Bluestone 42: DVD Review

Bluestone 42: DVD Review

Rating: R16
Released by BBC and Roadshow Home Ent

An 8 part comedy set in Afghanistan and focussing on a British bomb disposal squad sounds like it would be something a little bit different.

Billed as a mix between The Hurt Locker and Miranda, it's an odd mismatch of comedy, war and shaky camera movements. The action is set in motion after the death of Mike McShane's character, a brash American who's killed after removing his helmet while the squad's trying to clear a route. That death brings onto the scene a new female padre whom the head of the unit tries to seduce, setting up a series of black comedy moments from the squad as well as the war.

Bluestone 42 has moments of genius, but then dishes out a script that's as predictable as some of the broadest BBC comedy. Some fall flat and are predictable, others showcase the black humour to its real potential for this Dad's Army x Afghanistan x Miranda. While the premise is to be lauded, and the fact it's made three series shows that it's been popular, it's not quite edgy enough for this critic and feels occasionally like it's holding back, to get a simple laugh rather than show a smarter side.

Extras: Outtakes

Rating:

NZIFF Review - Starred Up

NZIFF Review - Starred Up

Prison dramas don't come searing than this.

Set in the UK, Jack O'Connell is Eric, a young offender who's transferred to a maximum security jail because of the danger he poses to others.

Within hours of being moved, he accidentally beats up a fellow inmate and puts himself on the radar as a troublemaker (even though his actions are instinctive rather than deliberate). Finding himself moved into a self-help group run by the apparently easy touch Oliver, he reluctantly begins to open up (to a degree) but it's his relationship with a fellow prisoner (played excellently by Ben Mendelsohn) causes more problems than he could ever imagine.

Starred Up is a brilliantly adrenaline filled drama that has you on the edge of your seat from the beginning sequence.

It's not your traditional arc for Eric - ie was a tough guy, but softens along the way - but is realistically handled in that he gradually lets down his guard only to come back out seething like a caged animal. O'Connell delivers a performance of searing ferocity that is both by turns terrifying and also occasionally vulnerable. It's the rare glimpses into the chinks underneath this armour that makes Starred Up so watchable and so unpredictable.

Likewise, Mendelsohn as one of the prison's top dogs is pretty damn good too; wanting the best for his kid but not wanting to see that harder edge softened at all. Gritty and exactly what you'd expect set in a male prison, this mix of volatile atmospherics and character insights makes for an undeniably edgy film that throws up many questions - can a man like Eric be rehabilitated, how soon will that powderkeg be lit and how does he survive day to day as well as outside?

But for all its dramatics and simply shot cinematics, Starred Up shows what an incredibly nuanced talent O'Connell is - it's his film and his alone in this father and son struggle that's undeniably powerful and utterly electrifying.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Movie Review

Guardians of the Galaxy: Movie Review

Cast: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Lee Pace, Josh Brolin, Michael Rooker
Director: James Gunn

Finally, after the Marvel Universe has spent its last few outings hinting at a world beyond our own, it heads out into the Universe - and as a result, breathes new life into the Marvel franchise after the likes of Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and The Avengers threaten to become too Earth-bound with their obsessions.

Chris Pratt stars as brash adventurer Peter Quill aka Star Lord, abducted by aliens when he was young and had just lost his mother. Complete with a Walkman full of 80s tunes and a cocky swagger (Han Solo / Indiana Jones anyone?), Quill finds himself the object of a bounty hunt after making off with an orb sought by Lee Pace's Ronan, a despot who wants to destroy everything in his path.

It's this hunt which puts him in the sights of beautiful green skinned assassin Gamora (a kick-ass Saldana), psychopathically enhanced Rocket Raccoon (a CGI creation voiced by Bradley Cooper), his protector the tree Groot (voiced by Vin Diesel), as well as Drax The Destroyer (Bautista).

Forced to team up, this ragtag bunch of squabbling and quipping misfits are determined to save the day when Ronan's ambitions threaten the entire galaxy...

Essentially, the plot of Star Wars redux with a mash of every 80s film you can think of (even the legend of Footloose is tossed in there), Guardians of the Galaxy is a space adventure which benefits from not taking itself too seriously at all.

Eschewing the brooding of the Earth set Avengers in favour of plenty of action, humour and general lightness of tone, Guardians of the Galaxy simultaneously succeeds in expanding the Marvel Universe and introducing a great new set of characters to it, who bristle with unpredictability and hints of chaos. This is not a team that has superpowers to fall back on most of the time, may not succeed with their plans and bicker affectionately along the way.

But it also benefits from a large dose of heart in places; Quill's determination to cling to the Walkman and the mix tapes his mother made for him is a lovingly poignant touch, a way into his past and a nostalgia the older parts of the audience will recognise.

The group have a great chemistry (particularly thanks to Bradley Cooper's scene-stealing Rocket Raccoon) and synergy together and off-set the po-faced and overly serious nature of Ronan and his gang. Former Doctor Who companion Karen Gillan impresses as cyborg Nebula, even if she is slightly underwritten. Even Thanos shows up to link the last lot of film, but he's casually tossed aside as an irrelevance to the plot and inadvertently loses some of his menace because of it.

If there are echoes of previous film's denouements and big final act action pieces, it's probably to be expected given how Marvel is all about spectacle and team building. A final sequence of ramming home the message very nearly chokes the film - but even with this cinematic deja vu, former Troma director James Gunn handles it all with a certain directorial aplomb, never losing sight of the fun and action of the piece throughout - and creating some truly stunning space visuals.

But it's Pratt's film for the taking. And it sees him seize his chance to soar as an occasionally vulnerable lead, who's always ready with a quick comment and a self-knowing wink (he describes the orb as a Ark of the Covenant / Maltese falcon type) in any given situation. For Star-Lord, this is a charismatic star-making turn - along with his colleagues - that suggest Quill's future is assured (even with hints of more personal discoveries to come).

Oh, and stick around for the now obligatory post-credits sequence - it fits perfectly with the 80s kitsch colourful vibe, even if it does little to advance the ongoing Marvel threads.

Rating:



Watch the new Guardians of the Galaxy trailer



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NZIFF Review - Snowpiercer

NZIFF Review - Snowpiercer

From director Joon-ho Bong, Snowpiercer's set in a future where the human population has pretty much wiped themselves out with global warming.

After finding the Earth was heating up too quickly, scientists discovered a way to cool it all down and ironically, froze the planet and killed everyone off apart from a rag tag band of survivors who inhabit a train that travels around the world.

Divvied up into classes within the train, tempers are fraying - and revolution is in the air.

Lead by Chris Evans' Curtis, the time has come for change - and when the powers that be head to the lower ends of the train inhabited by the lower classes to snatch some children, everything boils over. With a full blown assault underway and those at the front of the train desperate to quell this uprising, it's a fight for survival as the group tries to push their way through to the front carriage and change their lives for the better...

But the closer they get to their goal, the higher the personal cost....

Snowpiercer is a curious film (it's based on a series of French graphic novels) which blends action with some truly stunning production values, brilliantly realised.

Joon-ho's created a visual dystopian world within that impresses; from the grimy gritty nature of the tail end of the train where Curtis' people live in an oppressed huddle to the more luxurious front sections where the select few live it up, each door that Curtis unlocks releases a visual feast more splendid and excessive than the last.

Snowpiercer doesn't skimp on action either - with the director creating some visual smackdowns that impress and thrill in equal measure. A showdown on the train as it heads into a long tunnel is a terrifying proposition brilliantly executed and sickening in equal measures. A clash in a primary school section as well is shocking in many ways, incorporating indoctrination and lots of bullets in a way you'd never expect.

Likewise, Tilda Swinton is fantastic as the leader of the opposition, a pastiche of Thatcher with Deidre Barlow; her presence helps keep the film out of the stuffy po-faced territory and her Northern English accent is a sight to behold.

Visually, the glimpses of the frozen vistas are excellently executed, as life outside the train is showcased. The effects work is impressive and sparingly used.

But it's not perfect.

Parts of Snowpiercer feel too episodic by their very nature and don't quite hang together as the group unlocks a door, goes through that section of the train and onto the next part. Narratively, the thread dangles a little weak and a little too loosely as it plays out.

And there's one portion towards the end of the film where Evans just doesn't deliver the powerful punch it needs. A speech about the hardships they've faced feels overcooked and over-explained, lacking emotion at a crucial stage and over using exposition that's unnecessary. (There are flashes of this throughout, leaving you to feel that the whole thing's been overtly hammered home when it didn't need to have been and when the subtlety would have aided the power of the message.)

All in all, Snowpiercer tries to deliver a commentary on the classes' system - and for the most part it does so successfully, but the overall feeling is one that it could have delivered a lot more as you board this blockbuster on its 2 hour journey.

NZIFF Review - The Babadook

NZIFF Review - The Babadook

Prepare to find yourself a little scared by this new psychological horror from Aussie filmmaker Jennifer Kent.

Essie Davies stars as Amelia, a single mother on the edge; working by day at an old people's home and by night dealing with son Samuel (Noah Wiseman, who may make you think of Danny from The Shining) who claims to be battling monsters and is in trouble at school.

One night, Samuel chooses a book from the shelf for mom to read - the story of the Babadook, a mysterious creature that commands to be let in to the house. Traumatised by the story, Samuel's behaviour becomes worse as he believes the creature to be already here and promises to protect his mother whatever the cost.

Dismissing the story as fiction, Amelia tries to get on with life - but a series of events leads her to suspect there's a sinister truth in the story of the Babadook.....

Clearly an allegory for grief, loss and depression, The Babadook is a great psychological film that has a way of getting under your skin (for the most part).

The titular beast is a curious mix of shadows, the Gentlemen from Buffy The Vampire Slayer and something from primordial nightmares. Rarely fully displayed throughout the film (a wise move), it benefits from bringing sheer terror each time it harasses the increasingly frayed Amelia.

In among the suspenseful atmospherics and tension of The Babadook, there's plenty going on below the surface.

On the one hand, this is a story about a creeping malignancy affecting Amelia; a cumulative sense of shock seeping in after years of repressed trauma; a husband who died on the way to hospital to birth Samuel has given way to years of Amelia's withdrawal from life and connection to those around her; further fuelled by sleep deprivation from the fear of the Babadook and various things which go bump in the night around the drab house, Essie Davies is nothing short of plausibly brilliant as the harangued Amelia. With Samuel acting up, who wouldn't consider acting on their deepest darkest thoughts as the nights draw on?

It's this kind of nightmarish universal scenario that Kent has managed to bring so visually and viscerally to life as the trauma reaches fever pitch and the film delivers a crescendo of unspeakably uncomfortable moments. Aided by single fixed point shots of the house's darker spaces and a soundtrack which ratchets its way under your skin, The Babadook is set to be one of the greater modern horrors - and with its Baba-dook, dook, dook hook a great new entrant into the pantheon of urban horror legends. (And particularly the scene where the story book appears to come to life remains a visual flourish and a creative touch which impresses)

But it's sad to say that the final section brings out the usual horror tropes - from The Exorcist to every haunted house horror (via way curiously enough of Home Alone). And it's this part of the film which is the most disappointing because up until then, there's a subtlety that's as rewarding as it is uncomfortable. A little easing back on that side of things would have proved more effective than any kind of cliched moments can deliver.

It's the terror within that The Babadook so effectively mines, a reminder that the best horrors tap into fears we've long held since childhood and demons that lay dormant within. It's the power of suggestion boosted to the max which holds the key here - and with Kent tapping into most of that throughout, it's an unsettling horror that may ensure you want to sleep with the light on afterwards.

Read an interview with The Babadook director Jennifer Kent here.

Destiny BETA: PS4 / Xbox One Review

Destiny BETA: PS4 / Xbox One Review

Released by Bungie / Activision
Beta Platform

September is next month and it's clear the anticipation for Destiny is growing.

With over 4.6million people playing the latest BETA, which has just closed, there's clearly an appetite for this multiplayer - and quite simply, the more I play, the more I want it to be September.

Criticisms of the alpha came at the expense of Peter Dinklage's Ghost character (his line about a wizard coming from the moon has become legendary) but were completely misfounded. This time around, Bungie's saddled up with more content and more backstory as well, with cutscenes being thrown into the mix and some sense of atmosphere added in as well.

The cutscenes add a lot in terms of story but also a sense of proportion of the world around you - it's pretty impressive the scope of the game that's being set up. Sure this kind of thing has been done before, but this is the new world of the next gen platform and along with higher resolution graphics there is quite a damn sight more on the line for Bungie - and they show every intention of delivering with graphics for these scenes and dialogue that appears to be delivered by some major talent.

As you'll recall from the Destiny Alpha, there's the chance to customise your character and then get into the action - some of the sequences from the BETA were the same as the first one with missions being repeated (as the alpha was a private affair). But the level of the playability for these still appears to be extremely high, with the game feeling even more polished this time around. As you take on the Hive (The wizard line was nowhere to be seen this time), the tension's palpable and the constant onslaughts require you to be somewhat strategic getting rid of the bad guys.



But all of these require you to power up, to level up your abilities and to make it easier for you to progress through the worlds within. It means that you actually have to take on combat, rather than seeking to avoid it, which is an interesting touch when you consider how some games of a similar ilk look to help you on the path in a peaceful way. Loot chests give you material and unlockables as you face the enemy who have varying degrees of skill. Sometimes, it appears as if the AI isn't on your level and then other times you're despatched with ease. Still I guess even the baddies The Fallen have off days.

Multiplayer's going to be key to this - and I'm still keen to see what exactly happens when hundreds of people are wandering around your world and in your game. Granted, even with 4.6 million playing the BETA, there were never that many in the game at the same time as me, but you have to wonder how the servers will help to control such matters come launch. That said, if there were hundreds on board with the game at the same time, then I had no way of knowing - which shows the servers could cope with the numbers and gives great hope as to how the actual game will play without flaws. Which is extremely encouraging.

Polish is the main thing here - everything looks superb from the simple view of your character and the Crucible world around it to the cutscenes and their beauty. Money has been spent on Destiny and it shows at every turn. Hopefully, the Tower will come alive a little more - I'm still a little disappointed you can't actually interact with the traders vocally and only work through a button, but there's time for that to change. Particularly if it's supposed to be a social hub where you come to meet like minds.

What's impressive about the Destiny Beta is just how much it appears to have tweaked the experience of the Alpha - from its playability to the scope of the worlds within and the promise of what lies ahead, there seems to be a lot left to explore come September 9th. There are hints of further worlds to explore, more missions to go on and a raft of socialising to do.

Simply put, I cannot wait.