Brand new Doctor Who Series 7b trailer

Brand new Doctor Who Series 7b trailer

Something for Whovians, just 2 weeks before the new series of Doctor Who launches in the UK.

Here's a new trailer for Doctor Who Series 7b...




And also out is the Doctor Who Comic Relief 2013 piece. Remember to donate if you view.

How to Meet Girls from a Distance: DVD Review

How to Meet Girls from a Distance: DVD Review

Rating: R13
Released by Madman Home Ent

Scripted, edited and shot within a few months and made (on paper and in theory) for $100K, How To Meet Girls From a Distance is a minor NZ cinematic miracle. 

The peeping tom rom-com follows Richard Falkner's Toby, a stalker in Wellington whose luck with the ladies is less than impressive. 

So, while receiving coaching from dodgy date expert Carl (an utterly brilliant and scene stealing Jonathan Brugh), Toby ends up meeting Phoebe (Scarlet Hemingway) and falling for her. 

And of course, he does what any normal person would do - follows his heart, takes illicit pictures of her from a distance and stalks her to get to know her better. 

However, there's a stumbling block - Phoebe's with Owen Black's Brad - but for any decent stalker, that's not a problem. And soon, Toby is ingratiating himself into Phoebe's life and heart... 

How To Meet Girls From a Distance deserves to be admired for its turn around and chutzpah - but it also deserves to be admired for what's actually turned up on the screen, as well as making great use of its Wellington location.

Funny, charming and kooky, this piece of celluloid is a commendably good effort from all those involved. Falkner makes Toby endearingly sweet and innocent rather than borderline psychotic and Jonathan Brugh's Carl deserves a place in the pantheon of Kiwi oddball characters as a psychiatrist who helps Toby to meet women  he gets the lion's share of the best moments and is instantly a cult icon. 

A funny script plies on the laughs while never losing sight of the overall plot. Even though there are a few creaks and cracks here there, it still shows a great deal of likeability. From cringe-worthy dancing to dodgy tracheotomies, How To Meet Girls From a Distance is highly amusing, utterly rewarding and a totally unmissable experience which shows creativity comes from the simplest of ideas and the tightest of deadlines.

Extras: Commentary, extended scenes, trailer

Rating: 

The Angels Share: DVD Review

The Angels Share: DVD Review

Rating: M
Released by Vendetta Films

Ken Loach delivers an unabashed audience pleasing, absolute cracker of a film with The Angels' Share which is as charming and memorable as it is funny. 

From its opening montage of young offenders being sentenced to community work, you wonder if the trademark social realism is about to pierce the relatively light proceedings. 

But the master of miserabilism on the council estate delivers such a tonal shift early on that nearly gives you whiplash and unleashes corking tale from Scotland about an apparent no hoper called Robbie (Brannigan), who's running out of chances, that it'd be churlish to resist.

Just when you think Robbie's story will see him beaten by family rivalries and forced to leave his new son and girlfriend Leonie, a second chance and a gaggle of misfit Scottish colleagues end up on a caper comedy rife with pathos, heart and humour as they work to steal a rare Scottish whisky and change all their lives. 

Loach works with leads who're unknowns and thus garners great performances from them as he draws this tale together. 

The Angels' Share is about second chances, friendships and whisky - you'd be foolish to miss this wee dram of a film; it's an absolute ripper.

Extras: Deleted scenes and making of

Rating:

The Words: DVD Review

The Words: DVD Review

Rating: M
Released by Vendetta Films

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.

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.

Extras: Cast interviews

Rating:

Brand new Lone Ranger trailer drops

Brand new Lone Ranger trailer drops

Woah there, Tonto.

Here's the very latest international and brand new trailer for Lone Ranger, which is coming from Disney soon.

The Lone Ranger stars Armie Hammer and Johnny Depp as Tonto.

Brand new Kick Ass 2 trailer is here

Brand new Kick Ass 2 trailer is here

Good news for fans of Hit Girl - a brand new Kick Ass 2 trailer has just dropped.

It's due out later this year - and will see Aaron Johnson and Chloe Moretz reprising their roles as Kick Ass and Hit Girl.

And Jim Carrey will be starring in Kick Ass 2 as well.

Savages: Blu Ray Review

Savages: Blu Ray Review

Rating: R18
Released by Universal Home Entertainment

Oliver Stone returns with this lurid tale of drugs deals, cartels and rivalries.

In this pulpy, trashy and violent film, Taylor Kitsch stars as Chon, who's best friends with Aaron Johnson's Ben. The pair have been tight for years and live it up on Laguna Beach thanks mainly to a business growing and selling dope. But not only do they live the high life, they share a girlfriend O (played by Blake Lively in post Gossip Girl career mode) who they both care about. 

However, when the trio receive a video showing decapitations at the hands of a drugs cartel in Mexico, they're set on a collision course with the cartel, its enforcer Lado (Benicio del Toro) and its shadowy head honcho.

Savages is your typical Oliver Stone film; it's stylish, ultra violent, sexy and trashy but a wee bit shallow in terms of any emotional connection.

The menage a trois mix with drugs and kidnapping works well as a story device and idea complete with Stone's use of heightened colour behind the lens but it's definitely hard to get behind any of the main three as they face obstacle after obstacle, given how distanced and aloof they can be.

Savages is really a frustrating time; it's good to see Stone back in some kind of form and while the ending's certainly going to irritate some, it's perhaps worth taking a punt on Savages but only for some of the central performances.

Extras: An extended cut, deleted scenes, audio commentary and a nice 5 part making of are a solid if unspectacular bunch

Rating: