Luciano Pavarotti was born in Modena, Italy in 1935 and died there in 2007. He was known to the opera world from his early career singing with Dame Joan Sutherland and became world famous when The Three Tenors (with Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras) sang at the FIFA World Cup in 1990. He used his fame to raise enormous amounts of money for charity, working with Princess Diana and Bono amongst others.

You don’t have to be an opera fan to enjoy Oscar-winning director Ron Howard’s wonderful documentary. Pavarotti had a messy personal life, but Howard has somehow managed to get many family members to contribute to this very personal story. One of the best documentaries ever made on one of the greatest opera singers in history? Maybe.

In the mid-17th century town of Seaside, ironically nowhere near the sea, married puppeteers Judy (Mia Wasikowska) and Punch (Damon Herriman) are attempting to resurrect their once-popular marionette show to afford a better life for their new baby.
The revival is a hit due to Judy’s superior puppeteering skills but narcissistic Punch nevertheless revels in the limelight. Fuelled by alcohol and adulation, Punch inadvertently triggers a twisted whirlwind of violence and tragedy which sees Judy set out to exact revenge on her deplorable husband.

This eccentric and ambitious debut from actress-turned-director Mirrah Foulkes puts a brutally feminist, darkly comedic spin on a vengeful folk tale. Nominated for nine AACTA Awards in 2019, and winning two including Best Actor for Herriman, Judy & Punch is no lightweight.