Posted in: Disc Reviews by M. W. Phillips on July 25th, 2011
“Look, you got what you wanted, I'm officially out of control.”
Based loosely on (Executive Producer) Mark Walberg’s meteoric rise to fame, Entourage has always been a male bonding fantasy; it plays like a boys-will-be-boys version of Sex in the City. Following Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier) and his posse’s misadventures through the decadent lifestyles of the hyper-rich and fabulously famous carried with it a certain insider’s credibility and made for fun, if not slightly debauched TV voyeurism. HBO sweetened the deal by liberally mixing in hard body nudity with jaw-dropping self-satirizations from a slew of Hollywood cameos the like not seen since The Larry Sanders Show.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by M. W. Phillips on July 25th, 2011
“Give me a head with hair, long beautiful hair, shining gleaming steaming flaxen waxen. Give me it down to there, hair, shoulder length or longer, here, baby, there, mamma, everywhere, daddy, daddy hair! Flow it, show it, long as God can grow it, my hair!”
Born in the late 50s, I was a child of 60s and a teen in the 70s. I believed in the revolution. The Beatles and The Stones would lead the charge against the establishment. I grew my hair to mid back, stayed perpetually high, experimented sexually and washed infrequently. I used my selective service draft card to clean the seeds out of my pot. I was hippy and Hair was our manifesto. Now, I speak of the cult Broadway musical, Hair. The songs were prophecy of the future when the flower power movement finally conquered the squares. The lockstep Nixon youth, Wall Street plutocrats and pickled religious zealots would fall under the spell of free thinking and free love. Jupiter aligned with Mars. Peace would guide the planet and love would steer the stars. It was the dawning Age of Aquarius, man.
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 Gino Sassani on July 20th, 2011
"A picture's worth a thousand words."
James Wan first came to national attention when a short film that he made set the stage for one of the most successful horror franchises in recent years. That short, of course, was Saw, and after no less than 6 sequels that franchise appears to be over, at least for now. Wan has teamed with the writer that also helped to bring about the original Saw film, Leigh Whannell, to try and turn the horror world on its head once again. But, lightning just doesn't strike the same place twice, or does it?
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 20th, 2011
They say that when an alligator grabs hold of something tasty to eat, the reptile won't let go for anything. I guess the same thing could be said for Roger Corman. He's earned the title as King of the B Movie and has held reign for nearly 60 years. So we shouldn't be surprised that his relationship with SyFy and their monster mash-up series of original films would feature a few entries from Corman. Dinocroc came in 2004, followed by Supergator in 2007. Both found fitting places in the series from SyFy. Now Corman and the network have pitted the two against each other in the latest joint venture: Dinocroc vs. Supergator.
Two genetically-altered crocodilians have been developed in secret by the laboratories owned by Jason Drake (Carradine). The lab was funded by the government to create super-versions of food plants to solve the world's hunger problems. But these guys got greedy and decided to use the technology to develop a weapon out of an alligator and a crocodile. The result is two giant predators that soon break out of containment and threaten a Hawaiian island. There's plenty of the expected mayhem and chaos as the two creatures make their way through the population.
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.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 17th, 2011
There has been a trend recently that has seen classic fairy tales being adapted, often with new, modern twists. While this is not a bad idea in itself, it seems that this trend is skipping along, arm in arm, with another trend in not only the movie business, but the entertainment industry as a whole: almost everything is being aimed at 13-year old girls. Beastly is the latest product of that union.
Beastly, as you can probably guess, is a new take on Beauty and the Beast. In this case, we get a modern retelling of the tale, with several plot points that mirror the now classic Disney animated version (though the alternate ending supplied in the Special Features has a moment that, shockingly, pays homage to the even more classic 1946 Jean Cocteau film). However, Beastly not only makes the decision to set its tale in a modern, urban setting, but to attempt to ground it in reality. This is a mistake. Why, you ask? Well, simply because it leads to all kinds of logic-defying moments and paper-thin character motivations which I will address shortly.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by M. W. Phillips on July 16th, 2011
“The first rule of Fight Club is: you do not talk about Fight Club. The second rule of Fight Club is: you DO NOT talk about Fight Club!”
Now, let me be the millionth critic to break those rules… Back in 1997, David Fincher received a call from his agent, Josh Donen, who’d just finished Chuck Palahniuk's novel Fight Club and tried to talk Fincher into reading it. Even at a brisk 208 pages, Fincher passed on it, protesting being too busy to read books. So Donen read the Raymond K. Hessel scene over the phone, the one where Tyler puts the gun to the convenience store clerk’s head and tells him, "I know who you are. I know where you live. I'm keeping your license, and I'm going to check on you, Mister Raymond K. Hessel. In three months, and then in six months, and then in a year, and if you aren't in school on your way to being a veterinarian, you will be dead."
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 15th, 2011
"Delivering justice one shell at a time."
Sometimes you look at a movie title and you really can't decide what kind of movie it might be. It could cause you to avoid a movie you might have really liked. Scent Of A Woman was like that for me. I avoided it for years because I thought it must be some hyper-romantic film. Of course, it was anything but. Hollywood has a habit of trying to get too clever sometimes, and it leaves us just wondering what the heck are we in store for here. Then there are films that tell you everything you need to know in the title. When you see a title like Hobo With A Shotgun, you know exactly what it is you're getting.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 14th, 2011
Even though I have found my soulmate, I often consider myself to be a loner at heart. If I was born in another time, perhaps I would be roaming the earth searching for a purpose. In some ways, I could consider myself to be like the lead actor in Warrior’s Way. A warrior who is the best swordsman in the land but empty in his heart. That however would change when one day I found my purpose. Will it change in his?
Yang’s (played by Jang Dong-gun) only purpose in his life is to become the greatest swordsman in the entire world. As a member of the Sad Flutes clan, he eventually accomplishes this goal by killing the former greatest swordsman in the land and every one in the opposing clan. However, there is a wrinkle in his future ambitions when he decides to take pity on a small baby who was daughter to one of the members. In deciding to watch over her, he incurs the wrath of his fellow members and he has take refuge.
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