STACK #121 Nov 2015

DVD&BD

REVIEWS

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The sins of the Father. CALVARY

Workin' its way back to you. JERSEY BOYS

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Release Date: 05/11/14

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Release Date: 12/11/14

DRAMA

Following their successful collaboration on the 2011 comedy The Guard , Brendan Gleeson and director John Michael McDonagh reunite for this downbeat drama about a Catholic priest who receives a death threat from the confessional. Father James (Gleeson) becomes the target of a vengeful victim of childhood abuse at the hands of the clergy; an innocent substitute for the offending priest, who has since passed away. Given a week to prepare himself, James endures a Catholic backlash from the

He might love jazz, but Clint Eastwood isn’t the first director you think of when it comes to a film adaptation of the Broadway hit musical Jersey Boys . (Indeed, Jon Favreau was initially onboard.) But Clint was drawn to the underdog tale of Frankie Valli and the boys and their rise to superstardom as The Four Seasons during the 1960s. Cannily, he's cast stage actors familiar with the musical – such as Tony-winner John Lloyd Young, who reprises the role of Valli from the Broadway production – instead of Hollywood

locals (an ensemble that includes Chris O'Dowd, Dylan Moran and M. Emmet Walsh), any of whom could be his prospective killer. Calvary is bleak and brilliant, peppered with some disarming humour and anchored by an outstanding performance by Gleeson.

superstars, and the results are every bit as toe-tapping, sing-along and feel-good as you'd expect. Clint also doesn't gloss over the darker side of the tale, including the criminal element present during the group's formative years. A musical for everybody, not just your mum.

A fashionable drama. YVES SAINT LAURENT

West of Memphis. DEVIL'S KNOT

Release Date: 05/11/14

Release Date: 19/11/14

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The elegant YSL logo has bled out of the haute couture arena and into pop culture, to the point where one may not even think of the man those three letters represent. French fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent began to give life to his incredibly vigorous and elemental talent under the tutelage of Christian Dior, and his designs were so iconoclastic that, after Dior's death in 1957, he ascended to the head of the fashion house at just 21 years of age. Saint Laurent's genius was wrapped in a changeable, doubt-addled mindset, but he found immense relief in

Director Atom Egoyan ( The Sweet Hereafter ) isn't afraid of complex or sensitive material – his films frequently deal with socio-political intrigue and murder, with cleverly emotive character deconstructions within. Devil's Knot is based on the case of three teenaged boys who were jailed in the mid- '90s for killing three young boys in the American South, after a moral panic concerning Satanists emerged. Egoyan has sifted through the dense source material (the trial, conviction and subsequent release of the boys were covered heavily by documentary makers) for this dramatic reimagining, which

the companionship of revered industrialist Pierre Bergé, who became his partner in matters of heart and business. This biopic breathes warmth into the personal trials of the man's life, and documents his staggering rise to fame and fortune. Smooth, vivid and startlingly expressive.

allows him to flesh out figures within the case who weren't necessarily central to its mechanics – such as Pamela Hobbs (played with astounding candour by Reese Witherspoon), the mother of one of the victims. A beautifully-shot, intriguing look at grief, forgiveness and their murky overlap. • See page 82

NOVEMBER 2014 JB Hi-Fi www.jbhifi.com.au

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