The Nun: Film Review

The Nun: Film Review

Cast: Demian Bichir, Taissa Farmiga, Jonas Bloquet, The Nun
Director: Corin Hardy

The Conjuring universe gets its own Cloisters Encounters of the Interred Kind with this latest spin-off from the series, following on from the success of spooky doll Annabelle.

A priest with a haunted past (Bichir) and a novice (American Horror Story's Farmiga) on the threshold of her final vows are sent by the Vatican to investigate the apparent suicide of a young nun in Romania.

When they arrive, they hear tales from local delivery boy Frenchie (Bloquet) of what's happened, but are forced to confront a malevolent force in the form of a demonic nun. (Which will be familiar to those of James Wan's Conjuring films.)

You know what you're in for with The Nun.

Though in fairness, most of what transpires feels derivative and all-too familiar to really stand out on its own.

Essentially building a religious Mulder and Scully in the leads, and throwing in elements of The Exorcist, Buffy The Vampire Slayer's Hellmouth and spooky goings on in smoky cemeteries, The Nun does well to build an atmosphere of unease, and tensions with some sequences feeling like they've been dragged to the absolute edge of what suspense can do.

However, it becomes clear that what's being touted as "the darkest chapter of The Conjuring universe" doesn't quite believe in its own hype, with a series of corny dialogue moments mixed in with some truly awful comedy, which combine to puncture any kind of horror you may be feeling in your stomach.

It's a shame because the weighty issue of the sin of suicide at the start really sets a darker tone for the Transylvanian shot film - and it's a welcome one, but one sadly dispatched with for some jump scares and some horror punchlines which fall flat.

As the film progresses the wildly veering tone does more to unnerve than any horrors could do, and no amount of fleeting-out-of-the-corner-of-your-eye moments can rebuild what's being torn down.

Every horror works when the fear is primal, the boogeyman is lurking in the shadows to grab you - and it's here that Hardy works some cinematic magic, using corridors to great effect and pushing you as far as you can go.

But ultimately, The Nun doesn't quite capture its premise; its habit of providing some solid sequences (which look ripped from storyboards and writ large) don't quite gel together because of the sabotaging of its own narrative, and the film dissolves into a catacomb-set finale that's less climactic than it ought to be.

All in all, The Nun's penchant for unevenness is its undoing; it may offer a few moments of terror, but its proclivity for puncturing its own smarter edges make this one spinoff that doesn't quite prove to be as haunting or as much an atmospheric carny ride of terror as it ought to be.

Win a double pass to see SEARCHING

Win a double pass to see SEARCHING

To celebrate the release of SEARCHING, in cinemas September 13, you can win a double pass!

About SEARCHING

After David Kim (John Cho)'s 16-year-old daughter goes missing, a local investigation is opened and a detective is assigned to the case. 

But 37 hours later and without a single lead, David decides to search the one place no one has looked yet, where all secrets are kept today: his daughter's laptop. 

In a hyper-modern thriller told via the technology devices we use every day to communicate, David must trace his daughter's digital footprints before she disappears forever.

SEARCHING is in cinemas September 13 


To win all you have to do is email your details and the word SEARCHING to this address: darrensworldofentertainment@gmail.com or CLICK HERE NOW!

Competition closes September 13th

Samurai Jack: S1-5 Blu Ray Review

Samurai Jack: S1-5 Blu Ray Review

Released by Madman Home Ent

It's impossible to overstate how loved Samurai Jack is.

As a piece of animation, its Samurai roots, and iconic etchings have a place in animation history.As a piece of story-telling, one samurai's quest for revenge against a creature which has wronged him is a fairly simple and timeless kind of yarn.

And over five seasons, it's got something a little special in its execution and the fact it even exists in the first place.

Samurai Jack's strength was always in the telling of the tale and the one man encountering others ethos which pervaded much of it.
This collection doesn't scrimp on any of the iconography and spends a lot of time wallowing in the man who has been broken by his place in it all. Jack is ruined by his failure to succeed in his quest.There's a resonance and emotional depth that creator Genndy Tartakovsky is going for, the beats fall slightly short only in the final season.
The first four are solid in their execution - and stylish too.

Quick edits, stylistic shots and some gorgeous palettes make the season stand out - and it's certainly leagues ahead of anything else, even if its ultimate resolution never meets the highs of the questions raised.
Ultimately, Samurai Jack is still masterful and deeply watchable, even if parts of it feel familiar and compelling in equal measure. 

Sweet Country: DVD Review

Sweet Country: DVD Review

Aussie director Warwick Thornton's Samson and Delilah was a searing commentary on the treatment (or lack thereof) of contemporary indigenous races in Australia.

Blessed with raw visceral power, that tale set the bar very high for the director - and also lit a fuse under Australian film.

So, it's a slight disappointment to report that Sweet Country doesn't quite measure up to that stunning debut, preferring to instil an at-heart Western with a large degree of unsubtlety throughout.

Set in the 1929 Northern Territories, it's the story of Sam (Hamilton Morris), an Aborigine caught up in the politics and the horrendous racism of the time.

Sent by preacher Fred Smith (a stoic, underplayed and heartfelt Sam Neill) to help a bitter, traumatised war veteran (played with seething bile by Leslie)on his cattle farm, Sam finds himself in the centre of an insufferable situation.

When conflict forces Sam's hand, he ends up on the run with his wife - and a manhunt led by Bryan Brown's Sergeant Fletcher begins.

Thornton uses time and confusion well in Sweet Country, with images from the start, middle and future of the film intersecting with current events throughout. It's a disorienting, smart move that keeps some of the ambulatory pace at bay.

Make no mistake this is a film that takes its sweet time getting to its (entirely predictable and tragic) conclusion. There's nothing wrong with that and Thornton fills the screen with great vistas and full-screen landscape shots that capture the outback at its most confrontational and testing.

Occasionally though, the lack of time and apparent time jumps prove to be a step too far, pushing the narrative where it needs to go at a pace that seems interminable to engage with.

It seethes too, with an undercurrent of hatred, of theft from countries and of darkness that men do.

"I wanted the other one, but you'll do" is one line that lingers deep afterwards, delivered with contempt and malice ahead of a venomous act the consequences of which linger long on.

But despite great controlled performances from the likes of Neill as a preacher and of Morris, a man whose face is etched with the pains and injustices of the past, Sweet Country lacks a path to conclusion that feels anything other than pre-laid out.

There's no way this can't end in tragedy, and perhaps that's Thornton's aim - to showcase the ugly brutality of life and the repugnant nature of those who've fought in wars, and the arrogance of the white man.

It's an ugly film in some ways, with racism, violence and language giving this Western a brutal truth which is hard to stomach occasionally.

Ultimately, despite Thornton's intentions to rise above its grubby gritty nature, the final feeling of Sweet Country underwhelms. Some leaps in logic and some strange time jumps rob the film of the authenticity which has gone before it.

It's to be commended for being a Western that has a different way of doing things despite a very familiar premise (manhunt, people wronged, good and evil), but Sweet Country, complete with its hammering home of politics - one character's final comments are "What is this country coming to?" isn't quite as powerful as it could - and should - be.

Its lack of subtlety robs of it the power it needs, and while the pace makes the journey's destination unfortunately not quite worth it - Samson and Delilah, with its more laid back approach to situation, conflict and resolution, packed more of the resolute punch that Thornton's follow up delivers.

The Prisoner: The Complete Series: DVD Review

The Prisoner: The Complete Series: DVD Review

Released by Madman Home Ent

Essential viewing for Cult TV fans, and in many ways, setting the tone for the conspiracy mystery shows that now grace our screens, sixties' mind-bender The Prisoner is still a great, if confusing watch.

Patrick McGoohan is a high-ranking Government official who resigns and is promptly abducted. Awaking in the village, he's given a number, much like others there - and decides he will do what he can to escape.

But fighting against a system he doesn't understand, he finds it's not as simple as it could be.

All 17 episodes have been restored and look great in their latest incarnation.

As ever, the story remains as baffling as it always did, but this time, it looks great. Not really binge-worthy, this intellectual series mixed drama and mystery well, to ensure that each episode is rewarding.

Still resonant decades on, The Prisoner's a cult TV gem, and a worthwhile watch.

The Client List: Series Two: DVD Review

The Client List: Series Two: DVD Review

Jennifer Love Hewitt returns in the second series of the soapy titillating The Client List.
Focussed on those working at a spa where sexual favours are doled out, the twists come hot and heavy this time around, as Hewitt's Riley tries to untangle the return of her estranged husband.

With a love triangle forming (inevitably) Riley finds life further complicated by issues of trust at the spa.

The Client List won't win any awards for anything much, but it's amiably set out and is graced by Cybill Shepherd.


With some poor writing here and there, Hewitt tries her best to raise the show from its slightly grubby edges, and occasionally succeeds. But they're hollow victories.

Red Dead Redemption 2 Limited-Edition Gear and Collectibles - Outlaw Essentials Collection Coming Soon

Red Dead Redemption 2 Limited-Edition Gear and Collectibles - Outlaw Essentials Collection Coming Soon

THE RED DEAD REDEMPTION 2 OUTLAW ESSENTIALS COLLECTION

LIMITED-EDITION GEAR AND COLLECTIBLES COMING SOON

Presenting the Red Dead Redemption 2 Outlaw Essentials Collection, featuring a variety of limited-edition collectibles inspired by the game. Everything from an assortment of stylish t-shirts to unique and time-period informed articles like the Collapsible Shot Glass, PendletonBlanket featuring the Van der Linde Gang, and Glass Decoupage Tray by John Derian, plus lots more... 

Browse the full gamut of items via the slideshow viewer above.

Look for select items to be available for pre-order from the Rockstar Warehouse and other select retailers, including GameStop. And keep an eye out for upcoming giveaways at Social Club.