July 2009
32 posts
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Movie Review – Humpday (2009) – 4 Stars
When heterosexual friends Ben and Andrew make a drunken pledge to film the two of them “bonin’” for an art festival, each wants to out-do the other’s open-mindedness by not backing down from the task. The three stellar lead performances are what makes this film – largely improvised from Lynn Shelton’s extensive notes; giving this film a wonderful and realistic fly-on-the-wall feel. The...
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Restaurant Review – Trotters (Carlton VIC) – 4...
While having breakfast at Trotters we discussed the validity of restaurant reviews based solely on the quality of a hash-brown. That should give you some idea of just how good Trotters’ breakfast accompaniments are. The rest of the breakfast matches, too – with creamy scrambled eggs, and thick cut bacon that hasn’t been cooked to a crisp as sometimes happens. They have an extensive lunch...
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Movie Review - Borat: Cultural Learnings of...
There’s nothing about this movie that isn’t in bad taste; whether it’s the exploitation of the Kazakhstani culture or Sacha Baron Cohen’s ability to make anyone seem ignorant and foolish (though, that probably wasn’t that hard in some cases, here). I don’t, however, mean that as a bad thing. This movie is hilarious. It’s more than just “laugh-out-loud-funny”; it’s...
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Restaurant Review – Mecca Bah (Docklands VIC) –...
How could you go wrong with harissa-spiced calamari, sweet potato falafels, fried whole school prawns, and a spit-roasted lamb, rocket and mint yoghurt pizza? The answer is, once you get a table here, you can’t. Mecca Bah don’t accept bookings so getting your hands on a table at can be tough, especially as they don’t have an effective way to handle the queues of walk-ins. We were lucky to...
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Movie Review – Harry Potter and the Half-Blood...
Being the Harry Potter geek that I am, I like the fact that this film seemed to open the characters’ motives to the audience more than any other in the series. The casting and acting are again strong, with Tom Fleton showing perfect desperation with the downfall of Draco Malfoy, and Alan Rickman once again proving that he really *is* Professor Snape. But while it was a positive that the film...
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Restaurant Review – Ladro (Fitzroy VIC) – 3.5...
When I booked at Ladro for an early dinner on a Thursday, I was told, “I can give you a table from 6.30pm to 8 o’clock.” Hmmm… The venue is great, with bold colours and starkly minimalistic décor, and fantastic pizzas to match. They’re classically Italian with an innovative take (think: mozzarella, roast cauliflower, caramelised onion, and taleggio). The only problem was that, knowing...
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TV Review – Chuck (Season 2) – 3.5 Stars
There aren’t many shows in the action-comedy-spy-drama genre at the moment, but even if there were, I think ‘Chuck’ would still be one of the best. Season two recalls the first season’s character chemistry, sharp dialogue, overblown action scenes and incredible plot twists. And by that, I mean ‘incredible’ both as ‘exciting’ as well as ‘lacking credibility’ – with brain computers and secret...
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Bar Review – Sentido Funf (Collingwood VIC) – 3...
In all the hustle and bustle of Gertrude St, Sentido Funf had the longest line outside of everywhere I passed on my way. And that made me feel of the loop. I’m in the target age group (or maybe just slightly over), and I live within a few kilometres, yet I’d never heard of it. Three deep at the bar, you couldn’t have ordered anything special, but once you made it outside, the tables were big...
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Restaurant Review – Replete (Hawthorn VIC) – 4...
Replete’s got all its bases covered as far as food. Breakfasts are outstanding with bacon or smoked salmon on corn fritters, or ricotta hotcakes with lemon curd and strawberries (voted Cheap Eats breakfast of the year); lunches are satisfied with a full range of sandwiches, rolls and pastas; and if you want to take something home, they have gourmet pasta sauces and curries to feed a family, as...
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Game Review – Red Remover (Browser) – 2.5 Stars
Another of the physics simulator, level based games, Red Remover is based around the simple premise of removing all red blocks from the screen by clicking on them. Simple? Now pay attention to the green blocks – you can’t lose any of them. Gravity? Let’s make that specific to each block, not general for the whole screen. And therein lies the complexity. Levers, inclined planes, wheels and...
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TV Review – MasterChef Finale (Channel 10) – 2...
Back at the start of the season when I reviewed MasterChef, I mentioned that the contestants weren’t particularly memorable. And, unfortunately, the finale last night didn’t change my mind. I couldn’t get excited about either contestant, and although, technically, they cooked some fantastic dishes, the one thing I particularly wanted to taste was judge Gary’s Beef Bourguignon which was used...
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Restaurant Review – Beetroot (Melbourne VIC) – 4...
Lunchtime on a workday, and it can be very hard to get a table at Beetroot. That’s because all the folks that work in the CBD know where to go for a great meal. There’s a display case full of tasty treats; whether it’s a gourmet focaccia, a pot pie, soup, quiche, or a wrap. There’s also the fantastic range of cold drinks and coffees, or if you’re after something sweet, they serve hot...
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Book Review – ‘I, Robot’ by Isaac Asimov – 4.5...
If you haven’t read the book, but have seen the movie, try to forget it completely. While the movie was a lame excuse to fuse two of Hollywood’s favourites (Will Smith and CGI), the book is a fantastic study into psychological complexities given a basic behavioural framework. The book is broken down into nine short stories, each detailing an apparent breakdown in one of the (now well-known)...
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Restaurant Review – De Los Santos (Fitzroy VIC) –...
Something’s changed at De Los Santos, and it’s not for the better. Where previously all their tapas had been a delight; this time, two out of our five dishes were bland and lacked the intricacies of flavour and texture that had drawn me there in the past. It’s still a nice place for dinner, though; with a comfortable atmosphere, fully stocked bar, and soft Spanish guitar playing in the...
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TV Review – The Chaser’s War on Everything (ABC) –...
When did The Chaser change from a satirical news outlet to a “Candid Camera” TV show? There used to be some fantastic news articles (Anyone remember the sponsorship deal that would see the MCG renamed the McG™?); now we’re stuck watching the 38th iteration of “let’s see how security reacts when we try to deliver something inappropriate”. They simply don’t have enough good material for a...
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Website Review – MapMyRun – 4 Stars
Google Maps is good for many things, but if you don’t exclusively run on the road, then mapping out and tracking runs isn’t one of them. MapMyRun adds to the functionality of Google Maps by allowing you to create and save off-road runs, and then track your workouts for distance and time. Most importantly, it does all of this whilst being completely free (if you don’t mind a couple of ads). ...
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Product Review – Pilot Super Grip Pen – 4.5 Stars
For not much more than a couple of dollars per pen, it doesn’t get better than the Pilot Super Grip. In terms of ink on paper, it’s about as good as a ballpoint can get – deep black ink, 1mm ball for solid lines, and no imperfections for inking artefacts. It feels good in the hand, too. It’s light weight while still feeling solid, and the grip is comfortable without being too soft. In...
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Website Review – FlickChart – 3.5 Stars
The idea behind FlickChart is to get an idea of movie rankings by having people continuously pick their favourite from a pair of displayed movies until these comparisons turn into a relative ranking. It can take quite a while to get a decent list (I’m still not happy with my Top 20 after 300 ranks), but I can assure you that it’s a lot of fun to go through the motions. How do you choose...
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TV Review – The 20th Annual Great Debate (Channel...
I know I shouldn’t blame Corrine Grant (the host of the debate) for the fact that the quote the debate was based around was incorrect (it’s the “love of money” that is the root of all evil – or so the saying goes), but she annoys me, so I will blame her. Maybe I’ll also blame her for the fact that neither Janeane Garofalo, Stephen K Amos nor Jason Byrne were even remotely funny. Yet, luckily...
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Restaurant Review - Ishiya Japanese Stonegrill...
For me, it really doesn’t get any better than my main course at Ishiya – a big chunk of raw tenderloin steak, my own private stone grill, and a selection of sauces. I’d read mixed reviews about this place, especially with regard to group bookings, and as we had a group of 18, I was a little worried. But service was great (only issue was one main served, apologetically, five minutes after the...
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Bar Review – Sweatshop (Melbourne VIC) – 4 Stars
Not a great fan of the space here, and the drinks were priced a bit higher than I would have liked; but what really won me over at Sweatshop was the bartenders. I’m a whisky drinker, so when I’m on cocktails I tend to jump straight to a Godfather. Last night I wanted something similar but a little different; and on three separate occasions they were able to come up with a non-menu item for...
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Restaurant Review – The Metz Café Bar (Launceston...
Having no idea where to have lunch in Launceston, I read the “Welcome to Launceston” brochure and settled on the place that was“offering the ultimate dining experience” – but it wasn’t. The Metz doesn’t seem to know where it fits. The space and atmosphere isn’t flashy enough for it to be a bar, and the food’s nowhere near good enough to be a restaurant. The pizza we ordered had lots of...
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Theatre Review – Avenue Q (Comedy Theatre VIC) –...
It’s a bit of a chicken and egg conundrum as to whether this show appeals to so many people because it’s so funny, or whether it’s so funny because it appeals to almost everyone. Either way, it is laugh-out-loud funny for the whole time, and the story, themes, music and characters are instantly relatable. The live puppeteering, whilst noticeable at first, quickly feels completely natural to...
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Restaurant Review – Grossi Florentino Grill...
For the record, my experience at Grossi Florentino Grill was of dining from the pre-theatre special menu. That is, two courses for $35 if you eat at 6pm. I knew we were first sitting, so I shouldn’t have been surprised to be rushed, but I wasn’t prepared for just how much. And from what I’ve heard about the place, I certainly didn’t expect the food to be below average. The tomato ragu pasta...
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Movie Review – Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen...
To enjoy Transformers II you need to simultaneously be six (Yay! – Robots), sixteen (Yay! – Megan Fox), and twenty-six (Yay! – I like the way they handled the themes of morality and free will by treating the Autobot/Decepticon distinction as an issue of personal choice, rather than race). And on all three of these levels (well, really only the first two), this film performs admirably. The...
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Restaurant Review – Chashar Bliss (Hawthorn VIC) –...
It’s very rare to walk out of a restaurant feeling like you should have paid more than you did. But with great quality mains under $20, however, that’s how Chashar Bliss makes you feel. They have the great ability to seamlessly mix classic pub food (a medium sized chicken parmigiana served with salad and some very nice thick-cut, beer-battered chips), and gourmet specialities (a seafood...
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Show Review – Simon Coronel – Live at the...
“Magic isn’t real,” Simon tells us at the start of his show; “Think of it as live special effects.” He tells us he’s going to trick us; and he challenges us to catch him out – we can’t. It’s amazing to think that there are magicians this talented living among us. You’d think they’d have made all our watches disappear and changed all our $20 notes to $5s. Let’s just hope they’re all like...
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Restaurant Review – Curve Bar (Southbank VIC) –...
It’s a shame that the best place to eat at the Melbourne Arts Centre really isn’t very good. I appreciate the idea of a modern spin on the tapas theme, with most plates intended to be eaten in groups. But the chef needs to understand that there’s more to designing dishes for sharing than simply cutting the food into small pieces. It seems that very little thought has gone into how the...
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Theatre Review – The Birthday Party (MTC) – 2...
While Pinter’s play itself is still very relevant in today’s political environment (whether it be the Iranian election or Guantanamo Bay), it was unfortunate that this production simply wasn’t very good. Whether it was Director Julian Meyrick’s bland and overly literal approach to the dialogue, or Isaac Drandic’s ‘Stanley’ (which was played like a bad impression of Napoleon Dynamite); this...
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Restaurant Review – Piermont Restaurant (Swansea...
A lot of restaurants suffer from a lack of atmosphere when there are not many people there. The Piermont Restaurant, on the other hand, is the opposite. We were one of only three groups there, and the quiet ambience, soft lighting and open fire made it a great place to have dinner. The wine list is largely local, with some interstate favourites thrown in, and the food is well structured with...
June 2009
29 posts
2 tags
Product Review – Extra Professional Mints (Forest...
Last time I reviewed mints I created a bit of a stir. I had no idea so many of you were mint connoisseurs, and willing to provide recommendations. Unfortunately, things aren’t looking up with the Forest Berry flavour of Extra Professional Mints. They’re designed to have berry flavour on one side and mint flavour on the other, but they end up simply tasting like acidic chemicals that have...