Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on March 17th, 2010
"There's two kinds of people in this world when you boil it all down. You've got your talkers and you've got your doers. Most people are just talkers. All they got is talk. But, when all is said and done, it's the doers who change the world. And, when they do that, they change us. And, that's why we never forget them."
And while The Boondock Saints never did bring in box office gold (heck, it didn't even bring in Box Office aluminum) like the characters in the film, they were not forgotten. There were conventions and local film festival showings that brought out untold thousands to share the movie experience. It became what we commonly call today a cult hit. But that's a term of endearment used by critics and fans to describe this kind of grass roots fan base. Unfortunately, it's a dirty word in Hollywood. No one in the studio highchairs wants to produce a cult film. Well, no one except maybe Troy Duffy.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on March 11th, 2010
There was a new Cowboy in Dallas, and he wasn’t throwing touchdown passes. But Walker was almost gone before he could really get started. After just four episodes the show’s production company suffered financial collapse, and the show was rescued at the last minute by CBS Productions, who would continue to run the show for its nearly decade-long run. For nine years Chuck Norris brought us the ultimate Texas Ranger in a formula cops and robbers show. The show often became a parody of itself, but maintained a solid viewer ship throughout. Hell, Norris even sings the theme song. Truthfully, what started as a one man show (it was originally called Chuck Norris Is Walker, Texas Ranger) became a good working ensemble that probably kept the train going for so long. Walker (Norris) is a tough guy Texas Ranger. He is partnered with Sydney Cooke (Peebles) and Jimmy Trivetti (Gilyard) who’s an ex-jock with a brain. Walker had a love interest and eventual wife in the local assistant district attorney Alex Cahill (later Walker). Together they fight the evils that come to the high plains of Texas armed with their fists, six-shooters, and Stetsons. After starting with the final season, CBS is finally halfway through the series back from the beginning.
Norris almost deadpans his entire performance. Let’s face it, the man is no accomplished thespian. Still, Norris fans are quite passionate about their guy. There’s a popular T-shirt design that lauds their hero in epic fashion. One of my favorites is : “McGyver can build a plane out of gum and paper clips but Chuck Norris can kill him and take the plane.” Another brags: “Some people wear Superman pajamas. Superman wears Chuck Norris Pajamas”. And there’s the humorous: “Chuck Norris knows what Willis is talkin’ about”. Fans of Norris were never disappointed in what they got here. The requisite martial arts and tough guy talk are present pretty much in every episode. Season 6 is no exception. You should also note if you’re using an episode guide: this is really season 8, as the first two were combined in the first season release.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on March 1st, 2010
The ice caps have melted, leaving only 10% of the world livable, according to the opening narration of this adventure/disaster film. Salvaging relics from “lost” cities is a means of making money for our heroes, a boat crew that comprises of James Brolin as a Captain with a secret connection to the Vatican, and his two sons. As they pick up goodies to trade or sell they also search for clues towards a grand solution to the global flooding problem that the Vatican is housing.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 26th, 2010
Every seven years, thirty assassins descend on an unsuspecting city and slaughter each other, all the while being observed by hijacked security cameras for the benefit of the high rollers who are betting on the outcome. The previous winner was Ving Rhames, and he thought he had walked away from the life after that tournament. But then his wife was murdered, and he learns that the killer is in the new contest (taking place this time in England). Also taking part is the fatalistic Kelly Hu, who winds up being the reluctant protector of drunken priest Robert Carlyle, who even more reluctantly has become a long-shot competitor in the tournament after accidentally swallowing a tracking device that paints him as a legitimate target.
This sounds a bit more complex than the film really is, as the plot is primarily there just to facilitate the spectacular butchery that follows. The action is fast and furious, and the blood is as copious as you're going to get this side of Hostel. All of which is more than passably entertaining, and there are also some surprisingly witty moments, usually courtesy of Carlyle. In its enthusiasm to go over the top, however, the film does dip its toe into some of the same ugly misogyny that so pollutes the Crank films. Still and all, bloodthirsty action fans could do worse than spend 95 minutes in The Tournament's company.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on February 20th, 2010
Steven Seagal plays an LA cop who is forced into early retirement after being betrayed and shot by his partner. After an astounding recovery, which included blasting his partners brains all over the hospital walls (I'm assuming it was part of his rehabilitative therapy), he is hired by an old friend to be the head of security for his friend's daughter. This family is linked to some bad dudes who are keen on uranium and kidnapping, so Seagal is forced to slowly shoot everyone near him while mumbling something about being a tough guy or whatever.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on February 15th, 2010
“The Man Who Cannot Die”, better known as the Phantom was created by Lee Falk in 1936. The comic strip runs until this day, despite the creator dieing more than ten years ago. The Phantom was a costumed crimefighter that lived in the country of Bengalla. Bengalla was fictional but located in Africa. In 1996, they finally decided to create a movie based on the comic strip to find out what the “Ghost Who Walks” would do on the big screen.
The story starts when a young boy washes up on the shore of the African island known as Bengalla. He got there as the last survivor from a vicious pirate attack. In a ceremony with an ancient tribe known as the “Poison People”, he is dubbed the Phantom. The Phantom will devote his life to destroying piracy, cruelty and injustice. When the boy grows, he assumes the identity of a purple masked superhero with a brilliant horse to ride and a faithful wolf at his side.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on February 3rd, 2010
Planet Hulk started out as a storyline from Incredible Hulk #88-#95 (2006). The Hulk was too strong for the planet Earth and so the Illuminati under the direction of Iron Man and Doctor Strange sent him to a planet where he can cause harm to nobody except himself. Of course, things don’t go exactly as the Illuminati probably hoped for. The direct to video movie deals with Hulk’s stay on planet known as Sakaar.
Hulk is simply too strong. He is a danger to the earth and in such the New Avengers has sent him away to an abandoned planet. The Hulk wakes up and finds himself in the rocket. He listens to the words of Iron Man with Doctor Strange and what appears to be Reed Richards and the Black Bolt close by. The team thinks that they are sending him to an isolated planet devoid of life. However, the rocket actually passes through a portal and somehow Hulk ends up on the planet known as Sakaar.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on February 1st, 2010
As the resident video game expert for the site, certain movies will always fall into my lap. Any movie that includes something about video games, good or bad I will get the chance to review. Sometimes, I'm not so thrilled and sometimes I'm simply elated to take on the task. But then every once in a while, I get a movie where I'm not sure what to expect. The movie Gamer seems to take that tone. But perhaps the journey will lead to some rather unexpected but pleasant surprises.
Kable (played by Gerard Butler) is the most famous Slayer in history. He has survived twenty-seven matches and has only three matches left to his ultimate goal of freedom. The Slayers show is a third-person multiplayer shooter game where the contestants control the shooters. The shooters are death-row inmates who are given the opportunity to gain their freedom. The only catch is that they have to survive thirty matches. The other issue, is that nobody has ever made it; Kable might become the first.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 20th, 2010
Sylvester Stallone returned to his roots with 1993's Cliffhanger. No, I'm not talking about his iconic Rocky role here. I'm talking about his ancestral roots. The movie was filmed high in the Italian Alps to achieve many of these incredible vistas and the snow capped mountains. Believe it or not, this was June at the location, and several of the crew were stranded for a time because of a sudden and powerful blizzard.
However, it wasn't really the location along with its harsh weather conditions that caused this film the most trouble. The script was plagued from the beginning with several drafts and many writers. There were so many hands in the stew that lawsuits went on for some time afterwards, leading to several writers getting a paycheck they otherwise weren't getting. I've heard that as many as 12 people had a pass at the script in some form or another. Actor Christopher Walken was set to play the bad guy in the film but left the production just before shooting began. You will also notice that the film is dedicated to Wolfgang Gullich. Gullich was one of the best stunt climbers in the business. He did a lot of those climbs where you see a character without a harness or safety line. He managed to achieve all of this quite safely, only to be killed in an automobile accident in August of 1992, almost a year before the film actually opened. Finally, the film was forced to acknowledge that the harness which is seen to malfunction in the film’s opening scene was rigged to fail and that the actual harness was quite safe. All in all it was a troubled film from start to finish. It did get a lot of hype from Sony and went on to bring in a respectable $85 million at the domestic box office, but it was a much larger hit overseas pulling in almost $200 million. It's still considered much more of a hit in Europe than it has ever been in America.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 11th, 2010
If you are looking for some kind of logical sequel to the WWE film The Marine which starred wrestler John Cena, you will be greatly disappointed. The film doesn't even feature the same character. There is absolutely nothing about this film that connects it to the original beyond the name. The WWE doesn't even use one of its bigger names in this film. While I have heard of Ted "The Million Dollar Man" DiBiase, Jr., I was not aware that he had a son who has followed his footsteps into the wrestling arena. I would suspect that Ted DiBiase, Jr. is a name only known to the fans who follow the WWE. Of course, that does provide for the major draw for these kinds of films, but I would also suspect that the WWE is hoping for more wide appeal by branching out into these films. So far it doesn't seem like the sports organization is having any luck. The Marine 2 will not do anything to further the cause.
The film opens with the obligatory mission sequence. This scene does not really join with the actual film plot except to give us a chance to see Joe (DiBiase) in action. We quickly see how good he is. The scene also adds some pathos to the character when a young boy is caught in the crossfire and killed. Now we have a skilled Marine carrying around a bit of guilt over the dead boy. The mission ended, our hero gets a little R&R time. His plans to spend some quiet quality time with his wife, Robin (Cox) are somewhat sidetracked, because she has a mission of her own to conduct. She's helping a wealthy financier open his latest tropical resort. She's a PR person who will have her hands full with environmentalists and locals who resent the exploitation of their home. But Joe agrees to accompany her for what he expects will be five days of sun and sand. When they arrive at the resort, the 24 hour armed guards are our first clue that Joe's going to have to go "Marine" and do some butt kickin'. And, for a while the film settles into Blue Lagoon territory as Joe and Robin have some romantic time in the surf. They also meet up with the local boat tour guide who is also ex-military. He's a powder monkey, jargon for demolitions expert. You already know that this is no accidental meeting and that ex-Ranger Church (Rooker) is going to play a part in the events to follow.
![The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-boondock-saints-ii-all-saints-large.jpg)
![The Phantom [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-phantom-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![Planet Hulk [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/planet-hulk-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![Cliffhanger [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/cliffhanger-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![The Marine 2 [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-marine-2-blu-ray-large.jpg)
