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Drama

The Good Life

Posted in No Huddle by J C on August 29th, 2013

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“We have to understand as a whole entire world that marriage will have its ups and downs, but we have to have faith in God that he will help us through those tough times to stay faithful and committed, no matter what happens.”

These words are attributed to writer/director/producer/actor Christopher Nolen. (Not to be confused with this guy.) They also appear at the end of The Good Life, a low-budget, unintentionally funny relationship melodrama working in the same arena dominated by Tyler Perry’s low-budget, unintentionally funny relationship melodramas.
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Pain & Gain (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by J C on August 28th, 2013

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People have used a lot of different words to describe Michael Bay and his films: “loud”, “blockbusters”, “mindless”, “soulless”, “Hitler” and, of course, “awesome.” One of the words you don’t normally associate with Bay’s undeniably successful output is “clever.” I daresay Pain & Gain is the most interesting movie the action auteur has ever made; the film is both seriously silly and surprisingly smart in how it presents its stupid characters.
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Arthur Newman (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 27th, 2013

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“Poor John Doe, what a way to go.”

You might be asking yourself the obvious question here. I know that I was. Who is Arthur Newman? Arthur Newman is Colin Firth. The busy actor has been the king of the hit-or-miss movie. He’s scored some wonderful roles in films like The King’s Speech. But much of his career has been as a chameleon actor in niche independent festival films. Arthur Newman certainly fits in that latter category.
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The Good Wife: The Fourth Season

Posted in Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on August 25th, 2013

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Chicago Law firm Lockhart & Gardner is facing bankruptcy so each attorney works harder to reel in high profile clients so that they can save themselves from being sold, or shut down. Meanwhile Alicia Florrick (played by Juliana Margulies), who is an attorney at this firm, is caught amidst her husbands election campaign for the office of governor, as well as the temptation to become either an Equity partner in her current firm, or leave to be a name partner in a brand new one.
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Boardwalk Empire: The Complete Third Season (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 21st, 2013

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“Everybody’s got guns.”

Lately, you might have heard a lot of folks talking about getting home for a little Nucky. Well… it’s not what you think. They’re talking about Nucky Thompson, played by Steve Buscemi on HBO’s latest gangland series, Boardwalk Empire.
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Revenge: The Complete Second Season

Posted in No Huddle by J C on August 20th, 2013

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The first season of Revenge was soapy perfection. I’m not saying it belonged alongside the great, ambitious television series of our time. But in terms of sheer entertainment value and ridiculously delicious (or is it deliciously ridiculous?) gotta-see-what-happens-next-week drama, the debut season of Revenge was as good as it gets. Unfortunately, season 2 is, by comparison, a disappointing slog. By the time the smoke from the explosive two-part finale cleared, Revenge had lost its creator/showrunner and become the latest poster child for the sophomore slump on TV. (NBC’s Heroes was more than happy to pass that baton.)
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Cavalcade (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by J C on August 19th, 2013

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All Best Picture winners are not created equal. Some of them achieve cinematic immortality, while others are viewed as outright travesties. Then there’s the group of Oscar winners who have arguably suffered a fate worse than the derision and mockery of movie fanatics: the forgotten Best Picture winners. Cavalcade — described in this Blu-ray’s commentary as “not a particularly well-remembered Academy Award winner” — certainly falls in that category.
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Idolmaker (Blu-Ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on August 19th, 2013

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My best work is often done behind a computer or somewhere where my face is not on display. I am not the most handsome guy despite the fact I have been described by those of the female persuasion as otherwise. But I have talent, loads of it and I am always waiting for the next moment to show it off. Perhaps I can take a cue from our movie today, The Idolmaker and use my talent to make others around me stars. Maybe I should just go shave instead.
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Perry Mason: Season 9, Volume 2

Posted in Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on August 17th, 2013

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For nine seasons and several TV-movies afterwards, Raymond Burr was Los Angeles based defense attorney Perry Mason. This character’s verbal gymnastics, and uncanny hounding for evidence makes his famous winning streaks seem not just plausible but rather entertaining to behold. His adventures have been well-reviewed by myself and my reviewing compadre Gino on this very site (http://upcomingdiscs.com/?s=perry+mason).
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Girls: The Complete Second Season (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by J C on August 13th, 2013

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“Well, when you love someone you don’t have to be nice all the time.”

In this current age of message boards and morning-after recaps, the pressure is on to make your voice the loudest if you want to be heard in the wilderness of the Internet. For snarky TV critics, that often means declaring something is either the “Best ____ Ever” or the “Worst ____ Ever”, with little room for anything in-between. But even within these sharply-divided times, I believe HBO’s Girls — which is brilliant just as often as it is maddening — stands out as the most polarizing show on TV.
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Banshee: Season One (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 8th, 2013

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“With a name like Banshee how can you not be drawn in?”

Alan Ball got my attention in 2001 with HBO’s black comedy Six Feet Under. It was one of the most original shows I had ever seen, and to this day I find it hard to characterize the series when asked to do so. It was there that he also introduced me to Michael C. Hall, who continues to amaze me in the role of Dexter over at Showtime. When Six Feet Under left the airwaves, Ball didn’t waste very much time in bringing his quirky style back
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What Maisie Knew (Blu-Ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on August 7th, 2013

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For those who don’t know, I have been married twice in my life. I am currently going through my second divorce. At nearly thirty eight years old, I have lived the relationship life of arguably several lifetimes but something usually keeps me coming back. Am I done with love? Only time will tell. Today’s blu-ray review is about a six year old girl who sees life through the divorce of her mother and father. Something tells me we are in for a very long and bumpy ride.
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Bus Stop (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by J C on July 31st, 2013

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For most modern moviegoers, Marilyn Monroe is probably more “famous for being famous” than she is for her cinematic body of work. (Of course, she’s also infinitely better known for an entirely different “body of work.”) That’s not totally fair because Monroe has at least one bona fide classic (Some Like It Hot) and a handful of indisputably indelible images among her movie credits. Those of you interested in exploring her filmography are in luck: Fox has just released two titles from her mid-1950s superstar peak on Blu-ray, including her turn as an ambitious showgirl in Bus Stop.
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Love Me Tender (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by J C on July 29th, 2013

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Elvis Presley was easily one of the most impactful pop culture icons of the 20th century during his life, and that status has barely waned in the decades after his death. (Or “alleged death”, given the number of Elvis sightings each year.) Presley obviously made his most lasting mark in the world of rock and roll music (and fashion), but he also had a surprisingly fruitful film career. Though none of his movies turned out to be cinematic masterpieces and no one was confusing him with Marlon Brando, The King brought his charismatic presence to more than 30 movies between 1956 and 1969. He was 21 when he made his film debut in Love Me Tender.
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Twixt (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by J C on July 23rd, 2013

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The 1970s famously produced many of the most daring, diverse and groundbreaking classics in movie history. All-time greats like Scorsese, Spielberg, Polanski, Altman and Lucas either broke out or did some of their most exciting work during the decade. But, even among these titans, Francis Ford Coppola separated himself from the pack. Four films — The Godfather, The Conversation, The Godfather Part II, Apocalypse Now — four undisputed classics. Batting 1.000 during the greatest moviemaking decade of all time earns you a ton of slack. In Coppola’s case, it has gotten him enough slack to make up for the fact that nothing he’s done in subsequent years can touch his ‘70s output.
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Damages: The Complete Fifth and Final Season

Posted in No Huddle by J C on July 16th, 2013

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“You want to end this once and for all? Now’s your f—ing chance.”

And with those words, spoken during the closing minutes of the fifth and final season premiere of Damages, Patty Hewes sets the stage for her ultimate showdown with protégé/frenemy/surrogate daughter Ellen Parsons. (As you can see, Patty also takes advantage of the fact that the show — which began its life on FX — migrated to DirecTV for its final two seasons, allowing her to drop that F-bomb.)
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42 (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by J C on July 15th, 2013

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“You give me a uniform, you give me a number on my back — and I’ll give you the guts.”

More than any sport, baseball is all about numbers. Unfortunately, some of those numbers — like 73 (home runs in a single season) and 500 (career homers) — mean a little less in light of the steroid era. Others, like 56 (Joe DiMaggio’s legendary hitting streak), seem destined to live on forever. The most significant number on that shortlist might be 42, worn by Jackie Robinson when he broke major league baseball’s color line on April 15, 1947. 42 — the film, not the number — is significant for a somewhat surprising reason
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Bullet To The Head (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 15th, 2013

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It’s hard to imagine that Sylvester Stallone and Walter Hill never crossed paths for an action movie in the early days of their careers. Both have established themselves as staples in the action movie genre, and they dominated the 1970’s and 1980’s. It seems like a dream come true that the actor and director have finally joined forces. Unfortunately, some dreams are actually nightmares, and if Bullet To The Head is any indication, the two stars would have been better off had they remained unaligned.
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Blood and Sand (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by J C on July 15th, 2013

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Cruel blood sport or culturally-significant art form? That’s been the centuries-long debate surrounding the practice of bullfighting. Personally, almost everything I know about bullfighting comes from Ernest Hemingway stories and Looney Tunes. So Blood and Sand — a grand, cynical bullfighting drama/Technicolor spectacle from 1941 making its Blu-ray debut — was an eye-opening experience in more ways than one.
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Phantom (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on July 10th, 2013

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“There are only two reasons why a boat would go rogue. One is to defect, and the other is to start a war, and I don’t think we’re defecting. ”

Abraham Lincoln once said, “The best way to get rid of an enemy is to make him a friend.” That’s one way; however, Phantom proposes a different tactic: the best way to get rid of an enemy is to get someone else to do it. Which do you agree with more? Ed Harris and David Duchovny square off as two pieces on the opposite sides of the chess board locked in a submarine together with control of a nuclear warhead being the checkmate.
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Unforgettable: The First Season

Posted in No Huddle by J C on July 3rd, 2013

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“Only a few people in the world have the ability to remember everything. I’m one of them. If I miss something the first time, it’s okay; I can go back and look again. My life…is unforgettable.”

You’ve got to admire the courage of the person who decided to call this show Unforgettable. He or she had to know they’d be leaving themselves open to easy pot-shots from viewers and snarky critics like me if the drama series failed to make a lasting impression. And, for a while, it looked like this Unforgettable: The First Season DVD set might wind up being Unforgettable: The Only Season.
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Stoker (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 26th, 2013

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“My ears hear what others cannot hear; small faraway things people cannot normally see are visible to me. These senses are the fruits of a lifetime of longing, longing to be rescued, to be completed. Just as the skirt needs the wind to billow, I’m not formed by things that are of myself alone. I wear my father’s belt tied around my mother’s blouse, and shoes which are from my uncle. This is me. Just as a flower does not choose its color, we are not responsible for what we have come to be. Only once you realize this do you become free, and to become adult is to become free.”

If you are a fan of director Chan-wook Park, you are used to the kinds of bizarre images and somewhat enigmatic story elements
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Charlie Zone (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on June 18th, 2013

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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?
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The Last Ride (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Jonathan Foster on June 17th, 2013

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Hank Williams, Sr. was arguably one the most influential country artists of all time. During his short life (he died at the young age of 29) he had more than 30 #1 singles. His music has been covered by not just country artists, but has also crossed over into the pop, gospel and blues genres. With The Last Ride, this music legend joins Johnny Cash and Loretta Lyn in having their lives put on film.
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The Newsroom: The Complete First Season (Blu-ray)

Posted in Disc Reviews by J C on June 12th, 2013

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“In the old days, we did the news well. You know how? We just decided to.”

Sounds simple enough, so what’s keeping everyone from doing the news well? Well, other than a country that feels more politically polarized than ever and a population that mostly seems interested in cherry picking the “facts” they’d rather hear, I can’t think of a single thing. In fact, HBO’s The Newsroom pointedly compares the idea of putting on a quality news broadcast that educates the electorate and earns great ratings to Don Quixote embarking on one of his foolish quests.
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