Reviews

By Nick Everett

On January 28, 2010, singer, songwriter and socialist Alistair Hulett died from cancer at just 58 years old. I recall first seeing Hulett perform at the Sandringham Hotel, in Newtown, Sydney, in 1989. His band, Roaring Jack, which performed regularly at the “Sando”, had become legendary as one of the best left-wing political bands on the Australian pub scene in the 1980s, fusing folk and punk culture in a chorus of rebellion.

Going Rouge: An American Nightmare
Edited by Richard Kim & Betsy Reed
OR Books (2009)
335 pages (pb)
$26.95rrp
Reviewed by Dani Barley

By John Pilger

Why are so many films so bad? This year’s Oscar nominations are a parade of propaganda, stereotypes and downright dishonesty. The dominant theme is as old as Hollywood: America’s divine right to invade other societies, steal their history and occupy our memory. When will directors and writers behave like artists and not pimps for a world view devoted to control and destruction?

Inside the revolution: a journey into the heart of Venezuela
Directed by Pablo Navarrete
65 minutes
Alborado Films 2009
Available at http://alborada.net
Reviewed by Nick Everett

Avatar
Written & directed by James Cameron
Starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana & Stephen Lang
Runtime: 162 minutes
In cinemas now
Reviewed by Max Lane & Dani Barley

Invictus
Written by Anthony Peckman
Directed by Clint Eastwood
Starring Matt Damon and Morgan Freeman
Runtime: 133 minutes
In cinemas now
Reviewed by Dani Barley

Capitalism: A Love Story
Written & directed by Michael Moore
Runtime: 127 minutes
In cinemas now

Reviewed by Dani Barley

The Real Venezuela: Making Socialism in the 21st Century
By Iain Bruce
Pluto Books (2008), 240 pages (pb), $52

Reviewed by Chris Atkinson

Refugees and Rebels: Indonesian Exiles in Wartime Australia,
By Jan Lingard
Australian Scholarly Publishing (2008), 312 pages, $39.95 (pb)

Reviewed by Max Lane

By Van Thanh Rudd

Ramallah Underground is using music to spread the message that Palestinians have the strength to challenge Israel’s continuing brutal occupation of Palestine. Its members are Stormtrap (producer/MC), Boikutt (producer/MC) and Aswatt (producer/DJ), and the style is a fusion of Hip Hop with electronica and traditional Arab music. The band performed on October 23 at the Melbourne International Arts Festival.