Posted in: Tuesday Round Up by J C on October 11th, 2016
Look who's swinging into UpcomingDiscs HQ this week! (And he's doing it in an extra dimension.) Warner Bros. reacquaints us with The Legend of Tarzan 3D, which headlines our latest Tuesday Round Up. Elsewhere, Lionsgate gets paternal and protective with Blood Father, and Allied brings the heat with She Who Must Burn.
And now here's your weekly reminder before signing off for the week: if you’re shopping for anything on Amazon and you do it through one of our links, it’ll help keep the lights on here at UpcomingDiscs. See ya next week!
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on October 10th, 2016
“There can only be one queen.”
After navigating treachery at every turn in French court and having to cope with a deadly plague throughout the first two seasons of Reign — the CW's campy, compulsively watchable adaptation of the Mary, Queen of Scots saga — season 3 was meant to introduce Mary's most formidable foe yet. Queen Elizabeth I of England becomes a regular character on the show and Mary's chief rival from afar. But in telling the story of two warring queens (while trying to service the series' many established characters) the show stretches itself too thin and loses some of the fizz that made it a guilty pleasure.
Posted in: The Reel World by J C on October 7th, 2016
“My husband used to tell me I have an overactive imagination...”
The idea at the core of The Girl on the Train is equal parts provocative and relatable: a lonely commuter observes an attractive couple from a distance and imagines what their seemingly perfect lives must be like. Anyone who's ever done any people-watching will recognize the appeal of inventing a backstory for a stranger, and the story is a healthy reminder that things are never quite what they seem from the outside. But despite a powerhouse lead performance, this Train is ultimately derailed by an unsatisfying mystery and a lack of flair that causes this potentially juicy story to lose steam as it chugs along.
Posted in: Tuesday Round Up by J C on October 4th, 2016
Welcome to the first Tuesday Round Up of October! You've probably noticed that the spooky season is in full swing around these parts thanks to our “31 Nights of Terror” and we're going to keep the monster mayhem going thanks to Showtime's Penny Dreadful: The Final Season. In other horror-related news, Level 33 leave us in scary hands with The Caretaker, while Allied Entertainment giddily declares OMG...We're in a Horror Movie. RLJ Entertainment sees things through The Mind's Eye, and Lionsgate digs deep with 6 Plots. (You're in luck: enter to win a copy of 6 Plots by clicking here!) Magnolia bedevils us with Satanic and (in non-horror news) pays respect to The Last King.
Anchor Bay sows some Wild Oats, and Time Life stays up late for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson: The Vault Series — Archive Collection (which features the incomparable Joan Embery, who we got to chat with recently). Finally, HBO bids an action-packed farewell to Banshee: The Final Season.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on October 3rd, 2016
“Warning! The truly unusual motion picture you are about to see contains many scenes of graphic violence. It is not intended for the faint of heart, nor the young and impressionable.”
Anyone who makes it all the way through 1987's Blood Diner — a gleeful, inspired exercise in bad taste — can't say they weren't warned. That being said, the tongue-in-cheek disclaimer that precedes the film still may not be enough to prepare you for the utter silliness and depravity that follows.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on September 30th, 2016
“A creature that gestates inside a living human host…and has concentrated acid for blood.”
If you're a fan of sci-fi, horror, or action films, chances are you're also intimately familiar with the creature at the center of the Alien franchise. Ridley Scott's 1979 original is a masterpiece of space horror, so it would've been foolish for any follow-up to try and replicate the same formula. Instead, James Cameron's classic sequel succeeds by transplanting an entirely new genre into the series (Aliens is basically a war movie) while maintaining the sense of terror that made its predecessor a classic. You can get a fresh look for yourself now that Fox has released a 30th Anniversary Edition.
Posted in: Tuesday Round Up by J C on September 27th, 2016
It's getting to be that time of year. The color orange and the sheer number of pumpkin spice-flavored offerings are about to officially become overwhelming. That's right...it's almost October, which also means the arrival of the spooky season. As always, we'll have plenty more on that front once October properly kicks off. But in the meantime, this week's Round Up is highlighted by a pair of creepy throwback flicks. Lionsgate takes a violent trip to the Chopping Mall and has a killer meal at the Blood Diner. Meanwhile, ABC/Disney is on the case with The Catch: Season 1, while Warner Bros. courts some royal drama with Reign: Season 3. Finally, Film Detective discovers some Patterns in a Rod Serling-scripted 1950s drama.
One last reminder before signing off for the week (and for September): if you’re shopping for anything on Amazon and you do it through one of our links, it’ll help keep the lights on here at UpcomingDiscs. See ya next week!
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on September 27th, 2016
“This is when we roar.”
When Fox’s Empire premiered in early 2015, it became an instant sensation that re-wrote the ratings record books. The show’s mix of high drama and hip-hop obviously struck a chord with an underserved segment of TV viewers. Of course, that also means expectations were sky high for this second season. While Empire has inevitably lost some of the sizzle from its unprecedented debut, this unapologetically over-the-top soap rap-era has also managed to avoid the dreaded sophomore slump.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on September 22nd, 2016
“Does doing things the legal way really make it better?”
Since movies are at their core a form of escapism, they have a way of glamorizing anyone who violently slashes through the red tape of the criminal justice system. It helps explain the enduring appeal of vigilante/revenge movies and it's probably why we're meant to root for the charitable bank robbers in Marauders. While the movie contains some cool flashes of style and occasionally bumps up against some interesting ideas about justice, it ultimately gets way too bogged down in red herrings and pointless subplots.
Posted in: Tuesday Round Up by J C on September 20th, 2016
Is anybody up for some pizza? I know four sewer-dwelling superheroes who would happily jump at that offer any day of the week. So for this Tuesday (Round Up), we're excited about the emergence of Paramount's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows in 4K. Elsewhere, CBS lays down the law with Blue Bloods: Season 6 and marshals in Gunsmoke: Season 12. Finally, Eagle Rock does it ol' blue eyes' way with The Frank Sinatra Collection: Part 2.
Here's your weekly reminder before signing off for the week: if you’re shopping for anything on Amazon and you do it through one of our links, it’ll help keep the lights on here at UpcomingDiscs. See ya next week!
