A few films have looked at the Bosnian conflict of the 90s (Michael Winterbottom’s Welcome To Sarajevo, for one), but few have been as powerful, compelling or intelligent as this searing drama from Serbian filmmaker Jasmila Zbanic. Quo Vadis, Aida? was apparently one of former President Barack Obama’s favourite films of the year. The film…
The modern Indiana Jones clone Uncharted is a rollicking, fun-filled adventure. Nathan Drake was brought up in an orphanage with his older brother Sam, who was constantly getting into trouble. When Nathan was little, Sam took off but promised to stay in touch. He does that through the occasional postcard from an exotic place. Sam…
The challenges and complexities associated with mental health are front and centre in a compelling play based around a young man who hasn’t been (and isn’t) well. Institutionalised for quite some time, Adam (Ben Smalley) now lives alone. He listens to music, watches TV, shops when necessary, cooks some basics and ostensibly keeps to himself. His…
Musical Theatre Australia’s award-winning A Girl’s Guide to World War tells the true story of some amazing women forgotten by our history. If its premise is not made clear by this hint as to its content, its sentiment comes through strongly during the first scene, which sees its narrator (Vix Sheather, lead singer and guitarist…
Ever since Taken (2008) reinvented Irish actor Liam Neeson as the premier action hero of cinema, he’s been churning out a succession of formulaic action films of varied quality for over a decade. And while they may have been lucrative and kept him in steady work, he has become pigeonholed and not given roles that…
One of the pieces of advice often given to those looking to write their first novel is “write what you know”. Surgeon, public servant and art lover Michael Levitt has taken this advice to heart in his first novel The Gallerist. The Gallerist features a former doctor turned art gallery owner and a sometimes dangerous…
They don’t make many movies about lesbian nuns these days. Thankfully provocative Dutch auteur Paul Verhoeven is here to fill in this cinematic void. Verhoeven’s films have often courted controversy – from the sexy police thriller Basic Instinct through to the lurid and trashy Showgirls. Verhoeven has always been something of a subversive and provocative…
Arthur Miller’s stunning, Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winning 1949 play Death of a Salesman has lost none of its clout all these years later. The three-hour production by Hearth Theatre at fortyfivedownstairs explores themes of change, isolation, depression, self-worth, family values, truth and financial distress. The action takes place in 1940s New York. Willy Loman (Paul…
Adapting work from screen to stage can be tricky, even more so when it is a beloved animated feature. Thankfully, the hit family-friendly Broadway musical Frozen rises to this challenge, with lavish production design, stunning costumes and impressive special effects to astound as much as entertain. The musical, adapted from the Disney film and Hans…
From little things, big things grow. Director Ryûsuke Hamaguchi transforms a short story by Haruki Murakami into a 3-hour paean to love, loss and healing with Drive My Car. The film is a transcendent exploration of almost unbearable pathos, but with a shining light at the end. Another Murakami short story provided the source material…
