Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 22nd, 2022
"Sounds like the Mad Hatter is throwing a tea party."
Of all of the Arrowverse shows, I think Batwoman has had the hardest road of it. Ruby Rose was far from the dynamic character the CW or DC could have hoped for, and she spent most of her first season complaining or on the outs in some way or another. In her single season she was constantly outshone by her villain and pretty much everyone around her. It's bad when the one in the cape and cowl can't seem to attract any attention. It was a surprise to no one that Ruby Rose left the show after that first year. What did surprise me was that the show was going to continue. Instead of recasting Kate Kane, the powers that be brought in a completely different person to play the title character. Enter Ryan Wilder, played by Jevicia Leslie. She took the rap for a friend and ended up serving 18 months in prison for drug possession.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 22nd, 2022
"The modern world comes to Downton."
Downton Abbey spent six years on television and has amassed 52 episodes. In that relatively short run the series has also managed to collect over 200 award nominations and several Golden Globes along with other prestigious awards. Let's not forget a rather loyal fan base that has watched each episode with anticipation of the next sharp barb or character revelation. The fans have been vocal and strong enough that a new film franchise has been anticipated to fill the void left by the series and the first film. In one of its years it was the number-one binged series in the world. That's a lot of power, and it's little wonder that all of these ingredients are expected to create a little box office gold. But film franchises from television shows rarely go on to such golden heights. There are some notable exceptions, to be sure. But even here, expectations and changing caretakers often lead to both high points and flops.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 12th, 2022
"This rare Texas air will fix you right up."
Until The Exorcist came along in 1973, Giant was Warner Brothers’ highest grossing film at the box office. It was also the last film made by James Dean, who killed himself in a car crash two weeks before production, requiring the services of Nick Adams to step in and provide some of the voice ADR work for Dean. The film earned an at-that-time record 10 Oscar nominations. You would think that a film of this kind of historical importance and success would have been well cared for over the years since 1956. You would have been badly mistaken if you had that belief. Instead the film was allowed to deteriorate to a point where the restoration experts originally thought it could not be salvaged. After great effort and searches for better elements, the film has been pieced back together and given an impressive 4K release, and the result is an image that appears to be something of a miracle, now available to the public with Warner Brothers release of Giant on UHD Blu-ray in its native and natural 4K.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on July 8th, 2022
This was a bit of a letdown, if I’m being honest. It just didn’t deliver the epic conclusion that I was expecting. Honestly, it felt more like Part 1 of a two-part conclusion. While it wouldn’t surprise me to learn that there is another upcoming installment in the franchise, at this moment I am unaware of any intentions to continue the series with this group of characters. Bearing that in mind, I must defer to my original statement: it was a bit of a letdown. In recent years, my fandom for the Wizarding World has been rekindled due my daughter’s discovery, and now obsession, for all things Harry Potter. I was especially glad when I learned that I would be able to bring her along for what I expected, at the time, to be an epic conclusion. And while the film got her stamp of approval, my approval is a little harder to receive.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on June 21st, 2022
Offseason is the type of film we just don’t get a lot of anymore. It’s a film that heavily pays homage to HP Lovecraft and The Messiah of Evil and other films of the 70’s era, only there is little to no gore to show for it. There’s a strong Silent Hill vibe going on with the film, especially with the copious amounts of fog that seem to always be around. It would seem that this film has all the makings to be a hit, especially when it seems to be going for tropes that I like in a horror film, but unfortunately this one just missed its mark by making two big mistakes. One, it was too obvious, and two, it just totally screws up the ending. I’m not expecting every movie to be the next Wicker Man, but it seems that writer and director Mickey Keating is trying so hard to be on the same level as Ti West and Robert Eggers that the film just comes off looking like a good-looking snore-fest we’ve seen before. I really wanted to like this, and it had a lot going for it, but it seems when you pull inspiration from too many sources, it can get pretty messy.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 14th, 2022
"For nearly three thousand years, man has been searching for the lost ark. It's not something to be taken lightly. No one knows its secrets. It's like nothing you've ever gone after before."
Just in time for the wrap of principal photography on the next and final Indiana Jones film, Paramount cashes in on the renewed interest with the long-awaited, at least from this reviewer, release of the first four films in the Indiana Jones franchise on UHD Blu-ray in full ultra-high-definition complete with HDR and Dolby Vision. OK, I lied about the long-awaited four films. Now you can own the first on its own in this special Steelbook release of Raiders Of The Lost Ark on UHD/4K. No, I'm not going to call it Indiana Jones And The Raiders Of The Lost Ark, and yes, Han shot first and those feds in ET were not carrying walkie talkies in those hands. So sue me.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on June 14th, 2022
“Congratulations, you’ve just been erased.”
In 1996, when Eraser came out, it was pretty much what everyone expected from an Arnold Schwarzenegger film: lots of action and cheesy one-liners. It was far from Arnold’s finest work, but it was fun, and the big guns used in the film were pretty cool, too. Eraser is a film you can look back fondly on if you grew up in the 90s, because it was silly fun and nicely directed by the legendary Chuck Russell, who had a pretty good streak of films going when he did Eraser. Before he’d had success with the breakout Jim Carrey film The Mask, and before that he had the remake of The Blob and A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: The Dream Warriors. I bring this up because the reason Eraser worked when it did was because it had the biggest action star on the planet in its lead role and a talented director working behind the camera, and to top it off a $100 million dollar budget to play with.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 3rd, 2022
"There are among us a people, gifted with a perfect memory of all their past lives. They call themselves Infinites. Among the Infinites, two groups have vied for power. On one side the Believers, dedicated to using their knowledge for the protection and growth of all humanity. Against them stood the Nihilists, who see this power as a curse. New technologies have given the Nihilists an opportunity to end all life on Earth, and the race is on for its control."
Infinite is an adapted story from D. Eric Maikranz's novel The Reincarnation Papers. On the surface this is one of those great concepts that could support a film franchise, and might have accomplished just that if the film itself hadn't taken the route of spectacle over substance. It doesn't help that this film was hurt by the COVID shutdown of productions and never ended up with the wide release it was originally intended to have.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 3rd, 2022
"Let me speak to you directly and from the heart."
My first exposure to The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance wasn't the film at all. It was the song (The Man Who Shot) Liberty Valance, written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. It was a 1962 hit song by Gene Pitney and was written to be included in the film. I wouldn't really be taken with the song until James Taylor would cover it and have his own hit with the song in 1985 with his album That's Why I'm Here. By then I'd seen the film but only on late-night television broadcasts which offered bad transfers and plenty of commercials that caused the film to be chopped by over 26 minutes. The funny thing about the song is that while it was written to be included in the film, it actually never appears. Director John Ford thought it sounded too modern and suggested it would only weaken the film and insisted it not be used
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 27th, 2022
“They think I’m hiding in the shadows, but I am the shadows.”
You have certain expectations when you go to a superhero/comic book movie. Sure, it changes a little depending on the character that you’re going to see. But there are certain things that all of these films tend to have in common. There’s an expectation of frantic action and some mind-bending special f/x. You’re looking for colorful villains who tend to act over-the-top and always provide that gentle wink back at the audience. When these expectations aren’t met, audiences tend to be disappointed, and big-budget films can end up costing the studios hugely in the end. Even as we appear to be reaching the last days of the limited pandemic crowds, that risk gets multiplied. It also doesn’t help if audiences are still riding the high off the first big global billion-dollar film in almost three years.
