STACK #143 Sept 2016

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DVD&BD REVIEWS

On the air. Out of time. MONEY MONSTER

A Black comedy. THE NICE GUYS

Release Date: 01/09/16

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Release Date: 31/08/16

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George Clooney brings showmanship to the share market as Lee Gates, the flamboyant host of the titular TV show. Gates is held hostage during a live broadcast by an armed and angry young man (Jack O’Connell) that’s lost a $60k inheritance through a bad investment, and holds Gates responsible for endorsing the stocks. Money Monster begins as a tense real-time thriller, with Gates attempting to fast talk his way out of the situation with the help of his producer (Julia Roberts) via an earpiece. But then the film morphs into a blackly

Writer-director Shane Black’s latest action-comedy is a shambolic trip to Los Angeles, circa 1977, where Russell Crowe’s corpulent thug-for-hire and Ryan Gosling’s dimwit detective join forces to discover the whereabouts of a missing activist, whose disappearance is linked to the death of a porn star and a mysterious movie that someone is prepared to kill for. Forget the chaotic and circuitous plot and revel in the seedy ‘70s milieu of polyester, decadent parties, and Black’s flair for cracking dialogue and slapstick violence. A buddy movie is only

humorous revenge fantasy for anyone who’s lost big time on the stock market. Watching Wall Street come tumbling down has never been so much fun, thanks to Jodie Foster’s fluid direction, brisk pacing, and energetic performances that are bang on the money. SH

as good as its resident buddies, and Crowe and Gosling are a perfect mismatch. The Nice Guys may lack the zing of Black’s 2005 gem Kiss Kiss Bang Bang , but it’s still an enjoyably manic retro romp, and Gosling's performance alone is worth the price of the disc. SH (See page 40)

You haven't seen anything yet! NOW YOU SEE ME 2

Welcome to the war zone. WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT

Release Date: 14/09/16

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Release Date: 01/09/16

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Having been in limbo for more than a year, magical quartet The Four Horsemen finally have an opportunity to get up to their old tricks – and a whole bunch of spectacular new ones – in this sequel to 2013’s hypnotic action- comedy caper Now You See Me . Henley (Isla Fisher) may have given them the flick, but Atlas (Jesse Eisenberg), Merritt (Woody Harrelson) and Jack (Dave Franco) are soon joined by mistress of ‘geek magic’ Lula (Lizzy Caplan). Their mission? To infiltrate a shonky software mogul’s operations. But before they know it, they’ve

War has always been a core subject for movies. From the seriously dramatic likes of Apocalypse Now to on-the-surface more frivolous trips like Good Morning Vietnam , they’ve underlined the adage “war is hell”. There’s no Liz Lemon from the brilliant Tina Fey here, as her in-a-rut TV journo character Kim Baker decides to spice up life by doing the war correspondent thing in Afghanistan. Hey, it’s only a three month assignment! Despite being smacked in the face with culture shock, rampant sexism and the reality of modern warfare,

been infiltrated themselves and hijacked to Macau, where they encounter another dodgy software type with an offer that they probably shouldn’t refuse. Add Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine and Mark Ruffalo, and NYSM2 pulls off quite a trick – it’s a cool, spellbinding sequel! AF

Kim clicks, makes friends, and stays for several years. While there are laughs, they’re the everyday mortal foible kind. This is the key to why WTF engages – these people protecting our arses or those of innocents where they’re stationed are just as human as any of us. AF

SEPTEMBER 2016

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