Safety Not Guaranteed: Movie Review

Safety Not Guaranteed: Movie Review

Cast: Aubrey Plaza, Mark Duplass, Jake Johnson, Karan Soni
Director: Colin Trevorrow

A quirky little indie film, Safety Not Guaranteed is a gentle nugget of quirky cinematic genius.

Aubrey Plaza is Darius, a grad who's unable to get a job and ends up working as an intern at Seattle magazine. When reporter Jeff (a Mark Ruffaloesque Jake Johnson) suggests he looks into an ad in a newspaper promising to take a trip back in time, but with "safety not guaranteed", Darius, along with studious intern Arnau head to Ocean View to find out more.

But while Jeff uses the opportunity to look up an old flame, Darius discovers that the guy who placed the ad, is a curious oddball called Kenneth (a brilliant Duplass). Kenneth works at the local store and is convinced the authorities are following him as he nears completion of his time machine.

So, the question is - is Kenneth telling the truth or is it the mutterings of a mid American nutjob?

Safety Not Guaranteed is a real charmer of a film and an unexpected humour filled delight, which will amuse and engage your heart too.

From its start where we first meet Darius being rejected for a job right to its final shot where something unexpected happens, it's a film which confounds your expectations and surprises you.

It's a low key, lo fi indie film in many ways which hits all the right notes; part rom com, part sci fi flick, part road trip and part relationships/ hipster film, it's a mash up of many genres and all of them sensitively and sensibly handled with charm and ease.

The central premise is an intriguing one and throwing together the trio works very well; from the lazy, just out to hook up Jeff to the uptight Indian intern Arnau, mixed in with a dash of sullen sarcasm courtesy of Aubrey Plaza, the final resulting cocktail works very well.

But the film scores its major points with Mark Duplass as Kenneth, a denim jacketed slight oddball of a man about whom you're never quite sure if he's a sandwich short of a picnic or actually onto something with his notion of time travel and reasons for it. (And his occasional resemblance to 1990s Scott Bakula in time travelling TV series Quantum Leap is uncanny at times - or perhaps, a deliberate nod). Thanks to sensitive acting and a bit of depth of character, he remains an enigma throughout and a character you can't quite get a handle on.

However, the director wisely chooses not to dwell on this or reflect on a character who could be unhinged but instead propels the story forward with an energy and zest that's perfectly in keeping with this delightful little charmer.

With an eye for some sharp dialogue as well, Safety Not Guaranteed is as much of a treat as you're likely to get at the movies these days. Thanks to some great central turns from Johnson, Plaza and Duplass who give 110% in a never anything less than riveting watch, you're engaged at every level and when the movie ends, you find yourself puzzling about what actually transpired.

As one character remarks "This mission has to do with regret, mistakes and is about love" - it's an adage which helps us identify with the characters and engage with what could be a lunatic proposition.  With dashings of deadpan humour thrown in, and a final act which once again confounds your expectations by swiftly whipping the carpet from asunder, Safety Not Guaranteed deserves to be a hit thanks to its charm, performances and touchingly heartfelt and yet universal story.

Whether or not it will be depends on how much you're willing to gamble on this - my advice, roll the dice and enjoy every moment of what is one of the best character films of the year.

Rating:

The Dictator: Blu Ray Review

The Dictator: Blu Ray Review

Rating: R16
Released by Universal Home Entertainment

Sacha Baron Cohen's latest creation was always going to be divisive and when a film begins with a freeze frame of Kim Jong Il and the words "In loving memory", you're pretty much going to have a clue what's ahead.

In this outing, Cohen plays General Haffaz Aladeen, a dictator of Wadiya in North Africa. Summoned to the UN in America to face concerns over his nuclear programme, Aladeen finds his world turned upside down when he's abducted, shorn of his beard and cut adrift in America by his cousin Tamir (Kingsley) who's jealous of his power and installs a doppelganger as Aladeen.

When Tamir's plan to turn his beloved Wadiya into a democracy instead of a dictatorship, Aladeen schemes to get back power and ensure his way of life isn't changed.

Scabrous, satirical and scatalogical, The Dictator is a patchy but funny affair, helped by some truly hilarious one liners and some provocatively offensive gags.

That's the thing with Sacha Baron Cohen - he's never afraid to push the envelope and I'm grateful for that. Unfortunately this time, it feels like the joke's gone on a little too long and has ceased to be as hilarious as it used to be.

It starts off very well, mixing in verite news footage culled of figures of power warning the Dictator must step down - and even shows Aladeen's birth (complete with the mother being snuffed out by a pillow, as she "dies in childbirth") - it's almost as if Cohen and Charles decide early on to shock and make you question whether you should even be laughing in the first place.

But once it settles in there are some very funny moments, great visual gags and some amusing set pieces. A clever sequence inside a small American plane mocks stereotypes of beliefs and 9/11; news commentators are shown as idiots when they speculate on what Aladeen's saying and doing; and a final speech where Cohen mocks America is frankly intelligently funny fare which is sly and spot on. Granted, there's some satire over UN treatments of dictatorships when it suits at play here, but it's buried among the offensive.

However, let's be clear though - this isn't all sophisticated humour throughout the film; it's one of those no holds barred, everything's up for the offending - there are poo jokes, masturbation and male nudity as you'd come to expect from an offensive Baron Cohen film.

If you're after a no brainer bit of occasionally puerile fun, then The Dictator is for you. Otherwise, you can join the ranks of the apparent infidels who feel The Dictator isn't as good as it promised to be, and while it's content to offer some hearty belly laughs, there's just the feeling that this scripted piece could have been a little more.

Extras: Deleted and extended scenes, music video, Larry King interview

Rating:

Taken 2: Movie Review

Taken 2: Movie Review

Cast: Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Famke Janssen, Leland Orser, DB Sweeney
Director: Olivier Megaton

Not since Mike Myers decided to throw the spotlight on what happens to the henchmen has there been a film which really looks at the consequences of being a bad guy.

Well, that was until Taken 2.

Having killed off the very bad people who kidnapped his daughter in the first Taken movie, Liam Neeson returns as retired CIA agent Bryan Mills.

Estranged from his wife Lenore (Janssen), Mills is taking security work abroad in Istanbul when he offers his ex and daughter Kim a chance to join him for the weekend. But the vacation's about to take a turn for the worst when the father of one of people Mills killed the first time around seeks revenge.

Soon, Mills and Lenore are kidnapped - and only his daughter Kim holds the key initially to saving them.....

Taken 2 is a bit of a major disappointment to be honest.

Lacking any of the originality and surprise of the first film, it's a formulaic and heartless mash up of action sequences and fight scenes which lack any real tension or suspense, while going through the action film hoops (a car chase here, a fistfight there). Whereas the first film had a fresh and novel premise, this one feels forced and to be honest, in places, a little ludicrous. (Bryan's daughter Kim heads off over rooves at one point, hurling grenades willy-nilly so that Neeson can track the explosions - she doesn't get shot for her troubles, leading me to wonder what kind of air policing is in place in Istanbul.) Perhaps, the most insane moment is the moment that Mills is taken at gunpoint, but yet has the time to make a long protracted phone call to his daughter, explaining what's going on.

From its frenetic, jumpy camerawork which spits and starts during action sequences making it difficult to focus on anything for too long, before the focus heads elsewhere, to the choppy editing, this is a film which is ADD to say the least.

While Neeson has a reasonable time being a badass, he does in a rather dour manner and at the expense of any humour whatsoever - spending most of the time scowling and shooting. With his usual gruff, gravelly voice, he's clearly in action man mode but on auto-pilot as well.

Janssen and Grace have little else to do except whimper and offer sidekick support here and there, leading to plenty of feeling that it's simply going through the motions. Even the head bad guy, who grumbles about having revenge at the start of the film, poses less and less of a threat as Bryan Mills does little to boost  Eastern relations by taking out everyone who has a hint of an accent and stubble with a carefully placed shot here and there.

The problem with Taken 2 is that it's relatively bloodless for the amount of people being shot to pieces, it lacks any kind of real originality or tension and is sorely missing the inventiveness of the first Taken movie.

It seems highly likely given a $50 million US opening at the weekend that Taken 3 (Tak3n anyone?) is a distinct possibility but without any real threat appearing in this film, you'd kind of hope that unless the script ups the ante and makes it a bit more of a personal quest after this latest Mis-Taken attempt, (ie after the death of a family member), it's time to put this to rest.

Rating:

Details revealed of Hobbit premiere

Details revealed of Hobbit premiere

We've had details this morning on the Hobbit premiere and what Wellington will be doing for it.

From the Wellington council site, here's the full release:

"In just over 50 days, Wellington will again be in the worldwide spotlight when it hosts the 28 November world premiere of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, a production of New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM).

To celebrate Wellington's role as host of this much anticipated world premiere, Mayor Celia Wade-Brown says Wellington will be calling itself The Middle of Middle-earth during the week of the premiere.

"Wellington sits at the very heart of New Zealand's innovative and thriving film industry," says Mayor Wade-Brown.

"It's also the city that has been integral in bringing the fantasy world of J.R.R. Tolkien to life on the big screen. So for a week around the premiere Wellington will be known as The Middle of Middle-earth."

The Middle of Middle-earth logo was designed by Daniel Reeve, an artist who worked on the cartography and calligraphy for The Hobbit Trilogy.

"I'm absolutely thrilled that The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will have its world premiere in the Middle of Middle-earth," says the film's director Sir Peter Jackson. 

"Nowhere else in the world does a premiere quite like Wellington, and I'm very grateful for the support of the Mayor, the Council and all Wellingtonians. It's special showing any film to an audience for the first time, but even more so when it's in your home town."

Press launch - picture from Embassy Theatre's Facebook page

Jackson will be joined by members of the film's cast, as well as Hollywood stars and executives on the red carpet for the VIP invitation-only world premiere on the evening of 28 November.

"We're delighted to take part in the Middle of Middle-earth festivities with this exciting premiere of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey in Wellington," said Sue Kroll, Warner Bros. Pictures' President, Worldwide Marketing. "It's a unique opportunity to debut the film to the world in the country that has been the home of Middle-earth throughout production of the Trilogy." 

Stars and VIPs will walk more than 500 metres of red carpet from Reading Cinema to The Embassy Theatre, both of which will be screening the film for invited guests on premiere night.  The event will be covered by press from around the world. 

"Wellington has established a track record of holding stunning world-class red carpet premieres and we're confident the city will turn it on again and show that we are indeed 'the Coolest little Capital' in the world," says Mayor Wade-Brown.

"Preparation for The Hobbit premiere is a terrific opportunity to tell Wellington's story too - the Coolest Little Capital where talent lives, works and does great business."

Wellington City Council will contribute $1.1 million to the premiere week activities and towards ensuring Wellington is again looking its best under the international spotlight.

Celebrations and preparations for the World Premiere are already well underway, highlights include:

• A 'countdown clock' to be installed on the front of the Embassy Theatre. The clock will count down the minutes to the beginning of the premiere celebrations.
• Stunning artwork inspired by The Hobbit Trilogy to welcome visitors at Wellington International Airport and across the city.
• A Hobbit-inspired Artisan Festival in Waitangi Park showcasing the various craftspeople and talent involved in the making of The HobbitTrilogy.
• Outdoor, free public screenings of The Lord of the Rings Trilogy leading up to the premiere night event.  

LittleBigPlanet: PS Vita Review

LittleBigPlanet: PS Vita Review

Platform: PS Vita
Released by Sony Computer Entertainment

Ever since I got some hands on time with the LittleBigPlanet PS Vita Beta, I was drooling to get my hands on the full game - not only because it's Sackboy, whose previous outings I have utterly adored but also because of the promise of what the VITA was bringing to the party via its touch and interactive capabilities.

And man, does it not disappoint. But more on that shortly...

In this latest, Sackie heads to the world of Carnivalia in the Imagisphere where things have turned from joyful to downright dark.

A bad being known as the Puppeteer has snatched all the good from a normally fun place and is making the Sackboys and girls sad no-faced creatures known as Hallows. Once a popular entertainer on Carnivalia, the Puppeteer's now filled with raging darkness and determined to take out the people of Carnivalia and it's upto Sackboy to once again save the day.

Over five worlds, the cloth capers continue in the story mode which will be the one which many will be drawn to first of all. Once again, using the tried and tested Sackboy methods of grappling, swinging, grabbing, hurling, jumping and scooting through all kinds of terrain to overcome obstacles, collect bubbles and stickers and generally survive what the Puppeteer has up his sleeve. New to the Sackboy tried and true methods are swimming which works as well as any other game.

But throughout the 40 levels there are different challenges and the VITA's tech really brings them to the fore.

Touch and the interactive rear pad work brilliantly in terms of getting you to move objects, drop objects into place and build blocks to get over things; you'll really have to be relatively ambidextrous to solve some of these and while not exactly challenging, sometimes engaging the brain to swipe something in time proves to be the biggest problem and hurdle to completing a level.

First off, there's the capability of moving objects around the screen to help Sackboy get through a level - blue blocks can be moved to ensure the little fella can head up higher into the upper echelons of Carnivalia. But what's great about this is that they can be shifted around while Sackie's in motion, giving you the feeling you're about to react on the fly to what comes up. It's a smart use of the touch tech for the VITA and one which offers up a heap of potential - not just some gimmicky feel to it all.

Equally as clever is the use of the rear touch pad to shift green blocks around (which turn blue once bashed but can be moved back and forth) - the great thing about this is that you can use a combination of front and rear to help reach higher up and complete levels.

Along with Tilting the VITA, this is a game which really embraces everything the system has to offer - and it's so good to finally see a game which is clearly helping the platform blaze a trail for what it's best at - interactivity and fun.

It's not just the main story which sees LittleBigPlanet soar on the PS Vita - there are plenty of side levels which fully absorb and integrate the various features as well as providing lots of fun away from the main Puppeteer story. Levels where you race in a car, whack a series of Sackboys, build jenga style towers - the list of inventiveness goes on.

That's the thing with LittleBigPlanet on the PS Vita - it's so endless thanks to the creation of levels from within the PSNetwork, there's so much to do and explore. It's really a boundless game which offers hours of side entertainment some of it bitesize and some of it longer term.

Ultimately though, LittleBigPlanet on the PS VITA is the game the device was invented for - it's a seamless integration of all of the features offered by the technology and is perhaps one of the games of the year. 

I just wish there were more playing story levels as I could quite happily have carried on with this title for months on end. It's a game which will continue to grow thanks to the community aspects of it - and with more download content inevitable, it really is the first title you absolutely must own if you're getting a VITA.

Hooray for Sackboy!

Rating: 

The Words: Movie Review

The Words: Movie Review

Cast: Bradley Cooper, Zoe Saldana, Dennis Quaid, Jeremy Irons, Olivia Wilde
Director: Brian Klugman, Lee Sternthal

Bradley Cooper stars as a writer Rory Jansen in this melodramatic thriller, The Words.

Jansen's a down on his luck author; a real wannabe living the romantic dream of the ideal of the writer - he spends his nights writing and his days wandering the streets, with his beautiful and supportive girlfriend, Dora (Saldana).

But with rejection after rejection, Jansen's not having much luck getting published. However, that all changes when he honeymoons in Paris and is bought a suitcase by his new wife.

One night, hidden within the case, he discovers a battered manuscript and a story which keeps him up all through the small hours, as any good book should do.

Realising the potential of the story, and the fact it's never been published, Jansen toys with the idea of claiming it as his own. But, even though he transcribes it to his computer, he can't bring himself to steal another person's work.

That is until his wife discovers his book one day and urges him to submit it.

Suddenly, Rory is a literary sensation, a critical success and the writing world's hottest next big thing.

But, that's when an old man (Jeremy Irons) catches up with him and reveals that he's the true author of the book....

So, here's a warning - there are some unfortunately necessary spoilers coming up for this - and if you don't want a couple of the twists revealed, then look away briefly.

The Words is a masterfully and sleekly put together piece of story telling, which is somewhat torpedoed by some of its intentions and narrative gaps, as well as attempts at meta-fiction.

Well acted by the cast, it's only as the layers begin to peel back that you start to appreciate why some of the narrative is clunky and laboured in parts; there's a framework of storytelling afoot that you're either totally on board with or in the camp that believes it's completely pretentious.

The film starts with Dennis Quaid's character, reading from a book called The Words and which appears to actually be the main story of the film - ie Rory and Dora's story - and then with the Old Man revealing his story to Rory, the team adds another layer to give it a story-within-a-story-within-a-story feel.

The end result is a slightly frustrating and confusing one; with Quaid's voiceover framing the narrative and intoning several story cliches, it begins to feel more laboured and is somewhat akin to reading a book with a great premise but which ultimately ends up letting you down.

Thankfully, a mesmerising performance from Irons grounds some of this and he's spellbinding in his scenes - even if there is the nagging doubt that Rory never ends up asking the questions which would be natural in such encounters - ie what's your name - and a scene at the end, where Jansen tracks down the Old Man seems bizarre given how few details are revealed before - it's these kind of gaps which frustrate and jar a little.

Though, there is perhaps the other side of the argument - which is that they are fictional constructs within a story themselves and so are likely to be less rounded in these tales within tales. Maddeningly though, you're never quite sure which side to land on as the kitchen sink drama plays out and the real life one with Quaid's author and Wilde's alluring graduate reaches its conclusion. Likewise, Saldana's character seems a bit one note - but again, is that because of the writing done by Quaid's author or because of the direction?

All in all, The Words movie is slickly put together, polished, extremely frustrating but well acted ensemble piece which has the feel of an enigma but proffers up few resolutions and only more questions as the lights go up in the cinema. Like a good novel with an end that leaves you feeling disappointed after the initial premise, The Words will be lauded by some and scorned by others.

Rating:

Brand new Hobbit banners revealed

Brand new Hobbit banners revealed

Not only have we bought you the first look at Radagast The Brown on the New Zealand stamps, but now we can bring you some new Hobbit banners.

Warner Bros have revealed a series of banners promoting the release of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey on December 14th.

Take a look at the new Hobbit banners here....