The Evil Dead Anthology: Review

The Evil Dead Anthology: Review

Rating: R18
Released by Madman

Collecting together the original trilogy and the 2013 re-imagining of the Evil Dead (filmed in Auckland), the anthology is the definitive set for films of Sam Raimi's cult classic - and is only being released in Australasia.

With Bruce Campbell as the hero of the piece, you pretty much know the story - possession of the woods, an army of darkness from skeletons and a chainsaw for an arm - it's all the trappings of a cult and it's endured for years.

Pulling together the films onto Blu Ray and throwing in 3 extra DVDs of documentary and featurette stuff really does the set justice and warrants the extra cash. Complete with a book of drawings and a sculpted Kandarian dagger that's a testament to model-making, the set is designed to drive the true fan into a frenzy.

The transition to HD looks great and Invaluable a doco about the series is guaranteed to hook people in to this groovy and seriously genre-defining series.

If you're a fan of horror and serious about the Evil Dead series, then this set can't afford not to sit on your shelf. With a HD remaster that looks the business, an inside look at its enduring appeal, Madman's gone all out to ensure that finally a set dedicated to a film or its series feels like the definitive article.

Extras: Too numerous to mention, making of, trailers, outtakes, life after Death doco, commentaries - a wealth of material.

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Night At The Museum 3: Secret of the Tomb: Film Review

Night At The Museum 3: Secret of the Tomb: Film Review

Cast: Ben Stiller, Robin Williams, Ben Kingsley, Ricky Gervais, Owen Wilson, Dan Stevens
Director: Shawn Levy

So, the final installment of the Night At The Museum trilogy is unleashed, with the deaths of both Mickey Rooney and Robin Williams hanging over them (to whom the film is dedicated).

Ben Stiller returns as museum night guard Larry, who finds that the magic tablet of Ahkmenrah is decaying for no discernible reason, threatening the very existence of everyone in the museum. Convincing his boss (an uptight Ricky Gervais) to send him and the tablet to the British museum to reunite with the other half of the expedition that discovered it, Larry, his son and a gang from the museum head abroad.

But as they head to the British museum, their presence brings to life everything there - causing problems for Larry and the gang.

Night At The Museum 3: Secret of the Tomb is an uneven film, mixing in some nice emotional beats with a glut of CGI shenanigans and an OTT performance from a dashingly deluded Sir Lancelot played by former Downton Abbey star Dan Stevens.

Granted, a film that has a giant monkey peeing on Steve Coogan and Owen Wilson's mini-characters (to stave off lava from Pompeii) isn't promising to deliver much, but at times, it feels like Stiller et al are really phoning it in as they essentially go through a retread of the first film and the CGI shenanigans you've seen before.

And yet, in parts, the creatures in the British museum offer a degree of freshness even if the cast are simply moving from one corridor to the next, going through the episodic motions of a familiar farce. There are also some amusingly adult elements to the dialogue too with Larry remarking on how Attila the Hun was hacking into a dolphin like it was in The Cove and a certain cameo near the end offering up some smartly silly laughs. Equally, a showdown within an Escher painting brings a vital shot of cinematic creativity to the fore, an all too brief interlude before the cliched film resets to its default.

But too many of the scenes throughout drag on with strained banter that goes back and forth without any real punchline; too many opportunities feel wasted and the characters you know and love from the series are simply trotted out one last time because it's the end of the road.

There's no denying the poignancy of Robin Williams' final scene as Teddy Roosevelt, a last blast of sincerity and warmth which is punctuated with a manic rug-pull so endemic of Williams' own approach. It's a more than fitting send off which is then cruelly robbed of its emotional resonance just moments later in a lazy epilogue scene guaranteed to provide the sap and sentiment needed to wrap everything up happily ever after.

There's something to be said for Night At The Museum 3: Secret of the Tomb: its CGI (while over-used) brings real life into the creatures and will amaze the younger generation (much like David Attenborough's recent Natural History Alive special). But the lack of any real freshness or fizz within the cliched story and its execution (Larry's strained relationship with his son, everyone coming to terms with their place in life) lets down Night At The Museum 3: Secret of the Tomb quite badly, and leaves you with a feeling that you're quite glad that this exhibition is now being shut down.

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Merry Christmas to all

Merry Christmas to all

It is of course, Christmas Day today - and to wish you all a very Merry Christmas is of course, an obligation.

However, whether you're with family, without family, working or away from those you love or have had a difficult year, this shot of Baymax and Hiro from Big Hero 6 will give you the festive impetus you need to get through the day.

A very Merry Christmas to all of the readers of Darren's World of Entertainment - I really appreciate the support and wish you all the best festive tidings of the year.

Stand by for 2015 - it's going to be massive for films and games!

Mr Turner: Movie Review

Mr Turner: Movie Review

Cast: Timothy Spall, Paul Jesson, Dorothy Atkinson
Director: Mike Leigh

Renowned directorial miserabilist Mike Leigh teams up once again with actor Timothy Spall to bring to life the final 25 years of the canvas of Brit painter JMW Turner.

In this biopic, we witness the life of Turner as he rambles from one moment to the next in this relatively plotless film that makes more of its garish characters than anything else.

As we join Turner in a truly gorgeous opening shot with windmills in the background, Leigh pans to reveal the silhouette of the relatively rotund artist delighting in his daubings. It's a moody yet whistfully evocative shot that sets the tone for the piece as it shows how far Turner will go for his art, how dismissive of his apparent family he was - other than his beloved father, his interactions with other artists at the Royal Academy of Arts and his trips away to another wife and another life.

Throughout all the swirling of life's great canvas and negotiating through this 150 minute journey is Leigh regular and Brit stalwart Spall. He's already collected accolades for this portrayal of the relatively unlikeable man, who grunts his way through interactions like some kind of superior pig, revelling in acrylic muck. But throughout the bottom-gruelling biopic, Spall is the guiding light within as Leigh's direction and script do little to pander to the cultural ignoramuses who may attend this.

Some of Spall's best scenes come when he lets Turner's guard down; a fumbling desperate sexual encounter with his housekeeper, a breakdown after his father's death while attempting to draw a prostitute and an interest in the invention of the camera towards the end of his life show a man creatively trapped and lacking the respect and the public admiration from his time. Spall does little to hide his Turner from the vile, and uses it to his advantage bringing the man vividly to life.

While Leigh's eye for the visual is never anything less than stunning, with seaside vistas and shots of Turner tied to a ship's mast to help his recreation for his art being just two of the moments which stand out.

But all in all, Mr Turner is a film about more than broad brush strokes; it's just a film that left me relatively cold in terms of emotion; granted, Spall's character work as the pot-bellied Turner is nothing short of awards-worthy - particularly in the sequence where his father dies., but the emotional pull is distinctly lacking and the relative repugnance of the man does more to drive you away than pull you in.

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Begin Again: Blu Ray Review

Begin Again: Blu Ray Review

Rating: M
Released by Roadshow Home Ent

How do you follow a massive hit like Once?

As any musician will tell you, the second album syndrome is a difficult one to break through - and in the case of Once director John Carney, it's a case of maybe repeating yourself but on a bigger canvas with a wider appeal.

This time, it's the story of two disparate broken souls in New York; first, Ruffalo is Dan, a music producer who's not had a hit for years and who's just parted ways with the record company he founded with pal Saul (Mos Def); secondly, there's Greta (Knightley) , a UK singer / songwriter who's just split with her boyfriend, rocker Dave Kohl and is contemplating heading back to England.

Their paths cross at an open mic night, where Dan sees the potential in Greta and who is determined to get her signed up. With the power of no record label behind him, Dan pitches the idea that Greta will record an alfresco album with New York being the canvas for her to musically paint on, an idea that appeals to her opposition to overly produced music.
But along the way, both find themselves facing upto some home truths and looking to repair some broken bridges - from an ex wife and disenfranchised daughter (Dan) to dealing with an ex (Greta).

Begin Again is about as mainstream a feel-good romantic drama as you can get - a recognition from Carney that he can't repeat Once without swamping his next attempt in something so incredibly middle of the road that it becomes bland and mass marketable.

It's not without its occasional charm though; a brilliant visual flourish early on sees Dan focusing on the arrangement around Greta's open mic turn as she sings on. Instruments spring to life around her, as if operated by ghosts and it's a daring insight into how the creative mind works. Sadly, it's the one and only original touch in the piece that's just about as soulless and bland as the music that inhabits within.

Ruffalo has a rugged edge to Dan, a man who's teetering on the broken and looking for a way back up; a man whose fast-talking has worked for him before but who's now faltering in a world that no longer apparently needs him. And Knightley does as well as she can with a one-note character, who's initially strong but who falters into mediocrity once the on street recording of music starts and she inevitably begins to be a part of Dan's life and his domestic issues.
Ruffalo feels the most fleshed out of the characters with scenes of his relationship with his ex (Keener) giving the feeling of a past; contrast that with parts of Greta's story as she deals with the fall out from her ex (played by Maroon 5 singer Adam Levine), which feels cliched and stereotyped.

The saccharine levels of this rise pretty quickly as the sounds of the streets of New York form part of the album and the film - even if it's the tourist / picture postcard spots which form the majority of the locations. Throw in a cameo with a rapping Cee-Lo Green, it's all so sanitised and bland that Begin Again starts to feel like the complete antithesis to Once, a middle of the road creation that covers all the bases without any hint or frisson of excitement. (It's even got James Corden as a loveable busker....)

As a breezy piece of romantic drama, Begin Again will be to many people's cup of tea, but with a predictable story and pleasant acting, there's so much sugary inanity on show that it left me seeking a dentist after it had ended.

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Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris: PS4 Review

Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris: PS4 Review

Platform: PS4
Released by: Square Enix

The Tomb Raider reboot last year was one of the best games to hit the PlayStation.

Gritty, and with a depth of character for an action heroine, it was an engrossing piece that swept you up in the world and gave you something to enjoy.

Equally enjoyable but for different more disposable reasons is Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris, an isometric gamer that works better if you play with a group of people rather than solo.

Once again, you get to take hold of Lara in a new adventure that's fairly light in content but simple in execution. Picking up where 2010's Guardian of Light left off, this arcade style game (that's reminiscent of Gauntlet and Dead Nation) is a fairly stylistically simple piece that's not really about graphics, other than in its glorious cut scenes.

Lara's on a journey to the Egyptian pyramids when she inadvertently stirs Set, an Egyptian god of destruction and sets in motion a chain of events that could signal the end of the world. Along with fellow explorer and rival Carter Bell and a couple of gods, Horus and Isis, the group tries to revive Osiris to save the day.

Occasionally a top down view can make judging surroundings hard and climbing things difficult, but for the most part it fuels down some gaming which feels very much of an arcade game at its best. Collecting gems a la God Of War from urns and shooting hordes of enemies with your duel guns (as used by your right stick) the game's mechanics are breezy and easy to accommodate.

Artifacts, relics and weapons can all be collected and equipped; a staff can be used in something like Raiders of the Lost Ark style burning of other creatures and problems, but once in a while you'll have to employ the grey matter to help you as well as the fellow team-mates. While Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris plays fine as solo, it's really more suited to a co-op experience although that can lead to some screen frustrations if characters lag behind or you're desperate to push on.

Perfectly disposable, utterly fun, Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris is a game suited to the ADD Generation; if you want to invest hours within it, you'll be rewarded. But equally, if you just want to blitz through a few levels to kill some time, you'll also find your lack of patience deeply satiated.

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Skylanders: Trap Team: PS4 Review

Skylanders: Trap Team: PS4 Review

Platform: PS4
Released by Activision

Toys, there's just something endlessly enduring about the collectible nature, the little plastic figurines and the Pokemon-got-to-get-them-all mentality.

Skylanders was one of the original starters from the franchise and was ahead of the game before Disney Infinity swept in and stole some of their gaming thunder. So, a fourth iteration of the series has some way to go to try and ensure the series doesn't fall prey to heated up competition.

For those who've never played Skylanders before, this is a good place to jump in with a starter pack coming with a base and the ability to reuse old toys again. In among the gaming, the idea is that you can trap other characters within the game by defeating them and using the trap panel on the base to your advantage. But you need to have the right element to capture these characters too, with the developers ensuring that you have to stump up more cash to get them on your side.

Bright colours, simple mechanics and a desire to ensure you've completed all of the areas means that this is addictive and financially draining to any completist out there. But with the fact that the villain's capture throes fade from the TV into the Trap box is a cool little touch which makes it feel like it's not just a simple cash in on any front.

The game manages to bring some life to the toys but doesn't quite leave you feeling that you are being a little short-changed in that you can't access other games and content without opening up your wallet.

The Skylanders set is clearly aimed at the kids and it'll work in much the same way that Disney Infinity has - it captures their imagination, leaves them dazzled with bright colours and ideas and has them clamouring for you to get them more sets.

As summer's here, and the push for family entertainment is getting harder to fulfill, it's clear Skylanders Trap Team will work for those rainy days. The need for further content will be clearly obvious to older game players, though I suspect the youngsters of the families won't care about that and will simply spend hours on this action-platformer game that's definitely going to trap them.

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