Category: DVD Review

Staring –

2 years after Avengers Assemble Steve Rogers is working for SHIELD in Washington DC & has a US Air force friend called Sam Wilson. Nick Fury sends Rogers, Romanoff and a group of other SHIELD agents to free some hostages. Rogers discovers that Romanoff has been given a secret mission to download information from the computer onto a USB stick.

Rogers confronts Fury back at HQ and is told about Project Insight (3 helicarriers, linked to spy satellites to prevent any threats.  The data on the USB stick can’t be decrypted so Fury asks SHIELD official Alexander Pierce to delay Project Insight.

Fury is then ambushed by a group led by the assassin Winter Soldier.  Fury escapes and hides in Rogers’s apartment warning him that SHEILD has been compromised.  Fury gives Rogers the USB stick and is then gunned down by Winter Solider and dies in surgery.  SHIELD Agent Maria Hill takes charge of his body.

Pierce summons Rogers to HQ and asks him about Fury.  Rogers won’t tell him anything and is declared a fugitive.  Rogers meets with Romanoff and they manage to locate a secret SHEILD bunker in New Jersey where they activate a secret computer which contains the preserved consciousness of Armin Zola.  Zola reveals that since WW2 when SHEIDL was founded, Hyrda has secretly operated within its ranks with the aim of humanity willingly surrendering its freedom in exchange for its security.  They manage to escape just before a SHEILD missile destroys the bunker and realise that Pierce is Hyrda’s secret leader within SHEILD.

Rogers and Romanoff enlist Sam Wilson to help them.  Wilson has a “Falcon” wing back pack which lets him fly.  They fight the Winter Solider and Rogers recognises him as Bucky Barnes from WW2.  Hill rescues them and takes them to a safehouse where they find Fury who had faked his death.  They realise that Hyra is going to sabotage the Helicarriers by replacing their controller chips.

Rogers broadcasts the plans across the PA system at HQ.  Romanoff who is disguisedas one of the VIPs disarms Pierce and Fury forces him to unlock SHEILD’s database so that Romanoff can leak the information exposing Hyra to everyone.  There is a fight and Fury kills Pierce.

Rogers and Wilson get onto 2 helicarriers and rep-lace the chips but the Winter Solider destroys Wilson’s wing suit and starts to fight Rogers, but Rogers mages to replace the chip which allows Hill to take control of all 3 vessels and have them destroy each other.

Rogers try’s to get the Winter Slider to recognise him but as the carriers collide he is thrown into a river.  The Winter Solider recuses him before running into the woods.

Fury leaves to find the remaining Hyra cells and Rogers and Wilson look for the Winter Solider.

In a mid-credits scene we see an energy filled scepter and twin prisoners one with superhuman speed and the other with telekinetic powers.

In a post-credits scene the Winter Solider visits a Captain America museum and looks at a display about Bucky.

. 6/10

Starting – Matthew Mcconnerty, Anne Hathaway, Michael Caine, Jessica Chaistern

This is a SciFi film about a widowed former astronaut who is called on to join a mission through black holes where time moves at a different speed to earth in an attempt to save Earth.

His daughter believes her room is haunted but could it be her father trying to co tact her from another dimension?

6/10

Staring – Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Natalie Portman

In the past Odin’s father Bor defeated the Dark Elf Malekith who wants to destroy the universe using a weapon called Aether.  Bor hid the Aeher in a stone column but Malekith, his lieutenant Algrim and a few Dark Elves secretly escape into suspended animation.

In the present day Asgard Loki is in prison for the crime he committed in Avengers Assemble.

Thor and his friends discover that the Convergence is happening which aligns the nine realms and means portals linking the worlds appear at random..

In London Dr Erik Selvig has been institutionalised in a Mental Hospital following Loki taking over his mind. Dr Jane Foster, her intern Darcy Lewis and Daisy’s new intern Ian Boothby are at an abandoned factory where some of the portals have appeared.  Jane is teleported to a realm where she is infected by the Aether.  Heimdall who has been keeping watch over her from Asgard tells Thor that Jane has left Earth, but she soon returns.  Thor manages to transport to Earth, finds Jane and takes her back to Asgard.

Odin sports that Jane has been infected with the Aether and says that it will kill her and that a bad prophesy is coming true.

Malekith senses that the Aether is near and attacks Asgard.  Thor’s mum Frigga is killed protecting Jane, but Malekith is forces to flee without Jane.  Odin insists Thor and Jane stay in Asgard, but Thor decides to seek revenge, takes Jane and enlists Loki to help.

Thor and Loki use Jane and trick Malekith to release the Aeuther out of Jane, but the Aether consumes Malekith and Loki is fatally wounded dying in Thor’s arms.

Thor and Jane discover a portal to Earn and go back.  Dr Erik Selvig has been released from hospital and they work with him, Darcy and Ian to try to prevent Malekith destroying the universe by using the portals.  The Convergence centres on Greenwich and Thor battles Malekith across the portals.  Jane and her friends use their equipment to help Thor battle and eventually Malemith is crushed by his own ship.

Thor returns to Asgard, where he declines Odin’s offer to take the throne and tells Odin of Loki’s sacrifice. As he leaves, Odin’s form transforms into Loki, who is alive and impersonating Odin.

There is a mid-credit scene where “the collector” is given the Aether and says “one down five to go”.

In a post-credits scene, Jane and Thor reunite on Earth.

7/10

Staring – David Oyelowo, Tom Wilkinson, Time Roth, Carmen Ejogo, Common

This is a powerful historical drama tells the story of how hard black people had to fight to get the right to vote in America led by Martin Luther King Jr

The main focus concerns a protest march they wanted to make that would take them across a bridge in Selma where they were at first refused and then attacked. When the attacks were televised and more people joined the fight for civil rights and the final march.

8/10

Staring – Did James, Leslie Phillips, Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey, Hattie Jacques, Kenneth Connor

This funny early Carry On film follows the members of a police station including some new recruits and the trouble they get into.

7/10

Staring – Robert Downey Jr, Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Stephanie Szstak, James Badge Dale, Jon Favreau, Ben Kingsley

Tony Stark remembers a New Years Eve party where he meets a scientist Maya Hansen who has invented Extremis which is a regenerative treatment to help recovery from crippling injuries.  A disabled scientist Aldrich Killian who offers them a role at his company Advanced Idea Mechanics, but Stark rejects this and humiliates Killian.

In the present day (6 months after the events in the Avengers), Stark is having nightmares and panic attacks related to the battle.  He spends a lot of time building Iron man suits rather then spending time with his girlfriend Pepper Potts.

There is a series of bombs which are claimed by a terrorist known as the Mandarin, but no one knows who he is.  Starks chief of security Happy Hogan is seriously injured in one of the attacks which leads Stark to issue a televised threat to Mandarin.  Starks home is then destroyed by helicopters.  Pepper managed to escape by putting on an Iron Man suit along with Maya who came to warn them.  Stark escapes separately in one of his suits but doesn’t tell them he alive, meaning most of the world believes he is dead.

Stark travels to Tennessee and meets up with a 10 year old Iron Man fan called Harley who helps him out by mentioning a local attack which is similar to the others.  Stark discovers that the bombing as actually people combusting after they have been subjected to Extremis and the terrorist plot was used as a cover-up for Extremis’s flaws.

Harley helps Stark track Mandarin to Miami and Stark sneaks in to their HQ and discovers Mandarin is just an actor called Trevor Slattery who claims to be unaware of what is being done in the name of his character.

Killian then reveals he is the real Mandarin and captures Stark.  He shows Stark that he has already kidnapped Pepper and is subjecting her to the Extremis treatment to force Stark to fix the flaws in the programme to save his girlfriend

Killian trapes James Rhodes (formerly War Machine now called the Iron Patriot) and steals the armour.  Stark escapes and finds Rhodes.  They discover that Killian wants to kill the President on Air Force One.  Stark manages to use his suit to save a number of passengers before the plane crashes, but Killian gets the President.

Stark and Rhodes trace him to an oil platform, and Stark goes to save Pepper and Rhodes goes to save the President.  Stark summons many of his suits and Rhodes saves the President.  Stark finds Pepper who has survived the Extremis procedure, but before he can save her the rig starts to collapse and she falls into a fireball.

Stark manages to trap Killian into one of his Iron Man suits and makes it self destruct, but the Extremis means he survives and he then starks to attack Stark.  Pepper who survived her fall due to Extremis hits Killian with a pole, killing him but saving Stark.

Stark orders his computer JARVIS to destroy each suit to prove he cares more about Pepper than he does about being Iron Man.  Pepper’s condition is stabilised and Stark undergoes an operation to remove the shrapnel near his heart.  he then throws the chest arc reactor into the sea but says that he will always be Iron Man.

There is a post credit scene with Stark talking to Dr Bruce Banner who has fallen asleep listening to the story.

DVD extras – behind the scenes feature and preview to Thor Dark World

7/10

Staring – Sarah Gaddon, Bek Powley, Jack Reynor, Rupert Everett, Emily Watson, Roger Allam

This is a dramatisation of possible events during VE night in London 1945 when Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret were allowed outside to celebrate with the public.

5/10

Staring – Lily James, Care Blanchett, Richard Madden, Stellan Skarsgard, Holiday Grainger, Derek Jacobi, Helena Bonham Carter

This is a live action version of the original Disney but without the songs.

Ellis mother dies but she never forgets her mothers advise to have courage and be kind. Father remarries Lady Tremaine who has 2 daughters Drisella and Anastasia.  When her father dies unexpectedly Ella’s mother and stepsisters and decide to treat her as a servant.

One day when she is walking in the forest she find a man who is the Prince but she doesn’t realise it. He is under pressure to find a wife and his father the King hosts a ball for all eligible women to come to so that he can find a wife. 
Ella’s stepmother and step sisters refuse to let her go but her fairy godmother arrives and helps her go to the ball. Ella dances snd falls in love with the prince but the magic runs out snd she has to leave by midnight just leaving her shoe. The Prince searches the Kingdom to try to find the woman who fell in love with he eventually finds her and they get married.

7/10

Staring – Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hiddleston, Clark Gregg, Cobie Smulders, Stellan Skarsgård, Samuel L Jackson

Loki meets with the other who is a leader of a race called the Chitauri in exchange the Tesseract energy source, the other Loki an army to try to defeat Earth.
SHEILD Director Nick Fury and his lieutenant Agent Maria Hill visit a research facility which is being evacuated.  They see Dr Erik Selvig (unaware at the time that he is under Loki’s control). SHEILD Agent Phil Coulson tells them the Tesseract has begun radiating an unusual form of energy. It suddenly activates and opens a wormhole, and Loki comes through it. Loki takes the Tesseract and uses his scepter to control Selvig and a couple of agents, including Clint Baron /Hawkeye to help him escape.

Fury reactivates the Avengers Initiative.  Agent Natasha Romanoff recruits Dr Bruce Banner/The Hulk due to his expertise with Gamma Radiation.  Coulson recruits Tony Stark/IronMan and Fury gets Steve Rogers/Captain America.

They manage to capture Loki, but then his brother Thor arrives to free him hoping he can convince him to stop his plans.  Thor then agrees to take Loki to SHEILDs flying aircraft carrier (the Helicarrier) where he is imprisoned.

The Avengers start to argue about what to do about Loki. Barton and Loki’s other possessed agents attack the Helicarrier, causing Banner to transform into the Hulk. Stark and Rogers try to repair the carrier, and Thor attempts to stop the Hulk’s rampage. Romanoff fights Barton, and knocks him unconscious, breaking Loki’s mind control. Loki escapes after killing Coulson and ejecting Thor from the airship, while the Hulk falls to the ground after attacking a SHIELD fighter jet. Fury uses Coulson’s death to persuade the Avengers into working as a team. Loki uses the Tesseract,  with a device Selvig built, to open a wormhole above Stark Tower to the Chitauri fleet in space, launching his invasion in New York.

The Avengers start to defend New York , but quickly realize they will be overwhelmed as wave after wave of Chitauri descend upon Earth. Banner arrives and transforms into the Hulk, and together he, Rogers, Stark, Thor, Barton, and Romanoff battle the Chitauri while evacuating civilians. The Hulk finds Loki and beats him into submission. Romanoff makes her way to Selvig now freed of Loki’s control, reveals that Loki’s scepter can be used to shut down his invention. Meanwhile, Fury’s superiors launch a nuclear missile at New York to try to stop the war. Stark intercepts the missile and takes it through the wormhole toward the Chitauri fleet. The missile detonates, destroying the Chitauri mothership and disabling their forces on Earth. Stark’s suit runs out of power, and he falls back through the wormhole just as Romanoff closes it. Stark goes into freefall, but the Hulk catches him and Stark suggests they all got to a shawarma restaurant . In the aftermath, Thor returns Loki and the Tesseract to Asgard, the other Avengers and SHEILD agents go their own ways and Fury is confident that they will return when they are needed again.

There is a mid-credits scene, where the Other discuses with his master about the failed attack on Earth. In a post credit scene, the Avengers eat in silence at a shawarma restaurant as suggested by Stark.

There is a behind the scenes extra.

8/10

Director – Sean Anders

Staring – Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis, Jennifer Aniston, Jamie Foxx, Chris Pine, Kevin Spacey, Christoph Waltz

Sequel to Horrible Bosses. Kurt and Dale jobs Banbury Horrible Bosses and decided to set up in business together with an invention cold shower body. Find an investor called Berkhamsted but he pulls out after they spend a lot of money and facing bankruptcy they decide out of desperation to kidnap and ransom Hanson’s bullying son Rex to try and get even got to do some serious situations which they eventually have to work out a way of getting out of.

6/10