Review
The face of the future
Philippa HawkerDenis Villeneuve, in his sequel to the iconic science fiction hit Blade Runner, ‘felt a bit like a vandal who came into the church’ but had the keys.
Winds of change still blowin’
CHARLES ELTONAs the times move on, so has the quality of protest songs, which have become a virtue-signalling lifestyle choice.
Visions of Americana
Iain Shedden‘If you are a hardcore Bob Dylan fan you can see that we knew what we were doing,’ says Old Crow’s Ketch Secor.
Conjurer to the stars
GLYNIS TRAILL-NASHDirectors the likes of Alfred Hitchcock turned to Hollywood designer Edith Head to help create their characters.
Community bears witness
GRAEME BLUNDELLNow, and not without controversy, the case of vanished nine-year-old Shannon Matthews has become a BBC series.
The spies have it
THE ECONOMISTThe UK establishment, a perfect machine for producing secrets and lies, also produces the best mavericks and misfits.
Whale of a moment for Piccinini
tim douglasHyper-realist artist Patricia Piccinini said something striking this week on the eve of her first blockbuster show.
this (out-of-office) life
Rika Z. VayianniThe idea of working from home sounded so glamorous once. Almost utopian. But how things change.
Killing time in driverless cars
DEIRDRE MACKENA German ethics committee has set guidelines for how driverless cars should respond in unavoidable accidents.
Jazzing up the orchestra
STAFF WRITERSJazz musician and composer Judy Bailey joins a symphony orchestra for a hugely enjoyable double-album
Baby on board
Justin BurkeRaising babies is a daunting experience filled with drama, adventure and, as two local writers are plumbing, laughs.
In search of an answer
CHRISTOPHER ALLENEuropean exploration and mapping of our land is an integral part of our universal history, as a new exhibition shows.
Seat of power
Bronwyn WatsonA contemporary twist on the Christine Keeler pose features in an exhibition of iconic chairs of the past century.
A dignified rage
Stephen RomeiThe real narrator of I Am Not Your Negro is James Baldwin, speaking 50 years ago — and as relevant today.
Beatriz trumped
DAVID STRATTONBeatriz at Dinner frames its political commentary in the confines of a meal during which personalities bitterly clash.
Sight unseen
Andrew McMillenYou are sitting in the front row of a theatre when a calm, male voice begins to speak into your ear.
‘I trusted his every word’
Julian BarnesPierre Ryckmans would have thought it intellectually vulgar to chase success. He was not a writer who sought fame.
Remembering an authoritarian father
Agnes NieuwenhuizenThis is the sad and bitter tale of a son who feels he has been ‘written out of the family story’.
Investigating a deep injustice
Justin BurkeFans of true crime have been spoiled for choice in recent times, and this documentary is up there with the best of the contemporary genre.
Vale Agnes Nieuwenhuizen
Stephen RomeiI never met Agnes Nieuwenhuizen but valued her as a writer and critic, and her dedication to kids’ and YA literature.
Magical realism turned on head
Miriam CosicA new novel of the Iranian revolution is a striking blend of the political and personal, the poetic and practical.
Mix of truth and myth
Malcolm ForbesDeath rears its head in Orhan Pamuk’s touching tale of young love and shrewd examination of father-son relationships.
Sour Heart: Chinese tales
Lou HeinrichBy giving voice to young daughters of Chinese immigrants, Jenny Zhang rejects the white male gaze.
Deal was a byword for folly
Simon CatersonIt takes a historical novelist of the calibre of Robert Harris to make Chamberlain into a more empathetic figure.
Streets ahead of urban peers
Louis NowraJane Jacobs, who taught us how to see cities from the street up, continues to inspire urban planners and architects.
Plain pack hides lethal read
Richard KingThe ‘insane wibblings’ of Simon Chapman are in fact an entertaining rail against the perceived evils of modern society.
No magic can turn back loss
Felicity PlunkettMark Raphael Baker, like Joan Didion, wrote his memoir as a quest for a kind of cognitive trick to turn back loss.
Three chords ring in change
Iain SheddenBilly Bragg delivers a first-rate account of a phenomenon that transformed British popular music.
A sobering road trip
Daniel HerbornMelbourne-based writer Lennox Nicholson goes on a sobering journey in pursuit of beat legend Jack Kerouac.
Frightfully ugly endurance test
DAVID STRATTONIt’s been billed as a new classic in horror, but Darren Aronofsky’s new film mother! is pretentious and overwrought.
Gyllenhaal’s awkward TV demand
Alex MorrisMaggie Gyllenhaal and David Simon were having lunch when she told him she wanted to masturbate on television.
Love match
Philippa HawkerDespite the pressures of portraying tennis icon Billie Jean King, Emma Stone found much she could identify with.
Pauline’s ups, downs and ups
Ross FitzgeraldAn intriguing book based on a revealing documentary canvasses Pauline Hanson’s fluctuating political fortunes.
More than a knockout
GRAEME BLUNDELLWhy is the ABC axing its most popular locally commissioned show?
Grandkids: perfect politicians
Greg SheridanPolitics is for infants; the smaller the infant, the better the politician.
Heart and soul
Stephen RomeiTwo low-budget local films are worth seeing, for what’s on the screen and the force behind them.
A hope to reconnect and resolve
Eddie CockrellLook Me in the Eye, hosted by Ray Martin, explores what happens when two people, alienated from one another for years, come face-to-face again.
Review Editorial
Battle of sexes not over yet
Tim DouglasEmma Stone as Billie Jean King sheds light on a fascinating era in history, one that still has a long way to go.
MORE STORIES
Winds of change still blowin’
CHARLES ELTONAs the times move on, so has the quality of protest songs, which have become a virtue-signalling lifestyle choice.
Dream weavers of Erub
Greg BearupWhy is this tiny blip in the Torres Strait the talk of the art world?
Streets ahead of urban peers
Louis NowraJane Jacobs, who taught us how to see cities from the street up, continues to inspire urban planners and architects.
A sobering road trip
Daniel HerbornMelbourne-based writer Lennox Nicholson goes on a sobering journey in pursuit of beat legend Jack Kerouac.
Killing time in driverless cars
DEIRDRE MACKENA German ethics committee has set guidelines for how driverless cars should respond in unavoidable accidents.
Sight unseen
Andrew McMillenYou are sitting in the front row of a theatre when a calm, male voice begins to speak into your ear.
Visions of Americana
Iain Shedden‘If you are a hardcore Bob Dylan fan you can see that we knew what we were doing,’ says Old Crow’s Ketch Secor.
Remembering an authoritarian father
Agnes NieuwenhuizenThis is the sad and bitter tale of a son who feels he has been ‘written out of the family story’.
Vale Agnes Nieuwenhuizen
Stephen RomeiI never met Agnes Nieuwenhuizen but valued her as a writer and critic, and her dedication to kids’ and YA literature.
The spies have it
THE ECONOMISTThe UK establishment, a perfect machine for producing secrets and lies, also produces the best mavericks and misfits.