“This is the way the world ends; this is the way the world ends.” The final line in August: Osage County, taken from a poem by T S Eliot, is an apt conclusion to this damning portrayal of American culture and history. Considered one of the great 21st Century American plays, August: Osage County bares…
The Safdie brothers – Josh and Bennie – had success with their gritty crime drama Good Time. That film featured one of Robert Pattinson’s best performances. Now they bring us another tense, slow-burn thriller in Uncut Gems. Infused with their usual street-savvy edge, the film builds to an unexpected finale. The brothers bring a gritty…
The thing I like about the Limelight on Oxford is that the audience enters the theatre via the stage. Hence, we tread the same boards as the actors. It gives us an additional dimension from which to inhale the atmosphere of the production, besides ambience, lighting and comfort. So, we’re off to a good start…
You need to know two things about Paul Thomas Anderson’s Phantom Thread. First, this is one of the most exquisitely produced and intelligent films you’ll ever see. Second, a key plot element is, well, bonkers. You’ll need to wrap your head around those apparently conflicting ideas to fully appreciate this film. Anderson is of course known…
“Have you ever wanted to solve a murder? Gather the clues the police overlooked? Put together the pieces? Identify the suspect?” Where have we heard of this writer? For this reviewer, it is due to the riveting new true crime podcast, The Murder Squad, which Jensen co-hosts with former police detective, Paul Holes. The two…
Nosferatu meets The Devil Wears Prada meets Analyze This! in Renfield. In the hands of director Chris McKay (The Lego Batman Movie), Renfield has a lot going for it, but also has a few bats loose in the belfry. The film cleverly takes a minor character from Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula – the count’s deranged…
Early into Meyne Wyatt’s semi-autographical play City of Gold, feisty activist Carina (Shari Sebbens) speaks at a press conference following a protest in Kalgoorlie, condemning vigilantism and demanding justice. We need to wake up and listen in order to heal, she tells the unseen media and also the show’s audience. It’s a call to attention…
Set in Tehran, this Oscar nominated film for Best International Feature is a distressing, but compelling watch. For the past 20 years, lawyer Iman (Missagh Zareh) has worked for the authoritarian regime in Iran. Now, to the delight of his wife Najmeh (Soheila Golestani), he has been rewarded with an upgraded position as an investigator…
Relationships can be tricky to navigate at the best of times, but when you must traverse the cultural divide and respective parents are at cross-purposes the task becomes a whole lot more difficult. That is the premise behind Alex & Eve, the feelgood, comedic romance developed, written by and starring Alex Lykos, who began the…
For the VFL/AFL club that has finished runner up more than any other, the continued pain of losing Grand Finals and wasted seasons (when the result was far worse) was piling up. From working class roots, Tony Shaw tried his hand as basketball, but lack of height saw him turn his energies to Aussie Rules. At least,…
