Fuse Issue 84

Fuse.

Really grim fairytales Jurassic Park UK summer festival guide Documentaries

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Friday 22 May 2015

Short Fuse.

Comments and rants on entertainment news.

London’s calling, but is Assassin’s Creed still worth listening to?

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t’s that time of year again, when Ubisoft desperately beats out another title in the Assassin’s Creed series.

The livestreamed reveal of Assassin’s Creed Syndicate on YouTube described the game as ‘an epic single player experience set in London during the height of the Industrial Revolution… [where] players will embody both Jacob Frye and Evie Frye, twin Assassins raised to follow the Creed’.

Those unaware of the previously quoted statement’s unspoken weight are blessed. Last year Alex Amancio, Ubisoft’s creative director, announced that Assassin’s Creed Unity would not have the option of a female character as it would have been ‘really a lot of extra production work’.

Many fans, who were excited for the promised completely customisable avatar, suddenly found out that this was being

abandoned in favour of colour swatches and changeable clothes for the protagonist, good old white guy Arno.

The backlash to this statement was felt throughout the internet, from those frustrated that customisation was so limited to those who felt it was a massive overreaction as representation didn’t matter.

This time round, Ubisoft are more than happy to prove they’ve seen the error of their ways, and they’ve pretty obviously come to the conclusion that bunging a female in there will fix the issue entirely; an animated beautiful band-aid named Evie.

This obvious ploy is even more frustrating for fans and ridiculously embarrassing for Ubisoft. Even though it’s claimed the game will feature both male and female protagonists, the gameplay released only features Jacob. Evie is seen and speaks at points, yes,

but doesn’t do much more than that.

Worse than this, the official debut UK trailer exclusively features Jacob, gallivanting around with his painfully cocky cockney voiceover.

Even the still at the end of the trailer for the forthcoming DLC features only Jacob, with Evie forgotten. If it wasn’t for it being zealously repeated, the idea that Evie is a main character, let alone playable, would be inconceivable.

This whole debacle shows how wrong Ubisoft got it. It wasn’t an army of enraged women that needed calming, but a heartbroken collection of fans who had hoped to see themselves in the Assassin’s Creed world that needed their faith restored.

Here’s hoping for next time.

Moya O’Rourke

Birthday suits make for great battle armour

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ne of the things that Game of Thrones is infamous for is its tendency to have female characters undress on a regular basis. But this doesn’t necessarily mean demoralising or objectify them.

Women shouldn’t feel that by being nude they are instantly transformed into sex dolls with no other value or credence.

Nudity doesn’t equal sexism and objectification: the reaction to the nudity does.

This being said, more often than not, on screen nudity is intended to place the female characters on a plate for male characters and audiences alike.

Refreshingly, this isn’t the case in Thrones. Daenerys Targaryen and fellow females remind us that women can be naked and empowered. They can take pride in their sexuality.

In a particularly engrossing scene, Daenerys stands up in a bath in front of a male, and I could

In Case You Missed It A quick look at some of the entertainment stories from the past fortnight which were too interesting, funny or downright bizarre to overlook.

A team of LEGO builders called Titans Creations have taken fandom to a whole new level with this model of the Millennium Falcon. Made for an event at Legoland Malaysia on 4 May, the 110cm-long model is made up of 10,000 individual pieces (including two-dozen LEDs) and took a team of six builders two months to build.

liken the moment to that of a rising phoenix. She was not feathered, nor is she a bird, but the power with which she stood there nude was a subtle but critical statement of taking control of her own body.

As a strong advocate of feminism and equal opportunities I am frequently repulsed by the depictions of rape, especially being used as a tool, and dismissal of women and their power in Thrones.

However, it is dangerous to foster a culture which tells women to be afraid of their nudity, and that its only purpose is to please men.

If we constantly oppose female nudity we will reinforce the notion that it is directly linked to seeing women as purposeless sex objects.

The female characters in Game of Thrones are three-dimensional, complex, interesting and archetypal. They aren’t perfect, and their strength doesn’t just come from sassy one liners and some ass kicking. Instead, they all have their

weaknesses, troubles, intellect and goals.

Why should a naked pair of breasts distract from this? If we state that, by taking their clothes off, their worth and strength is reduced, then we will objectify them, but the initial nudity doesn’t.

Admittedly, there are issues of gender inequality and overt patriarchy in the show. However Daenerys, Ros, Osha, Margaery, Talisa Maegyr, Ygritte, Shae, and Melissandrei have all disrobed over the series and, as Thrones has humanised them, we do not see them as bodies.

If you are concerned about this sexism do not lump it together with scenes in which our favourite females heroes decide to strut around in their birthday suit.

Sian Bradley

The future of The Simpsons was thrown into doubt last week when it was revealed that actor Harry Shearer - the voice of characters like Mr Burns, Waylon Smithers, Ned Flanders, Reverend Lovejoy, Principal Skinner and Otto the bus driver - is leaving the show after 26 years. We’d make a joke about this news not being particularly excellent, but we were worried that someone would release the hounds on us.

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Friday 22 May 2015

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ll good things must come to an end - except for The Simpsons, which seems determined to go on forever despite losing one of its key cast members this past fortnight.

The end of the academic year is almost upon us, and with it comes the frantic clusterfuck of unhappiness we call the exam season.

Hair torn out over unfinished (or in some cases unwritten) dissertations; fistfights in Western Bank over the last chair in the entire library; complete mental breakdowns as a first-year History student realises

there’s no way to revise for all of ‘Paths From Antiquity To Modernity’ in a week - exam season can get ugly.

But fear not; there are two bright spots on the horizon to get you through the dark pit of despair.

First, the Harley is offering a student discount until 8 June (and burgers are the best comfort food).

And secondly, there’s a new issue of Fuse out! But you knew that already, since you’re reading it right now.

We’ve got some great features this issue. Screen and Music are both looking forward to

the summer: Rhys Handley talks documentaries ahead of Sheffield’s very own Doc/Fest in June, while Tara Hodgson gives us a rundown of the best summer music festivals.

And Glastonbury.

Over in Arts, Valeria Vigilante takes a fascinating look at the reality of some of our best known fairy tales; and the Games editors have unleashed their inner six year-olds with a feature all about dinosaurs, bless their little cotton socks.

We’ve also got our usual Listings page crammed full of the latest

goings on in the Uni and the city, and reviews of films like the amazing Mad Max: Fury Road, the newest album from Wolf Alice, racing game Project CARS and the Crucible’s current production of The Full Monty (which we are honour bound to review every time it comes to town).

So good luck with exams, have a lovely summer, and we’ll see you in September - when we might look a little different...

Phil Bayles & Joss Woodend

Editorial.

This amazing photo of the Arts Tower was taken by Katherine Hodgson.

When it comes to immortal works of art, we need to forget about the price tags

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icasso’s ‘The Women of Algiers’ features an array of naked women distorted by a colourful, abstract lens; sort of like looking through a 12-rated kaleidoscope. Last week, the piece was auctioned off at Christie’s for a record-breaking $179 million that’s £115m.

Whether this is a product of capitalism or something inside us, many of us will agree that we like owning things - there is satisfaction in surrounding ourselves with ‘things’ that mirror our identity. The

successful auctioning off of ‘The Women of Algiers’, however, seems to have highlighted the sticky side of this situation; these things, all things, are, inevitably, subject to price guns. We are essentially told the value of objects. Does this mean we are in danger of thinking of works of art too much in terms of their commercial value?

Well, first, what’s to say that the commercial value of a piece of art is completely separate from the piece’s intrinsic worth?

If art is a vehicle of expression,

then this would necessitate a more egalitarian understanding of it but only of the act of expressing, rather than how the finished product is surveyed.

Most of us would agree that experimentation, radicalism and the visually beautiful are all winning characteristics of...well, many things. So it seems that some art can, justifiably, be seen as ‘better’ than other pieces. Logically, the commercial value would follow.

But it’s also about context. Let’s say that, instead of Picasso, a

young man from Northampton had the idea for ‘The Women of Algiers’. Art-wise, he’s just getting started. Still, he tries selling it for well over £100m.

Would this be ridiculous? Yes. Because the woman who was willing to part with $179m didn’t just see a painting featuring a bunch of nude women when looking at ‘The Women of Algiers’. She wasn’t just fond of abstract art and thought she’d indulge. Instead, she was purchasing a fragment of cultural history; a desire to own something

by the same man who painted ‘The Young Ladies of Avignon’ and ‘Guernica’, a man whose name is known the world over.

On the flipside , this demonstrates our society’s tendency towards glorifying names and people.

A person’s value is, arguably, priceless. But if you could distil fame andgenius and passion, then I imagine it would look a lot like $179m.

Stephanie Dando

Sheffield’s favourite club looks good for 35

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lmost every Sheffield student probably has a story about the Leadmill.

Whether it’s from a glorious pissed up night out, or the “I was there” gig that saw an unknown band on the brink of notoriety burst into the music scene, the Leadmill has touched each and every one of our lives - mostly in a good way.

This month marked the 35th anniversary of the legendary converted flour mill, the stage of which has played host to almost every local Sheffield band worth knowing. And, on inspection of its archives, pretty much every other band in the world has performed there.

However, the Leadmill is most proudly known for its nurturing of local talent, including the Arctic Monkeys, Drenge, and of course Pulp, who have played the club a record 18 times. Pulp’s involvement

with the venue hasn’t stopped there, with Jarvis Cocker and Steve Mackey returning recently to DJ at the official birthday party.

In an interview with NME, Cocker and Mackey praised the Leadmill’s support of local bands, explaining how “getting a spot at the Leadmill was how bands like us managed to get out of the rehearsal room”.

The Leadmill is a truly special place, an icon of independence, local culture and heritage, and we should count ourselves lucky for its continued existence.

Happy Birthday, Leadmill!

Benjy Taylor

Photo: Simon Varwell We were devastated to learn this fortnight about the death of Blues legend BB King, widely regarded as one of the greatest guitarists of all time, at the age of 89. King was awarded his 15th Grammy Award three years ago, and was performing in as many as 100 concerts a year right up to his recent hospitalisation. The world of music is surely poorer for his absence.

In lighter news from the world of music, footage of a U2 concert in Vancouver went viral after bassist David Howell Evans, better known as the Edge, walked off the edge of the stage. Unsurprisingly, every news website and their dog rushed to point out the humour in the fact that a musician called the Edge fell off the edge of a stage.

But we at Fuse are bigger than that. We just hope he doesn’t get vertigo from the experience.

Friday 22 May 2015

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UK Festival Guide 2015 Music editor Tara Hodgson gives you the annual round-up of the UK’s major music festivals, plus a few smaller favourites

Glastonbury

T in the Park

The godfather of all music festivals returns to Worthy Farm next month for another weekend of The Scottish bash sees in its first year on the new turf of Strathallan Castle (having just been acts across its 100+ stages. With tickets selling out in a record breaking 25 minutes, it’s sure to given the green light from Perth and Kinross council after wildlife concerns), with potentially be another Glasto to remember. The controversial booking of Kanye West as the Saturday night the best line-up of any British festival this summer. With the headline acts coming in the headliner has divided the crowd, but if Kanye’s not your cup of tea there’s plenty more on offer forms of Kasabian, the Libertines, and Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, this festival is starting to give Glasto a run for its money. including: Foo Fighters; the Who; Florence + the Machine; the Vaccines and many, many more.

When: 24 - 28 June 2015 Tickets: £220 SOLD OUT

When: 10 – 12 July 2015 Tickets: £205 weekend ticket

Reading and Leeds

Latitude

This double festival is a favourite of young people, and definitely not for the light-hearted.

This is the one that most people cite as their first major festival, so expect to see a lot of firsttime campers around the arena. The headliners this year aim to please all walks of life, with Mumford & Sons, Metallica, and the Libertines taking the late night slots.

This one is for the more refined festival-goer, with a more intimate arena, and LOTS of designer wellies. The chilled-out atmosphere is a nice contrast to the mayhem of other British festivals, and acts from other art forms as well as music - such as literature, poetry and comedy - are also on offer. The headliners consist of Alt-J, Portishead, and Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, as well as Laura Marling, James Blake, and Manic Street Preachers.

When: 28 – 30 August 2015 Tickets: £213 weekend ticket

When: 16 – 19 July 2015 Tickets: £200 weekend ticket

Tramlines – Sheffield’s very own festival, Tramlines is fast becoming one of the biggest inner-city festivals in the country. With performances from Wu Tang Clan, Basment Jaxx, the Buzzcocks and the Charlatans, the multi-venue festival takes place across the 24-26 July for just £33 a ticket.

Green Man – The popular Welsh festival returns with a stellar line-up, including Super Furry Animals, Hot Chip, and St.Vincent, between 20 – 23 August, in its unbeatable location. And they even have a ticket option for students at £145 for the whole weekend.

Wilderness – Set in the Oxfordshire countryside from 6 – 9 August, this is a festival with a difference. Along with the typical music stages (which are headlined by Bjork and Ben Howard), there’s also the opportunity to ride a camel, go for a swim in the Cornbury Estate lake, and embark on a foraging and cooking course. Tickets £175.94.

Friday 22 May 2015

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YOU BET JURASS(IC) WE’RE DOING A FEATURE ON DINOSAURS To celebrate the upcoming release of Jurassic World and 14 years of patience, Oliver England and Andrew Parkinson dig up two dinosaurs from gaming history while Ash Emritte reminisces building his dream in Operation Genesis.

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OPERATION GENESIS (2003)

THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK (1997)

ike my love life, the history of film tie-in videogames has enjoyed some elusive highs and far more soul-crushingly regrettable lows. Of the former, Goldeneye 007 (1997) is often regarded as the greatest console shooter of all time, while E.T. the Extra Terrestrial (1982) remains one of the most expensive and critically-panned failures in videogame history, leading Atari to bury many of its unsold copies in the New Mexico desert.

In this beautiful and tragic past lies The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997). With a similar look to the era’s Command and Conquer titles, the player controls an unnamed character through Isla Sorna as they hunt down dinosaurs while evading the assaults of rival poachers. Although a limited range

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remember, many moons ago, when I was a wee youngling in Game store, my eyes chanced upon a Tyrannosaurus Rex striking an argumentative pose with a Spinosaurus. It was then I noticed the words Jurassic Park and decided that I must have it.

Operation Genesis was, at its core, basic wish fulfilment 101. It could not have had a more brilliant concept. As the game’s tagline adds: ‘Build it, dream it, survive it!’

Hurricanes will attack your island from time to time, often than not destroying part of the fence that separates your hungry carnivores from your visitors. You now have a

of weapons are available at the start, upgrades can be collected as the player progresses across the game’s 19 levels. Co-operative and competitive multiplayer options are also available to add value to a tiresome single player mode.

Released in the dying embers of the Sega Mega Drive’s lifespan, the sluggish and repetitive gameplay of The Lost World: Jurassic Park means it’s perhaps not as memorable as fellow Apaloosa Interactive title Ecco the Dolphin (1992). However, it still offers just about enough fun to distract you from the disappointment of its cinematic namesake. Yes, I still feel that pain 18 years on.

Oliver England

Ash Emritte

TRESPASSER (1998)

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wo raptors slowly approach a grazing Parasaurolophus, one from each side, mimicking one of Alan Grant’s classic monologues from the first film.

Their pace slowly increases as they occasionally shift from side to side.

One roars and the other moves in for the kill only to suddenly hit the floor in a tremendous thud as it collides with the herbivore’s hitbox, but not the creature itself.

The other raptor attempts to flee but I quickly draw my revolver which swings violently through the air; I fire three shots into the ground, two into a tree and one into the air before finally managing to move the camera down to see the raptor chewing on my stomach while I flamboyantly flap my gun against its head and watch as the health indicator tattoo on my left breast grows redder. This is Trespasser.

The story of Trespasser is a long and painful one; billed as a tie-in to the upcoming sequel to Jurassic Park, the ambitious game would

dinosaur rampage on your hands.

Fear not! If you had half a brain, you should have already built a security bunker and a ranger station. Upon the fun of building your park, the game lays on the joy of seeing its destruction and the thrill of taking control of the ranger helicopter and tranquilising that angry Rex or those hard-to-get, pesky Velociraptors.

An alternative to tranquilisng, if you are cold and heartless, would be to simply kill them (though, remember, these biological assets of yours cost a great deal of money to bring into existence).

Operation Genesis is a game with a strong concept, but one that is only partially realised. It demands a sequel. In the meantime, hit the web and explore the great variety of mods available. You will not be disappointed.

feature a complex engine that could render beautiful environments filled with hundreds of trees and filled with fearsome dinosaurs that, uniquely, did not follow scripted animation patterns: their movements were controlled purely by their artificial intelligence and a set of parameters.

Unfortunately Trespasser was constantly going over-budget and was taking far longer to create than initially supposed: in 1998 the game was rushed to a buggy and unfinished release that struggled to run on any PC at the time.

Revolutionary visual effects became rows of clunky trees swapping between 2D and 3D models, raptors with broken AI flopped gaily from side to side like they

were trying out for Britney Spears’ backup dancers, and the protagonist, Anne, was left with only one useable arm (‘useable’ perhaps being too kind).

But for every gyrating T-Rex there is a spark of brilliance in this broken masterpiece; this is of course the game that influenced Half Life 2, one of the most highly acclaimed first-person shooters ever, and was the first game to include ragdoll physics. Trespasser is a modern

fable for the dangers of ambition, a game ahead of its time: a contemporary Fall of Icarus, if you will.

Andrew Parkinson

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Friday 22 May 2015 Photo: Michał Koralewski via Flickr

Friday 22 May 2015

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hen I read The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen, I was surprised and a little bit shocked to see my beloved mermaid dying and reduced to sea foam, rather than marrying her prince.

It was akin to discovering Santa Claus isn’t real, but in this case it’s even worse: it’s a lie on top of another. Learning the truth behind the Little Mermaid isn’t a compulsory part of growing up; you can be a mature human being without knowing how the mermaid’s new pair of legs made her feel like she was walking on blades. Or you can know the original version of this story, but still ignore a lot of others.

The stories were adapted for the screen by cutting off all the violent and bloody details and, often, adding a happy ending.

“If we want to people watch it, we have to change how the stepmother dies: it’s too cruel. The censor would be on our back.” That’s what Walt Disney thought in producing Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the start of ‘fairy tales in celluloid’.

In actuality, while collecting the German oral traditions in the 19th century, the Brothers Grimm had already pre-sanitised some of the real events that inspired the stories in order to make their books more sellable.

Speaking again of Snow White, her character was based on the life of Margarete von Waldeck, a 16th-century German noblewoman.

Her brother had a copper mine where he employed small children who, through their work, became severely deformed. These were the inspiration for the dwarves of the tale. To the workers suspected of stealing, poisoned fruits, like apples, were offered.

Not a very nice environment to grow up for the little Margarete.

She had an envious stepmother who sent her to the Brussels court to get rid of her. There, she met her

prince, Philip II of Spain – the same guy who married Bloody Mary and proposed to her half-sister Elizabeth – who became enchanted with her and proposed marriage.

“Hell no”, said the king of Spain, who sent his best men to poison her. In the real world, a kiss was no rescue from death.

Like Grimm’s Snow White, Rapunzel is full of gross details about the prince falling from the tower and being blinded by some thorn brushes, but at least it has a ‘happily ever after’. That’s more than we can say for the story behind it. Back in the third century, Rapunzel was the beautiful daughter of a merchant, who used to lock her in a tower while away.

During that time, the girl converted to Christianity and started praying to God, clearly and loudly from the tower. Eventually, forced to choose between his fortune and his daughter, the merchant father decapitates her, but is himself hit by a lighting strike and dies. Rapunzel thus became Saint Barbara, revered by the Eastern Orthodox Church.

In the end, the Brothers Grimm and Walt Disney did the same thing: they pushed the stories they had into the shape their audiences demanded.

Reading about Cinderella’s stepsister lopping off a toe to fit into a glass slipper is one thing, but seeing it in a children’s film would have been quite another.

No parent would dream of telling their child Perrault’s original version of Little Red Riding Hood just before going to bed.

It could be said that by losing their darker details as time passes, fairy tales have lost their raison d’être in teaching moral values. But there’s more to this than the little details.

The dark side of fairy tales is more than a few gruesome happenings, it’s the hidden metaphorical themes; things that a child, enchanted by the colourful imagery and catchy tunes of a Disney movie (or perhaps equally by the bloodiness of Grimms’ or Perrault’s works) would never notice.

Recalling Perrault’s Little Red Riding Hood, there is a French idiom relating “she has seen the wolf” to

the loss of virginity. Indeed, in the original tale, the girl strips naked in the bed before being eaten up by the wolf; this sexual undertone would be lost on a child.

Only the most precocious child would pick up on the sinister implication of the prince having sex with the unconscious Sleeping Beauty, as occurs in Giambattista Basile’s early version of the story.

Recently, new trend by the big cinema players has emerged: embracing the dark side of fairy tales, challenging the Disney orthodoxy.

In most cases, this exploration involves changing the story significantly from the source material, rather than the restoration of original bloody details. This is the case in the action-live version of Little Red Riding Hood with Amanda Seyfried, in which the wolf becomes a werewolf, or in Snow White and the Huntsman, which is memorable chiefly due to Kristen Stewart’s affair with director Rupert Sanders.

While these projects are pitched at young adult audience, Disney’s most recent output suggests the trend is bifurcating. Sanitised live action remakes of classic cartoons, like this year’s Cinderella or the announced Beauty and the Beast, complement “darker and edgier” retellings, in the case of Maleficent and Into the Woods.

Given how fairy tales have evolved from their inception to the present, the only dark side we can truly be sure will persist is that people will always seek to make money out of old stories.

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Friday 22 May 2015

With Doc/Fest coming up, Rhys Handley talks documentaries

Friday 22 May 2015

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he documentary stands alone in popular collective thought - it is entirely separate to the feature film, to the craft of storytelling.

It is considered and rewarded separately, it is seen to serve another function and is held up on entirely different merits to its fictional counterpart.

Why is this so? Why do our minds slot storytelling into one category and documentary into another as if the two are completely, intrinsically opposite?

The distinction stems from how we separate fact from construction, true from false. “I watch documentaries for information. I watch films to be entertained,” said American songwriter Meshell Ndegeocello.

She describes the line we all draw: we go to feature films to escape the world and to documentaries to immerse ourselves in our own world, to educate ourselves. This education manifests in various ways.

One of our most beloved documentarians, David Attenborough, aims to teach us about the wonders of the natural world, to open our eyes to the environment around us. This is perhaps one that most of us leap to when we hear the word ‘documentary’.

We may be educated in other ways - Josh Fox’s Gasland teaches of the process of fracking, what it means for the world and the communities it affects and gives viewers the insight to participate in a vital debate.

Louis Theroux, another popular British documentarian, immerses himself in the hidden corners of humanity to uncover hard truths we remain ignorant of. He satisfies our curiosity and broadens our perspectives.

Steven Spielberg calls documentaries “the greatest way to educate an entire generation that doesn't often look back to learn anything about the history that provided a safe haven for so many of us today.”

True, documentaries can bring to light topics that people today may otherwise remain unaware of - Oliver Stone’s recent Untold History of the United States series is a stellar example of this goal.

But doesn’t the existence of Spielberg’s own Schindler’s List or Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave blur the distinct line the director has drawn?

While films like these may play a little looser with fact, surely they do just as much as documentaries to raise awareness of historical atrocity, to educate the youth of today?

Werner Herzog, master of both disciplines, isn’t so rigid in his distinction. “You should bear in mind that almost all my documentaries are feature films in disguise,” he warns his audience. For Herzog, both mediums are equally effective methods of communication.

Just as feature films can be educational, documentaries can be entertaining - even riveting and challenging.

Last year, Laura Poitras’ masterful Citizenfour emerged as a shining example of the documentary’s versatility as an art form. As much as it is a compendium detailing the far-reaching, invasive capabilities of the NSA, it is also a visceral political thriller detailing the very human struggle of the fugitive Edward Snowden.

Citizenfour stands not only as a testament to documentary filmmaking, but to filmmaking as a whole, deserving recognition in the same breath as Ava DuVernay’s

9 Selma or Richard Linklater’s Boyhood as one of the most important films of the past year.

Perhaps what draws us to documentaries is that added aspect of human truth beneath the information.

Perhaps this is why Kevin MacDonald’s Marley (top right) is a far more engaging and affecting portrait of a musical icon than John Ridley’s lacklustre Jimi: All Is

By My Side.The talking heads and old footage - the genuine firsthand evidence - gets us to the root of a subject far quicker than a fictionalised portrait likely could.

Of course, we accept this despite an undeniable truth - documentaries are crafted and designed just as feature films are.

Photojournalist Tim Hetherington said, “You can construct whatever story you want to. Documentaries are constructions, as is all journalism.” It is true that every filmmaker has an agenda.

Documentarians, like all journalists, can select, re-order and manipulate the facts they collect to craft a very specific message - a message we may be more willing to adhere to thanks to the added human truth we infer from the documentary as an art form.

Robert Kenner’s deconstruction of the meat industry Food, Inc. or Morgan Spurlock’s Super Size Me are important, affecting films, but they’re specifically designed to push their creators’ ideas, to persuade their audience.

How many vegetarians is Kenner responsible for? How many thought twice about a Big Mac after spending two hours with Spurlock?

Yes, documentaries are educational and enlightening, but they are equally personal and ideological - a fact we would do well to bear in mind.

But the fact documentaries are the product of their makers’ bias does not decrease their artistic nor their educational value.

Documentaries have for years been consistently enlightening, entertaining, enthralling and controversial. They push boundaries and ask questions many would dare not to - look to Michael Moore to see how far the form can go.

Their unique contribution to our culture should be celebrated - as it will be this summer as Doc/Fest rolls out over Sheffield.

From 5-10 June, 150 documentaries from 35 countries will be shown in the Steel City covering matters as varied and unexpected as sheep addiction, black Brooklyn kids playing heavy metal and Kurt Cobain.

It is a fitting tribute to a form that is diverse, daring and vital to the enrichment of all. Their purpose is various and enigmatic, not entirely separate to their fictional counterparts but not entirely bound to them either.

Perhaps actor Steven Yeun sums up where documentaries stand in the best, simplest way: “It's about honesty and real-life circumstances coming out. Granted, it can be swayed by how people tell that story, but overall, I like it because it is true.”

For more information about Doc/Fest, including a programme of events and links to buy tickets, go to sheffdocfest.com

“It’s about honesty and reallife circumstances coming out.

Granted, it can be swayed by how people tell that story, but overall, I like it because it is true” Steven Yeun

“You should bear in mind that almost all my documentaries are feature films in disguise” Werner Herzog

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Friday 22 May 2015

Fuse Games.

PROJECT CARS

SLIGHTLY MAD STUDIOS

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he ultimate driving journey is promised by Project CARS (Community Assisted Racing Simulator), made by Slightly Mad Studios and completely crowdfunded by the general public, with Bandai Namco only recently offering to pay for distribution. But with several delays, a long development cycle and a market saturated with well known racing sims such as Forza and Gran Turismo, it’s safe to say that the odds are stacked against the relatively small, British studio.

But the incredible scope and ambition of the game makes the four year development completely justifiable. Offering a large selection of over 110 tracks at more than 30 locations, with various motorsports being available. All of this is at the players disposal from the get go; the player can start careers from the lowly depths of Karting and work their way up, jump to the upper echelons of open wheel Formula racing, or anywhere in between. All of this is delivered expertly, with different cars and events each have their own unique feel in terms handling and performance which accurately reflects their real life counterparts.

The player is also able to create custom events which allow them to jump straight into the action in any cars at whichever location. These

events can be tweaked to every specific detail, from inclusion of practice laps and qualifying, to weather patterns and race start time (it’s also worth noting that the game boasts a full day night cycle). The online multiplayer stands up just as well, although the addition of local multiplayer would have been nice.

The customisation doesn’t end at the races either, with the player able to tune their car setup and pit strategy to a huge degree of detail, although unlike several of its competitors, Project CARS does not allow the player to customise their car’s parts or create custom decals. This lack of change is made more evident by the fact that, due licensing , several big names are missing from the games relatively small car list of 60, most notable the grand daddy of motorsport Ferrari. This problem becomes ever more apparent once the cars are broken down into their various class, with each event containing only three or four different models of cars, or in many cases all 20 plus drivers in the same car.

However all these problems become miniscule when the race begins and the adrenaline kicks in. Despite being the norm in racing games, Project CARS sound and

visuals are stunning. This coupled with the ferocious AI and the unpredictability of motorsport makes every race realistic enough to give an incredibly exciting and immersive experience. And this is by no means exclusively for racing sim veterans, Project CARS has the usual set of assists and tweaks available, giving even the most novice player the opportunity to become World Champion.

Although it is very accessible, it should be made clear the Project CARS is a simulator, so don’t expect to find any undercar lighting, jumps or explosions.

Project CARS is a game which, despite initial thoughts, lacks neither in quantity or quality. It’s overall life span is further improved by the addition of constant community events; for example the recent F1 Spanish Grand Prix was recreated in game, with leader boards available showing worldwide fastest laps. As it stands, the game is a solid purchase for any petrol head. With some minor bug fixes and the addition of the free DLC cars and tracks promised by the developer, Project CARS could even prove to rival the competition.

Luke Baldwin

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CULT CORNER

REPUBLIQUE REMASTERED CAMOUFLAJ

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et in a dystopia much like Orwell’s 1984, Republique is an enticing little stealth game that drops you into the autocratic world of Metamorphosis, a society where citizens are watched and there is little hope of escaping.

Hope happens to be the name of the girl whom you are trying to save. She is trapped in a state facility for supposedly knowing things she shouldn’t; your mission is to get her to safety. You navigate her through tightly observed corridors by hacking through surveillance cameras and locked doors. There are guards around

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every corner, but there are many ways to stay hidden by utilizing the resources available and unlocking new features.

The game has a smooth interface which allows you to freely jump from one surveillance camera to another with ease, you can control each camera to track the guards and look for tools that Hope can use to quickly escape tricky situations.

The ‘OMNI view’ shows you where the cameras are, what doors you can unlock and alternative routes between rooms. You can gather lots of information in the OMNI view, and even identify guards by their passports. Each room you go into is a puzzle of sorts, you work out how to coordinate Hope’s movements without getting caught. There are numerous ways to do this, and numerous things that will help you along the way.

The game plays out in episodes,

with more to be released. Although originally made for smartphones, the ‘remastered’ version has made a successful jump to the PC platform. It’s quite well done, but you can’t help but feel that some of the features would just work a lot better on smartphones, as they feel out of place in the PC version.

Regardless, this is a high quality stealth game that has a surprising amount of depth and interesting playability with lots of positive feedback on its Steam page.

The only real letdowns being its smartphone tailored interface and a risk of becoming a bit repetitive.

For those who enjoy games like Wolfenstein, but who want to try something focused less around violence and more around puzzles, this is a game for you.

Ned Westwood

WOLFENSTEIN: THE OLD BLOOD MACHINEGAMES

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azis, as someone once said, are like Skittles: you can get rid of as many of them as you like, and you’ll never get a bad taste in your mouth. Which is just as well, because in The Old Blood, the new standalone expansion to last year’s Wolfenstein: The New Order, you kill a hell of a lot of Nazis.

Set in an alternate 1960s in which the Axis powers won World War II and subsequently conquered the globe, MachineGames’s instalment of the classic first-person shooter franchise was a breath of fresh air.

Its wonderfully visceral gameplay, coupled with a surprisingly strong story that pulled no punches in its depiction of the Nazi regime, struck a chord with gamers who had long been bored of the endless parade of modern warfare shooters saturating the market.

The Old Blood once again puts players in the shoes of American one-man army BJ Blazkowicz, this time in 1946, as the Allies make a last-ditch attempt to stop the Nazis once and for all by infiltrating the infamous Castle Wolfenstein.

The mission goes hideously wrong, leaving BJ to fight his way to freedom armed with nothing more than a metal pipe and the ability to absorb an obscene amount of bullets despite being shirtless.

The game’s opening half is undoubtedly the strongest, as your

lack of guns forces you to rely on the excellently crafted stealth system. The metal pipe which serves as BJ’s main melee weapon provides some satisfyingly ultraviolent takedowns, and can be split into two parts and used as a tool to climb walls and jimmy open doors.

It pays to err on the side of caution, but if things do go tits up and you get spotted there’s an entirely new arsenal of rifles, pistols and shotguns to choose from; each perfectly suited for bringing legions of foes to a squelchy end.

The whole experience clocks in at about six hours, and there’s a lot crammed into the space. There’s a great amount of variety in the locales, and the cast is equally colourful.

BJ’s few allies are all nicely fleshed out, and the two main villains of the piece – sadistic doglover Rudi Jäger and terrifying archaeologist Helga Von Schabbs – are instantly iconic.

It’s just a shame that the story loses some of its momentum in the second half. As you find yourself running through cobbled streets blasting at Nazi zombies, everything feels strangely muted and serious. If it had done more to embrace the schlocky, B-movie aesthetic the trailers promised, this could have been an instant classic to rival Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon.

Still, sometimes you just want a little more bang for a few more bucks, and at a very reasonable £14.99 The Old Blood delivers on that promise and then some.

Phil Bayles

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Friday 22 May 2015

Fuse Arts.

HENRY V Octagon

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ast week, a talented group of students performed a memorable and moving adaptation of the renowned Shakespearean history play, Henry V. As the play carries on from the accession to the throne of Henry V after the death of his father, Henry IV, a feeling of uncertainty and insecurity surrounds the new monarch.

Composed of two corrugated sheets of iron in the background, the austere, modern set design brought the political tension that governs the action of the play, aligning it with the austerity that is felt in Britain today.

The merging of the mystical world of Shakespeare and the austerity of the modern world was illustrated further by the cohesion of the actors in the play. All of the actors worked together remarkably to capture the sentiment of national pride which runs throughout all of Shakespeare’s history plays.

David Upton, who played Henry V, encompassed the drive and tyranny of the character perfectly, while Katherine Miles frequently interjected an eerie, mystical charm to the play with her role as the one-

BOOK CORNER RESURRECTION Leo Tolstoy

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his book has always been unfairly treated as the forgotten middle child of Tolstoy- outshone by the glory of War and Peace. Being his final novel, it truly is something special with enthralling dialogue and characters who make you feel like you have known them forever.

The novel focuses on Nekhlyudov, an aristocrat who knows nothing about poverty or injustice and Maslova, a young servant girl who has seen nothing but. Their story

man Chorus.

A more comical tone balanced the sinister side of the play. Lewis Colson, who played Bardolph; Alice Woodcock, who played Fluellan and Tom Outteridge, who played Nym all performed with a convincing engagement with the much-loved comical side of Shakespearean history plays.

The multi-dimensional talent of the cast exhibited itself throughout the play, in particular in the second act, where many actors skilfully acted in French as well as in English.

Laura Marsden and Flora Turnball were astounding in their ability to switch languages.

The use of dual tongues added an extra tinge of comedy to an adaptation that has skilfully maintained its roots in the political insecurity that resonates throughout English history.

A brilliant understanding of the complex history and depth of Henry V. Beth Andralojc

THE FULL MONTY

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begins in their youth when she was stationed at his aunts’ house. During one of the summers spent there, he impregnates and swiftly leaves Maslova without any knowledge of his unborn son. Maslova struggles to survive, and is forced into prostitution and harassment from lecherous men.

Many years later, when Nekhlyudov is appointed for jury service, they meet again to see Maslova standing trial for crimes she did not commit. He soon embarks on a journey to correct his wrongs and dispel his guilt. The novel acts as an exposé on the Russian prison system with scenes where prisoners are left starving in cold and damp conditions. Nekhlyudov’s discovers the hardships and hurdles the poor have to overcome- a stunning

T

he movie The Full Monty may be a classic everywhere, but this is especially true in Sheffield, the city where it is set. Putting on stage a faithful, vivid picture of the post industrial city of the 80s, this same-name theatre comedy makes clear from the outset the degree of similarity with its cinematic doppëlganger.

The play in fact follows scene by scene the original screenplay and, as well as the movie, goes all the way, full monty, to its grand finale.

Gaz (Gary Lucy) is broke and unemployed in the Sheffield of the late 80s. He spends his days roaming around the city with his pal Dave (Martin Miller) and his 14-year-old son, engaging in unusual, slightly illegal activities, such as stealing steel bars from the

contrast to his opulent and indulgent life.

Tolstoy has woven Resurrection into a memorable political statement, with female characters like Maslova remaining empowered and full of integrity throughout. It highlights the disillusionment within the class system by showing that deep down, all our wishes remain the same. We want to love and to be loved; we want redemption just as much as we crave forgiveness; we want peace and happiness just as much as we try to avoid pain and sorrow. This book is an underrated triumph; a must read which deserves more recognition.

Devni Kitulagoda

surrounding factories. As his exwife threatens him to take the boy away from him if he doesn’t start to pay for alimony, his life takes an unexpected turn.

With the help of some friends from the job-centre and some selectively auditioned lads, Gaz decides to get in the business of male stripping, to raise the money for his kid and to prove to everybody he is not a pathetic loser.

“This play is pure entertainment”

The Full Monty is a production born to be staged at theatre. With its remarkable scenography and its very play-like timing, this is one of those cases where the adaption bears the comparison with the original.

Crafted with meticulous care and interpreted with a language

and an attitude worth of the finest South Yorkshire tradition, the play enchants with its burlesque spirit and its strong themes, most of them still very up to date after more than 25 years.

Most of the credit goes to screenwriter Simon Beaufoy, who takes on the venture of adapting his own screenplay from the movie and to make it work in a theatrical space.

However, also worth a mention is the experienced ensemble cast, gifted both with a comic verve and a genuine stage personality.

Introspective as much as outspoken, licentious as much as ingenuous, it never failed to amuse in its entire two-hour length. It really is the unmissable piece of Sheffield’s theatrical season, and not just because it already holds a special place in the hearts of the people of our city, but because it is true quality.

Mariaclaudia Carella

Friday May 22 2015

12

Fuse.Albums. music Fuse MUMFORD AND SONS Wilder Mind

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umford & Sons return with a whole new vibe on their new album Wilder Mind. Their music has always endeavoured to blur the line between folk and rock and in Wilder Mind they have made the crossover to a more Indie style.

Gone are the acoustic country sounds of the banjo and accordion. They have been replaced with synths and heavy effects on the electric guitar and the track ‘Tompkins Square Park’ opens the album sounding more like Coldplay than the Mumford & Sons we are used to. Marcus Mumford’s entrancing singing voice and his distinctive way of dealing with melody are carried through to this album and it maintains the wholehearted and honest feel of their earlier music, but this time the sound is grittier and more urban.

Tracks like ‘Ditmas’, named after a park in New York, are lively and rousing while elsewhere on the album a more restrained reverence

WOLF ALICE

My Love Is Cool

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n early 2013, the initial, piercing snare hits of debut single ‘Fluffy’ sounded as if Wolf Alice were smashing down the doors to the UK indie scene, and resolutely intending to stay there. Those who have had the band at the back of their minds since then have been teased with a string of acclaimed EPs, and a live show the envy of similar up-and-comers. Two years on, their full-length debut, My Love is Cool, has arrived at last.

Opener ‘Turn to Dust’ starts life as a delicate, ethereal seashanty. The song works brilliantly as an exposition of singer and guitarist Ellie Rowsell’s vocals. Like a cornered animal, her singing displays a heartfelt vulnerability veiled with snarling aggression.

Intimate whispers on ‘Silk’, a rewarding foray into neo-80s

is present in the quiet, celestial harmonies of the ending song, ‘Hot Gates’. The songwriting dabbles in the melancholy, presenting a string of bittersweet love songs.

The track ‘Cold Arms’ features just Marcus Mumford and an electric guitar. There is a subtlety to this track which shows an interesting development and movement away from much of their more full textured music.

“The album maintains the wholehearted and honest feel of their earlier music, but the sound is grittier and more urban”

Straying from the trademark folky sound which made Mumford & Sons so successful, was risky and

dream pop, stir an atmosphere that would allow the song to sit alongside the likes of Kavinsky and College on the soundtrack to Refn’s 2011 film Drive.

Sadly, during the album’s more tepid moments, it’s this talent alone which has to carry the songs - after the fun, overblown riffs of live favourite ‘Giant Peach’, ‘Swallowtail’ takes far too long to get off the ground. Patiently slow-burning through five minutes of slightly prosaic pop-ballad meandering, the song finally erupts into an exciting, fuzzed-up tumult that points towards noise-rockers Wavves and the Raveonettes.

In a way, the song’s character epitomises the feeling of the whole album. Almost as soon as an inspired moment materialises, the album picks itself up and dusts itself off, continuing to trudge forward through the sedateness of swaying ballad ‘Soapy Water’ and a frustratingly slackened version of ‘Bros’.

might disappoint some fans of their old style, but arguably boldness in music is always worth it, and whilst something is inevitably lost with the disappearance of the banjo, their music has matured in an exciting way.

The album debuted at number one in the UK and the US, maintaining the success of its predecessor, Babel. The new style seems like a positive progression.

Mumford & Sons have successfully reinvented themselves as a band and the title Wilder Mind sums up this adventurousness. However, the territory into which they have now strayed is already densely populated and they have arguably lost their uniqueness.

They have created an engaging album but perhaps its captivation powers lie mainly in its role in the evolution of their music.

Whether it has the power as a stand alone album to really succeed in this genre is something that’s less certain, but it’s definitely an intriguing step forward.

Joanna Booth

Rowsell claimed earlier this year that My Love is Cool is “100 per cent not a grunge record”. It’s true that from the first listen, stylistically, it’s much more than that.

But, as she also asserts, is it braver than that? At times it feels like Wolf Alice have got ahead of themselves, traversing into territory normally reserved for third album genre-meddling. Although rather than leading to trailblazing, boundary-bending sounds, the record is instead littered with fairly impressive, if a little safe, pastiches of a range of styles which have taken their fancy.

Given the band’s enthusiasm for experimentation and keenness to surprise, fans are likely to appreciate this offering, but might find themselves turning to the ‘old’ Wolf Alice, as they yearn for a bit more bite.

Harry Chambers

PALMA VIOLETS Danger In the Club

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idely dubbed as British guitar music’s ‘next big thing’, Palma Violets swaggered on to the scene in 2012 with raucous garage-rock anthems and riotous live shows, unapologetically irreverent in boasting the joys of youth and friendship, epitomised by lead single ‘Best of Friends’.

Three years on and Danger in the Club finds the Lambeth four-piece in bullish pub-rock mode, not diverting far from the formula which brought them success on 2013’s widely acclaimed debut record 180.

Indebted to British glories of the 1970s such as Dr. Feelgood and the Clash, ‘Hollywood (I Got It)’ and ‘Gout! Gang! Go!’ successfully capture on record the spirit that has made Palma Violets such a captivating live act and promise ample pogoing opportunities for this summer’s festival throngs.

Continuing the theme, ‘English Tongue’, a frantically recorded last minute addition to the album, charmingly wraps up the album with its celebratory group singalong chorus.

Unfortunately there are relative troughs to such energetic peaks. ‘No Money Honey’ is a directionless drag and fails to emit the melancholia it strives for. ‘Peter and the Gun’ plods along for its first three minutes, tarnishing what could have been one of the best tracks of the album when the tempo finally kicks up a few notches.

Such downsides are thankfully short-lived and by wisely treading out from their comfort zone, the Palmas manage to sow the seeds for the future diversification of their sound. Reminiscent of the Libertines’

‘Radio America’, ‘The Jacket Song’ is a weary tale of lost love (albeit veiled behind the metaphor of a crumpled jacket, “second hand and made in Japan”) which welcomes a more reflective side to songwriter Sam Fryer’s repertoire.

“There are relative troughs to such energetic peaks” Elsewhere, the Spaghetti Western clang of ‘Matador’ showcases a band who know how to please the fan base while delving into new territory.

Although lacking the immediacy of the best moments of its predecessor, Danger in the Club makes up for this with the encouraging signs of a band evolving and exploring more nuanced approaches to their craft.

“We’ll probably burn out and fail / But at least it’s a marvellous failure” cries Fryer on ‘Girl, You Couldn’t Do Much Better on the Beach’. A ramshackle record it may be and there remains room for improvement but the triumphant punch emanating through Danger in the Club ensures that Palma Violets are not nearly at risk of burning out just yet.

Fin Rylatt

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Friday 22 May 2015

13

liveFusemusic.

Gigs.

Django Django Plug May 14

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iven the brilliantly fun puzzle that was Django Django’s self-titled 2012 debut, you’d be forgiven for thinking that by now, these London mavericks had been all but sapped of imagination.

Instead, they appear to have seized the bull that is the difficult second album by the horns, conjuring up an intriguing new release, Born Under Saturn.

Django Django were hoping to prove that they do, in fact, have a considerable arsenal of curveballs left to throw.

“One of their foremost talents remains knowing how to make people have fun” First up was the jagged postpunk clatter of Manchester’s Hot Vestry. The support earned itself a warm reception, which was understandable since, for some reason, the audience largely looked old enough to have been around for those heady waves of late-1970s innovation being evoked onstage.

As the stage darkened for the headline act, synthesisers whirred and soared upwards into an inebriating fuss, eventually taking the shape of stirring opener, ‘Hail Bop’. If the Clangers formed a space-age Beach Boys tribute act,

it would sound something like this.

Rhythms and harmonies darted around, chasing each other through futuristic clamours and cutting guitar lines.

Their oddball remodelling of 1960s West Coast surf on tracks like ‘WOR’ allowed the Plug’s inhabitants to disregard the lifeless May weather outside for a moment; chirpy British Invasion-era harmonies coupled with Syd Barret levels of discordant fiddling made it easy to forget it was 2015 for a moment.

While songs taken from their debut have their heart in the 1960s, recent tracks owe their spirit to the new wave sounds of Squeeze and the ambitious electro pop of the 1980s. Mischievous, warbling synths and strong house beats perforated and pulsed through the triumphant stomp of ‘First Light’. The expansive chorus of ‘High Moon’ channeled the style and memorability of the Pet Shop Boys.

For all their eccentricities, Django Django’s meddling never felt like hard work to listen to.

Their tracks retained an irresistible danceability, which the audience was plainly grateful for. Sufficient levels of zaniness saved them from being pompously labelled ‘cerebral’, an occupational hazard for bands of this pedigree.

Django Django displayed a canny ability to fuse gratifying pop allure with a cartoonish quirkiness rarely heard since the bloom of mid-1970s art-poppers, 10cc, and are matched only by a handful contemporaries - Metronomy and Hot Chip come to mind.

But most importantly, one of their foremost talents remains knowing how to make people have fun.

Stornoway The Leadmill May 8

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tornoway’s set had some overwhelming moments of crapness.

One pitiful attempt at crowd-surfing by the bassist who was gracefully carried all of 3 rows before falling. Frontman Brian’s frankly bizarre chats to the audience of pie eating competitions alongside an embarrassingly so bad it’s good bird joke punchline: ‘Shag in Scarborough.’

A clichéd shout of ‘everybody’ as an encouragement to sing. The charming faux pas were finished off by recordings of Humpback whales at sea - yes, whales.

It’s this sort of quirkiness that underpinned the entire appeal of the set, but while also oddly endearing the tie wearing front

man’s troop of somewhat awkward looking musicians act doesn’t play clearly. We were left confused; is this somehow working or is the whole thing just too odd? When the audience was asked the question ‘Partridge, Bittern or a cliff of Seagulls?’ as their final, of several, bird noise based preludes - no this isn’t made up - there was an intriguingly animated reaction: the crowd seemed to love it.

A sound clip of Alan Partridge, not in fact the flighted variety was followed by the hotly requested Bittern.

Musically, singer Brian Briggs succeeded in ‘bringing some sunshine’ to counteract Sheffield’s dismal weather. His vocals started somewhat flat but soon get going, charming with a humming flow that did indeed brighten the room. He bobed about, somewhat restrained but charmingly so, a rockstar to bring home to your mum.

In contrast his band lacked

charm; the bassist looked almost bored, and keyboard player Jon Ouin only got notably animated during new song ‘Lost Youth’, a great funky number that exudes the frivolity of Stornoway.

A highlight was an unplugged performance of another new song ‘Josephine’ in which the harmonies were spot-on, only interrupted somewhat by the annoying sea of phones that emerge to murder/ capture the delicate atmosphere created by the quartet’s voices.

Finishing off with a perfectly crap cover of Yazz’s ‘The Only Way Is Up’ and first album favourites ‘Fuel Up’ and ‘Zorbing’, Stronoway left to loud applause from their fans who get the joke. Whether anyone else will is uncertain.

we were met with an immediate eardrum-bursting wall of sound as the four piece launch into ‘You Are, You Are’, which deafened us with a barrage of surrounding distorted noise and intertwining synthy-guitar melody.

with such energy. The guitarist and singer went mental, thrashing around with their instruments and writhing in the smoke. The effects were great, and gave the band a real presence and atmosphere on stage.

The flashing, blinding lights that illuminated the smoky figures emphasised the mystery surrounding their identity online.

All in all the act was a barrage on the senses in the best possible way, which made for an intensely atmospheric and strangely personal gig.

Although the fact they only formed last year showed in the distinct lack of material (the set only just reaching the half-hour mark), October Drift left a lasting impression on the crowd, as well as a never-ending ringing in their ears.

Sam Ralphs

Harry Chambers

October Drift Plug May 8

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uch mystery surrounds October Drift. After playing two sell-out gigs in Sheffield earlier this year on their first ever UK tour, the excitement surrounding the Somerset shoegazers has only intensified.

Their refusal to accommodate any form of social media in promotion, relying instead on a ‘word of mouth’ tactic, is a breath of fresh air in the midst of the forceful overadvertisement in music these days.

The night kicked off with bluesinspired three piece FloodHounds, quickly followed by indie/electro crossover Ordnance, as the room slowly filled buzzing with excitement for the main act. Smoke slowly filled the room, and silence fell in anticipation for the upcoming performance.

Tearing distortion announced the arrival of the October Drift, and

“A breath of fresh air ” The crowd shifted as their lacklustre engagement with the previous acts was replaced with rapt attention. There was no casual, disinterested conversation now; you wouldn’t be able to hear it anyway.

With minimalist verses and impressive, aggressive choruses, it was easy to compare October drift to bands like Editors and Mogwai, as they moved on to debut single ‘Whoever’.

Overlapping, Shoegazey riffs pushed through the sea of distorted fuzz, while the backing drums attempted to keep some structure to the maelstrom of sound.

It’s hard, however, to find a band

Benjy Taylor

Friday 22 May 2015

14

Fuse Screen.

Fuse. screen GIRLHOOD

Dir: Céline Sciamma

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eline Sciamma’s third movie, Girlhood depicts an unusual picture of being a teenager in the Parisian suburbs through the struggle of Marieme aka Vic (Karidja Tourè) as she trys to find independence and her own identity as a girl and a woman.

Without any chance to go to high school and hence have any future prospects, Vic starts her metamorphosis as she meets Lady (Assa Sylla), Adiatou (Lindsay Karamoh) and Fily (Marietou Tourè).

Strong and independent on the streets, the four girls still fall into the typical suburban cliché of dropping out of school early and shoplifting nice dresses as they are dominated by male family members, usually fathers or brothers.

Sciamma comes back to explore but develop themes already seen in

SMALL SCREEN THE AFFAIR: SEASON 1, EPISODE 1

Dir: Hagai Levi & Sarah Treem

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he latest US import to make it across the Atlantic and with the first season already over in America, The Affair has had time to casually win the Golden Globe for best drama series.

Created by one of the House of Cards writers and with two English lead actors, Dominic West (The Wire) as family-man Noah and Ruth Wilson (Luther) as troubled

Alison, this seems like a promising offering, despite poor viewing figures in the US. But honestly, the first episode does not open too well. Some flat dialogue and clichéd characters (Noah’s children) hold the show back.

However, give this some time and you start to see quality coming through. Seemingly inspired by True Detective and other recent successes, The Affair employs a similar twist to the usual TV narrative structure, making use of perspective to create a unique and intriguing opening episode.

Central to the show is memory, specifically those of the two people involved in an affair that, in a way

as yet unclear to the audience, has gone wrong. With the first episode split into two halves, one from Noah’s perspective and one from Alison’s, the audience is shown that when different people recount the same story, subtle differences can reveal a lot.

The fact that these recollections are presented in a police interview obviously ups the stakes and makes the viewer wonder what has gone wrong.

Questions like ‘who offered who a cigarette?’, ‘who first approached the other?’ and ‘who suggested that Noah walk Alison

her previous works like sexuality. By following Vic’s struggle to find her place in the world, something the majority of teens can relate to, she opens a small but precise window on suburban life.

In few minutes she’s able to give a perfect view of the situation.

The opening scene is an example: the girls, strong on the American football field, are back to their minor subordinate roles as soon as they approach the housing complex.

Sciamma’s directing is energetic, powerful and strong. Through her camera she becomes a mute observer of facts. She doesn’t fall into the trap of shaping a stereotypical picture of the suburbs and she portrays her characters with a great sense of humanity. The result is a brilliant, ferocious but honest film.

The soundtrack does not only give rhythm to the story but also gives the most powerful and beautiful scene of the entire movie. In the three minutes of lip-syncing to ‘Diamonds’ by Rhianna, Vic, Lady,

Adiatou and Fily are carefree of the world outside; they are just four friends enjoying life and youth.

Sciamma crafts one of those outside-time-and-space moments that seems to last forever, in perfect contrast with the girls’ real life situation.

What hits first is Sciamma’s intentional choice of an all-black cast taken from the streets, given the lack of black women in the French cinema industry, this strengthens the spirit of truth and honesty in the film.

Among a good quality female ensemble, Tourè is the brightest star.

The first thing you notice are her eyes: dark and enchanting, you can read in them Vic’s entire metamorphosis from a quiet girl, willing to have a different future to the woman challenging her role within a maledominant environment.

As a rare coming of age tale from a female perspective, Girlhood is a strong and remarkable film.

home?’ are clearly central to who takes the blame for starting the affair, yet both perspectives offer different answers which only adds to the tension.

The first episode is hardly thrilling, but as far as openers go it certainly h o l d s

potential. Despite some characters and dialogue lacking slightly, it was able to win me round with an interesting take on traditional narrative.

As the episode closes with a policeman commenting that he has “a few more questions” the viewer cannot help but agree.

Valeria Vigilante

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CULT CORNER THE EDUKATORS

Dir: Hans Weingartner

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familiar tale of youth disillusionment, The Edukators follows Jan (Daniel Brühl), Peter (Stipe Erceg) and Jule (Julia Jentsch) as they struggle against capitalism.

Filmed like a disgruntled teen who has just got a new camera, Weingartner’s direction compliments the anger in the film perfectly with its jerky angles and quick transitions.

The cinematography of Daniela Knapp and Matthias Schellenberg paints a grungey picture of the city with their focus on graffiti and rundown flat blocks, which provides a stark contrast to the giant mansions of the likes of Hardenberg

(Burghart Klaußner).

Immediately as a viewer you identify with the three leads, particularly Jule as she tries to earn a living serving pompous arseholes in a posh restaurant.

Who’d have thought brandy had to be served in a brandy glass?

But then shit gets real. While we held an anti-austerity protest in Devonshire Green, they decide to break into mansions and fuck shit up. Stereos in the fridge, porcelain soldiers in the toilet and sofas in the pool…you know the drill.

Each house is then left an angry note, “Die fetten Jahre sind vorbei” which translates as “The fat years are over”, not nearly as irate.

What is interesting is that the three don’t steal, although Peter does have a moment of weakness over a Rolex (understandable).

These three are about the message not the money which is refreshing.

Brühl is heartbreakingly sincere as the young revolutionary slowly coming to terms with his ineffectuality. When things get really real, we’re talking kidnapping (I do not advocate this approach) the four have a weird bonding experience. However, don’t be fooled.

When Hardenberg is eventually released it all seems like happy families. But as armed police storm a flat, we know “Manche Menschen ändern sich nie” or “some people never change”.

But of course these hardy youths knew this and are sunning themselves in Barcelona, the joke’s on Hardenberg.

So as Jan says, “Every heart is a revolutionary cell” but please guys, don’t kidnap Cameron.

Ashleigh Howard

Friday 22 May 2015

BIG GAME

Dir: Jalmari Helander

J

almari Helander’s Big Game starts as an almost silent coming-of-age tale, in which a young Finnish boy named Oskari (Onni Tommila), is sent into the woods on his thirteenth birthday by the men of his village to prove his worth by hunting.

Then Air Force One crashes into the side of a mountain, and things get a bit silly.

It turns out that President Samuel L Jackson (even the credits don’t bother reminding us what the character’s real name is) has been betrayed by his once-trusted bodyguard (Ray Stevenson) for some very stupid reason and dropped into the wilderness to be hunted by a psychopathic terrorist named Hazar (Mehmet Kurtulus).

Back in the US, meanwhile, the vice president (Victor Garber) and a sandwich munching CIA operative (Jim Broadbent) watch everything from a war room with satellites that can zoom and enhance images to an

MAD MAX: FURY ROAD Dir: George Miller

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t may seem redundant to point out just how mad George Miller’s Mad Max: Fury Road is, but then how many films can claim to feature not only two straight hours of flawless action and unflinching violence, but also what could be the world’s first human breast-pump factory line?

The film is at once a love song to the pulpy hits of the 70s and 80s, to Carpenter and Cronenberg, and simultaneously something fresh and exciting in a sea of superheroes, robots and whatever

almost microscopic level.

Big Game is an unbelievably dumb movie, and that’s why it works. It revels in its absurdity, defying you not to crack a smile at the admittedly quotable one-liners or punch the air with glee when President Jackson inevitably calls someone a ‘motherfucker’.

And while the supporting cast, like Broadbent happily munching on his sandwich, might be running on autopilot, Jackson and Tommila form a surprisingly effective double team. There’s something quite satisfying about watching Jackson, now forever immortalised as a badass for quoting the Bible or wearing an eyepatch, reduced to an utter wimp of a politician.

But he’s arguably outshone by young Tommila, who has a natural gift for comedy. There’s even, if you look hard enough, an interesting point to be made about Oskari’s community – a bunch of burly, bearded men whose idea of masculinity comes from shooting defenceless animals.

Once Oskari and the President team up the film bounds along at a nice brisk pace; leaping

from one action beat to the next without stopping for breath. There’s refreshingly little green-screen on show, too – a wise choice, as the rugged wilderness of Finland makes for a beautiful (and original) backdrop to an otherwise formulaic movie.

It’s just a shame that it doesn’t have the courage to stretch beyond its 12A certificate. A few of the more cartoony action moments could have done with a generous dollop of blood and guts – if only to provide a greater contrast with the (ingeniously) almost bloodless finale.

Big Game doesn’t have the same ‘instant classic’ appeal as Snakes on a Plane, but as bad movies go it’s pretty damn good. When you inevitably see this in your local HMV for less than a fiver in a few years’ time, be sure to pick it up.

else Hollywood tries to pass off as a blockbuster action film these days.

The story, taking place in a postapocalyptic Australia, centres around the titular Max (Tom Hardy) who is captured by the ‘War Boys’, a band of warriors who blindly follow and enforce the word of their leader, King Immortan Joe (Hugh Keays-Byrne).

Max then finds himself in an uneasy alliance with Furiosa (Charlize Theron) who he aids in escorting Joe’s five wives out of his clutches.

The film is structured as a series of thrilling chase sequences, each punctuated with tense confrontations between Max, the five wives, the War Boy Nux (Nicholas Hoult) and other characters met along the way.

However, the pace of the film never falls and the threat of Joe and his ‘War Boys’ remains ever constant as he grows more and more enraged, chasing down the escapees while rather distractingly, a disfigured musician in a red union suit plays an electric guitar with a flamethrower attached to the end.

The battle scenes between the heroes and Joe’s forces are never short of incredible, each ramping up the insanity until the ‘War Boys’ are swinging through the air on makeshift seesaws, and trying to grab Joe’s wives from Furiosa’s fearsome war rig.

The war rig is the crux of the film really. A huge wagon that carries our heroes with what looks to be just about anything Miller’s crew could

15

Phil Bayles

SPOOKS: THE GREATER GOOD Dir: Bharat Nalluri

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e open on that panoramic shot of London.

You know the one. The expansive, patriotic, this-is-whatwe’re-fighting-for landscape, recognisable from dozens of spy films. Spooks: The Greater Good hardly reinvents the spy genre, but luckily it doesn’t try to.

The plot is full to bursting with dead drops, traitors, conspiracies and lone wolves. Director Bharat Nalluri, sticks to what the original TV series did best, to his merit.

The Greater Good preserves the anyone-can-die mentality of the series to traumatic effect.

Spooks popularised this trope long before Game of Thrones, achieving notoriety for brutally killing a lead character in its second episode,

find at the scrapyard, welded onto it. Most of the film’s cars follow this aesthetic, but each one is uniquely designed with mustangs stacked on top of mustangs, rolling on tank treads.

The strange contraptions make the action sequences even more exciting as the ‘War Boys’ scramble between cars, generally causing chaos and leaping to their deaths hoisting spears with grenades attached to the ends.

Miller’s distinctive retro style only intensifies the scenes; sections move from slow to fast to slow motion in a pleasingly chaotic fashion, sudden and swift close ups are abundant and visual effects are mostly practical, the latter a testament to the skill of the cast and crew.

Dialogue is sparse but the plot remains impactful thanks to strong performances, particularly from Hardy and Theron whose grounded, no-nonsense survival instincts contrast nicely with the wacky and suicidal followers of Immortan Joe. The film is a rejection of the conventional, and embraces what made films like the original Mad Max trilogy such hits: it seems strange then that a film so obsessed with the bizarre feels so focused.

A masterpiece for fans of the originals and newcomers alike.

inundating the BBC with complaints.

Riveting action scenes and a more worldwide scope (both no doubt enabled by the magnified budget) are welcome additions to the film.

Harry Pearce, the main character of the series, returns and proves he’s still got some screen time left in him, spending most of the film as a rogue – possibly traitorous – agent.

Much of the plot heavy lifting is done by new characters, including Kit Harrington as archetypal brooding hero Whatshisname.

Established characters from the series are sidelined, reduced almost to cameos. This may be a smart decision; the show has been off-air for four years. In particular, Sherlock alumnus Laura Pulver’s character is disappointingly underutilised.

Characters tell us again and again that villain Adem Qasim is a new, charismatic threat, but such attributes are barely evident when he’s on screen. His motivations are given lip service but never fully explored. The ideological conflict between MI5 and Qasim has the

seeds of compelling drama, and a little more on-screen discussion of this would have elevated The Greater Good above the reductionist us-versus-them formula.

Commissioned at the height of the al-Qaeda threat, Spooks tapped into a collective cultural anxiety over the clandestine wars going on under our noses (though the first series shied away from directly examining Islamic extremism). 12 years on, that anxiety has sublimated somewhat; the zeitgeist has moved on. It may be an appropriate time to bid the show goodbye.

More than anything else, The Greater Good is one last hurrah for the fans. Were it an episode of the show, it would be an exceptional one, but even with a cinematic budget and Kit Harrington, whether it makes the cut as a standalone film is far from obvious. That said, it’s entertaining and gripping, and certainly a fit farewell for Harry Pearce.

Joshua Hackett

Oliver England

Fuse Listings.

Photo: Dan West

All the events in Sheffield that you don’t want to miss in the next fortnight.

Screen.

Games.

Big Screen Eurovision (May 23, the SU Auditorium, 7pm) Film Unit and The Five and Dime Picture Show team up to present the best Eurovision night of all time, on one of the biggest screens in the city. Featuring live commentary, themed pizzas available to order to your seats, and £1 off all tickets to the Pop Tarts after-party; the perfect way to numb the pain when we inevitably come dead last again.

Game Releases

National Theatre Live: Man and Superman (May 25, the Showroom Cinema) Ralph Fiennes takes the lead role in this production of George Bernard Shaw’s witty and provocative play about a celebrated thinker and bachelor who flees to Spain to escape the trappings of domesticity and ends up debating the Devil.

June 1 Hatred (PC)

Exhibition on Screen: The Impressionists (May 26, the Showroom Cinema) A unique film focusing on the 19th-century Parisian art collector Paul Durand-Ruel, whose brave decision to exhibit the Impressionists in New York in 1886 not only filled great American galleries with Impressionist masterworks, but kept Impressionism alive at a time when it faced complete failure.

May 29 Legend of Kay HD (PC, PS4, WiiU) Splatoon (WiiU)

June 2 Heroes of the Storm (PC) Lord of Magma: Maiden Heaven (3DS) June 9 The Elder Scrolls Online (PS4, Xbox One) June 23 Batman: Arkham Knight (PC, PS4, Xbox One)

Sheffield Doc/Fest 2015 (June 5 - 10) The international documentary festival returns for another year of amazing talks and documentaries. Opening the festival will be Bafta-winning director Joshua Oppenheimer, whose new film The Look of Silence deals with the aftermath of the Indonesian genocide of 1965. Other highlights include A Sinner in Mecca, a look at the pilgrimage of an openly gay Muslim; Orion: The Man Who Would Be King, a film about the fame of Elvis impersonator; and Monty Python: The Meaning of Live - a behind the scenes look at the comedy legends’ reunion tour. The festival also offers outdoor screenings free to the public, and a series of talks with special guests like Sheffield legend and Python actor Michael Palin.

Arts.

Noah: A Musical Adventure (May 22, the Montgomery Theatre, 7pm) A new musical for all the family When God tells Noah that there will be a mighty flood and that Noah must build an Ark to save his family, the animals and anyone else who believes, that’s exactly what Noah starts to do... but there’s no sign of rain. Is a flood really coming? Will the ark ever be ready? Will anyone else believe?

Pioneer (May 27, the Crucible Studio) Made in collaboration with Dr Lewis Dartnell of UCL, Pioneer is a curious, multimedia sci-fi thriller about the first manned mission to Mars. Sounds like a comfier version of Gravity.

So It Goes (May 30, the Crucible Studio, 7:45pm) A true story of love and loss written and performed by Hannah Moss and David Ralfe. Hannah has always wanted to talk about her dad. But in the seven years since he died, she hasn’t quite managed it. Not one to be defeated, she’s enlisted her friend David to help her on a journey through memory, laughter and sorrow. Frank, funny and endlessly inventive, So It Goes explores the light and dark sides of grief, in a playful and deeply personal show.

Shrek: The Musical (May 27 - June 7, the Lyceum) Direct from the West End, this hit show based on the classic DreamWorks animated movie about an ogre and his friend Donkey is filled with new songs. At any rate, it can’t be any worse than the sequels.

Music.

Live Gigs Frazer - 22/5, Plug Eureka Machines - 22/5, Corporation Gaz Coombes - 22/5, the Leadmill The Smyths - 22/5, O2 Academy The Picturebooks - 23/5, Corporation Lucy Spraggan - 23/5, the Leadmill Secret Romance - 23/5, O2 Academy Steel City Groove - 24/5, the Harley Vibes - 25/5, the Harley

The Bohicas - 26/6, the Harley Blossoms - 28/5, Plug De La Soul - 29/5, O2 Academy East India Youth - 30/5, Plug Grandmaster Flash - 31/5, the Leadmill The Lafontaines - 31/5, Corporation Take That - 1/6, Motorpoint Arena Funeral for a Friend - 3/6, Corporation Terri Walker - 5/6, the Rocking Chair

Album Releases May 25 Nick Diamonds - City of Quartz Nocturnal Sunshine - Nocturnal Sunshine Rachel Grimes - The Clearing The Vaccines - English Graffiti June 1 Algiers - Algiers Ben Lee - Love is the Greatest Rebellion Florence & The Machine - How Big How Blue How Beautiful

Major Lazer - Peace is the Mission RiFF RAFF - The Peach Panther June 8 Franz Ferdinand and Sparks - FFS Muse - Drones Of Monsters and Men - Beneath the Skin Pins - Wild Nights Seoul - I Become A Shade Tramlines (July 24 - 26) A weekend of great music in venues across the city like the Harley, City Hall, Devonshire Green and even our own Foundry and Fusion. Headlined by the Wu-Tang Clan and Basement Jaxx, the line-up is stuffed with local talent like the Crookes, Drenge, and Blood Sport.

Unfortunately the festival is no longer free, but compared to the ridiculous amounts of cash needed to get into the likes of Glastonbury, £30 is a small price to pay for a weekend of amazing music.