New Anchorman 2 trailer hits

New Anchorman 2 trailer hits

Crikey it's all go.

There's just been the release of the first teaser of Will Ferrell's Anchorman 2.

Take a look below...

Brand new Skyfall movie trailer is here

Brand new Skyfall movie trailer is here

Bond is back and here is your first look at the new Skyfall trailer...

 

Skyfall hits New Zealand cinemas in November.

The Muppets: Blu Ray Review

The Muppets: Blu Ray Review

Rating: G

Released by Walt Disney

After 12 long years away, the Muppets are back.

But in a world where TV has moved on and the Muppets are no longer cool, they've become obsolete.

Except to Walter (a Muppet himself and brother of Jason Segel's Gary) who idolizes them still after discovering them when he was young.

So when Gary and long time girlfriend Mary (Amy Adams) decide to go to Hollywood to celebrate their tenth anniversary, Walter is taken along too - and discovers that evil businessman Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) wants to tear down the Muppets studio and mine for oil.

Walter takes the news of this to Kermit - and his greenness decides to get the gang back together and raise the cash they need to buy the studios back.

However, a major spanner's in the works because none of them are still in touch - will they be able to put aside their differences and find it's time to play the music, it's time to light the lights; in short, will the Muppet Show ever go on again?

The Muppets is perhaps the best Muppet film ever.

Heartfelt, humorous, hilarious and wholesome, it's a welcome journey back into the nostalgia and the brilliance of Jim Henson's creatures.

There's a simplicity to the story which is just charming and will reduce you to a dewey eyed sense of yesteryear. There's also a brilliance around the jaunty songs which pepper the flick; some have an almost Flight of the Conchordianesque feel (no surprise given Bret McKenzie and former FOTC showman James Bobin are involved) - and every single one of them a bright showtune, bathed in lyrical brilliance and clever lyrics.

The Muppets is a self knowing film; it mocks what they've become but never in an overly knowing way; it's a sly wink to the sophisticated audiences these days but one which really does make you remember how brilliant these guys were back in the day. And how brilliant they are once again.

At its very core, this is another chance to see the Muppets do their weekly show which so enriched our younger years, with its music hall sensibilities and its corny gags. They take on the bad guys too and an array of guest stars drop by - the majority of whom have made their showbiz names since the lights went down on the Muppets' weekly show. Sure, it's probably nostalgia which is giving this its wondrous feel and maybe it's aimed more at the adults than the kids, but it works so, so well that you can't help but crack a huge beaming smile and shed a joyful tear at how funny, clever, bright and engaging this film is.

Quite simply, The Muppets is an unmitigated joy, a welcome return to form and easily the most spectacularly heart warming family film of the year.

Extras: Some great stuff here - deleted scenes, audio commentary, blooper reel, screen test, full Tex Richman song

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Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy: Blu Ray Review

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy: Blu Ray Review

Rating: M

Released by Universal Home Entertainment

Based on the book by John Le Carre and adapted for a seven part BBC series, this latest is an espionage film which saw a long overdue Oscar nomination for Gary Oldman.

Oldman stars as George Smiley, a retired British spy who's asked to investigate the possibility of a Soviet mole high up in British Intelligence (nicknamed The Circus) in the 1970s. The head of intelligence Control (John Hurt) believes the mole is one of the four people who report directly to him and has his suspicions given credence after the shooting of one of their own while investigating his claims. 

But as Smiley begins to investigate, he discovers the conspiracy is a lot deeper than he expected and when spy Ricky Tan (Tom Hardy) returns after apparently defecting to Russia, the web grows tighter.

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy is not a film for those who like quick fix entertainment; it's a brilliantly crafted piece of paranoia and suspicion which rewards engrossing viewing and those who like a complex plot.

Perhaps, unfortunately it is a little dense at times - though that could be more of a reflection on audiences who don't traditionally lap up this kind of material.

Thankfully, riveting performances from an extremely strong cast, led superbly by Gary Oldman, mean you can't actually tear your eyes away. Each of them is given their individual moment to shine as well. Of the group, Benedict Cumberbatch's spy is the stand out performer and although the rest of the cast all get their time, it's Cumberbatch (the latest Sherlock) who really breaks through here.

The 1970s of Britain are superbly recreated with the drab browns and greys and attention to period details being spot on. It's also stunningly shot - but it's Gary Oldman who really shines in this adaptation which pours more importance on looks and stares rather than words and exposition.

Oldman brings a nuanced and textured take to the spy who was so definitively played by Alec Guinness back in the 1970s. There's also a cruelty lurking under his precise veneer which you're never quite sure is going to break out at any moment.

All in all, in a good way, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy feels like an old fashioned espionage film - it's suspenseful and masterful and an intelligent night’s worth of entertainment.

Extras: Commentary with Gary Oldman and director, John  le Carre interview and deleted scenes

Rating:

Hugo: Blu Ray Review

Hugo: Blu Ray Review

Rating: M

Released by Universal Home Entertainment

Asa Butterfield (who many will remember from the Boy With the Striped Pyjamas) stars as orphan Hugo Cabret. Cabret lives in the walls around the station of Paris in the world of the 1930s; after his clock maker father (Jude Law) died in a fire at the museum where he worked, Cabret was an orphan.

But Cabret spends his day stealing food and clockwork pieces from Ben Kingsley's toy shop owner, Papa Georges, as he has a secret. Hugo is trying to rebuild an automaton left to him by his father as he believes the machine has a message from his departed dad.

But, Hugo's missing a heart shaped key for it - and it appears Isabelle, Georges' granddaughter, may be able to help unlock the mystery.

Martin Scorsese's film is a passionate piece about a love of cinema - even though it doesn't start out like that. Initially, it appears to be a tale about an orphan boy, avoiding the clutches of Sacha Baron Cohen's station master.

However, it soon switches to a mesmerizing and breathtakingly beautiful tale which celebrates the wonder of cinema and the influence of early film makers - specifically, one by the name of Georges Melies.

It's also a stunning use of 3D as well and it finally makes the technology feel magical and wondrous.

Opening with a shot of a clockwork mechanism, it fades into a Paris landscape and then swoops majestically into the train station - it's a bold and stupendous opening shot which shows the scope of Scorsese's ambition for this film.

Cinephiles will love this film - it's bound to be a classic celebration of the pioneering cinematic forefathers - but Hugo is not just for film fans.

It's a beautifully crafted, passionately heartfelt and spellbinding, enigmatic film which is a captivating and magical watch from beginning to end. 

Extras: A Making of - a little disappointing

Rating:

Prometheus video starring Charlize Theron is here

Prometheus video starring Charlize Theron is here

Is the mystique of Ridley Scott's Prometheus starting to falter?

There's been yet another video release from the film ahead of its June 7th launch in New Zealand cinemas.

This time, the video features Charlize Theron's character Vickers.

(Spoilers may lie ahead for people wishing to stay away)



Prometheus hits NZ cinemas on June 7th - though after all the recent marketing, let's hope Ridley Scott's got something spectacular up his sleeve for us to see....

Datura: PS3 Game Review

Datura: PS3 Game Review

Released by Sony
Platform: PS3

The world of downloadable adventures is getting incredibly good on the PlayStation.

Having set the bar incredibly high with the wonderfully mystical and magical Journey earlier this year, it's always interesting to see what comes next - and whether the experience is as good as what's come before.

Datura is another mystical game with little initial clue about what's expected of you.

As it begins, you're in the back of an ambulance with no clue how you got there and no real idea of what to do next; thankfully a floating disembodied hand becomes your guide on screen as you throw back the sheet, rip off the electrodes - and then find yourself in a forest.

It's a puzzling start to an intriguing journey ahead and one you'll often find yourself wondering what you're supposed to do next.

I think the push is more for a creative experience rather than a fully rewarding one because the controls can be difficult to grasp. You have a choice of either using the Move tech or the Siaxis controller and both have their issues in achieving the movement you're expecting. Taking control of the hand, you have to touch things around you, move levers, explore and examine - but sometimes, despite following what you think are the right instructions for the controller leaves you with little actual result. It's a frustrating touch which hampers this game's experience and borders on the obtuse and difficult rather than the creatively flowing touch the designers have clearly gone for.

That said, the world they've created and its dreamscape like appearance are mystical, magical and a bit bizarre. As you blunder about your atmospheric world, trying to work out what's expected of you it can be tricky to know what exactly to do but as with Journey, half of the fun of these titles is getting out what you put in and immersing yourself in the world around you.

All in all, while not quite as successful as it could be (thanks mainly to the technology issues), Datura is an intriguing title and proof that creativity moves in mysterious ways.

Rating: