New World's End Poster unleashed

New World's End Poster unleashed

There's no denying the end of the Cornetto trilogy is the one film I'm hanging out for at the moment.

Starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, The World's End looks great already.

And now director Edgar Wright's tweeted a teaser poster for the World's End.

Take a look below:

Comedy Fest Q and A - Rob Lloyd of Doctor Who show, Who.Me?

Comedy Fest Q&A - Rob Lloyd of Doctor Who show, Who.Me?

I can't tell you how excited I am by this show this year at the NZ Comedy Festival. A couple of years back I got similarly excited by Toby Hadoke's Moths Ate My Doctor Who Scarf. 

This time around, at Auckland's Basement Theatre from Tuesday 7th May to Saturday 11th May, Aussie comic Rob Lloyd's bringing his show, Who, Me to town.

Rob's fortunate enough they cast a lookalike as the 10th Doctor (David Tennant) because the two share an uncanny similarity....The show starts at 8.30pm, which should be no major if you have a time machine....


So, tell us what your show is called this year? 

WHO, ME.

Why? 
Well the show isn’t just about the Doctor Who, it’s also about me!

Can you give us a few hints as to what broadly your festival show is about? 
I basically put Doctor Who, the TV show, on trial and see whether he has enhanced or ruined my life.

How much time have you spent crafting the show over the past 12 months since the end of the last festival? 
This is my first New Zealand Comedy Festival and I am so excited to be here. I’ve presented WHO, ME. at festivals right across Australia but this is the show’s first overseas trip! My co-devisor and director Scott Gooding and I worked solidly on the show for around 7 months before we premiered it at the Melbourne Fringe Festival in 2011 - since then the show is constantly evolving and changing, depending on the audience I’m in front of.

The comedy festival is turning 21 this year – what were you doing 21 years ago? 
Wow - 21 years ago I was 14. I was in Year 9 at High School in country NSW. I remember I went and saw Tim Burton’s Batman Returns at the cinemas. I loved that film!

The Comedy festival is all about the camaraderie too - is there anyone you’re looking forward to seeing over here either socially or on stage? 
I’m looking forward to catching up with Dave Bloustien -his show ‘The Social Contract’ is hilarious. Also, I can’t wait to catch some of the really fantastic impro comedy groups here. Improv is my main love and New Zealand improvisation always has a great reputation in the impro world.

What’s the comedy scene like at the moment who do you rate and why? 
It’s a really exciting time! There are so many interesting acts really pushing the boundaries to find new ways to make people laugh or re-examining the old ways and breathing new life into them. It’s a brave new world.

We think comedy, we think Heckling so, best tip for dealing with the hecklers? And has a heckler ever bested you? 
It’s your stage, you’re in charge, and you have the power. But just like what Spiderman was taught by Uncle Ben: ‘With great power, comes great responsibility’. You need to show who’s boss but you still need to keep the audience on side, put the heckler in their place but don’t go too far because you’ll lose the audience respect. Oh, I’ve been ‘bested many times’. I used to mostly perform impro comedy in pubs and clubs across Austraila. With impro, you kind of encourage audience members to call out stuff -sometimes it just releases the floodgates and it’s hard to ‘reel them back in’. It’s always challenging and fun though.

When we say New Zealand International Comedy Festival to you, what’s the first thing you think of? 
One of the most respected Comedy Festivals in the world! I am honoured to have been invited to perform here!

How would you persuade people to come and see your show? 
If you have ever been obsessed with anything in your life…you should see WHO, ME!

Find out more about Who Me on Facebook here...

Wreck it Ralph: Blu Ray Review

Wreck it Ralph: Blu Ray Review

Rating: PG
Released by Disney Home Ent

Ever wondered what happens to the arcade games you play at night?

Well, in a well timed piece of nostalgia, computer animated film Wreck It Ralph provides an answer to a question nobody's ever really asked before. Wreck It Ralph (Reilly) is the bad guy in an arcade game called Fix It Felix (30 Rock's McBrayer) - it's been 30 years since he first terrorised Felix in the tower block which he inhabits and smashes on a regular basis. But Ralph's had enough of being the bad guy in the game; tired of the lack of recognition for his service to the cause and generally neglected as well as a little jealous of Felix.

So,one day, determined to win himself a medal and redeem himself in the eyes of his colleagues within the games, Ralph decides to follow his dream to be a hero, and promptly absconds into a first person shooter called Heroes' Duty. It's here he meets up with tough as nails CGI sergeant Calhoun (Glee's Jane Lynch) and manages to get the medal he craves. But, even though he does, he accidentally sets in motion a chain of events which could wreck everything when he inadvertently brings a virus from the Heroes Duty game into another....

Wreck It Ralph is a colourful blast of video game nostalgia, which is smart, funny and bright and breezy.

Reilly is great as Ralph, the big outsider doofus who simply wants to no longer be the bad guy. And Sarah Silverman isn't annoyingly perky and endearingly cute as Vanellope, the rogue star of karting racing game, Sugar Rush. The two pair up as outsiders in a world which has rejected them because of their differences and inevitably form a loveable bond. Likewise, McBrayer and Lynch make a good mismatched duo as Fix it Felix and the Marine sergeant.

The idea (and major pull) is that it Wreck It Ralph looks at the psychological impact of being a baddie and explores the world of computer gaming which has never been done before. Wreck It Ralph never loses sight of its emotional core even as the gorgeously spot on animation swirls around the screen. Thanks to great vocal talent, a smart and respectful script which acknowledges the debt of the 80s video gaming world (and its myriad of characters), it's a virtual joy to behold.

Also, worth you heading to this on time is the gorgeous black and white animation, Papermanabout a pair of office workers who meet one day on a train station. Magical and memorable, this is animation at its absolute best and a salute to simpler times.

Extras: Sort, making of, deleted scenes, commercials

Rating:

Best of the Billys: Comedy Festival Review

Best of the Billys: Comedy Festival Review

New Zealand’s comedy scene is thriving and the fact the Billy T Award is handed out annually shows there’s the recognition around to provide a boost to NZ comics.

It began back in 1997 and is still in rude health – this year’s latest crop of nominees are now taking their shows to the streets to try and secure this year’s elusive towel and cash combo.

Also an annual thing is the celebration of the comics who’ve won the award – and this latest crop at SkyCity showed there’s still plenty of life left in them after they win.

Amiably hosted by Paul Ego, whose MCing tended to wander into riffing as he tackled the issues of kids as well as trying to drag some life out of the lacklustre crowd (Seriously – why would you answer the MC’s initial question and not their follow up?)

As Ego said, the best of is a “smorgasbord of acts, with no deadwood” – so it’s curious to note that not everyone was firing 100% with the crowd last night at SkyCity – even with potty mouths and toilet obsessed humour prevalent.

Last year’s winner Guy Williams’ usual dry, low energy laconic style got some unexpected laughs from his attempts at audience interaction and put downs. His usual deadpan one liners and way of looking at life garnered a fair few giggles but not perhaps the broader acclaim he should have received.

Equally Mike Loder’s continuing comedy mission to offend and divide the audience proffered up some of the more edgy moments of the show.  It really demonstrated that despite winning back in 2000, he’s lost none of the acerbic edge which marks him out as dangerous as each sucker punch landed on their unexpected target.

Steve Wrigley’s opening about, erm, his opening at a mate’s house in the loo, proved to be nothing short of puerile and potty obsessed – but to be fair the audience lapped up every second of it so I’m not sure who’s to be blame there. He described his performance as “fun but with a touch of soul destroying” and with a shaky start before finding some comedy nuggets, I’d suggest, politely that he wasn’t far off the mark.

The second half saw the incredibly self-assured and cleverly intelligent Nick Gibb put the audience back on track with some smart and amusing one liners and observations on those shopping at Pak’n’Save and Oscar Pistorius (kudos for the Blade Runner gag too)

Cori Gonzalez Macuer also landed a few unexpected zingers in his downbeat style of delivery too. Despite saying he’d been lying low from comedy, he proved on the mark and divisive with some smart observations about New Plymouth strip clubs and New Zealand’s walk of fame in Wellington. I kind of wanted more from him, which is always a good sign.

But the star of the night was undoubtedly the closing act, Ewen Gilmour who won the award back in 1997. To rapturous applause he hit his comedy straps right away and never, ever let up. With a Billy T-esque laugh here and there, Gilmour certainly proved there’s plenty of life in the Westie yet. Which makes his show Mid Life Circus more of a must see.

In all honesty, the Best of was not quite the full on laugh fest it usually is; it was a little more muted – but it showed NZ comedy is in rude health. But unfortunately with more of the emphasis on the rude side of things than the normal sophistication….

Celeste and Jesse Forever: Blu Ray Review

Celeste and Jesse Forever: Blu Ray Review

Rating: M
Released by Sony Home Entertainment

So, for 2013, a quirky and fresh rom com with a hipster twist.

Rashida Jones and Andy Samberg star as Celeste and Jesse, a couple who seem perfect for each other. They compliment and complement each other, seem to finish each other's sentences and work perfectly. The only problem is they were married and are now separated. But they still live in the same house and hang out every day, do dinner with friends and so forth.

But when a couple of their friends tell them they can't cope any longer with this closeness which seems unnatural after separation, cracks begin to form in Jesse and Celeste's relationship.

When Jesse starts dating someone else, Celeste starts to go off the rails and pretty soon, everything's heading for a total implosion. 

There's a truth which permeates this bittersweet rom com and both the leads, Jones and Samberg, encapsulate it perfectly. With each side veering between being back in love with the other, this could have been one of those cloying, deeply annoying and totally irritating films where everything's oh-so cutesy and it all works out in the end.

Thankfully, due to a very real (and borderline annoying in places) performance from Jones, this feels real. Jones herself even wrote the screen play and it benefits from the truth and veracity of someone who's clearly been through such real life events.

There's a rich vein of humour throughout as well which helps punctuate any pretentiousness on show. Of which, there is occasionally some. With moving camera work and a hipster OST, this does, very occasionally, try a little too hard to be too cool for school and there is a feeling towards the end that it's run over length and out of steam.

Celeste and Jesse Forever is a good, solid, quirky, offbeat romcom which really benefits from an honest script and strong performances. It captures the twilight of a relationship which neither party wants to sacrifice and chronicles the reality of life while avoiding many of the genre cliches. Fresh and original, with a hipster heart at its centre, some people will utterly adore this film.

Extras: Deleted scenes, commentaries and making of, plus red carpet premiere

Rating:

Class Comedians: Comedy Festival Review

The Class Comedians: Comedy Festival Review

It can’t be easy.

Being young, a bit precocious, and a bit of a loud mouth who thinks they are funny.

Yep, just your average teenager. But thanks to the Class Comedians initiative, these wannabe comics get to undergo training (and potentially counselling) from those in the know of treading the boards.

So the 2013 show sees six acts tread the boards, all consumed with the possibility that they could be on their way to big things.

MC Ravi, with his suit, grin and swagger is all nervous energy before launching into a piece about whether anyone has friends. His energy catches the audience off guard and despite dwelling on calculus, Ravi takes in the Irish accent as well. While some of his moments may be a little off, he’s certainly a competent MC.

Head boy at Long Bay College, Brad, who believes he was screwed over by poverty certainly garners and commands a confidence which is beyond his years. Replete with a gag on TapeFace, his send off with his “I’ve been Brad – and you’ve been adequate” shows a star potentially in the making.

Kate Fitzgibbon is next up and continues the trend of confident youngsters. Taking in a lot of the current youthful obsessions of selfies, being a Catholic school girl and racism, she’s got real potential as well with an eye for an off hand one liner and a clever grasp of comic timing.

Mily follows next – clad in an all over green lycra suit. Sure, it gets the visual interest going, but appears to have no direct point or pay off, other than to demonstrate how awkward her young life was. But then, her set lapses into some clever riffing on dancing and elevators, and takes you to unexpected places.

Suvi, the James Bindlah of the South African and Indian world proves to be a confident eye opener as well. With some well placed observations about dating and wingmen, he’s got enough nous to ensure that his future lies in this game too.

Final act is Dan, a surly and sulky type, whose tendency to drag people up on stage for a piece, doesn’t quite work as well as he’d be hoping, but his story telling does impress – even if the eventual punchline doesn’t quite hit the target as well as expected.

Overall, the Class Comedians show there’s a healthy bunch around for the future – and given that tastes change so quickly, you’d be smart to catch a glimpse of these graduates. They’re clearly marked for success and will, hopefully be around for a long time to come.

Parental Guidance: Blu Ray Review

Parental Guidance: Blu Ray Review

Rating: PG (The irony)
Released by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment

It's been a decade since Billy Crystal graced the screen with Analyze That and now he's back in this family comedy, along with Bette Midler.

Crystal plays Artie Decker, an ageing baseball announcer, whose time on the side of the field is called out by his bosses. When his estranged daughter Alice (Tomei) calls asking Artie and wife Diane (Midler) to babysit the kids for a week while she heads out of town, chaos ensues.


The reason? Alice is a strict parent who has rules and boundaries for her three children and whose political correctness version of parenting clashes directly with Artie and Diane's somewhat more liberal and relaxed approach to letting them do what they want....

Parental Guidance is predictable family fare which will amuse the younger end of the audience more than the older. Certainly, with its fart gags and obvious humour and situations, it's going for low hanging fruit - and yet, its target will definitely love parts of it despite the fact we've seen it all before. And while it's great to see Crystal back on the screen, he's constrained by a film script which aims low and then manages to dig deeper everytime.

Somewhere in among all the misfires is a social commentary, waiting to rise to the surface; a look at how parenting values have changed over the years and how in some ways, the old methods of a sharp slap and rebuke are the best rather than having your child "use their words" to express their anger. But these oft-unspoken truths are lost among the deeply uninspiring and highly unoriginal story we've all seen before. Don't get me wrong, as a piece of holiday entertainment, families with young kids will be amused by the antics and the occasional slapstick.

However, on a personal level, Parental Guidance remains a disappointment for the return of Billy Crystal - how he could waste himself in such a cliched movie and deliver a performance which offers up more than the material given to him is a real headscratcher.

Extras: Commentary, deleted scenes and gag reel.

Rating: