Pop Culture
Cultural journalism, analysis, and criticism, for print and web publications.
Various
‘Why Must Every Hollywood Hero Have a Dead or Deadbeat Dad?’ - The Outline, June 4, 2018.
‘What Disaster Films Miss About Death’ - The New Yorker online, October 1, 2015.
‘Partisan Director Ariel Kleiman’s Brave New Worlds’ - The Saturday Paper, No. 63, June 6-12, 2015.
‘For Mad Max’s George Miller, All Roads Lead to Myth and Music’ - The Dissolve, May 15, 2015.
‘Jungle - First Look Review’ - Little White Lies, August 3, 2017.
‘City professionals are sending their dogs on the adventures they're too busy for’ - Sydney Morning Herald, June 2, 2016.
The Guardian
‘Lake Mungo: has Australia completely forgotten about its scariest and best homegrown thriller?’ - July 27, 2021.
‘Enter the dragon: how Australia became China’s gateway to Hollywood’ - February 12, 2018.
‘Behind Belle Gibson's cancer con: 'Everything about this story is extreme'‘ - November 13, 2017.
‘True crime plunderers: the dark truth about Hounds of Love and Australia's new gorefest’ - July 26, 2017.
‘Diversity, millennials and Trump: big issues dominate Australia’s screen conference’ - November 18, 2016.
‘John Safran: 'In Australia we don't get religion'‘ - May 16, 2017.
‘Kong: Skull Island – why do Hollywood blockbusters have such Trump-like politics?’ - May 22, 2017.
‘Inside the bizarre 1960s cult, The Family: LSD, yoga and UFOs’ - February 13, 2017.
‘Everywhere I Look by Helen Garner review – elegant reflections on life, writing and Russell Crowe’ - March 22, 2016.
The Big Issue
‘Humble Spy’ - Issue 633, March 2021, p26-27.
The pandemic hasn’t stopped the unstoppable Benedict Cumberbatch, but it has made him reassess the role and value of film.
‘Designer house of horror’ - Issue 496, October 2015, p32-33.
Guillermo del Toro brings grand Hollywood horror back from the grave.
‘The femme fatale twist’ - Issue 522, October 2016, p36-37.
From the biblical seductress Salome to the scalpel-wielding spurned Amy Dunne in Gone Girl (2014), the dangerous woman is a recurring literary character.
Junkee
‘We Talked To Director Crystal Moselle About The Boys Of ‘The Wolfpack’, And How Their Family Has Responded To The Film’ - August 27, 2015.
‘With ‘The Gift’, Joel Edgerton Becomes One Of Australia’s Most Exciting New Filmmakers’ - August 25, 2015.
‘What Netflix’s Crazy-Bloody Hit ‘Daredevil’ Tells Us About TV’s New Wave Of Ultra-Violence’ - April 21, 2015.
‘Junk Explained: Everything You Need To Know About The Sony Hack’ - December 22, 2014.
‘How To Make Economic Injustice Entertaining: An Interview With The Dardenne Brothers’ - November 6, 2014.
‘Why Is Nobody Paying Attention To Isao Takahata?’ - October 9, 2014.
‘A Guide To Appreciating The Films Of Hayao Miyazaki’ - March 4, 2014.
‘From Reality Bites To Walter Mitty: Growing Up And Selling Out With Ben Stiller’ - December 24, 2013.
Meanjin
‘The Journey and the Destination: George R. R. Martin’s Narrative Method’ - Volume 73, Issue 4, 2014, p50-57.
‘A Crippling Way to Be’ - Volume 73, Issue 1, May 2014, p68-75
On the non-fiction writing of Anna Krien.