STACK NZ Jan-Feb #59

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32 SUMMER EDITION 2015 JB Hi-Fi
visit REVIEWS DVD&BD
Dracula as a good guy? Hard to believe but that’s the
premise of this new origin story, which takes its cues
from the opening scenes in Francis Coppola’s 1992
version of the vampire classic. Set in the Middle Ages,
Vlad The Impaler (Luke Evans) is looking forward to ruling
Transylvannia peacefully, having already proven his loyalty
to The Ottoman Empire. However, when this former
childhood friend Mehmed II (Dominic Cooper) demands
1,000 children – including his own son (Art Parkinson)
– be conscripted into his army, Vlad rebels. Knowing he
won’t be able to defeat the Turks, he turns to a demonic creature (Charles
Dance) for help. Dracula Untold is actually closer in spirit to fantasy
reboots like Red Riding Hood than traditional vampire tales, albeit with a
much higher body count. It’s all a bit silly, if truth be told, but the intriguing
final scene hints that a new monster franchise might be in the works.
Vlad’s not all Bad
DRACULA UNTOLD
he creepy titular doll that had a supporting role in
ames Wan’s 2013 supernatural hit The Conjuring gets
ts own spin-off-cum-prequel in this moderately scary
pookfest. The setting this time is LA in the late ‘60s
here newly-weds Ward Horton (The Mighty Macs)
nd Annabelle Wallis (Peaky Blinders) are expecting
heir first child. Wallis is a doll collector and is delighted
hen her husband buys her the rare Annabelle doll for
hich she’s been searching. However, after a violent
home invasion by two members of Manson-like cult,
she begins to wonder if the doll has become possessed by an evil
spirit. Director John Leonetti, who worked on both The Conjuring and
another Wan horror franchise Insidious, serves up plenty of jumps and
frights, although it must be said these sort of haunted house flicks are
becoming a little too predictable.
Welcome to the Dollhouse
ANNABELLE
Watching characters grow up on screen is not
uncommon on television, whether on soap operas or
long-form dramas like Mad Men or The Sopranos. But
it’s not something that would seem to be possible
for a feature film… until now. The new film from indie
icon Richard Linklater (Dazed & Confused, the Before
trilogy) was shot over 12 years and charts a young boy’s
progress from a six-year-old to late adolescence. Ellar
Coltrane is a revelation as the kid who literally comes
of age on screen, and he is well supported by Linklater
regular Ethan Hawke and Patricia Arquette as his estranged parents;
incidentally his sister is played by the director’s own daughter Lorelei. By
focusing on the ordinariness of life, Linklater has fashioned an enthralling
and utterly believable family saga – forget reality TV, this is the real deal.
A Literal Coming-of-Age Story
BOYHOOD
In her most recent work Meek’s Cut Off, American indie
director Kelly Reichardt put her own distinctive stamp on
the western; here she takes a similarly unconventional
approach to the thriller genre, and the result is an
unsettling and thought-provoking drama about eco-
terrorism. Jesse Eisenberg plays a young organic farmer
who together with his girlfriend (Dakota Fanning) and an
ex-marine (Peter Saarsgard) set out to blow up a hydro-
electric dam. Although it works well as a suspenseful
thriller, Reichardt is more interested in exploring the
paranoia and misplaced idealism of her trio of amateur terrorists,
particularly in the tragic aftermath of their mission. Eisenberg is great in
an unlikable role, while Fanning cements her growing reputation as one
Hollywood’s brightest young talents. A slow-burning triumph.
Dambusters
NIGHT MOVES
Format: Release Date: 10/12/14 Format: Release Date: 11/02/15
Format: Release Date:25/02/15 Format: Release Date: 25/02/15
DRAMA
HORROR