STACK #164 June 2018

DVD & BD REVIEWS

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The house that ghosts built. WINCHESTER

Justice seen to be done just isn't enough. SWEET COUNTRY

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Release Date: 13/06/18

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Release Date: 13/06/18

Dame Helen Mirren makes her first foray into the horror genre – as the heiress to the Winchester firearms company – in this supernatural tale “inspired by actual events”. A grieving widow who claims to be haunted by the restless spirits of those killed by the repeating rifle, Sarah Winchester resides in a labyrinthine mansion built to accommodate the spectral multitude. Concerned that she may not be of sound mind, the company board enlist Dr Eric Price (Jason Clarke) to perform a

An Australian frontier western set in 1929, the second narrative feature fromWarwick Thornton ( Samson and Delilah ) highlights the impact of colonialism on the Indigenous population. On a remote Northern Territory station, an Aboriginal stockman (Hamilton Morris) shoots and kills a volatile landowner (Ewen Leslie) in self defence and is subsequently pursued by a justice- hungry posse, led by the local sergeant (Bryan Brown). Told through shifting character perspectives, Sweet

psychological assessment; his arrival coincides with the appearance of a vengeful spirit. Ghost stories are always more effective when they’re period pieces, and while there are possessed children, levitating rifles and jump scares, Winchester effectively favours gloomy atmosphere and other gothic tropes, with Mirren adding a touch of class. SH

Country unfolds in a very subtle and measured fashion, creating a totally immersive and uncompromising experience that lingers long after the credits roll. Gritty and powerful, this is an important Australian film that doesn’t sidestep shameful historical facts; in some respects it recalls 12 Years a Slave as much as it does The Tracker and The Proposition . SH

DEATH WISH (2018)

FINDING YOUR FEET

12 STRONG

HANGMAN

Release Date: 06/06/18 Format:

Release Date: 06/06/18 Format:

Release Date: 13/06/18 Format:

Release Date: 20/06/18 Format:

With horror whiz kid Eli Roth ( Hostel, The Green Inferno ) at the helm of a pulpy remake of Death Wish (1974), you can be certain of one thing: there will be blood. Lots of it! Bruce Willis takes on the role of self-appointed vigilante Paul Kersey (previously played by Charles Bronson), this time a wealthy doctor whose wife and daughter are the victims of a violent home invasion. Forget about the moral dilemma of a doctor taking lives instead of saving them; Death Wish is everything promised on the box – a down and dirty action-fest with Willis dispensing private justice with a stolen gun. However, unlike the Bronson movies, numerous sequels are unlikely to follow. AC

If films in the tradition of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2015) and Quartet (2012) prove anything, it's that it's never too late for a second chance. Stiff upper lips be damned – it's time to quiver and shake as these classy UK thesps reach for the sun, as the number of their years decline. Similarly, in Finding Your Feet , a husband's infidelity results in the uppity Sandra (Imelda Staunton) reconnecting with her free- spirited sister Bif (Celia Imrie). Sandra is at a loss, but gradually gets her groove back at a dance class for seniors; life opens up anew. This sweet dose of redemptive therapy will please fans of Grace and Frankie . AC

Immediately following the events of 9/11, the US military began its counter-attack against the Taliban with the deployment of the ODA 595 Special Forces team. Led by Captain Mitch Nelson (Chris Hemsworth), these 12 soldiers enter unknown territory in Afghanistan to contact a warlord, whose vast knowledge of the region’s alliances and geography would give them the advantage in eradicating the Taliban presence around Mazar-i-Sharif. First-time director Nicolai Fuglsig balances large scale action and intimate character moments, while Hemsworth (with a fluctuating American accent) and Michael Shannon deliver performances respectful of the men they're portraying. GAGE P.

The title reveals the chilling game being played out in this propulsive police procedural. In his ninth role as a law enforcer, Al Pacino is Ray Archer, a retired detective who is pulled back to duty after his badge number is found carved alongside a victim. With a new murder every 24 hours, and all the bodies leading to Archer, it's a race against the clock to find the killer and uncover the motive behind this vicious vendetta. Pacino brings credibility to the hardened police veteran, with strong support from Karl Urban and Brittany Snow, as his partner and a New York Times reporter respectively. AC

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JUNE 2018

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