New Edge of Tomorrow trailer

New Edge of Tomorrow trailer

There's a new trailer for the Tom Cruise / Emily Blunt actioner,  Edge of Tomorrow.

The film's due out in June in NZ

First look at Batman: Arkham Knight

First look at Batman: Arkham Knight

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and DC Entertainment have today unveiled all-new screenshots and artwork from Batman: Arkham Knight, Rocksteady Studios’ epic finale to its trilogy of Batman: Arkham videogames.  The screenshots showcase Batman and the Batmobile, as well as the new villain, Arkham Knight. 

Batman: Arkham Knight is based on DC Comics’ core Batman license and will be available exclusively for the PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft, and Windows PC.  The game is scheduled for release worldwide in 2014. 

In the explosive finale to the Arkham series, Batman faces the ultimate threat against the city he is sworn to protect. The Scarecrow returns to unite an impressive roster of super villains, including Penguin, Two-Face and Harley Quinn, to destroy The Dark Knight forever. Batman: Arkham Knight introduces Rocksteady's uniquely designed version of the Batmobile, which is drivable for the first time in the franchise. The addition of this legendary vehicle, combined with the acclaimed gameplay of the Batman Arkham series, offers gamers the ultimate and complete Batman experience as they tear through the streets and soar across the skyline of the entirety of Gotham City.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles first look trailer

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles first look trailer

We are very excited to bring to you the return of Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello and Michelangelo, not your favourite Renaissance artists, but your favourite mutated turtles!

Paramount Pictures is pleased to help you relive your childhood years this morning with the release of the first teaser trailer for TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES, ahead of its September 18 release.

Watch the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles first look trailer below:

Noah: Movie Review

Noah: Movie Review

Cast: Russell Crowe, Emma Watson, Jennifer Connelly, Anthony Hopkins, Ray Winstone
Director: Darren Aronofsky

Stone Transformer type creatures, a Lord of the Rings Treebeard style battle, a potential murder of babies and a flood of Biblical proportions.

It can only be director Darren Aronofsky's take on Noah.

Yep, water surprise.

You read that right - it's the old Bible story but through the old Aronofsky skew of perception, where the lead actor may - or may not - be facing the onslaught of madness. (Think Black Swan's psychological machinations).

Russell Crowe is Noah, who one day experiences a vision that the world is about to be flooded in watery destruction (the first of Aronofsky's brilliantly visual interpretations) and decides to build an ark to save the creatures so that the Creator (never God in this film) can start again. But his plan to help them avoid the initial floods (though, he intones, he and his family must be judged too) causes conflict within his family and also with tubel-Cain (Ray Winstone, looking drowned and like he failed a Game Of Thrones audition) who amasses an army to seize the ark and ensure their survival.

Epic in scale, it's easy to see why Noah may offend some - particularly with the introduction of the Watchers, a set of Stone Transformers type six armed creatures which are fallen angels, grounded by the Creator to keep an eye on Earth and Man.

While I distinctly don't remember these from earlier studies - or the magical and mythical - (which would have no doubt piqued my interest), they exist simply to perhaps engage the younger end of the audience and also to provide an epic LOTR style fight as they defend the ark from Tubel-Cain's masses, before exploding into Rapturous light and heading skyward-bound in a redemptive arc deemed necessary by Hollywood.

Of the acting, Crowe is difficult to read to start off with as Noah, the man whose visions cause so much conflict; initially, he's a father and a forager for his kith and kin, but as the quest takes his toll, we see one of Aronofsky's key motifs come into play - a man on the descent of unswerving belief and searching for something else, self-destructive or otherwise. It's here Crowe gets his acting chops on (even if the dialogue does fail him) and manages to provide some more depth to the wronged scavenger - even if you're never quite clear on whether his interpretation of events is right or not. That said, you can't fault Crowe's commitment to the cause.

Elsewhere, Jennifer Connelly is largely wasted as Naameh, his wife; Emma Watson looks Harry Potter-esque as Ila, Ray Winstone is half-eyed and slurring as Tubel-Cain and Welsh tongued Anthony Hopkins veers between venerable and OTT as the hermit Methuselah, who appears obsessed with gathering berries rather than playing grandfather.

Yet, it's Aronofsky who's the real star (and ironically, divisive presence) of this apocalyptically epic piece - his trippy execution of Noah's initial vision (all watery and floating bodies) is evocative and disturbing, suggesting a mania in his lead that's fearful and lost; equally, his peppering of the film with images of the snake, the apple and Man's destruction verges on the hallucinogenic in places; but his bravura time-lapse sequence showing the birth of creation and the Let there be light speech demonstrates a bravura flair that's only dragged down by the other flawed elements of the piece, which draws to a hysteria as the end comes and Noah threatens to teeter over into the unthinkable. At times, the bombastic score could do with being eased off as it blasts all and sundry with ominous tones that are unnecessary.


While it's clear that Noah was a passion project for director Aronofsky, I can't help but have a nagging feeling that this somewhat bloated telling of a Biblical style film for a modern day audience which veers from its subject material in some ways is likely to rankle; it appears to be a flight of schizophrenia for its director in places thanks to flawed ideas and execution, but in other moments, its visual execution and evocative displays of originality lead to plenty of impressively creative touches.

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Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa: DVD Review

Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa: DVD Review

Steve Coogan is hapless radio DJ Alan Partridge, who's still working at a local UK radio station pushing his own brand of banal and pedantic chat on the people of Norwich with his show Mid Morning Matters. But something sinister is afoot at the station with a corporate takeover threatening to sweep through and clear out the chaff.

When Partridge gets whiff of the fact it's either he or fellow night time DJ Pat (played by Colm Meaney) who face the chop, he does the only decent thing Alan can do - urges the new station bosses to get rid of Pat. But Pat's not taking it lying down - and comes back armed with a grudge and a shotgun at the launch of the new station.

Pretty soon, Partridge, whose star has been firmly in the descent, is back in the limelight as Pat's confidant at the siege and the police's negotiator... will Alan save the day or will the chance thrusting of him back into the media spotlight cause his ego to run riot?

Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa is a particularly British film, which will resonate with the ex-pat audience but will be loved for some of its comedic subtleties. And a lot of that is due to Steve Coogan's acting and the exceptionally strong writing on show, which parodies the banality of local radio ("Yesterday's meat at today's prices") and yet also deals with the seismic shifts of conglomerates taking over whole rafts of local stations in the UK markets.

Anyone au fait with Partridge will know what to expect - moments of cringeworthy asides and comments coupled with some endlessly quotable bon mots. Granted, all of those are present and correct (some with deadly accuracy) but there is also a subtlety to Coogan's performance and a slyness to the writing which almost threatens to fly over your head at times.

Whether it's a sly look or a clever one-liner, Coogan and his team of writers have nailed the transition of Partridge to the big screen. That said, while the story starts to run a little out of puff during its final third, the ratio of gags to screen time is particularly high - and an impressively fleshed out Partridge proves central to the whole story. Strong support comes from Montagu as Partridge's long-suffering PA Lynn and Colm Meaney adds a degree of volatility to the unfolding siege that's hard to ignore.

But it's Partridge's parochial show throughout - whether he's dissing Pat by saying "he's Irish, to be sure", miming in his car to the middle of the road rock of Roachford (see the clip below) or running from a one night stand by squealing that "she's a drunk racist, I can take one but not both", Coogan's timing and comic subtlety is immaculate. He also brings the inherent sadness of this character to the fore as well with one joking exchange over his final message to his family bordering on the tragic.

Belly laughs and subtle sniggers are the order of the day with Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa. Complete with subtle digs at the radio industry that insiders will cherish but outsiders won't be isolated by, the corporate takeover's given a slightly new twist, embracing everything that was iconic about radio in the UK in the 80s and yet cocking a snook at it. (And when was the last time you saw a film end its tension on a crummy seaside pier?)

Thankfully, Coogan et al have chosen not to rest on their laurels and rely on old material for gags despite there being a wealth of them around in the character of Alan Partridge. It's a sly move, ensuring this cinematic outing has a freshness and British comic joie de vivre that's as addictive as it is amusing.


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The Wolf Among Us: Episodes 1 and 2 PS3 Review

The Wolf Among Us: Episodes 1 and 2 PS3 Review

Released by TellTale Games
Platform: PS3

TellTale Games has built itself a reputation on story telling, and that helped it to achieve wider acclaim with The Walking Dead game that was released last year (and has just had episode 2 of season 2 recently released onto the market)

So, the bar was incredibly high for The Wolf Among Us, another similar story, presented in a similar way with graphic novel visuals and point and press ways of interacting.

Based on Bill Winningham's Fables stories, the story which is currently unfolding is a prequel to that run. You take the role of Bigby Wolf, the sheriff of the town of Fabletown and who's called in to investigate a disturbance in an apartment block by Mr Toad.

However, when Wolf gets there, he finds not everything is as it seems and that it's hard for him to keep the residents of Fabletown hidden from the human world around him. Episode One, Faith, sets out the world, its inhabitants and proffers up a story that's engaging, beautifully presented and has all the grit (and language) of a gumshoe novel. As Bigby begins to trace what's going on, it leads up to a stunningly gripping cliffhanger that we've had to wait months for for the resolution.

Episode 2, Smoke and Mirrors, takes up that cliffhanger, but also puts you more in control of Bigby and the investigation. Whereas the first episode is a lot more about exploring, this second is more about the nitty gritty and minutiae of investigating a case and so grounds you more in the characters and developments within. You can unleash the nastiness within - as is evidenced early on in an investigation sequence which sees Bigby (and you) given the choice to beat the answers he needs out of a victim - and to be frank, delving into the darker side of the character seems right and natural as the story progresses.

Choices inform the path of the narrative and that's really what gives Telltale Games the edge they need - you'll come back to these for a second bite, another chance to go the other way and to see how that informs your overall experience - it makes for an engaging time on the console, rather than the feeling that you're constricted by the point and click nature of the game.

The Wolf Among Us is currently progressing, and if this review seems a little spoiler-lite, that's because the best way to play it is on your own, making your own choices and enjoying what transpires. It'll be very rare that any two games will be the same - and with episode two pushing the narrative further on, you'd be wise to jump into Fabletown now and play it episodically because there's something clever going on here; it's a subversion of what the gaming experience can be and it's definitely worth being part of.

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inFamous: Second Son: PS4 Review

inFamous: Second Son: PS4 Review

Released by Sucker Punch
Platform: PS4

It's your choice to be good - or evil.

The first two inFamous games were excellent fun, a heady mix of wanton destruction (if you so desired) or the chance to follow the path of righteousness as you guided Cole McGrath around the world.

But the final game in the series ended somewhat definitively, so there was no way another game could be anything but a reboot. And here it is...

Seven years on after the events that ended inFamous 2, you play Delsin Rowe, a Native American kid, who's prone to beanie wearing and street tagging. That puts him into conflict with Reggie, his brother and also the local sheriff (so, in effect, Delsin's moral compass). When a truck carrying three Conduits crashes in Delsin's reservation, he tries to help one who's trapped, but inadvertently gets given powers. Which, if you're a street kid, is a great idea - but if you're a hunted Conduit, pursued by the Department of Unified Protection (DUP), it's not such good news....

Confronted by the leader of the DUP, Augustine, Delsin's forced into a battle to save his people who are being tortured by her power. With time running out, he's got to find Augustine and save the day. Or wreak havoc, whichever you choose....

Delayed at the launch of the PlayStation 4, there was much hope for inFamous: Second Son. And a demo that I played recently seemed to indicate that action and fighting were the MO for this latest, with developers Sucker Punch choosing not to veer too far away from the things that made the other entrants into this series so damn popular.

READ A HANDS ON PREVIEW OF INFAMOUS SECOND SON

But what the demo didn't really show was the depth of the gameplay - it certainly showed the fantastic visuals of the open world gaming, with HD and Next Gen firmly coming into its own. Certainly, visually, it's never looked more beautiful - particularly once Delsin comes into contact with fellow conduit Fetch, the neon glows look stunning. In fact, the open world of Seattle where Delsin ends up is wonderfully crafted - from night time scenes to the daytime and the Space Needle, there's so much effort gone into the world around and it lends itself to simply hurtling around the skies or running up buildings to sample the designers' delights.

Yep, you can run up buildings in this new game - with a burst of vibrant neon stripes, Delsin can circle tall buildings in one bound. Other smoke powers mean he can use vents to zip from base to top - all without a hint of a glitch in the graphics. Which is good, because there are occasionally some glitches in the game - particularly at the start. In some parts I was able to walk through solid objects ( a pole in a street, a building wall) which was a real concern. A patch appeared to take care of that, but you'll have to remember to do that at the start or you'll suffer. And conversations on screen appear to conflict too, with some over-running on each other, making messages a little garbled. (The patch didn't appear to fix that and unless you have subtitles on, it makes it difficult)

And it's the powers which make inFamous: Second Son the fun that it is - sucking up smoke and absorbing neon ( as well as one other, which is equally as fun) mean you can blast the pesky DUP as you hurtle around the city (and you'll need to do that to free districts from their grip). Combat can be quite hard with some powers not quite cutting it at the start, but again, collecting blast shards from around the city will help you boost those powers the more you play. Initial fighting is with a chain (a la God of War) but upgrading to neon gives you a kind of light sabre lance that's great to use on unsuspecting baddies.

There's a feeling of familiarity though - it's very similar to the other inFamous games but just with the next generation elements thrown in to showcase the fact that it's on the PS4. That said, you get a chance to improve Delsin's street art by turning the DualShock into a spray can which is done by turning the controller on its side, shaking and spraying. (On a side note, keep an eye out for other street tags around the city - so far I've found Sly Raccoon - but who knows what else is out there)

Side missions keep you amused as you go from district to district, but they're very familiar as you usually end up in some conflict with the DUP - thankfully though the story missions prove engaging as you choose whether to corrupt or redeem fellow Conduits. This gives the game the chance to get a second run through - and it's up to you whether you come back to it.

The initial patch also brings up the PaperTrail missions, a side game where Delsin has to follow another Conduit and work on some murders, submitting evidence which is uploaded to an online profile. While it's not exactly multiplayer (and really how would that work in inFamous), it's an engaging enough activity.

While inFamous: Second Son may appear to have a degree of familiarity in terms of gameplay, there's no denying this latest is a lot of fun. It's a solidly playable open-worlder that is entertaining, engaging and a good showcase for what the PS4 can do - from impressively detailed cut scene animation to great time-wasting, there's definitely the feeling that inFamous: Second Son is an essential title and a sign that greatness is to come on the PS4.

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