Missing Doctor Who episodes recovered

Missing Doctor Who episodes recovered

It's not often you get to write a headline like this - and it's one guaranteed to send a tingle down the spine of any Doctor Who fan.

The BBC has announced that nine episodes of Doctor Who have been found in Nigeria. The even better news is that they feature the second Doctor, Patrick Troughton.

The previously missing, presumed destroyed episodes hail from The Enemy of the World and The Web of Fear, with episodes 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6 of Enemy completing that particular story and the return of episodes 2, 4, 5, and 6 of Web meaning only episode 3 of the Yeti sequel is still missing. Episode 3 of Enemy and episode 1 of Web were also returned, but were already held in the archive.

The recovery now brings the total number of missing episodes down to 97.

More details are on the Doctor Who News site.

The Enemy of the World will be on release on DVD from November 24th in the UK - no word yet on a NZ release; and The Web of Fear is scheduled for sometime in early 2014.

2 Guns: Movie Review

2 Guns: Movie Review

Cast: Denzel Washington, Mark Wahlberg, Paula Patton. Bill Paxton, Fred Ward, James Marsden, Edward James Olmos
Director: Baltasar Kormakur

It's back to the world of the buddy cop movie in 2 Guns, the latest movie to team director Baltasar Kormakur back up with Mark Wahlberg. (They previously collaborated on Contraband)

This time around, wise-cracking, fast-talking Wahlberg plays Michael Stigman who's buddied up with Denzel Washington's even-tempered, gold-toothed, hat-wearing Robert Trench. The pair are criminals and are busted on the Mexican border after meeting with Edward James Olmos' drug overlord, Papi.

But unbeknownst to each other, Trench is an undercover DEA agent and Stigman is working for the navy...

Suddenly, when $43.1 million dollars goes missing from a bank they were going to rob to break their way into a drug cartel, the pair find themselves under suspicion from every angle - and under investigation from each other.

Based on a series of graphic novels, 2 Guns is a surprisingly competent comedy actioner, which occasionally flounders around trying to find its own identity. It feels, at times, as if it's unsure whether it's comedy or action, with Wahlberg's constant wise-cracking, smart-ass bouncing nicely off Denzel's usual charismatic underplaying.

But this is not in the vein of Lethal Weapon or the usual buddy up you've come to expect from movies of these types. It's a surprisingly restrained, occasionally twisty movie that proffers up surprises as it unspools. Eschewing some of the usual tropes of the genre, 2 Guns introduces more low-lifes than you'd come to expect in between the explosions and violent bursts of gun fire.

Occasionally though, it does lack a little punch and panache as it skates the line between not quite comedy and not quite out-and-out action. And some of the plot's turns and machinations are a little murky at best, with double crosses and revelations left, right and centre making it confused for you to get a handle on.

Washington and Wahlberg's bromance works well, and the film hints at future outings for the fractious pair; elsewhere, Edward James Olmos' moustachioed Papi gruffly chews up some of the scenery; Marsden scores points as a buzz-cutted Naval officer and Paula Patton oscillates between love interest and captive. But it's Bill Paxton who brings the sleaze and odd menace as someone caught up in this money triangle - with thin tie and cowboy hat, his is a role that crackles when he's onscreen.

All in all, 2 Guns is perfectly serviceable and utterly forgettable. It's due to the easy going chemistry between the two leads that it works, but if it was a one shot film, that wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing.

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American Hustle trailer is here

American Hustle trailer is here

The brand new trailer for David O Russell's American Hustle is here.

Starring Amy Adams, Jennifer Lawrence, Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper and Jeremy Renner, the film is due out in NZ next year.

We're gearing up for David O Russell's next film, American Hustle and it looks like the publicity is starting to kick in for this piece now.

There are now five character posters for American Hustle.

American Hustle, which reunites Lawrence and Cooper with their Silver Linings Playbook director David O Russell,  focuses on the FBI’s infamous Abscam operation of the late 70s and early 80s, which ultimately led to the conviction of a US senator and five members of the US Government’s House of Representatives.

Machete Kills: Movie Review

Machete Kills: Movie Review

Cast: Danny Trejo, Lady Gaga, Amber Heard, Mel Gibson, Alexa Vega, Sofia Vergara, Charlie Sheen, Antonio Banderas, Michelle Rodriguez

After breathing life into a character which appeared as part of the Planet Terror / Death Proof faux trailers, and scoring box office gold with a spin off, Machete (Danny Trejo) returns once again.

This time around, after the death of his partner (Jessica Alba) at the hands of a masked killer, Machete is recruited by the US Government (aka POTUS Charlie Sheen) to take on an arms dealer in Mexico.

The rub? This arms dealer wants to fire a rocket on Washington and wipe out the government for doing little to wipe the scourge of the Mexican drug cartels from the planet.

So, it's upto Machete, a big knife and some cojones to save the day....

Where the first Machete had a degree of panache and self-awareness in terms of its exploitation, this latest Grindhouse / cult effort from director Robert Rodriguez brings little to the table.

Amid a slew of killings, beheadings and general limb dismemberment, Danny Trejo, complete with his ruggedly lined face stumbles about as a dull Machete, looking tired, dazed and confused as to what exactly is going on. In amid his monosyllabic gruntings and one liners ("Machete don't tweet", "Machete don't smoke" to name but two of them), he seems lost at sea and confused as to what exactly is expected of him this time around.

Only Modern Family's buxom Sofia Vergara seems to have a ball with her part, playing a whorehouse mistress whose main thrust is to avenge her dead daughter, killed when under Machete's charge. She fires the role with such aplomb that she's sorely missed when her brief time is over. And she brings new meaning to showing off her guns as well.

But that's half the problem with this latest Machete film - it feels sorely unfinished and under-cooked.

The first was a complete story whereas this latest seems to find Rodriguez suffused with the desire to build everything up to a climax that doesn't deliver and only teases a future installment, which appears to be set in space and is likely to be a grindhouse take on Star Wars, judging by the faux trailers which preface and bookend the piece. And the hints of a third film are terrifying, given the whole thing could have been epically wrapped up in this one alone.

Narrative threads simply disappear or are just disposed of to move the story along and it's utterly frustrating and feels like a callous disregard for the audience, regardless of the constraints of working within the grindhouse genre.

Sure, Rodriguez manages a clever way to bring in a slew of guest stars (ooh, look it's Lady Gaga, prancing like she was in a music video, oooh, it's Cuba Gooding Jr, oooh it's Antonio Banderas) by having them play different faces of a criminal known as La Cameleon. (He even deserves praise for using so many women actors (even if they do have their butts hanging out of chaps) amid the action) But even they are simply thrown by the wayside when Rodriguez tires of playing with his celluloid toys.

Carlos Estevez (aka The winning Charlie Sheen) is wooden as the US President and Mel Gibson is utterly banal and unconvincing as the bad guy (with Rodriguez slyly hinting at Scientology but not bothering to go the full hog); even Demian Bichir hams it up as the OTT baddie initially, before he falls prey to the gory slaughter rained down upon the cast. A couple of gory kills will satisfy the adolescents in the audience, but there's little else here given how tame it all feels and how self-indulgent it becomes.

In short, the creatively limp Machete Kills does nothing except fire blanks.

Rating:

Win a double to Auckland's Armageddon

Win a double to Auckland's Armageddon

It's almost time - time for one of the most awesome events thrown in Auckland.

The Armageddon Expo returns to the ASB Showgrounds from October 25th and thanks to our pals over there, I've got double passes to giveaway (sadly no transport to and from so you'll have to find your own way there).

We're giving you a chance to win a double to either one of those shows - simply email to this address: darrensworldofentertainment@gmail.com  and in the subject line put  Auckland, your name and address and the answer to this question....

Where is the Armageddon Expo based in Auckland in October?

I'll draw tickets by Friday October 18th at midday and get them to you before the show - good luck and maybe see you there!

About Armageddon

Kiwi muggles, hobbits and zombies don’t usually get together in one reality, but they’ll be lining up with all kinds of other superheroes, fantasy creatures and gamers when Armageddon Expo returns to the ASB Showgrounds in Auckland on 25^th – 28^th October.

With huge stars already confirmed, Auckland’s show is set to break Armageddon records again and is expected to beat the 50,000 fans that attended in 2012.

Guests will include Billy Boyd, Pippin from The Lord of the Rings; Evanna Lynch, Luna Lovegood from the Harry Potter series; as well as multiple stars from Doctor Who (current series) and Supernatural, with still more to be announced.

Comic fans will delight with Kevin Eastman, co-creator of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, making an appearance as well as Dan Slott, writer of Marvel comic Spiderman.

Armageddon Expo organiser Bill Geradts says that the 2013 show will be massive.

“Zombies are the new vampires, so we’re expecting a huge turnout for David Morrissey, and Evanna Lynch is our first ever Harry Potter actor and the response to her attendance has been incredible,” says Geradts. “We’ve confirmed some amazing talent, with gaming displays and previews still to be announced.”

Alongside the big and small screen stars, Armageddon Auckland has comic, gaming and anime names a plenty.

“We’re really looking forward to having Matt Melvin, the artist of the internet comic sensation Cyanide and Happiness, on board for the first time. I’m hoping he might feature New Zealand in a comic in honour of visiting the expo,” says Geradts.

All of the popular events that take place at the show will be happening again this year.

The infamous Burning Man will explode on the Friday night with a fiery pyrotechnic display, and the all-ages masquerade ball on Sunday night will be a stunning parade of Cosplay outfits and creative masks alike leading up to the announcement of the Trans-Tasman Cosplay winner on Monday 28^th October.

“Cosplay entrants have been working on their costumes all year, and if the Hamilton and Wellington competitions are anything to go by, Auckland is going to be a spectacular exhibition of the best Cosplay in the country. I can’t wait,” says Geradts.

Tickets are on sale now at www.iticket.co.nz

The Fifth Estate: Movie Review

The Fifth Estate: Movie Review

Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Daniel Bruhl, Alicia Vikander, David Thewlis, Stanley Tucci, Laura Linney
Director: Bill Condon

From the director of the final Twilight Saga movies, we get this blockbuster insight into Wikileaks, its founding and its moral and ethical divisions. The Fifth Estate is an adaptation of two books on Wikileaks, (Domscheit-Berg's book Inside WikiLeaks: My Time with Julian Assange and the World's Most Dangerous Website, as well as WikiLeaks: Inside Julian Assange's War on Secrecy by British journalists David Leigh and Luke Harding) both dismissed by founder Julian Assange as being propaganda and who's staunchly opposed to them.

The film starts with Assange meeting up with Daniel Bruhl's Daniel Berg at a techno conference, before recruiting him to the cause of revealing the truth via his fledgling whistle-blowing website. But the further into Wikileaks Berg gets, the more he finds his morals and ethics challenged by Assange's desire to publish all at any expense.

Assange has made it his crusade to reveal the wrongs of the world from the war in Kenya to Scientology.
But the pressure really grows on the group when they're handed the biggest leaks of their life from Bradley Manning and also the Iraq War Logs, which took in a Baghdad airstrike which killed civilians.

And it's here that the cracks start to show as the tension and conflict between Berg and Assange is ramped up - with Berg worrying of the effect and aftermath on those they name and Assange only being interested in revealing all...

The Fifth Estate is a case of style over substance thanks to its intriguing directorial choices.

With a pumping Eastern European score blasting out in parts, the film resembles some kind of ongoing music video with the trappings of a Eurobeat hit. Complete with some awful dialogue ("Super cool" and some "crazy shit in Kenya" being among the worst), the frenetic editing style gets the better of a film which could have been built solely on the idealistic tension and diametrically opposed attitudes of Berg and Assange.

Benedict Cumberbatch plays Wikileaks founder Julian Assange as a white haired paranoid genius who prances around like some kind of louche Iggy Pop style Messiahnic rocker, dispensing such bon mots as: "Courage is contagious" and "No-one can bar the road to truth" throughout to inspire his troops. It's telling though, that unlike Berg, we get to learn little about Assange and his motivation, with his methods and reasons remaining as much of an enigma at the end than at the beginning. Director Bill Condon throws in a few sample piece meal flashbacks to Assange's time in a cult in Australia when he was young, but proffers up little insight into his psyche. Cumberbatch gives a chameleonic and almost electrifying performance as Assange, working with what he's got and cpaturing some of Assange's mannerisms perfectly.

Tellingly (given the movie was adapted from his book) Berg emerges as a more rounded character, with personal insights into the sacrifices he makes as a co-founder being on display - a relationship with a girl played by Alicia Vikander being the main victim of Assange's moral crusading. Bruhl brings a kind of solid performance to the role which is unshowy and very nearly is sidelined by Cumberbatch's turn.

If those involved had chosen to spend more time on the tension, debates and conflict rather than crafting together some kind of extended music video, The Fifth Estate would have been a much stronger film and a greater insight into the Wikileaks sensation. A side story into a government department and White House security being compromised by the organisation feels shoe-horned in and sidelined in the wake of the overall piece.

By reducing The Fifth Estate to a techno thriller in the vein of Hackers (there's even a virtual never-ending office to signify Wikileaks' servers and embody the internet) rather than concentrating on the inter-personal conflict of the likes of The Social Network, you can't help but feel there's a more definitive WikiLeaks / Julian Assange film to be made - while The Fifth Estate is not exactly a mess, it does do a reasonable job of boiling down a complex ethical debate and organisation into a blockbuster thriller aimed at the masses.

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Grand Theft Auto Five: PS3 Review

Grand Theft Auto Five: PS3 Review

Platform: PS3
Released by Rockstar Games

Grand Theft Auto V has been on every gamer's lips for a while now.

And with each early press release, Rockstar did nothing but whip them into a frenzy with trailers and promises of a game that would save the day, late into the PS3's life.

But, what a game to deliver.

Grand Theft Auto V is incredible. It's immersive, exciting, enthralling and graphically excellent.

The game begins with a bank heist in a snowy American town and it's here that you're swathed in details and shown the excellence and bravura of Rockstar's plans. As the bank heist goes wrong, you get to flip from your character of Michael to another in the room to aid your escape. It's a clever touch from the initial set up which sets out Rockstar's stall and lets you realise that they've covered every possible angle. As the snow pours down on the screen, the ensuing shoot out and chase take an almost cinematic feel as they play out.

It's here the game begins with Michael seeing a shrink and discussing his problems. After leaving the shrink's office, Michael sits down on a bench on the seafront as two young kids wander past. They stop and ask him where a house is - and suddenly, the game swaps from Michael to Franklin. And just like that, you realise that Rockstar has produced an interwoven narrative which is expansive and actually spent time on the story mode.

A little later on, you get to meet the third protagonist, Trevor, who's an aggressive on the edge type. But his nervy energy brings a life to GTAV that you'd expect.

Each of these characters have different skills and as in any real life situation, it takes time to build them up; they also have special abilities which can be activated during the game - for Michael, it's a shooting ability and for Franklin, it's a driving ability. Granted, these only last a brief while, but they add a welcome touch to help you out so that your floundering skill levels don't cause you to fail the day every time.

There are story missions to carry out, as ever with any GTA game - and there's also the chance to burn around the vast city of Los Santos, wreaking havoc, running people over, attacking them in an unwarranted manner and generally cutting loose in way you never could in real life. It's here that you realise the scope of the game and also the amount of time you could spend burning around could prevent you from ever completing the game itself. Once again, the developers have excelled themselves when it comes to creating the world outside - from strip clubs to simply people on the street, there's more than enough to keep you amused, entertained and in trouble. A main series of heists will keep you and your characters engaged throughout, but my goodness, it's totally easy to get distracted from the story mode.

And talking of the crime, a mention has to go to the police. In the past in these games, it's been rather easy to knock them down, steal their car and go nuts. Not this time around. My first attempt to engage the cops after a low level crime wave of running down three pedestrians led me to my first confrontation, which ended after the cops immediately shot me dead without worrying about that pesky questioning first business. Combined with the fact that a helicopter can be dispatched and that it's notoriously difficult to shake off, it seems the AI of the police this time around has been boosted substantially - and while that's a good thing, it doesn't half make the challenge of the game a little harder.

The free-wheeling nature of the game hints at the epic, but it's the story thread running through and the clever interconnected feel of it all that makes this one of the best games of the year, period. Sure, it's got the usual confrontational GTA streak that pushes the censors, but as a depiction of life in America, it's spot on. And it's also graphically utterly entrancing - everything feels so natural. From landscapes which are beautifully crafted and seamlessly integrated to a city scape which is never repetitive, so much attention to detail has gone on the world of Los Santos and its surroundings.

Even though the main characters in this are nasty to a degree, there's no shaking the fact that Rockstar's created a totally immersive experience which will take hours of your life without you even realising that they're gone. But it's an investment - and given the sprawl and scope of GTA V you will never find everything that's been hidden, but you will have a hell of a good time trying to find it all and exploring.

Rockstar deserves to take a bow - sure, there's a seedy underbelly to GTA V which will irritate and downright annoy some purists, but gamers will adore what Rockstar's created this time around. A great central story, some clever ways of gaming and some impressive use of characters show that creativity is its own reward.  While the online environment's yet to fully work (and I'll talk about that when it's properly up and running) there's so much to do here.

Utterly engrossing, totally rewarding and completely addictive, Grand Theft Auto V is one of the games of the year - it's raised the bar for future developers and certainly fired off a last shot for the PS3 as the next gen of consoles lurk around the corner.

Rating: