Yesterday
Lin-Manuel Miranda on Mufasa and the secret to a Disney hit
The Hamilton creator, who crafted the soundtrack for the new prequel to The Lion King, reflects on writing songs that have universal appeal.
- Sarah Bahr
This Month
It’s a Wonderful Life is a ritual, but its darkness must be dealt with
The organisers of a festival celebrating Frank Capra’s classic holiday film are finally tackling the difficult subject at its heart.
- Erik Piepenburg
Five grown-up films for a sequel-free Boxing Day
Hollywood’s obsession with rehashes carries on to the biggest day of the year for Australian cinema owners, but there are some flicks for discerning adults.
- Michael Bodey
How the Queen’s death cost this Aussie filmmaker $1m
A Melbourne-based producer and director somehow raised $100 million to make a movie starring Robbie Williams as a CGI monkey. It didn’t all go smoothly.
- Patrick Durkin
Cate Blanchett swears she’s not Angela Merkel in zombie movie
She’s played a monstrous maestro, elf queen and bounty hunter – now the Oscar-winning actress is taking on our narcissistic world leaders.
- Julia Llewellyn Smith
November
This Rich Lister has a plan to save cinema (and his business)
Blackmagic Design’s Grant Petty hopes his new camera, which shoots at 16 times the standard image quality, can lift box-office sales and those of his company too.
- Michael Bailey
Hollywood gives thanks as blockbusters set to soar
Studios bet “Wicked”, “Gladiator II” and “Moana 2” will kick off a strong holiday season at the box office in the United States and globally.
- Christopher Grimes
Why screen villains always play golf
Short of kicking a puppy, there’s no more reliable signifier of utter rottenness than a man – and it is always a man – playing golf.
- Peter Swain
AI made Tom Hanks 18 years old again. Unlike colleagues, he’s a fan
Hollywood is divided over whether artificial intelligence is a boon to creativity, or a vapid destroyer of jobs.
- Devin Gordon
From Cats to the Babe sequel, the most disastrous films of all time
Andrew Lloyd Webber was left so traumatised by what Hollywood did to Cats that he bought an emotional support dog.
- Leaf Arbuthnot
October
New Trump movie shows the power of wearing an expensive-looking suit
The Apprentice’s costume designer tells how the film’s clothes tell the story of Donald Trump’s rise and lawyer Roy Cohn’s descent.
- Max Berlinger
Think you know that voice? Dead celebrities are working again
Judy Garland, James Dean and Elvis might be dead, but thanks to artificial intelligence, they can still do voice-overs, act and generally make money.
- Mia Dawkins
Qantas apologises for showing R-rated film on all screens on flight
The crew played the movie following the malfunction of personal in-flight entertainment systems, according to a person who recounted the experience on Reddit.
- Kate Christobek
Liked The Sopranos? You’ll love this doco about it
Twenty-five years after The Sopranos first aired, this two-part series on Binge explores the way the show’s art mirrors the life of its creator.
- Terry Pontikos
Kamala Harris’ historic run could outpace Hollywood’s Oval Offices
The lack of women of colour among actors playing presidents could prove consequential as Americans weigh voting for Harris.
- Sara Ruberg
September
‘Harry Potter’ and ‘Downton Abbey’ star Maggie Smith dies
The 89-year-old actress was a shining star in a generation that included Judi Dench and Vanessa Redgrave.
Mercury hits the right note at JMC Academy; buys majority stake
JMC’s alumni include Pacific Avenue’s Harry O’Brien, Universal Music Group’s Brent “Quincy” Buchanan and Animal Logic Entertainment’s Felicity Staunton.
- Sarah Thompson, Kanika Sood and Emma Rapaport
In Beetlejuice sequel, Michael Keaton looks the same 36 years on
The actor delivers a barnstorming performance as the fast-talking sleazebag demon in Tim Burton’s comedic vision of the Afterlife as a nightmarish bureaucracy.
- John McDonald
If you’re leaving Disneyland while it’s light, you’re doing it wrong
The world’s best-known theme park inspires awe and delight during the day, but after dark Walt’s $280 billion vision truly comes to life.
- Lucy Dean
August
‘Kneecap’ and ‘Touch’: edgy Irish hip-hop and an Icelandic romance
The fictionalised biopic of a loud, incomprehensible band has a rough and ready quality, while a heart-warming drama somehow manages to keep the lid on the treacle jar
- John McDonald