STACK NZ Mar #71

DVD & BD REVIEWS

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The truth lies in the most unexpected places Secret in Their Eyes

Welcome to the jungle THE GREEN INFERNO

Release Date: 23/03/16

Release Date: 16/03/16

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If a non-English speaking movie is successful, you can bet your last peso it will be remade. Such is the fate of Argentinian ‘Best Foreign Language Film’ Oscar-winner El Secreto de Sus Ojos, with this star-studded Hollywood makeover. A hard-hitting thriller that boasts Chiwetel Ejiofor, ‘our’ Nicole Kidman and Julia Roberts, Secret in Their Eyes spans 13 years as it plunges viewers into the shocking world of teenage rape and murder. That the victim in question is the daughter of DA investigator Jess Cobb (Roberts) sets things rolling. Cobb, FBI counter-terrorism investigator Ray

A group of idealistic student activists travel to the Amazon rainforest where they are dismembered and eaten by the tribe they've come to save from deforestation. That's just one of the cruel jokes on offer in Eli Roth's grisly homage to the Italian cannibal movie cycle of the 1970s. Another is what happens when the natives are fed a bag of dope in an attempt to sedate them – the munchies! Roth knows and loves this sub-genre and The Green Inferno is certainly a well intentioned tribute, but it's also a missed opportunity in that it's far too slick and goofy to pack the

Karsten (Ejiofor) and assistant DA Claire Sloan (Kidman) look into the crime, but a conviction isn’t made and their partnership implodes. Still haunted years later, Karsten discovers a lead and gets the cold case reopened, which results in more than he’d bargained for... AF

same kind of visceral punch as the grungy films that inspired it – namely Cannibal Holocaust and Cannibal Ferox . However, those who haven't seen these cult shockers will find it confronting, while gorehounds will appreciate the gruesome set pieces and makeup effects. SH

Love The Coopers

LUTHER: SERIES 4

Sleeping With Other People

Intruders

DVD&BD

Release Date: 02/03/16 Format:

Release Date: 02/03/16 Format:

Release Date: 10/03/16 Format:

Release Date: 09/03/16 Format:

Unlike the rude and lewd shenanigans of The Night Before (see overleaf), this is a much more traditional sort of festival flick. A sort of cross between Va lentine’s Day and Parenthood , this starry ensemble piece follows the disparate stories of the dysfunctional Cooper family as they prepare for their annual Christmas Eve dinner. John Goodman and Diane Keaton are the parents, who unbeknownst to their kids are contemplating divorce, while the most entertaining sub-plot involves their bad girl daughter, Olivia Wilde, who picks up a soldier (Jack Lacy) at the airport and persuades him to pose as her boyfriend. JF

Throughout TV history, the line between good and bad in cop shows has usually been absolute – the constabulary are the goodies, the baddies are the, well, baddies, and the only time they’ll meet is when the latter are being nicked. Luther creator Neil Cross seems to revel in playing with this rigid trope, helped immeasurably by Idris Elba in the titular role. One minute he seems in control, the next you’re convinced that he’s about to go totally off tap. As a viewer it keeps you on your toes, and draws you into a deep web of darkness and moral ambiguity. This two-parter sees Luther’s leave of absence curtailed upon hearing some shocking news. AF

The basic premise of When Harry Met Sally – can men and women ever just be platonic friends? – gets a politically incorrect makeover in this naughty but nice romantic comedy. Jason Sudeikis plays an unashamed serial cheater who forms an unlikely friendship with an old college one-night stand (Alison Brie) following a chance meeting at a sex addicts' group. The talented supporting cast includes Adam Scott as the manipulative married man whom Brie remains hung up on, and Amanda Peet as Sudeikis’s sexy boss, while writer-director Leslye Headland ( Bachelorette ) successfully sidesteps most of the usual soppy rom-com clichés. JF

Crippled by agoraphobia, Anna (Beth Riesgraf) hasn’t left the home that she shares with her ailing brother for more than a decade. But when her brother dies it’s a given that she’ll venture outdoors to attend his funeral, right? Well, that’s what a trio of burglars who see Anna’s house as ripe for the plundering reckon – but they have no idea as to the voracity of her affliction. Our dodgy threesome ransack the place for a rumoured cash stash, but little do they realise that Anna – who is very much at home – has a few twisty tricks up her sleeve. Panic Room collides with Saw in this horror-tinged girl power thriller. AF

MARCH 2016

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