May 2009
31 posts
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Restaurant Review – Café Nova (Fitzroy) – 2.5...
I don’t think I’m asking too much, am I? If I order a steak to be ‘rare’, I’ll let it slide if it comes to me ‘medium-rare’, but when it turned up ‘medium-well’ that’s when I have a problem. And this was the case with my dinner last night. But aside from this, Café Nova is a good place for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It’s right in the bustle of Brunswick St without making you feel rushed,...
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Survey Review – Servcorp International Business...
In April, Servcorp commissioned a survey of 7,500 international businesspeople from 24 countries as to which countries are best surviving the global financial crisis. Here are my issues: (a) Servcorp rents out office space – they’ve got no need for information like this; (b) Servcorp is an Australian company, and surprise, surprise, Australia is the best place to be; and (c) nowhere, in any of...
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TV Review – Scrubs (Season 8) – 4.5 Stars
There aren’t many shows of which I’ve watched every single episode. ‘Scrubs’ is one of these shows, and with season eight they’ve shown that they’re not running out of ideas. There’s always been an emphasis on showing the main characters interactions with the new interns, but this season they’ve really closed the loop and we see J.D., Turk and Elliot as the teachers they started off looking...
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Game Review – Splitter (Browser) – 3.5 Stars
There’s something about puzzle physics sims that I really enjoy. And ‘Splitter’ is a good one at that. This game is the standard get-the-ball-through-the-obstacles variety, but your control method here is to slice through the obstacles and let gravity do the rest. It’s simple to learn, but gets quite challenging in the later levels. A few levels required quite a bit of trial-and-error, and...
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Movie Review – Step Brothers (2008) – 3.5 Stars
It’s both a strength and a weakness for Will Ferrell that he gets most of his laughs as part of a team. His ability to play off other actors is great in his group pieces like ‘Old School’ and ‘Blades of Glory’, but he seems not to be at 100% on his own like in ‘Talladega Nights’. This isn’t a problem, though. Mugatu in ‘Zoolander’ is one of the greatest comic villains of all time. And in...
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Product Review – IKEA Bestå Bookshelves – 3.5...
When I was getting my new apartment all sorted, I was going to do my best to avoid Ikea furniture. But when you take into account looks, price, and functionality, the Bestå shelving system is pretty good. Stick with either the walnut or black-brown colour, as the white version looks like tacky shop fittings. It was really easy to put together (the hardest part was getting the boxes into my...
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Movie Review – RocknRolla (2008) – 2.5 Stars
Something I’ve loved about Guy Ritchie’s films in the past has been the multi-liner action scenes. You see? I bet you’re already thinking about the end of ‘Lock, Stock’ and humming ‘Zorba, The Greek’. And while ‘RocknRolla’ tries a couple of these, they never capture your attention as much as they should. And while this film has some genuinely funny parts (What would you do for a friend if...
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Restaurant Review – Café Giraffe (Melbourne VIC) –...
Hidden up on Little Lonsdale, just west of Elizabeth St, is one of the best places for a tasty, affordable lunch in the city. There’s an extensive menu of pastas, risottos, tortilla wraps, gourmet pies, and more – all for $8. They’re solid serves, too, and they all come with salad. I’ve also heard good things about the desserts (and they’ve looked impressive being served), though I’m yet to...
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Meme Review – Which X are you? Quiz (Facebook) –...
In general, I don’t have a problem with this meme. What I do have a problem with is that there’s no way to escape it. If Facebook had an option to “Hide all quiz posts”, then I’d do that, and you’d be welcome to find out which My Little Pony you are. In a post back in mid-march, I jokingly mentioned that I was expecting these things to get a little out of hand, and that’s happened. People...
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TV Review – Rove (Channel 10) – 1 Star
Last weekend was the first time I’ve sat through a show of ‘Rove’, and I’m not going to do it again. The term ‘mindless’ can have positive connotations when you’re discussing the latest action blockbuster, but when you’re describing a chat-show, then there’s a real problem. Rove, himself, lacks all charisma and wit; Dave Hughes and Peter Helliar are just idiots, and I’m really not sure why...
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Bar Review – HolliAva (Richmond VIC) – 2 Stars
It seemed to me that the popularity of HolliAva is really its downfall. They sell themselves as a funky bar with a great selection of drinks, and a nice place to relax with friends. When I was there, it was busy and loud. And standing three deep at the bar, if you’d asked for anything more fancy than a couple of beers, you’d have been lynched. I had a good night, but that was more a...
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Restaurant Review – Minh Minh (Richmond VIC) – 3...
As far as decent Vietnamese food at cheap prices goes, you could do a lot worse than Minh Minh. But with so many competitors around Victoria St., I don’t think a bad Vietnamese restaurant would last long. The décor is basic, but you’re not there for style. The food is tasty and the main issue that I had with the menu was the overabundance of stir-fries and lack of curries. The only ones we...
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TV Review – Heroes (Volume 4 - Fugitives) – 3.5...
After such a fantastic first season, it was a shame to see Heroes start to lose it a bit with some crazy time travelling plot lines and catalysts allowing others to acquire powers. But it’s great to see it back on the rails here in volume four – Fugitives. Like the first season, the focus is much more on the characters’ interactions rather than the fanciful plot lines, and the strong push...
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Restaurant Review – Tjanabi (Federation Square...
Tjanabi promotes itself a restaurant that reflects the spirit of Australia. The menu is proof of that, with dishes like emu kabana, crocodile sausages and wallaby fillets. The problem with these dishes is that they seem to be served more for their name than for their flavours. The novelty Australiana strayed into the deserts as well, with a chocolate terrine that was overpowered by lemon...
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Music Review – Tame Impala ‘Half Full Glass of...
I’m a big fan of up-and-coming Perth band, Tame Impala. I think there’s an incredible amount of potential right there. On their debut, self-titled EP, “Half Full Glass of Wine” particularly stands out. Kevin Parker and Dominic Simper’s guitar solos are reminiscent of George Harrison and Paul McCartney in ‘Golden Slumbers’, and Jay Watson’s 30-second long drum solo to end the track is...
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Restaurant Review – Alpha Ouzeri (Fitzroy VIC) – 4...
Luckily, we found a table for two still available at 8.30pm on Mothers Day. The place was bustling, the music was loud, and waiters were buzzing around tables while overcharged Greek family conversations went on around us. The banquet option was a fantastic way to avoid tough decisions over the extensive menu, and was incredibly well priced. We had about six different entrees and just as...
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Website Review – 100wordreviews.net - 100th Review
Back in February, I decided to start up my own website. I thought about things that I liked doing (‘telling people my opinions’ and ‘not writing too much’ were the big ones) and through this I came up with ‘100 Word Reviews’. It’s been a lot of fun so far, and with reviews of movies, music, books, restaurants, comics, TV shows, websites and more, I’ve managed to make it to 100 reviews. And...
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Product Review – Rubik’s Mirror Blocks – 3 Stars
I’ll admit that I’ve been a Rubik’s Cube fan for a few years now. The Rubik’s Mirror Blocks is a new take on the puzzle, with all faces having the same colour, but the slices aren’t even. This way, each individual block is a different shape, and you only know where they go by size. It’s solved the same way as a standard cube, but the size metric makes an interesting change. It’s certainly...
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Restaurant Review – The Provincial (Fitzroy VIC) –...
The Provincial is one of my favourite places on Brunswick Street. It’s incredibly versatile; offering beautiful meals for a romantic dinner, great pub grub on your way to see some live music, and a nice bar for a boozy night out with the boys. This time was a bit of a combination with a group of friend there for a sit down meal. The steaks were simple, and cooked to perfection, and the wine...
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Movie Review – Club Dread (2004) – 2 Stars
I was expecting a bit more from Broken Lizard’s follow up offering after ‘Super Troopers’. To me, ‘Club Dread’ was like a dog turning around in circles before it lay down. It just never seemed to find a position that it was comfortable with. At times, it had the laid back irreverence that makes ‘Super Troopers’ so funny, but at other times, too much effort was going into actually making the...
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Restaurant Review – Feddish (Federation Square...
It’s all about managing expectations, really. The Feddish website is really impressive. It shows off a very classy restaurant with beautiful table settings and views. But just like online dating, reality doesn’t always live up to the picture. I don’t like expecting class and getting a laminated menu. It didn’t help that tables are set so far back you can’t see the view, that despite the...
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Movie Trailer Review – Morris: A Life With Bells...
If you loved ‘Confetti’, ‘Kenny’ or ‘Best in Show’, then strap on your laughing gear and check out the trailer for ‘Morris: A Life With Bells On’. This mockumentary follows the fortunes of Derecq Twist and his Morris Dancing troupe, Millsham Morris. Derecq is a Morris dancer to the core, but he also believes in innovation, an agenda he pushes through his invention of “Extreme Morris”. But...
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TV Review – MasterChef (Channel 10) – 2 Stars
I tried to get into MasterChef. I really thought that it could be one piece of reality TV that I’d enjoy. I enjoy good food so I thought that a show that requires participants to have some talent in this field would be good. But there’s not much in the way of memorable contestants, and the judges fail to garner much credibility – which is odd, given that I’ve been a big fan of Preston’s...
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Movie Trailer Review – Transformers: Revenge of...
I’d be hard pressed looking past “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” as the 2009 movie that I’m most looking forward to as a pure spectacle. And neither the latest full trailer nor the initial teaser make me think this film will disappoint. Apparently when Steven Spielberg saw a preview of this film he described it as “f***ing awesome!” And if anyone’s qualified to judge a movie like this,...
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Movie Review – Transformers (2007) - 4 Stars
If you’re aged between 24 and 34, you watched TV in the late-80s, and you haven’t seen the Transformers live-action film, then I demand that you rent the DVD today. As far as reliving your childhood, this film is second only to TMNT. There’s really no point over-analysing the plot here as it’s completely unnecessary to the film (as is Rachael Taylor’s character, for that matter). All you...
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TV Review – True Blood (Season 1) – 4 Stars
It’s got vampires in it; it’s got Anna Paquin in it; and it’s got the best title sequence since ‘The Sopranos’ – you’re primed for some great TV here. ‘True Blood’ is set in the deep south in a reality where vampires have recently come into the open to try and live together with humans thanks to the invention of synthetic blood. In a society that has spent so many years dealing with racism,...
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Restaurant Review – Smoken’ Joes (Moonee Ponds...
There’s something inherently masculine about eating ribs. I think it’s the primal aspect of eating with your hands and the feel of your teeth against pig bone. That’s certainly how I felt as I polished off my 500g rack of ribs last night. This isn’t a restaurant for delicate eaters – if you’re not willing to order your steak by weight, you’re in the wrong place. But don’t think that big...
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Movie Review – X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009) – 2...
There are some movies that explain very little about the details of the plot, and there are others, like ‘Wolverine’ that explain far too much. If you were to watch this movie and the first ‘X-Men’ film back to back, then the ratio of explanation/set-up to action might be just about right. I know that this is supposed to be an ‘Origins’ film, but there’s simply far too much time spent emoting...
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Restaurant Review – Tiamo 2 (Carlton VIC) – 2.5...
A while back, I lived in Carlton, so I’d been to Tiamo 2 then. I don’t know whether it has changed or I’ve changed, but it certainly didn’t seem to be as good as I remember. We did turn up a bit late (9.45pm), so that may have contributed to the reticence of the waiters, but we certainly weren’t the last people there. The food was ok – the duck soup had very little duck, and the pizza was...
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Theatre Review – Realism (MTC) – 4 Stars
In an atmosphere of regulation and fear, the only thing that can’t be controlled is the imagination. This seems to be the theme of Paul Galloway’s ‘Realism’, as a group of actors and writers discuss what can and can’t be said in Russia in 1939 when you’ve been commissioned to do a play for Starlin’s sixtieth birthday. There’s certainly laughs on stage (thanks largely to Grant Piro’s fantastic...
April 2009
30 posts
2 tags
Restaurant Review - VietStar (Hawthorn VIC) - 3.5...
If there was ever going to be a restaurant to survive the recession, then ‘VietStar’ would be the one. It has the kind of prices that prompt low expectation, but service and food that far surpasses them. It’s not classy, though – so your suit and tie will seem out of place among the bare tables and paper napkins. But the food arrives quickly, in big servings, and tasting great. It’s BYO,...