TV & Streaming

Interview: Jessica Chastain and Eddie Redmayne on The Good Nurse; “He’s America’s most prolific serial killer, and you’ve never heard of him”

Based on an incredible true story centred in the world of hospitals and health care, about how one woman’s growing suspicion of her co-worker led to America’s most prolific serial killer being brought to justice after 16 years of quietly killing patients across the US, The Good Nurse is a chilling true crime story that…

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Film Review: The Good Nurse overcomes any true crime narrative mechanisms with a strong, honest core

There’s something incredibly refreshing about The Good Nurse in that its true-crime temperament isn’t marred by overt manipulation – as so many of such adapted tales can be. Jessica Chastain (as typically great and committed as expected) is Amy, the titular good nurse, a single mother who is hiding her own ailment as she dedicates…

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Film Review: Rosaline is a charming reimagining of the world’s greatest love story

Before Romeo & Juliet, there was Romeo & Rosaline. Adopting a personality that takes inspiration from the likes of Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo & Juliet, 10 Things I Hate About You, and A Knight’s Tale, Rosaline is a charming romantic comedy that manages to present its meta commentary on the pros and cons of Shakespeare’s work…

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Six episodes in, is The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power worth watching?

If you have been glued to Amazon’s new show The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power each week, you wouldn’t be alone. The first five episodes have firmly established the Second Age setting, filled with a lot of back story and establishment of Numenor, Southlands, Khazan-dum and Lindon. It feels all of this…

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Jennifer Lopez and Josh Duhamel’s nuptials ignite in explosive trailer for Shotgun Wedding

It’s time to literally save the day for Jennifer Lopez and Josh Duhamel in the first explosive trailer for Shotgun Wedding. Darcy (Lopez) and Tom (Duhamel) gather their lovable but very opinionated families for the ultimate destination wedding, just as the couple begin to get cold feet. And if that wasn’t enough of a threat…

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Interview: Casting director Jill Anthony Thomas on assembling Apple TV+ series Loot; “My favourite thing is finding and fostering new talent”

As casting director Jill Anthony Thomas states herself, those involved in the casting process are “the unsung heroes of the industry”.  Actors aren’t always handed a role.  And two performers on paper doesn’t equate to them working well in person.  So, thank the movie and television Gods that we have people like Jill to steer…

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Interview: Queer For Fear producer Bryan Fuller on uncovering the history of queer subtext within the horror genre

From its literary origins with queer authors Mary Shelley, Bram Stoker and Oscar Wilde to the pansy craze of the 1920s that influenced Universal Monsters and Hitchcock; from the “lavender scare” alien invasion films of the mid-20th century to the AIDS obsessed bloodletting of 80s vampire films; through genre-bending horrors from a new generation of queer creators; Queer for Fear re-examines genre stories through a queer lens, seeing them not as violent, murderous…

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Interview: Melanie Zanetti on Raven’s Hollow, exploring psychological horror and the increased prominence of strong female roles

There’s always a certain joy in seeing someone you know personally excel in their chosen field of expertise. And for Peter Gray it was chatting with Queensland actress (and long-historied friend) Melanie Zanetti in conjunction with the release of Raven’s Hollow. After catching up and filling more than a few interview minutes on celebrating each…

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Film Review: Hocus Pocus 2 is campy, nonsensical, and bathed in a self-aware musicality

Like so many of the House of Mouse’s IPs, Hocus Pocus has been conjured once more.  Disney weren’t entirely sure they had a success on their hands some 30 years ago with the release of the original film – what with the studio releasing a Halloween-themed family film in July, for starters – and were…

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Why we have Cate Blanchett to thank for the return of Documentary Now!

Earlier in the month, three episodes from the new season of IFC’s iconic mockumentary series Documentary Now! premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).  And during a post-screening Q&A, it was revealed that we have Australia’s own Cate Blanchett to thank for its long awaited return. In front of a sold out audience at…

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Interview: Raven’s Hollow director Christopher Hatton on navigating gothic horror and upsetting genre purists

As the Edgar Allan Poe-inspired Raven’s Hollow begins to haunt horror streaming service Shudder just in time for the spooky season (you can read our review here), Peter Gray spoke with writer/director Christopher Hatton about navigating gothic horror, what he hopes Poe purists will take away from the film, and their own personal connection to each…

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Film Review: Raven’s Hollow is an atmospheric gothic horror tale that favours story over scares

Not exactly an origin story in the traditional – or autobiographical – sense, but a healthy start all the same as to how legendary horror writer Edgar Allan Poe fuelled his creativity for all things macabre, Christopher Hatton‘s Raven’s Hollow indulges in the author’s aesthetic for an atmospheric chiller that favours story over scares. In…

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My Policeman suffers from a glossy sheen that doesn’t naturally represent its queer merit: TIFF 2022 Review

Given how wild everyone – or teenage girls, to be a little more accurate – are for pop’s main man-candy Harry Styles, it will no doubt throw much of his female following off as to how graphic the sexual scenes are in My Policeman, a queer love story that perseveres with grand intentions but, sadly,…

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V/H/S/99 flexes its creative muscle with a shaky form: TIFF 2022 Review

One of the more unlikely franchises of a resilient nature, V/H/S/, a retro-appearing horror anthology effort that often compiles a series of genre directors flexing their creative muscle through short horror narratives, is now in its fifth iteration in the form of V/H/S/99. The horror tales that often are confined within the V/H/S/ films are always…

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Film Review: Confess, Fletch; the long awaited sequel we didn’t know we needed

The idea of a Fletch remake/reboot/sequel has long been discussed for almost three decades now.  The obvious suggestions of Jason Lee and Jason Sudeikis were thrown around for contention to follow in Chevy Chase’s comedic footsteps during its production, but after consistent stop/starts it has fallen to Jon Hamm to pick up the mantle and…

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First Impressions: Amazon’s The Rings of Power is a sensual feast of Tolkien goodness

Set in the middle age of Middle Earth, thousands of years before the events of The Hobbit and the One Ring, Amazon Prime Video’s new series The Rings of Power. After watching the first two episodes, it is clear the studio squeezed every cent out of the reported $465 million dollars for its first season…

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Interview: Director Daniel Roher on controversial political documentary Navalny; “It’s really important that the world remembers that not all Russians are evil”

In August 2020, Alexei Navalny, the leader of the Russian opposition was poisoned with a lethal nerve agent in an assassination attempt.  In the months following, the shocking revelations about the attempt on his life came to light during his road to recovery, a process that was captured by award-winning director Daniel Roher in his…

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Interview: Director Rebekah McKendry on her philosophical scarer Glorious

The pandemic gave many a creative time to think as so much of the entertainment industry faced an uncertain future. For director Rebekah McKendry through, it played into her favour. Presented with a unique, near-singular-set horror film that mused on philosophy and existentialism, Glorious seemed like an idea born from a world that was unsure…

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Film Review: Glorious is surprisingly contemplative for a lightly demented horror film

With a rest-stop bathroom glory hole serving as a type of universal gateway between a confused, confined Ryan Kwanten and an unseen, but very heard, J.K. Simmons, one would be forgiven for thinking Glorious may be, well, just a little filthy. Sure, it’s dirty at times and leans into a gory mentality when it sees…

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ABC iView reveal new miniseries Soundtrack To Our Teenage Zombie Apocalypse

What do you do when you get trapped in an abandoned building during a zombie apocalypse? Write a song about it, of course. ABC iView have today revealed the exclusive new miniseries Soundtrack To Our Teenage Zombie Apocalypse (STOTZA for short). The 10 half-hour-episode feature follows four teenage musicians on a mission to win triple…

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Film Review: Thirteen Lives is a tense dramatization of one of this century’s most triumphant rescue efforts

In June of 2018 when thirteen members of a Thai boys’ soccer team were trapped underground in a cave that flooded out through early monsoon rains, it didn’t take long for the story rights to be snapped up by various studio heads, all looking for their own take on an initially tragic then, thankfully, happily…

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Interview: Robert Patrick on respecting the acting process when making What Josiah Saw

One of the most recognisable presences within film, Robert Patrick has been dominating the screen with his oft-villainous and authoritative roles for nearly four decades now. Best known for his turn as T-2 in the groundbreaking Terminator 2: Judgement Day, as well as such films as Cop Land, Charlies Angels: Full Throttle, Walk the Line,…

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Film Review: What Josiah Saw subverts our horror expectations with a brutal subtlety

Though What Josiah Saw may include rather expected tropes of the haunted gothic subsect of the horror genre, Vincent Grashaw‘s self-contained chiller continually subverts our expectations with a brutal eeriness that’s likely to divide its audience between those who are enveloped by its slow burn mentality and those who prefer their horrors far less subtle….

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TV Review: This is Going to Hurt is hilarious, dramatic & pain-free

There aren’t many shows that can successfully straddle the lines between comedy and drama. But This is Going to Hurt is not most programs. The British dramedy based on Adam Kay’s memoir will dazzle audiences with its sharp writing, humour and pathos. Ben Whishaw stars as a young doctor working for the National Health Service….

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SXSW to head to Australia in 2023

SXSW have announced an annual Asia-Pacific installment, with Sydney set to host in October 2023. It’s the first time the iconic conference and festival of creativity has expanded beyond North America since its inception in 1987. A joint collaboration between the NSW Government, Destination NSW, TEG, and SXSW, SXSW Sydney will bring together the world’s…

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Season Review: Chloe is an intriguing, thrilling series about the web of lies built around social media

Watching the anti-heroine of Alice Seabright‘s thrilling series Chloe, Becky Green (Erin Doherty, an absolute star-making turn), as she scrolls through the social media lifestyle of the titular Chloe (Poppy Gilbert), a flame-haired femme with a seemingly enviable and lavish existence, the loneliness and self-loathing is palpable. It’s a feeling we’ve probably all experienced, noting…

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Interview: Zahn McClarnon on the importance of Native representation in his new series Dark Winds

Executive produced by George R.R. Martin and Robert Redford, Dark Winds is set in 1971 on a remote outpost of the Navajo Nation near Monument Valley, and follows Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn (Zahn McClarnon) of the Tribal Police as he is besieged by a series of seemingly unrelated crimes. The closer Leaphorn digs to the truth, the more he…

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Film Review: Fire Island is a savagely funny comedy that’ll prove warmly important to queer audiences

Whilst I’m certainly not suggesting that Fire Island won’t earn some crossover appeal with straight audiences – hell, I even saw this movie with a straight guy – queer audiences are sure to wholeheartedly embrace Joel Kim Booster‘s deliciously funny, at times savage comedy in a manner that’s entirely personal and significantly unique compared to…

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Interview: The cast of The Boys on the “messed up” third season at Prime Video’s exclusive fan screening

The Boys hasn’t had to do much to announce itself as the dirty, profane, narcissistic, misogynistic, black sheep of the comic book world…but it doesn’t mean it won’t keep on trying. Following its three-episode premiere on Prime Video on June 3rd, cast members Jack Quaid (Hughie), Jessie T. Usher (A-Train), Chace Crawford (The Deep), Karen…

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Season Review: The Boys season 3 spits in the face of superhero fatigue with a violent glee

Within the first few minutes of the third season of The Boys, the profane-laced dialogue (no one drops a “C-bomb” like Karl Urban), bold nudity (if you think there’s a lack of male frontal shots in mainstream media, feast your eyes here), and bloodied-red body horror (there’s that R18+ rating certified) more than announces that…

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