SNAPSHOT“[Julie and the Phantoms] stars Madison Reyes as Julie, a talented singer who’s feeling uninspired after her mother died. But then three musicians come into Julie’s life and convince her to join their band, giving her a chance to rediscover her voice…and maybe fall in love along the way.” (synopsis Continue Reading
Songs, songs and more songs #33: Cut Copy, Jónsi, River Boy, Myd, Motez + #Eurovision update
Feeling alone? Goofy? thoughtful? Out of control? In love but fearful? Yep, that’s a lot of emotional states coming together all at once but then this is a big messy, emotionally jumbled up year so it all fits together. Even more so, when you listen to these five talented artists Continue Reading
Mystery runs in the family: The delightful sleuthing chutzpah of Enola Holmes
SNAPSHOTWhen Enola Holmes-Sherlock’s teen sister-discovers her mother missing, she sets off to find her, becoming a super-sleuth in her own right as she outwits her famous brother and unravels a dangerous conspiracy around a mysterious young Lord. (synopsis via IMDb) OOOO Enola Holmes premieres on Netflix on 23 September.
Book review: The Last Migration by Charlotte McConaghy
Is there hope at the slow end of a dying world? You could be forgiven for thinking not in Charlotte McConaghy’s The Last Migration where the climate changed-induced creeping apocalypse at its heart has ushered in the demise of moose and elephants, wolves and bees and the big cats, and Continue Reading
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is SO serious … no, really, it is now and it’s very cool
SNAPSHOTWhat would happen if Will Smith made The Fresh Prince today? Bel-Air, a story of a kid from Philly whose life got turned upside-down… in 2019. (synopsis (c) Sun Squared Media via YouTube) How do you know you’ve captured the viewing public’s fractured attention in this ever more crowded digital Continue Reading
Book review: On a Barbarous Coast by Craig Cormick and Harold Ludwick
The alternate history genre of storytelling is often dismissed as a fanciful game of “what ifs”, a moving around of real world people and events to create an altogether different perspective on a particularly transformative moment in time. But the really good alternate histories perform an altogether more important role Continue Reading
Comics review: The Backstagers
It is a rare and wonderful thing indeed to stumble by accident across a series of graphic novels that happily combine an imaginative sense of the surreal and the fantastical, an emotional resonance that captures the heart and profoundly so, and a willingness to unapologetically reflect the world as it Continue Reading
The answer is always more? Wonder Woman 1984 asks the question in new trailer
SNAPSHOTRaised on a sheltered paradise known as Paradise Island, when an American pilot crashes on their shores and tells of a massive conflict raging in the outside world, Diana then leaves her home, convinced she can stop the threat. Now a new era of wonder begins… Fast forward to the Continue Reading
Weekend pop art: The gorgeously colourful illustrations of The Very Hungry Red Panda
SNAPSHOTThis children’s book is a journey about an endangered red panda who eats its way through the world, meeting other animal friends and trying food that is unique to their countries. It is a celebration of food, animals, and art, promoting biological diversity, cultural diversity, and belonging. (synopsis via Laughing Continue Reading
Magical vocals: Remembering Disney voice actress Verna Felton
SNAPSHOTTim Nydell of Saturday Morning Rewind pays wonderful tribute to legendary voice actress Verna Felton (1890-1966), whose distinctive timbre was featured in such classic Disney films as Dumbo, Cinderella, Lady and the Tramp, Sleeping Beauty, Alice in Wonderland, and The Jungle Book. Felton also portrayed the original Pearl Slaghoople (Wilma Continue Reading