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Published: Tuesday, 07 January 2020 09:20

Written by Greg Letts

La Belle Époque is the sort of film that only the French could pull off – a heady mix of modern times and nostalgia – sexy, smart and utterly charming.

After viewing the trailer, I was mildy interested in coming to watch the movie. The premise wasn't fully clear, but seeing as I usually find anything with Daniel Auteuil quite enjoyable, I was willing to give it a go.

After settling in at the Somerville among the pines and with our premium on-site pizza from Charlies (two thumbs up for the field mushroom one), we put on the mozzie repellent (a must!) and waited for the trailers to end.

When La Belle Époque finally began, the opening scene gave me a brief moment of panic before everything came together and the magic began.

Attempting to summarise the plot of La Belle Époque risks ruining the experience for others, so I'll simply say that this a wonderfully entertaining and enjoyable film, showing that even when people change (or when they don't!), love still remains eternal. But love is not always simple or easy!

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Published: Wednesday, 11 December 2019 09:15

Written by Nita Teoh

Director and writer Céline Sciamma’s latest romantic movie Portrait of a Lady on Fire revolves around the story of artist Marianne (Noémie Merlant), who is commissioned by the mother of a bride to be to paint a secret portrait of her daughter Héloïse (Adèle Haenel), to give to her future husband.

As the painting progresses, Marianne and Héloïse become better acquainted and form a strong emotional and sensual bond.

Set in the 1770’s in France, Portrait of a Lady on Fire brings to the fore some interesting issues that women had to face during those times – lack of recognition for their chosen vocations (Marianne as an artist), restricted social freedom, repressive public morals and more.

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Published: Saturday, 30 November 2019 09:22

Written by Greg Letts

Standing on the balcony outside the Blue Room Theatre, my partner and I mused on what we were about to witness during the performance of Bang! Bang!, a theatrical dance double-header. Not being dance devotees, we were interested in how the cast and crew would bring the two pieces, Love You, Stranger and Act 2, Scenes 1-4 to life.

Prior to settling into our seats, we crossed a stage stripped bare of props and scenery apart from a half-dozen or so black wooden boxes. The focus was undoubtedly on the three cast members, dressed in garb reminiscent of Victorian era dresses. Love You Stranger presents the fates of three women of those times who were brought to trial for murder, and provides a commentary on our own modern issues of public shaming.

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Published: Wednesday, 27 November 2019 11:28

Written by Nita Teoh

In his latest movie By the Grace of God (Grâce à Dieu), Director François Ozon (Frantz, Swimming Pool, 8 Femmes) tackles some highly sensitive and challenging issues in regards to the sexual abuse of children by priests.

The movie centres around main character Alexandre Guerin (Melvil Poupaud), who at age 40 is happily married with a lovely wife and 5 children.

Beneath that happy family life, his intense memories of being sexually abused by a priest during his childhood days continue to haunt him.

When Alexandre discovers that this same priest is still working with young children, he decides to take action and lift the veil of silence on his long standing secret.

His journey to seek justice unwinds with many interesting turns – bringing forth other victims who share  their stories of hurt and the widespread impacts that it has had on their families.

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Published: Wednesday, 20 November 2019 10:27

Written by Nita Teoh

Based on an autobiographical story by writer-director Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Farming centres around the story of Enitan, a young Nigerian boy growing up in the UK last century.

During the 1960’s to 1980’s a practice called “farming” took place, whereby Nigerian families fostered out their children to working class white families in Britain, so that they could focus on work, study and saving money.

As the movie unfolds, we are thrown into Enitan’s childhood and coming of age story which one can only best describe as turbulent.

He is alone and a misfit – caught between cultures, and subject to constant racism. When he gets drawn into the world of a racist and violent skinhead gang, it starts a sequence of events that lead to pointless repeated violence and tragic circumstances.

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Published: Sunday, 13 October 2019 11:32

Written by Lee-Ann Khoh

Three years after appearing on Australia’s Got Talent with a powerful poem on racism, spoken word artist Sukhjit Kaur Khalsa has made her theatre debut: Fully Sikh. The “Fully Sikh” experience began pre-show outside Studio Underground – where I attempted to play carrom, an Indian tabletop game for the first time, while others got turbans tied.

When it was time for the show, we took off our shoes and were invited into the theatre. The set had been beautifully transformed into Sukhjit’s childhood home, where she was preparing a meal in the kitchen.

Through her spirited, interactive performance poetry, Sukhjit told her story of growing up as a Sikh girl in suburban Perth.

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