Rosie Andrews pulls a slight bait-and-switch in her debut novel The Leviathan. Set in the 17th Century, the first half of The Leviathan concerns itself with a possible witch trial before pivoting into something even darker. The short prologue ends with the ominous words: “She is awake.” But it will be a while before those…
The Melbourne Winter Masterpieces series once more brings out the “big guns” with an exhibition featuring over 400 works from the personal collection of Catherine the Great. Gathered over a 34-year period, Masterpieces from the Hermitage: The Legacy of Catherine the Great represents the foundation of the Hermitage’s collection and includes outstanding works from artists…
The baton has been officially passed to Delta Goodrem as Grizabella, the shunned Glamour Cat and she makes a triumphant entrance to musical theatre, with the audience favourite Memory. What a voice! I remember thinking the same thing when I first saw Debra Byrne in the role in 1985, who, incidentally, attended the opening night…
The Power of the Dog is Jane Campion’s first feature film since Bright Star, twelve years ago. Produced under the auspices of streaming giant Netflix, this modern western, set in Montana in 1925, is based on Thomas Savage’s little-known 1967 novel. Phil Burbank (Benedict Cumberbatch) and his brother George (Jesse Plemons) work the sprawling family…
A confronting new play from the co-artistic director of the Owl and Cat Theatre, Thomas Ian Doyle, RIOT concerns a 30-year-old bisexual anti-establishment druggie whose life is just drifting. Jim (Jonathan Peck) works in a fast food restaurant because he needs the money. Otherwise, he wouldn’t, as the job means nothing to him. His former…
Joanna Murray-Smith’s remarkable insight, attention to detail and writing prowess are front and centre in a captivating production of Berlin at The MC Showroom. 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…
This is a big ask. Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries was (and is) one of Australia’s most loved TV shows. So even tinkering around the edges of it is going to be fraught; let alone embarking on a sequel of sorts. But Every Cloud Productions (who made both the original and the upcoming Miss Fisher feature…
During the late 90s and early 2000s, the pioneering Blackberry – the phone with a keyboard – dominated the tech market. At its peak, the iconic device made up 45% of the cellphone market and had some 85 million subscribers. But then egos, hubris, corporate greed, shady business deals and rival tech companies and their…
King Kong and Godzilla move over. There’s a new kid in town. Let me put it this way: Rampage isn’t a gentle romantic comedy. It is a CGI-driven destruction-fest with The Rock providing an endearing link between a gigantic albino gorilla and humanity. Primatologist Davis Okoye (Dwayne Johnson) oversees the ape habitat at the San…
Katy Massey draws on her own family history as the basis for her downbeat and gritty debut crime novel All Us Sinners. The book is set in Leeds, in the North of England, in the late 1970s, during the reign of terror of the killer who came to be known and The Yorkshire Ripper, All…
