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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 15th, 2013
In 1363, the Black Plague had done its damage, leaving most infected areas uninhabitable. Escape — known in Norway as Flukt — is the story of a family that sets out into the countryside to get away from the plague and hopefully find a new place to rebuild their lives. But just as I’m thinking this is going to be a movie about sticking together and fighting to survive the elements, it shifts gears to something far darker but not all that original.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 14th, 2013
“This is not what you think it is.”
Sometimes a movie comes along that simply has so much to say that two hours simply isn’t enough to flesh it out to its full potential. Broken City is a film that is filled with many great characters and story threads that needed more than just the 109-minute running time to tie everything all together.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 8th, 2013
“If you have a tender soul, brace yourself.”
Sometimes I’ll get a stand-up comedy DVD and wonder how to write the review differently from other stand-up routines because there was simply little-to-no difference between the acts. Everyone just about knows — or should know — the basic formula. A guy walks out on stage and, for 45 minutes to an hour, delivers self-deprecating humor with the goal of receiving a few laughs. But then there are the comedians like Bo Burnham and Jeff Dunham, who at least try to bring something new to the stage by using music or puppets. In the case of Kristen Schaal, the mold continues to break
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 8th, 2013
There has always been something about anime, as well as role playing card games like Pokémon and Kaijudo, that I’ve never quite been able to understand the draw towards them. When my friends talk about these games — with their booster packs and leveling up — all I can do is smile, nod my head, and pretend I have the slightest inkling at what they are talking about. Surely I can’t be alone on this. So when it came time to settle in and give Kaijudo: Rise of the Duel Masters a spin, I was reluctant; I hoped, perhaps, I could gain some insight into what some of my friends were talking about.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 2nd, 2013
Being raised Catholic the notion of God calling down to someone and delivering a message to help someone make a decision in life is actually a concept that’s easy to accept. Whether someone else believes, well, that’s a whole other can of worms people usually don’t like to discuss. But with If You Really Love Me we are given a look behind the curtain at one man’s decision to leave a successful law firm in order to fulfill the destiny laid out by what would appear is a higher power.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 30th, 2013
I wasn’t sure what I’d be getting into when picking up this Bollywood animated feature for kids. Though it has an Americanized voice cast, the Bollywood culture is more than evident throughout this feature, not just through the cultural views but the many song and dance numbers peppered throughout. As the film progressed, there was one thing that stuck with me from the beginning; this film has a message, and it’s not subtle about it, it hits the audience square in the jaw with it.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 22nd, 2013
Donnie Yen continues to deliver one great martial arts film after the other, easily making him the most entertaining martial arts star for quite some time. Sure, there are those who cling to the idea of Bruce Lee being “the best” or perhaps mentioning Jackie Chan or Jet Li for more modern viewers. But for me it’s Yen, and I have no problem saying he may be the best martial arts star of all time. His work with Ip Man, Seven Swords, and Flash Point are staples in a career that has been going since 1984.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 19th, 2013
Ever wonder what would happen if you took all the best or most memorable parts in a sci-fi film and cut them all together? What you get is the hodgepodge mess that is Oblivion, which unless I’m mistaken or blinked a bit too long and missed it, doesn’t have an original bone in its already weak story. Though they say if you’re going to steal, then steal from the best; the problem is that when you play it off as your own, please be able to give us a refreshing twist on a classic scene, not just make it cool. Sure people will say the same about Tarantino, but he owns up to it and puts a spin on it that is undeniably his own.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 16th, 2013
Sometimes a movie comes along that rises above simple entertainment and actually has something to say. The Big Picture is the kind of movie that has profound ideas about love, family, and the pursuit of your dreams. Is it possible to really have it all? The perfect spouse, the perfect family and live out your lifelong passion and dream? Many who have families, especially when starting young, can understand the idea of sacrifice for their families; it doesn’t mean they just cast their hopes and dreams aside, but once marriage and children are involved the direction your life may take was never the direction you had planned at all.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 11th, 2013
Looking back, it’s amazing how far visual effects have come since 1988. I can remember sitting in the theater watching Willow for the first time and believing everything I saw up on the screen wasn’t the work of movie magic, but I believed it to be reality. Perhaps some far off land where there are swordsmen fighting evil sorcerers and trolls lurk in the shadows of abandoned castles. This is a thought I’d like to believe I’m not the only one that hoped this was a reality, but if I am I’m fine with that. Willow came out at a time when Hollywood was trying to bring large-scale fantasy to the screen with other releases like Excalibur, Legend and Conan.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 5th, 2013
Remakes, reboots, and sequels: these are the trends in Hollywood that seem to make fan boys groan. Some films should be left in the past, and some franchises simply need to come to an end. But every so often a film comes along that dares to show us something new, and the end result manages to capture some of the magic that got us to love the original film to begin with. The new Evil Dead filmmakers managed to succeed in doing just that and deliver a film that has me excited about what is next for the Book of the Dead and all those unfortunate enough to flip through its pages.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 3rd, 2013
This is a review that I’ve been dreading. It’s been a while since a movie has gotten me so worked up over its thoughtless execution that I struggle to find something redeeming out of it. For those unfamiliar with non-linear storytelling, a simple definition would be a story told out of order, for instance Memento or Pulp Fiction. Those two examples are of films that execute non-linear storytelling and use the structural device as a means to further their story. As for the filmmakers involved with The Devil’s in the Details, they took a decent story and then tore it up into shreds, tossed it in the air, and pieced it together however they saw fit.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 2nd, 2013
Just how much appeal can a show have when it’s about two directionless twenty-something’s who are groundskeepers at a local park; oh yeah, and they happen to be a raccoon and a blue jay? It came as more than a little surprise how much this show not only had me laughing but I’m certain will have heavy replay value in this household. For those that believe it’s simply a kids’ show, be warned. Though it may not be filled with the raunch one would expect from Family Guy, Regular Show does dip its paw into indecency but never seems to cross the line.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 27th, 2013
It seems that to survive in today’s world everyone has to be at least a little tech-savvy; even grandma has to learn how to text and download images if she cares to see her grandchildren. Unfortunately even stalking has evolved with the times; with social media more and more becoming the way we communicate, the days of peeping toms outside the bedroom window are gone and have moved on to webcam. To some degree I think this should bring a sigh of relief, but then again stalking seems to have gotten easier, allowing more anonymity, and this is what Cyberstalker attempts to delve into.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 22nd, 2013
For years it seems DreamWorks Animation has been living in the shadow of Pixar. Sure, DreamWorks has had their success with Shrek and Ice Age, but when you stack the films next to Pixar’s library, you see Pixar just seems to be the best at what they do. That is until The Croods came along; with the new DreamWorks release it would appear the animation studio has stepped up their game and released their best-looking 3D film to date. My expectations were not too high with this release, but I was at least relieved I wouldn’t be watching Ice Age Ten: The Ice is Still Melting.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 15th, 2013
Some movies have a way of simply sneaking up on you and leave you exiting the theater with a multitude of thoughts and emotions. When a film comes along where you are able to forget your troubles or the stresses of the real world, and long after the final credit has rolled you still can’t shake certain images or lines of dialog from your mind, this is usually the best sign of a good film. The Call I must confess snuck up on me and managed to suck me into “the hive” of the Los Angeles 911 dispatch center and has kept me in its clutches as I write up this review.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 14th, 2013
I think it would be safe to say that ever since Edward Stratemeyer penned The Hardy Boys he has garnered a legion of loyal fans of the popular young adult book series. For many young readers these books are what planted the seeds for them to later become private investigators or join some form of law enforcement. Then there were the casual readers like myself who became obsessed with the crime genre and would later move on to edgier writers. Whatever direction readers may have taken, it’s safe to say that the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew deserve the same respect as other classic characters in fiction like Sherlock Holmes.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 7th, 2013
In a film the pays its respects to the French soldiers who are participating in the war on terror as well as the journalists that risk their lives to cover the war, Special Forces delivers more of the same in this new release. Though the default setting has the spoken language in English and has English-speaking stars, don’t let this French release fool you; the dubbing is terrible and the film is better viewed in its original language. Elsa (Diane Krugar) is a French journalist who is in Afghanistan to cover a story about a woman sold as a child. By now we should all know speaking against the politics in these countries is not just bad, but when you are a woman this could get you killed.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 6th, 2013
Normally when I see trailers for films about “inspiring true stories” I try to remind myself to avoid that film at all costs. Sure I’ve seen more than a few of these kinds of films, but that’s the problem with them, once you’ve seen one you’ve seen them all. When Chasing Mavericks was brought to my attention I was ready to ignore, but then I gave it a quick look at IMDB and to my surprise it had two directing credits, Curtis Hanson (L.A. Confidential, which just so happens to be in my all-time top ten films) and Michael Apted (Gorky Park, Nell, Gorillas of the Mist), and with that my mind was made up.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on February 28th, 2013
When an action title comes along and you see the name Steve Austin headlining it, the expectation level shouldn’t be too high (unless, of course, you’re an obsessed fan of Stone Cold). I’ve seen more than my fair share of straight-to-video action films, so it takes a lot to deter me from giving a film a chance, and when it also gives Dolph Lundgren billing, well, the film becomes hard to resist. Tommy Wick (Austin) does work for a crime family to help work off the debt of his brother, who is currently serving time in the state penitentiary.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on February 25th, 2013
The story about Finn, the human, and Jake, the Dog is something I’ve managed to come into without any knowledge of what is going on. It’s not as though there is a complex plot built around the characters but I’m somewhat at a loss why the 12-13yrold boy lives with his talking dog with no parental unit to be seen. I know it’s a cartoon and considering this takes place in the land of Ooo, hoping to find a plot thread that follows any real world logic is asking a bit much.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on February 23rd, 2013
When I see the claim “inspired by true events” I tend to always take this with a grain of salt, because really just about anything can be inspired by a true event. It’s a misleading caption that frustrates me when I see it used to promote a film. Why does it bother me so much? Its simple; people read those words and begin to think everything is just about entirely true. In this case the film Snitch was inspired by true events. It took some time but I did manage to find a video on You Tube about a PBS television show that inspired the film. This again is an example of what Hollywood does to spin the truth in order to fill seats at the theater.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on February 23rd, 2013
Ever since Ben Affleck stepped behind the camera and took on the role of director, I’ve found myself not only becoming a fan of his work but believing the man has greatness ahead of him. When I first watched Gone Baby Gone, I was more than a little impressed; after all, it was his first time at the helm. But then Affleck released his follow-up film, The Town, and it blew me away. Sure, there were some great movies that came out that year, but the fact that it didn’t make the list of best picture nominees I just can’t understand.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on February 19th, 2013
From the opening title card, Mafia does its best to fit in with the blaxploitation films of the 70’s, and even with Pam Grier in one of the key roles the film just doesn’t hold up. It seems a lot of filmmakers and fans have on rose-colored glasses to the exploitation era (I’ll lump myself in with this group as well), but the filmmakers who attempt these films forget a lot of these films of the past had a strong political or sociological message they were trying to send. Just making a film set in the 70s and throwing on some filters doesn’t mean you made an exploitation film; it simply means you captured the cheap low quality of the pictures they made back then.
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Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on February 15th, 2013
I remember watching Heavenly Creatures and believing Melanie Lynskey would break out and become a star. I never would have guessed her co-star Kate Winslet would be the one to emerge from the film and be the A-list actress she has become. After all, when you watch Heavenly Creatures, it’s hard to believe this was the first role Lynskey had in front of a camera; I would have imagined she was destined to play some great roles through her career. Unfortunately that’s not the case, but I’m glad to see at the very least she has a career up on the screen.
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