Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on January 1st, 2016
America’s most dysfunctional family is back for a fifth season. Showtime dramedy series Shameless, based on the popular UK series of the same name, continues with the same level of comedy and drama that has made it one of the network’s all-time popular shows. The Gallagher clan is always full of surprises, and this season is no different, especially when comes to the family matriarch, Fiona, who probably comes through the largest arc this season as always. Usually when a show reaches this point, it begins to show signs of tedium or signals that it is close to its end; however, that is not the case here, as the season 6 is expected to begin in January.
When we last looked in on the Gallaghers, Fiona was just released from jail and is now on probation. Mickey was worried about Ian, who was beginning to exhibit symptoms of his bipolar disorder. When Fiona wishes to hospitalize him, Mickey fights back and asserts that he will look after Ian. Frank the Plank awakens from his liver transplant to discover his marriage to Shelia. Told that the side effects of his transplant won’t be pleasant and he must refrain from drinking, Frank takes off with Carl and shares a drink with his way-underage son. The final scene was probably the most shocking, as a familiar face showed up outside the Gallagher house.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on December 25th, 2015
Whenever I read the caption that says the story is inspired by true events, the first thing I wonder is how much of film is actually truth and how much is poetic license. Am I the only one who wonders that? I’m guessing I’m not. In the case of Dragon Blade, I’m thinking that the opening featuring Jackie Chan’s trademark clumsy marital arts style is likely the latter, a tale that falls short of war epic status due to sentimental tendency. Held my attention in the beginning; however, I felt my interest wane in the middle, and by the conclusion it had lost me completely. Sad, because I was excited for this film when I originally heard about it.
Dragon Blade takes place in 50 BC, and Jackie Chan is Huo An, captain of the Silk Road Protection Squad. As the group’s leader, Huo An with a small coalition does his best to keep the peace in Silk Road, a task that is very difficult given the constantly warring factions. Despite these obstacles, Huo An holds steadfast to his code, refusing to resort to violence without attempting peaceful negotiations first. An honorable man, his life is shortly turned upside down when he and his group are accused of smuggling gold and sentenced to a prison camp.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on December 9th, 2015
“Why are the Romantics relevant today?”
Some Kind of Beautiful shamelessly embraces every rom-com cliché in the book. The utterly nonsensical title, the main characters’ impossibly-posh digs, and the film’s exceedingly contrived and predictable plotting are probably enough to send jaded moviegoers running to the airport exit. So why am I not kicking this film to the curb? Well it helps that this particular group of attractive stars shares a relaxed, mature chemistry that carries the story through its more outlandish shenanigans.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on December 7th, 2015
We've seen this story before: a family tragedy compels a tortured young soul to return home after a long absence. It's almost always about a prodigal son who is forced to come to terms with his past so he can heal in the present and get on with his future. (Think Garden State or Elizabethtown.) Where Children Play absolutely deserves credit for inserting a more diverse cast of characters into that familiar template. However, the filmmaking here is too heavy-handed and inert to truly make an impact.
Belle (Teyonah Parris) is a chronic underachiever living in Savannah, where she works a dead-end job and shamelessly mooches off her male roommate/sorta-boyfriend. One day, her aunt Helen (Macy Gray) arrives to inform Belle that her mother Gayle (Edwina Findley) has died. Belle has been estranged from Gayle and the rest of her family for a long time, but she returns to Compton for her mother's funeral. During the visit, Belle reconnects with Jeremy (Brian White), a do-gooder former athlete who (unlike Belle) made something of himself. More importantly, Belle is horrified to learn that she must now serve as a nurse for her ailing father David (Leon Robinson), since Gayle had been taking care of him.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on December 4th, 2015
“I don't care about winning. I just like to play, I really do.”
In Mississippi Grind, a pair of damaged gamblers hustle their way through the American South so they can buy into a high-stakes card game in New Orleans. That's technically the “plot” of the movie, but it's not really the point...nor is it where the film's true charms lie. Instead, this well-made, low-key character dramedy feels like a welcome throwback to the sort of buddy/road films that have mostly been pushed out of multiplexes.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 25th, 2015
I'm going to start by listing a number of names that make up a kind of extended family. The names don't have a lot in common at first, and it seems like a hodgepodge. I'm sure I'm going to leave someone out, but let's start with Kevin Kline, Johnathan Demme, Diablo Cody, Sebastian Stan, Mamie Gummer, Audra McDonald, Joe Vitale, Rick Springfield, Bill Erwin, Bernie Worrell, Rick Rosas, and Charlotte Rae. I'm forgetting someone. Oh yeah, Meryl Streep. It's that kind of a movie which is being sold as a star vehicle for the most praised and beloved actress of the modern era, but is really an ensemble piece. We can debate who is as beloved as Meryl Streep in the history of cinema, but let's not, because Ricki and the Flash is not that kind of movie. It really isn't about the star turn by Meryl, but a collective, communal experience by all involved. All the names I mentioned are part of this experience, more so than in most movies. It's about the connections we try to make and the ones we fail at. It's about reaching for things and not getting them but doing it anyway. It's about failure and celebration, often within a breath of each other. It's about moving on but not forgetting the past. It's about loving someone when they are far from perfect. It's about forgiving and accepting.
I'm going to start with Rick Rosas. He died before the film was released and plays the bassist in Ricki's band, the Flash. In real life, he played in three bands with Neil Young (Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Crazy Horse, and Buffalo Springfield) as well as with Joe Walsh, Ron Wood, Etta James, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Johnny Rivers. Bernie Worrell, who plays the keyboardist, was a founding member of Funkadelic and Parliament as well as playing with The Talking Heads. Joe Vitale is the drummer; he has played with The Eagles, Joe Walsh, Ted Nugent, Dan Fogelberg, Crosby, Stills and Nash, and many others. Ricki and her band play to a few die-hard faithfuls in Tarzana every night, as well as doing her day job as a cashier at Whole Foods. I should mention that her frazzled boyfriend and lead guitarist is Rick Springfield. I should also mention Streep is 66 years old and is singing Bruce Springsteen and Tom Petty.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on November 19th, 2015
“There's the legal system...procedure...the almost-theatrical aspect of the law. And behind all that...”
Those words are wearily spoken (in voiceover) by Germain Cazeneuve before we even realize the character is a social worker/passionate prisoner advocate. They also hang in the air until the conclusion of Two Men in Town/Deux Hommes dans la Ville, a blistering takedown of the French judicial system and capital punishment. (France used the guillotine to execute prisoners up until 1981, which is the year the country abolished the death penalty.)
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on November 18th, 2015
Its spy vs. spy in Man from U.N.C.L.E., or at least it starts out that way. Henry Cavill and Armie Hammer play Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin respectively in this reimaging of the popular television series from the 60’s. Guy Ritchie is at the helm of the spy flick, which should give everyone high hopes that this will become the first film in a franchise. Though a bit dry at times, Man from U.N.C.L.E. proves to be a clever and engaging movie that stays true to the era it is set in. There is enough action, espionage, and beautiful women to capture the attention of the male audience, and the female audience is likely to be sated just being able to stare at Cavill and Hammer as a suave, well-educated, gentleman and a terse, committed, albeit volatile patriot. I’ll leave it to the ladies to determine which is which.
The film takes place after World War I; Napoleon Solo is a reformed criminal working off his sentence as the C.I.A.’s most effective operative. Solo ventures into Soviet territory in order to make contact with and extract Gaby Teller (Alicia Vikander, Ex Machina), the daughter of a nuclear scientist believed kidnapped to exploit his expertise. While carrying out his mission, Solo crosses paths with KGB’s top operative Kuryakin, whose mission it is to stop him. At odds, the two battle wits as well as weapons in an exchange Solo ultimately wins.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on November 13th, 2015
“Their channels have millions of subscribers. Their videos have billions of views. They are the future of dance.”
The definition of “making it” as a dancer has shifted over the years. Movies have dramatized this struggle by having its hoofing heroes struggle to earn street cred, gain admission into some prestigious dance academy, or make noise on Broadway. But thanks to social media and websites like YouTube, wannabe dance sensations can take a more DIY approach to stardom. The best parts of Breaking Through brush up against that notion, but too much of the film gets drowned out by groan-worthy dance flick cliches.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 11th, 2015
"Different, entirely."
I have been a fan of Sherlock Holmes since I was a kid. Mixed amidst those Universal horror films I watched with my Pop on weekend chiller shows was an occasional Universal Holmes film with Basil Rathbone as the master of deduction. Soon followed the Doyle books, and a new world was opened for me forever. Since those days we have seen every kind of incarnation of the character possible, or so I thought. I've seen Holmes as a child in Spielberg's Young Sherlock Holmes. There have been several comedies and even a musical or two. Robert Downey Jr. has turned him into an action hero, and Benedict Cumberbatch has brought him into the modern world. I even remember Larry Hackman's television version of a motorcycle cop who has a head injury and believes he's the famous detective, gaining the requisite deductive skills in the process. It was called The Return Of The World's Greatest Detective. Star Trek fans reveled in Data's immersion in the detective's world, even bringing back his infamous nemesis as one of The Next Generation's more sympathetic bad guys. But in all of these incarnations I have never seen anything as truly remarkable as Mr. Holmes. It is most decidedly something different entirely.
