Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 29th, 2014
Martial arts films are just about as done to death as the slasher film. Just about every angle and direction that you can take with these films has been explored by now. When it comes to the martial arts genre, seeing a student or son avenge their father or master is just about the motivation in most of these films, but audiences accept this because what we are sitting down for is the action. Seriously, how many people remember the plots of the old Jackie Chan or Jet Li films? But go back even further to the core classics like The 36th Chamber of Shaolin or Five Deadly Venoms; these films are all rooted in the spirit of revenge.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 28th, 2014
It’s movies like Big Bad Wolves that keep me excited about cinema. After all, who would guess that Israel would produce this savagely dark fairy tale revenge film that is also one of the darkest comedies I’ve seen in some time with a visual aesthetic you’d expect from a Coen brothers film, but the violence and humor you’d expect from a film by Tarantino. My first time viewing this film was via On Demand a few months ago; more and more I feel the cable companies are onto something by acquiring these little films and releasing them pay-per-view so that those not in New York and Los Angeles can experience these films before having to wait months longer for their DVD or Blu-ray release.
Posted in: The Reel World by Brent Lorentson on April 25th, 2014
Being the last film completed by Paul Walker before his passing, fans are getting the chance to see their star up on the big screen before he takes his final bow in Fast & Furious 7. The only Paul Walker film that managed to get me excited was Running Scared. It was dark and gritty, and I feel director Wayne Kramer pulled a great performance out of Walker. Looking to Brick Mansions, a remake of the parkour French hit District B-13, it seemed like Walker could possibly have another teeth-cutting performance. But that’s not the case.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 23rd, 2014
With all the zombie media out there have you ever thought what you would do if you found yourself in the middle of the zombie apocalypse? It’s fun to discuss your plans for survival and clever weapons you may devise to battle the hordes of the undead. But what would you do if a loved one was infected and became one of the undead? Would you be able to simply put them down so easily? Or would you tend to them with the hope that somehow they could return and not be the flesh-eating monstrosity they’ve come to be?
Posted in: The Reel World by Brent Lorentson on April 18th, 2014
Just about any project that Christopher Nolan has any attachment to is going to get my attention. And from the first glimpses of the film in the early teasers, Transcendence always felt like a film Nolan would seem right at home making. Instead taking the helm for the first time as director is Wally Pfister. Though this may be his first time in the director’s chair, Pfister is no stranger to working on pictures of large scale; after all, he’s been Nolan’s director of photography since Memento back in 2000. So how does Pfister do with his first at bat? Well, it could be a lot worse…
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 15th, 2014
The summer camp horror genre seems to have been on the back burner for a while in my opinion. Sleepaway Camp, Friday the 13th, and The Burning are some of the classics I used to watch over and over when I was younger. Camp Dread looks to revisit this old-school sub-genre and reboot it with a new twist; this time it’s using a backdrop of a reality show to get these unsuspecting campers together. It’s not the most original approach to the genre, but what is most surprising is that Camp Dread actually holds up with the previous films and franchises I mentioned and could easily be seen as an unofficial sequel to any of them.
Posted in: The Reel World by Brent Lorentson on April 12th, 2014
When I saw the trailer for this film a while back, I was intrigued by what I saw. Sure, we’ve seen the haunted mirror film before, but that doesn’t bother me; I actually enjoy the notion of haunted mirrors and the notion that what we see in the reflection may not necessarily be real. With Oculus they take the idea of altered perception and play with us the viewer, and I have to admit I liked everything that this film had to offer; unfortunately what the film actually delivers is something entirely different.
Posted in: The Reel World by Brent Lorentson on April 12th, 2014
When I first experienced The Raid it was a film that simply put my jaw to the floor in awe of the action spectacle. The Raid was everything I could have wanted in an action film, fun gun play and intense bare-knuckle martial arts brutality just about from start to finish. This is the kind of film that after you see it you simply have to tell your friends about it and simply gush over simply how awesome and cool this movie is. So when I first heard about a sequel in the works, already I was excited. And when the first trailer dropped for the sequel, it teased us with visuals that promised not just an escalation of action but a film that was on a much larger scale.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 8th, 2014
On the heels of the reality TV Pentecostal preacher dying from a snakebite, Holy Ghost People delves into the dark side of religion and how those who believe can be corrupted and taken advantage of. It’s not that the film is looking to exploit or demonize a religion or anyone’s beliefs, but instead it explores the people who have no problem using another’s beliefs and weaknesses to manipulate them. Though the film takes place deep in the backwoods of the Appalachian mountains, it could just as easily be about a chapel just up the street; after all, faith and corruption are everywhere so long as there is someone eager to believe.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 8th, 2014
Ever watch one of those reality shows and wonder what would happen if someone got killed, or what if one of the cast members turned out to be a psycho ax murderer? Well, I’m not ashamed to say the thought has crossed my mind from time to time in hopes that it would make the season of Survivor mean a whole new thing with the stakes raised, and instead of a vote off you were literally cut out of the show. Well, HazMat tackles this very notion of a reality show breaking from the script (come on, we all know by now reality shows are scripted) after the show’s participant gets the thirst for blood.
