A few years ago, Hollywood clearly decided it was far better to recycle or re-mix old stories than to write new ones. It’s actually been occurring for many, many years but less notably than the recent stream of comic book and other features based on stories already told, already written. Let me be clear, I [...]
Over the last couple of years there have been a TON of new films featuring our aging Hollywood elite. You’ve seen them and maybe enjoyed them, some of which have even spawned sequels (RED 2 coming this July). In general I think can be fun if you accept them for what they are, fluff cinema. [...]
Every year there are a handful of animated films released, many of which never really garner much attention aside from having star-studded casts. Most of them are forgettable entries in the genre… aside from Pixar, which tends to put out quality every time. Hit-or-miss doesn’t begin to describe our typical animated releases. ESCAPE FROM PLANET [...]
One of the simplest and most primal fears we have is the fear of the unknown. Things we cannot see, cannot understand, cannot fathom are inexorably terrifying. Recent Hollywood horror films have tried to capitalize on this with varying degrees of success. DARK SKIES, which arrived in theaters in February 2013 and is now available [...]
K-11 is an immensely confusing film. It attempts to be a prison drama, a story of redemption in a man lost to the world of drugs and vice, and a poorly executed, quirky, dark comedy on the state of humanity. K-11 suffers from an identity crisis that renders it nearly unwatchable. Thankfully the leading actors [...]
It’s hard to believe there was a time that Tom Hanks was better known for his comedic, and then dramatic, turns as an actor than for his work behind the camera. One of his first forays into behind the screen work, THAT THING YOU DO!, was a classy and beautiful homage to the original boy [...]
THE SWEENEY, a nickname for the London based “The Flying Squad” (because in cockney, it rhymes with Sweeney Todd), is a new UK film released to Blu-ray. The Flying Squad are the armed task force who deal with especially violent crimes within London, immortalized for many a Brit during the iconic 70’s television show. The [...]
When DRAGON (Wu Xia) arrived in my mailbox, I was worried it was going to be another cheap martial arts/CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON knockoff. The red case and simple premise really don’t do the film justice, though, and I’m quite pleased to say that I was mistaken. DRAGON is actually a very good movie. I’m [...]
After decades of war between humans and alien invaders called Scavs, the earth is rendered nearly useless. Earth won the war but the use of nukes and military warfare has destroyed the world to unsafe standards. After evacuating earth’s people to a more inhabitable place on one of Saturn’s moons, an “effective team” of Jack [...]
One of the problems with horror movies (and I’m a fan) is that they inevitably release sequels that may or may not live up to the original. For every HALLOWEEN H2O (which I enjoyed) there are 3 or 4 shortfalls like HALLOWEEN 2, HALLOWEEN 3, etc. I’ll stop picking on the John Carpenter flicks for [...]
When ATLAS SHRUGGED: PART ONE (click the title to read our review) was released almost two years ago, I was dubious. Based on the quality of the production and the lukewarm public and critical response I never considered they would actually try to make the 2nd part of this intended trilogy. But there are apparently [...]
If you ever wondered what a Michael Bay directed and Jerry Bruckheimer produced World War II film may look like, this film is about as close as it gets. COMPANY OF HEROES is a high-octane, action-packed war film, focusing more on explosions and kills rather than the intricate story details or character building exercises. While [...]
(Long pause) I really have no idea how to review HOLY MOTORS. To just say it is weird, random and non-sequitur would be a disservice. Don’t get me wrong, all those descriptive adjectives are absolutely true. But the film is also organized within its strangeness, which I realize is bordering on an oxymoron – structured [...]
Anchor Bay Entertainment and The Weinstein Company have announced that the Academy Award winning film from Quentin Tarantino, DJANGO UNCHAINED (click the link to read the review), starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Academy Award winner Christoph Waltz, Jamie Foxx, Kerry Washington, Samuel L. Jackson, James Remar and Walton Goggins, will be available in a Blu-ray/DVD/UltraViolet combo pack [...]
A team of professional thieves come together to pull off an impossible casino heist. No, I’m not talking about OCEAN’S ELEVEN (although there are eleven thieves involved), I’m talking about the South Korean like minded film THE THIEVES (original title Dodookdeul). THE THIEVES is an exciting thriller with action, love and betrayal. The film starts [...]
I am so thankful I live in a world where Quentin Tarantino makes films. Exciting, creative, colorful (visually and in language), fascinating characters, interesting dialogue and wildly entertaining, Tarantino films regularly land on top of my favorite list. DJANGO UNCHAINED is no exception. The unique director aims his love toward Spaghetti Westerns and blaxploitation flicks [...]
That time has come between Thanksgiving and Christmas where Americans buy, buy, buy. Kicking off with Black Friday, a somewhat makeshift national holiday celebrating consumerism and corporate bottom lines. It’s that beautiful day after Thanksgiving that quite frankly makes me want to puke…or maybe because I ate five too many pumpkin pies. As a tradition [...]
When I first saw LORD OF THE RINGS: FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING, I was forever changed with an incredible moviegoing experience that has yet to be matched. Like many people, to say I love these films would be an understatement of epic proportions. You can imagine my excitement when news broke that Peter Jackson would [...]
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has announced that the action/thriller LOOPER (click the link to read the review), from director Rian Johnson and starring Bruce Willis, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Emily Blunt, Jeff Daniels, Paul Dano and Piper Perabo, will be released on Blu-ray December 31st, 2012 (though this is being called a “preliminary release” so that means [...]
THE FRENCH CONNECTION is a masterfully gritty cop drama about two officers that don’t stop until they get their man. Full of intensely compelling police surveillance and one the most memorable chase sequences in film history, THE FRENCH CONNECTION is a classic that should be seen by all film lovers. Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle (Gene Hackman) [...]
Based on David Mitchell’s popular novel, CLOUD ATLAS is an extremely ambitious film following several characters throughout different historical time periods spanning from as early as 1850 to the distant future. Using an all-star cast including Tom Hanks, Halle Berry and Jim Broadbent to present several thematic issues about the impact individual’s choices have on [...]
Driving in the dark of the night, a man and a woman follow directions that lead them into a garage of a residential home. As the garage door shuts, a man leads them into the home and instructs them to use the soap well while they scrub in separate showers. The two are dressed in [...]
Foreign films can be a treat. They can take you to places you have never been. They can allow you to experience cultures to which you would never otherwise be exposed. Sometimes, seeing a foreign film is like a glimpse into a world you’ve never known. Sometimes, though, seeing a foreign film can completely baffle [...]
Hannah (Rachel Hendrix) is performing in a college play when an unexpected asthma attack strikes. While at the hospital, Hannah learns from her parents and the doctor that she was adopted and her poor health problems stem from the fact that she is a survivor from a botched abortion. Understandably devastated and confused, Hannah goes [...]
Based on the true story during the 1979 Iran hostage crisis, ARGO is a captivating political thriller that no one should miss. The film follows CIA specialist Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck) and his plight to rescue six U.S. diplomats from Tehran after the Iranian revolution had reached maximum heights using an extremely unorthodox cover of [...]
One of the most enduring characters in modern cinema, Indiana Jones has touched the imaginations of millions of people over the past 30+ years since breaking onto the scene with an incredible collaboration – George Lucas (STAR WARS), Steven Spielberg (JAWS, LINCOLN), and Harrison Ford (COWBOYS & ALIENS) came together and created something absolutely marvelous [...]
An independent film about the life of a single woman, LOLA VERSUS attempts to modernize the finding one’s self genre. Unfortunately, while the attempt garners a few laughs, the entire story is empty of substance lacking focus and direction. After her fiance calls off the marriage weeks before the wedding, Lola’s (Greta Gerwig) life begins [...]
What is there to say about one of the most anticipated sequels in the history of modern cinema? In the case of INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL, sadly, not a lot of people had much positive to say. This eagerly awaited follow-up in the Indiana Jones saga was considered a hot [...]
Modern Family has quickly become the sitcom juggernaut. In it’s third season, the ABC primetime comedy has obtained numerous Emmy Awards, become a critics darling and is a ratings powerhouse. As a personal favorite in our household, Modern Family: The Complete Third Season finds the whole family back in usual funny identifiable form. The Dunphy’s, [...]
What better way to end the ‘80s than with a third Indiana Jones film, INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE? After the debacle that was INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM (click the link to read our Blu-ray review) there was a decent passage of time between movies two and three of this incredible [...]
Time travel is always a tricky topic that almost always falls victim to plot holes and added questions, usually relegating the sci-fi film to campy fun or irritating frustration. LOOPER manages to beat the odds and deliver an original high concept film that is both smart and entertaining led by an amazing performance by Joseph [...]
In today’s world of cinema, it may be hard to imagine a time when there were very few sequels being made. Even harder, perhaps, to grasp the reality – they were usually reserved for the fantastically successful or beloved films of an era (as a general rule). So, if you made RAIDERS OF THE LOST [...]
How to review one of my favorite movies of all time (if not my favorite)? Talk to any movie lover and they’ll have ready an ever-rotating list of their all-time favorite movies. Or, if they are like me, they’ll have a rotating list of what I call the ‘best’ movies of all time, and then [...]
In 1991, Martin Scorsese remade one of the best villain with a vengeance stories in CAPE FEAR. The very next year it seems Hollywood wanted to capitalize on the success by putting out a string of films using stalker psychotic villains working their way into a nice family unit with UNLAWFUL ENTRY, SINGLE WHITE FEMALE [...]
Whenever I see a movie being released featuring a singer or a basketball player, or a rapper or wrestler… well, lets just say that it doesn’t inspire my confidence in Hollywood executives and their decision-making ability. So, suffice it to say, when I heard about FREELANCERS I was more than a bit apprehensive. Put simply [...]
Rarely does a film have so much insight, creativity and originality that it reinvents how we look at movies. THE CABIN IN THE WOODS takes the horror genre and spins it on its head. Forever providing a completely different outlook whenever watching any monster/slasher/scary film, THE CABIN IN THE WOODS is a brilliant new take [...]
I’ll be honest with you. The first few times I looked at the DARLING COMPANION Blu-ray cover/box I didn’t want to watch it. Not that it looked bad, per say, there just wasn’t anything that grabbed me and screamed “Watch ME!” It didn’t help matters that this looked like a movie about a family dog [...]
No matter how many terrible films fill his resume, Cuba Gooding Jr. will always be known as Academy Award winning actor, Cuba Gooding Jr. (JERRY MAGUIRE). And no matter how many times we are reminded that Dolph Lundgren has a master’s degree in chemical engineering and is a Mensa member, he will always be the [...]
When a Texas housewife discovers her husband committed armed robbery with the plan of leaving her high and dry, she ties him up and calls her best friend to help scheme an idea of taking the money for themselves in the murderous dark comedy BREATHLESS. Unfortunately, they can’t seem to find the cash and accidently [...]
I think one’s love for Sushi will ultimately persuade whether you like or dislike JIRO DREAMS OF SUSHI. The raw fish seems to spark a very love it or hate it attitude. I for one love it! But I think beyond one’s taste for food the documentary is crafted quite well so that most anyone [...]
The name Disney is synonymous with children’s features, feature length cartoons, a fruitful partnership with Pixar… but who would have known that they would find a way to “Disney-fy” the nature-documentary genre? Most people probably don’t know (I didn’t until doing research for this review) but Disney actually produced an acclaimed nature documentary series called [...]
Growing up, ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING was a staple in our household. While I have seen it dozens of times in my youth, I have not revisited the film in quite sometime. So it was with much trepidation that I went into reviewing a film that I had such fond memories of, in fear that those [...]
Bill Murray made a string of movies in the late 1970s and early ‘80s, some of which are considered the best comedies in history. One of these movies, MEATBALLS (1979), was recently released on Blu-ray. The Saturday Night Live alum was actually in the middle of his tenure with that show when MEATBALLS was released, [...]
Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment has announced that the 2009 James Cameron film AVATAR (click the link to read the review), starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez and Giovanni Ribisi, will finally be coming to Blu-ray in 3D on October 16th, 2012. AVATAR follows a paraplegic Marine named Jake (Sam [...]
I’ve always enjoyed war movies though they aren’t usually the ones that I seek out. Instead they are the movies that I find playing on some channel when I channel surf and suddenly I realize that I’ve just spent a couple of hours watching. That said there have been some exceptions, usually movies like MEMORIAL [...]
Tyler Perry has made a career of putting together and deconstructing the family unit. From his over-the-top Madea films to his more recent dramatic entries – Perry has a gift. The characters he creates are not necessarily identifiable but he plays them with such universality, and inspires the same in his fellow cast members, that [...]
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has announced that the dark comedy from director Tim Burton, DARK SHADOWS (click the link to read the review), will be available in a Blu-ray/DVD/UltraViolet combo pack on October 2, 2012. DARK SHADOWS has a stellar cast that includes: Johnny Depp, Eva Green, Michelle Pfeiffer, Helena Bonham Carter, Jonny Lee Miller, Chloe [...]
Ever since Luc Beeson entered the public consciousness as the writer/director of LEON: THE PROFESSIONAL (1994) and THE FIFTH ELEMENT (1997), I’ve gotten excited every time I hear his name attached to a new project. Very few of his recent films have materialized the same way, despite some clever writing and an obvious flair for [...]
Set in the cold snowy months of Wisconsin, THIN ICE follows an insurance salesman trying to pull a scam over an old man’s valuable violin that goes terribly awry. Director Jill Sprecher co-wrote the script with her sister Karen Sprecher who delivers a nice “idea” of a dark comedy with a decent production and some [...]
Every once in a while a movie just flat out surprises you. It may be one that you heard about in passing, or something that you just checked out because of the star… With the number of films released each year growing, you would hope that the chance to find these gems would increase. Sadly, [...]
