Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on August 10th, 2011
Though others might not share my same vision, I have had my share of serious cop movies and television shows. Every time I turn on the television, it seems like everybody wants authentic police work in the form of crime scene investigation, special victims unit, and even a SWAT team or two. Even though this has spawned a few excellent shows like Flashpoint and the Shield, I wished for something lighter. Enter the direct to disc film, Tactical Force.
It is just another day in Los Angeles. We visit a grocery store where normal activity is occurring. All of the sudden, a clown, Bill Clinton, and Obama show up (masks of course). If that is not the setup for a joke, I don’t know what is. Anyway, they hold up the place. As people are gripped in fear, the police are called in to negotiate the safe return of the hostages. But there is only one team that can take care of this situation, and that is the SWAT team.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on August 8th, 2011
Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if I wised up at the altar of my first wedding and walked away. Sure, I would have been spared a terrible marriage and some financial woe but fate has a weird way of canceling out the good things in life too. How long would I have been single? Who would I end up with? Would I even know the love of my life, Sarah? Scary when you start thinking about it. Well, today I review A Guy Thing which explores a marriage to be that shouldn’t be. What will happen?
A pair of shots are poured. Jim (played by Shawn Hatosy) says there are three rings in a man’s life: the Engagement Ring, the Wedding Ring and suffering. *rim shot*. Heyooooooo. Jim is the best man for Paul Coleman (played by Jason Lee) who is set to be married in just a week’s time. The bachelor party is at the Hula Lounge and the bar is a hopping. But Paul just does not want to be recognized as the groom of this bachelor party.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on August 7th, 2011
Hockey is one of my favorite sports. Unfortunately, figure skating is not. This actually paints an interesting parallel. How can two sports that both share skating on the ice cause love on one side and distaste in the other? It most likely stems from upbringing and society's mainstream views on the two subjects. But what would happen if a hockey player came to the world of figure skating, would I feel different about the sport? Perhaps, but I would be more interested to see a film about it. Enter: The Cutting Edge.
The alarm sounds, Doug Dorsey (played by D.B. Sweeney) wakes up in a panic along side a girl with a heavy foreign accent named Lita or Rita or perhaps Anita (it is actually Gita, played by Nahanni Johnstone). Doug is #9 on the American Olympic Hockey team and is to be the next big thing in the NHL. However, at this point he is four hours late and must get dressed and off to the finals with the West Germans.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on August 3rd, 2011
Dave “The Animal” Bautista has had a fairly interesting life. Most people know him for his wrestling accolades even though his career only lasted about ten years. It is hard to believe that at one time, he was passed on by WCW and said he would never make it in the wrestling business. He would go on to be the six-time World Champion and a four-time Tag Team champion as a part of WWE. However, he departed with the company in 2010 to pursue other avenues including an acting career which made its way to my review door. Let’s explore: House of the Rising Sun.
Ray (played by Dave Bautista) takes a long drag on his cigarette. Sometimes he is not sure how his life got to be like this. He used to be a Vice cop who ended up getting jailed for being on the take. Now, trying to live a normal decent life he takes on a job as head of security for a strip joint called “House of the Rising Sun”. Unfortunately, Ray looks the other way a lot here too since this joint also runs prostitution and illegal gambling.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on August 1st, 2011
Two of my favorite films of all time are Bloodsport and Mortal Kombat. Before you start groaning, let me explain why. They both act as the total testosterone injection for all of the macho men out there. These movies have tournament style martial arts and MMA mayhem where the only code is to beat your opponent until he/she is defeated. Then they move on to the next fight. Usually, there are theatrics thrown in there too, like to save the world or restore honor. Enter my next review movie: Tekken.
Sometime in the future, the world is plunged into chaos. Eight different corporations take over the world and divide the countries between them. They establish a yearly tournament called Iron Fst which is supposed to determine the greatest fighter of the world. The US territory is controlled by Tekken and headed by one, Heihachi Mishima (played by Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa) with his son, Kazuya (played by Ian Anthony Dale) in charge of security.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 27th, 2011
A mockumentary is a piece of satirical entertainment that is shot like a documentary except it is fictitious and never really happened. Like my first marriage, HEYOOOO! (okay, not really) They can be funny or serious but they are often shot to be of the former. Sometimes, they can be pretty interesting or funny but more often than not, they tend to be just like most documentaries. Boring, pointless and liable to cure insomnia. We shall proceed to investigate Brother’s Justice which mocks movie making.
Dax Shepard has an idea. He calls one of his best friends, Nate Tuck who is a producer and tells him to come right over with a camera. Nate says he will need a couple of hours to get things together, Dax asks if he can make it a half hour, the producer says I will try to be there in forty five minutes. At this point, I am already wishing for Nate to slam down the phone and walk away.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 24th, 2011
Hard-rock guru of the seven seas (as long as you count the porta-johns) here with another musical review courtesy of Eagle Rock Entertainment. This one is entitled: Bad Co.: Live at Wembley. The concert played on April of 2010 to a packed house. As the booklet inside the package indicates, “...for a band to achieve this level of brilliance is extremely rare, to capture it on film, nearly impossible.” Well that is exactly what they did and it is my pleasure to bring that review home to you.
Bad Company (or Bad Co. to their fans) was actually a supergroup that formed in 1973. The original line-up consisted of Free former members: singer Paul Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke. It also included former Matt the Hoople guitarist Mick Ralphs and King Crimson bassist, Boz Burrell. Their first album sharing the same name as the band would go on to sell 5 million copies in the US alone and have three hot singles.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 23rd, 2011
When it comes to westerns, I certainly have a love hate relationship. For most westerns, especially anything with Clint Eastwood or spaghetti in the description, I have an extreme loathing and it is honestly hard for me to sit through. But then there is Tombstone which I think is one of the best movies of all time. This summer, I am even excited to go see Cowboys & Aliens. Maybe I just need a western that is out of the ordinary. However, I received Posse to review and by the looks of the cover, this might be a very conventional western or perhaps not.
An old black man (I don't normally get into race, but it is important here) (played by Woody Strode) spins us a story about black cowboys. He tells us to forget about the past and truth. One out of every three cowboys was black. He then goes into a few more facts before telling the tale of Jesse Lee and his posse. It all started long ago during the Spanish-American War, more specifically in Cuba around the year 1898.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 20th, 2011
Bands tend to change members about as often as I change my disposable razor. Heck, in some cases perhaps more often. (I really need to get a new razor) Whether it is a lead singer or perhaps a drummer, in some cases nobody is safe when people start arguing (ask Michael Anthony of Van Halen). But for this review, I was presented with a band that had changed members quite a few times. In fact, only one of the original members remains and he is the drummer. Meet Deep Purple.
Deep Purple was formed in the late 1960’s. The original lineup included Jon Lord, Ritchie Blackmore, Nick Simper, Rod Evans, and Ian Paice. The band was originally called Roundabout but after their first tour quickly changed their name to Deep Purple after Blackmore grandmother’s favorite song. They broke thru the rock world after and released three albums numbers that would do quite well in the US as well as abroad in the UK.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 17th, 2011
One of my favorite books growing up was Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Clearly. It was a charming book that told the story of a child who would write letters to his favorite author. But somewhere in the middle of the book, it turns from letters to a journal of his life in the second grade. The book series, Diary of a Wimpy Kid focus on the experiences of Greg Heffley and told through the pages of a journal. Today, I get to review the second movie adaptation subtitled: Rodrick Rules.
Like the pages of a drawing book, we join the Rocket Rollers Roller Rink (say that five times fast) where they are welcoming back Westmore 7th graders. A car pulls up and some drawings get out? Oh I get it. By the way, the sign has now changed to, More Lame 7th Graders courtesy of two 8th or 9th graders I assume. As the drawings come out, they dissolve to a family of four.
![Tactical Force [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/tactical-force-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![The Cutting Edge [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-cutting-edge-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![House of the Rising Sun [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/house-of-the-rising-sun-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![Brother's Justice (Bluray + DVD Combo) [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/brothers-justice-bluray-dvd-com-large.jpg)
![Bad Company: Live at Wembley [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/bad-company-live-at-wembley-blu-r-large.jpg)
![Posse [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/posse-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![Phoenix Rising [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/phoenix-rising-blu-ray-large.jpg)
