Category: Reviews
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout – Book Review
Books are like cities. Some you only ever need to visit once and you absorb all they have to offer in one go, while others you could re-visit over and over, getting lost in its alleys and passageways and noticing new things every time. This book, not quite a traditional novel but more like a novel in short stories, about the community in a small coastal town in Maine, is so rich in detail and insight I can see myself picking it up from the book shelf a few times over.
New Music 12/2018 – Muse, The Breeders, Florence + The Machine
It’s nice when your favourite people release albums that don’t suck.
Roma – Film Review
This acclaimed movie is out on Netflix, but I jumped at the chance to watch it on the big screen in the comfort of the ACMI movie theatre. Though I found it easier to admire than to love, it was very much a worthwhile visit.
Endless Night by Agatha Christie – Book Review
Though Christie wrote a great many standalone crime novels, Endless Night feels like a true departure, different to everything else she wrote before or since. It’s not a classic detective story with classic detective tropes, there is barely any criminal investigation and the crime itself happens almost three-quarters into the story. Back when I first read it as a teenager my reaction was ambivalent, but even then this eerie novel imprinted on my brain as much as the haunting passage from William Blake’s poem it takes its name from. Revisiting it now has cemented Endless Night as one of my Christie favourites.
The Breeders @ Forum Theatre
Another year, another fantastic December gig at the Forum Theatre. As a bonus, Melbourne was graced by a stunning sunset that cast the city in an otherworldly light and made everyone on the street reach for their cameras.
The Death of Stalin – Film Review
I didn’t see this eccentric, pitch-black, savagely funny satire about the death of the Soviet dictator when it was out in the cinemas, but I’m glad I had a chance to watch it at home. Or rather my Mum’s home, since I don’t do streaming.
Fish Tank – Film Review
A raw, grimy but lyrical British drama about the pains of adolescence and life at the margins, with a fantastic supporting turn by Michael Fassbender earlier in his career.
Russian Resurrection Film Festival – Tutor & Hamlet
I mean to check out this festival every year and usually end up missing it for whatever reasons, mostly procrastination. This year, I finally made it, catching two films over two weekends, something old and something new.
Bohemian Rhapsody – Film Review
It’s nice to be wrong about a movie sometimes. Though I was incredibly sceptical about this biopic of Queen and their extraordinary frontman Freddie Mercury, it turned out to be one of the most purely enjoyable and entertaining cinema experiences I’ve had in a while.
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