Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on August 24th, 2016
For years (at this point we can say decades), fans have been holding out hope for a new installment in the Evil Dead franchise. Over the years there have been rumors of a fourth film, even talks of doing a crossover involving Ash (Bruce Campbell) taking on various horror icons. In the end these talks seemed to be nothing more than pipe dreams, but then in 2013 something special happened. A remake/sequel occurred for the series that actually was pretty awesome and gory while also being a financial success…but it was the stinger at the end of the credits that got people excited, the brief appearance of the man with the chainsaw hand himself. Was it a tease for more to come, or was it simply a wink to the fans of the series? As it would turn out, a little bit of both. It’s a fanboy’s dream come true, not just a continuation of the Evil Dead series, but Starz delivers a 10-episode season that packs a gore-soaked punch to my heart.
When we catch up with Ash, he’s pretty much the same as when we last saw him. He’s a man stuck at a dead-end job and living in a trailer park, but this is the lifestyle choice he’s made on his own. He remains haunted by his past battles with The Book of the Dead and of course the deadites, but in true Ash fashion he copes with it through alcohol and easy women. It’s at his job that he meets Pablo (Ray Santiago) and Kelly (Dana De Lorenzo) who reluctantly find themselves mixed up with Ash and the return of the evil that seeks to be reunited with the Necronomicon.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 22nd, 2016
The Vampire Diaries is finally living up to its name. Elena is asleep until Bonnie dies, so the characters have promised to keep a record of all the goings on in Mystic Falls and with their lives. And there's a lot to write about. Mystic Falls has been evacuated so that Lily and her family of heretics won't kill everybody in town. They're living in the Salvatore mansion, and Carolyn is carrying twins that don't really belong to her. And Damon...he's just being...Damon. All of them are either trying to steal or running away from something called The Phoenix Stone. Elena's going to have a lot of catching up to do, and so do you if you haven't been watching all along.
What is Mystic Falls? Who the heck are Damon and Elena, you ask? Bonnie? You've got questions. We've got answers, but not here. You've heard me say this before, and it's become more and more true of television shows these days. If you don't know what I'm talking about, you're just not ready for Season 7 of The Vampire Diaries. But you are in luck. You can check out my reviews for the previous seasons here: Vampire Diaries Reviews. Then you can pick them up and start a mega-marathon session. Once you're up to speed, join us back here for the next thrilling installment.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 22nd, 2016
"We've been on the sidelines too long, missed too many adventures. Now it's embarrassing. How do you think it feels when everyone asks you how the adventure was, and you gotta say that no one asked you to go along?"
Well, you're invited, now gather up your Disney Fastpass and get in line for more television adventures in Storybrooke. Ah, but before you get on the boat for this year's ride you might want to be sure you're all caught up on the adventures of these characters. This is not the place to start. The mythology of Once Upon A Time gets quite complicated over the previous seasons. This is not the place to start if you want to watch the show. Check out our previous reviews of the first four seasons of Once Upon A Time. Bang it here to get caught up: Once Upon A Time Reviews.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on August 19th, 2016
“He's just got a knack for being in the wrong spot at exactly the right time.”
Jack Irish, the disheveled former lawyer-turned-debt collector with a nose for trouble, is at it again. The character is the creation of novelist Peter Temple, but Australian TV audiences got to know Jack thanks to a trio of TV movies starring the great Guy Pearce. The movies were successful enough that Jack Irish returned as a six-episode series that brings the entire gang back together.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 16th, 2016
There has been no shortage of medical dramas dating back to the infancy of television. Many have become classics. Most have dealt with the use of modern (at least for that time) advances and cutting-edge science. That's exactly what you get with The Knick. You get cutting-edge medical advancement... for 1902. The Knick is the fictional Knickerbocker hotel in 1900's New York. The hospital exists in a poverty-stricken neighborhood where few of the patients can pay for their care. This has been a problem the board has been trying to turn around. Now ground is being broken on a new location in a much more affluent part of New York City. It'll be an opportunity to finally turn a profit and also one of corruption for the man handling the new construction. But what of Dr. Thackery, played by Clive Owens?
We left Thackery in a rehab facility. While he is attempting to recover from his addiction, Dr. Algernon Edwards (Holland) is the acting chief of surgery. He hopes to make it permanent and continues to report pessimistically on Thackery's recovery. But it's going to be a struggle for a black doctor to be hired in such a position, particularly when the hospital is about to make its move in the hopes of attracting a more elite clientele. Edwards isn't the only one with schemes. Dr. Everett Gallinger (Johnson) does not want to serve under a black boss. In fact, he's joined a group of doctors who believe that "inferior" people should be sterilized in a twisted form of eugenics. His only hope is for Thackery to return, so he kidnaps him from the facility and keeps him on his sailboat, where he hopes to cure the addiction by making him focus on tying nautical knots. The process works so well that it pushes Thackery to change his thoughts on addiction and consider it a disease and dedicate his research to finding the cause and cure of addiction. This leads to all manner of brain experiments and a chance for the guys who do the incredible makeup effects to deliver the goods again. I even had a chance to talk with Justin Raleigh, who does many of these marvelous creations. You can check out that interview Here.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 12th, 2016
"When people see that red cape, they expect to see a certain someone. Someone they know. But this isn't his story. It's mine."
Of course, that "someone" they know is Superman. This is the story of Supergirl. We've seen her story on both the big and small screen, as well. Helen Slater put on the tights and skirt in the Richard Donner film made during the Christopher Reeves Superman years and meant to tie into that filmactic universe. When television told the story of a young Clark Kent in Smallville, it was only natural that his famous cuz would show up there. This time it was Laura Vandervoort who played the Kryptonian. It's nice to see that the new version of Supergirl pays homage to both previous incarnations of the character. Both Slater and Vandervoort have roles in the series that rise a bit above the cameo level.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 12th, 2016
James Spader is Raymond "Red" Reddington. If you have not yet watched an episode of The Blacklist I will tell you from the beginning that you just can't start here. Season 3 hits the ground running as the consequences of some major storylines from the previous year start to play out. I found myself having to take the time and catch up on Season 2 because we didn't get that year to review. It was clear to me from the start that there was no way to truly enjoy this release if I wasn't caught up. The trouble I go through to keep you guys informed. It's a tough job but someone has to do it. So, if you're not up to speed this is your chance to pick up all three seasons and do some serious binge watching. Make sure you stretch every now and again. Keep yourself hydrated and avoid the fatty/sugary junk foods. It'll be worth it because The Blacklist takes you on one heck of a three year run and I'm already looking forward to season 4. But go no farther if you're not up to speed.
If you're still with us then you know that Liz Keen (Boone) shot the country's Attorney General because he was part of The Cabal and threatened her future. She's also been framed for a terrorist attack that she did not commit. Now her partner Donald Ressler (Klattenhoff) is in charge of the task force because Cooper (Lenox) is also implicated in the crimes of Keen and Reddington. Ressler is not totally convinced she is guilty and hopes that she'll be cleared in the courts. But he is completely dedicated to bringing her in. The rest of the team is rather divided. None of them believe she is guilty and they end up being drawn in by Reddington to help behind Ressler's back. Aram (Arison) has already gone too far over the line but it has earned him the gratitude of Reddington. It's a chit he has to call in before the season ends. Samar (Marno) uses her Mossad connections to help to the point that Ressler has her fired.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on August 12th, 2016
What if you were given the chance to step back in time; would you take this opportunity to change the world, even if it meant having to kill someone for the “greater good”? This is the question that kicks off the story that is 11.22.63, from the novel written by Stephen King. Sure, merely mention Stephen King and many automatically people think of the man as the master of contemporary horror. Yet some of his prolific works that have made their way to the big screen and have gone on to be classic pieces of cinema are less about horror and more about friendship and the deepest bonds we can share with another. Stand By Me, The Shawshank Redemption, and The Green Mile are just a couple examples of King’s more profound works, and for a moment 11.22.63 could have stood right alongside these titles.
Hulu is the streaming company that set out to adapt 11.22.63 as their way to take their streaming service to the next level and begin to stream original content. When I first heard there was going to be adaptation of the book, I was far from excited; after all, most of the mini-series that had come before just turned out to be lackluster executions of the stories I loved. (Yes, even IT I felt missed the mark in several ways that had me hoping this next attempt will be better.) What gave me a little hope, though, was hearing about the involvement J.J. Abrams would have with the project, how his name alone would elevate this past Mick Garris mini-series we got throughout the 90’s. With eight episodes, would Hulu and Abrams be able to step up to the plate and deliver?
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on August 11th, 2016
“The story of the American Frontier is a tale of conquest, but also one of survival, persistence, and the grit of the people.”
And the story of the American Western is a tale of quick draw competitions, fights aboard speeding trains, and other assorted horseplay. Each of those elements can be found in Traded, which inelegantly grafts the plot of Taken onto an Old West setting. The problem is that nothing here is executed particularly well.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on August 8th, 2016
When I first saw the trailer for Keanu I wasn’t sure if what I was watching was a real trailer or simply a sketch from the Key and Peele Show. Thankfully this turned out to their first starring foray in taking their talents to the big screen. With one look at the trailer, I felt they were attempting to capture the over-the-top stylish action we got in most 90’s action films, Face/Off is the first that comes to mind, but really there are countless examples. But the real star of the film is little Keanu himself, the ball of feline cuteness that will either have you embracing the film from the start or have you rolling your eyes (yeah, I’m talking about those cat haters out there). Grab your Glock, and don’t forget the catnip, as we scratch a little deeper into Keanu.
Two ruthless assassins come into town, hired to take down members of a gang. In the midst of the gunfight, a little kitten manages to make an escape. The kitten finds his way to the doorstep of Rell’s apartment. Rell (Jordan Peele) has hit some rough times after a breakup, and Keanu (adorable kitten) seems to be what has brought Rell out of his rut. But things turn for the worse when Rell’s home is broken into and he discovers that Keanu has been catnapped. Rell’s cousin Clarence (Keegan-Michael Key) tags along to help Rell find his lost cat. Unfortunately it takes them deep into the street gang underground where they are mistaken for the two assassins. To rescue Keanu and to ensure they both don’t get killed, Rell and Clarence go ahead and pretend to play the role of the assassins.
