Dark Skies: DVD Review

Dark Skies: DVD Review

Dark Skies
Rating: M
Released by Shock DVD

Late 90s UFO conspiracy show Dark Skies was notable for many reasons at the time.

It crested a wave created from the success of the X Files and launched Eric Close as an actor (before he went onto Without a Trace)

It was also notable for launching to the fanfare that it would run over five seasons - if the ratings held up.

Sadly they didn't - so we're left with only the one season.

It centres around a young couple in the 60s John Leongard and Kimberly Sayers (Close and Megan Ward) who are caught up in the conspiracy of an alien invasion by a group called The Hive.

But opposing their hunt for the truth is the Majestic 12, a covert government group who'll do all it can to stop the truth coming out- and it seems all of history as we know it is a lie and was manipulated by these two groups.

Clever and well written Dark Skies still holds up reasonably well, some 15 years later.

Well acted and with a sense of compelling story telling, the 18 episodes all hang together and pack in great performances from Close, Ward and the much missed JT Walsh as the bad guy.

It's just unfortunate the season ends on a frustrating note which will never be resolved.

Extras: Photogallery

Rating: 7/10

Luther: DVD Review

Luther: DVD Review

Luther
Released by BBC and Roadshow
Rating: R16
The brilliant Idris Elba of The Wire fame finds himself in a BBC crime drama about a troubled detective (aren't they all?) lasting six episodes.
Elba is John Luther - who as the series opens is being brought back into work after being cleared from an investigation into his part in a case.
But no sooner is this maverick cop back on the beat than he finds his life taking all manner of turns for the worst.
Hoping for a reconciliation with his wife (Indira Varma), Luther discovers his already fragile world teetering on the brink into a series of investigations which push him to the very edge.
A little slow to get going, Luther is worth persevering with.
Mainly because of its star Elba who veers from burning passion and rage to complete vulnerability - and all of it thanks to a nuanced performance.
Which is a relief because the stories themselves are nothing spectacular - and may explain why the show's only coming back for another two episodes.
Ultimately Luther rises on Elba's turn and falls on the lack of originality in the script - it's perfectly watchable but instantly forgettable when it's finished.
Extras: Brief doco

Rating: 6/10

Sarah's Key: Movie Review

Sarah's Key: Movie Review

Sarah's Key
Rating: 8/10
Cast: Kristin Scott Thomas, Melusine Mayance, Niels Arestrup, Aidan Quinn
Director: Gilles Paquet-Brenner
Based on Tatiana de Rosnay's best selling novel, Scott Thomas stars as American journalist Julia Jarmond.
She begins to look into the Vel'd'Hiv Roundup in 1942 in France as part of a magazine article but discovers that she shares a key connection to what happened in the past to a Jewish family and their little girl called Sarah.
As she digs further into the past, and vivid flashbacks bring to light what happened, Jarmond finds that the present and future can definitely be influenced by what has already happened.
Kristin Scott Thomas has done little recently cinematically to impress after Leaving and Love Crime; so it's great to report that she's back on form in this exquisitely layered and powerful drama.
The film starts with two children bouncing and giggling in a bed in 1942; but with a dreaded knock at the door, everything changes.
This film is arrestingly good and packs a mighty wallop as the pieces begin to fit together; the story from 1942 is horrifically well realised, and conjures up a time we hope never to see again.

It's a strong sense of direction that delicately weaves together these two tales, stretched 67 years apart as they are - and thanks to the sensitive acting of Scott Thomas, you'll be left an emotional heap at the end.

Game Review: Rango - The Game

Game Review: Rango - The Game

Rango - The Game
Platform: PS3
Rating: PG
Released by EA
Based on the brilliant Johnny Depp CGI animated film of the same name, Rango (The Game) takes place after the film's denouement.
Depp's CGI chameleon is still top dog/ sheriff in the town of Dirt but has a new investigation to look into - the disappearance of Beans' father and the appearance of some moon rocks.
So, once again spinning some tall tales, the player must take on his mission and find out what the rocks have to do with everything and why Bad Bill's back in town.
The platforming style of this game mean it's pretty much aimed at all ages - though after a while, it does tend to feel as if it's skewing a little younger with the core repetition of action scenes.
It's great to have Depp voicing the character once again and makes the spin off game feel more like it's part of the film rather than the usual swift cash in. With some smart scripting, the goofy oddball sensibilities which pervaded the film are once again present in the gaming narrative.
Most of the game sees Rango having to see off gangs of bandits - either with his trusty shooter gun or via some crafty punching and general fightin'. Each villain you dispatch brings you sheriff stars which you can trade in to build up your core strengths, fighting skills and gun ammo. Throw in the need to guide bullets around certain parts of Dirt to open up portions of each level and you've got enough to keep you occupied.
While Rango is good platforming generally, its somewhat simplistic tone and repetitive nature (search the town, fight the gangs, collect the stars, shoot a golden bullet at a target and defeat the end of level boss) does grate a little towards the end. There are a few minor deviations where you get to ride creatures and chase trains and because of their sparse use they feel like welcome diversions.
Three settings (easy, medium and hard) mean you can play again if you want to - and also means all ages can take part in this.
All things being equal, Rango isn't a bad platformer; I was quite happy to endure the repetition of the levels and played onto the end - though I have to say, while it was a fun and entertaining ride while it lasted, it's fairly forgettable stuff once the PS3 was turned off.

Rating: 7/10

Paul: Movie Review

Paul: Movie Review

Paul
Rating: 7/10
Cast: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig, Voice of Seth Rogen
Director: Greg Mottola
Aliens, geeks and Pegg and Frost back on screen - how can it go wrong?
The duo from Hot Fuzz, Spaced and Shaun of the Dead reteam (and write) this comedy about two guys, Graeme and Clive who head to geek mecca Comic Con after years of dreaming of making the trip.
Sated on the nerd fest that is Comic-Con, the duo then decide to roadtrip around the States, taking in some of the best UFO spots in America.
On a remote highway, the hapless pair chance upon Paul, a grey alien (voiced by Seth Rogen).
The little chap needs a helping hand to escape the government and get home - so Graeme (Pegg) obliges - and the great alien road trip begins.
Throw in a couple of FBI agents chasing, an accidental kidnap of Kristen Wiig's Ruth from an RV camp and a shadowy figure trying to stop them, and you've got the recipe for the rest of this scifi-geek-steeped-pop-culture film.
Eschewing many sci-fi references (ET, Close Encounters, Aliens, Star Wars et al), Paul is likely to appeal more to a certain sector of the audience than others.
That said, don't let the scifi bent of this witty (at times puerile) script put you off.
Sure, some may garner a little deeper level of laughs here compared to others - but the trademark bromance chemistry between long time working partners Pegg and Frost continues to amuse on many levels.
Granted, Paul is a little slow to get going and you almost feel some of the jokes are a little predictable at the beginning but once it picks up the pace, it really fires on all cylinders.
If you're a connoisseur of the bromance of Pegg and Frost (and their old married couple vibe), you'll know the easy charm the pair exude and with some great repartee (some of it completely unexpected and laugh out loud funny), you'll be in stitches throughout.
The supporting cast are also uniformly brilliant too - from the ever dependable Jason Bateman as an FBI agent to Kristen Wiig as the love interest, there's plenty of heart beating in here as well as the geek.

And yet in places, the script creaks a little with easy puerile humour being relied on a little too heavily. Given the smarts of the writing team that is, to be frank, a little disappointing.

Ultimately though, Paul is a good solid night out; it's cheeky, amusing and fun - some of the geek references may be lost on portions of the crowd, but that's not enough to make you feel you're missing out.

Hop: Movie Review

Hop: Movie Review

Hop
Rating: 4/10
Cast: Russell Brand, James Marsden, Hugh Laurie, Gary Cole, Kaley Cuoco, Hank Azaria, The Hoff
Director: Tim Hill
As school holidays lurk around the corner, along with Easter, then it's time to roll out the animated fare at the cinema.
Hop is a part live action, part animated film, starring the vocal talent of Russell Brand, as EB.
A descendant of the Easter Bunny line from Easter Island, EB has a destiny to fulfil - he gets to become the Easter Bunny.
But selfish bunny two shoes EB doesn't want that - like any rebellious kid, he's got his own future marked out - as a drummer.
So running away from Easter Island to Hollywood via a portal, EB runs into Frank O'Hare (Marsden) a no hoper whose continual disappointment to his family has led to them intervening in his life to try and get it on track.
The pair accidentally meet - and EB throws himself into Frank's life - despite Frank's protestations to the contrary.
However, while EB is away, back at the Easter Island factory where the holiday season becomes real, the number two in charge, The Easter Chick, Carlos (voiced by Hank Azaria) is plotting a chicken coup d'etat...(That's not a MasterChef dish or recipe by the way)
Hop is a disappointment.
With a script that hardly packs in many laughs early on, it tries to get by on the charm and roguish caddish ways of Russell Brand and early jokes about the Playboy mansion (just think about the inhabitants if you're struggling).
The animation is charming enough (from the creators of Despicable Me, you'd expect that) but the live action scenes don't really gel. Russell Brand is typically Russell Brand and you can tell the creators have played to his strengths; James Marsden seems a little lost and brings only goofiness to the role.
Don't get me wrong; there are some moments when the comedy comes to the fore and finally reaps the rewards - including a scene halfway in where EB acts like a stuffed toy to get a cuddle from Frank's sister (The Big Bang Theory's Kaley Cuoco).

But with laugh out loud moments few and far between in an average script, this Easter "funny" will play better to the young.

Even with a cameo from the Hoff (which has more cheese on it than he likes on his burgers), it's one which the parents may find a little difficult to sit through. The kids however, will love it.

Rio: Movie Review

Rio: Movie Review

Rio
Rating: 8/10
Cast: Jesse Eisenberg, Anne Hathaway, Jemaine Clement, Leslie Mann, will I am, Jamie Foxx
Director: Carlos Saldanha
The second of this week's animated openings (also out is Hop with Russell Brand) Rio is an altogether different beast.
From the creators of Ice Age, it's the story of the last male macaw in the world Blu (voiced with geeky overtones by The Social Network's Jesse Eisenberg) who's kidnapped when young from his Brazilian habitat.
An accident leads him to be cared for by Linda (Leslie Mann) in Minnesota - and Blu's quite happy in his domesticated lifestyle.
However, when Tulio, from Brazil's department of Conservation shows up on her doorstep, pleading with Linda to let him mate Blu with the last female Macaw Jewel (Anne Hathaway), Blu's life is thrown into disarray.
Dragged to Rio for a romantic liaison, Blu's birdnapped once again - and along with Jewel and a few feathered friends, he's determined to escape back to Linda and the comfort of his normal life.
Colourful, passionate and full of heart, Rio is an animated delight.
From its opening song which soars with birds covering the screen in a wealth of vibrant colours, Rio will get you onside right away.
Even if the sight of most of those birds being kidnapped minutes later will terrify the young (one youngling screamed out during the screening at this point).
With a story which is sweet but not cloying, Rio manages to move and amuse in equal measures.
Throw in a great performance from Jesse Eisenberg (who's really cornering that geeky style) as bird nerd Blu - and a menacing turn from Jemaine Clement's Nigel, a cockatoo who used to be the in thing but who's now bitter and angry, and you've got the mix for a fun time for all the family at the cinema. Which is a rare thing.
But, it's an all family affair too - from the wondrous animated backdrops of Rio itself to the cast of supporting characters, (monkeys, dogs, toucans, birds) there's plenty for everyone to get lost in here.

The script has smarts too - with witty dialogue, great songs (the stand out of which is Jemaine Clement's bird rap) charm and animation that is easy on the eye and not reliant on 3D, you can't go wrong with Rio.