STACK #143 Sept 2016

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DVD&BD REVIEWS

Raise some shell. TMNT: OUT OF THE SHADOWS

Two worlds. One destiny. WARCRAFT

Release Date: 15/09/16

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Release Date: 22/09/16

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Out of the Shadows is set a little while after the events of the 2014 TMNT film, during which time the turtles have returned to their sewer dwelling with Splinter. Having captured Shredder with the help of April and her cameraman, all seems well, until the footclan attempt to break him out of police custody. Shredder has the help of comedic “errand boys” Bebop and Rocksteady, who assist in blowing stuff up and cracking mediocre jokes. There’s also an enhanced super-purple serum and an alien named Krang.

Transforming Blizzard Entertainment’s massively popular MMORPG into a movie was always going to be a challenge, and director Duncan Jones ( Moon ) has done a solid job with a tough gig, setting the action in a recognisable fantasy realm to give non-gamers an entry point. Despite all the lore craft, the story is a simple tale of light versus darkness. Warrior orcs enter the human realm through a magic portal, intent on claiming it as their new home. Unless a peace can be struck with a rebellious orc chieftain, the world will be overrun by the horde waiting

Longtime fans of the renaissance reptiles will appreciate the smaller things; the horn on the turtles’ truck is the original theme song, and there’s a cute Michael Bay Transformers cameo that you can’t miss. What the film lacks in plot it makes up for in fan-service. AK

on the other side of the gate. The world of Warcraft is brought to vivid life through cutting edge CGI and motion-capture; Jones has lavished incredible detail on the orcs’ appearance and culture, and the film is at its best whenever these brutish warriors are on the screen. SH (See page 36)

They're not app-y. THE ANGRY BIRDS MOVIE

Call of the wild. HUNT FOR THE WILDERPEOPLE

Release Date: 22/09/16

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Release Date: 28/09/16

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With all its feathered, flightless finery, Bird Island is an idyllic place. Few denizens question anything, but every society has its outcasts. This is where he of the Gallagher brothers' eyebrows, Red, comes in, as he has hothead issues. Sentenced to anger management classes, he soon gets chummy with a pair of fellow detainees in speedy Chuck and, well, his name’s Bomb so you can guess the rest. While they’re busy paying penance, a boatload of green piggies arrives. They claim to come in peace, even sharing their technology.

Taika Waititi has an uncanny instinct for what clicks with audiences across the ditch: his second feature Boy (2010) became the highest grossing New Zealand film off all time, and now he has trumped his own record with this irreverent action-comedy. And the blend of deadpan humour, quirky characters and slapstick action is sure to go down a treat with Aussie audiences as well. Young Julian Dennison displays comic timing way beyond his years as the teenage foster kid who ends up sparking a nationwide manhunt

However, their intentions are firmly fouler. It’s up to our three outcasts to do what needs to be done to protect their own from this pernicious porcine presence. With gags for young and old – and possibly every bird pun ever - The Angry Birds Movie is fun family fare. AF

when he disappears into the bush with his grumpy guardian (Sam Neill, enjoying himself immensely). A zany family comedy that will appeal to the mischievous kid in everyone; let’s hope that Waititi can bring a similar verve and wit to the next Thor movie. JF

SEPTEMBER 2016

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