Love and Friendship: Film Review

Love and Friendship: Film Review

Cast: Kate Beckinsale, Chloe Sevigny, Stephen Fry, Tom Bennett
Director: Whit Stilman  

There can be no denying that Whit Stilman's Love and Friendship is a dizzying take on the meshing of an Austen novella, first published back in 1871.

Occasionally aloof and wrapped up in its own whimsical way with prose and the machinations of Beckinsale's Lady Susan, this piece is a pacy comedy mocking manners and cocking a snook at stuffy period pieces of the time, while still enjoying the trappings of such tropes of the genre.

For the period comedy, it’s off to the 1790s and to the world of “most accomplished flirt” and recently widowed Lady Susan Vernon (a good Beckinsale, revelling in the wicked ways of the word and general dispatches of disdain) whose desires to find a husband for herself and her daughter consume her daily interactions.

And that’s really rather it for the plot of Love and Friendship, a film that’s more concerned with a once over-lightly approach to many of its characters – and an approach which bizarrely suits Stillman’s execution rather masterfully.

Employing the actors to stand directly facing the camera while posing and posting sarcastic text on the screen is one of the more bravura touches of the piece, simultaneously acknowledging the source material and also negating the need for expositionary introductions that would waste time in an already slim and taut running time.

Beckinsale excels in the role and demonstrates a lighter touch which has hitherto been unexplored and could see her destined for awards season if some are to be believed. While her Lady Susan moves from one portion of the chess board of life to another, it’s clear she has her intentions in focus, even if sometimes, the script demands more from the audience. This is not a film which stops to let you catch up or stoops to pander to the common denominator. And it’s also not a film that has a traditional Austen heroine, with Beckinsale’s Lady Susan having more in common with Clueless than other period fare.

If Beckinsale impresses, it’s clearly Tom Bennett as the blithering fool Sir James Martin who steals the comic limelight. His rambling and delight at the simplest of things suggests a naïvete that borders on idiot and is reminiscent of Hugh Laurie’s bumbling in Blackadder. However, his introduction comes at a great point for the film which begins to feel lost to anyone thanks to lighter characters and brief dalliances with them. And certainly his belief that there are 12 commandments is a delight to watch as he struggles with the idea that it could be anything different.

Perhaps though the lack of stronger male characters gives this piece a feminist watch that’s har  d  to escape and yet also delightful to revel in. This is a world where the women conduct the affairs and twirl around society with the men struggling to keep up – on this front, Stillman’s embracing cameras and sweeping dialogue shots do much to keep the viewer engaged.

Ultimately, Love and Friendship is a film of froth; a light adaptation that is a dizzying but slightly sophisticated affair, a film that revels in language and character and one that's grounded by a performance from Kate Beckinsale that will have you thinking twice about what she's done before.

Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates: Film Review

Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates: Film Review

Cast: Zac Efron, Adam Devine, Anna Kendrick, Aubrey Plaza
Director: Jake Szymanski

Loosely based on the antics of real-life brothers Dave and Mike Stangle, who placed an online ad in Craigslist, this raunchy comedy knows exactly what it wants to do - and manages to achieve it without any level of class or originality.

Wedding Crashers for the next generation it may aspire to be - but be assured, it ain't.

Efron (straight-laced) and Devine (hyperactive, bordering on severely irritating) are Dave and Mike respectively, who have a habit of boorish behaviour and going too far damaging family celebrations. With their younger sister's marriage on the horizon, Mike and Dave are ordered to get respectable dates to the big day, to ensure everything goes to plan.

So placing an online ad, the duo meets plenty of prospective plus ones. But striking out, they come across Alice and Tatiana (Kendrick playing ditzy and Plaza playing trademark deadpan with an edge of sassiness) who appear on the surface to be nice safe girls.

However, it turns out the girls are even worse than the boys....will the big day go ahead?

Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates is the kind of raunchy, crass, brain-dead frat boy party antics flick that is the very definition of leaving your brain at the door and ensuring you have a skinful before you sit down to watch it.

It also comes with the caveat that you have to be puerile in your acceptance and outlook as well to fully appreciate and get on board with the humour.

While Efron and Kendrick downplay their respective roles after initially ratcheting up the goofy unlikeable factor early on, Devine threatens to derail the whole thing with an OTT turn that borders on severely irritating thanks to gurning, screeching and generally being as dumb as is humanly possible.

It's great to see Kendrick playing off type, and Plaza clearly has a deadpan blast, but none of these are unforgettable characters and while the bro-ing of all of them (is the female equivalent a bra-mance?) is a nice touch in terms of ladies can do it too, the whole thing feels dumber than a bag of spanners.

There's a kernel of a nice story waiting in the wings (one laments late on in the piece as the inevitable schmaltz sets in that they thought they were destined for great things but have never achieved anything) but it's sacrificed in favour of some relatively forgettable set pieces that linger as long as the lights are down in the cinema, before disappearing in the haze of reality.

Vulgarity is the order of the day and Szymanski never sets his sights above that, but what would you expect from the writers of the Bad Neighbours series? However, there are arguments that it doesn't go far enough.

There's an over-riding sense of repetition to get the point across, and while Kumail Nanjiani of Silicon Valley delivers some of the best moments of the film in a brief cameo, the obligatory out-takes show more fun was being had than what was being recorded.

All in all, Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates does exactly what you'd expect.

But if you're looking for something that will be added to the pantheon of R-rated films like Bridesmaids and The Hangover for the millennials, this is totally forgettable, utterly disposable and ultimately a dimwit escapade that goes nowhere fast but will sadly satiate a portion of the box office audience.

(Oh, and is it now obligatory in any Zac Efron film that he needs to remove his shirt?)

Ice Age: Collision Course: Film Review

Ice Age: Collision Course: Film Review

Vocal cast: Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Adam Devine, Simon Pegg, Nick Offerman, Jennifer Lopez, Melissa Rauch, Queen Latifah
Director: Mike Thurmeier, Galen T Chu

There's a moment in the fifth Ice Age movie (yup, not a typo) where woolly mammoth Manny asks "Did I hit my head? What's happening here?".

It's a question that many will face in this latest instalment of the admittedly gorgeously animated tale of the three friends Sid, Manny and Diego (Leguizamo, Romano and Leary respectively).

This time around, the gang's facing extinction after an asteroid meteor is set on a collision course with Earth by Scrat who's up in space still trying to get that elusive acorn. (This time around, Scrat is a propeller of opportunistic plot, rather than a great lunatic aside). With Buck (a brilliant Simon Pegg) along for the ride, the group tries to work on a plan to prevent the inevitable happening and stop them all being wiped out.

But for Manny, there's more terrifying prospect - losing his daughter to perky newcomer Julian (Pitch Perfect and Modern Family star Adam Devine) who's about to marry her....

It's churlish to suggest Ice Age: Collision Course adheres to the law of diminishing returns because to be frank, with its silly puns and zany antics of both Scrat and Buck, there's lots for the younger kids to engage with and keep amused during the upcoming school holidays.

However, any semblance of logic or consistency of narrative's been abandoned this time around for ACME style silliness that defies belief and throws everything at the screen to service anyone who's ever been in previous Ice Age movies.

Despite some clever insertions and throwaway references to 2001, Cocoon and The Planet of The Apes denouement, as well as Neil de Grasse Tyson, Ice Age Collision Course jettisons any kind of smarts for a series of loosely connected moments.

Chief offender among these is Scrat, whose antics up until now, have proven fertile ground for interludes that have been separate to the movie's actual goings on. This time, with Scrat in space, firing around beams that rocket into planets like snooker cues, the charm wears quickly thin. That's not to say that his shenanigans aren't amusing, more that they don't really do much except perfunctorily propel the narrative.

Back on Earth isn't much better either, with far too many characters to be serviced and a narrative that's too cluttered by far. Poor Diego gets badly sidelined with little to except a piecemeal plot involving kids, and even Manny's plight and enforced message of accepting growing up feels a little weary and hoary as the film goes on.

It's perhaps a good sign though the Blue Sky animation work is excellent, with sequences feeling fresher than the plot they're servicing and CGI work that brings depth to all elements of Manny et al's world.

Ultimately, the kids may enjoy the more out there elements of the story of Ice Age Collision Course, and the film was clearly never going to fulfil its potential extinction storyline, but Ice Age Collision Course's story is severely lacking.

If this is the cinematic extinction of the gang, its exit, based on this entry alone, won't be mourned.

Red Dead Redemption on Xbox One Backward Compatibility Coming Friday, July 8th

Red Dead Redemption on Xbox One Backward Compatibility Coming Friday, July 8th

Today we're happy to announce that Red Dead Redemption will be released as part of Microsoft’s Xbox One Backward Compatibility program this coming Friday, July 8th.

Starting on Friday, every Red Dead Redemption Xbox 360 owner will be able to play the game directly on their Xbox One, regardless of which version of the game they own (Red Dead Redemption, Undead Nightmare and Red Dead Redemption: Game of the Year Edition). And for those who have yet to experience it, the game will be available to purchase on Friday from the Games Store on Xbox One.

Stay tuned to the Newswire for more details

Swiss Army Man: NZIFF Film Review

Swiss Army Man: Film Review

Cast: Paul Dano, Daniel Radcliffe, Mary Elizabeth Winstead
Director: Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert

"People don't like other people's farts".

It's this line which will sum up the polarising but utterly beautiful Swiss Army Man, the story of Paul Dano's Hank, a man who's stranded on an island with no hope. Setting up a noose to relieve him of his own life, Hank's life changes when he spots another person washed up on the beach.

This is Manny (Harry Potter's Daniel Radcliffe) - but the problem is Manny is a corpse.

Well, a farting corpse - that Hank saddles up and rides off the island like a jetski. But the pair end up lost in the woods and Hank struggles to freedom, while reflecting on his life.

Mixing the profound and the puerile, Swiss Army Man is like nothing else at the movies at the moment. (And is potentially why people walked out at screenings at Sundance).

A meditation on life and love that's occasionally punctuated by flatulence at the start, Swiss Army Man is actually an incredibly moving piece that may or may not be told by an unreliable narrator. Whether it is a descent into madness and sanity or a realistic story remains deeply in question once the film's ended, but what's clear is that the directors have crafted a flick that's as visually engaging and crammed with original visual ideas as anything from Michel Gondry.

Surreal in parts, and laugh out loud humorous, with an ethereal soundtrack that builds on loops and riffs on meditations of love, as well as human connections, both Dano and Radcliffe are incredible in a kind of Pinteresque Godot type survival story that crosses Castaway and Wilson.

It could do to lose some of the more bottom obsessed moments, but equally some of the earlier scenes with the farting bizarrely add to a level of humour that transcends the childish. And there's a profundity throughout that's ultimately quite moving.

Mixing spirituality, existentialism and life, the fresh and utterly original Swiss Army Man is a hallucinatory and melancholy trip that's worth taking. It's an affecting and tragic film that speaks to loneliness and reeks of the sincerity of co-dependancy of the human condition.

Animation Now! Q&A with director Malcolm Turner

Animation Now! Q&A with director Malcolm Turner

This year's New Zealand International Film Festival is also going to be the springboard for animation.

With the announcement of Animation Now!, New Zealand’s own dedicated festival of animation as part of NZIFF in Auckland.

Its programmer is Malcolm Turner, who for 20 years,  has been providing NZIFF with a popular survey programme of ‘year’s best’ animated shorts titles: Animation Now.


The launch of the new Animation Now! Festival in Auckland seems like a canny move. Why has this taken so long?
It's something we've talked about internally for quite a while. There have been a number of things that have conspired against pushing the "go" button until now - mostly 'boring' things such as venue issues, timetabling issues and things like have been the headwinds facing launching the festival. But the substantial increase in the number of entries (over 4,000 this year) and the rapid simplification of the technologies relating to screening material have been among the 'push' factors that encouraged us to create the Animation Now! Festival this year

Animation at NZIFF is perhaps one of the truly universal experiences for all ages, does that give you a feeling that you can be bolder with some of your selections for this mini curated event?
Probably the main thing that allows us to enlarge (or to make more bold) the programming now that we have a festival structure to use is all that extra 'real estate'. There is only so much that can go into a single program but by launching the Animation Now! Festival we not only have a lot more room for more films, we have a structure that allows us to explore themes, genres and styles in a lot more depth.

What's your favourite of the films you've programmed and why?
Well, I love them all of course. But "The Sparrows Flight" is a film that really synchronises with my passion for animation as an artform - apart from being a wonderful film in its own right, it is a kind of encyclopedia of animation styles and techniques complete with a built in hand guide for how they work. And "Velodrool" is pure animation magic - it's absolutely a grade A textbook example of the unique properties of animation.

Blind Vaysha (Trailer) from NFB/marketing on Vimeo.


Blind Vaysha and Go to City ELE were 2 of the best I saw at the launch event you put on, but equally two of the most diverse in execution - how hard is it to juggle such polar opposites?
Well, it's much easier now that we have the Animation Now! Festival structure to work with. But even so, the beauty of short films is exactly that - they're short .... the start, they run and they end. It's reasonably easy to fit a roster of fairly diverse films into even a single programme, the real trick is finding a sympathetic (or provocative) screening order that helps the programme become more  than the sum of its parts.

How is the animation section faring globally - was it difficult to curate down into programmes and selections?
Globally auteur/independent animation is booming. As I mentioned early we had over 4,000 entries to contend with. Curating them into programs is a process that becomes more difficult as you go. Ultimately we are not programming a specific number of films but are working to a definitive number - being the number of minutes of screen time. Typically each program is about 75'00 long and the hardest part is always getting any given program down to that number. I find the pain usually sets in around about the 150'00 minute mark. It's usually not too bad up until then but trimming off the last hour and a bit always leaves great work off the list.
A COAT MADE DARK- Trailer from Damien Byrne on Vimeo.

Star Trek Beyond goes boldly for KidsCan...

Star Trek Beyond goes boldly for KidsCan...

KIDSCAN AND KARL URBAN PARTNER WITH PARAMOUNT PICTURES NZ FOR EXCLUSIVE ADVANCED SCREENING OF STAR TREK: BEYOND

Today, we are beyond excited to announce that Auckland Star Trek fans have an opportunity to be amongst the first in the world to see the highly anticipated next instalment in the globally popular franchise, Star Trek: Beyond.

Thanks to a partnership between KidsCan NZ and Paramount Pictures, as well as support from Karl Urban and Event Cinemas Broadway, there will be an exclusive early screening of Star Trek: Beyond - the first public screening in New Zealand, and one of the first in the world.

All proceeds from ticket sales for the screening will go directly to KidsCan, to aid its important, on-going mission to provide food, clothing and basic healthcare in schools to allow disadvantaged Kiwi kids to reach their full potential.

The screening has come together with support from star of the film and long-time KidsCan ambassador Karl Urban. KidsCan CEO Julie Chapman says, “Karl’s been supporting us since 2009 and we’re incredibly grateful that he continues to be so generous. We see him as a great role model for the children we support.”

STAR TREK: BEYOND – Special Advanced Screening

Sunday 17th July, 6.30pm

Event Cinemas Broadway

Tickets available now: www.kidscan.org.nz/star-trek-beyond

Star Trek: Beyond releases to the public on Wednesday 20th July.