Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on December 10th, 2021
You could say that West Side Story goes back to 1957 with the iconic collaboration of composer Leonard Bernstein and the very recently deceased lyricist Stephen Sondheim. But that isn't exactly true. The play was a modern retelling of William Shakespeare's equally iconic Romeo And Juliet. Instead of Capulets and Montagues, we have street gangs from 1950's New York City. All of the beats are there and then some. The legendary Robert Wise adapted the play as a film in 1961, which has deservedly gone on to classic status. And there it all sits for 60 years outside of the expected revivals and local productions of the work. Along comes Steven Spielberg who wanted to create a film as homage to his father. Their shared love of the source material here has led to a new film that is likely to captivate a new generation of fans, while also being a love letter to those of us who loved the original ... including Steven Spielberg's pop. The film is a complicated experience, to say the least. It has its shares of ups and downs, to be sure. But does it have the heart and soul of the original material. The answer is a guarded yes.
If you don't know the story, shame on you. I had to admonish a fellow critic who came to the film having never seen the original. Fully shamed, I hope he's corrected that oversight by now. Tony is played by Ansel Elgort. He's a somewhat inactive member of the street gang The Jets. Gang leader Riff (Faist) is itching to have an all-out rumble with rival gang The Sharks. He wants a kind of winner-takes-all event that settles their "beefs" once and for all. He's trying to convince Tony to support the gang and participate in the expected rumble. Tony isn't convinced. The challenge is set to go down at an upcoming dance, where Tony falls in love at first sight with Maria, played by Rachel Zegler. Isn't love just grand? The problem is that Maria's brother Bernardo, played by David Alverez is the leader of The Sharks. Just the fact that they are talking to each other at the dance infuriates brother Bernardo. Now he's even more wanting that rumble, and he wants the Jets to make sure Tony is there, because he wants to take him out personally. The two lovers spend the next 24 hours before the scheduled fight together growing even closer. Tony convinces Maria he can stop the bloodshed, but this is after all a tragedy, and that's not really going to fit into the template. Don't blame me. Blame Willie S. for dooming these star-crossed lovers from the start.
Posted in: Podcasts by Gino Sassani on December 9th, 2021
RLJE Films has just released their lycanthrope horror/comedy Werewolves Within on Dec 7th. It's a rather unique take on the often tired werewolf story. I had the chance to talk to the film's director, Josh Ruben. Josh took time out of his busy holiday schedule to talk about the film. I found his insights rather interesting, and I think you might agree. You won't need a wiretap warrant to eavesdrop on the call. Bang it here to listen to my chat with Josh Ruben.
Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on November 26th, 2021
"It was a name that sounded so sweet ... Synonymous with wealth, style, power. But that name was a curse, too."
If you've ever seen me show up for a movie screening in my sweats and t -shirt, you will know instantly that I'm not going to ever be confused with a person of high fashion. I dress for comfort, and accessorizing usually means I've got shoes and socks on. The jargon of the industry is Greek to me, and I guess sometimes it really is. I've certainly heard of Gucci, but the extent of that knowledge is along the lines of those famous patterned bags that they sell on the street downtown for $20 with no questions asked. Of course those bags often appear to have misspelled the name, so I know a few folks walking around with a Gutchi on their arm and a Rolax on their wrist. I'm guessing that's not exactly dressed for fashion. Ridley Scott rides to the rescue. I still can't tell the bags apart, but I now know a little bit about the famous family that those guys are ripping off.
Posted in: Holiday Gift Guides by Gino Sassani on November 26th, 2021
I think I see your problem. You have this list. It’s a list of people you need/want to buy a Christmas gift for. The trouble is that they’re into home theater, and you don’t know Star Trek from Star Wars. You couldn’t tell a Wolf Man from a Wolverine. And you always thought that Paranormal Activity was something too kinky to talk about. Fortunately, Upcomingdiscs has come to the rescue every Christmas with our Gift Guide Spotlights. Keep checking back to see more recommendations for your holiday shopping. These gift guides ARE NOT paid advertisements. We take no money to publish them. With conditions as they are, shopping won't be easy this season. The nice thing about discs is that they're so easy to get from places like Amazon that you can give a great gift and stay perfectly safe while you do it. First up it's Warner Brothers with what I consider the best home theater gift of the season. The Middle Earth Ultimate Collector's Edition.
“The tale grew in the telling until it became a history…”
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 25th, 2021
"Strange, isn't it? Each man's life touches so many other lives. When he isn't around he leaves an awful hole, doesn't he?"
Another holiday season and another release of the classic It's A Wonderful Life. This edition looks like a storybook case and has both the restored black & white version as well as the recent colorized versions of the films. If you have one of the UHD 4K collections, you pretty much have the definitive version of the film, and the audio and visual aren't likely to get any better than that. But there are many of you out there who have not made the switch to UHD. This is likely going to be that best ever release for you. You get two versions of the film in an attractive and safe case.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 25th, 2021
"We are the only people who are capable of handling time-traveling aliens."
Of course, that can only mean The D.C. Legends Of Tomorrow. This is the sleeper of the entire Arrowverse. It's never really been one of the higher-rated shows, but it has a strong cult audience and has survived more than one season on the proverbial bubble and has beaten back a pandemic and outlasted such better shows as Arrow and Supergirl. I always enjoy it, but I do find it the hardest show to completely follow. It will delve into the silly and the absolutely crazy, and it's pretty much jumping sharks on a weekly basis. It doesn't help that every year sees a huge shakeup of the cast, and this season was no exception. The crew of the Waverider change over faster than teens at a fast food joint. Of course, you might be left asking yourself what is this Waverider of which you speak? It's hard enough to keep track of the players without a program, but it's a near impossible feat if you are trying to join the festivities in the fourth season. You might want to check out our reviews of the previous years and then rejoin me for the breakdown of the Blu-ray release of DC Legends Of Tomorrow Season 6. Just bang it here to catch up: Legends Of Tomorrow Reviews.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 17th, 2021
"There are certain rules that one must abide by in order to successfully survive a horror movie."
No one knew those rules better than Wes Craven. He helped to create them, after all. Starting in 1972 with the cult favorite The Last House On The Left, he followed that just two years later with The Hills Have Eyes, which led to a sequel. But it wasn't until a decade later that he would deliver his masterpiece and most successful franchise, Nightmare On Elm Street. Wes Craven introduced the world to Freddy Kruger, and our dreams have never been quite the same since. While others attempted to reproduce the same results with many sequels, it was Craven himself who put Freddy to bed with New Nightmare exactly 10 years after his birth. A remake never got much traction, and Wes Craven's place in horror history was assured. In 1996 he decided to take one more stab at the slasher genre and delivered one of the best films to look directly back at the audience and celebrate the genre. Scream was another hit and another franchise staple. He took a then relatively unknown cast and made them household names with future amazing careers and decided that it was time to also poke a little fun at himself and his colleagues. The result was four films and an upcoming kind of reboot/sequel after a three-year television series examined the material. More importantly, it led to an entire sub-genre of films that include the Scary Movie franchise and others. Now, just in time for the holidays and the new film, you can see Scream in 4K with this UHD Blu-ray release.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 17th, 2021
"I, Cordell Walker, do solemnly swear..."
No, this is not the next spin-off of the zombie Walking Dead franchise. There's a new ranger in town, and his name is Cordell Walker. I know what you're thinking: "Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss." That's where you'd be wrong. They might share the same name and job, but this Walker is nothing like the Chuck Norris version that lasted for over a decade when you include made-for-television movies. This Walker is much younger. He was a Marine who had joined after 9/11. He has a family. His wife was killed a year ago, and now he's trying to raise his son and daughter with the help of his parents, who were no longer living in the Norris series. The episodes are more of an ongoing story arc, which conforms to pretty much most dramas on television today. While there were certainly elements that ran through the original show, it was pretty much a bad-guy-of-the -eek setup. If you haven't caught any of the new show, now is your chance. CBS Home Entertainment has released the entire first season on DVD, and just in time for the holidays. You get all 18 episodes on five discs with a couple of brief features.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 11th, 2021
"My name is Nicky Shen, and this has been my home for three years. A Shaolin monastery in Yunnan Province, China. My mom sent me on a cultural tour of China. Turned out, it was really a matchmaking tour to land me a Chinese husband. Just one of the many ways my mom tried to control my destiny. I panicked. I ran. That was the first time anyone told me I had a choice in anything. I was only planning to spend the night. But then I saw something that I knew I wanted to be a part of. These women were warriors. And so I stayed. Pei-Ling became my Shifu, my mentor."
The new Kung Fu series at the CW is not really anything like the 1970's show that starred David Carradine. And while the credits claim to be based on that show, they really do not have anything in common. This show is not a period piece but exists in current day San Francisco. The titular character is no longer a middle-aged quiet hero or a guy. Instead we have law school drop-out Nicky Shen, a twenty-something woman who doesn't quite have a handle on who she is. She's not a wanderer, and she doesn't play a handmade flute. She lives with her family and is totally connected to the modern from cellphones to Uber. That isn't to say the show is bad. The production values are high, as are the writing and acting. The weak link for me is it's given me flashbacks to Pretty Little Liars, as this show likely shares those adolescent girl demographics. So clearly I'm not the target audience. So otherwise, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play? Warner Brothers Home Entertainment drops this reincarnated Kung Fu on Blu-ray with all 13 episodes on three discs.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 9th, 2021
It's hard to believe that one of the most popular comedy shows of the 1950's was not really a show at all, at least not in the way that we think of a television series today. The show began its life in 1951 as a segment on the popular Cavalcade of Stars. At that time only Jackie Gleason and Art Carney starred in their familiar roles. Alice was played by Pert Kelton. The series took its more recognizable look when it became part of The Jackie Gleason Show in 1955.That's also when Joyce Randolph joined the series as Trixie Norton. The series would take up a half hour of the slot. The second half was taken up by a larger variety of pieces, usually a series called Stage Show. The show would come and go, with other cast members coming and going over time. Even Art Carney had left The Jackie Gleason Show at one time, only to return in 1957 to the role. The show's history is a complicated one to which entire books have been devoted over the years. It wasn't until syndication that the series was really a show unto itself. The original 39 episodes were joined with nearly 70 re-edited versions of the other various incarnations of the show have made up what most of us today think of as The Honeymooners. The final original versions of the show ended in 1971; both Audrey Meadows and Joyce Randolph were gone by then, replaced by Sheila MacRae and Jane Kean respectively.
But this show that wasn't really a show had legs. The syndicated versions became hugely popular, and new generations of fans were being indoctrinated with each new package. The show even survived on pay television at Showtime for a while in the 1990's when the 70 newly-formed "Lost Episodes" first aired. But the fever just never died. The show would influence a large number of series that would follow. Even the animated world of cartoons wasn't safe. The Flintstones would come along and become a prehistoric cartoon show that was basically the same down to the characters. Fred and Barney couldn't have been closer to Ralph and Norton if their names had been the same. Today, comedians constantly recall The Honeymooners and Jackie Gleason as their inspiration. To more than one generation of television viewers, Gleason really was "The Great One".
