Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on June 6th, 2026
"We're not rock stars. We're human jukeboxes."
A little bit of quick background. I'm a recording artist with eight albums under my belt, so I likely approached this film a little differently than most folks. I wasn't really all that enthused about seeing the film. You see, I tend to hate when songwriters write songs about writing songs. I think it's pretentious. So what have I done? Written at least a handful of songs about writing songs, so I don't do a lot of practicing what I preach. That's the mindset I had going into the screening. It turned out maybe I do like songs about songwriting and just haven't had the guts to admit it. There aren't any maybes about one thing. I can tell you for certain that Power Ballad turned out to be one of the best films I've seen in the first half of 2026. Who knew? I think that director/writer John Carney knew. It's possible that Paul Rudd and Nick Jonas did. Now I know, and in a minute, so will you.
Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on May 29th, 2026
Let's just get this out of the way from the jump. I very much doubt that any film or filmmaker is going to ever come close to giving us the D-Day invasion of France in any better detail or realism than Stephen Spielberg did with Saving Private Ryan. There have already been countless documentaries. There have been enough films on the subject to make just about anyone a "Hollywood" expert on what is likely the greatest military campaign in the history of warfare. The only way you're going to get anyone's attention or leave any kind of mark on the cinematic history of D-Day is to find an angle that no one else has found. Good luck with that... or maybe there is an aspect that hasn't yet been mined. I didn't think so before I saw director Anthony Maras's latest film Pressure. The approach is so simple it's almost crazy that it hasn't been covered before. What is it everyone always complains about but no one ever does anything about? The weather. Perhaps nothing determines the outcome of a battle more. Just ask George Washington or Napoleon Bonaparte or maybe ask Dwight D. Eisenhower. Because when he was asked what the turning point of the D-Day invasion was he answered that we just had better weathermen than the German's did. That's what Pressure is all about.
We are 72 hours from D-Day which currently is scheduled for Monday June 5th, 1944. If that date sounds just a little off to you be patient. Andrew Scott plays Lt. James Stagg. He's a British expert on meteorology. His wife is pregnant with their first child but he has been called away on a very secret meeting with Dwight Eisenhower who is The Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces. What he's about to discover is that the Allies are just three days from embarking on the greatest expeditionary force in history... The invasion of Nazi-occupied France. Brendan Fraser plays Eisenhower. He has relied on his own meteorologist Irving Krick (Messina) throughout the war. Captain Krick's forecasts have been reliable and have led him to many victories particularly in North Africa. But the British claim Stagg is the best there is and so Eisenhower puts him in charge of the team that have the responsibility of delivering a go/no go forecast for the offensive. The two instantly butt heads when Krick gives a clear skies go forecast while Stagg believes there is a strong front moving through the area that will bring the mother of all storms. As the film advances each of these men are engaged in a conflict that complicates the invasion and causing a bit of hostility within the ranks.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 26th, 2026
“So, you wanna give that thing to a good person so they can save the world. I understand. But in order to save that good person, you’re gonna have to give it to a really bad person. In all my years, I've only ever seen one man come out on top in Vegas. We go to do it like he did. He rigged the game.”
I know what you might be thinking. It was going through my mind as well. It sounds a little bit like "Save the cheerleader. Save the world." Admit it, that's exactly where you were going with this thing. Even at its best ... or worst, Heroes was never as intense or dark as the video game television series adaptation of Fallout on Prime. With all respect to Zachary Quinto and his portrayal of Syler, Syler would be running home cryin' to mama if he ever came across Walton Goggins as The Ghoul in Fallout. Don't believe me? Now's your chance to find out, because Alliance and Prime have teamed up to bring the second season of Fallout to home video. And they aren't messing around here. It's the ultimate television series release, because you can grab it on UHD Blu-ray in the full glory of 4K and Dolby Vision. One caveat before we move on. If you haven't seen or bought the first season yet, you're going to have to run, don't walk, to wherever you get your home theater goodies and pick up Season 1 first. You'll be lost without it. That's the danger I was facing. I fixed that right quick.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 19th, 2026
Lucille Ball was originally a radio personality starring in a popular comedy, My Favorite Husband. It was here that she began to develop the character she would continue to play for decades in television through several shows, all bearing her name in one form or another: I Love Lucy, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy, and Life With Lucy. See the pattern? Anyone who was a fan of the radio show would instantly recognize the red-haired actress even though they had never actually seen her on the radio. That exaggerated cry was already a staple of her physical comedy, even when she couldn't be seen. She had also toured for many years with her real-life husband Desi Arnaz. When they could not convince a network to film a pilot of a show featuring both of them, they made it on their own dime. CBS was so impressed with the pilot that they reimbursed the couple, and in 1951 I Love Lucy hit the airwaves.
Lucy played the character she had already perfected on radio and on the stage. Desi played her husband, a Cuban bandleader who headlined at the Tropicana. Lucy was always trying to find a way to get into Ricky's act. She had no talent, but that never stopped her, usually embarrassing Ricky along the way. The couple lived in an apartment owned by the Mertzes, Fred (Frawley) and Ethel (Vance). They were not only the Ricardos’ landlords but also their closest friends. Ethel would often find herself talked into one of Lucy's crazy schemes. The show also found comedy fodder in Ricky's thick Cuban accent. Sometimes his mispronunciations caused hilarious misunderstandings. William Frawley as Fred had the job of playing straight man most of the time. It was a thankless job, to be sure, but he was perfect at it. He didn't talk as much as the others, but he had some golden moments over the show's very successful six-year run. It was a shame that Frawley and Vance absolutely hated each other. Both were slated to return to Lucy's second series The Lucy Show, but Vance refused to work with Frawley again, and he was written out of the second show, as Vance and Ball were very close in real life as well. During that time the series never once fell below number three for the entire year in ratings.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 12th, 2026
"Jack Shindo has made it back alive from Mars. but his reappearance will raise more questions than it answers. He has a secret that cannot be shared. He can tell no one that he is Ultraman, a savior from the stars."
Ultraman is a huge part of Japanese culture and pretty much has been since the original live-action show in 1966. Perhaps Godzilla started the ball rolling, but Ultraman brought us these monsters on a regular basis. In Japan, Ultraman is like our Superman. He’s an iconic hero and a huge part of the pop culture. Since the 60’s he has appeared in many forms, most of them animated. But it is this 1966 series that made a ton of us kids fall in love with him and an entire genre. Yes, there were many from the era: Space Giants featured a giant fighting robot who fought monsters and sometimes converted into a spaceship (yes, before transformers were ever thought of); Johnny Socko had his giant robot; and the list goes on. But it was Ultraman who started it. Eiji Tsuburaya, who created the original Godzilla, formed a new company outside of Toho Pictures. Ultraman was pretty much the first thing out of the new shop.
Posted in: The Reel World by Jeremy Butler on May 9th, 2026
“I'm warning you. I got a Saturn Award for Best Fight in a Feature Film, so don't mess with me.”
So, it goes without saying the success or failure of this movie rested solely on Karl Urban’s portrayal of Johnny Cage. Johnny Cage is among the most popular characters in the video game franchise. Not to mention, he was my favorite character back in my Sega days. For me, while I still enjoyed the first film, his absence was felt. I was thrilled when I heard that he was going to be featured in the second film. I will admit when I heard that Urban would be playing the role, I was mildly skeptical. While I know Urban to be a fantastic actor and hilarious, the physicality of the role, I initially thought would be too much for him. Luckily, it proved me wrong. It’s been five years since the reboot, and yet for the most part, the sequel feels like no time has passed at all. Especially given that everyone member of the cast from the reboot returned for the sequel, including a few that I wasn’t expecting. This of course includes some new additions as well as a bit of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina reunion.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 5th, 2026
"Welcome to Derry, home of Paul Bunyan."
I can still remember the It miniseries from a few decades ago. I thought Gary Oldman was just wonderful as Pennywise the clown at the center of Stephen King's novel of the same name. What I really never took into account was that being wonderful really wasn't the point of the character at all. With much love to Oldman and the many characters he's brought to life over the years, I never realized until 2017 was who Pennywise the clown was truly meant to be. Andy Muschietti and his sister Barbara went to work on a two-film attempt to bring It back to life, this time on the big screen. Like most people I was pretty skeptical of the whole thing, and a lifetime of failed Stephen King films that never lived up to his written word was the evidence I cited. Can't be done, I said. They'll only run it into the ground to be resurrected badly as if it had been buried in King's Pet Semetary. But I was wrong. While Stand By Me and The Shawshank Redemption might still be some of the best adaptations of King's work, I think the 2017 It and It: Chapter Two are the best one-two punch in the frightening world of Stephen King. What I didn't know was this wasn't a two-film deal at all. It was intended to be three films, with the third being a prequel. Something happened along the way, and the project finally got greenlit, and the Muschietti family brought along all of their scary friends including Bill Skarsgard, who taught me who Pennywise really was, and the lesson has been unforgettable. Now Warner Brothers is releasing the first eight episodes that make up the first season of It: Welcome To Derry, and it's available on UHD Blu-ray in 4K. Snatch it up before Pennywise snatches you.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 30th, 2026
"Why are you talking? Do you ever think about what you're gonna say or why you're speaking? Or do you just open your mouth and just blah blah blah blah blah? In about thirty seconds I'll be gone. We don't need to speak."
Die My Love is the latest film by director Lynne Ramsay whose best film is still We Need To Talk About Kevin. I say still is because Die My Love doesn't live up to the reputation. Ramsay was never quite a linear storyteller and this film is no exception. She loves to dabble in the subtle madness of a situation and here she does much more than dabble and while there are certainly attempts to be nuanced the film rages as out of control as her main character played by Jennifer Lawrence who takes a huge swing and a big chance here. It was the right idea but maybe not quite the right vehicle. Lawrence has been trying to distance herself from the Hunger Games franchise not because that wasn't good work but she appears to be trying not to get too pigeonholed in her career. as I said, it's the right call. the problem is that Die My Love is too messy of a film to show much of anything, and trust me anything worth watching about this film lands entirely on the performance of Jennifer Lawrence.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Dakota Nivens on April 29th, 2026
“You are a pig!” / “I’m a rural farm boy. It’s part of my charm.”
The quote above really sets the tone of The History of Sound (2025). It is a charming movie, a cinematographically soft motion picture, subtle and intimate in execution. It was directed by Oliver Hermanus and written by Ben Shattuck, premiering at the Cannes Film Festival on May 21, 2025. The movie has since won three awards and been nominated nine times. After watching it, I can see why, and I immediately knew I wanted to write an affectionate review for such an affectionate film. That said, I could write what the movie was about, and I could write what the movie was really about. The nuance in interpretation may sound minute, but worth exploring to understand in depth. The film is a soft gay romance, showing how two men fall in love. It centers around these two men, Lionel (Paul Mescal) and David (Josh O’Connor), although the story is essentially told from Lionel’s point of view. It is set at the brink of World War I in 1917 when David is drafted into the military. Just before being drafted, David and Lionel meet in a bar when Lionel noticed David playing an old folksong from his home in Kentucky. It sparked an instant connection sealed by their shared love of music. They were both gifted in music, with Lionel described as having synesthesia, seeing colors in sound, and David having a photographic memory with sound, being able to play or sing to music he’s only heard once. Upon David’s return from being stationed in Europe, the two instantly reconnect and set upon a field research journey to collect and archive regional folk music, hence the name The History of Sound. In their quest, their love is allowed to blossom, and all is well until David decides to part ways after they finish their quest.
Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on April 24th, 2026
"I know you've been waiting a long time for this. The tracks are made, the songs are ready. Let's take it from the top!"
For a little over two hours Michael Jackson has risen from his grave. It's not a miracle. It's a little bit of movie magic and a performance by an actor with a little bit more at stake than the usual paycheck or quest for awards and accolades. When he decided to direct a bio-pic about Michael Jackson, Antoine Fuqua made a couple of smart choices. He hired John Logan to write the script. Logan is likely best known for Gladiator but he has a pretty impressive resume to call upon. But the wisest choice was to hire Jaafar Jackson to play the title character. And while Jackson was required to audition for the part like any other actor might be required to do, he had an edge both in getting the role and in turning it into something a little bit special. He is Michael Jackson's nephew and the son of Jackson Five member Jermaine Jackson. So there's certainly a lot of Jackson power in the film, and it's all put together to pull in a whole lot of a different kind of Jacksons at the box office. So hold on tight, because this story is going to be a whirlwind.
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