The Turning (2013) starring Cate Blanchett – In cinemas 6th Feb

The Turning is based on the best-selling book of short stories by Australian author Tim Winton.This big-screen adaptation is a collaboration between many writers and directors; each working on one the books segments.  The film stars Cate Blanchett (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Hugo Weaving (The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies) and Rose Byrne (X-Men First Class).

The Turning

Compilations like this run the risk of feeling disjointed however this film seems mostly to avoid that as the various tales intertwine and cover the whole range of the human experience from relationships to death. Continue reading →

Interview: Daphne Ashbrook

Written by Lewis Mainwaring

Daphne Ashbrook is known for both her comic timing and deeply complex emotional portrayals on both the big and small screen. One of her best known roles (and my personal favourite) is that of Dr Grace Holloway in the Doctor Who TV Movie (1996). We recently caught up with her for an interview about her life both on and off screen.

IMG_0093-794x800“I love, love, love getting lost in a character’s reality. Quite fun leaving my own boring life at the door. Ha!”

 

 

 

 

Continue reading →

Atari: Game Over (TV Documentary – 2014)

atari_game_overThis documentary (a joint venture between Fuel Entertainment and Xbox Presents) explores one of the great urban myths in video gaming, the dumping of around 700,000 copies of the Atari game ‘E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,’ for the classic Atari 2600 console at a dumping site in Alamogordo, New Mexico. This game has often been referred to as one of the worst games in history and blamed for the ultimate financial failure of Atari.  This propels the stereotype we still have today that video games based on films are invariably terrible.

Typically at the time Atari would spend many months developing a game but after making a multi-million dollar deal with Steven Spielberg (who approved the game himself) for the E.T. game gave the company just 12 weeks to get the game to market in time for Christmas. Following the games release the companies finances took a turn for the worst and it went on to lose $536 million. Continue reading →

Review: Before I Go To Sleep (2014) – Out now on DVD & BluRay

Pre-release review thanks to distributor StudioCanal.

beforeigotosleep Based on the best-selling novel by S.J. Watson. The film rights were initially acquired by Ridley Scott; who then brought Rowan Joffé on board as Director (he also wrote the screenplay).

Before I Go To Sleep tells the story of Christine (Nicole Kidman); who suffers from anterograde amnesia and wakes every day with no knowledge of her surroundings and how she came to be the way she is. She goes through life haunted by a past she can’t recall and a present she cannot fathom.

She lives with husband Ben (Colin Firth) who helps her to deal with her condition but we discover she has also been secretly seeing Dr. Nasch (Mark Strong) who is helping her to recover her memory through a video log. With his help she begins to piece together the pieces of her life; sometimes contrary to what she has been told. Continue reading →

BluRay Review: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (Limited Edition – 2013)

Written by Lewis Mainwaring

This Limited Edition (Nov 2013) release by Arrow Films (10,000 copies) of the 1986 horror classic The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 is the sequel to the 1974 iconic movie The Texas chainsaw Massacre.IMG_2332

Tagged lined ‘The Buzz is Back’ this second installment of the franchise sees the Sawyer clan relocated from their family home and on a killing spree in an abandoned amusement park.

The original film poster is a parody of the 1985 film The Breakfast Club.

Chainsaw-wielding maniac Leatherface (Bill Johnson) is up to his cannibalistic ways once again, along with the rest of his twisted clan, including the equally disturbed Chop-Top (Bill Moseley). This time, the masked serial killer has set his sights on pretty disc jockey Vanita “Stretch” Brock (Caroline Williams), who teams up with Texas law-man Lefty Enright (Dennis Hopper) to battle the psychopath and his family deep within their lair.
Continue reading →

Movie Gem of the Week: Death at a Funeral (2007)

Death at a Funeral (2007) is a classic British farce comedy directed by Frank Oz (Little Shop of Horrors) and written by Dean Craig (A Few Best Men). It features a great comic ensemble cast including Matthew MacFadyen, Kris Marshall, Ewen Bremner, Alan Tudyk Andy Nyman, Peter Dinklage, Rupert Graves and Keeley Hawes. death-at-a-funeral

The film follows the great tradition of british ‘farce’ comedies (i.e. The Ladykillers, Carry On). The story revolves around Daniel (MacFadyen) who is left to deal with the funeral arrangements for his late father. Things are complicated when his fathers ex-lover Peter (Dinklage) turns up at the wake and a hilarious comedy of errors ensues. Continue reading →

Review: The Woman in Black 2 – Angel of Death

The Womanthe-woman-in-black-angel-of-death_Fotor_Collage in Black 2 – Angel of Death is the sequel to the 2012 film The Woman in Black which starred Daniel Radcliffe as Arthur Kipps a young lawyer who travels to a remote village where he discovers a vengeful ghost of a scorned woman who is terrorizing the locals.

Directed by Tom Harper and written by Jon Croker and Susan Hill this film takes place 40 years after the events of the previous film.

Continue reading →

Merry Christmas from IndieMacUser!

We’d like to wish all our readers and friends around the world a very Merry Christmas…however you chose to spend it. 2014 has been a busy year for us and we can’t wait to share some of the exciting articles and events we will be bringing you in 2015.

IMG_1625 Continue reading →

Support Indie Film – Lake Eeerie (2014)

From husband and wife team Chris Majors (director/producer) and Meredith Majors(writer/producer/star); Lake Eeerie is a new indie horror/thriller starring Betsy Baker (The Evil Dead), Lance Henriksen (Aliens/Terminator) and Marilyn Ghigliotti (Clerks). Due for release worldwide in 2015.

Young widow Kate (Meredith Majors) moves into an old house Lake-Eerie-Poster- - 24x36on Lake Erie to recover from her husband’s death. The house has not been lived in for over 40 years. From the moment Kate moves into the house, she is soon haunted by a dark presence. Kate is taking multiple pills/ medications for her anxiety and depression; therefore, she is not sure if she is losing her mind or if the haunting is really happening.

Kate is suddenly enveloped by a whirlwind of tragedy and dark forces, and must decide whether or not she is strong enough to fight back and figure out the evil truth before it’s too late.

Continue reading →

Blu-Ray Review: Day of the Dead (1985) Steel-book

Day of the Dead is widely regarded as the third installment in George A. Romero‘s seminal zombie series; following Night of the Living Dead (1968) & Dawn of the Dead (1978).

IMG_1944 IMG_1945This Limited Edition Steel-book release from Arrow Films Video is a re-hash of their 25th Anniversary edition Blu-Ray release; the special features included here are the same.

Continue reading →