Most people will be familiar with celebrity chef Manu Feildel through his prime-time stint judging My Kitchen Rules. Soon, however, Sydneysiders will have the chance to flip the script, judging Feildel's skills on the pots as he returns to the kitchen to launch a new bistro in the heart of the Inner West. Bistro Red Lion by Manu will occupy the upper level of the 196-year-old Red Lion Hotel in Rozelle, which has undergone a $1.5-million top-to-bottom renovation over the past eight months. For his return to a restaurant kitchen following a four-year hiatus, Fieldel — a sixth-generation chef — is presenting a menu of rustic French bistro fare, including treasured recipes passed down through the Feildel family. For his return to a restaurant kitchen following a four-year hiatus, Feildel has collaborated with long-time friend and Laundy Hotels Group Executive Chef Jamie Gannon to deliver a concept that can appeal to a broad range of diners through "delicious, approachable food rather than aiming for the stars". "I want guests … to forget the outside world and feel as though they're dining at my home," Feildel said. Crowd-pleasing comfort foods will feature prominently, including a double-baked comté cheese soufflé designed for sharing and a country-style pâté with prune and armagnac jam, a recipe created by Feildel's father. Carnivores will be well served with hunger-busting mains such as the pork tomahawk, chargrilled and served with braised fennel and mustard sauce; confit chicken served on a bed of cannellini beans with and kale fricasée and jus gras; and, of course, steaks — here, you can carve into a butcher's cut of beef accompanied by pommes dauphine house-made sauces including peppercorn, mushroom and blue cheese. Desserts will be similarly indulgent, with a selection that includes a luxuriant chocolate mousse topped with hazelnut chantilly cream, as well as a riff on crêpes Suzette featuring flambéed canelés, the cork-shaped Bordeaux-famous pastry, served with vanilla ice cream. With almost two centuries of heritage to honour, renovating Red Lion was a necessarily sensitive process. Design collective Co:Aika was tapped to realise a fitout that has the updated finishes today's pub-goers expect, while cherishing the existing charm of this historic Rozelle institution. And first thing's first: yes, the pub's iconic taxidermied lion will remain a focal point of the ground-floor space. So too will many of the venue's original features, including the working fireplace, balustrades and sweeping staircase. Exposed sandstone walls, contemporary light fixtures and cosy booth seating will add a modern touch, but tempered with a heritage-inspired colour scheme. The 120-seat bistro on the first floor will evoke the spirit of a Parisian bistro, with a muted yet sophisticated palette of creams, egg-shell blue and taupe, counterpointed by the rich stain of the extensive wood panelling. Pops of colour from modern artworks and other objets d'art will add some playful winks that echo the restaurant's unpretentious ethos, while the restored wrap-around balcony is set to offer year-round al fresco dining overlooking Darling Street. Don't worry if French cuisine isn't your feed of choice — Red Lion's ground-floor kitchen will continue to serve pub favourites, including the hotel's ever-popular hand-crumbed schnitzel, alongside bangers and mash, pepper steak pie, and a slow-cooked beef ragu bolognese. Red Lion, including Bistro Red Lion by Manu, will open to the public from Friday, July 12, with the restaurant operating Thursday–Sunday. Red Lion's ground floor kitchen will operate daily, 10am–9pm. Images: Kitti Gould
What do perusing the inaugural SXSW Sydney conference program and scrolling through Netflix have in common? Artificial intelligence, cybernetics, tech-enhanced dating, social media's ups and downs, science fiction-esque healthcare applications, digital afterlives and interactive gaming all feature in both — and the list goes on. On the streaming platform, you'll find the above in Charlie Brooker's Black Mirror. Since starting with a squeal in 2011, the British anthology series has become pop culture's go-to place for futuristic visions dripping with unease. It ponders what might come, often with prophetic insight, and imagines how humanity's use of any given gadget or advancement will bring out our worst impulses. No one is going home from SXSW Sydney with nightmares, of course. Still, it couldn't be a better place for the creator of Black Mirror to dive into the latest in tech and future innovations. He's one of the keynote speakers at the first-ever SXSW outside of Austin, Texas since it was founded in 1987, getting chatting in an interview-style discussion about his hit series, its ideas and what fascinates him about technology. "Luckily I don't have to deliver a speech," he tells Concrete Playground after freshly arriving in Sydney. "When you say 'keynote speaker', I always get a stab of fear like an anxiety dream where you haven't done your homework, because I have not prepared a speech. So I'm just going to answer questions as off the cuff as I can." [caption id="attachment_922397" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Brendon Thorne/Getty Images for SXSW Sydney[/caption] From the moment that Brooker was added to the SXSW Sydney lineup, joining a bill that also features Chance The Rapper celebrating 50 years of hip hop and Future Today Institute CEO Amy Webb musing on tomorrow's possibilities — plus literally hundreds of other speakers and sessions — the two seemed a dream pairing. Somehow, this is the first time that Brooker and SXSW have connected at all. "I've not been to South by Southwest in the States. I've not been there, and I've never been to Sydney before, either," he explains. "So these are two firsts for me happening concurrently, so that's very exciting, and I'm intrigued to see what it's all about." As well as Brooker's in-conversation session on Wednesday, October 18, SXSW Sydney is about everything from streaming algorithms to simulations. True crime features on the SXSW Sydney Screen Festival lineup, too — but no, even with the two clearly sharing plenty of fields of interest, the event isn't happening inside the latest and sixth season of Black Mirror that arrived this past June. [caption id="attachment_917938" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Netflix[/caption] What should get fans of Brooker's work particularly buzzing is his SXSW Sydney plans beyond regaling an audience. On the list for the former video gaming journalist, satirist, Wipe franchise host, creator of both Big Brother-but-zombies gem Dead Set and the Cunk mockumentaries, and the reason that Netflix also has choose-your-own-adventure-style interactive short Cat Burglar in its catalogue: "digging into obviously the screen side of things, and also the video games and technology side of things". Will the next season of Black Mirror find its basis in SXSW Sydney's talks upon talks? Will Sydney inspire a new Philomena Cunk instalment after this year's Cunk on Earth? And how does someone navigate a tech, innovation, ideas, music, screen and gaming conference when they gave the world a series that's become synonymous with tech anxiety? As Brooker soaked in the Harbour City's weather — "it seems like there's about ten times the amount of light here, whereas in Britain it always feels a bit like it's on eco-saving mode" — he told us about all of the above, plus marvelling at getting to talk to anyone about Black Mirror, being mistaken for being anti-technology and his dream to make a Black Mirror game. [caption id="attachment_922398" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Brendon Thorne/Getty Images for SXSW Sydney[/caption] ON DISCUSSING BLACK MIRROR AT SXSW — AND STILL MARVELLING AT THE SHOW'S IMPACT Ask Brooker if he ever imagined that Black Mirror would bring him to SXSW's stage and he's emphatic that it didn't even cross his mind. "I didn't conceive that I would be talking to anyone about it other than myself, so I'm amazed and delighted that I can talk to anyone about the show. I wouldn't have foreseen it at all," he advises. "Our first episode, the story of that is quite divisive. Certainly way back yonder when doing the very first episodes of the very first series, at that point I thought 'wow, this is never going to…'. I just, in my head, assumed it would only ever be of interest colloquially in Britain." "It's been astonishing that the show has travelled, as they say, or it's got legs or whatever you want — global reach, whatever you call it. That is constantly startling to me." "I've come here to Sydney, so I'm on the other side of the world from where I normally am. I don't often go out of London, basically. I'm a writer, so I spend most of my time sitting typing in in West London. And so I have to occasionally check myself. I think it's weird I've flown all the way to Sydney, Australia, and I can talk to people who've heard of the show. That's quite odd — that does my head in." ON BLACK MIRROR BECOMING SHORTHAND FOR TECH ANXIETIES, DYSTOPIA AND NIGHTMARES It's inspired by The Twilight Zone. It surveys the tech landscape. It's famed for predicting everything from Prime Minister pig scandals to social currency systems. And it features a spectacular cast, with Daniel Kaluuya (Nope), Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Loki), Jon Hamm (Mad Men), Sarah Snook (Succession), Andrew Scott (Fleabag), Annie Murphy (Schitt's Creek), Salma Hayek (Magic Mike's Last Dance), Zazie Beetz (Atlanta), Breaking Bad co-stars Aaron Paul and Jesse Plemons, and Miley Cyrus are just some of its stars. Black Mirror isn't just a series that the entire world knows about, though. It has become a term itself. That too isn't something that Brooker ever anticipated. "It is weird. It's an odd thing to have done. I remember the first time I really thought 'ohh okay, this has entered common vernacular in ways beyond the reach of the show itself'. I think it was in 2016 that somebody said, 'hey, did you see Hillary Clinton just referred to something as being a bit Black Mirror?'. And I thought 'oh my god, that's a bit Black Mirror in itself'." "So it's weird. Actually, the only aspect of that I find frustrating is when people assume I'm going to be anti-tech or that I'm some Luddite who thinks we should smash all computers up with his shoe, because I'm actually quite pro-technology. It would be the worst job if you hated technology, doing Black Mirror, because a lot of it involves thinking about product design of some gizmo or other that someone's going to use to wreck their own life. What it's showing is that it's human foibles that are the problem, not the amazing tool that is technology in and of itself." "So that's the only aspect I find frightening. That said, I love it if people are going say, 'oh, that's a bit Black Mirror' about some new Samsung fridge that comes out that sings to you every time you pour milk from it. That's all free publicity for me." ON POTENTIALLY FINDING NEW BLACK MIRROR OR PHILOMENA CUNK IDEAS AT SXSW SYDNEY Anyone who's ever watched Black Mirror is always wondering what's coming next, whether the series is dropping an interactive film such as 2019's Bandersnatch or years have passed between seasons (four from 2019's fifth season to 2023's sixth, for instance). If you've seen Cunk on Earth and its predecessors Cunk on Shakespeare, Cunk on Christmas and Cunk on Britain, the same train of thought applies. Perhaps SXSW Sydney might inspire the next chapter in both Brooker-created shows. "I was thinking we should send Cunk here, because we're always looking for nice filming locations, apart from anything else. And I know Diane [Morgan, who has played Philomena Cunk since 2013–15's Charlie Brooker's Weekly Wipe] hates it when it's cold. That's her main complaint — she doesn't like being anywhere cold." "Hopefully I'll go home with a head full of all sorts of things. It's interesting because, like I say, it's a new experience for me being here — and then we're also we're going to travel a bit over the next week." "I'm looking forward to digging into the video games and VR side of things that are going on the South by Southwest, partly because I used to be a video games journalist — so I'm also very interested in all of that as well." ON EXPLORING INTERACTIVE AND GAMIFIED STORYTELLING WITH BLACK MIRROR: BANDERSNATCH — AND THE DREAM OF MAKING A BLACK MIRROR GAME A series about technological possibilities, Black Mirror fills its frames with new gadgets and inventions — and new evolutions of today's tech as well. As Black Mirror: Bandersnatch showed when it had audiences pushing buttons to guide a gaming programmer through his decisions, Brooker's hit also likes tinkering with its own technology. He'd like to do more. "I'd love to do a sort of full-bore video game, as it were. With Bandersnatch, actually the original design was even more explicitly game-y than the finished thing ended up being. There were going to be achievements you could unlock, and stuff like this. And it was structured a bit more like an escape room puzzle that you had to solve," he explains. [caption id="attachment_922399" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Kevin Lake[/caption] "It feels like it's a very different skill set. I think the most-impressive video games that I encounter tend to be, when they tell a story, they tell it in a way that you couldn't do in any other medium. So I'm thinking of games like Lucas Pope — he did a game called Papers, Please and a game called Return of the Obra Dinn." "Those are both fascinating and very different, but really interesting forms of storytelling. I think all scriptwriters should sit down with those games and see how they tell a story in a very deceptive way — they're puzzles, but they tell quite complex stories." "I'm in awe of that sort of thing. I don't think I probably have the skillset to be able to think that way. But I'd love to see a full a full-blown Black Mirror video game. That'd be great." Charlie Brooker in Conversation takes place at SXSW Sydney at 1pm on Wednesday, October 18 in the Pyrmont Theatre at ICC Sydney, 14 Darling Drive, Sydney. SXSW Sydney runs from Sunday, October 15–Sunday, October 22, and SXSW Sydney Screen Festival from Sunday, October 15–Saturday, October 21. Head to the SXSW Sydney website for further details. Black Mirror streams via Netflix. Read our review of season six. Cunk on Earth also streams via Netflix. Read our review. Top image: Netflix.
If you had plans to see Childish Gambino in Australia and New Zealand in 2025, you were likely paying close attention when he announced in early October that he was cancelling the remainder of his North American tour, and also his UK and European dates. A trip Down Under was meant to follow, and wasn't scrapped at the time; however, it's officially no longer going ahead. There'll be no summertime magic after all, then, after the musician that you also know as Donald Glover first announced four Australian shows for 2025, then expanded his local dates before general ticket sales even started. For the rapper, hip hop talent and Mr & Mrs Smith actor, this was set to be his first trip to these shores since 2019. Dates at Auckland's Spark Arena in January, then at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Sydney's Qudos Bank Arena, Melbourne's Rod Laver Arena and RAC Arena in Perth are all now cancelled. When Gambino's shows elsewhere were scraped, he advised on social media that he'd been "to the hospital in Houston to make sure of an ailment that had become apparent" after a show in New Orleans. "After being assessed, it became clear I would not perform that night, and after more tests, I could not perform the rest of the US tour in the time asked. As of now I have surgery scheduled and need time out to heal," the statement continued. "My path to recovery is something I need to confront seriously. With that said, we have made the difficult decision to cancel the remainder of the North American tour and the UK and European dates. Tickets will be refunded at point of purchase." [caption id="attachment_955315" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Eli Watson via Flickr.[/caption] This situation might sound familiar. When Gambino last headed this way — complete with a headline spot at Splendour in the Grass — it was after initially announcing a 2018 Australian tour, then cancelling it due to an ongoing injury. Before that, he performed at Falls Festival in 2016. Gambino mightn't have been on Aussie stages for a spell — and still won't be anytime soon — but Glover had the final two seasons of Atlanta, both in 2022, reach screens since he was last Down Under. Voice work on Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, producing TV series Swarm, the aforementioned Mr & Mrs Smith: they've all joined his resume as well. He'll also be heard as Simba again in Mufasa: The Lion King, the prequel to 2019's photorealistic version of The Lion King, before 2024 is out. [caption id="attachment_955317" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Eli Watson via Flickr.[/caption] Childish Gambino 'The New World' Tour 2025 Australia and New Zealand Dates Tuesday, January 28 — Spark Arena, Auckland — CANCELLED Saturday, February 1 — Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Brisbane — CANCELLED Tuesday, February 4–Wednesday, February 5 — Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney — CANCELLED Friday, February 7–Saturday, February 8 — Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne — CANCELLED Tuesday, February 11 — RAC Arena, Perth — CANCELLED Childish Gambino is no longer touring Australia and New Zealand in January and February 2025. Head to the tour website for further details. Top image: The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas via Flickr.
Just west of Sydney CBD, across the sparkling waters of Darling Harbour, you'll find Pyrmont. It's famously the home to a number of tourist hot spots, including Sydney Fish Market, the Powerhouse Museum and The Star. But, beyond these legendary landmarks, there's a cornucopia of quirky restaurants, small bars, cafes and friendly pubs to explore. Begin your day with Egyptian bakery treats, stop for lunch in a 177-year-old pub and finish up with a degustation where Italian fare meets Japanese influences. In between eats, step into the future at the Powerhouse Museum and catch some live jazz in a New York-style club. Here are ten places in Pyrmont that you really, really shouldn't miss. Plus, for a few more hot tips, check out our video above for Terminus Hotel venue manager Luke Reimann's favourite spots around the suburb.
For residents of Brisbane, southeast Queensland and Northern New South Wales, the week commencing Monday, March 3, 2025 is starting with a key piece of advice: stay safe and dry. The Bureau of Meteorology has advised that Tropical Cyclone Alfred is forecast to impact the area, including potentially making landfall near the Sunshine State capital. Wet, windy and wild weather is expected from Bundaberg down to the Gold Coast and into the Northern Rivers, complete with daily rainfall totals up to 600 millimetres — and authorities are telling residents to prepare now. As at 4am AEST, Tropical Cyclone Alfred is around 465 kilometres northeast of Brisbane and 410 kilometres east northeast of Maroochydore, but the Category 2 storm is due to head south, then west. First, on Monday it is predicted to keep travelling southeast, away from Queensland's coastline, the Bureau advised in a morning update. Come Tuesday, however, it'll shift, coming back towards the southern Queensland coast. ⚠️Issued 4:51am AEST Monday 3 March 2025⚠️ 🌀The latest track map for Tropical #CycloneAlfred is available. Regardless of the track Alfred takes, severe coastal hazards are likely for southern #Qld and north-east #NSW. Track Map & Cyclone Bulletin: https://t.co/OGEZjBtOPJ pic.twitter.com/hhckFxyQtj — Bureau of Meteorology, Queensland (@BOM_Qld) March 2, 2025 While updates will keep being issued, the forecast for Brisbane and the Gold Coast for Thursday, March 6 already notes "cyclone possible" on the BOM website. The Bureau presently notes that "heavy to locally intense rainfall is forecast for southeast Queensland and northeastern New South Wales from Wednesday as Alfred approaches the coast" — and that the regions should all be on flood watch. "We are seeing sustained winds near the centre of the cyclone of 95 kilometres an hour and wind gusts to 130 kilometres an hour," Senior Meteorologist Jonathan How also advised. "It is moving in a southeasterly direction at around 13 kilometres an hour, sort of about a running pace, moving down towards the southeast." On Sunday, March 2, Brisbane City Council issued a weather alert communicating that Alfred "will potentially produce damaging or destructive wind gusts and isolated heavy rainfall which may cause flash flooding, from late Wednesday through until the weekend", and urged Brisbanites to "make all necessary preparations for possible severe weather impacts". On the list: clearing yards and gutters, securing loose items outside and trimming tree branches. The BCC website has a guide for being prepared for an emergency that's worth bookmarking. Also on Sunday, Queensland Premier David Crisafulli held a press conference about the storm, revealing that waves in some parts of the state — in the Wide Bay area — were already hitting 14 metres due to the cyclone. He also said that an official Tropical Cyclone warning was likely in the coming days. It has been 35 years since Cyclone Nancy threatened Brisbane. Back in 2019, Cyclone Oma also sat off the coast. While the River City mightn't seem like cyclone territory, the 1893 and 1974 floods were the result of cyclonic weather systems — and the latter was caused by a slow-moving cyclone. The Bureau's Brissie forecasts predict possible showers on Monday, a shower or two on Tuesday, wind and showers on Wednesday, all with temperature maximums of 31, 30 and 28 — and with winds up to 90 kilometres an hour on Wednesday. Thursday's prediction is currently "very high chance of rain" plus "the chance of a thunderstorm" and "destructive wind gusts exceeding 130 kilometres an hour possible depending on movement and development of Tropical Cyclone Alfred". From there, wind and heavy rain is expected on Friday, then showers across the weekend. Your plans for the week obviously might change due to the weather situation. Already, the AFL has flagged that it's keeping an eye out given that the first game of the 2025 season, with premiers Brisbane facing Geelong, is scheduled to take place at the Gabba on Thursday night. The Bureau of Meteorology will continue to update its warnings and maps regularly — visit its website for further details and updates.
Here's one way to throw a spectacular party: combine exceptional art, a lineup of live tunes and DJs spinning tracks, bites to eat including dessert, plus pop-up bars slinging drinks, all in an iconic venue that isn't normally open after hours. That's the Archie Party setup. 2025 is the fourth year that the Art Gallery of New South Wales is putting on a one-night-only shindig during its Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prize exhibition — and it's set to be a bustling celebration. On Friday, July 4 between 7–11pm, you can check out the winners and finalists from AGNSW's annual accolades, with tunes from Pakistani instrumental group Jaubi providing the soundtrack — and music from Gayathri Krishnan, alongside Kafi, Jhassic and Munasib from Australia-wide South Asian artist collective Kerfew on the decks, too. You have Kerfew to thank for the lineup, in fact. Learning more about being an Archies finalist from Bronte Leighton-Dore, Sassy Park and Mostafa Azimitabr is also on the agenda. Park and Azimitabr are hosting drop-in workshops as well, so you can make art as well as peer at it. OGNI, from MasterChef alumni Sarah Tiong and Rashedul Hasan, is among the venues on food duties — as are Pocket Rocketz, Miss Pearl Bar + Dining, MOD, Crafted by Matt Moran and Mapo Gelato. You'll be buying whatever you're eating and drinking on top of your $45 ticket (or $36 for members). To help you get home, a free shuttle bus is running from 9–11.30pm from the Art Gallery to Central Station. Archie Party images: Anna Kucera.
SXSW is taking over Sydney between Sunday, October 15–Sunday, October 22. It's the first time that the world-renowned music, film, tech and gaming conference has left the US — and it has a jam-packed eight-day program in store. Included on the lineup is a slate of over 700 speakers, who will be appearing on talks and panels during the festival's massive conference. You can browse the full schedule at the SXSW Sydney website, but it's pretty overwhelming with plenty of not-to-be-missed sessions popping up each and every day. In order to help you plan out your fest, we've compiled our picks for the cream of the crop — ten absolute must-catch conference sessions at SXSW Sydney 2023. Our recommendations include looks at Australia's arts and culinary scenes, big-name creatives sitting down for exclusive chats, and even a panel that we've pulled together ourselves pondering the future of journalism and digital learning. APPETITE FOR DISTRACTION: YOUTH, INFORMATION AND THE DIGITAL AGE Gone are the days of "I read an article about". Gone are even the days of "actually, I just saw the headline". We're now well and truly in the age of "I watched a TikTok". The way that we absorb information is constantly changing, and right now video is ruling — especially among gen z and millennials. Concrete Playground's very own SXSW Sydney panel is looking at just this, pulling together a group of video-first creatives to discuss how young people are consuming info in the digital age. The panel will feature Pedestrian.TV's Issy Phillips to discuss news and journalism in the era of short-form video; astrophysicist and scientific communicator Kirsten Banks to chat about the role of TikTok, Reels and YouTube in sparking people's love in all things space; and Concrete Playground's very own Ben Hansen to talk about how we're searching for recommendations and deciding how to fill our calendar in 2023. Catch Appetite for Distraction: Youth Information and the Digital Age at 2pm on Wednesday, October 18 at Room E3.9, ICC Sydney. [caption id="attachment_917272" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Anthony Quintano via Wikimedia Commons[/caption] 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF HIP HOP FEATURING CHANCE THE RAPPER "As we celebrate 50 years of hip hop in 2023, I'm reminded of the transformative power this culture has had, not just on the world stage, but on the streets of Chicago's South Side," said Chance The Rapper, announcing his SXSW Sydney appearance. The three-time Grammy winner is appearing on the event's lineup to discuss the global impact of the genre five decades after DJ Kool Herc first isolated percussion breaks, then repeated them — and made history. "Chance The Rapper is renowned for both his chart topping and community advocacy. There's few out there like him, who take what they've made and use it to build the dreams of others," noted SXSW Sydney Managing Director Colin Daniels. The conversation should be top of the must-see list for all hip hop heads and music lovers in general. It also stands as the marquee session in a program full of hip hop — including other panels like Hip Hop How a Generation Is Changing the World, films like OneFour: Against All Odds, and boundary-pushing sets from rappers Redveil, Barkaa, Zion Garcia and Flyanna Boss. Catch 50th Anniversary of Hip Hop ft. Chance the Rapper at 1pm on Thursday, October 19 — check the website for venue details. [caption id="attachment_856346" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Dan Boud[/caption] THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY — MICHAEL CASSEL AM AND KIP WILLIAMS IN CONVERSATION After selling out multiple Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland runs, and before it hits the UK's West End with an iteration starring Succession's Sarah Snook, Sydney Theatre Company's The Picture of Dorian Gray is being dissected at SXSW Sydney. Premiering in Sydney in 2020, this take on the tale uses video and theatre to get its star playing 26 characters. In the Australian runs, Eryn Jean Norvill has done the honours, and brilliantly, with Snook following in the actor's footsteps abroad. Renowned producer Michael Cassel AM will sit down with Sydney Theatre Company's Artistic Director Kip Williams to discuss the imaginative, groundbreaking and thought-provoking stage show. Developed right here in Australia by a local creative team during the pandemic, the The Picture of Dorian Gray is a real success story for Australia's arts scene — and this is your chance to take a look under the hood and hear what's next for the production. Catch The Picture of Dorian Gray — Michael Cassel AM and Kip Williams at 4pm on Tuesday, October 17 — check the website for venue details. [caption id="attachment_820444" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Nine Perfect Strangers, Vince Valitutti/Hulu[/caption] A SPOTLIGHT ON BLOSSOM FILMS In a late addition to the SXSW Sydney program, Australian icon Nicole Kidman is joining the event. Adding one of the nation's most famous acting names at home and in America to perhaps the biggest tech, innovation, screen, music, games and culture festival that Australia has ever seen is fitting. 2023 marks 40 years since Kidman starred in BMX Bandits, but that's not why she'll be taking to the SXSW Sydney stage as part of its massive speaker lineup. Instead, she'll be chatting with her producing partner Per Saari about her production company Blossom Films. On its resume: the Nickers-starring Big Little Lies, Nine Perfect Strangers, The Undoing and Rabbit Hole, as well as this year's Elizabeth Olsen (Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness)-led Love & Death. Catch A Spotlight on Blossom Films on at 11am on Thursday, October 19 — check the website for venue details. DERRICK GEE — HOW TO TALK MUSIC (ON THE INTERNET) You may have come across the soothing tones of Derrick Gee's voice on your TikTok or Instagram feeds chatting about Erika De Casier, audio equipment or the international influence of yacht rock. If you haven't, this is your sign to get lost in his videos right now. Gee will be hitting the SXSW Sydney stage to discuss the wonders of discussing music on the world wide web. Sometimes music feels like this indescribable thing, but other times genres feel like they've been talked to death; however, Gee has a distinct way of finding the story and the humanity in the music he chats about. This is a must-see session whether you're a band or promoter looking to change up how you communicate your music online, a lover of all things sound or just like Derrick Gee's videos. Catch Derrick Gee — How to Talk Music (On the Internet) at 11.30am on Friday, October 20 at The Guthrie Theatre, UTS Building 6. INDIGENOUS COLLABORATION: MAKING FILMS THAT HEAL Māoriland Film Festival, the world's largest Indigenous film festival, joins the SXSW Sydney lineup in conjunction with UNESCO Wellington City of Film with a panel featuring award-winning talent from across the film industry. The focus: discussing Indigenous collaboration, plus creating films that facilitate change, and help the audience and the filmmakers heal. On the panel: writer and director Chantelle Murray (My Name is Mudju, Elvis, Thor: Love and Thunder); Chelsea Winstanley (Jojo Rabbit, What We Do in the Shadows, Moana Reo Māori, Talk to Me), the first Indigenous woman to be nominated for the Best Picture Oscar; Māoriland Film Festival Director and producer Libby Hakaraia; and independent film and television producer, director, writer and presenter Tainui Stephens. Catch Indigenous Collaboration: Making Films That Heal at 3.30pm on Monday, October 16 at Cinema Theatre, UTS Building 6. BETTER THAN YESTERDAY WITH OSHER GÜNSBERG TV personality and author Osher Günsberg is bringing two live episodes of his podcast Better Than Yesterday to SXSW Sydney. The man of many talents — including the host of Australian Idol and The Bachelor, creator of the satirical news parody NTNNNN: Night Time News Network Nightly News and narrator of Bondi Rescue — will take to the stage for two long-form interviews about how we can work towards a brighter tomorrow. The first, on Wednesday, October 18, will be with psychotherapist and holistic counsellor Diane Young. Günsberg and Young will discuss the ramifications of addiction — however, they'll do so with the hope of creating a constructive conversation that will leave the audience feeling "better than yesterday". The following day, Günsberg will sit down with activist, politician and Midnight Oil frontman Peter Garrett. The conversation will traverse Garrett's storied career and also see the musician announce a brand new musical project. Catch Better Than Yesterday with Osher Günsberg at 10am on Wednesday, October 18 and 10am on Thursday, October 19 — check the website for venue details. [caption id="attachment_917939" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Netflix[/caption] CHARLIE BROOKER IN CONVERSATION If you're a bit wary of technology's ever-growing influence in humanity's daily lives — be it artificial intelligence, streaming algorithms, social media, drones, augmented reality or online dating, to name just a few examples — then Charlie Brooker and Black Mirror might be one of the reasons. Since 2011, they've been spinning dystopian nightmares about what might happen as tech evolves. In plenty of cases, they've been satirising and interrogating innovations we use today, and what their next step might be. Yes, that makes Brooker the perfect speaker to get chatting at SXSW Sydney. "Black Mirror consistently leads the cultural conversation on what we face in the now or may confront in our future, offering a chance for reflection and change. Charlie embodies what attendees can expect from SXSW Sydney: creativity and innovation," says SXSW Sydney Managing Director Colin Daniels. Catch Charlie Brooker in Conversation at 1pm on Wednesday, October 18 — check the website for venue details. [caption id="attachment_759108" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Alana Dimou[/caption] WHAT IS THE FUTURE OF CHINATOWN? Sydney's Chinatown finds itself in an interesting situation. In some ways, it's continuing to thrive, with the streets packed every Friday night and a fleet of new venues arriving post-lockdown. At the same time, urban sprawl, the cost of living and changing migration patterns have seen the city's Asian diaspora move out to the suburbs more and more. Moderated by Soul of Chinatown's Eddie Ma, this panel will break down where Chinatown is now and what's to come for the bustling inner-city district. The roster of experts joining Ma includes acclaimed chef and Chinatown resident Dan Hong (Mr Wong, Ms. G's, MuMu), property developer and Chinatown advocate Brad Chan, and award-winning architect Qianyi Lim. Catch What Is The Future of Chinatown? at 10am on Wednesday, October 18 at Theatrette, Powerhouse Museum. HORROR & AUDIENCE: WHY WE LOVE TO BE TERRIFIED Whether you love them, hate them or love to hate them, people flock to horror movies — and thanks to studios like A24 and an exciting batch of homegrown horror filmmakers, the genre is having a real moment right now. This panel features four leading voices in horror movies, discussing why they find the genre enthralling, the art of horror storytelling and where the spookiest of films are heading. Daley Pearson leads the lineup of speakers, bringing experience from his eclectic career to the stage, including executive producing Bluey, creating the concept for Danny and Michael Philippou's Talk to Me and playing Thor's roommate Darryl on Team Thor and Team Daryl. Joining Pearson will be Wyrmwood director Kiah Roache-Turner, filmmaker Natalie Erika James (Relic) and Causeway Films producer Samantha Jennings (Talk to Me, You Won't Be Alone, Of An Age). Catch Horror & Audience: Why We Love to Be Terrified at 2pm on Thursday, October 19 at Cinema Theatre, UTS Building 6. SXSW Sydney runs from Sunday, October 15–Sunday, October 22 at various Sydney venues. Head to the SXSW Sydney website for further details. Top image: Brittany Hallberg.
Don your birthday suit. Get your kit off. Disrobe. You're going swimming — the way nature intended. Like Michelangelo said: "What spirit is so empty and blind that it cannot grasp the fact that a human foot is more noble than the shoe, and the human skin more beautiful than the garment with which it is clothed?" So — you heard the man — it's time to get nude. And because it's not exactly legal to do it just anywhere, here are five beaches where your feet and skin can embrace their noble, beautiful selves, without inciting the wrath of the law. [caption id="attachment_556370" align="alignnone" width="1280"] National Parks NSW[/caption] LADY BAY BEACH, SOUTH HEAD We have the late Neville Wran to thank for all the naked bodies at this glorious stretch of sand, which is tucked into the harbour just north of Watsons Bay. In 1976, as Premier of New South Wales, he legalised going in the buff here, turning Lady Bay into one of Australia's first legal naturist beaches. The easiest way to get there is via ferry from Circular Quay to Watsons Bay Wharf, from where it's an easy one-kilometre walk. Those pesky clothes might well be weighing you down — but do try to keep them on 'til you hit the sand. [caption id="attachment_556382" align="alignnone" width="1280"] National Parks NSW[/caption] COBBLERS BEACH, MIDDLE HEAD This 100-metre strip of sand, flanked by rocks, is located just north of Middle Head and 700 metres east of Balmoral. It's best known as the starting point for the Sydney Skinny. Heading into its fourth year on February 28, this event involves hundreds of people stripping off, diving in and swimming 900 metres around a diamond-shaped course. But you can take a dip in the raw there any time. Park at the end of Middle Head Road and follow the signs marked Cobblers Beach. [caption id="attachment_556386" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Ernest McGray Jnr. via Flickr[/caption] OBELISK BEACH, MIDDLE HEAD Another nudie opportunity awaits you on the southern side of Middle Head. Obelisk Beach is even smaller and more private that Cobblers — plus, it comes with panoramic views of Watsons Bay. Drive to the car park at the crossroads of Middle Head Road and Chowder Bay Road. Walk along the latter, until you see a marked track on the left. Follow the path downwards. [caption id="attachment_558305" align="alignnone" width="1280"] National Parks NSW[/caption] WERRONG BEACH, ROYAL NATIONAL PARK Located at the southern end of the Royal National Park, this is one of the most remote and wild beaches on the list. Getting there takes a bit of effort, though — it's a two-kilometre walk each way, down a steep path, starting from Otford Lookout. That said, you'll pass through some stunning scenery, taking in sandstone rock formations and lush rainforest, with cabbage tree palms and ferns. The beach isn't recommended for swimming, as the surf is pretty rough, rippy and unpatrolled by lifeguards — clothed or unclothed. [caption id="attachment_558306" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Webaware via Wikimedia Commons[/caption] BIRDIE BEACH, CENTRAL COAST To fit a naked dip into a Central Coast weekender, head to Birdie Beach. It's located between Wybung Head and the Budgewoi Peninsula, and is backdropped by the Munmorah State Conservation Area. You can drive straight there along Birdie Beach Drive and even camp the night at nearby Freemans campground. Or, to add a hike to your beach visit, walk along the Geebung Heath Track, off Wybung Head Road. Top image: Dollar Photo Club
Whenever projectors have whirred in 2023, it has sometimes been thanks to seasoned filmmakers at the top of their games. Whenever silver screens have come alive with new sound-and-vision delights, it's sometimes been due to new voices making glorious debuts, too. Both are hallmarks of an exceptional year at the movies, as the 15 best films of 2023 show — because when beloved greats are delivering the goods and the next generations are making instant masterpieces, the state of cinema as an artform is glowing. The one caveat to the above, and a reminder that's worth repeating each and every year: thanks to the hundreds of titles that make their way to picture palaces across each annual calendar, there's no such thing as a bad 12 months of films. Still, each year's crop is boasts its own wonders, surprises and thrills — and 2023 was no different. Not all movies can be stunners, of course, but this year brought electrifying takes on Frankenstein, plus both Martin Scorsese and Hayao Miyazaki's new masterpieces, swooning love stories, blasts into the past, haunting documentaries and pink-hued playtimes our way. They're all among our 15 best films of 2023 — and most unforgettable — complete with excellent company. POOR THINGS Richly striking feats of cinema by Yorgos Lanthimos aren't scarce. Sublime performances by Emma Stone are hardly infrequent. Screen takes on Mary Shelley's Frankenstein couldn't be more constant. For Lanthimos, see: Dogtooth and Alps in the Greek Weird Wave filmmaker's native language, plus The Lobster, The Killing of a Sacred Deer and The Favourite since he started helming movies in English. With Stone, examples abound in her Best Actress Oscar for La La Land, supporting nominations before and after for Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) and Lanthimos' aforementioned regal satire, and twin 2024 Golden Globe nods for their latest collaboration as well as TV's The Curse. And as for the best gothic-horror story there is, not to mention one of the most influential sci-fi stories ever, the evidence is everywhere from traditional adaptations to debts owed as widely as The Rocky Horror Show and M3GAN. Combining the three results in a rarity, however: a jewel of a pastel-, jewel- and bodily fluid-toned feminist Frankenstein-esque fairy tale that's a stunning creation, as zapped to life with Lanthimos' inimitable flair, a mischievous air, Stone at her most extraordinary and empowerment blazing like a lightning bolt. With cascading black hair, an inquisitive stare, incessant frankness and jolting physical mannerisms, Poor Things' star is Bella Baxter in this adaptation of Alasdair Grey's award-winning 1992 novel by Australian screenwriter Tony McNamara (The Great). Among the reasons that the movie and its lead portrayal are so singular: as a character with a woman's body revived with a baby's brain, Stone plays someone from infancy to adulthood, all with the astonishingly exact mindset and mannerisms to match, and while making every move, choice and feeling as organic as birth, living and death. In this fantastical steampunk vision of Victorian-era Europe, London-based Scottish doctor Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe, Asteroid City) is Bella's maker. Even if she didn't call him God, he's been playing it. But curiosity, the quest for agency and independence, horniness and a lust for adventure all beckon his creation on a radical, rebellious, gorgeously rendered, gloriously funny and generously insightful odyssey. So, Godwin tries to marry Bella off to medical student Max McCandles (Ramy Youssef, Ramy), only for her to discover masturbation and sex, and run off to the continent with caddish lawyer Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law). Read our full review. KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON Death comes to Killers of the Flower Moon quickly. Death comes to Killers of the Flower Moon often. While Martin Scorsese will later briefly fill the film's frames with a fiery orange vision — with what almost appears to be a lake of flames deep in oil country, as dotted with silhouettes of men — death blazes through his 26th feature from the moment that the picture starts rolling. Adapted from journalist David Grann's 2017 non-fiction novel Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI, with the filmmaker himself and Dune's Eric Roth penning the screenplay, this is a masterpiece of a movie about a heartbreakingly horrible spate of deaths sparked by pure and unapologetic greed and persecution a century back. Scorsese's two favourite actors in Leonardo DiCaprio (Don't Look Up) and Robert De Niro (Amsterdam) are its stars, alongside hopefully his next go-to in Lily Gladstone (Reservation Dogs), but murder and genocide are as much at this bold and brilliant, epic yet intimate, ambitious and absorbing film's centre — all in a tale that's devastatingly true. As Mollie Kyle, a member of the Osage Nation in Grey Horse, Oklahoma, incomparable Certain Women standout Gladstone talks through some of the movie's homicides early. Before her character meets DiCaprio's World War I veteran Ernest Burkhart — nephew to De Niro's cattle rancher and self-proclaimed 'king of the Osage' William King Hale — she notes that several Indigenous Americans that have been killed, with Mollie mentioning a mere few to meet untimely ends. There's nothing easy about this list, nor is there meant to be. Some are found dead, others seen laid out for their eternal rest, and each one delivers a difficult image. But a gun fired at a young mother pushing a pram inspires a shock befitting a horror film. The genre fits here, in its way, as do many others as Killers of the Flower Moon follows Burkhart's arrival in town, his deeds under his uncle's guidance, his romance with Mollie and the tragedies that keep springing: American crime saga, aka the realm that Scorsese has virtually made his own, as well as romance, relationship drama, western, true crime and crime procedural. Read our full review, and our interview with Martin Scorsese. PAST LIVES Call it fate, call it destiny, call it deeply feeling like you were always meant to cross paths with someone: in Korean, that sensation is in-yeon. Partway through Past Lives, aspiring writer Nora (Greta Lee, Russian Doll) explains the concept to fellow scribe Arthur (John Magaro, Showing Up) like she knows it deep in her bones, because both she and the audience are well-aware that she does. That's what writer/director Celine Song's sublime feature debut is about from its first frames to its last. With Arthur, Nora jokes that in-yeon is something that Koreans talk about when they're trying to seduce someone. There's truth to her words, because she'll end up married to him. But with her childhood crush Hae Sung (Teo Yoo, Decision to Leave), who she last saw at the age of 12 because her family then moved from Seoul to Toronto, in-yeon explains everything. It sums up their firm connection as kids, the instant spark that ignites when they reunite in their 20s via emails and Skype calls, and the complicated emotions that swell when they're finally in the same place together again after decades — even with Arthur in the picture as well. Song also emigrated to Canada with her parents as a pre-teen, but achieves that always-sought-after feat: making a movie that feels so intimately specific to its characters, and yet resonates so heartily and universally. Each time that Nora and Hae Sung slide back into each other's lives, it feels like no time has passed, but that doesn't smooth their way forward. Crafted to resemble slipping into a memory, complete with lingering looks and a transportingly evocative score, this feature knows every emotion that arises when you need someone and vice versa, but life has other plans. It feels the weight of the roads not taken, even when you're happy with the route you're on. It's a film about details — spying them everywhere, in Nora and Hae Sung's lives and their faces, while recognising how the best people in anyone's orbits spot them as well. Lee, Yoo and Magaro are each magnetic and magnificent, as is everything about this sensitive, blisteringly honest and intimately complex masterpiece. And, in one specific shot, waiting for a car has never felt so loaded and conflicted. Read our full review, and our interview with Celine Song. AFTERSUN The simplest things in life can be the most revealing, whether it's a question asked of a father by a child, an exercise routine obeyed almost mindlessly or a man stopping to smoke someone else's old cigarette while wandering through a holiday town alone at night. The astonishing feature debut by Scottish writer/director Charlotte Wells, Aftersun is about the simple things. Following the about-to-turn-31 Calum (Paul Mescal, Foe) and his daughter Sophie (debutant Frankie Corio) on vacation in Turkey in the late 90s, it includes all of the above simple things, plus more. It tracks, then, that this coming-of-age story on three levels — of an 11-year-old flirting with adolescence, a dad struggling with his place in the world, and an adult woman with her own wife and family grappling with a life-changing experience from her childhood — is always a movie of deep, devastating and revealing complexity. Earning the internet's Normal People-starring boyfriend a Best Actor Oscar nomination, and deservedly so, Aftersun is a reflective, ruminative portrait of heartbreak. It's a quest to find meaning in sorrow and pain, too, and in processing the past. Wells has crafted a chronicle of interrogating, contextualising, reframing and dwelling in memories; an examination of leaving and belonging; and an unpacking of the complicated truths that a kid can't see about a parent until they're old enough to be that parent. Breaking up Calum and Sophie's sun-dappled coastal holiday with the older Sophie (Celia Rowlson-Hall, Vox Lux) watching camcorder footage from the trip, sifting through her recollections and dancing it out under a nightclub's strobing lights in her imagination, this is also a stunning realisation that we'll always read everything we can into a loved one's actions with the benefit of hindsight, but all we ever truly have is the sensation that lingers in our hearts and heads. Understanding why the adult Sophie is scouring VHS tapes and her mind's eye for far more than mere nostalgia involves doing what everyone on a resort getaway does: hanging out. Aftersun spends much of its time in the simple holiday moments, including by the pool, at dinner, singing karaoke, day tripping, and in Sophie and Calum's room — and lets these ordinary, everyday occurrences, and the details that flow from them, confess everything they can. Read our full review, and our interview with Charlotte Wells. OPPENHEIMER Cast Cillian Murphy and a filmmaker falls in love. Danny Boyle did with 28 Days Later and Sunshine, then Christopher Nolan followed with Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises, Inception and Dunkirk. There's an arresting, haunting, seeps-under-your-skin soulfulness about the Irish actor, never more so than when he was wandering solo through the empty zombie-ravaged streets in his big-screen big break, then hurtling towards the sun in an underrated sci-fi gem, both for Boyle, and now playing "the father of atomic bomb" in Nolan's epic biopic Oppenheimer. Flirting with the end of the world, or just one person's end, clearly suits Murphy. Here he is in a mind-blower as the destroyer of worlds — almost, perhaps actually — and so much of this can't-look-away three-hour stunner dwells in his expressive eyes. As J Robert Oppenheimer, those peepers see purpose and possibility. They spot quantum mechanics' promise, and the whole universe lurking within that branch of physics. They ultimately spy the consequences, too, of bringing the Manhattan Project successfully to fruition during World War II. Dr Strangelove's full title could never apply to Oppenheimer, nor to its eponymous figure; neither learn to stop worrying and love the bomb. The theoretical physicist responsible for the creation of nuclear weapons did enjoy building it in Nolan's account, Murphy's telltale eyes gleaming as Oppy watches research become reality — but then darkening as he gleans what that reality means. Directing, writing and adapting the 2005 biography American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin J Sherwin, Nolan charts the before and after. He probes the fission and fusion of the situation in intercut parts, the first in colour, the second in black and white. In the former, all paths lead to the history-changing Trinity test on July 16, 1945 in the New Mexico desert. In the latter, a mushroom cloud balloons through Oppenheimer's life as he perceives what the gadget, as it's called in its development stages, has unleashed. Read our full review. EO David Attenborough's nature documentaries are acclaimed and beloved viewing, including when they're recreating dinosaurs. Family-friendly fare adores cute critters, especially if they're talking as in The Lion King and Paddington movies. The horror genre also loves pushing animals to the front, with The Birds and Jaws among its unsettling masterpieces. Earth's creatures great and small are all around us on-screen, and also off — but in EO, a donkey drama by Polish filmmaker Jerzy Skolimowski (11 Minutes), humanity barely cares. The people in this Oscar-nominated mule musing might watch movies about pets and beasts. They may have actively shared parts of their own lives existence the animal kingdom; some, albeit only a rare few, do attempt exactly that with this flick's grey-haired, white-spotted, wide-eyed namesake. But one of the tragedies at the heart of this adventure is also just a plain fact of life on this pale blue dot while homo sapiens reign supreme: that animals are everywhere all the time but hardly anyone notices. EO notices. Making his first film in seven years, and co-writing with his wife and producer Ewa Piaskowska (Essential Killing), Skolimowski demands that his audience pays attention. This is both an episodic slice-of-life portrait of EO the donkey's days and a glimpse of the world from his perspective — sometimes, the glowing and gorgeous cinematography by Michal Dymek (Wolf) takes in the Sardinian creature in all his braying, trotting, carrot-eating glory; sometimes, it takes on 'donkey vision', which is just as mesmerising to look at. Skolimowski gets inspiration from Robert Bresson's 1966 feature Au Hasard Balthazar, too, a movie that also follows the life of a hoofed, long-eared mammal. Like that French great, EO sees hardship much too often for its titular creature; however, even at its most heartbreaking, it also spies an innate, immutable circle of life. Read our full review. CLOSE When Léo (debutant Eden Dambrine) and Rémi (fellow first-timer Gustav De Waele) dash the carefree dash of youth in Close's early moments, rushing from a dark bunker out into the sunshine — from rocks and forest to a bloom-filled field ablaze with colour, too — this immediately evocative Belgian drama runs joyously with them. Girl writer/director Lukas Dhont starts his sophomore feature with a tremendous moment, one that's arresting to look at and to experience. The petals pop; the camera tracks, rushes and flies; the two 13-year-olds are as exuberant and at ease as they're ever likely to be in their lives. They're sprinting because they're happy and playing, and because summer in their village — and on Léo's parents' flower farm — is theirs for the revelling in. They don't and can't realise it because no kid does, but they're also bolting from the bliss that is their visibly contented childhood to the tussles and emotions of being a teenager. Close's title does indeed apply to its two main figures; when it comes to adolescent friendships, they couldn't be tighter. As expressed in revelatory performances by Dambrine and De Waele, each of whom are genuine acting discoveries — Dhont spotted the former on a train from Antwerp to Ghent — these boys have an innocent intimate affinity closer than blood. They're euphoric with and in each other's company, and the feature plays like that's how it has always been between the two. They've also never queried or overthought what their connection means. Before high school commences, Close shows the slumber parties, and the shared hopes and dreams. It sits in on family dinners, demonstrating the ease with which each is a part of the other's broader lives amid both sets of mums and dads; Léo's are Nathalie (Léa Drucker, Custody) and Yves (Marc Weiss, Esprits de famille), Rémi's are Sophie (Émilie Dequenne, An Ordinary Man) and Peter (Kevin Janssens, Two Summers). The film adores their rapport like a summer day adores the breeze, and conveys it meticulously and movingly. Then, when girls in Léo and Rémi's grade ask if the two are a couple, it shows the heartache and heartbreak of a boyhood bond dissolving. Read our full review. ALL THE BEAUTY AND THE BLOODSHED With photographer Nan Goldin at its centre, the latest documentary by Citizenfour Oscar-winner Laura Poitras is a film about many things, to deeply stunning and moving effect. In this Oscar-nominated movie's compilation of Goldin's acclaimed snaps, archival footage, current interviews, and past and present activism, a world of stories flicker — all linked to Goldin, but all also linking universally. The artist's bold work, especially chronicling LGBTQIA+ subcultures and the 80s HIV/AIDS crisis, frequently and naturally gets the spotlight. Her complicated family history, which spans heartbreaking loss, haunts the doco as it haunts its subject. The rollercoaster ride that Goldin's life has taken, including in forging her career, supporting her photos, understanding who she is and navigating an array of personal relationships, cascades through, too. And, so do her efforts to counter the opioid epidemic by bringing one of the forces behind it to public justice. Revealing state secrets doesn't sit at the core of the tale here, unlike Citizenfour and Poitras' 2016 film Risk — one about Edward Snowden, the other Julian Assange — but everything leads to the documentary's titular six words: All the Beauty and the Bloodshed. They gain meaning in a report spied late about the mental health of Goldin's older sister Barbara, who committed suicide at the age of 18 when Goldin was 11, and who Goldin contends was just an "angry and sexual" young woman in the 60s with repressed parents. A psychiatrist uses the eponymous phrase to describe what Barbara sees and, tellingly, it could be used to do the same with anyone. All the Beauty and the Bloodshed is, in part, a rebuke of the idea that a teenager with desires and emotions is a problem, and also a statement that that's who we all are, just to varying levels of societal acceptance. The film is also a testament that, for better and for worse, all the beauty and the bloodshed we all witness and endure is what shapes us. Read our full review. THE BOY AND THE HERON For much of the six years that a new Hayao Miyazaki movie has been on the way, little was known except that the legendary Japanese animator was breaking his retirement after 2013's The Wind Rises. But there was a tentative title: How Do You Live?. While that isn't the name that the film's English-language release sports, both the moniker — which remains in Japan — and the nebulousness otherwise help sum up the gorgeous and staggering The Boy and the Heron. They also apply to the Studio Ghibli's co-founder's filmography overall. When a director and screenwriter escapes into imaginative realms as much as Miyazaki does, thrusting young characters still defining who they are away from everything they know into strange and surreal worlds, they ask how people exist, weather the chaos and trauma that's whisked their way, and bounce between whatever normality they're lucky to cling to and life's relentless uncertainties and heartbreaks. Miyazaki has long pondered how to navigate the fact that so little while we breathe proves a constant, and gets The Boy and the Heron spirited away by the same train of thought while climbing a tower of deeply resonant feelings. How Do You Live? is also a 1937 book by Genzaburo Yoshino, which Miyazaki was given by his mother as a child, and also earns a mention in his 12th feature. The Boy and the Heron isn't an adaptation; rather, it's a musing on that query that's the product of a great artist looking back at his life and achievements, plus his losses. The official blurb uses the term "semi-autobiographical fantasy", an elegant way to describe a movie that feels so authentic, and so tied to its creator, even though he can't have charted his current protagonist's exact path. Parts of the story are drawn from his youth, but it wouldn't likely surprise any Studio Ghibli fan if Miyazaki had magically had his Chihiro, Mei and Satsuki, or Howl moment, somehow living an adventure from Spirited Away, My Neighbour Totoro or Howl's Moving Castle. What definitely won't astonish anyone is that grappling with conjuring up these rich worlds and processing reality is far from simple, even for someone of Miyazaki's indisputable creative genius. Read our full review. SALTBURN Sharp, savage and skewering, plus twisted in narrative and the incisive use of genre tropes alike: as a filmmaker, Emerald Fennell certainly has a type. With the Oscar-winning Promising Young Woman and now Saltburn, the Barbie and The Crown actor-turned-writer/director takes aim, blazes away giddily and blasts apart everything that she can. When she made a blisteringly memorable feature debut behind the lens — giving audiences one of 2021's's best Down Under releases, in fact, and deservingly earning a place among the Academy Awards' rare female Best Director nominees in the process — she honed in on the absolute worst that a patriarchal society affords women. Now, after also pointing out the protection provided to the wealthy in that first effort as a helmer, Fennell has class warfare so firmly in her gaze that Saltburn is named after a sprawling English manor. With both flicks, the end result is daringly unforgettable. This pair of pictures would make a killer double, too, although they enjoy neighbouring estates rather than frolic across the same exact turf. On her leaps from one side of the camera to the other, Fennell also keeps filling her features with such spectacular casts that other filmmakers might hope to fall into her good graces to bask in their glow — a fate that sits at the heart of Saltburn, albeit beyond the movie world. Fresh from nabbing his own Oscar nomination for The Banshees of Inisherin, Barry Keoghan adds yet another beguiling and astonishing performance to a resume that's virtually collecting them (see also: The Killing of a Sacred Deer, Dunkirk, American Animals, The Green Knight and Calm with Horses), proving mesmerisingly slippery as scholarship student Oliver Quick. Usually standing in his sights, Euphoria's Jacob Elordi perfects the part of Felix Catton, aka that effortlessly charismatic friend that everyone wishes they could spend all of their time with. And as Felix's mother Elspeth, father Sir James and "poor dear" family pal Pamela, Rosamund Pike (The Wheel of Time), Richard E Grant (Persuasion) and Carey Mulligan (Fennell's Promising Young Woman star, also an Academy Award nominee for her work) couldn't give more delicious line readings or portraits of the insular but shambolic well-to-do. Read our full review. BARBIE No one plays with a Barbie too hard when the Mattel product is fresh out of the box. As that new doll smell lingers, and the toy's synthetic limbs gleam and locks glisten, so does a child's sense of wonder. The more that the world-famous mass-produced figurine is trotted through DreamHouses, slipped into convertibles and decked out in different outfits, though — then given non-standard makeovers — the more that playing with the plastic fashion model becomes fantastical. Like globally beloved item, like live-action movie bearing its name. Barbie, the film, starts with glowing aesthetic perfection. It's almost instantly a pink-hued paradise for the eyes, and it's also a cleverly funny flick from its 2001: A Space Odyssey-riffing outset. The longer that it continues, however, the harder and wilder that Lady Bird and Little Women director Greta Gerwig goes, as does her Babylon and Amsterdam star lead-slash-producer Margot Robbie as Barbie. In Barbie's Barbie Land, life is utopian. Robbie's Stereotypical Barbie and her fellow dolls (including The Gray Man's Ryan Gosling as Stereotypical Ken) genuinely believe that their rosy beachside suburban excellence is infectious, too. And, they're certain that this female-championing realm — and the Barbies being female champions of all skills, talents and appearances — has changed the real world inhabited by humans. But there's a Weird Barbie living in a misshapen abode. While she isn't Barbie's villain, not for a second, her nonconformist look and attitude says everything about Barbie at its most delightful. Sporting cropped hair, a scribbled-on face and legs akimbo, she's brought to life by Saturday Night Live great Kate McKinnon having a blast, and explained as the outcome of a kid somewhere playing too eagerly. Meet Gerwig's spirit animal; when she lets Weird Barbie's vibe rain down like a shower of glitter, covering everything and everyone in sight both in Barbie Land and in reality, the always-intelligent, amusing and dazzling Barbie is at its brightest and most brilliant. Read our full review, and Greta Gerwig, Margot Robbie, Issa Rae and America Ferrara chatting about the film. SAINT OMER In 2016, a French documentarian with Senegalese heritage attended the trial of a Senegalese French PhD student who confessed to killing her 15-month-old daughter, who was fathered by a white partner, by leaving her on the beach to the mercy of the waves at Berck-sur-Mer. The filmmaker was fixated. She describes it as an "unspeakable obsession". She was haunted by questions about motherhood, too — her mum's and her own, given that she was a young mother herself as she sat in the courtroom. That story is the story of how Saint Omer came to be, and also almost exactly the tale that the piercing drama tells. In her first narrative film after docos We and La Permanence, writer/director Alice Diop focuses on a French author and literature professor with a Senegalese background who bears witness to a trial with the same details, also of a Senegalese French woman, for the same crime. Saint Omer's protagonist shares other traits with Diop as she observes, too, and watches and listens to research a book. A director riffing on their own experience isn't novel, but Saint Omer is strikingly intimate and authentic because it's the embodiment of empathy in an innately difficult situation. It shows what it means to feel for someone else, including someone who has admitted to a shocking crime, and has been made because Diop went through that far-from-straightforward process and was galvanised to keep grappling with it. What a deeply emotional movie this 2022 Venice International Film Festival Grand Jury Prize-winning feature is, understandably and unsurprisingly. What a heartbreaking and harrowing work it proves as well. Saint Omer is also an astoundingly multilayered excavation of being in a country but never being seen as truly part it, and what that does to someone's sense of self, all through Fabienne Kabou's complicated reality and Laurence Coly's (Guslagie Malanda, My Friend Victoria) fictionalised scenario. Read our full review. WOMEN TALKING Get Rooney Mara, Claire Foy, Jessie Buckley, Frances McDormand and more exceptional women in a room, point a camera their way, let the talk flow: Sarah Polley's Women Talking does just that, and this year's Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar-winner is phenomenal. The actor-turned-filmmaker's fourth effort behind the lens after 2006's Away From Her, 2011's Take This Waltz and 2012's Stories We Tell does plenty more, but its basic setup is as straightforward as its title states. Adapted from Miriam Toews' 2018 novel of the same name, this isn't a simple or easy film, however. That book and this feature draw on events in a Bolivian Mennonite colony from 2005–9, where a spate of mass druggings and rapes of women and girls were reported at the hands of some of the group's men. In a patriarchal faith and society, women talking about their experiences is a rebellious, revolutionary act anyway — and talking about what comes next is just as charged. "The elders told us that it was the work of ghosts, or Satan, or that we were lying to get attention, or that it was an act of wild female imagination." That's teenage narrator Autje's (debutant Kate Hallett) explanation for how such assaults could occur and continue, as offered in Women Talking's sombre opening voiceover. Writing and helming, Polley declares her feature "an act of female imagination" as well, as Toews did on the page, but the truth in the movie's words is both lingering and haunting. While the film anchors its dramas in a specific year, 2010, it's purposefully vague on any details that could ground it in one place. Set within a community where modern technology is banned and horse-drawn buggies are the only form of transport, it's a work of fiction inspired by reality, rather than a recreation. Whether you're aware of the true tale behind the book going in or not, this deeply powerful and affecting picture speaks to how women have long been treated in a male-dominated world at large — and what's so often left unsaid, too. Read our full review. ASTEROID CITY In 1954, one of Alfred Hitchcock's greatest thrillers peeked through a rear window. In Wes Anderson's highly stylised, symmetrical and colour-saturated vision of 1955 in Asteroid City, a romance springs almost solely through two fellow holes in the wall. Sitting behind one is actor Midge Campbell (Scarlett Johansson, Black Widow), who visibly recalls Marilyn Monroe. Peering through the opposing space is newly widowed war photographer Augie Steenbeck (Jason Schwartzman, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse), who takes more than a few cues from James Dean. The time isn't just 1955 in the filmmaker's latest stellar masterpiece, but September that year, a month that would end with Dean's death in a car crash. Racing through the movie's eponymous setting — an 87-person slice of post-war midwest Americana with a landscape straight out of a western, the genre that was enjoying its golden age at the time — are cops and robbers speeding and careening in their vehicles. Meticulousness layered upon meticulousness has gleamed like the sun across Anderson's repertoire since 1996's Bottle Rocket launched the writer/director's distinctive aesthetic flair; "Anderson-esque" has long become a term. Helming his 11th feature with Asteroid City, he's as fastidious and methodical in his details upon details as ever — more so, given that each successive movie keeps feeling like Anderson at his most Anderson — but all of those 50s pop-culture shoutouts aren't merely film-loving, winking-and-nodding quirks. Within this picture's world, as based on a story conjured up with Roman Coppola (The French Dispatch), Asteroid City isn't actually a picture. "It is an imaginary drama created expressly for the purposes of this broadcast. The characters are fictional, the text hypothetical, the events an apocryphal fabrication," a Playhouse 90-style host (Bryan Cranston, Better Call Saul) informs. So, it's a fake play turned into a play for a TV presentation, behind-the-scenes glimpses and all. There Anderson is, being his usual ornate and intricate self, and finding multiple manners to explore art, authenticity, and the emotions found in and processed through works of creativity. Read our full review. LIMBO When Ivan Sen sent a police detective chasing a murdered girl and a missing woman in the Australian outback in 2013's Mystery Road and its 2016 sequel Goldstone, he saw the country's dusty, rust-hued expanse in sun-bleached and eye-scorching colour. In the process, the writer, director, co-producer, cinematographer, editor and composer used his first two Aussie noir films and their immaculately shot sights to call attention to how the nation treats people of colour — historically since its colonial days and still now well over two centuries later. Seven years after the last Jay Swan movie, following a period that's seen that character make the leap to the small screen in three television seasons, Sen is back with a disappearance, a cop, all that inimitable terrain and the crimes against its Indigenous inhabitants that nothing can hide. Amid evident similarities, there's a plethora of differences between the Mystery Road franchise and Limbo; however, one of its simplest is also one of its most glaring and powerful: shooting Australia's ochre-toned landscape in black and white. Limbo's setting: Coober Pedy, the globally famous "opal capital of the world" that's known for its underground dwellings beneath the blazing South Australian earth, but reimagined as the fictional locale that shares the film's name — a place unmistakably sporting an otherworldly topography dotted by dugouts to avoid the baking heat, and that hasn't been able to overcome the murder of a local Indigenous girl two decades earlier. The title is symbolic several times over, including to the visiting Travis Hurley (Simon Baker, Blaze), whose first task upon arrival is checking into his subterranean hotel, rolling up his sleeves and indulging his heroin addiction. Later, he'll be told that he looks more like a drug dealer than a police officer — but, long before then, it's obvious that his line of work and the sorrows he surveys along the way have kept him hovering in a void. While he'll also unburden a few biographical details about mistakes made and regrets held before the film comes to an end, such as while talking to the missing Charlotte Hayes' brother Charlie (Rob Collins, The Drover's Wife The Legend of Molly Johnson) and sister Emma (Natasha Wanganeen, The Survival of Kindness), this tattooed cop with wings inked onto his back is already in limbo before he's literally in Limbo talking. Read our full review, and our interview with Ivan Sen and Simon Baker. Looking for more viewing highlights? We also rounded up another 15 exceptional flicks that hardly anyone saw in cinemas this year — plus the 15 best straight-to-streaming movies, 15 best new TV series of 2023, another 15 excellent new TV shows of 2023 that you might've missed and the 15 best returning shows as well. And, we've kept a running list of must-stream TV from across the year, complete with full reviews. Also, you can check out our regular rundown of film and TV streaming recommendations, which is updated monthly.t you might've missed.
The James Street Reserve Community Garden, established in 2010 to make use of a valuable but erstwhile neglected nook of public land, is a beautiful and productive garden tended to by passionate local community members. You can contribute to the health and maintenance of the garden by joining a working bee on the first Saturday of every month, from 9–11am, or by simply paying the lush patch of flora a visit at any time to scope the latest produce. Despite increasingly living in urban environments, our need for nature remains. Even just marvelling at lavender or freshly grown bok choy can be enough to provide that much needed connection with the great outdoors.
Shlomi Palensya has been mastering dough throughout his career. Formerly the Executive Pastry Chef at the Ritz-Carlton in Israel and Sydney's Park Hyatt, Palensya has turned his attention towards a different kind of dough — with his first solo venture, Ta Ta Ta Pizza, based in Bondi. Located in the backstreets of the eastern suburb, Ta Ta Ta sees the accomplished chef bring his experience in high-end hotel kitchens to a more casual pizza-by-the-slice spot. The eastern suburbs' takeaway eatery specialises in thick, fluffy, and crunchy Roman-style al taglio pizzas. This airy style of pizza is perfect for those who like their pies thicker without being too doughy. It also allows Palensya to flex the skills he gained as a pastry chef and to get creative with the flavours, thanks to thicker pizza bases that can facilitate plenty of toppings. The flavours on offer are continually changing but centre around fresh produce, with prominently vegan and vegetarian options on offer alongside a few choice salami-based flavours. The easiest way to attack the menu is to get a few friends together and opt for the chef's selection, which includes three to six different styles of pizza, depending on how big your group is. There's also your standard Italian favourites like the margarita, an olive- and three-cheese-topped pizza, and the simple Roman salami. Spice lovers can opt for the hot salami and jalapeño option, or else there are some more adventurous combinations like corn cream, shallot and feta; artichoke, goat's cheese and parmesan; or a trio of mushrooms with kale, chilli and parmesan cream sauce. Rounding out the menu is a pair of salads, including a classic burrata, rocket, cherry tomato, parmesan, balsamic glaze and olive oil combo, plus a couple of jarred desserts — such as an on-the-go tiramisu.
Automata's executive chef Clayton Wells is again hosting an all-star crew of Aussie chefs at his venue this month — all for a good cause. After a highly successful first run in 2018, One Plate for Two Good is set to return with ten of Sydney's culinary masterminds joining forces for a charity lunch on Sunday, February 24 from noon–3pm. Trust us, you're going to want to be at it. Joining Wells in the kitchen this time around are Dan Hong (Mr. Wong, Ms.G's), Monty Koludrovic (The Dolphin, Icebergs), Ben Greeno (The Paddington, Hotel Centennial), Paul Carmichael (Momofuku Seiobo), Trisha Greentree (who's about to join 10 William Street), Luke Powell (LP's Quality Meats, Bella Brutta), Palisa Anderson (Boon Cafe, Chat Thai), Josh Niland (Saint Peter) and Federico Zanellato (LuMi Dining). Yup, they've hit the jackpot with this group. The lunch will consist of 10 snacks — with each chef preparing a different dish — and three drinks, with booze provided by P&V Wine and Liquor, NZ brewery Garage Project and vermouth label Regal Rogue. This year, music will also take a front seat, with each chef contributing to the arvo's playlist. All proceeds from the lunch are going to Two Good Co, a social enterprise that provides food and employment for victims of domestic violence and others in need. If miss out on the event, you can also order tasty salads and soups from the charity — which has a buy-one, give-one lunch delivery model. All of its recipes are created by top Australian chefs, too, so you're really getting some feel good, bang-for-your-buck. The ticket to the Automata event will cost you $100, but, with this calibre of eats and the funds going to a great cause, we reckon it will be one of the best lunches you'll buy. Tickets have just gone on sale, and you can get yours here. Last year's party sold out in 24-hours, so if you want 'em, come and get 'em. To learn more about Two Good or to order lunch to the office, head to their website. Images: One Plate for Two Good 2018, Nikki To.
We've all been there — determined to stretch that bank account until payday by eating lentil bolognese for dinner five days in a row. You swear you won't dip into your savings account this fortnight. But on day six of toasted sandwiches made from dumpster-dived bread, it's time to say enough is enough, and treat yourself to a satisfying dinner. You deserve it. Thankfully, Sydney is brimming with hospitality legends pumping out delicious and nutritious food for less than what a trip to the supermarket will set you back. With a little help from American Express, we've put together a list of spots around town where you can fill your tummy without bankrupting yourself before payday. When leftovers just won't cut it, these small businesses have you covered, and will let you pay using your American Express Card.
When Studio Ghibli opened its own theme park outside of Tokyo at the beginning of November, it took a leaf out of Disney's book, gifting the world the new happiest place on earth. Now, it's actually joining forces with the Mouse House on a surprise collaboration. If you've ever wondered what the cutest figure in a galaxy far, far away might look like if it was given the hand-drawn Ghibli treatment — complete with Spirited Away's susuwatari in tow — then wonder no more, because short film Zen — Grogu and Dust Bunnies has the answers. Two pop culture favourites, one epic collaboration, and your delightful weekend viewing all sorted: that's the recipe here. Zen — Grogu and Dust Bunnies will drop on Saturday, November 12 in the US — which usually means 6pm AEST/7pm AEDT in Australia and 9pm in New Zealand — all to celebrate three years since The Mandalorian first hit screens. pic.twitter.com/RZ74q04w7J — スタジオジブリ STUDIO GHIBLI (@JP_GHIBLI) November 10, 2022 pic.twitter.com/31jDkRIXTL — スタジオジブリ STUDIO GHIBLI (@JP_GHIBLI) November 11, 2022 The just-announced news comes after a few days of teasing on social media, including Studio Ghibli posting a short video featuring both the Lucasfilm and Ghibli logos — and another image featuring a statue of Baby Yoda, aka Grogu, with Studio Ghibli icon and founder Hayao Miyazaki in the background. Zen — Grogu and Dust Bunnies hails from director Katsuya Kondo (an animator on Earwig and the Witch, When Marnie Was There, The Wind Rises and more), and will feature music by Oscar- and Emmy-winning composer Ludwig Göransson (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, The Book of Boba Fett, The Mandalorian). Further details, other than the fact that you'll need to head to Disney's streaming service Disney+ to see it, haven't been revealed. The anniversary also marks three years of Disney+ itself, and the short precedes the long-awaited third season of The Mandalorian — which dropped a trailer back in September, but won't hit streaming until sometime in 2023. Of course, Andor is filling the Star Wars TV gap quite nicely in the interim — and now Zen — Grogu and Dust Bunnies, aka a dream team-up, will help as well. Discover Zen - Grogu and Dust Bunnies, a hand-drawn animation by Studio Ghibli, is streaming tomorrow on #DisneyPlus. pic.twitter.com/ODqHrgIwnB — Disney+ (@DisneyPlus) November 12, 2022 Zen — Grogu and Dust Bunnies will be available to stream via Disney+ from Saturday, November 12.
Get your laughs at Marrickville's Factory Theatre when Sydney Fringe Comedy takes over from Tuesday, August 28 to Sunday, September 30. More than 100 Australian and international acts will appear, with five venues hosting up to 20 shows every night. Watch out for Aaron Chen in The Crushing Defeat and Public Humiliation of Aaron and Cassy Workman in Giantess, a fable about a kidnapped six-year-old whose only hope of salvation is a giant – which happens to double as an exploration of struggling with gender identity. Meanwhile, Break Out NZ will bring together accomplished Kiwi comics David Corroes, Donna Brookbanks and Jamie Bowen. These funny guys are just the tip of the iceberg; check out the rest of the massive program over here — most tickets are a steal at $10–$15.
The inner west's much-loved Newtown Festival returns this November, with a huge day of community, art, music and food. Brainchild of the Newtown Neighbourhood Centre (NNC), the event's main aim is to raise funds and drum up support for those doing it tough in the area. It's also a great excuse for people to get together and show some love for a unique pocket of the world. Taking over Camperdown Memorial Park on Sunday, November 10, this year's outing sees the return of a bunch of festival favourites, including the Heaps Gay Karaoke Closet (a tent dedicated to dress ups and lots of karaoke, of course), the Eco Village and the ever-popular Sassy Treats Dog Show, celebrating all of those four-legged festival-goers. There'll be a sprawling collection of over 200 stalls, selling everything from food to fashion, more than 100 live, roaming performers and a music lineup showcasing artists who've each got their own strong connection to the Newtown community. You'll catch The Delta Riggs, Godtet, Lola Scott, The Buoys and the Sorcha Albuquerque Organ Trio, as well as a few more, too. In the lead up to the festival, NNC will also host a series of gigs, live street art performances and open air movie screenings. More details on that is dropping soon — we'll let you know when it does. Newtown Festival's $5 entry fee, collected at the gates, goes directly to the NNC, which provides support services for disadvantaged groups in the local community. Newtown Festival runs from 9.30am–5.30pm Image: James Simpson and Kirsten Muller
Whether you're in full lockdown mode, are only leaving the house to buy groceries or still have to venture out regularly because you can't work from home, no one is moseying far in these COVID-19 times. Everyone wants to, though. That's just human nature. Even if you're a homebody whose idea of a perfect vacation is getting cosy on the couch with your partner and your streaming queue, we're betting you're currently craving something — anything — to look at beyond your own four walls. Being cooped up in the house and experiencing a hefty dose of wanderlust go hand-in-hand, unsurprisingly — and you can cope in two ways. If you're itching to travel the globe the second you're able to, you can spend all your new spare time planning the trips you'll take when you can finally leave isolation behind. Or, if you're happy to simply pretend that you're somewhere far, far away, you can enter the world of travel live streams. You've virtually toured museums, galleries and landmarks already. Now it's time to while away as many minutes, hours or days as you like staring at a live webcam feed that's capturing life in another country right at this moment. Maybe you want to see what's going on in some of the places you've already been to. Perhaps you're keen to view stunning sights that you've always wanted to visit. Either way, here are seven travel live streams that you can watch from your couch at this very instant. A hint: pop one on in the background while you're working from home, and your day will instantly seem brighter. Also, a word of warning: they're rather addictive. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwriDd8STdI&feature=emb_logo THE NORTHERN LIGHTS, CHURCHILL, CANADA The northern lights, aka aurora borealis, are one of the world's great natural wonders — the type of phenomenon that you need to see with your own eyes to truly appreciate. Caused by solar winds, the lights beam an array of colours across the evening sky, emitting a show that luminous events like Vivid only wish they could emulate. And, for everyone who needs that kind of magic in their lives at the moment, they're being live-streamed via Explore.org's dedicated webcam. You'll obviously need to tune in at the right time; however the middle of the night in Churchill, Canada (where the camera is stationed) coincides with late afternoon Down Under. And, even when you can't glimpse the main attraction, you can still peer at a scenic sky above an expanse of snow, all on the other side of the world. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HpZAez2oYsA CANAL OF CANNAREGIO AND PONTE DELLE GUGLIE, VENICE, ITALY Perhaps it's the centuries-old architecture. Maybe it's the glistening water. Or, it could be the entire idea of a city built on a group of 118 small islands, all separated by canals and linked by bridges. Whichever one fits, Venice boasts a particular kind of magic — and, in good news, that remains the case if you're watching on via live stream. Peering at the Ponte delle Guglie over the Canal of Cannaregio, the webcam setup at Hotel Filù is one of the best. Also, while you're viewing, you'll be doing so from a camera inside a building that dates back to the 800s. Those interested in more of Venice's distinctive sights can choose from a range of other cams, too, including a rolling live feed that switches between various scenic vantages. SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE CROSSING, TOKYO, JAPAN It has been featured in everything from Lost in Translation to Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift — and, during normal circumstances, it's one of the busiest places in one of the busiest cities in the world. That'd be Shibuya's famous scramble crossing, where hordes of people usually cross the intersection all day, everyday. Whether you've been to Tokyo plenty of times or you've always wanted to take a trip, this bustling site is on everyone's must-visit list. For now, though, you can simply watch. Shibuya Community News' web cam peers down at the four-way crossing non-stop, as the few folks who are still out and about in Tokyo go about their business. If you've ever walked across the road yourself, the sparse sight is quite surreal. If you haven't yet had the chance, get ready to start people-watching. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnNrd-VjLsQ WAIMEA BAY, HAWAII, USA Who doesn't wish that, right about now, they were sunbathing on a beach with nothing but sunscreen, sand and the crash of the waves to worry about? We all know the feeling — and while Australia's beaches have been closing over the past few weeks, all in an effort to enforce the country's current social-distancing requirements, you can check out Hawaii's Waimea Bay instead. If you find looking at the surf and listening to the roar of the ocean soothing at the best of times, you'll undoubtedly feel the same in today's far-from-usual predicament. This is a live stream you'll want to turn the volume up for, too, so you can make the very most of every sound from the scenic O'ahu spot. THE EIFFEL TOWER, PARIS, FRANCE Live stream network Earthcam.com has access to cameras in a huge number of places; however there's nothing quite like staring at one of the world's most famous tourist attractions while you're sat on your couch. If you time your peek just right — aka, you have a look when it's evening in Paris but daytime Down Under — you'll see the Eiffel Tower lit up against the night sky, perhaps even with the moon in the background, too. And, if you'd like to see how the iconic structure looks at various times of the day and under different conditions, you can scroll through the site's extensive image gallery, checking out how the tower appeared over the past hours, days, weeks and months. YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, CALIFORNIA, USA There's no shortage of magnificent natural land formations to see in California's Yosemite National Park. While no one can lock their peepers on them in person at present, anyone eager to get a glimpse can still do so online. And, thanks to Yosemite Conservancy and the US National Park Service, there are multiple options — peering at multiple sights, too. If it's a live webcam feed you're after, then take a gander at Yosemite Falls, one of the world's tallest waterfalls. Watching water stream down from almost 740 metres up is quite the vision to behold. For those who'd rather peer at the Yosemite High Sierra, the Badger Ski Pass Area or Half Dome, or vicariously live out their Free Solo dreams at El Capitan, you can do so via static live images that refresh every 60 seconds. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zUmDtZAd28&feature=emb_logo LOCH NESS, SCOTTISH HIGHLANDS, SCOTLAND You could spend your days in isolation learning a few new skills, catching up on a heap of movies, watching everything from theatre to opera, getting your sweat on and cooking up a storm. Or, you could keep your eyes peeled for a famous critter: the Loch Ness Monster. Thanks to the Nessie on the Net live stream, a webcam is trained at the body of water in the Scottish Highlands all day and night. If anyone is ever going to spot the creature — if it does even exist — now seems like the perfect time for it. You'll want to check out the stream when it's daytime in Scotland, otherwise you'll just see darkness. And, monster or no monster, the lake and the surrounding countryside still looks idyllic either way. Top image: Shibuya scramble crossing, Benh Lieu Song via Wikimedia Commons.
Probably one of the most fun, interactive and accessible events on Sydney's cultural calendar, Underbelly Arts Festival will be kicking into gear on the first weekend of August (but they're letting you into The Lab from July 22). Dedicated to providing a platform for early career artists, this biennial showcase is all about amplifying the bold new voices of Australian art. Featuring over 100 artists, the festival will be a colourful patchwork of thought-provoking installations spread across Sydney’s industrial playground, Cockatoo Island. “The island is filled with possibility,” says artistic director Eliza Sarlos. “And I think it will continue to do so because every artist brings their own unique skills and imagination to the spaces.” From investigating artist studios to visiting a bar that serves air, to stuffing your face with Mary's and throwing shapes at an art party after a long day's exhibition exploring, there's plenty of indulgent adventures to be had this year at Underbelly — here's a sneak peek into what you're allowed to get yourself into. STUFF YOUR FACE (AND MIND) SILLY The Underbelly team is acutely aware of the relationship between artist and audience. And this year, they've cooked up an even bigger program to get your mind cogs moving. In addition to art, music and performance, there will be plenty of delicious noms from your favourite food providers — think inner-west all-stars such as Mary's, Rising Sun and Young Henry's — curated by Sydney foodie, FBi Radio presenter and The Unbearable Lightness of Being Hungry founder Lee Tran Lam. You can also look forward to a kickass art party smack bang in the middle of the weekend. SEE ART BEFORE IT'S READY Prior to the festival on August 1 – 2, the exhibiting artists will finish creating their works in an intensive two-week-long residency or The Lab. “One thing that excites me about Underbelly is what happens before the festival,” says Sarlos. “We have all the artists from different disciplines in the same space together. It’s that exchange that happens when people are creating under the same roof, side by side.” The Underbelly ethos is primarily forward thinking, showcasing art practices that dwell on the consequences of our current moment. “Art has this wonderful capacity to present versions of tomorrow and perspectives on what the future should hold,” says Sarlos. “I think Underbelly is in a great position to facilitate that. It's a precarious time for the arts, so it's important to have those opportunities to pause and reflect.” The festival also provides a laboratory to conceptualise solutions to the big issues. This has spawned a number of socially and politically engaged works. For instance, Emily Parsons-Lord is developing a bar that serves air. Yes, you heard correct. You will literally be served samples of air. Her work, The Arrariam, is concerned with the history of air and the impact of human development. MAKE A BUNCH OF NOISE Alongside the visual art offerings, there is a stellar music and sound program planned. “It’s really exciting to be presenting music in an art context because I don’t think it happens enough,” says Sarlos. “It’s rare that you’re in an environment where you have access to art, music and performance. One thing I love about the festival experience is that there aren’t those arbitrary lines.” From sonic sculptures through to serene acoustics, there will be a whole bunch of technologically innovative sound installations to experience. “We have the amazing Lucy Cliché (Lucy Phelan) recording a piece specifically for one of the bunkers on the island,” says Sarlos. “Getting to hear it in the space it was designed for will be quite special.” Saturday evening will be packed with punchy beats and danceable tunes. The art party lineup will feature Cassius Select, GUERRE, Austin Buckett, Megan Alice Clune and Softwar, to name a few. The Goodgod Karaoke House Band will also make an appearance, inviting festivalgoers to warm up their vocal chords and soak up some good ol' nostalgia. BRAG ABOUT NEW INTERNATIONAL ART YOU JUST LEARNED ABOUT For the first time, this year’s program will include a cohort of international artists. And as the festival spreads its wings, Sarlos believes it’s never too soon to reach overseas. “We’re definitely here for early career artists and I think that’s true for international artists as well. What is interesting for me is building networks with people across the world. I think there’s no reason to wait until you have a blockbuster to create those connections and opportunities.” UK sculptor James Capper is one of the foreign artists climbing aboard. He will be unleashing a number of earth-marking machines to crawl across the island and create their own compositions. “Even though it was developed in the UK, it’s funny how strongly this work resonates with industry driven and mining obsessed Australia,” says Sarlos. ADDRESS THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM With recent government cuts, it's a bleak time for emerging artists attempting to carve out a career or simply pay bills. But simply by attending Underbelly Arts, you'll be supporting said artists and inevitably getting into heated debates over a cider at the end of the day about 'the state of things'. Thinking about this unsteady and uncertain future, Sarlos is a keen campaigner for visibility across every level of art-making. “I certainly don’t advocate against the major art institutions — there’s an important role for them to play,” she says. “Art offers such a beautiful ecology of people creating at different stages — everyone benefits from what everyone else is doing. If you lose the support mechanisms or the access points for audiences to see work from the new generation you miss the opportunity to develop sustainable careers.” Underbelly Arts Festival runs August 1-2 at Cockatoo Island, with The Lab running July 22-26. Check the website for more details or to lock down tickets. Images: Underbelly Arts, Prudence Upton, Lucy Parakhina, Rafaela Pandolfini, James Capper.
Want to escape to the peaceful beachside paradise that is Jervis Bay? A short drive from Huskisson, you'll find Paperbark Camp, a family-operated eco-friendly bush retreat with African safari-inspired tents. The tents have everything you need for a luxe camping experience, including polished hardwood floors, high-quality linen and an open-air private en suite, where you can enjoy a hot bath while spotting wildlife. The property has a number of walking trails to explore, plus bikes and canoes to borrow if you want to venture a little further. The accommodation also includes the renowned treetop dining room, The Gunyah, which offers a three-course set menu showcasing local produce and Indigenous ingredients. Images: Destination NSW
For viewers, three years have passed since Squid Game became an award-winning Netflix hit. For Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae, The Acolyte), the same amount of time has elapsed in the show's storyline. Audiences and Player 456 are alike are in for a new round of life-or-death matches when the streaming smash finally returns on Boxing Day 2024 — but only the series' protagonist will be fighting for survival again while on a quest to shut down this chaos forever in season two. No one watching should ever want Squid Game to end; however, the show itself will wrap up in 2025 with season three. First comes the long-awaited second season to end 2024, though, where Player 456 is back in the game with new fellow competitors for company. "We are not trying to harm you. We are presenting you with an opportunity," the guards tell the latest batch of contestants battling it out for 45.6 billion won in the series' just-released full season-two trailer. Another pivotal line in the latest sneak peek: "the game will not end unless the world changes". Netflix has been dropping multiple early looks at season two, including a teaser trailer to kick off November — and its finishing off the month with a new glimpse at what's to come. These games don't stop, clearly, even after three years. As the show's protagonist dons his green tracksuit once more, his new fellow competitors are wary of his motives. Also part of the recent teases: Lee Byung-hun (The Magnificent Seven) as Gi-hun's nemesis Front Man, plus Wi Ha-joon (Little Women) also back as detective Hwang Jun-ho. Squid Game was such a huge success in its first season that Netflix confirmed at the beginning of 2022 that more was on the way, and also released a teaser trailer for it the same year, before announcing its new cast members in 2023 — and then unveiled a first brief snippet of Squid Game season two in a broader trailer for Netflix's slate for 2024, as it releases every 12 months. For season two, Gong Yoo (Train to Busan) also returns as the man in the suit who got Gi-hun into the game in the first place; however, a show about a deadly competition that has folks battling for ridiculous riches comes with a hefty bodycount. Accordingly, new faces were always going to be essential — which is where Yim Si-wan (Emergency Declaration), Kang Ha-neul (Insider), Park Sung-hoon (The Glory) and Yang Dong-geun (Yaksha: Ruthless Operations) all come in. 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. As a result, 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. Netflix 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. Check out the full trailer for Squid Game season below: Squid Game season two streams via Netflix from Thursday, December 26, 2024. Season three will arrive in 2025 — we'll update you when an exact release date for it is announced. Images: No Ju-han/Netflix © 2024.
Crusaders for saving Sydney's nightlife Keep Sydney Open have issued the battle cry once again, announcing another large-scale rally in Sydney on Sunday, October 9 starting from Belmore Park. And, they'll have company. More than 15,000 Sydneysiders turned up back in February; however this weekend's protest will see more than a few high-profile names join the fold. Known for his loud voice behind a mic, Jimmy Barnes joins the lineup of artists keen to help urge the NSW Government to rethink the state's controversial lockout laws, as well as Justice Ian Callinan's (honestly pretty general) liquor law review, which was released this week. He'll be joined by Urthboy and The Jezabels lead singer Hayley Mary on the speaking front, as well as City of Sydney Councillor Jess Scully and KSO's own Tyson Koh. Fighting a suffering live music scene with some ace live music is also on the agenda, thanks to a performance by the One Day Crew, aka Joyride, Horrorshow, Spit Syndicate and Jackie Onasis. With DJs Touch Sensitive and Ariane also on the bill, as well as Paul Mac with Stereogamous, the rally will demonstrate the city's vibrancy and variety — things that are at risk of fading under the lockout regime. "We're excited to bring this line up together and to unite such diverse genres of music, and eras in Sydney's cultural history, and we're proud to bring this to Sydney's streets for everybody to enjoy on Sunday," said Koh. "It has never been clearer that the lockouts are the wrong answer to the question of how to create a safe, fun and vibrant city," he continued. "Keep Sydney Open will march in the streets to call on the state government to let Sydney have the same, world class late-night culture we all know this city is capable of having." By Shannon Connellan and Sarah Ward.
It's hard to ignore the glistening sails of the Sydney Opera House or the star-studded sands of Bondi Beach when compiling a bucket list of must-visit sites in New South Wales. But these beloved icons are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to jaw-dropping landmarks in the state. Whether carved by hand or etched out by the elements over millennia, there is a bounty of awe-inspiring sites across NSW. A trip to these destinations could see you trekking through the desert or meditating in secluded gardens, so match your adventure to your mood and map out a mission to these ten glorious landmarks.
Something delightful has been happening in cinemas in some parts of the country. After numerous periods spent empty during the pandemic, with projectors silent, theatres bare and the smell of popcorn fading, picture palaces in many Australian regions are back in business — including both big chains and smaller independent sites in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. During COVID-19 lockdowns, no one was short on things to watch, of course. In fact, you probably feel like you've streamed every movie ever made, including new releases, Studio Ghibli's animated fare and Nicolas Cage-starring flicks. But, even if you've spent all your time of late glued to your small screen, we're betting you just can't wait to sit in a darkened room and soak up the splendour of the bigger version. Thankfully, plenty of new films are hitting cinemas so that you can do just that — and we've rounded up, watched and reviewed everything on offer this week. THE QUIET GIRL When Normal People became the streaming sensation of the pandemic's early days, it made stars out of leads Paul Mescal and Daisy Edgar-Jones, and swiftly sparked another Sally Rooney adaptation from much of the same behind-the-scenes team. It wouldn't have been the hit it was if it hadn't proven an exercise in peering deeply, thoughtfully, lovingly and carefully, though, with that sensation stemming as much from its look as its emotion-swelling story. It should come as no surprise, then, that cinematographer Kate McCullough works the same magic on The Quiet Girl, a Gaelic-language coming-of-age film that sees the world as only a lonely, innocent, often-ignored child can. This devastatingly moving and beautiful movie also spies the pain and hardship that shapes its titular figure's world — and yes, it does so softly and with restraint, just like its titular figure, but that doesn't make the feelings it swirls up any less immense. McCullough is just one of The Quiet Girl's key names; filmmaker Colm Bairéad, a feature first-timer who directs and adapts Claire Keegan's novella Foster, is another. His movie wouldn't be the deeply affecting affair it is without its vivid and painterly imagery — but it also wouldn't be the same without the helmer and scribe's delicate touch, which the 1981-set tale he's telling not only needs but demands. His focus: that soft-spoken nine-year-old, Cáit (newcomer Catherine Clinch), who has spent her life so far as no one's priority. With her mother (Kate Nic Chonaonaigh, Shadow Dancer) pregnant again, her father (Michael Patric, Smother) happiest drinking, gambling and womanising, and her siblings boisterously bouncing around their rural Irish home, she's accustomed to blending in and even hiding out. Then, for the summer, she's sent to her mum's older cousin Eibhlín (Carrie Crowley, Extra Ordinary) and her dairy farmer husband Seán (Andrew Bennett, Dating Amber). Now the only child among doting guardians, she's no less hushed, but she's also loved and cared for as she's never been before. Clinch is another of The Quiet Girl's crucial figures, courtesy of a downright exceptional and star-making performance. If you were to discover that she was a quiet girl off-screen, too, you'd instantly believe it — that's how profoundly naturalistic she is. Finding a young talent to convey so much internalised, engrained sorrow, then to slowly blossom when fondness comes her way, isn't just a case of finding a well-behaved child who welcomes the camera's presence. Clinch makes Cáit's isolation and sadness feel palpable, and largely does so without words: again, this is The Quiet Girl in name and nature alike. She makes the comfort and acceptance that her character enjoys with the instantly tender Eibhlín feel just as real, and kicks into another still-composed but also visibly appreciative gear as a bond forms with the tight-lipped Seán. Pivotally, Clinch plays Cáit like she's the only lonely girl in Ireland, but also like she's every lonely and mostly silent girl that's ever called that or any country home. That astonishing performance, and the empathetic and absorbed gaze that beams it into the film's frames, tap into the lingering truth at the heart of this soulful picture: that overlooked and disregarded girls such as Cáit rarely receive this kind of notice on- or off-screen. The warm way that the movie surveys her life, and is truly willing to see it, is never anything less than an act of redress — and, even with dialogue sparse, The Quiet Girl screams that fact loudly. It gives the same treatment to loss, which is an unshakeable force in Eibhlín and Seán's home despite remaining unspoken. "There are no secrets in this house," Eibhlín tells Cáit, but that doesn't mean that the type of pain that defies speech doesn't haunt the place, as it does the lives lived in it. Grief, too, is usually pushed aside, but The Quiet Girl sees how it persists, dwells and gnaws even when — especially when — no one is talking about it. Read our full review. FLUX GOURMET Flickering across a cinema screen, even the greatest of movies only inherently activate two senses: sight and hearing. Audiences can feel the seats they nestle into in their favourite picture palaces, and savour both the scent and flavour of popcorn while they watch, but no one can touch, taste or smell films themselves as they're playing — even if adding scratch-and-sniff aromas to the experience has become a cult-favourite gimmick. British director Peter Strickland knows all of the above. And, he hasn't ever released a feature in Smell-o-Vision, Smell-O-Rama or Odorama. But his work still conjures up sensations that viewers know they can't genuinely be having, such as running your fingers over an alluring dress with In Fabric, detecting the flutter of insect wings against your skin via The Duke of Burgundy and, courtesy of his latest movie Flux Gourmet, relishing the fragrances and tastes whipped up by a culinary collective that turns cooking and eating into performance art. If you've seen his features before, Flux Gourmet instantly sounds like something that only Strickland could make — and from its first frame till its last, it proves that with every moment. While spinning this innately sensory tale, which he both helmed and penned, it does indeed literally sound like something that only Strickland could've come up with, in fact. As the acoustics-focused Berberian Sound Studio demonstrated, the filmmaker's audioscapes are always a thing of wonder, too. His movies may manage to magically engage senses that cinema's sound-and-vision combination intrinsically shouldn't, but they also make the utmost use of every echo. The same applies to each image; unsurprisingly due to his strong and distinctive sense of style and mood, everything about Flux Gourmet looks and feels like pure Strickland. His films can't actually be injected into anyone's veins, but the director's devotees will instantly want this delirious farce pumping through their system. The setting: The Sonic Catering Institute, a conservatory specialising in blending sound and cuisine, as its name makes plain. The "institute devoted to culinary and alimentary performance" is overseen by the couture-coveting Jan Stevens (Gwendoline Christie, Game of Thrones), and regularly welcomes in different groups to undertake residencies. Those visiting artists collaborate, percolate and come up with eye-catching blends of food, bodies and creativity. Hosting OTT dinners, role-playing a trip to the supermarket, getting scatalogical and turning a live colonoscopy into a show: they're just some of the menu items that Jan's latest guests cook up. In Elle di Elle (Strickland regular Fatma Mohamed), Lamina Propria (Ariane Labed, The Souvenir: Part II) and Billy Rubin's (Asa Butterfield, Sex Education) case, however, that unique kind of kitchen virtuosity only springs when they're not broiling in messy bickering. Chaos bubbles through and troubles the trio's troupe, who stir up mayhem among themselves as heartily as any chef stirs their dishes. But Elle, Lamina and Billy aren't the Institute's only current visitors. Watching and chronicling is journalist Stones (Makis Papadimitriou, Beckett), who is also suffering from gastrointestinal struggles that he worries might be something more. As his subjects keep riffing on the human digestive system, or trying to, he can't control his own. Endeavouring to withhold his flatulence 24/7 is his constant struggle. Somehow, keeping a straight face as everything gets absurd around him is a far easier task, but Flux Gourmet's viewers shouldn't want to share that achievement with him; this purposefully strange, silly and surreal film is far too deliciously hilarious. Read our full review. If you're wondering what else is currently screening in Australian cinemas — or has been lately — check out our rundown of new films released in Australia on June 2, June 9, June 16, June 23 and June 30; and July 7, July 14, July 21 and July 28; August 4, August 11, August 18 and August 25; and September 1. You can also read our full reviews of a heap of recent movies, such as Mothering Sunday, Jurassic World Dominion, A Hero, Benediction, Lightyear, Men, Elvis, Lost Illusions, Nude Tuesday, Ali & Ava, Thor: Love and Thunder, Compartment No. 6, Sundown, The Gray Man, The Phantom of the Open, The Black Phone, Where the Crawdads Sing, Official Competition, The Forgiven, Full Time, Murder Party, Bullet Train, Nope, The Princess, 6 Festivals, Good Luck to You, Leo Grande, Crimes of the Future, Bosch & Rockit, Fire of Love, Beast, Blaze, Hit the Road, Three Thousand Years of Longing and Orphan: First Kill.
Back in 2015, when word arrived that the Flinders Street Station Ballroom would be brought back to life after three decades of sitting dormant, no one could've imagined the wonders that it has gone on to hold. Skywhale artist Patricia Piccinini filled it with twisted flowers and otherworldly creatures. Street-art legend Rone decked it out with a new immersive artwork. For RISING 2025, now an art exhibition that's also a nine-hole mini-golf course is temporarily moving in. When it takes over Melbourne each winter, RISING is always all about giving the Victorian capital — and Australia — brand-new experiences. As popular as putt putt is around the country, Swingers: The Art of Mini Golf is definitely a unique addition to the major annual arts festival's 2025 lineup. The event has enlisted female-identifying and gender-diverse artists to design mini-golf holes at the Flinders Street Station Ballroom, and is inviting RISING attendees — plus anyone in Melbourne for a couple of months after the festival — to get swinging at the three-month-long pop-up. While RISING itself will run from Wednesday, June 4–Sunday, June 15 in 2025, Swingers: The Art of Mini Golf will kick off on the fest's opening day but keep letting folks get putting until Sunday, August 31. When you're tap, tap, tapping, you'll be navigating greens designed by Kajillionaire filmmaker and All Fours writer Miranda July, Australian artists Kaylene Whiskey and Nabilah Nordin, Japan's Saeborg, the United Kingdom's Delaine Le Bas, and Indonesia's Natasha Tontey. Expect surreal, mindbending creations — whether July is riffing on her latest book's name with an 'all fores' setup, Whiskey is merging pop culture and Anangu traditions, latex creatures are a feature courtesy of Saeborg or Le Bas is working in embroidery, to name just a few of the details set to star. Swingers: The Art of Mini Golf is RISING 2025's first program announcement — and if you're keen to find out what else is in store, the full roster arrives in March. For this certain highlight of the fest, as well as a mini golf-meets-art mashup, there'll also be a Swingers Clubhouse, aka a pop-up Archie Rose Distilling Co bar, for when you're done swinging. As for what inspired the piece, "the history of mini golf is surprisingly subversive and sits at the heart of this project," explains RISING Senior Curator Grace Herbert, who developed Swingers: The Art of Mini Golf. "It's been incredible to see how each artist has taken this on. Alongside playing mini golf and experiencing the artworks, you might have your fortune told, travel to desert country, become a human-animal hybrid or even find yourself singing along to Dolly Parton." "RISING is about creating collective experiences and Swingers continues that tradition. Bringing such unique artistic minds into the creation of a nine-hole course is a literal game-changer. I can't wait to see audiences step up and take their shot," added RISING Co-Artistic Directors Hannah Fox and Gideon Obarzanek. RISING 2025 runs from Wednesday, June 4–Sunday, June 15 across Melbourne — and Swingers: The Art of Mini Golf will run from Wednesday, June 4–Sunday, August 31, extending past the festival. Head to the event's website for further information. Images: Eugene Hyland.
In preparation for the release of her super-hyped, internet-breaking personal memoir Not That Kind of Girl, your spirit animal Lena Dunham has created a 12-part web series. Taking the whole 'voice of her generation' thing to its logical conclusion, Dunham poses as an agony aunt for people's personal and relationship problems and dishes out some stellar advice. Namely, don't date garbage men and don't yell 'vagina' in inappropriate public places (at home is obviously fine). Though Dunham has worked hard to differentiate herself from her on-air persona Hannah Horvath, it's interesting to note the similarities. For all her faults, the narcissistic Girls character is at least a feminist and a thinker. Here's how the two compare: Takeaway advice: Wear booty shorts and rock on with your bad self. Takeaway advice: Don't bother counting almonds, love your size and rock it in a romper. Takeaway advice: Don't waste time with bad friends. Takeaway advice: Don't fuck garbage people (or something like that). Takeaway advice: The personal is political. Write about whatever you want. Takeaway advice: Ask for help. Mental illness is just as serious as any other disease. Takeaway advice: Bullies are just sad ol' meanies. Takeaway advice: Eating your own stockings doesn't necessarily lead to lots of orgasms. Takeaway advice: Sometimes people just aren't right for each other. Takeaway advice: We're all going to die and Lena Dunham's life is much better than yours. Takeaway advice: We can all be successful, just make a fatty to-do list and hit that shit hard. Takeaway advice: Screaming 'vagina' in a chocolate store is apparently a bad thing. Not That Kind of Girl is released in the US on September 30. Expect overanalysed excerpts on Gawker not long after that.
When Midnight Special starts, TV news reports splash Roy Tomlin's (Michael Shannon) face across the screen. He's wanted for kidnapping eight-year-old Alton Meyer (Jaeden Lieberher), with the film swiftly showing him and his accomplice Lucas (Joel Edgerton) holed up in a motel with the kid. They're about to leave, but when Roy picks up the goggle-wearing Alton to carry him outside, the boy clings to him lovingly. That's not typical abductor-captive behaviour — and this isn't your typical film. A host of questions spring up, as audiences find themselves asking who, why and what's really going on. A cult leader (Sam Shepard) gives two men four days to find Alton shortly before FBI agents interrupt his evening sermon. By the time beams of light shine from Alton's eyes, and a storm of fiery space debris showers down upon him, it's clear we're in entirely uncharted territory. That's by design. Midnight Special asks its characters and viewers alike to wonder, but refuses to flesh out too many details or offer up easy solutions. Indeed, as filmmaker Jeff Nichols tells Roy and Alton's tale — tracking their drive through America's south, picking up Alton's mother (Kirsten Dunst) along the way, and attracting the attention of NSA officer Paul Sevier (Adam Driver) — he seems to have stolen Fox Mulder's catchphrase. He wants to believe, or, more accurately, he wants to tell tales about people who place their faith in something, in the hope that audiences will too. His three previous features may appear a diverse bunch; however 2007's Shotgun Stories, 2011's Take Shelter and 2012's Mud all focused on figures who chose to trust in a force other than themselves, be it vengeance, apocalyptic dreams or the power of love. Now, with Midnight Special, he veers into science-fiction to explore the conviction that comes from a parent's bond with their child. It's an ambitious task, but if anyone is up to it, it's Nichols. With a command of visual and emotional storytelling, he crafts a film that's a road movie, chase thriller, intimate drama and otherworldly adventure all in one, yet remains united in tone and mood. Everything from the cinematography to the evocative score feels heartfelt and mysterious. And then there's the pitch-perfect performances, particularly from the filmmaker's continued main man Shannon, who provides yet another quietly haunting portrayal. Of course, Nichols' latest offering doesn't just follow in his own footsteps, even though he's clearly carving out his own niche. Courtesy of its supernatural narrative, it also conjures up thoughts of '70s and '80s sci-fi fare. Think John Carpenter's Starman and Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T. A lingering sense of awe emanates from not only the writer-director's material, but from the genre greats that inspire him. It's no surprise that the movie that results proves as enigmatic as it is enchanting, delivering Nichols' fourth knockout in a row.
The element setting B&M apart from other florists is the immeasurable passion the family-run business has for its craft. Thirty years ago, the shop was a simple corner store selling groceries and the occasional bouquet of flowers. As the supermarket giants began taking over, the groceries on the shelves gradually began to disappear, making way for more and more flowers — until one day, there was no more groceries. From there came the vast range of plants, gifts and homewares, alongside flower-arranging classes and decorations for weddings and events. The team here is very talented — it has a slew of awards to prove it — so no matter the occasion or budget, you'll find a bloom that's right for you. Images: Trent van der Jagt.
The foundations of wine are relatively simple — find a fertile patch of land, plant extraordinary grapes, and make the best wine you possibly can. In Australia, we grow more than 100 different grape varieties scattered across the country, in 65 distinct wine regions, and in each region we celebrate our unique climate and landscape by crafting some of the most exceptional wines in the world. Knowing the differences between them all is not so simple, which is why we've pinned down the six varieties you should get to know better — from dry, crisp rieslings to that spicy shiraz you like to crack open at a summer barbie. Winemakers, grape growers and viticulturists all work with Australia's varied climates and our ancient soils to plant classics like riesling, chardonnay, pinot noir and shiraz alongside newer varieties like vermentino, fiano, nebbiolo and sangiovese. Unlike other winemaking countries in Europe, Australia's not beholden to any rules or boundaries, which means we've fostered a creative and innovative wine scene. Our winemakers are pushing boundaries by not only experimenting with new grape varieties and unusual blends but also by toying with new winemaking techniques, such as partial berry ferments, carbonic maceration and skin-contact wines. Start taste testing the classics and progress from there. [caption id="attachment_673382" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Manly Wine[/caption] RIESLING Riesling is one of the most exciting and elegant dry white wines in the world. The grapes produce aromatic light- to medium-bodied wines with high acid presence and Australian rieslings tend to lean on the drier, crisp end of the spectrum. They are generally unoaked to highlight the wines zippy, acid lines, and while it's drinkable when it's very young, some wines can mature for decades. Where it's grown: Clare Valley, Eden Valley, Tasmania, Great Southern (WA) and Canberra District. What it tastes like: It's got so many expressions: jasmine florals overlaid by lime cordial and lemon meringue pie with a backbone of acidity and structure that will complement dishes like pork dumplings or sweet-and-sour chicken. SAUVIGNON BLANC Even though it's a white varietal, sauvignon blanc is the parent grape to red grape cabernet sauvignon. Hailing from France's Loire Valley, the grape was first grown in Australia in the 1800s but didn't become popular until 160 years later when our friends across the ditch started generating buzz about this little aromatic variety from the Marlborough region. Sauvignon blanc suits a more 'hands-off' approach; it's often picked when ripe and then fermented in stainless steel tanks to maintain freshness and vibrancy. Where it's grown: Adelaide Hills, Margaret River, Tasmania and Orange. What it tastes like: Australian Savvy Bs tend to take on a more tropical fruit expression — think pineapple, mandarin and guava — with bright citrus notes that scream for a bucket of prawns or fish and chips by the beach. CHARDONNAY Chardonnay is an excellent representation of the vineyard in which its fruit was grown, and it allows for experimentation — winemakers can choose what barrel it's fermented in, for example. Australia makes lean and light-bodied wines in cooler climates up to fuller-bodied, rich and ripe versions in our warm climates. Where it's grown: Adelaide Hills, Yarra Valley, Tasmania, Margaret River, Hunter Valley and Mornington Peninsula. What it tastes like: Ripe stone fruits like white peach, balanced with fruits like pink grapefruit or apples and pears, rounded out with vanilla notes (from the oak it's fermented in). ROSÉ There are a few different ways to make rosé, but the most common is the practice of 'free run' juice. The grapes are crushed and all the liquid freely drains from the skins to the tank before the squeezing process begins. This process produces wines that are balanced in acidity and display high levels of purity in fruit aroma and flavour. Where it's grown: Yarra Valley, Tasmania, Langhorne Creek, plus most other wine regions. What it tastes like: Depending on the style of rosé, you could have florals, pomegranate and wild strawberry characters with fleshy savoury flavours (like dried herbs) on the other end of the spectrum. Dunk one in an ice bucket and enjoy with an antipasti platter for summer grazing. [caption id="attachment_731347" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Steven Woodburn[/caption] PINOT NOIR All over the world pinot noir is regarded as one of the hardest grapes to grow and requires extra attention in every step of its development. A common winemaking strategy when handling pinot noir is to do an 'early press'. Pressing is the process that separates the red juice from its skins. Flavour and structure are extracted during this process by pressing early, before fermentation is completed. Where it's grown: Adelaide Hills, Yarra Valley, Tasmania, Mornington Peninsula, Gippsland, Geelong and Macedon Ranges. What it tastes like: It runs the full gamut of flavours from raspberry and crushed blueberries to savoury expressions like hints of clove, cinnamon bark and wet earth. With its complexity and versatility, pinot noir is the ultimate team player — an all-rounder that can fit into any culinary occasion. SHIRAZ Shiraz thrives in the heat and requires a warm growing season (something we're not short on here in Australia). However, the most aromatic, elegant styles of shiraz are grown in regions with high diurnal temperature ranges (warm days/cool nights). In more temperate areas, shiraz shows jammy, dark berry and plummy fruit characters and less of the delicate aromas. Where it's grown will affect how shiraz is processed and fermented, allowing the winemaker to create a particular style and to build character and complexity into the wine. Where it's grown: Barossa, McLaren Vale, Langhorne Creek, Heathcote, Hunter Valley, Canberra District, McLaren Vale, Eden Valley and Mount Barker. What it tastes like: Punnets of berries dusted with black and green peppercorns, usually medium-bodied in style with drying tannins that call for barbecued meats. WHO'S DOING THINGS DIFFERENTLY? Australia's winemakers are always looking for new ways to develop, and even our more established wineries are open to experimentation in crafting new and exciting wines. The Wolf Blass Makers' Project range is all about celebrating the artistry of winemaking and showcasing the unique properties of each grape variety grown at a particular site. Experimental wines, like this range, are a way of developing and fostering new talent too, as the opportunity encourages the next generation of winemakers to think outside the box. The Wolf Blass Makers' Project wines showcase textures and freshness from the grapes to create fun and easy-to-drink styles like the pink pinot grigio, which is crafted with 'free run' juice, and the pinot noir, made using early pressing techniques to create a smooth and silky wine that's bursting with berry fruit characters. And then there's the reserve shiraz, which uses whole berry fermentation so that more full-fruit and robust flavours are extracted with gentle spicy characteristics. Explore the range that celebrates the processes of skilled winemakers, here. Love to wine and dine? Learn about your favourite flavour matches in our series Encyclopedia of Wine in collaboration with Wolf Blass. Top image: Hunter Valley, Destination NSW.
Wellington's inner heart beats with an amazing cultural offering all of its own. As New Zealand's capital, you'd be forgiven for thinking that the city is all political banter and suits. However, this microcosm of creatives is actually a place where artistry, quirkiness and creative risk taking are celebrated within one of the richest arts environs in the southern hemisphere. Best of all, you can walk anywhere in the inner city in around twenty minutes, tops. On any given night, you'll find something happening, whether it's a poetry reading, a new art showing, book launch, gig or interpretive theatre piece. If you're looking for entertaining sights during the day, you'll find Wellington's cultural identity woven along its beautiful waterfront, and tucked into its streets and laneways. Depending on the time of year, one of Wellington's many epic, internationally acclaimed arts festivals and shows might be lighting up its spaces — among them the Lit Crawl, Jazz Festival, Cubadupa, World of Wearable Arts or the New Zealand Festival (held in even years). The creatives of Wellington are wild, rigorous, obscure and genius all at once. They know how to make their own fun, and then take it to the world. Step into their home. CATCH A FLICK AT THE ICONIC EMBASSY THEATRE Wellington's Embassy Theatre is a jewel in the city's film history. The old bird has perched at the end of Courtenay Place, at the base of Mt Vic since 1924. And there's no better place to view a film in the city, whether it's a blockbuster or an arthouse piece. Maintained to the grandeur of old film theatres of yesteryear, the Embassy has hosted each world premier of Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings and Hobbit films. Each year, the picture palace also hosts the New Zealand International Film Festival. Before or after your film, pay a visit to the old orchestra pit, which is now home to the Shelley Indyk-designed cocktail bar, The Black Sparrow. With its cocktail menu full of litterati and film references, the bar is the perfect spot for a tipple while you wait for your film upstairs to start, or a post-picture nightcap. [caption id="attachment_636658" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Te Papa.[/caption] BROWSE THE LATEST EXHIBITION AT TE PAPA Should you run into inclement weather during your Wellington stay, look to Te Papa Tongarewa, the national museum of New Zealand. An excellent spot to sink a few hours, its floors of world-standard exhibitions and history are truly fascinating. Learn a bit about New Zealand itself in the permanent exhibitions, and venture to Nga Toi on level five for a revolving glimpse into Te Papa's extensive art collections — you could see anything from an early Picasso sketch to a Venice Biennale entrant. When it comes to exhibitions, the large spaces in the museum have hosted everything from gargantuan bugs to Monets and Warhols, making it a true lucky dip experience. [caption id="attachment_636607" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Stars Are Underground via Flickr[/caption] SEE A GIG AT ONE OF THE CITY'S MANY MUSIC VENUES If ever there was a place where you can find consistently good acts from Wellington and beyond, it's in the underground gig venues of the city — well not really underground, they're pretty well signposted. They're the home turf of a whole heap of great local bands — Fazerdaze, Mermaidens and Flight of the Conchords, for example — and they've all started out with Friday and Saturday gigs at either Meow, San Fran or MOON. This is where set lists are refined, live performances honed and fans made, all in intimate settings, and all with beers in hand and forgiving audiences who come out looking for a musical treat. Join them in the search for sonic gold, and you'll be rewarded. [caption id="attachment_636441" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Enjoy Public Art Gallery[/caption] VISIT THE CUBA ART QUARTER Wellington's Cuba Street is known far and wide for its offbeat inhabitants and kooky spirit. A street that was once considered shady in the '80s has come into its own with an eclectic blend of art, vintage and antiques. The best street style can be found here, while the block around Cuba and Ghuznee has some of the best art and dealers in the country. The iconic Peter McLeavey Gallery has been selling art from Cuba Street since 1968, and its neighbour, the kookier Enjoy Gallery, is famed for its non-commercial artist-run initiative MO (as well as its annual art sale). Hamish McKay, Bartley & Company and Suite Gallery up the street round out a robust, artful offering in the heart of the city. [caption id="attachment_636598" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Tony via Flickr[/caption] TAKE A STROLL ALONG WELLINGTON WRITERS WALK Opened in 2002 during the NZ International Festival of the Arts (New Zealand Festival's previous moniker), the Wellington Writers Walk is a project of the New Zealand Society of Authors. It's a beautiful route, mapped along the waters of the Wellington Harbour, that consists of 19 text sculptures. Each work features a quotation about the city from a piece of prose or poetry, penned not only by some of the world's best writers, but by scribes who made Wellington their home at some point in their lives. Writers featured on the walk include luminaries such as Katherine Mansfield, James K. Baxter, Lauris Edmond, Fiona Kidman, Patricia Grace and Maurice Gee. Art, literature and bracing beautiful sea air — it doesn't get much more Wellington than that. You can pick up a map of the walk from the Wellington i-SITE. Maybe you've been to Auckland, maybe you've gone to the snow in Queensland, but now it's time to set your sights on Wellington. The harbourside city may be compact, but that only makes for excellent walkability from its excellent restaurants, cafes and bars to its cultural hot spots and around the great outdoors. Use our planning guide to book your trip, then sort out your Wellington hit list with our food and drink, culture and outdoor guides.
As far as publicity stunts go, this one is as literal as it gets. For its next big fundraising/marketing venture, Aussie company AMP is pulling out some transparent but undeniably ambitious moves, announcing plans to launch a mildly terrifying-sounding building-to-building zipline in Sydney this October. Dubbed The AMP Foundation Big Zipper, the 125-metre zipline is set to stretch between AMP's two CBD skyscrapers, perched 75 metres above Circular Quay, and propelling riders through the air at up to ten metres per second. Registrations are now open for the casual plummet, which will be held on October 20 and 21. It's not a cruisy public affair though. To be involved, participants will need to raise at least $5000 in funds for one of The AMP Foundation's 15 non-profit partners like Wesley Mission, The Stroke Association of Victoria or Cancer Council NSW. If you reckon you can make that kind of coin for charity and want to actively participate in a major corporation's marketing campaign, sign up here.
Symmetry, pastel hues and an astonishing cast: they're all now part of your 2023 plans. Two years after The French Dispatch hit cinemas, Wes Anderson is returning to the big screen with Asteroid City, his 11th feature. Even better: it's now officially on the release slate for the year, featuring a Moonrise Kingdom-esque setup and just about every well-known actor that the filmmaker has ever worked with before (and then some). First, mark midyear in your diary. Asteroid City just locked in a US release date of June 16, 2023, and hopefully it'll reach cinemas Down Under not too long afterwards. That timing makes it an obvious choice to play at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, where The French Dispatch and Moonrise Kingdom also premiered, and then possibly hit the Sydney Film Festival, Melbourne International Film Festival and New Zealand International Film Festival in this part of the world. Next, the premise. Those Moonrise Kingdom vibes spring from Asteroid City's plot, with the film following a Junior Stargazer/Space Cadet convention in the titular — and fictional — American desert town. Students and their parents descend on the contest from around the country, all in the name of scholarly competition; however, then world-changing events shake things up. Anderson penned the script alongside his frequent writing partner Roman Coppola, who also co-wrote Moonrise Kingdom and The Darjeeling Limited, and has a story credit on Isle of Dogs and The French Dispatch. [caption id="attachment_881607" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Raffi Asdourian via Flickr[/caption] Helping bring the story to life on-screen is everyone from Jason Schwartzman (I Love That for You), Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Jeffrey Wright (The Batman), Tilda Swinton (Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio) and Ed Norton (Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery) to Adrien Brody (See How They Run), Liev Schreiber (Ray Donovan), Willem Dafoe (The Northman), Tony Revolori (Servant), Stephen Park (Warrior) and Bryan Cranston (Better Call Saul) — and, of course, Jeff Goldblum (Jurassic World Dominion) — all of whom are Anderson regulars. They'll be joined by Tom Hanks (Elvis), Margot Robbie (Amsterdam), Steve Carell (The Patient), Matt Dillon (Proxima), Hong Chau (The Menu), Hope Davis (Succession), Rupert Friend (Obi-Wan Kenobi), Maya Hawke (Stranger Things), Jake Ryan (Uncut Gems), Grace Edwards (Call Jane), Aristou Meehan (The Contractor), Sophia Lillis (IT: Chapter Two), Ethan Lee (Mr Robinson) and Rita Wilson (Kimi). We told you that the cast list was hefty. It's too early yet for a glimpse at Asteroid City, but you can check out the trailer for Moonrise Kingdom below in the interim: Asteroid City will release in the US on June 16, 2023, with exact dates Down Under yet to be confirmed — we'll update you when the local release date is locked in. Top image: Moonrise Kingdom.
Something delightful is happening in cinemas across the country. After months spent empty, with projectors silent, theatres bare and the smell of popcorn fading, Australian picture palaces are starting to reopen — spanning both big chains and smaller independent sites in Sydney and Brisbane (and, until the newly reinstated stay-at-home orders, Melbourne as well). During COVID-19 lockdowns, no one was short on things to watch, of course. In fact, you probably feel like you've streamed every movie ever made over the past three months, including new releases, comedies, music documentaries, Studio Ghibli's animated fare and Nicolas Cage-starring flicks. But, even if you've spent all your time of late glued to your small screen, we're betting you just can't wait to sit in a darkened room and soak up the splendour of the bigger version. Thankfully, plenty of new films are hitting cinemas so that you can do just that — and we've rounded up, watched and reviewed everything on offer this week. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwk9DsB2JAM IRRESISTIBLE Late in Irresistible, a penny drops — figuratively, of course. Much that has seemed overtly clumsy and broad prior to this moment is given some bite and sting thanks to a crucial plot development, and the political comedy finally seems like something that its writer/director Jon Stewart would conjure up. It's a great moment, but it's sadly also a case of too little, too late. Equally skewering and unpacking the polarised state of America today, especially where politics, elections, campaign finance and escalating culture wars are concerned, Irresistible is far too happy to coast on stereotypes of supposed Democratic and Republican party supporter traits, and for far too long. As he did for on The Daily Show, Stewart has set himself the important task of pointing out just how broken US politics is at present (or, realistically, just how broken it continues to be), but this is one of the great comedian and commentator's lesser efforts. It's also inescapably, unshakeably obvious, even as a moral comedy that endeavours to pair its laughs and observations with a few lessons. After being humiliated by Hillary Clinton's defeat in the 2016 election, Democratic strategist Gary Zimmer (Steve Carell) is re-energised about his job when he's shown a YouTube video from the small town of Deerlaken, Wisconsin. In it, Marine Colonel Jack Hastings (Chris Cooper) makes an impassioned speech supporting undocumented immigrants, and Gary instantly sees a potential Democratic mayoral candidate who'll actually appeal to voters in the Republican heartland. On the ground, little goes smoothly. When Gary's long-time rival, his Republican counterpart Faith Brewster (Rose Byrne), arrives to support the incumbent mayor, Deerlaken suddenly becomes the centre of national attention — and a drawcard for hefty political donations. While Byrne is a fantastic comedic actress in general, it's telling that her presence, expressions and line readings ensure that she steals absolutely every scene she's in, including opposite Carell. Everyone from Russian Doll's Natasha Lyonne to That '70s Show's Topher Grace also pops up, but Irresistible's other standout performance comes from an underused Mackenzie Davis (Terminator: Dark Fate) as the Colonel's resourceful daughter. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mwk10YGPFiM I AM GRETA If a single image can sum up the current crucial battle against climate change, it's a picture — any picture — of Greta Thunberg. Since deciding to skip school to protest outside Sweden's parliament back in August 2018, the braid-wearing teen has become the face of a movement. She isn't the first person to sound an alarm about the dire state of the planet, to vehemently speak truth to power or to gain widespread attention, but her determined, no-nonsense approach really isn't easily forgotten. Sometimes, it's directed at ordinary Stockholm residents going about their days while she strikes. As she has garnered increasing attention, Thunberg has trained her stare on crowded United Nations' conferences, too, and at attendees with the power but not necessarily the inclination to make a difference. She has also met face to face with world leaders, but she knows that politicians usually only share her gaze for a photo opportunity. Demonstrating patiently, speaking passionately, shaking hands for the cameras: all of these moments are captured by documentary I Am Greta, which surveys Thunberg's ascension from everyday Swedish 15-year-old to one of the best-known figures fighting to save the earth. The film acts as a chronicle, starting with her activism on her home soil, following her efforts as she's thrust to fame, and culminating in her trip across the Atlantic Ocean via yacht to present at 2019's UN Climate Action Summit, where she gave her iconic "how dare you" speech. But as the title indicates, this doco is just as concerned with Thunberg's home life as her public impact. Accordingly, while filmmaker Nathan Grossman has an array of recognisable footage at his disposal in this slickly packaged affair, he interweaves it with quieter, intimate and unguarded moments. These snippets help paint a picture of the teenager behind the activism, and much of it is highly relatable. Also cutting through astutely is Thunberg's continued recognition of how, as her fame increases, the global response by naysayers encapsulates so much about the status quo and the lack of government action. And, similarly leaving a mark is the documentary's dedication to show Thunberg's work to effect change in action, and to let that speak volumes. Indeed, what echoes here is that simply doing the right thing is essential regardless of any obstacles and opposition, whether urged by Al Gore, David Attenborough, Aussie doco 2040, your best mate, your neighbour, a stranger or Thunberg. Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFVhB54UqvQ REBECCA In the pages of Daphne du Maurier's 1938 novel, and on the big and small screens several times since, Rebecca tells the tale of a young woman caught in the shadow of her wealthy new husband's late previous wife. So it's noticeable and perhaps fitting that the new 2020 movie adaptation mimics that sensation, with Ben Wheatley's film forever destined to be compared to Alfred Hitchcock's Oscar Best Picture-winning 1940 adaptation of the beloved book. Wheatley is a stellar filmmaker, and has a resume filled with everything from Down Terrace, Kill List and Sightseers to High-Rise, Free Fire and Happy New Year, Colin Burstead to prove it. Here, in his most mainstream, least boundary-pushing effort to date — and his most visually lavish, too — he has crafted a moody and brooding, elegant and often overtly gorgeous film that doesn't do its source material or the gothic genre a disservice. But it still always feels as if it is following in Hitch's footsteps, even when it deviates from that version's famed changes under Hollywood's strict production code at the time. As the book does, this iteration of Rebecca starts an evocative line: "last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again". It's uttered in voiceover by a young woman who is never known as anything but Mrs de Winter (Lily James), and who viewers first meet as a paid companion to an acid-tongued socialite (The Handmaids' Tale's Ann Dowd) during a trip to the French Riviera. During the picturesque getaway, the unnamed heroine crosses paths with widower Maxim de Winter (Armie Hammer). Romance quickly blooms, setting them en route to his sprawling family estate. Back at Manderley, however, the new bride can't escape the lingering presence of the movie's titular figure, the menace directed her way by housekeeper Mrs Danvers (Kristin Scott Thomas) and the sensation that much is awry about her current situation. Those unacquainted with Rebecca's twists should keep it that way going in, with Wheatley patiently teasing out its ample psychological thrills. Still, as luxe as it looks, as capably as it handles the iconic narrative and as memorable as Scott Thomas is — with James and Hammer always hitting their marks, but doing little more — this is a movie that exists, engages enough, but rarely has a strong lasting impact. Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTxobgjD3hE CITY OF LIES It has been almost a quarter-century since Tupac Shakur and Christopher Wallace (aka the Notorious BIG/Biggie Smalls) were gunned down in separate incidents within six months of each other — and, over that time, fewer films about either or both have reached screens than one might expect. Known not only for their music but for being the focal points of the supposed East Coast-West Coast hip hop feud, the pair's plights have inspired exactly zero worthwhile movies, though, and that includes the long-delayed City of Lies. Based on the non-fiction book LAbyrinth by Randall Sullivan, this conspiracy thriller views the deaths of two of the 90s' biggest stars through the efforts of LAPD detective Russell Poole. There is real-life grounds for that angle, and the on-screen Poole (Johnny Depp) is constantly noting and fighting against the racial prejudice that existed in the Los Angeles police department at a time just after the Rodney King assault, trial and riots, as well as the OJ Simpson case. But there's no escaping the fact that the film approaches some of the most momentous events in rap history through a white cop. In 1997, Poole is assigned to another shooting — of a black officer by a white officer — just days after Notorious BIG's death. Soon, however, his investigation of the former leads him to the latter, and to the conclusion that the LA police were involved in killing Biggie, all as his superiors demand he ignore the evidence. Decades later, long after he has resigned from being a cop, a journalist (Forest Whitaker) wanders into Poole's apartment for a 20-year piece on the rapper's murder — and the writer might've been accused of dredging up the past if Poole's walls weren't covered in case details and materials. Where director Brad Furman turned legal thriller The Lincoln Lawyer into a slick and entertaining affair, almost everything about City of Lies is misjudged, and it drags on rather than drawing viewers into its theories or even the cases it covers. Depp plays crusading but hard done by with little discernible effort, and the decision to film the movie's 90s scenes with the same type of hues and lighting usually reserved for 70s-set features smacks of the same. And while Whitaker is the best thing about City of Lies, his determined performance isn't enough to salvage the film. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9Vm7cpQX80 HOPE GAP If you're going to watch a couple navigate the waning days of their decades-long marriage, and watch as their adult son tries to cope with the fallout, too, then you might as well be directing your eyeballs at Annette Bening, Bill Nighy, and God's Own Country and The Crown star Josh O'Connor. They play Grace, Edward and Jamie, respectively, with their family rocked by the revelation that mild-mannered, history-obsessed teacher Edward is leaving after 29 years because he's fallen in love with another woman. Usually the shining light and driving force in their modest house in a seaside town, Grace doesn't take the news well. Jamie, who lives in the city and doesn't generally come home as often as anyone would like, swiftly becomes his mother's main source of a support and a go-between with his father. As written and directed by second-time filmmaker William Nicholson (1997 feature Firelight) based on his 1999 play The Retreat from Moscow, little in Hope Gap's narrative offers surprises — especially if you've seen other movies about marital breakdowns, such as 2019's far meatier Marriage Story — but the British drama benefits considerably from its central trio of talent and their performances. While the plot plays out as anticipated, one aspect of Hope Gap does veer from the expected formula — and that'd be O'Connor. That he's an exceptional actor isn't new news, but he's firmly the heart of this wordy drama about the yearning and breaking hearts of his character's parents. He's also the most soulful part of the film; however, that isn't a criticism of Bening and Nighy. In spiky but still vulnerable mode, Bening may struggle with an unconvincing English accent, but she cuts to the core of Grace's bravado and pain. Nighy plays his part in a far softer, gentler, more nervous register, and helps make it plain just how Grace and Edward's marriage has gotten to this fracturing point. In a handsomely shot movie that intertwines picturesque glimpses of the coast with tense domestic scenes — and uses poetry verses to help convey emotion as well — they all demand the viewers' attention. But without the especially tender and thoughtful O'Connor, Hope Gap would've felt like just another average portrait of a longstanding relationship imploding, even with Bening and Nigh's impressive work. If you're wondering what else is currently screening in cinemas — or has been lately — check out our rundown of new films released in Australia on July 2, July 9, July 16, July 23 and July 30; August 6, August 13, August 20 and August 27; September 3, September 10, September 17 and September 24; and October 1 and October 8. You can also read our full reviews of a heap of recent movies, such as The Personal History of David Copperfield, Waves, The King of Staten Island, Babyteeth, Deerskin, Peninsula, Tenet, Les Misérables, The New Mutants, Bill & Ted Face the Music, The Translators, An American Pickle. The High Note, On the Rocks, The Trial of the Chicago 7, Antebellum, Miss Juneteenth and Savage. Top image: Rebecca, Kerry Brown / Netflix.
Little Box proves correct the old adage that it's not about size, but what you do with it that matters. Quite literally a little box that appears to have been plonked in the middle of an outdoor shopping arcade, it's tiny — but you can't walk past without being intrigued. Judging from the setup, you'd expect their menu to be short and sweet, but Little Box is essentially the clown car of cafes — so there's plenty to choose from for both breakfast and lunch. They've earned our respect with their sweet potato and zucchini fritters with avo smash and a balsamic glaze ($13.50) and their portobello mushroom burger with haloumi ($13). If you prefer a bit of meat, the lamb salad with feta and roast pumpkin ($15) or the slow-cooked pulled lamb burger with chipotle salsa ($14) are equally impressive options. And if you're a coffee aficionado who's keen to try a new bean, theirs comes from Barrel One Roasters, a boutique roaster that's local to the northern beaches.
Sweet-toothed Sydneysiders, rejoice — Sugar Republic, Australia's dessert-themed installation experience, is back for another serving this November. And if you think you've seen it all before, here's some extra-great news for all you candy lovers: the 2021 season will be bigger, and will also mix familiar attractions with new rooms and installations. Sugar Republic's previous Aussie iterations included a giant gumball machine that you can climb inside, and that's returning this time. But you'll also be able to jump out of a life-sized birthday cake, check out a huge lolly jar and see a rather big jelly — if super-sized sweets are your thing, that is. Still on that topic, the new Sydney setup will include a game of giant doughnut Connect Four, too, when it heads to The Rocks from Sunday, November 6. Also on the lineup: a prize claw machine you can crawl into, a pool of marshmallows that you can swim through, a sprinkles ball pit, chocolate and popcorn swings, and a wild west saloon dedicated to Bubble-O Bills. Yes, it sounds like the kind of place that Willy Wonka might own, complete with a scratch 'n' sniff wall where you'll guess the lollies, a living room dedicated to iconic Australian biscuits, art devoted to milk bars by Frida Las Vegas and a party zone to celebrate the 130th birthday of sweets brand Allen's. Each time that Sugar Republic pops up, it's always OTT. Basically, if you missed out on visiting New York's Museum of Ice Cream back in 2016, this is Australia's equivalent. Typically these kind of places are designed to be as photogenic and Instagram-friendly as possible, so expect plenty of pics to clog your Instagram feed. Exactly how long Sugar Republic will hit up Sydney this time hasn't been revealed; however, tickets are currently on sale until Thursday, December 23. And yes, free lollies and ice cream are part of the $38 admission price. Also, you can use Dine and Discover vouchers at the door.
Despite Australian supermarkets' current two-item limits, trying to get your hands on — and covered in — sanitiser is much harder than it should be at present. The liquid disinfectant is on everyone's must-buy list, leaving empty supermarket shelves seemingly everywhere. Luckily, a bunch of Australian distilleries are using their booze to make the now-essential product. It makes sense, because alcohol is a crucial ingredient in sanitiser — especially ones that are effective against COVID-19. So, next time you slather your hands with sanitiser, you could be covering them with your favourite booze, too. Meaning there's now no excuse not to clean your hands, you detty pigs. To find out more about the status of COVID-19 in Australia and how to protect yourself, head to the Australian Government Department of Health's website. MANLY SPIRITS CO Normally, north Sydney's Manly Spirits Co makes gin, vodka, whisky and liqueurs. Of course, these aren't normal times, so it's using its high-grade gin to whip up its own sanitiser. So, if you're wanting to disinfect your hands and smell like botanicals, now you can. Understandably, that's likely to make you thirsty, so the company is making 50 millilitre bottles available for free with every Manly Spirits Co bottle of spirits purchased, which can be ordered here. To discourage stockpiling, however, there is a limit of one free sanitiser per person. Plus, it's supplying its Manly Spirits Hand Sanitiser with Gin Aroma to local community groups, charities and organisations in larger five-litre sizes, to assist with their crucial operations. MR BLACK COFFEE LIQUEUR Fans of caffeinated booze can look forward to freshening their fingers with their preferred tipple thanks to Mr Black's new hand sanitiser. The distillery has made thousands of bottles and you can grab a maximum of two 500 millilitre bottles, for $19.95 each, plus a $10 flat-rate national shipping fee. It's also donated bottles of its A-class sani to a bunch of charities, medical centres and COVID-19 testing clinics. The hand sanitiser is made using a World Health Organisation recipe with 80 percent ethanol, and as bottles don't come with a pump they're designed to be used as refills. While currently out of stock, Mr Black will be adding more early next week and you can join a waitlist over here. And if you decide to invest in some actual coffee liqueur while you're on the site — the OG ($60), single-origin ($75) and amaro ($80) versions are all for sale, as is the most adorable 50-millilitre bottle ($5.99) — or some sweet merch, and spend over $80, you'll get free shipping. BRIX DISTILLERS Sydney's only rum distillery has also jumped on the sanitiser wagon — and selling twin-packs of 300-millilitre bottles for $34. While you're on the site, you can nab a bottle of white, gold or spiced rum; a mix-your-own espresso martini pack; or barrel-aged rum negroni from these guys, too. Plus, Brix is offering $10 off and free shipping on its core range of rums. Nab your booze and sani over here. CAPE BYRON DISTILLERY Premium spirits slinger Cape Byron Distillery is turning its awarded Brookie's Byron Gin into a natural hand and surface sanitiser. Made with 70 percent ethanol, gin byproducts, filtered spring water, aloe vera and citrus, this hand cleaner is also scented with lime and gin botanicals, so your hands will smell like a G&T. As well as supplying large containers of the stuff to local medical centres, doctors, hospitals and care workers, 500-millilitre bottles are also available for purchase via Cape Byron's website for a reasonable $14.99. ARCHIE ROSE The much-loved Rosebery distillery has reallocated its spirits production capacity to hand sanitiser. And in doing so, it's been able to keep majority of its staff in a job. Unsurprisingly, Archie Rose's sanitiser sold out in an instant, but you can pre-order a 500-millilitre bottle via the website. The latest release will leave Archie Rose's facilities the week of April 27, so hopefully you have some in the cupboard for the meantime. ANIMUS DISTILLERY Located in Victoria's Macedon Ranges, Animus is known for its small-batch gins and is using its distillery to now make sanitiser. A 100-millilitre bottle will only cost you $10 and is available for purchase online or pick up in person at the distillery. To discourage hoarding, there's a six-bottle limit per person. You can feel good about buying it, too, with 50 percent of all profits being used to subsidise access to sanitiser for those in need. POOR TOMS GIN Need to restock your gin supply? Poor Toms is still delivering its goods — and it's throwing in a free bottle of its hand sani with any gin purchase. But only for a limited time, so best be quick. As the distillery is supplying frontline healthcare professionals, the botanical-scented sanitiser is not available for retail sale. So, nab yourself some of its classic, strawberry-infused or Fool's Cut gin and maybe throw in a bottle of its amaro, too, and you'll receive 200 millilitres of high-grade, limited-edition sanitiser. It's only $10 shipping across Australia. Available online.
City of Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore is questioning the need for alcohol-free zones. The inner-city council currently has 379 public areas where alcohol is prohibited, including several of the city's expansive green spaces. But Moore thinks that it's time to reconsider their efficiency and their negative side effects. "Several councillors and I share concerns the current restrictions have a disproportionate impact [on] people in low incomes, people living in social housing and First Nations communities," said Moore in a statement online. "We have spent a lot of money and effort encouraging people to return to the city post-pandemic, giving people ways to have a good and safe time outdoors through our Sydney Streets and al fresco dining programs. We also need to make sure that people who cannot afford to go to pubs and licenced outdoor events have the same right to enjoy a drink with friends in our outdoor spaces." [caption id="attachment_828944" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Cassandra Hannagan[/caption] The current slate of alcohol-free zones are set to expire in December. Instead of extending the zones for four years, the City of Sydney has voted to only reinstate them for a further nine months as it assesses their future. "We obviously don't want to have any decision result in unintended consequences, such as an increase in antisocial behaviour or arrests, but there is limited evidence that would be the case — and we can have a mature conversation as a community about how we manage our public spaces." Areas that are currently alcohol-free zones that the changes could impact include Hyde Park, Prince Alfred Park and Redfern Park. The change would also impact areas like Harmony Park, Sydney Park and Rushcutters Bay Park, where alcohol is only permitted during certain hours of the day. [caption id="attachment_826986" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Harmony Park, Brooke Zotti[/caption] Read the full statement from City of Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore on the future of alcohol-free zones in the inner-city council area. Top image: Kgbo.
The New Pornographers tread a categorical line between rock and roll's grungy distortion and pop pleasure — basically they're contemporary pop musicians in the true form. So if we were to categorise theirs as pop music, let's distinguish it from the fake, plastic kind. With rich harmonies and vocal layers, there's no chance of an auto-tuner being tucked into their luggage, there's no lip-syncing and they're certainly using real instruments — you won't find anything more electrical than a guitar in their set up. After releasing album number five, Together, they're touring Australia and New Zealand; 1) because who wouldn't want to take a holiday while you work and 2) because we love them and can't wait to see them perform their new album live, in the flesh. Sure, you'll tap your foot while listening to them while you work but when you're stretching your lungs to sing along to them in the car, there's no denying how good this pop really is. Seeing them in the flesh will only make you wish they were playing two dates instead of one — make sure you don't miss it. https://youtube.com/watch?v=bxMCaU83QKs
It might not be quite the same as jetting off on an international getaway, but the banks of Circular Quay are about to get a taste of New Caledonian beach life, as part of a four-day pop-up this July. A whole heap of sand will transform the eastern side of the quay, between the ferry terminals and the Sydney Opera House, into a tropical oasis inspired by the French island's beach villages. The summery beach is part of the city's annual Bastille Festival, which also includes a wintry Christmas in July Village over in the Rocks. As well as New Caledonia, the temporary beach takes inspiration from the artificial beaches that pop-up along the Seine in Paris during summer, which look a little like this: The Sydney beach, however, will have a bit more going on. From July 11 to 14, the sandy stretch is set to be the ultimate playground for those avoiding winter, dotted with beach chairs and palm trees and filled with cocktails, treasure hunts, games and island-inspired fare. Imagine lazing beneath the beach umbrellas while you tuck into the likes of barbecued prawn and pineapple skewers and coconut-glazed roast pork, before sampling limited-edition Noumea-style ice cream treats and desserts from your mates at KOI and Messina. Yep, the Sydney dessert big guns are getting involved for this one. To match, there'll be a bar serving a cocktail selection heavy on rum, coconut and pineapple, along with a tidy lineup of French rosé and bubbles. But it doesn't have to be all lounging and lazing. If you prefer a more adventurous sort of summer getaway, round up your own crew of pirates to take part in a giant treasure hunt, trekking all through Circular Quay and the Rocks. Or, have a crack at 'coconut pétanque' — a riff on the classic European game, which plays a little like Aussie lawn bowls. The Island Kanak Beach Village will pop up at East Circular Quay from Thursday, July 11–Sunday, July 14 as past of Bastille Festival. It'll be free to enter and open from 10am–10.30pm Thursday–Saturday and 10am–8.30pm Sunday.
It won Emma Stone her second Golden Globe. It just might nab the actor her second Oscar, too. And it was the best film of 2023. Poor Things is also the inspiration behind a key part of this year's Europa! Europa Film Festival in Sydney and Melbourne: a retrospective dedicated to Greek filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos featuring six of his prior flicks. Three of his movies in his homeland are covered, including the Oscar-nominated Dogtooth, earlier psychological drama Kinetta and 2011's Alps. So are his trio of English-language titles before riffing on Frankenstein, aka The Lobster, The Killing of a Sacred Deer and The Favourite. 2024 marks two years since Europa! Europa first debuted, giving film fans a new excuse to pretend they're on the other side of the world while settled into three Aussie cinemas, and taking place at the Ritz Cinemas Randwick in Sydney, and Melbourne's Classic Cinemas Elsternwick and Lido Cinemas Hawthorn. The event's third annual fest runs from Thursday, February 15–Sunday, March 10 in the New South Wales capital and from Thursday, February 15–Monday, March 11 in Victoria, both with a lineup of 47 movies from 28 countries. Accordingly, while diving into the bulk of Lanthimos' filmography is a major drawcard, that's just one part of the just-unveiled full program. It all starts with the Mads Mikkelsen (Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny)-led The Promised Land, which is also Denmark's shortlisted submission for Best International Feature category at the 2024 Academy Awards. And still on movies with awards ties, the centrepiece gala will screen conversation-driven play-to-film drama Freud's Last Session, which features The Father Oscar-winner Anthony Hopkins as an elderly Sigmund Freud. Io Capitano is also a 2024 contender for Best International Feature, for Italy. Hailing from Gomorrah and Dogman's Matteo Garrone, it follows two teens leaving Senegal for Europe. While it didn't make the Academy's shortlist, Poland's The Peasants was the country's submission in the category, with Loving Vincent's DK Welchman and Hugh Welchman behind the animated drama that this time is styled to resemble Polish artworks. From there, other highlights include the futuristic The Beast from Nocturama's Bertrand Bonello, which adapts a Henry James novel, and stars Léa Seydoux (Crimes of the Future) and George Mackay (1917); Les Indésirables, the latest by Les Misérables director Ladj Ly; BPM (Beats Per Minute) filmmaker Robin Campillo returning with the Madagascar-set Red Island; and The Mauritanian helmer Kevin Macdonald's fashion documentary High & Low: John Galliano. Or, there's Spanish comedy Co-Husbands, with Paco León (Staring at Strangers) and Ernesto Alterio (You Shall Not Lie) playing men who learn they've wed the same woman; A Chef for Dali, also from Spain, as inspired by restaurant El Bulli's origins; Greece's The Summer with Carmen, about writing a film script one summer; Men of Deeds, focusing on a Romanian cop; and Germany's Stella. A Life starring Paula Beer (Afire). The Lanthimos retrospective isn't the only way that Europa! Europa is looking backwards, either, thanks to 4K restorations of 1963's Contempt by late, great French directing icon Jean-Luc Godard (Goodbye to Language) and 1970's The Conformist from Bernardo Bertolucci (Stealing Beauty). "This year's Europa! Europa line-up is a testament to the power of diverse storytelling, offering a rich tapestry of narratives that speak to a wide array of experiences and emotions," said Artistic Director Spiro Economopoulos, announcing the program. "Each film, carefully selected, is not just a viewing experience but an invitation to engage with stories that resonate universally, truly exemplifying the essence of European cinema." EUROPA! EUROPA 2024 DATES: Thursday, February 15–Sunday, March 10 — Ritz Cinemas Randwick, Sydney Thursday, February 15–Monday, March 11 — Classic Cinemas Elsternwick and Lido Cinemas Hawthorn, Melbourne Europa! Europa will screen in Sydney and Melbourne between in February and March. For more information or to buy tickets, head to the festival's website.
Come Friday, March 22, it's time for a night at the museum — but you won't find Ben Stiller roaming the halls here. Rather, given what'll be on display at Queensland Museum at the time, the revelry will feel a little out of this world. Walking, talking, drinking and partying like you're on the moon is on the agenda at QM's latest After Dark shindig, which is all about soaring beyond the earth as part of the museum's NASA — A Human Adventure showcase. There'll be music, drinks and demonstrations — plus attendees will get free reign, peering not only at the a whole host of exhibits about space featuring more than 250 items, including pieces that have actually been to space, but also feasting your eyes on the rest of the joint's displays. You'll be knocking back beverages; examining rocket engines, space food, space suits, lunar cameras and moon boots; and pondering life beyond our pale blue dot — and the fun coincides with this year's World Science Festival Brisbane, so there'll be plenty of science (yeah!) coming your way. A word of warning: these shindigs often sell out so you'll want to nab a ticket quickly.
Bistro Rex's Nick and Kirk Mathews-Bowden have teamed up with Chef Ben Sears (Paper Bird, Moon Park) to open Ezra — a love letter to Tel Aviv, a city on Israel's Mediterranean coast. The trio hopes to bring a taste of this city Kings Cross, where Ezra has opened inside an old terrace house. Its design takes cues from Tel Aviv's byzantine and bauhaus architecture, with many curves and lots of earthy tones. The space boasts two plant-filled courtyards — one out back and one in the front — a long walnut bar and a large mosaic archway, made using handmade Lebanese tiles. Floral sculptor Tracy Deep makes dried native arrangements for the space, too, while local artist Amy Hunter has created original pieces for the walls. Apart from table seating, diners can pull up a stool at both the bar and in front of the open kitchen. Expect family-style dining here, with the menu split into small snacks, salads and larger charcoal-grilled dishes. On the snacks front, there's spanner crab falafel ($6), gildas with salmon pastrami and pickled chilli ($5) and hummus with smoked egg ($14). We think the latter is best scooped up with pita ($4) or a Jerusalem bagel ($5). Larger dishes include chicken baked in vine leaf ($29), lamb shoulder and prune tagine ($29) and roast cauliflower with haloumi ($17), while desserts feature the likes of almond milk panna cotta ($12) and an ice cream baklava sandwich ($7). [caption id="attachment_791590" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Cassandra Hannagan[/caption] At Moon Park and Paper Bird, Sears was known for his riffs on Korean, Japanese and Chinese dishes, and he's incorporating some of those flavours into the dishes at Ezra, too. The whole flounder ($39), for example, is cooked in chickpea miso. To accompany the food, a relatively succinct wine list spans both "natural" and "nostalgic", meaning you can get pét-nats, orange and minimal-intervention wines alongside a classic chablis. Apart from wine, there's a short cocktail list, created by a friend from Melbourne's Black Pearl. On it is a paloma ($20), a limonana ($20) — a gin-spiked Israeli mint lemonade that's been shaken with lemon sorbet — and a play on a Brazilian batida de coco ($20). That last one is a dark rum-based drink similar to a piña colada, but the Ezra version uses natural yoghurt instead of coconut milk. Images: Cassandra Hannagan
A Sydney Film Festival top ten? From more than 200 films and events? Yeah, that's going to happen. We may have snuck a few extras in there. But with a fierce competition field, an extended Sydney Film Festival Hub program and special presentations of some of the most talked-about new films we thought we'd have to wait much longer to see, you'll want to know you had this vital extended information when heading over to book seats. 1. Rear Window Loop This impressive video installation, spliced together by Jeff Desom, allows you to see the world as it appeared to Jimmy Stewart's paranoid, wheelchair-bound photojournalist Jeff in Hitchcock's Rear Window — possible murders and all. It will be set up at the SFF Hub in the Lower Town Hall, a site so integral to the feel of the festival, it's hard to believe that it is only in its second year. The Hub is the spot to hang out, imbibe and celebrate the way films bleed into life and art, via a program of cinema-related happenings, interdisciplinary works and playtime. And also: Nearly everything here is good; just go already. But, seeing as I'm literally being paid to choose: This Is It, a staged movie press conference where you can ask questions; the nostalgic VHS Party, to which you can bring your own cued tapes; and the Download This Show panel discussion Cinema in 2074, in which Marc Fennell and co discuss what the tech and culture might look like 60.5 years from now. This is also the place to buy last-minute $10 tickets. 2. Before Midnight There's something really special about Richard Linklater's Before Sunrise, the conversational, anti-narrative, true-to-life romcom which is partly responsible for the mumblecore movement. With the sequel Before Sunset coming nine years later and this third installment nine years later still, the movie release has become an event. We care about Ethan Hawke's Jessie and Julie Delpy's Celine the way we care about TV characters that we've spent seasons with, and it's a joy to think about visiting them as middle-agey marrieds. And also: New films from other cult writer/directors are also previewing at the festival. Don't miss Mood Indigo, the newbie from the finest mind in whimsy, Michel Gondry, and the alluring stumper Upstream Color, Shane Carruth's follow-up to Primer. https://youtube.com/watch?v=x5eKn5LK0fw 3. The Rocket Directed by Kim Mordaunt, this Australian film set in Laos comes to the festival with a lot of momentum at its back, having just won Best First Feature at the Berlinale and Best Narrative Feature at Tribeca. The wins are probably because it's so sweet and heartwarming, even while following a ten-year-old boy hurt both by displacement and by having everyone in his village ostracise him for being 'cursed'. And also: Australian filmmakers constantly prove their mettle amidst the international heat of the Sydney Film Festival. Opening the festival is the world premiere of Mystery Road, Ivan Sen's Western-tinged follow-up to Toomelah. 4. The Act of Killing This is one of those documentaries that in its very form is something new. While filming survivors of the 1965-66 Sumatran massacre, Joshua Oppenheimer discovered that the perpetrators, now elder statesmen, remain openly proud of their crimes — and eager for fame. So he has them join the project, scripting and starring in re-enactments of their murders. It's chilling but also achieves a surprising effect, leading Werner Herzog to say "I have not seen a film as powerful, surreal, and frightening in at least a decade...it is unprecedented in the history of cinema." He signed on to executive produce, along with documentary king Errol Morris. And also: Documentaries are a huge strength of the festival. There's the surprising reveals of Stories We Tell, Sarah Polley's revealing investigation of her own family; the call to action of urban planning manifesto The Human Scale; and the constant bizarreness of Fuck for Forest, which spends time with the enviro group that fundraises by selling homemade porn. 5. Stoker Stoker will be out in cinemas in August, but it's already generating so much buzz from overseas — based on it being the first English-language film from ruthless Korean director Park Chan-wook (Oldboy) and on the awesome Aus-lady casting triumvirate of Mia Wasikowska, Nicole Kidman and Jacki Weaver — why wait to join in the conversation when you don't have to? The Stokers bear a resemblance to the Addams family, with added violence, psychosexual exploration and Hitchcockian suspense. Hooray! And also: You can say it; there's a petty but good feeling that comes from seeing something just a bit earlier than everybody else. Other majorly hyped releases previewing at SFF time include The Bling Ring (the one where Emma Watson sticks her tongue out), Behind the Candelabra (the one where Michael Douglas and Matt Damon are lovers) and Only God Forgives (the Nicholas Winding Refn/Ryan Gosling reunion we're only more excited to see now it's been booed at Cannes). https://youtube.com/watch?v=U7SxMaA0Om8 6. Frances Ha Like a Woody Allen comedy, with Greta Gerwig as Woody Allen. She wrote this script together with director (and love friend) Noah Baumbach (Greenberg). Even if you really, really can't stand films/TV/books about self-involved, twenty-something-year-old white people trying to figure their lives out, this one looks poised to charm. And also: It's so easy to make it to the end of SFF without seeing a comedy; they're often dismissed around more 'worthy' films. Another favourite is The Way, Way Back the latest from Descendents writers Nat Faxon and Jim Rash (Community's Dean!), with Andrew Bujalski's mockumentary Computer Chess striking a more offbeat note. https://youtube.com/watch?v=2pcCCbLzhcY 7. Wadjda Joining The Rocket in competition is Wadjda, the first film shot entirely in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, by a University of Sydney grad no less: Haifaa Al Mansour. It's a sweetly challenging number, about a 10-year-old girl who'll do anything for a bicycle — including train to win a Koran recitation competition. And also: Don't be that person who stays in their Hollywood-cinema comfort zone, at least not at festival time. Asghar Faradi follows up The Separation with The Past, fellow Iranian Jafar Panahi follows up This Is Not a Film with closed curtain, and Berlin's hipsters get a moment in the sun in Oh Boy. https://youtube.com/watch?v=4QzblZ-Dg0U 8. Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer One thing we never regret doing, when we get the chance, is revisiting a story that dominated headlines a year or so prior. Context, analysis, consequence, meaning — all these new things to appreciate. You know you want to in the case of Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer, a new doco from Academy Award-nominated producer Mike Lerner (Afghan Star) that's soon to screen on HBO, too. And also: SFF has a Sounds on Screen stream, but it could just as easily have a 'women and girls smashing it' stream. That's where we'd place Miss Nikki and the Tiger Girls, teen dream Ginger and Rosa and the burlesque boundary-pushers of Exposed all demand attention. https://youtube.com/watch?v=OtVnYcFAGLU 9. Comrade Kim Goes Flying This is not a film you'd expect to see, anywhere. It's actually the first North Korean-Western co-pro in more than 30 years. And the film itself is a kitschy comedy about a young coal miner pursuing her dreams in the circus arts. Go figure. And also: A great film festival experience features at least one film that's truly bizarre (and probably too bizarre to make it into cinemas later down the track). Some of this year's loveable oddballs include The Pervert's Guide to Ideology, in which Slavoj Zizek talks at you from replica film sets (it's a sequel to The Pervert's Guide to Cinema), and Love City Jalalabad, in which filmmaker George Gittoes starts a surreal artist commune in Afghanistan. https://youtube.com/watch?v=uY0p7QLtZHo 10. Burning Bush TV is going through a golden age that sees movie stars and directors flocking to the medium. The Sydney Film Festival recognises this through their Box Set program, which screens quality TV series (mini ones, not eight-series-long ones) that mightn't be on your radar yet. Check out HBO Europe's Burning Bush, which revisits a pivotal moment in Czech history, triggered by a student's act of self-immolation. It screens in one 240-minute marathon with a 20-minute interval. And also: There's Japanese broadcaster WOWOW's Penance, a vengeance tale from Kiyoshi Kurosawa (270 minutes). The Sydney Film Festival runs from Wednesday, June 5, to Sunday, June 16. Top image: Upstream Color
Open up your eager eyes, Sydney: The Killers are headed this way. Even better, the Las Vegas-born rockers are stopping by the Harbour City on Monday, December 19 for not just one show but two, after announcing an intimate one-off midnight gig at the Entertainment Quarter's Liberty Hall. The band has been hitting up a heap of arenas Down Under across November and December, and a few Aussie wineries as well. But its latest addition will get you singing 'Mr Brightside' and the group's other hits from 12am, when they take to the stage for a second time on the same night following their earlier show at Qudos Bank Arena. If destiny is calling you, you'll need to grab tickets either from 10am AEDT on Thursday, December 15 in the Frontier members' pre-sale or from 12pm on Friday, December 16 when general tickets become available. Given the band's lengthy back catalogue, Brandon Flowers and company won't just be playing 'Mr Brightside' on repeat like it's an AFL Grand Final, but will be making a hot fuss over plenty of the band's hits — including tracks from their 2020 album Imploding the Mirage. The tour is named after that record, even though they released another one, Pressure Machine, this year. That's what happens when live gigs get put on hold during a pandemic, clearly. Remember: somebody told you that you'll be dancing along to 'Somebody Told Me', 'Smile Like You Mean It', 'When You Were Young', 'Bones', 'Human' and 'The Man' as well. Still in NSW, The Killers are also playing Hunter Valley's Hope Estate on Saturday, December 17. The Killers have added a midnight gig on Monday, December 19 at Entertainment Quarter's Liberty Hall to its Australian tour. Pre-sale tickets go on sale at 10am AEDT on Thursday, December 15 for Frontier members, and general tickers from 12pm on Friday, December 16. For further details, head to the tour website. Top image: Raph_PH via Wikimedia Commons.
It feels like it's been a long time between endless boozy lunches. Savouring a chilled rosé with your friends, overlooking the city, and grazing the day away on rock oysters and panko crumbed prawns seems like a pleasure that we took for granted in 2019. Well, not this year. With all that 2020 has thrown our way so far, we'd be remiss to overlook the Rosé Bottomless Lunch. Every Saturday, atop the CBD's Republic Hotel at Taylor's Rooftop Bar, you can book in with your friends for a couple of hours of pink-hued vino and a share-style feast of oysters, spinach and mozzarella arancini, guacamole and corn chips, panko crumbed prawns, bocconcini, roasted pumpkin and feta and Californian-style tacos. And, for $69, you'll be fed all of the above with the choice of bottomless rosé, frosé or sangria. Groups of 4–10 people can book in for two-hour slots, from midday to 4pm on Saturdays, and you'll be seated on the hotel's rooftop, surrounded by a vertical garden and views of the city skyline. It also has a convenient retractable roof for those rainy days. As always, there'll be summery tunes to match the alfresco vibe. It's best to book ahead for Rosé Bottomless Lunches. However, if you need to cancel, do so 48 hours before the event to give the venue enough time to fill your seats. We're in COVID-19 times, so be considerate of your hospo friends and don't leave them hanging.
Something delightful has been happening in cinemas in some parts of the country. After numerous periods spent empty during the pandemic, with projectors silent, theatres bare and the smell of popcorn fading, picture palaces in many Australian regions are back in business — including both big chains and smaller independent sites in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. During COVID-19 lockdowns, no one was short on things to watch, of course. In fact, you probably feel like you've streamed every movie ever made, including new releases, Studio Ghibli's animated fare and Nicolas Cage-starring flicks. But, even if you've spent all your time of late glued to your small screen, we're betting you just can't wait to sit in a darkened room and soak up the splendour of the bigger version. Thankfully, plenty of new films are hitting cinemas so that you can do just that — and we've rounded up, watched and reviewed everything on offer this week. C'MON C'MON The last time that Joaquin Phoenix appeared in cinemas, he played an overlooked and unheard man. "You don't listen, do you?" Arthur Fleck asked his social worker, and the entirety of Joker — and of Phoenix's magnetic Oscar-winning performance as the Batman foe in the 2019 film, too — provided the obvious answer. Returning to the big screen in a feature that couldn't be more different to his last, Phoenix now plays a professional listener. A radio journalist and podcaster who'd slide in seamlessly alongside Ira Glass on America's NPR, Johnny's niche is chatting with children. Travelling around the country from his New York base, C'mon C'mon's protagonist seeks thoughts about life, hopes, dreams, the future and the world in general, but never in a Kids Say the Darndest Things-type fashion. As Phoenix's sensitive, pensive gaze conveys under the tender guidance of Beginners and 20th Century Women filmmaker Mike Mills, Johnny truly and gratefully hears what his young interviewees utter. Phoenix is all gentle care, quiet understanding and rippling melancholy as Johnny. All naturalism and attentiveness as well, he's also firmly at his best, no matter what's inscribed on his Academy Award. Here, Phoenix is as phenomenal as he was in his career highlight to-date, aka the exceptional You Were Never Really Here, in a part that again has his character pushed out of his comfort zone by a child. C'mon C'mon's Johnny spends his days talking with kids, but that doesn't mean he's equipped to look after his nine-year-old nephew Jesse (Woody Norman, The War of the Worlds) in Los Angeles when his sister Viv (Gaby Hoffmann, Transparent) needs to assist her husband Paul (Scoot McNairy, A Quiet Place Part II) with his mental health. Johnny and Viv haven't spoken since their mother died a year earlier, and Johnny has previously overstepped when it comes to Paul — with the siblings' relationship so precarious that he barely knows Jesse — but volunteering to help is his immediate reflex. As captured in soft, luxe, nostalgic shades of greyscale by always-remarkable cinematographer Robbie Ryan (see also: I, Daniel Blake, American Honey, The Favourite and Marriage Story), Johnny takes to his time with Jesse as any uncle suddenly thrust into a 24/7 caregiving role that doesn't exactly come naturally would. Jesse also reacts as expected, handling the situation as any bright and curious kid whose world swiftly changes, and who finds himself with a new and different role model, is going to. But C'mon C'mon is extraordinary not because its instantly familiar narrative sees Johnny and Jesse learn life lessons from each other, and their bond grow stronger the longer they spend in each other's company — but because this tremendously moving movie repeatedly surprises with its depth, insights, and lively sparks of both adult and childhood life. It's styled to look like a memory, and appreciates how desperately parents and guardians want to create such happy recollections for kids, but C'mon C'mon feels unshakeably lived-in rather than wistful. It doesn't pine for times gone by; instead, the film recognises the moments that linger in the now. It spies how the collection of ordinary, everyday experiences that Johnny and Jesse cycle through all add up to something that's equally commonplace, universally relatable and special, too. Conveying that sentiment, but never by being sentimental, has long been one of Mills' great powers as a filmmaker. He makes pictures so alive with real emotion that they clearly belong to someone, and yet also resonate with everyone all at once. With C'mon C'mon, the writer/director draws upon his own time as a parent, after taking inspiration from his relationship with his father in Beginners, and from his connection to his mother and his own upbringing in 20th Century Women. Read our full review. FLEE When Flee won the World Cinema Documentary Grand Jury Prize at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, it collected its first accolade. The wrenchingly affecting animated documentary hasn't stopped notching up deserving acclaim since. A spate of other gongs have come its way, in fact, including a history-making trifecta of nominations for Best International Feature, Best Documentary and Best Animated Feature at this year's Oscars, becoming the first picture to ever earn nods in all three categories at once. Mere minutes into watching, it's easy to glean why this moving and compassionate movie keeps garnering awards and attention. Pairing animation with factual storytelling is still rare enough that it stands out, but that blend alone isn't what makes Flee special. Writer/director Jonas Poher Rasmussen (What He Did) has created one of the best instances of the combination yet — a feature that could only have the impact it does by spilling its contents in such a way, like Ari Folman's Waltz with Bashir before it — however, it's the tale he shares and the care with which he tells it that makes this something unshakeably exceptional. Rasmussen's subject is Amin Nawabi, an Afghan refugee using a pseudonym. As his story fills Flee's frames, it's also plain to see why it can only be told through animation. Indeed, the film doesn't cover an easy plight — or a unique one, sadly — but Rasmussen renders every detail not just with eye-catching imagery, but with visuals that flow with empathy at every moment. The filmmaker's protagonist is a friend of his and has been for decades, and yet no one, not even the director himself, had ever previously heard him step through the events that the movie chronicles. Amin is now in his 40s, but he was once a kid in war-torn Kabul, then a teenager seeking asylum in Copenhagen. His life to-date has cast him in other roles in other countries, too, on his journey to house-hunting with his boyfriend as he chats through the ups and downs for his pal. That path — via Russia and Sweden — is one of struggle and acceptance. It's a chronicle of displacement, losing one's foundations and searching for a space to be free. It's also an account of identities fractured and formed anew, and of grasping hold of one's culture and sexuality as well. Flee explores how global events and battling ideologies have a very real and tangible impact on those caught in their midst, a truth that the feature's hand-drawn look underscores at every turn. And, it's about trying to work out who you are when the building blocks of your life are so tenuous, and when being cast adrift from your family and traditions is your status quo. It's also an intimate portrait of how a past that's so intertwined with international politics, and with the Afghan civil war between US-backed rebels and the nation's Soviet-armed government, keeps leaving ripples. Plus, Flee examines how someone in its complicated situation endures without having a firm sense of home, including when acknowledging he's gay after growing up in a place where that wasn't even an option. Clearly, Flee is many vivid, touching, devastating things, and it finds an immense wealth of power in its expressive and humanistic approach. There's a hyperreality to the film's animation, honing in on precisely the specifics it needs to within each image and discarding anything superfluous. When a poster for Jean-Claude Van Damme's Bloodsport can be spied on Amin's 80s-era Kabul bedroom, for instance, Rasmussen draws viewers' eyes there with exacting purpose. There's impressionistic flair to Flee's adaptive style as well, with the movie firmly concerned with selecting the best way to visually represent how each remembered instance felt to Amin. A scene set to A-ha's 'Take on Me' presents a fantastic example, especially given that the Norwegian group's pop hit is famed for its animated music video — something that Rasmussen happily toys with. Read our full review. QUO VADIS, AIDA? Films about war are films about wide-ranging terror and horror: battles that changed lives, deaths that reshaped nations, political fights that altered the course of history and the like. But they're also movies about people first, foremost and forever: folks whose everyday existence was perpetually shattered, including those lost and others left to endure when hostilities cease. Quo Vadis, Aida? is firmly a feature about both aspects of war. It homes in on one town, Srebrenica, in July 1995 during the 1992–95 Bosnian War, but it sees devastation and a human toll so intimate and vast in tandem that heartbreak is the only natural response. A survivor of the war herself, writer/director Jasmila Žbanić (Love Island, For Those Who Can Tell No Tales) knows that combat and conflict happens to ordinary men and women, that each casualty is a life cut short and that every grief-stricken relative who remains will never forget their magic ordeal — and she ensures that no one who watches Quo Vadis, Aida? can forget the Srebrenica massacre, or the fact that 8372 civilians were killed, either. A teacher-turned-interpreter, the eponymous Aida Selmanagic (Jasna Đuričić, My Morning Laughter) is Žbanić's eyes and ears within the demilitarised safe zone established by Dutch UN peacekeepers. The film doesn't adopt her exact point of view aesthetically — we see Aida, and plenty; Quo Vadis, Aida? wouldn't be the same without the tenacity and insistence that radiates from her posture and gaze — but it lives, breathes, feels, roves and yearns as she does. What she translates and for who around the UN base varies but, as she roves, she's primarily a channel between innocents scared for their lives and the bureaucracy endeavouring to keep the Bosnian Serb Army away. She visibly feels the weight of that task, whether speaking for the injured, scared and hungry all crammed into the facility or passing on instructions from her superiors. Aida has a mother's and wife's motivations, however: above all else, she wants her husband Nihad (Izudin Barjović, Father), a school principal, to be with her and to be safe — and the same for their sons Hamdija (Boris Ler, Full Moon) and Sejo (Dino Barjović, Sin), obviously. It's a mission to even get them in the base, with Colonel Karremans (Johan Heldenbergh, The Hummingbird Project) and his offsider Major Franken (Raymond Thiry, The Conductor) determined to not show any appearances of favouritism, especially with so many other refugees pleading to be allowed in outside. But Aida hustles, including getting Nihad sent to negotiations with Serbian General Ratko Mladić (Boris Isaković, Last Christmas) as a town representative. And as the General's brash, cocky, swaggering troops start escorting out the base's inhabitants and putting them onto buses depending upon their gender following those talks, Aida makes every desperate move she can to save her family. Quo Vadis, Aida? equally chronicles and shares Aida's reaction to the chaos and trauma around her. With Nihad, Hamdija and Sejo's lives at stake, the peacekeepers that Aida is helping refusing to assist by expanding the protections she enjoys to her loved ones, and the UN making moves that bow to Mladić — refusing to act otherwise, more accurately — Žbanić's film was always going to bustle forward in lockstep with its protagonist's emotional rollercoaster ride. That said Quo Vadis, Aida? is also an exacting movie in laying bare the complexities bubbling within the base, and the broader scenario. Unflinchingly, it sees how ineffective the UN's actions are, as ordered from far away with no sense of the reality on the ground. It recognises how outnumbered the peace effort is in Srebrenica, too. It spies the ruthlessness of the General and his forces, as was destined to happen when given even the slightest leeway. And it also spots how determined Aida is to safeguard her family, all while hurrying around thousands of others in the same precarious circumstances but without the possibility of anyone even trying to pull strings in their favour. Read our full review. UNCHARTED Some movies sport monikers so out of sync with their contents that someone really should've had a rethink before they reached screens. Uncharted is one of them, but it was never going to switch its name. The action-adventure flick comes to cinemas following a decade and a half of trying, after the first Uncharted video game reached consoles in 2007 and the journey to turning it into a movie began the year after. Accordingly, this Tom Holland (Spider-Man: No Way Home)- and Mark Wahlberg (Joe Bell)-starring film was fated to keep its franchise's title, which references its globe-trotting, treasure hunting, dark passageway-crawling, dusty map-coveting storyline. But unexplored, unfamiliar and undiscovered, this terrain definitely isn't — as four Indiana Jones films to-date, two National Treasure flicks, three Tomb Raider movies, 80s duo Romancing the Stone and The Jewel of the Nile, and theme park ride-to-screen adaptation Jungle Cruise have already demonstrated. Uncharted mightn't live up to its label, but it is something perhaps unanticipated given its lengthy production history — a past that's seen six other filmmakers set to direct it before the Zombieland movies' Ruben Fleischer actually did the honours, plenty of screenwriters come and go, and Wahlberg once floated to play the saga's hero Nathan Drake rather than the mentor role of Victor Sullivan he has now. That surprise? Uncharted is fine enough, which might be the best likely possible outcome that anyone involved could've hoped for. It's almost ridiculously generic, and it sails in the Pirates of the Caribbean flicks' slipstream as well, while also cribbing from The Mummy, Jumanji and even the Ocean's films. Indeed, it borrows from other movies as liberally as most of its characters pilfer in their daily lives, even nodding towards all things Fast and Furious. It's no worse than the most generic of its predecessors, though — which isn't the same as striking big-screen gold, but is still passable. The reasons that Uncharted just hits the barest of marks it needs to are simple and straightforward: it benefits from Holland's charms, its climax is a glorious action-film spectacle, and it doesn't ever attempt to be anything it's not (although reading a statement of intent into the latter would be being too generous). It also zips through its 116-minute running time, knowing that lingering too long in any one spot wouldn't serve it well — and it's as good as it was going to be given the evident lack of effort to be something more. While you can't make a great movie out of these very minor wins, they're all still noticeable pointers in an okay-enough direction. Getting audiences puzzling along with it, delivering narrative surprises even to viewers wholly unfamiliar with the games, asking Wahlberg to do anything more than his familiar tough-guy schtick, making the most of the bulk of its setpieces, providing the product of more than just-competent direction: alas, none of these turn out. In a film that acts as a prequel to its button-mashing counterparts, Holland plays Drake as a 20-something with brother issues, a vast knowledge of cocktail histories that's handy for his bartending gig, an obsession with 16th-century Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan and the gold he might've hidden, and very light fingers. Nate's elder sibling dipped out of his life after the pair were caught trying to steal a Magellan map as orphanage-dwelling kids, in fact, which Sully uses to his advantage when he first crosses his path in a New York bar — and, after some convincing, Nate has soon signed up to finish the quest he's been dreaming about since childhood. Naturally, this newly formed duo aren't the only ones on the Magellan treasure's trail. The wealthy Santiago Moncada (Antonio Banderas, The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard) is descended from the explorer's original financiers and boasts a hefty sense of entitlement, while knife-wielding mercenary Jo Braddock (Tati Gabrielle, You) and enterprising fortune-hunter Chloe Frazer (Sophia Ali, India Sweets and Spices) are each chasing a windfall. Read our full review. ALINE In a 1997 ballad that'll forever linked with the on-screen sinking of the world's most famous ship, Celine Dion told us that her heart would go on. Whether the Canadian singer's ticker will physically defy mortality is yet to be seen, but Aline, the fictionalised biography based on her rollercoaster ride of a life, certainly takes the idea to heart by overextending its running time. It's easy to see why the 'Because You Loved Me', 'The Power of Love' and 'Think Twice' crooner demands a lengthy feature. Also, compared to the big-budget superhero blockbuster standard, Aline's 128 minutes is positively concise. At every moment, however, this Valérie Lemercier (50 Is the New 30)-directed, -co-written and -starring film feels like it's going on and on and on. Near, far, wherever you are, it limps along despite packing plenty of ups and downs into its frames. A key reason: it primarily plays like the result of Lemercier simply opening up that door to Dion's Wikipedia page. Dion's story has everything from childhood fame and enormous career achievements to relationship scandals and personal tragedies, and Lemercier and her co-scribe Brigitte Buc (who also co-penned the filmmaker's 2005 featured Palais royal!) don't overlook any of it. But Dion's immense success doesn't necessarily make her overly fascinating, and nor do the many twists and turns her path has taken since she was born into a large Quebec family — arriving as the youngest of 14 children — and then found fame as a teen. Or, in her defence, they don't make her particularly interesting in a movie that's content to tick through everything that life has thrown her way like it's marking off a checklist rather than fleshing her out as a person. Viewers glean all of the necessary biographical details from Aline, but little sense of its subject, especially buried under Lemercier's unconvincing blend of soapy comedy and loving affection. The name Celine is mentioned in the film, as one of the script's gags — and Aline Dieu (Lemercier) is quick to correct the record. But before anyone is calling her anything much, she's a gifted singer crooning at her family's bar and proving in big demand locally, which sparks one of her brothers to record a demo. The tape's recipient, manager Guy-Claude Kamar (Sylvain Marcel, Les Honorables), can't quite believe that the slender girl in front of him comes with such a voice, and soon helps guide her career from strength to strength. Pitstops along the way include a pause so Aline can enjoy being a teenager, her mother Sylvette's (Danielle Fichaud, District 31) dismay when she falls for the much-older Guy-Claude, vocal troubles that require a three-month break from even speaking and the struggle to get pregnant. Among the highlights: winning a singing contest in Dublin, a big Hollywood awards ceremony, a lengthy US residency and all that chart-topping. Eurovision isn't mentioned by name in Aline, and nor is Titanic or the Oscars, mirroring the change to Dion's moniker (and those of her loved ones and key figures in her life). But the film does weave in the star's own songs, which makes its altered details elsewhere feel uncanny, and like the movie is caught between a parody and a love letter. The montage-esque handling of big and small moments alike doesn't help, cramming in minutiae from Dion's real-life tale but never giving anything room to resonate. Neither does the perfunctory direction and by-the-numbers dialogue, which can't elevate the film beyond Behind the Music-style recreations. Lemercier's choices, including playing Aline at all ages — from childhood through to now — could've resulted in goofy inspiration. Perhaps that's what, every night in her dreams, she saw and felt. But while happily absurd, the movie that results is an over-packed jumble and drag, like getting 'My Heart Will Go On' stuck in your head for head for a quarter-century. A STITCH IN TIME When A Stitch in Time begins, it's with weary veteran musician Duncan (real-life veteran musician Glen Shorrock) playing his weekly gig at a Sydney RSL. But the crowd is sparse, inspiring the venue's newly installed manager to proclaim that it's time for a change to draw in a bigger and younger audience. The silver-haired Liebe (Maggie Blinco, The Nightingale), Duncan's long-standing partner, is singled out as the type of patron that the bar wants to move past — an observation that's rightfully and instantly met with anger. But when they're alone, Duncan's demeanour towards the woman that's been by his side for decades through jousts at fame and a lifetime of dealing with unrealised dreams is hardly affectionate. He wants acclaim and praise, and still to make the record he's always fantasised about, all while Liebe simply keeps quiet and cooks bacon for breakfast. A Stitch in Time tells Liebe's story as she finally finds the courage to step away from the toxic relationship that's defined her life, all thanks to a trip to a local market and the resulting encouragement from up-and-coming Chinese Australian designer Hamish (Hoa Xuande, Cowboy Bebop). A skilled dressmaker, she once had her own dreams of success, but let them slip aside to support Duncan. Now, his utter contempt for her renewed interest in rekindling her fashion prowess is the push she needs to seek a change after all these years. In first-time feature writer/director/producer/editor Sasha Hadden's hands, Liebe's path from there charts both an expected and a bleakly complex path — stitching together setbacks, roadblocks and miseries as part of a pattern for a brighter future and a predictably feel-good ending. One part schmaltz, one part domestic grit: that's the combination at the heart of the nonetheless sunnily hot A Stitch in Time, with the film teetering between the two accordingly. It's an awkward mix, despite the movie's efforts to lay bare the reality facing Liebe in trying to start again after living the bulk of her life — attitudes faced, financial difficulties and internal struggles among them — and its mission to spin a heartwarming story about a character and demographic often relegated to the big-screen sidelines. Again and again, the feature's script layers heartstring-pulling complications on top of each other, such as Liebe's childhood escape from Nazi Germany and her health woes after moving into a sharehouse with Chinese university students. It similarly adores saccharine moments, and uses the gimmick of going viral not once but twice. Thankfully, A Stitch in Time pays far more respect to its ageing protagonist than its recent equivalents (see: Queen Bees, Never Too Late, Poms, Dirty Grandpa and The War with Grandpa). That said, it still doesn't trust that viewers would feel for Liebe and her plight without either the laundry list of traumas thrust her way or the cheesy twists of fate that arrive to save her. The roster of talent that Hadden has amassed both on- and off-screen do their best to lift the material, however. That includes via spirited performances from not just Blinco but also Belinda Giblin (Home and Away) as Liebe's long-estranged pal Christine, plus the warm rapport between Blinco and Xuande — and also crisp lensing from legendary Australian cinematographer Don McAlpine (an Oscar nominee for Moulin Rouge!). THE LAST MOUNTAIN In films about humanity's undying yearning to conquer the planet's towering heights, what goes up doesn't always come down — to tragic results. But the quickly growing genre of documentaries that's sprung up around scaling mountains, or trying to, does traverse both the highs and the lows. It spans tales of life-altering success against the odds, chronicling all the hard work and near-fatal slips along the way, as seen in Oscar-winner Free Solo and the similarly uplifting The Dawn Wall. It also includes clear-eyed accounts of disaster, with the phenomenal Sherpa easily at the peak. And, it covers accounts of mountaineers who strived to climb lofty peaks and their own dreams, but ultimately saw their lives cut short doing what they love, such as The Alpinist. The Last Mountain falls into the latter camp and twice over, stepping into the stories of British mother-and-son duo Alison Hargreaves and Tom Ballard. In 1995, 33-year-old Hargreaves aimed to scale the three highest mountains on the globe: Everest, K2 and Kangchenjunga, all without the help of bottled oxygen or Sherpas to transport her gear. She achieved the first in May, becoming the first woman to do so. Next, she attempted the second in August, but died on the descent. In the aftermath, to help process their grief, Hargreaves' husband Jim Ballard, seven-year-old son Tom and four-year-old daughter Kate made a pilgrimage to K2, a trip that unsurprisingly left an enormous imprint upon her children. Tom was in his mother's womb when she climbed the north face of the Eiger in Switzerland, so he was perhaps fated to love the pastime with the same passion. He became an acclaimed alpinist himself, until a February 2019 trip to Pakistan's Nanga Parbat, at the age of 30, to attempt the never-before-completed Mummery Spur. Twenty-four years elapsed between Hargreaves and Ballard's final climbs, at mountains that sit less than 200 kilometres apart — and the symmetry in their lives, loves, passion for alpinism, untimely demises and final resting places is nothing short of haunting. That's how it feels to watch The Last Mountain, all the more so because the documentary devotes much of its running time to unpacking how haunted his sister Kate, also an avid rock-climber, feels after the deaths of both her mother and brother to doing what they adored. With filmmaker Christopher Terrill (Britain's Biggest Warship) along for the trip, she once again heads to Pakistan and Kashmir, this time to get as close as is safely possible to where Tom met his end. Symmetry abounds here as well, including in a tearful reunion with Big Ibrahim, the local guide who carried her on his back for the trek the first time around. The Last Mountain doesn't simply rely upon its heartbreaking echoes, or the Hargreaves–Ballard family's personal plight, as bolstered with archival material and interviews both of Alison and Tom. (Given the passage of years and the change in technology since, there's more and better footage of Tom in action, and it's a spectacular sight to behold.) A lesser film would've been happy with all of the above and still proven gripping; however, Terrill also unpacks the intricacies around celebrating extreme alpine and rock-climbing feats, then looking for someone to blame when treks finish badly — even without examining how the media backlash that swelled around Alison for dying and leaving her kids behind more than a quarter-century ago. Indeed, the back and forth that steps through the events leading to Tom's death, after uncharacteristically taking on a climbing partner in Italian Mummery Spur fanatic Daniele Nardi, is as complicated as the emotions that visibly course through Kate every time that she's in front of the camera. The Last Mountain is a clear tribute, and another ode to humanity's pull to the mountains, but it's also willing to be as thematically complicated as the terrain that looms so large within its frames. If you're wondering what else is currently screening in Australian cinemas — or has been lately — check out our rundown of new films released in Australia on October 7, October 14, October 21 and October 28; November 4, November 11, November 18 and November 25; December 2, December 9, December 16 and December 26; January 1, January 6, January 13, January 20 and January 27; and February 3 and February 10. You can also read our full reviews of a heap of recent movies, such as The Alpinist, A Fire Inside, Lamb, The Last Duel, Malignant, The Harder They Fall, Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain, Halloween Kills, Passing, Eternals, The Many Saints of Newark, Julia, No Time to Die, The Power of the Dog, Tick, Tick... Boom!, Zola, Last Night in Soho, Blue Bayou, The Rescue, Titane, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn, Dune, Encanto, The Card Counter, The Lost Leonardo, The French Dispatch, Don't Look Up, Dear Evan Hansen, Spider-Man: No Way Home, The Lost Daughter, The Scary of Sixty-First, West Side Story, Licorice Pizza, The Matrix Resurrections, The Tragedy of Macbeth, The Worst Person in the World, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, House of Gucci, The King's Man, Red Rocket, Scream, The 355, Gold, King Richard, Limbo, Spencer, Nightmare Alley, Belle, Parallel Mothers, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Belfast, Here Out West, Jackass Forever, Benedetta, Drive My Car and Death on the Nile.
When historians in some far-flung future crack the books on 2023, one thing that will be immediately apparent is that it was an absolute red letter year for video games. Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Baldur's Gate 3, Alan Wake 2, Super Mario Wonder, Diablo IV, Armored Core IV — the list of bangers goes on and on. But it wasn't just big games that shone – indie developers also had a cracker 12 months and that's what we're here to celebrate. Here, in no particular order (and, as a person with a full time job and a child, by no means exhaustive), are the best ten smaller games the year blessed us with. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnClIPdnXUs[/embed] Storyteller There's no better example of a passion project on this list than Storyteller. Created by Argentinian solo developer Daniel Benmergui, it's been a labour of love that has lasted almost 14 years since he first started work. Thank goodness he stuck with it. This puzzle game plays on the concept of narrative familiarity. Each level presents you with a title — for instance 'Seeing The Ghost Of A Lover', or 'Witch Becomes The Mirror's Favourite' – and tasks you with arranging a choice of characters and scenes in a visual setup not dissimilar to comic panels to build a suitable story. Your solutions update in real time as you move elements around, allowing for rapid-fire experimentation when the stories start to get tricky. The art style could be described paradoxically as 'restrained cartoony', but it works so well, imbuing each of the characters with enough personality to give you a sense of how they operate when deployed. Perhaps its greatest strength is how approachable it is. The gameplay is so simple that you could hand it to a 90-year old who has never touched a controller and they'll be up and running in no time, particularly when using touchscreen controls on a phone, tablet or Switch. Take that, generational gap. Available on: PC/Mac, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qrhivCSKZxk[/embed] Fading Afternoon 'Auteur' is not a word thrown around often in gaming, but it's not without merit to apply it to Russian-based developer Yeo. His latest, Fading Afternoon, is a rumination on the tension between the past, the present and the future. Step into the shoes of Seiji Maruyama, a legendary Yakuza enforcer who starts the game at the end of a stint in prison. His old crime family welcomes him back, but with advancing age and a cough that won't go away, is it really the life he wants? That's up to you to decide, with player agency forming the core of the storytelling, allowing you to fight for former glory, betray colleagues, dive into degeneracy or simply spend your hours fishing. It's got surprisingly deep combat mechanics – side note: breaking an enemy's arm and taking their weapon never stops being cool as hell – and a finely curated soundtrack that matches the various moods of the game perfectly. Plus there are controls that allow you to remove your character's jacket and sling it over your shoulder, put sunglasses on, comb your hair, light up a cigarette and more, turning something as simple as walking down the street into a moment. Fading Afternoon is not a game that holds your hand, which some may find frustrating, but approach it with an open mind and you'll encounter numerous 'wow, I didn't know I could do that' moments that are as rewarding as they are surprising. Available on: PC [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p85VHMpE0to[/embed] Dave The Diver The game that launched a thousand online threads about what truly constitutes an 'indie', it's being included in this list because it's too damn good not to talk about. You play the portly title character as he joins an old crony on a new venture: to establish a sushi joint next to a mysterious blue hole in the ocean that teems with sea life from around the world. Spend your days exploring this marine miracle rendered in stunning pixel art and catching its inhabitants, and your nights running the restaurant, both of which present gameplay challenges that are a joy to master. It's honestly unbelievable how much South Korean developer MINTROCKET managed to cram into the game. There's a wide cast of characters; a variety of different narratives involving merpeople, shady eco-warriors, and snooty food critics; boss battles; a whole farm management element; vast amounts of upgrades for your equipment, your staff and your dishes, and a whole lot more. What's most amazing is how balanced all these elements are, allowing you to choose where to focus at any given time without feeling overwhelmed. Be warned, it is addictive and you'll find yourself wondering if you can fit in another dive when the clock says 2AM on more than one occasion. Available on: PC/Mac, Nintendo Switch [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOD6tKr3dHE[/embed] El Paso, Elsewhere Some breakups are amicable. Some are bad. Some lead to the apocalypse. That's just the way love goes. El Paso, Elsewhere, developed by Strange Scaffold, sees you dealing with the third type of end to a relationship. You're James Savage, a folklore researcher with a pill problem and a score to settle with your ex-girlfriend Draculae, a powerful vampire who is bringing about the end of the world from an extra-dimensional space underneath a roadside motel in El Paso, Texas. Gameplay-wise, it's an unashamed love letter to the Max Payne series, with satisfyingly chunky gunplay augmented by slo-mo dives that are as cinematic as they are tactical. In your journey through the increasingly surreal sub-floors of the motel, you'll face off against werewolves, biblically accurate angels, living suits of armour and more, each requiring you to switch up your approach which keeps the combat interesting, particularly when crowds of enemies start testing your ammo reserves. Where this game really shines is just how fucking cool it is. The script is so hard-boiled it wouldn't be out of place in a Caesar salad. Savage is pitch-perfectly voiced by Strange Scaffold's creative director Xalavier Nelson Jr., and each cutscene in between levels is a welcome narrative reward for the chaos you've navigated. It's a journey into addiction and heartbreak that will stick with you long after the credits roll. Available on: PC, Xbox One/S/X [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00B3pbxoFvI[/embed] Blasphemous 2 There's no rest for the penitent. Spanish outfit The Game Kitchen brought us back to the grim, guilt-soaked lands of Custodia for another pilgrimage of exploration and gory combat in Blasphemous 2. The sequel leans more heavily into its metroidvania roots than its predecessor, adding in classic elements like double jumping and air dashing that give more options for both combat and traversal. There's also the expanded range of weaponry the Penitent One can wield, each with its own skill tree and strengths, meaning you'll be hot swapping up a slaughter during your journey. With its dense, lore-heavy plot that evokes shades of Dark Souls and Elden Ring, Blasphemous 2 goes beyond the usual fantasy fare into something that is more memorable (and occasionally bleak). And the world is huge, with plenty of nooks and crannies to explore whenever you unlock new abilities. Special mention should be made of the boss battles as well, with excellent character design and confrontations that induce just enough frustration to leave you fist-pumping when you finally triumph. Available on: PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One/S/X, Playstation 4/5 [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHfzY-nIQxw[/embed] Cocoon The true measure of any puzzle game is the sense of achievement you feel when you finally crack a solution. Cocoon, the first release by Danish studio Geometric Interactive (founded by former employees of Playdead, developers of Limbo and Inside, which is an immense pedigree), is a symphony of such 'Aha!' moments. It's a game about orbs. As a small winged figure, you traverse a variety of biomes that blend the biological and mechanical, discovering these various pearls along the way. Bring them to specific machinery and you can dive into them, opening up new worlds to explore. The kicker? You can carry worlds into worlds, leading to some truly matryoshka-esque puzzles that can tax your brain to the limit. These conundrums are never unfair, though. The overarching game design is beautifully done, with each mechanic introduced and explored until familiar before the next one comes along. There's no backtracking, no missed items, no external information needed – everything you need to arrive at a solution is right in front of you in that particular moment of gameplay. You only need to think. Narrative fans be warned, it's vastly more weighted to exploration than exposition, but there is a plot at play here that crescendos in a cosmic fashion. But the real story is that warm glow you get throughout as you overcome obstacles and realise hey, I am smart! Available on: PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One/S/X, Playstation 4/5 [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3ws82dj_fA[/embed] Dredge Who would've guessed that adding a handful of horror to a fishing game would be such a good recipe? New Zealand developers Black Salt Games, that's who. Leaning into the cold hard fact that the ocean is a terrifying place full of nightmares, Dredge puts you behind the wheel of a small fishing vessel as a captain whose memory was taken by a shipwreck. You'll earn your keep by pulling fish out of the ocean through a variety of methods, each with their own minigame that keeps the gameplay fresh. Some of these fish, however, are… wrong, which speaks to the wider tension of the game. There's something sinister afoot in the various archipelagos you visit, from eldritch cults to abyssal monsters, and while you're never tasked with finding a solution to these problems, investigating them is chilling fun nonetheless. Supporting the eerie atmosphere that pervades the game are some excellent decisions around gameplay mechanics. Your ship has an upgrade tree that gives pleasantly concrete results in game. The aforementioned minigames are coupled with a Tetris-style mechanic of arranging your catch in your hold, leading to some hard decisions about what to keep and to jettison when you hit the space limit. Throw in an encyclopedia that tracks all the species you catch, and you've got a range of addictive gameplay loops that'll keep you heading out to sea. Available on: PC, Playstation 4/5, Xbox One/S/X, Nintendo Switch [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXgktRWrHaI[/embed] Thirsty Suitors If you've ever been in public, caught sight of a former romantic partner and felt a wave of panic engulf you, then have we got a game recommendation for you. Thirsty Suitors is the product of Outerloop Games, a studio in Seattle with a penchant for exploring underrepresented cultures and themes. You play as Jala, a second generation Indian immigrant and young LGBTQIA+ woman who is back in her Pacific Northwest hometown of Timber Falls for her sister's wedding. Only thing is, dear sister is not talking to you and there are a slew of ex-romantic partners who are eager for a reckoning due to your past problematic behaviour. While topics like this could be approached in a heavy-handed manner, Thirsty Suitors instead takes an over-the-top path that is as entertaining as it is sensitive. Each ex gets a showdown that plays out through turn-based combat, combining wildly imaginative battlefields and moves with conversational back-and-forths that tackle codependency, betrayal, the expectations of South Asian parents, navigating life out of the closet and more. Better yet, victory is not about domination but understanding, giving each battle a far more satisfying denouement. Throw in a deep and humorously acrobatic cooking minigame, Tony Hawk Pro Skater-style traversal and maybe one of the best video game fathers ever, and it's a truly unique experience with emotional enlightenment at its centre. Available on: PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One/S/X, Playstation 4/5 [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sKDwnRWroto[/embed] Sludge Life 2 It's time to go back to the sludge, baby! The crassest, coolest vandalism simulator made a return this year, shepherded into existence by developer Terri Vellman and musician DOSEONE. You're back as Ghost, an elite tagger turned artist manager responsible for the rapper Big Mud. He's got a gig to play, but after a night of epic partying with his Click Sick crew he's nowhere to be found. Time to leave your trashed hotel room and track him down. Sludge Life 2 builds on its predecessor in the simplest way: by being bigger across the board. There's more world to explore, more NPCs to engage with and more tools to help you get around, from sneakers that allow double-jumping to a portable launcher that throws you high into the air, helping you to reach the 100 tagging spots scattered around the city - some obvious, some fiendishly hidden. There's also a higher level of cheerful cynicism present. The world has evolved since the first game, with the corporate presence of the Ciggy Cig company now dominating the map with their efforts to get children puffing their wares (now with vitamins!). As you make your way around and talk to the inhabitants, you'll uncover a revolution brewing, which you can wind up playing your own part in. Also, the cat with two buttholes is back. Really, it's a game with something for everyone. Available on: PC [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__hzPH3tcvA[/embed] Chants of Senaar Chants of Senaar, developed by French team Rundisc, is the answer to the question 'what if the Tower of Babel and the Rosetta Stone had a baby that was a puzzle game?' The game sees you exploring a mystical tower divided into levels populated by groups organised around castes, each of whom has a unique language consisting of logograms (or symbols that represent words, for those who haven't studied linguistics too deeply). To progress, you need to decipher these languages using a variety of context clues, interactions and signs scattered throughout the environments. Your efforts are tracked in a notebook, where you can record what you think various symbols mean and confirm them in sets once you've discovered enough of them, a mechanic that helps to defeat a brute force approach. Eventually, grammar is layered in as another aspect to consider, testing your skills even more. The tower itself is a joy to explore, with distinct colour palettes and architectural styles for each of the levels and a great use of light and shadow throughout. Breaking up the language puzzles are the occasional stealth sections, giving a welcome variety to the gameplay. As mentioned earlier, puzzle games can be measured by the sense of achievement you feel, and watching the world around you gradually become more intelligible, not to mention helping the different castes actually communicate, well, it doesn't get more satisfying than that. Available on: PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One/S/X, Playstation 4/5
Oh, the misery of spending those sunny days indoors at work. How are you expected to get anything done with those warm rays beating through the window, beckoning you to the beach? As soon as December 1 pops around there'll be a remedy — and it's in the form of a tiki bar, taking over the now-closed York Trading & Co. space right in the middle of the CBD. Lost Luau is born out of a string of successful tiki nights at Burrow Bar. Burrow's owners Chau Tran and Bryce McDonough have decided to make it semi-permanent, collaborating with rum aficionado Tom Bulmer (Sydney Rum Club), who'll be running the bar. Expect timber and hessian decor, coconuts, umbrellas, beach vibes and plenty of rum-based cocktails. The pop-up is also open for coffee each morning (except Sundays) from 7am till 4pm, with lunch running from 1–4pm. Dinner will kick off from 5pm with a Caribbean-inspired menu by chef Phil Spence and the kitchen team from Factory Theatre, before picking up at night for a tiki beach party until late. Lost Luau will be open from 7am till midnight Monday to Saturday until the end of summer.
The gardening bug is a hard one to shake. What might start off with growing some Woolies parsley in the windowsill above the sink can quickly evolve into obsessively spraying Seasol on your asters and getting elbow-deep in dirt to dig up this month's potato harvest. Our green thumbs seem to have only gotten greener ever since we were stuck at home during the pandemic — when local pant stores were assisting our green-thumbed obsessions with click-and-collect and delivery options throughout the city. And for many of us, this love for taking care of plant babies continued well beyond such stuck-at-home times. So, whether you're wanting some tips on affordable places to get a start on your own patch of green, or you're eager to know where you can find the best variety of natives and endangered plants, here are the top places to buy and order plants in Sydney.
