STACK 132 October Issue

52 / 120

It's a bold move revisiting Steven Spielberg and Tobe
Hooper's 1982 house of horrors, but this remake
more closely resembles the likes of Insidious and The
Conjuring than the classic original. It's also surprisingly
restrained in its use of CGI to reimagine the original's
big FX set pieces. The plot remains the same: family
move into a new house in the 'burbs that's built on
a (supposedly) relocated cemetery, their youngest
daughter communes with the spirit world through the
television and gets abducted to the other side, and
there's a creepy clown doll. This time, however, it's a TV ghost hunter
who's called in to help and declare "this house is clean", and the
original's sense of fun has been replaced with a more serious tone.
But the overall message remains the same: don't go into the light.
They're here... again.
POLTERGEIST
Release Date: 21/10/15 Format:
Steven Soderbergh's 2012 male stripper opus was a
Boogie Nights-like peek into an adult industry via a rites of
passage story. Gregory Jacobs' sequel is more of a road
movie, set three years later when Mike (Channing Tatum)
has settled into his own furniture removal business and
is keeping his clothes on. When he receives a message
from his beefcake buddies (Joe Manganiello, Matt
Bomer, et al) to join them for a stripper convention (yes,
apparently there is such a thing), Mike is initially reluctant.
But when an epiphany whilst welding leads to some
serious dance moves in the workshop, Mike joins the boys for one last
strip. Matthew McConaughey and Soderbergh are sorely missed here, and
the guys don't really get their gear off until the final reel, but Magic Mike
XXL boasts enough six-packs to keep a hens' night rowdy.
Back to the grind.
MAGIC MIKE XXL
Release Date: 21/10/15 Format:
Aloha is Bradley Cooper's second stint in the military
this year, albeit less traumatic than the events of
American Sniper . It's a Cameron Crowe film, which
means loads of whimsy and a great soundtrack. Cooper
plays a former pilot turned defence contractor who
returns to Hawaii, where his past is waiting in the form
of an old girlfriend (Rachel McAdams – is there a movie
she isn't in nowadays?). The other woman in his life is
his air force liaison (Emma Stone), who reminds us of
Kelly McGillis in Top Gun, only cuter. This isn't the love
triangle it sounds like, however, as Cooper is kept busy negotiating
with a Hawaiian leader over the launch of a satellite from Oahu. Crowe
has assembled a great cast – that also includes Bill Murray and a
blustering Alec Baldwin – which alone makes Aloha worth a look.
The future isn't just something that happens.
ALOHA
Release Date: 08/10/15 Format:
elen Mirren sinks her teeth into another tasty role
n this real-life account of the attempt to return a
asterpiece of art to its rightful provenance. Mirren
lays Maria Altman, who discovers some revealing
etters in her late sister's belongings regarding a
ainting of her aunt, Adele Bloch-Bauer, which was
tolen by the Nazis and now hangs in an Austrian
allery. Maria heads to Vienna with a young lawyer
Ryan Reynolds) in tow, and will stop at nothing to
restore her family's past – even if it means taking the
Austrian government to court. And really, would anyone say no to the
indomitable Dame Helen? Woman in Gold isn't some stuffy movie
about art, it's a buddy movie, a courtroom drama, and another fine
showcase for Mirren, who's as adept at accents as Meryl Streep.
Justice is priceless.
WOMAN IN GOLD
Release Date: 07/10/15 Format:
visit REVIEWS DVD&BD
052 OCTOBER 2015