At Darren's World of Entertainment - a movie, DVD and game review blog.
The latest movie and DVD reviews - plus game reviews as well. And cool stuff thrown in when I see it.
Call of Duty - Black Ops 3 tactical details revealed
In the Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 campaign, your soldier can access cybernetic modifications on the battlefield. Learn about Tactical Mode, Enhanced Vision, and the Tactical Rig enhancements.
You can watch the Official Call of Duty®: Black Ops III - Tactical Abilities video HERE.
DISGAEA 5: ALLIANCE OF VENGEANCE IN STORES NOW FOR PLAYSTATION®4!
NIS America is happy to officially announce that the next entry in the long-lived Disgaea series, Disgaea 5: Alliance of Vengeance is in stores now across Australia and New Zealand
About the game:
The sixth home console entry to the legendary Disgaea series tells a tale of revenge, and of rebellion. As a new and terrible Overlord named Void Dark seeks to enslave the countless Netherworlds, one young demon has stood to end his reign—Killia. In Disgaea 5, lead Killia and his tenacious army of rebels on their dark and dangerous path to vengeance. Filled with more over-the-top action and hilarious writing than ever before, Disgaea 5’s damage numbers are surely headed for the record books.
Features:
Alliance Attacks: New to the Disgaea series, your relationship with your teammates influences a new battle system called Alliance Attack. These special moves are only available to main characters and only when their relationships are appropriately aligned.
Recruitment: A familiar feature for Disgaea faithful, this system lets you choose from over 40 races and jobs, and identify new party members with the exact traits you desire.
Revenge Mode: A game about vengeance wouldn’t be complete without a character stat boosting system based on revenge, would it? The Revenge Mode empowers your characters with bonus stats when they’ve become fed up of their allies being beat on.
Explore the Netherworlds: While previous games in the series have shown a glimpse of the darkness that is the Netherworlds, Disgaea 5 takes you to a myriad of those dark lands.
Definitely over 9,000: In true Disgaea fashion, Disgaea 5 harnesses the power of the PlayStation®4 to deliver battles with a ridiculous number of enemies and outrageous damage.
Halo fans around the world will join together on Oct. 26 to celebrate the global launch of “Halo 5: Guardians,” one of the most anticipated games of 2015. Streaming exclusively on YouTube, “Halo 5: Live,” a six-hour live broadcast, will kick off at 6 p.m. EDT on Oct. 26 and culminate at midnight when “Halo 5: Guardians” goes on sale in North America. The broadcast will feature exclusive gameplay reveals, celebrity appearances, live interviews with the 343 Industries development team and much more.
“Halo 5: Guardians” is the most ambitious addition to the $4.6 billion sci-fi franchise to date, bringing together a gripping story, deep character narrative and teamwork-based gameplay. As a mysterious and unstoppable force threatens the universe, the Master Chief has gone AWOL and the UNSC’s elite man hunter, Spartan Locke, is tasked with hunting him down. As the pursuit unfolds, players can band together in a four-player cooperative epic that spans three worlds, or challenge friends and rivals in new multiplayer modes.
“‘Halo 5: Guardians’ is the game we have always dreamed of making, and it was important to us that Halo fans in every corner of the world could join us in an epic-scale launch celebration,” said Bonnie Ross, corporate vice president and head of 343 Industries. “Whether they tune into the live broadcast on YouTube or come out and celebrate with us in person at one of our global fan events, we hope Halo Nation will help make ‘Halo 5: Guardians’ the biggest game launch in Xbox history.”
Streaming a global celebration The “Halo 5: Live” broadcast will connect millions of fans around the world, allowing viewers to watch, comment and virtually participate in multiple launch celebrations held in key international cities. Microsoft is reinventing the traditional video game launch, inviting fans to join in the celebration, no matter where they are located. Festivities currently planned include the following:
The world premiere of “Halo: The Fall of Reach” episode one, the new animated series that tells the dramatic tale of the origin and intrigue behind the SPARTAN program that propelled characters like the Master Chief and Dr. Catherine Halsey into the pantheon of Halo lore.
The first Xbox roundtable featuring the writers behind “Halo 5: Guardians” and Nathan Fillion, the voice of Spartan Buck.
Special documentaries will get up close and personal with Halo superfans around the world, showcasing what makes Halo Nation unlike any other community in gaming.
A lucky fan in Australia will play “Halo 5: Guardians” from a helicopter flying over Sydney, as gameplay is broadcasted via a screen suspended from a second helicopter.
In London, iconic entertainment venue The Roundhouse will transform into a “Halo 5: Guardians” celebration, with a friendly tournament between four teams of YouTube creators and fans. U.K. fans can win a chance to attend the London event by visitinghttp://bit.ly/1REsmt6.
In celebration of a Halo superfan from Japan who has played over 10,000 hours of Halo, Master Chief and Agent Locke action figurines will travel to the edge of space for the most epic Gamertag selfie.
A Taiwanese cosplayer will bring his passion for the Master Chief to life when he collaborates with one of the hottest jewelry designers in Australia to recreate the Master Chief’s helmet with more than 30,000 Swarovski crystals. The one-of-a-kind helmet will be unveiled during the show and kick-start a chance for gamers around the world to bid on it for charity.
In New Zealand, Halo fans will converge at the close of the Armageddon Expo for multiplayer sessions, cosplay displays and more.
In Hong Kong, a real-life course inspired by the new “Halo 5: Guardians” competitive Arena multiplayer mode, “Breakout,” will be constructed, putting Halo fans into real 4v4 combat.
In New York City, a special fan destination will take place at the brand new flagship store Microsoft at Fifth Ave. and 53rd St., located in the heart of Manhattan and culminating in the midnight launch of “Halo 5: Guardians.”
Millions of our fans around the world are waiting in anticipation of the launch of ‘Halo 5: Guardians,’ so we wanted to do something special for them and launch a video game in a way that has never been done before,” said Aaron Greenberg, head of games marketing for Xbox. “We are excited to stream the ‘Halo 5: Guardians’ launch exclusively through YouTube so fans can share in a New Year’s Eve-like countdown moment together. Special fan events will take place at all Microsoft stores. All stores will be streaming the “Halo 5: Live” broadcast and are offering an exclusive Halo poster with a $25 purchase, early gameplay and more for the midnight launch of “Halo 5: Guardians.” Fans can also enter a sweepstakes to win a trip for two to Seattle for a tour of the Xbox and 343 studios. More information can be found on the Microsoft storeFacebook page. The full “Halo 5: Live” launch day programming lineup will be announced soon. Additional “Halo 5: Live” details can be found at https://www.xbox.com/Halo5Live.
n New Zealand, Halo fans will converge on the Logan Campbell Centre at the close of the Armageddon Expo for multiplayer sessions, cosplay displays and more in the countdown to midnight.
Cast: Tom Hiddleston, Mia Wasikowska, Jessica Chastain
Director: Guillermo del Toro
Gothic and ghastly in equal measure, Guillermo del Toro's Victorian-soaked Crimson Peak aims for scary chamber piece but ends up more as atmospheric attempt and in its final scenes, derivative and slasher silly. Period piece go to actress du jour Wasikowksa stars as wannabe novelist Edith Cushing (reference number 1) who ends up falling for society man Thomas Sharpe (Hiddleston), much to the consternation of long time friend and potential love interest, Doctor Alan McMichael (Sons of Anarchy star Charlie Hunnam). When her father dies brutally, Edith marries Sharpe, and moves to his somewhat spooky mansion in a remote part of England, where Thomas lives with his sister. But upon arrival, Edith's plagued by visions and begins to realise something's not quite right...
While The Frighteners-esque visuals and general atmosphere deserve to be richly commended as nothing short of a pre-Hallowe'en feast for audiences seeking their spooks, the high society melodrama elements of the story are lost in the mix as the maestro tries to weave a seductive tapestry but ultimately, ends up muddying some of the threads.
The haunted house vibe works superbly with del Toro's detailed eye, delivering the perfect mix of creepy corridors and moody mansion as well as throwing in some blink and miss it gruesome shocks from yesteryear. But, as the cameras pan down the long nightmarish corridors destined to haunt your darker nights by way of suggestion, it appears the cinematic cupboard is bare of real scares, preferring to let the chamber piece melodrama of icy and aloof Chastain, swarthy and sinister Hiddleston and stuck-between-worlds Wasikowska take centre stage. (Something which may surprise those looking for a things-that-go-bump-in-the-night thrill ride).
As the inherent mystery of the house, its inhabitants and its past all threaten to collide with hints of delicious promise, the coming together never delivers the coup de grace you are expecting. It's mainly due to the emphasis on the love triangle and the time taken to craft that section of the story, which doesn't quite hit the mark. There's no disputing del Toro's delivery of a magnificently moody atmosphere, but the prosecution weighs heavily against his would be "love makes monsters of us all" raison d'être.
And quite simply, the mystery of the siblings' bond is anything but original to anyone who's seen a horror film in the last 10 years.
Nods to Cushing and Mary Shelley as well as other inspirations are dispatched with ease early on and seem destined to play Del Toro's influence hand, but the script lacks a depth and retains an aloofness which will prove fatal to some audiences as it plays long and languorously out over its extended two hour run time. Special mention must go to the lavish costuming and the beautifully bedecked mansion. Equally, the eerie score by The Orphanage's Fernando Velazquez is incredible (seriously, stay for the start of the end credits to see del Toro's vision perfectly embodied), drenching this cinematic Victoriana in a richness which is hard to shake.
The build-up and the extended tease is perfectly executed, but the ultimate reveal and overplaying of the Gothic elements of the story leave more questions than answers and frustrate, rather than thrill and electrify. Ultimately, Crimson Peak is a masterclass in atmospheric execution and in influence, a sign that Del Toro's lost no sight of what makes a great film visually soar (some of the background detail over butterflies and insects really stand out); but a little more crafting of the love story and other elements could have made this haunted house drama a more enticing check-in prospect. Rating:
Rating: M Released by Rialto Sometimes inspirational stories and their subjects are failed by the leap to the big screen.
So it is with the well-intentioned but ultimately weakly executed Noble, a film that fails to inspire and live up to the legacy of Christina Noble, the Irish charity worker who underwent horrors in her formative years but began fighting the cause of the Vietnamese street children, leading to the creation of her children's charity foundation.
Moone Boy star (and also wife of director Bradley) Deidre O'Kane is the elder Noble who finds herself in Vietnam, after visions exhort her to do so. Exuding an irrepressible self-belief and confidence, Noble believes she can help the street children to better lives, despite the insistence of the authorities otherwise.
When Noble finds herself at a run-down orphanage after railing at God to lead her to her destiny, Noble discovers her work's cut out for her in among the sea of hands and wailing of unhappy children, wrecked by poverty and wracked by the after-effects of the likes of Agent Orange and abuse.
It's hard to describe the disappointment of Noble, a story that so fudges every major emotional beat and hides the true darkness of the abject horror that Christina went through. From her alcoholic father to her mis-treatment by nuns at the local orphanage, through to her gang-rape and consequent child being adopted out, Noble has a powerful story to espouse; a recognition of the strength of spirit in the face of such continued and sustained adversity.
But Bradley, who wrote and directed the piece, boils the whole thing down to its simplest moments, avoiding any of the true horrors from Christina Noble's book, Bridge Across My Sorrows, because it doesn't hold any truck with his attempts to please the crowd and manipulate them with piano-swelling music, aimed at telling you what to feel and when to feel it.
Some of the problem comes from drowning the film in too many flashbacks, from Christina as a young child in the grim settings of 1950s Dublin to the teen Christina dealing with disappointment and the evil that men do, without giving them space to breathe and us a chance to connect. The ebb and flow of the film doesn't help either with one-dimensional caricatures the only things to cross Christina's path.Things get slightly better with O'Kane's venerable and charismatic turn as the compassionate Noble, giving the road to enlightenment and selflessness more a humane touch. But again, the latter stages of her journey only feel more grounded in her limited interactions with Downton Abbey's Mr Bates aka Brendan Coyle as a potential benefactor rather than the fight against immigration or the powers that be.
The fact Noble ends with Coldplay's In My Place ringing out as the camera pans back to reveal the creation of Christina's clinic and the signifying that her endless fighting and suffering has resulted in something speaks volumes to the biopic's blandness and muddled execution. It's a travesty to Noble's legacy and a shock to anyone who's expecting some kind of subtlety for this film - if you're expecting to be inspired, there are other films which would serve you better than this.
Rating: PG Released by 20th Century Fox Home Ent magine an animation where Tim Burton's Gothic sensibilities met with portions of computerGrim Fandango's aesthetics and the whole thing was meshed together with an infusion of Mexican culture and heritage as well as filtered through Guillermo Del Toro's eyes... That in a nutshell is The Book of Life.
A story within a story, The Book of Life is the story of childhood pals Manolo (Luna) and Joaquin (Tatum) whose lives are intertwined by their love for Maria (Saldana). Their push and pull relationship catches the eye of two gods, La Muerte (Del Castillo) and Xibalba (Perlman) and forms the basis of a wager; if Maria chooses Manolo, La Muerte wins and if Joaquin wins her heart, Xibalba is triumphant....
The Book of Life is an unusual animation.
Its fiesta of Mexican culture, colours and vistas is a real blast to the eyes, and a sign that something different has been transposed to the screen as this Day of The Dead story is exposed to perhaps more culturally ignorant viewers.
Throw in some mariachi music themes of current stylings (such as Radiohead's Creep andMumford and Sons I Will Wait) and you've got somewhat of a pinata of cinema that bursts vibrantly as it's cracked open on the big screen.
Utilising ancient Mexican mythology and fusing it with old Greek stories such as the Ancient Gods' squabbles and an Orpheus-like Quest are just the icing on this cake - which is perhaps just as well as the story isn't quite as strong as it could be, feeling in parts like it's been stretched somewhat thin.
The animation is sumptuous; a veritable pot pourri of wooden puppet CGI creatures mixes with the aforementioned Grim Fandango aesthetics when the movie heads to the Land of The Remembered to brilliant visual effect; purples, greens and other hues burst from the screen to make the resulting film feel like something we've never seen before.
Tatum adds another string to his acting bow as the animated blowhard Joaquin; Saldana brings wide-eyed sultry to Maria and Luna leads an everyday appeal as the sensitive bullfighter who can't kill but can deliver a killer tune. Perlman, del Castillo shine as Xibalba and La Muerte and Applegate blends it all together as the narrator / story hook.
The only bum note is adding in Ice Cube - his involvement seems to pander to the kids purely as his duffle-headed comments and goofball sensibilities sing out from the screen. It's a rare moment that misfires but sours part of this spicy mix.
All in all, The Book of Life is a vibrant chapter of different animation; its story may not be the strongest, but its visuals sing loudly from the screen and proffer something entirely - and welcomely - different.
