Dawn of War 2 – Retribution Review

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‘Ten years after the events of Chaos Rising and the fall of the Blood Raven’s Chapter Master to Chaos, Sub-Sector Aurelia remains in a state of constant warfare. The pirate Freebooter Orks have arrived to take advantage of this and loot the sector, the vile forces of Chaos continue to spread their blasphemy, the Eldar of Craftworld Alaitoc work to recover key artifacts from their past, and the feral Tyranids remaining from the failed Hive fleet invasion have suddenly reestablished contact with the Hive Mind.’

The Warhammer 40K universe has always been a great deal of fun. The sheer silliness of the whole thing is very endearing, and you can’t help but get attached to the horrible races that inhabit this crazy reality. Relic has always done really well with their Dawn of War games, but Dawn of War 2 seems to be following the same path as the original with each expansion being less fun than the last one.

Retribution picks up the tale of the intrepid Continue reading →

Swerve Review

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‘A woman, two men and a suitcase of money – a lot can happen in the middle of nowhere.‘

I really regret not going along to see more movies at this year’s Melbourne International Film Festival, because I know that I’m missing out on some really great films. Thankfully, I did get along last night to see the really fun new Australian movie – Swerve. Swerve is a thriller full of some great dark humour and a simple but compelling storyline.

The film opens in the middle of Continue reading →

Web Review – A Lonely Place for Dying

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‘In 1972, the conflict in Vietnam continues. The creeping threat of communism grips the nation in fear. In an abandoned prison on the US/Mexican border, KGB mole Nikolai Dzerzhinsky waits for his contact from the Washington Post. He holds explosive evidence against the CIA, information he will trade for asylum in the United States. Special Agent Robert Harper’s orders are clear: take the documents from Dzerzhinsky and kill him.‘

I’ve been a big fan of Vodo.net for a while. Their mission to try and create a new business model for film and TV that involves community support is something that I really hope will catch on. A Lonely Place for Dying is a film that has been doing the festival circuit for a while now, and Writer/Director Justin Evans has decided to tap into the audience that studios have been so busy fighting with a piecemeal release via torrent over the next few months.

One of the first things that struck me Continue reading →

Cash Cows – Predator

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Directors: John McTiernan, Stephen Hopkins, Nimrod Antal, Paul W.S. Anderson, The Brothers Strause

Writers: Jim Thomas, John Thomas, Alex Litvak, Michael Finch, Robert Rodriguez, Paul W.S. Anderson, Shane Salerno

Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Danny Glover, Kevin Peter Hall, Adrien Brody, Lance Henrickson, Sanaa Lathan, Reiko Aylesworth, Steven Pasquale

Years: 1987-2007

Predator

Ok, seriously…what the hell!?! I’ve spent a whole week looking at AVP: Requiem and I can’t see a damn thing! I mean it – I could never review this film because I can’t actually Continue reading →

Web Review – Kaydara

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‘Kaydara, a bounty hunter who is living separately from the Human Resistance Group, does not believe in the prophecy of ‘the One.’ He sees this so-called saviour instead as a threat to the awakening of Man’s self-awareness and considers him an enemy. If their paths cross, Kaydara will not hesitate to confront him.‘

This has been sitting on my watch list for a while. Kaydara hit the internet a few months ago and caused quite a stir over the quality of its visual effects. Many people were hailing this as an example of how independent filmmakers could now create CGI on par with Hollywood. While I agree that Kaydara is very impressive in the visuals department, it’s pretty disappointing as a film.

For me, Kaydara really feels like Continue reading →

Web Review – The Guild – Road Trip

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Vodpod videos no longer available.

After what seems like an eternity, The Guild is back on the air for its 5th season! If you haven’t seen The Guild before, I recommend that you go over to the official website and do a quick catch up. It won’t take you long, each episode only runs for a few minutes. This is one of the most popular web shows around, and is largely responsible for propelling Felicia Day to the internet stardom that she now enjoys.

Season 5 picks up Continue reading →

Captain America Review

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Director: Joe Johnston

Writers: Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely, Joe Simon, Jack Kirby

Starring: Chris Evans, Hugo Weaving, Hayley Atwell, Tommy Lee Jones

Year: 2011

I’m gonna try not to gush, but I gotta say: YEAH BABY!

For those of you who don’t know and aren’t reading this review anyway, Captain America marks the last stop on the Marvel Studios line before reaching The Avengers. Others much more qualified than I have gone into detail on the creative process Continue reading →

Eureka – Glimpse Review

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‘Jo receives a technical boost to her duties with lenses that predict security breaches. Allison’s headaches won’t go away so Carter plans a vacation. Fargo, meanwhile, deals with an onslaught of volunteers when he announces a space mission with room for civilians.‘

Eureka continues on its hot streak with yet another fun, reference filled episode. Like last week’s excellent Reprise, Glimpse manages to tick all the boxes that make Eureka such a fun show to watch. The writers seem to have really embraced their inner geeks throwing film and comic references in at every opportunity.

Relationships are once again Continue reading →

LEGO Star Wars – The Padawan Menace Review

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‘Tour guide Master Yoda leads a group of rambunctious Jedi younglings through Senate chambers when he senses a disturbance in the Force. Summoned to help save the Republic, he discovers that one of the younglings secretly boarded his ship…and has a taste for adventure!‘

After the disappointment of the last two Family Guy Star Wars Specials I was beginning to think that Robot Chicken was the only place that I’d be able to find some good Star Wars humour, but out of nowhere comes LEGO Star Wars – The Padawan Menace, and it’s the most fun I’ve had watching Star Wars for quite a while.

While The Padawan Menace is obviously Continue reading →

Cash Cows – Alien

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Directors: Ridley Scott, James Cameron, David Fincher, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Paul W.S. Anderson, The Brothers Strause

Writers: Dan O’Bannon, Ronald Shusett, James Cameron, David Giler, Walter Hill, Vincent Ward, Larry Ferguson, Joss Whedon, Jim Thomas, John Thomas, Paul W.S. Anderson, Shane Salerno

Starring: Sigourney Weaver and a bunch of people that no-one really cares about except for Lance Henrickson and Ron Perlman…but they were all big stars at some point.

Years: 1979-2007

There can be no better examination of filmmaking as a collaborative craft than a look at the Alien franchise. This is what happens when a ridiculous number of people get together to tinker with a simple idea – resulting in varying amounts of genius, ineptitude and (in both cases) insanity.

Let’s begin, shall we? Continue reading →