WATCH: Synedoche, New York [2008]

I am a real sucker for multi-layered films that encompass all areas of human emotion. Donnie Darko made me feel this way, Vanilla Sky is a culprit and so are many of John Hughes' rite-du-passage movies. Synecdoche, New York is a fantastical tale which covers the human map of emotion without faltering into repetition or bum-numbing shiftiness for the viewer. Familiar with only Being John Malkovich, Eternal Sunshine and a very early viewing of Human Nature, I was excited to see Synecdoche, New York, Charlie Kaufman's directorial debut - and for this review, it is the third viewing. It's a visual masterpiece of life imitating life and the constant questions of our morals. It's a brave piece but one that does not feel out of place when viewed alongside Being John Malkovich. With that in mind, and several dozen more motifs and metaphors tacked on, this is a life-spanning adventure of achieving an unrealised lifetime goal, even if it is not yet known. It's also with this film that I noted Philip Seymour Hoffman as one of the most invigorating actors of all time.

WATCH: Oblivion [2013]

I've noticed I have a habit of referencing previous works or franchises that I feel a director's work reminds me of. I also have a habit of spotting subliminal (intentional or otherwise) symbology throughout these works. With that in mind, I'll try and be as obvious as possible. Oblivion is full of blue skies, glorious technology and tectonically sculptured greys and browns. It's also full of intentional nods to sci-fi favourites 2001: A Space Odyssey and Moon as well as current-gen console game Enslaved (can you tell I was lying about not referencing franchises?). There were particular shots throughout the final act that reminded me strongly of imagery such as the Starchild and HAL-9000.

WATCH: A Field In England [2013]

 I watched A Field In England with three friends. In the silence that dawned on us after the uninterrupted viewing on Film4, it eventually broke. "I feel like I should be on something," I uttered. They nodded in agreement. But then it wasn't paraphernalia I wanted to be high on, I was already high on the intense low-key visuals that Ben Wheatley and his team had just staggered us with. Shakerspearian-cum-Chaucerian dialogue littered with 'fuck' and 'cunt' expletives framed an intense mindwarp in 17th-Century England in the midst of a distant and echoing Civil War.

WATCH: Pacific Rim

Humourous title aside, Pacific Rim had me questionable at best before I had seen the damn thing. From hearing American audiences prefer the appeal of Grown-Ups 2 I felt a wee bit disheartened. Regardless, after seeing the extended trailer and falling in love with the set design in Hong Kong I came away the complete opposite. Fantastically content. ILM have done an amazing job bringing the hulking piloted mechs known as Jaegers to life. The beautiful thing here is they look functional. Cranks, gears and pistons operate some of the more experienced mechs while being retrofitted with sleek interiors akin to Minority Report. Jets rocket to life when maneuvering the hulking robstrosities in every pivot and turn. The difference with previous robot shows like Transformers is that this doesn't look a mess, even through the battering thunderstorms and crashing waves. I felt like I couldn't quite catch the punches landed between Autobot and Decepticon and, although this is mechs versus monsters, you catch every devastating blow thanks to the spectacular camera work.

PLAY: The Last Of Us

This review has spent a long time sitting in my head, festering and decaying, erstwhile being lit by a fading summer sun as specks of dust dance around in the invisible breeze. Immersion is the best angle a game can take and Naughty Dog's latest offering shovels it in leaps and bounds.

The Last Of Us tells us the story of Joel, a smuggler in the year 2033, living in a world run by martial law where civilians are housed in Quarantine Zones in the now ruined USA. Towering walls make up these QZ's littered with lookouts and checkpoints, marched through by soldiers securing the perimeter and ensuring residents are safe by any, including brutal, means necessary. Joel has experienced firsthand the emotional backlash this new crumbling world can deliver as shown in a harrowing prologue that you play.

PLAY: State Of Decay

There were two games this year that I've been very much anticipating since their announcement. One was The Last Of Us; a post-apocalyptic survival game from my favourite developer, Naughty Dog. The other was State Of Decay, an independently developed game focussing on the survival aspects in a world torn apart by the zombie apocalypse. Undead Labs aim was to bring a zombie game unlike previous worn out shooters of current and last gen; a fully immersive experience giving the player challenges based around the finite resources left when the dead walk the earth.

WATCH: Star Trek Into Darkness

Why oh why can I not look at anything to do with re-whatever'ed Star Trek and not find myself whistling the dance mix of the Lost In Space theme tune? My experience with Star Trek started from a young age, coming home from school to catch either The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine and eventually Voyager a teatime on BBC2 when The Simpsons wasn't on. Not so much a Trekkie but a Treklite, I ventured forth most evenings Picard, Riker and his strange chair-mounting to worlds unseen. Eventually, the original films and The Original Series had my eyes peeled with one film being particularly memorable.