Film & TV

Special screenings of Jaws to take place in Sydney’s Andrew (Boy) Charlton Pool this summer

Steven Spielberg’s legendary Jaws is about to become much, much more terrifying with an immersive cinematic experience put on by Art & About Sydney and Golden Age Cinema next January. The concept is fairly simple: the screening will take place at Andrew (Boy) Charlton Pool right by Sydney Harbour on Woolloomooloo Bay and attendees can…

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Lavazza Italian Film Festival Review: Mia Madre (Italy, 2015)

A deeply emotional and captivating film, Mia Madre (My Mother) stands as what is bound to be one of the many beautifully told Italian films on offer for the Lavazza Italian Film Festival. Having won awards from the likes of the Cannes Film Festival 2015 (Prize of the Ecumenical Jury), and being directed by Nanni…

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Film Review: Life (CTC, GER/USA/CAN/AUS, 2015)

The title of this film doesn’t really give much of an insight into its narrative and in fact, the word “life” has a bit of a double entendre. It couples as both the act of existing as well as the name of the publication that one of our leads works for. Not so surprisingly though,…

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What to Watch: The Iris’ Weekly TV Picks (9th September-15th September)

Need to catch a TV break and don’t know what to watch? Simon takes us through his top picks on must-see shows and films for the week. Click through to see what’s showing for your entertainment needs…. Wednesday 9th September 2015 9/11: The Lost Hero-ABC2-9.20pm AEST There are innumerable tales of heroism from 9/11; with…

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Liam Hemsworth and the cast of The Dressmaker coming to Melbourne for Australian premiere

On Sunday 18th October at Village Cinemas Crown in Melbourne, the cast of new comedy-drama The Dressmaker will be on hand at a red carpet premiere. The impressive line-up includes Liam Hemsworth and co-stars Judy Davis, Hugo Weaving, and Sarah Snook. What’s more is that the highly acclaimed filmmaking team will also be in attendance,…

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Our five favourite moments of Empire Season One

TV series Empire caused quite a stir with it’s first season, quickly becoming one of the most talked about shows of the year and establishing itself as a firm player amongst the likes of network big guns like The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones. Created by Lee Daniels and Danny Strong with stand-out performances…

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Japanese Film Festival 2015 returns to Art Gallery of NSW

Japanese Film Festival Classics program returns to 2015 with an array of the best Japanese films selected from the works of renowned filmmaker, Kon Ichikawa. This tribute highlights Ichikawa significance in moulding the style of 20th Century Japanese films. All screenings are free and are to be held in the Domain Theatre, featuring a total…

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Sydney Underground Film Festival Review: Jesus Town USA (2015)

In a small town in America’s Bible belt, Christianity and tradition reign supreme. For the past 88 years a community in the Holy City of the Wichitas have staged an Easter passion play/pageant that once saw audiences number the tens of thousands. Jesus Town USA is a documentary that is warm and sweet-enough but can…

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Film Review: Kill Me Three Times (USA, 2014)

Kill Me Three Times is a black comedy/thriller that sees professional assassin Charlie Wolfe (Simon Pegg) tangled up in a web of deception tying together the rural lives of a dentist (Sullivan Stapleton), a bartender (Callan Mulvey) and his lover (Alice Braga) in Western Australia. Unfortunately, despite the messy fun of this premise and the…

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A director and show runner have been hired for the Netflix Lemony Snicket series

Variety is reporting that Netflix’s upcoming adaptation of the Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events book series is moving closer to production. Paramount Pictures, who also ran the ship on the last adaptation – the 2004 film starring Jim Carrey – have hired Mark Hudis (True Blood) as the showrunner and Barry Sonnenfeld to…

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Director Danny Boyle to make Trainspotting sequel his next project

1996 classic Trainspotting, a landmark achievement in raw British cinema, has remained the crowning achievement of Director Danny Boyle. Adapted from Irvine Welsh’s novel of the same name almost two decades ago, the black comedy is a reference point for the careers of all involved, particularly Ewan McGregor who played Renton, one of the four…

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Film Review: Pixels (PG, USA, 2015)

Pixels is not your usual alien invasion fare type film. It’s also not your usual Adam Sandler type film. And it’s also not your usual family type film either. You would think that being unusual would work in its favour but sadly it doesn’t. What this film does have is some funny moments, some really…

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Sydney Underground Film Festival Review: Call Me Lucky (USA, 2015)

Call Me Lucky is a fascinating and compelling portrait of one of the most memorable and significant voices in comedy that you’ve never heard of. However, once you hear Barry Crimmins declaration – “I’d like to overthrow the government of the United States, and I’d like to close the Catholic Church” – it’s hard to…

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Get the answer to today’s In The House trivia question for Highlander

Every second Friday, guests to the In The House Screenings at Event Cinemas on George Street (Sydney) are treated to a trivia question from your friends here at The Iris. And here is where they come to find the answer! This week, the question concerns the classic 1986 film Highlander. And we made it a…

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This Week’s DVD Release Picks: Sequels and Spinoffs

Sequels, prequels, adaptations, and spin-offs rule in this week’s Australian DVD and Blu-Ray releases. Here are our three picks for the week…

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Bone-chilling new poster revealed for James Bond’s 24th adventure, Spectre

A brand new poster has been revealed for the upcoming 24th Bond film, Spectre. The film is the fourth film to star Daniel Craig as the iconic spy – and is contracted for a fifth and final turn. The film is released in November. Check out the “bone-chilling” new poster, here:

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Watch the Trailer for The Danish Girl

Based on the book by David Ebershoff, The Danish Girl is the inspiring love story based on the lives of Lili Elbe and Gerda Wegener (portrayed by Academy Award winner Eddie Redmayne and Alicia Vikander [Ex Machina]). Directed by Academy Award winner Tom Hooper (The King’s Speech, Les Misérables), the film follows Lili and Gerda’s…

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TV DVD Review: Wayward Pines (USA, 2015)

Wayward Pines is M. Night Shyamalan’s first venture into the world of TV and while it lives up to his legacy of telling stories with ridiculous plots, it has got way too many problems to hold its own against all the other compelling shows at the moment. Based on the book by Blake Crouch, the…

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Film Event “Flicks At The Greens” is coming to Sydney this September for the First Time!

Among the lush landscapes of Sydney’s Harbour, Flicks at The Greens offers the perfect destination for an outdoor cinema experience. From September 16th till October 11th,  Flicks at The Greens is screening a movie every week from Wednesday to Sunday at sundown. The intimate movie sessions are being held at North Sydney at The Green’s freshly refurbished…

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Watch the Trailer for Apocalyptic drama The 5th Wave

From the pages of young adult science fiction writer Rick Yancey comes the film The 5th Wave. Due out next January,  Chloe Grace Moretz will star as older sister and lone survivor, Cassie on an Earth dominated by Martians called “The Others”. With the Earth already in ruins just four waves in, the 5th wave is coming…

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Exclusive Interview: O’Shea Jackson, Jr talks portraying his father in Straight Outta Compton

Straight Outta Compton is fresh of a huge three-week dominance in the U.S Box Office, holding onto the number 1 position despite some strong competition. The N.W.A biopic, which currently has a 90% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, has finally made it’s way down to Australia and at the Sydney premiere we caught up with O’Shea…

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Exclusive Interview: Ice Cube on the success of Straight Outta Compton and new music

At the Sydney red carpet premiere for N.W.A biopic Straight Outta Compton we talked to legendary emcee Ice Cube about the film’s success, the timeline of the plot, and find out if filming has inspired him, in a similar way to Dr Dre, to release new music. Having put his 10th studio album, Everythang’s Corrupt…

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Video Game Review: Dishonored: The Definitive Edition (PS4, 2015)

Published by the acclaimed Bethesda and developed by Arkane Studios, Dishonored launched to critical and financial acclaim when it was released in 2012. While it was far from perfect, it certainly presented something fresh and forced players to think rather than merely kick a door down and shooting everything in sight. The Definitive Edition is…

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Film Review: Straight Outta Compton (USA, 2015)

N.W.A have, is, and always will be integral to hip hop and it’s status as one of the most unique, and accessible, forms of self-expression in music. Birthed in the excessively rough neighbourhood of Compton, California, the group became a reference point for hip hop as a channel through which youth can make sense of…

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Win a double pass to see Gayby Baby at the Indie Gems Film Festival in Sydney!

The sixth annual Indie Gems Film Festival has announced its 2015 program, showcasing the latest independent Australian cinema from 11 to 13 September at Riverside Theatres. Indie Gems presents film enthusiasts with a rare opportunity to view superior non-commercial cinema that is specially curated by award-winning creative producer, John L. Simpson, on the big screen…

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Australian Box Office Report: Southpaw and Vacation duke it out for #1

A couple of new films have changed the box office landscape this week but the two from last week are back at it again, fighting for top spot. Southpaw has usurped number 1, earning $1.3 million last week. Although it is only in its second week in Australia (as opposed to its 7th in The States)…

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River Song to return to Doctor Who for the 11th Christmas Special

Let the anticipation commence! We’re still over two weeks away from the much anticipated return of Doctor Who – Peter Capaldi’s second season as the iconic time traveller – and already we’re getting news on the end of this run of the series. BBC revealed today that Alex Kingston would be returning for this year’s Christmas Special,…

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Film Review: Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (USA, 2015)

Given my past experiences with the horrific disease, I’m one person that finds the deus ex machina of cancer unbearable. It is often done tastelessly, depicting it’s sufferers as people without autonomy or regarded with the self-respect that they deserve – cancer patients are people, not pawns that should be used to explain a protagonist…

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The Jewish International Film Festival Announces Line-Up And Dates

In October, the Jewish International Film Festival returns to Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Gold Coast and New Zealand for a run of dates that will feature 60 international premiere features and documentaries. The festival has become known for showcasing diverse cinema and engaging audiences both from the Jewish community and beyond. Every film, selected by Festival…

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Darwin International Film Festival Announces 2015 Program Launch

The Darwin International Film Festival has launched its official program at Deckchair Cinema over the weekend. A full line-up of films, workshops and events curated by an expert panel has been announced, with this year’s program resulting in all films having their Northern Territory premieres at the festival. Countries featured include Brazil, India, Germany, Poland and more,…

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