Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 3rd, 2016
Keanu Reeves is a guy who I don’t think anyone would be crazy enough to say is a “great actor”, but instead he’s a guy who has been in some pretty great films. For me he’s an actor I grew up with from his days doing the Bill and Ted movies and Point Break. (Seriously, how dare they attempt to remake that gem?) Between Speed and The Matrix, those are the two movies I’ve held onto for so long as his career took a more interesting turn; that is until John Wick came along and blew my mind with all the insane coolness that was up on the screen. Finally it seemed I was on track to getting the Keanu Reeves that I grew up watching. I know, so what’s the point of all this? Well, until now, none of the Reeves films that I’ve liked could I really say it was because of his performance, and Exposed is finally the film he’s needed where he can show he’s more than just a brooding action star.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 30th, 2016
The name Quentin Tarantino carries the weight of legacy as such directors as Alfred Hitchcock, Steven Spielberg, and more recently Christopher Nolan. I’m not saying one is better than the other, but simply by name recognition alone Tarantino is in the company of directors that when you hear that his name is attached there will be a loyal fan base flocking to the theaters to see what they have to dazzle us with. This time around Tarantino returns to the cinema in his biggest release to date; in glorious 70mm we have The Hateful Eight.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 17th, 2016
Here we go, yet another killer crocodile film to whet your appetites for fun, cheesy gore and perhaps a late-night scare or two. Sure, the thought of another killer crocodile film may cause some (OK, many) to roll their eyes, but in the killer-animal genre, it’s the crocs and gators that still manage to get my attention. Perhaps it’s because I’m a Florida boy, born and raised, and around these parts it’s not much of a surprise to hear about gators being found in the strangest places. With The Hatching bringing us some cold-blooded horror out of the UK, I figure I’ll test the waters with this film from across the pond and see what it has to offer.
Posted in: The Reel World by Brent Lorentson on March 11th, 2016
Bad Robot in my eyes is simply the best at keeping things a secret. In this day and age to be able to surprise audiences is just about an impossible task. When the first Cloverfield trailer was released in 2007 in front of Transformers, it was a trailer that had us all guessing up until its release. In my opinion Cloverfield was one of the best found-footage films to come out, and was a grand achievement considering it was a monster film that had been pretty much been kept under wraps until its actual release. Bad Robot managed to surprise us again, releasing a trailer for 10 Cloverfield Lane that set the internet on fire with theories and hopes for this to be a long-awaited sequel. But is that what this really is?
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 9th, 2016
Maybe it’s simply just a part of growing up, but when I listen to the radio and I hear what is topping the charts I just roll my eyes and wonder, “What is this crap I’m listening to?” We’ve all experienced this at some point, I’d imagine, and as I’ve gotten older my music tastes have seemed to move to before my time, as I’ve moved past my days of listening to strictly metal and rock that ruled the 90’s to now embracing the music of the 60’s and 70’s. I listen to the pop music that floods the airwaves now and hear “music” that lacks substance and meaning, as it is just noise to play on the dance floors of clubs. It’s here where I feel the series of documentaries Penelope Spheeris should conclude her saga of music over the decades.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 7th, 2016
Despite how the History Channel continues to churn out more reality shows, the upside of this is that the shows they put out happen to be pretty entertaining. When I first heard about Mountain Men, the first thing that came to mind was how dangerous was this show really going to get? Sure, you can have people hunting in the snow, but would the producers of the show really allow their crew to sit back and record the “cast” as they continue to face dangerous and deadly situations over and over? Well, the answer is yes, and the danger comes in various forms as the men of the show face off against Mother Nature in a blistering struggle for survival.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 2nd, 2016
When certain stories become public domain, you just have to expect that there will be a lot of people creating their own “unique” versions of the same tale all in the name of making a few bucks. When it comes to adaptations of Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein, I think we can all agree every attempt to tell the story has not been in the name of preserving the art. What I do find surprising: despite all the attempts to bring the story to the screen, there still isn’t a version that I can say is a perfect retelling of the tale, though each may have its pros, for the most part it just never seems to translate well.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on February 28th, 2016
Life on the road as a comic always seemed like it would be the bachelors dream lifestyle: a new town every other night, getting to meet new people and see new sites while getting paid to tell jokes. Well, for the most part I still think it’s a pretty sweet deal, but in the new existential comedy Entertainment, we get a glimpse into what the road life would be if you just happened to be one of the worst comedians to take the stage. This slow, depressing look at The (unnamed) Comedian (Gregg Turkington) as he attempts to mend his relationship with his daughter doesn’t go for laughs but instead attempts to take an introspective look at its star, and just seems to go nowhere.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on February 28th, 2016
Here is an instance where there was so much promise going into this film, but because of its lack of restraint, it blew an opportunity to be a good film. The Midnight Man offers up a fun premise, a good cast, and high production values, but what plagues this film is a script that is filled with so much bad dialog you’ll wish you were watching a silent film. Quick lesson in screenwriting: don’t try to be Shane Black or Quentin Tarantino; they are a class of their own, and to try to copy them only shines a light on how bad your dialog really is. I’m being hard on this film, because had this film shown some restraint and kept the dialog simple, this could have been a really cool film.
Posted in: The Reel World by Brent Lorentson on February 26th, 2016
Ever since Michael Mann came along, the bar has been set when it comes to making gritty heist films. Sure, films have come close in reaching the ranks of Thief and Heat, but close isn’t enough to put films over the top. When the trailers came along for Triple 9, it was a film that I immediately had my eye on and was curious what director John Hilcoat (The Road and Lawless) would do with the material. The result is just about the most corrupt cop film to come out in ages and a gritty crime drama full of double-crosses that’ll have you questioning who are the good guys in a sea of so many bad ones. Is this a modern masterpiece or simply a slick action film? Well, to be fair, it’s somewhere in the middle. Strap on your bulletproof vest and grab and extra clip, because Triple 9 throws you in the thick of the action.
