The Bikeriders: The film that cast Austin Butler before he became a heartthrob

WATCH / THE WILD BUNCH

Jodie Comer and Austin Butler get motors running in The Bikeriders.

Director Jeff Nichols likes to say he cast Austin Butler in The Bikeriders before the heartthrob became a hunk of burning love in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis. It’s an easy boast, but you’d have to be made of stern stuff not to recognise the 32-year-old’s husky-voiced, pouty-lipped appeal. Butler and his scene-stealing Bikeriders co-star, Jodie Comer (Villanelle in Killing Eve), are part of a crop of young actors who are knocking on the door of bona-fide movie stardom without going all-in on the
big-box-office, superhero route. Instead, they’re building their careers in mid-budget movies, which are now re-emerging in cinemas. Which is why The Bikeriders, a portrait of the rise of a motorcycle gang in 1960s Chicago, seen largely through the eyes of Comer’s character, Kathy, is betting on the pair’s star power to woo filmgoers back into still-struggling movie theatres. Can Butler and Comer save cinema? Time will tell. In the meantime, they certainly know how to get motors running. In cinemas now.
Louise Rugendyke

SHOP / GOOD NIGHT AND GOOD LUCK

Get the stats on your snoozing: this under-mattress sensor measures breathing patterns, heart rate and body movements.

How well do you sleep really? Get to know the stats behind your snoozing with the Withings Sleep Analyzer ($199). A world-first, this under-mattress sensor can measure and analyse, with medical-grade precision, your breathing patterns, heart rate and body movements – all without the need for you to wear anything more intrusive than your pyjamas. The data, computed in real time, can be shared with your GP to identify potential disorders such as sleep apnoea, or used to take proactive steps to enhance your sleep routine, boost energy levels and, by extension, your cognitive function.
Frances Mocnik

GROOVE / STRING ART

Warren Ellis of Dirty Three, which has released it first album in 12 years. Credit: @slydawg83/Instagram

It’s not easy to upstage Nick Cave, but his musical foil and songwriting partner, Warren Ellis, comes close as the central member of the Bad Seeds. With his scarecrow frame and mad-prophet-style hair and beard, Ellis casts wild shapes while being transported by the untamed sounds he squeezes from his violin. Those in the know have been following his own band, Dirty Three, for more than three decades – an unorthodox instrumental trio featuring Ellis, guitarist Mick Turner and drummer Jim White. Their first album in 12 years, Love Changes Everything, is a six-song suite that perfectly encapsulates their whisper-to-a-scream aesthetic, with Ellis’s violin veering from eerie lullaby to impending apocalypse, often within the space of a single song.
Barry Divola

WEAR / DARK GOOD LOOKS

Edera’s homegrown sunnies design incorporates Italian materials.

We may not be able to escape to Italy this season, but the tips of our noses can come a little closer, thanks to Australian start-up, Edera, which has launched a range of sunglasses that have been designed locally using Italian materials. These square, tortoiseshell frames with brown lenses (“Elio” in “Retro Havana”; $310) offer enough maximalist vibes to keep Mafia wives happy while staying on the right side of the fashion police.
Damien Woolnough

RECYCLE / SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW

Credit: Dan Gosse

When Lottie Dalziel (above) decided to live a more sustainable life but couldn’t find credible info on how to go about it, she started Banish, a social enterprise that makes sustainable options easy to find and educates consumers along the way. Today, the online store stocks items that stick to strict ecological guidelines – developed without cruelty to animals and free of palm oil, parabens and other ingredients on the Banish “sin-bin” list. In addition, the Banish Recycling and Disposal Program (BRAD) offers a solution for household items that are tricky to repurpose, such as blister packs, toothbrush tubes and bread tags. Just put them in an old shoebox and purchase a BRAD collection label online ($15), which includes postage and the cost of recycling. banish.com.au​
Frances Mocnik

EAT / CRUNCH TIME

Move over Pink Lady, the Cosmic Crisp apple is in town.

Aussie apple aficionados, get ready for your first satisfying chomp of the Cosmic Crisp ($6.90 per kilogram), a new variety growing in Victoria’s Yarra Valley and Batlow, NSW. Developed over two decades by apple experts at Washington State University, this apple takes its name from the constellation-like appearance of the lenticels on its skin, and its parent varietal, the Honeycrisp, one of America’s best-selling varieties. With its flashy exterior and mouth-watering blend of sweetness and crunch, the Cosmic Crisp can be refrigerated for a long time and is slow to brown when cut, making it perfect for entertaining and lunchboxes.
Frances Mocnik

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