ScreenAnarchy has partnered with Magnet Releasing and Magnolia Pictures to bring you a couple of wonderful films on Blu-ray and DVD. First up we have two copies of Toa Fraser's brutal New Zealand Maori action film
The Dead Lands. A film that our Jason Gorber very much enjoyed when he saw it at the Toronto International Film Festival last year:
An engaging film with strong commitments from those on screen, the visit to The Dead Lands
is both epic and intimate. Audience expectations
should be tempered, as the film defies easy categorization, and
those expecting a simple action film may be disappointed. Still, for
those willing to take
the journey, and who are willing to be patient as it tells its tale with
a mix of kinetic brutality and introspective spiritualism, The Dead Lands proves to be a memorable, rewarding experience.
Next up is 2014 Cannes standout
White God, from Hungarian director Kornél Mundruczó. We have five copies of this stunner on DVD to give away to lucky readers. A wildly visual tale of what happens to the outcast when they can no longer supress their anger at being ignored and rejected,
White God damn near made me cry in several places. Gorber was impressed, though perhaps not as much as I, when he saw it last spring:
At its best, White God is a cautionary fairytale about
contemporary Europe, a continent where both left and right wing are
growing increasingly reactionary, and entrenched notions of "purity"
continue to plague various countries as they balance their unique
cultures against the hegemony of a greater, interconnected world.
This
backdrop gives the film both its bark and its bite, making it more than
something as trivial as a game of fetch. Yet he film works also,
thankfully, as a fun little action movie, akin to a Night of the Living Dead or Planet of the Apes-type flick that mixes its message in with the medium of genre cinema.
Sure,
plenty of wags won't abide what they'll deride as a simple tale, but
for those open to a story about revenge seen from a four legged warrior,
they just might be in for a treat.
If you are interested, drop me a line at
josh [at] ScreenAnarchy [dot] net and make sure that you include your name, US address, and which film you want. If you want both, you'll need to send two e-mails, with the film's name in the subject line. I'll be drawing winners next Monday, August 31st. Good luck!