Dawn of the Planet of the Apes: Blu Ray Review

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes: Blu Ray Review

Rating: M
Released by 20th Century Fox


The latest Planet of the Apes outing sees the film continuing from the end of the 2011 Rise of the Planet of the Apes, which concluded with a viral plague starting to sweep the planet.

Picking up ten years on with most of the earth's population wiped out by this plague of virulence, the Apes are now the dominant species, thanks to their genetic development in the first film. But when Caesar (an utterly incredible Andy Serkis) and his tribe inadvertently meet a band of human survivors, the fragile agreement they reach is shattered by a lack of trust.

With factions of the Apes not trusting the humans, and with Caesar urging them to give the humans a chance, division is imminent - and could threaten all species...

Dawn Of The Planet of The Apes had such ape expectations piled upon it after the intelligent and digitally impressive first film - and boy, does it deliver in spades.
Starting a close up of Caesar's eyes (an image which book-ends both the beginning and end of the movie), the film is gripping and tense from start to finish. The opening sequence sets everything up - but subverts expectations as the apes hunt for food; relationships between father and son are defined as are tensions between Caesar and Koba (Kemmell) - both of which threaten to boil over when the humans arrive.

It's a testament done to Joe Letteri and his digital team at WETA, that when in fact they do show up, the live action creatures are the lesser on screen species in more ways than one. While the underwritten Clarke and Russell relatively impress in this Last of Us style world that's evolved from the plague and Oldman hams it up beyond belief, they can't hold a candle to the digital apes who, not only visually impress and feel natural, but deliver emotion in great heaps and more expression than some actors ever muster. In fact, it's even more intelligent this time around, as we dizzy from leader to leader's viewpoint in a film about prejudices, the choices faced by those in power and a timeless story of power struggles and betrayal. It's a universal tale which has been told many times before - and even echoes some of what happened to the real Caesar from within.

There's plenty of action on hand as well - from all out war (with gun-toting apes on horseback turning on the humans) through to birth of new ape life, every gamut is explored and every emotion exploited to maximum effect.

Quietly and patiently, Reeves weaves a tale of such power and impressiveness that you can't help but be swept along with it all.

Once again though, it's the digital team at WETA and Andy Serkis who are the stars, giving us creatures that we care for and characters that we side with as the tensions rise and the factions split with horrific consequence; subtle differences in faces and eyes give us more than we need to hang onto and the creation of the world within (from Ape Commandments no less) a place we can identify with. It all feels natural and not one digital moment has been thrown in to simply show off. Serkis, if anything, deserves to get some kind of award for his ongoing impressiveness in expression and emotion for the work done on Caesar.

Dawn Of The Planet of the Apes is a sequel which surpasses the intelligence and action stakes of the first; it's an excellent and masterful movie that deserves to be seen.

All hail Caesar and his Apes of Wrath - long may they reign.

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Snowpiercer: Blu Ray Review

Snowpiercer: Blu Ray Review

Rating: M
Released by Roadshow Home Ent

From director Joon-ho Bong, Snowpiercer's set in a future where the human population has pretty much wiped themselves out with global warming.

After finding the Earth was heating up too quickly, scientists discovered a way to cool it all down and ironically, froze the planet and killed everyone off apart from a rag tag band of survivors who inhabit a train that travels around the world.

Divvied up into classes within the train, tempers are fraying - and revolution is in the air.

Lead by Chris Evans' Curtis, the time has come for change - and when the powers that be head to the lower ends of the train inhabited by the lower classes to snatch some children, everything boils over. With a full blown assault underway and those at the front of the train desperate to quell this uprising, it's a fight for survival as the group tries to push their way through to the front carriage and change their lives for the better...

But the closer they get to their goal, the higher the personal cost....

Snowpiercer is a curious film (it's based on a series of French graphic novels) which blends action with some truly stunning production values, brilliantly realised.

Joon-ho's created a visual dystopian world within that impresses; from the grimy gritty nature of the tail end of the train where Curtis' people live in an oppressed huddle to the more luxurious front sections where the select few live it up, each door that Curtis unlocks releases a visual feast more splendid and excessive than the last.

Snowpiercer doesn't skimp on action either - with the director creating some visual smackdowns that impress and thrill in equal measure. A showdown on the train as it heads into a long tunnel is a terrifying proposition brilliantly executed and sickening in equal measures. A clash in a primary school section as well is shocking in many ways, incorporating indoctrination and lots of bullets in a way you'd never expect.

Likewise, Tilda Swinton is fantastic as the leader of the opposition, a pastiche of Thatcher with Deidre Barlow; her presence helps keep the film out of the stuffy po-faced territory and her Northern English accent is a sight to behold.

Visually, the glimpses of the frozen vistas are excellently executed, as life outside the train is showcased. The effects work is impressive and sparingly used.

But it's not perfect.

Parts of Snowpiercer feel too episodic by their very nature and don't quite hang together as the group unlocks a door, goes through that section of the train and onto the next part. Narratively, the thread dangles a little weak and a little too loosely as it plays out.

And there's one portion towards the end of the film where Evans just doesn't deliver the powerful punch it needs. A speech about the hardships they've faced feels overcooked and over-explained, lacking emotion at a crucial stage and over using exposition that's unnecessary. (There are flashes of this throughout, leaving you to feel that the whole thing's been overtly hammered home when it didn't need to have been and when the subtlety would have aided the power of the message.)

All in all, Snowpiercer tries to deliver a commentary on the classes' system - and for the most part it does so successfully, but the overall feeling is one that it could have delivered a lot more as you board this blockbuster on its 2 hour journey. 

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ZB movie reviews - NightCrawler, The Drop and The Babadook

ZB movie reviews - NightCrawler, The Drop and The Babadook

http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/on-air/saturday-mornings-with-jack-tame/audio/darren-bevan-the-drop-the-babadook-and-night-crawler/

The Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra: Be Mine Tonight Tour Review

The Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra: Be Mine Tonight Tour Review

It was Auckland's turn to host New Zealand's premiere touring troubadors of the ukulele variety.

In the relatively intimate surroundings of the Winter Garden at Auckland's Civic Theatre, bathed in a stage of red light to match the red carpet, there was an inter-generational buzz awaiting their arrival.

From the young to the very old, everyone was here to have a good time as the band continued its Be Mine Tonight tour in support of their first ever full album release.

READ THE WIUO'S TRACK BY TRACK ANALYSIS OF BE MINE TONIGHT

With expectancy at a poised fever pitch, the band doled out 7 rules over the speakers before filing out in front of everyone and launching into their cover of Brooke Fraser's Something in the Water. You know what to expect most of the time with the WIUO (no bad thing) - lush harmonies, beefed up choruses and a damn good time. The child in the front row whose feet couldn't touch the ground was having a damn good time - because I saw her little spindly legs rocking back and forth the moment the band struck up.

But as the group took in a smattering of some of their old faves and select tracks from the new LP with their usual charisma-filled performance, there seemed to be something slightly different about them this time.

Sure, there was electricity in the air - but it was also there on stage with some howling feedback affecting the end of a couple of their songs (Team by Lorde and Jezebel were slightly hit by it) - and more surprisingly, there were a few electrical instruments - an electric uke here, a guitar there. For the couple of purists next to me in the audience who'd come to lap up the stripped back harmonies and rousing simplicity of the singalongs, it was a bit of a shock.

However, it represents the growth of the band and to be honest, howls aside, it didn't dampen any of their enthusiasm for their onstage antics, their boundless energy and their ability to awaken the joy in your belly and send it on its way to your face.

After Raylene, Jezebel, some Afternoon Delight, Wake Up, an almost gospel like Happy by Pharrell, a tour to Tahiti and Hawai'i, the first half concluded with their frankly anthemic version of David Kilgour's Today's Gonna Be Mine ( a song which gives me goosebumps every single time I hear it) that left the crowd reeling and hoping the interval was nothing more than a brief interlude.

A second half saw a couple of surprises and ensured the Civic's builders were going to be needed to deployed after the roof was raised.

Shorty Street star Amanda Billings and long time secret band member is touring with the WIUO this time and stepped up to the plate for E Ipo; as did Th'Dudes' star Peter Urlich to shake his money maker on their cover of Be Mine Tonight, which concluded with a stunning solo from band member Steven to rapturous applause.

It was here really that the band completely found their groove, won over the crowd and ensured the second half would send us all into the stratosphere. Following up with heart-felt and singalong fave Heartache, the always theatrical and expressive Andy led the audience to a fervour before Gemma and Age gave us a Second Chance to remember.

Clothed in cricket whites, Age's lead on Howzat (whose chorus always reminds me of the UK Pearl and Dean cinema intro) had an energy and vitality which was contagious; a kid invasion accompanied Megan's next turn on stage and showed why the band has such a universal appeal before Sam, replete in self-made onesie, gave us a 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover that led to cheers from within the growing rabble on the floor.

Choosing to end with Counting The Beat (and getting Peter Urlich back on stage was a master-stroke for the second half (like David Kilgour was in the first) because it summed up the essence of what the WIUO does when it's on fire. They get you up on your feet, singing along, and dancing like crazy thanks to their contagious and infectious energy, sending you out into the world with a joy in your heart.

The WIUO are a clever bunch; they always leave you wanting more and this time was no exception (even if the second half felt a little stronger than the first); as a group of friends and musicians, they've got the mix completely right and the new album shows they're heading on a slightly different path without forgetting their roots.

When it comes to their live shows, you'd have to be a real grouch to leave with a frown on your face - and I don't believe there's such a thing as a bad WIUO show (certainly from what I've experienced before); the band's growing in musical depth and performance as tonight's show demonstrated.

That's no bad thing at all - jump on the WIUO bus; their destination is Good Times, via stop-offs for Singalong, Grin Central and Charisma city. It's a musical journey you won't forget.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer is here

Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer is here

It's finally here - the one thing that fans have been waiting for.

It's the first trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens!

Far Cry 4: PS4 Review

Far Cry 4: PS4 Review

Platform: PS4
Released by Ubisoft

Far Cry 3 was epic.

It was a mix of a good solid story set in an open world environment that challenged you every step of the way, thanks to a despot determined to take you down.

So Far Cry 4 had a battle on its hands to try and up the ante on the next gen console.

Thankfully, while Far Cry 4 doesn't truly deviate from the last outing, it does make a compelling argument for the next gen release.

While there are similarities in plot ideals to Far Cry 3, Far Cry 4 is set in Kyrat, a fictional area of the Himalayas (which look truly outstanding on the console front). You play Ajay, a Kyrati who's heading back to the region to dispose of the ashes of your mother. But on arrival at a border and about to head into the region, the bus Ajay's on is ambushed by local tyrant Pagan Min (a sort of Patrick Stewart-esque looking character with a sweep of blonde hair) who has a connection to Ajay.

Within moments, you're flung into the depths of a civil war, where you discover you have the capability to tip the balance of power....or die trying.

Far Cry 4 is exceptional open world gaming.

From firing it up initially after the story had kicked in, I found myself engrossed and immersed in the world within; so much so, that I actually spent a day deviating from the main story to explore the island, get involved in side quests and unlocking parts of the maps by taking out radio towers spouting Min propaganda. Which should give you an indication of how much can actually be done in the game - and how far the scope is.

If you want to spend time checking out the animals or hunting them for their skins, you can. (Though watch out for the vicious little tykes the honey badgers which aren't exactly welcoming) Danger lurks at every angle - from the mercenaries waiting to take you out at outposts to the hidden creatures within the waters, there's something gunning for you whenever and wherever.

It's fair to say that for the most part, Far Cry 4 expands on its predecessor without significantly deviating far from the path of what was laid out before. Sure, the menus have been given a spit and polish, the crafting screens and loot bags all look a lot swankier than before, but the nuts and bolts of the game haven't changed too much. Thrown into the mix are Karma missions (such as freeing the hostages) which help you level up and give you a chance to work on your stealth. The PS4 version's got the chance to invite players who don't own the game along to the co-op mode, a nice touch which shows Ubisoft's not content to simply rest on their laurels and leave you to it.

The story's relatively predictable and there are rumours that there are multiple endings and alternate endings to Far Cry 4 which change everything before, but to say more is to spoil them - Pagan Min makes a psychotic adversary and is a welcome addition to the lunatics running these asylums.

Beautiful vistas, a sense of scope, a smattering of intelligence and endless amounts of time to be spent playing mean Far Cry 4 is well worth owning. While in parts it feels like a Far Cry 3 retread, the revisions and spit and polish for the PS4's grunt make it a vital addition to your collection - and a chance to escape the summer rays inside over the coming months.

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Locke: Blu Ray Review

Locke: Blu Ray Review

Rating: R13
Released by Madman Home Ent

One man, a car, (relatively) endless road, a bluetooth and a pile full of problems.

That's what's facing Tom Hardy in this one man movie now on home viewing after the success of the NZIFF earlier this year.

Tom Hardy plays Ivan Locke, a foreman for a construction company, whose life is carefully built on very solid and precisely maintained foundations. Which are about to crumble around him in emotionally catastrophic terms.

As the movie starts, Locke is leaving the site at the end of the day ahead of a major piece of work for the company he's with. Waiting at a traffic light at the start, he literally faces a fork in the road with either turning left or right determining his path through the oncoming storm.

And to say any more than that would be to betray some of the emotional beats and bombs which go off during the piece, which reeks of claustrophobia and a degree of unexpectedly mundane tension.
A soft spoken Welsh accented Hardy is eminently watchable in this piece and commands the screen for the 100 minutes of its run time - writer Steven Knight's crafted together something which may polarise some in terms of reaction and expectation over tension, but he's brought together a series of events that have long reaching consequences for all involved as Locke deals with many on the phone as the real time "thriller" plays out. Kudos also have to go to the voice acting talent - from the likes of Broadchurch star Olivia Colman, Luther star Ruth Wilson and Sherlock's Moriarty Andrew Scott, but it's Hardy who's the star of this piece. Occasionally the veneer and carefully constructed exterior starts to slip - notably with conversations to a passenger that only Locke sees in the back of his car but Hardy manages to sell all of these moments with an undying commitment to the one man show.

Like any piece of theatre that's confined to just one person, Locke rises or falls on the central performance and it's one which Hardy delivers with an unswerving devotion to the character; the only threats faced on this journey are occasional traffic and rain, but the personally devastating roadblocks which Locke faces are eminently relatable, occasionally amusing and utterly watchable.

This is one journey that you need to be a passenger on.

Extras: Audio commentary, behind the scenes

Rating: