Watch Red Dog: True Blue with your own pooch. True dinks!
Let’s face it, the screen sector is dragging itself towards summer, exhausted by another long year on the emotional roller coaster. Summer lasts a lot longer than a quick holiday in Asia or the temporary share house by the ocean. Finding stuff for the whole family is getting harder too.
Summer is blockbuster time in the cinemas, and we’ve got a list of all the new releases from now until early February at the end of this article. Keep your eye out for really small releases with micro-distribution strategies. The big arthouse venues will keep some of the 2016 favourites running for a while, unless there is a tentpole pile-up and they succumb to the lure of larger audiences.
Meanwhile, under the stars, a whole new exhibition form has been quietly normalising itself. The open-air cinema has evolved into a full-blown THING in the way that drive-ins marked the Fifties. Here’s just some examples.
In Sydney, Darling Harbour is making a pre-emptive raid into the frenzy of entertainment costs for kids and their suffering parents across January with a free film program on the Village Green. Between January 6 and 25 it is screening ‘26 of the hottest feature films and 17 shorts, as well as live entertainment and scrumptious eats that kids and their adult friends won’t want to miss.’
The shorts start at 6.30 with pieces of the youth-created LIttle Big Shots festival, while the noisy adult pics start at 8.30 with titles that run from Hunt for the Wilderpeople to US tentpole pics. It closes between 20-22 for the endearing reason of Chinese New Year.
This event is typical of the metastasis of cinema into a triumphant celebration of outdoor life across Australia. The Moonlight Cinema in Perth, for instance, is running virtually the whole tentpole program with added mossies but more merriment. The Luna Palace Camelot Cinema is proud of its Wednesday music program as well, really emphasising that Perth’s weather makes WA the natural capital of the open air flicks. There’s even a small circuit run by volunteers to raise money for charity.
And 40kms east, the Kookaburra Cinema is celebrating its twentieth anniversary. Where else would you want to see Red Dog: True Blue on Australia Day?
In places like St Kilda in Melbourne, US ice cream chain Ben and Jerry’s is branding itself with blow up screens, but for limited seasons which don’t really compete with the real stayers. Melbourne already has the Moonlight in the Botanical Gardens, the Rooftop in Swanston Street and the new Lido open air venue atop Eddie Tamir’s Hawthorn venture to complement the Cameo in Belgrave, certainly the most Deco of the possum parade.
In Adelaide the Moonlight Cinema has been running since December 1 [hi, great climate] and demonstrates once again that the boutique Botanic Gardens is a lovely, lovely place. There is a designated smoking area [koff, koff] and punters can bring their dogs. This venue makes a point of this but it is probably true in most places. The Mercury is also carrying mainstream releases and the feeling is good though it does have a roof.
That Moonlight name is where mainstream exhibition pokes through. It is an Event Cinema line, which means it is really Greater Union plus free air conditioning. Along with Perth, Adelaide and Melbourne, you will find them heading the list in Sydney and Brisbane.
There are many starlight venues in Sydney, with St Georges adding to that branding idea though superb views and a longer run beat the smash-and-grab approach of the ice cream people.
Brisbane also sports a fair number of free cinema outlets run around parks and councils. The Christmas Beach cinema adds a unique twist to an already bizarre space, because you can dive in [sort of, subject to regulation and the laws of physics] and watch films about fat people in Santa suits from the water. They badly need an annual screening of The Life of Pi.
The climate in Tasmania makes open air venues a bit tougher. Here we find the pop-up hire companies which parachute into party nights and fundraisers, which is a fine adaptation of the technology. However, the State Cinema has opened its rooftop venue and is proudly in action with a hilarious note about the weather:
Unlike our auditoriums downstairs, this cinema has no ceiling! This means you have a fantastic view, but also it means that you need to rug up. This is Hobart, people! We recommend you bring gloves, a beanie, a blanket, windproof jacket… you get the idea.
All these cinemas are providing new releases but there’s not much to tempt your arthouse taste buds for those challenging films that can inspire an Australian feature filmmaker. However, the University of Melbourne is hosting a substantial exception – not surprising given the city’s passion for arthouse movies.
Shimmerlands at the Parkville campus is a long summer festival of music, culinary culture and cinema, and I can’t think of a better combo for the enquiring sybarite.
From the creators of Shadow Electric comes two months of high-quality programming throughout the daylight and night hours, featuring an outdoor cinema, outdoor music amphitheatre, multiple bars and an outdoor dining area hosting an extensive range of Melbourne’s finest restaurants.
Melbourne of course is pretty well served with outdoor cinemas, from Fed Square to the astroturf near the State Library,to the Backlot Rooftop Drive In down at Docklands. If you can find working drive-in anywhere in Australia, cherish it.
Read more here: How to build the perfect rooftop cinema
And this: Why some cinemas thrive as cultural hubs.
Here is the list of new releases from now to February:
22 Dec 2016
Paterson : Comedy by Jim Jarmusch
The Wasted Times: Chinese drama set in the Sino-Japanese war of the 1930s
23 December
Dangal: Indian action
26 Dec 2016
Rosalie Blum: French comedy
Gimme Danger: Documentary about Iggy Pop by Jim Jarmusch
Janis: Little Girl Blue: Documentary about Janis Joplin by Amy Berg
Dr Who: The Return of Mysterio: Cult
La La Land: Musical about Los Angeles, a hot Oscar fave
Moana: Kids’ animation about South Pacific
Red Dog: True Blue: Crowd-pleaser from Kriv Stenders carrying high hopes of wide release. Bring hankies
Why Him? Comedy with James Franco
Allied: Drama with Brad Pitt
Sing: Family film with Scarlett Johanson
29 Dec 2016
Assassin’s Creed: tentpole based on a game, directed by Justin Kurzel (Snowtown, Macbeth)
1 Jan 2017
Passengers: Adventure with Jennifer Lawrence and Morten Tyldum
2 Jan 2017
Museums Alive 3D : Imax documentary (Melbourne)
5 Jan 2017
Raliroad Tigers: Chinese action
The Music of Strangers: Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble: festival-pleasing documentary (limited release)
The Edge of Seventeen: Teen comedy, goes wide but out over Xmas
12 Jan
Operation Avalanche: Thriller
Jackie: Oscar contender about Jackie Kennedy. Looks good, performance win awards. Natalie Portman
Monster Trucks: mega tentpole action with Rob Lowe and Chris Wedge
Middle School: the worst years of my life: Kids’ comedy
Collateral Beauty: Drama, Kate Winslet
Ballerina: Family film
13 January
OK Jaanu: Indian drama
Sarvaan: Indian thriller
19 January
A Man called Ove: Scandinavian comedy
Lion: The Australian Oscar hopeful, and a crowdpleaser
XXX 3: The Return of Xander Cage: Action
26 January
Resident Evil: the final chapter: Action
Raees: Indian Action
The Perfect Strangers: Italian comedy
Kaabil: Indian action
Rules Don’t Apply: comedy with Haley Bennett and Warren Beatty
Live by Night:Drama with Ben Affleck
A Monster Calls: Drama with Felicity Jones directed by J.A.Bayona
Untitled Blumhouse Project: Horror
Split: Thriller by M. Night Shyamalan
Moonlight: Oscar favourite, gay Black love story.
2 February 2017
Toni Erdman: Well-regarded festival comedy
Manchester by the Sea: Oscar favourite from Kenneth Lonergan
Gold: crime adventure
Patriots Day: biographical drama about the the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing Bastards
