Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on January 16th, 2017
It would seem as though Ben Affleck is finally starting to shed the stigma of doing bad films. He’s been on a roll since he took on the role of George Reeves in Hollywoodland and has also in the process become an accomplished director. When the trailer first dropped for The Accountant, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but as you look at the laundry list of talent that fills the cast, it quickly became a film I had my eye on. What is surprising is despite there being franchises that seem to cover the same territory i.e.: Jack Reacher and the Jason Bourne films, is there room for another lone-wolf killing machine film? Before going into this it was a question that bothered me; heck, I’m already burnt out of the Jason Bourne films, and with a new Jack Reacher film on the horizon, the saturation is noticeable. But thankfully, The Accountant doesn’t just come out swinging but exceeded all expectations and has raised the bar for this brand of action film.
Christian Wolff (Ben Affleck) is, as the title would lead you to believe, an accountant. He runs his own firm and is exceedingly good at what he does when it comes to solving accounting problems people may have. He’s exceptional at solving problems, and what makes this all the more impressive is he does all of this as a high-functioning autistic. This may be one of the first times I’ve seen a character with a disability on screen, but not once is it ever played as a way to sway sympathy; instead, it’s just another layer to this character. We see the everyday hell Wolff goes through, but we also see how far he’s come from his childhood after his mother gives up hope and abandons her family.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Dan Holland on January 16th, 2017
When a movie makes a bold claim such as being “a tour de force murder flick that defies classification,” it is inviting a hefty amount of preconceived criticisms prior to anyone actually viewing the film. It’s like titling a horror film This Will Scare You. Naturally, your first thought would be something along the lines of “Yeah, whatever, movie.” Needless to say, that want to criticize burns within you until you watch it. Then, with all the satisfaction in the world, you get to say “No, that wasn’t scary at all.” In the end, you are stuck with a movie that wasn’t what it promised to be, but realistically, you knew that would be the case anyway. It is a cheap marketing ploy that entices you to watch for all the wrong reasons.
On the surface, The Orphan Killer has a lot more in common with the Halloween franchise than it realizes. A homicidal maniac churns out an impressive body count in an attempt to destroy his own bloodline. The only difference is the plot of The Orphan Killer is anchored down to a Catholic orphanage, where the killer grew up. So in terms of being a film that “defies classification,” I would argue that is an objectively erroneous statement. It is a horror film, a slasher specifically, that uses a little more blood than its competition.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on January 11th, 2017
“I don’t want to be in this relationship anymore, and I don’t know how to get out.”
A TV show’s fifth season is around the time it starts to feel like you have to see things through to the bitter end. I mean, it seems downright irresponsible to ditch a series after five years of investing in its characters’ lives, no matter how flawed and frustrating they are. And there’s no doubt the self-absorbed millennials on HBO’s Girls are among the most flawed and frustrating people on TV; so I was delighted to find that the series produced one of its strongest seasons as it nears its conclusion.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on January 10th, 2017
In 1999 The Blair Witch Project was released, and it was a horror film that created a stir like I had never seen before. I remember going to Tampa Theatre to see it opening week. The line was wrapped around the building for the sold-out screening. Discussions were going on in the line about the film actually being real, some even talking about how they heard the bodies of the three filmmakers were never found. It’s this kind of mindset going into the film that made it such an impact as I walked out of that first showing. At the time I knew I had seen something unique, but I never would have expected it to spawn an entire style of genre filmmaking that would be copied over and over again. Now nearly two decades later, director Adam Wingard (You’re Next) attempts to inject new life in the found-footage genre and into the film franchise that started it all.
The film picks up years after the disappearance of the film students in the first film. James (James Allen McCune) has been looking for evidence since his sister first disappeared. A digital video has surfaced that may have more clues as to what happened to his missing sister. It’s this hope that takes James and his friends to the woods where is sister vanished and where the legend of the Blair Witch continues to flourish. Lisa (Callie Hernandez) makes plans to document the trip to the woods as they hope to acquire this new evidence, and she comes armed with an array of high-tech gadgets to document the journey.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 10th, 2017
"Evil has returned to Sleepy Hollow."
With the big bad finally destroyed and an apocalypse averted, the dynamic duo of Sleepy Hollow have gone their separate ways. Abby is now with the FBI, while Crane has gone into seclusion and ends up in jail for trying to sneak an artifact into the country from his homeland of Scotland. Abby gets him out of trouble only to discover that the tablet Crane found in his family crypt back in Europe holds more prophesy for the pair of witnesses. The two have to come back together to save the world from yet another end of times.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on January 9th, 2017
There is something about a Rob Zombie film that will always be a draw, and it is always the realism that he brings to the screen. Whether it’s The Devil’s Rejects or his version of Halloween, he always presents it in a way that I feel is grounded in reality. Perhaps it’s also because I live in Florida, and there are some small towns that you don’t want to break down in at night for fear of crossing some crazed backwoods types. To put it out there, I was a fan of Rob Zombie before he was putting out movies, and I have all of his albums; he’s just a guy who does stuff that I really dig. That being said, I can be objective in saying his films have been a bit all over the place, but Lords of Salem was a piece of work that I simply loved, and I felt it showed a lot of growth from his previous films and worked well as a slow burn. Now he’s released 31 upon the masses, a Kickstarter film that was initially (if not mostly) financed by fans. Is it worth the investment? Well, it depends on what you were hoping for.
The film opens in a static shot with Doom-Head (Richard Brake) approaching the camera and unloading a menacing monologue. This is the kind of opening that should get any horror fan excited and anxious for the kind of violence that is about to be unleashed in the film, yet sadly the film never quite lives up to this scene. This doesn’t mean the film is bad; I just mean that the opening is just THAT good, and it just leaves you with anticipation to see so much more with this character.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on January 9th, 2017
And the Ultimate Legacy makes three, marking the third installment in what will undoubtedly become known as the "Ultimate" series. Please don't misunderstand my meaning; I say that as a good thing. Granted, before I watched the film I would have likely said that sardonically, but I must admit to being genuinely touched by the story and have gained an appreciation for the message behind it. Given this is the third go-around for the franchise, the themes and some of the cast is already well established by this point, which opens it up to becoming boring and stagnant; however, despite those obstacles it remains fresh and engaging. It is definitely a movie that should be shared with the whole family.
Joey Anderson (Myko Oliver) left home as soon as he was able and has never looked back, embracing his life as a nomad and enjoying his wanderlust as the thought of home only holds bad memories in his opinion. However, he has no choice but to return following the death of his grandmother. Determined to just pay his respects, collect his inheritance, and get back on the road, his plans are interrupted when he discovers that he can only collect his inheritance if he completes stipulations that were laid out by his grandmother and being carried out by her legal team which includes the retiring (reprising his role from the past two films) Mr. Harrison (Bill Cobbs) and his team of experts, which includes Jason Stevens (Logan Bartholomew, Ultimate Life),who is brought in to help Joey with his assignment after completing his own assignment. Joey is unhappy with the situation, especially given that one of the stipulations is that he remains at the infamous Anderson House for a year period.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on January 4th, 2017
“America is the only industrialized nation with a higher murder rate than countries at civil war.”
2016 might technically be in the rearview mirror, but it feels like last year left an indelible mark on the psyche of the United States. In addition to the most polarizing presidential election in a very long time, last year was marked by the deadliest shooting in U.S. history about an hour away from where I’m currently sitting, along with other highly-publicized instances of gun violence. So it feels like an appropriate time to revisit The Killing of America, a 1981 documentary that was never granted a commercial U.S. release after being deemed too exploitative.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on January 2nd, 2017
Since we are knee-deep into the holidays, it would only be fitting to discuss the independent horror film Never Open the Door; after all it takes place on Thanksgiving Day. It’s a shame we don’t have more horror films to watch during turkey day, but for some this new title may be a nice fit to change all that. When I picked up the title I hadn’t heard a peep about it, but I’m a sucker for horror, and seeing that it was shot in B&W just made it all the more enticing. Now, when I watch a title like this, one thing has to work. It has to have a story that engages me; story is what matters with these smaller films, because the budgets tend to not have room for big makeup FX or big-name actors. The limitations placed upon the filmmakers seem to force their hand and have them get more creative with the execution of scenes, whether this means creative camera work or unique storytelling. Many of my favorite directors came from shoestring budget beginnings: Peter Jackson, Sam Raimi, and Kevin Smith, to name a few. So is the next up-and-coming directing star putting his goods on display here?
It’s Thanksgiving, and a group of friends have gotten together to celebrate by making a trip to a secluded cabin in the woods. While the dinner is going on, we get a perspective from outside of a man running through the woods. Most of this is through his POV, so there is plenty of shaky camera footage here; thankfully it’s not too bad. The dinner is interrupted by a knock on the door, Tess (Jessica Sonneborn) gets up to answer it and as a result has blood spat upon her from a stranger that falls to the ground giving an ominous warning about answering the door. There’s nothing new here, and we can pretty much telegraph what happens next; the problem is most viewers are not going to care.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Dan Holland on January 2nd, 2017
Road to the Well is about what you would expect from an independent thriller: atmospheric and character-driven, sporting a slow pace. While the pacing was indeed slow, it was most certainly deliberate and aided in the storytelling. I can’t necessarily say that I would watch the film again, but I can say I understand why it has won awards while on the festival circuit, especially given the fact that it is writer/director Jon Cvack’s first feature length film. It is a good movie. It satisfies. And even though good movies have their faults, Road to the Well succeeds in balancing its failures with tremendous amounts of successful feats.
Jack (Micah Parker), is a drifter who wanders into the town of his youth and starts to look up old friends. He convinces Frank (Laurence Fuller) to spend a night out with him, which ends in the murder of a prostitute. Together, the two strengthen their bond through the initial trauma and must make a series of difficult choices together in order to relieve themselves of the dead body. Along the way they encounter characters who add a unique flare to the story, including an intimidating seasoned military chaplain, played by Marshall R. Teague. With each new character comes a new set of choices, a subtle theme that is rather important to the development of each character.
