Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on October 1st, 2012
Look, I don’t take pleasure in being the guy who slams a religious movie. It’s not that I’m afraid I’ll go to hell. (If someone can go to hell for writing a scathing movie review, then the system is broken.) I just don’t particularly enjoy tearing down any well-meaning movie with a positive message. However, when a film is as thoroughly inept as The Holy Roller, I’m afraid I have no choice.
The New Zealand dramedy follows Pastor Luke (Angus Benfield) who leaves his modest countryside congregation — although calling one person a “congregation” might be too generous — in favor of the big city because he wants to witness a miracle. (The Holy Roller was filmed in Christchurch, the country’s third largest urban area, right before a series of severe earthquakes in 2010 and 2011.)
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 1st, 2012
"Everything old is new again."
If the CSI franchise were a sports team, we would say that season 12 was a rebuilding year. It's the most radical change since the show began. Certainly loosing Grissom was a big change, but he was just one guy. In the 12th season we say goodbye to two of our characters and welcome in three. It's going to take some getting used to, to be sure. Overall, it's actually a good thing for the series and the franchise. I don't think it's been this good for a number of years. It's a family again. That's no dig on anyone who has left. It's just that the series has seemed in turmoil since the departure of Grissom. The show has lacked direction, and no one appeared to have the confidence that seems to have returned to the series in its 12th year. For the first time I'm not looking for this "tired" show to finally run its course. It has new legs, and I think we just might be in it for the long haul.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 1st, 2012
All good things must come to and end. Fortunately, the same can be said for the not-so-good things as well. I've been calling it the weakest link in the CSI franchise since the year it first hit our television screens. It looks like the ratings and your opinions have supported that feeling, and CSI: Miami is finally going the way of the dinosaur, both on television and in reality... extinct.
The series followed the CSI model set forth in the original Vegas version of the franchise. The lead CSI here was Horatio Caine, played by former NYPD Blue actor David Caruso. Caruso left that series because he fancied himself better as a big movie star. Several failed leading roles later he finds himself back playing virtually the same character here. It’s the same Caruso odd speaking pattern, only this time he has a lab coat to go with that gun. Adam Rodriguez plays Caine’s favorite among his lab partners, Delko. He shares a bit of history with Delko. They’ve had a few off-the-reservation missions together and have bonded somewhat. Delko wants to be just like Caine. Next in the pecking order is Ryan Wolfe, played by Jonathan Togo. Togo is the Greek-tragedy character here. It seems that every year this guy is getting the worst of it, from losing his hearing to getting roughed up by the Russian mob. He was a cop and transferred over to the CSI unit in season 2 under Caine’s wing. Emily Procter plays Calleigh. She’s the ballistics expert and all-around tough girl with a disarming southern accent. She makes a living by being underestimated. By far the most annoying character is Eva La Rue’s Natalia. Her love lives and former life baggage turn her more often than not into the helpless whimpering damsel in distress. She’s by far the most frustrating character in the entire franchise. Now I won't have to hear her whine one more season… Rex Linn plays the crew’s uniformed cop buddy, Frank Tripp. He’s getting more and more screen time and acts as the audience’s representative on the show. He’s a good tough cop, but the science just goes over his head. New to the 7th season was Megalyn Echikunwoke, please don’t make me spell that last name again, as the new medical examiner on the series, Dr. Tara Price. She’s a huge change from the previous pathologist whom I’m sure fans are already missing. She’s got a bit of a ‘tude. She also flirts too much, while Alex always had this almost unnatural respect for the dead. The best new character and one I will see sorry to go is young Omar Benson Miller, who played Walter on the show for just the last couple of seasons. He brought the freshness the show so desperately needed. I will miss him a lot.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on September 27th, 2012
If the phrase “You got served” only conjures up images of wait staff or a notice to appear in court, then Battlefield America may not be for you. The film comes “from the writer, director and creator of You Got Served” — the hip hop-flavored dance drama that became a modest hit in 2004 — but offers up a child-centric twist. For fans of You Got Served, the best way to enjoy this inferior film may be to pretend the dancers in that movie were tragically shrunk down to kid size.
Sean Lewis (Marques Houston) is a successful and arrogant agent at a Los Angeles marketing firm. After celebrating a professional victory, he gets busted for DUI and sentenced to perform 120 hours of community service. His lawyer gets him a supposedly cushy gig working at an inner-city community center run by the impossibly attractive Sarah Miller (Mekia Cox). Sarah tasks Sean with teaching a group of misfits how to dance in preparation for the prestigious Battlefield America dance battle. (At least we learn the title refers to the competition and not a misguided sequel to Battlefield Earth.) The fact that Sean can’t dance and hates kids (of course he does) doesn’t seem to matter to anyone.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on September 26th, 2012
The first word that springs to my mind when considering this box set is “essential.” I try to use that word without all of the marketing baggage that comes with it, conjured up by countless previous DVD releases of other films that have claimed to be “essential.” This set lives up to that term perfectly. Raiders of the Lost Ark alone is an incredibly important film (as my review below explains in a gushing fanboy-ish manner) and the entire series is a must have for any true fan of American cinema. This transfer to Blu Ray is a very successful one, making this the ultimate collection to purchase.
Raiders of the Lost Ark:
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on September 26th, 2012
“‘Cause I’m a con, don’t mean I ain’t got no rights.”
The movies have done a pretty good job of showing us the action, drama, horror, comedy and, yes, sex that lies behind prison walls. But there are far fewer examples of films examining what happens once an inmate is paroled and tries to re-enter the “real world.” The most famous movie parolee is probably Brooks from The Shawshank Redemption, and that didn’t turn out so well.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on September 21st, 2012
One of the first rules I’ve set for myself when writing reviews that I’ve managed my best to follow has been to avoid bringing up politics and religion. After all, this is a site dedicated to cinema, but sometimes these topics are injected into the films we review, and like it or not it’s something I was bound to encounter at some point. To simply spit it out, October Baby is a movie the tackles the subject of abortion and delivers a very pro-life message. So for those of you who are very passionate about this topic, I mention this not to offend or start a debate but simply give a disclaimer.
When we first meet Hannah (newcomer Rachel Hendrix) it is just before curtain call, and she is nervously going through her lines. She’s the star of the play, and it’s opening night. All the seats are full, most notably by her parents and her friends, so of course it’s fair to say she has a case of the jitters. But as the curtains rise, something is wrong as Hannah collapses on stage. After numerous tests and it is discovered it’s not just the stress of the show that got to her, but that she is sick and it is due to some complications surrounding her “birth”.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on September 20th, 2012
They say blood is thicker than water. Both of those substances are on display in Brawler, which cannily stages its bloody, illegal fights on a New Orleans riverboat. The film’s plot was inspired by a real-life pair of feuding brothers who infamously came to blows, but the Big Easy practically shares top billing with the squabbling siblings.
At the start of Brawler, we get to see Charlie (Nathan Grubbs) and Bobby (Marc Senter) Fontaine in separate fights. Those fights also serve as a shorthand introduction into their personalities: older brother Charlie has a more workmanlike approach, while Bobby is a ruthless showboat. Charlie and Bobby are the sons of a legendary fighter who we never get to see.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 19th, 2012
“There’s always a story. You just have to find it.”
What happens when you’re a popular murder-mystery writer and someone starts to use your stories and ideas to kill people in the real world? At first you become the prime suspect, particularly if you’re found to be completely self-centered and annoyingly arrogant. That’s where a pretty good alibi might come in handy. Is playing poker with the Mayor and the Chief of Police good enough? So, you’re no longer a suspect. Now what do you do? You sign on as a consultant for the special crimes squad of the police department, and you help catch the real killer. Only instead of looking for him O.J. style on golf courses and in steakhouses, you team up with the cops and nab that good-for-nothing plagiarist. The problem with that is you might just find that you like it. Even worse, it might end up curing that writer’s block you got after killing off your lead character and proverbial golden goose, much to the chagrin of your publisher who also happens to be your ex-wife. Follow any of that? If you did, you now have the setup for one of the better premiere series from last season, Castle.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on September 18th, 2012
Being on this planet more than a few years, I can say I have had my share of relationships as well as those times when I felt like I was starting over. In that time I was able to reflect, I always felt like a new person, well at least temporarily. But every relationship helped me to refine my personality and build my character to the person I am today. As it turns out today, I get to review Lola Versus which takes us on a journey of self realization after a crushing breakup. Let’s see how it does.
We open up to a beach where Lola (played by Greta Gerwig)is performing various yoga exercises and over analyzing her horoscope which says that something will soon turn her life upside down but in the end it will only make her stronger. Her ears start ringing to a sound of a persistent noise blower. The next thing she knows she is waking up next to her boyfriend, Luke (played by Joel Kinnaman). It’s her birthday and she is turning twenty-nine.
