Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 24th, 2010
"Pray for dawn."
Mark Young is a bit of a one-man band in the short list of films that he's done in his decade-long career. Southern Gothic is no exception. Mark Young is credited as: producer, director, writer, editor, chief cook and bottle-washer on the film. I have to say that I'm more often scared when I see that sort of thing than anything that ends up coming at me from the screen. Too many cooks may, indeed, spoil the broth, but only one cook tends to mean someone's going to end up eatin' out tonight. This was the first of these multi-tasking films I've seen from Young, and I have to say none of it was as bad as all that. I even caught myself enjoying the movie after a short while. The trick here is not to look at Southern Gothic so much as a horror film. It's pretty evident that Young absolutely did not. This is camp. It's the kind of dish you might expect served by Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi. That's how you'll need to approach the movie. If you're looking for something a little more serious or straight-out horror, move along, because there's nothing to see here. If you're a fan of camp horror, you just might be able to scrape a little entertainment out of this one.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 20th, 2010
"We're all put to the test. But, it never comes in the form, or at the point, we would prefer, does it?"
When The Edge made its debut in September of 1997, you would have thought it had a lot going for it. The idea of putting Alec Baldwin and Anthony Hopkins together in a winter wilderness sounds like a pretty good idea. Audiences didn't seem to think so. The film was gone after just 5 weeks and less than $30 million box office receipts. It lost nearly half of its screens in just 2 weeks. So, what went wrong with this movie? The answer is nothing, and everything.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 19th, 2010
"It doesn't look like they have chicken tenders here."
How can you not like Jackie Chan? If there has been a more versatile action or martial arts star, I haven't heard from him. The man made a name for himself in China's film industry as a remarkable martial arts performer. For decades he's been the closest thing the film industry has seen to Bruce Lee. But, unlike Lee, Chan wasn't content with being the best in a single genre. When he finally came to Hollywood, he decided it was a good idea to work a bit more lightheartedness into his films, something he had already begun to do in his homeland, China. The result made him a unique personality on film. It didn't matter if it was straight-out comedy like the Rush Hour or Shanghai films or more serious action adventures like his Police Story outings. Chan is first and foremost ... Chan, not just an action hero. Not afraid to poke fun at himself, he's become a reliable property at the box office.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 19th, 2010
"Even in the most primitive man, the need to create was part of his nature. This need, this talent, clearly separated early man from animals who would never know this gift. And here, in a cave somewhere in the North American Continent, about two million years ago, the first artist was born. And, of course, with the birth of the artist came the inevitable afterbirth ... the critic."
That's me. Afterbirth here. Brooks always did love to poke fun at the critics. And why not? Unfortunately, this was not one of his better films and likely received a lot of poking from the brethren. It was one of his worst films at the box office, pulling in only $31 million. Compared to many of his hits, it must have been a disappointing take for Mel at the time. Now out, along with some other of his films, on Blu-ray, this rather forgettable film looks even more dated and overindulgent than ever. Certainly, there are some classic moments. Mel, is, after all, Mel. But he never could string enough of them together to meet expectations. Too bad, really. It was a grand idea.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 19th, 2010
"In our findings on Gamera, we've ascertained that: Firstly, it is attracted to and consumes fire. Secondly, it also seems to possess an internal power plant, of sorts. This emits a signal frequency that can jam radio communications. In order to store up energy reserves, Gamera consumes inorganic resources. Not only does it consume petroleum as well as other mineral and fossil fuels, but Gamera may also seek out atomic bombs."
Ask anyone about Japanese monster movies and Gamera usually won't be the first name that comes into their minds. Godzilla would likely dominate the conversation, and for most of the last 60 years the folks at Toho have been synonymous with large monsters. But they didn't exactly hold a monopoly on the big beasts. Kadokawa Pictures had their own little monster franchise going on. It all started in 1954 with Gamera: The Giant Monster. From 1965 through the 1970's the studio would produce 8 Gamera films in all.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 18th, 2010
"You, sir, are guilty of disseminating disbelief. Killing dreams. Committing first-degree murder of fantasy, which by Fairy Law, in order to pay your debt to humanity, you are hereby ordered to serve time as a Tooth Fairy. The normal sentence is one week, but because you have the nerve, the unmitigated gall, to actually call yourself a Tooth Fairy, thus making a mockery of everything we stand for, I'm sentencing you to two weeks Tooth Fairy duty."
Dwayne (once The Rock) Johnson has made a bit of a new career move over the last few years. When he left the wrestling ring to "go Hollywood" the expectation was always that he would become an action hero. It's what his fans expected. It's what Johnson wanted, at the time. Movies like The Scorpion King were created completely as vehicles for Johnson to show off his physique and join the ranks of the big strong action heroes. It didn't exactly work out as well as everyone involved expected. He wasn't a flop, but he wasn't setting the movie industry on fire either. But with movies like The Game Plan and Race To Witch Mountain, Johnson appears to have a knack for working with kids in films targeted primarily at kids. He's become a big teddy bear, and it's paying off quite handsomely. While he still hasn't given up the wrestling gigs and an action role here and there, his biggest success so far in Hollywood has been with the kids.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 18th, 2010
"The Legend Had It Coming."
It seems that pretty much every decade has had its screen version of Robin Hood; sometimes it's on television. Robin Hood is one of the most popular characters in film, and there have been plenty of versions, each with their own particular take on the multiple legends that have made up the character over the centuries. Currently Ridley Scott has just released his own epic version of the tale with perfectly-cast Russell Crowe in the title role. In the early 1990's there were two films on the subject released. The first was the disaster that stared Kevin Costner, so abysmally cast as the titular hero. It was only inevitable that following one of the worst attempts to portray Robin Hood, Mel Brooks would see his chance to lampoon the legend. After Costner's film, the legend truly did have it coming.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 17th, 2010
For most of this last decade Mel Gibson might as well have vanished from the face of the planet. The once extremely popular actor had charmed the world. Women found his childish grin to be irresistibly sexy, and men bought into the “kick ass and crack a joke” style that made the Lethal Weapon films such a romp of fun. But lately, you expect him to be the subject of a “Where Are They Now” segment from a late show on television. It's no secret why Gibson climbed so quickly out of the public eye. I'm sure everyone still remembers the drunk-driving arrest where Gibson compounded his already serious case of bad judgment with even worse judgment. He tussles with the police officers who stop him and lets loose one of the worst anti-Jewish rants since Pharaoh unloaded on Moses. He apologized, of course, but some things just can never be put back into the box. There's an old Latin phrase that roughly translates to "In wine there is truth". The idea is that Gibson's true feelings were revealed by the reduced inhibitions of alcohol. Whatever his real feelings might be, none of us will ever know, and I don't really have an opinion, or care for that matter, except for the fact that it has removed Mel Gibson from the front of the camera pretty much ever since. His only projects have been as director, producer, and even writer. Even those efforts have been controversial. It's hard to watch The Passion Of The Christ without a visceral reaction to what you've seen. It's been a rough decade for Mel Gibson.
For those who have seen the British mini-series, and I reviewed it in these pages some time ago, you'll find that while the story doesn't really change, the dynamics of the story certainly change, and for the better. This wasn't a good story to drag out over six hours. The British version went into some fantasy elements that this version absolutely avoids. While Craven still appears to be seeing the "ghost" of his dead daughter, it appears to be more in his mind and a product of the grief. In the British series it got rather silly with her teaching him how to do laundry. It was quite absurd, after a time. The basic story elements do remain:
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 17th, 2010
I've seen quite a bit from Steven Seagal of late. There was his reality series from his deputy job, and many of his numerous catalog titles are finding their way to Blu-ray. All in all, it's a pretty good time to be a Steven Seagal fan. The latest of these earlier films to reach high definition is the 1990 entry Marked For Death. It pretty much follows the established Seagal formula here, combing martial arts with the vendetta theme, that he has come to personify for so long. It has a little of what the fans are looking for, including the social messages that are a huge part of Seagal's films. I'll give him a lot of credit here. He does appear to have a huge heart, particularly for kids, and tends to press issues of importance to them in many of his films. He also manages to accomplish this without getting too preachy.
John Hatcher (Seagal) works for the DEA. He's in the middle of an undercover operation in Mexico that goes sideways. That means that people are going to get killed, and you can bet your bottom peso that one of those people is going to be someone that Hatcher cares very much about. Playing a family member or partner in a Steven Seagal movie is like putting on a red uniform and beaming down to a hostile planet with Kirk, Spock, and Bones. You'd be safer with a three-pack-a-day smoking habit topped off with a 5th of Scotch and a heroin chaser. No one's going to be selling you any life insurance. So naturally, since we don't see any family members running about, Hatcher's partner is not long for this script. When his partner does die, Hatcher rethinks his job and decides to quit.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 15th, 2010
"In the West there lives an animal that runs wild and free. Its strength and courage symbolize our pioneering spirit. That magnificent animal is the wild mustang."
In 1943 a very young Roddy McDowall played a young boy in the perennial classic My Friend Flicka. The film was about a rebellious boy who is given a colt to teach him responsibility. He eventually bonds with the horse and learns the necessary lessons. The film was followed by a 1956 television series that followed the adventures of Gus and Flicka and lasted but one year. In 2006, the story was revived in a remake filmed under the same name but shortened to Flicka before it was released. While the character’s last name was retained, the film went the route of a young girl instead of a boy. It was probably a natural choice. My wife stands as a perfect example of how much every little girl appears to like horses. When I was that age I was more interested in the tough-as-nails cowboys who rode them. The film didn't manage to excite a very large audience and pulled in the small sum of $21 million. You might have expected the story to end there. It hasn't. 20th Century Fox has brought back the friendly spirited mustang in a direct to video release, Flicka 2.
![The Edge [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-edge-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![Tooth Fairy [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/tooth-fairy-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![Robin Hood: Men in Tights [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/robin-hood-men-in-tights-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![Edge of Darkness [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/edge-of-darkness-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![Marked For Death [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/marked-for-death-blu-ray-large.jpg)
