STACK #132 Oct 2016

DVD & BD

REVIEWS

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A Norseman in Paris. VIKINGS: THE COMPLETE THIRD SEASON

One of us. One of us. AMERICAN HORROR STORY: FREAKSHOW

Release Date: 21/10/15

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Release Date: 08/10/15

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Vikings just keeps getting better every year. Who really cares that historical accuracy has been ditched in the name of entertainment; this rousing series continues to enthrall with its power struggles, well drawn characters, and epic battles. This season, a deal with King Ecbert to farm land outside of Wessex leads to betrayal and bloodshed, threatening the alliance between the Norsemen and Saxons; Ragnar Lothbrok broods like never before; Christian and Pagan beliefs clash during a bloody fertility ritual; a mysterious stranger (who may be Odin) visits

If you suffer from coulrophobia (a fear of clowns) you'd best avoid the fourth season of AHS. Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk's creepy and campy anthology series is back to its nasty best after the disappointing Coven , relocating to a carnival freakshow in Florida, circa 1952. The regular cast are all freaked out, with Kathy Bates sporting a beard, Evan Peters lobster claws, and Sarah Paulson two heads (possibly the most disturbing use of CGI to date). But it's Jessica Lange who steals this freaky show as a Marlene Dietrich-

Kattegat; Floki commits an act that Ragnar can never forgive; and a climactic attack on Paris results in a spectacular siege of Game of Thrones proportions. Most of the characters suffer physical and/or emotional scars and not everybody makes it out alive. You have been warned.

like dame who performs anachronistic Bowie covers. The episodes screened on Eleven were cut to meet broadcast standards, but this R-rated version presents AHS Freakshow in all its gory glory. The fifth season, Hotel , featuring er, Lady Gaga, premieres October 12.

Many lives, one epic journey. LIFE STORY

Back from the dead. GLITCH: SEASON ONE

Release Date: 08/10/15

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Release Date: 01/10/15

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David Attenbrough's latest series is one of the BBC's most ambitious Natural History programmes to date, and the first to be shot in HD. Life Story , a companion series to Life (2009), chronicles the journey from birth to parenthood in the animal kingdom, and the challenges and obstacles different species face at each stage of their lives. Whether it's insects, humpback whales, cheetahs, arctic foxes, or those kiddie favourites the meerkats, the need to procreate and populate is what keeps the circle of life turning. Told with the attention to detail we've come to

The living dead continue to invade television. Now it's Australia's turn, with this six-part drama that takes its cues from French series Les Revenants rather than The Walking Dead . In the Victorian country town of Yoorana, lawman James Hayes (Patrick Brammall) discovers a group of mud- caked naked folk wandering in the cemetery one night – one of whom is his wife, who passed away two years ago. As James and the local doctor (Genevieve O’Reilly) attempt to keep a lid on this apparent "miracle", a snooping cop from the neighbouring town gets closer to the truth, while the

expect from the great Sir David, the footage is extraordinary and up-close- and-personal. A word of caution though: the sequence involving goslings in Greenland, who take a literal giant leap from 400ft cliffs to ensure their survival (or sometimes not), could prove distressing for some viewers.

resurrected attempt to discover who they are and why they've returned. Creepy and thought-provoking, this innovative new entry in the zombie genre will hook you in from the very first ep. As usual there's no clear cut explanation, but the promise of a second series will hopefully reveal more.

OCTOBER 2015

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