Put together each year by the popular music aggregation site The Hype Machine, Hype Hotel has become a mainstay of the annual SXSW music festival. Every time the Hotel returns, it gets bigger and better, and this year was no exception, taking over a massive warehouse on the East side of town. One of our…
A film about The Dull Men’s Club doesn’t scream “entertaining” but Born to Be Mild is the exact opposite of everything you think it is. The documentary short revels in celebrating the ordinary and mundane. And it’s packaged in such a warm and optimistic style and along with an upbeat soundtrack, this means it is…
Love Has No Age should be renamed “Love Has No Boundaries”. The documentary short is a blissful romance story spanning over four decades. It’s also a beautifully-shot film and a warm slice of pure joy. The film is directed by Eli Born who has previously directed music videos for the likes of: Jack White, Iggy…
UnReal is a TV series that will appeal to fans of Frontline or Ben Elton’s Chart Throb or Dead Famous books. The series looks at the chaotic world of filming a fictional reality dating program. It’s an insightful and honest account of the depths of manipulation that are employed by a reality show’s production staff…
Doug Sahm lived and breathed Texas music. But he was also largely unknown outside of that particular American state. Until now. The documentary film, Sir Doug and the Genuine Texas Cosmic Groove looks at the chameleon musician and gets at the heart of all of his layers of complexity. Sahm was a charismatic bloke who…
Last year’s Divergent introduced us to Beatrice (later known as Tris) Prior (Shailene Woodley) and Four (Theo James) in a post-“war” Chicago split into factions which are organised around the different character traits of its citizens. You can read our Divergent review here. Still hot on the heels of the YA post-apocalyptic phenomena, Insurgent hits our screens as the much-anticipated part…
“No one else had done it, so I figured…well I’ll do it!” Colin Hanks laughs, then adds: “he said naively.” Standing on the red carpet moments before the premiere of his documentary on fallen powerhouse record chain Tower records, All Things Must Pass, Hanks is characteristically calm, dressed down in a bright red checked shirt…
For nearly 40 years, Tower Records stood as the largest and most successful record store chain in the world, regularly raking in the millions of dollars in profit per year. In 1999, they managed to pull in a staggering $1 billion dollars. Five years later, they went suddenly bankrupt. It was an astonishing rise…
“Family is what you make of it”. This sentiment, by Twinsters co-director Ryan Miyamoto, is somewhat of a mantra for reunited twins Anias Bordier and Samantha Futerman. The two women were both born in South Korea and adopted to two different families on two different continents. They found each other over social media, and have…
Having worked on housing estates in London for over a decade, Rebecca Johnson is no stranger to the world portrayed in her feature film, Honeytrap. Starring Skins actress Jessica Sula as Layla, a young girl who has recently arrived in London from Trinidad, Honeytrap examines one young woman’s determination to maintain her new-found power in…
After just finishing up after seven seasons on NBC’s Parks and Recreation, Aubrey Plaza certainly hasn’t slowed down. Not only does she star in another SXSW film, Fresno, she also stars as Susan in writer/director Hal Hartley‘s film Ned Rifle. The AU Review spoke to the film’s star and writer/director about religion, Kickstarter, and all…
Loved TV series Entourage has always been a hot spot for celebrity cameos, and it’s looking like the film won’t be any different. With everyone from Kid Cudi and T.I to Liam Neeson and Kelsey Grammar set to appear in the film, Entourage is beginning to look like a whole heap of fun. Main cast…
There have been rumblings for months about The X-Files and whether the cult hit 90’s TV series would be making a comeback. Well, Fox (the network, not the character) has made it official. On their website Fox made a bold statement “The next mind-bending chapter is coming!” and stated that six episodes have been confirmed…
Coming to Australia next month, Canadian electronic artist, Peaches, will be heading our way for Groovin’ The Moo festival to dazzle audiences with her delightful presence on stage. After putting her heart and soul into writing lyrics for her new album, she takes a bit of a breather in Berlin, mentally preparing herself for the upcoming busy schedule…
Falling In Reverse have just released their most recent LP Just Like You. Since their controversial single, “Alone”, Ronnie Radke and his fellow band mates have gotten quite a following with their stylish direction in the post-hardcore scene and have been turning heads since their early days with “The Drug in Me is You”. Unfortunately, the band’s image has…
The third annual Grulke Prize has been awarded in three categories to some of the showcasing artists taking part in SXSW this year. The special accolade, created in honour of the late Brent Grulke, who was the Creative Director of the SXSW Music Festival, recognises artists from both the US and abroad who have shown…
The week that is SXSW in Austin; Texas always brings with it its fair share of opportunities to discover new artists. Here were my five discoveries at the festival, all of whom seem destined for greatness. Some may be names you already know, others will probably be ones you’ve never heard of before. But they’re…
This week we’re seeing the appearances of several films that opened this week, pushing old favourites like The Theory Of Everything and American Sniper officially out of the top ten. Topping the charts was the latest instalment of The Divergent Series, Insurgent, grossing $4.1 million. This dystopic action film is sure to please any thrill…
With Netflix finally launching in Australia and New Zealand today, all eyes are on the online entertainment service and it’s promising potential to shake up what we know of Australian subscription television/streaming. Already the service has attracted praise for their very reasonable price point and humongous collection of new and classic films, series, documentaries, and…
In my review for the first Girls episode of this season, I said that if the rest of the season was as good as that episode and back in the realm of season one form, that I would eat my words and stop hating on Lena Dunham’s show. Here we are, nine episodes later, and here I…
Following the teaser which came out earlier this week, Paramount Pictures have released the first full-length trailer for Mission: Impossible-Rogue Nation, and boy does it look like a doozy. Continuing the exploits of super spy Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise), the film sees “Ethan and team take on their most impossible mission yet, eradicating the Syndicate, an International rogue organisation,…
The 2015 Spanish Film Festival has launched its full program, and its becoming clear that you’re a film aficionado of the Mediterranean kind you’ll be in for a real treat. Taking place exclusively at Palace Cinemas across Australia, the festival will feature 38 feature films and runs from April 21 until May 20. Highlights include special guest Elena…
Following the success of their iview comedy binge, which racked up over 2.6 million views across the summer period, the ABC is proud to announce Binge on the Best Australian Drama, set to kick off on April 1st. Throughout the month, you can look forward to watching some of the best Aussie drama the ABC has to offer….
17th Century France brings to mind a number of words, opulence, beauty, indulgence, but it was also when the Palace of Versailles and its gardens blossomed under the reign of Louix XIV and the design and construction of André Le Nôtre. But in this film with some slight tweaks on the truth, we meet Sabine…
In the 32nd installment of ‘Stumbled Upon’, we meet Chicago’s Chicago Loud 9, and get a sneak peak at their latest release Punk Soul. Band Name: Chicago Loud 9 Website: www.chicagoloud9.com Facebook / Bandcamp Genre: Windy City Roots, Hip Hop Rock n Roll, Funk n Soul Members & their roles: Dhan D. – Emcee Aya…
We had the privilege of capturing Canadian artist Frog Eyes (Carey Mercer) performing a brand new track “Rejoinders in a Storm” as part of our SXSW AU Sessions series last week. Filmed in Austin, Texas at the Buffalo Nickel on 19th March 2015, you can watch the video exclusively here: Find out more about this…
For the 8th consecutive year, Rachael Ray’s Feedback Party took over Stubb’s BBQ for the final afternoon of SXSW, seeing a mix of bands from around the world play across three stages, while four Rachael Ray recipes (which you can see HERE), were enjoyed by the masses (you have to try the tacos!) – some…
Our friends at Willow Wood put on a special showcase last night to help bring SXSW to an end, taking over Bethell Hall at St David’s Church with a group of artists who took full advantage of the venue to deliver an evening full of special performances. First up was Howard, a self described “folktronica”…
Picking up where the previous episode left off, (and to “Something Good” by Alt-J) Life is Strange: Episode 2 – Out of Time continues Max Caulfield’s story, but not especially far. There’s not a lot of narrative ground covered in this second episode – instead, Dontnod devote more to the development of their leading lady….
From the minute the opening theme rolls into the bass lines to Simple Minds anthem for The Breakfast Club ‘Don’t You Forget About Me’ it’s apparent that this episode’s going to be something special. In hindsight the title really says it all, meshing elements of the play on The Breakfast Club, the fashion runway themes…
