Thursday, 13 June 2013

More films announced for NZ International Film Festival

More films announced for NZ International Film Festival

More good news for film fans this morning as further films are revealed from the upcoming New Zealand International Film Festival.

Further Film Announcements

The Weight of Elephants

New Zealand/Denmark 2013/87 mins/Censors rating tbc
Kiwi-born Daniel Joseph Borgman returns to NZ, after a string of successful Danish shorts, with this piercing insight into the world of children, centred on a lonely, imaginative 11-year-old boy’s search for friendship. 
Read more about The Weight of Elephants on our website.

The Source Family

USA 2012/98 mins/Censors rating tbc
A sobering and fascinating time capsule of 70s psychedelia and communal hippiedom, with those who lived through the psychedelia, the songs and the madness – all wrapped up with eye-popping home movies and insightful interviews.
Read more about The Source Family on our website.

William Yang: My Generation

Australia 2013/58 min/Censors rating tbc
William Yang presents his entertaining, affecting photographs of Sydney bohemia in the riotous 70s and 80s. “Fashion parades, art events, and wild, bohemian parties… a fascinating journey into a vibrant era.” — Time Out Sydney
Read more about William Yang: My Generation on our website.

Brand new The Wolverine trailer

Brand new The Wolverine trailer


Another brand new The Wolverine trailer's dropped with a nice intro from Hugh Jackman.

Here's your first look at the brand new Wolverine Trailer.

It comes after director James Mangold released a 7 second tease of the full Wolverine trailer

And there's also a brand new The Wolverine poster out as well.

So get excited for the brand new full length The Wolverine trailer.




Wednesday, 12 June 2013

The Hunt: Movie Review

The Hunt: Movie Review


Cast: Mads Mikkelsen, Annika Wedderkopp
Director: Thomas Vinterberg

Fresh from success at the New Zealand International Film Festival last year, Danish film The Hunt finally gets a release here.

It's the story of Lucas (Mikklesen in another award winning turn), a teacher, who leads a solitary life and is wrestling with the fall-out from a break up as he tries to get time with his son.


Living in a small knit Danish community, Lucas ends up working at a kindergarten to make ends meet - but that's where the trouble starts as he is accused by Klara (Wedderkopp) of exposing himself to her. With investigations into his conduct and alleged behaviour, the small community begins to slowly turn on him, with devastating emotional effects.

I'd heard dark things about The Hunt - about how it got unrelentingly bleak and so to be honest, I had been expecting the worst from this tale of kindergarten teacher Lucas whose life is irrevocably changed after one of the children in his charge lies and falsely tells his boss he's been sexually abusing them.

What I couldn't have been expecting is just how utterly compelling and totally claustrophobic, this latest film from the director of Festen, Thomas Vinterberg was going to be. It's no wonder Mikkelsen won the Best actor at Cannes this year for his portrayal of Lucas, the innocent man who's damned before his peers without any shred of evidence.


But what's winning about this film is how utterly plausible it is in places as it taps into the small minded community mentality and how non-hysterically it plays out. 

Mikkelsen and youngster Annika Wedderkopp (who plays Klara who makes the claim) are completely the stars of the piece thanks to underplayed, subtly sly and riveting performances. Sure, it's an old story and one which we've all seen shades of before, but it's these two actors who imbue their time on screen with such utter devotion that you can't help but be swept up by it - despite accusations of how it really could happen in this day and age.

Vinterberg also needs commendation for his directing and crafting of the tale - Lucas goes from being part of a gang of friends whose bond stretches years back to a haunted and vilified ghost of a man, whose (admittedly frustrating) refusal to totally refute the claims seems like madness. No doubt his self belief is what carries him through but as they say, it's darkest before the dawn, and Mikkelsen's subtle performance is a cinematic tour de force.

Similarly, Wedderkopp, a cute blond moppet (a direct contrast to Mikkelsen's frog like facials) plays a girl who doesn't understand the truth of her lie and who's caught up in a world she can't possibly understand. The scenes where she tells her mother that it didn't happen and her mother comes back telling her it did are gobsmackingly heart breaking and cut an emotional quick as well as hint at a reality of what could play out. Vinterberg's hit a fine form here and a few nerves as well (judging by the horrified yelp of one woman at the screening's ending during the Film Festival) and makes The Hunt as dark as anything you're likely to experience.

The Hunt is horrifyingly good, heart in the mouth drama that challenges but showcases acting genius and really does need to be seen up on the big screen while you have the chance.

Rating:


New The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug trailer is here

New The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug trailer is here


Good news this morning - the launch of the new Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug trailer....



  It comes after the reveal of a The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug poster.

Peter Jackson's unveiled a first look at The Desolation of Smaug - well, a first look at theposter for The Hobbit sequel anyway.

And it's been revealed The new teaser trailer for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug will be unveiled this Tuesday, June 11th, at 10am PT

Benedict Cumberbatch is the voice of Smaug and it hits cinemas in December 2013.



So, wanting to fuel that fire even further, here's your first look at Bilbo in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug...

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug is due in cinemas in December 2013...




Here's a First look at the elf Tauriel.

The elf Tauriel played by Evangeline Lilly will appear in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.



Tuesday, 11 June 2013

More details on PS4 hardware

More details on PS4 hardware


Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI) today announced that the PlayStation®4 (PS4™) (CUH-1000A series) computer entertainment system will come in “Jet Black” color and will be available this holiday season at a recommended retail price (RRP) of $649.95 NZD.

The design of PS4 made its public debut at the PlayStation® press conference on June 10, 2013, which kicked off the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles.  PS4 will also be displayed this week at the Sony Computer Entertainment America booth at E3, one of the world's largest video game exhibitions.

The internal design architecture of the PS4 system, from the optical drive and power supply unit to the cooling mechanism, has been pursed to keep the body as slim and light as possible to dramatically enhance the flexibility of the design.

The PS4 features a simple but modern design accentuated by its linear flat form factors.  The surface of the PS4 body is subdivided into four sections, as if four blocks are stacked together making one figure, with disc slot, buttons, power indicator and vent placed within the slim interspace created between the sections.  The power indicator designed atop the body will glow in a PlayStation blue color when the power button is turned on.  The foreside and backside of the body is slightly angled; it not only gives users easy access to the power button and disc slot when placed either horizontally or vertically but also helps conceal the connected cables.  The black-themed color along with the matte and gloss finish adds a sophisticated look to the PS4 system as the next generation entertainment system and will fit perfectly wherever it is placed
.

PS4 peripherals include the stand-alone Wireless Controller for PlayStation®4 (DUALSHOCK®4) and PlayStation®Camera, which will be available at launch for RRP of US$ 59, Canada$ 59, € 59 and £ 54, and US$ 59, Canada$ 59, € 49 and £ 44 respectively.  Both accessories will come in “Jet Black” color.

The upcoming software lineup for PS4 from software developers and publishers will include Destiny™ from Bungie, Inc., in partnership with Activision Publishers, Inc., Diablo® III from Blizzard Entertainment, Inc., KINGDOM HEARTS III and FINAL FANTASY® XV from SQUARE ENIX, Assassin’s Creed® IV Black Flag™ and Watch_Dogs™ from Ubisoft Entertainment, NBA® 2K14 from 2K Sports, The Elder Scrolls® Online from Bethesda Games Studios and Mad Max ™ from Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, totaling more than 110 titles. PS4 has earned great support from a wide variety of game publishers, including many indie developers. Since February 2013, the number of developers joining has increased from 126 to 505.

Furthermore, from SCE Worldwide Studios, more than 30 titles, including 12 brand new IP, are under development, including Killzone: Shadow Fall, Knack, inFAMOUS: Second Son, #DRIVECLUB and The Order: 1886.*1 Out of over the 30 titles under development, 20 titles will be available within a year from the PS4 launch.

SCE will vigorously promote PS4 towards the launch as the next generation computer entertainment platform through further introduction of peripherals and attractive software lineup.

Console and peripheral specs: 

Product name PlayStation®4 Jet Black
Product code CUH-1000A series
Recommended retail price NZ $649.95 
Main processor Single-chip custom processor
CPU :  x86-64 AMD “Jaguar”,  8 cores 
GPU : 1.84 TFLOPS,  AMD next-generation Radeon™ based graphics engine
Memory GDDR5 8GB 
Storage size 500GB Hard disk drive*1
External dimensions
  Approx.  275×53×305 mm (width × height × length) 
(tentative, excludes largest projection) 
Mass Approx. 2.8 kg
BD/ DVD drive
(read only) BD × 6 CAV
DVD × 8 CAV
Input/ Output Super-Speed USBx (USB 3.0) port × 2
AUX port × 1
Networking Ethernet (10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-T) ×1
IEEE 802.11 b/g/n
Bluetooth® 2.1 (EDR)
AV output HDMI out port
DIGITAL OUT (OPTICAL) port
Included PlayStation®4 system × 1
Wireless Controller (DUALSHOCK®4) × 1
Mono headset × 1
AC power cord × 1
HDMI cable × 1
USB cable × 1
*1 The hard disk drive contains space that is available for users and space that is reserved for the system, therefore the actual space that is free for users is smaller than the total space stated in this document.
* Design and specifications are subject to change without notice.
 <Wireless Controller for PlayStation®4 (DUALSHOCK®4)>
Product name DUALSHOCK®4 wireless controller
Color Jet Black
Product code CUH-ZCT1
External dimensions Approx. 162mm × 52mm × 98mm (width × height × depth)
(tentative, excludes largest projection)
Weight Approx. 210g (tentative)
Keys / switches PS button, SHARE button, OPTIONS button,
Directional buttons (Up/Down/Left/Right), 
Action buttons (Triangle, Circle, Cross, Square),
R1/L1/R2/L2 button, Left stick / L3 button, Right stick / R3 button, Pad Button
Touch pad 2 Point Touch Pad, Click Mechanism, Capacitive Type
Motion sensor Six-axis motion sensing system (three-axis gyroscope, three-axis accelerometer)
Other features Light Bar, Vibration, Built-in Mono Speaker
Ports USB (Micro B), Extention Port, Stereo Headset Jack
Wireless communication Bluetooth® Ver2.1+EDR
Battery Type Built-in Lithium-ion Rechargeable Battery
  Voltage DC3.7V (tentative)
  Capacity 1000mAh (tentative)
* Design and specifications are subject to change without notice.
< PlayStation®Camera >
Product name PlayStation®Camera
Color Jet Black
Product code CUH-ZEY1
External dimension Approx. 186mm × 27mm × 27mm (width × height × depth) 
(tentative)
Weight Approx. 183g (tentative)
Video pixel (Maximum) 1280 × 800 pixel × 2
Video frame rate 1280×800 pixel @ 60fps
640×400 pixel @ 120fps
320×192 pixel @ 240fps
Video format RAW, YUV (uncompressed)
Lens Dual Lenses, F value/F2.0 fixed focus
Capture range 30cm~∞
Field-of-view 85°
Microphone 4 Channel Microphone Array
Connection type PS4 dedicated connector (AUX connector)
Cable length Approx. 2m (tentative)
* Design and specifications are subject to change without notice.

UBISOFT Titles at E3 unveiled

UBISOFT Titles at E3 unveiled


UBISOFT® AND SONY COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT DELIVERING PLAYSTATION® EXCLUSIVES

60 Minutes of Game-play, Special Missions And Rewards Available for Assassin’s Creed® IV Black FlagTM and Watch_DogsTM


SYDNEY — June 11, 2013 — Today, Ubisoft® and Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCE) announced an expanded partnership that provides exclusive content and game-play on the Sony PlayStation®3 (PS3TM) and Sony PlayStation®4 (PS4™) computer entertainment systems for Assassin’s Creed® IV Black FlagTM and Watch_Dogs™. Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag will be released on the PS3 system on October 31 and on the PS4 system later this year. Watch_Dogs arrives on store shelves November 21 on the PS3 system and on the PS4 system around the system’s launch.

“Expanding our partnership with Sony Computer Entertainment allows us to offer PlayStation gamers even more substance to games that are already rich with content,” said Geoffroy Sardin, EMEA chief marketing and sales officer, Ubisoft “Regardless of which PlayStation console Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag and Watch_Dogs are played on, PlayStation gamers will be treated to exclusives that will add to their game-play experiences.”

Aveline, the first leading female Assassin who headlined Assassin’s Creed® III Liberation on the Sony PlayStation® Vita system, returns in Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag with three missions exclusively on PS3 and PS4 systems.

For Watch_Dogs, PS3 and PS4 players will receive four exclusive additional missions centered on a faction fighting for freedom in the digital age. As vigilante Aiden Pearce, players can help them get their revenge against a Chicago tech mogul who did them wrong. Upon completion of the extra missions, players will unlock an exclusive suit for Aiden Pearce.

“Ubisoft is no stranger to pushing the boundaries of play, and that is why we are expanding our partnership with PlayStation to bring PlayStation fans one-of-a-kind content for two of the year’s most anticipated games, Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag and Watch_Dogs,” said Adam Boyes, Vice President, Publisher and Developer Relations, Sony Computer Entertainment America LLC.  “With an hour of exclusive game-play for each title, yet again we are blazing new trails by providing more unique experiences that can only be found on PlayStation.”

PlayStation 4 hardware revealed

PlayStation 4 hardware revealed

Here's your first look at The PlayStation 4 console....

Pricing can be confirmed - the NZ RRP for the PS4 is $649.95 RRP

PlayStation News conference at E3

It's the one you've been waiting for - the PlayStation news conference from E3.

Expected announcements will include more details about the PS4 as well as a reveal of the PS4 Console

Tune in at 1pm today for more.


Very latest post

Honest Thief: DVD Review

Honest Thief: DVD Review In Honest Thief, a fairly competent story is given plenty of heart and soul before falling into old action genre tr...