Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 16th, 2016
There has been no shortage of medical dramas dating back to the infancy of television. Many have become classics. Most have dealt with the use of modern (at least for that time) advances and cutting-edge science. That's exactly what you get with The Knick. You get cutting-edge medical advancement... for 1902. The Knick is the fictional Knickerbocker hotel in 1900's New York. The hospital exists in a poverty-stricken neighborhood where few of the patients can pay for their care. This has been a problem the board has been trying to turn around. Now ground is being broken on a new location in a much more affluent part of New York City. It'll be an opportunity to finally turn a profit and also one of corruption for the man handling the new construction. But what of Dr. Thackery, played by Clive Owens?
We left Thackery in a rehab facility. While he is attempting to recover from his addiction, Dr. Algernon Edwards (Holland) is the acting chief of surgery. He hopes to make it permanent and continues to report pessimistically on Thackery's recovery. But it's going to be a struggle for a black doctor to be hired in such a position, particularly when the hospital is about to make its move in the hopes of attracting a more elite clientele. Edwards isn't the only one with schemes. Dr. Everett Gallinger (Johnson) does not want to serve under a black boss. In fact, he's joined a group of doctors who believe that "inferior" people should be sterilized in a twisted form of eugenics. His only hope is for Thackery to return, so he kidnaps him from the facility and keeps him on his sailboat, where he hopes to cure the addiction by making him focus on tying nautical knots. The process works so well that it pushes Thackery to change his thoughts on addiction and consider it a disease and dedicate his research to finding the cause and cure of addiction. This leads to all manner of brain experiments and a chance for the guys who do the incredible makeup effects to deliver the goods again. I even had a chance to talk with Justin Raleigh, who does many of these marvelous creations. You can check out that interview Here.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on August 15th, 2016
“Who do you think I am? Miss Marple?”
Despite his knack for becoming entangled in byzantine plots and conspiracies, no one would confuse Jack Irish for an Agatha Christie character. Instead, Jack is the creation of novelist Peter Temple, and the character's rumpled charm and general aversion to violence means he has more in common with Jim Rockford than Hercule Poirot. The character has been adapted for Australian television and brought to life thanks to a winning performance by the great Guy Pearce. You can now get to know Jack yourself since Acorn Media was nice enough to put three Jack Irish TV movies on Blu-ray.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on August 15th, 2016
Charlie “Charlie Mac” McIntyre (Terrence “Terrence J” Jenkins) is a modern lothario (not much call for that world nowadays) with a seamless ability to remain romantically unattached to the many women that he meets and sleeps with. Now before you begin to hate him, let me clarify that he is not callous, and he does have scruples. He does not date anyone that shares a connection to any of his circle of friends in order to preserve their friendship. Despite him respecting that relationship, his friends wish for him to reform his ways and settle down, something he has no intention of ever doing. Believing his actions are emotionally unhealthy, his two best friends Rick and Victor (Donald Faison and Robert Christopher) take it upon themselves to propose a bet: he must commit to one person until Victor‘s wedding, in order to prove that a prolonged period of time with one woman will not fundamentally change his perspective on relationships. Charlie accepts.
Enter Eva (Cassie), a sultry and successful woman that Charlie has a chance encounter with. Now this is where the story takes a turn. She is fully aware of the bet, and at first is not interested in participating but soon changes her mind on one condition: she is not looking for a full-blown commitment, but rather a no-strings-attached relationship. Thinking that is the perfect circumstances for him, Charlie accepts once again. With every encounter their passion and connection grow, leaving one question lingering: are they falling for one another?
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 12th, 2016
"When people see that red cape, they expect to see a certain someone. Someone they know. But this isn't his story. It's mine."
Of course, that "someone" they know is Superman. This is the story of Supergirl. We've seen her story on both the big and small screen, as well. Helen Slater put on the tights and skirt in the Richard Donner film made during the Christopher Reeves Superman years and meant to tie into that filmactic universe. When television told the story of a young Clark Kent in Smallville, it was only natural that his famous cuz would show up there. This time it was Laura Vandervoort who played the Kryptonian. It's nice to see that the new version of Supergirl pays homage to both previous incarnations of the character. Both Slater and Vandervoort have roles in the series that rise a bit above the cameo level.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 12th, 2016
James Spader is Raymond "Red" Reddington. If you have not yet watched an episode of The Blacklist I will tell you from the beginning that you just can't start here. Season 3 hits the ground running as the consequences of some major storylines from the previous year start to play out. I found myself having to take the time and catch up on Season 2 because we didn't get that year to review. It was clear to me from the start that there was no way to truly enjoy this release if I wasn't caught up. The trouble I go through to keep you guys informed. It's a tough job but someone has to do it. So, if you're not up to speed this is your chance to pick up all three seasons and do some serious binge watching. Make sure you stretch every now and again. Keep yourself hydrated and avoid the fatty/sugary junk foods. It'll be worth it because The Blacklist takes you on one heck of a three year run and I'm already looking forward to season 4. But go no farther if you're not up to speed.
If you're still with us then you know that Liz Keen (Boone) shot the country's Attorney General because he was part of The Cabal and threatened her future. She's also been framed for a terrorist attack that she did not commit. Now her partner Donald Ressler (Klattenhoff) is in charge of the task force because Cooper (Lenox) is also implicated in the crimes of Keen and Reddington. Ressler is not totally convinced she is guilty and hopes that she'll be cleared in the courts. But he is completely dedicated to bringing her in. The rest of the team is rather divided. None of them believe she is guilty and they end up being drawn in by Reddington to help behind Ressler's back. Aram (Arison) has already gone too far over the line but it has earned him the gratitude of Reddington. It's a chit he has to call in before the season ends. Samar (Marno) uses her Mossad connections to help to the point that Ressler has her fired.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on August 12th, 2016
What if you were given the chance to step back in time; would you take this opportunity to change the world, even if it meant having to kill someone for the “greater good”? This is the question that kicks off the story that is 11.22.63, from the novel written by Stephen King. Sure, merely mention Stephen King and many automatically people think of the man as the master of contemporary horror. Yet some of his prolific works that have made their way to the big screen and have gone on to be classic pieces of cinema are less about horror and more about friendship and the deepest bonds we can share with another. Stand By Me, The Shawshank Redemption, and The Green Mile are just a couple examples of King’s more profound works, and for a moment 11.22.63 could have stood right alongside these titles.
Hulu is the streaming company that set out to adapt 11.22.63 as their way to take their streaming service to the next level and begin to stream original content. When I first heard there was going to be adaptation of the book, I was far from excited; after all, most of the mini-series that had come before just turned out to be lackluster executions of the stories I loved. (Yes, even IT I felt missed the mark in several ways that had me hoping this next attempt will be better.) What gave me a little hope, though, was hearing about the involvement J.J. Abrams would have with the project, how his name alone would elevate this past Mick Garris mini-series we got throughout the 90’s. With eight episodes, would Hulu and Abrams be able to step up to the plate and deliver?
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Dan Holland on August 12th, 2016
The Boy Who Cried Werewolf (1973) is an interesting collection piece for fans of horror film. It marks the end of Universal’s long-standing tradition of double-billing B-horror films from the 1930’s onward. That being said, The Boy Who Cried Werewolf and its companion film Sssssss (1973) are the physical evidence of the end of an era. This particular release drops the double- billing tradition, which is rather confusing to me, simply because the Universal Studios distributing system’s historical relevance is worth more to me than the actual film. Outside of the context that I have provided, this film doesn’t have many interesting qualities.
Recently divorced father Robert Bridgestone takes his son, Richie, to his secluded summer cabin. While walking through the woods one night, the two are attacked by a werewolf. After a struggle, Robert is able to throw the creature off the cliff, but not before he was bitten. Now Robert must cope with this ailment in addition to the responsibilities of being a single father. The film also outlines Richie’s complex position during the ordeal. Richie tries to tell his dad about the ailment, but his dad thinks Richie has an overactive imagination. Richie doesn’t want to tell the police, for fear they may harm his caretaker.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on August 11th, 2016
“The story of the American Frontier is a tale of conquest, but also one of survival, persistence, and the grit of the people.”
And the story of the American Western is a tale of quick draw competitions, fights aboard speeding trains, and other assorted horseplay. Each of those elements can be found in Traded, which inelegantly grafts the plot of Taken onto an Old West setting. The problem is that nothing here is executed particularly well.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on August 11th, 2016
When I think of the Bible, I don’t think of northern Ontario. But there is an appetite for Christian-themed movies, and Canada is one of the most cost-effective places to produce movies. They have studios and sets up there, so it isn’t the worst idea in the world to go there to make any movie, even movies that take place in a very arid, hot, and dusty place. I have reviewed a group of Biblical films that Ted Turner produced for the TNT Network in the 1990’s. They were fairly well made, and, yes, they were made pretty close to the original locations. This new group of Biblical films is not quite up to those standards. I am reviewing The Apostle Peter: Redemption, but the same company has also produced Joseph and Mary, so we can probably expect more.Peter The Redemption follows the story of Peter (John Rhys-Davies, The Lord of the Rings I, II and III, Raiders of the Lost Ark) when he is lying in a Roman prison at the end of his life. He is still plagued by guilt for how he acted when Jesus was taken to the cross to die. The Roman Empire is ruled by the viscious and insane emperor Nero (Stephen Baldwin, The Usual Suspect, Bio-Dome). Two people, Susanna (Brittany Bristow) and Martinian (Steve Byers, The Man in the High Castle) find themselves shuttling back and forth from the court of Nero to the dudgeon of Peter. Susanna is a court servant of the empress Poppaea (Bobbie Phillips, Showgirls, Murder One). I should mention that Bobbie Phillips is playing probably the most complicated character in this film. At times she is sweet and understanding, but she also enables her husband’s numerous infidelities. Eventually she is downright despicable, which probably makes it OK that she was one of the fully nude showgirls from infamous Hollywood debacle, Showgirls. Martinian is a hardworking and honest Roman soldier who slowly falls in loves with Susanna and becomes a follower of Jesus.
I should stop now and say that this not a very good movie. I say that because most of us have a reasonable standard for what we can accept. We already know the standards have been lowered by making a Biblical movie in northern Canada. The acting is OK and mostly professional. I want to single out one person who stands out for chewing up the scenery. That would be Stephen Baldwin (one of the famous Baldwin brothers) who has been good in movies as long as he plays a mouth-breathing thug or near moronic goofball. In this case he plays a famously ruthless monster who killed somewhere between 100,000 and 1,500,000 people during his reign depending how you interpret history. That was a very healthy number back in those days. Baldwin is very central to this story and plays the part like a mafia mob boss. He looks like a bad hairdresser. The reason I say this is that it is a good example of how details of a production can accumulate and make a movie a disaster. The story also is somewhat unfocused and the production values marginal. So overall, I have to give this a low rating even though everyone involved probably had good intentions.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on August 11th, 2016
I fear our acceptance of A Haunted House has opened a door that we may never be able to close, as it would cause the disaster that is Meet the Blacks to be born. Parody films have the potential to be extraordinarily funny or incredibly bad. Can you guess what side of the scale this film falls on? Whether it be through overacting or jokes that attempted to play on every stereotype known to man, Meet the Blacks never really manages to get off the ground and make me laugh, which is equally disappointing given the sheer talent pool of comedians in the film: Mike Epps, Charlie Murphy, DeRay Davis, Lavell Crawford, Michael Blackson, Lil Duval, Paul Mooney, and the list goes on. As I said, this was a clear waste of talent.
A clear ripoff of a film which features the allowance of any crime for a predetermined period of time, the overall storyline involves Carl Black (Epps), a father with an on-the-nose name that moves his family out of the south side of Chicago after landing a lucrative contract for his wiring business, or at least that’s what his family believes. In reality, Carl stole the nest egg of a recently incarcerated drug dealer.
