Art Smitten

In the Mens

Interesting look into the expansive Australian male psyche.

The show is a number of monologues dedicated to generations of male Australians. It highlights the weird, quirky and uncomfortable experiences felt in our own backyard.

Characters included “shirtfront” the jockey addicted to cheesecake, a ex-greyhound racer, a stockbroker stuck between the bliss of the sea-change and the agony of work, the oldest man in Australia, and a businessman breaking up with his fiancee due to his supposed infidelity.

The show felt at first difficult to approach. Introducing this short enthusiastic Jockey and his pursuit of racing success and love was completely different from my experience. He was the epitome of who I could not care about unless I personally knew him. This was similarly seen with the greyhound racer. However, I was taken aback as the ex-racer’s story took a turn with the dog’s eventual death.  

Ben Maclaine and Ben Grant’s depictions of loneliness and stress within these characters surprisingly positioned me to understand the pressures that men in a variety of circumstances can make. Some characters felt surprisingly familiar, such as the stockbroker. His story of wanting more from life reminded me of individuals who boast of success within work yet have lost the ability to enjoy life. Ben Grant’s acting had so much poise to it,  his words, no matter how mundane they were, held you like Kevin Spacey in House of Cards.

Overall, this play positioned me to find it arduous but then broke it down with some incredible engagement by actora on stage. Although parts such as the monologue on the oldest person alive lost me, it kept bringing me back with interesting plots and characterisation. It is highly recommended for people who want to step in other people’s shoes for a night.

In The Mens runs until April 30 La Mama Courthouse, 349 Drummond St, Carlton

Written by Maria Dunne

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Cal Wilson's show in the MICF this year is about 'Things I've Never Said', or, all things she's never focused on in her comedy. For Wilson, this means a focus on politics and feminism. Wilson flourishes on the topic, deploying a white hot commentary on sex, gender and equality. Throughout a series of anecdotal pieces which include her prejudice about playing to a room full of male mine workers; what it means to be a mother; what happened when her son wore pink sparkly face paint, and being physically dominated by men or boys, as a woman or a girl, Wilson constructs a framework exploring very serious subject matter. Not one, you might think, for a comedy show.

This is where the highly experienced comedian demonstrates, lightly, almost effortlessly, her genius. Wilson navigates her sadder pieces with grace, perfectly balanced between sad and happy, finding positive elements in each story, but also finding ways to tickle her audience into a state of emotional abandon, caught between the jagged truths of our current society, and a perspective delivered in caring humour which gives us the strength to face these fears head on.

I might compare Wilson's show to the Bogart in Harry Potter. The Bogart is a magical creature, which hides in cupboards and under beds, which when you look at it, it takes on the facade of your greatest fear, like a perverted Chameleon. The only way to fight the Bogart is to cast a spell which turns that great fear into something ridiculous and stupid, to see it from a perspective which reminds you of your own power, in the snapping towel edge between fear and laughter.

Aside from the more serious parts of her show, Wilson's laughs are generally extremely warm and kind, which makes the times when she diverts into a dirty joke or a naughtier story even more enjoyable. The things she does with language are intelligent and mercilessly funny, and I nearly cried with laughter many times throughout.

Wilson is a complete professional. I've seen a lot of live stand up, and she has just got it. She never failed in her delivery, which I found incredible given the speed at which she speaks and moves, cramming into an hour slot what most comics would only be able to fit into an hour and a half. She knows how to take care of her audience, too, and her interactions are always witty without picking on anyone when she does talk with the crowd. I would love for you to go and see this show. Cal Wilson is playing at the Swiss Club until the 23rd of April.

Written by Jim Thomas

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Colossal is a film about monsters, both literal and metaphorical. Written and directed by Nacho Vigalondo, perhaps most famous for his sci-fi dark comedy Timecrimes, it stars Anne Hathaway as Gloria, a young woman with a lot of problems. In an attempt to recharge, she goes back to her home town, which is small, nondescript and somewhere in the Midwest of America. She reconnects with a childhood friend, and slowly starts to get back on her feet, when suddenly news breaks out of a giant monster terrorising the city of Seoul in South Korea. Amazing! We soon find out that through some strange force Gloria actually controls this giant monster when she stands at a particular spot in the playground at a particular time of day. And then a robot appears as well! Even more amazing!

Amidst this odd revelation all the issues that plague Gloria still rage on. Alcoholism, the reason she went back to her home town in the first place. Relationships, both dysfunctional and downright abusive. The general disorientation of life. Which means that yes, the giant monster attacking Seoul is in fact a giant monster attacking her soul. The entire film hangs its premise on a pun. You’ve got to admire that.

While some moments are dragged down a bit by clumsy writing and acting, most of the film breezes along. That said, there’s a real depressive mood to Colossal, something that caught me a little off-guard. Once I recalibrated, however, I appreciated this downbeat vibe quite a lot. Gloria is struggling with a lot of issues and the film’s pace and atmosphere mimic that really well. Some might find the metaphor a little trite, but I thought it was quite a clever and unusual way of dealing with personal traumas. The monster and robot are less of the focus and more of a surrealist addition to the main narrative – and it works.

If you’re going into Colossal expecting an explosive robot vs monster action fest, you’re going into the wrong film. This is a subdued, personal character study that just so happens to have a giant monster. Both literal and metaphorical.

Written by Ben Volchock

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Raw has got to be one of the best horror films I’ve seen in recent years. It manages to create discomfort not only out of the deeply horrifying but also out of pretty much everything else. Cannibalism becomes as nasty to watch as skin rashes. The first film by Julia Ducournau, it’s grisly and very dark and shows an impressive flair for visceral tension and thematic construction. I was gripped from the start and floored by the end.

Justine is a first-year veterinary student, intellectually gifted but socially stunted. It’s the start of the academic year and like all first-years has to undergo a series of unpleasant hazing rituals, including eating a piece of raw rabbit kidney. That she’s a vegetarian who’s just eaten meat turns out to be the least of her worries. Soon after, she starts displaying alarming symptoms, culminating in an intense hankering for more raw meat and, finally, human flesh.

The discomfort is palpable from the start. From the startling opening, to the subsequent scene in the roadside diner where Justine’s family, all vegetarians, find some meat in their meal, to her arrival at the university where she’s immediately thrown into a daunting and unknown environment. No sooner has she settled down than she’s torn out of her bed and forced to crawl alongside other first-years to an unspecified location that turns out to be an underground rave full of sweaty screaming bodies tanked up on drugs and alcohol dancing to oppressively loud music. That’s frightening enough as it is. It’s definitely alienating and unsettling and places us on the side of Justine so we’re with her every step of the way as she attempts to make sense of her situation and survive these intrusive humiliations. And later on, when things get a lot darker, we’re still with her.

Raw does what all good horror films do: it couples themes of horror and of life. And it does this amazingly well. It finds the horror in life and it finds the life in horror. In this case, Justine’s cannibalism is explored alongside the rest of her uncertain identity. She’s trying to figure out her place in society as a young woman, as well as her body. There’s a reason cannibalism is a physical act, as it complements the physical manifestations of conformity and adulthood, like clothes and sex, and the parallel is deliberate and effective. At one point, Justine’s older sister tries to give her a Brazilian wax, which goes wrong, and moments later Justine is nibbling on a human finger. It’s a very clever scene as it shows Justine at her least comfortable, namely changing her body to fit in with social expectations, quickly followed by her most comfortable – being a cannibal. And there’s plenty more like it.

I highly, highly recommend Raw, but I will warn that it’s quite graphic and confronting. Many people have reportedly thrown up while watching it. Many more have walked out. But those people are missing out on one of the best new horror films around.

Raw is out in cinemas April 20.

Written by Ben Volchock

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Jim, Gill and Smithers interview vocalist and viola player Biddy Connor from the Letter String Quartet, who have an upcoming concert, Oracle Marker, on Sunday April 23, 6pm at the Hawthorn Arts Centre on 360 Burwood Road.

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Smithers chats to Brenton Amies and Cam Ralph the morning after seeing she saw their Melbourne International Comedy Festival show Everyday Monsters, playing at Tasma Terrace (6 Parliament Place, East Melbourne) until April 22.

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Nikki Britton is an excitable, full of energy Australian comedian whose show, Romanticide, reflects on her not so excitable love life. Britton reflects in her show on her romantic conquests, experiences and failures, and how they have shaped her as a person. The show is a one hour energised stand up routine in a small crowded room at The Forum, which boasts quite a hot time, as it’s stuffy inside. Luckily, there is a massive air conditioner blasting cool air into the place. Unluckily, it was positioned directly behind my head, meaning I sometimes struggled to concentrate on the show as blasts of cold air ruffled my hair.

Apart from this however, Britton manages to encapsulate her audience over the hour by going through her experiences in the field of relationships from the help of a show plan which she attempts to hide behind a massive speaker on stage with her. Although this might come across as amateur at first, it merely adds to the hilarity of the show as she openly denies what it is, instead cracking jokes about how interesting the speaker is. Her use of accents and impersonations brings the majority of laughs in the show, and it's genuinely amusing when she uses body movement to help tell a story or event.

Britton connects with the majority of the audience through the topic of her show, being romance and relationships. Nearly everyone has experience something to do with love or loss of it, and even if you haven’t you are still able to connect with what Nikki Britton is joking about. She covers the new age of online dating and dick pics, how she deals with them and the stupidity of it. Her audience interaction and comments on what we laughed at added to laughs, pinpointing men’s awkward laughing at the dick pics and just making the show funnier.

Since Nikki Britton’s Romanticide can relate with so many different people, it comes down to her personality which determines if you would like this show or not. Nikki Britton is a very energetic ball of excitement, and perhaps that’s why I enjoyed her so much, because I feel like I relate with the constant energy spikes. If you prefer a little bit more sedated, not in your face comedy, then this might not be the show for you. However if, like me, you enjoy explosive comedians who can never get run off their feet from overuse of yelling, moving or shouting, Nikki Britton is for you. Her show, Romanticide, is on at the MICF until April 23rd at The Forum Theatre’s Ladies’ Lounge.

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I grew up watching older British Comedy, so I’ve always had a love for it. Fawlty Towers was of course one of these loves, as well as Monty Python, The Goodies and Benny Hill. I’m shocked that I never heard about Faulty Towers, The Dining Experience until now, but better late than never, I finally went to go. Straight up, and I didn’t even realise until writing this review, the actual names of the show and the original are different. Fawlty is spelt F A W L T Y whilst the Dining Experience is F A U L T Y. Not a big deal, just thought that needs to be clarified. Even with the name change, Faulty Towers The Dining Experience is almost a complete mimic of an episode of the original Fawlty Towers, just with more improvisation. It’s remarkably impressive.

It is also quite group, family or couple experience. It would be weird going in to sit by yourself and enjoy a three course meal. It just wouldn’t be the same. For the night I took my partner too the show, who actually has never seen anything to do with Faulty Towers before, apart from one scene I showed her once. It’s interesting already going in as one person knowing everything about the show, and another going in pretty much blind to what it’s about. Performed at The Aegean, a greek restaurant in Fitzroy, a short wait occurs before Basil, the co owner of the hotel, emerges to show everyone to their seats, with the help of Manuel, the waiter of the hotel. The comedy starts immediately, due to the personal touch that the actors take with the guests, giving them different names or slurs. For instance later in the night during a fake fire drill, I was referred to at the Harry Potter knockoff.

Basil is pretty rude to the majority of the guests when seating them, so it was a surprise that we didn’t endure too much abuse when being seated, instead receiving a smile. Perhaps it was because we we’re the youngest in the restaurant. Soon after being seated we are given an intro, where we are introduced to Cybil, Basil’s wife and co-owner of the hotel. Cybil is much more sensible and real than Basil at first, and easily brings empathy to the show by her compassionate act. However the star of the show in my opinion is Manuel. Manuel brings the biggest laughs, to the amount that my partner, who mind you hasn’t had any history of Fawlty Towers, was in pain from laughing so hard.

The show progresses from the intro through two of the three main courses, with each course coming with a fresh array of jokes or a sketch. A juggling match is made out of the bread, as Manuel lobs multiple pieces to different people across the restaurant, whilst some of the entries of pumpkin soup had fake dentures in them. Manuel’s misinterpretation of Basil’s orders brings the most laughs in the show, as he takes everything he says to heart, the most extreme taking wait on the tables to literally waiting for Basil to return by dancing on top of one family’s table. I don’t want to give away the major laughs for the show, but the presentation and improvisation was incredible well done to the extent that sometimes I forgot that we weren’t in one of the episodes of the originally show.
This is what Faulty Towers does best, and stands out as the shows major selling point for the show. It has the ability to take a 40 year show and still make it hilarious for a contemporary audience. Take my partner for instance; having no knowledge or interest in british comedy, she ended up laughing at the show more than I did at some points. Even if not all the comedy was spot on, the addition of a three course meal of really well made food should give you enough incentive to give this show a go. Faulty Towers The Dining Experience might of ended at the MICF by this reviews airing, however productions of the show take place all around the world, so go to their website to find a location near you!

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A stunningly beautiful dive into humanity's dark future with cyborg implants and upgrades, skyscraper high advertisements and incredibly frightening half human half machine - cyber terrorists.

Ghost in the Shell is effectively a dark futuristic crime thriller that follows the Character of Major, who is an all robot body with the brain of a human being. She’s an elite counter-terrorist working for a crew called section 9 an elite group formed by murky mix of Hanka robotics the company responsible for Major, and the Government, Aramaki the the head of section 9, an enigmatic leader who seems to of seen it all before.

Major’s team are relatively interesting but not particularly explored in depth, except for Major’s Partner Batou, who’s a relatively interesting character who ventures further from simply musclebound hard ass. He’s got a more soulful human bent.

Now the film is an obviously an adaptation of the wildly successful and groundbreaking 1995 anime original. And in a way beautifully realises that original vision, the post-human cyber punk future of hong kong is seen in all it’s neon glory, seeing this film in 3D is a visual feast. And on those grounds i highly recommend it. It also borrows heavily from Ridley Scott’s Classic Blade Runner, the gritty apocalyptic visuals and noir dreariness set a very nervous and eerie tone undercut but the superficial beauty of neons splashing across all surfaces, murky or otherwise.

But where the previous two films explore the intersection of human and machine, meditating on what it is to be alive and indeed what it is to be human, and if that is actually worth anything at all - this film instead opts for a broader appeal, dealing less on introspection and instead plenty, of visuals action and strong acting from Scarlett Johansson.

This isn’t to say that it doesn’t explore important themes, it delves into memory and what that means and how that makes you human but in my opinion not as well or as deep. Which is a shame, given our current techno-political climate and all the ramifications of transhumanism in the future.

Ghost in The Shell, goes in guns blazing and maintains that pace throughout, rarely coming up for air. The opening scene has Major dive off a building into a room and pull of some matrix-esque moves before blowing up and neutralising the threat of rogue robots, killing humans and hacking into their brains via their modifications, which make them just as vulnerable as it makes them stronger.

Ghost in the Shell is well acted, the action enthralling, it’s biggest selling point is the visuals. And these are great, stunning even. But I don’t think it’ll see the film last, perhaps in much the same way we now view avatar, from afar, with the novelty less bright. We will to this film, But if this is the beginning of a franchise then so be it, the story is tight the themes dark, the hero interesting. Viewed on it’s own terms, Ghost in the shell is a thrilling watch in for the action fan.

Written by Matthew Toohey

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For those who haven’t seen David O’Doherty’s comedy before, like myself, if you decide to see him in action you’ll be greeted by one of the most refreshing examples of comedy in modern day times. O’Doherty blends his own down to earth comedic vibe with music seemingly created on the spot in front of the audience. He covers both the biggest issues that the world faces today such as the rise of fascism, to the smallest such as bad twitter sponsorships. It’s nice to see both topics handled off hand, putting a light touch on even the saddest of events our world faces today.

Performed at the Forum Theatre under a wash of blue, red and multicoloured lights, David O’Doherty keeps the crowd focused through his consistent switch between musical performance and stand up comedy, as he prances around the stage displaying his own brand of characteristics. You become so immersed in what he’s saying occasionally that you forget to notice him lying sideways on the stage, his legs splayed and in a state of obvious relaxation. This itself is hilarious, as O’Doherty is obviously a man who does what he wants, when he wants it, wherever he wants it. And of course, the crowd will follow.

There are never massive crack up moments from the crowd, but there doesn’t need to be. O’Doherty dishes out comedy by the second, meaning that there is a constant state of amusement in the air. Although not all of it lands, the nature of constant comedy makes up for this, as you’ll forget that you didn’t laugh at something within minutes. The star of David O’Doherty’s show perhaps might be his musical ability, or his little keyboard. The musical instrument brings a lot to the show, which would be lost without it. O’Doherty’s skill with the instrument is apparent as he blunders music on purpose for the gags, switching between singing and talking sporadically, which gives the impression of complete unpreparedness.

This skill is brilliant, as in your heart you know this is a show which is perfectly timed, structured and planned, however you just believe it too be completely improvised as he jumps from topic to topic to on the keyboard. David O’Doherty breathes a breath of fresh air into the modern day comedy scene, which in itself is amusing coming from a man who's been in the game for so long, eighteen years to be exact.

This in itself shows his prowess in the sport of comedy, as he has perfected his own style of comedy, which no one else would be able to come close to mimicking. David O’Doherty’s Big Time is on till April 23rd at the Forum Theatre. He also has a children's show Danger Is Everywhere on the 6th and 13th of April at the Melbourne Town Hall.

Written by Hamish Vallance

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