Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on July 12th, 2016
I have previously reviewed movies from the Bible Stories collection including Samson and Delilah and David. I also reviewed Abraham, which was one of the earliest stories in the Bible but not as early as Noah or, of course, Adam and Eve. The Bible Stories: Jacob (or The Bible Collection: Jacob) follows up on the story of Abraham, since Jacob is his grandson. I have also just watched The Bible Stories: Joseph which I will review later, but I mention it because Joseph is Jacob’s son.
Isaac (Joss Ackland) had two sons who were very different, Esau (Sean Bean) and Jacob (Matthew Modine). Esau is the first born and seems a natural leader. Esau is a great hunter and fighter who is pursued by many women in the area. Jacob is a shepherd who is gentle and somewhat unsure of things. Jacob is favored his mother, Rebekah (the famous Greek actress Irene Pappas, The Guns of Navarone, Zorba the Greek). Esau is the natural choice of his father, Isaac. Rebekah says that she had a vision when she was pregnant that the elder will serve the younger. Jacob is uncertain and hesitant about many things but at times seems to covet the role of heir. Esau makes a deal to give his inheritance away for porridge that Jacob is making. Time passes and Isaac grows old and blind, and it is time to pass on leadership of the tribe. He is to give his blessing to Esau. Rebekah conspires to deceive Issac and have him give the blessing to Jacob. Jacob reluctantly agrees. The plan succeeds but infuriates Esau who vows to kill Jacob when Isaac dies. Rebekah persuades Jacob to take provisions and a dowry for marriage to the land of her brother, Laban (Giancarlo Giannini, Casino Royale, Hannibal). During his journey, Jacob is robbed by one his brother’s warriors. Jacob arrives in Harran penniless. Before he arrives, though, he has a vision in which God speaks to him and tells Jacob that Jacob will always be safe and prosperous. Laban welcomes his nephew but is disappointed that he has arrived empty-handed. Jacob has already been smitten by the younger daughter of Laban, Rachel (Lara Flynn Boyle, Twin Peaks, Red Rock West, Men in Black II). Laban proposes that Jacob be an indentured servant for seven years to earn Rachel. Jacob agrees. After the seven years are over, Laban ingeniously deceives Jacob by secretly consummating a marriage in the dark to the older daughter, Leah. Jacob is furious. He has brought great prosperity to Laban’s house, and Laban proposes that Jacob can have both his daughters, but he must work another seven years to earn Rachel yet again.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 12th, 2016
"They once roamed the earth by the tens of thousands. Their whistles spoke of distant places, of adventure and romance."
No, we're not talking about dinosaurs or some other extinct animal. Of course, we're talking about the steam-engine train. I'm old enough to have ridden them myself. I had a grandfather who realized in the early 1970's that these steam trains were about to disappear. He made it a point to explain this to me and made sure I appreciated my rides from Reading, Pennsylvania (literally a train city) to Philadelphia, where my Mom was sure he was a bagman for the mob and was using me as a cover. My grandfather wasn't a bagman; we never visited any Don. We would explore the various wonders of America's birth city. We'd visit the zoo or some historic site. Often we'd take in a Phillies game or hang out at the Italian markets in South Philly. I may not remember the details of everything we did. But I never did forget riding those steam-engine trains. And my grandfather was right. They've disappeared except for amusement parks and tourist attractions. But if you want to take a ride just like I did with my grandfather, all you have to do is pick up your ticket from Shout Factory and hop aboard The Rocky Mountain Express on UHD and in the dynamic color of 4K.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on July 11th, 2016
“I’m too young and too pretty to die in the f*&$ing woods.”
Those sound like famous last words if I ever heard them. The Levenger Tapes is without a doubt one of the more intriguing thriller films that I have seen this season, featuring not only a found-footage technique but a subplot involving the authorities investigating a kidnapping case simultaneously. The thing that ties it all the together, the discovered footage, is the only tangible link to solving the other crime.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 9th, 2016
When I was a kid in the 1970's there was a weekend sports show on ABC called The Wide World Of Sports. It was a catch-all for those sports that don't have the kind of national branding of football or baseball. It was the kind of show for boxing, gymnastics, or skiing. I don't remember a single episode that I saw. What I do remember along with anyone who has ever watched it is the opening sequence. We were promised the thrill of victory... and the agony of defeat. With that last line we saw the image of a ski jumper taking a horrible wreck as he comes off the jump. In the 40 years since I still often wonder about the guy whose legacy will always be the very definition of unmitigated failure, and painful failure at that. Who in their right mind would want to be a ski jumper, I would think. Who would want to be that guy? Apparently, his name was Eddie "The Eagle" Edwards, and now he has himself a "true story" film, and it's out in 4K. Of all the things I could have been thinking as I approached this film, I'm afraid to say it was: "Is Eddie "that guy"? Will I see it in 4K? Eddie isn't "that guy", and unfortunately, Eddie The Eagle isn't even close to being "that movie".
Kingsman: The Secret Service star Taron Egerton plays Eddie Edwards. Ever since he was a young child, he dreamed of being an Olympic athlete. During the games he would stage "runaway from home's" to get to the games wherever they might be. He was a sickly child with leg issues that kept him in the hospital for a year. Still the dream lived on. It didn't matter what event, he just wanted to get there. So he takes up skiing and amasses a few ribbons and trophies but falls short of his Olympic dream when the British selection committee doesn't find he represents the right "class" of competitor. He finds a loophole in the fact that Britain hasn't had a ski-jump entry in over 40 years. Britain isn't exactly the best place to polish your ski skills. If you're thinking Jamaican bobsled here, you're not far off the mark.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on July 9th, 2016
In 1983, The Dresser was nominated for five Oscars for Best Actor for Tom Courtney and Albert Finney as well as Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Picture. In 1980, it was also nominated for Best Play in both Britain’s West End and on Broadway in New York. It is a showpiece for the best actors in the world. It revolves around two characters: a great Shakespearean actor who is struggling with the fear of oncoming mortality and his close personal servant who tries to hold his master together. It is a brilliant vehicle for any great actor. Since it first came to prominence, there have been talks about a new attempt to reinterpret the material. It has now been done for the Starz and BBC channels and is out on video. And as brilliant as the first two actors were, I was surprise how much richer this new version has made the material seem.
Sir Anthony Hopkins is Sir. Sir Ian McKellan is Norman. The person who especially impressed me was Hopkins. He has spent a number of years coasting in various roles, but in this case all sorts of reserves of shading and character emerge. He is absolutely stunning, in maybe one of the best performances of his life. That being said, McKellan shines as well in a part that is much showier in many respects.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 7th, 2016
"Never underestimate the impact of dramatic entrance!"
It's hard to maintain the attention of the 21st-century child. Animated movies have to combine enough elements of charm and action to keep their attention for a little under two hours. If you want to keep a franchise going, you have to rip out your sequels in reasonably tight schedules. It's been over four years since Kung Fu Panda 2, and we waited nearly that long between the first and second entry. That's a long time in a culture where we move from fad to fad almost by the hour. But if the films are good enough and leave enough of an impact, you might be able to bridge those years successfully. In 3-4 years you're almost targeting a new generation of your target audience. Kung Fu Panda 3 appears to have found the secret of that kind of franchise longevity.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 7th, 2016
"That's me, Mike Hanover, and I just killed a man in a taco shop bathroom. Hey, he started it. I been hiding near the border looking for The Vigilante..."
You've found him. Anchor Bay's The Vigilante actually started life as a web series. The web episodes followed the exploits of The Vigilante, played by Paul Sloan and his sidekick The Kid, played by Kevin L. Walker. It was pretty much a hyper-superhero kind of series with ramped-up action on a limited budget. Now we have a feature film version that is quite the mixture of genre films. You get a little grindhouse mixed with some Leone Spaghetti Western with extra sauce. Throw in The Expendables with a side of Deadpool. Stir in some graphic novel clichés and season it all with a bit of exploitation film violence and characterizations. The result is a film that doesn't take itself very seriously and might be good for an entertaining ride. That is, if you don't overcook the whole thing. At about 108 minutes, let's just say it was bordering on overcooked.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on July 7th, 2016
“Oh...you were expecting Prince Charming?”
Shrek really did pick the absolute perfect time to emerge from his swamp. The 2001 computer animated sensation from Dreamworks arrived just as rival studio Disney was winding down its decade-long hot streak of hand-drawn new classics like The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King. In other words, it was the ideal moment for someone to come along and take shots at cartoon musicals and fairy tales that end with “Happily Ever After.” (Shrek's biggest target, however, was probably the Mouse House itself.) But how does the movie play 15 years later? Fortunately, Fox and Dreamworks have released a new Anniversary Edition to help us figure out the answer.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on July 7th, 2016
I wrote about The Facts Of Life before (Season 7 in October 2015 and Season 8 in February of 2016). The final season (Season 9) made it one of the longest-running sitcoms up to that time. It was never a number one show, but was consistently popular over the years. There is no George Clooney (Clooney had moved on to Rosanne) in the final season, or Charlotte Rae (who was just tired and left in Season 7). The focus in Season 9 was on the four girls, Blair Warner (Lisa Welchel), Jo Polniaczek (Nancy Mckeon), Natalie Green (Mindy Cohen), and Dorothy ‘Tootie’ Ramsay (Kim Fields), because they were growing up and becoming adults. This led to the whole season being a lead-up to potential spinoffs. They did introduce a new young character, Pippa Mckenna (Sherri Austin), who was a feisty part exchange student/part runaway from Australia. Cloris Leachman returned after joining in Season 8 as the replacement house mother. Mackenzie Austin also returned as the precocious Andy Moffett. But the focus on the girls was about them growing up and moving on. Engagements, marriages, premarital sex, adult jobs, college, and moving to new locations were part of the main storylines of the final season. The Facts of Life was originally a spinoff of the popular Different Strokes. The whole focus of the final season was could The Facts of Life be spun off? One episode had Natalie moving to New York to live with roommates including Richard Greco and David Spade. In another episode, Blair purchases their old school, Eastland, which included student cast members Juliette Lewis, Mayim Bialik, and Seth Green
All the girls were essentially adults and all had serious boyfriends. We finally got to see the mysterious Snake (Robert Romanus from Fast Times at Ridgemont High), the fabled boyfriend of Natalie, which was the focus of the parental warning episode. Jo developed a relationship with a somewhat unstable former pianist, Rick Bonner (Scott Bryce), which bounced in uncomfortable directions. Blair seemed to finally find a match in someone who was her complete opposite, Casey Clark (Paul Provenza), but eventually her somewhat inflexible nature seemed to work against her. ‘Tootie’ seemed to have a secure sense of herself and pursued her dreams of marriage and career in a clear-headed manner.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on July 6th, 2016
“Hello boys…I’m baaaaaack!”
You probably know that Independence Day — the spectacular, shameless sci-fi smash that introduced the world to “Will Smith, Global Superstar” — dropped a sequel last month. What you may not know is that the original film has been granted a 20th Anniversary Blu-ray and UHD release. I was 13 when ID4 came out in the summer of 1996, which means the movie’s deluxe destruction and alien shoot-em-up antics were right in my wheelhouse. So I was curious as to how an older and wiser, um, taller version of me would feel watching it with a critical eye.
