Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 19th, 2011
"Who knew mothering was so hard?"
If you thought that mothering was hard, you should see the work and creativity that goes into making a motion-capture computer animation feature. What started with The Polar Express led to a wonderful holiday special in the hands of Walt Disney with last year's charming A Christmas Carol. Now Disney has taken the magic one step farther with the recent release of Mars Needs Moms.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 2nd, 2011
"Obviously, I miscalculated a few things. Why is it that the moment your life exceeds your wildest dreams the knife appears at your back?"
You've heard the myth that we only use about 10% of our brains so often that most people actually believe it's true. It's one of those old wives' tails that has been around long enough to become an axiom. We actually do use considerably more than 10% of our brains, or should I say, most of us do. But it is true that we don't utilize anywhere near all of it. So what might happen if we could? How might that improve our lives? After spending almost a couple of hours watching Limitless, I might have to become a tad more content with whatever percentage I'm using right now. In fact, maybe it might be a good idea to lower it a little.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 1st, 2011
Back in 1981 we all got a little lost between the moon and New York City as Dudley Moore played the spoiled and perpetually drunk title character in the surprise hit Arthur. He was in love with Liza Minnelli, but his rich family had plans for the socialite played by Jill Eikenberry. Arthur's only real friend was the guy who was paid to be there for him, but nevertheless had a soft spot for him. That was butler Hobson, played by Sir John Gielgud. It was a quirky little romantic comedy that turned out to have legs. Moore would reprise the role in the sequel Arthur 2: On The Rocks which was as much a flop as the original was a success. Moore died nearly a decade ago, and most of us had pretty much forgotten the classic and moved on to other things.
Now along comes Russell Brand, who knows more than a little bit about being an out-of-control drunk. His successful attempt to turn his own life around before it careened off a cliff might have made him the perfect fit to play the character in this 2011 remake. Of course, that's not really what makes him such a wonderful choice. Brand infused enough of his wit and clever improvisation to make this a far funnier version. Moore might have certainly been a more believable and charming drunk. But Brand is a much more entertaining one. And that wasn't the only clever casting to be found here. More on that later.
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 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.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 21st, 2011
"Do you believe in Sin?"
The Exorcist was one of the most chilling films ever made. William Friedkin used subliminal images as well as those quite famous scenes of Linda Blair being taken over by Satan himself. Ever since that time filmmakers have been trying to cash in on the phenomenon. Exorcism movies have become almost a sub-genre in the horror field. There have been everything from no-budget to mega-budget attempts. There have been both sequels and prequels to the original film. Some of these efforts have been truly worthy films with effective moments and compelling plots and performances. None have come close to the original film. The Rite is another attempt to create a modern version of The Exorcist. It's not a bad film at all, but it's not even close.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 21st, 2011
I've long held the belief that the folks at Pixar are really just children who have refused to grow up. That doesn't mean that they don't have to deal with the realities that adulthood thrust upon each of us. I'm sure they have families and are responsible citizens and parents. They consistently make movies, that while there is certainly appeal for children, are obviously intended for adults, adults like them, who have decided to never grow up. If you ever required proof of that concept, The Incredibles should prove the point quite nicely. Brad Bird and his team weren't writing about superheroes. They decided to do a movie about themselves. Finally out in high-definition Blu-ray the team now calls all of us like-minded souls to join the fold. This Blu-ray serves as our membership card and absolutely grants all of the privileges of membership right from your most comfortable home theatre seat. Count me in.
Bob Parr (Nelson) has a secret identity. He's in reality Mr. Incredible. He is a superhero who has dedicated his life to fighting crime. He has super strength and other abilities. He's not the only one. There is his best friend Lucius (Jackson) better known as the cool hero Frozone. There's also Helen (Hunter) who protects the city as Elastigirl. She has the same powers that The Fantastic Four's Mr. Fantastic has to stretch her body. Bob and Helen get married and join their superpowers with two super kids. Dash (Fox) has super speed and Violet (Vowell) has the abilities of The Fantastic Four's Susan Storm. She can become invisible and create powerful force fields. Unfortunately, the world has had enough of masked heroes. Lawsuits cause the heroes to turn in their capes, and they are put into a sort of witness protection program where they must swear off crime fighting. That's been hard for Bob and Lucius who do a little rescue work on the side while their wives think they're out bowling. It's a good thing, too. A new super-villain has emerged, and now it will be up to the Parr family to save the world from Syndrome (Lee), a one-time stalker fan who has decided to get revenge on the hero who once spurned his advances to join him.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 20th, 2011
"So far every person I've met in this strange place suffers from the most florid delusions, chasing green mists and looking for lost lords. I can only assume that this is the result of poor diet, or they're all just barking mad."
C.S. Lewis created an incredibly imaginative world when he wrote his Chronicles Of Narnia. The stories were an escape, of sorts, from a war-torn Europe. They integrated elements of Christianity in an effort to provide a semblance of hope in the form of a children’s fairy tale. And like all such tales, the world of Narnia was first and foremost a place of magic and bewilderment. It was a place where fantastic creatures of both good and evil thrived, living out epic lives of adventure. It was also a world where only children could enter. The stories became hugely popular, first in England, and eventually around the globe. Since that time we live in a different planet than the one Lewis was attempting to offer a respite from. Still, the images and ideals are remarkably relevant today. With such sweeping grand adventures and marvelous creatures, it’s no surprise that the franchise has found its way into films. The only real mystery is why it took so long. Perhaps it was necessary for the technology to finally catch up, providing a far more realistic and captivating experience. Some credit must also go to the enormous success of the Harry Potter and even the Lord Of The Rings films. With the investment of time and money required to bring such a world into existence on celluloid, there must be some reasonable assurance that, if done correctly, there was a large enough profit to be found. These earlier, and continuing, franchises have overwhelmingly proven that point. It was only a matter of time before the studio that practically invented movie magic would find such a place as Narnia and claim it for their own. When you combine these extraordinary histories together, can there be any question as to the results?
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 6th, 2011
If you are old enough to have seen the original Tron back in 1982, you know how much things have changed in the digital world since then. The block graphics of the film and subsequent game might have been state-of-the-art at the time, but it looks like something very primitive to the younger generation. Like all good science fiction, many of the incredible elements of the film have become quite commonplace. The idea that a person can be scanned by a laser and transported into a virtual world might still be out of reach, but it turns out that using lasers to scan objects is exactly how we get three-dimensional images of real-world items into the virtual world. When Flynn is communicating with his program, the program is represented by an image of Flynn himself. Today we'd call Clu an avatar, and it's become quite common for people to socialize in environments like Second Life, where their avatar representatives engage in the same kinds of activities we do in the real world.
Tron wasn't quite the huge box office film you might have expected. It did pull in about $5 million on its opening weekend, which was pretty respectable in 1982. The film ended its box office run with just under $40 million from a $17 million budget. That's not where Tron found its biggest success. The film became more popular as the years went by and some of the content was getting more and more like reality. The game became a classic and is still found in the occasional arcade. That was another trend started by the film. It was one of the first films to spawn a video game, something almost every big-budget genre film does as a matter of course today. The movie was a milestone in computer-generated images combined with animation. It took nearly 30 years, but it really isn't a surprise that Tron has finally gotten a sequel. It's been a commanding presence for years at ComicCon. It's the little big movie that wouldn't die.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 5th, 2011
"Once upon a time, a single drop of sunlight fell from the heavens. From this small drop of Sun grew a magical golden flower. It was said that this flower held the power to heal the sick and injured. From this flower sprang a glorious kingdom, ruled by the most generous king and queen, who were soon to have a baby..."
That baby has been the subject of many tales over the years. Walt Disney himself had begun work on an animated feature based on Rapunzel back in the 1940's. Uncle Walt was fascinated with timeless fairy tales, and they became the studio's specialty over the years. For one reason or another the film was pushed back and eventually shelved for other titles. But it seems that the studio that still bears his name continues to have the same fascination with fairy tales and fables. Somehow you probably just knew that they would eventually dust off those old plans and return to the story of Rapunzel.
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