Honour (Red Stitch Actors’ Theatre) – theatre review
It is such a cliché, but trust the magnificent wordsmith in Joanna Murray-Smith to give…
Hard Truths – movie review
Mike Leigh continues his gritty filmmaking endeavours with his 23rd film, the tragicomedy Hard Truths. Middle aged Pansy (Marianne Jean-Baptiste – Secrets & Lies) is a perpetually angry and desperately unhappy woman. With a series of claimed ailments, she pays out regularly on her plumber husband Curtley (David Webber) and their 22-year-old son, Moses (Tuwaine…
Mickey 17 – movie review
It is 2054 and Earth is in trouble, so droves of people are taking up the opportunity for interplanetary relocation. A man who has gotten himself into trouble and is financially destitute is Mickey Barnes (Robert Pattinson). Without digging too deeply, he seizes the chance to start afresh, as a new human colony is about…
Robot Dog (MTC) – theatre review
It is Melbourne 2042 and artificial intelligence has evolved. Melanie Chan Wing Lam (Jing-Xuan Chan) has died (it appears to be suicide), leaving behind an empathetic robot therapy dog (also voiced by Chan). Wing Lam neatly packed all her belongings into large plastic storage bags, while her home shrine, where incense is burning, remains chock-a-block…
Never Have I Ever (MTC) – theatre review
If you have money, just how far are you prepared to go and at what price? That is the question at the centre of the devilishly clever Never Have I Ever. Bisexual Jacq (Katie Robertson) and Kas (Sunny S Walia) is a couple. Together, they run a London restaurant named Masada, or at least they…
The Boys in the Band (Chapel Off Chapel) – theatre review ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Revolutionary back in the day, The Boys in the Band still packs punch 57 years later. In 1968, when the play premiered Off-Broadway, homosexuality and illegality were inextricably linked. The Boys in the Band put the joys and fears of being a homosexual into the public domain. Comedic, dramatic and angst riddled, it centres on…
Honour (Red Stitch Actors’ Theatre) – theatre review
It is such a cliché, but trust the magnificent wordsmith in Joanna Murray-Smith to give it so much edge and polish. I speak of an older man leaving his long-term wife for a younger woman. In this case, it is a feted journalist married to a writer – a poet, no less. She gave up…
Gapu Ŋupan (Arts Centre Melbourne) – theatre review
What was it that first divided the world? Could the answer to that question be attributed to the parable as outlined in the Book of Genesis, whereby people simply couldn’t understand each other? I ask because while sitting, watching Gapu Ŋupan unfold, I thought how nice it would be if the world’s 8.2 billion inhabitants,…
Berlin (Little Life Productions) – theatre review
Passion, intellect, history and legacy explode on stage in the masterfully written, acted, directed and produced romantic, dramatic, thriller Berlin. Australian Tom (Lachlan Hamill) has just landed in the German capital, keen to get to know the real city, not the tourist offering. He’s directed to a small watering hole, where he meets and is…
Fresno (Chapel Off Chapel) – theatre review
Here we have a new Australian musical that I wanted to embrace, but I struggled with. Most of it is set in a traditional Irish/American bar, called Flannigan’s, in Fresno, California. It is operated by Sam (Douglas Rintoul), who took it over from his dad. His only employee appears to be his best mate, JJ…
The Last Showgirl – movie review
A gritty piece about the travails of an ageing Las Vegas showgirl and those around her, The Last Showgirl feels real. Back in the day, decades ago, Shelly (Pamela Anderson), was one of the headline acts in Le Razzle Dazzle, which was fashioned on erotic Paris shows, like the Lido. Now, at 57, she is…
