STACK NZ Magazine April 2015 Issue 61

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REVIEWS DVD&BD
ne of the most original films of the last 12 months,
ightcrawler sees the Jake Gyllenhaal embodying a disturbing
ersonage of youthful zeal covering a cold and calculated
aze. The enigmatic and enterprising Lou Bloom (Gyllenhaal)
onsiders himself a maverick, willing to put in the effort to
ake his own luck and bend accepted ethics to get to the top
f his brand new obsession: the 'nightcrawling' profession –
rawling the streets of LA for crime aftermath he can film and
hen sell on to rabid television networks. Equally brilliant are
enee Russo (director Dan Gilroy's wife) as cutthroat news
network manager Nina Romina, whom Lou bends to his will through a series
of off-putting ultimatums, and Riz Ahmed as Rick, the nervous and homeless
young man whom Lou employs as his navigator during their terrifying
nocturnal chases. A must-see.
The night has a price
NIGHTCRAWLER
Big Bang Theory meets Entourage
in this acerbic but affectionate
comedy about a budding group of
IT entrepreneurs. Co-created by
Mike Judge (Beavis & Butthead),
the series follows nerdish
programmer (Thomas Middleditch)
and his geeky pals as they get
their new start-up company off
the ground with the help of an
oddball billionaire (Christopher Evan
Welch). However, the show is at its
best in lacerating the pretensions
and hypocrisy of Silicon Valley’s
corporate titans, represented
mainly here by the fictional internet
giant Hooli and its splendidly
egomaniacal owner (Matt Ross).
Another must-own HBO comedy.
SILICON VALLEY:
SEASON 1
Release Date:
15/04/15
Format:
Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley
Cooper reunite for this old school
melodrama set in the Depression.
Serena (Lawrence) and George
(Cooper) are a match made in
lumberjack heaven; wise and
outspoken Serena is a formidable
partner for timber baron George,
both in business and in marriage.
But when Serena is rocked by
a personal loss and George's
dodgy business dealings come
back to haunt him, this slow burn
drama makes a dark detour into
thriller territory, where murder
and madness lurk. Considering
its troubled road to release, the
finished film stands up surprisingly
well, with J.Law totally fearless and
commanding in the title role.
SERENA
Release Date:
08/04/15
Format:
Release Date: 09/04/15 Format:
son Bateman, Jason Sudeikis and Charlie Day return for
is sequel to the 2011 comedy hit – only this time, they're
e bosses. But are they horrible? Well, no; that role
es to Christoph Waltz, as a dodgy investor in their new
hower buddy' business venture (which is not what you
ink). When Waltz cancels a massive order, the trio face
nkruptcy, but rather than kill this corrupt capitalist, they
tch a harebrained scheme to kidnap his son (Chris Pine)
d hold him for ransom. Also back for seconds is Jennifer
niston's trash-talking dentist and Jamie Foxx's jailbird, as
well as Bateman's former horrible boss Kevin Spacey. Written and directed
by Sean Anders (Hot Tub Time Machine), this is that rare example of a
comedy sequel being better – and funnier – than the original, which was
pretty horrible.
New crime. Same tools
HORRIBLE BOSSES 2
r Jean-Pierre
Jeunet (Amelie) made his
Hollywood debut with Alien
Resurrection, but is on much
more familiar turf for his second
English language feature.
This whimsical fable follows
the adventures of titular hero
(newcomer Kyle Catlett), a child
genius who sets off on a solo
cross-country journey to collect
a prize from the Smithsonian
Institute after inventing a
perpetual motion machine. The
glorious visuals – it’s Jeunet’s first
3D movie – and fine performances
(the grownups include Helena
Bonham Carter and Judy Davis)
more than compensate for the
scattershot plotting.
The Young AND
Prodigious T.S Spivet
Release Date:
09/04/15
Format:
Bill Murray as a boozy old codger
who mellows after babysitting the
kid next door might sound as sugar-
laden as a bottle of soft drink, but St.
Vincent never descends into outright
schmaltz thanks to the irrepressible
appeal of its leading man. Murray
gene splices his Wes Anderson
characters with DNA from Stripes
and Ghostbusters, and goes for
broke. Conversely, Melissa McCarthy
delivers a performance of surprising
restraint as the boy's single mom,
whose long working hours allow her
son (Jaeden Lieberher) to bond with
this irascible scene-stealer. Things
turn a tad mawkish at the end but
for the most part it's the Murray
showcase we've been waiting for
since Lost in Translation.
ST VINCENT
Release Date:
29/04/15
Format:
Release Date: 22/04/15 Format: