STACK #147 Jan 2017

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DVD&BD REVIEWS

Not a superhero movie. CAPTAIN FANTASTIC

Family justice. BLOOD FATHER

Release Date: 04/01/17

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Release Date: 11/01/17

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We’d consider living off the grid, but the lack of internet? Nuh-uh! Ben (Viggo Mortensen) is quite the unconventional – yet definitely well-meaning – father of six kids, all of whom have unique (read “weird”) names and don’t have the same umbilical-like attachment to the ’net as us. As such they live mostly off the land within a forest. But when the mother/wife passes, Ben loads up Steve – the family bus – and heads into civilisation with his brood to pay their respects. It’s here that Ben’s ways of raising his kids are challenged

Imagine taking both Riggs and Murtaugh from the Lethal Weapon movies and rolling them into one character. That basically sums up John Link (Mel Gibson) in this thrill-a-minute action blast. Link’s an ex-con, keeping his head down, living in a trailer and inking tatts to scrape by. His head’s soon to pop up in a big way, however, when he gets a desperate call from his estranged daughter, Lydia (Erin Moriarty). She’s been hanging with some bad dudes, has crossed them, and they’re not going to let it slide. It’s time

at every turn, with the most resistance coming from his wife’s family, who won’t even honour her final wishes. As it merrily messes with hero/villain tropes, Captain Fantastic raises many questions and answers very few. But it sure is one entrancing bus trip! AF

for daddy and daughter to hit the road, but even old allies think twice about helping them out. With kinetic direction from Jean-François Richet ( Assault on Precinct 13 ), and some fine screen time from William H. Macy, Mad Mel is definitely back. AF

Get stupid rich. MASTERMINDS

Ti West heads west. IN A VALLEY OF VIOLENCE

Release Date: 11/01/17

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Release Date: 18/01/17

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When it comes to comedies, Hollywood has been lowering the bar more than raising it in recent years (well, unless we’re talking dick jokes). Crassness often usurps cleverness, heart and classic tropes such as slapstick and silly hair. Masterminds , loosely based on a 1997 US$17 million armoured car heist, eschews the smut for more of the latter stuff – and if there was an award for silly hair then Zach Galifianakis would be shoo- in! He’s Mike, an adventure-craving armoured car driver. He falls for his new co-worker, who hangs with shady

Ti West's slow burn horror films House of the Devil and The Innkeepers established him as an indie director to watch, and his first Western is a quirky oater that's quick to cut to the chase. Think High Plains Drifter meets Quentin Tarantino. Ethan Hawke is the mysterious stranger who rides into town, clashes with the resident villain (James Ransone), and pays a high price that demands vengeance. West is a master of casting and has assembled another cool ensemble: John Travolta (who surprisingly has never appeared in a Western until now) slyly underplays the role of

types and convinces her devotee to rob his place of work. Banishing him to Mexico, they’ve no intention of giving Mike his cut. But they’re not the sharpest tools in the shed. Masterminds is silly fun – and worth watching just for a wondrously weird turn from Kate McKinnon. AF

the marshal, while Karen Gillan and Taissa Farmiga break the stereotypes of women in Westerns. Ultimately though, it's Hawke's dog, Jumpy, who steals the show. Hot on the spurs of The Magnificent Seven remake, In a Valley of Violence proves there's still life in the ol' Western yet. SH (See page 22)

JANUARY 2017

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