Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 14th, 2007
Synopsis
Stereo-typing is a nasty business and unfortunately happens a lot in Hollywood. Certain actors play certain types of characters, certain movies always have the same themes, certain Uwe Boll movies (all) get bad ratings, etc. One of those unfortunate stereo-types is african-american movie making. Quite often you see an urban setting, a rise from the ghetto, or something related to basketball or football. Dominant african-american stereo-typing at what everybody thin...s they do best. Sometimes however there are films that try to steer away from that by portraying them in a different light; one we aren't used to (but should be). It is the only hope that it is still a good film when all said and done.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 14th, 2007
Synopsis
Meeska Mooska Mickey Mouse! (tell me you just didn't say that) So what happens to a 31 year old adult who sits through a show alone that is geared towards children who might not even be in grade school yet? Besides binge drinking & wondering why he doesn't have a date this weekend? Apparently some good wholesome family entertainment. I was actually a little surprised how decent this was after twenty minutes into the program.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 14th, 2007
Released earlier this year to a successful box office run, Ghost Rider is yet another Marvel character making his way to the big screen. There’s something about these comic movies that have everyone all psyched these days, all of them performing admirably in the theatre and selling just as well upon DVD release. For me, there are only a couple of these Marvel films that I actually think were well done and in good contrast compared to their comic book counterparts. In fact I’m probably the only person on this c...ntinent to despise the Spiderman movies. So I wait in anticipation, is another Marvel franchise about to be ruined, or can director Mark Steven Johnson pull off a good one.
A Ghost Rider is a bounty hunter for Mephisto (Satan) (Peter Fonda), and for as long as time can tell, the devil has had a Ghost Rider. In the days of the Old West, a Ghost Rider was too retrieve the souls of an entire town, but the souls proving to be too powerful to be in the hands of Mephisto, the Ghost Rider outran the devil and hid the contracts. 150 Years later Mephisto is back and he wants the contracts. Fooling a young Johnny Blaze into trading his soul for his father being cured of cancer and then later having him killed anyways, he is doomed to one day face the curse of the Ghost Rider.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 13th, 2007
Synopsis
It's fairly common to bring ideas from other cultures and bring them into American television shows. We have done it with gameshows (Lingo) and we have done it with movies (Ring). However, sometimes we simply wish to recreate shows in our image. Rarely, we just go ahead and use the same show and edit it to suit our tastes. Enter Most Extreme Elimination or MXC. This show (part of SpikeTV's late night lineup) is simply the Japanese show; Takeshi's Castle peace me...led together with new commentary and a different focus. (I'll explain more later in the extras).
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 11th, 2007
Synopsis
I love the brothers named Warner. If it were up to me, I would settle down and marry them, and keep my marriage to my wife. Warner does more to proactively suit the needs of the DVD fan than any other studio out there. And by putting out a version of The Road Warrior with some extras to trump the crappy barebones release, I'm putting the offer of marriage out there now for the world (and the wife) to see.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 10th, 2007
Synopsis
Produced under the auspices of the Imperial War Museum, Stuart Cooper’s unusual film tells the story of a young private (Brian Stirner) undergoing basic training and experiencing premonitions of his death in the days and weeks leading up to the D-Day invasion. This narrative is intercut with extensive archival war footage.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 9th, 2007
Synopsis
After the apprehension of a rogue general results in the death of his mentor, officer Dan Chupong accompanies his sister and her team of athletes on a charity visit to a rural village. As luck would have it, the general’s forces attack this very village, threatening to slaughter all the villagers is the general is not released. What these villains fail to mention is that they have a nuclear missile which they plan to fire at Bangkok no matter what happens. Chupong leads the villagers and ath...etes in a desperate resistance.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 8th, 2007
OK. Everyone knows about The Blair Witch Project by now. We’re all impressed that this little independent film managed to bust out and generate enormous success. Every film student in the world is encouraged that a crude looking film can make history. So, can we all stop trying to imitate it now? The Hunt is nothing more than an obvious copy. In this case it’s a trio of deer hunters who are attempting to make a “how to” video on hunting deer with a bow. The film integrates their grainy footage with that of one of t...e members of the rescue operation. He, of course, is also documenting his search for the now missing hunters. Throw in an out of nowhere climax and you have the entire film in a nutshell. The film keeps everything that was annoying about The Blair Witch Project, but retains none of what made it original. It doesn’t take long to get really tired of the shaky grainy camera work that basically gives us nothing remotely suspenseful or entertaining. Before long, Atticus (Rusler), the group’s cameraman, plays the part of a poor man’s Mulder with no Scully for balance. I can’t imagine what is really motivating these two men to continue their romp in the woods with a 10 year old boy in tow. Whatever happens to them we tend to feel they deserve. The final reveal is a complete letdown. Not even the film’s creatures are original. Hell, they’re not even rendered competently.
Video
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 8th, 2007
In the past, I have not enjoyed this types of movie. Save the Last Dance, You Got Served, Step Up and even Drumline are all comparable to Stomp the Yard. So it goes without saying that this isn’t one of my more anticipated movies of the year. But I’m throwing all pre-conceived notions out the window, and am hoping that Stomp the Yard will take a turn away from the clichéd norm.
I don’t even know how I would classify this movie – romance, drama, musical? Regardless o... its genre, it has all those aspects included. Personally I would call this movie a comedy, not because it was funny, but because it was a joke. I’ll try not to be too harsh about this, but this movie was extremely melodramatic. I can’t believe how repetitive movies are getting these days; I’ve seen this formula been done to death. The overcoming of tragedy, just to be thrown into the face of adversity once again, only to be uplifted again leaving the whole audience inspired. This movie was bad, ridiculous even. The one thing I respected and even enjoyed about the movie was a few of the dance sequences, which were extremely complicated and impressive. In fact the only reason why I give this movie any marks at all is because of this choreography, which was entertaining to watch.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 8th, 2007
Beverly Hills 90210, although I never watched this growing up, I knew a lot of people who did. Often compared as The OC of the 90’s, the show does in fact share a lot of similarities with The OC; two popular primetime soap operas based around the posh lives of rich teens. The main difference between the two shows is the fact this 90210 lasted 9 seasons and 10 years on air, which made for a vast array of storylines and ever developing characters. Some people might not remember the show all ...hat much, but I’m pretty sure everyone remembers the teen idols that it produced which include Luke Perry and Jason Priestley. Of course the storylines are at times a little over the top, but also address serious problems that teenagers and young adults might deal with, but in an entertaining manner.
Incase you don’t know, Beverly Hills 90210 takes place in Beverly Hills, California a city known for its exclusivity ranging from shopping to housing. These elite teenagers enjoy a posh lifestyle that is a constant drama fest. From love triangles too serious issues like child abuse, divorce, and teenage pregnancy - this show has it all. In true soap opera fashion these mid to late twenty actors play seventeen year olds, but I can get past that I just thought I’d throw that out there.
![The Road Warrior [HD DVD] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-road-warrior-hd-dvd-large.jpg)
