If James Bond was a Jazz Age flapper, he’d be Phryne Fisher, the glamorous detective from the hit Australian TV series and bestselling novels, now in her very first feature film. It’s British Palestine in the 1920s. After freeing a young Bedouin girl from unjust imprisonment, Miss Fisher (The Babadook’s Essie Davis) begins to unravel a wartime mystery involving a priceless jewel, ancient curses and the truth about the disappearance of the young woman’s village. The pleasure of Miss Fisher’s adventures in any medium is that while she sleuths in her striking trademark wardrobe (her forthright nature and wit being her best accessories), beneath the mystery and mayhem is always a pronounced thematic strand around resourcefulness, social issues and justice. Based on the book series by Kerry Greenwood, the delightful Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears has the widespread allure for fans of both Downton Abbey and Indiana Jones.

Director Tony Tilse, screenwriter Deb Cox, executive producer Fiona Eagger, director of photography Roger Lanser, and actors Essie Davis and Nathan Page are expected to be in attendance on January 4 and 5.