A brass band is the connection between two fascinating and compelling unrelated personal stories that are part of a double bill known as Stardust + The Mission. First up is the tale of Victorian trumpeter and bandleader Col Brain, as told by his grandson Joel Carnegie. Joel, who was only two when Col died, chanced upon a…
He’s rude, crude, remarkably observant and lightning quick with one liners. In short, a force of nature. I speak of the indomitable Reuben Kaye, who wears his heart on his sleeve and totally owns his audience like few others I have come across. His stage presence is remarkable. He walks, talks and warbles like an…
Dead Centre by Tom Holloway, and Sea Wall, by Simon Stephens, two monologues, are presented as a Co-Production from the Red Stitch Actors Theatre, Melbourne, and Red Line Productions, at the Old Fitz Theatre. Sea Wall was written by contemporary British playwright, Simon Stephens (On the Shore of the Wide World), in 2008. A monologue…
If 2022 saw a return to normality for the first time since 2019, in 2023 cinema took a beat to consolidate. And if 2022 was really all about Top Gun: Maverick, in 2023 the pie got divided up rather more evenly. Australian box office dominated by “Barbienheimer” with the international smash hit Barbie taking out…
Is it real or a fake? That was the $64,000 question … or, in the case of The Lost Leonardo, a lot more. The film examines the tale of Salvator Mundi, a painting that could be (but probably isn’t) the work of Renaissance master Leonardo da Vinci. Depending on the source, as few as 15…
Martin McDonagh reunites with Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, and returns to form, with the biting satire, The Banshees of Inisherin. Although many liked his last film, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, I personally didn’t. I think the cultural disconnect between America and Europe let it down. But now, back in familiar territory, he brings…
This droll and offbeat fish out of water story is actually based on a 2001 urban legend about a Japanese woman who died while trying to find the money that Steve Buscemi’s character buried in the snow in the Coen brothers’ classic movie Fargo. That myth has provided the inspiration for this quirky drama from…
Muriel’s Wedding The Musical begins with a ‘Sunshine State of Mind’ Porpoise Spit burst of hyper colour and brashly bright lighting that sets the tone for the joy of its satirical stage experience. What follows is an explosion of high energy, full of colour and movement to brighten any adult day. The affectionate stage realisation…
From Taxi Driver and Goodfellas to The Age of Innocence and The Wolf of Wall Street, Martin Scorsese’s intense and exhilarating films define him as one of the most influential directors of our time. Now the first exhibition celebrating the indelible cinematic legacy of the prolific and passionate auteur has opened at Melbourne’s ACMI (Australian…
A ghostlight is a theatre tradition. One light is left on in the theatre after all the others have been turned off. The image of one light shining in the darkness resonates through Ghostlight, the remarkable new indie film from Kelly O’Sullivan and Alex Thompson. Ghostlight marks the first directing collab between O’Sullivan and Thompson;…
