Review Category: DVD/Blu Ray

DVD REVIEW: THE CROW: STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN – THE COMPLETE SERIES / CERT: 15 / DIRECTOR: VARIOUS / SCREENPLAY: VARIOUS / STARRING: MARK DACASCOS, MARC GOMES, SABINE KARSENTI, KATIE STUART / RELEASED: OCTOBER 6TH

This late ‘90s TV series is finally released on DVD after initially airing in the UK on The Sci-Fi Channel (as it was) at the turn of the millennium. Over 22 episodes, we’re given an expanded story centred on Eric Draven (Dacascos). After he and girlfriend Shelly (Karsenti) are murdered, Draven returns from the grave a year later in order to gain revenge. As the series progresses, the story becomes more about redemption and helping others who have been wronged, all whilst Draven looks for a way to be reunited with his soul mate. Often assisting him are well-meaning cop Albrecht (Gomes) and tough street kid Sarah (Stuart).

Just to throw it out there: no, this isn’t up to the standard of the classic Brandon Lee-starring movie… but it really isn’t that bad, either. With the first two episodes essentially retelling a lot of that 1994 movie, including use of some of its score, the series then goes off on its own path. Given how this version of The Crow was aimed at a TV audience, there are obvious differences to any of the four movies that we’ve seen over the years. In fairness, there are some moments that are more tied to James O’Barr’s original novel than the Lee-starrer, but then there are confines that the show has to work within in terms of language, violence, and certain adult themes. The show doesn’t suffer for those and it actually adapts rather well to these limitations.

Often more spiritual than some of the Crow movies that you may have seen, this series still amps up the action but relies more on well-choreographed sequences to make up for a lack of being able to use extreme violence and bloodshed. Central to all of this is Mark Dacascos as Eric Draven. The martial artist-turned-actor steps up to the plate remarkably well in the role made famous by the sadly-deceased Lee, bringing a likeable charm to his wronged former rock star and revelling in the sarcastic quips that he gets to spit out; acting as tragic lover, big brother, partner, and a hand of justice at various points. Whilst some of the dialogue and action is a little cheesy at times, Dacascos often does enough to wind it in just enough to make it enjoyable.

Away from the central lead, the show has some decent SFX for the time, even if they may look a little dated these days, and the supporting performances from the likes of Gomes, Karsenti and young Katie Stuart are all solid and delivered in line with the tone of the show. As a show, there’s really a bit of everything here, including some continuing threads throughout the series and regular villain-of-the-week types to go up against Draven, with character development and continuity used wisely.

We’re huge fans of Brandon Lee’s movie, but if viewed through neutral eyes, Stairway to Heaven is a good series that was annoyingly cut short and left on a cliff-hanger. Despite some obvious dating, helped non-by the aspect ratio and video quality of the release, the show stands up reasonably well and is a worthy addition to the collection of any fans of The Crow.

Extras: Audio commentary on selected episodes / Gag reel / Production dailies / stills gallery and series description / Original score / Cast and crew biographies / Collectors’ Series guide booklet

BLU-RAY REVIEW: GARGANTIA ON THE VERDUROUS PLANET / CERT: 12 / DIRECTOR: KAZUYA MURATA / SCREENPLAY: VARIOUS / STARRING: KYLE HEBERT, CASSANDRA MORRIS, MICHELLE RUFF / RELEASE DATE: SEPTEMBER 29TH

Fans of sci-fi and anime will quickly identify the narrative make-up of Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet, blending Mobile Suit Gundam Wing, Neon Genesis Evangelion, 2001: A Space Odyssey and even Waterworld. The 13-episode series does indeed shamelessly borrow from the genre past and present, and despite its flaws, makes the mix its own.

Famed for his dark style and tragic plots, writer Gen Urobuchi brought his game face to Gargantia. The plot, recognisable enough on the surface, gives us a future in which the Galactic Alliance of Humankind, a right-leaning organisation, battle Hideauze (space squids) in AI automated battle suits, called Machine Calibres. During a failed attempt to destroy an enemy super-weapon, 16-year-old ensign Ledo and his battle suit, Chamber, are sucked into a wormhole and flung to the other end of space. The pair end up on Earth, specifically Gargantia; a fleet harmoniously joined as a post-industrial city, floating on an ocean that has consumed all land.

Populated by rosy-cheeked teens, cocksure salvagers, bookish elders, and manual labourers aplenty, Ledo soon interacts with the people of Gargantia, lending his and Chamber’s help. Watching him learning the lingo is a fascinating insight into the conflicting languages. Like Avatar (and all the films it ripped off), Ledo goes native, edged along by the discoveries he makes and the climatic encounter he faces.

The vistas of space, sea and sky and beautifully animated, providing a backdrop to a bogged down narrative. Unfortunately, it’s a 10-episode series padded out to 13; with Calm Day devoted to barbecue and sunbathing. It’s a shame, as Deep Sea Secret provides a complex explanation as to we why left earth in the first place, which makes the surplus episodes even more damning of an otherwise decent show.

The characters, while anime standards, are quick to warm to in both Ledo’s and the audience’s case, but surprisingly it’s the ensign’s relationship with Chamber that is the most engrossing. Their bond is fully realised in the poignant series finale, Legend of the Verdurous Planet.

Peppered with Firefly-style music, Gargantia is an interesting, intelligent, and philosophical series, which indulges in unnecessary subplots and long-winded episodes. The series doesn’t come into its own until the last five episodes, but is worth a watch.

Included with the Blu-ray releases are two extra episodes, the 14th is superfluous, the 15th is an interesting addition but nothing especially exciting. There’s also a two-part sequel on the way.

BLU-RAY REVIEW: DOCTOR WHO – DEEP BREATH / CERT: PG /DIRECTOR: BEN WHEATLEY / SCREENPLAY: STEVEN MOFFAT / STARRING: PETER CAPALDI, JENNA COLEMAN, NEVE MACKINTOSH / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

Peter Capaldi’s Doctor Who debut pops up on DVD/Blu Ray with almost indecent haste, barely a month after its TV transmission and all the breathless flag-waving and associated hoo-hah that accompanied it. But Doctor Who moves so fast Deep Breath almost seems like a lifetime ago and with much better episodes having followed it as Series Eight’s unfolded; looking back on it just a few weeks after its unveiling doesn’t really do it many favours.

However, in truth there’s quite a lot to admire here. The story’s more leisurely pace (many dialogue-driven scenes are much longer than we’ve been used to these last three years) allows the audience to adjust to Capaldi’s frazzled Time Lord and Jenna Coleman’s Clara finally gets some meaty material to add flesh to her character’s previously undernourished bones. Nevertheless, the thin story – clockwork robots stalking Victorian London and replacing their disintegrating mechanical bodies with human flesh – needs to be lighter on its feet. Action set pieces aren’t Moffat’s forte and Deep Breath tends to sag when it should soar. A decent script editor could have red-penned several unnecessary scenes (especially the tiresome ‘comedy’ antics of one-joke Sontaran, Strax) and just generally tightened up the whole narrative.

Deep Breath is concerned not just with introducing the new Doctor, but with making it quite clear this is a very different man to the fast-talking, hyperactive bow-tie obsessive of his previous incarnation. Peter Capaldi is initially manic – a post-regeneration trope that Moffat wisely doesn’t overplay – but quickly establishes himself as brittle, spiky and utterly unwilling to suffer fools at all, let alone gladly. Capaldi is captivating throughout, whether bantering with Clara in the extraordinarily languid restaurant sequence or trading existential angst with the half-faced clockwork man. Ambiguity’s the name of the game for this Doctor and by the end of the episode, although Clara may have made her peace with the new boy (courtesy of a slightly uncomfortable cameo from Matt Smith), we’re still not quite sure if the new Doctor is a good man or even the same man. Capaldi was already a brave choice in an era where the Doctor has become a sexy action hero but the actor’s testy, abrasive, hands-off portrayal is potentially even braver.

Deep Breath is, in many ways, fairly standard Moffat fare. The script is cleverly contructed to remind troubled viewers that this is the same old Doctor Who. Back come the Paternoster Gang, the tiresome triumvirate of Victorian investigators created by Moffat as shorthand ‘best friends’ for the Doctor, and a variation on the clockwork androids from ‘Girl in the Fireplace’ are the antagonists (although, refreshingly, the Doctor can’t quite remember where he’s met them before). It’s longer than it needs to be, and Wheatley’s direction is oddly lacking in confidence (contrasting with his bold, explosive and imaginative work in the next episode) but it’s a decent and generally-competent start to a bold new era in the history of 21st century Who. Special features on the disc include last year’s live BBC show where Capaldi was announced to the nation by a breathless Zoe Ball, a brief ‘making of’ previously available online and the desperately-bad cinema introduction to the episode in which ‘comedy’ Sontaran Strax assassinates the characters of the previous Doctor in the name of a few cheap laughs. Watch it once and wish you hadn’t.

BLU-RAY REVIEW: ARROW – THE COMPLETE SECOND SEASON / CERT: 15 / DIRECTOR: VARIOUS / SCREENPLAY: VARIOUS / STARRING: STEPHEN AMELL, MANU BENNETT, EMILY BETT RICKARDS, DAVID RAMSAY, CAITY LOTZ / RELEASED: SEPTEMBER 22ND

Whilst the first season of The CW’s Arrow was good, this second year made for some truly stunning television. In the aftermath of Malcolm Merlyn’s “undertaking” scheme, Oliver Queen (Amell) is doing his best to support the rebuilding of Starling City whilst also whooping the bad guys in his other job. Now known as The Arrow, Queen has to fight his way through a slew of familiar DC faces, such as The Clock King, Dollmaker, Count Vertigo, Brother Blood, Gyrus Gold, and Nyssa al Ghul. But it’s with one-time bestest bud Slade Wilson (Bennett) that The Emerald Archer starts to have serious problems. During the show’s island flashbacks, we find Wilson under the influence of mirakuru, a serum that increases his strength, speed, and aggression while making him near invincible and a little unhinged. As Slade loses his grip on sanity, he blames Oliver for the death of his ‘one true,’ putting in motion a plan of revenge that culminates in modern-day Starling City and with the aim of destroying Ollie and those closest to him.

Season Two of Arrow has so much going on, but the key is the pacing and the execution of its storytelling. The main arc is most definitely Slade’s ascension to the Deathstroke moniker, mirrored with Oliver’s growth from mere reckless vigilante to full-on hero who operates with a code, but there are so many subtle, intriguing subplots strewn throughout the season. We get to see Sara Lance (Lotz) return from the grave and become The Canary, Moira Quinn (Susanna Thompson) take on Sebastian ‘Brother’ Blood (Kevin Alejandro) for the Mayor of Starling City position, and Oliver take the troubled Roy Harper (Colton Haynes) under his wing. Then there’s the expanded trust between Oliver, Felicity (Rickards) and Diggle (Ramsay), the attack on Queen Consolidated by Isabelle Rochev (Summer Glau), mirakuru-ravaged soldiers on the streets of Starling City, The League of Assassins, Amanda Waller (Cynthia Addai-Robinson) and her Suicide Squad, and there’s a whole host more and the introduction of the freakin’ Flash (Grant Gustin)! To sum up such a crammed series in a concise review almost seems criminal.

Whereas there’s a whole lot going on in Season Two, the fractured relationship between former ‘brothers’ Oliver and Slade is brilliant to watch develop, particularly with the modern-day Wilson always being once step ahead of his former protégé. Whilst Manu Bennett simmers perfectly as Slade, Stephen Amell has gotten to the stage where the whole Arrow character fits him like a second skin. Natural, fluid, immersive, genuine, and emotive, Amell, much like Arrow itself, hits it out of the park here. Additionally, with a supporting cast of characters that have been so wonderfully developed the show can survive extensive time without its central hero, it really does feel like the minds behind Arrow have truly crafted something special for their audience.

Simply put, in terms of must-see television, Arrow clinically hits the bullseye.

Extras: Three featurettes / Select episode commentaries / Deleted scenes / Gag reel.

DVD REVIEW: GOD HELP THE GIRL / CERT: 15 / DIRECTOR: STUART MURDOCH / SCREENPLAY: STUART MURDOCH / STARRING: EMILY BROWNING, OLLY ALEXANDER, HANNAH MURRAY / RELEASE DATE: OCTOBER 27TH

If the words ‘Belle and Sebastian’ mean anything to you, you probably already know about God Help the Girl. If not, they’re a folksy indie band from Scotland, and this is the directing debut of lead singer Stuart Murdoch; a musical featuring the songs of, you guessed it, Belle and Sebastian.

Depressed and restricted to the mental hospital in which she’s being treated for anorexia, Eve finds escape in songwriting. She checks herself out, and meets up with James and Cassie, a remarkably well-tailored pair of graduates with whom she starts up a band.

And then they spend a lot of time talking about music. Far too much time. As wistful as the songs it features, God Help the Girl is sorely lacking in drama, and any developments in the plot feel like afterthoughts thrown on to decorate the string of music videos. This is especially disappointing after the opening sequence sets the film up for an interesting exploration of mental illness; when this topic is dealt with, the film does so tastefully and interestingly, but these moments of interest are too sparse among the tedious chatter.

It’s a film with a strong indie sensibility, and this style works well when the characters are likeable. Emily Browning shines as the vulnerable and talented Eve, and her chemistry with Olly Alexander’s James is occasionally sweet enough to forgive the film its errors. James himself is at times hilariously pathetic – he has a day job as the world’s crappiest lifeguard, urging swimmers “away from the sinkingness” – but is at other times just irritatingly pretentious, so much so that he commits the worst heresy possible – he insults Bowie. Cassie, meanwhile, as great as Hannah Murray is, is thinly characterized; an underdeveloped third cog.

The musical sequences themselves are competently directed, and Browning has a lovely voice, but if you’re not a fan of the band, you’ll tire of them by the end of the almost two-hour running time. Murdoch does chuck in some clever visual jokes to lighten the mood, such as an arrogant clothes store clerk whose mannequin is the spitting image of him.

While it does deal with interesting themes, exploring music as an escape from mental illness, God Help the Girl is overly long and dramatically weak, especially compared to this summer’s Begin Again, a much more engaging look at the trials of an up-and-coming musician. Ultimately, whether you’ll enjoy this film can be ascertained from two simple questions. Do you like Belle and Sebastian? Do you like them enough to watch a two-hour Belle and Sebastian music video where sometimes they stop and talk? Only if you answer yes to both of these is God Help the Girl worth your time.

REVIEW: KIDNAPPED / CERT: 18 / DIRECTOR: MIGUEL ÁNGEL VIVAS / SCREENPLAY: JAVIER GARCIA, MIGUEL ÁNGEL VIVAS / STARRING: FERNANDO CAYO, MANUELLA VELES, ANA WAGENER/ RELEASE DATE: OCTOBER 13th

There are some films that you really only need to see once. So harrowing and depressing are these films that a second viewing would be very much like running head first into one of Jigsaw’s traps for another taste of pain and misery. Long after the likes of Irreversible, Requiem for a Dream and Inside have messed with our collective melons comes Kidnapped, a home invasion thriller that starts out nasty, before descending into downright vicious.

A simple story of one family moving into their brand new lush home soon turns to bloodshed and slaughter as three balaclava-clad men burst into their lives to make some quick money. Jaime, Marta and daughter Isa are just getting to grips with their luxurious new pad when the hooded burglars smash their way into the house and proceed to demand money. Quickly cast aside are tensions between mother and daughter, suddenly replaced by a gut-churning night of survival as one of the armed men takes Jaime out to a cash point to collect as much money from the family’s cards as they can. But as things go from bad to worse, it becomes clear these robbers are not going to stop at just taking their money.

After an extraordinary opening scene involving a man with a bloodied bag over his head stumbling through the woods and then having a very near miss with a speeding car, it swiftly becomes clear that director Miguel Ángel Vivas likes a long take. The camera glides and prowls around this film like it is attached to the shoulders of characters, giving a more immersive feeling than any number of found footage horror films could ever attempt to muster. Kidnapped is actually comprised of very few shots for a feature, and the camera sticks to these characters like glue making for some uncomfortable viewing.

To make things even more unbearably tense, Vivas employs split screens for key scenes where action comes to a head. It is riveting, edge of the seat stuff, and despite the lack of characterisation or complex plot, Kidnapped is one hell of a visceral thrill ride. Relentlessly grim, brutal and with little in the way of catharsis, it is a difficult watch at times with some shockingly graphic violence. Let’s just say that once some sexual violence rears its ugly head, the gloves really come off!

While Kidnapped may add little to the home invasion thriller that hasn’t already been seen in the likes of Straw Dogs or Panic Room, its style is exceptional and Vivas doesn’t holding back as he heads towards the vicious climax. With a camera that rarely cuts, and often sits static on the faces of victims in despair, the performances are necessarily outstanding. Manuela Vellés and Ana Wagener are particularly magnetic; their faces fraught with fear and their screams an almost constant soundtrack of terror.

There are plenty of familiar beats with unexpected intrusions adding to the body count and tensions’ arising between the kidnappers, but what makes Kidnapped so special isn’t its story or characterisation but its style and ultra violence. Considering there is little time to get to know these characters, it is the impressive camerawork, editing and committed performances that make this film so disturbing. Its unrelenting torment is the kind of thing you will probably only wish to witness once, but Kidnapped is definitely a film that locks you in and refuses to let you go.