Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 24th, 2018
"Do you remember the first time you saw a dinosaur? The first time you see them, it's like a miracle. You read about them in books, you see the bones in museums, but you don't really believe it. They're like myths. And then you see the first one alive."
By the time you get to the fourth sequel of a film, the results are usually not very good. Even a groundbreaking film like Jurassic Park has been followed by at least one terrible sequel. The problem with these kinds of things is pretty easy to figure out. You can't please all of any film's diehard fans, and it's hard to continue to deliver on the formula's expectations, all the while breaking new ground without the result feeling more contrived than original.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 23rd, 2018
"My name is Kara Zor-El. I'm from Krypton. I'm a refugee on this planet. I was sent to Earth to protect my cousin. But my pod got knocked off course, and by the time I got here, my cousin had already grown up and become... Superman. I hid who I really was until one day when an accident forced me to reveal myself to the world. To most people, I'm a reporter at CatCo Worldwide Media. But in secret, I work with my adoptive sister for the D.E.O. to protect my city from alien life and anyone else that means to cause it harm. I am Supergirl."
So, you're asking yourself, who the heck is Kara Zor-El, and what is this D.E.O.? I get it. You're just not caught up on the CW series Supergirl. It's not such a good idea to start here, however. You can check out our reviews for the first two seasons here. Catch up on the episodes, and then join the rest of us for Supergirl: The Complete Third Season.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 21st, 2018
"It's not just for profit. It's for revenge. It's a twofer."
Hollywood has been making a greater effort these days to add some diversity to their film casts. From minorities to women, this has been a year of unprecedented changes in the makeup of so many films. One of the new trends in this effort is to remake/re-imagine/reboot an already established franchise with a gender-switched cast. The results have been somewhat mixed. The female Ghostbusters film was a complete disappointment.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 21st, 2018
"In the exciting days of live television, there was one show that won major awards in all categories. It was a live show in a live theater, and what you will hear is live laughter - a genuine reaction of a live audience."
That was Sid Caesar's Your Show of Shows. Sid Caesar is arguably the world's first major television star. His show was a monster hit that eventually earned him $25,000 an episode back in the early 1950's. He was something of a comic chameleon. He portrayed many iconic characters where Sid himself appeared to completely disappear into the role. His skits were often like small films that ran 20 minutes or more.
Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on September 16th, 2018
"Predators don't just sit around making hats out of rib cages. They conquered space."
In 1987 Predator became somewhat of a milestone film for many reasons. The movie would anchor a franchise thanks mostly to a wonderfully original Stan Winston creature design and the performance of Kevin Peter Hall under the suit. Both Winston and Hall have since passed, but the alien hunter that they created together is still going strong. The film also featured two stars who would later go on to become governors of their states. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jessie Ventura made their mark in politics. The film also featured Rocky's Carl Weathers. It also featured Shane Black in a small role that might not have contributed to the blossoming franchise then, but he has made his own impact by writing and directing the latest installment of that franchise The Predator.
Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on September 15th, 2018
There is something about the words “based on a true story” that seems to have a certain effect on us and seems to alter our perception of a film. Then there is something about a true crime story that seems to excite us even more; at least for me, I enjoy these films where we get a glimpse of the seedy underbelly of society. So when White Boy Rick comes along to tell the tale of the youngest FBI informant who also happened to be an arms dealer and drug kingpin, well, this is the kind of film I tend to get excited about. When I first saw the trailer, it had me thinking this could be a hodgepodge of American Hustle, Blow, and Goodfellas all wrapped into one. Unfortunately, though the film has some great talent and oodles of potential, the result is a good-looking mess on the screen.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 14th, 2018
"You're in a stolen cop car with a dead hooker in the trunk; you don't have to obey traffic laws."
The Big Bang Theory certainly didn't obey the established laws for television comedy. The series was certainly more cerebral than most, and a lot of jokes went over a lot of heads, I suspect. But it was never about the geek factor or the IQ of the characters. The show was simply about the characters, and that extended family has spent 11 years in our living rooms or home theatres. But like all good things, The Big Bang Theory is about to come to an end.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 12th, 2018
Jay (O'Neill) is the patriarch of his extended family. He's a pretty wealthy businessman who lives in relative comfort. He's married to a Columbian woman who is much younger than he is. Gloria (Vergara) also brings her son Manny (Rodriquez) to the Pritchard home. They also have their own 5-year old named Joe (Maguire). Jay has two grown children with families of their own. Mitchell (Ferguson) is gay and living with his partner Cameron (Stonestreet). The two have adopted a Vietnamese daughter named Lily. Mitchell is an attorney who supports his family, while Cameron is the jolly stay-at-home dad.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 12th, 2018
When Michael Weatherly left NCIS it was like losing an old friend, both for the cast and crew of the franchise and for the millions of fans who had invited him into their living rooms for almost 15 years. But he returned to both. His presence was very much alive in the last season of NCIS. He was discussed, shown in flashbacks, and somehow continued to carry on his teasing war with McGee. But he wouldn't return in person. That's because he was busy with the second season of his own show Bull. And while Bull is reportedly based on the early career of Dr. Phil, nothing could be farther from the reality that Bull is 100% Michael Weatherly.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 7th, 2018
For its first seven years there have been few departures on the refreshed version of Hawaii 5-O. What we have seen instead is additions to the cast pretty much on an annual basis. The result has been a fairly large ensemble that wasn't there for the start. But Season 8 sees the largest departure to the series since its inception. It started out with Daniel Dae Kim wanting the same pay as the show's two leads, Scott Caan and Alex Loughlin. That wasn't going to happen, and before long Kim started to accuse the show runners of being racist because of the difference in pay. Now keep in mind that every series has a lead or leads who get more money than the rest of the cast.
