Geek of Oz

Beardy and the Geek are back and this time we talk to one of the men behind the phenomenal Winter City.  Patrick Purcell and his brother Carl have scripted a neo-noir detective story that revolves around a mysterious, masked and murderous man who makes his mark through meticulously mapped moments of mayhem... or similar. Back in June I reviewed the first few books and loved it so it was great to have a chat to one of it's main men, Patrick Purcell. Check out the full podcast after the jump!

Films with a focus on time travel are notoriously difficult to pull off. Geeks the world over who have a basic knowledge of the inherent paradoxical nature of time travel through little more than Star Trek, Quantum Leap and everyone's favourite kid next door, Mr Michael J. Fox. While the subject matter itself can cause automatic concern for some, rest assured that in the hands of otherwise "indie" writer and director Rian Johnson (Brick, The Brothers Bloom), you need not fear time travel. In 2072, time travel exists, albeit illegally, and is used to transport targets 30 years in the past to be disposed by willing employees of the mob. The only catch is that you must always dispose of your target, even if the target is you.

Loud electric guitar, disconcerting puppets and a rather impressive pants bulge can only mean one thing – the 80's classic film Labyrinth , which returned to the big screen last night as part of Cremorne Hayden Orpheum Theatre’s ‘I Love Retro’ series. It’s hard to beat watching a film so steeped in nostalgia when you’re in a cinema with six hundred fans all eagerly waiting to applaud each iconic moment.

Geek of Oz were privileged to attend a preview of this year’s upcoming Graphic festival – a highly anticipated weekend of graphic storytelling, animation, music and gaming to be held at the Sydney Opera House on November 10th and 11th. Graphic festival showcases and celebrates innovative and creative new forms of story-telling, and although only in its third year, has already racked up some fairly impressive feathers in its cap, having featured the likes of Gotye, Neil Gaiman and Regurgitator in previous years. This year’s lineup is no less impressive. The highlights include: Pixar: Behind-the-Screens , hosted by Lee Unkrich, director of Toy Story 3 , who will allow audiences a rare glimpse into the animation masters’ workshop; an illustrated musical collaboration between celebrated New Zealand soul outfit Fat Freddy’s Drop and street artist Otis Frizzell; a design-your-own-game workshop with Qantm College; an exciting homage to Dr Seuss’s work, put to the music of over 25 onstage p...

When Madman first announced the line up for REEL ANIME at Sydney Supanova, I remember watching the trailers for each movie and being most impressed with Wolf Children. A reasonably basic, albeit fantastic storyline made me feel as though this could be a simple delight. I could not have been more wrong. "When Hana falls in love, it feels like a fairy tale. She starts a family and produces two beautiful children – Yuki (Snow), a girl, and Ame (Rain), a boy. But the family harbours a secret – their father is a 'Wolf-Man', half human and half wolf, and has passed his affliction on to his children. The family try to reside discreetly in a quiet corner of the city, but their joyful life is shattered when their father passes away. To live peacefully, Hana must make the difficult decision to move Yuki and Ame to a small town and surround them with nature."

Based upon the manga series by Kentaro Miura, Berserk: The Egg of the King is the first of three films which retell the original 1990 manga series and 1997 anime series . Much like REEL ANIME alumni Rebuild of Evangelion, Berserk compresses the anime series into a series of films that often mirror sequences from the TV series frame to frame.  "An epic action-adventure tale set against a dark, European-inspired medieval fantasy world, Berserk - The Egg of the King follows the story of Guts, a lone mercenary renowned for his ferocity and unmatched in a fight especially when armed with his imposing sword, a towering blade as tall as he. His destiny is to eventually become 'The Black Swordsman' and he will face untold horrors in battle."

If you know absolutely anything about Japanese animation you will surely have heard of Studio Ghibli. Purveyors of such fine films as Spirited Away , My Neighbour Totoro and Princess Mononoke , Studio Ghibli are often described as "Disney of the East" which is in my opinion an understatement. "Set in Yokohama, From Up On Poppy Hill is a high school love story that take place in the year before the 1964 Tokyo Summer Olympics. As the country begins to pick itself up from the devastation of the Second World War, the new generation struggles to move towards a prosperous future whilst trying not to lose the essence of their past. The film's rich and vibrant animation captures the entrancing beauty of Yokohama's harbour and lush surrounding hillsides and, with a soundtrack that draws inspiration from the finest music of the time, perfectly captures the thrills of young romance and the hope of a new dawn." The release of any new Studio Ghibli film is ca...