STACK October 2016 Issue 144

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44 OCTOBER 2016
DVD&BD
REVIEWS
It's that time of year again – the annual Purge,
when crime and murder are legalised for 12 hours in
America. This third installment in the action-horror-
thriller franchise is cunningly timed to coincide with
the 2016 US presidential election campaign. A female
senator (Elizabeth Mitchell) determined to put an
end to the Purge should she win office, is targeted
for assassination on the night murder and mayhem
is allowed to run rampant. Political commentary and
Clinton/Trump allusions aside, The Purge: Election Year
is easily the biggest and best entry in the series to date, offering a
closer look at the NFFA – the sinister administration who introduced
the Purge – and once again raising the question of how this radical
initiative actually manages to keep the country's crime rate down. SH
The road to the White House is paved in red.
THE PURGE: ELECTION YEAR
The joke might have lost its bite
but this Syfy franchise continues
to be an annual event that props
up the careers of stars Tara Reid
and Ian Ziering. Delivering yet
another whirlwind of cheesy CGI,
celebrity cameos, and of course
sharks and the Hoff, Sharknado 4
is set five years after the events
of the third film, during which
time a device has been developed
to repel sharnados. If only it had
worked! This time the feeding
frenzy consumes Las Vegas, with
the titular Star Wars pun allowing
Reid to be fitted with a lightsaber
arm! Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2
fans will appreciate the casting of
star Caroline Williams as Stretch;
no prizes for guessing her
weapon of choice. SH
SHARKNADO 4:
THE 4TH AWAKENS
Release Date:
12/10/16
Format:
From hitman to having his face
ripped off, and being a disco king
who can pull of a pretty mean
twist, John Travolta’s proven
to be a versatile guy. Now
this thrilling action explosion
sees him going all heroic on
our arses, maintaining high
voltage powerlines so we can
do everything from Nutribullet
smushing to sitting at the
computer typing this review.
Travolta – toting a rather luxuriant
beard – is Beau, who’s in the
midst of a huge grid upgrade
with his crew when a storm
that would have Noah bolting
to Bunnings for emergency
supplies springs up, and, as we
all know, water and electricity
aren’t perfect playmates... AF
LIFE ON THE LINE
Release Date:
05/10/16
Format:
Release Date: 26/10/16 Format:
Maggie from The Walking Dead, aka Lauren Cohan,
finds something more frightening than zombies when
she takes a job as a nanny in a rambling old mansion in
rural England – the kind with hidden rooms and a sinister
family portrait on the wall. The boy she's there to look
after is named Brahms, only he's not a boy – he's a child-
sized doll that's become a stand-in son for an elderly
couple who lost the real Brahms in a fire, and can't let
him go. Leaving a strict set of rules to be followed, the
'parents' depart, but is Cohan really alone in the old dark
house? Despite, or because of, the bonkers premise, this gothic chiller
becomes curiously compelling and manages to sidestep the clichés of
creepy doll movies: this isn't Chucky. But if you've seen enough horror
movies, you'll quickly guess where this one is headed. SH
Hello dolly.
THE BOY
Recent action blast Hardcore
Henry introduced us to first-
person cinema – after all, why
should gamers have all the
reality immersion? Boasting
ample thrills and twists,
Pandemic continues the trend as
New York’s Dr. Lauren and her
team descend upon L.A., hoping
to find survivors of a worldwide
pandemic. What she discovers
is that she’s lobbed into an “us
and them” world (not dissimilar
to that of TV’s The Walking Dead)
where those infected have
become crazed and more than
a tad envious of those who’ve
remained healthy. Can Dr. Lauren
help contain the outbreak and
find a cure before humanity goes
the way of the dinosaurs? AF
pandemic
Release Date:
05/10/16
Format:
Yeah, but can he open
bottles? Hank (Paul Dano) is
marooned, and what bare
threads of rescue hope he has
are fading fast. But then he
finds Manny (Daniel Radcliffe)
washed up on his island –
Hank has a friend! There’s
just one issue – his new pal
happens to be a corpse, and
one that farts a lot. But hey,
that makes him handy as a
jet ski! A surreal friendship
blossoms thanks to Manny’s
ability to talk and... Well,
you get the picture. Swiss
Army Man is nutty but nice.
Imagine Cast Away chucked
into a blender with Weekend
at Bernie’s, then directed by
Terry Gilliam. AF
SWISS ARMY MAN
Release Date:
19/10/16
Format:
Release Date: 12/10/16 Format: