37 / 70
37
REVIEWS
DVD
&
BD
DVD&BD
This US-set post-apocalyptic drama – based on the
1974 Young Adult novel by Robert C. O'Brien – was
filmed in New Zealand, which is kind of appropriate
because it owes a big debt to the 1985 Kiwi cult
classic
The Quiet Earth
, in which a trio of strangers
are the only people left on the planet.
Z for Zachariah
is also a three-hander and is set in a world which has
been devastated by a nuclear disaster. Margot Robbie
plays a young woman who lives in a remote valley,
which has miraculously escaped the radioactive fallout.
She is delighted when Chiwetel Ejiofor arrives at her farm, but their
burgeoning friendship comes under strain when another stranger,
Chris Pine, moves in. A thoughtful drama about the destructive power
of jealousy and suspicion, even during the most perilous of times.
The last woman on Earth isn't alone.
Z FOR ZACHARIAH
Pineapple Express
meets
The
Bourne Identity
in this agreeably
bonkers comedy-thriller which
reunites
Adventureland
stars Jesse
Eisenberg and Kristen Stewart.
He’s a stoner slacker who works
at a service station while trying to
summon up the courage to propose
to his long-suffering but devoted
girlfriend (Stewart). However,
Eisenberg is blissfully unaware that
he is also a lethal assassin, the only
successful graduate of a secret CIA
program that was subsequently
shelved. So when his old handler
(Connie Britton) reactivates him
because he has been marked
for assassination by the agency,
all hell breaks loose. A daft but
unexpectedly dark delight.
AMERICAN ULTRA
Release Date:
06/01/16
Format:
This second attempt to bring
Namco's bald, barcoded video
game assassin to the screen
replaces former Hitman Timothy
Olyphant with
Homeland
's
Rupert Friend, who transplants
his lethal skills as Agent Quinn
to Agent 47. His target is the
psychic daughter of the brilliant
geneticist who created the
Hitman program. Bullets move
in slow motion, helicopters
fly into buildings and people
are sucked into a jet engine
in an explosive and mindless
action-fest that owes a huge
debt to
The Terminator
. The
perfect supporting feature for
The Transporter Refuelled
as a
Friday night double bill.
hitman: agent 47
Release Date:
06/01/16
Format:
Release Date:
06/01/16
Format:
It may revolve around a teenage girl who is dying of
cancer, but this utterly charming and wittily inventive
teen flick couldn’t be further from
The Fault in Our Stars,
while still packing an equally heartbreaking emotional
punch. The ‘me’ of the title is Greg (Thomas Mann),
an awkward kid who spends most of his time making
silly mini-parodies of movie classics with his pal Earl (RJ
Cyler). At the urging of his mother (Connie Britton), he
befriends Rachel (Olivia Cooke), a fellow student who
has been diagnosed with terminal cancer and she in
turn opens his eyes to what he has been missing out on in life. Director
Alfonso Gomez-Rejon’s quirky visual eye and delight in teen movie
clichés makes this an instant cult classic, and film buffs will get a kick
out of Greg's homemade movie masterpieces like 'Senior Citizen Kane'.
Death-defying acts.
ME AND EARL AND THE DYING GIRL
Woody Allen's latest sees
Joaquin Phoenix plagued
by the director's trademark
neuroses (in addition to
impotence and alcoholism) as
burnt out philosophy professor
Abe Lucas, whose reputation
and ample life experience
attracts the interest of married
colleague Parker Posey and
undergrad Emma Stone. The
latter reintroduces him to the
joy of living, but what starts as
a charming rom-com abruptly
detours into thriller territory.
Allen juggles it all with his
usual flair for character and
biting wit, although you can't
help wondering how the Coen
brothers would have done it.
IRRATIONAL MAN
Release Date:
20/01/16
Format:
A 15-year-old girl (Bel Powley)
experiences sexual awakening
with the thirtysomething
boyfriend (Alexander Skarsgård)
of her mother (Kristen Wiig).
On paper this sounds all kinds
of wrong, but Marielle Heller's
assured debut feature is a bold
and brilliant coming-of-age story
with the female perspective
as its focus. Set in a bohemian
San Francisco during the sexual
revolution of 1976, this edgy
indie drama is punctuated
by animated interludes and
voiceover narration, taking
the viewer into its teenaged
protagonist's head with a non-
judgemental attitude. For fans
of
Fish Tank
and
Thirteen
.
THE DIARY OF A
TEENAGE GIRL
Release Date:
21/01/16
Format:
Release Date:
13/01/16
Format: