Film Guide

Taut and gripping, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt1 (hereafter: DH1), first half of the cinematic finale of the Harry Potter saga, evidences an on form director in Potter third timer David Yates. Yates artfully compresses the plethora of story elements with a clear editorial eye whilst remaining faithful to the intent and tone of J.K. Rowling’s final Potter book. Not as easy as it sounds, and an achievement that applies to perhaps only half of the films.

The opening scenes of DH1 find Harry and friends in an England that has fallen, once more, under the control of Lord Voldemort. Fear reigns; old prejudices are enflamed. No longer is Hogwarts the safe haven it has always been: Voldemort’s Death Eaters openly fill staff positions and Dumbledore’s killer Severus Snape sits atop the headmaster’s chair. Complex plans are afoot to help Harry escape from an increasingly frustrated Voldermort and the trio finally breakaway from the safe confines of school, friends and family, setting off to accomplish the ‘fate of the world’ task that Dumbledore has left for them. Only, things aren’t quite as straightforward as our young protagonists would hope and they spend much of their secret mission in hiding, grasping for the tiniest clue which might help guide them to the evil they’re hunting. Top this off with the problem of how to destroy each piece of their quarry before it destroys them and you can see that things are looking pretty grim. Read the rest of this entry »

RED, which stands for Retired, Extremely Dangerous is a film about a group of ex-assasins who get burned and band together one last time to seek revenge. If you think the plot sounds familiar then you’re probably watching the same recently released DVDs as I do, namely The Expendables, The A-Team and The Loosers (at least RED isn’t called The RED!). Add to this the fact that RED is based on a comic book by the same name and you might start inwardly groaning. Heck my might even starts groaning outwardly as well.

Well stop your groaning, because even though RED might not have an original idea anywhere in it’s 111 minute run time, it is a heck of a lot of fun. As an action/comedy RED remembers two very important things: A – It’s an action film, B- It’s a comedy. In other words it doesn’t take itself too seriously and it has some fantastic set pieces.

Littered with some of my favourite actors, Morgan Freeman, Helen Mirren, John Malkovich and Bruce Willis (who gets to kick Karl Urban’s arse all over the place) RED had me smiling from beginning to end.  Read the rest of this entry »

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Free daily events at the Civic will be a new addition to the NZ International Film Festival in Auckland this year.

The Civic’s elegant Wintergarden will be transformed into Film Café presented by Show Me Shorts and hosted by NZIFF and The Edge.

Film Café will be an open social space for people to meet and relax in and will be the central venue for free short film programmes, Meet-the-Filmmaker talks and other events to be organised in consultation with industry partners.

“Film Café allows us to provide a fun Festival environment and thanks to the involvement of Show Me Shorts as Film Café’s presenters adds a whole new facet to the Festival’s engagement with short films. The team behind Show Me Shorts know their shorts and we’re very pleased that they will be taking such a leading part in this programme.” says Festival Director Bill Gosden

“We also see the opportunity for Festival goers to meet NZ and international filmmakers in this informal atmosphere, an aspect that makes the Festival such an important cultural event.” says Gosden.

Show Me Shorts Festival Director Gina Dellabarca says, “We think Aucklanders want a place to hang out in between movies at NZIFF. A place to go for a drink when they bump into friends. We are really excited by this opportunity to partner with the iconic NZIFF and deliver Aucklanders short films from some of the hottest up and coming talents in such an opulent venue. We have a great line-up of shorts in store that we know people are going to love!”

Craig Cooper, Associate Director – Arts Programme for The Edge says, “The Civic has long been the Auckland home for the Film Festival. We are pleased to be working in partnership with the Festival to create a boutique cinema experience and café space in the Wintergarden. Festival patrons will be able to meet with each other, mix with the film makers and engage with a free programme of short films in one of Auckland’s much-loved venues.”

The NZ International Film Festival starts in Auckland from Thursday 14 July. Film Café will run from Saturday 16 July until Sunday 31 July (the final day of the Festival).

The Film Café will be open from 12pm weekdays and from 2pm on weekends. Daily film events will be held at 6.30pm as well as weekday lunchtime events at 12.30pm.

Fellow Geeks and Nerds… Tron has returned… Almost 30 years has passed since Disney’s tale of young computer hacker Kevin Flynn entering the world of the grid hit the screens. At the time the movie was applauded for its stunning state of the art graphics and unique plot concept.

Now the good news is that Disney has decided that to do a remake would be a bit pointless, building on the existing story base and developing Tron : Legacy. Legacy follows the story of Sam Flynn, son of Kevin, who after his fathers mysterious disappearance spends his life doing everything to disrupt ENCOM, the company that both provides his inheritance and source of questions to his fathers whereabouts.

One night he is encouraged to head back to Flynns, an arcade his father owned and worked from. At Flynn’s he discovers not only the edges of his fathers work, but a portal into the mysterious online world known as the Grid.  Read the rest of this entry »

The Girl Who Kicked The Hornets’ Nest is the anticipated final chapter in the Millennium Trilogy, and would have to be one of my most anticipated DVD releases of the year, more so because I missed it at the cinemas, and had to wait that much longer to finally see it! During my wait however, all I heard from other reviewers was how disappointing it was, how it didn’t live up to expectations.

What total and utter bollocks.

The film kicks off right after the ending of The Girl Who Played With Fire, with Lisbeth fighting for her life and having to undergo surgery to remove a bullet lodged in her brain. Lisbeth’s half brother, the blond giant is on the run and her father is recovering from an axe to the head.

The dark forces are gathering to discredit or silence Lisbeth and lone crusader Mikael Blomkvist is in overdrive as he pours his life – and his magazine – into proving her innocence.  Read the rest of this entry »

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Simply THORsome!

Thor was always going to be the wild card in the Marvel stable of superhero movies. Could this release pull off a box office win with a relative newcomer leading man, a classical director and still showcase a mystical powered Hero from not another world but actually another ‘realm’? The character isn’t as well known as Spidey or the Hulk so the scriptwriters (and there are five of them) had to create a story which enveloped a Norse mythology lesson wrapped around a modern day backdrop for guy meets girl, world falls apart, guy becomes superhero, guy saves world, girl falls for guy. Well you know the plot. And it still rocks!
Don’t take these thoughts for cynicism.

This movie delivers and aside from a couple of ‘why did they do that’ moments, it climbs on every level. Kenneth Branagh has surprised many detractors on this project. Could the man who brought us Frankenstein and The Magic Flute as follow-ups to his 1989 hit Henry V deliver a comic book superhero? He does, and he’s brought the right combination of artistry and superhero action to a script that is also able to bring in the nuances of Norse myth lore. Combine that with some great ‘God meets Humanity’ humour points and we’re loving it. The preview audience were vocal in both their laughter and post screening praise.  Read the rest of this entry »