Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 21st, 2017
"Don't you get it? This is all meaningless. Heaven, hell, this world if it ever meant anything, that moment is passed. Nothing down here but a bunch of hopeless, distraction addicts, so filled with emptiness, so desperate to fill up the void. They don't mind being served another stale rerun of a rerun of a rerun."
No stale reruns here. Season 12 of Supernatural picks up exactly where the previous year left off. The brothers are not together at the moment. Dean has just helped out God's sister and gets a pretty sweet gift in return, while Sam's at the bunker and is surprised by a British lass with a gun.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on September 20th, 2017
“You have been my greatest love. Be careful, Diana...they do not deserve you.”
Ever since Richard Donner made us believe that a man can fly with 1978's Superman — considered by many to be the first modern superhero film — we've gotten three different Men of Steel, along with five different versions of Batman (if you don't count Will Arnett's voiceover work). Heck, in the last 15 years alone we've had three Spider-Men and (incredibly) gone through three Hulks! Yet in all that time, a movie starring Wonder Woman — a superhero just as iconic as all the ones I just mentioned — could never get off the ground...until now. I'm happy to report it was worth the wait.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 19th, 2017
"I made a big mistake.... I wanted a new life. I wanted to start over, and that's what I did. But somehow I made things worse. So I reset everything. I put everything back to the way that it was before, except some things weren't the same any more. Not even a little bit."
That something is called Flashpoint. It's one of the biggest events not only in the Flash comic universe, but it had ramifications across the DC landscape and led to more than a few changes in that world. This season of The Flash uses that story arc to guide Season 3, but like everything else in these comic shows, it is quite different than the printed event.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on September 19th, 2017
By John Delia, Jr.
"Death is but a doorway to new life. We live today. We shall live again. In many forms shall we return." - Egyptian Prayer Of Resurrection.
In ancient Egypt there is a princess, Ahmanet (Sofia Boutella), who will inherit the entire kingdom when her father dies. She has remarkable fighting skills, amazing beauty, and has the ability to lead the people. But her father remarries, and soon after their first son is born her legacy changes. What soon follows will seal Ahmanet’s fate that’s worse than death.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on September 18th, 2017
“Seems like a new boatload of expatriates gets dumped here every day.”
In The Moderns, “here” happens to be 1926 Paris, a time and place that immediately conjures joie de vivre images of lavish parties and complete artistic freedom. And while both of those things are technically on display in filmmaker Alan Rudolph's 1988 drama, the movie turns down the volume on the Roaring Twenties to explore the tricky and transactional connection between art and commerce...and how it can extend to personal relationships.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on September 15th, 2017
“What can you tell me about African Americans and science?”
Anyone who even halfway paid attention in their high school science class knows that a polio vaccine was developed in the 1950s. And if you were especially attentive, you even know the vaccine was developed by American researcher Jonas Salk. Unfortunately, the story that is far less commonly told in classrooms is that of Henrietta Lacks, the poor black woman whose “immortalized” HeLa cell line gave birth to the biomedical industry. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks takes a curious approach: instead of merely shining a light on its worthy subject, this powerful (and overstuffed) HBO film is about *the quest* to bring Henrietta back to life.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on September 7th, 2017
“Rebels have friends always rushing to the rescue.”
The Star Wars universe is famously vast, and that’s before even going down the Expanded Universe rabbit hole. Though it's been precisely 40 years since the fourth first Star Wars film premiered, the army of artists who have taken on George Lucas’ iconic creations haven’t even come close to running out of material to explore. Disney XD’s Star Wars Rebels debuted three years ago as an engaging, thoroughly zippy, kid-friendly contribution that has blossomed into a thoughtful, vibrant, and vital part of Star Wars lore.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 7th, 2017
"This used to be a gentleman's game."
I must confess that I had not even heard of the comic book titles created by Warren Ellis and Cully Hamner. I think that might have been one of the best things that could have happened to me as I sat down to watch the film Red. With a cast this strong, there was little doubt that they would provide a powerful stamp on these characters. No insult intended toward the graphic novels, but I can't imagine these characters any other way now.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on September 6th, 2017
“It’s important to enjoy life while you still can.”
My word, Bruce Willis must be exhausted, helming three movies this year so far and six last year alone; jeez, I know I’d be in need of a serious break. Luckily in RED 2, Willis doesn’t have to hold down the fort alone. Not when you have Malkovich, Mirren, and Parker available to help pick up the slack. That’s right, like Joe Matheson (Morgan Freeman’s character from RED) said in the original, “The band is getting back together.” And this time they are picking up some new members as Catherine Zeta-Jones and Anthony Hopkins join the cast. RED was great, but RED 2 is epic.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jonathan Foster on September 5th, 2017
"No, they have to make the choice of their own free will. Otherwise, the system doesn't work. It's like the Harbinger. It's this creepy old f#$%, practically wears a sign, 'You will die.' Why do we put him there? The system. They have to choose to ignore him, and they have to choose what happens in the cellar. Yeah, we rig the game as much as we need to..."
When I first heard about The Cabin in the Woods, I admit I was not impressed. I thought it was just another run-of-the-mill slasher flick a la The Last House on the Left or Amityville Horror. My mind quickly changed, though, as soon as I heard that Joss Whedon was the writer.
