Shayda tells the story of our titular heroine (Zar Amir Ebrahimi), an Iranian woman who is living in Australia with her 6-year-old daughter Mona (Selina Zahednia). She resides in a women’s shelter after having fled from Iran to hide from her husband Hossein (Osamah Sami) and she tries to establish a normal life for her…
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What make horror films successful is how it examines ideas that are truthful about the human condition with bloodcurdling, cinematic panache. In the case of Carlota Pereda’s feature-length film debut Piggy, she succeeds with flying colours. Adapted from her 2018 short film of the same name; Pereda has ample time to explore the horrors of…
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The Medium tells the story of a Thai documentary team who are travelling to the region of Isan to follow the life of the local medium Nim (Sawanee Utoomma). She claims that she was possessed by the spirit of Ba Yan, a deity that the people of Isan worship and a significant presence in Nim’s…
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Burning is the latest documentary from filmmaker Eva Orner, an acclaimed documentarian who has covered subjects within Australia like the awful treatment of asylum seekers in Chasing Asylum as well as producing many well-received works like Taxi to the Dark Side. Now she explores the 2019-20 Australian bushfire season with her latest project. Burning is…
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Murina follows Julija (Gracija Filipovic), a 16-year old girl living with her parents on an island that many would consider to be a heavenly paradise. With an endless summer maintained by daily chores of fishing in beautiful vistas, it sounds like the perfect place to live. But underneath the façade lies something that is anything…
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Shopping mall beauty pageants and wedding anniversaries meet true crime and Victorian taxidermy in Night Rooms, a stunning personal essay collection from Gina Nutt. There’s likely an expectation that, given that she’s writing about it, Nutt’s life is packed with adventure or trauma or something generally monumental. It isn’t. But Night Rooms is no less…
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Genesis Owusu is an artist in control. Taking a few years to get here, his debut album Smiling With No Teeth showcases an artist well and truly ready to breakdown barriers and take the world on, fifteen tracks at a time. A lengthy debut, Smiling With No Teeth is the sign of an artist not…
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Barefoot: The Mark Baumer Story was my first introduction to the eccentric writer and eponymous artist. Baumer went viral in 2016 after he embarked on a barefoot walk across America. This documentary takes in various beats along his journey of over 100 days. It’s a portrait that is as rich and detailed as an oil…
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Zappa is a documentary that feels like one giant motherfucker of a film. At 129 minutes, director Alex Winter (the former lead actor of Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure) covers lots of ground about this enigmatic genius. They broke the mould when they made Frank Zappa. So, while the proceedings are detailed and capture his…
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Corpus Christi follows the story of a young inmate Daniel (Bartosz Bielenia), who is imprisoned for second-degree murder. During his long stint, he has a spiritual awakening and he makes it his goal to become an ordained priest. But his journey does not come easy due to his criminal background. After his release, he is…
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In America 1964, the audience is introduced with its four main players. Renowned boxer Cassius Clay (Eli Goree) had just defeated Sonny Liston to become heavyweight champion of the world; Muslim minister and human rights activist Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir) is still fighting for the cause for Black people; pop musician Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom…
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When Bettina Scott’s father and brothers disappeared, her mother took charge. The wild ways of her childhood were over, and Bettina was moulded into a proper young lady. But, when a mysterious letter arrives and a painted warning appears on their perfect picket fence, Bettina is forced to confront what really happened all those years…
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From the moment he swaggers into the room, you can tell Tyler Everett (played by Tom Crotty) is going to own the audience. Making eye contact, he begins his story of sex, violence and city living. Dressed in a black leather jacket, white t-shirt and designer stubble, with a backpack slung over his shoulder he…
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Fetch Phillips’ world is just like ours. Well except for the magic, and all that comes with that: chimera, wizards, elves, vampires and more. But, the magic has gone out, leaving the world irrevocably changed. And, our erstwhile “hero” Fetch might have more to do with it than we imagine. The Last Smile in Sunder…
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The home-grown wonder that is Tora are no longer Australia’s best kept secret. Following the success of their first album Take A Rest in 2017, songs including “Another Case” and “Too Little” caught international attention and saw them head overseas to perform. Now preparing to re-pack their bags for another tour of Europe in the…
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Terrence Malick and his mystical signature can be off-putting to some; many, in fact. And that’s completely understandable. The auteur has long been considered a divisive director, but it’d be foolish to deny the unconventional and dreamlike wonder he brings to poignant stories both intimate and large in scale. Although, if you’re not already sold…
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Elton John and photographer Terry O’Neill first collaborated in 1972. Since then, O’Neill has taken around five thousand photographs of the star across the decades that followed. Recently, when going through his collection, O’Neill recognised the special nature of these photographs and wanted to share them with Elton’s legion of fans. Elton John: The Definitive…
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It might have been a Sunday night, but it was an exciting time for those in Melbourne, with Middle Kids continuing along the path of their ‘New Songs For Old Problem’ tour. The band’s Melbourne dates fell somewhat unfortunately on a Sunday night, but as lead singer Hannah said, “people who see shows on Sunday nights…
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It may sound wrong to start off a review in the first person as well stating my personal bias, but I am planning to anyway because it would be unfair for the reader and myself due to certain restrictions in my writing. First off, I love horror films of the ’80s. I grew up watching…
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Long before The Ramones were co-opted for an ad, they were a punk band who appealed to suburbanite teens. Andrew Stafford was one such fan, which his memoir, Something to Believe In proves. Across the book’s pages he takes readers to rock ‘n’ roll high school, educating them on all matters of music and madness…
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Jocelyn Moorhouse knows how to spin a great yarn. The Dressmaker director has had a rich career in film, and this forms part of her memoir, Unconditional Love. This book looks at her brilliant career, including her collaborations with filmmaker husband, PJ Hogan (Muriel’s Wedding). But, Moorhouse’s most intriguing chapters are about her experiences with…
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If you’ve ever seen a performer such as Sharon Van Etten, you’d understand the term ‘smooth operator’. This was something that was seemingly obvious at Hamer Hall on Tuesday night as Sharon closed up the Australian leg of her Remind Me Tomorrow tour. Along for the ride was Melbourne’s vert own BATTS, who proved to…
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London-based Australian musician Jordan Rakei has just dropped his new album, Origin, his third, and first since the release of Wallflower back in 2017. Initially I came to this album on a bit of a whim, unfamiliar with Rakei’s past output, but drawn in by plaudits from the likes of Robert Glasper and Terrace Martin….
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Self styled country outlaw Rose-Lynn Harlan (Jessie Buckley) is out of jail and ready to chase her dreams. A talented country singer, her goal is Nashville (where else?), but Rose-Lynn is torn between starting fresh or finally taking responsibility for the life she’s made in Glasgow, involving two young children who barely know their mother….
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Enigmatic, ethereal and endearing AURORA, has at last released the response to her call, A Different Kind Of Human (Step II), following up her 2018 release Infections of a Different Kind (Step I). Like many artists of this moment, more and more performers are turning their lyrical focus towards ecological themes, and cries to save the Earth….
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If Langata, Crooked Colours’ sophomore album was enough to get the dance juices pumping in your system, then their live performance of the album would have almost sent a person over the edge. The night opened with Sydney via Perth duo, Kayex. Their raucous brand of electronica was not lost on the burgeoning crowd, as slowly…
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You know the old American show ‘Cheers’? The one set in the aptly named ‘Cheers’ bar, featuring Ted Danson, Kirstie Alley, Woody Harrelson and everyone’s favourite radio show hosting psychologist (well before he couldn’t work out what to do with those tossed salads and scrambled eggs). Anyway, the bar that is Cheers is the place you…
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Although Nick Murphy (formerly known as Chet Faker) has been consistent in releasing new singles over the past few years, Friday saw the release of his first album, Run Fast Sleep Naked, since 2014. The Melbournian artist has spent four years travelling around the world, recording content in places where he felt the most creatively…
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Edited by Maxine Beneba Clarke, with Magan Magan and Ahmed Yussuf, Growing Up African in Australia is a new anthology from Black Inc., following on from Alice Pung’s Growing Up Asian in Australia, Benjamin Law’s Growing Up Queer in Australia and Anita Heiss’ Growing Up Aboriginal in Australia. Whilst, Carly Findlay, who also contributed to this…
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For those fans of growing Melbourne artist BATTS, the news of an album release was a quiet relief. The Grand Tour, draped in the magic of the stars, portrays the singer-songwriter as an artist and person, creating a wonderful fusion album that evokes her powerful storytelling in different ways. As a concept, BATTS’ The Grand Tour…
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