Film & TV

Lynette Wallworth’s VR experience Collisions to tell an Indigenous Australian story at ACMI

Acclaimed artist and filmmaker Lynette Wallworth will present a virtual reality film experience titled Collisions at ACMI from October this year. The free exhibition will be a part of the Melbourne Festival, and will run at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image from Thursday 6 October 2016 to Sunday 15 January 2017. Exploring the…

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A Suicide Squad Member is Coming to Supanova in Brisbane and Adelaide

As the much anticipated entry in the DC Cinematic Universe Suicide Squad opens this week, it has been announced that one of its stars Karen Fukuhara, who plays Katana, will be part of the Supanova’s lineup in Adelaide and Brisbane this November. Katana, a masked assassin assigned to protect Rick Flag, the leader of the…

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Miss Saigon celebrates its 25th anniversary with limited cinema run

Miss Saigon: The 25th Anniversary Performance is coming to cinemas around the world, including Australia this October. The acclaimed new staging of Boubil and Schönberg’s Miss Saigon was one of the most highly anticipated musical events the West End had seen in recent years. It broke box office records and won numerous awards. Shot in front…

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Perfect Strangers to open to the 2016 Lavazza Italian Film Festival in September

The Lavazza Italian Film Festival is returning for the 13th consecutive year to showcase the very best and freshest films in Italian cinema. Opening night will see the premiere of Perfect Strangers (Perfetti sconosciuti). Seven friends at a dinner party decide to share the content of every message, email and phone call they receive over the night during which more…

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DVD Review: Eddie the Eagle (PG) (UK/USA) (2016)

Biographical films, especially ones that revolve around triumphs of the human spirit, can range from the truly inspirational The Pursuit of Happiness to award-bait films like the dull and manipulative The Blind Side to unmitigated disasters like the agonizing Patch Adams. However, very few of those films show the comedic side of life and this is where Eddie the Eagle…

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Win tickets to IMAX Darling Harbour to see the latest blockbuster Suicide Squad

From August 4th, IMAX Darling Harbour will be screening the latest DC Comics blockbuster Suicide Squad. With an all-star cast including Margot Robbie, Will Smith and Jared Leto, Suicide Squad is about a group of supervillains who accept a secret government mission that will likely results in their deaths. Watch the film trailer here IMAX…

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Bridget Jones is coming to Australia – and bringing McDreamy along for the trip

Continuing an amazing run of celebrity visits over the last couple of months, the stars of Bridget Jones’s Baby are coming to Australia. Bridget Jones herself, Academy Award winner Renee Zellweger and McDreamy (Grey’s Anatomy) himself, Patrick Dempsey – who joins the franchise for the first time – will both be in Australia to promote…

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MIFF Review: Toni Erdmann (Germany, 2016) is a meandering delight

Written and directed by Maren Ede, Toni Erdmann is a meandering delight. By turns hilarious and poignant, it concerns the ageing Winfried Conradi’s frequently maladroit attempts to re-establish some sort of a meaningful relationship with his adult daughter, Ines, in the course of a spontaneous trip to visit her in Bucharest, the Romanian capital. Unkempt,…

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The Iris’ Weekly Australian TV Picks: 2nd – 8th August 2016

Welcome to a brand new month and a new set of TV picks that will glue you to your seat.

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Film Review: Embrace (MA15+) (Australia, 2016)

It’s not very often a film will change my perspective on life, but after viewing Taryn Brumfitt’s documentary Embrace it was a completely different story. The roots of this inspiring documentary stem from a post of Brumfitt’s that went viral in 2013, depicting Taryn in an unconventional before and after photo – from having a…

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New Line Cinema has already ordered a Lights Out sequel

As Lights Out continues its surge through the box office, now accumulating as much as US$27 million in domestic sales since its July 22nd release, New Line Cinema have already ordered a successor to the film. David F. Sandberg and his wife Lotta Losten are reportedly both to return to work on Lights Out 2,…

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Larry David to bring Curb Your Enthusiasm back for a ninth season in 2017

If inferences can be drawn on the fans of Larry David, then the announcement of a ninth season of Curb Your Enthusiasm is probably being greeted with a lot of nonchalant, unenthusiastic cheers right about now. It has been five years since the friendly face of the neurotic Larry David flashed the screens of HBO…

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It’s official: there are just two seasons left of Game of Thrones

Though long rumoured and assumed based on interviews with the creatives behind the hit TV series Game of Thrones, today HBO made it official. According to Variety, HBO’s programming chief Casey Bloys has confirmed that the 8th season of the show will be its final bow. The confirmation came during the Television Critics Association press…

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Blu-Ray Review: Gods of Egypt (M) (USA, 2016)

Gods of Egypt isn’t bad – but it certainly feels out of place. It feels like an effects-heavy blockbuster from a time before superheroes ruled the box office. With no spandex in sight, the movie stands out like a sore thumb. While this does the movie some favors, there’s plenty of other missteps which act as…

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TV Review: Thirteen (UK, 2016)

What is the first thing you would do after being trapped underground for thirteen years? This is the question that BBC First’s mini-series Thirteen tries to answer. When affordable Pay TV and access to streaming digital content is easier than ever, we demand quality. Where more and more drama and comedy series seem to bring…

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Girl Asleep releasing theatrically with Q&A sessions

Umbrella Entertainment has announced the Australian release of the internationally praised, coming-of-age comic drama Girl Asleep on Thursday 8 September, with a series of advance Q&A events featuring key cast members taking place across the country. Based on the acclaimed production by Adelaide’s Windmill Theatre, Girl Asleep is a journey into the absurd, scary and beautiful…

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The surprise trailer for September’s Blair Witch has landed

One of the biggest surprises at Comic-Con International in San Diego earlier this month was the release of a trailer for a sequel to the 1996 hit film The Blair Witch Project. The movie, simply titled Blair Witch, was filmed in secret and will be released in September of this year. Announcing the thriller this…

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‘Une Fabuleuse’ film lineup announced for the 2016 Alliance Française Classic Film Festival

Be transported back in time to relive classic French cinema on the silver screen, as the Alliance Française Classic Film Festival announces its exclusive ‘Une Fabuleuse’ collection. The screenings will be held across Australia for a weekend in the upcoming months, showcasing the talents of the “Les Blondes” in classic French film, including acclaimed actresses…

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Watch the trailer for upcoming Australian film Boys In The Trees

Australian filmmaker Nicholas Verso‘s first feature film, Boys In The Trees, has released its official trailer in anticipation for its national release on October 20. Boys In The Trees “tells the story of two estranged childhood friends who reunite on Halloween 1997, and embark on a surreal journey through their memories, dreams and fears”, and will compete at the…

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New For Honor trailer highlights the real heat of battle

For Honor has been looking like a guilty pleasure straight from its initial announcement at E3 last year. Vikings, Knights and Samurai? What’s not to like? Check out the all new Accolades Trailer below.

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First Assault Online launches into open beta

After connecting with the game’s community through Early Access to improve and enhance the game, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex – First Assault Online is in open beta. Players in supported regions can now experience the free-to-play online squad-based first-person shooter on Windows PC via Steam or the Nexon Global Platform.

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Blizzard Entertainment unveils Arthas Statue in Taichung, Taiwan

At an event in Taichung, Taiwan earlier this week, Blizzard Entertainment unveiled a giant bronze statue of one of its most iconic characters: Lich King, Arthas Menethil, from the Warcraft universe. The statue is located on the Calligraphy Greenway, a cultural and artistic hub built around the concepts of innovation, sustainability, recreation, and entertainment. The…

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Netflix receives worldwide rights to stream American Crime Story

Cable’s most watched new TV series of 2016, The People v. OJ Simpson: American Crime Story, will come to Netflix in 2017. The series will be available globally (excluding Canada) and will stream all new seasons in the hit American Crime Story TV series. The announcement is the first global agreement between Netflix and 20th…

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Netflix acquires exclusive rights to feature film on the Panama Papers

Based on the tell-all book by Obermaier and Obermayer, Panama Papers: Breaking the Story of How the World’s Rich and Powerful Hide Their Money, will be adapted in to a feature-length film. Key members from the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), Gerard Ryle and Marina Walker, are also on board with the project as…

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Freddy Krueger himself to appear at Q&A for screening of The Last Showing in Sydney

Robert Englund, known for his infamous role as horror supervillain, Freddy Krueger, will be at the Ritz Cinema in Randwick, Sydney for a special Q&A for his new film The Last Showing. The film tells the story of a projectionist (played by Englund) who is made redundant. As it was his life-long career he looks…

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Special Comic-Con footage of Justice League and trailer for The Lego Batman Movie finally released online

Making their debuts a couple of days ago, this year’s event of  San Diego’s Comic-Con International  showcased exclusive content from upcoming films Justice League and The Lego Batman Movie.  With such a strong fandom for both films, both video clips on YouTube have already reached millions of views, with fans excitedly sharing their thoughts on…

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Palace Cinemas to open a ten-screen cinema in Double Bay, NSW

Yesterday, Palace Cinemas announced that they will be opening a new ten-screen cinema in Sydney’s Double Bay, which will increase their number of cinemas in NSW to five by the time it opens. The boutique company also confirmed plans to renovate their existing NSW cinemas, Palace Verona and Palace Byron Bay. For the Verona, the…

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Gilmore Girls is dated, Chelsea returns and more in Netflix’s announcement bonanza

Netflix, the world’s leading Internet TV network, today announced premiere dates for nine upcoming series that span documentary, drama and comedy. Chelsea, Lady Dynamite and Real Rob were renewed today for a second season. The Untitled Motown Project, an all new animated series for children and families from writer/director Josh Wakely, was also announced today. Other announcements include Black Mirror,…

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First teaser trailer for M. Night Shyamalan thriller Split released

Hollywood all-rounder M. Night Shyamalan returns to the captivating rapture of The Sixth Sense with Split, an original thriller that delves into the mysterious recesses of one man’s fractured but gifted mind.  Following the success of The Visit, Shyamalan reunites with producer Jason Blum for the film, which will open in the US in January 2017. The…

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Blu-Ray Review: Supergirl Season One (M15+) (USA, 2015)

Adopting a hopeful, cheery personality that aligns itself more with quintessential 90’s outing Lois & Clark over the grittier tone set by Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel, Supergirl injects some much-needed optimism into the TV comic-book scene which is teetering with becoming an over-saturated market at this stage.  Much like the character herself, the show…

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