Film & TV

TV Review: The Walking Dead Season 5 Episode 7 “Crossed” (USA, 2014)

“Crossed” had a lot of table setting to do for the mid-season finale, cutting back and forth between four segments of the group in order to bring them all back into the scope and establish where they are and where they will be when the final episode for 2014 airs next week. After a few…

Read more

Win a Black Sails: The Complete First Season Blu-Ray prize pack!

This November, Anchor Bay Entertainment is set to release the highly anticipated Starz Originals series, Black Sails The Complete First Season on Blu-ray and DVD. Direct from its premiere season on Foxtel’s Showcase, Black Sails is an action packed and thrilling series based on history’s most notorious pirate captains, following the story of New Providence…

Read more

TV Review: The Molly Meldrum Story (Music Max – Australia, 2014)

If he’s not the King then Ian “Molly” Meldrum is undoubtedly the Queen of Australian music. The broadcaster, raconteur, producer, TV presenter, journalist, band manager and passionate music fan has seen and done it all. To celebrate some 50 years in the music industry as well as his upcoming induction into the ARIA Hall of…

Read more

Box Office Report: Hunger Games is a blow out in its opening week

Despite Interstellar’s stellar reviews and impressive opening week, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 did as expected and knocked it back down to earth. The Hunger Games is a box office magnet. It is commonplace for the franchise and this week was no different as the the newest iteration pulled in over $11.8 million. Interstellar didn’t…

Read more

Paddington creator Michael Bond calls the new film “A delight from start to finish”

  What may ostensibly be another cash in of a classic children’s cartoon in the vein of Alvin & The Chipmunks and Yogi Bear, Paddington has received the ultimate thumbs up. London’s Leicester Square was the home of the Paddington premier last night and the venue had a very special guest in attendance. Michael Bond -the creator of the…

Read more

Sony reveals their monsters for Goosebumps

Sony Pictures has unveiled all the things that will go bump in the night in their upcoming Goosebumps movie. The cavalcade of characters look fantastic, most notable of which is Slappy, the ventriloquist doll from Night of the Living Dummy. Jack Black plays R.L Stine, author of the Goosebumps books who is forced to hide…

Read more

Scientists create a genetically modified dinosaur in official Jurassic World trailer

It’s a full blown, technologically advanced dinosaur theme park that is to serve as our island setting for the fourth installment in the iconic Jurassic Park series. Jurassic World, due for release June 12th next year, has itself an official trailer now, giving us a nice scope of just how chaotic this film is going…

Read more

Hanging at Supanova Adelaide with…James and Oliver Phelps (Harry Potter)!

  Drawing easily one of the largest crowds of Supanova’s latest Adelaide jaunt were James and Oliver Phelps, otherwise known affectionately as Fred and George Weasley from the popular Harry Potter film series. With a Q&A panel on Sunday apparently cracking a 900-strong crowd number, the British siblings fielded questions from fans of all ages, covering all different topics. Surprisingly,…

Read more

Hanging at Supanova Adelaide with…Tahmoh Penikett (Battlestar Galactica, Supernatural)!

  Supanova came through Adelaide over the weekend, whipping the Adelaide Showgrounds up into a bit of a frenzy, so much so that the torrential rain and thunder on the Saturday added to the hectic vibes the pop culture expo brought on its own! I had the pleasure of catching up with some of the guests…

Read more

Netflix orders fourth season of Longmire

It has been confirmed that Netflix, the world leader in Internet TV  has ordered the fourth season of the hit drama Longmire , from Warner Horizon Television. With Netflix hitting our shores in March of next year (finally!), ten new episodes will be premiered exclusively on the network. The 10 brand-new episodes will also be…

Read more

Emirates British Film Festival Review: Jimmy’s Hall (UK, 2014)

By Alexandra Donald Jimmy’s Hall, the latest from veteran filmmaker Ken Loach, is a stately portrait of a struggle for justice that’s a delicately executed, picturesque film and a charming watch – if not a particularly memorable one. Based on the life of Irish political activist Jimmy Gralton, the film charts the titular character’s return…

Read more

TV Review: Bones Season 10, Episode 8 “The Puzzler in the Pit” (USA, 2014)

By Kimberley Veart Before its Thanksgiving hiatus, Bones offers up an episode to tug at the heartstrings. Daisy (Carla Gallo) returns, heavily pregnant and about to give birth to her child with the recently departed Sweets. The Jeffersonian team is concerned about her during this vulnerable time, especially as she seems to be acting strangely,…

Read more

SBS 2’s The Feed recreates Anchorman journo fight with Sandra Sully, Lee Lin Chin, Derryn Hinch, and more

Well this is escalating quickly. SBS 2’s The Feed has released a trailer for an episode this coming Thursday, featuring Australia’s top broadcast journalists in an all-out war, Anchorman style. The full segment will be part of The Feed’s final episode for 2014, which airs on Thursday November 27 at 7:30pm. David Marr oversees the…

Read more

What to Watch: The Iris’ Weekly TV Picks (24th – 26th November 2014)

By Kimberley Veart Monday The Talented Mr. Ripley, Gem, 8:30pm AEST This entertaining and thought-provoking film is set in the 1950s and features Matt Damon as Tom Ripley, on his journey to becoming the eponymous ‘Talented Mr. Ripley.’ A skilful liar with a talent for impressions and forgery, Ripley seeks to make the life of…

Read more

Film Review: The Mule (MA15+) (Australia, 2014)

The Mule marks the Directoral debut of Angus Sampson and Tony Mahony, starring Sampson as Ray Jenkins alongside Leigh Wannell (Gavin) as “brothers in life”, with Gavin roping Ray into becoming a heroin mule following a trip to Bali. After getting nervous at Sydney Airport, he gets taken away by the police for suspicious behaviour and in…

Read more

DVD Review: Imaginaerum by Nightwish (Finland & Canada, 2012)

The film Imaginaerum is like opening the doors of perception and entering a music video by Finnish metal band, Nightwish. The movie is based on their seventh studio album and concept record. Imaginaerum seems to have the same trappings as most rock operas once they are adapted for the screen. That is that while the visuals…

Read more

The Iris Interview: Ryan Kwanten on life after True Blood.

  Back in 2008, TV audiences around the world were introduced to the fictional world of True Blood, the television adaptation of Charlaine Harris’ Southern Vampire novels and the first major HBO produced series Alan Ball created since the wrap of the hugely successful Six Feet Under series back in 2005. It was a time where vampire mythology was growing for itself a stronger…

Read more

TV Review: Chicago P.D Season 1 Episode 1 & 2 (USA, 2014)

Chicago P.D premiered to Australian audiences with a double episode last night. The series is the newest in but a long line of crime dramas by Law & Order mastermind Dick Wolf, and so it makes sense that all the experience will pour into making the show something special, right? Law & Order has been…

Read more

Podcast: Listen to our full, exclusive interview with Angus Sampson and Leigh Whannell on The Mule (Australia, 2014)

If you were reading The Iris back in March of this year, you may remember we posted parts of an interview we conducted with Angus Sampson and Leigh Whannell to talk about their new film The Mule, which premiered at SXSW 2014. Some eight months later and the film has finally had an Australian release,…

Read more

TV Review: The Walking Dead Season 5 Episode 6 “Consumed” (2014, USA)

Fans of The Walking Dead have been waiting for Daryl and Carol to have their own episode for awhile, with the chemistry between these two both interesting and unique. Any sexual tension is mostly attributed to fan speculation, but what these two have here is an endearing platonic magnetism that always deserved to be explored…

Read more

Jurassic World is so big that its trailer needs a trailer

The very long-awaited fourth installment in the iconic Jurassic Park film series is not longer just a rumour, with the blockbuster to be released on June 12, 2015. Just in case you still refuse to believe the news, a teaser has dropped before the first full-length trailer, which is expected to be unveiled on November…

Read more

TV Review: The Mindy Project, Season 3, Episode 8 “Diary of a Mad Indian Woman”

By Amy Nancarrow Who hasn’t seen a friend, family member or significant other’s personal diary and been tempted to sneak a peek at their most intimate thoughts? Danny succumbs to his curiosity in “Diary of a Mad Indian Woman”, and doesn’t necessarily like what he reads. Mindy realises that Danny never stays at her house,…

Read more

Exclusive Interivew: Miyavi (Japan) discusses the film Unbroken and working with Angelia Jolie

Unbroken, directed by Angelina Jolie, premiered this week in Sydney – ahead of its Australia wide release on January 15th. In the film, singer Miyavi plays Mutsushiro “The Bird” Watanabe, a World War II POW camp guard. We spoke to him earlier in the year about the performance and are excited to be able to…

Read more

Film Review: The Hunger Games Mockingjay Part 1 (USA, 2014)

You may be feeling your patience wearing thin while watching The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1; that is, if you’ve only come on board for the tense wheel of brutality in which two tributes from each district are forced to kill each other until one remains. No, there’s no such hunger games here as compared…

Read more

Looking ahead to police drama Chicago P.D (Australian premiere on Thursday 20th November)

Police dramas seem to come naturally to Dick Wolf, an Emmy winner involved in the Law & Order franchise, and the more recent Chicago Fire; so when he dabbles further into the genre, there’s no doubt that the result is worthy of attention. His latest exploration of city crime comes in the form of Chicago…

Read more

Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 gets a trailer…Yes, really.

Well it’s happening. Like it or not, Paul Blart is making a return to the silver screen. Not content enough to weave his unusual brand of justice in his home town, Paul Blart takes a trip to Vegas to attend a security guard convention. (Are those actually a thing?) Its here that Paul stumbles (probably…

Read more

What to Watch: The Iris’ Weekly TV Picks (20th – 23rd November 2014)

Thursday Soul Mates, ABC 2, 9:33 pm AEST Brought to you by the creators of Bondi Hipsters, Soul Mates is a new sketch-show that tackles life’s big questions in a hilarious manner. In this episode, two fundamental creationists visit Travel Time whilst Rocky and Sticks question whether it’s wrong to eat babies. Friday MythBusters, SBS…

Read more

Go behind-the-scenes with the ‘Women’ of Men, Women & Children

Get a inside view of the latest Jason Reitman film through newly released behind the scenes footage with the ‘Women’ of Men, Women & Children – Jennifer Garner (Dallas Buyers Club), Judy Greer (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes) and Rosemarie Dewitt (Rachel Getting Married). The film is a story that follows a group…

Read more

Tropfest’s 2014 Tropscore finalists announced

Tropfest is Australia’s most prestigious short film festivals and is also the largest in the world. Tropscore was developed by Tropfest in partnership with APRA AMCOS, and is the largest film score competition in Australia. It encourage musicians to produce a musical score or synch for a short film clip provided by Tropfest. The finalists…

Read more

Box Office Report: Let’s Be Cops is no match for Interstellar

Despite an impressive opening by Lets Be Cops – one to the tune of $1.6 million – it just didn’t pack enough of a punch to usurp top spot. Interstellar retains its position at number 1 pulling in another $3.7 million. Christopher Nolan’s spectacle has received tremendous reviews, lauded for its ambitious storytelling and sheer scope….

Read more