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Sci-Fi / Fantasy

Mothra vs Godzilla

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on April 2nd, 2007

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A ferocious typhoon washes up a giant egg on Japan’s coast. Unscrupulous entrepreneurs lay claim to it, planning to exploit it as a tourist attraction. The egg in fact belongs to Mothra, now nearing the end of her life cycle, and the twin fairies from Infant Island come to Japan in the hopes of having the egg returned. No such luck, but when Godzilla returns and begins another rampage, this time it is the inhabitants of Infant Island who are turned to for help in the hopes that Mothra will come to Japan’s aid.
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Children of Men

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 24th, 2007

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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 CuarÃ©n (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.
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Eragon

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 21st, 2007

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Eragon is based upon the best selling book, which was written by then nineteen-year-old Christopher Paolini. This film was met with much hype, but initially to me seemed to be another generic Lord of the Rings type rip-off, with the addition of a dragon. Not usually my type of movie, but The Lord of the Rings trilogy did more that just amaze me maybe Eragon has a trick or two up its sleeve.
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Superman II – The Richard Donner Cut (HD DVD)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 27th, 2007

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There’s definitely no doubt in my mind that the Superman films, particularly the first two, will always be remembered as excellent pieces of film not only because they introduced the world to the late, great Christopher Reeve but also because they’re simply great films. When word first came around that Superman director Richard Donner had filmed an ENTIRE version of the 2nd film only to have it scrapped at the last second, the interest of fans immediately piqued. What was so risquÃ© about the Donner cut that made Warner Brothers basically shelve the film for some 20+ years? Well thanks to renewed interest in the Superman stories via Superman Returns, Warner has finally decided to let fans see for themselves what Donner’s visionary ideas were all about by showing us his cut of Superman II.
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Superman II – The Richard Donner Cut

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 13th, 2006

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The 1978 Superman film set the standard for what a quality comic hero film should be. The tagline promise: “You will believe a man can fly” was kept. All future comic films would be judged by this standard. Superman II had its faults. Certainly it was not the modern classic like the first film. The plot was bogged down with a rather silly love story that broke down the barriers of the Kent/Superman identity for Lois Lane. Luthor, while played again with style by Gene Hackman, is reduced to a comedic backseat to the real villains.
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Forbidden Planet

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 22nd, 2006

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Few science fiction films of the 1950’s left as much of an impact as Forbidden Planet. Gene Roddenberry often cited the film as the birth of Star Trek. It is in this film that he took away the interactions of an interstellar craft’s bridge crew. Even the United Planets organization in Forbidden Planet heralds Trek’s United Federation of Planets. Robby the Robot would become a science fiction icon and lead to a great number of copycats, most notably the Lost In Space robot. Robby even made a cameo on that show. MGM …
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12 Monkeys (HD DVD)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 30th, 2006

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12 Monkeys tells the story of a man named James Cole (16 Blocks Bruce Willis) who is sent back in time from the year 2035 to the year 1996 in hopes of saving the human race from a deadly virus which has forced mankind into total seclusion from the above world. Down below the ground, they live in communities hoping one day to come out and start a new world. Once he arrives, Cole encounters a patient named Jeffrey Goines (Troy’s Brad Pitt) and a psychiatrist named Kathryn Railly (We Were Soldier…
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X3: X-Men – The Last Stand

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 11th, 2006

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The third entry into the X-Men franchise turned out quite a bit better than I expected. Early script turmoils were only overshadowed by cast problems. It seemed the bottom fell out when Bryan Singer decided to take on The Man of Steel instead of X3. Enter Brett Ratner, best known for the Rush Hour films. Give the man credit for overcoming a ton of problems to deliver a pretty good thrill ride film. Ratner adapted quickly to the f/x driven world of X-Men and managed to fashion a rather compelling tale. The idea of a…
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This Island Earth

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 5th, 2006

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By the middle of the 1950’s Universal was playing out its long string of monster movies that started over 20 years earlier with Dracula and Frankenstein. In the next year their last iconic monster would take its last bow in The Creature Walks Among Us. This Island Earth was a bit of a crossover film. Like many of the alien invasion films of the 1950’s the film capitalized on the growing belief that we were not alone. Contrary to the DVD’s misleading box art, these aliens were here to find answers to their own survi…
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Ultraviolet

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 6th, 2006

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There is no shortage of vampire stories out there. There’s certainly no shortage of kick butt chicks dressed as sparsely as possible running around in depressed future populated worlds. Underworld, without a doubt, does the combination better than anyone. Ultraviolet makes a grand attempt that really ends up being more of a ride than anything else. Now, I can usually follow the most convoluted storylines, but this one gave me some trouble. It seems that while trying to create a super soldier (where is Mulder and Scully when you need them) the government made a big oops and created something akin to a vampire.
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Aeon Flux

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 2nd, 2006

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Synopsis

Over 400 years in the future, the remnants of humanity live in one last city. This is under the total control of the Goodchild regime. Innocents are constantly disappearing. The government is fought by the Monican resistance, and super-assassin Aeon Flux (Charlize Theron) is sent to assassinate supreme leader Trevor Goodchild. At the moment of her victory, however, she hesitates, and it soon becomes apparent that nothing is as she though it was.

This financial dud is unlikely to be…
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Battle for the Planet of the Apes

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 25th, 2006

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Battle For The Planet Of The Apes was the last of the original Apes films. It has been far too frequently maligned. While I will admit that some of the high concepts are a little too undisguised, there was still some life left in the franchise. Of course, the novelty had worn off by now. It didn’t help that the films’ budgets kept falling as Fox was looking for cheaper ways to sell the same ideas. “Battle” was a violent film, but it was really a film about peace and the violent rite of passage often necessary to ac…
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Babylon 5 – The Legend of the Rangers

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on March 28th, 2006

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Where is Chuck Norris when you need him? The Rangers alluded to in this Babylon 5 film aren’t anything like Walker’s bad boys. These Rangers talk tough but are pretty much dull when it comes to action. The problem with Babylon 5 has always been the convoluted and complicated mythology of the show. I’m a huge science fiction fan who has always wanted to get into this show but just couldn’t wrap my mind around the premise. The Rangers are no exception to this flaw. These guys are charged with basically protecting the…
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Godzilla (Monster Edition)

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 24th, 2006

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Synopsis

French nuclear testing (?!) in the Pacific leads to the mutation of iguanas (!?), and giant one makes its way to New York to nest. Scientist Matthew Broderick hooks up with old-flame TV journalist Maria Pitillo and French secret service guy Jean Reno to try to stop the rampage.

You’ll note that I did not refer to the giant iguana as “Godzilla.” The monster in question here, designated by Toho studios as “Zilla” and known in Godzilla fandom under the name GINO (“Godzilla In Name Onl…
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Mirrormask

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 3rd, 2006

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Neil Gaiman’s Mirrormask is just the sort of mixed bag I expected. While parts are mesmerizing and the performance of Stephanie Leonidas is a joy in itself, the plot fails to make room for credibility when it’s desperately needed. The holes left behind from this weak story cause the film to masquerade as art while carefully avoiding admission to what it really is – a product of sloppy writing. Gaiman is a talented scribe, but with Mirrormask, he’s dangerously close to believing his own hype. Judging fro…
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Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 28th, 2006

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Utter the simple phrase of Harry Potter to any age, and it is nearly guaranteed that they will know what you are speaking about. Since becoming a worldwide phenomenon in 1999, the Harry Potter series have been turned into everything from video games to bathing products. Most notably, the series have been turned into a set of excellent films that are successful, for the most part, in recreating the major elements presented in the novels by author J.K.Rowling.

With this being the fourth film in the series of …
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Dune

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 21st, 2006

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David Lynch’s Dune has an extremely odd past, which some might say is just how David Lynch likes it. This cult classic came out in 1984 to the joy of sci-fi fans everywhere. Some time after the film’s release, the studio tried to get Lynch to take all of the extra footage that he had shot for the film, and re-cut the product into an extended TV-appropriate film. Lynch refused, but since the studio already owned the footage, they went ahead and cut it together themselves. The result is an “Alan Smithee” directe…
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X-Files: Fight the Future

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 18th, 2005

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Synopsis

After years of answering questions running along the lines of “When are you guys going to make a movie?” X-Files creator Chris Carter and stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson decided, in lieu of taking the time off between TV seasons 4 and 5, to go ahead and start production on a feature-length movie and a place in the summer blockbuster arena.

As a more than casual fan of the show, but not delving into the hardcore fan area, I’ve got to say I was somewhat disappointed with this prod…
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Serenity

Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 16th, 2005

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Synopsis

The oppressive Parliament controls human civilization, willing to engage in any atrocity for the sake of a dubious greater good. A teenage girl, developed as a psychic super-weapon and traumatized by some mysterious event, is broken out of Parliament custody by her brother, and the two become part of the fractious crew of the mercenary ship Serenity. This crew is made up of veterans of independent colonies who fought in an unsuccessful war against the Parliament. Captain Malcolm Reynolds is …
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Godzilla: Final Wars

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 11th, 2005

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Synopsis

In Antarctica, Godzilla battles the Gohten-go (an earth-drilling/submarine/flying ship familiar from Ataragon), and winds up buried after an earthquake. Flash-forward to the near future after a superb credit sequence by Kyle (Se7en) Cooper, and monsters are suddenly attacking cities all over the world. Humanity is apparently saved by the extraterrestrial Xilians, who zap the monsters away. Of course, it turns out the Xilians are up to no good, and were controlling the monsters …
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Stargate

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 11th, 2005

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Stargate is something of a cult phenomenon among sci-fi buffs. It is so popular, in fact, that it produced not one, but three spin-off TV shows. It is amazing that the big business of the Stargate franchise started with a quirky little film. Now there are some big fans of this movie that will surely have strong words of disagreement for me, but this is really not a very good film. The premise alone is enough to make most moviegoers roll their eyes.
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Fantastic Four

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 7th, 2005

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Scientist Reed Richards (Ioan Gruffudd) wants to study the effects of cosmic rays, but he needs a lot of money to do. After searching for the money practically everywhere, he turns to his old college rival Victor Von Doom (Julian McMahon). Naturally we need to have some type of love triangle going on. Enter Sue Storm (Jessica Alba) and the equation is complete.

Victor needs to make money off of this because he doesn’t seem to have enough despite being a billionaire. He agrees to finance the project only if …
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War of the Worlds (1953)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 23rd, 2005

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Aliens have sent super machines to Earth. The intent is obvious. They want to remove the human infestation and relocate from their own dying world. Independence Day, right? Wrong. Almost 50 years before Rolland and Emerich pitted mankind against killer aliens, George Pal brought us a wonderful interpretation of the famous H.G. Wells novel, War of the Worlds. Although not as faithful to the source material as a Wells fan might have hoped for, Pal created a classic film with groundbreaking f/x for the 1950’s.
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War of the Worlds (2005)

Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 19th, 2005

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Ray Ferrier (Tom Cruise) is a middle-aged divorcee with a blue-collar job and a rundown home in the New Jersey suburbs. When his ex-wife unexpectedly drops his estranged kids—ten year old Rachel (Dakota Fanning) and sixteen year old Robbie (Justin Chatwin)—off for the weekend, Ray is less than pleased. He’s always struggled with his parental duties, but now finds it increasingly difficult to communicate with his children. However, events beyond his control are about to force Ray to come to terms with his responsibili…
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Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith

Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 13th, 2005

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A long time ago in a galaxy far far away…

It was really 1977 and as close as your neighborhood theatre. Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Darth Vader, and Princess Leia captured our imaginations and have never let go. Star Wars has become nothing less than a modern mythology. No one can deny that George Lucas changed how we see films forever. It doesn’t matter if you’re a Star Wars fan or even watch science fiction as a whole. Movie making changed in 1977. Lucas continues to shape the industry with the f/x empire he built on Star Wars.
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