Destination: Niagara Falls, Ontario (Canada) Origin: Toronto, Ontario (Canada) Travel Time (Each Way): Two Hours In the first part of our special feature series on the Niagara Falls day trip in Canada, we literally took you inside the famous Horseshoe Falls and got a birds eye view of the natural wonder from our elevated room…
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The Iris’ writers count down their top 10 films, released between January 1st and June 30th in Australia! 1. The Grand Budapest Hotel Though there are moments of unexpected violence and cruelty, ‘The Grand Budapest Hotel’ stands as one of the most joyous experiences I’ve had in the cinema this year. Tackling feelings of loneliness…
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Performing arts has always been – and will always be – fertile ground for documentary filmmaking. Clashing egos and high stakes in the pursuit of a craft is always going to be fun for a camera to follow, and we’ve seen it work multiple times over in movies like Every Little Step, Mad Hot Ballroom,…
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The movie version of the musical of the same name, Jersey Boys, there’s no need to reinvent the wheel here, and director Clint Eastwood does a solid job and even manages to retain a little bit of that musical flair but it’s not altogether brilliant, nor is it terrible. We’re given the fairly routine storyline…
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One country. Two men. Three cities. Two Men In China sees friends- comedian and writer, John Doyle (who is best known as “Rampaging” Roy Slaven) and scientist and activist, Tim Flannery once again taking a trip. This is the pair’s first overseas sojourn as the two have previously travelled across the Great Divide as well…
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I’ve not watched a huge amount of Swedish cinema in my life, but the few films that I have watched have the same stylistic feature that has led me to believe something about Swedish dramas: that they are characterised by a distinct visual and narrative style based in honesty and stark realism. This realism is…
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Exciting news, Whovians! The first teaser for Doctor Who season 8 has landed, and it’s brought a release date with it. The sci-fi powerhouse will be returning to our screens on August 23rd, which is less than two months away! Although the trailer itself doesn’t reveal much, it does involve the new Doctor (Peter Capaldi)…
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All Our exes live in Texas. Mandolin, guitar, ukulele, accordion. All girls. All singers. Traditional sort of music. Hotel yorba cover That thing you do I’m not that lonely yet Our love won’t die – beautiful! Tell me you don’t love me anymore – high energy! Powerful stuff. Ends! — The Morrisons six piece Double…
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When I first heard of River Sessions a couple of months ago, I was positive it must have been a new festival. Even in the regional festival circuits I feel I have a pretty good idea of what’s happening around the country. But lo and behold, River Sessions has not only been running since 2008,…
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Brad Pitt seems to be fighting Nazis in a lot of his movies in recent years. However, from the look of Fury we’re not going to be seeing an bad Italian accents or light hearted art chasing this time around. Set in April 1945, the film centres around a battle-hardened and world weary sergeant who…
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One of our favourite bands over the last few years has been Husky, whose debut Forever So still gets plenty of play here at AU HQ. So it comes with much excitement that the band are back, and are officially releasing the first single from their as yet untitled sophomore LP on Monday! But you…
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John Goodridge chats to Dominic Philips of Irish band Bell X1 about their sixth album Chop Chop and their upcoming trip to Australia. Hi Dominic, it’s John calling from the AU Review. John, how you doing? Good thanks, how are you? Not too bad, thanks very much. Excellent. Now you’re touring your album Chop Chop…
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This Saturday, River Sessions – a boutique regional festival – returns to Mackay in Queensland, bringing with it an incredible lineup of Australian and even USA based talent. From Art vs Science to Illy, Rüfüs to Megan Washington and The Amity Affliction to New York artist Sweater Beats, the event is sure to keep all…
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This is it, we have finally reached the end of Noah Hawley’s black comedy-crime-drama Fargo, inspired by the Coen Brothers film of the same name. Without further ado, let us launch into a recap of the episode and a little discussion, beware there’s thin ice and spoilers ahead. We open with a long tracking sequence,…
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In the lead up to this year’s Tropfest, Tropfest Australia is holding the fourth annual Tropfest Roughcut event on July 26th in Sydney. The engaging and interactive film industry event will include networking sessions, panel discussions, and conversations with industry greats, such as actor John Jarratt (Wolf Creek) and comedian Dan Ilic. The full day…
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In a move that will make the dictator appear even crazier, Kim Jong Un has threatened violent retribution if Seth Rogen and James Franco’s latest film, The Interview, is released. The plot of the movie is pretty simple – a talk show host and his producer are given the opportunity to conduct a rare interview…
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In a particularly clever marketing ploy, the advertisements for the third instalment of The Hunger Games franchise are going far beyond stock standard trailers and movie posters. Instead, an immersion tactic has been employed by releasing propaganda posters that address the fictional citizens of Panem. In these posters, different districts are “saluted” in an attempt…
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“Run For Your Life”, the new single from Bertie Blackman triggers the very sensations Bertie Blackman is singing about: feet pounding the pavement, the air rushing into your lungs, the blood pumping through your veins. Referencing the stylistic choices of the 80’s and all the things that made Bertie happy growing up, Vanessa Ronan-Pearce had…
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It’s sad about the Big Day Out, but all these “RIP” posts on social media today, when the event is still owned by a company – albeit an American one – seems a bit premature. What comes next for the brand could be an exciting thing. C3 run some of the best festivals in the…
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Before they hit the stage at the Oxford Art Factory in Sydney over the weekend, Geelong’s The Evening Cast gave us an exclusive acoustic performance of their latest single – and reason for their tour – “Questions”. The tour continues in Byron Bay tomorrow night and at Rics in Brisbane on Saturday before moving onto…
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Michael Bay’s typical grandiosity has spilled over into the classic tale of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles; it would be a cause for concern if the first official trailer didn’t make the film seem so incredibly fun. Detailed and very polished, the modern take on the anthropomorphic fantasy looks to be a visual feast for…
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Heart Of A Lion (Leijonasydän) is a Finnish drama that asks the question, “Should you be ruled your head or by your heart?” It’s an age-old conflict and yet, this film manages to deal with this along with two sensitive and timely topics (racism and nationalism). Directed by Dome Karukoski, Heart Of A Lion is…
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Dean O’Gorman may as well be an Australian citizen, let’s be real. The NZ born actor who is currently making The Hobbit fans’ hearts melt alongside Aidan Turner as ‘Fili’ has had a long-running connection with us over the pond, having starred in McLeod’s Daughters back in the day, which saw him stationed just outside…
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The Hollywood Reporter broke the story earlier today that Ralph Fiennes (The Grand Budapest Hotel), Channing Tatum (22 Jump Street) and Tilda Swinton (We Need to Talk About Kevin) have signed up to appear in the next film directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, Hail, Caesar! The Coen Brothers, whose films include Fargo, The Big Lebowski, and Best…
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This past weekend saw the release of two sequels of much loved originals, with 22 Jump Street and How to Train Your Dragon 2 finally being released on Australian screens. Both of the original films have gained a strong fanbase in the years since they were released, so the sequels were always going to be a big deal. 22…
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Saturday night saw Fremantle’s Mojos play host to the third and final Little Bastard show of their album launch tour through Western Australia with a large rowdy crowd braving the stormy winter weather for an evening of good times and good music. Kick-starting it all was, the brilliantly named, Aborted Tortoise. It’s pretty safe to…
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Following a smash-hit national tour and back by popular demand the unforgETTAble sounds of Vika Bull and the Essential R&B Band will grace the stages of Bendigo, Ballarat and Subiaco (WA) this July to delight audiences with the story of one of the most influential soul singers of all times – Etta James. With a…
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Hello Asia! talks to Taiwan’s reggae lion – Taitung born and bred musician Matzka, while in Toronto for Canadian Music Week. We get to know him and his music, his experiences in Toronto and find out what’s coming next. And much more! Questions in English, answers provided in Mandarin and translated into English by HanYu…
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Michael Bay has managed to somewhat redeem himself with Transformers: Age of Extinction with a too long but well worth it rollercoaster ride. Just remember, it’s Hollywood, it’s Bay, it’s not really supposed to make sense and you’re really going to watch the giant robots and cars and see things blow up. Firstly, lower your…
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Documentary Keep On Keepin’ On is rather naive in the way it was made. Director Alan Hicks and his cinematographer Adam Hart had never really worked on any similar projects before, so they just kept on shooting until they could piece together a film. It took five years for them to make Keep On Keepin’…
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