STACK #146 Dec 2016

YOUR ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO CINEMA, DVDs, GAMES MUSIC

.net.au

ISSUE 146 DEC ’16

INSIDE

RICKY GERVAIS • KATE BECKINSALE • FINAL FANTASY XV

WIN! COMPETITIONS see inside

Sign up for your

at stack.net.au

PRESENTS

INCLUD 3 MI MO

Wonder what they do all day? PRESENTS

3 MINI MOVIES WITH INCLUDING MINION MOWER

Wonder what they do all day?

THE PERFECT GI FT THI S CHR I STMAS

NEW TO 4K ULTRA HD ™ , 3D BLU-RAY ™ , BLU-RAY ™ & DVD 7 DECEMBER AT

*WHILE STOCKS LAST

“A FUN FILM FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY” –NORTHERN STAR

S I IES

MORE FAVOURITES FROM THE ILLUMINATION RANGE

© 2016 UNIVERSAL SONY PICTURES HOME ENTERTAINMENT AUSTRALIA PTY LIMITED. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

THESECRET LIFEOFPETS© 2016UniversalStudios.AllRightsReserved.

Save $50 on a gift of Sonos. Fill their home with music.

$50 off RRP on PLAY:1, PLAY:3, PLAY:5, PLAYBAR and SUB only. Offer valid until December 31st, 2016, or while supplies last.

ACTION

ONLY AT JB HI-FI

DRAMA

Co m e d y

OUT 7 DEC

Available at

Period drama

OUT 7 DEC

OUT 7 DEC

OUT 22 DEC

NEWSWORTHY

BATMAN:DC’S LEGENDSOFTOMORROW and all pre-existing characters and elementsTM and©DCComics.BATMAN series and all-new characters and elementsTM and© 2015WarnerBros. Entertainment Inc.©2016WarnerBros.Entertainment Inc. Distributed byRoadshow Entertainment.All rights reserved.

©2016HOMEBOXOFFICE, INC. ALLRIGHTSRESERVED. HBO®ANDRELATEDSERVICEMARKS ARETHEPROPERTYOFHOMEBOXOFFICE, INC. DISTRIBUTEDBYROADSHOWENTERTAINMENT.

WHILE STOCKS LAST

visit stack.net.au

Contributors

Founder Nic Short Editor-in-Chief Paul Jones Film & DVD Editor Scott Hocking Music Editor Zoë Radas JuniorWriter Alesha Kolbe

Issue 146 DECEMBER 2016

Creative Director Justin Buxton DVD Consultant Michelle Black Games Consultant Andre Eivik Music Consultants Mike Glynn, Fleur Parker Tech Consultant Chris Allen Contributors John Ferguson, Graham Reid, Gill Pringle, Michael Dwyer, Jeff Jenkins, Emily Kelly, Simon Lukic, Chris Murray, Billy Pinnell, Denise Hylands, Simon Winkler, Adam Colby, Savannah Douglas Social Media Manager Sally Carlier-Hull Photographer Chip Mooney Production Manager Craig Patterson Accounts Coordinator Tracy Kingman Chief Contributors Bob Jones , Amy Flower

WELCOME December is generally the epitome of chaos. It’s the sudden realisation that you haven’t even thought about Christmas presents and it’s looking highly likely that the pack of charity Christmas cards you’ve had in the stationery drawer for two years will be there for a third. And for some unknown reason, there’s always a desperate, almost pathological, need to catch-up with people for a drink before the 25th – people that you haven’t seen or cared about all year. Remember how you told yourself this time last December, when you searched the shopping mall car park for two hours, that you would do your Christmas shopping early next time? It didn’t happen, did it? Now you’re going to have to face the elbows and the ankle-bruising, pram-wielding parents in a retail Running of the Bulls. However, there is an easy solution. If you’re unsure what to buy your loved ones this year, head into your local JB, corner a category staff member and let them do the hard work for you. Whether you’re thinking video games, music or DVDs, these super knowledgeable folk are on hand to guide you through the process of making a purchase that you won’t be embarrassed to watch being opened on Christmas morning. And then you can sit back, pull a cracker, and bask in the kudos of that inspired gift choice. Have a wonderful Christmas and a Happy NewYear. See you in 2017. Paul Jones, Editor-in-Chief

Download the STACK App It’s FREE!

Correspondence STACK P.O. Box 2051, Richmond South, VIC 3121

NEWSLETTER

RATINGS GUIDE

stack.net.au

Disclaimer STACK is published by Scribal Custom Pty Ltd (ACN 092 362 135). © Copyright Scribal Custom Pty Ltd, 2016 All rights reserved. All material appearing in this publication is copyright unless otherwise stated or it may rest with the provider of the supplied material or advertisement. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of Scribal Custom Pty Ltd. No responsibility is accepted for accuracy of advertisements or information. Whilst care has been taken in the research and preparation of this publication, the publishers, writers or anyone else associated cannot accept any responsibility for any loss, injury or hardship arising from the content contained herein or reliance therefrom, howsoever caused, and it remains your responsibility to evaluate the accuracy, completeness and usefulness of any such content. Views expressed are not necessarily endorsed by the publisher or the editor. By the very nature of this publication, things change daily and we cannot take responsibility for any changes or inaccuracies that occur subsequent to going to press.

The large print giveth, the small print taketh away. “Every breath I take is a cliffhanger!”

on Blu-Ray, Blu-ray 3D™ and 4K Ultra HD™ BRING THE SQUAD HOME DECEMBER 7 FEATURING FOOTAGE NOT SEEN IN CINEMAS

While stocks last.

M Recommended for mature audiences.

LIMITED EDITIONS

BLAST OPEN EVERY PACKAGE OF THE WORST. HEROES. EVER.

DERANGED DIGIBOOK with an awesome 64-pages

HARD-CORE HARD COVER GRAPHIC NOVEL Secret files of the Suicide Squad

SERIOUSLY FUN STEELBOOK ™ Exclusive packaging

ALSO INCLUDES. ..

BRING THE SQUAD HOME ON BLU-RAY ™ Also on Blu-ray 3D™ and 4K Ultra HD™

M Recommended for mature audiences

NEW ON BLU-RAY ™ DECEMBER 7 AT

while stocks last

stack.net.au

Issue 146 DECEMBER 2016

Extras Pages 12–14

Cinema Pages 16–24

DVD & BD Pages 30–56

Games & TECH Pages 59–72

Music (From back) Pages 1–27

12 NEWS Felicity Jones plays a new kind of rebel in December’s hotly anticipated cinema release, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story . 14 XMAS GIFT IDEAS There’s something for everyone at JB Hi-Fi. Here’s just a small sample of the unbelievable range you’ll find in-store. 44-45 BEGINNER’s GUIDE Fasten your seatbelts! Engine failure, turbulence, terrorists, time warps, hijackers and even snakes – anything can happen on a plane in the movies, and

16-18 UNDERWORLD: BLOOD WARS

30-31 SUICIDE SQUAD They “play by a different set of rules.” Director David Ayer explains why sometimes it’s good to be bad. 32-34 DAVID BRENT: LIFE ON THE ROAD Ricky Gervais on bringing his iconic character from The Office back after 13 years. 36 OUTCAST The latest TV adaptation of a Robert Kirkman comic book series isn’t your average exorcism show. 38-39 7 MAGNIFICENT WESTERNS This year’s remake of The Magnificent Seven could spearhead a Western revival. In the meantime, here are seven classics to keep you going. 40 RED BILLABONG We’ve seen an oversized pig, and giant crocodiles. Now, this new local creature feature introduces a monster from Aboriginal legend. 42 DOCTOR WHO Whovians rejoice! The lost classic The Power of the Daleks returns this month as a new BBC animated production.

62-63 FINAL FANTASY XV Following a final delay, it’s time to get our hands on one of the year’s most highly anticipated games – at last! 64 steep Head for the hills – Ubisoft are bringing us an open-world sports sim. We caught up with the creative director to find out all about it. 66 the last guardian Yeah, we can’t believe it either, but The Last Guardian has landed. We’ve played it, and here’s why we think you should too. 68 dead rising 4 Believe it or not, it’s been 10 years since the original Dead Rising . Frank is back, and you’re in for one hell of a slay-ride. 69 corsair You might not recognise the name, but Corsair have been in the accessory market for quite some time. We road test the Void RGB USB Headset and the M65 Pro RGB Mouse. 70 esports Check out our monthly eSports round-up with Junglist, as well as our review of Logitech’s G920. 72 previews The Last Guardian, Dead Rising 4, Super Mario Maker 3DS, Steep

8-14 INTERVIEWS + NEWS We spoke to Briggs and Trials of A.B. Original, Haley Bonar, Nikki Sixx and more. 15 HOLY HOLY + SONOS We visited Oscar Dawson – of incredible alt-rock duo Holy Holy – and set him up with a state-of-the-art SONOS speaker system. 16 THE ROLLING STONES Chris Murray reviews The Rolling Stones’ brand new album, Blue & Lonesome . 18-20 VINYL REISSUES Two illustrious local acts have recently received the reissue treatment; Michael Dwyer delves into black wax from the discographies of Crowded House The A.B. Original boys take out Album of the Month, but we also have feelings about Neil Young, Bruno Mars, Brian Cadd & the Bootleg Family Band, Metallica, Body/Head, Alex Izenberg, Tommy Emmanuel, John Cale, Alicia Keys, Gillian Welch, Pink Floyd, Frank Iero & the Patience and more. and Cold Chisel. 22-27 reviews

From its low budget beginnings, Kate Beckinsale never imagined she would be involved with this vampire franchise for 13 years. 20 LA LA LAND Ryan Gosling reveals why he couldn’t turn down the opportunity to channel his idol Gene Kelly in this romantic musical. Look out ladies! 22–24 REVIEWS Arrival, Nocturnal Animals, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, I, Daniel Blake, The Accountant 26-28 BOB J. The story of the end of the Golden Age of Hollywood is as remarkable as its rise. It begins with Clark Gable in 1954...

usually does. 58 GIVEAWAYS

David Brent: Life on the Road prize-pack, Monster Trucks and Red Dog: True Blue cinema passes, and a massive CD giveaway.

Test your movie knowledge with Bob J’s FilmBuff Bafflers at stack.net.au

THE RODDENBERRY VAULT has finally been opened! BLU-RAY TM LIMITED EDITION includes 2 classic episodes, 3 exclusive special feature documentaries presenting unseen footage and new interviews with notable Star Trek figures! AVAILABLE ON BLU-RAY TM 14 DECEMBER FROM

*WHILE STOCKS LAST

TM & © 2016 CBS Studios Inc. STAR TREK and related marks are trademarks of CBS Studios Inc. All Rights Reserved.

A FILM BY CLINT EASTWOOD

© 2016 Warner Bros Pictures. All Rights Reserved.

M - Recommended for mature audiences

ON BLU-RAY ™ & DVD DECEMBER 14 AT

while stocks last*

REVENGE IS A DANGEROUS BUSINESS.

JASON STATHAM

JESSICA ALBA

TOMMY LEE JONES

MICHELLE YEOH

MA15+ - Not suitable for people under 15.

Under 15s must be accompanied by a parent or adult guardian

visit stack.net.au

CINEMA BUZZ

AN ENGLISH ROSE IN SPACE

Felicity Jones drew critical praise for her performance as Stephen Hawking’s wife Jane in The Theory of Everything . Now she's getting ready to embark upon the role of a lifetime in a galaxy far, far away… Words Jake Taylor

E ver since J. J. Abrams’ stellar record-breaking style, all eyes have been firmly glued to the Star Wars schedule in anticipation of the next instalment in the timeless space opera. Now the release date of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story – chronologically situated between the events of 2005’s Revenge of the Sith and 1977’s A New Hope – has been set, and fronting the film’s fearless band of rebels is none other than 33-year-old British leading lady, Felicity Jones. And despite attracting critical acclaim in her Academy Award-nominated turn as Jane Hawking in 2014’s The Theory of Everything , the thought of becoming an integral part of the Star Wars universe is intimidating enough for any calibre of star. “I’m very excited – it’s exciting simply because it’s part of an iconic history,” she explains. “I remember going to see the films, with that classic intro, with my cousins and brother. When I think about that now it just seems so daunting, but exhilarating at the same time.” While details of the upcoming film – slated for release in December – remain under ‘lock and key’ according to the saga’s reboot of the world’s most famous sci-fi franchise flew into cinemas in

is traditionally dominated by men has become an opportunity to play a very independent and courageous woman,” Jones says of Erso. “She’s someone who knows what she wants in life. I appreciate that kind of determination. In my own life, I’m a hard worker. I’m very passionate about what I do – I think there are aspects of me in all my characters.” After working her way up through the cinematic ranks from small-time movies to the Hollywood behemoth that is Star Wars, Jones is dealing with her newfound leading lady status with an experienced and unpretentious nonchalance. “I’ve always had my feet on the ground; I spent many years working in England to be able to get to this point,” she remarks. “I’ve also had the advantage of being part of a very close family which has supported me and given me good advice when it comes to making decisions based on my instincts about the kinds of roles and films I’ve wanted to do. “I’ve worked very hard in pursuing my dream and I’m really enjoying everything about this time. It’s very gratifying and I hope to keep finding more good roles.” And a role in one of cinema’s most well- loved stories will surely have one more unique selling point: the inevitable release of a Jyn Erso action figure. “It’s something I haven’t given much thought to,” she laughs. “But should it happen, that’ll be on the mantelpiece for certain!”

TheTheory of Everything

as the cosmos itself – Forest Whitaker, Mads Mikkelsen, Diego Luna and Ben Mendelsohn, to name just a few. Jones – following in the footsteps of The Force Awakens ’ Rey, portrayed by fellow Brit Daisy Ridley – is delighted to see that the future of sci-fi’s most lucrative franchise rests firmly in the hands of its feisty female leads. “I enjoy taking on challenges. Getting to be part of a genre that I’ve worked very hard in pursuing my dream and I'm really enjoying everything about this time

newest addition, we already know that Jones will be portraying rebel Jyn Erso alongside a cast that includes almost as many stars

• Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is in cinemas on Dec 15

DECEMBER 2016

12

jbhifi.com.au

RENÉE ZELLWEGER

COLIN FIRTH

PATRICK DEMPSEY

EXPECTING ON BLU-RAY ™ & DVD DECEMBER 14 AT “A HILARIOUS TREAT” – THE WEEKLY REVIEW

ALSO AVAILABLE ON BLU-RAY & DVD

*WHILE STOCKS LAST

© 2016 Universal Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Australia Pty Limited.All Rights Reserved.

visit stack.net.au

EXTRAS NEWS

HOP ON IT

Origins: Wolverine (2009) and The Wolverine (2013). If it's a dystopian future you're after, The Purge: 3-Movie Collection is a great choice. On one night of the year, anything goes – kind of like Christmas Eve.

Here’s just a small sample of the unbelievable range of Christmas gift ideas you’ll find in store at JB Hi-Fi.

GREAT LAUGHS

this year's Christmas holiday must-have. The Secret Life of Pets is out December 7 on DVD, Blu-ray, 3D Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD, in case Santa was extra generous with a High-Def TV this year. It also features three mini-movies, including Minion Power . As summer heats up, make sure you keep the kids cool with Ice Age – Complete Collection . This box set contains all five movies including this year's installment, Ice Age: Collision Course . And celebrating nine decades on Earth, The David Attenborough 90th Birthday Collection boasts eight programmes including one on the Great Barrier Reef, and much more. BLOCKBUSTER BOXED SETS In terms of value, you can't go past these much loved franchises, bundled together for your viewing pleasure and convenience. Ghostbusters Collection features all three movies – the mega-hyped 2016 reboot Ghostbusters , plus the 1984 original and its 1989 sequel, Ghostbusters II . It only took twenty years between Independence Day and its 2016 follow-up Independence Day: Resurgence , and now you can watch them back to back with the Independence Day – 2 Movie Collection . If you're after a gift for the Marvel fan, you can cross it off your shopping list now. The X-Men: Collection brings the mutant saga bang up to date with 2016's X-Men: Apocalypse . It also contains the Hugh Jackman solo spin-offs X-Men

FROM TV Jerry, George, Elaine, Kramer! There's only one way you can own them forever, and that's with Seinfeld -The Complete Series . This massive box set contains all 180 episodes, and more than 104 hours of bonus material. Also featuring a much-adored ensemble cast, Parks and Recreation:The Complete Series comes in a 22-DVD set. Featuring Amy Poehler as an energetic bureaucrat within a fictional Californian town, this mockumentary also boasts the comic talents of Aziz Ansari, Nick Offerman, Aubrey Plaza and of course, Chris Pratt. Over its 125 episodes, the fly-on-the-wall shooting style proved ideal for an array of walk-on cameos, with Bill Murray, Jon Hamm, Paul Rudd and comedian Louis C.K. all making an appearance. Culture clash comedy Upper Middle Bogan: Complete Series 1-3 is fresh from its run on the ABC, which began in October 2016. The perfect pressie for fans of homegrown comedy, Annie Maynard is the inner city dweller who learns that she was adopted, and that her biological family comes from the outer suburbs. But they might as well be from another planet.

FAMILY VIEWING Before Christopher Nolan's angst-ridden version of Batman, there was a time when Gotham City's favourite caped crusader went about his business accompanied by candy coloured onomatopoeia. Get ready to relive those heady days of pop art inspired madness again with

the fully restored release of Batman:The Complete Television Series . That's 120 original broadcast episodes, plus over three hours of extras on Blu-ray and DVD. Along with AdamWest and Burt Ward (as Batman and Robin, respectively), there's a memorable cast of recurring villains including Julie Newmar and Eartha Kitt as Catwoman, Vincent Price as Egghead, Cesar Romero as the Joker, and Burgess Meredith as the Penguin. From the animation studio that brought us Minions comes

Download the STACK Magazine App for extra treats and content.

OCTOBER 2016

14

jbhifi.com.au

“THE FUNNIEST FILM OF THE YEAR” – Daily Mirror

#BrentsBack

NEW TO BLU-RAY & DVD 14 DECEMBER TM

©LOTRFilmsLtd,BritishBroadcastingCorporation,EntertainmentOneUKLimited2016.

visit stack.net.au

CINEMA INTERVIEW

Witty, wise and warm-hearted, its ironic that Kate Beckinsale’s life, both personally and professionally, has been somewhat defined by playing a vampire in the cult favourite Underworld franchise. Words: Gill Pringle

would die unexpectedly of a heart attack at just 31 years old. Both beautiful and precocious, Beckinsale could easily have rode her father’s coattails but instead pursued a degree in French and Russian literature at Britain’s prestigious Oxford University, during which time she won her first movie role in Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing . Reflecting on her 13 years with the Underworld franchise, she’s not sure what advice she would give her younger self, embarking on her first time out as Selene. “I don’t think I would tell her that you have to do four or five of these… I was so expecting to be fired on the first one because it’s not my thing, it was such a big stretch for me. “I was at a period in my career – I’m still sort of in it – where a big prerequisite was that if something really terrifies me and makes me want to hide under the bed, then that’s a good idea to do it. I just had never imagined myself doing anything like that. "We had quite a low budget. Very often

ast in 2003 as sexy, kick-ass vampire warrior Selene, Kate Beckinsale wed Underworld

director and co-creator Len Wiseman, with their 12-year marriage coming to an end earlier this year. With the franchise outlasting their marriage, Beckinsale, 43, now returns for a fifth outing as the 'Death Dealer' in Underworld: Blood Wars , directed by Anna Foerster. “I’m all about as many vaginas being involved as possible,” jokes Beckinsale when STACK meets with her backstage at Madison Square Garden, prior to the unveiling of the film’s trailer at New York Comic-Con. “I don’t think gender has much to do with whether you’re a good or bad director. I know it’s coming up a lot because an action heroine used to be unusual and now it’s less unusual. I hope in a few years time a woman director will be less unusual as well,” says the actress who, prior to meeting Wiseman, was involved in an eight-year relationship with Michael Sheen, with whom she has a 17-year- old daughter, Lily, who plans to follow in her

parents' thespian footsteps. “I think it is cool for us to have a franchise that has a female at the centre of it to also have a female director’s take,” she adds. “Selene is a fairly emotional character for someone who doesn’t show a lot of emotion, so it’s nice that Anna was interested in that component of the character. I don’t know if that’s because she’s a woman or just because she’s Anna.” The daughter of beloved British comedy star Richard Beckinsale, Kate made her first TV appearance, aged four. A year later, her father

DECEMBER 2016

16

jbhifi.com.au

“The most anticipated drama of the year” R a d i o T i m e s

C u l t b o x

I M D B

NEW ON DVD S 1 - 2 B o x s e t a l s o a v a i l a b l e

M Recommended for mature audiences

© 2016 Mammoth Screen Limited. All rights reserved. Licensed by ITV Studios Global Entertainment.

OUT NOW AT

while stocks last

“the new downton” s t a n d a r d . c o

“...you’ll be swept away” t e l e g r a p h

e v e r y i nch a qu e e n

★★★★ t h e t e l e g r a p h ★★★★ i m d b

★★★★ c u l t u r e w h i s p e r ★★★★★ c u l t b o x

PG Parental guidance recommended

© iTV Global Entertainment 2016

NEW ON BLU-RAY ™ & DVD DECEMBER 7 AT

while stocks last

visit stack.net.au

CINEMA INTERVIEW

continued

we had squibs blowing up and we only had one go. I kept thinking, ‘I’m going to ruin it and they’re just going to get someone who does this for a living.’ So I think it would have alarmed me if I’d known there were going to be so many of them,” she muses. Consistently voted as one of the sexiest women in the world,

The story so far...

UNDERWORLD (2003) Selene falls for a human/ Lycan hybrid named Michael and uncovers a plot to destroy the Vampire Elders.

opening up my toolbox as an actor; it’s just not necessarily going to win me an Oscar.” Currently single and anticipating an empty nest, she looks forward to stretching herself. “I stopped doing theatre when I had a baby, but I hope to return to the stage quite soon. My daughter probably wouldn’t care if I didn’t come home now that she’s 17, but certainly that was prohibitive for a long time. The slightly less hands-on motherhood thing has been an interesting thing. But I just have to watch out I don’t have another one!” she teases. If Beckinsale doesn’t always have the opportunity to test the boundaries of her

Beckinsale relishes her position as an iconic screen femme fatale. “Obviously there has always been Joan Crawford and Bette Davis, but for this kind of movie, at the time we only had Linda Hamilton and Sigourney Weaver, who were amazing, but there weren’t a lot of references. Being a small part of moving that needle feels really great. I’ve got a 17-year-old daughter, and it’s very normal for her to have a female-led franchise which is number one at the box office. It wasn’t necessarily the same for me growing up. As the youngest with four brothers, it feels good.” If Underworld has played a large role in her career, she hopes this isn’t what she will only be remembered for,

UNDERWORLD: EVOLUTION (2006) Selene awakens the Vampire Elder, Markus, and discovers his Lycan heritage.

UNDERWORLD: RISE OF THE LYCANS (2009) The origin of the Vampire/Lycan war is revealed – and a forbidden love is at the heart of it all!

naughty humour, then her Underworld co-star Theo James was the brunt of many jokes on the Blood Wars set. “I heard that Theo was really frightened of ferrets. I was bored. So we had an enterprising crew, and in moments we had a ferret put on set to scare him,” she reveals. “It was a very attractive ferret... it actually looked a bit like Theo. Big eyes, great

pointing to her recent acclaimed performance as Lady Susan Vernon in Love & Friendship , Whit Stillman’s comedic take on Jane Austen’s novella Lady Susan . “I’ve been lucky that I have been able to travel back and forth between things. I don’t think that these kind of movies are necessarily what get critics really hot under the

In terms of my entire career, Underworld has been a really big part in opening up my toolbox as an actor...

UNDERWORLD: AWAKENING (2012) Humans declare war on Vampires and Lycans, and Selene is defrosted after 12 years in stasis to find she has a hybrid daughter.

cheekbones.”

collar and excited. But one doesn’t just make movies for critics. And also, as an actor, it’s important to have a lot of different parts to your palette. For example, I didn’t go to drama school, I went to Oxford. I was used to doing literary adaptations and I really did need Underworld in terms of physical training that I never got. So it’s been very useful for me in terms of other work that I have done, where suddenly I became really good at stuff that I sucked at, and that I was pushed to the limits on. “So, in terms of my entire

One of the crew members ended up adopting the ferret, though James grew attached and held interviews to decide who would make the most responsible pet parent. After the ferret gag tired, Beckinsale also made use of a silicone version of James’s torso, built to emulate the actor’s screen injuries. “Theo has some injuries

take pictures of ourselves licking it. We left little offerings, little bowls of raisins and stuff.” STACK is later joined by James, who confesses to his anxiety over co-starring with the gorgeous Beckinsale. “I was quite nervous at first. I was naked and sweating and

in the movie, and they made him a prosthetic stomach. It had all of the same pubes

and stuff that Theo has,” she giggles. “We would go pay little visits to it and

Kate is very glamorous, so I was shivering and jibbering. But Kate’s sense of humour always helps in any situation.”

• Underworld: Blood Wars is in cinemas on Dec 1

career, Underworld has been a really big part in

DECEMBER 2016

18

jbhifi.com.au

D C C L A S S I C S O R I G I N A L M O V I E

BATMAN! THE DYNAMIC DUO ARE BACK!

HOLY NOSTALGIA

STARRING THE VOICE TALENTS OF ADAMWEST, BURTWARD & JULIE NEWMAR

BATMAN and all related characters and elements are trademarks of and © DC Comics. © Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All rights reserved.

PG Parental guidance recommended

NEW ON BLU-RAY ™ & DVD AT

while stocks last

FULLY REMASTERED

THE COMPLETE TV SERIES! HOLY HEADLINES BATMAN, IT’S...

ALL 120 ORIGINAL BROADCAST EPISODES IN ONE COLLECTION OVER 3 HOURS OF EXTRAS

BATMANandall relatedcharactersandelementsare trademarksofand©DCComics.©1966-1968,2014TwentiethCenturyFoxFilmCorporation. PackageDesign&SupplementaryMaterialCompilation©2014WarnerBros.Entertainment Inc.DistributedbyRoadshowEntertainment.All rights reserved.

PG Parental guidance recommended

BUY IT NOW ON BLU-RAY™ DVD AT

while stocks last

visit stack.net.au

CINEMA INTERVIEW

The Canadian actor reveals why he couldn’t turn down the opportunity to channel his idol Gene Kelly in romantic musical La La Land . Words Karen Anne Overton RYAN GOSLING GOES LALA

La La Land

“I ’ve always loved An American in Paris and Singin’ in the Rain – Gene Kelly gave us some of the single greatest song and dance numbers ever,” reveals an uncharacteristically wistful Ryan Gosling, who dons his dancing shoes in latest film La La Land. Created by Damien Chazelle, the Oscar-nominated director of Whiplash , the film is a glorious throwback to old-style Hollywood musicals and is already being touted as a major Oscar contender. “I’m a big fan of musicals and Damien is a serious student of the genre; his ambition was to capture the spirit of those movies and also pay homage to the city of Los Angeles,” reveals the actor. Gosling plays Sebastian, a cynical jazz pianist who is fast becoming a star in Hollywood, unlike his lover Mia (Emma Stone), a barista and struggling actress who can’t seem to get a break. The film follows the season of their romance as they both eventually achieve their longed-for success, only to find it threatens their fragile love for one another. Bathed in a nostalgic glow, the film serves to remind us of a simpler time in Hollywood as its stars sashay and tap dance to the song of old Los Angeles. We are also reminded of the irresistible chemistry between Gosling and super-babe

themselves,” he says. Whilst we don’t

associate him with musical theatre, Gosling actually started out performing on The Mickey Mouse Show when he was a kid, but admits that the intricate and graceful routines were a far cry from his '90s

Crazy, Stupid, Love

hip hop dancing days. “When I signed on to the film, I foolishly expected that my lost dance skills would come back to me pretty quickly. But I was wrong! Nothing came back,” he reveals with a laugh. Currently filming Blade Runner 2049 , the long-awaited sequel to Ridley Scott’s original 1982 sci-fi cult classic, the star admits

I often take my work and myself too seriously...

that since becoming a father to daughters, Esmeralda, 2, and Amada, born in April, with girlfriend Eva Mendes, he is less inclined to work long hours on set, saying: “I enjoy being a father more than I could ever have imagined... It’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Now that we have two girls

story because you feel very close to Mia and Sebastian,” explains the 35-year-old Canadian heartthrob. “I wanted to do the film because I think it takes you on this beautiful ride.” Having grown so used to seeing Gosling play the dark and brooding anti-hero in dramas Drive and The Place Beyond the Pines, it is refreshing to see him cut loose and have some fun. “I often take my work and myself too seriously, so getting to do this film and Nice Guys was a great way for me to be able to get to talk a lot, open up more, and make people laugh and enjoy

I find myself wanting to stay at home with them all the time.” No wonder he has so much to sing and dance about.

Stone, who have wowed us once before in 2011’s Crazy, Stupid, Love . “Not everyone might like musicals, but in this case you’re emotionally invested in the

• La La Land is in cinemas on Dec 26

Drive

DECEMBER 2016

20

jbhifi.com.au

“MOVE OVER MICK TAYLOR, AUSTRALIA’S GOT A NEW TERROR TO RUN FROM” - RICHARD GRAY, THE REEL BITS

“2016 AUSTRALIAN MOVIE OF THE YEAR” - NOVASTREAM

“Like John Cassavetes directing an episode of ‘THE WIRE’!” - Indiewire

instore and online at

visit stack.net.au

CINEMA REVIEWS

I, DANIEL BLAKE

RELEASED: Now Showing DIRECTOR: Ken Loach CAST: Dave Johns, Hayley Squires, Sharon Percy RATING: MA15+ Ken Loach may now be 80, but his latest film I, Daniel Blake shows that he remains as impassioned – and angry – as ever about the ever widening gaps in modern society between the haves and have-nots. This time, Loach and his longtime writing collaborator Paul Laverty zero in on the bureaucratic minefield that people must now navigate in the UK (and most other countries) when claiming welfare benefits. Eponymous hero Daniel (Dave Johns) is a middle- aged carpenter from Newcastle who has been recovering from heart surgery and has been told by his doctors that he is not yet healthy enough to return to full-time employment. However, when he is assessed by an “expert” from the social security department, he is deemed fit to work, so while he waits for his appeal to be heard, Daniel must prove he's actively seeking a new job to ensure some form of welfare payments. His struggles are contrasted with those of a young single mother Katie (Hayley Squires) from London whom he befriends. As is often the case, Loach draws beautifully naturalistic – and ultimately heartbreaking – performances from his largely unknown leads, and while the underlying message is bleak, there is still room for laughter, in particular Daniel’s attempts to grapple with the internet and Kafka- esque civil servants . John Ferguson THE ACCOUNTANT RELEASED: Now Showing DIRECTOR: Gavin O'Connor CAST: Ben Affleck, Anna Kendrick, J.K. Simmons RATING: MA15+ Despite an all-star cast and action galore, The Accountant unfortunately ends up conforming to the drab and dreary stereotypes that surround the profession. A daft mash-up of Rain Man and Jason Bourne , Ben Affleck plays mysterious savant accountant Christian Wolff – just one of a number of his aliases – who is being hunted by US Treasury agents because it appears that his bookkeeping skills are highly valued by criminal and terrorist organisations around the world. With the authorities on his trail, Wolff takes a ‘legitimate’ accounting assignment at a high-tech robotics firm, where he discovers more than $60 million has been siphoned out of the business. But when his investigation is abruptly terminated and he and co-worker Dana Cummings (Anna Kendrick) are targeted by assassins, Wolff’s other skills – oh yeah, he is also a lethal marksman and martial arts fighter – come to the fore. Affleck is badly miscast as the autistic hero, although neither he nor the rest of talented ensemble – J.K. Simmons, John Lithgow, Jeffrey Tambor, Jon Bernthal – can do much with a woeful and needlessly complicated script, and the plodding direction of Gavin O’Connor. The finale leaves the door open for a sequel, but a full creative audit is required if this is ever to become an action franchise. John Ferguson

RELEASED: Now Showing DIRECTOR: David Yates CAST: Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston RATING: M

FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM

A return to the Potterverse was inevitable, but what's surprising about Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is its perpetually gloomy tone. If you thought The Deathly Hallows was dark, this is Harry Potter on depressants. Newt Scamander (a sleepwalking Eddie Redmayne) is an English magizoologist in Prohibition-era New York, a destination on his global trip to catalogue magical creatures for what will become the titular Hogwarts textbook. When his TARDIS-like suitcase – containing numerous enchanted species – is accidentally switched for one belonging to aspiring baker Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler), the fantastic beasts are unleashed upon the city. This is frowned upon by the US Magical Congress, who have strict rules outlawing magical creatures and must protect the wizarding community from exposure (cue memory-wiping Obliviate charms). Together with former Dark Arts investigator Porpentina Goldstein (Katherine Waterston) and Kowalski, Newt must track down and recapture the beasts ( Pokémon GO , anyone?) and magically undo the damage they've done. Lurking on the sidelines is Percival Graves (Colin Farrell), a brooding wizard who has a particular interest in a family of Second Salemers (a sect devoted to the persecution of magic users) – specifically their troubled son, Credence (Ezra Miller). Harry Potter on depressants.

There's more to it than that – in fact there's a LOT going on in this film, including subplots involving the escape of a Voldemort-type named Grindelwald, and the threat posed by a destructive amorphous entity known as an Obscurus. Despite the downbeat mood, period setting and relocation Stateside, this is still recognisably the Potterverse. The same creative team are casting the spells – director David Yates, producers Steve Cloves and David Heyman, and J.K. Rowling penning the screenplay – and have conjured a boldly different and more adult adventure aimed at the grown-ups who devoured the Potter novels as kids. But it's lacking the magic, fun and loveable characters that made us wild about Harry. Moreover, there's a sense that Rowling's universe has succumbed to the brand of comic book filmmaking consuming Hollywood. X-Men-like issues of tolerance and acceptance are raised, and the city-smashing climax is the kind that Marvel has made de rigueur. Fans will enjoy the menagerie of beasts and the subtle differences between British and American wizardry (a Muggle is called a No-Maj in the States, and wands require a permit), but as the first in a five film franchise, Fantastic Beasts is a strangely inert introduction. You may find yourself feeling Obliviated as you leave the theatre. Scott Hocking

RATING KEY: Wow! Good Not bad Meh Woof!

DECEMBER 2016

22

jbhifi.com.au

visit stack.net.au

CINEMA REVIEWS

ARRIVAL

ALSO SCREENING IN DECEMBER

RELEASED: Now Showing DIRECTOR: Denis Villeneuve CAST: Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner RATING: M

The year's best sci-fi film has arrived.

First contact with alien life would change the world as we know it. But beyond the obvious scientific and theological ramifications, there's also the simple matter of how we would communicate with extraterrestrial visitors. Close Encounters of the Third Kind used a haunting five-note melody, China Mieville made it the subject of his brilliant novel Embassytown , and Denis Villenueve's sci-fi drama Arrival tackles the problem from a human perspective. Linguistics professor Louise Banks (Amy Adams) is recruited by a US military colonel (Forest Whitaker) after 12 gigantic spacecraft appear in seemingly random locations across the globe. The alien visitors' intentions are unknown and with

China and Russia eager to fire the first shot, Banks faces a race against time to discover whether they are friend or foe. When she comes face to tentacle with the creatures – who aren't even remotely humanoid and dubbed "heptapods" – she discovers their vocabulary consists of inky smoke rings exhaled from their starfish-like extremities. Working with a theoretical physicist (Jeremy Renner), Banks realises that the recent loss of her young daughter could hold the key to deciphering the alien language. Reducing cities and major landmarks to CGI rubble are not on the agenda here; Arrival is a film about big ideas not big effects, although it has those too. The sight of a spacecraft wreathed in cloud as it hovers above a field like a giant Fabergé egg is truly breathtaking, and the alien designs are both elegant and eerie. The genre is at its best when exploring philosophical ideas and the human condition, and Arrival is as much about love, loss and the paths we choose in life as it is about making contact with an alien species. Villeneuve's films ( Incendies, Prisoners, Sicario ) are always very austere and emotionally resonant, and this moody ambience translates well to science fiction. Blade Runner 2049 is in very capable hands. Scott Hocking redneck psychos while on a road trip through the Texas badlands with his wife (Isla Fisher) and daughter. Through flashbacks to the early romance between the ‘real’ Susan and Tony, and the subsequent breakdown of their marriage, the two story strands slowly and subtly begin to dovetail. Adams gives a beautifully modulated performance as Susan, whose self-assured exterior begins to crack as memories and guilt bubble to the surface. Gyllenhaal is equally good in his dual roles, although Michael Shannon, as usual, steals every scene he is in as the laconic Texas lawman who helps the fictional Tony on his quest for justice. Fashion designer Ford, who triumphantly made the switch to filmmaking with his stylish debut A Single Man (2009), seamlessly knits the disparate strands of the film together and his cool, fluid visuals provide the perfect counterpoint to the melodramatics that unfold on screen. A thoughtful treatise on revenge and the life choices we all must make, the enigmatic ending also provides further food for thought, making Nocturnal Animals a film you will definitely want to watch again when it arrives on DVD and Blu-ray. John Ferguson

"During the battle, rebel spies managed to steal secret plans to the Empire's ultimate weapon, the Death Star." This reference from Episode IV's title crawl forms the basis of the first Star Wars spin-off feature, which is even more exciting to anticipate than The Force Awakens , thanks to its status as a true prequel. May the Force be with you on Dec 15 . ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY

NOCTURNAL ANIMALS

Robert Zemeckis directs this World War II-set romantic thriller starring Brad Pitt as an intelligence officer who falls for a member of the French Resistance, played by Marion Cotillard. Sparks and bullets fly on Dec 26 . ALLIED

RELEASED: Now Showing DIRECTOR: Tom Ford CAST: Amy Adams, Jake Gyllenhaal RATING: MA15+

A thoughtful treatise on revenge and life choices.

This playful and elegantly dark melodrama is a Hitchcockian psychological thriller filtered through the post-modernist lens of David Lynch. Nocturnal Animals unfolds through two distinct and very different timeframes. In one, Susan (Amy Adams), a wealthy but jaded art gallery curator, is surprised to receive the proofs of a forthcoming novel written by her ex-husband, Tony (Jake Gyllenhaal). In the other, the story of his novel plays out in Susan’s mind, with Gyllenhaal also taking on the role of the book’s lead character (also Tony), who falls foul of some

Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone channel the spirit of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers and old Hollywood musicals in this acclaimed romantic drama. Dancing into cinemas on Dec 26 . LA LA LAND

This prequel to the Aussie smash hit is a coming-of-age tale about the friendship that develops between a boy and a red puppy, and also reveals the origin of the legendary “Pilbara Wanderer”. Winning hearts on Dec 26 . RED DOG: TRUE BLUE

DECEMBER 2016

24

jbhifi.com.au

POSSESION IS JUST THE BEGINNING

©2016Fox InternationalStudiosLLC.AllRightsReserved. ©2016TwentiethCenturyFoxHomeEntertainmentLLC.AllRightsReserved. TWENTIETHCENTURYFOX,FOXandassociated logosare trademarksofTwentiethCenturyFoxFilmCorporationand its relatedentities.

WHILE STOCKS LAST

GET THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON NOW AT

INTOTHEBADLANDS©2015AMCFILMHOLDINGSLLC. ARTWORKANDSUPPLEMENTARYMATERIALSARE™,®AND©2015AMC NETWORKENTERTAINMENTLLC.ALLRIGHTSRESERVED.

*WHILE STOCKS LAST

visit stack.net.au

EXTRAS

the manufacturing and distribution processes which were innovated during the 1920s at the General Motors Automobile Corporation, and adopted the concept for their individual film companies. The result was a virtual factory system for manufacturing motion pictures based on rigid control of the labour force with long term contracts for actors, directors, writers, composers and lavish in-house production facilities and publicity departments. Actor Cary Grant perfectly captured, in Hollywood did not invent the movies but it honed and perfected the art of making them and the business of selling them to a global audience

The Golden Age of Hollywood: 1930-1955

Part 1

O ne afternoon in March 1954, after dubbing part of the soundtrack of his latest movie Betrayed , Clark Gable drove his custom made Jaguar car out of the gates of MGM for the last time. He would never return to the studio that had made him the most famous movie star in the world. During his 23-year reign as “The King of Hollywood”, Gable had made over 50 movies for Metro including the timeless classic Gone with the Wind  (1939). But the majority of his early 1950s films had been box office failures, resulting in MGM president Dore Schary deciding he could no longer afford Gable’s $520,000 salary, and as a consequence wanted to re-negotiate his contract. Gable instructed his agent to “see how high you can get those sons-of-bitches to go. When you get their best offer, tell them to take their money, their studio, their cameras and lighting equipment and shove it all up their ass!”  This acrimonious episode has been identified by many film historians as the beginning of the end of the Golden Age of Hollywood and its once highly innovative and hugely successful so called “studio system”. Hollywood did not invent the movies but it honed and perfected the art of making them and the business of selling them to a global audience of millions, making it at the time the

greatest medium of mass communication the world had ever seen. In the early 1920s Hollywood was awash with small, independent motion picture companies, but less than a decade later practically all of them had been bought out and absorbed by a few astute Jewish immigrant businessmen such as Adolph Zukor, William Fox, the brothers Warner and Marcus Loew. These so called “movie moguls” studied

Adolph Zukor, the founder of Paramount Pictures, on the cover of Time magazine 1929

The Warner Brothers: Sam, Harry, Jack and Albert

DECEMBER 2016

26

jbhifi.com.au

FROM THE PRODUCERS OF INSURGENT, THE FIGHTER AND TRIPLE 9

“Harrelson is delightfully wicked” NERDIST

© 2015MISSISSIPPIXSTUDIO, LLC.ALLRIGHTSRESERVED.

ACTION-PACKED WESTERN ON BLU-RAY & DVD DEC 19 AT

FROM MASTERS OF HORROR

JASON BLUM AND

ELI ROTH

E V I L L I V E S

THE COMP L E T E S E R I E S

This summer’s most bingeable new series!

SEXY SUPERNATURAL TV ON BLU-RAY & DVD DEC 1 AT

visit stack.net.au

EXTRAS

continued

interest from the moviegoing public. Studio bosses such as Louis B. Mayer (MGM) and Darryl F. Zanuck (20th Century Fox) had definite ideas about how a star should look and refashioned their new talent accordingly. Now contractually bound and literally owned by the studio, the newcomers were exposed to an elaborate star development apprenticeship. They were taught to walk, talk, sing, and dance. Teeth were fixed, hair and eye colour adjusted, false biographies were written for them, and those with mundane names had them changed to fit their new image: Archibald Leach became Cary Grant, Frances Ethel Gumm became Judy Garland, Issur Danielovitch Demsky became Kirk Douglas, and so on. The studio’s casting director would now cast these fresh young actors into either small parts in A productions or star them in a B picture and await the public reaction, usually gauged by the amount of fan mail the actor received. Although this system gave the newcomers job security, if they ever reached “full star status” their contract contained many terms that were highly unfavourable and detrimental to the actor. With relatively little control over the roles they were cast in or the movies they made, the actors could even be loaned out to other studios without their consent. A studio could terminate the contract at will but the actor could not. If they refused to appear in movies they believed was typecasting them, they were immediately suspended and their contract extended to make up the lost time whilst on suspension. Also, following the Roscoe Arbuckle sex scandal in 1921, all actor contracts customarily contained morality clauses that gave the studio extensive and often intrusive control over the star’s private life. Actors as employees became valuable commodities and Hollywood created the myth that stars weren’t made, they were born, when in fact the studios manufactured their own homegrown movie celebrities as a mechanism for selling movie tickets. Publicists, marketing departments and the Hollywood press joined together to create this incredibly successful celebrity industry. Through its movie stars, the studios would show an idealised America and the glamour that became synonymous with Hollywood.  By 1939 the Hollywood studios, having gathered together the most accomplished collection of creative talent in the history of the movies, were at the height of their power and productivity. With American moviegoers buying tickets at the rate of 80 million a week, what could possibly go wrong with this integrated movie money machine? 

Louis B. Mayer with two of his “homegrown” stars: Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney

his own inimitable way, the studio system of manufacturing celluloid entertainment for the masses when he said, “ We have our factory, which is called a stage within a studio. We make a product, we colour it, we title it, and we ship it out in cans.” The production, distribution and exhibition of motion pictures was originally handled separately, but as the industry rapidly grew, these functions became vertically integrated. These powerful studio executives could now maximise profits by distributing and exhibiting their movies into theatres they now controlled in practically every major city in America. By 1930 there were eight corporations that totally dominated the US motion picture industry. “The Big Five” – Paramount, MGM, Fox, Warner Bros. and RKO – owned substantial production facilities in California, a worldwide distribution network and an extensive theatre chain. These five corporations would rule and monopolise Hollywood for the next three decades. And then there were “The Little Three” – Universal, Columbia and United Artists – who maintained only the production and distribution parts of the system. They lacked a sizeable chain of theatres – one of the crucial elements of vertical integration – to be a major player, and consequently had to depend primarily on independent theatre owners to show their pictures. Another integral part of Hollywood’s studio system was its “star system”. All the major studios had a talent department whose personnel would scour the country, attending entertainment venues such as Broadway shows, vaudeville houses,

Darryl F. Zanuck with his most famous movie star, Marilyn Monroe

regional theatre productions, nightclub acts and beauty pageants in search of young people with charisma and potential star quality. Those with the necessary photogenic credentials received an all expenses paid trip to Hollywood to take a screen test, followed by a sound test. If approved by the studio executive, they were signed to a seven-year contract with options, which simply meant that the studio could drop them at the end of each six month interval of the contract period if they did not generate within a studio. We make a product, we colour it, we title it, and we ship it out in cans We have our factory, which is called a stage

To be continued...

DECEMBER 2016

28

jbhifi.com.au