Stoker Interview - Matthew Goode

English actor Matthew Goode is known for his roles opposite Mandy Moore in Chasing Liberty, in Woody Allen’s Match Point and the epic graphic-novel adaptation Watchmen. Other notable roles include the Evelyn Waugh adaptation Brideshead Revisited, Leap Year, Imagine Me and You, and A Single Man, opposite his friend Colin Firth. In STOKER, from acclaimed director Park Chan-wook, Goode plays Charlie Stoker, uncle to central character, India (Mia Wasikowska), and brother-in-law to Evie (Nicole Kidman)…


Director Park reveals that he gifted Mia a jaguar statue. Did you get anything nice?

He gave me the part. That was the best present! And yes, he did he gave me a gift — an amazing green tea. He and his wife gave me these six or seven boxes of this green tea with this lovely little teapot. Fantastic. I like it a lot. It certainly has anti-oxidant stamp on it.

What surprised you most about working with a great filmmaker like Director Park?

The atmosphere he creates and the man himself are so wonderfully peaceful, especially considering what his work is often about, with the violence and often quite disturbing themes. But as a man he is the antithesis of that. He is not manic. It is funny, because he and Quentin Tarantino like each other’s work. They have an appreciation but, obviously, Quentin is much more manic. Both are brilliantly intelligent and, as I say, Director Park is so peaceful and I liked the whole Korean vibe on set because I found it quite Zen. Listening to him is very peaceful, particularly the way he speaks. I find him a very relaxing, calming person to be around. He is just fabulous, a really lovely guy. I think his next film is a Western and I would love to be in that, as barman with a moustache or something like that!

How did the director help you to understand his visual ambition for STOKER?

We actually got a folder when we arrived, stuffed full, where just about every single frame had been drawn. It was amazing and also slightly worrying.

Why was it worrying?

Well it was like, ‘Wow! This is going to be quite demonstrative and there won’t be much room,’ but he is actually very collaborative during the filming and it was fantastic. You knew pretty much that it was going to look special even if you weren’t always sure at the time why things happened. Nicole said that she always wondered why he photographed her hair being brushed for so long that day. And then you realize when you watch the film he was going to do that incredible cross-cut with the fields. So some things you knew and some times you were just like, ‘Well, he is an Asian director, perhaps this is what they do.’ The film is ravishingly shot.

And how did you and Nicole Kidman strike up the chemistry on screen?

Well, we went to the house because Director Park wanted to show us around it early-on during the rehearsal stage and I remember getting there and it was very hot, in the hundreds, and I was in a vest, a bit sweaty and Nicole said, ‘Actually, I think we should rehearse one of the scenes now that we are in the house.’ And I, professional that I am, had not got my script with me, so I was a bit worried that it would really show me up. Then it turned out to be the scene with the kiss at the end, so I was thinking, ‘Well, it’s just a rehearsal, we are not going to get to that moment, are we?’ But, suddenly, she’s approaching and that very day in an impromptu rehearsal she ends up going in for the kiss. I thought, ‘This is weird.’ I had this flashback to being in the cinema and seeing her in BMX Bandits! That was one of the first films that I watched in the cinema and if someone had told me at the age of seven, ‘Oh, you are going to kiss her. It is just going to be in another 25 years,’ well that is a very, very weird thing. Also, you are not in character when you are rehearsing. I was just a grubby Englishman in jeans and a vest, probably stinking of cigarette smoke. So at the rehearsal it was a little intimidating but on the day, in character, it was fine and just another scene. The rehearsal really helped.

Apparently, you and Mia visited the local Nashville honky-tonk bars on your weekends off?

Yes. We went two stepping. That’s one of the joys. We were such tourists. It was like buy cowboy boots? Check! Also my wife and my daughter were there because we were filming in Nashville and I knew that I wasn’t going to work every single day. It was one of the joys of the job that they came with me. We did everything that you think a tourist does and I bought them cowboy boots and my daughter actually got two pairs of cowboy boots. They are huge. She is only just wearing them now. With the two stepping, there were some very cool places to go, like The Bluebird Café, which has a reputation. It is the quality of the musicians that blows you away. We went to The Station Inn which is a very famous old place and the players are unbelievable — Bluegrass and swing music and it just makes you really happy. It’s a great a way to wind down. You see the old couples dancing, two-stepping, and they make it look so easy. Mia did a lot of dancing with my wife as well while I was sitting a couple out.

Having your family there must have made shooting STOKER even more special…

It did, because this can be a very selfish job. It becomes harder and harder. I have never really liked being away from family. I went to Australia and that was tough. Three months away with the little one at home. I hated it. They did come out for two weeks and that was hell. Then I had a one-year old with jet lag, while I was working a 16-hour day! It was awful when they had to leave and go back to Britain but, boy, did I sleep well. They are always the priority. . I just wish that I could work in England more. But you do have to go where the job takes you. It is not like I can pick and choose.

You were chosen for this film, so things must be going quite well…

I take work far more seriously since becoming a dad. I generally still wake up with financial crises going on in my head and for me it is just about getting a job and doing it. I think you do get better. I have been doing it for 14 years now and I have done 20-odd things. I’d love to think that down the road I am going to meet someone like Michael Fassbender’s got this amazing relationship with Steve McQueen. I’d love to find a director who brings out the best in me time and time again. That is what I’d like to think will happen one day.
Stoker is out on DVD & BluRay 1st July.

Saving The World From Total Boredom This July The Aquabats Season 1 on DVD!

Join a new generation of super hero in The Aquabats: Super Show Complete Season One comes to UK this July.

Taking outrageously fun entertainment to the next level for kids and adults alike The Aquabats looks set to take over TV screens with an offering of rock out tracks and hearty laughs. This hit CITV TV show finds itself on DVD for the first time in the UK. Featuring a former ska band and a number of set pieces reminiscent of 90’s cartoons and the Power Rangers, The Aquabats are ready for just about anything.

From the creators of Yo Gabba Gabba! and frontman Christian Jacobs comes the perfect blend of live-action and animation! Follow the amazingly wild comic antics of The Aquabats the galaxy's first group of musical crime-fighting superheroes! MC Bat Commander Crash McLarson Ricky Fitness Eagle Bones Falconhawk and Jimmy the Robot will take you along on their most outrageous adventures to protect space from the creatures and super villains out to destroy it! All 13 Season One episodes can now be found in one deluxe collection sure to banish boredom and make anyone an instant fan of the world's most inept superheroes!



Aquabats hits every note with rockin’ success. A blending of both humour, action, animation and music, the Super Show packs in a dazzling performance to make a stunning debut season enjoyable for both adults and kids. With references to 90’s ska and some truly out of this world creations, Aquabats places itself centre stage ready to become an instant cult classic.

The Aquabats! Super Show Season One Arrives on DVD in UK 22nd July. The Aquabats are Christian Jacobs, Richard Falomir, James Briggs , Ian Fowles, Chad Larson. Pre-Order or Buy The Aquabats Complete Season 1 (CITV) [DVD] now!

Jaws On Wheels, Elliot Silverstein’s 1977 cult horror classic The Car Driving On Blu Ray July

Arrow Video is pleased to announce the worldwide Blu-ray debut of Elliot Silverstein’s 1977 cult horror classic THE CAR on Monday 15th July.

Often referred to as “Jaws on Wheels”, THE CAR has been lovingly re-mastered by Universal Pictures and, for the first time in its history, will finally be available on the Blu-ray format. This landmark release also marks the first time the film has been available with extras.

Starring James Brolin (The Amityville Horror; father of Josh Brolin) alongside Kathleen Lloyd (The Missouri Breaks), John Marley (The Godfather), and Ronny Cox (Deliverance), THE CAR tells the story of a mysterious automobile which goes on a murderous rampage, terrorizing the residents of a small town.

In addition to the HD restoration, Arrow has sourced a host of bonus material and special features, something which has never been done before for this film. The deluxe Blu-ray package includes Audio Commentary with director Elliot Silverstein, two exclusive featurettes on the making of the film and its history, the original theatrical trailer with commentary by John Landis (director of An American Werewolf in London), extended collector’s booklet and, as is becoming customary with Arrow Video’s classic film releases, an exclusive reversible sleeve, containing both the original and newly commissioned artwork. THE CAR’s brand new sleeve comes courtesy of acclaimed illustrator Joe Wilson.

Made when Jaws was still the most successful film of all time, THE CAR has almost exactly the same premise, but replaces the ocean with the Utah desert, and the shark with a Lincoln Continental Mark III, of

possibly supernatural origin.

When two teenage cyclists and a hitch-hiking musician are killed in apparently deliberate hit-and-runs, the police department of Santa Ynez investigates, whereupon the seemingly driverless vehicle turns on its hapless officers as well.

When the car strikes rather too close to the home of Captain Wade Parent (James Brolin), he vows to stop at nothing to defeat it.

espite a police cordon being applied to all roads in the Santa Ynez region, THE CAR still manages to enter the town, causing murderous havoc wherever it roams.

With police officers, bystanders, squad cars, civilian homes, a marching band, and even an innocent gatepost all falling victim to the un-manned killing machine, Captain Parent must stop at nothing if he is to defeat THE CAR and make his beloved town safe once again.

Director Elliot Silverstein (Cat Ballou, A Man Called Horse) keeps everything as slick and streamlined as the car itself, turning the desert landscape into a powerfully mythic backdrop for a potent clash between the forces of good and those of inexplicable, but clearly implacable, evil.

A complete list of the special features included on the deluxe blu-ray release of THE CAR is as follows:

- High Definition presentation (1080p), on Blu-ray for the first time in the world!
- Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing.
- Audio commentary with director Elliot Silverstein, moderated by Calum Waddell.
- “Making a Mechanical Monster” – Special effects artist William Alridge remembers The Car.
- “Hitchhike to Hell” – Actor John Rubinstein recalls becoming a victim of The Car.
- Trailer commentary by director and The Car fan John Landis.
- Original Trailer.
- Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Joe Wilson.
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Cullen Gallagher as well as a brand new interview with co-writer Michael Butler, conducted by Calum Waddell, illustrated with original archive stills and artwork.
- Easter Egg.

Runaway This July With Andrei Konchalovsky’s Runaway Train On BluRay

Buy Now
Arrow Video is pleased to announce the worldwide Blu-ray debut of Andrei Konchalovsky’s gripping thrill-ride Runaway Train on Monday July 22nd.

Starring Academy Award and Golden Globe winner Jon Voight (Coming Home, Deliverance, The Rainmaker), Eric Roberts and Rebecca De Morney, this brand new dual format DVD & Blu-ray release of Runaway Train has been re-mastered in High Definition by MGM, following its 2010 premiere at the Cannes Film Festival (Classics Selection).

Finally available on Blu-ray for the very first time anywhere in the world, Arrow Video’s brand new deluxe edition of Runaway Train also includes a host of special features and bonus material, the first time any such items have been sourced to accompany the feature on a home video release.

Following its debut at the 1986 Cannes Film Festival, Runaway Train went on to be nominated for a total of three Academy Awards (Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Editing) and three Golden Globe Awards (Best Motion Picture – Drama, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor). To this day it remains as one of the all-time classic break-out movies.

Based on a script by the legendary Japanese director Akira Kurosawa (Seven Samurai), Runaway Train begins as two convicts break-out of Stonehaven Prison in the dead of winter, boarding a freight train with the intention of getting as far away as possible before their notoriously sadistic warden finds out.

Oscar "Manny" Manheim is a ruthless bank robber and hero to the convicts of Stonehaven. After two previous escape attempts the doors to Manny's cell have been welded shut for three years. A court order see’s Manny released back into the general prison population, where he immediately sets his next escape plan into action.

Aided by fellow inmate Buck, who joins Manny’s break-out attempt at the last minute, the pair embark on a freezing cross-country hike (involving a 300 ft drop into a river and subsequent swim) until they reach a remote Alaskan rail yard and board a locomotive.

Upon leaving the rail yard, the locomotive’s brakes fail and the driver has a fatal heart attack, sending one hundred tons of metal hurtling through the snowy Alaskan wastes at a terrifying and seemingly unstoppable speed.

With hardboiled prison slang added by real-life ex-con Edward Bunker (Mr Blue in Reservoir Dogs), this riveting thriller combines electrifying action with constant psychological tension. Runaway Train  is one of cinema's great thrill-rides.



A full list of the special features included on the Blu-ray &DVD dual format edition of RUNAWAY TRAIN is as follows:

- High Definition transfer of the film prepared by MGM for the Cannes Film Festival premiere.
- High Definition Blu-ray and Standard Definition DVD presentation of the film.
- Optional English SDH Subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing.
- Running on Empty – An Interview with director Andrei Konchalovsky.
- From Thespian to Fugitive – Star Jon Voight shares his memories of his Academy Award-nominated role.
- Sweet and Savage: Eric Roberts recalls his Academy Award-nominated performance.
- The Calm Before the Chaos – Co-star Kyle T. Heffner remembers Runaway Train.
- Trailer with commentary by Rod Lurie.
- Original Trailer.
- Booklet featuring new writing on the film by Michael Brooke, a new interview with Runaway Train’s Production Designer Stephen Marsh conducted by Calum Waddell and the original Life Magazine article that inspired the film, illustrated with rare behind-the-scenes production images.

Stoker Interview - Park Chan-Wook

South Korean filmmaker Park Chan-Wook is best known for his films Joint Security Area, Thirst and ‘The Vengeance Trilogy’, consisting of Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance (2002), Oldboy (2003) and Sympathy for Lady Vengeance (2005). STOKER, a coming-of-age drama starring Mia Wasikowska, Nicole Kidman and Matthew Goode, is his first film in the English language…

Had you been looking to direct a film in the English language for some time or did the script for STOKER just appeal so much?

Ever since Old Boy, scripts started coming to me, English language scripts, and when it came the time when I made and released Thirst, which was partly financed by American studios, it was taking me one step closer to doing an American film, I felt. Things happened in stages I feel. It was really a combination of both — that I have been thinking about making a film in America for some time as well as having the right script to come across.

Even as a young man did you harbour an ambition to make films outside your homeland?

It was very difficult at times for me to even imagine that I would really become a film director. Thinking I would make a film in America, I couldn’t even fathom it. Looking back, it all probably started when I read some American friends a novel, which I wanted to adapt into a film and in the process of thinking about that project I thought the very story of the book, particularly if I were to adapt it, was very American. It had to be set against the backdrop of America. And that is the first time I started thinking about this concept of making films in America.

Were you surprised when you found out that a popular actor, Wentworth Miller, rather than an experienced screenwriter, had produced the STOKER screenplay?

Well, when I found out that the scriptwriter was him, I was probably as surprised as anyone else who had found out who the scriptwriter was, because he wrote under a pseudonym. But to think that a young man, no less than a popular actor, has written such a script, is probably the last thing you would guess. I would have probably been less surprised if I had been told that it was a female actor who had written it. I still consider that he is an amazing, talented person and I think myself lucky that I got to direct this script.

What were the first visual metaphors that struck you when you were reading the script?

I have to say the saddle shoes, which India loves to wear and her mother abhors. It is a very fitting little item to speak to India’s somehow old-fashioned and closed-off personality. But before all that I, at first wondered what a pair of saddle shoes looked like because in Korea we are not used to seeing these shoes. It was never part of our popular culture so I started by looking for images of these shoes online to see what they looked like exactly. After that I began to think: What if it was a birthday gift for India every year, from a mysterious figure? And on her eighteenth birthday she gets a box but it is empty. Instead of a pair of shoes there was a key, which leads to the high heels? This all adds to the saddle shoes becoming in the end one of the most important visual metaphors. As you see in the film this pair or set of shoes that she receives on her birthday every year, it follows her across the years, from a baby size set of shoes to grown up pairs of shoes and she lies on her bed surrounded by them all. It is a very clear visual metaphor to say this is a coming of age story and having gone through these trains of thought it became clear to me that the reason I had conjured up this visual metaphor is because this is very much her coming of age story. It’s that, that helps categorize the film as such. In Korea between people who love each other, they never give shoes as gifts because there is an urban myth or a jinx that when you give a pair of shoes to someone you admire, they will wear the shoes and run away. The American writer, Wentworth Miller, could never have known this, so as a Korean director it is something of an element that I added to the script — the idea that she got saddle shoes every year and she never knew who was sending them but finds out it was Uncle Charlie and that this year instead of saddle shoes, she gets high heels, which is also a metaphor and wearing those shoes, she leaves, she runs away. So this is a very Korean train of thought and idea.

How did you play up the dynamic of hunter and hunted when shooting the movie? At different times, different characters seemed in control…

This is an important element and one of the most important elements I brought to the script. And it informs every aspect of the film. Of course, Uncle Charlie’s love for the car, the jaguar, is also part of that. It is such an important motif and when I met Mia for the first time my gift to her was a sculpture of a jaguar. It is all to do with how the father taught his child to hunt because he is worried that she would end up in a similar situation that befell Uncle Charlie, because her father fears the bad blood. And in order to find a healthy outlet, which can vent any potential violent urges, that is why he taught her to hunt in the first place. Also, Uncle Charlie believes that the blood running through his and her veins is exactly the same, he believes this idea and he almost forces the idea on his niece which leads us to that scene in the forest where she is attacked and how Uncle Charlie arrives at the scene and ties the boy up and just pats the prey saying to the young predator, ‘All yours’. You can compare that to any natural predators like lions, how they would attack their prey and render them immobile and have their baby lion or tiger come in to do the killing blow — to teach this whole hunting process.

Is there anything specific that you plan for the Blu-Ray & DVD release?

Now that you mention it, the documentary will of course be there. And all the trailers I would love to be there, especially the DJ Shadow trailer. This is my favourite trailer of all time, of all my films. Also, some deleted scenes could make their way back into the DVD. I can’t think of the scenes specifically now but one scene comes to mind is when Aunty Gin [Jacki Weaver] arrives. She is putting the flowers in the vase. That is when Uncle Charlie appears. She never knew about him being there and she drops the vase and it shatters on the floor of the kitchen. That scene will make it, perhaps. Another idea that comes to mind is that Emily Wells [who contributed to the STOKER soundtrack] is coming to Korea and she is going to be performing “Becomes the Colour”, which is the song for the film when the red carpet entries are being made by the guests and so I would love that live performance to be captured and to make it on to the DVD.
Stoker will be released on DVD, BluRay on 1st July, Read Review here.

Brian De Palma's Dressed To Killing Will Killy Your BluRay This July

Arrow Video is pleased to announce the UK Blu-ray debut of Brian De Palma’s erotic crime thriller Dressed To Kill on Monday 29th July.

One of De Palma’s best loved films, Dressed To Kill  has been lovingly re-mastered by MGM studios, and will finally be available uncut and on blu-ray for the very first time in the UK. Arrow’s deluxe edition of the film will come loaded with an exclusive selection of special features and bonus material.

Starring legendary British actor Michael Caine (The Italian Job, Get Carter) alongside Nancy Allen (Carrie, Blow Out) and Angie Dickenson (Point Blank, The Killers), Dressed To Kill begins as sexually frustrated housewife Kate Miller (Dickenson) consults her psychiatrist about her husband’s lacklustre performance in the bedroom. Following the session with Dr Elliot (Caine), Kate silently seduces a stranger in a New York Art gallery, before going back to his place.

Upon leaving the man’s apartment, Kate is brutally murdered in the elevator; the only witness is high-end prostitute Liz Blake (Allen), who is in-turn accused of the murder.

One of De Palma's darkest and most controversial suspense thrillers, Dressed To Kill was as acclaimed for its stylish set-pieces and lush Pino Donaggio score as it was condemned for its sexual explicitness and extreme violence.

The glee with which De Palma turns this material inside out is completely infectious, as he delves deep inside the troubled psyches of his characters (critic Pauline Kael said that the film was "permeated with the distilled essence of impure thoughts") in order to undermine expectations at every turn.

Following Obsession and Blow Out, Dressed To Kill is the third film in Arrow Video’s De Palma Collection. Restored Blu-ray editions of Sisters, Phantom Of The Paradise and The Fury will follow in 2013/14.

Best known for his psychological and often violent thrillers, De Palma’s use of split-screens, slow panning shots and Hitchcockian suspense have made his films instantly recognisable. Alongside Dressed To Kill, some of De Palma’s most revered works include Scarface, Carrie, Blow Out, The Untouchables and Mission: Impossible.

De Palma has proved hugely influential, inspiring many modern-day film makers to get behind the camera; Quentin Tarantino hails De Palma as the greatest living American director. Also known for discovering and nurturing new acting talent, De Palma is widely credited with fostering the early careers of Robert De Nero and John C. Reilly.

A complete list of the special features included on the deluxe blu-ray edition of DRESSED TO KILL is as follows:

- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation of the feature.
- Optional original uncompressed Mono 2.0 Audio and DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround Sound.
- Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing.
- Symphony of Fear: Producer George Litto discusses his working relationship with Brian De Palma.
- Dressed in White: Star Angie Dickinson on her role in the film.
- Dressed in Purple: Star Nancy Allen discusses her role in the film.
- Lessons in Filmmaking: Actor Keith Gordon discusses Dressed to Kill.
- The Making of a Thriller – A documentary on the making of Dressed to Kill featuring writer-director Brian De Palma, George Litto, stars Angie Dickinson, Nancy Allen, Dennis Franz and more!
- Unrated, R-Rated, and TV-Rated Comparison Featurette.
- Slashing Dressed to Kill – Brian De Palma and stars Nancy Allen and Keith Gordon discuss the changes that had to be made to avoid an X-rating.
- Original Theatrical Trailer.
- Gallery of behind-the-scenes images.
- Reversible sleeve with original and newly commissioned artwork by Nathanael Marsh.
- Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by critic and author Maitland McDonagh, and a new interview with poster designer Stephen Sayadian by Daniel Bird, illustrated with original archive stills and promotional material.

Stoker DVD Review

Rating: 18
BD/DVD Release Date: 1st July 2013
Director: Park Chan-Wook
Cast: Mia Wsikowska, Matthew Goode, Nicole Kidman
Buy Stoker: Blu-ray / DVD

If you can avoid the trailer, then for God’s sake do because here’s a film that benefits from going in blind. Park Chan Wook’s Stoker is a thing of undeniable beauty; a carefully crafted piece of art, and there’s a word I don’t go throwing around too often. Essentially it’s a story about sexual awakening against a backdrop of dysfunctional family politics, but as with most great films, it’s not in the idea: it’s the execution.

The first half hour may strain patience, but it’s worth it. Wook takes time to set up his near epic tales, but after that slow start the film starts winding tighter and tighter, releasing brief flurries of energy whilst maintaining the illusion of a melodrama.  Here is a film horrific and deeply unsettling, without giving itself over to the horror genre.  Early scenes of India in the basement are thick with suspense, and moments of mystery call up Hitchcockian influences.You’ll spend a lot of time wondering just what in buggery is going on until finally Wook delivers a fantastic phone-box realisation scene and the film, rather than falling into place, lifts.

Important to the horror aspect is Mathew Goode’s electrifying performance as India’s estranged uncle, a man who appears just after her father’s death and upsets the balance of the household. To be fair I had expected Goode would be on top form, but this is something different.  There’s so much going on under the surface, so many silent and manipulative glances that you need a second viewing to catch the subtlety, Goode’s performance is the prize of the piece. Wasikowska’s India is something of gothic beauty also, shifting from what could have been a tired Burton character to a solid Angela Carter heroine.  We should be hearing a lot more from her in the future if this is anything to go by.

As with every Clint Mansell soundtrack Stoker is a thing to behold, furthering those Hitchcock influences with epic strings whilst digging deeper into India’s slowly dawning mind state with heartfelt piano.

Wook’s keen sense of style and image are fantastic , perhaps even a career best. The Gothic grandeur of the colonial house is captured with apparent ease, every frame looks like a painting, every image is a goldmine, there’s enough symbolism here to fill a hundred books. Repetition and explanation of certain details allows Wook’s film to achieve a bizarre nostalgic quality. This works hand-in-hand with the vicious and cold quality of the night time sequences allowing the horror to take shape.

Kidman’s performance fits in somewhere here; as a detail. And a fine one.  Just as important as India or Charlie, Kidman’s performance is seductive, pathetic, and heart-breaking: her’s is the damaged thread that winds throughout, adding the most pure strain of heart-ache to Stoker.

Macabre, erotic, visually seductive, perfectly cast and performed, and flaunting a plot so thick with mystery and meaning you’ll feel your brain swell. Stoker may just be a genuine masterpiece from a genuine master.

★★★★★

Scott Clark

[This is a repost of the Glasgow Film Festival review]

Win Arbitrage On Blu Ray

In a role which earned him a Golden Globe nomination, Richard Gere plays a man beyond redemption in Nicholas Jarecki’s blistering thriller Arbitrage, available on Blu-ray and DVD on 15th July, 2013.Courtesy of Koch Media. we have 3 copies of the film up for grabs on Blu Ray.

When we first meet New York hedge-fund magnate Robert Miller (Richard Gere) he appears the very portrait of success in American business and family life. However, behind the gilded walls of his mansion Miller is in over his head, desperately trying to conceal an affair with French artist Julie Cote (Laetitia Casta – Gainsbourg) whilst racing to complete the sale of his trading empire to a major bank before his fraudulent dealings are revealed. When a tragic accident complicates things further, attracting the unwanted attention of NYPD detective Michael Bryer (Tim Roth), and the net tightens around him Miller realises that the suspicions of not just the police but also his loyal wife (Susan Sarandon ) and heir-apparent (Brit Marling) have been aroused. With time running out, Miller finds himself battling not just for his reputation but also his life.

Slick, smart and genuinely gripping, Arbitrage is a suspense-packed game of cat and mouse. With a classy cast comprising some of Hollywood’s most glittering stars in a timely and gripping thriller, Arbitrage is one of this summer’s most essential Blu-ray and DVD releases.

To win Arbitrage on Blu Ray please answer the following question:


Deadline to enter this competition is Sunday 21st July 2013 (11;59pm) and you must be 15 or older to enter
Why not enter The Arbitrage competition at our main site The People's Movies too? Enter here!

Arbitrage is available on digital platforms From today.

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1.The competition is not opened to employees, family, friends of The Peoples Movies, Cinehouse,Koch Media employees who have the right to alter, change or offer alternative prize without any notice.2.All The Peoples Movies entries must be done via contact form. deadline Sunday 21st July 2013 (23:59pm) 15 years or older to enter 3.Failure to include any information required to enter could result in your entry been void.  4.automated entries are not allowed and will be disqualified, which could result you been banned, DO NOT INCLUDE telephone numbers as for security reason your entry will be deleted.5.If you are friend or like us at facebook for every competition you enter you get double entry, but you must stay friend/like us all the time,or future entries maybe considered one entry if you are liking us share the post on facebook and re-tweet the post.6.The Peoples Movies, Cinehouse takes no responsibility for delayed, lost, stolen prizes 7.Prizes may take from days to a few months for delivery which is out of our control so please do not complain 8.The winning entries will be picked at random and contacted by email or announced via facebook, sometimes we are unable to confirm winners. Uk & Irish entries only.

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Who Would You Seduce For Chocolate? Watch First Clip From Lars Von Trier Nymphomaniac

How many can you seduce? It’s the situation 2 young pretty girls find themselves in, but what will convince you to find out? Some chocolate candy sweets! Don’t despair if your a chocoholic as there’s easier ways to get your fix just watch the first clip from Lars Von Trier‘s Nymphomaniac.

Exclusively released by The Guardian newspaper the first clip from Von Trier’s sex odyssey sees this sees young Joe (Stacy Martin) and her friend B (Sophie Kennedy Clark) daring each other see which boys the can have sex with. The clip shows clearly Joe is the more eager to get the prize been she is whom the film is based around and this been a film from Von Trier it makes you wonder if the ‘Chocolate sweets’ do have another meaning? The clip fulfills the visual palette with trademark Von Trier weirdness, it’s also a little tame though there’s no glimpses of computerized schlongs or body doubles here more the sexual curiosity of young girls.

Split into 2 films spread over 8 chapters Nymphomaniac tells the tale of Joe a self diagnosed sex addict Joe (Charlotte Gainsbourg) who retells her life story after been saved by an charming older man (Stellan Skarsgard). Will it be sexually explicit as Shia LeBeouf raved about or simply a film insanely hyped?



Nymphomaniac doesn’t have a official UK release date just yet but expect late 2013 if not early 2014. The film also stars Jamie Bell, Connie Nielsen, Christian Slater, Uma Thurman, Willem Dafoe, Jean-Marc Barr, and Udo Kier.

source:Guardian via The Peoples's Movies

Film4 Frighfest Announces Its Biggest Ever Line Up For 2013 Festival

Film4 FrightFest 2013 announces full line up; record 51 films, new FrightFest Xtra strand and films from five continents marks biggest genre global invasion ever.

Are you ready for a spine-chilling global avalanche of Indian zombies, Israeli oldboys, vengeance-crazed Vikings, Swedish mesmerists, Irish telekinesis, Argentine undead, Aussie bone-crushers, murderous Mormons and Chilean assassins?

Film4 FrightFest 2013, returning for its 4teenth year, is delighted to unveil its biggest line-up in history. From Thurs 22 August to Monday 26 August, the UK’s leading event for genre fans will be at the Empire Cinema in London’s Leicester Square to present 51 films on three screens. Empire 1 will house the main event while the Discovery strands will play in Empires 2 & 4. The new FrightFest Xtra strand, also in Screen 2, will allow fans to catch up with sold-out performances of the most popular attractions.

This year there are eleven countries representing five continents with a record-breaking thirty-three UK or European premieres and ten world premieres.

The world premieres include our opening night attraction THE DEAD 2: INDIA from the Ford Brothers, BANSHEE CHAPTER, produced by Star Trek’s Zachary Quinto, Kit Ryan’s startling DEMENTAMANIA , the epidemic shocker ANTISOCIAL the Argentinean post World War Z drama THE DESERT and the retro Spanish chiller FOR ELISA. European premieres include Don Mancini’s CURSE OF CHUCKY, Anthony Di Blasi’s MISSIONARYand Steven R. Monroe’s I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE 2.

The UK premieres feature our closing night film, the most want-to-see 2013 title BIG BAD WOLVES, Jim Mickle’s appetising WE ARE WHAT WE ARE, Vincenzo Natali’s HAUNTER, Ryuhei Kitamura’s NO ONE LIVES, Lasse Hallstrom’s THE HYPNOTIST, the Pastor Brothers’ THE LAST DAYS, the VHS documentary REWIND THIS!, Bobcat Goldthwait’s horror-comedy WILLOW CREEK, producer Adam Green’s HATCHET III, acclaimed anthology V/H/S/2, the fantasy thriller ODD THOMAS, rural horror romp 100 BLOODY ACRES, compulsive chiller THE CONSPIRACY, Renny Harlin’s mystery thriller THE DYATLOV PASS INCIDENT & Marina De Van’s high-voltage shocker DARK TOUCH.

The Brits are once again proving that the genre is in fine form. Aside from the aforementioned THE DEAD 2: INDIA and DEMENTAMANIA, there is Christian James’ toilet-humoured STALLED, Jeremy Lovering’s white-knuckle ride IN FEAR, Farren Blackburn’s axe-murderous HAMMER OF THE GODS, Kate Shenton’s human suspension doc ON TENDER HOOKS, THE PARANORMAL DIARIES: CLOPHILL, from the Zombie Diaries duo, Michael Bartlett & Kevin Gates, Kieran Parker’s latest in the zombie action franchise OUTPOST: RISE OF THE SPETSNAZ and THE BORDERLANDS., a paranormal chiller from Elliot Goldner.

Keynote previews include THE GRIEF TOURIST starring Michael Cudlitz and Melanie Griffith, and Carlos Medina’s award-winning PAINLESS.

Crowd-pleasers have always been at the heart of the FrightFest experience, so audiences can sit back and thrill to the roof-raising YOU’RE NEXT, the incredible CHEAP THRILLS, the mutant-tastic FRANKENSTEIN’S ARMY and a Special Preview of the Hollywood blockbuster R.I.P.D. starring Ryan Reynolds and Jeff Bridges. And we have included two of our February FrightFest Glasgow draws – the fabulously trashy grindhouser BRING ME THE HEAD OF THE MACHINE GUN WOMAN.and Michael Stephenson’s hugely entertaining doc THE AMERICAN SCREAM.

Expanding the Discovery Strand means there are double the treats to sample this year, including the nerve-shredding SNAP, the smart horror-fantasy HANSEL &GRETEL &THE 4:20 WITCH, Sonny Laguna’s ferocious WITHER, Israeli war fantasy CANNON FODDER, Scream-styled homage SADIK 2, James Sizemore ‘s demonic THE DEMON’S ROCK, David McCracken’s story of small-town child abuse DAYLIGHT & sex-disease horror CONTRACTED. There is also a first-time screening of three episodes of Adam Green and Joe Lynch’s TV series HOLLISTON.

Plus, there’s a chance to discover an eclectic mix of Premiere screening restorations : Ozploitation classic - WAKE IN FRIGHT, a tribute to Hammer Horror icon Peter Cushing – CORRUPTION, the first Roger Corman Edgar Allan Poe masterpiece – THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER, and the genre landmark that is F. W. Murnau’s NOSFERATU.

With Andy Nyman’s ever-popular ‘Quiz From Hell’ now in its 4th year, the announcement of the ‘666 Short Cuts To Hell’ competition winners, in association with Horror Channel and Movie Mogul, the ‘Turn Off Your Bloody Phone!’ entries and the usual bloody red carpet gathering of stars, directors and surprise guests, Film4 FrightFest 14 looks set to raise the roof. Let the screaming begin!

Alan Jones, Festival co-director, said today: Fourteen years down the line from our seminal start in 2000, the ambitions of the Film4 FrightFest remain exactly the same: to promote horror and fantasy in all its rich and varied ways, to foster the latest in world genre cinema, to highlight our vibrant home-grown independent sector and to invite an international array of directors, actors and filmmakers to discuss their work. For that reason we have remained at the vanguard of the genre”.

Julia Wrigley, Head of Film4 Channel4, added: '“We are thrilled to return for the 7th year in a row as the headline sponsors of Film4 FrightFest. Once again, the line-up includes a great range of British films, including the relentlessly terrifying Film4 Production In Fear. Our FrightFest fortnight on Film4 is packed with channel premieres, festival favourites and some classics from the crypt”.

The guest line-up and 2013 Short Film Selections will announced shortly.

Festival &day passes go on sale from 29 June. Tickets for Individual films are on sale from 27 July.

Bookings: 08 714 714 714 or www.empirecinemas.co.uk

Winners of 67th Edinburgh International Film Festival Announced

The winners of this year’s prestigious Edinburgh International Film Festival awards were announced at the Festival’s awards ceremony, held at Filmhouse today and hosted by Grant Lauchlan, producer and presenter of stv’s Moviejuice. The ceremony took place ahead of Sunday’s Closing Night Gala, NOT ANOTHER HAPPY ENDING, which concludes the 12-day Festival.

The Award for Best Film in the International Competition was presented to Mahdi Fleifel’s A WORLD NOT OURS (Lebanon/UAE/Denmark/UK), which received its UK premiere here at EIFF. The award is given to filmmakers from outside of the UK in recognition of their imagination and innovation. Acclaimed South Korean director Bong Joon-ho chaired the International Feature Film Competition Jury, which also included actress Natalie Dormer and film critic Siobhan Synnot.

The jury citation read: “The International Jury loved this film’s warm regard for the people at the heart of the film. A difficult subject was handled with confidence and humour. We hope that many more people get the opportunity to see A WORLD NOT OURS.”

Mahdi Fleifel said: “I am immensely grateful to the programmers at the EIFF for inviting my film. I have lived, studied and worked in the UK for 13 years, but I've never managed to screen any of my work at a single British film event - not even my short films which were pretty successful internationally. Winning the prize in Britain's No. 1 Film Festival is too good to be true. I hope this will help bring our film to a wider audience in the UK and I would like to thank the jury for this wonderful honour.”

The jury also gave a special mention to Elias Giannakakis’ JOY (Greece). The citation read: “The Jury would like to make special mention of Elias Giannakakis’ unique character study in JOY and an outstanding performance by Amalia Moutousi.”

The Michael Powell Award for Best British Feature Film went to Lucien Castaing-Taylor and Véréna Paravel’s LEVIATHAN (UK/USA/France), which received its UK Premiere at the Festival. A visually stunning documentary, LEVIATHAN wins one of the longest-running film awards in the UK, honouring imagination and creativity in British filmmaking.

The winner was chosen by the Michael Powell Jury, chaired by Iranian director Samira Makhmalbaf and including actor and director Kevin McKidd and film critic Derek Malcolm. The jury described the film “as an original and imaginative documentary which observes the brutal routine of deep sea fishing in a way which completely immerses the watcher in its story.”

Lucien Castaing-Taylor and Véréna Paravel said: “We are totally bowled over by the news of this award. All our films have been rejected by every British film festival to date, so it is all the more moving for us! We also admire in so many ways the work of this jury, which makes this award especially meaningful to us both. It also gives us the courage and conviction to continue to keep pushing at the envelope - of cinema, of documentary, of art.”

The jury awarded a special commendation to Paul Wright’s FOR THOSE IN PERIL “for its passionate portrait of a young Scots survivor of a tragedy at sea.”

The Award for Best Performance in a British Feature Film was shared by Jamie Blackley and Toby Regbo for their performances as the dysfunctional schoolboys in uwantme2killhim? The performance awards were voted for by the Michael Powell Award Competition Jury.

Jamie Blackley said: “I felt lucky enough to hear that two films I was in had been selected for the EIFF, so to then win this award is a wonderful shock that I wasn’t expecting and I am proud to share it with Toby. I’d like to thank Andrew Douglas and the cast and crew for making the experience so special for me and to EIFF for making me feel so welcome.”

Co-star Toby Regbo added: "I'm absolutely over the moon. Making this film was so positive: a really interesting story, a great director and a superb actor to work opposite, what more could you want really? I'd like to say thank you to the EIFF for supporting British independent film and young actors."

Reinstated in 2013 after a two-year absence, The Audience Award, supported by Sainsbury’s Bank, went to FIRE IN THE NIGHT (UK) directed by Anthony Wonke for his deeply moving documentary detailing the 1988 Piper Alpha disaster in the North Sea. The film, which received its World Premiere at the Festival, skilfully combines archival footage, audio recordings and interviews with some of the 61 survivors of the disaster, some of whom are interviewed for the very first time.
Voted for by cinema-goers attending public screenings, films were eligible from across the Festival programme at the discretion of the Artistic Director.

Anthony Wonke said: “It’s 25 years ago this July that Piper Alpha exploded and sunk into the North Sea and we hope that with this film the memory of that fateful night that affected so many lives will act as a suitable remembrance. I'd like to thank everyone who voted for FIRE IN THE NIGHT, it really does mean an awful lot to everyone involved especially all the men who took part in the film. I know that they will be incredibly touched and thankful that the public engaged with this film and their story in such a positive way.”

EIFF Artistic Director Chris Fujiwara said: “The Audience Award, which we reinstated this year after a two-year hiatus, is not only one of the most significant of EIFF’s initiatives designed to engage audiences with cinema, it’s also one of the most fun. We’re delighted by the enthusiasm shown by our audience members who took part in choosing this award, and we’re grateful for the support and commitment of Sainsbury’s Bank.”

GHL by Lotte Schreiber won The Award for Best Short Film in the shorts category. The prize was one of three awards bestowed by the Short Film Competition Jury, which included International Film Festival Rotterdam programmer Inge de Leeuw (chair), film critic Christoph Huber and independent film programmer Ricardo Matos Cabo.

The jury citation read: “The jury unanimously gives this prize for Best Short Film to a visually and rhythmically precise architectural study that doubles as a portrait of current social changes with the ghost of capitalism haunting the space of a popular landmark of communal recreation erected as a socialist utopia in Vienna.

Lotte Schreiber said: "I am very proud to receive this amazing award from this fantastic film festival, which is the most exciting one I’ve ever received! I’m proud of my little team and I want to thank them all for their precious contribution to this little movie: especially Johannes Hammel, who did the breathtaking camerawork and Michael Krassnitzer for his perfect low-key acting. This award makes me sure to keep on filmmaking, even under extremely tough economic circumstances, which will probably become even tougher for all of us independent filmmakers in the next years. But it’s worth carrying on! I want to express my sincere gratitude to the Festival Programme Committee who has selected the Film to be part of the International Competition at EIFF and likewise to the Short Film jury members, who have put their whole confidence into this little Viennese movie.”

The Award for Creative Innovation in a Short Film, given for the first time this year, was awarded to DOLL PARTS by Muzi Quawson, as voted for by the Shorts Jury. The jury citation read: “The prize for creative innovation goes to a short that takes an unusual approach to documenting subculture and its protagonists, utilising paradoxical means. The film achieves a sense of drift by focusing on moments of stasis and capturing the energy of touring musicians through surprising ellipses and attention to incidental details.”

Another newly introduced award within the shorts category, The Award for Outstanding Individual Contribution to a Short Film, which celebrates imaginative and innovative work in short cinema, was awarded to Josh Gibson as Director of Photography of LIGHT PLATE, which he also directed.

The jury citation read: “The prize for outstanding contribution to a short film goes to the camerawork of a magical landscape study, capturing a day in the Tuscan countryside with a series of subtle, imaginative and mesmerizingly textured images forged with careful attention to the possibilities and beauty of 35mm films.”

Josh Gibson said: "I am honoured and humbled to receive this award and to be recognized along with this small, personal film at such a prestigious international film festival, brimming with work by talented people that I have admired for a long time. Unlike feature films, short films are delicate creatures that owe much to the programming. In shorts programmes the individual films reverberate against one another, sometimes changing fundamentally depending upon the other pieces in the programme. I especially want to thank the EIFF programmers for finding a place for LIGHT PLATE where its particular point of view and visual preoccupations could be acknowledged and admired."

The jury also gave a special mention to three filmmakers whose work holds great promise for the future: Charlotte Rabate for LUCILLE IN THE SKY; Ivan Castineiras for THE BORDER; and Anna Frances Ewert for ENDLESS DAY.

As voted for by the audience, The McLaren Award for Best New British Animation, supported by the British Council, went to MARILYN MYLLER by director Mikey Please and co-animator Dan Ojari. Named after Scottish-born filmmaker Norman McLaren, the McLaren Award is the longest running award celebrating creativity amongst UK animation talent. The award was presented at the awards ceremony by Richard Williams, widely regarded as one of the world's greatest animators.

Mikey Please said: “The team and I are absolutely thrilled to receive the prestigious McLaren Award. We hope that our gonzo, the-rules-are-there-to-break-them approach to filmmaking was very much in a spirit that would have made Norman proud. This was Marilyn's World premiere, so naturally we were very nervous about how she'd be received. To have the warm welcome of an audience vote is wonderful, the best result we could have possibly hoped for.”

The Student Critics Jury Award, supported by Morag and James Anderson, was awarded to CELESTIAL WIVES OF THE MEADOW MARI by Alexey Fedorchenko. The award was determined by a jury of seven aspiring film critics, Lewis Camley, Ruth Swift-Wood, Kathryn Craigmyle, Phil Kennedy, Catarina Mourao, Rebecca Lily Bowen and Vivek Santayana, who took part in a workshop on film criticism at EIFF under the guidance of Kate Taylor (Independent Cinema Office), Gabe Klinger (independent film critic and programmer) and Nick James (editor, Sight & Sound).

The jury citation read: “Bearing in mind what the Artistic Director said, film is reality and also something more. A witty, perceptive and beautiful celebration of folk mythologies”.

Want A Beatdown? Well Just watch The New UK Trailer For Only God Forgives

With his dukes at the ready Ryan Gosling is ready to fight anyone who takes a dig at his new film Only God Forgives. Don't go for the beatdown just watch the UK trailer for the film instead!

Some are calling this the unofficial sequel to Drive, the new trailer showcases Only God Forgives will be a neon lit fest of brutality and visual slickness. Its a much anticipated unholy alliance between Nicholas Winding Refn and man in demand Gosling, to many its a natural chemistry made in heaven. But the word from Cannes and the early American reviews is a mixed bag of nuts ironically it seems  the British reviews seems to be more favourable, so whatever your point of view this film has the makings to be another cult film in the making.

We do also have a rather awesome neon clad UK Quad poster that accompanies the trailer (see below), a big thanks to Lionsgate Films UK for sending us those visual delights. The question will be can Only God Forgives match the momentous levels of Drive? Find out on 2nd August(USA 19th July) when the film arrives in UK cinemas.

Only God Forgives stars Kristen Scott Thomas,  Yayaying Rhatha Phongam, Vithaya Pansringarm, Tom Burke and Byron Gibson.

Synopsis

Bangkok. Julian (Ryan Gosling) runs a Thai boxing club as a front for a drugs operation. He has everything he wants for and is respected in the criminal underworld though, deep inside, he feels empty.

When Julian's brother murders a prostitute the police call on retired cop Chang - the Angel of Vengeance (Vithaya Pansringarm). Chang allows the father to kill his daughter's murderer, then 'restores order' by chopping off the man's right hand. Julian's mother Jenna (Kristin Scott Thomas) - the head of a powerful criminal organization - arrives in Bangkok to collect her son's body. She dispatches Julian to find his killers and 'raise hell'.

Increasingly obsessed with the Angel of Vengeance, Julian challenges him to a boxing match, hoping that by defeating him he might find spiritual release… but Chang triumphs. A furious Jenna plots revenge and the stage is set for a bloody journey through betrayal and vengeance towards a final confrontation and the possibility of redemption.

source: Thepeoplesmovies

EIFF 2013 - Il Futuro (The Future) Review

Rating: 15
Release Date: 28th June 2013 (EIFF)
Stars: Manuela Martelli, Luigi Ciardo, Rutger Hauer
Director: Alicia Scherson


Alicia Scherson's third feature-length film, Il Futuro, is a staggeringly impressive watch. Adapted from Chilean novel Una Novelita Lumpen by Roberto Bolano, Il Futuro is a thrilling tale of suspense, eroticism, and intrigue set against a backdrop of vintage Hollywood Gothic noir.

Il Futuro follows two teenage orphans, Bianca and Tomas, who become intertwined with two untrustworthy opportunists from the local gym. These acquaintances persuade Bianca (the eldest of the orphans, played by Manuela Martelli) to infiltrate and rob the home of one of their ex-clients, Marciste (Rutger Hauer) - a blind, former Mister Universe and movie star who has become something of a recluse. However, Bianca's developing feelings for Marciste seem set to compromise her original intentions.
From the onset Scherson's distinct visual aesthetic is apparent - the titles appear in thick gold lettering giving viewers a sense of this tale of Hollywood noir that is about to unfold. The director builds up and impressive sense of intrigue and suspense in the film's slow-burning opening - one of scenes sees Bianca and her brother view the now-mangled car that killed their parents. Scherson films the scene whilst slowly zooming in on the macabre wreckage set against a soundtrack of rumbling unease. This immediately crafts a sense of dark alienation that initially haunts Il Futuro and showcases Scherson's powerful and refreshing directorial style.

The narrative unfolds like a Hitchcockian suspense story with no predictable trajectory and countless enigmas that hit the viewer, from the unease provided by Tomas's untrustworthy gym acquaintances to the truth behind the relationship between Bianca and Marciste. These answers are unravelled throughout Scherson's well-crafted screenplay - although they ensure the viewers brain is continually at work throughout this intriguing feature.

There is a marvellous sense of the Gothic in both the aesthetic of Il Futuro and throughout the film' narrative. Marciste's mansion has echoes of Blanche and Jane Hudson's decaying home from What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? where we see decaying architecture and covered furniture, with remnants of Marciste's film career scattered amongst. Marciste could initially attract comparisons with the Beast from Beauty and the Beast - he is a reclusive, impaired creature whose humanity, warmth and vulnerability begins to show through his time with Bianca. Rutger Hauer is utterly sublime - a true master of his craft, and Il Futuro provides us with his finest performance in recent years.

Il Futuro further shows echoes of Hollywood noir with Bianca and Marciste's romance gradually paralleling those from Marciste's old films - however, viewers will gain a further sense of unease through their knowledge of the darker motivations that have lead Bianca to seek the blind actor out. Martelli's performance is also exceptional - seeing Bianca begin to fall for Marciste makes for a heart-warming romance, however the actress ensures that we still question whether Bianca will steal from Marciste.

Scherson has crafted a fascinating slice of gothic noir that proves to be both sublimely acted and directed. Il Futuro is packed with suspense, heart and nostalgia - resulting in an outstandingly original combination.

★★★★★

Andrew McArthur

You Need To Fight If You Want To Escape (Flukt) This July

The director and star of the critically acclaimed Cold Prey team up once again for a thrilling, action-packed adventure that marries the best of The Hunger Games and Mad Max as a young girl fights for survival against brutal warriors in a disease-ridden medieval world.This July Escape (Flukt) will arrive on DVD in UK in July

Ten years after the Black Plague ravaged their country, a poor family sets out on a journey for a new home. On a remote mountain pass, they are attacked by a band of merciless killers led by the vicious Dagmar (Ingrid Bolsø Berdal) and the only one spared is young Signe (Isabel Christine Andreasen), who is taken hostage. At the gang’s camp she meets fellow kidnap victim Frigg (Milla Olin) and learns that a terrible fate awaits her. There is nothing for it but to escape, but Dagmar will not let Signe go that easily…

Escape is like The Hunger Games stripped bare – a strong heroine, fast-paced action, awesome archery, but not a love triangle in sight! It’s a beautifully filmed, uncompromising tale of survival-against-the-odds with top performances and stunning scenery that’ll leave you wanting a trip to Norway!

Escape(Flukt)is directed Roar Uthaug (Cold Prey) and stars Ingrid Bolsø Berdal (Cold Prey, Cold Prey 2), Kristian Espedel aka Gaahl (frontman of Gorgoroth, Trelldom and Gaahlskagg) and the film arrives on DVD in UK on 29th July.

Special Features:

• Visual Effects
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• Deleted Scenes
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• Bloopers

EIFF 2013 - We Are The Freaks Review

Rating: 15
Release Date: 22nd June 2013 (EIFF)
Director: Justin Edgar
Stars: Jamie Blackley, Sean Teale, Michael Smiley, Danielle Bux

Justin Edgar's We Are the Freaks sets out to challenge the conventions of the traditional teen-comedy, and it mostly does so with a cheeky sense of humour and fond nostalgia for the nineties.

We Are the Freaks follows working class Jack (Jamie Blackley) who dreams of going to university yet struggles to get funding. Jack's best-friend Chunks (Sean Teale) who dubs himself a "textbook underachiever" suggests a night-out that begins with gate crashing a party.

The setting of the early 1990s provides an exciting twist on the traditional teen comedy, allowing Edgar to pack his film with a soundtrack including the likes of New Order and The Happy Mondays which certainly adds a distinct and likeable character to the film. This era also means that Edgar can pack his screenplay with gags relevant to the nineties (as well as the usual teen comedy gross-out humour) resulting in a bizarre, yet rather amusing subplot involving Jack's friend Parson's unhealthy sexual attraction to Margaret Thatcher.

Edgar's distinct directorial style makes a refreshing change from what you would find in many other teen comedies. Direct dialogue to the camera is one such method, whilst Edgar's eye for impressive visuals can also be seen - especially in the film's earlier scenes showing Jack's mind at work in a drab office.

Despite being mostly amusing in its first two acts, We Are the Freaks soon takes a darker turn in its conclusion that feels somewhat out of place with the film's prior quirky and light-hearted tone. In building up to this moment it also appears that many of the gags have lost their steam - mainly as the characters hit respective low points.

For the most part the characters are all likeable and amusingly crafted. Jamie Blackley is an up-and-coming talent to watch - delivering a mature performance that is equally perfect when tackling either comedy or more emotional-heavy dramatic scenes. Sean Teale also displays a stellar comic ability, especially in hilarious sequences dealing with Adam Gillen's character Splodger (the brother of his crush, whose personality verges on psychotic).

We Are the Freaks is an amusing and charmingly nostalgic look at the nineties, even if it does seem to run out of steam towards the end.

★★★☆☆

Andrew McArthur

EIFF 2013 - The Bling Ring Review

Rating: 15
Release: 22nd June 2013 (EIFF) 5th July 2013 (UK Cinema)
Stars: Emma Watson, Katie Chang ,Leslie Mann, Israel Broussard, Katie Chang
Director: Sofia Coppola

The Bling Ring marks Sofia Coppola's first feature since 2010's outstanding Somewhere and faces the challenge of living up to the quality of this and her previous body of work. Whilst The Bling Ring is an enjoyable watch, it ultimately feels as superficial and shallow as its central characters.

Based on real events, The Bling Ring documents a group of teens who break into the homes of some of America's biggest celebrities.

Coppola's narrative presents us with teens burglarising the homes of Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, and Orlando Bloom simply because they can.  This is handled with a lack of insight or depth which can result in The Bling Ring becoming quite a frustrating watch - it is not clear whether Coppola is making a statement about obsession with celebrity or the lack of direction faced by young people. You could make a case for both (and more) arguments, yet Coppola does not commit to either - she simply portrays these teens committing the crimes through a skewed sense of self-entitlement. Whilst this is always continually watchable thanks to Coppola's distinct aesthetic style, it seems like somewhat of a wasted opportunity that she does not dig below surface depth.

Despite this frustration, there is much to enjoy about The Bling Ring. Coppola's dialogue provides an often amusing look at our celebrity obsessed culture - best presented when Katie Chang's Rebecca's main concern about her crimes was Lindsay Lohan's reaction, or when Emma Watson's Nicki discusses her ambition to lead a country. Leslie Mann's appearance as Nicki's mother also furthers the idea of the cult of celebrity through references to a lifestyle ideal known as The Secret.

There may be little to the characters of The Bling Ring other than their vacuous Californian lifestyle and superficial style and beliefs, yet there are still some solid performances within the feature. Katie Change excels as Rebecca, the careless teen who initiates the first break-ins, whilst Israel Broussard is solid as the more cautious best-friend.  However, it is Emma Watson who makes The Bling Ring - the actress is magnificent as the spoilt LA teen who happens to be the most superficially charismatic of the group.

Coppola's aesthetic is perhaps one of the most redeeming elements of The Bling Ring from the sun-stroked Californian streets to the pulsating nightlife, set to an eclectic soundtrack of contemporary pop and R&B music.

There is a lot to like about The Bling Ring from its clever dialogue, excellent performances and Coppola's distinct glossy aesthetic, but it ultimately feels like an unfulfilling watch with a narrative lacking the depth that it needs.

★★★☆☆

Andrew McArthur

EIFF 2013 - The Complex (Kuroyuri danchi) Review

Rating:
18
Review Date:
22nd June 2013 (EIFF 2013)
Director:
Hideo Nakata
Stars:
Atsuko Maeda
Hiroki Narimiya
Masanobu Katsumura


We should know better than to get excited when a once great horror director makes a back to basics comeback. It's happened with John Carpenter (The Ward), George A. Romero (Survival of the Dead), Wes Craven (My Soul to Take), and Dario Argento (Dracula 3D), and now it is the turn of Japan's own Hideo Nakata - the man behind Dark Water and Ringu. In a miraculous feat Nakata has managed to make a film worse than all those aforementioned combined.

The Complex follows a young nursing student (Atsuko Maeda) who moves with her family into a derelict apartment block, which her friends claim is haunted. After being disturbed by eerie noises coming from her neighbour's apartment it seems these claims may have some truth.

Nakata has made some of the most terrifying Japanese horror features in recent years, which makes The Complex and even more disappointing watch. Opening as an old-fashioned ghost story, The Complex sticks pretty close to the conventions of the genre - from strange noises in the middle of the night to shadowy figures appearing every so often. However, these scenes lack any of the tension or originality they deserve - failing to quicken the pace or enhance the horror of The Complex. As the narrative progresses the clichés continue to come thick and fast from dying old men to sinister children - many completely laughable in the bland way they are executed.

When The Complex does deviate from the conventions of the ghost film there are some great concepts to be found in Ryûta Miyake and Junya Kato's screenplay. Traces of de ja vu begin to seep into Asuka's daily life, resulting in a unsettling tone being established. This eventually leads to a look at the effects that grieving can have on the mental state, however, these come secondary to Nakata's preference for traditional genre scares (ie. possessed children).

The main issue that The Complex simply is not scary. It lacks any tense edge of your seat moments or any originality in its set pieces. It's not a terrible film - it is just a case of having seen almost everything before and on a superior level. This can result in The Complex becoming quite a tiresome and immediately forgettable watch.

Despite some intriguing concepts at its heart, The Complex is dull, generic and laughable at points. Sadly this is not the return to form that many thought Nakata would deliver.

★★☆☆☆

Andrew McArthur

Entity DVD Review

Rating: 15
DVD Release Date: 24th June 2013
Director: Steve Stone
Cast: Dervla Kirwan, Charlotte Riley, Branko Tomovic
Buy: Entity [DVD]


There was a time when the term 'horror film' meant just that. Admittedly however, it seldom required much more than keeping the landing light on at night to dispel any fears that something might be lurking in the dark once the film ended. Now your home could be plunged into complete darkness as the result of a total power cut after you've just finished watching the latest horror release, and you'd have no more nightmares than if you'd sat through an episode of Scooby Doo! The scariest thing about Entity (2012), the new film from this category by debut director / writer Steve Stone, and starring Dervla Kirwin, Charlotte Riley and Branko Tomovic, is how it managed to win two awards at the recent London Independent Film Festival, both as Best Sci-fi / Horror Feature and Best Low Budget Film. If this was the best it wasn't saying a lot for the other entries.

Three British television documentary makers, Kate Hansen (Riley), Matt Hurst (Rupert Hill) and David Hamilton (Oliver Jackson), along with psychic Ruth Peacock (Kirwin) and their Russian guide Yuri Levkov (Tomovic), venture into the forests in a remote area of Russia in order to investigate the truth behind the deaths of thirty two bodies found in the area twelve years previously. As they head deeper into the area they come upon a disused hospital facility, which houses a dark secret that could threaten all their lives.

Someone should tell filmmakers that lost footage as a basis for horror films has had its day. Any originality the method might have shown when first seen in films like The Blair Witch Project (1999) has long since died. This means that the only point of interest in this new variation is how they fooled someone of the calibre of Kirwin (who once showed some promise as an actress) into getting involved in this dire escapade in the first place. Here she is reduced to wandering round a damp field and then a series of dimly lit corridors pleading with what remains of the rest of the cast to "get me out of here"! By the end of eighty seven minutes (if you make it that far) you'll wish they had taken heed of her entreaties, for your sake as well as hers.

I wish I could say something at least remotely positive about Entity. However, before it finished I was as lost and confused by the film as its characters themselves seemed to be, so I guess we had better leave it there.

★☆☆☆☆

Cleaver Patterson