The Bioshock Collection: PS4 Review

The Bioshock Collection: PS4 Review

Released by 2K Games
Platform: PS4

There's just something about the Bioshock series.

Being a newcomer to the gaming franchise, it was a PS Plus release of Bioshock Infinite back on the PS3 that really piqued my interest. With its heady mix of steampunk ethos and ominous overtones, there was just something about the series.

Swathed in mysterious touches, this return to the Rapture and Columbia is a great reason to own the set and play such an influential set of titles. In fact, given the level of story-telling the game feels like a next generation release in many ways for a re-release.

While the 1080 adds a crispness to the oppressive nature of all of the games, it's raison d'etre as a remaster is whether it's still playable - and all three of these titles stand their ground exceptionally well after being released nearly a decade ago. Details in the architecture feel crisp and look stunning - and even though this is not a sandbox game and areas are clearly marked for exploration and no going outside the lines, it still manages to be worth ploughing plenty of time into.

The first Bioshock title as the oldest is the one with the most poured into it, with graphic upgrades and a swish PS4 based coat of paint. And even Infinite's recent release doesn't tarnish the look and feel of the game on the next gen console; with stereo surround sound too, this clutch of titles borders on the quite terrifying as people come hurtling toward you from the dark. The suspense and spookier elements as you take on the despotic leaders is palpable and 2K Games have done more than enough to justify this as a release.

Ultimately for a remaster and a re-release, while this doesn't exactly shake up the gameplay techniques or reinvent the wheel, what it does do is show a vital collection needs a place in the next generation shelf.

The Bioshock Collection is living proof of that - for those yet to invest in the worlds, it's a great reason to have the series and for those wanting to relive the best moments of an undoubtedly influential series, this is an absolute must have.

Win a double pass to see Marvel's Doctor Strange

Win a double pass to see Marvel's Doctor Strange

To celebrate the release of Marvel's Doctor Strange, in cinemas October 27th, we've got 2 double passes to win to see the film!

About Marvel's Doctor Strange

From Marvel comes “Doctor Strange,” the story of world-famous neurosurgeon Dr. Stephen Strange whose life changes forever after a horrific car accident robs him of the use of his hands. When traditional medicine fails him, he is forced to look for healing, and hope, in an unlikely place—a mysterious enclave known as Kamar-Taj.

He quickly learns that this is not just a center for healing but also the front line of a battle against unseen dark forces bent on destroying our reality. Before long Strange—armed with newly acquired magical powers—is forced to choose whether to return to his life of fortune and status or leave it all behind to defend the world as the most powerful sorcerer in existence.

“Doctor Strange” stars Benedict Cumberbatch, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachel McAdams, Benedict Wong, Michael Stuhlbarg, Scott Adkins, Benjamin Bratt with Mads Mikkelsen and Tilda Swinton. Scott Derrickson is directing with Kevin Feige producing. Louis D’Esposito, Stephen Broussard, Victoria Alonso, Charles Newirth and Stan Lee serve as executive producers. Jon Spaihts and Scott Derrickson & C. Robert Cargill wrote the screenplay

Join Strange on his dangerous, mystifying, and totally mind-bending journey when Marvel’s “Doctor Strange” opens in NZ theaters on October 27th.

To be in to win, simply answer the two Marvel trivia questions below and simply email to this address: darrensworldofentertainment@gmail.com  and in the subject line put STRANGE. 

Please include your name and address and good luck!

Marvel trivia questions - 

Which actor plays Doctor Strange in Marvel’s Doctor Strange?
a. Tilda Swinton b. Mads Mikkelsen c. Benedict Cumberbatch d. Chiwetel Ejiofor

Which actor plays the fanatical Kaecilius? 
a. Tilda Swinton b. Mads Mikkelsen c. Benedict Cumberbatch d. Chiwetel Ejiofor

 

Now You See Me 2: DVD Review

Now You See Me 2: DVD Review

Rating: M
Released by Universal Home Ent

It’s all about sleight of hand in the sequel to 2013’s NowYou See Me.

And much like the central illusionists themselves, behind the smoke and mirrors, there’s not as much going on as perhaps you may imagine in this slickly distracting film.

In Now You See Me 2, the band of magicians, the Four Horsemen have been forced undercover after their last heist.  With Isla Fisher’s Henley taking flight from them, the trio of Daniel Atlas, the presumed dead Jack Wilder and Merrit McKinney (Eisenberg, Franco and Harrelson respectively) find their group hit up by Lizzie Caplan’s Lula, who’s desperate to join their number. 

With their ringleader, the FBI mole Dylan Rhodes (Mark Ruffalo), they plan to spring back to the public attention by exposing a tech boss who’s about to launch a new product and who’s been misusing private details.

But the tables are turned on the gang, when someone reveals them at the launch, forcing Dylan on the run and sending the remaining Horsemen to Macau and into the domain of Daniel Radcliffe’s Walter. Under pressure to steal a chip that can access any computer in the world (bonjour, MacGuffin), the group’s got to overcome their own fractures to save themselves and the day…

As ever, it's about the misdirection in this slickly executed caper once again, but equally, character takes second fiddle to the set pieces. Once-over-lightly characters again thrive throughout; Eisenberg's Atlas is given an ounce of jealousy, Harrelson's McKinney is saddled with a bouffanted, tanned and toothy twin; and Ruffalo's Rhodes is landed with an emotional arc where he seeks vengeance for his father's death all those years ago.

While Radcliffe really makes little difference to the film as a rather wet behind the ears villain, it's a refreshing Kaplan whose place in the sequel gives it the life and energy that's sorely needed throughout. Perky and enthusiastic, she gives the film the zing that a sequel deserves, where the plot sags and appears tired.

Admittedly, as with the first, much of the film is about the set pieces and Chu delivers a central sequence involving a card and a chip inside a secure institute that whirls past the eyes. Flashy and slick, it's certainly a sign that the prestidigitation of illusionists can keep you entertained; but as ever, it comes down to editing and choreography (it's no surprise David Copperfield is involved behind the scenes).

Slickly entertaining, and more a sequel that doesn't really need to exist, there's no denying thatNow You See Me 2 will amuse those looking for popcorn entertainment and who enjoyed the first. Whether the trick is on the audience though is another matter - much like the first, once the razzle dazzle of the illusion is stared at for too long, this watchable heist caper that's essentially a retread of the first and which turns some of those conclusions on their head, begins to crumble in the light of day.

Inferno: Film Review

Inferno: Film Review

Cast: Tom Hanks, Felicity Jones, Ben Foster, Omar Sy, Sidse Babett Knudsen, Irrfan Khan
Director: Ron Howard

The fourth Robert Langdon book heads to the screen courtesy of Dan Brown's paranoia and Ron Howard's direction.

With Hanks once again reprising his role for a third time as Professor Langdon, it's a tale of amnesia, over-population concerns and a good old fashioned chase movie.

As the film starts, Langdon wakes in a hospital bed where a doctor Sienna (Felicity Jones) tells him he's been shot and has a head wound caused by a bullet grazing him.

Unable to work out what's going on, Langdon, along with Sienna (who turns out to be a fan of his) is on the run amid concerns a global virus is about to be unleashed thanks to a genius called Zobrist (Ben Foster).

With time against them, and a series of chasers closing in, can Langdon solve the puzzle and save the day?

If ever a film was so jammed with conspiratorial edges and paranoia, as well as po-faced portentous dialogue such as "Humanity is inhuman" and "The sixth extinction will be our own", Inferno is that film.

With allusions to Dante's Divine Comedy and inferno, black death imagery, hellish sights given life on the streets via Langdon's visions, flashes of kidnapping, the film's so chock full of stuff happening that it merely disguises the fact there's little going on beneath the surface.

It starts at breakneck speed under Howard's guidance and doesn't really let up or give you the chance to breathe and allow for the contrivances to be accepted as it hurtles through Europe and Italian streets and landmarks.

Hanks is solid as Langdon and Jones is intelligent as his acolyte aide (it's like Doctor Who given a new assistant each time these films come out as Langdon receives a new pretty exposition partner), but there's never really much of a vibe between the pair of them to propel the film through.

Far more successful is Hanks' pairing with Westworld's Babse Knudsen towards the end of the film. As the film slows and the pace drops, the scenes between the two of them develop a lilting humanity and bittersweet edge, lifting proceedings from what is a fairly ludicrous chase movie throughout. Equally welcome, though narratively brief is Khan's shadowy leader, who adds humour to the proceedings that grow increasingly dour and border on the stiffly dull.

With its schlocky edges and predictable twists and turns, it feels like it's a few years too late on the scene and while the book diverges from its own ending to something more sanitary and audience pleasing, it feels like it has no courage of its convictions.

Inferno is the cinematic equivalent of a pulpy paranoiac, writ large; an airport thriller riddled with holes and pretensions, perfect for a journey but forgotten the moment of touchdown.

In many ways, thanks to its dullness, it's the cinematic equivalent of Purgatory.

Marguerite: DVD Review

Marguerite: DVD Review

Rating: M
Released by Universal Home Ent

Hollywood's already brought us this tale and in a relatively short space of time in the form ofFlorence Foster Jenkins starring Meryl Streep, but this French version of the same story is an eminently classier version.

This time it's 1920s Paris and it's the story of Marguerite Dumont, a wealthy woman who's a patron of the arts and opera. Imbued with the delusion that she's a good singer, her tone is less than aurally pleasant.

However, when a journalist Lucien Beaumont writes a review of her performance, Dumont misinterprets the barbs within and furthers her delusion of singing to the masses. So, deciding to organise a concert for others to enjoy, Dumont's dysfunctional belief deepens...

Marguerite is a different beast to the all together fluffier Florence Foster Jenkins.

Dividing the story up in to five chapters and setting the whole thing in some sumptuous period details is mightily beneficial.

Unlike the delayed gratification of its Hollywood counterpart, Marguerite wastes no time in showing off Dumont's dismal drone which helps make the film a different beast. Admittedly, there is still no fuller explanation as to why Dumont was encouraged to sing and why no-one took the time to be honest with her, but there are subtleties in this version that hint at the adage of never being cruel to someone face to face.

Interestingly, the film digs deeper into the after effects of Dumont's delusion, with a hospitalisation chapter hinting at a breakdown that doctors are trying to treat. There's a sympathetic touch deployed by Giannoli that's involving, and a tone that's set which is more endearing than a straight out laugh fest.

Unfortunately, if Frot delivers a stronger performance and a more heartbreaking approach in a slightly over-long film, some of the other side plots don't fare as well.

Theret is impressive as the singer brought in early on and a side-plot involving her career and potential relationship with Dieuaide's Beamount is torn asunder from the narrative with a few lines thrown in that make no sense and lead to too much for the audience to draw on.

Macon as the husband and Denis Mpunga as Mandelbos the house servant present nuanced turns as carers for Dumont; the former realising too late the damage his indulgence and laissez-faire attitude have wreaked. Elsewhere Mandelbos is clearly devoted to Dumont and it becomes his way into the film for the rest of us.

Ultimately, Marguerite's folie a deux attitude is more successful than Frears' broader take on the subject. Thankfully, a restrained performance from Frot, covered in earnestness and heart make her Dumont a character not a caricature (an important difference that Frears overlooked) and consequently makes Marguerite a film that gives more of a psychological take on an enigmatic subject.

Though admittedly, if I never hear a mangled version of The Queen of the Night aria again in my lifetime, it'll be too soon. 

Newstalk ZB Review - The Girl On the Train, Deepwater Horizon and Money Monster

Newstalk ZB Review - The Girl On the Train, Deepwater Horizon and Money Monster

This week on Jack Tame, I took a look at the new thriller The Girl On The Train starring Emily Blunt and Deepwater Horizon with Mark Wahlberg.

And there's a quick look at the George Clooney real time thriller, Money Monster.

http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/on-air/saturday-morning-with-jack-tame/audio/darren-bevan-the-girl-on-the-train-deepwater-horizon/

Florence Foster Jenkins: DVD Review

Florence Foster Jenkins: DVD Review

Released by Universal Home Ent


There is a comic nugget between Morecambe and Wise and composer Andre Previn where Eric Morecambe astounds Previn by playing a piano concerto at odds with what is expected.

Asked by Previn what he's doing, Morecambe, with Ernie Wise stood proudly over his charge, tells him that he's "playing all the right notes, but not necessarily in the right order". 

The delusion that both Morecambe and Wise have in this very famous sketch extends to Stephen Frears' film of the deluded wannabe soprano singer Florence Foster Jenkins, as a collective mania sets in over her talent (or lack thereof).

Set in New York in 1944, with the depression of World War II hanging over them, Streep is the aforementioned singer, who entertains friends 25 years after founding The Verdi Club. At her side is the renowned (but awful) monologuist and husband St Clair Bayfield (Grant, who is arguably the real star of this piece).

Deciding that she needs a pianist, Jenkins and St Clair end up hiring Cosme McMoon (The Big Bang Theory's Wolowitz aka Simon Helberg) who is aghast to see Jenkins cannot sing and those around her continue to nurture her delusions with sycophancy and lavish her with praise.

But as Florence Foster Jenkins' star continues to rise, she sets her sights on playing Carnegie Hall - to the dismay of McMoon and the panic of St Clair.

To say that Florence Foster Jenkins is a crowd-pleaser is an understatement.

(It's also the second such film about Jenkins since French film Marguerite last year channelled similar vibes).

Much of the first third of the film is set in delicious anticipation of Streep's delivery of Jenkins' mangling of music - and Helberg's nuanced facial reactions as she first warbles (sounding like a chicken gargling and also being strangled) are priceless, pitching the film in its glory.

However, Frears' film comes to rely on Streep's musical interludes once too often as the rest of the biopic plays out - and while Streep imbues her eccentric socialite with degrees of sadness and tragedy, as well as pathos and delusion, there are only elements of why she is like she is laid out, meaning she ends the film more of a delicious enigma than a fully rounded character. 

Granted, there's a perverse pleasure in watching Streep warble out of tone with such conviction, but the film relies on this too much as a crutch to carry it through.

Helberg's subtle performance delivers much to the proceedings but his underdeveloped edges don't help further this into much of a character piece for McMoon, a man whose inner conflict of playing the ultimate venue versus his own integrity could have proved such fertile ground.

Thankfully, in among Frears' excellently realised period details, Grant emerges in one of the best performances of his life. His St Clair is an actor who's come to the realisation that he's good, but never destined to be great - and his revealing this gives the film an underlying tone of melancholy that's greatly welcomed. 

It is Grant's film through and through and he throws all his mannerisms into a turn that's swathed in sadness, love and is ultimately strangely rousing as he throws all his support behind someone who is clearly destined to fail - it is love incarnate and is inspiring to see as he tries to buy off reviewers, sets up invite only concerts and bury the evidence out of nothing more than devotion.

Where Frears' film falls down though is its refusal to hit some of the harder edges it needs - it shies away from exploring Jenkins' delusion, only hinting at the tragedies that have shaped her present (and never once explaining why nobody has told her she could never sing). 

While it could be explained away with the same schadenfreude that sees people embracing clearly bad acts on current day talent shows, the inference that America was in need of a laugh during the end of World War II and needed healing is left sorely under-mined.

Ultimately, Florence Foster Jenkins is a light frothy film that could have been a little more with some tweaks here and there. It tantalisingly offers a glimpse at the why, but gets distracted by its own desire to grandstand Streep into performing badly. It's not a bad film by any stretch of the imagination, but there's a feeling this charmer could have hit more of the right dramatic notes if it had wanted to by embracing some more of the sadness inherently within.

Rating: