John Safran is no stranger to stirring the pot. In his third book, Puff Piece, he asks and answers some of the burning questions aimed at Big Tobacco. The result is an enjoyable read that’s full of his trademark humour and is a clever examination on some ethical grey matters. Many readers will perhaps be […]
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Many of us have probably never contemplated a world where restaurants didn’t exist. The French film, Delicious traces the origins of those humble establishments with a heart-warming story involving French nobility. The result is a visual feast that will warm the cockles and sate the appetite just like a fine Christmas dinner. Éric Besnard directs […]
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The Killing of Kenneth Chamberlain is a film that will leave you scared and asking, “How could this happen?” It is based on a true event that took place in 2011. In the wake of the Black Lives Matter Movement and the continued senseless deaths by racists, it remains an achingly important indictment on society […]
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They call it the CSI effect. The TV show has become so popular that individuals on juries are questioning the experts because the evidence doesn’t resemble TV. Comedian and podcaster, Meshel Laurie’s latest book, CSI Told You Lies is an intriguing look behind the scenes at the professionals working in homicide and victim identification. Laurie […]
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If you’ve ever wondered what Sir George Martin – the legendary Beatles producer – did after the Fab Four split then Under the Volcano is the film for you. Sir Martin remained prolific in the music industry and opened up his own studio-cum-playground in Montserrat. This state-of-the-art workspace was the birthplace of many hits and […]
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If you want an example of the transportive power of dance then you need to look no further than Firestarter: The Story of Bangarra. This documentary packs a lot into its slender 96-minute run time, by tracing the origins of this First Nations dance troupe. This film draws together many facets and stories including the […]
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The tagline for Nick Hornby’s ninth novel should be “Love happens you least expect it.” On, Just Like You he’s fashioned together an interracial and intergenerational romance between two unlikely individuals. The result is a very sweet and realistic book that could offer a breezy form of escapism for readers during the world’s continued Covid madness. Hornby […]
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Laura Bates is an author, educator and the founder of the Everyday Sexism Project. In interviews she states that she’s witnessed a change in the young men she’s been teaching; and that she has more hostility and resistance to her lessons about feminism and sexism. In identifying this, she had the kernels of an idea […]
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Turns Out, I’m Fine sees comedian Judith Lucy making peace with different things in her life. The former star of The Late Show toured her comedy show, Judith Lucy versus Men across Australia in 2019. A number of the jokes and stories she told there form the basis of her latest book. Fans of her debut biography, […]
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Sydney will be treated to an enchanted fairy-tale in the form of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella. The Capitol Theatre will host the Australian premiere of a production presented by Opera Australia and the Gordon Frost Organisation, who previously partnered together for The King and I. Debuting in on Broadway in 2013, the award-winning Cinderella is […]
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In “Magnetic”, Dan Sultan sang, “I’m trying to keep it simple/But I’m a complicated man.” Never were truer words uttered. Sultan’s one-off show at the Enmore Theatre certainly saw him keeping things modest. With his commanding voce and an acoustic guitar, he charmed the audience. The songs were wistful about the past and also had a […]
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Six-time ARIA winner Dan Sultan will grace the stage with an exclusive, one-off performance at Sydney’s iconic Enmore Theatre. In a one-off show on Saturday March 27th, Sultan will entertain audiences with an evening of stories, reflection and music. Sultan is a brilliant raconteur so fans can expect laughter as well as all the heartfelt […]
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Lots of us know Free Willy but what about Free Smooshi? The latter campaign started after a former trainer at Canada’s Marineland water park went rogue. He took to Twitter to make allegations about animal abuse at his former employer. The documentary, The Walrus & the Whistleblower tells this sad story. Nathalie Bibeau directs this […]
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Screening as part of the digital Transitions Film Festival, we caught up with Director Julie Sokolow to talk about her new documentary Barefoot: The Mark Baumer Story. What first attracted you to making a film about Mark Baumer? Back in 2016, a friend of mine frequently shared Mark’s videos on Facebook. I finally clicked on […]
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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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These crazy Covid times have most likely left people feeling as though they were living the wrong life. For those of you questioning and soul-searching, never fear as life coach, Kate James is here to help. She is an author who has worked in the realms of positive psychology and meditation practices for some time. […]
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Comedy returns to Australia from March 2021 with news that Ben Elton is returning for his first stand-up show in 15 years. In 2019, Ben Elton announced a brand-new comedy show called Ben Elton Live, which was to tour Australia in 2020. That was postponed for obvious reasons. His tour has been expanded with new […]
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Rock and roll ain’t easy on the artists. It’s no picnic for the roadies either, as Tana Douglas’s memoir, Loud proves. Douglas was the world’s first female roadie. Her first book gives us a fly on the wall account of her life and career in music. She and her fellow crew members worked hard, played […]
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Vida Goldstein’s surname might have been used to denote a federal electorate, but she’s hardly a household name. This trailblazing woman was a steadfast women’s rights advocate who toiled away in Australia and abroad in the early 20th century. Jacqueline Kent‘s new biography chronicles this inspiring lady’s work in the social justice and political spheres. Kent […]
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Adrian Tame certainly understands the adage, “Never let the truth get in the way of a good story.” The English-Australian journalist has notched up over five decades in the business working in Australia, the US and the UK. In his fourth book, The Awful Truth: My Adventures with Australia’s Most Notorious Tabloid he gives us […]
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Yoko Ono and Paul McCartney have often asked that we do not name John Lennon’s killer. They reasoned that we should not reward Mark David Chapman, nor grant him the fame and notoriety he sought from that heinous act. There have been many films and books about John Lennon’s murder over the years. The latest, […]
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Shane MacGowan is an artist specialising in Irish cream and the craic. The Pogues’ former front man is a brilliant raconteur, even if his body now seems rather battle-hardened. This documentary film is a detailed mosaic and in-depth look at this punk poet’s hedonistic life and his remarkable career. Documentarian, Julien Temple (The Great Rock […]
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Oliver Sacks was an incredible man. The neurologist, writer and naturalist forced us all to rethink our understanding of the brain with his absorbing medical case studies and books. He showed a real empathy towards his patients at a time when the establishment were sceptical about such treatment. Now he is the focus of Oliver […]
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David Byrne is no stranger to starring in concert films. In 1983, as frontman of Talking Heads, he appeared in the acclaimed Stop Making Sense. Now he stars in his very own: American Utopia, courtesy of director Spike Lee. The result is something that is stripped back yet ultimately brimming with authenticity. For American Utopia, […]
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It won’t happen overnight; but, it will happen. That’s certainly the message we should take away from the documentary, Machine. The film is a fascinating dive into the technological revolution that our world will experience, in time, as artificial intelligence (AI) augments all aspects of our lives. The film comes to us from the creators […]
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Steve Ewert and Dick Russell certainly had good reason to say, “We’re not in Kansas anymore!” In 1971 the photographer and writer went on a gruelling 4300km hitchhiking trip through the Sahara Desert. The result was like On the Road meets Wild. The documentary, Hitchhiking to the Edge of Sanity looks back at the pair’s […]
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Music fans will often find their favourite tracks are bigger than their genre. In fact, some music is so big it permeates into an entire subculture. Australian DJ, Steve Wide celebrates this with two sharp new books, A Field Guide to Punk and A Field Guide to Post-Punk and New Wave. Both of these are […]
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There was something in the water in Laurel Canyon. This area in California is one that hosted many great musical acts, especially during the sixties and seventies. Echo in the Canyon is a documentary that examines this free-wheeling period but only scratches the surface of the time’s divine light. Jakob Dylan (Wallflowers) is a big […]
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There are some people who think happiness is as easy to achieve as typing out a smiley-faced emoji. Ariel Gore knows the reality is far more complex. Her latest book, F*ck Happiness: How the Science of Psychology Ignores Women is a deep and insightful look at the positive psychology movement and where it rests in […]
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