Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 24th, 2013
"Welcome to the wonderful world of magic."
They say that the hand is quicker than the eye. Through the art of misdirection and skillful manipulation we have been awed by magicians ever since Glog made Ooof's club disappear somewhere in Mesopotamia circa 20,000 BC. It's not all skill, really. The truth is we've always wanted to be fooled. We're begging for "magicians" to tamper with our sense of reality. I don't know how fast the hand happens to be, but today we're fooled at the speed of 24 frames per second (unless you happen to be Peter Jackson)
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 24th, 2013
“Midnight is the most evil part of the night. If someone dies at 23:59 hours, his soul will not rest in peace and will return to the mortal world.”
Every culture has its own set of ghost stories. They’re usually passed around very late at night by a group of very impressionable young people. That’s precisely where 23:59 — an atmospheric and thoroughly effective Malaysian/Singaporean horror flick — picks up, with a group of army recruits on an island training camp sitting around telling spooky tales. The only thing missing was the campfire.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 20th, 2013
"On the evening of April 13th, 1865 John Wilkes Booth initiates his plan not only to kill Abraham Lincoln, but to decapitate the government of The United States."
Whatever you may think of Fox News or Bill O'Reilly, it would be a terrible mistake to discount seeing Killing Lincoln because of purely political leanings. The Department Of The Interior tried it when the book came out and underwent a campaign to keep the book from the public gift shops with claims of inaccuracies. Give O'Reilly credit for not taking the accusations lying down.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on June 20th, 2013
Imagine being arrested, not even finished with high school, and you are tried and convicted of the rape and murder of your high school sweetheart. Try to imagine being locked away for 19 years in a cell, alone, awaiting your execution by lethal injection. But then one day, DNA evidence emerges that seems to exonerate you for your crimes, and suddenly you are given your freedom back. How do you go on? This is question creator and executive producer Ray Mckinnon explores in the new series Rectify that airs on the Sundance channel.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on June 20th, 2013
What’s a girl to do when her bills pile up, her hours at work get cut, and though she’s a promising medical student, life seems to be getting in the way of her studies? Well, the “easy” answer seems to be, hit the closest strip club and put your natural assets to work. At least that is the direction Mary Mason (Katharine Isabelle) decides to take. Though luckily as fate would have it, during her “audition” process an emergency occurs, allowing Mary to put her surgical skills to the test and make a quick five grand.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on June 20th, 2013
Any discussion of the greatest living rock stars has to have Paul McCartney at or near the top of the list. Obviously, “greatest” is a totally subjective descriptor, but even if you’re more of a Stones person you can’t argue with McCartney’s staggering success. He has sold more records than anyone else, wrote the most covered song of all time (“Yesterday”) and owns a handful of other Guinness World Records. The recipe for his singular greatness is a mixture of artistic brilliance, versatility and longevity. It’s what has allowed him to remain relevant more than 40 years after the dissolution of the best-selling band of all time. And a key part of that staying power was Wings.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on June 19th, 2013
“Fee, Fi, Fo, Fum, ask not whence the thunder come. For between heaven and earth it’s a perilous place, home to a fearsome giant race. Who hunger to conquer the mortals below, waiting for the seeds of revenge to grow…”
Jack the Giant Slayer is the mash-up adaptation of two classic fairy tales; Jack and the Beanstalk and Jack the Giant Killer. Now adaptations are big business in today’s industry, but is combining two different source materials wise, or a recipe for disaster?
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on June 19th, 2013
When a documentary is made about a subject and interviews are presented with a wide variety of individuals talking about a single thing, most of the time no one will question such a presentation. In this case, people are likely to question the intentions and ultimate content of the project. The film is directed by noted photographer Deborah Anderson, who has taken photographs of many famous celebrities like Elton John and George Clooney. She is the daughter of rock singer Jon Anderson from Yes. Aroused is about celebrities of a sort. The film includes extensive interviews with porn stars and their agent during the course of an extensive photo shoot.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on June 18th, 2013
Enigma: something hard to explain or understand: well, that about sums up Charlie Zone. The story itself is mildly interesting but takes its time building traction. I was expecting to be introduced to a film about underground fighting and instead was introduced to a film about two people who were dealt a bad hand and are thrust into a life-or-death situation. At odds at first, the two must work together in order to survive. Does this plot theme sound familiar to anyone else?
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 18th, 2013
"Now, this game has 12 rounds. You win more than you lose, I turn myself in. You don't, a lot of people die including you. If you refuse to cooperate, people die. If you make any attempt to contact the police, people die."
I'm usually pretty skeptical when it comes to movies that are made by any of the various fighting federations out there. W?? usually stands for "What The F***". I get it. There are a lot of tough guys out there who would like to follow in the footsteps of guys like The Rock. But for every successful transition to acting there are a hundred stories of mindless muttering substituting for actual... I don't know.... words
