Our selection of the best new music across a range of genres from the week ending 31 July 2020. Madeline Kenney bounds toward the unknown on her third album, Sucker’s Lunch. On the record, Kenney expands on the idea of what a love song could be – a little more cautious than exuberant, more nuanced…
A series of fine performances led by Carolina Sanín highlight the Colombian drama Litigante. Silvia (Sanín) is a single mother of a four-year-old son, Antonio (Antonio Martínez). Life is a constant struggle for her. She has a responsible job, as Deputy Legal Director of a government department. At the same time, she and her sister…
23 Walks promised much but delivered little. It ends up being scenic but manufactured pap for the elderly. Two lonely people connect after a shaky start and try to make something of their relationship. Of course, it wouldn’t be a movie without a number of obstacles. Dave (Dave Johns) is a retired mental health nurse…
Like many of the innovative, influential women artists who carved out a name for themselves in the early days of modern rock & roll music – Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Nina Simone, Janis Joplin, Grace Slick, Joni Mitchell, Linda Ronstadt, Joan Jett – Chrissie Hynde is practically a force of nature unto herself. As she sang…
“Before Arthur the King, the Sword of Power chose a Queen.” If Cursed piqued your interest as you have a thing for the Arthurian legends, then hail young fellow or lass, well met, dive right in. Park your cynicism at the door and enjoy the lush scenery. Touched by darkness and shunned by her people,…
The publicity blurb for Kyle Perry’s thriller debut The Bluffs describes it as a cross between Picnic at Hanging Rock and Mean Girls. The hook is four teenage girls missing in the inhospitable landscape of Tasmania’s Great Western Tiers and the aftermath of their disappearance, coupled with a bit of horror-inspired local folklore. Whatever Perry’s…
A largely predictable romantic drama, Love Sarah centres around three generations of women who go into business together in a culturally diverse area of London’s Notting Hill. The Sarah of the title (Candice Brown) and Isabella (Shelley Conn) are best friends who were about to open a sweet-focused bakery together, but then tragedy struck. Sarah,…
Our selection of the best new music across a range of genres from the week ending 24 July 2020. New Zealand-born, Melbourne-bred and now Los Angeles-based Jess Cornelius has released her debut album, Distance. A lot has changed since Jess Cornelius began writing the songs that would comprise Distance. For starters, she moved halfway around…
The Irish drama-thriller Calm with Horses features a brutal but poignant script, skilful feature directorial debut and a bravura lead acting performance. Douglas “Arm” Armstrong (Cosmo Jarvis) is a former boxer who fell in with a ruthless family. The family’s two no-nonsense brothers, Paudi (Ned Dennehy) and Hector Devers (David Wilmot), rule with an iron…
Some names need no introduction. And when it comes to the world of fashion, Pierre Cardin is one of those. But what’s behind the name motivates filmmakers P. David Ebersole and Todd Hughes in their documentary The House of Cardin. This reverential doco sources both archival footage and contemporary interviews, including with Cardin himself (he…
