STACK New Zealand October Issue 67

Writer-director Paul Feig and actress Melissa McCarthy,

who hit the jackpot with

Bridesmaids

and

The Heat

have teamed up again for this comedy crime-caper. And

even if you disliked their two previous collaborations,

you’ll doubtless find something to love in

Spy

. Feig’s

story – about a jovial deskbound analyst (McCarthy) in

the FBI who ends up having to go undercover when two

field agents are compromised – is still full of dumb and

hilarious absurdities, but manages to transcend its

Big

Momma’s House

-like premise with the most rewarding

script McCarthy (who ain’t no Martin Lawrence) has ever run with.

Moreover, it’s the best opportunity she’s had to showcase her winning

mix of dry and slapstick humour, not to mention her ability to wring real

empathy from the viewer.

Move over Bond!

SPY

Release Date:

07/10/15

Format:

teven Soderbergh’s 2012 male stripper opus was a

oogie Nights

-like peek into an adult industry via a rites of

assage story. Gregory Jacobs’ sequel is more of a road

ovie, set three years later when Mike (Channing Tatum)

as settled into his own furniture removal business and is

eeping his clothes on. When he receives a message from

is beefcake buddies (Joe Manganiello, Matt Bomer, et

l) to join them for a stripper convention (yes, apparently

here 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:

With James Wan defecting to the action genre to helm

Fast & Furious 7

Insidious

co-creator Leigh Whannell

takes the reins for the third chapter of their post-

Saw

horror franchise.

Chapter 3

actually takes things back to

the beginning, with a prequel that introduces medium

Elise Rainier, played by the fabulous Lin Shaye. As the

reluctant psychic enlisted to contact the deceased mother

of high school kid Stefanie Scott, Shaye goes for broke;

moving her centre stage was a stroke of genius and

reason enough to check out

Insidious Chapter 3

. Whannell

and buddy Angus Sampson are also back as ghostbusters, Specs and

Tucker, and the former’s familiarity with the material allows him to expand

the series’ mythology, while retaining all the requisite jumps and spooky

apparitions we’ve come to expect.

Shaye-ing power

Justice is priceless

Insidious: Chapter 3

Release Date:

28/10/15

Format:

Helen Mirren sinks her teeth into another tasty role in this

real-life account of the attempt to return a masterpiece of

art to its rightful provenance. Mirren plays Maria Altman,

who discovers some revealing letters in her late sister’s

belongings regarding a painting of her aunt, Adele Bloch-

Bauer, which was stolen by the Nazis and now hangs in

an Austrian gallery. 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.

WOMAN IN GOLD

Release Date:

07/10/15

Format:

DVD

REVIEWS