Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 4th, 2009
Meerkat Manor is back for a fourth season on DVD. You’re invited back into the South African desert with the famous Whiskers Clan. Animal Planet has themselves a relatively big hit here with Meerkat Manor. OK, so, it’s not exactly The Sopranos or The Shield, but it does have a modestly dedicated audience. Seems that folks just can’t get enough of these fur balls. They’ve set up blogs and websites dedicated to the antics of the celebrated Whiskers. If you like them and are dying to see what these lil’ guys are up to next, wait no longer. Fast on the heels of the prequel film, The Story Begins, Meerkat Manor is here again. Of course, all of this is strictly in the interest of scientific study. Sure it is! Don’t worry, I won’t tell a soul.
Stockard Channing takes over the narration duties from Sean Astin. She’s a bit more playful and often more dramatic, but I have to admit I was partial to Astin. Expect more of the same here. Kidnapped kids to missing Commandos and, of course, the annual loss of a beloved character. It’s all par for the course on Meerkat Manor. I have to admit that as cute as these little guys are, it’s all starting to run together for me. I can’t remember which character is which or who belongs to which tribe. Maybe it’s about time to close the books on the fur balls from the African desert.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 3rd, 2009
Director Rene Daalder is best known in cult film circles as the man who gave us Massacre at Central High. But now Cult Epics has released a pair of his films (this and Here Is Always Somewhere Else) that seem more in keeping with his real interests. A long and twisting road led to this effort, starting with an abortive collaboration with Russ Meyer and the Sex Pistols, which brought Daalder into the world of punk rock. In that field he met Tomata Du Plenty, vocalist for The Screamers. After funding for their proposed collaboration Mensch collapsed and Du Plenty’s HIV-positive status became apparent, they put together the present film out of a mixture of footage from the abandoned project, plus new elements. The striking result is Du Plenty as the last survivor of nuclear holocaust, holed up in his bunker, declaming/singing poetic rants about the history of the United States, all the while surrounded by a phantasmagoria of bizarre sights. Whether the result is compelling or pretentious (or both) will depend on one’s sympathies with respect to the art scene from which it emerges, but that it is a work that rigorously works out its conceptual and artistic premises all the way to the end cannot be denied.
Audio
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 3rd, 2009
“Four cops down: two dead, two likely. An NYPD drug bust has gone horribly wrong.”
That’s how this gripping drama opens. Not since the likes of Al Pacino in Serpico has there been a movie anything at all like Pride And Glory. This film doesn’t pull punches, and it looks about as real as any police drama I’ve seen anywhere before. Filmed entirely on location in the seedy streets of New York City’s Washington Heights district, there is enough gritty realism to go around. Director Gavin O’Connor not only used these very dank and atmospheric streets, but he also employed his extras and some of the key cast members from the community. If nothing else, you can’t criticize this film for not taking us into the street and watching the action from street level.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 3rd, 2009
Welcome to the neighborhood here in Lakeview Terrace. See that house next door with the zillion watt security lights? Yeah, they’re pointed right at your bedroom window, but that’s just for your own protection. Well, that’s Abel’s house, right there. He’s a cop with the LAPD. Don’t worry about crime around here. Abel performs regular patrols in the neighborhood in his off hours. If you do something against the rules here, like litter, or park somewhere you shouldn’t, don’t worry, Abel will let you know what’s what around here. Abel will keep a close eye on you. Yes, indeed. Welcome to Lakeview Terrace.
When young couple Chris (Wilson) and Lisa (Washington) buy their first home and move into the community of Lakeview Terrace, they are giddy with excitement. They have that first time homeowners feeling, at least until they meet neighborhood big dog, Abel (Jackson). First of all, Jackson doesn’t believe in interracial marriage, which is what the Mattisons happen to be. They’re used to that. Lisa’s father, played by Barney Miller’s Ron Glass, isn’t real high on the idea either. But when Abel starts to meddle in their business, they begin to get concerned. They don’t help matters themselves when they decide to “christen” the pool with a make-out session while Abel’s young son and daughter watch from their bedroom window. Abel’s the self-appointed community enforcer, and he’s decided that the Mattisons have to go. The confrontations continue to escalate, leading to the predictable, because it’s inevitable, conclusion.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 2nd, 2009
Three soldiers are on their way home from Iraq. They have each suffered injuries. Fred Cheaver (Robbins) is on his way home for good. He’s retired and looks forward to getting back to St. Louis and his wife and son. Colee Dunn (McAdams) is a young woman who was injured in her leg and now has a month leave. She’s planning on going to Las Vegas to return a guitar to the family of her boyfriend, who died in Iraq. T.K. Poole was injured in the groin and is also on his way to Las Vegas for a one month leave. He’s afraid that his fiancée won’t want him back because his injury appears to have left him impotent. He’s heard tell of sex experts in Vegas that might be able to “get him working again”. The three are strangers until a blackout cancels their flights once in the United States. They decide to carpool to St. Louis with Fred and get flights out of there for Vegas. During the trip they bond somewhat which turns out to be fortuitous for Fred. When he gets home he finds that things are not going to be the way he planned. His two new friends join him in extending the road trip, ultimately to Vegas. There no one finds what they expected.
If you’re looking for a film about the war, one side or another, you are most likely going to be disappointed. There is very little discussion on that front, and what is there is what you would expect from someone like Tim Robbins who wears his politics on his sleeve. Fortunately it is a limited scope and not really the point of the movie. What looks like a soldier film is really a very typical and unoriginal road trip film about bonding. They meet the typical odd characters and weird circumstances along the way. The acting and characters are charming to some degree. All three performers do a good job of bringing some chemistry to the film, but it all appears so pointless. The problem is that the film is ultimately claustrophobic, and while there’s tons of driving, it doesn’t end up going anywhere at all. In the end the characters are little changed by their experience, and we’re led to believe will go on with their lives. In the end it’s an innocent enough diversion, nothing more.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 28th, 2009
Humboldt County, the new independent comedy-drama from writers/directors Darren Grodsky and Danny Jacobs, sneaks on to shelves this month with a quietude as serene as its iZLER-composed musical score. Despite apt writing and direction, this slice-of-life piece simply fails to assert itself and leaves viewers with an indifference to the material.That’s not to say Humboldt County lacks competence. There isn’t a bad performance in the film. Two performances, in fact, are absolute dynamite. The always dependable Brad Dourif does what he does best, playing the crazy eccentric type, but this time he has a very human twist that endears him to the audience like never before. And Madison Davenport, a stunningly talented child actress, marks her debut with a strong performance that captures every scene she’s in.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on January 27th, 2009
So there's this group of flight attendants, and we follow their swinging adventures and affairs on and off planes. One, for instance, hopes to be an actress, and hooks up with an advertising executive. And if you care what the plot of “the first 3D sex film” is, you need your head examined. Much of the what goes on is mind-numbingly banal (SEE Wine being poured SEE Drinks being mixed HEAR Dull conversations ), though the acid trip that leads one woman to make out with a lamp in the form of a greco-roman head is something you don't see every day.
The film is an object lesson on how far mere novelty can take a film – it was a huge success at the time, and 3D was, in 1969, a rarity again after its initial craze in the 50s. So there are numerous shots of legs and pool cues (and feet) jabbing at the camera, enough, presumably, to have kept audiences entertained while everything else remained mundane beyond words. Or, so the situation is for most of the running time. But the last act takes a sudden turn into the starkly dramatic, and becomes very dark indeed. It is also rather more imaginatively shot than most of the rest of the film. The ending is a vicious sucker punch that must be seen to be believed, and suggests that the filmmakers were storing all of their creative juices for the cruel finale. In fact, as the accompanying featurettes reveal, the dramatic plot was added to the film after the rest of it was completed, and indeed, after it had already been released in some markets. In the final analysis, this is a vital piece of low culture.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on January 27th, 2009
The Cambodia’s K11 red light district might sound to some like a good time. The fact is that the K11 district is home to such horrific acts such as child slavery & prostitution. It’s sleazy, filthy and about as immoral as you could imagine. Guy Moshe decided to tackle this subject when he directed the 2006 movie: Holly. Guy had to make sure that he brought the harsh reality to screen in a proper fashion. In doing so, he made quite possibly the most uncomfortable film this reviewer has seen in a long time.
Patrick (played by Ron Livingston) lives in Cambodia playing cards and getting rid of stolen goods for his pal Freddy (played by Chris Penn). He’s become immune to the effects of the world in chaos around him. Crime is rampant and the Cambodian world is oozing with underage women who are sold in slavery. Then they are forced to work in brothels catering to everybody from locals to the government to travelers who come to the area just for the immoral delights.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 26th, 2009
“This motion picture is principally based upon the book “Wallace” by Marshall Frady and other historical sources. Certain events, characters, and dialog have, nonetheless, been created or altered for dramatic purposes”.
In other words, this should not be taken as an historical record of the controversial George Wallace. If anything, the film attempts to soften his personality some. One of those created characters is Archie, a trustee attending to the needs of the residents at Alabama’s Governor’s Mansion. We are meant to see Wallace and the events of the tumultuous era through his eyes. It’s not told from his perspective, mind you, but we are intended to share his reactions and emotions along the way.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 21st, 2009
Paramount has decided to standardize their DVD releases. This goes from everything to the DVD disc art, which is now just a two tone silver on all releases, to the cases. The new cases are a mixed deal. You get 6 discs inside of a single DVD space. That’s the good news. The bad news is that the disc holders are quite brittle and end up chipping and breaking. You save space but ultimately endanger the discs themselves. I hope someone at Paramount takes a look at the packaging and comes up with something a little better. There will also be some inconsistancy with your older sets, and because the final season was already released out of order your middle sets will look out of place. If you’re even a little OCD, you are not going to like the changes.
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 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.
