Cars 3: Blu Ray Review

Cars 3: Blu Ray Review

That a large thread of Cars 3 is spent with Owen Wilson's Lightning McQueen's dilemma over how to stay relevant in the face of zippier competition can't be lost on those of us who feel that Pixar's Cars franchise has critically struggled.

Never quite firing on all cylinders, the series is back to relative amiable form in this latest which sees Lightning McQueen's old racing ways fail to have him against new tech and cars like Jackson Storm (Hammer). In a nod perhaps to how Formula 1 these days is all about the technology rather than the driving, McQueen's forced to go back to basics and attend an upskilling centre run by Fillion's Sterling and under the tutelage of Cruz (Alonzo).

But will it be enough to help McQueen to both move on and win again?

There's a definite feeling of passing the torch here in the overly literal trappings of Cars 3.

With a nod to the past and Paul Newman's racer as well as the embracing of the newer way of doing things, and avoiding the fear of the new, Cars 3 hits the ground running, even if it does feel like it could ease up on some of the messaging that's ramraided home repeatedly.

However, its desire to champion women and give girls the feeling of empowerment is something akin to what Patty Jenkins Wonder Woman has already achieved this year. By forcing Cruz to embrace her dream and never settle for second best, the film's desire to ensure the right message gets out there is both bold and admirable.

Sure, the racing looks slick and there's an undeniable sheen in the polish that the animation carries, but there's little else under the hood for Cars to roll out except its amiable intentions and fair aspirations. Everything looks great and there's no sign that Pixar's decided to drop the quality for the third of the series in terms of the animation, but the relatively straight story-telling means it's one of the more humour free entrants into Pixar's canon which is a real shame.

All in all, Cars 3 is nothing more than pleasant - with its simple story worryingly showing there's maybe less in the tank, but its important message it gets the job done on the track but it's far from the convincing victory it really should have been. 

Gran Turismo Sport: PS4 Review

Gran Turismo Sport: PS4 Review

Platform: PS4
Developed by Polyphony Digital

The Gran Turismo brand is still in tact on PlayStation.

Synonymous with solid simulations, the 2017 entry is one that makes the most of what it's already got and ensures the grunt of the PlayStation is capitalised on.

It's the same as it was - and the same as most car simulations are these days; race tracks, build your skill base up, accrue points and XP, spend money on cars and generally progress through the ranks.

But Gran Turismo Sport manages to do all this and still looks beautiful.

Whereas DriveClub claimed a higher ground in terms of making cars look like a work of art, GT Sport concentrates more on the handling of these beauties rather than ensuring vistas and environments are sparkling too.

It does make a case for a little old school racing simulations in many ways though, as its intentions are clearly all about the cars, whereas others, such as the Forza series, manage to make it about the environments just off the track as well.

Perhaps the biggest fault is any kind of truly dynamic weather system, meaning some races feel a little static in some ways and out of step with what's currently around.

However, there is a lot of beauty in GT Sport's motors.

Lovingly crafted and beautifully rendered, the cars are the star of GT Sports - and at the expense of a more single player campaign, the online mode is where the game's spent a great deal of its time. Whilst you may never crash entirely out in a race (there's yet to be a car seen despite plenty of scraping up against the railings) and there it lacks a degree of reality, it's the technical side of the game which flourishes.

And nowhere is this more evident than in the VR version of the game.

Nervous after DriveClub's VR made this reviewer want to hurl within seconds, it's pleasing to report that the VR experience is exceptional. Several burn outs around the tracks soared by without a hint of nausea and while the inner race experience is a static, the experience is second-to-none.

Cruising through Tokyo and its streets from the inside of the helmet is thrilling and shows that one year after launch VR is finally getting the bits that flawed its last 12 months right.

Ultimately, while GT Sport can feel a little more of a technical beast than an arcade thrill, it's still showing no signs of slowing against its competitors. It may need a little tweak under the hood for its next reveal, but this is still a series that's vying strongly for pole position despite a growing field of competitors.

Murder On The Orient Express: Film Review

Murder On The Orient Express: Film Review

Cast: Kenneth Branagh, Daisy Ridley, Dame Judi Dench, Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, Josh Gad, Derek Jacobi, Penelope Cruz
Director: Kenneth Branagh

It's fair to say no-one loves Kenneth Branagh on the screen as much as Kenneth Branagh does behind the camera in the latest version of Murder On The Orient Express.

And while the lavish, star-studded affair looks sumptuous in its vistas, it narratively stutters to a halt around the same time the famed Orient Express derails.

For those unfamiliar with Agatha Christie's novel and the plot, it centres around the great Belgian detective Hercule Poirot (Branagh, complete with hair lip) who tries to take some rest on a trip but finds himself called upon to solve a murder mystery on board the famed Orient Express.

When Johnny Depp's Ratchett is found stabbed to the death in his compartment on the train, it seems like everyone on board has some kind of motive to be involved.

However, the deeper Poirot delves, the more puzzling the case seems - can the self-professed greatest detective solve the mystery before the snowclad train begins its journey again?

While Murder on The Orient Express is lavishly shot on 65mm, and starts off dizzyingly with Poirot solving a case at the Wailing Wall (involving a priest, an imam and a rabbi, as the old joke apparently goes), the film comes a bit of a cropper when it starts to try and crack the conundrum.

It becomes clear that there are too many in the ensemble to give the film the time it needs to breathe - with a cast that numbers the likes of Michelle Pfeiffer, Daisy Ridley, Josh Gad, Dame Judi Dench and Sir Derek Jacobi to name but a few, the narrative groans under the strain of not enough time for any of them - other than Poirot himself. And some, such as Penelope Cruz's religious mouse get nary any oxygen needed to breathe any life upon the screen.

As a result, everyone becomes a bit of a once-over-lightly character - be it Depp's spiv-like villain or Dench's sneering Russian aristocrat.

It's not helped by the fact that the central mystery requires reams of exposition as the final reveal unmasks the culprit and motive.

To be fair, it's not Branagh's fault, merely the source material - and whilst most of the screen time is devoted to Poirot's bizarre chortling at Dickens or picking up his borderline OCD autistic tendencies, Branagh does also manage to imbue some wearied sadness into his eyes as he tries to escape the right and wrong of life.

Whilst his Poirot is perhaps not as iconic as David Suchet's portly moustachioed investigator, this one has a little more depth than perhaps you'd expect - and certainly doesn't have the flashiness of the modern day Sherlock Holmes, as depicted by Benedict Cumberbatch.

Perhaps therein lies an element of the problem as well - this is a film that's very much of its time, a period piece that has none of the accoutrements of a modern day adaptation other than perhaps a smattering of Hollywood's current glitterati. It's a curio on that front then, and one which modern day audiences may struggle with the pacing of (it goes distinctly off the boil in the middle).

While the film throws a cursory mention of a problem on the Nile in its conclusion, hinting at more for Belgium's greatest detective, one of the more infamous cases from the pen of Agatha Christie leaves you with a sad feeling of indifference.

Unfortunately, it's almost as if this Orient Express has been slightly derailed by narrative leaves on the line as it departs the cinematic platform.

The Evil Within 2: PS4 Review

The Evil Within 2: PS4 Review

Developed by Tango
Released by Bethesda
Platform: PS4

The latest nightmare to haunt your dreams and hitting the gaming world is Bethesda's generally terrifying, but occasionally familiar The Evil Within 2.

Three years after the events at Beacon Mental Hospital in The Evil Within, you get to play Sebastian Castellanos again in the third person horror thriller.

Having left the Krimson City Police Department to uncover the truth about the mysterious organization Mobius, Sebastian's consumed by dreams about the death of his daughter Lily in a house fire. 

When he discovers her death was faked, things take a turn for the macabre....

The Evil Within 2 is disturbingly brought to life - it's almost like a psychological Saw movie writ dangerously large on the screen, with some extra jolts thrown in for HD fun.

Ticking off many of the horror genre tropes and jump scares, the game's got an edge that's as compulsive as it is gut-wrenchingly tense. From a cat who gives you gel to level up to mirrors that take you places you'd never expect, the game's desire is to freak you out and in several places, it does this well.

However, it's in the execution of the game that it really stands out.

Some balletic and kinetic horrifying imagery aside, the art within and the scenes that play out are generally the stuff of nightmares. It sounds cliched to say it, and while the reliance on typical horror scares may put some off, The Evil Within 2 really is a game to play alone.

There are elements of Resident Evil mixed in with Silent Hill pepper a lot of this and there are perhaps influences of the short lived PT mixed in as well.

Maybe the dialogue seems a little corny in places and there are hints that perhaps it goes for hoary rote cliches, but to be honest, it's hard to put The Evil Within 2 down. From its stealth skulking to its moments of body horror, there's more than enough to keep fans of this particular gaming genre more than happy.

Tense and scary with a story and mystery that's anchored in the personal, The Evil Within 2 has more success than its first outing - namely because, like it or not, you're involved from beginning to end.

Detroit: Film Review

Detroit: Film Review

Cast: John Boyega, Will Poulter
Director: Kathryn Bigelow

Reuniting Zero Dark Thirty's team in the form of director Kathryn Bigelow and writer Mark Boal proves in part to be potent for Detroit.

Centred around the summer of 1967 and the riots which hit the Detroit African American population, Bigelow's film finds its focus in one pivotal moment - a motel raid which spirals out of control, and police abused their power.

Boyega plays a security guard, treading a dangerous line between keeping the cops on side and sympathising and saving others from being caught in the riot; whereas Poulter plays a cop, whose momentary lapse early on when he shoots a fleeing man in the back seems to set his moral compass distinctly awry.

The film uses its NYPD Blue style shaky cam to good effect early on, throwing you slap bang into the middle of the riots and the urgency and danger of the situation. But the film hits the skids to centre its actions on the Algiers Hotel, and sacrifices the space it's created for a claustrophobic and unflinchingly difficult section within.

Against a backdrop of Motown uniting people and then suddenly dividing those caught within, the discomfort is palpable, even if one of the cops within the actual event feels like a lazy stereotype. It's a shame given the work done in the run up to the event with Poulter's character feeling a little more multi-faceted than his closeted hatred would demonstrate.

While the back half of the film and its PTSD approach and subsequent trial feel a little more disjointed and discombobulated, its first half, warzone and all,  is painful watching  made ever more disgusting by the fact this is no fiction, but a reality that occurred.

Detroit's searing strength lies in its mid-section execution, an interlude of pure hatred and abuse of power that's so tautly executed, it feels like a modern day horror sequence, guaranteed to leave you with your mouth agog in horror.

Ultimately, it's the little moments and the ripples of after effects in Detroit which make it, for the large part, so compelling.

Perhaps timely given the social divides we currently face and equivocally appalling, Detroit's light-the-touch-paper-and-stand-back execution of events makes it a livewire event that slightly fizzes in the back third.

South Park: The Fractured But Whole: PS4 Review

South Park: The Fractured But Whole: PS4 Review

Platform: PS4
Released by Ubisoft

I've not ventured back to South Park for years.

While I'm aware that the show continues under the watchful satirical eye of Parker and Stone, the last time I touched South Park was the Stick of Truth game a few years back.

This latest, the wonderfully mature titled South Park: The Fractured But Whole seems to build on exactly what they did with the first one, but makes it a little naughtier and a little bit more welcoming for both casual and long term fans of the show.

Whereas the Stick of Truth roundly mocked fantasy, this Fractured But Whole takes a swipe at superhero films and the team-up mentality.

You get to play the New Kid (on the South Park block) as Cartman as the Coon time travels back into the past to prevent a kitty from going missing. But the Coon's arrival causes a civil war between the kids with each taking sides in the conflict.... it's up to you to tip the balance of power.

There are moments of satire in South Park: The Fractured But Whole which amuse and as ever with Parker and Stone's world some of it sticks, some of it misses. There are classes to negotiate and unlock as the game goes on, and things to do with crafting.

In amongst that is all the puerile scatological edges you've come to expect from the show. From using toilets at every house to simply letting one rip whenever you want, the game's got the South Park mentality to a tee.

Combat this time is still turn based and takes place on a grid - it's a little less complicated than previously, and still provides as much bemusement as it does amusement.

It's also got the look and feel of the show down to perfection as well - it almost feels like you've crafted your own South Park adventure at home and animated it yourself.

That's perhaps part of the problem for South Park: The Fractured But Whole in some ways. It all feels very familiar and like The Stick of Truth to make it feel like an evolution of the series and leaves it feeling like another episode of the series.

Playable in puerile doses, but ultimately sadly disposable, South Park: The Fractured But Whole is worth it after a few beers and with some mates - but the casual gamer may feel a little alienated by it.

Baby Driver: Blu Ray Review

Baby Driver: Blu Ray Review

Cast: Ansel Elgort, Kevin Spacey, Lily James, Jon Hamm, Eiza Gonzalez, Jamie Foxx, CJ Jones
Director: Edgar Wright

Seeded from an idea Spaced and Cornetto Trilogy director Edgar Wright had two decades ago, and given life after studio executives caught Wright on the hop after being bounced off Ant-Man, Baby Driver is a jukebox blast of a movie.

Baby Driver

Centring around the story of hotshot driver, Baby (Elgort, in relatively mute, but extremely physical form) who's blackmailed into one last job by Doc (Kevin Spacey, in monosyllabic but charismatic form), Wright's latest marks a more mature directing outlook.

When the assembled crew of volatile Bats (Foxx), Buddy (Hamm) and his wife Darling (Gonzalez) are teamed up with Baby, Baby decides to try and get away from the job, after falling for local diner waitress Debora (James).

But with the clock ticking, and the screws tightening, is Baby ever going to be able to just drive off into the sunset with his love in the passenger seat?

Riffing on many a familiar heist premise, and with the stonking soundtrack providing the cues for much of the action and editing, large parts of Baby Driver are high-octane, adrenaline-fuelled fun. The synchronisation of sound with the onscreen action proves to be a great boon for Baby Driver, as it mixes the music that Baby's permanently listening to with life around him (including a breath-taking one take street walking sequence that exceeds La La Land's highway opening number).

While it's fair to say that perhaps the romance doesn't quite gel as much as it could thanks to Debora feeling more like a passenger than a driver of the story, the women feeling slightly underwritten, and the back third of the film feels raced and jumbled, what Wright's brought to the screen for the rest is a relative delight.

From a laundromat scene where different coloured sheets flow in wash in the background via a sublime choreography to the use of sign language in Baby's relationship with his father, Wright's eye for details and their execution is second-to-none.

A physical Ansel has to use his gangly gait and the music to propel most of his action along, and Elgort willingly surrenders easily to the beat, imbuing Baby with a heart, and a naive innocence that's grimly catchy.

There's much of Baby Driver which feels fresh on the screen, even if the trademark Wright quick cuts show up at the end. With a script that's more like an album transposed on screen, music's a major part of Baby Driver and gives the film its beating heart. But it's Wright whose eye for cinematic flair and directing maturity hold the film together when the wheels threaten to fall off.

In a cinematic landscape which is overwhelmed by sequels and superheroes, Baby Driver (along with Colossus earlier this year) demonstrate there's still thankfully a place for originality at the movies. 

FINAL FANTASY XV - Episode Ignis Release Date & Videos

FINAL FANTASY XV - Episode Ignis Release Date & Videos

FINAL FANTASY XV EPISODE IGNIS RELEASE DATE

AND LEGENDARY GUEST COMPOSER REVEALED

New Trailer For Episode Ignis Contains Surprises For Fans

SYDNEY, 31^st October 2017 – Square Enix Ltd., today announced the release date of FINAL FANTASY® XV: EPISODE IGNIS, the new DLC episode where players can experience a brand-new storyline from the perspective of the ever-dependable team member and chef. FINAL FANTASY XV players will be able to enjoy this latest DLC episode from 13^th December.

A new story trailer released today contains a first detailed look at the action and story surprises that EPISODE IGNIS will offer, but also reveals the next guest composer to work within theFINAL FANTASY XV Universe. The legendary Yasunori Mitsuda (Chrono Trigger, Chrono Cross, Xenogears), has composed and recorded three new songs with the Brussels Philharmonic Orchestra for EPISODE IGNIS.

FINAL FANTASY XV: EPISODE IGNIS features:

• A brand-new storyline, unbeknownst to Noctis as he remains unconscious after the Trial of Leviathan. Ignis faces his own fight on the streets of Altissia, driven by his unwavering dedication to protect Noctis at all costs.
• Fast-paced action and battles – Ignis’ spelldaggers can be imbued with elemental properties, and his unique ability “Total Clarity” allows him to target and attack multiple enemies at once.
• A new Comrade – following the guest appearances of Cor in EPISODE GLADIOLUS and Aranea in EPISODE PROMPTO, Ravus will join forces with Ignis, putting allegiances aside in order to save the ones they care about.
• Master Your Fate – EPISODE IGNIS features multiple endings, allowing players to see a different outcome of events.

FINAL FANTASY XV: EPISODE IGNIS Story Trailer is available to view on YouTube: https://youtu.be/qWerLwE_uDw

A short video interview with composer Yasunori Mitsuda talking about his work on EPISODE IGNIS, is available to view here: https://youtu.be/X5TRZEW5_sc

FINAL FANTASY XV is available now worldwide for the Xbox One and PlayStation®4 system and will be available next year on Windows PC. For more information on FINAL FANTASY XV, visit: http://www.finalfantasyxv.com/

FAR CRY 5 – FRIENDS FOR HIRE CO-OP TRAILER

FAR CRY 5 – FRIENDS FOR HIRE CO-OP TRAILER

FAR CRY 5 – FRIENDS FOR HIRE CO-OP TRAILER

Ubisoft^® reveals more details on Far Cry^® 5 online co-op mode: “Friends For Hire”. Available from launch, players will be able to team up with one of their friends to free Hope County from the Project at Eden’s Gate cult. Far Cry 5 will be entirely playable via online co-op and all earned experience and inventory items, excluding quest-based items, will carry over following each co-op session. While exploring Montana, each player will see and collect their own loot. However, the host player is the only player who will keep their story progress.

To watch trailer click image below

Far Cry 5 will be available February 27^th, 2018 on PlayStation^® 4 Pro, PlayStation^®4, the Xbox One, Xbox One X, Xbox One S, and Windows PC. Set in Montana, USA, Far Cry 5 offers players total freedom to navigate a serene-looking yet deeply twisted world as the new junior deputy of fictional Hope County, Montana. Players will find that their arrival accelerates a years-long silent coup by a fanatical doomsday cult, the Project at Eden's Gate, igniting a violent takeover of the county. Under siege and cut off from the rest of the world, players will join forces with residents of Hope County and form the Resistance.

MONSTER HUNTER: WORLD™ PLAYSTATION®4 BETA AND EXCLUSIVE, HORIZON ZERO DAWN™ DLC CONTENT DETAILED

 MONSTER HUNTER: WORLD™ PLAYSTATION®4 BETA AND EXCLUSIVE, HORIZON ZERO DAWN™ DLC CONTENT DETAILED

MONSTER HUNTER: WORLD™ PLAYSTATION®4 BETA AND EXCLUSIVE, HORIZON ZERO DAWN™ DLC CONTENT DETAILED

Take on Three Epic Monsters and Quests in the Exclusive Beta this December

and Equip Special Gear from Lethal Hunter Aloy

Sydney, 31 October 2017 - Capcom, a leading worldwide developer and publisher of video games, today confirmed during the Sony PlayStation Showcase at Paris Games Week that a beta for Monster Hunter: World™ will be available exclusively for PlayStation Plus users starting 9th - 12th December, 2017. In addition, special Horizon Zero Dawn content featuring Aloy's bow and full armor set plus a Palico armor will be available for Monster Hunter: World exclusively on PlayStation®4. To see what the content looks like in-game and to see a brand new area of the game, the Rotten Vale, a new trailer is available to download now from the Capcom press site www.capcomeuro-press.com or can be watched on the official Monster Hunter™ YouTube channel.

Available starting 9th December, players from around the world can experience three fearsome quests as they join up with other hunters online or take on the beasts alone in the exclusive beta for PlayStation Plus users. Running for three days, hunters participating in the beta can tackle the hungry Great Jagras, a scavenger capable of swallowing other monsters whole, or the fiery and territorial Anjanath, both of which roam the dense and complex eco-system within the Ancient Forest. For those feeling brave enough they can adventure to the desert land of the Wildspire Waste where the armored Barroth can be found lurking in the muddy waters, waiting to unleash its devastating charge attack.

Horizon Zero Dawn's young machine hunter Aloy comes to life in Monster Hunter: World for PS4. With Aloy's bow and full armor set as well as Palico armor that can make the player's Palico look like a machine from Horizon Zero Dawn. The full armor set will make any player character look like Aloy from head to toe, including facial likeness. After completing the Horizon Zero Dawn collaboration event quest, which is planned to be distributed to online players post launch, special materials can be obtained to forge collaboration equipment. By bringing the necessary materials to the in-game facility (Smithy), players will be able to forge the Horizon Zero Dawn collaboration equipment. Details on the exact timing and availability of the Horizon Zero Dawn collaboration quest will be revealed soon.

The latest Monster Hunter: World trailer released at Paris Games Week highlights for the first time the terrifying Rotten Vale area of the New World. Littered with the skeletons of deceased monsters, a land of unique and gigantic creatures awaits amongst this bed of bones. The deeper players journey into the inner layers of the Rotten Vale, the tougher the environment gets with a dangerous and toxic mist blanketing the land obscuring the perils that lurk nearby until the very last minute. The Radobaan, a hulking beast that wears the carcasses scattered around the Vale for armor will need hunters to be quick and fast as they take off chunks of its bone armor and avoid its rolling attacks. Hunters can brave the beast alone or with their team of four hunters. With drop in multiplayer, each hunter has their own story to tell - but will they live to tell it?

Monster Hunter: World launches on January 26th, 2018 with a PC release coming at a later date. 

Yomawari: Midnight Shadows is out on November 3

Yomawari: Midnight Shadows is out on November 3

YOMAWARI: MIDNIGHT SHADOWS OUT ON NOVEMBER 3 IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND

NIS America is happy to announce that Yomawari: Midnight Shadows is out on November 3^rd in Australia and New Zealand for the PlayStation®4, PlayStation®Vita, and Steam® (all regions).

About the game:

The follow-up to 2016’s cult horror hit Yomawari: Night Alone, Yomawari: Midnight Shadows introduces two girls, Yui and Haru, to the night and the spirits who haunt it. Separated by a mysterious attacker, each girl will explore haunting and bizarre locations, face the terrors of the night, and test their courage and wits to survive and reconnect with one another.

Key Features:

A Complete Town to Explore - Enter abandoned homes, climb through junk yards and up mountains, or venture into dark sewers in your search.

Two Views of the Dark - Search the night and explore a town as either of Yomawari: Midnight Shadow’s two characters. What you find with one may serve as a clue, or even save the other.

Horrors, Oddities, and Mysteries - When Japanese spirits come to life, you’ll encounter horrors birthed in nightmares, oddities that will make you question what is real, and mysteries that may just keep you up at night.

Gorgeous Style - Enter the dark with haunting art to view the city and from above, and get close to the heart-pounding moments in beautifully imagined side-scrolling set pieces.

FINAL FANTASY DIMENSIONS II Out Now & Launch Trailer

FINAL FANTASY DIMENSIONS II Out Now & Launch Trailer

   

TRAVEL THROUGH TIME AND CHANNEL THE POWER OF SUMMONS

IN FINAL FANTASY DIMENSIONS II

Epic New JRPG Adventure Now Available for Mobile Devices

SYDNEY, 2^nd November 2017 – Square Enix Ltd., have today announced that players can discover and enjoy a whole new adventure on mobile devices as FINAL FANTASY® DIMENSIONS II™ is now available on Android and iOS.

Players join heroes Morrow and Aemo as they embark on an exciting journey across multiple worlds in the past, present, and future. Classic turn-based battles will lead players through a nostalgic RPG experience filled with a wide cast of characters who will help shape a deep and engaging story spanning multiple worlds.

To watch the FINAL FANTASY DIMENSIONS II Launch Trailer, go to: https://youtu.be/7oDP6y9E90Q

Developed by veteran SQUARE ENIX® game director Takashi Tokita (FINAL FANTASY IV, CHRONO TRIGGER), FINAL FANTASY DIMENSIONS II puts a fresh twist on character advancement with the Signet Stone system.

These powerful items can summon well-known Eidolons featured throughout the history of the FINAL FANTASY series as well as teach characters new abilities. Players can obtain and evolve over 300 Signet Stones, customizing each hero with powerful magic and skills to help best monstrous foes in battles.

Additionally, a unique ‘Archive’ Mode will unlock after finishing the main game, giving players access to game design illustrations and art, as well as the ability to sample the soundtrack created by famed composer Naoshi Mizuta (FINAL FANTASY XI).

FINAL FANTASY DIMENSIONS II is available to download now on the App Store and Google Play.

Related Links:

Official Facebook® Page: www.facebook.com/FinalFantasy 

Official Twitter®: www.twitter.com/FinalFantasy

Bad Moms 2 Christmas: Film Review

Bad Moms2 Christmas: Film Review

Cast: Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell, Kathryn Hahn, Susan Sarandon, Christine Baranski, Cheryl Hines
Director: Jon Lucas, Scott Moore

A year ago, Bad Moms came hurtling out of the traps, to offer a female alternative to the male-led comedy domain.

A success, thanks to its foul-mouthed edges and relatable leads, it was inevitable a sequel would show up to build on the box office plaudits of the first.

This time around though, while the formula still offers some laughs, it feels like the subject doesn't feel as fresh - despite the attempts of all involved to try and keep it bubbling over.

Building on the pressures of conforming to societal norms expressed in the first, the latest is, as the title suggests, set at Christmas and sees Mila Kunis' Amy, Kristen Bell's Kiki and Kathryn Hahn's Carla determined to reclaim back the festive season when their mothers come to town.

But as the pressure to make everything perfect unfolds, the pot begins to boil over....

Once again, setting the film against a backdrop of relatability helps Bad Moms 2 achieve a degree of familiarity once again. However, while there are a few laughs throughout (potentially more if you're a group out on a night out or imbued with alcohol), there's not quite enough as the Hangover style opening of a trashed house (complete with camel walking into shot) would suggest.

It feels a little less fresh this time, and some may even say rushed in parts as the script shows cracks; most of the film feels like mini-episodes sewn together with such a laissez-faire attitude that it makes it hard to fully engage with what's going on.

And the trio of mothers who end up visiting their broods are so ghastly, not once do you ever feel anything but from the oppressed younger mums' point of view. Sure, it ends up in the usual gloop of sentimentality that tars all festive films - but there are a few raucous laughs to be had, mainly from Hahn's foul-mouthed member of the group.

Kunis and Bell are fine, but don't have nearly as much to work with this time around - and whilst it's good the male element are sidelined this time around (aside from one skin-crawlingly unamusing fat-shaming Santa sequence), there's little that feels as enticing this time around.

Baranski is the best of the bunch, even though Sarandon's rocker hits fast and loose to start off with. It's Baranski as Amy's mum who delivers some of the best deadpan sneering moments and manages to get the rankling sideswipes that family members dish out so well downpat.

Best viewed with a non-critical head and with a group of friends, it does feel like A Bad Moms Christmas is the contractually obliged sequel in a series that's already worryingly out of ideas. Inevitably perhaps the next one will be Bad Moms Summer Holiday, but unless there's a stronger script and more to go on than the recognition of universal truths faced by mums and their mothers, the Bad Moms franchise could undo all the good will its strong leads have already garnered.

Bad Genius: Film Review

Bad Genius: Film Review

Inspired by true events and a cheating scandal, Thailand's Bad Genius is perhaps the most accessible and popcorn friendly film of the festival.

But this is no bad thing by any stretch of the imagination.

Set in a school where money helps buy you in and keep you there, it's the extremely moral tale of Lynn, a straight A student, who's financially badly off. Approached by her best friend Grace to help her with her grades at her Thai school, Lynn's soon enticed by Grace's boyfriend into running classes to help less able students ace the tests - and with the promise of money, Lynn's soon in and enjoying it.

But when Grace and boyfriend Pat are told by their parents that they have to score highly enough to get into Boston University, Lynn and her warped sense of logic are soon caught in a global scandal...

If one were to say that what is essentially a heist movie but set against a backdrop of school exams is perhaps the most compelling and thrillingly tense movie of the year, then you'd be inclined to think this reviewer had lost it.

However, using smartly edited scenes, a sense of stylistic flashiness, an eye for character and a degree of cinematic aplomb, Bad Genius director Nattawut Poonpiriya manages to create a real sense of danger and tension as the film progresses.

It helps that setting it against a backdrop of a slightly scathing look at the moral arguments over the financial pressures of paying for tuition as well as ensuring there's a heart to the story with Lynn's relationship with struggling friend Bank, means that Bad Genius is a compelling film from beginning to end.

Lacing humour in helps a lot too, and goes some way to alleviating some of the rather appallingly acted non-Thai roles in the final section of the film.

Overall, Bad Genius is pretty much close to Bloody Genius and will most likely, if there's any justice, get a Hollywood remake.

By keeping the presentation simple, but stacking the odds high and personal, as well as delivering a polished and gripping pace, Bad Genius' pleasure comes from ensuring it's thrilling from beginning to end. 

Halloween in GTA Online: Double GTA$ Bonuses, New Western Seabreeze Plane and More

Halloween in GTA Online: Double GTA$ Bonuses, New Western Seabreeze Plane and More

GTA$ BONUSES, NEW WESTERN SEABREEZE PLANE AND MORE

It's Halloween in Los Santos, which means it's time to terrorize the neighborhood while reaping the benefits of a litany of bloodcurdling bonuses and deadly discounts.

In addition to Double GTA$ & RP on the new Adversary Mode Condemned and a special Halloween Playlist running through November 6th that features the new Inferno Transform Race, Lost Vs Damned and Slasher, become your competition's greatest nightmare with Double GTA$ & RP on any of the following modes today, 10/31 only:

·         Lost vs Damned

·         Slasher

·         Beast vs Slasher

·         Come Out to Play

·         Transform - Inferno Race

There's also 25% off all returning Halloween content - including the Fränken Stange, Lurcher and the demonic LCC Sanctus - as well as the Duke O'Death - now through November 6th.

OUT NOW: WESTERN SEABREEZE

Escape the ghouls and costumed crazies in style; whether you're landing on a desert runway or splashing down right next to your private yacht, the Western Seabreeze is a business class option for every occasion and locale. And if you’re the kind of high-earner who might have need of a machine gun and bomb bay, don’t worry, there’s plenty of room. The Western Seabreeze is now available for purchase at Elitás Travel.

THIS WEEK'S BONUSES

For those who are a bit squeamish, there are plenty of other GTA Online bonuses to take advantage of through November 6th. In addition to the continuation of Double GTA$ and RP on Smuggler's Sell Missions and Double GTA$ Salary for Bodyguards and Associates, join a different sort of mile high club and earn Double GTA$ and RP on the Stockpile Adversary Mode.

As a reminder, simply log in through the 6th to claim a GTA$400,000 award, which will slip into your Maze Bank account by November 13th.

Flush from selling product, flag capturing and other generally illicit activity, you can use some of that hard-earned scratch to take advantage of 25% off the following items:

·         Western Company Besra (Jet)

·         Nagasaki Blazer Aqua (Special Vehicle) - both Buy it Now and Trade Price

·         Hangar Custom Shop Add-On

·         Progen GP1 (Super)

·         Grotti Cheetah Classic (Sports Classic)

·         HVY Insurgent (Off-Road) - both Buy it Now and Trade Price

·         Lampadati Toro (Boat)

·         All Melee Weapons

PREMIUM RACE & TIME TRIAL SCHEDULE

Get lifted with this week's Premium Race & Time Trial events, now live through November 6th.

·         Premium Special Vehicle Race - "Drop Ship" (Locked to Ruiner 2000)

·         Time Trial - "Observatory"

Launch Premium Races through the Quick Job App on your in-game phone or via the yellow corona at Legion Square. The top three finishers will earn GTA$ and you'll get Triple RP regardless of where you place. To take a shot at the Time Trial, set a waypoint to the marker on your in-game map and enter via the purple corona. Beat par time and you'll be duly rewarded with GTA$ & RP payouts.