Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 26th, 2010
Written by Diane Tillis
I will admit, the moment I saw the cover of the DVD I was already convinced this was going to be one of the worst films I have ever seen or a close second. The cover has a dark figure cloaked in a blue throw blanket and is holding a leaf blower as a weapon… a leaf blower?! Four Boxes turned out to be one of those independent thriller films that should have been left on the cutting room floor.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 26th, 2010
A&E and History have combined for some of the best educational as well as entertaining programs over the years. Many of those shows have taken close looks at the various civilizations and empires throughout world history. Most of these shows take a look at these civilizations from the inside outward. We're not talking the litany of facts and accomplishments that we've seen on hundreds of documentaries as well as our old high school textbooks. These programs look at the day-to-day life of these cultures and peoples. The accomplishments here are the ones that affected everyday life within these empires. These are the kinds of things we tend to take for granted in our modern lives. Things like sanitation, architecture, and basic metro services didn't just appear out of nowhere. These shows give us a rare look into the evolution of the things that have identified human evolution over the millennia. It's said that we are separated from animals by our ability to shape and change our environment. With this massive 14 disc set, you can explore the ways that we have shaped our planet in our quest for civilization.
The disc includes the following series and episodes:
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on October 25th, 2010
Written by Diane Tillis
Grimm Love is a thriller film based upon the true story of a cannibal and his willing meal. Graduate student Katie Armstrong (Keri Russell) is researching into cannibal Oliver Hartwin (Thomas Kretschmann) and his victim Simon Grombeck (Thomas Huber) as a part of her criminal psychology thesis. As she goes deeper into their tortured psyches, Katie begins to lose herself to her obsession to understand why. Grimm Love is a love story from hell. The men were attracted to each other as perfect opposites; Simon wanted to be eaten and Oliver was hungry. Their intense relationship would drive the two men carry out an unimaginable horror.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Michael Durr on October 24th, 2010
Sometimes when you have two reviewers in the family, you have to save your better half from a movie they simply don't understand. I found myself in that situation when my wife took on the daunting task of trying to review The Haunting from the Fright Fest collection. She couldn't put together the various religion themes into a compelling review, so I decided to help her out since she's done the same for me many times over. So did I understand the goings on? Well kinda.
In the first scene, we are treated to news from No-Do, people who bring us the truth in Spanish government and holy news. The movie moves to Blanca (played by Maria Alfonsa Rosso )who has woken up after 60 years of sleeping. She is the last patient of her kind and is left to fend for herself since the hospital is closing down. Miguel (played by Hector Colome)asks her if she has anywhere to go and Blanca nods her head. She confuses the priest with the late Bishop who apparently passed away a month ago.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on October 24th, 2010
Former pirate radio DJ Mike Raven plays Victor Clare (a case where the actor has a scarier name than the character he plays), reclusive artist who, one strongly suspects, has the unpleasant House-of-Wax-y propensity to pour molten metal on his models in order to bronze them. A group of characters with varying agendas gather at his Cornwall abode: his senile wife; his sexually ambivalent model; his weak, alcoholic son (Ronald Lacey, a long way from the menacing Nazi he would later play in Raiders of the Lost Ark) and impatient daughter-in-law; a neophyte art dealer and his girlfriend, Millie (Mary Maude). Victor becomes obsessed with Millie, determined make her his artistic muse. Meanwhile, the cast is being gruesomely bumped off one after the other.
Raven comes across very much as a poor man's Christopher Lee. He has the height (more or less), he has a deep voice, and he even looks not unlike Lee. But he has none of the master's screen presence, and isn't as frightening as he clearly should be. Most of the film is a rather dull plod, with characters wandering about, flirting or sniping at each other, and repeating conversations ad nauseum. The murders come along every so often to spice things up, but given Victor's obvious villainy, one might well wonder why the film is being so coy about the killings, and refusing to show us the killer.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on October 23rd, 2010
Written by Diane Tillis
If you happen to be a loyal fan of B-horror films, like I am, then you are going to want to check out Dark House. For those who have never heard of the ‘B-horror film’ concept, here is a little education!
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 22nd, 2010
Wow, someone took Dolan’s Cadillac, one of my favourite Stephen King short stories, and made it into a movie! Awesome! Cool, not a bad cast either. Christian Slater and Wes Bentley. Good actors. A little bit of edge to them. This might be alright. What’s that? It’s a straight to DVD release? Well that’s not promising. Hmm? It was made in Saskatchewan? By a Canadian sit-com director? Okay, now you’re just messing with me…
As it turns out, it’s all true. King’s sun-scorched tale of madness and revenge has indeed been brought to the screen, even if that screen is the one hooked up to your DVD player.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on October 21st, 2010
Written by Diane Tillis
October is my favorite month for several reasons. First, my birthday is only a month away…hint hint. Second, the cooler weather characteristic of fall finally reaches Florida, even if it only lasts a weekend. And finally, it is the month for horror films!! Finding a truly amazing (scream till I am white in the face, can’t sleep for fear of the boogie monster) horror film is something I love to do every October. I will collect some of the historic foreign horror films, throw in a little Hitchcock with a dash of Supernatural episodes, and put on my own horror festival. Thus when I had the opportunity to review a few screeners from the Fangoria Frightfest, I was tickled Bloody Mary red!
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 21st, 2010
“Mentalist: Someone who uses mental acuity, hypnosis, and/or suggestion. A master manipulator of thoughts and behavior.”
I remember fondly Simon Baker’s last television series, The Guardian. It wasn’t exactly a great or groundbreaking show, but it chugged on somewhat quietly for five seasons. It didn’t seem like anyone was really noticing this quality show. So as much as I like this new series, I think what pleases me most is that The Guardian has made it to DVD. I’m not sure it would have happened if The Mentalist hadn’t broken out as the number one new series last year. And as much as I’d love to tell you more about that earlier series, I’m going to get that chance next month, so stay tuned.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 21st, 2010
Perry Mason did it for lawyers. Marcus Welby did it for doctors. From 1969 to 1976 and beyond, Robert Young was the face of the television doctor. The actor was so identified with his part that he dealt with fans and their medical questions his entire life following his portrayal of Marcus Welby. In those days there wasn't a medical doctor on the planet, real or fictional, who was more recognizable than Welby. The show pretty much wrote the book on the television medical drama. It doesn't matter if your a fan of House, ER, Grey's Anatomy, or any of a hundred other medical dramas that have come and gone since that time, each of those shows owes more than a little of its existence to Marcus Welby, MD.
In the 1950's Robert Young was that model parent in Father Knows Best. It's likely that audiences first fell in love with his wise and caring style. There was something about both the character and in the man himself that just caused America to trust him. It was no surprise that when the Marcus Welby creators were looking for a doctor that could, above all, exhibit those same qualities that Robert Young would get the call. And it didn't matter that Young considered himself retired from show business for the last 6 years. Marcus Welby was a role he just couldn't turn down. It was another gentle character with wisdom and common sense beyond his years. The Doc was a general practitioner in California. To him his patients were people. He would treat the individual as well as whatever ailment was proving to be the problem. He took the tough cases, often seeing some slight symptom that others would miss. That's because he paid attention to his patients, and they couldn't help but trust him with their lives. More times than not, that trust was rewarded with a full recovery. But, even when Welby couldn't beat a disease or injury, he always added something to the patient’s life. It might be helping them to come to terms with their own mortality. He might heal a family rift. Sometimes he just offered a kind word at just the right time.
