Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on November 16th, 2013
In the Florida everglades, the Wedloe family have a 650-pound tame bear for a loyal pet. A very young Clint Howard stars as Mark, the son of a game warden (played by Dennis Weaver),who leads Ben around on several adventures and merry mishaps. Though “merry” may be the wrong word as Mark and Ben encounter their fair share of real life dangers.
Right off the bat, this show leaps into stories that are far more intense than one might expect from a family program from the 1960s. In the debut episode, the entire community faces a deadly hurricane. The characters spend the entire hollaring at eachother in the driving rain as things get torn apart around them. As the season continues, the high stakes hardly let up as members of the Wedloe family are threatened by poachers, wrestle with alligators, get trapped by wild fire, and square off against a huge number of malevolent hunters, voodoo doctors, and wildlife in every single episode. At one point little Mark is trying to help Burt Reynolds get out of a crashed plane while fighting away a tiger with a fire extinguisher...you read that correctly. Each tale was always moral and wholesome, but never exactly soft.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on November 15th, 2013
On paper, the premise of Prince Avalanche sounds about as exciting as watching paint dry. The film follows a pair of squabbling workers whose job it is to paint yellow lines in the middle of a country road in the aftermath of a devastating wildfire. They're basically the only two characters in the movie, and the story never moves away from their desolate surroundings. Although his film is occasionally self-indulgent (by design, I suspect), director David Gordon Green finds the strange beauty in that desolate landscape. He's also armed with stars who bring this meandering character study to life.
Paul Rudd and Emile Hirsch star as Alvin and Lance. Alvin (Rudd) revels in the isolation of his work and appreciates the benefits of outdoor physical labor. Meanwhile, Lance (Hirsch) is the lazy, immature, inexplicably charming brother of Alvin's girlfriend. Alvin hired Lance to work with him on the road project as a favor to Lance's sister (who we never see) and as a way to whip some masculinity into the younger man. The pair experience some emotional ups and downs, and it turns out they both have plenty they can learn from one another.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 14th, 2013
"What if a child dreamed of becoming something other than what society had intended? What if a child aspired to something greater?"
It's appropriate that exactly 75 years ago this very month Superman was born at the hands of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. He was born to be the patriotic hero symbol for a nation on the brink of a devastating world war. The war came and went as many others would since the hero's inception. Styles would change. Technology would come and go. Superman would find himself invading each and every medium that has come along since. Television shows, cartoons, comics, novels and even previous films have all continued the ongoing adventures of the man from Krypton. In those years styles have changed so much that the symbols of the hero himself have become quite dated. But in any time there will always be a need for larger-than-life heroes. They don't come any larger than Superman, The Man Of Steel. Can he be as relevant today as he was in 1938?
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on November 13th, 2013
Charles Dickens' Christmas Carol is vastly re-imagined with characters from Dora. Swiper replaces Scrooge as the one who travels through time in order to learn the true meaning of Christmas. This special is twice the length of a normal episode.
Music and singalongs have always been a part of the Dora the Explorer experience but this particular special is formatted more like a typical children's musical. There are fewer moments where the characters do that unnerving pause in anticipation of the audience to talk to the television, and more time spent on songs. Sometimes they merge the audience participation/pausing moments with the music during a reoccuring tune about swiper not swiping. Repetition is a staple of children's programming...it can also be a device that forges madness in the mind of adult viewers.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on November 12th, 2013
“To this day, there's no record of an orca doing any harm to any human...in the wild.”
Orcas are sometimes referred to as “blackfish,” but Gabriela Cowperthwaite's thrilling, thought-provoking documentary examines why they're most commonly known as “killer whales.” The movie's obvious standout moments involve breathtaking footage of these massive animals violently turning on their trainers. Although some viewers will undoubtedly make the leap to wondering whether it's ok to keep any animal in captivity, the thing that elevates this film is that it serves as an eloquent argument against keeping this particularly majestic, highly-social beast in a concrete pool.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on November 11th, 2013
The most surprising thing about Ambushed is that it's not quite as generic as its completely uninspired title might suggest. (Off the top of my head, I can think of at least 15 movies that could credibly be re-titled Ambushed; I'm sure you can too.) This particular straight-to-DVD action thriller is being sold as The Expendables-lite, with tough guy supporting players (and Ambushed producers) Dolph Lundgren and Randy Couture — along with Vinnie Jones, who really should've been in an Expendables movie by now — glowering from the Blu-ray cover. But this stylish L.A. drama — which liberally borrows from superior crime flicks — has a few tricks of its own.
Despite the presence of Lundgren, Couture and Jones, Ambushed is technically the story of Frank (Daniel Bonjour), who narrates the film. Frank is a strip club owner in downtown Los Angeles who is also involved in the cocaine business along with best friend/brash Scotsman Eddie (Gianni Capaldi). Frank also has a sweet, staggeringly gullible girlfriend named Ashley (Cinthya Bornacelli), who is the only pure thing in his life. Since Frank eventually wants to leave the drug business and make a life with Ashley, he makes a bold, violent play to move up the cocaine food chain.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on November 8th, 2013
Twenty-five years in any business is a feat to be recognized, especially when it is in the field of entertainment. It requires constant dedication, devotion, and a loyal fan base that sticks by you; Morrissey seems to have all three. In his latest concert series, Morrissey 25 Live, the English singer celebrates his latest career milestone at Hollywood High School in Los Angeles. From the very beginning, it is obvious that the singer has a loving and dedicated fan base, which was the most surprising detail for me given that before this disc, I had never heard of the singer.
The concert begins with testimony from two admitted Morrissey fans, who speak about how his music speaks to them. He appears to have the crowd from the very beginning as they go wild as he comes to the stage. He grabs the microphone, utters “Viva Mexico, I never forget my alma mater,” and the band launches right into the first song, “Alma Matters.” It took me a second to realize what his comment meant given that according to the cover art, the concert took place in Los Angeles (His words are equally confusing given that according to his bio, the singer is English.)
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 7th, 2013
"I like people to go away from a Queen show feeling fully entertained, having had a good time. I think Queen songs are pure escapism, like going to see a good film - after that, they go away and say that was great, and go back to all their problems" - Freddie Mercury
I had that very pleasure back in the late 1970's when I attended a Queen concert at the old Spectrum in Philadelphia. It was one heck of a show. Freddie was flamboyant as always. They were also quite good. I still remember an acoustic set they did in the middle. Take away the "plugs" and you really find out what kind of musicians you're dealing with. Apparently, pretty good ones.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on November 6th, 2013
“You think you had a bad day? This guy lost a billion dollars.”
Clear History is ostensibly about hot-shot marketing exec Nathan Flomm, who misses out on a billion-dollar payday after a petty disagreement. But really, this HBO Films original comedy is basically a 100-minute, all-star episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm with prettier scenery. As such, it's another opportunity for writer/star Larry David to profanely and incredulously sound off on a fresh set of social landmines, including insincere apologies and birthday e-card etiquette.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 6th, 2013
Ike Evans (Morgan) owns the most swank hotel in Miami. It's the Miramar Playa. He bought the land at a song from his deceased wife's family, and he's turned it into a luxury city where the likes of Frank Sinatra call home. He's determined to make it without caving to the influence of his minority partner, who happens to go by the name of The Butcher. He's Ben Diamond (Huston), and he wants the hotel to become a kingdom of gambling and other profitable vices. Sure, Ike allows a little prostitution and backroom bookie action, but he wants to keep the hotel pretty much legit. That's hard with a bank nut that runs $65,000 a month.
He has a young wife, Vera (Kurylenko) who was once the sensational Vera Cruz, a Cuban Tropicana dancer. He has two sons. Danny (Cooke) is studying law and doesn't want any part of the hotel business. He's being recruited by the DA's office in order to get a man inside. They don't really want Ike. They want Ben Diamond, and if they have to squeeze Ike to get to him, then that's what you might call collateral damage. Danny's in love with Mercedes (Garcia-Lorido), who is a maid at the hotel and daughter to Ike's hotel manager Victor (Vazquez). Victor's wife was killed in the Castro takeover of Cuba, and Ike's trying to get her ashes out. Stevie (Strait) is Ike's youngest son. Stevie tends bar in the hotel's famous Atlantis Bar (remember that Miami bar in Analyze This)? He does want the life of his father. He's also a bit of a womanizer. But he's fallen in love with Lily Diamond (Marais), who also loves him. They have a rather torrid affair. The only trouble is that Lily is The Butcher's wife, and he is the jealous type.
