Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 1st, 2007
I can just feel already, what an epic teen comedy Surf School is going to be, much pun intended of course. But appearance isn’t everything and I hope that this film can somehow surprise, as much as I doubt it.
Laguna Beach High School is tough for everyone, especially the outcasts, the non surfers. But when a group of social misfits band together, they decide to beat the schools reigning champions in a surf competition. The group goes to Costa Rica to learn, meeting some interesting people along the way. I bet you can already guess how this one ends, and trust me there are no surprises.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 1st, 2007
Tyler Perry, best known for Madea's Family Reunion, is responsible for yet another film in Lionsgate's line of movies about nice black people. In Daddy's Little Girls, the writer-director explores the conflict between the ghetto-class African Americans we've seen so much of in films and the black middle- and upper-class we haven't. While this aspect of the conflict is relatively fresh in cinema, what the premise really boils down to is an age-old tale of love between princess and pauper.
When his mother-in-law passes away, Monty (Idris Elba, The Gospel) is forced to take care of his three daughters full-time. While he loves them and has been supporting them faithfully their whole lives, Monty is also struggling financially and the burden may prove too much. The mother of his kids, Jennifer (Tasha Smith, The Whole Ten Yards), has been absent for years, preferring to live it up with her drug-dealer boyfriend, Joe (Gary Sturgis, Pride).
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 1st, 2007
I am a big fan of Kung Fu on film, whether it be Bruce Lee’s Enter The Dragon or Jackie Chan’s Drunken Master I can't get enough. More specifically I love Asian Kung Fu cinema, the Sammo Hung's and the Sonny Chiba's. So I think it goes without saying that this isn’t the first time I’ve seen Kung Fu Hustle, and it certainty won’t be the last.
It’s the 1930’s in Shanghai and various gangs compete for territory, the most powerful being the deadly Axe Gang. The police are powerless and it seems the only people that can live without fears are the poor ones, who the gangs have no interest in. That is until things get shaken up by Sing (Stephen Chow, Shaolin Soccer) and his sidekick Bone (Lam Chi Chung, Shaolin Soccer). The two pose as Axe members in the tenement Pig Sty Alley, where they attract the attention of real gang members. Catastrophe is merely averted when three local tradesman the coolie, tailor, and baker showcase their kung fu talents and thwart an Axe gang attack.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 31st, 2007
In the same cinematic style of Sin City another Frank Miller graphic novel has found its way to the big screen. For those of you history buffs out there, you might recognize this story as the Battle of Thermopylae. Although 300 is large in part fictitious, the core elements of the historical story remain intact, and factual. Regardless of your knowledge of history, 300 is to be enjoyed by anyone, and everyone.
300 is told in a narrative from Spartan orator Dilios (David Wenham, The Lord of The Rings). It begins with a young Leonidas who is in the midst of his typical Spartan training. He is cast out into the wild and survive amongst the beasts throughout the winter, when he comes home he is crowned King of Sparta. Some time goes by and Leonidas (Gerard Butler, The Phantom of the Opera) now the fully grown Spartan King is faced with a problem. Persian King Xerxes sends messengers to Sparta demanding their submission to the Persian Empire. Insulted by the offer King Leonidas kicks the Persian messenger into a pit and the rest of his commandants follow shortly. Leonidas seeks the advice of the Oracle and requests permission to go to war, only to be denied. He then takes the matter into his own hands and gathers 300 of Sparta’s best warriors, to take on the dominating numbers of the Persians. The Persians demand that the Spartans drop their arms but the persistent group of warriors will not let up and they try to hold up knowing that they are facing sure death.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 31st, 2007
There are 8 simple rules for having a successful sit-com on television today.
1. Strong leading actor: John Ritter never really had much of a chance in his early career to show just how good his acting chops could be. Let’s face it. While Three’s Company had quite a loyal following, it was never mistaken for anything more than a parody. Ritter was never asked to stretch himself here, and the role likely cost him better opportunities over the years. Fortunately, while 8 Simple Rules wasn’t a great show either, it did offer quality enough work to allow Ritter to thrive. Unfortunately he would not live long enough to reap the rewards he was earning for himself.
2. Solid supporting cast: Who knew Katey Segal wasn’t a one trick pony riding on the coattails of Peg Bundy? Who also knew you could find teenage girls who could act and satisfy the “other†attributes often necessary from female actors on television these days. The casting on this show is well above average.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 31st, 2007
Throw reason out with the trash, and sit down to a feel-good movie that tries just a little too hard to be quirky. That’s your best approach to The Astronaut Farmer, which pits Billy Bob Thornton against all odds to reach outer space by way of his farm-built rocket.
Everyone likes an inspirational story now and then, so I’m sure this film will find an appreciative audience. For me, there are better choices – say, October Sky, for example. Here, instead of a boy who loves rockets, we have Charlie Farmer (Billy Bob, Sling Blade), a former astronaut who never made it to space. Now he’s trying to get there by himself, having built a rocket from spare parts, a project which has brought him this close to foreclosure on his house, his farm and his family. Though they’re supportive, even Farmer’s wife and kids have to reach beyond the stars to find the guts and lack of reason to commit to helping their father reach his goal – or bust.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 30th, 2007
Director David Fincher (Se7en) has returned to serial killer territory in a very different way. Zodiac is an effective period piece that enwraps the viewer in a real-life mystery that remains unsolved because it happened before the age of computers and minute C.S.I. technology.
In 1969, a serial killer who eventually became known as the Zodiac struck for what is believed to be the first time. While the Zodiac continued to kill and take credit for murders for more than two decades, the killer eluded police, reporters and hobbyist investigators who tried to nail him down.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 30th, 2007
I have to admit that I have never heard of this film prior to receiving it for review, so I went into this one completely blind without any expectations. My only guess was that this would be some sort of fantasy/horror film, and it turns out I was right. Perfect Creature is a different sort of take on a vampire film which makes it rather unique, but how’s it going to end up?
Set in a fictitious New Zealand referred to as Nuovo Zelandia, Perfect Creature takes place in an alternate world not unlike our own. There is, of course, one major difference, which is the acceptance of vampires as the next level of evolution in human beings, referred to as The Brotherhood. Members of The Brotherhood and humans have a pact in which they live amongst each other in harmony, humans donating blood at the churches to quench the thirst of the vampires. That is, at least, until the renegade vampire Edgar begins attacking and killing human beings. Lilly, the local hard-knock cop, who has lost her entire family to a sweeping influenza epidemic, teams up with Edgar’s brother Silus who wants to protect the rights of The Brotherhood and stop Edgar’s madness. Eventually, the two succeed and even share a few almost romantic moments, but before long Edgar escapes the confines of The Brotherhood once again, and he carries with him a dark secret powerful enough to change the society forever.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 29th, 2007
In 1997, Hal Hartley put out a film called Henry Fool. It was the story of an introvertish garbage man Simon who makes friends with Henry Fool, a witty but talent-less novelist. Simon ascends to be a great poet while Henry finds the bottomless pit of alcoholic brew. However, the plot turns around and Simon helps Henry to flee the country since he has a criminal past. The movie did seem to hint at a sequel but didn't see one until 10 years later. Fay Grim tries to pick up where Henry Fool left off. It includes many of the same cast of characters.
Parker Posey returns as Fay Grim, the wife of Henry Fool (she took back her maiden name after his death). She becomes the focus for this movie. Donning a leather coat with fake pockets, she goes around Europe and the Middle East in search of Henry's missing notebooks. These notebooks apparently contain some government secrets that lead to a game of deadly espionage. Back at home, Simon Grim (played by James Urbaniak) is serving a prison term for keeping his mouth shut regarding Henry Fool's escape from the country. Ned (played by Liam Aiken)(Fay's 14 year old son) and Angus James (played by Chuck Montgomery)(Simon's publisher) also return as important characters for the sequel. However, new characters are on foot here too. The most important is the role of Agent Fulbright (played by Jeff Goldblum). Jeff as Fulbright does an excellent job of being the main opposition of the film as he is trying to investigate the notebooks and seeing if he can convince Fay to do his dirty work for him.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 28th, 2007
I still remember the first time I watched a Spawn animated episode. I was with my parents in my younger years on what I believe was the last vacation we ever took together. It was a hotel we were staying at which had HBO (I never had that channel growing up). I had read Spawn but didn't even know of the animated series. The fact it was late at night and on a premium movie channel meant it had to be good. I was simply blown away and remember telling my parents that we had to be back at the hotel to watch it again the next night. I remember that later I would procure used copies of the series. All beat up, in snapper cases, it didn't matter. I soon dumped those copies in a couple of years and hoped that it would get reissued in a nice box set. That time has come, Spawn has come home.
Spawn is Todd McFarlane's baby; his issue of defiance when he and a group of artists started Image Comics. Great art, compelling stories and no boundaries. Spawn was the story of Al Simmons who sold his soul to the demon Malebolgia so that he come back to avenge his death and be with his wife Wanda one more time. Problem was once that occurred he was to become an undead "hellspawn". So he fights that control constantly along with enemies from that conflict and those enemies in the human world that would bring him harm. He is not a superhero so much but the boogieman, a character that lives in the shadows and comes out at night to take care of business and then return to those same shadows by morning.
