Pygmalion, Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw’s humorous but pointed take on language and speech and their importance in society and in personal relationships, was first mounted on stage more than a century ago. Now Malvern Theatre Company has reprised the masterwork under the direction of Andrew Ferguson, who – along with Neil Barnett – is…
Comedian Glynn Nicholas has parlayed the cult following of the syrupy sweet Eurovision Song Contest into his often hilarious and decidedly agreeable new show, Song Contest. Eurovision is the longest-running annual international TV song competition that sees upwards of 20 European countries vying for the adulation that goes to the winner. Hundreds of millions of…
Some books you don’t want to end … except you do, because you’re dying to know what happened. Missing, Presumed is one of those books. Here’s the blurb: Detective Sergeant Manon Bradshaw soothes her insomnia with the din of the police radio she keeps by her bed. After another bad date, it takes the crackling voices…
Melissa McCarthy is the larger than life star of a movie co-written by her and her husband, Ben Falcone (who directs) and Steve Mallory. McCarthy’s character was brought up in an orphanage. One after another set of parents took her in briefly but then sent her back, indicating she “wasn’t the right fit”. But that…
An inspiring and uplifting documentary set in outback NSW, this is the story of a 130 strong children’s choir, which is renewed each year, thanks to the efforts of a local for whom this is a passion project. Every March Michelle Leonard steps into her car and heads west. Travelling more than 4,000 kilometres across…
Memory. The tricks of memory. I have recollections of what I believe to be ‘turning points’/’defining moments’ in my life and each time I replay them, either, mentally or verbally, both in speech and writing, they subtly change – more or less. If that ‘point’/’moment’ was between two of us, or more, each of us…
A somewhat surprisingly worthy follow up to the new age retelling of Snow White, namely 2012’s Snow White and the Huntsman, this has clout as well as pyrotechnics. The Huntsman: Winter’s War is billed as a prequel. It tells how the Huntsman (Chris Hemsworth), also known as Eric, came to be. That involves the malevolent…
Rudyard Kipling’s timeless tales make for engaging family entertainment and are inevitably children’s favourites, whether they be straight animation or animation combined with live action, as is the case here. Bombay-born, English writer Kipling channeled his love of India in 1894’s “The Jungle Book,” following with “The Second Jungle Book” in 1895. Though considered kids’…
The premise of Michael Moore’s (Fahrenheit 9/11, Bowling for Columbine) latest documentary is straightforward enough, namely what could America do better? … and the results are often hilarious. Moore plays the role of “invader”, visiting several countries to see what they are doing differently and the impact that difference is having on their populace. He…
The Un Certain Regard Best Film Prize winner at Cannes last year, this is a beautifully shot, slow moving story about a pair of estranged brothers and their sheep in small town rural Iceland. This pair is more obstinate than their animals. Siblings Gummi (Sigurður Sigurjónsson) and Kiddi (Theodór Júlíusson) have been living side by…
