Star Wars Rebels: Season 1 Review

Star Wars Rebels: Season 1 Review

Rating: G
Released by Sony Home Ent

The Star Wars series shows no sign of abating.

With a new Star Wars movie on the way and the Force fever reaching higher levels, the animated series Star Wars Rebels will satiate the fans to a level that's almost as addictive as the animation itself.

Set 5 years before the original trilogy and after Revenge of The Sith, the series follows a motley group of rebels on board a ship (The Ghost) as they fight the Empire. From an orphan who discovers use of the Force (Luke Skywalker anyone) to a Jedi, the crew's a good mix of characters and give  a spikiness to the Rebel Alliance's birth.

Having the characters interact with old fan faves certainly doesn't harm the show's place in the canon as the 15 episodes play out. Individual adventures loop with an overall theme and build to a conclusion that Star Wars fans will adore. Equally the cartoony graphics are perfect for the vibe; they never stray too far from expected boundaries and yet look bright and fresh enough to attract new fans.

Star Wars Rebels: Season 1 manages to straddle nostalgia and the future very well - it's a great addition to the existing universe and will keep all ages happy until December 17th....

The Blacklist: Season 2: Review

The Blacklist: Season 2: Review

Rating: M
Released by Sony Home Ent

James Spader continues his charismatic turn as Red Reddington as the second season of the breakaway hit, The Blacklist continues.

Teaming up with Megan Boone's Liz, the battle continues against arch-enemy Berlin (Peter Stormare) as secrets continue to be revealed and nothing's ever as it seems. While working episodically, the series also threads in a raft of conspiracies and bigger picture questions while never fully answering them.

Spader's charisma carries a lot of this series through as the darker elements come out, but Megan Boone's Liz also balances things out. Equally impressive this year is the level of guest stars - from the likes of Peter Stormare to Alan Alda (one episode featuring his character ranks among the series best) to Mary Louise Parker and Ron Perlman, the calibre is mightily impressive.

And just when you think things are heading towards getting a little stale, the series throws up an end of season twist that's delicious and spices things up for year 3. Thrilling and entertaining in equal measure, The Blacklist is compelling TV, even if it does occasionally hit a weekly slump.

Outlander Series 1, Part 2: Blu Ray Review

Outlander Series 1, Part 2: Blu Ray Review

Rating: M
Released by Sony Home Entertainment

Diana Gabaldon's Outlander books series continues to be adapted for binge-worthy TV in the second set of the Outlander TV series.

Time-travel, romance and a fair whiff of naughtiness pervades this historical love story series centring around nurse Claire Randall, who finds herself whisked back in time and stuck in the skirmishes between Redcoats and Highlanders.

The second half of season 1 sees things take a darker turn as Black Jack Randall's presence begins to be felt, and Claire's attraction to Jamie grows, but her separation from her modern day husband starts to bite.

A moving story that rarely stays still, an attraction between the two leads and smattering of threat keep Outlander from feeling stale - though it has to be said, fans of the genre will find more in this series that's wonderfully evocative than casual viewers.

Claire's character is an interesting one and her reactions to each situation ground the fantastical elements in a way that feels enticing and welcoming; it doesn't hinder things that Catriona Balfe and Sam Heughan have a chemistry that's palpable.

It's a reasonably strong series that works on a few levels, but Outlander remains a more adult version of a Twilight style series; longing and desire worked in with historical elements add a lot and ultimately, the series will endure as the Scottish myths have,

The Night Before: Film Review

The Night Before: Film Review

Cast: Seth Rogen, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Anthony Mackie, Michael Shannon, Lizzy Caplan, Mindy Kaling, Jillian Bell
Director: Jonathan Levine

Putting the crass into the Christmas holidays, Seth Rogen returns for an annual assault on the season after last year's near apocalyptic The Interview.

This time ploughing rather more frat frantics than low brow political satire, Rogen is Jewish Isaac, who along with Anthony Mackie's Chris, has every year for the past 13 years spent Christmas with their mutual friend Ethan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) after he was orphaned at this time of the year.

However, this Christmas is going to be different as Isaac's on the cusp of fatherhood and Chris is a growing athlete juggling success and sponsorship. In search of the Holy Grail of Christmas parties, the trio decides this year will be their last of bad behaviour and ho-ho-hos under the tree.

The Night Before is a patchy film that goes for low-hanging fruit and picks every one of them off the tree without fail but without any kind of flair.

These three less-than-wise men booze, sniff and inhale their way through New York as each of them takes on their own personal quest and demons. Mixing in this with the obligatory holiday spirit and eventual mush of the season with a large portion of other white stuff, this film's about as irreverent as it can get - as you'd no doubt expect from a Rogen / Goldberg screenplay.

There's a degree of heart from Gordon-Levitt's character as he battles a bit of holiday blues and post-break up depression from Lizzy Caplan's Diana, but to be frank, this film aims for hedonism mixed in with It's a Wonderful Life / Christmas Carol and barely strays too far from where it's aiming.

Despite Michael Shannon's brilliantly comic turn as a high school teacher turned drug dealer / pothead, and the obligatory showbiz cameos - and a great return from Tracy Morgan, The Night Before runs out of gags and steam by barely half-way through. Rogen's increasingly deranged Isaac's on the run from himself, fuelled by drugs given him by his wife - moments of humour are wrung from this set up but they all ultimately feel aimless and scabrously scatter-shot (even if one pay-off involving the crucifixion shows some residual smarts) when placed in the overall context of a 1hr 40 min movie.

As the film descends into an inevitable cornucopia of cameos and the inevitable happy ending mush is piled on, this Christmas Carol riff on friendship through the years lays out its message to the kids - it's hard to stay in touch as time goes on, but make the effort one character intones. Something that no doubt its mainly frat boy puerile audience will nod vehemently at before life takes hold.

It may sound like a Christmas Grinch to dismiss The Night Before and there's no denying there are some laughs to be had, but the stop-start ramshackle nature of this drug-fuelled nightmare before Christmas is more no-no-no than ho-ho-ho; it's nothing short of seasonal excess with a terrible cinematic hangover once the lights go up.

Rating:

The Guest: Blu Ray Review

The Guest: Blu Ray Review

Rating: R16
Released by Roadshow Home Ent

From the director of the brilliant You're Next comes a thriller that for some will cast a new light oncousin Matthew from Downton Abbey.

Dan Stevens stars as David, a former soldier who one day shows up on the doorstep of the Peterson family, claiming to have been a friend of their son who was killed in action. Not wanting to appear unkind, the family invites him to stay while he gets settled.

However, as David spends more time with the family, there are a series of deaths, leading daughter Anna (It Follows star Maika Monroe) to suspect him.

Lurid and trashy, revelling in its 80s attitude and soundtrack, The Guest is a hyper-stylish thriller that works on many levels, inveigling its way into your consciousness.

Stevens drops the Downton charm and impresses with his nonchalant and detached exterior belying the menace within his character, but continues to drop hints thanks to underplayed looks and momentary glances. And Monroe, who was so impressive in It Follows, cements her credentials as an up and comer as Anna, who balances paranoia and growing up in equal measure.

Wingard's latest is a genre piece in many ways with the retro feel seeping its way through but without soaking it in past glories. A synth soundtrack sets the tone for the ultra-violence, but there's more than just the music to admire; while the explanations as to what's going on may be a little lacking (there's no doubt you may feel a little cheesed at never getting the full picture), the film's ambiguous and mysterious tone works as it heads to its conclusion.

The Guest is a thriller that works on many levels, a powerful blast of retro fused with the modern and cements Wingard's place as a genre master.

Rating:

Newstalk ZB Review - Talking Mockingjay Part 2, Secret in their Eyes and Ground We Won

Newstalk ZB Review - Talking Mockingjay Part 2, Secret in their Eyes and Ground We Won

This week it was the brand new Hunger Games movie, a look at the remake of Secret In their Eyes and on DVD, a brilliant look at heartland rugby in The Ground We Won

http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/on-air/saturday-mornings-with-jack-tame/audio/darren-bevan-the-hunger-games-mockingjay-part-ii/

http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/on-air/saturday-mornings-with-jack-tame/audio/darren-bevan-the-hunger-games-mockingjay-part-ii/

Deathgasm: Blu Ray Review

Deathgasm: Blu Ray Review

Rating: M
Released by Roadshow Home Ent


There are 666 reasons to enjoy Deathgasm.

This bold opening statement has no basis in any kind of fact, but should give you some idea of how the winner of the Make My Horror Movie competition turned into a real winner at the New Zealand International Film Festival.

It's the story of metalhead Brodie (a relatively tender Milo Cawthorne, playing alienated and real) who is shipped off to his Christian aunt and uncle in Greypoint, a small community in New Zealand. As if having a mother who ended up sectioned wasn't bad enough, Brodie finds this dead-end community isn't much better, thanks to bullies, school and having family who are "balls deep into Jesus."

Thankfully, his solitude is lightened by his love of metal and his friendship with fellow rocker Zakk. Along with two other outsiders, they form a band. But things go somewhat haywire when the group plays an unrecorded song from their idols, which they happen to find in an abandoned house with a pentagram in it.

That tune unleashes the imminent arrival of the apocalypse as everyone around becomes possessed by demons....can Brodie save the day?

Bloody silly, Deathgasm is a pure-popcorn treat.

With an eye for the gags and one-liners (perhaps, occasionally, it indulges itself a little too much), it's a riotous feast of sight gags, practical effects, sweetly earnest love-story, and betrayal. Basically, director Jason Lei Howden knows exactly what his audience wants - and delivers it in spades of gory laughs.

Granted, there are puerile moments. But who can turn down a slow-mo fight to death with demons with dildos as your weapon of choice? Or chainsaws up the backside for the bad guys? Deathgasm delivers what it promises in spades, but always with an eye for a great unexpected visual gag here and there and a zippy punchy script that's as self-knowing as it is silly.

For a film that's put together on a budget, the writing is, for the most part, strong (I have some reservations about the slightly inconsistent nature and actions of one of the lead characters) with a searing eye for never losing sight of Brodie while clamouring to deliver the fun one-liners.

Devilishly good fun, demonically funny and satanically silly, the splatter-fest of Deathgasm represents another cult classic in the making.