Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 19th, 2010
"Born with a steering wheel in his hand and lead in his foot, he is the Nightrider, cruising at the speed of fright! This is the Nightrider, and we ain't never coming back. I'm a fuel-injected suicide machine..."
Long before Mel Gibson's troubles involved real-life police officers and a bad case of "foot-in-mouth disease” that has made him his own worst enemy, Mel had more dramatic enemies to deal with. The unknown Australian actor was only 22 years old when he starred in the Outback production that would put both Mel Gibson and his native Australia on the filmmaking map.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 19th, 2010
A&E has brought together a collection of television episodes from three British series that have featured prominently on the network over the years. The shows each feature one of the greatest detectives in literature. The long-running shows have used the original literary works as the basis for most of the episodes. But long before they were played on television, we knew who they were. The exploits of Sherlock Holmes, Miss Marple, and Hercule Poirot have engaged the minds of mystery lovers for nearly a century now. For the first time, you have the wonderful opportunity to enjoy them at your own leisure,
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 19th, 2010
Mention the name Roger Corman and several things spring instantly to mind: boobs, blood and gore. The man has been the king of the low-budget film since the 1950's. His movies often graced the screens of drive-ins all over the country. There wasn't an idea in the movies that Corman didn't try to exploit at one time or another. He also gave some of the most successful and influential filmmakers their start in the business. People like James Cameron and Martin Scorsese started in the Roger Corman factory.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 18th, 2010
"I never wanted a war. I just wanted people to know what happened here. 98 men, women, children ... my husband. And yet no one believed. They rebuilt the town. Life went on. But I was already dead inside. I never wanted a war."
In October 2007 30 Days Of Night was unleashed at the box office to less than stellar numbers. In fact, the film took in only $39 million off of a $30 million budget. That's not usually a good sign for any potential franchise. But the film was received very well by the folks who did like it. I was one of those people. I found myself defending the film to a lot of others who were obviously not so impressed with the take on the vampire legend.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 16th, 2010
Regan MacNeil (Linda Blair) is going through more than the usual puberty traumas. She pees on the carpet, curses a blue streak, causes objects to fly around the room, and speaks in the voice of Mercedes McCambridge. Her mother Chris (Ellen Burstyn) takes her to every medical professional under the sun, to no avail. With her daughter's life in the balance, she turns to Father Karras (Jason Miller), asking him to perform an exorcism. But not only is he skeptical, he has his own problems, not least of which is losing his faith. Meanwhile, Regan's symptoms of possession grow steadily worse...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 15th, 2010
Lee Holloway (Maggie Gyllenhaal) is a young woman utterly lacking in self-confidence and given to deliberately cutting herself. She gets her first job as secretary to E. Edward Grey (James Spader), as tightly wound and ferociously self-isolated an individual as you could imagine. What happens when the sadist meets the masochist? Sparks fly
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 13th, 2010
"In 1539 The Knight Templars of Malta paid tribute to Charles V of Spain by sending him a Golden Falcon encrusted from beak to claw with rarest jewels --- but pirates seized the galley carrying this priceless token, and the fate of the Maltese Falcon remains a mystery to this day."
What is not a mystery today is the significant role that The Maltese Falcon has played in cinema history. The film itself was a remake. In fact, it was actually Warner's third attempt to film the Dashiell Hammett novel in a single decade.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 13th, 2010
By 1948 John Huston had proven his ability as a director with just his first film, The Maltese Falcon. Since then he had returned to Humphrey Bogart in Across The Pacific and again in The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre. Each of these films presented the star in very different surroundings and situations. His Dobbs character here couldn't have been any farther from his Sam Spade character. But in each case Huston relied on his leading man to dominate the screen with his trademark mannerisms and his ability to liven up even the most cliché of dialog.
Posted in: Random Fun by Gino Sassani on October 12th, 2010
Once again Upcomingdiscs found themselves the guests of Busch Gardens and their annual Halloween event, Howl-O-Scream. Each year the friendly amusement park employees turn in their mandatory smiles and courtesy for chainsaws and scarred flesh. The park's normally pristine nature areas are converted into terrifying scare zones where you'll encounter creatures unfit for the normal Florida sunshine. So once again I put on my Frankenstein shirt, a gift from Sara Karloff (with whom we'll be talking soon for a podcast), and braved the horrible hallways and petrifying pathways of Busch Gardens.
Posted in: Contests by Gino Sassani on October 11th, 2010
Our friends at A&E have graciously given us a copy of America: The Story Of Us on High Definition Blu-ray to give away.
To enter to win a copy of this unique look at American History, just follow these two steps…
Contest is now closed Winner is Jimmy Hughes
![The Exorcist (Extended Director's Cut & Original Theatrical Edition) [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-exorcist-extended-directors-c-large.jpg)
![Secretary [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/secretary-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![The Maltese Falcon [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-maltese-falcon-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![The Treasure of the Sierra Madre [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-treasure-of-the-sierra-madre-b-large.jpg)
![America: The Story of Us [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/america-the-story-of-us-blu-ray-large.jpg)
