Review Category: DVD/Blu Ray

Few filmmakers can portray the beauty, hardship and subtle comedy of peasant life as eloquently and sympathetically as Paolo and Vittorio Taviani, but although their films have enjoyed some success internationally (especially the three movies in this collection) the brothers’ work is still not as well-known as it should be. Hopefully, this handsome new Blu-ray set will help to correct that oversight, at least in the UK.

Padre Padrone (Father, Master) is a bittersweet coming-of-age tale about a young boy called Gavino whose father literally hauls him out of primary school to tend to the family’s herd of sheep. As Gavino grows older his father continues to terrorise him until he finally decides to make a break for freedom and emigrate overseas with other men from his village, but that plan is thwarted when the authorities discover his father didn’t sign the release form. Instead, Gavino’s father punishes his naïve and illiterate son by forcing him to join the army, not realising that this will be Gavino’s salvation. In the army, Gavino begins to educate himself and, returning to his family home, finally puts an end to the old man’s tyranny. On paper, this story might sound a bit of a downer but – as in all of the films in this collection – there’s a fabulous vein of irony and black humour running through it all. The voiceover from the sheep is a classic, but you might be put off chickens for life.

The Night of the Shooting Stars is probably the most accessible of the three films. Set near the end of World War II, it follows a small band of Tuscan villagers whose homes are about to be destroyed by the retreating Germans. Their only hope is to escape into the night and seek help from the advancing American troops, but it is a dangerous gambit. The villagers are mercilessly hunted down by a band of pro-Nazi fascists – people who used to be their neighbours – and after joining up with a group of armed rebels, they take a final violent stand against their oppressors inside a wheatfield. It is a stunning, heartbreaking climax to a remarkable film, and some of the photography is iconic, especially during a moment when one of the Blackshirts is felled by a multitude of spears, courtesy of a young child’s frenzied imagination.

The final film – Kaos – is the longest and most problematic of the three. It is essentially a portmanteau developed around four short stories by the Sicilian author Luigi Pirandello, and although there isn’t a weak episode in the bunch it wasn’t until we watched the disc’s main special feature, a visual essay about how the film was constructed, that we really began to appreciate what we’d just seen. Amongst Kaos’ highpoints are ‘Moon Sickness’, a morality tale about a young husband who is bewitched by the full moon – no, he doesn’t go full lycanthrope but it’s still not a pleasant sight – and ‘The Jar’, a comic tale about greed and freedom that centres around a hunchbacked man who traps himself inside a wealthy landowner’s giant olive jar. Still, if we had to choose a favourite, it would be the film’s opening story, ‘The Other Son’, which is sad and intriguing, with a centrepiece that won’t easily be forgotten.

As far as presentation goes, Night of the Shooting Stars and Kaos look especially lush on Blu-ray, with Padre Padrone acquitting itself well but showing the limitations of its source material. Among the extras is a two-part interview with the Taviani brothers, trailers and still galleries. This is a truly fantastic boxset that should be a part of everybody’s Blu-ray collection. Don’t miss it.

THREE FILMS BY PAOLO & VITTORIO TAVIANI / CERT: PG / DIRECTOR: PAOLO TAVIANI, VITTORIO TAVIANI / SCREENPLAY: PAOLO TAVIANI, VITTORIO TAVIANI, TONINO GUERRA, GIULIANI G. DE NEGRI / STARRING: OMERO ANTONUTTI, SAVERIO MARCONI, FABRIZIO FORTE, MARGARITA LOZANO, ORAZIO TORRISI / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

What is it about “woods” that make them such a potent well of inspiration for horror filmmakers to draw from? Whether it be the domain of a witch, home to a bunch of feral cannibals or, God forbid, they contain yet another “unnamed presence”, it is a plot device often relied upon to provide some semblance of terror. Don’t get us wrong, it can work and work extremely well; The Blair Witch Project utilised it’s woody setting to terrifying effect; and Corin Hardy’s dark fairy-tale The Hallow imagines the inherent creepiness of trees and their roots as hidey holes for a gaggle of mythical nasties. And so we come to The Harvesting, a film that carries as much threat and intrigue as a pile of damp kindling.

Attempting to mend their failing marriage, Jake (Chris Conner) and Dinah (Elena Caruso) drag their technology-loving children off to a remote cottage in the middle of Amish country. But as we know from the prologue, when a possessed young man, Amos (Jack Buckley), butchered his family with a rusty axe, this place has some issues. “Stay out of the woods,” comes the cry as Elders warn against the mysterious, malevolent force hiding therein, but where would that get the story? Before you know it the bored children have gone to explore and all sorts of unpleasantness begins.

Except, it doesn’t. With The Harvesting, director Ivan Kraljevic has attempted to create a psychological thriller full of dark secrets and spectral misadventure. What he has made is a film that meanders to a point of stagnant disinterest as nothing at all happens save for some repetitive hauntings that offer little in the way of scares, and hints towards a greater mystery that never feels fully resolved. The issues are compounded by the cast’s insistence – perhaps at the request of their director, but possibly just to amuse themselves – on flitting between camp overacting and expressionless brooding. Caruso is the greatest culprit, as her face barely conveys even a hint of emotion even in what should be hugely fraught and stressful scenes as her children go missing following some faintly disguised threats from locals.

The message the film extolls is also an issue. Treading an uncomfortable line just the wrong side of religious fanaticism, The Harvesting implies that forgiveness makes everything alright, even the brutal murder of multiple family members. Misplaced at best, deeply insensitive at worst, this further adds to the confused tone of the film.

With so many other, and much better, films with similar themes available, The Harvesting contains nothing worth your time. Nothing new, nothing interesting, nothing scary. Just nothing.

THE HARVESTING / CERT: 15 / DIRECTOR: IVAN KRALJEVIC / SCREENPLAY: BEN EVERHART / STARRING: ELENA CARUSO, CHRIS CONNER, JENNIFER GAREIS, GREG WOOD, JACK BUCKLEY / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

War is hell. Other people are also hell. So being trapped in a tight space with a bunch of other people in the middle of a war must be pretty hellish. This is the premise of the strange and dark horror movie, Tank 432.

Good horror stories set in a warzone are pretty rare beasts. Getting the mix between the horrors of war and a scary narrative is a tricky thing to balance; get it wrong and all you have is either yet another war movie or a subpar horror flick. Nick Gillespie’s rather surreal and sometimes confusing movie is a rare example of the elements being a perfectly balanced blend of claustrophobia, paranoia and conflict.

Gillespie’s feature follows the misadventures of an unfortunate unit of soldiers. When we first meet the protagonists, they’re already making terrible errors and are clearly desperate to escape the clutches of whatever unseen menace wants them dead. Exhausted and harried by the enemy, this squad drags its two prisoners to the only safe space they can find; an old armoured personnel carrier.

What follows is a mostly character-driven piece, and Hellboy actor Rupert Evans is particularly superb. Our squaddies quickly realise they’ve trapped themselves in a tiny space and are surrounded by things that want them gone. Then it gets worse, which is unlucky as this isn’t the most tightly wound military unit in the world. The result is lots of yelling, lots of swearing and some terribly thought-out life choices.

It’s a tight piece about madness, trust and isolation, but mostly it’s a cracking little horror film. It’s also pretty short; this is a movie intended to scare the heck out you as quickly as it can and stay with you for a long time. As such, it doesn’t need to be long, just memorable, and Tank 432 is not a movie that you will forget in a hurry.

The world-building is fairly inconsistent; we don’t know much about the threat out hapless gang of soldiers are in, and the little snippets we get really don’t help. This actually helps the story; the less we know, the more haunting it becomes. All that it’s important to know is that something is after them, and the crew are so exhausted that them going crazy and getting killed becomes more and more likely with every minute.

Tank 432 is surreal, weird and totally terrifying. It’s also a fantastic example of how to tell a grand horror story on a tiny budget. Unforgettable and clever stuff.

TANK 432 / CERT: 15 / DIRECTOR & SCREENPLAY: NICK GILLESPIE / STARRING: RUPERT EVANS, STEVE GARRY, DEIRDRE MULLIANS / RELEASE DATE: AUGUST 22ND

Terrahawks! Stay on this channel! This is an emergency! By the late 1970s and into the early ‘80s, the genius of Gerry Anderson and his brilliant run of imaginative, exciting era-defining science fiction marionette and live-action TV classics had been pretty much forgotten. Tastes had changed and the genre had become glossier and ostensibly more sophisticated and Gerry’s work with Century 21 Productions just seemed quaint and extremely dated in the wake of the success of the likes of Star Wars and ET. But after several difficult years in the wilderness following the cancellation of Space: 1999 after its second season in 1976, Gerry was back in business, teaming up with businessman Christopher Burr to create Anderburr Productions. Terrahawks was the first fruit of their labours, a show which harkened back to the glory days of the 1960s and took Gerry – possibly kicking and screaming – back into the arms of the puppets and models he had grown to resent years earlier as his plans to move into legitimate live-action filmmaking were continually thwarted both by his reputation and his continuing success in children’s television.

Terrahawks unashamedly revisits the theme of shows like Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons and UFO. In the year 2020, the Earth is under the attack from the grotesque Zelda, an android from the planet Guk, who has established a base on Mars from which to launch her assault upon humanity. Fortunately, the Terrahawks, a covert organisation operating out of a huge country house in South America, are on hand to put a stop to Zelda’s perfidious plans. In typical Anderson fashion, the Terrahawks – led by the cloned Dr Tiger Ninestein – have a fleet of sophisticated craft at their disposal, from the orbiting Spacehawk commanded by Lieutenant Hiro, the space transporter Treehawk (it emerges, Thunderbird-style, from a tree which conveniently splits open), the bulkier Battlehawk (the house folds open to allow the ship to lift-off) and its detachable Terrahawk command centre (Ninestein’s personal ship) and the Hawkwing, a fighter aircraft which launches, Stingray-style, through an underwater porthole, usually piloted by part-time pop star Kate Kestrel and her co-pilot Lieutenant Hawkeye.

Familiar Anderson tropes, all warmly welcomed back in Terrahawks but what makes the show so different from the earlier series that are so clearly and blatantly its inspirations is that it firmly abandons the slightly po-faced tone of Scarlet and UFO and is altogether a looser and more ramshackle affair. This is very much tongue-in-cheek stuff, its scripts (many written by familiar Anderson names such as Tony Barwick and Donald James under excruciating pseudonyms such as Anne Teakstein and Kit Tenstein) are played largely for laughs, mostly generated by the antics of the Terrahawks’ army of circular robot Zeroids, commanded by Sergeant Major Zero (voiced with maximum fruitiness by Windsor Davies). The Zeroids clearly possess individual intelligence and are capable of independent thought, much to the chagrin of the ferociously machine-unfriendly Dr Ninestein. Equally hilarious are Zelda and her cohorts, the gurgling Jungstar and the brainless Cy-Star and the battalion of ludicrous alien horrors they free from suspended animation in their ill-considered attacks against the Terrahawks. It’s hard to believe that even in 1983 the likes of Sram, the Sporilla and the Moid – Master of Infinite Disguise – were able to engender much more than muted giggles from the intended juvenile audience.

Terrahawks sees Gerry Anderson return to his puppet roots but here, instead of the gantry-operated marionettes of the 1960s, the Terrahawks and co. are operated as sophisticated glove puppets (a process dubbed Supermacromation) which allows for a greater range of movement and expression but still doesn’t really solve the perennial problem of how to make the damned things walk convincingly. The model work never really matches the sheer vibrancy and scale of the work of Derek Meddings (who by now had moved on to feature film production) but much of it is more than acceptable, perhaps let down only by the rather unmemorable and generic designs of the Terrahawk vessels themselves, none of which have the sleek, colourful appeal of the classic hardware from the ‘60s Supermarionation shows.

Despite its shortcomings – most of the stories are just silly, disposable nonsense (although ‘Space Samurai’ contains an extraordinarily passionately-written confrontation between Zelda and Ninestein in which the former explains exactly why she has set her sights on Earth and the latter explains why the planet and the human race are worth defending) – Terrahawks is a lot of fun. Its sense of humour is relentlessly endearing and although it’s far from Gerry’s finest work (he later preferred to forget the series altogether), it’s quite heart-warming to see him revisiting the style of television which made him hero to a generation back in the 1960s. Network has done their best to spruce up these episodes but they still look a bit soft and grainy (although a considerable improvement upon earlier long-unavailable DVD releases) and we weren’t too impressed by the fantastically frustrating menus or the impossible-to-access special features. Anderson completists will be keen to add this one to their collections and we’re rather looking forward to reacquainting ourselves with the even more outrageous second and third seasons.

Extras: Raw FX footage, interviews, extended version of first episode

TERRAHAWKS – THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON / CERT: U / DIRECTOR & SCREENPLAY: VARIOUS / STARRING: DENISE BRYER, JEREMY HITCHEN, WINDSOR DAVIES, ROBBIE STEVENS / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

Considering that Season 2 of Gotham was given subtitles such as Rise of the Villains and Wrath of the Villains, the second year of FOX’s supposed Jim Gordon-driven series unsurprisingly sees the series bringing in a whole host of new rogues to make life hell for the very few well-meaning citizens of Gotham City. With Ben McKenzie’s Gordon again doing his best to keep on top of any and all new threats whilst also juggling his personal life, all bets are off when it comes to raising the bar of Gotham’s ever-ominous criminal presence. Can Gordon stay ahead of the game or will the city and its expanding evil become too much for Gotham City’s most famous cop?

In its first season, it has to be said that Gotham took a little getting used to; the over-the-top slapping in the face that it gave to its audience in letting it know just who certain characters were to become down the line proving a turn-off for many a viewer. But in fairness, if you stuck with Gotham and could get past certain issues, the series actually became hugely enjoyable if taken with a pinch of salt and viewed less through Bat-tinted glasses. With its second season, Gotham upped the ante and turned the craziness up to 11, picking things up with Jim Gordon as he struggles with his new relationship with Leslie Thompkins (Morena Baccarin) whilst still troubled by how things ended with the insane Barbara Kean (Erin Richards) and still, as ever, having to deal with all of the problems that come with being a part of the Gotham City Police Department. If all of this wasn’t bad enough for Jimbo, he’d even have to find himself once more turning to Oswald Cobblepot (Robin Lord Taylor) for help at times, entrenching himself into debt with the man known as The Penguin. At least Gordon has the trusty Harvey Bullock (Donal Logue) at this side to lend a helping hand when times get hard.

While Season 2 may throw up plenty of familiar faces and threats – most interesting being the full descent into madness of Edward Nygma (Cory Michael Smith) as he edges ever closer to becoming The Riddler – there’s also a new threat in town in the form of the ominously-charming Thea Galavan (James Frain), somebody who arrives in Gotham City championing the cause to make the city great once more but who clearly has a far darker side than what he allows the public to see. One such person taken in by Galavan’s charms is young Bruce Wayne (David Mazouz), who is caught yearning for the father figure that he feels he doesn’t have. And where there’s Master Bruce, there’s of course always his faithful butler, Alfred (Sean Pertwee). As Gotham’s multitude of plot arcs and character developments intertwine with one another, it soon becomes clear that Gotham City may just have reached its breaking point as Season 2 progresses with each passing episode.

That’s about all we can really say in terms of plot points here for fear of veering into spoiler territory, but it’s safe to say that everything you loved about Gotham’s debut season is here in abundance. Then again, if you stuck with the entire first season but still couldn’t get any enjoyment from it, chances are you still won’t be sold on the show based on Season 2. Luckily for us, we managed to put down our Bat-blinkers early on in the show’s run and so found the second season to be hugely enjoyable, particularly in just pitch-perfect so many of the cast are in their roles. Both Robin Lord Taylor and Cory Michael Smith as The Penguin and The Riddler, respectively, are the two real standouts of this season, delivering multiple layers of pain, torment and downright viciousness to their characters as they begin to morph into what longtime comic book fans know all too well. And then there’s Sean Pertwee, whose hardened, badass take on Alfred threatens to steal every scene he’s in… well, that is unless Cameron Monaghan gets there first, for his Joker-lite Jerome devours every moment of screen time he’s given.

From The Penguin, to The Riddler, to possibly The Joker, to Poison Ivy, to Catwoman, to Mr. Szasz, to Dr. Freeze, to Hugo Strange, to Firefly, to… well, you get the idea – Gotham is giving viewers its own unique take on many a character who we’ve all become accustomed to over the years. And that’s before we get to that certain future Caped Crusader, with young David Mazouz putting in some truly spellbinding work as he takes his Bruce Wayne further down the rabbit hole that will see him one day emerge as the World’s Greatest Detective.

If there’s one slight downer on Gotham, well apart from it maybe being a little too knowing and too cheesy for some more stoney-faced Bat-fans, is that its central character still doesn’t feel quite right. Ben McKenzie has proven that he’s a good actor when given the right material, but it feels that Gotham is still struggling to nail its depiction of Jim Gordon; the character at times coming off as being just as culpable as some of Gotham City’s criminal element. Sure, it’s clear that nobody in Gotham is truly clean or truly the quintessential good guy… but that’s where Jim Gordon is supposed to be the exception to the rule.

All in all, if you can maybe cut it a little slack and enjoy it for the fun that it is and for the great character development it regularly displays, Gotham’s second season is a great year of television to sink your genre-centric teeth into.

Special Features: Comic-Con panel / Three featurettes / Character profiles

GOTHAM – SEASON 2 / CERT: 15 / CREATOR: BRUNO HELLER / DIRECTOR: VARIOUS / STARRING: BEN MCKENZIE, DONALD LOGUE, DAVID MAZOUZ, SEAN PERTWEE, ROBIN LORD TAYLOR, CAMREN BICONDOVA, ERIN RICHARDS, CORY MICHAEL SMITH, JAMES FRAIN, MORENA BACCARIN, CAMERON MONAGHAN / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
 

For anyone as yet unfamiliar with Italian crime drama Gomorra (the ‘h’ is added in the English translation), we strongly recommend you seek it out before returning to this spoiler-filled review of Season 2. Otherwise, let us bring you up to speed.

Amidst the dark streets of Naples there exists a criminal underworld. Less showy than their more notorious Sicilian cousins, these Camorra clans, or Camorristas, operate more independently of each other than Mafia families, and as such are more feudal and violent. Don Pietro, head of the Savastano Clan, spent Season 1 fending off the advances of main rival Don Conte while clinging to the belief that his high-living son Gennaro could one day take over from him. The season ended with Don Pietro imprisoned, his wife murdered, Gennaro shot and presumed dead, while all the time trusted general Ciro plots to usurp power.

Season 2 picks up exactly where the first finished, before advancing one year as a resurgent Gennaro returns to Italy having established some new and powerful drug trafficking contacts. When Don Pietro escapes, and as Ciro attempts to barter an alliance with other clans, the three are set on a collision course.

What you really need to know is that Gomorra is an intensely engaging drama that retains its rough edges. From lowly street criminals through the assorted “soldiers” to the Dons at the top, the depiction of the characters and the violence they dispense is as uncompromising as it is shockingly real. Based loosely on the investigative exposé from writer Roberto Saviano, a man still under police protection in Italy, this is a tale balancing political manoeuvring with moments of blunt retribution. Gomorra carries none of the style of shows like The Sopranos – this is not a world of sharp-suited gangsters. Instead, this is bloody struggle to survive in a world that offers few second chances.

The performances needed to be excellent and without exception they are. Fortunato Cerlino stalks the screen with barely concealed malevolence as the under pressure Don Pietro. Salvatore Esposito is wholly convincing as his son Gennaro, whose right of passage perfectly bookends both seasons. It is Marco D’Amore as the ambitious Ciro who stands out, though, moodily scheming as he plots a path to the throne while struggling to maintain any semblance of normality in his private life; something that implodes surprisingly, and yet with horrific inevitability, early in Season 2.

Gomorra may not be for everyone. It is both wilfully slow and frenzied to a point of breathlessness. Sympathy for any of the characters is also hard to find; these are extremely violent people, the majority of which will, and often do, meet violent deaths. But give it time to breathe and develop and you will discover a series that is unlike anything else you will currently find. Gomorra is thoroughly unpleasant at times, but that unpleasantness is also so beautifully spell-binding.

GOMORRAH – SEASON 2 / CERT: 15 / CREATOR: ROBERTO SAVIANO / DIRECTOR: VARIOUS / STARRING: SALVATORE ESPOSITO, FORTUNATO CERLINO, MARCO D’AMORE, FABIO DE CARO, MARIA PIA CALZONE / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

The second part of Shinji Higuchi’s Attack on Titan live-action adaptation of the iconic anime, End of the World, wasn’t met with much fanfare upon its release. Neither was its predecessor, come to think of it. When it was announced that these films were in production, there was a lot of excitement among anime fans even though it was always going to be difficult to translate the original source material to the big screen and keep fans happy. And going by the reaction up until now, both efforts must be marked down as fails in comparison to their source material. However, when taken on their own merits they’re both actually quite fun.

End of the World opens with the events from the previous film being recounted. This immediately sets the tone for what’s to come, as the film is ultimately bogged down by exposition all the way through. In this movie, teenager Eren (Haruma Miura) is forced to grow up and take on the Titan giants that are ravaging the lands before they wipe out humanity completely. It’s a classic tale of standing up to the tyranny of evil overlords, but it won’t go down as a classic like some other films of this ilk.

What made the first film so wildly engaging was its splendid visuals and gruesome carnage. There’s just something so sinisterly satisfying about seeing puny humans being crushed like ants by colossal beasts. Perhaps it didn’t have the most cohesive narrative, but it was entertaining nonetheless. With End of the World, we are forced to endure moments of stale melodrama in an attempt to flesh out a backstory that isn’t really needed, since the film’s main strengths is witnessing grand feats of destruction and a regular supply of senseless violence. End of the World still has these moments, though not quite as spectacularly as the first film.

Overall, this is worth picking up when it goes down in price. The visuals are absolutely spellbinding, due in no part to the expertise of Higuchi. If he had a better script to work with these movies could have been something special, but there is still enjoyment to be found in both despite their flaws. End of the World is a watchable missed opportunity.

ATTACK ON TITAN II: END OF THE WORLD / CERT: 15 / DIRECTOR: SHINJI HIGUCHI / SCREENPLAY: TOMOHIRO MACHIYAMA, YUSUKE WATANABE / STARRING: HARUMA MIURA, HIROKI HASEGAWA, KANATA HONGO, KIKO MIZUHARA, TAKAHIRO MIURA / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

Chuan Lu’s follow-up to City of Life and Death is an ambitious retelling of the birth of the Han Dynasty in China in 206 BC, specifically the story of Liu Bang’s rise to the Emperorship told in flashback from his death bed. It’s an epic and beautifully-filmed story of suspicion and betrayal, but ultimately one that founders on an inability to truly connect with its characters as human beings.

Liu (Liu Ye) begins his ascent as rebel leader of the Han people, and the first half of The Last Supper details the events leading up to the infamous Feast at Hong Gate, a failed assassination attempt by Liu’s associate Lord Yu (Daniel Wu) which would have quelled the Han Dynasty in its infancy. The latter half of the film then deals with the aging Emperor’s paranoia about the two men who helped him in his ascendency, and his wife’s (Qin Lan) endeavours to eliminate these men and assure her husband’s legacy.

Without doubt Lu Chuan’s film is a visual feast, albeit one without the budget to stage any effective battle sequences, so much of what we see is the causes and consequences of the various conflicts that swept Liu to supreme power. The tone is set by the sequence in which a younger Liu is given command of several thousand soldiers by the incumbent Emperor; although the scene is played with sufficient tension – and just a hint that Liu is receiving supernatural support – to convey its import, Lu Chuan doesn’t really show us who Liu is or why the commander of these forces should trust him. It’s a problem that dogs the film; the principal events are lovingly recreated, but the relationships between the protagonists are too vague to generate sufficient emotional engagement with the subsequent unravelling of their affiliations.

Nevertheless, there is plenty of substance in the narrative, with parallels being drawn between Yu’s unsuccessful plot to kill Liu and the empress’ eventual execution of General Xin (Chang Chen), the third in the triumvirate of insurrectionists, and allusions made to the way in which history is told and how trustworthy it might therefore be – suggestions that in less competent hands might undermine the film but instead serve to reinforce it. The flashback structure is effective and the acting is exemplary, and finally in dealing with Xin’s memories of his days in Liu’s service, and his minister Xiao’s (Sha Yi) reaction to the empress’ plan to have him executed, the film finds the heart it has so badly been in need of hitherto.

This is a gorgeous work and a valuable window into the formation of one of the most powerful nations on the planet, it’s just a pity it’s too impassive to fully involve as a piece of storytelling.

THE LAST SUPPER / CERT: 15 / DIRECTOR & SCREENPLAY: CHUAN LU / STARRING: LIU YE, DANIEL WU, CHANG CHEN, QIN LAN, SHA YI / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

The debut feature from Texas internet, film and gaming production company Rooster Teeth, Lazer Team combines the stupidity of Hot Tub Time Machine with a concept cribbed from TV’s Misfits. There’s precious little satire, but there’s plenty of well-executed dumb fun. Just don’t raise your expectations going in.

A government plan to train a Champion of Earth against an impending alien attack goes awry at the eleventh hour, when a bunch of four bickering good-for-nothings accidentally shoot down the UFO that’s bringing the Champion his power suit – a gift from another, more benevolent alien race – and each become irrevocably attached to one of its component pieces of armour. At first going on the lam from authorities who want to retrieve the suit by whatever means necessary, the self-dubbed “Lazer” (sic) Team eventually work together to repel an attack from a further set of alien surrogates, causing the military to realise that the hapless losers probably actually are mankind’s best and only defence against the planet’s imminent annihilation.

Lazer Team could have been a horribly cheap straight-to-Vimeo production, but thanks to one of the most successful Indiegogo campaigns in history, it looks a lot more expensive than it otherwise would. It also has a considered, if not remotely sophisticated, script which ought to satisfy most viewers thanks to the speed, variety and sheer volume of gags and references; this might be for the YouTube generation, but there’s nothing to prohibit couch potatoes of all ages and backgrounds from laughing along.

The four main characters are a mostly likeable if fairly nondescript bunch, basically a jock Justin Timberlake, a Mr T-lite, a feckless featherbrain and a deadbeat town sheriff (co-writer Burns), whose daughter is more Playmate of the Month than all-American girl next door. But the relationships are convincing – if exaggerated – and the acting from everyone involved is a notch above the usual in films of this ilk and provenance. The special effects are ubiquitous and mostly very effective.

If there’s one issue it’s that in this Director’s Cut the pacing has been allowed to wander, occasionally prompting a desire for the film to get back on track, but the story is effective and encompasses many of the clichés of the genre without allowing any of them to feel tired. The action, of which there is much, is physical and sharp and unexpectedly accomplished, and while the climax of the film might not be quite the battle it feels promoted to be, the plot turn that precedes it mitigates against it being a disappointment.

Cineastes will hate Lazer Team, but if you like to wash your popcorn down with a beer or three, this is the perfect entertainment to accompany the experience.

Special Features: Audio commentary / Orchestra featurette / VFX breakdown / Concept art / Bloopers / Deleted and extended scenes / Trailers

LAZER TEAM / CERT: 15 / DIRECTOR: MATT HULLUM / SCREENPLAY: BURNIE BURNS, CHRIS DEMARAIS, JOSH FLANAGAN, MATT HULLUM / STARRING: BURNIE BURNS, GAVIN FREE, MICHAEL JONES, COLTON DUNN, ALLIE DeBERRY, ALAN RITCHSON, STEVE SHEARER / RELEASE DATE: AUGUST 15TH

When the Snow White tale got the post-Lord of the Rings action treatment back in 2012 with Snow White and the Huntsman, you’d have been forgiven for thinking that there was no more tale left to tell. But this is Hollywood, and when your unexpected hit makes $400 million worldwide you can bet they’re not going to be bashful when it comes to planning a sequel. And so we find ourselves back in the dark fairytale land in this continuation that serves as both as a prequel and a sequel, but – as the title suggests – without the fairest of them all in tow.

In order to put the post-Snow White tale into perspective, we travel back to the moment where Queen Ravenna (Charlize Theron) first exercised her wicked ways, worming her way into power and ensuring that she was the fairest of them all. Yet it wasn’t just her poor King who suffered at her hands, Raveena’s sister, Freya (Emily Blunt), also came a cropper when her dutiful sibling helped her out by robbing her of her loved one and newborn child.

It was this last act that led to the inception of the Huntsmen, children plucked from the bosom of their families and trained to hunt, kill and never, ever love. Needless to say, one of their number was Eric. All grown up, Eric (Chris Hemsworth) does the worst thing imaginable and falls for fellow Huntswoman, Sara (Jessica Chastain). Needless to say, things don’t go well and Eric is banished, finding his way into the story that preceded this one (you know the one, with dwarfs, apples and all that).

Flashing forward now (keeping up?), we find ourselves post-Snow White. The evil queen has been vanquished, but her precious mirror is still a cause for concern, having recently gone missing, Snow White’s husband William informs Eric that ‘Queen Not Appearing in This Film’ has charged him and the funniest dwarf from the first film (Nick Frost) to find it and return it to her before it falls into the wrong hands. Adventures ensue.

Firstly, this isn’t a bad film, but it’s not a particularly brilliant one either. To say that the sub-Frozen plot lacks originality is putting it mildly and the Tolkein-lite quest feels incredibly familiar. That said, what there is, is accomplished incredibly well. Considering this film ran at around two thirds of the budget of the first film, the only time you really feel that on screen is the lack of epic battles. Otherwise, the effects and look of the film are as you would expect them to be, and the camaraderie between the various couples (from Hemsworth and Chastain to Rob Brydon and Sheridan Smith) work well enough to make it an enjoyable romp in itself.

Sadly, Hemsworth’s accent still bounces around somewhere between Tom Cruise Far and Away and Brad Pitt Snatch, but there’s no escaping his cavalier charm which is more evident here, especially in the Extended Edition. Theron continues to joyfully consume scenery with every breath, leaving Blunt the opportunity to show some real emotion as the icy queen Elsa, sorry, Freya and the dulcet tones of Liam Neeson’s narration at the beginning adds a certain gravitas.

The film comes in two flavours: Theatrical Cut and Extended, along with four deleted/extended scenes, two-part featurette Winter’s Vistas: The Making of The Huntsman: Winter’s War, and a gag reel which includes Theron having to parent on camera, Blunt’s stomach noises and a particularly busy flight path.

THE HUNTSMAN: WINTER’S WAR / CERT: 12 / DIRECTOR: CEDRIC NICOLAS-TROYAN / SCREENPLAY: EVAN SPILIOTOPOULOS, CRAIG MAZIN / STARRING: CHRIS HEMSWORTH, CHARLIZE THERON, JESSICA CHASTAIN, EMILY BLUNT, NICK FROST / RELEASE DATE: AUGUST 15TH