Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 11th, 2014
Erle Stanley Gardner wrote crime fiction, and while many of his 100 or so works are unknown to most of us, he created a character who has become as identified with criminal lawyers as any other in fiction. It was in these crime novels that Perry Mason first faced a courtroom. He developed a style where he would investigate these terrible crimes his clients were on trial for. He would find the real killer, and in what has become a Hollywood cliché, reveal his findings in a crucial moment during the trial. While we may not remember the novels, we all remember the man in the persona of Raymond Burr. Burr had a commanding presence on our screens and enjoyed a well-deserved 11-year run as the clever lawyer. What makes this run so amazing is that the show followed pretty much the same pattern the entire time. We always know what’s going to happen, but we wait eagerly for that gotcha moment when Perry faces the witness on the stand. We know when he’s got the guy squarely in his sights, and we can’t sit still waiting for him to pull the trigger. OK, so maybe that’s a little over the top, but so was Perry Mason. From the moment you heard that distinctive theme, the stage was set. To say that Perry Mason defined the lawyer show for decades would be an understatement. Folks like Matlock and shows like The Practice are strikingly similar to Perry Mason.
Perry Mason officially ended in May of 1966, but that wasn't going to be the end. Twenty years later the surviving cast members reunited for Perry Mason Returns. It was Perry and Della back together again. Both Raymond Burr and Barbara Hale returned to their roles. William Hopper had died in 1970, so William Katt joined the reunion as Paul Drake, Jr. Katt might not have really been Drake's son; he was Hale's son. When Katt left the films he was replaced by William R. Moses as Ken Malansky. Ken was a young law student helped by Perry once when he was framed in law school for a rival's murder. He ends up being both a legal assistant and investigator for Perry in the reunion films. Ken's girlfriend is Amy, played by Baywatch's Alexandra Hastings. Amy was a rich girl who had too much time on her hands. It led to her involving herself in Ken's investigations. The films also often starred James McEachin as Lt. Brock, the cop on many of the cases. The team would continue to do 30 television movies from 1985-1995. CBS has now begun to package these reunion films in collections like this.
Posted in: Uncategorized by Gino Sassani on December 10th, 2014
So you have a horror fan on your shopping list this year. You're not sure if they like classic or slasher. Do they appreciate the wonderful films of the past, or do they like to go for the jugular? You know there's a ton of horror titles out there, but which ones are any good? You also want this gift to be something special. The guy at the store doesn't know Frankenstein from Jason. You ask for his help, and he looks at you like something out of The Walking Dead. Shopping for a horror title scares you more than a walk at Camp Crystal Lake with a bullseye tattooed on your face. Don't lose your head over this one. Anchor Bay and Shout Factory's Scream Factory have that perfect special gift. It's The Halloween Collection. You get the classic John Carpenter film and all of the slash-fest sequels as well. It's 10 films in one high-definition splatter festival. And it won't cost you an arm and a leg... well maybe a foot.
"I met him fifteen years ago; I was told there was nothing left; no reason, no conscience, no understanding; and even the most rudimentary sense of life or death, of good or evil, right or wrong. I met this six-year-old child, with this blank, pale, emotionless face, and the blackest eyes... the devil's eyes. I spent eight years trying to reach him, and then another seven trying to keep him locked up because I realized that what was living behind that boy's eyes was purely and simply... evil."
Posted in: Holiday Gift Guides by Gino Sassani on December 8th, 2014
"1968, I was twelve years old. A lot happened that year. Dennis McLain won 31 games, The Mod Squad hit the air, and I graduated from Hillcrest Elementary and entered junior high school...but we'll get to that. There's no pretty way to put this: I grew up in the suburbs. I guess most people think of the suburb as a place with all the disadvantages of the city, and none of the advantages of the country, and vice versa. But, in a way, those really were the wonder years for us there in the suburbs. It was kind of a golden age for kids."
The show takes place in Anywhere, USA. The pilot begins in 1968 and is told from the point of view of a contemporary adult looking back on those early years of his life. Anyone who is a fan of A Christmas Story will appreciate the narrative style of The Wonder Years. While it is mysteriously never mentioned in the tens of hours of extra features, there's no question that A Christmas Story and the works of Jean Shepherd were a huge influence on the voice and style of the series. Here narrator Daniel Stern offers the same kind of storytelling, even down to the odd observations and slip into occasional fantasy. He's an unreliable narrator in the sense that he's seeing the people and places around him from the perspective of his younger self. It's not an intentional unreliability. He's Kevin Arnold, and this is the story of his own...wonder years.
Posted in: Holiday Gift Guides by Gino Sassani on December 5th, 2014
Johnny Carson might have been king of the late-night airwaves, but it was Merv Griffin who held court during the day. From 1962 until 1986 Merv Griffin brought you the most important, entertaining and fascinating personalities to your living rooms. He was also quite the producer. Here's the question: He created two of the longest-lasting game shows in television history. Who was Merv Griffin? That's correct. He created both Wheel Of Fortune and Jeopardy. But it will be The Merv Griffin Show that he'll he's most remembered for.
Star Vista and Time-Life have combined to bring you a 12-disc collection of some of Merv's best moments. Taken from the entire series run these highlights includes such guests as: "Lucille Ball, The Everly Brothers, Willie Mays, Aretha Franklin, Salvador Dali, Dennis Hopper, Maya Angelou, Robert F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., John Wayne, Bette Davis, Ingrid Bergman, Warren Beatty, Jayne Mansfield (seen with her two-and-a-half-year-old daughter Mariska Hargitay), Jerry Seinfeld, Bill Maher, Jay Leno, George Carlin, Richard Pryor, Jerry Lewis together (!), Joan Rivers, Steve Martin, Moms Mabley, Bill Cosby, Henny Youngman, Jack Benny, Redd Foxx, Carol Burnett, Andy Kaufman, Woody Allen, and more."
Posted in: Holiday Gift Guides by Gino Sassani on December 4th, 2014
It's funny how some actors mean different things to different people. It often depends on your age and interests. Michael Landon is one such actor. I was a horror movie fan who watched late-night creature features with my dad. To me Landon was the titular character from I Was A Teenage Werewolf. To my Dad and his generation, Landon was Little Joe from Bonanza. To continue the comparison, Little Joe's pop was always Commander Adama, with no offense intended toward Edward James Olmos. But there is another generation that doesn't know werewolves from cowboys, and to them Michael Landon will always be the warm father Charles Ingalls from Little House On The Prairie.
From 1974 until 1983 Little House On The Prairie told the story of the Ingalls family. The series was based on the book written by Laura Ingalls Wilder, who is one of Charles' daughters and is played by Melissa Gilbert in the series. It had a very Waltons feel for family life in a bygone age. For the Ingalls family, it was the mid-1800's, and they were a true pioneer family. The show's focus was on the family, but the entire little town became a character on the show, as well. It was populated by many recurring characters who combined to give the show that rural charm found in shows like The Waltons or The Andy Griffith Show.
Posted in: Contests, Expired Contests by Gino Sassani on December 1st, 2014
Our friends at Arc Entertainment have another great giveaway for you faithful Upcomingdiscs readers. On Dec 2nd Field Of Lost Shoes hits the stores and we have 2 copies to give out. This one is based on a true American Civil War story. A group of teen cadets shows their courage under fire when they are sent into the heart of battle. The film stars David Arquette and Tom Skerritt.
To win just follow these instructions.
Posted in: Holiday Gift Guides by Gino Sassani on November 28th, 2014
"The gods finally bless us with a complete collection."
AnchorBay is going all out in delivering a couple of complete series collections. There is a limited edition with some cool stuff that we hope to talk to you about on Black Friday for your shopping edification. This set contains all of the show's 39 episodes on 12 discs. There is a 13th disc with limited extra features that were not found on the original individual season releases.
Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on November 21st, 2014
"All we need now is the perfect message".
It has almost become expected. When a successful franchise based on a series of books reaches the end of the published material, studios start to think about the approaching end with some dread. One way to put off the inevitable is to split the final book into two films. It worked for Harry Potter and Twilight. Peter Jackson managed to squeeze three long films out of one Tolkien book. For most of these cases it was a severe case of milking those final chapters for all that they're worth and then going beyond that. That's simply not the case with Mockingjay Part I. The book itself has two very distinctive parts, and telling this story in a single film would not have done justice to the material. Trust me when I tell you that you'll feel like you've gotten a complete story, but one that has more story left to tell. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part I is the beginning of a payoff that has been promised since the first film debuted just two years ago. Yes, any film that contains Part I in the title might appear a little intimidating with promises of an untold story and a portent to a feeling of dissatisfaction. Don't let any of that keep you from the best film in the franchise. Take the risk. You'll be well rewarded for your two-hour investment.
Posted in: Contests, Expired Contests by Gino Sassani on November 20th, 2014
Those Santa's elves at Arc Entertainment want to get you in a Holiday mood so they've given us three copies of Northpole on DVD. Robert Wagner and Jill St. John lead the cast. The Northpole is having an energy crises. The place is powered by Holiday cheer but too many folks are getting too busy to keep up their Christmas Spirit. Can one boy help by showing his Mom the magic of the season? Find out.
To win just follow these instructions.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 18th, 2014
"If anybody gets up, they're dead. Anybody moves, they're dead. Anybody makes a sound before I leave this movie, ..."
You get the idea. These are the words of one John Wojtowicz, better known as The Dog. On August 22, 1972 he attempted to rob a Chase Manhattan bank in order to finance his male lover's sex change operation so that he could become a woman. The heist was about as amateur as the come and went horribly wrong from the start. In a matter of minutes the bank was surrounded by a swarm of police units and a growing mob of bystanders. In the hours that followed, The Dog interacted with the crowd, gave a radio interview, and managed to whip the crowd into a frenzy by throwing thousands of the bank's dollars out of the front door. If this all sounds familiar to you, it should. While you may not have heard of these exploits directly, you surely saw the movie Dog Day Afternoon. Al Pacino played John Wojtowicz, and now you know where he got the nickname The Dog.
