The Gift - Film Review

"Not Every Gift Is Welcome" - but this DVD will be!

This Christmas, any film fans will be glad to get The Gift on DVD or Blu-ray to add to their collection. The hit chilling thriller from the producer of The Purge was loved by cinema goers and critics, who gave it 93% on Rotten Tomatoes!

The film stars Jason Bateman as Simon, a successful businessman, who is making a fresh start with his wife Robyn in a new house in the Californian hills. With a job promotion on the cards, everything is going well. That is until a chance meeting with an old high school friend Gordo, played by Joel Edgerton, (who also wrote and directed the movie) sets into motion a series of events that sends their world into a harrowing tailspin.

Uninvited visits, mysterious gifts left outside the door and strange encounters prove unsettling, but when a dark secret from the past is uncovered, the situation escalates and unravels the lives of everyone involved. As Robyn learns the shocking truth about Simon and Gordo's shared past, she begins to question just how well she knows those closest to her.

The plot of The Gift is full of suspense with a few proper jumpy moments to keep the tension high. The film doesn't rely on big special effects or gimmicks to tell the story, instead it relies on great acting, a compelling script and quality storytelling. It keeps you fully immersed and guessing until the end, as you share Robyn's confusion and doubts as she searches for the truth. Is Gordo a dangerous creep and a threat to the couple or is he a misunderstood loner looking for closure?

Special Features:

·         Karma For Bullies

·         The Darker Side of Jason Bateman

·         Deleted Scenes

·         Alternate Ending (Blu-ray exclusive)

Certificate 15

Run time 105 minutes

Lionsgate UK Releases The Gift on Digital HD November 30th and Blu-ray & DVD December 7th, 2015.

The Big Wedding Film Review

"Marriage is like a phone call in the night.  First you get the ring, then you wake up!"  This is one of the opening lines spoken by Robert De Niro in this star studded movie, The Big Wedding from Lionsgate.  It pretty much sets the tone for the film in which long divorced couple Don and Ellie (played by De Niro and Diane Keaton) are forced to play the happy couple once again for the sake of their adopted son when his ultra- conservative, Catholic, Colombian biological mother arrives to attend his wedding.  This creates all kinds of awkward and funny moments as the family are forced to confront their past, present and future during the wedding weekend.

There are many awkward moments throughout the film, some of which are scarily familiar.  The sort of cringeworthy moments that family gatherings have an uncanny knack of bringing out!  There are love triangles, pregnancy issues, celibacy problems, religious conflicts, commitment problems and countless other family issues.  The characters each have a storyline that entwine and come to a head at the wedding.  

The cast carry the film well although some of the roles seem a bit underplayed. Robin Williams doesn't deliver one of his usual OTT performances. Katherine Heigl who is the queen of the rom-com, is under used as big sister Lyla who is separated from her husband and has some serious daddy issues.  De Niro is a bit of a Lothario and a lot of the laughs are down to his overactive sex drive.  If you don't like the idea of older people 'at it' the first 5 minutes may need to be viewed through your fingers. 

We discover that the truth isn't always what it seems and that people will bend the truth in order to protect their loved ones. We also see there are different kinds of love, many of which are explored in this frothy comedy.

For me, Sarandon and Keaton stole the show, demonstrating a good chemistry and sharing some witty acerbic banter between them.  I think this rom com is designed for the older audience who will enjoy watching how the relationships develop and play out.  Although I didn't find it a 'laugh out loud' rom-com, it leaves you feeling pleasantly satisfied and well entertained. It is worth a watch.

The Big Wedding is out on DVD/Blu-ray 14^th October.


                         

Available now to pre-order.

Release date: 14th October 2013

Certificate: 15

Running Time: 89 minutes

We received a check disc to view.

The Possession

There has been a spate of shockingly bad exorcism films released recently so I wasn't completely confident when we were sent The Possession from Lionsgate, that it would be any different.  But I love horror films and was more than willing to give it a watch.  Thankfully however, I was not disappointed.  In fact I really enjoyed it.

The film is based on a true story (although I always wonder just how much truth is actually in these sort of claims.  Surely if these cases were going on in real life we'd see them on the news...or on a Jeremy Kyle exorcism special perhaps?)

The plot revolves around  Em, who is the youngest daughter of divorced parents who share custody of their two girls.  On her dad's watch, Em finds herself drawn to an old, carved, wooden trunk at a garage sale, which he buys for her.  Very quickly Em becomes strangely attached to it and her behavior starts to change.  Initially blaming it on the divorce, it takes a while for her parents to realise that her sudden terrifying moods and the odd goings on are related to the wooden box that Em is so attached to.  It's her dad who puts two and two together first and seeks help from the Jewish community to try to save his daughter's soul from the demonic presence that has been released from the wooden box where it had been trapped.  The family, assisted by a Jewish rabbi,  enter into a terrifying battle to save Em and return the malevolent spirit to the box, culminating in a very frightening show down against the evil presence.

This film is genuinely very unnerving in parts, aided by the performance from the young actress who plays 10 year old Em.  She was very creepy and made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up on several occasions! The effects are pretty good and stay with you long after the film has finished.  There are plenty of jumps and a fair few moments that make you want to peep through your fingers. The pace of the story, the suspense and the amount of scary scenes are enough to keep you gripped and entertained.  It has all the elements of a good supernatural, horror movie that will provide 90 minutes of enjoyable scare time.  As it has a certificate 15, it stops short of being too gory or violent, relying more on being subtly disturbing keeping you on edge.

It may not be groundbreaking, but it is very entertaining, genuinely scary in parts, pretty well acted with likeable characters and has some nice creepy effects putting it above other films I have seen in the exorcism genre.  It was thoroughly enjoyed by myself, Ian and 16 year old Ella who said it was the best new release horror film she had seen in a while.

The Possession DVD from Lionsgate is due for release on January 21st 2013 and will be available from all good stockists.