Fight for what you believe in. Fight for decency. Fight for who you are. In fact, just fight. That is one, perhaps uncharitable, representation of Malcolm & Marie. This black-and-white two-hander focuses on an African-American filmmaker Malcolm (John David Washington) and his live-in partner Marie (Zendaya), a former drug addict. It’s 1 a.m. and they’ve…
What would Aussie TV be without the luminous Claudia Karvan? We’ve seen her grow up on-screen to become one of our most loved and consistent stars on the box. She and producer John Edwards’s affiliation goes back to Network Ten’s The Secret Life of Us in 2001 and now along comes BUMP, the Stan series…
The documentary Happy Happy Joy Joy (now available on Docplay) explores the influential and groundbreaking animated series Ren & Stimpy, as well as the rise and fall of its controversial creator John Kricfalusi, through archival footage and extensive interviews. Patrick Scott sat down with the directors Kimo Easterwood and Ron Cicero to talk about the…
The gritty and unrelenting Rosie is an affecting slice of life drama dealing with homelessness. With a severe shortage of rental properties and rising rents in Ireland, Rosie Davis (Sarah Greene) and her family have been left homeless and struggling. That happened after their landlord of seven years decided to sell the house they were…
The dictionary definition of the term “bodice ripper” is: “a novel, on a historical subject, that involves some sex and violence”. Well, now the television equivalent is ripping its way into your lounge room in the form of Netflix’s hit series Bridgerton. Think Emma meets Gossip Girl and you’ve got a pretty good idea where…
We take our hearing for granted – until we can’t. Sound of Metal charts a deeply personal journey for a young man who’s going deaf. Heavily tattooed drummer Ruben (Riz Ahmed) has had a troubled past. Although four years clean, he previously took all manner of drugs, although his poison of choice was heroin. Then…
Two lost souls go on an unexpected journey together in Adrian Ortega’s ultra-low-budget Australian film Cerulean Blue. Alex (Jack Michel) is as introverted as they come. He’s also a germophobe who disinfects at every opportunity. In fact, he goes out of his way to avoid others unless absolutely necessary – which includes turning his back…
Art and capitalism can be uneasy bedfellows. In our society each depends on the other to some extent. The exploitation of art in the name of money is nothing new, but things could be changing. Critical examinations are now happening around their relationship, particularly as it intersects with issues of race and power. Steven Soderbergh…
Cinema, like any art form, has boundless capacity to surprise. Disney-Pixar has struggled a little recently (see Onward, for example). But the studio reclaims its title as the benchmark in animation with the incredible Soul. I suspect the success of Soul has a lot to do with the return of Pete Docter to the director’s…
I can’t think of an actress who has epitomised class, style and magnetism more than the late, great Audrey Hepburn (1929 – 1993). The documentary Audrey charts her life’s course. Notwithstanding remarkable and well-deserved success, there was also much pain and sadness. She was just a young girl when her parents split and war broke…
