The Nature of Jade

Posted 1:08pm Saturday 10th September 2016 by Monique Hodgkinson

Although technically classified as a YA novel, The Nature of Jade is one of those rare books which holds something inspiring and beautiful for readers of all ages. This book has been one of my firm favourites for years now, because of its captivating and accessible writing style, unexpected and Read more...

The Story of Your Life

Posted 1:11pm Saturday 10th September 2016 by Jack Blair

Ted Chaing examines, through the eyes of Louise Banks (a linguist tasked with decoding the language of an alien species known as the Heptapods), how understanding language means more than simply understanding a conveyed message. As The Story of Your Life progresses, and Louise applies a theory of Read more...

3 x 4 — Lisa Reihana

Posted 1:14pm Saturday 10th September 2016 by Carolijn Guytonbeck

Take the opportunity to view some work from one of New Zealand’s current 'it' artists, Lisa Reihana. Milford Gallery are showing a range of her magnificent staged photographic portraiture work.  Distinct themes of mythology and colonisation run through the Māori descended Read more...

Ben Hur (2016)

Posted 12:38pm Saturday 10th September 2016 by Max Olson

Rating: C+ Set in ancient Roman-occupied Jerusalem, Ben Hur is a remake of the 1959 film directed by William Wyler, which famously grabbed a record 11 Academy Awards at the time. Unfortunately, I cannot see many awards lurking in the near future for the 2016 version, although I will admit that Read more...

Crazy ex-Girlfriend (TV series)

Posted 12:41pm Saturday 10th September 2016 by Anonymous Bird

Rebecca Bunch (Rachel Bloom) is a successful, career focused, big bucks lawyer —who is unsatisfied and unhappy with her New York life. During a panic attack over a promotion, she bumps into total heartthrob Josh Chan (Vincent Rodriguez III) her summer camp boyfriend from when she was 16. He Read more...

War Dogs

Posted 12:47pm Saturday 10th September 2016 by Lindsay D’Alessandro

Rating: A- Based on the 2011 Rolling Stone article, “The Stoner Arms Dealers: How Two American Kids Became Big-Time Weapons Traders,” War Dogs tells the true story of two twenty-something childhood friends from Miami Beach who made millions during the Iraq War bidding on US military Read more...

Shadow of the Colossus

Posted 12:55pm Sunday 4th September 2016 by Campbell Calverley

Rating: Classic While it doesn’t deal with heavy psychological themes, Shadow of the Colossus is another beautifully empty game that instead imbues a feeling of the mythical. It is the 2005 spiritual successor to Team ICO’s first game, Ico. While that game was a dreamlike, Read more...

I Hate Fairyland

Posted 1:14pm Sunday 4th September 2016 by Anonymous Bird

It’s almost every child’s dream to be transported to a mystical fairyland to complete some complicated and epic quest, making bizarre and cute friends along the way, right?  The eight-year-old Gertrude might have fantasised about Fairyland, but she certainly wasn’t equipped Read more...

Nimona

Posted 1:17pm Sunday 4th September 2016 by Anonymous Bird

Lord Ballister Blackheart, our protagonist, scientist and villain, finds Nimona at his lair. Nimona is a young, powerful and impulsive shape-shifter with a desire to cause havoc and bring about destruction. She convinces him to take her on as a sidekick. The pair work together to mess things up in Read more...

Kubo

Posted 12:37pm Sunday 4th September 2016 by Anonymous Bird

Rating: A From Laika, the studio behind the likes of Paranorman, Coraline and The Boxtrolls, comes Kubo, a magical coming of age tale. The line “If you must blink, do it now” opens the film, setting the scene for a fantastic adventure film about love, family and Read more...