Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 21st, 2016
"Did you ever have a dream but didn't know where it started?"
Some dreams did indeed start with the box office flop Nomads. It was the first starring role in a feature film for future James Bond Pierce Brosnan. It was also the first film directed by John McTiernan and his only screenwriting credit to date. Both would go on to have quite flourishing careers, and I suspect neither spends much time looking back at Nomads, and with good enough reason. And those careers did not take long. For McTiernan his next three films would be, in order: Predator, Die Hard, and The Hunt For Red October. The film also sports a score by legendary Bill Conti
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 20th, 2016
"So that’s what it’s like to be Simonized."
Years before he became the iconic suave British secret agent with the license to kill, Roger Moore might just have put himself in the running through his six-year run on British television’s The Saint. The show was part of the British Invasion of spy shows that came close on the heels of the first James Bond film Dr. No. Moore played Simon Templar, known throughout the globe as The Saint. While Templar wasn't really a spy, he acted like one most of the time, and the series managed to cover most of the conventions of the genre.
Posted in: Tuesday Round Up by Gino Sassani on January 19th, 2016
Howdy partners. Gino here again. Johnny’s out on the high seas running from the likes of Captain Jack Sparrow and Flint. If he makes it back, I’m sure he’ll be filling you in on titles again real soon. If not, we’ll be sure to send out a search party real soon.
This week Shout Factory keeps it in the family with Sisters: Season 3. Timeless Media canonizes The Saint Seasons 3 & 4. Indiepix has faith in I Believe In Unicorns. Universal climbs Everest in 3D and menaces us with Sinister 2. Warner Brothers gives us Robert De Niro in The Intern. A&E grabs the gator by the tail with Swamp People Season 6. Sony logs in with The Diary Of A Teenage Girl. Lionsgate passes judgment on The Condemned 2 and raises our awareness with Stonewall.
Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on January 16th, 2016
"Welcome to Benghazi."
It shouldn't matter what your politics might be. The events in Benghazi on September 11th, 2012 bring up some very important questions. Contrary to one 2016 presidential hopeful's declaration, it does make a difference. It did to the people who were there. It does for the families of the four who lost their lives. And it should make a difference to you. With such a political hotbed issue, you'll find that 13 Hours goes out of its way to avoid the political questions. Some might view this as an oversight, but I think it gives the film a greater sense of credibility and makes its impact on the audience to fill in their own political blanks.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 12th, 2016
"Millions of people around the world believe we have been visited in the past by extraterrestrial beings. What if it were true? Did ancient aliens really help to shape our history? And if so, what if there were clues left behind, something hiding in plain sight? What if we could find that evidence?"
Ever since Eric von Daniken released his speculative book and its subsequent 1970 film Chariots of the Gods, there has been an entire field of study created around something commonly called Ancient Astronaut Theory, the idea is that extraterrestrials have visited many of our ancient civilizations.
Posted in: Podcasts by Gino Sassani on January 11th, 2016
Painkillers is the new fantasy/thriller out from RLJ Entertainment. Colm Feore stars as Dr. Troutman who is running a top secret operation that involves special ops specialists in Afghanistan a new brain drug and a secret artifact. This one will play with your head and I got to get inside the head of star Colm Feore last week. We talked about the film and his take on the character. I remember him best from HBO's Gary Sinese film Truman. We talked a little about that film, as well. It was a great conversation, to be sure. Bang it here to listen in on my chat with Colm Feore.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 10th, 2016
"Four weeks ago, an invisible dome crashed down on Chester's Mill, cutting us off from the rest of the world. The dome has tested our limits, forcing each of us to confront our own personal demons... rage... grief... fear. Now, in order to survive, we must battle our most dangerous adversary... the enemy within."
Under The Dome began life as a Stephen King novel. The basic idea was that a mysterious clear dome isolates the town of Chester's Mills from the rest of the world. Of course, the story was populated with King's trademark characters that represent his own special version of Americana.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 9th, 2016
"I'm under some medication for a medical condition so I may not be seeing this correctly. But I'm pretty sure I might be seeing some of your students possibly eating Mr. Peterson. Again it could be the medication."
Cooties starts out with the grossest sequence in the entire film. You might not want to start this film if you're eating, particularly if you're eating chicken nuggets. Ben Franklin once warned us that there were two things one should never see made: laws and sausages. He might just as well have been talking chicken nuggets.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 8th, 2016
"The techniques change, the victims change but it's still a question, "How do these things happen? How are they institutionalized?"
“I was just following orders.” It was the plea heard by too many of the Nazi war criminals during their trials following World War II. It wasn't enough to spare them the consequences of their actions, of course. Six million people were exterminated, experimented on, or tortured. The excuse just didn't hold water. But was it at all valid? Could an otherwise "good" person be turned into something evil just because someone in authority told them to do it? Just how far would an average human being go toward hurting another person whom they have no provocation to hurt just because they are told to do so?
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 7th, 2016
"A good family business is not the same as a good family."
You can say that again. The television landscape is changing, at least on cable. Ray Donovan is the latest in the string of new shows that are attracting talent once thought out of reach for television. A show starring Liev Schreiber and Jon Voight: this Showtime series looked to be something very special... and it has gotten better... perhaps a lot better.
