Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 26th, 2011
"Contestants are experienced marksmen operating on a closed course. Do not attempt this at home."
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 26th, 2011
"We are pioneers and trailblazers. We fight for freedom. We transform our dreams into the truth. Our struggles will become a nation."
I was really looking forward to this release. From the moment I was made aware that it was going to be arriving here for review, I made a mental note to put it at the top of my viewing list. Fact is, I'm a history junkie, particularly American history. I taught the subject in AP and honors classes along with American Government and Law for over seven years. The History Channel is also one of my favorite places on the dial. There are many thought-provoking and informative shows to be found there to help you explore almost every aspect of history. I truly expected this to be one of those milestone releases. Unfortunately, it isn't.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on October 25th, 2011
Even though I love the game, I have not watched too much baseball in the last few years. This goes double for games not involving the Philadelphia Phillies. I still keep up with it, still analyze the standings and box scores but for some reason I do not watch as many games as I wish too. The odd thing is when I get sets like the one I'm reviewing today, I am 100% excited. Perhaps it is because I have nothing vested in it. The games are already played, the result is already known, I can simply appreciate the game that way it is supposed to be. The magical game of baseball.
2002 was the first time in baseball history that two wildcard teams made the World Series. The Anaheim Angels had finished 99-63 (Oakland and New York won 103 games a piece that year) while the San Francisco Giants went 95-66 (The Braves were the standout in the NL winning 101 games). However, when the Angels took out the Yankees and the Giants took out the Braves in the first round of the playoffs, baseball fans knew that they were in for something special come the Series. After the League Championship series with the Angels and Giants both crushing their opponents (Twins and Cardinals), it was time to play the big one.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on October 21st, 2011
It’s willing suspension of disbelief time, folks, as this reality show chronicles the soap-operatic lives of a group of young lesbians. Cari and Kacy want a baby – will they find the appropriate sperm donor? Romi and Kelsey are are having trouble with their sex life. Whitney is having all sorts of girl trouble, while Sajdah (whose name oddly does not end with “y” or “i”) is seeking her first relationship.
And on and on and on we go. Can eyes glaze and roll at the same time? You’ll find out before too many minutes of this season have passed. Who the hell is this show aimed at? The flashes of nudity and coupling, not to mention the box cover art and uniformly attractive cast (I’m sorry, subjects) smack of catering to male fantasies, but is that audience going to sit through the oversharing psychodramas? Is anyone? (Apparently, I guess, since this is the second season.) Years ago, there was a moment in House where the titular doctor announces that he’s off to his office “to watch The L Word with the sound off.” I keep thinking of that line in connection with this show. It feels like nothing more than comic fodder for another program’s punchlines.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on October 20th, 2011
It is that time for more cartoon goodness from the people at Nickelodeon. As we have seen, I seem to attract odd cartoons to review. Let’s see, there is a dude with a football as a head, a beaver with a surfer voice or perhaps a monster who has to carry his own eyeballs. This time I lay witness to a Cat and a Dog conjoined at the stomach devoid of tails or hind legs. What sounds like a bad science experiment might be full of cartoon love.
CatDog started out as a sneak peek cartoon before the Rugrats movie. In April of 1998, forty initial episodes were ordered. When it was all said and done, it would last half a dozen years and sixty eight episodes. It was not an overly strong cartoon but it would go on to accumulate a fairly quiet fan base and some minor nominations for an Annie as well as a Kid’s Choice Award. One might think with this mediocre run that the cast of voice actors was mediocre. That would be completely wrong.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on October 11th, 2011
The more I get into this review writing gig (I say this like I just started writing movie reviews last week when it’s been half a dozen years), the more I appreciate foreign films. I am no longer afraid of subtitles, culturally sensitive sub-plots, or the use of specific foreign mythological creatures as supporting characters. I am not even sure what I just said. Anyway, we have an interesting foreign film to review today entitled “Sin Yan” or more commonly known by the American title as Stool Pigeon.
We are in Hong Kong, manufacturing side of town. A couple of vans pull up along with a Jeep. Inside the Jeep is Inspector Don Lee (played by Nick Cheung) awaiting to make an arrest. Meanwhile, in a nearby warehouse we lay witness to a drug deal masterminded by mob boss Marco (played by Vincent Wan Yeung-Ming). Lee’s informant, Jabber (played by Liu Kai-chi) is on the inside and waits patiently for the police to make their move.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on October 11th, 2011
An aging soap opera starred, played by Sally Field, is the target of a jealous supporting cast and a conniving producer (Robert Downey Jr.). The head writer of her show (Whoopi Goldberg) seems to be the only ally she has as a former love's character (Kevin Kline) is recast to throw her off her game, along with a mysterious family member barging into her world and work life.
Soapdish relishes in Soap Opera story tactics just as much as it wishes to lampoon them. Twists, secrets, romance, backstabbing, tears, sex changes, melodramatic speeches...all of these elements are parodied in the show within the film, but also work their way into the real-life drama of these characters. The success of this film relies on being able to display how ridiculous soap operas can be while still selling the audience a complete (and often over-the-top) soap opera tale. This is truly a soap opera world as nothing is grounded in reality (Abandon all hope, Vittorio De Sica fans who enter here). The plot twists are painted in broad strokes and the physical comedy bits are motivated by pure nonsense. That considered, it is a truly funny journey peppered with some outstanding yet subtle visual gags (constantly panning past beefcake actors in the production hallways for example).
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 11th, 2011
It's hard to believe that one of the most popular comedy shows of the 1950's was not really a show at all, at least not in the way that we think of a television series today. The show began its life in 1951 as a segment on the popular Cavalcade of Stars. At that time only Jackie Gleason and Art Carney starred in their familiar roles. Alice was played by Pert Kelton. The series took its more recognizable look when it became part of The Jackie Gleason Show in 1955. That's also when Joyce Randolph joined the series as Trixie Norton. The series would take up a half hour of the slot. The second half was taken up by a larger variety of pieces, usually a series called Stage Show. The show would come and go, with other cast members coming and going over time. Even Art Carney had left The Jackie Gleason Show at one time, only to return in 1957 to the role. The show's history is a complicated one to which entire books have been devoted over the years. It wasn't until syndication that the series was really a show unto itself. The original 39 episodes were joined with nearly 70 re-edited versions of the other various incarnations of the show have made up what most of us today think of as The Honeymooners. The final original versions of the show ended in 1971; both Audrey Meadows and Joyce Randolph were gone by then, replaced by Sheila MacRae and Jane Kean respectively.
But this show that wasn't really a show had legs. The syndicated versions became hugely popular, and new generations of fans were being indoctrinated with each new package. The show even survived on pay television at Showtime for a while in the 1990's when the 70 newly-formed "Lost Episodes" first aired. But the fever just never died. The show would influence a large number of series that would follow. Even the animated world of cartoons wasn't safe. The Flintstones would come along and become a prehistoric cartoon show that was basically the same down to the characters. Fred and Barney couldn't have been closer to Ralph and Norton if their names had been the same. Today, comedians constantly recall The Honeymooners and Jackie Gleason as their inspiration. To more than one generation of television viewers, Gleason really was "The Great One".
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on October 9th, 2011
Upcomingdisc's 31 Nights of Terror is a favorite of many here at the website. I have been through a few now and have always tried to bring something unique to the table. Whether it be Top 10 Lists, special movie essays, or games of a forgotten lore, I always want this time of the year to be different and wonderful. Well today, to start off my month of oddball terror off right, I am given a rare scary (well somewhat anyway) animation title. One of my favorites from the mid 90's, Aaahh!! Real Monsters, Season 1 from our friends at Shout Factory.
In the mid nineties, there were a lot of animation delights to feast our eyes upon when it came to Nickelodeon. You had Rugrats, Doug, Hey Arnold, Rocko's Modern Life, and a bunch of other shows that were staples of the network and known to kids everywhere. But Nickelodeon as a network was not afraid to explore new ideas, cartoons that were perhaps a little different. *caugh* Ren & Stimpy. There was also another show called Aaahh!! Real Monsters which explored the idea of monsters being trained to perform their jobs, scaring the pants off of humans. Long before Monsters Inc copied the concept.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on October 7th, 2011
A few years back, Paramount released all eight of the studio’s Friday the 13th films in a so-called “Ultimate Edition.” With cut versions of the films and no 3D, it wasn’t really that ultimate. So here we are again, with another Ultimate Edition (also Limited!) and this time, the package is much more worthy of the name, bringing together all the deluxe versions of the series.
As those deluxe editions have previously been reviewed on this site, I am now going to surrender the floor for a while. The comments below on Part 1 are by Aric Mitchell, and on Parts 2-6 are by Gino Sassani. I’ll come back for 7 and 8.
![The Stool Pigeon [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-stool-pigeon-blu-ray-large.jpg)
