MUSIC
1000 Forms of Fear Sia (Inertia)
It’s not often pop stars make headlines for turning their back on the spotlight. During a recent performance on Ellen, Adelaide’s Sia Furler refused to show her face on camera, letting a young dancer take centre stage instead. This reluctance to promote herself, rather than her music, belies the fact these are her most naked songs yet. On Fair Game, she comes to terms with falling for a man she can’t easily manipulate. “You terrify me,” she sings, “you are exactly what I need.” It’s a thrilling piece of self-dissection and the centrepiece of an album that has Furler turning away from the quirkiness of her earlier work. Her voice is as astonishing as ever, capable of functioning with laser precision or as a weapon of mass destruction, but the performances are less kooky and more consummate. Certainly, it’s an album that eschews candy-colouring for something darker and far more stirring. Cellophane begins playfully enough, with Furler claiming to be a “basket case” left on somebody’s doorstep, but it’s possibly the bleakest track here. “If I fall apart,” she sings, “you’ll hide all my pills again.” It’s a capital mistake to confuse the singer with the song, but there’s an unnerving sense of the confessional throughout 1000 Forms of Fear. It’s tempting to speculate that, in retreating from the spotlight, Furler has allowed herself a new honesty. Here, we’re taken through several ever-darker nights of the soul, until the finale Dressed in Black, with its semi-spiritual climax, offers a pyrrhic sort of redemption. Furler has written hits for the likes of Madonna and Rihanna, but this is her best work yet – powerful, roof-shaking, chart-busting pop that will break your heart while sending you spiralling across the dancefloor.
CABARET
Encore Mein Kampf July 2-13, My Life in the Nude July 15-27, 8pm, $32-$65
The result of a new creative partnership between the legendary La Mama theatre and fortyfivedownstairs, Encore offers audiences a chance to see two of La Mama’s finest sell-out productions from last year. Mein Kampf is a mad farce by a German dramatist exiled by the Third Reich. First staged in 1987, the play is part history, part biography and complete fabrication. Cheeky My Life in the Nude is just as personal, with Maude Davey offering an unclothed overview of her long career in burlesque and in the buff.
FILM
Scandinavian Film Festival Palace Cinemas, July 10-27
» www.scandinavianfilmfestival.com
There has been an explosion of interest in the Nordic regions in recent years, following the popularity of Scandi-noir works such as Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, The Bridge, and the books of Jo Nesbø. The inaugural Scandinavian Film Festival features a few thrillers, but sets out to broaden expectations of the region’s fare. As such, there’s a strong focus on comedy. The program launches with the funny Swedish blockbuster The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared, then detours through weird Icelandic comic hit Spooks and Spirits and Finnish rom-com 21 Ways to Ruin A Marriage. Along the way there are quirky dramas, edgy arthouse flicks and hard-hitting documentaries.
TV
The Imposter ABC2, Sunday, July 13, 8.30pm
The true stories are often the least believable. That’s certainly the case with this suspenseful American doco about a French-Algerian conman who impersonates a missing Texan teen. Frédéric Bourdin is in his early 20s, barely speaks English, has darker skin and different coloured eyes, but he still succeeds in convincing the family of 13-year-old Nicholas Barclay that he is their vanished son.
The media celebrates his remarkable reappearance, despite the inescapable truth he’s clearly not the same boy. Indeed, the film documents how hard people will work to escape the facts. The Barclay family know Bourdin isn’t their son, but that doesn’t mean they’re ready to believe it. There are lessons here that extend far beyond this improbable tale – facts are largely impotent when it comes to shifting closely held beliefs. As a work of fiction, this would be utterly implausible. As a true story, it’s a reminder that none of us, however cynical, is immune to swallowing the right lie at the right moment. Gripping from start to jaw-dropping end, this is a film as tricky as its subject, who guides us through his deception with engaging (apparent) frankness.
MYKE’S SPACE
Watching True Detective. Now out on DVD and Blu-ray, this noirest-of-noir series is TV worth treasuring.
Listening Guerre, Ex Nihilo. Slippery, strange and soulful electronica from the Sydney producer.
Attending Nailed It! Opening July 9 at the Butterfly Club, this new musical tackles painful break-ups with side-splitting humour.
Follow Myke on Twitter @mykebartlett
