Rob Marshall (Chicago, Nine, Into the Woods and Mary Poppins Returns) — and not Sofia Coppola — promises vivid underwater realms, glowing light shining down from above, mermaid dances, bright coral, friendly fish and floating jellyfish. Also included: the flick's star singing 'Part of Your World'. As for the tunes, they come courtesy of Alan Menken — returning from the original movie, as do all those old songs — and recent Australia visitor Lin-Manuel Miranda. Check out the full trailer for The Little Mermaid below: The Little Mermaid will release in cinemas Down Under on May 25. Images: Photo courtesy of Disney. © 2023 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Today, Sydney hospitality giant Merivale has unveiled the first phase of its 'Ivy 2.0' project, which will see four new venues open in the Sydney CBD this year. First up is Little Felix: a 60-seat cocktail bar and little sister to Ash Street's hatted French bistro Felix on George Street. The space itself — by lauded design firm Acme and stylist Amanda Talbot — is opulent and designed to transport guests back to 1920s Paris — or at least to the set of Midnight in Paris. Think Zelda and F Scott Fitzgerald parties at their grandest. In terms of drinks, Group Bar Manager Sam Egerton has created a succinct cocktail list featuring eight old-world classics made with premium French ingredients and liqueurs. Instead of a straightforward French 75 (gin, citrus and champagne), Little Felix serves up the Paris Meridian, which uses Chandon blanc de blancs and Farigoule de Forcalquier (a French thyme liqueur). Then there's the Le Ricain (the bar's take on a Sidecar), made with Hennessy VS, Cointreau and Armagnac. The wine list is impressive in its own right, too, curated by Merivale's Master Sommelier Franck Moreau and Head Sommelier Jean-Charles Mahe. Expect by-the-glass wines and champagnes to be poured from magnums — 1.5-litre bottles — and a custom-built wine fridge behind the bar. Guests can also order back vintages from the (impressively large) wine list next door at Felix. [caption id="attachment_736325" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Nikki To[/caption] To eat, Head Chef Nathan Johnson has created a dedicated menu of simple French dishes for Little Felix, with the focus on charcuterie, cheese and tartines (temptingly spread out on the bar). Order a plate of jambon and melon, creamy duck liver parfait or one of the nine different cheeses. Also joining the group's Ivy Precinct this year is a casual Middle Eastern eatery by ex-Rockpool Chef Simon Zalloua, a sister to Bondi's Italian restaurant Totti's and a new Mexican joint. The precinct is already home to Bar Topa, Felix, Palings, Ash St Cellar, The Royal George and Ivy Pool Club, Den and Lounge. The openings coincide with the big Light Rail reveal and the soon-to-launch George Street pedestrian zone that comes along with it, as well as City of Sydney's newly approved late-night trading plan. This phase of Merivale's 'Ivy 2.0' project is the first step toward entirely redeveloping the site, but that won't come into play for many years to come. We'll keep you in the loop as we learn more about all of the new Merivale happenings. Little Felix is now open at 2A Ash Street, Sydney. Opening hours are Monday through Wednesday from 5pm–10pm, Thursday through Friday from 3pm–11pm and Saturday 5pm–11pm. Images: Nikki To
