TIMEOUT
GAMESGEAR Bloom (Stephen Rea), his sexy and adulterous wife Molly (Angeline Ball) and struggling poet Stephen Dedalus (Hugh O’Conor), whose fortunes collide of on the streets of early 20th century Dublin. (Cert 18, 110 mins, Stoney Road, DVD £12.99, Drama)
WINTER SOLDIER
Langdale) and Melanie (Annabelle Wallis). The seven fun-seekers discover they have been lured into a series of booby traps, laid by a psychopath. (Cert 18, 89 mins, Lionsgate Home Entertainment UK, DVD £12.99, Horror/Thriller)
BLOOM
Feature film of James Joyce’s comic “stream of consciousness’’ novel Ulysses, following the dalliances of frustrated Leopold
Recorded discreetly by an anonymous group called the Winterfilm Collective in 1971 in a Detroit hotel conference room, Winter Soldier is a shocking and sobering confessional by 100 Vietnam veterans about the crimes they committed and the atrocities they witnessed during the conflict. With the notorious My Lai massacre still fresh in their minds, the men present an unvarnished and raw vision of the horrors of war, stripped bare of spin and propaganda. (Cert E, 97 mins, Stoney Road, DVD £19.99, Documentary)
THE HONEY POT
Based on the play by Ben
Jonson, Joseph L Mankiezwicz’s 1967 comical mystery ponders how far some people will go to get their greedy mitts on an inheritance. International playboy Cecil Fox (Rex Harrison) concocts an elaborate scheme to test his three old flames by pretending to be dying, then inviting the woman to visit him in his supposedly final hours to see their reaction. He hires actor William McFly (Cliff Robertson) to pose as his secretary to complete the charade. The three contenders – Merle (Edie Adams), Mrs Sheridan (Susan Hayward) and Princess Dominique (Capucine) – arrive at Cecil’s bedside to learn which of them will inherit his fortune but events take a sinister turn. (Cert PG, 126 mins, Optimum Classic, DVD £15.99, Drama/Comedy/Thriller)
GRAND THEFT AUTO IV Xbox 360
It’s no understatement to say that GTA IV was the most eagerly anticipated title that the gaming world had ever seen, and no short, snappy review was ever going to do it justice. There’s no way you can sum up the amount of laugh-out-loud moments, adrenalin-fuelled car chases, ear-splitting shootouts and other jaw-dropping stand-out experiences that come choice bundled into the return to a living, breathing Liberty City. Everything about GTA IV oozes class and that all-important attention to detail, and there are few people who can dispute this is quite possibly the greatest videogame of all-time. 5/5 £49.99
✔ life!
LITTLE BIG PLANET WWE – UNFORGIVEN 2008 Let’s get ready to rumble in Cleveland Ohio as the three championships – WWE, World Heavyweight and ECW – are decided in so-called 20-minute scrambles, during which literally anyone could take home the prize. Shawn Michaels faces long-time rival Chris Jericho in the big grudge match alongside frenetic World Tag Team and Diva championships contests. (Cert 15, 178 mins, Silver Vision, DVD £17.99, Special Interest)
PS3
It can take a while for a new console to produce the kind of titles that you’ll look back on with huge affection when the next ‘next-generation’ is in full swing. Little Big Planet is absolutely one of those games for the PS3. Creative and incredibly addictive to play, either on your own or with friends, it’s an action game with a real difference. You can choose to build a world to share with other gamers or simply explore the adventures there on the disc but, either way, customising your sackman character is an absolute hoot and developing your own patch on the planet for others to come and see feels more like the game itself than an added extra, such as how other level editors often feel. This is unique, stunning and sets a new benchmark for PS3 games to beat and that could take some time. 5/5 £44.99
GEARS OF WAR 2
Xbox 360
With 5 million copies of the original Gears of War sold, it’s sequel had pretty big army boots to fill. As one of the most popular games in Xbox history, Gears re-defined shooter action with an incredible cover system and supreme co-operative play, and guess what - it’s just as good all over again! Continue as war hero Marcus Fenix, six months after
HARDCORE NATION 2009
Stu Allan and Joey Riot
In case you haven’t recovered from the New Year parties, here’s a reminder that it’s 2009 – with another 52 weeks to love or loathe the thumping sounds of far harder edged dance than you’ll get in your church hall disco. Stu Allan is an instigator of the Hardcore genre, Joey Riot is one of the fastest rising DJ/producers and together they bring together 58 prime slices of their kind of music. The only official remix of Guru Josh project’s smash Infinity 2008 is as soft as it gets. EMI/Nukleuz
SWEET BELLS
SHAKE & SHOUT
After being saturated with the usual festive musical tosh for far too many weeks it’s almost a crime that this latest release from the delightful Ms Rusby should be released pretty much too late to capitalise on most of this yuletide season. This is basically a collection of South Yorkshire Christmas Carols and seasonal songs performed in the time honoured style of touring carollers moving from venue to venue in a tradition dating back over 200 years. Her arrangements and voice as ever are impeccable. Pure Records
This is a re-launch for the seven piece Berlin Mississippi band who almost made their breakthrough with the Stallion Battalion album. That track kicks this collection off in fine style paving the way for their strange fusion of the disco pastiche of Electro 6 and the Elvis spoof revivals of The King. Take Britney’s Toxic or Outkast’s Hey Ya, shake in a little white trash country and pepper it with punk and you are part way to the whiskey and whimsy which inspires them. Excess Berlin
Kate Rusby
YOURVIEW e-mail life@blackpoolgazette.co.uk
The Bosshoss
GREAT GAME: Grand Theft Auto IV the events of the original, there’s a new Locust threat from below. It looks absolutely stunning and the improved cover system now even allows you to use downed enemies as shields - much needed when you get a load of the psycho enemies you’ll encounter along the way, many of whom are thirsty for all new chainsaw duels - another highlight. Put simply, it’s about as intense and over-the-top a shooter adventure you’ll get, before you even get a chance to sample the superb online offerings, too. 5/5 £44.99
SUPER SMASH BROS. BRAWL Wii
Pokemon, Super Mario Bros, Zelda and many more of your favourite Nintendo characters unite in one game to do battle with each other in a frenetic fighting extravaganza that takes the series one step further in terms of graphical excellence, superior sound and the all-round enjoyment to be had from what must rank as one of the best multiplayer experiences out there right now. A fabulous fighting combat system coupled with cracking power-ups and other items to improve your in-battle chances unleashes pure, unadulterated fun - and who can ask for more than that? Countless gameplay options ensure there’s never a shortage of new challenges to set yourself, but it’s the main multiplayer that really steals the show. 4/5 £34.99
WEBSITE
MOST movie star websites are depressingly similar: a gallery of photos, a rarely-updated ‘news’ page, and probably a biography listing all the movies the star has appeared in. Sites like this aren’t usually very interesting. Jeff Bridges, most famous for his role as The Dude in The Big Lebowski, bucks that trend with style. It turns out that Jeff is quite an artist, and his sketches, paintings and drawings are used to bring the site to life. What’s more, he updates it frequently with notes, comics, and photos from his film shoots. A recent gallery shows behind-the-scenes snaps of the making of Iron Man. His site is at www.jeffbridges.com and is well worth an hour of your time, even if you’re not a movie buff.
BROWSING AROUND
■ Labyrinth - can you find your way through? labyrinth.codify.se ■ Classics - something to read on the train www.taptaptap.com
Saturday, January 3, 2009
life! 11