Doctor Who: Season 7 Part 1: Blu Ray Review

Doctor Who: Season 7 Part 1: Blu Ray Review

Rating: PG
Released by Roadshow Home Ent and BBC

So, this is goodbye.

For Matt Smith's 11th Doctor, Karen Gillan's Amelia Pond has been the one constant. She was with him when he regenerated and has been travelling with the Doc in the TARDIS for the last 3 years. But now with the start of the new series, it was time to say goodbye. And that's something which hangs over these 5 episodes, each of them feeling more cinematic than the last.

In the first, Asylum of the Daleks, The Doctor's plunged onto Skaro to help the Daleks destroy the asylum of their insane; but below is a terrible secret - and one hell of a brilliant surprise with the introduction of the actress who will be the new companion. From then, it's Dinosaurs on a spaceship, a filmsy romp which is all laid out in its title; then a Western seeing the Doctor lose some of his sanity in A Town Called Mercy. The fourth is set on the latter day earth and is an interesting tale of what the Ponds do when the Doc's not around and whether they want to keep travelling with him. Finally, the end comes with The Angels Take Manhattan, in which Amy and Rory leave in heartbreaking fashion.

While Doctor Who: Season 7 Part 1 feels like a swansong throughout, there's a feeling of hope with the introduction of Jenna Louise Coleman; her freshness is evident in the writing and spark on screen. But it's Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill who impress most in this set - Matt Smith,as ever is on top of his game. While the adventures are varying, this is still very strong Who and worth investing in.

Extras: Doctor Who: Season 7 Part 1: Blu Ray has a flimsy amount; a couple of prequels, the making of the Gunslinger and The Science of Dr Who (A BBC America doco which is ok). It's a shame there's no retrospective doco and interviews with the cast given it's such a big change, but maybe those are being saved.

Doctor Who: Season 7 Part 1: Blu Ray Review Rating:

Little Big Planet Karting: PS3 Review

Little Big Planet Karting: PS3 Review

Platform: PS3
Released by Sony Computer Entertainment.

Sacky's back - and this time, he's brought a car.

Phenomenally popular on both PS3 and PS Vita, Sackboy's a perennial favourite. So, it was with some trepidation that I approached this Karting game to be honest, because the PS3 already has an awesome Karting game in ModNation Racers.

However, I needn't have worried at all.

In this latest outing for Sackboy, a nasty bunch called The Hoard are invading the Imagisphere via Craftworld and stealing all the stuff for their own nefarious reasons (the clue is in their name). So, it's upto you as Sackboy to get in your cart, power up and beat them in various races, while collecting prize bubbles for your own benefit.

And that's it really - there are versus levels, as well as levels which are battle levels and of course, the racing levels too.

Yet, it's all rather fun and beautiful to behold as Sackboy hits the track. As you would expect with any LittleBigPlanet release, all the elements are there - from Stephen Fry's mellifluous voiceover to gibberish spouting beings of the Imagisphere. There's also the prize bubbles to collect, which give you the usual points as well as various items to help you create and decorate your own kart and world. There's the access through the Pop-It menu to customise ole Sacky and his world, which proves to be good fun if you fancy hurtling around a track wearing a little something different than your usual wool look.

Graphically, it's all very similar to any Karting game but with the traditional LittleBigPlanet aesthetics thrown in as well, giving you the feel of Sackboy's world expanded more than ever before. In terms of gameplay, it's quite addictive - you have to collect weapons to take out the Hoard or you can use them to defend yourself against their attacks.

It's a shame you can't build up weapons strength, a la ModNation Racers, but it's a minor oversight. You can also drift around the tracks as well, helping to build up your own boost, which has to be used the minute you stop drifting. That takes a wee while to adjust to in terms of planning your track strategy.

That said, this will resonate with anyone who really just wants to have fun on a karting game - with co-op modes, 2 player split screens and the chance to go online to muck about with the LBP community, it's certainly one hell of a lot of fun. I'd struggle to deny that each new level left me grinning like a small child as I raced around each track - and it'd be churlish to suggest that this disposably simple game isn't about anything other than delivering insanely simple fun.

Bright, colourful and completely fun, LittleBigPlanet Karting is destined to be one of the favourites come Christmas - with kids of all ages.

Rating:

Compliance: Movie Review

Compliance: Movie Review

Cast: Dreama Walker, Ann Dowd, Pat Healy
Director: Craig Zobel

Based on actual events, Compliance is an insidious watch.

It centres on a fast food chain in middle America - it's a busy store and one which is facing a hectic Friday night with the possibility of soiled stock, a secret shopper and plenty of customers.

So, when manager Sandra (Ann Dowd) receives a call from an officer Daniels, telling her that one of her employees was believed to have stolen money from a customer, who was currently at the police station. With only a vague description of the employee, Sandra assumes it's the quiet Becky (Dreama Walker) and follows out the policeman's request to hold her in a back room until they get there.

And that's when things start to take a turn for the bizarre.

The officer tells them he won't be able to get there for a while - and they will have to strip search her for the cash. Gradually, the requests escalate into the utterly unbelievable - and the depraved.

Compliance is an uneasy, queasy watch.

There's revulsion that it is based on a real event (some 70 calls were made of a similar nature in America) and a sickening claustrophobia which pervades the whole thing. Using slow, swooping camera movements, Zobel manages to convey the atmosphere in the restaurant and the tense nature of the enclosed environment. Essentially, as you watch it unfold in a fixed space, it feels as if you are there - a fact made all the more uncomfortable in that actual CCTV footage exists of the real life incident.

Burrowing into your mind, Compliance taunts you with the nagging thought of "What would you do" as it unfolds - a surefire sign that the film works on a psychologically disturbing level and on a level which every instinct in your brain screams at you to deny.

Thanks to very real performances from Dowd and the victimised and very naked Dreama Walker, Compliance feels ugly to watch and will definitely induce squirming in your seat as they blindly obey authority. It's a fascinating expose of how people react to different positions of power.

A tangled mix of empowerment and ethical dilemmas, awash with a morally queasy investigation into why we don't question authority or what compels us to do what we do, Compliance demands you watch. But just don't be surprised if you feel like taking a wash afterwards thanks to its queasy and unsettling, but compelling nature.

Rating:

Sir Ian McKellen to miss the Hobbit premiere

Sir Ian McKellen to miss the Hobbit premiere

With just over one week to go until the world premiere of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey in Wellington, we've got details of who will be at the premiere.

But perhaps, it's more apt to say who won't be there.

Sir Ian McKellen will not be joining the fellowship on the red carpet.

In a press release from Warner Bros, it's been revealed that he will be unable to attend, meaning Sir Ian McKellen will miss the Hobbit premiere

The full press release is below:

Gearing up for the global release of “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” the epic adventure will have its world premiere on November 28, 2012, in Wellington, New Zealand. A production of New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM), “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” is the first in Oscar®-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson’s epic adaptation of the enduringly popular masterpiece The Hobbit, and will be released in New Zealand on December 12 from Warner Bros. Pictures.

The star-studded premiere will be a party of Middle-earth proportions in New Zealand’s capital city of Wellington, with a 500-meter red carpet that will run along Courtenay Place, from the Embassy Theatre to the Reading Cinemas, both of which will be screening the film for invited guests.

Pre-carpet entertainment will begin at 3:00pm and the filmmakers and stars of the film will begin to arrive at 4:30 pm. Joining filmmakers Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens at the event are Martin Freeman, who plays the central role of the Hobbit Bilbo Baggins; Richard Armitage, who stars as the Dwarf warrior Thorin Oakenshield; Cate Blanchett and Hugo Weaving, who reprise their roles from “The Lord of the Rings” Trilogy as the Elf Queen Galadriel and Elf Lord Elrond; with Andy Serkis also returning to the role of Gollum, and Elijah Wood as the Hobbit Frodo Baggins.

Ian McKellen, who reprises his legendary role as the Wizard Gandalf the Grey, will be unable to attend but said: "It is thrilling that Peter and my other friends from the cast and crew will be re-united for the world premiere of 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. I know they will have a wonderful welcome from the fans and I envy them. As ever, my heart is in Wellington, and I send my love."

A spectacular Gandalf the Grey-inspired installation on the front of the Embassy Theatre was unveiled this weekend, created by the film's production designer Dan Hennah. Ian McKellen’s beloved character Gandalf the Grey will be overseeing all of the premiere activities from a perch high above the red carpet.

Also attending the premiere will be the cast playing the Company of Dwarves, including Jed Brophy, Adam Brown, John Callen, Mark Hadlow, Peter Hambleton, William Kircher, Graham McTavish, James Nesbitt, Dean O’Gorman and Aidan Turner; Barry Humphries, who plays the Goblin King; and Sylvester McCoy, who appears as the new Wizard Radagast the Brown.

From Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson comes “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” the first of a trilogy of films adapting the enduringly popular masterpiece The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien.

Ian McKellen returns as Gandalf the Grey, the character he played in “The Lord of the Rings” Trilogy, with Martin Freeman in the central role of Bilbo Baggins, and Richard Armitage as Thorin Oakenshield. Also reprising their roles from “The Lord of the Rings” in “The Hobbit” Trilogy are: Cate Blanchett as Galadriel; Ian Holm as the elder Bilbo; Christopher Lee as Saruman; Hugo Weaving as Elrond; Elijah Wood as Frodo; and Andy Serkis as Gollum. The international ensemble cast of the trilogy also includes (in alphabetical order) Manu Bennett, Jed Brophy, Adam Brown, John Callen, Mark Hadlow, Peter Hambleton, Barry Humphries, Stephen Hunter, William Kircher, Sylvester McCoy, Bret McKenzie, Graham McTavish, James Nesbitt, Dean O’Gorman, Conan Stevens, Ken Stott and Aidan Turner.

The screenplay for “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” is by Fran Walsh & Philippa Boyens & Peter Jackson & Guillermo del Toro. Jackson is also producing the film, together with Carolynne Cunningham, Zane Weiner and Fran Walsh. The executive producers are Alan Horn, Toby Emmerich, Ken Kamins and Carolyn Blackwood, with Boyens and Eileen Moran serving as co-producers.

Under Jackson’s direction, “The Hobbit” Trilogy has been shot in 3D 48 frames-per-second and will be released in High Frame Rate 3D (HFR 3D), other 3D formats, IMAX and 2D. Production took place at Jackson’s own facilities in Miramar, Wellington, and on location around New Zealand.

Among the creative behind-the-scenes team returning to Jackson’s crew are director of photography Andrew Lesnie, production designer Dan Hennah, conceptual designers Alan Lee and John Howe, composer Howard Shore and make-up and hair designer Peter King. The film is edited by Jabez Olssen. The costumes are designed by Ann Maskrey, Richard Taylor and Bob Buck. 

Taylor also oversaw the design and production of weaponry, armor and prosthetics, which were once again made by the award-winning Weta Workshop. Weta Digital takes on the visual effects for the films, led by the film’s visual effects supervisor, Joe Letteri. Post production is taking place at Park Road Post Production in Wellington.

“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” and the second and third films of the trilogy are productions of New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM), with New Line managing production. Warner Bros. Pictures is handling worldwide theatrical distribution, with select international territories as well as all international television distribution being handled by MGM.
“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” will be released December 12 2012 in New Zealand and most territories following on December 13 2012, with the second film, “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug,” releasing December 12 2013, and the third film, “The Hobbit: There and Back Again” slated for July 17 2014. 

Monsieur Lahzar: Movie Review

Monsieur Lahzar: Movie Review

Cast: Mohammed Felag, Sophie Nelisse, Emilien Neron
Director: Philppe Farladeau

Monsieur Lahzar arrives on New Zealand screens after a solid performance at the New Zealand International Film Festival earlier this year.

This Canadian/French drama won an Oscar nod and features some of the strongest ever performances by child actors I've ever seen. 

It centres on a Bashir Lazhar (Mohammed Felag), an Algerian immigrant and teacher, who comes to an elementary school after one of the teachers hangs herself in the classroom. Lazhar has his own demons to deal with as well - with family killed in attacks back home. 

But gradually, Lazhar heals as do the children in his care who are deeply traumatised and repressed after the hanging. Fighting the school at every level, Lazhar encourages the children to open up to heal their hurt - but with his attitudes at odd with the school's official line, how long will it be before the ethical clash becomes too much.... 

Enormously affecting, Monsieur Lazhar deals with grief, hope and offers a picture of healing which many will latch onto. The two child leads who play the kids who find the teacher hanged simply blow the adults off the screen with their simple, honest acting being a real tour de force set of performances. Some may see echoes of Dead Poets Society within, but it's a much stronger outing than that, with frissons of sentiment and proof of how important teachers can be. Felag commands the screen, but to be honest, it's the child actors who really dominate this drama.

Sensitive, deeply affecting and utterly riveting, Monsieur Lazhar is well worth your time.

Rating: 

Doctor Who faces the Snowmen

Doctor Who faces the Snowmen

Hot off the press in the UK, your first look at the new Doctor Who Christmas Special.

Fans of the Doctor as played by Matt Smith, will be very excited to see that coming at Christmas this year, the 11th Doctor will be facing off against the Snowmen.

The brand new Doctor Who Christmas Special trailer's just been unleashed and is available to view below. Also revealed is the title of The brand new Doctor Who Christmas Special - which is The Snowmen. And appears to feature Sontarans too.

It's introduced by Matt Smith himself and new companion Jenna Louise Coleman, who makes her debut in the Christmas special as Clara.

Or does she?



There's also been the Doctor Who Christmas Special Prequel minisode released too....

Universal Pictures celebrates 100 years

Universal Pictures celebrates 100 years

2012 may nearly be over, but for one movie studio, it's been a major milestone of a year, with a fair few months of celebration yet to come.

Universal Pictures has celebrated 100 years of movies this year - and chances are you'll know at least one or two of their films and their iconic memories which have been created.

The Universal 100th Celebration site offers up a tantalising glimpse into the history of the company, from its founder Carl Laemmie first setting up the Independent Moving Picture Company back in 1906 to the merger of IMPC into the entity that would become Universal on April 30th 1912, the site hints at the effect Universal has had on the movie world.

The site's also about getting you to remember iconic moments from classic films - with the re-release of a beautiful ET Blu Ray hitting the shelves this month likely to start some of those memories flowing. I personally remember being blown away by the BMX bikes rising into the air in one of the film's magically iconic moments and equally being terrified by the billowing white tents when the government comes for ET at the end.

The collectors' series this year has shown there is a lot of love being put into the extras - for example, the ET set includes a collectable 44 page booklet, with a Drew Barrymore introduction as well as an insight into how the film was created.

There are so many films to think back on - Phantom of the Opera, All Quiet on the Western Front, Arabian Nights, The Deer Hunter. In fact, it's just easier if you watch the video below to set your memories tingling...