Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 17th, 2014
"He's dangerous, amoral, he pathologically flaunts authority. He's reckless to the point of suicidal. But all of this... everything we've done. None of it would have been possible if it weren't for him."
Him, of course is James Spader as the enigmatic Raymond "Red" Reddington. The show is NBC's break-out hit The Blacklist created by first-time show-runner Jon Bokenkamp. Bokenkamp is truly a newcomer to the business. He has literally only a couple of very minor writing credits to his name. Perhaps that's why The Blacklist is able to contain quite a few of the cliché elements running through television today and still feel like one of the freshest shows in a long while. Or maybe it's really Spader.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 14th, 2014
The television landscape has been flooded with shows about the supernatural. Vampires have been particularly hot topics in recent years, but werewolves are starting to get their own sub-genre going. MTV's Teen Wolf manages to pull the theme off quite well. It's no surprise that pretty much every network out there wants to throw their own hats into the supernatural ring. It's getting quite crowded, but the popularity appears to have no end. Of course, with such a crowded field you have to find a way to stand out from the rest. That's what I was hoping to find when I started to dig into the Blu-ray release of Bitten. Unfortunately, the results aren't as impressive as I had hoped.
Bitten tells the story of Elena, played by Smallville's standout actress Laura Vandervoort. Elena is a werewolf who has left her pack behind to try to live a normal life in Toronto. She gets a job as a photojournalist and even manages to find time for a more artistic approach to her photography. She has just moved in with boyfriend Philip (Greene) who is unaware of her supernatural alter-ego. Just as she's trying to build that relationship, she gets a call from her pack alpha Jeremy, played by Greg Bryk. That call is going to throw a bit of a monkey wrench into that normal life she was hoping for.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 14th, 2014
"I wonder if you could spare me a little of your time?"
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.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 12th, 2014
"Space... the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its continuing mission, to explore strange new worlds. To seek out new life and new civilizations. To boldly go where no one has gone before."
The sixth season of Star Trek: The Next Generation is arguable one of the best seasons in the history of the franchise. There are likely many reasons for this. I think the most likely has to do with Rick Berman. He had moved his attention over to Deep Space 9 and had left the day-to-day running of Next Generation to others. Most notable of the others was Jerri Taylor, who moved up to take control of both the writer's room and casting choices. Both showed remarkable improvement under her leadership. She's credited with the "graying" of Starfleet, insisting that there be more guest stars over 30. She also insisted that stories stop using some of the same gimmicks. As a result, this is the only year in Star Trek history where a starship malfunction did not lead to the crises of the week. She would hold brainstorming sessions at her home on Sundays and was more open to tie-ins with the original series. This, of course, led to Relics, in which James Doohan returns as Scotty, and it became the third highest rated episode of Star Trek in franchise history. The season was so successful in the ratings that it beat that year's World Series, which led to a two-page spread in the trades from Paramount with the tag line: "Baseball's World Series lost to our worlds series". The truth was Trek didn't just beat it. It was a blowout. Trek brought in 23% more viewers during that time period than the games. Trek was at an all-time high in popularity. The merchandising had just crossed the $2 billion mark, and the sky was literally the limit.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 11th, 2014
"Hi, little guys."
There was a time, decades ago when Walt Disney Studios was doing quality documentaries on a pretty regular schedule. Many of them appeared on the television show The Wonderful World Of Disney, and more than a few were released as feature films. And while that tradition has continued somewhat, it's been a while since I was truly impressed by a Disney documentary. That all changes with the release of Bears.
Posted in: Contests, Expired Contests by Gino Sassani on August 4th, 2014
Arc Entertainment decided to turn up the heat this summer, and they want Upcomingdiscs readers to share in the action. They've sent over 3 copies of Jesse on DVD for us to give away. This one's got it all: corrupt cops, mafia guys and Stephanie Finochio in the middle of it all as Jesse, a rather troubled cop. The film also stars Eric Roberts, William Forsythe, and one of my favorites, Armand Assante.
To win just follow these instructions.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 31st, 2014
"Make no mistake. Blood will be spilled. Lives will be lost. Fortunes will be made. Men will be ruined. There will be betrayal and scandal and perfidy of epic proportions."
With a statement like that, how can you not want to check out AMC's newest drama series Hell On Wheels? I've been told the title sounds like it's about motorcycle gangs, and I couldn't agree more. The term refers to the mobile tent city that housed the workers on the Union Pacific Railroad and the support entourage the camp attracted. It was a virtual tent city that had all of the essentials: a church, bar, and whorehouse. It was just after the Civil War, and the American government believed that a railroad connecting the east and west coasts was just the kind of project the country needed to pull back together and heal still-festering wounds. As one of the filmmakers accurately points out, this was the Apollo moon project of the day. Long believed impossible by the brightest engineers of the day, the railroad would cut the time it took to go from coast to coast from six months to just under seven days. It was a truly remarkable feat, and it carried with it more than a fair dosage of corruption and blood. Now AMC has brought those days from 1865 back to our television screen with an ambitious and smartly produced series. It's a must see.
Posted in: Contests, Expired Contests by Gino Sassani on July 29th, 2014
Those real cool cats up at Nasser Entertainment must love you guys. They've given us 5 copies of Amber Alert: Terror On The Highway to give away to our Upcomingdiscs faithful. That means you've got 5 chances to dig your teeth into this dramatic thriller. It stars Tom Berener, Torri Higginson and Britt McKillip and produced by real reserve police officer Joseph Nasser. It's a rare look at the national Amber Alert System and an edge-of-your-seat thriller. It's out this week on DVD.
To win just follow these instructions.
Posted in: Contests, Expired Contests by Gino Sassani on July 28th, 2014
Our good friends over at Entertainment One what to give you some Hell... Hell On Wheels that is. We're giving away a copy of Hell On Wheels Season 3 on DVD to one lucky Upcomingdiscs fan. This one has it all. We're talking gritty action and wonderful characters. I'll be reviewing the series soon, Spoiler Alert: It's fantastic! It's all here in one place. This 3-disc set is a must have. To win just follow these instructions.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 22nd, 2014
It happens all the time. It's just as common on large-budget films as it is on the small films. Someone comes up with a great hook. It's a clever idea with all of the potential to be very good. It might even start off that way. Too many times the road traveled is a road to nowhere, and potential was lost somewhere along the path. That's exactly the issue with Open Grave. The opening sequence is one of those scenes that really sticks with you. A guy wakes up in a huge pit filled with dead and rotting human beings. He has no memory of who he is or how he got into this mess. It's a terrifying thought. It's a visceral nightmare that can touch those hidden fears in even the most stoic among us. What a promising start. Soon our character is given a rope and helped out of the pit. It's all downhill from here. It's bad... really bad... when your film peaks at two minutes in.
We eventually find out the guy who woke up in the mass grave is Jonah, and he's played quite well by Sharlto Copley. With not much dialog to work from (he is among dead people, after all) he manages to do a perfect job of portraying the emotions we would expect from this terrifying situation. When he's rescued from the pit, he's led to a house where there are several characters suffering from the same limited amnesia. They maintain knowledge and skills from their lives. ID cards even provide them with their names. The rest is the proverbial blank slate. There are some clues, however. A date circled on a calendar portends some ominous event. There is also an Asian girl, played by Josie Ho, who knows what's going on. Unfortunately, she can't speak and doesn't understand English.
