Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 29th, 2007
Pedro Almodévar is a big deal in Spanish film, and well respected worldwide by those in the know. Almodévar - director, screenwriter and producer - has had major success with films that explore complex themes and favor female characters. His latest, Volver, remains true to those qualities.
Starring Penélope Cruz (Vanilla Sky), Carmen Maura (Comunidad, La) and Lola Dueéas (The Sea Inside), Volver is a film about female resilience, and the power of death over life. Raimunda (Cruz) is a hardworking mother with a lazy husband and a teenage daughter, Paula. When Paula's dad drunkenly approaches her for sex, claiming he's not really her father, she accidentally stabs him to death. Raimunda, taking charge and protecting her daughter, cleans up the mess and hides his body in the freezer of her neighbor's nearby vacant restaurant, which she's supposed to be minding.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 27th, 2007
Two films in, and I am still impressed with Warner Brother's new Raw Feed line of direct-to-DVD horror films. As the direct-to-DVD market continues to grow, Warner's has jumped out in front with their new studio. The first film, Rest Stop, deftly told the story of a woman stranded at a rest stop and terrorized by a local madman. An entertaining film, but certainly not a new premise.Sublime is a much more developed story, and a very involving film.
Tom Cavanagh from TV's Ed and Love Mon...ey stars in a film that is much more psychological horror than outright terror. When George Grieves visits the hospital for a routine colonoscopy, all seems to be going well. When he wakes up, however, he discovers that the procedure was anything buy routine. I don't want to give too much away, but I can honestly say that the film pulled me in early, and didn't let me go until the last frame.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 27th, 2007
Ask anyone on the street about children and odds are they will respond that children are our hope and are the obvious future of the world. We strive to improve our lives and fight for every available right so our children can live the best possible life. Imagine a world where children have become such an absent feature of daily life that everyone gathers around the TV when one dies. Visionary master Alfonso Cuaron invites us to sit back and imagine a future that is drab, dull and lacking the brightness of a world we expect for our children.
The year is 2027 and the surrounding world seems to be down for the count with no real sign of getting up. Cities and countries around the world burn from fires and explosions. Infertility has resulted in no child being born in nearly 18 years, and Britain is controlled by such a repressive police force that it seems like an Orwellian world has resurfaced. Police forces round up illegal immigrants called Fugees throwing them inside cages for immediate deportation (some later sequences seem like concentration camps). We soon meet Theo Faron (Clive Owen), a man who isn�t really the ideal type of hero that we would think of. He tends to drink, smoke and curse quite a lot almost feeling as if life doesn�t have a point. His old girlfriend Julian (Julianne Moore) approaches him, causing Theo to be immediately thrown into a world he never thought possible for himself. What we, and Theo quickly learn, is that Theo must protect the first pregnant woman in over 18 years. In the blink of an eye Theo, the seemingly disillusioned character, has now become Theo, the last hope of the human race.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 27th, 2007
Midnight Cowboy (Awards Series) is a previous DVD version re-released with a cardboard slipcover.
"I'm walking here! I'm walking here!" Smart money says you're familiar with that quote whether you've seen this film or not. Midnight Cowboy was a hit back in 1969, and it's been referenced plenty of times in pop culture since.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 26th, 2007
Misery (Awards Series) is the 2000 DVD version re-released with a cardboard slipcover. (Cover art pictured is the 2000 edition)
Of the many films based on books by prolific writer Stephen King, Misery ranks near the top. Falling somewhere between the horror and thriller genres, this film about a twisted obsession is frightening because the premise seems very real.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on March 25th, 2007
Synopsis
Family pictures usually miss when viewed by a lonely dvd reviewer who has nothing better to do on a saturday morning. There are no kids to laugh at the bad jokes and slapstick mayhem, there are no wives to go awwwww and marvel at the cute kids. All that one man can hope for is a decent lead who provides thought provoking characterisms and smart laughs. Wait, I'm watching Are We There Yet?, so I have pretty much no chance of that. Are We There Yet? is the stor... of Nick Persons (played by Ice Cube) who just bought a Lincoln Navigator (good blatant advertising to start a film off of) and works at the local fine sports collectibles shop. One day he spots a fine woman ( Nia Long as Suzanne Kingston) and wants to ask her out until he realizes she has two kids (been there, done that) Lindsey and Kevin (played by Aleisha Allen and Philip Bolden respectively. After another brief encounter he decides to pursue her anyway and gets introduced into the friend zone. He tries to break out of the zone and is unsuccessful until an opportunity arises when somebody is needed to escort the kids to meet her in Vancouver for New Year's eve. So from there, we get Ice Cube and two terrible kids in and out of a Navigator for an hour and a half. Hilarity, mayhem and a single dvd reviewer who wishes to impale himself with blunt objects ensue.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 25th, 2007
Since its premiere in 1994, Inside the Actors Studio has been a fascinating talk show for film fans and aspiring actors, writers and directors alike. Each episode a famous guest � usually an actor � is interviewed one-on-one by host James Lipton, followed by questions from the student audience.
If you�ve never seen the show, this three-disc set would make a fine introduction. Inside the Actors Studio: Icons features episodes with four towering entertainment personalities. In chronological order, star...ing with the series� first episode, the �icons� are Paul Newman, Clint Eastwood, Barbara Streisand and Robert Redford.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on March 25th, 2007
Synopsis
As I get older, I notice my tastes for movies change. Sure, I still like over the top action and if there is an attractive girl on the screen it gets my attention. I'm human, however as I get older I start liking films that are older. Now, I'm not talking about keeping true to films of my generation but I find myself engrossed in films that were made before I was born. There are some true classics out there such as In the Heat of the Night. This movie starred Sidney Poitier ...s Virgil Tibbs and Rod Steiger as Police Chief Bill Gillespie. A murder has gone down in the little town of Sparta, Mississippi of a prominent businessman Colbert. He was going to bring hundreds of jobs to the town for both blacks and whites alike with building a new factory. Virgil Tibbs, a black Philadelphia homicide detective is merely passing through town when he gets arrested by Officer Sam Wood (played by Warren Oates) for the color of his skin. When he is brought into the police station; the mistake is realized by Police Chief Gillespie. After a call to Philly; Tibbs is coaxed into helping out the local police solve the murder. As one would suspect from the era and the locale, this movie is steeped in race relations. This was one of the last states that was truly racist (some would argue it still is)in the middle of the civil rights movement. However, the movie brings this across in such a way as a backdrop, not the forefront. This movie is basically a whodunit where solving the murder is more important than the prejudice that surrounds it.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 24th, 2007
He's one of the most compelling villains of modern fiction. Disturbing, disgusting and absolutely captivating at the same time, Hannibal Lecter can really get inside your head.
You may not have read the novels by Thomas Harris, or even seen all of the films, but I'm willing to bet you're familiar with The Silence of the Lambs. One of the greatest thrillers in film history, the film in which Sir Anthony Hopkins became Dr. Lecter is the cornerstone of this three-movie set.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 24th, 2007
Children are the future. They're why we strive to make the world a better place, or at least to maintain the world we've got. But what happens when there are no more children, when there is no future?
That's the context for Children of Men, the latest film from director phenom Alfonso Cuarén (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban). Based on the novel by P.D. James, Children of Men is set in 2027, our near future. There are no flying cars, or space-suit clothes. In fact, the world appears pretty rundown, and the reason for its shabby state is the most striking difference between our present and the film's - humankind is infertile.
