NieR: Automata 'Glory To Mankind' Trailer

NieR: Automata 'Glory To Mankind' Trailer

GLORY TO MANKIND!

NEW TRAILER EXPLORING THE STORY OF

NIER: AUTOMATA AVAILABLE NOW

SYDNEY, 14^TH February 2017 – Square Enix Ltd., today unveiled a brand new story-driven trailer to introduce fans to 2B, 9S and A2, the assembled army of androids enlisted to help reclaim mankind’s disturbing dystopia in the upcoming action-RPG, NieR: Automata™.

In NieR: Automata, Humanity has been driven from the Earth by mechanical beings from another world. In a final effort to take back the planet, the human resistance sends in 2B, 9S and A2 in a hope to destroy the invaders. A war between machines and androids rages on... A war that could soon unveil a long-forgotten truth of the world.

The new “Glory to Mankind 119450310” trailer is available on YouTube or below

NieR: Automata is developed by SQUARE ENIX and PlatinumGames Inc. and will be available on 10^th March 2017 for the PlayStation®4. A free playable demo is also available to download now from: http://bit.ly/2k9txbV.

Silence: Film Review

Silence: Film Review

Cast: Andrew Garfield, Liam Neeson, Adam Driver, Yosuke Kubozuka,
Director: Martin Scorsese

Rounding off Scorsese's religious trilogy (Kundun, The Last Temptation of Christ), the occasionally bum-numbing Silence, with its 162 minute run time, is very much a story of endurance.

Garfield and Driver play missionaries Rodrigues and Garupe, whose faith is severely tested when one of their own, Father Ferrera (Neeson) disappears bringing the word of the Bible and spreading faith in Japan in 1633.

With authorities determined to root out Catholicism before it even gained groundswell support, Rodrigues and Garupe are forced to scrabble around in darkness, hiding in hillside huts and administering to those seeking absolution by night.

But when the pair split up after learning authorities are on their tail, Rodrigues faces the deepest darkest night of his soul after he's betrayed.

Silence is Scorsese's cry out to a deity that so often many believe works through silence and offers little by way of absolution when great suffering is visited on so many.

It's a reflective and reflexive suffering piece about the purity of faith in the darkest of times and certainly in large parts of its second half, it becomes an internal piece rather than an action filled denouement to all that's passed.

It's distinctly blessed with some fairly visceral and extremely powerful imagery - from the opening scenes of Neeson's Ferrera watching fellow priests tortured by boiling water as the mists of Japan waft mythically through proceedings to striking shots of those convicted of Catholicism strung up on crosses and left on the sea's edge to be broken by the continual flow of waves, this is a film that doesn't shy away from the realities of what the authorities would do.

And yet in among the philosophical edges, and the increasing likeness that a bearded, long haired and bedraggled Garfield bears to the allegory made real of a 1633 Jesus undergoing trials, there's an emotional devastation that's hard to shake. It helps that there's a lack of soundtrack ( a crushing nod to the silence that bedevils our protagonists) and few of Scorsese's trademark zooming shots - this is a stripped back version of the meister's behind the camera work)

Garfield delivers a powerful and haunted performance as the wise Rodrigues (standing in juxtaposition to Driver's brash and impetuous Garcia whose patience is in short shrift);  and he manages to convey the internal struggle with heartbreaking ease and nuance. From the continual requests of confession from the Judas-like Kimichi (Kubozuka) whose family was killed because he was Catholic that test his patience and his resolve to the desire to find Ferrara, Garfield shoulders a large portion of this film and more than suitably delivers.

Neeson also delivers strong scenes as Ferrera as the price of martyrdom weighs heavily down (and to say more is to offer spoilers) and as the adaptation of the 1966 novel by Japanese Catholic author Shūsaku Endō resolves.

Silence is a demanding film in many ways; and while the reward is certainly not in the on-screen pay-off, it's perhaps more Scorsese's intention that this soul-searching film stays with you and nudges you to question it and yourself in the days after viewing.

The Light Between Oceans: DVD Review

The Light Between Oceans: DVD Review

Making great fist of the desolate New Zealand coast and aiming for emotional devastation but landing somewhere nearer trying experience, Blue Valentine director Derek Cianfrance's The Light Between Oceans aims big in its period affectations.

Beautifully shot and framed, The Light Between Oceans is the film adaptation of ML Steadman's post war story. Fassbender stars as Tom, a World War I veteran who simply wants to recover from the horrors of the Great War (or as he understates he's "just looking to get away from things"). Ending up in the Lighthouse service and asking for a posting on Janus Rock which overlooks the oceans, Tom meets Vikander's Isabel on the mainland and despite his withdrawn nature, an instant attraction blossoms.

The pair's marital bliss is hit by double tragedy with miscarriages and when a boat washes up with a dead man on board and a crying baby, Isabel pleads with Tom to raise the child as their own. Reluctantly, he agrees and the pair settle into a familial life, blissfully happy.

But years later, on the mainland, Tom meets the widow and grieving mother (a dignified and gravitas-filled Weisz) and a chain of events is guiltily set in motion.

The Light Between Oceans benefits from a great solemn first half, that hits all the emotional beats required.

In among some stunning cinematography and some melancholy moments that border on the darkness, Cianfrance draws the best from Vikander with some truly heartbreaking and devastating sequences playing out as Isabel loses two children (the first in the most harrowing of circumstances). But the film hits a stumbling block as it saunters towards the end (which no doubt is in large part the fault of source material) and negotiates both time jumps and desperation for closure, sacrificing the emotional heft that's needed to allow the choices to feel quite so cataclysmic for all involved.

Of the two actors, Vikander's the strongest and most adept at translating her arc to the screen, and while Fassbender's stoic outlook on Tom is nigh on aloof, he's helped by some choice morsels of dialogue that provide insight where characterisation on screen can not.

His ethos of "I just try to keep the light burning for whoever needs it" is laden with tragedy and selflessness but the implications of this lightkeeper doing more than his duty unfortunately never feel fully fleshed out on screen as the film slips into melodrama and divergent endings.

With Cianfrance using cutaways to the rolling oceans and the cruelty of nature a little too often to segue between it all, The Light Between Oceans struggles to really find its own voice in its back half. Granted, the emotion is there initially and it's hard not to get swept up in the bleak unfolding tragedy of Tom and Isabel; but the final strait and its long dawdling route to get there mean its emotional effectiveness is muted and stilted, despite some of the finest efforts of its central cast.

Never as devastating or as provocative as it should be, this effective translation of Steadman's source material may look rich on the exterior, but its core is flawed when others come into the picture and its attempts at emotional resonance are thwarted.

Rating:

Ouija Origin Of Evil: DVD Review

Ouija Origin Of Evil: DVD Review

There's just something about creepy kids that the horror genre has to keep mining  (just ask The Omen) - and Ouija: Origin of Evil has managed to add another one to the pantheon, thanks to this film, based on a board game (one of the wildest conceits the horror world has perhaps seen).

After a wildly financially successful but critically mauled first outing, the sequel, acting as a prequel heads to 1965 Los Angeles and to a widowed mother Alice (Reaser) struggling to make ends meet after the death of the patriarch. Equally struggling are daughters Paulina (Basso) and youngest Doris (Wilson, looking like a blonde CGI'd younger version of Reese Witherspoon).

Mum Alice is a medium, scamming people who visit but justifying it by offering them comfort for their pain. However, when business isn't powerful enough to keep the foreclosure ghosts away from their door, on Paulina's advice, she gets a Ouija board to use as a prop for her seances. But when youngest Doris claims to have been contacted by her father, something starts to go awry....

Ouija Origin Of Evil is at best a carbon copy horror film, filled with enough references to the past to stop it from being its own thing.

From the start with its usage of the old Universal logo to its vintage setting, use of significant moments from the era in the space age and execution (complete with the circles on the film used in the past to tell projectionists to change reels), this is a flick that's derivative of the genre and that squanders its genuine unease and unsettling set up for something rather familiar.

The deal's sealed when the priest played Henry "Elliott from ET" Thomas shows up outside the house, complete with suitcase and shadow in a blatant rip off from The Exorcist.

It's a shame because aside from the schlock standard jump scares, there's something relatively uneasy about the rather claustrophobic proceedings. From a soundtrack that exudes quiet rather than the traditional blast of a scraping OST to get the requisite jump moments to the evocative period setting, the beginning of Ouija Origin Of Evil is deeply unsettling thanks to tight camera angles and spooky goings on within the tightknit family.

However after Doris is possessed and her mouth starts apeing Munch's The Scream, the film starts to falter and the tropes and inherent illogical silliness that plagues some horror films infects the narrative, and it falls into a trapping of usual stock scares as the back half plays out and the malevolent moppet gets her grips into the family.

While it scores for being a bit more dour and downbeat than the usual fare trotted out for Hallowe'en, there's a feeling that Ouija: Origin Of Evil's more subtly written moments (grief of family, post-traumatic coping) are more successful in hitting the emotional beats than its schlockier edges.

But it still feels like this sequel is possessed by a rogue force rather than a benevolent one intent on ensuring the experience is a smoother ride - it's likely to be as successful as the first, but its derivative edges and reliance on illogical missteps mean it's creatively trapped in the past. 

Win The Great Wall

Win The Great Wall

Directed by Zhang Yimou, The Great Wall tells the story of an elite force making a last stand for humanity on the world’s most iconic structure. 

Starring Matt Damon, Jing Tian, Lu Han and Andy Lau

Academy Award® winner MATT DAMON leads humanity’s greatest fight for survival in The Great Wall, from Legendary and Universal Pictures. 

When a mercenary warrior (Damon) is imprisoned within The Great Wall, he discovers the mystery behind one of the greatest wonders of our world. 

As wave after wave of marauding beasts, intent on devouring the world, besiege the massive structure, his quest for fortune turns into a journey toward heroism as he joins a huge army of elite warriors to confront this unimaginable and seemingly unstoppable force.

In Cinemas February 16

Rated M: Violence

We're giving away double passes to the movie - To enter simply email MATT DAMONNNNNNNN to this address: darrensworldofentertainment@gmail.com or CLICK HERE NOW!

Please ensure you include your name and address - competition closes February 16th 

'The Walking Dead: The Telltale Series - A New Frontier' Arrives at Retail Feb 28th; Ep 3 Out Next Month

'The Walking Dead: The Telltale Series - A New Frontier' Arrives at Retail Feb 28th; Ep 3 Out Next Month

Critically Acclaimed  'The Walking Dead: The Telltale Series - A New Frontier'  Available at Retail Starting February 28th Series Continues with Episode 3: 'Above the Law' Arriving Next Month

Fellow Survivors, Today we can share the release date for the critically acclaimed The Walking Dead: The Telltale Series - A New Frontier on a special season pass disc at retail, and announce the release window for the upcoming Episode 3: 'Above the Law'.   Beginning February 28th at North American retailers, and March 3rd at European retailers, The Walking Dead: The Telltale Series - A New Frontier will be available for purchase on a special Season Pass Disc for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles. The season pass disc includes the critically acclaimed two-part premiere episodes, and grants access to all subsequent episodes in the five episode season for download as they become available.  The two-part premiere of The Walking Dead: The Telltale Series - A New Frontier launched to widespread critical acclaim. In their review of the premiere, IGN.com said that, "Smart characterization and writing for Javi and his family, plus the return of Clementine, add weight to a largely unfamiliar but already engaging new frontier that I can't wait to continue to explore," adding that its "uncharted territory feels familiar and, excitingly, fresh." GamesRadar said that A New Frontier, "demonstrates the resonant power of interactive storytelling," and that it, "finds the right balance between rewarding longtime players who've shaped their own version of the story and welcoming those who might be hopping aboard this grim adventure for the first time." Game Informer said the two-part premiere has, "shocking deaths, intense betrayals, and split-second decisions to second-guess," claiming that "Everything leads up to a hell of a cliffhanger, making me intrigued to see what happens next."  In further news, today we can also confirm that the much-anticipated Episode 3: 'Above the Law' is set to debut later next month. Look for more details on the episode in the coming weeks.  When family is all you have left... how far will you go to protect it? Years after society was ripped apart by undead hands, pockets of civilization emerge from the chaos. But at what cost? Can the living be trusted on this new frontier? As Javier, a young man determined to protect his family, you meet a young girl who has experienced her own unimaginable loss. Her name is Clementine, and your fates are bound together in a story where every choice you make could be your last.   The Walking Dead: A New Frontier acts as both a new beginning for players fresh to the series and unfamiliar with Clementine, as well as a continuation for players who have experienced Seasons One and Two. Players new to the series are able to start a story that is tailored to this new beginning. Players continuing onward from prior seasons have multiple options for quickly configuring their tailored backstory, or importing past save files from various platforms.   The Walking Dead: The Telltale Series - A New Frontier Episode One: 'Ties That Bind' Part I is rated 'M' (Mature) for Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, and Use of Drugs by the ESRB. Episode Two: 'Ties That Bind' Part II is rated 'M' (Mature) for Violence, Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, and Strong Language by the ESRB. Future content in the season is yet to be rated.   To date, The Walking Dead: A Telltale Games Series has sold more than 50 million episodes worldwide, earning more than 100 Game of the Year awards from outlets including Metacritic, USA Today, Wired, Spike TV VGAs, Yahoo!, The Telegraph, Mashable, Polygon, Destructoid and GamesRadar, and was also the recipient of two BAFTA Video Games Awards for Best Story and Best Mobile Game.    The Walking Dead is set in the world of Robert Kirkman's award-winning comic book series and offers an emotionally-charged, tailored game experience where a player's actions and choices affect how their story plays out across the entire series.

GTA hits XBox Backwards compatability

GTA hits XBox Backwards compatability

GRAND THEFT AUTO IV AND EPISODES FROM LIBERTY CITY NOW PLAYABLE ON XBOX ONE WITH BACKWARD COMPATIBILITY

Hi all,

Today we’re happy to announce that the intersecting sagas of Niko Bellic, Johnny Klebitz and Luis Lopez in Grand Theft Auto IV and Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City are now all playable on Xbox One via Backward Compatibility.

All versions of the game, including Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition, are compatible on Xbox One. Digital game owners have instant access on Xbox One, so they can download Grand Theft Auto IV directly from the “Ready to Install” section of their Xbox One and play at will. Physical game owners can just insert the Xbox 360 game disc into their Xbox One and download the game. Your original game saves will also transfer if you have saved your game to the Cloud Saved Games feature on Xbox 360. 

Anyone who doesn't already have Grand Theft Auto IV can get it from the Xbox Store on Xbox One, along with The Lost and Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony.