STACK NZ May Issue #62

REVIEWS

CINEMA

RATING KEY:

Wow!

Good

Not bad

Meh Woof!

EX MACHINA

IT FOLLOWS

A lucky employee of the biggest Internet company is invited to spend a week with the reclusive guru/owner at a remote undisclosed location, where the ultimate dream-come-true soon descends into a deadly nightmare of wits, philosophy and ethics… oh, and an extremely sexy robot called Ava, possessing the most advanced AI known to mankind. Science fiction, when done with creative abandon and stripped of the philosophical duality of humanity, can indeed affect audiences with a power few other genres can ever muster. AI being the new black, with ideals of nature versus nurture and whether humans need to be around at all, has been tackled well via Spielberg, Duncan Jones, and way back when to Kubrick’s HAL in 2001 ; whereas Alex Proyas' effort ( I, Robot ) was more akin to a Fast & Furious flick with no sense of humour. Writer Alex Garland ( 28 Days Later , Dredd ), making his directing debut here, dances between a Kubrickian clinical unease and a Richard Kelly head-f**k. An unpredictable thriller is welcomed, one that utilises the amazing acting talent on offer and tones down the CGI element in favour of raw sensuality, big questions we could debate for weeks, and a Hitchcock sting that tickles the dreamer in all of us. Bar the last two minutes, this may be the best sci-fi film you’ll see in quite a while. No, I didn’t tell you much – just bloody well see it! Chris Murray RELEASED: May 7 DIRECTOR: Alex Garland CAST: Alicia Vikander, Domhnall Gleeson, Oscar Isaac RATING: R13

Following a one night stand, 19-year-old Jay (Maika Monroe) is left with something worse than an STD; her date has passed on a curse in the form of a malevolent, shapeshifting entity which relentlessly shadows her with homicidal intent. In a neat riff on the body-snatching theme, 'it' can look like anyone – a family member, a friend, a dead person, a naked person – and the only way to get rid of it is to pass it on to your next sexual partner. There's a wealth of subtext here, particularly for fans of Cronenberg's early work, but It Follows more closely resembles an arthouse version of the original A Nightmare on Elm Street , sans the gore and flashy visual effects. The emphasis here is on mood and atmosphere, with Mitchell conjuring a palpable and sustained sense of dread from the ordinary and everyday, while a weirdly anachronistic setting adds further to the inherently creepy vibe. What's also impressive, and refreshing, is that the protagonists are real teenagers with real hopes and fears about growing up, and not the gorgeous-looking, self-centred social media addicts who populate today's horror films. While Hollywood continues to churn out endless remakes and found-footage horror films, indie gems like It Follows offer something new, exciting, and most importantly, scary. Scott Hocking RELEASED: Out Now DIRECTOR: David Robert Mitchell CAST: Maika Monroe, Keir Gilchrist, Olivia Luccardi RATING: R16

LEVIATHAN

COBAIN: MONTAGE OF HECK

Seen much Russian cinema? If so, you’ll already appreciate their ability to project high art via tragedy, death, brutish behavior and booze-soaked denial. Here, infidelity, pride, alcoholism and faith all collide to horrific results in a coastal Russian village when a small family attempts to survive aggressive government corruption. No, it’s not the best date movie. Leviathan centres on Kolya, a mechanic father whose family legacy is threatened when he is forced to sell his treasured property cheaply via a corrupt mayor. With a bad temper, a second wife who’s wearing thin, a teen son groomed for doom and no idea how to petition his predicament in the questionable Russian legal system, Kolya calls upon an old army buddy turned lawyer, Dimitriy, to help his lost cause. Then things really turn to custard. Why this film transcends the mud is the stunning imagery, the visceral performances that literally hit-you-in-the-gut, and the overwhelming confidence the director demonstrates, turning an otherwise kitchen-sink drama into a grand metaphor for a global fall of grace and morality which forces the viewer to question humanity itself. Heavy, but rewarding beyond all western convention. Chris Murray RELEASED: Out Now DIRECTOR: Andrey Zvyagintsev CAST: Aleksey Serebryakov, Elena Lyadova, Roman Madyanov RATING: M

Kurt Cobain was the lead singer of Nirvana, a band that seemingly came out of nowhere to become the biggest rock act in the world, capturing the angst and rage of an entire generation. Then he took his life at 27… but just who was he, really? With much hoopla and anticipation of a new flick on a most misunderstood rock icon, from the director of the Rolling Stones' doco Crossfire Hurricane and the Oscar-nominated bio of Hollywood producer Robert Evans, The Kid Stays in the Picture , it’s almost impossible to distance yourself from an emotional connection to the never-seen home vids, candid pics, illustrations and audio offerings in this exhaustive portrait. Created with the blessing of ex-wife Courtney Love, it’s refreshing to see there’s certainly no homogenisation or punches pulled. Perhaps even the opposite, as we see the bare tragedy of an artist lost in popularity, escaping via isolation amidst a bubble of comfort with wife and child. Clever manipulation via smart use of stock footage, incredible cinematography, clever graphics and an aural onslaught of stimuli mirroring the mindset of our subject, it’s hair-on-the-arm raising to feel so intimate and voyeuristic. Presented without judgement and merely offering the materials available is the secret to this engrossing last word on a troubled man struggling to be emotionally satisfied. Chris Murray RELEASED: May 7 DIRECTOR: Brett Morgen CAST: Kurt Cobain, Dave Grohl, Courtney Love RATING: M

35