Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 8th, 2015
"Listen, my friend. This is going to be very hard to comprehend, but none of what you are seeing is real."
Of course it's not real. It's not really that hard to comprehend at all. This is an animated show, after all. And the figures look like cut-out pieces of construction paper. Of course, we're talking about South Park. What is hard to comprehend, however, is that we're talking about the 18th season of South Park. Few television shows last this long, and only The Simpsons has been around longer when it comes to scripted animated shows running today. That's rare air, indeed.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on October 7th, 2015
The last decade hasn’t been too kind to Al Pacino. The man is only one of our greatest living actors, but he’s mostly been stuck appearing in forgettable tripe (88 Minutes) or out-and-out atrocities (Jack and Jill) for the last 10 years. So it’s easy to overlook the fact that Pacino is quietly doing really good work again. I say “quietly” because the actor has recently eschewed the “hoo-ah!” tics that turned him into a caricature. This affecting, engaged, and more subdued version of Pacino can be seen in Danny Collins, and he is also front-and-center in Manglehorn, a whimsical, uneven drama that is grounded by its star’s strong work.
Pacino plays A.J. Manglehorn, a shabby, solitary locksmith whose biggest personal connection is with his beloved cat Fanny. As we watch Manglehorn shuffle through each day — which includes hopping in his rickety van to help clients who have locked themselves out of various places — his life starts to come into focus.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on October 7th, 2015
“Man, they killed my brother…you think I’m gonna let that slide?”
Even if you haven’t sat through a ton of revenge-minded pulp, you won't be surprised to hear the answer to the above question is a resounding, “No!” The good(ish) news is that Chain of Command manages to stand out from a pretty crowded straight-to-DVD action pack. The disastrous news is that this laughably bad, shoddily-made debacle is likely to stick in your memory for all the wrong reasons.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 6th, 2015
I don't enjoy writing negative reviews. It's a struggle when the film experience was joyless and then to have to go back and relive that. I also don't enjoy reading reviews by other critics that get everything completely wrong. It's even worse when almost all the critics get it wrong. Even worse than that is when I see critics dumping on a film that's actually good, but that's a story for a different day. How can I say Spy is so bad? Because I had to sit through the movie. I can get some enjoyment out of even the worst movies, and that's true here, but I would not recommend it to unsuspecting viewers.I do imagine a lot of people will enjoy the movie despite themselves if they are paying for babysitters, etc. Again, I do think every movie has some entertainment value. I will try to find it in the new movie Spy. The first good thing I can say is that Spy is a chick flick that lets chicks save the day. They don't look great doing it, but they save the day. That's one of the problems. Almost no one looks good in this film.
The film has a great cast. Melissa McCarthy is the big star, but she shares billing with Jason Statham, Jude Law, and Rose Byrne. You can also throw in sturdy supporting players like Allison Janney and Bobby Cannavale. There are plenty more, but those are the names. I will say that the person who comes off the best is Rose Byrne. She plays a super-bitch super-villain who you truly believe doesn't like anyone. She dispatches people with the unpleasant venom of someone who doesn't like the service she is receiving at a restaurant. Jason Statham has the thankless job of making fun of himself. He seems game, but he doesn't really pull it off. He gets some of the funniest material but almost flubs most of his lines with his mush-mouth delivery. Jude Law gets the part of the perfect James Bond-type spy, but you get the hint of embarrassment in his facial mannerisms like he's trying too hard to spoof the trope.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 1st, 2015
"My name is Ichabod Crane. In 1781 I died on the battlefield, but I was saved by a mysterious spell cast upon me by my wife Katrina. Now I've been reawakened 250 years later in a land I no longer recognize. And fate has led me to Miss Abigail Mills., a young police lieutenant. Investigating baffling mysteries, our real mission is in danger, and the apocalypse may be upon us, our destinies entwined."
Fans of the tale The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow will recall that Ichabod came to encounter the headless horseman in one of the first American horror tales ever written. Irving was a contemporary of our founding fathers, including another Washington who happened to play a big part in a little skirmish with the Brits that came to be known as the American Revolution here and the Great Colonial Rebellion over there. Thanks to the new series Sleepy Hollow, we discover that the British weren't the only ones we were fighting. It's a story of independence we hadn't heard before. It's a fresh take on an old idea that dates back to Kolchak: The Night Stalker. The second season is out on Blu-ray now, and I recommend you check it out. Just don't mix it up with that American history text. We history teachers frown on that kind of thing, you know.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 29th, 2015
"To understand what I'm about to tell you, you need to do something first. You need to believe in the impossible. Can you do that? Good. Because all of us, we have forgotten what miracles look like. Maybe because they haven't made much of an appearance lately. Our lives have become ordinary. But there is someone out there who is truly extraordinary."
It's become so much easier to believe in the impossible in recent years. The guys over at Marvel have created an amazing theatrical universe where we escape into the comic book world of heroes at least a couple times a week. DC hasn't managed to wow us in our theater seats so much recently. What they have been able to do is deliver hours of wonderful escapism television every week. That's where the DC miracles are happening, first on Arrow and now Gotham and... The Flash. This is the decade when comic book pages truly come to life before our very eyes.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 24th, 2015
"My name is Oliver Queen; after five years in hell, I have come home with only one goal, to save my city. Now others have joined my crusade. To them, I'm Oliver Queen. To the rest of Starling City, I'm someone else. I am something else."
That someone, that something more ...that something else is the DC Comics character Green Arrow. Not to be confused with the same-colored Hornet or Lantern. In season 2 Oliver Queen finally shed the name and reputation of the Hood or Vigilante. He vowed not to kill, and he no longer has the list to guide him. His job now is to go after any bad guys in Starling City. In season 3 that job will get a lot harder to do while still keeping his vow. You can say that things get a lot more personal and that season 3 of The Arrow is all about family. And, you can bet that not everyone is getting out alive. Those who remain will be forever changed. That much is certain.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 23rd, 2015
If ever a show were more aptly named, it would have to be HBO's The Jinx. It's a documentary on Robert Durst, who had been charged with three murders and never convicted. The title comes from his own description of why he never had any children. He believed he would be a jinx to any child as a father. It turns out that this HBO series would be a jinx for Durst himself, because he couldn't quite keep his mouth shut and ends up making potentially incriminating statements. The suspect was arrested just hours before the last episode of the show aired on HBO. We might have to get into the whole art-imitating-life-imitating-art conversation. One thing is certain. This show had an impact on the real world like few shows ever had. But that's not the only reason I'm going to tell you that you simply must see The Jinx out on Blu-ray from HBO.
It begins like something out of Dexter. In Galveston, Texas, a grisly discovery is made. There are body parts washing in from the bay in garbage bags. Eventually an entire body is discovered except for the head. The evidence leads to the victim's next-door neighbor Robert Durst, who had been staying there disguised as a woman. An arrest is quickly made, and it looks like a slam-dunk conviction. But this seemingly poor man posts a $250,000 bond the very next morning and takes flight.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 23rd, 2015
Finally a situation comedy for geeks. Ever since Urkel went from being a one-off character on Family Matters to the star of the show, the geeks have been looking for their own series. With The Big Bang Theory you get plenty of geek factor with a healthy dose of laughter. I honestly haven’t laughed this much at a situation comedy in decades. Meet Sheldon Cooper (Parsons). He’s a brilliant young scientist working at a Pasadena university. His field was string theory but now he's shifted to dark matter. He’s one of those young prodigy guys who likely graduated from college and then went home to get his diapers changed. Sheldon insists on tight structure and is uncomfortable outside of a highly structured environment. He’s insecure and can’t stand confrontation. He also, of course, believes he’s the smartest guy on the planet. He’s a huge comic and science fiction fan who envisions himself a young Lex Luthor. His girlfriend Amy (Bialik) is a behavior scientist. The two have a relationship based on a contract and have to negotiate even when they can kiss.
His roommate Leonard (Galecki) is also a gifted member of the school’s staff. Leonard is about the most normal one of the group and actually has a steady girl in next-door neighbor Penny (Cuoco). Penny now works as a sales rep for a pharmaceutical company and finds she's doing well. Unfortunately, they cut her hair off this year, and it isn't a good look at all. She’s not the sharpest tool in the box, but she can often teach the boys a thing or two about the real world.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on September 21st, 2015
“Have courage and be kind.”
Those words — repeated many times in this newest version of Cinderella — serve as both the title character’s mantra and the film’s unofficial tagline. The message is elegant in its simplicity in a way that mirrors this refreshingly old-fashioned adaptation, which resists the prevailing urge to modernize and/or revise a classic story.
