Posted in: Contests by Gino Sassani on September 3rd, 2010
The good folks over at Anchor Bay have given us a copy of Hatchet on high definition Blu-ray to give away. This 2006 slasher film will be presented in an unrated director's cut. Features an all-new audio commentary with writer/director ADAM GREEN and Victor Crowley himself - KANE HODDER! To enter follow these instructions.
Contest is now closed Winner is David Filley
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 1st, 2010
In the late 1960's three musicians came together with an idea. It was a somewhat unconventional idea. Roy Wood and Bev Bevan were part of the band The Move when they met up with Jeff Lynne from The Idle Race. The three hit it off almost instantly. So much so that before long Lynne would also become a member of The Move so that he could work with Wood and Bevan. But that wasn't going to be the ultimate goal. That unconventional idea that the three had involved combining rock and roll with classical music. Of course, other bands had done orchestral arrangements, most notably, The Beatles. But their idea was to fuse the concepts more integrally together. The idea was to have live violins and cellos as part of the actual band itself. Lynne would once describe the concept as picking up where The Beatles had left off. Together they invented a new way to rock "n" roll. That invention was The Electric Light Orchestra, or ELO to the fans.
The band started with a bang. The first album, while not a huge commercial success received more than its share of attention. But band squabbles would almost doom this ambitious project before it got off the ground. Roy Wood left the band to form his own and took some members with him. It looked bleak for the struggling concept. But that might have been the best thing that could have happened. Jeff Lynne would become the controlling force and the band would go on to enjoy commercial success to go along with those critical appreciations. The band's second album was called No Answer, but it wasn't really intended to carry the title. A secretary with the record company was assigned to contact Jeff Lynne to get the correct album title. He wasn't home. Naturally, the secretary made the notation "no answer". The notation was misinterpreted as the album title, and the mistake would be a permanent entry in the band's discology.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 1st, 2010
The longest running show in prime time doesn’t feature cops, doctors, or lawyers. It’s hard to believe that The Simpsons have existed as long as the Fox network. While the series didn’t really begin until Fox’s second year, the characters were part of The Tracey Ullman Show, which did start the first year of Fox. Who could have guessed that an animated short from an otherwise horrible and doomed variety show would explode into such a phenomenon? The Simpsons have not only dominated the pop culture; they have placed everything else into context with their show. Like Doonesbury, it could be said that the only thing worse than being made fun of on The Simpsons is not being made fun of on The Simpsons. With that said, you’ll understand my warm feelings and appreciation for this show.
This thing has been on forever. Still, it never gets old. The show has a charm yet edginess to it that can’t be beat. Let’s not forget that while kids might love the show, this stuff is intended for adults. We’re not talking South Park trash talk here; every episode is a veritable treasure hunt of subtle and not-so-subtle cultural references. Even after seeing an episode several times, it’s not uncommon for me to find something that I missed before.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 1st, 2010
"On October 6, the planet blacked out for two minutes and seventeen seconds. The whole world saw the future..."
For all intents and purposes, it appears just like any routine fall day throughout the world. People are busying themselves about their normal concerns. Suddenly everyone on the planet blacks out for exactly 2 minutes and 17 seconds. Just think about that part for a moment. Every human being collapses at the same moment. Think about all of the things that people are doing at any given moment. Driving cars. Flying planes. Performing delicate surgical procedures, or just walking across the street. Pretty much any activity is going to become dangerous as the blackouts occur. 20 million people worldwide die in the event.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 31st, 2010
Vampires are hot right now, at least that's what everyone keeps telling me. The truth is that everyone is absolutely wrong. Vampires are not hot right now. They've always been hot. Since at least since 1897 when Bram Stoker took the world by storm in one of the earliest examples of a horror novel. Of course, I'm talking about Dracula. Dracula, as a character, might have been based on the historical figure of Vlad the Impaler, but the vampire legend that Stoker perfected in Dracula is pure fiction. Still, it wasn't quite Stoker's novel that created the vampire craze, it merely lit the fuse. The explosion came just a couple of decades later with the Broadway production and Universal film based on the story. It was first on stage and then in the very first talkie horror film where Bela Lugosi would change Bram Stoker's rules and become the iconic symbol for vampires for nearly a century and beyond. Stoker's Dracula was a hideous, wretched creature who was not going to be seducing any ladies without his supernatural powers. It was Lugosi who delivered the vampire in the evening coat and cape. Here we see the cultured, handsome man who doesn't even need all of that vampire mojo to get the ladies. Of course, it doesn't hurt, and between the novel, play, and film vampires got hot, and they still are.
We've all seen the young girls out there swooning over the Twilight films and books as if the whole vampire idea had just been invented. It shouldn't come as too much of a surprise that the television networks and cable channels would be taking notice. No, it's not the swooning teenagers, it's the green being transferred from their pockets to their coffers. But vampires on television are not new either. Dracula itself was a series. In the 1960's and 70's there was Dark Shadows and the vampire Barnabas Collins. I rushed home from school every day to watch that show. Maybe that's why I missed so many homework assignments. I should have tried the "under a vampire's spell" excuse. Tim Burton and Johnny Depp are about to bring that franchise back to life. I can't wait. In the 1970's Kolchak began his monster chasing career going after a vampire or two. Then there was Buffy, and the craze reached another crescendo. The spin-off Angel only made the genre even hotter. Before that there was Forever Knight and The Hunger. I could go on for pages talking about vampires in television and movies. The Underworld franchise gave us Selene, and the sexy female vampire was reborn. Yeah, there were scary ones as well, but I was a bit distracted. HBO is mining vampire gold with yet another series of vampire books in True Blood. If you think this is going to end any time soon, you just haven't lived long enough ... yet.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 31st, 2010
Back in 2001 Larry Blamire and his troupe released The Lost Skeleton Of Cadavra. Blamire was obviously a fan of the science fiction films of the 1950's and decided to take many of those standard elements and pretty much have a blast with the material. The end result was an over-the-top spoof that left you laughing, not because the material was all that funny. You laughed because they sometimes hit those ludicrous devices so perfectly that you have flashbacks to your favorite Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode. The film had all of the clichés including special effects that were anything but special. And it was all done on purpose. It was a stroke of genius, really. They did a low-budget film with all of its deficiencies and made them out to be deliberate.
Now, Blamire and his wacky group of players is back at it ... again. Shout Factory is releasing two films that the team has recently added to the Cadavra legacy. Both films utilize pretty much the same amateur cast with a few seasoned veterans sprinkled in to keep things interesting. Both films are in black & white, for the most part, to maintain the intended atmosphere.
Posted in: Podcasts by Gino Sassani on August 30th, 2010
Had a great chat today with Ed Douglas. Most of you know him as one of the masterminds behind the Midnight Syndicate Halloween music. You've heard their stuff on television and at haunted houses all across the country. He's just released his second film as a director and writer. He's collaborated with our friend, producer and f/x genius Robert Kurtzman for The Dead Matter. Check out what he had to say. Bang it here for the interview: Edward Douglas Interview
Check out some really cool web sites: The Dead Matter Movie Site: Dead Matter Check out some music at the official Midnight Syndicate Site
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 30th, 2010
It's been said that all good things must come to an end. In television that could not be more true. In the world of entertainment good things end, often quickly without a chance to leave any kind of an impact. Maybe six years wasn't exactly quick for Lost, but at least it can't claim not to have left an impact. The show changed how we watch television, and it will be a long time before anyone forgets about it.
For six years now, Lost has taken us through mystery after mystery. I’m beginning to think that the show’s title is more a mission statement for where they want to take the viewers. Each time Abrams appears to answer a question and move on, closer examination proves that nothing has actually been revealed. The series has become the poster child for misdirection and script sleight of hand. When I examine the 13 episodes from season 4, I’m left with the inescapable, pun intended, feeling that nothing significant has really happened here at all. But at the same time, it’s the most significant event of the series. All the while I find myself compelled to watch episode after episode. Abrams would have been a great drug dealer if that producing gig hadn’t worked out for him. The show started out with enough directions and plot devices to put our brains into overload. From that point on, he’s been cutting each dose a little bit so that we find ourselves drawn to each hour fix, chasing the high we got in the beginning. Of course, we already know we’re never going to feel that way again, but we’ll keep coming back for more as long as he continues to make us believe that we will. I’m not saying the show has declined at all. I’m saying that it doesn’t really ever go anywhere. Abrams continues to introduce major plot lines such as the hatch, the others, and now the freighter, with promises of linking it all together into some kind of epiphany, and for a short time he actually does. But hindsight leaves us scratching our heads, because once we come down we can’t really explain what the high was all about. And so, we’ll continue to tune in or buy the DVD’s to see where it’s all headed, even if we already know that we’re doomed to remain lost no matter how it all ends.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 30th, 2010
Ken Olin is truly a great talent that I’ve followed since back when he played the snotty detective Garibaldi on Hill Street Blues. Since then he’s done some wonderful work behind the camera, and Brothers & Sisters certainly shows his influence; however, this is not some of his best work. The show often leans on clichés and gets awfully lazy in moving forward at times. I do see the great family of characters they created here, but fail to find them interesting beyond the life breathed into them by their performers. This is a case of ego getting in the way of great potential. The writers and producers are trying way too hard to do something special. True greatness often requires the least effort. My advice to Olin and company is, play to the strengths of this great cast, and then get out of their way as often as possible.
Sally Field plays Nora Walker. Her husband has just died and left her with a lot of unanswered questions in her life. She soon discovers a twenty-year affair and some even more serious hanky-panky with the books of the company the family owns. Her emotional ups and downs can be about as compelling as television can get. Callista Flockhart plays the best opposite Field as the errant, and of course, conservative, black sheep of the family. The moments they share have given me a greater respect for Flockhart than her previous roles have. It is a little much watching her call someone else skinny. Ron Rifkin steals every scene he’s in as the old fashioned Uncle Saul, proving that Alias was no fluke for this accomplished actor. Rachel Griffiths again hides her English accent to show that if nothing else, she does a good job of crying. The remaining cast of Dave Annable, Balthazar Getty, and Matthew Rys are often just as nice as the three brother siblings on the show.
Posted in: Contests, Random Fun by Gino Sassani on August 30th, 2010
We had some great things to give away in June.
Here are all of the winners in one place, so you can check for your name.
![Hatchet [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/hatchet-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![The Simpsons: The Thirteenth Season [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-simpsons-the-thirteenth-season-large.jpg)
![The Vampire Diaries: The Complete First Season [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-vampire-diaries-the-complete-f-large.jpg)
![Lost: The Complete Sixth and Final Season [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/lost-the-complete-sixth-and-final-large.jpg)
![Ip Man (Collector's Edition) [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/ip-man-collectors-edition-blu-r-large.jpg)
