Batman Ninja - DVD Review

Out on DVD from Monday 14th May, a new story featuring Gotham City's greatest hero, Batman Ninja

Incorporating the influence of Anime animation, Batman in the attempts to ward off an evil experiment, gets transported to feudal Japan where the Joker and the rest of the criminal masterminds have taken over various states of Japan as their feudal lords in the hope to make Japan one criminal world with Penguin, Poison Ivy, Two-Face all joining the party.

Batman is not entirely on his own, he has Catwoman as his ally - the plan to bring structure and normality to Japan before getting themselves and everyone back to the modern day world.

Whilst lusciously drawn in such detail, the film is also a satirical comment on the influence of western civilisation on eastern worlds with the Joker ploughing the land for coal bringing forward the industrial revolution by a few hundred years.  Ironically though the influence goes full circle with anime becoming an avenue for new storylines and narratives for the Caped Crusader.

Featuring good voice work led by Roger Craig Smith as Bruce Wayne and Tony Hale as The Joker, the film is a stunning piece of animation full of set pieces aplenty and colourful aplomb.

This new adventure away from Gotham is ripe for fans old and new; providing a good gateway for American comic book fans to find a route to enjoy the rich tradition of Anime movies.

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment is pleased to make available a brand new featurette for the incredible upcoming animation, BATMAN NINJA, out now on Digital and available on Blu-ray™ Steelbook, Blu-ray™ and DVD May 14.

Trailer Talk: Teen Titans Go! To The Movies

Out from Warner Bros. UK the new trailer for TEEN TITANS GO! TO THE MOVIES coming to UK cinemas from August 3rd.

When the Teen Titans go to the big screen, they go big!  “Teen Titans GO! to the Movies” finds our egocentric, wildly satirical Super Heroes in their first feature film extravaganza—a fresh, gleefully clever, kid-appropriately crass and tongue-in-cheek play on the superhero genre, complete with musical numbers.
Full of knowing tongue in cheek references that the adults will get whilst the kids are transfixed by the colour and action, with voice talent including Will Arnett (Lego Batman), this is a self-referential funny film for all the family this summer.

The film is being directed by Aaron Horvath and Peter Rida Michail, from a screenplay by Michael Jelenic and Horvath, based on characters from DC.  Michail, Will Arnett and Peggy Regan are producing, with Sam Register, Jelenic, and Horvath serving as executive producers.  Apart from Arnett, all are “Teen Titans GO!” series contributors.

My thanks to ThinkJam for the trailer preview

Batman Ninja

Released from Warner Bros. Entertainment on Digital now, available on Blu-Ray Steelbook, Blu-ray and DVD on May 14

The visually stunning Batman Ninja is the creative result of a trio of anime's finest - director Jumpei Mizuasaki, writer Kazuki Nakashima and character designer Takashi Okazaki - who produced the original film in Japan. The script was then reinterpreted and re-written for English language distribution.

The film transports Batman's worst enemies to feudal Japan along with the Dark Knight himself. The villains take over the forms of feudal lords that rule divided land, with the Joker taking the lead; along with Bane and Poison Ivy. Batman with his allies - including Catwoman - must restore order to the land and return to Gotham City.

Below is a featurette about the history of anime and enthusing the DC universe into the animation featuring the screenwriter Leo Chu.

Voice talent in the film include Roger Craig Smith (Batman: Arkham Origins) and Tony Hale (Veep) voice Batman and the Joker respectively.  Other support comes from Grey Griffin and Tara Strong.

The trailer and featurette promises a feast for the senses and a thrill ride as Batman Ninja gives the best of both worlds in a new synergy of entertainment.

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment is pleased to make available a brand new featurette for the incredible upcoming animation, BATMAN NINJA, out now on Digital and available on Blu-ray™ Steelbook, Blu-ray™ and DVD May 14.

My thanks to ThinkJam for the link.

John Wick: Chapter 2

Keanu Reeves returns as the eponymous character John Wick, in the sequel to the surprising 2014 hit with Reeves playing a retired hit man who just cannot avoid his forcing him back into the game he wanted to walk away from.

Directed again by Chad Stahelski - whose stunt work has graced The Hunger Games, The Wolverine - the film continues not long after the first film's conclusion. On this occasion, John must do a favour for Italian crime lord Santino D'Antonio (Riccardo Scarmario) who wants a seat at the top table of the crime syndicate, or the crime world will descend upon him.

The film features some amazing action sequences shot in some beautiful locations especially in subways and nightclubs, the film culminates with an ingenious mirror sequence.  The other stand out scene is when John must flee the catacombs of a Roman tomb and you become almost a point of view from John as he encounters wave upon wave of people out to shoot him, it is reminiscent of a Call of Duty or other first person shooter video games. The scene is both exhilarating yet at times bewildering.

Whilst Reeves is never going to win Oscars for his performances, you have to admire the way he has found this niche role for his minimalist range combining his star persona and Matrix martial arts skills to promote a run of the mill action role into a franchise keeper. 

This film would be a lot different with a brooding Jason Statham or ranting Liam Neeson; and because of his zen like centre the somewhat over-the-top action scenes are believable due to Reeves holding court with his range.

The film does not hold back from the off there is a rip-roaring stunt car scene, and the scenes between Reeves and Common, who almost steals those scenes, are handled effectively as a calm down before the next dynamic explosion of pulsating action.

Exhilarating and intense, John Wick: Chapter Two is a great addition to the hitman revenge action film genre, but it the quiet moments of reflection and dialogue stop it from becoming one of the greats, despite everyone clearly having a ball whilst doing it.

The Special features include never-before-seen content including 'Training John Wick', 'Car Fu Ride Along', 'Kill Count' and three deleted scenes.

John Wick: Chapter Two is available to own on 4K Ultra HD Blu-Ray, Blu-Ray and DVD from June 12th from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.

In The Heart of the Sea

Coming along on the crest of a wave following their successful collaboration on Rush, Ron Howard directs Chris Hemsworth again in a big seafaring action-adventure In The Heart of the Sea, an adaptation of Nathaniel Pilcrick's novel itself based on Herman Melville's classic Moby Dick.

Told in flashback by the last living survivor of the Essex disaster, Thomas Nicholson (Brendan Gleeson) to a determined Herman Melville (Ben Whishaw) who is eager to hear about the truth of the Essex following the whitewash of an inquiry.

Nicholson tells the story and how the two conflicting attitudes and backgrounds of Captain Pollard (Benjamin Walker) and First Mate Owen Chase (Hemsworth) spelt trouble for the cursed voyage from the departure.

With a demand to get 200 barrels of whale oil within a year paramount to the voyage, the men are at loggerheads with each other before they encounter the great big whale in the waters of the western coast of South America.  The ship is destroyed by the whale, and the men abandon ship yet 2000 miles from land.

Then begins the story of survival in the vein of Tom Hanks in Castaway or 1992's Alive, where men must bear witness to deplorable things and abominable acts to survive in the harsh waters more akin to a desert than an open expanse of water.

Ron Howard has done men marooned miles from home before in Apollo 13 but this larger crew allows a greater vantage of human experience on this palette of man versus nature. The cast are excellent throughout led by the ever improving Hemsworth who displays a stoic heroism befitting the  role, slowly becoming a key leading man in Hollywood and shows he does not need a cape to be heroic.

Cillian Murphy does good things in his support role as mediator between the two leaders on the boat, yet the key scenes between Gleeson and Whishaw are the quiet most impressive scenes of note holding great swathes of gravitas and dramatic tension in the still of the night; the two actors grip in the short moments they have on screen.

The scenes at sea are wonderfully shot by Anthony Dod Mantle and the sweeping score by Joque Rosta adds to the epic feel. While the scenes with the whale may not match the glory of battle in Master and Commander by Peter Weir, you cannot fault the ambition or determination of Howards's intention in doing justice to the tragic event or the influence it had on Melville's epic tome.

Impressive and expertly produced, while the film has mind bogglingly been ignored by Americans in terms of box office the film deserves to be seen and especially on the big screen.

In The Heart of the Sea is released on Digital HD on 18th April and on 3D, Blu-Ray and DVD on 2nd May from Warner Bros.

Pan - Preview

Released today from Warner Bros. this is the first offical teaser trailer of Pan, a live-action origin story of the fabled Peter Pan, how he became the boy who could never grow up and how he became a part of Neverland.



Directed by respected Brit, Joe Wright, the teaser introduces us to many a character and the fine ensemble Wright has assembled. From Hugh Jackman as Blackbeard calling upon his theatrical background, in playing the pantomine villain, to Garrett Hedlund as James Cook with both hands in place. Along with spirited newcomer Levi Miller as the eponymous Peter and Rooney Mara as Tiger Lily.

After a brief foray into Oliver Twist territory, the film shows Peter being kidnapped from an orphanage and being taken aboard a ship in the sky towards the second star to the right. There he embeds with the tribe before battling Blackbeard and his tyranny. 

 

The film will be released in both a 2D and 3D format, the footage seen thus far makes this reviewer believe that the combination of fantasy, flight and action may make it a suitable film for the transfer to the third dimension much in the way Avatar set the bar for.

Pan is released in UK cinemas in July 2015 and promises something for all the family.

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https://www.warnerbros.co.uk/movies/pan

In the Heart of the Sea

 

Directed by Oscar winner Ron Howard and starring Chris Hemsworth, Cillian Murphy, Ben Whishaw and Brendan Gleeson, In the Heart of the Sea tells the epic true story of men who survived upon the vessel Essex which would serve as the inspiration for Herman Melville's Moby Dick in the winter of 1820.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=E0b2bYO519s
 
In the Heart of the Sea reveals the encounter’s harrowing aftermath, as the ship’s surviving crew is pushed to their limits and forced to do the unthinkable to stay alive.  Braving storms, starvation, panic and despair, the men will call into question their deepest beliefs, from the value of their lives to the morality of their trade, as their captain searches for direction on the open sea and his first mate still seeks to bring the great whale down.

 

In the Heart of the Sea stars Chris Hemsworth (The Avengers, Rush) as the vessel’s veteran first mate Owen Chase; Benjamin Walker (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) as its inexperienced Captain, George Pollard; Cillian Murphy (The Dark Knight Rises) as second mate Matthew Joy; and Ben Whishaw (Skyfall) as novelist Herman Melville, whose inquiries into the event 30 years later helped bring the story to light.  Tom Holland (The Impossible) also stars as young seaman Tom Nickerson, and Brendan Gleeson (Edge of Tomorrow) as the same man, 30 years later.  Spanish actor Jordi Mollà (Riddick) is the captain of another ship, the Archimedes, who tries to warn the Essex of what may lie ahead.

The trailer is a gripping two and a half minute teaser which has the customary voice over from the experienced old dog, some lilting music from the soundtrack and some amazing photography of the action at the sea, borrowing a trick from Spielberg's Jaws in that we do not see all of the beast. 

 

The film promises to be the best nautical movie seen since Master and Commander, which was directed by Hemsworth compatriot Peter Weir and starred Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany.  That film, pardon the pun, sank from public consciousness but hopefully will be remembered now, and if the film does half of what the trailer envisages we land lovers are in for a treat.

Opening worldwide beginning March 13, 2015 in theatres and IMAX, the film will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, and in select territories by Village Roadshow Pictures.

In the Heart of the Sea will be released in UK cinemas on 13th March 2015

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Battle of the Five Armies - Preview

 

Click here to see an exclusive World Premiere Announcement video starring Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Orlando Bloom, Richard Armitage and Luke Evans.  The World Premiere takes place in London on December 1st, 2014; with Peter Jackson and much of the cast and crew in attendance to meet and greet fans. The Battle of the Five Armies will be opening in UK cinemas on Friday 12th December.

If you click here you will also see the teaser trailer where the battle holds the centre of attention, with Armitage and Evans exchanging words before battle.  Epic in scope, huge in its ambition yet the music of Howard Shore forebodes an underlying finality to proceedings.

Following on from the DVD/Blu-ray release of The Desolation of Smaug Extended Edition, the appetite is getting well and truly whetted before the conclusion of The Hobbit Trilogy: The Battle of the Five Armies promises to not disappoint.

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Project X

Nima Nourizadeh directs and Todd Phillips of The Hangover produces this tale of teenage debauchery shot through found-footage coverage of the best party in the history of house parties.

Starring Thomas Mann as Thomas, the loser son who has to look after the house whilst his parents are away celebrating their anniversary.  Influenced heavily by Costa (Oliver Cooper), a kid from Queens who has moved to middle America suburbia and finds himself at the bottom of the high school food chain, the boys decide to throw a party for all time.

What slowly becomes a small event to gain acceptance and cool credits, descends quickly into a flash mob of destruction as the whole school and neighbourhood attend the shin dig.  The boys fail to control the event, attempting to keep it solely in the garden and pool, quickly the party comes inside and the sheer level of damage done to the house is mind-boggling.

Whilst the party holds a purpose for the three lame boys to rise up in the ranks, the party holds no narrative thread and instead is just a basis for a string of skits and gimmicks that would be more at home on youtube clips, where people capture the moment or party tricks are shared with the world.

A nice romantic thread is forgotten about quickly, and the boys punishment for such a horrible display of recklessness and fecklessness is nothing more than a slap on the wrists.  In terms of a narrative thrust with traditional cause and effect, what effect does this party have on the community is forgotten about in the wake of having a good time.

In comparison to Superbad, the better attempt of losers attempting to gain some respect in high school, Project X is as lame as the characters it tries to put on a pedestal.

Project X is out on DVD on Monday 2nd July from Warner Bros

Midnight in Paris

Woody Allen's Oscar nominated movie comes out on DVD for the pleasure of Home Entertainment purposes.

Allen's love affair with Europe which has brought us such commerical work as Match Point and Vicky Cristina Barcelona, continues with his biggest and most profitable film to date.

Midnight in Paris stars Owen Wilson as Gil, a former screenwriter on holiday in Paris with his fiancee Inez (Rachel McAdams).  Gil is attempting to write his first time novel, and is seeking inspiration on the streets of Paris with its endless reams of culture and sophistication.  A spanner in the works appears in the form of intellectual Paul (Michael Sheen), a former college crush, who is meant to be a superior of Gil.

One night after wine-tasting, Inez, Paul and his fiancee Carol go dancing.  Gil passes over the invitation, and goes strolling the streets.  When he gets lost, he sits and hears a church bell strike Midnight.  A car appears and in it is Ernest Hemingway (Corey Stoll), who takes him to a party where he encounters Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald (Tom Hiddleston and Alison Pill).

Gil has a better night with historical figures than the present day people he is on holiday with - he is in opposition to Inez's Republican parents due to his democratic, Hollywood beliefs - Gil's novel centres around a man who runs a nostalgia shop.  This stream of nostalgia flows through the film as figures from literature (Gertrude Stein), art (Picasso and Dali) and music (Cole Porter) co-exist in Gil's fantasies.

Problems arise when Gil has a connection with Adriana (Marion Cotillard), a muse for Picasso, as they slowly begin to fall in love Gil begins questioning his commitment to Inez and whether they are in love.  There is a funny scene between Gil and Dali (Adrien Brody), who will not stop comparing a man to a rhinoceros in terms of love.

Allen does a wonderful job of making Gil a believable fantasist.  Although he is blind to his fiancee falling in love with her college crush, Gil has happened upon a world away from the mundanity and pseudo-intellectual falsity of Paul.  Whilst Paul is all book smarts and academica; Gil is a street smart and fittingly is an embodiment of never judging a book by its cover.

As an Allen surrogate, Wilson has this ease and charm about him.  In Frat Pack movies, which made his name it came across as a laissez-faire influence; but his laidback nature here compensates Allen's easy flow of narrative and plot.

Allen is helped by a wonderful original score by Stephane Wrembel, a jazzy Parisian score that chimes throughout the film like a long lost cousin of the score in The Third Man, another European movie.

My own criticism would be that Allen has concentrated so much on Gil and the historical figures; that he has failed to paint fully rounded characters in the real world especially the women such as Inez, who although beautiful as Rachel McAdams is, she comes across as a women who wants to control Gil rather than co-exist with him. You also wonder how their paths ever crossed in the first place, as she is so fixated with herself - a shame considering how well he wrote Rebecca Hall and Scarlett Johansson in 'Vicky..'

Midnight in Paris is out on DVD now from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment

My thanks to ThinkJam movies for the check disc.

Final Destination 5

We should learn that franchises never really die or pass on, especially in the horror genre.  After the last film in the franchise, where they did not even grant it a number - The Not So Final Destination - and the previous incumbent succumbed to the fad of 3D technology.  Your heart kind of went in the mouth as we heard of a fifth instalment.

Which is why it is all the more surprising and refreshing to see the fifth film, Steven Quale has kind of resurrected a franchise which was feared to be on life support.

The familiar conventions of the series are all here and present.  Aspiring chef Sam (Nicholas D'Agosto) has a weird premonition regarding a elaborate bridge collapse which in glorious CGI comes to life as pins and steel and concrete account for close to a hundred deaths.  Sam - after much convincing - saves the lives of on and off girlfriend Molly (Emma Bell) and two other workers from the factory where they all work.

Yet as told by coroner Tony Todd (Candyman), nobody can cheat death and so death comes a calling picking off the survivors one by one as this elusive stalker who uses all manner of creative crowd pleasing ways.

This is where the film comes to life through the death scenes, it seems to be the only reason you go to see the film yet the actors especially D'Agosto are able (and most importantly allowed) to inject some humanity and plausability into their performances, where other directors would insist on cheap histrionics.

Whereas, the previous films in the series were more about fate and second chances; this feature appeals to the scares of knowing when death is waiting for you.  The scariest thing may be knowing when you are going to die.

While there is nothing out of the ordinary in the scares, the humour that has run through the franchise remains yet the film as a whole is one of the best in the series.

Final Destination 5 is out on DVD from Warner Bros on Boxing Day on Blu-Ray, Triple Play, Blu-Ray 3D, DVD and Ultraviolet Digital Download.  HMV are also offering the triple play in an exclusive Steelbox presentation case.

Crazy, Stupid, Love - Preview material

Set for UK release on 2^nd September 2011 from Warner Bros. Pictures, Crazy, Stupid, Love. stars Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, Julianne Moore, Emma Stone, Marisa Tomei and Kevin Bacon, and is directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa (I Love You Phillip Morris).

At fortysomething, straight-laced Cal Weaver (Steve Carell) is living the dream—good job, nice house, great kids and marriage to his high school sweetheart. But when Cal learns that his wife, Emily (Julianne Moore), has cheated on him and wants a divorce, his “perfect” life quickly unravels. Worse, in today’s single world, Cal, who hasn’t dated in decades, stands out as the epitome of un-smooth.

Now spending his free evenings sulking alone at a local bar, the hapless Cal is taken on as wingman and protégé to handsome, thirtysomething player Jacob Palmer (Ryan Gosling). In an effort to help Cal get over his wife and start living his life, Jacob opens Cal’s eyes to the many options before him: flirty women, manly drinks and a sense of style that can’t be found at Supercuts or The Gap.

Cal and Emily aren’t the only ones looking for love in what might be all the wrong places: Cal’s 13-year-old son, Robbie, is crazy about his 17-year-old babysitter, Jessica, who harbors a crush on Cal. And despite Cal’s makeover and his many new conquests, the one thing that can’t be made over is his heart, which seems to keep leading him back to where he began.

With a huge potential audience across a wide reach of demographics judging by the talent on display from the everyman quality of Steve Carell, to the still under-rated Ryan Gosling. Female comedic quality is supplied by Emma Stone and Marisa Tomei, while overall veteran experience is guaranteed by Julianne Moore and Kevin Bacon.  As fine a group of ensemble actors as you could wish for; and directed by the two men who directed the criminally unseen I Love You Philip Morris, and wrote Bad Santa, so laughs are their perogrative. 

This is out in September, so lets get tongues wagging about Crazy, Stupid, Love before then.

Click here to watch the hilarious trailer

The official web site: http://www.crazystupidlove.co.uk/ and follow on Facebook