Cinema
The Color Purple
A simmering, joyous and heart-pounding adaptation of the hit Broadway musical, The Color Purple brings all the vibrancy, attitude and panache of the stage production gloriously to the big screen.
Inspired by Alice Walker's unforgettable novel, emerging director Blitz Bazawule captures both the genteel sentiment and the gripping power of Walker's story, while delivering on the glam and razzamatazz of the show-stopping musical numbers.
Set in Georgia at the turn of the last century, we're introduced to sisters Celie and Nettie who live in constant fear of their domineering and abusive father. Forced into an arranged marriage, Celie becomes separated from Nettie, yet their sisterly bond remains unbroken whilst navigating life's many hardships.
Crossing paths with a free-spirited singer and her fiercely independent step-daughter, Celie embraces the challenges of life in a new way with the help of her newfound sisters.
American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino is absolutely astounding as the good-natured and put-upon Celie, while Taraji P. Henson is an absolute joy as the confident and flamboyant songstress, Shug Avery. In fact, the entire cast are universally brilliant and do not put a foot wrong.
Boasting outstanding performances, dazzling production design and powerful, stand-out musical numbers, The Color Purple is a celebration of the strength of the human spirit – make this your movie night out on the town, and you'll be dancing in the aisles by the time the time the finale comes around!
Baghead
Dark, cold, creepy and grimy, Alberto Corredor's Baghead uses every trick in the horror movie rule book to lure us in and freak us out.
Playing around with a very simple 'demonic spirit in the basement' premise, this low budget yarn keeps the sets minimal, the lighting turned down, and the screech-heavy jump-scares turned up to eleven.
Freya Allan stars as Iris, a young woman who learns she has inherited an ancient pub in Berlin from her estranged father who has just passed away.
More resembling a medieval torture chamber than a cosy pubic house, Iris soon discovers the dreary-looking establishment has a dark secret hidden within its basement – a supernatural, shape-shifting ghoul that has the ability to summon the spirits of the dead and morph into their human form.
When one grieving punter offers Iris a huge wad of dough to speak with his dearly departed wife, the cash-strapped Iris cannot resist, and it's a decision she immediately regrets.
Director Corredor keeps the tension taut and the spooky bits well-spaced out, as the action builds to an inevitable conclusion. As horror flicks go, Baghead doesn't offer anything new or ground-breaking, but will certainly deliver well-aimed chills for the horror fanatics out there.
