Blended families aren’t new – nor is the situation where
children in such arrangements don’t exactly take to their
step-parents. Sometimes it’s because, well, they’re
arseholes, but this isn’t the case with good natured radio
exec Brad Whitaker (Will Ferrell). He’s married Sara (Linda
Cardellini), inherited two great kids in Megan and Dylan,
and he’s finally making great progress with them. Then their
biological dad, Dusty (Mark Wahlberg), rocks up. He’s the
anti-Brad, all machismo, muscles and motorcycle, but despite
being intimated, Brad does his best to make the guy feel
welcome. It’s a dumb idea, for Dusty’s come with one aim – to wrest Sara
and his kids back from Brad. But the stepdad isn’t going down without a
fight. Ferrell and Wahlberg’s rapport, as first seen in
The Other Guys
, makes
this often surprisingly raunchy comedy (for a PG rating) well worth a look.
AF
Who's your daddy?
DADDY'S HOME
Romeo & Juliet
do Sydney in this
tale of star-crossed lovers from
two very different families. School
teacher Alex (Richard Brancatisano)
isn’t in any hurry to get dating,
despite being pushed by his Greek
Orthodox family to find a nice
girl. Then one night Alex actually
meets a nice girl – quite literally by
accident – in lawyer Eve (Andrea
Demetriades), and they really hit it
off. But she’s Lebanese Muslim, so
while they fall hopelessly in love,
their respective families completely
lose their shi.. erm, minds. Based
on the stage play of the same
name,
Alex & Eve
shakes off those
limiting shackles to give us a big
fat and thoroughly entertaining
multicultural rom-com romp.
AF
ALEX & EVE
Release Date:
13/04/16
Format:
To what lengths would you go
in order to avenge your wife’s
murder? If you’re a cop named
Jack Stone (Matthew Reese, and
no relation to the LEGO series),
then the answer would involve
the word ‘incredible’. He stages
a bank robbery with the sole aim
of being sent to the same prison
where notorious Russian mobster
Balam (retired UFC champ Chuck
Lidell) is currently doing time.
He’s more than your everyday
crim, too, as he basically still
runs the city from his cushy – but
bar-heavy – digs. He’s protected
to the hilt, but underestimating
Stone just may be his downfall.
Featuring bonus Dolph,
Riot
is a
riot of fab B-grade action.
AF
RIOT
Release Date:
30/03/16
Format:
Release Date:
07/04/16
Format:
Truth
delves behind the scenes of the
60 Minutes
exposé in 2004 on President George W. Bush's
National Service during the VietnamWar. This
dramatisation also reveals the scandal that erupted
in the wake of the report's revelations that Bush
attempted to dodge the draft to undertake pilot training
with the Texas Air National Guard, as claimed in a
series of possibly bogus documents acquired by the
news team. Caught in the fallout are steely producer
Cate Blanchett, veteran anchorman Robert Redford,
and researcher Dennis Quaid. With the, um, spotlight currently on
investigative journalism dramas,
Truth
is a gripping companion piece to
this year's Best Picture Oscar-winner. The moral of the story is simple:
always use reliable sources, and always check the facts!
SH
Can you handle it?
TRUTH
The zombie's recent resurgence
in popularity sees director Fred
Decker's 1986 gem resurrected
from VHS obscurity to find a new
and appreciative audience. It
still holds up in today's crowded
landscape of the living dead,
and it's got cult favourite Tom
Atkins (
The Fog
,
Halloween III
)
in top form as a cynical cop.
An extraterrestrial experiment
that can reanimate the dead
plummets to earth and unleashes
mayhem on a small town in the
form of undead prom dates,
exploding heads, and slithering
alien slugs. This Special Edition
will definitely thrill you, being
stacked with bonus features
including the original ending.
SH
NIGHT OF THE
CREEPS
Release Date:
Out NOW
Format:
Ten-year-old twin brothers become
convinced that their mother has
been replaced by an imposter,
after she returns home from a
cosmetic surgery procedure with
her face swathed in bandages
and a malevolent manner. This
Cronenbergian Austrian thriller
is a nightmarish exercise in high
tension that gets more disturbing
as it progresses. And while the big
twist might seem a bit predictable,
the film still works thanks to
a narrative duality that nicely
reflects its twin protagonists.
Highly recommended for horror
fans and creepy in the extreme,
especially if you have an aversion
to cockroaches. Note: the Blu-ray
edition is exclusive to JB Hi-Fi.
SH
GOODNIGHT
MOMMY
Release Date:
20/04/16
Format:
Release Date:
20/04/16
Format:
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REVIEWS
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jbhifi.com.auAPRIL
2016
DVD&BD