Amanda Thompson and her family are attempting to cut back on the meat, so they gave all the vego sausies the local supermarket had to offer a hoon on the barbie. Here are the results. I was a vegetarian once. Even the best of us take a well-meaning wrong turn on the tangled highways and … Read more
With the help of her faithful four-legged assistant, Jean Teng disregards commonsense and ‘only for pet consumption’ labelling to review dog food fit for a king (or at least a cavalier king charles spaniel). First published June 2, 2020 Three months ago, I was reviewing fine-dining restaurant The Grove. Today, I’m reviewing vacuum-sealed frozen dog … Read more
The last big show of the year might just be its most satisfying. Sam Brooks reviews Bridgerton, the latest from Grey’s Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes. If you told me, 15 years ago, that newcomer Shonda Rhimes would be one of television’s biggest players, I wouldn’t believe you. But, after the juggernaut that was, and continues … Read more
Many of Waitara’s residents want to escape their small New Zealand town, but exceptional new documentary Taranaki Hard proves they might not have to. When Fati finishes a set of squats, bench presses or an early morning swim, his mum is right there to cheer him on. “Shake it out,” she’ll direct, while ticking his … Read more
Netflix drama Ratched aims to rehabilitate the villain from One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, but would do better in the electric chair. Nurse Ratched is, quite rightly, one of the most famous movie villains of all time. The source of all of McMurphy’s despair and angst in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, written … Read more
I’m Thinking of Ending Things is another trip into the mind of the pathetic man, but Charlie Kaufman finally finds universality in one man’s fantasy. Mild spoilers for I’m Thinking of Ending Things below. You can mark the exact point at which one-time wunderkind Charlie Kaufman went from being a critic’s darling to a difficult … Read more
After six months of film delays and cinema closures, Tenet is New Zealand’s only blockbuster hope, writes Stewart Sowman-Lund. Black Widow, No Time to Die, A Quiet Place 2. All were big-budget should-be hits scheduled to open in New Zealand cinemas during the time of Covid-19. Now, they won’t be hitting screens until, at the … Read more
A cold day, a roaring fire, a steaming mug between your hands – Josie Adams reviews Hot Marmite Drink, in cupboards now. Marmite New Zealand’s Instagram page has gone off the deep end. It’s posting instructions on how to create obscenities: how to create Marmite salad dressing, Marmite zoodles, Marmite quesadillas. Its latest invention is … Read more
With the help of her faithful four-legged assistant, Jean Teng disregards commonsense and ‘only for pet consumption’ labelling to review dog food fit for a king (or at least a cavalier king charles spaniel). Three months ago, I was reviewing fine-dining restaurant The Grove. Today, I’m reviewing vacuum-sealed frozen dog pizza. Such is life. Dog … Read more
Our Place is the latest in a plethora of new suburban eateries opening up across Auckland city. When Sonya Wilson visited this week, she discovered a relaxed newcomer that embraces its homely, neighbourhood vibe. Compared to many of Auckland’s fine-dining establishments, Our Place is rather unassuming upon approach. Diners enter via a front porch in … Read more
The Frenchest man to helm a starship is back! The first episode of Star Trek: Picard is out, and José Barbosa and Josie Adams have some thoughts. Warning: contains spoilers (kind of a big one) Josie Adams Captain Jean-Luc Picard was a father figure to me for a couple of years, so seeing him back … Read more
Taco Bell is here. Alex Casey, Madeleine Chapman, and Alice Webb-Liddall give the first review. There’s nothing more American than drinking a frozen margarita out of a plastic cup with a comically large straw. And that means America has come to West Auckland. New Zealand’s first-ever Taco Bell opens tomorrow at New Lynn’s Brickworks in … Read more
Madeleine Chapman took her piano-playing nephew Harper to see the orchestra for the first time. Madeleine: When I was very small, I used to sit in the hallway at home with my closest siblings and we would ask our brother Bernard, a teenager at the time, to play songs on the piano. We would name … Read more
New Netflix movie The Tall Girl was roundly mocked before it even came out. Josie Adams, a tall girl herself, reviews it. “You know that really, really, really tall girl you go to school with? The one that people call LeBron, Skyscraper, Patty long legs?” That’s Jodi, the 6-foot-1 protagonist of The Tall Girl. I’m … Read more
The Harry Potter Invisibility Cloak has just been released in toy stores worldwide. Alice Webb-Liddall got the chance to try one out. It’s a Tuesday, and a snowy owl flies above my head on the way to work. It poops on me. That’s extra good luck, I think to myself. I get to work, make … Read more
George Clooney sold his tequila company for a billion dollars – but is the stuff any good? The Spinoff finds out. Imagine being so stupidly sexy you sneeze and sell a billion-dollar booze company. That’s what George Clooney did last year, flicking off the tequila business he started accidentally with an old drinking buddy to … Read more
When Josie Adams broke her laptop last week, she knew she’d never find love like that again. Can the Asus Chromebook Flip C213SA offer a new kind of technological relationship? She reviews how it stands up to everyday use and the cosmic forces that seek to destroy her. Last Thursday I accidentally gave my old … Read more
Sam Brooks reviews the second season of Big Little Lies, which generated as much social media conversation as its first season did critical acclaim, for better and worse. Light spoilers for the second season of Big Little Lies. Big Little Lies felt like the TV phenomenon of 2017. It united three of the most acclaimed actresses of … Read more
Alex Casey, a bona fide Simba-head, went to premiere of the new Lion King movie last night. She wasn’t mad at it. For months, I was furious about this fucking remake. I hate to sound like a millennial snowflake, but The Lion King is extremely important to me and ONLY me and NOT YOU. Like … Read more
Last night, Billie Eilish kicked off her world tour at Spark Arena. Tamsyn Merchant reviews the show (alongside her nine year old daughter, Ruby). When I was 9 years old, I was given a double cassette tape – Mellon Colie And The Infinite Sadness by The Smashing Pumpkins. It was a revelation. I can remember … Read more
To mark the 50th Ockham book awards earlier in the year, we asked 50 experts – authors, publishers, academics, booksellers – to name the very best local books published since 1968. Originally published on May 14, 2018 And the winner is Plumb. Maurice Gee’s 1979 novel was almost immediately regarded as The Great New Zealand … Read more
The increasingly hated Ivar revels in fake news, but will his people care? Alex Braae reviews the latest episode of Vikings. So, you might remember that there was a person about to be sacrificed at the end of the last episode, as a symbol of Ivar’s divinity. There were fears that it might be Hvitserk, … Read more
If people don’t recognise your power, no worries, you can always just appeal to a higher authority. Alex Braae recaps S05E13 of Vikings. One of the things that often gets forgotten when looking at media depictions of historical events is the all-encompassing role that religion once played in political and social life. Spiritual power had a … Read more
A New Zealand reviewer thought that a line in a new novel by acclaimed Irish writer Caoilinn Hughes was about a “head-cold”. She has helpfully pointed out it was a period. “Very cool to be reviewed in New Zealand’s Dominion-Post,” Irish novelist Caoilinn Hughes wrote on the Twitter machine on Tuesday. This was in reference to … Read more
The Spinoff Board of Review visited Texas Chicken on west Auckland’s Lincoln Rd to see if its Fiery Crunch Chicken was, as claimed, the “spiciest fried chicken in New Zealand”. This was a test, right? What is stronger – the love of fried food or the fear of looking stupid in front of your workmates? Chicken or … Read more
It might be called Coast New Zealand but, after three seasons, it should really be called Neil Oliver New Zealand, writes Calum Henderson. After three seasons of Coast New Zealand, most reasonable TV watchers will surely agree: Neil is the best Oliver. He’s funnier and smarter than John without even trying, and even though he … Read more
The government is digging deep into the price of electricity in New Zealand, with a review of the entire energy sector. What will the review look at, why should there even be one, and does it mean you might pay less for power? * Where did the idea for a review come from? The price … Read more
“There is nothing more miserable, pointless, expensive and anxiety-provoking than going through life worrying that some food you ate will give you cancer,” writes George Henderson, in his review of a new study which considers the food we eat, and what it’s doing to our bodies. Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarrelling … Read more
longtime U2 fan Eddie Johnston (Lontalius, Race Banyon) reviews the band’s latest album, Songs of Experience. I have two very strong beliefs: U2 are a great band Rock music has never sounded more stale U2’s newest album Songs Of Experience leaked into the world last Monday and my initial reaction was very positive, mostly because … Read more