The new documentary Cool It from acclaimed filmmaker Ondi Timoner is a breath of fresh air for anyone sick and tired of the fear-based approach to fighting climate change. With the help of Danish environmentalist Bjørn Lomborg, Timoner’s Cool It acts as a rebuttal of sorts to Al Gore‘s documentary An Inconvenient Truth.
The first part of the climax to the Harry Potter series is much different than its predecessors. It features whole new kinds of depression, anxiety and an anger that the previous films simply did not have. In the past books and films, Harry and his crew had to overcome obstacles and that was that, even though they knew something more was coming. There were epic battle scenes, and other scenes that showed Potter striving for some illusive goal. This time around, Harry, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasely are alone and confused in a dark and sinister world.
About 15 minutes into Tucker & Dale, you will think to yourself: why did no one have this brilliant idea before? Maybe if they did, it would not the work of horror comedy genius that this film is. While initially worried that I saw all the best jokes in the trailer, I was amazed at how Craig and Jurgenson kept the entire film fresh and brilliantly funny.
As it turns out, there is a lesser-talked-about James Bond game this month. Not directly related to the new Goldeneye, but I guess it must have been convenient to have Daniel Craig in the sound studio. So Bond for all, Wii or otherwise! James Bond 007: Blood Stone is a new, standalone tale for MI6 addicts made by Project Gotham and Geometry Wars creators Bizarre Creations, letting players take the role of Bond as he shoots the bad guys and roughs up luxury cars, but is this a diamond in the rough or just plain fake?
Shot in just under 10 very long takes, Vivas’ Secuestrados tells the story of a wealthy family who, having just moved into their new home, are held hostage and robbed by three masked men. No harm seems intended for the victims, until one of the thieves’ psychotic personality starts to show itself, and the father of the family attempts to get help. Then all hell breaks loose.
Our North American, contemporary version of Santa Claus apparently comes from Coca-Cola; the red suit trimmers with white, the beard, the jolly laughing belly. Santa Claus or some version of him has been around for several centuries, of course, but our modern age has skewed the origins quite a lot. In this tale of the man, director and writer Helander conceives not of a jolly person who brings presents to little children, but of a demon buried deep under a mountain, a demon that eats children. And it will take a child to stop him.
La Casa Muda has become fairly well known on the fantastic festival circuit mainly for its modus operandi: it was shot in one long take. And deservedly so: this technique, which frequently incorporates first person perspective, creates one of the most terrifying atmospheres in any horror film I’ve watched.
Hopeless Savages: Greatest Hits 2000 - 2010 brings together all the published issues of Jen Ven Meter's comic and a few colour stories that fill in key moments in the Hopeless Savage family drama. The collection features the art of Christine Norrie, Chynna Clugston Flores, Ross Campbell, Andi Watson, Becky Cloonan and Bryan Lee O’ Malley.
A gem of a comedy from Argentina, Fase 7 tries to find the lighter side of disease outbreak. Sounds like a contradiction, but writer and director Nicolás Goldbart focuses on the residents of a small apartment building in order to examine the (humourous) human condition during trying times.
Eugenio Mira’s second feature is a strange but rare and beautiful bird. A blend of espionage thriller, gothic romance, and fantasy, the title refers to a neurological disorder in which the brain cannot properly interpret visual and aural stimuli, and thereby cannot tell faces and voices apart.
LucasArts brings us back to a galaxy far far away and into the shoes of Darth Vader’s insubordinate apprentice Starkiller, as he grapples with Vader’s mind games, searches for his lost love and aids the fledgling rebellion.
We had a chance to see the first two episodes of the new Marvel animated series Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes. The show has some big shoes to fill, but Marvel has learned from their missteps and enlisted some serious talents to help mold this show into something that can be held up with the other fantastic comic book-based animation. Marvel Studios has totally nailed it.
It has been a derivative year for games. But it’s also been a great year for games. Old material doesn’t mean a bad game, and even when titles like Darksiders were dramatically close to plagiarism, they remain some of the most enjoyable entries this year. Ninja Theory’s Enslaved is an ‘adaptation’ of one of China’s earliest exports: fables. Specifically the Journey to the West, but I would argue that it’s a more accurate ‘adaptation’ of Ubisoft’s Prince of Persia series. Even if it’s monkey see monkey do, does this monkey shine?
Sega’s console dynasty, headed by Sonic and his masterful platformers on the Genesis, is long gone. The blue rodent’s high-budget 3-D games have had mixed results at best, with the occasional disaster that few franchises could ever recover from. With that in mind, Sonic Team and Dimps – designers of Sonic’s handheld “Rush” series – have come together to create Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1. It’s the first part of what hopes to be a grand return to the series’ salad days.
Last week's episode Stargate Universe provided a nice conclusion to the cliffhanger ending of season one, but also left many issues unresolved. Things are starting to get back to normal aboard the Destiny, or at least as close to normalcy as it can get on a ship lost on the other side of the universe.
