Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on January 7th, 2016
I previously reviewed season 4 of The Nanny, and now it’s time to review season 5. If you are interested in the overview on everything about The Nanny and season 4 in particular, then you will have to go back and look for that review. This all about season 5, which I might suggest is the climax of the 6-season series, for whatever that’s worth. The relationship between Fran Fine and Maxwell Sheffield had been on a slow burn for four seasons, but the time was coming for a reckoning. Will Fran’s persistence and patience pay off? I don’t want to make this too dramatic, since The Nanny is probably one of the silliest sitcoms ever made, and that’s taking into consideration that there are hundreds and hundreds of silly sitcoms. But The Nanny also had a heart, hidden, frequently, under a garish exterior. When I say garish exterior, I am describing some of the most startling and colorful outfits ever worn this side of a circus. These outfits were frequently explosions of color. Fran Fine, or actress Fran Drescher, was always very attractive, despite crazy hairdos and a signature foghorn voice. The show was supposed to be about a clash of cultures, with Mr. Sheffield depicting the height of sophistication and Fran representing the brash lower class.
The whole thrust of the entire series was that Fran saw the opportunity to marry up into the upper class. As a nanny, Fran was a surrogate mother figure for Mr. Sheffield’s three children. At one point in season 5, we see the late Mrs. Sheffield (Bess Armstrong) come back to talk to Maxwell about his desire to marry again. She gives her approval, because she wants his happiness. When I say there was a heart to the show, Fran was always a well-intentioned person ultimately, and a positive influence on the children. When the time came to be honest and truthful, she ultimately always was. Like Lucille Ball before her, Fran could be ditzy and somewhat deceptive, but she always showed a good nature and positive character. I say that this season was climactic, and that should already be known to fans of the show. The whole point of this staggered DVD release is for those fans who are nostalgic for the show and want to add it to their collection.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 6th, 2016
Between 2002 and 2008 Jason Statham made a name for himself playing Frank Miller in three Transporter films. Miller was a former special ops expert who became a high-end black market transportation expert. He used his skills to transport anyone or anything from point A to point B for a hefty fee. He had a few rules that governed his business: the deal never changes once it's made, no names, and he doesn't want to know what he is transporting. The business made for some nice action films that gave Statham a chance to show off that particular skill set. The films brought in a modest box office, averaging around $35 million each. It was barely enough to keep three films going in the franchise. It all ended in 2008, and Statham moved on to bigger and sometimes better things. That should have been the end of the story. It isn't.
Editor-turned-director Camille Delamarre decided to take a run at a reboot, of sorts. Game of Thrones actor Ed Skrein takes over the Frank Miller role, and the film picks up the character already established. It's a grey area on what to call Transporter: Refueled. It's not entirely a reboot. The character is established, as are the rules and general formula. But it is a rather new take on the material. Unfortunately, there's not a lot of heart in this attempt, and the wheels might have gone completely flat on this franchise.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Dan Holland on January 6th, 2016
There is so much to enjoy when it comes to Mercury Plains. It is the first time I have seen Scott Eastwood in a starring role, Nick Chinlund provides a brilliant performance as the philosophical Captain, and each of the characters are engaging. To be clear, Scott Eastwood is the main character of the film, but his comrades have very interesting character arcs that make them unique. In fact, I think that is what I enjoyed the most from this film: the details that are not spoken directly to the audience. There are so many instances where the details in the character arcs (even Eastwood’s) are so minute, you could very well miss them.
Mercury Plains tells the story of Mitch (Eastwood), a young man who has just been released from a prison in southern Texas. Rather than begin working for his family, he finds himself confronted with a lucrative “opportunity” after a night spent drinking across the border in Mexico. A man known as the Captain (Chinlund) is prepared to offer Mitch five thousand dollars to join his crew of mercenaries, taking out the drug cartels before police have a chance to. Soon, Mitch realizes this crew is comprised of troubled teenagers, housed in a military-like camp. As the Captain begins to send the young men on new missions, Mitch realizes his objectives are becoming more dangerous, and more criminal.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on January 6th, 2016
Scott Adkins is one of those actors that I’m surprised hasn’t quite hit the mainstream success he deserves. In the late 80’s and 90’s this is a guy who would have been an action superstar who would have crushed such icons as Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren. It seems that somehow Adkins has been lost amongst the glut of superhero films; he’s one of the true great tough guys who even does most of his own stunts, which is surprising, since some actors these days can’t function on set without their own personal chef and have stand-ins when their face is not on screen. Close Range is the new release for Adkins that once again shows off his martial arts skills while leaving a high body count in his wake.
Close Range kicks things off in high-action fashion as Colton Macready (Adkins) goes on a one-man rescue mission to save his niece from the clutches of some Mexican drug dealers. In the process of rescuing Hailey (Madison Lawlor), Colton accidently pockets a flash drive that contains some highly sensitive information for the drug cartel. The theft of this drive causes the head drug lord Fernando Garcia (Tony Perez) to send out all his top men to retrieve the drive by any means necessary.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 4th, 2016
If you were a child in the 1960's or 1970's, you were around at the golden age of the Christmas television special. We just celebrated the 50th anniversary of A Charlie Brown Christmas, and there were a ton of holiday charms that came and went each year. But there were a handful that became classics and found their way to the airwaves every year in December. Of course, A Charlie Brown Christmas became one of these, and it is indeed among the best. It was not the only special to become beloved by generations of viewers. Now Dreamworks has brought together seven of the most memorable of these classics. This was a wonderful trip down memory lane for me, as it will be for millions of children of all ages who looked forward to these event broadcasts each and every year. Now you can watch them whenever you want. And they might not be just for Christmas anymore.
Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on January 4th, 2016
Over the years it’s become a bit of a trend to read headlines discussing a pit-bull attack. Sure, it’s been known to be an aggressive breed, but I tend to be in the camp that believes it’s the owner who truly reflects a dog’s behavior. Another unsettling trend that has been in the news lately is the abuse inflicted upon these animals, whether it is to “toughen” the dog up for fighting or simply that the dog was an unfortunate object that a person decided to unleash their cruelty upon. I note this not to attempt to make any social commentary, but instead to set up this film that tackles both sides of the coin when it comes to pit bulls, and it just so happens to be based upon a true story.
Donna (Emmanuelle Vaugier) and Roy (Burgess Jenkins) Lawrence are a happy married couple with a newborn on the way. Life couldn’t get better for the Lawrence family as they are preparing the bedroom for what is expected to be their first child. In the neighborhood there is a dog that is barking, so Donna and her neighbor go to investigate; they find a pit bull that has been tied to a tree with no food and water and owners that are unaccounted for. In an act of kindness, Donna goes to feed the dog the next day and is viciously attacked. Not only does she lose the baby, but complications make it impossible for Donna to ever have children again. The recovery alone is enough drama to fill a movie as Donna struggles with depression and Roy is overcome with anger issues of his own.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 4th, 2016
"Let's be careful out there!"
The final season of Hill Street Blues arrives from Shout Factory. I think it's likely you already have the full series collection. If not, this isn't really the place to start. Over the course of seven years you really get a chance to get to know these characters. You see them evolve both as actors and characters. Yes, it all comes together with one of the better season finale episodes in television history. You just can't deny yourself a chance to see it all. Last year I took that journey once again and binged the entire seven seasons, and I'm up for it again. In case you missed what there was to say about the show...read on.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on January 4th, 2016
At this point, the most shocking M. Night Shyamalan-related twist would be for the director to make a movie that people actually enjoyed. (The “M.” stands for “maligned,” right?) Hopes weren't exactly high when it was announced Shyamalan — who was once fated to become either “the next Hitchcock” or “the next Spielberg” — would be dabbling in the fading found footage genre. So imagine my surprise to find that The Visit — a broad, nutty mix of comedy and horror — is the director's loosest, most playful effort since Signs. It's also his first (subjectively) non-terrible flick in about a decade.
We meet a harried single Mom (Kathryn Hahn) as she prepares to send her two children on a week-long trip to meet her estranged parents. Becca (Olivia DeJonge) is a 15-year-old aspiring filmmaker who decides to document the experience of meeting her grandparents on camera; she also wants to find out the reason Mom had a falling out with them. Tyler (Ex Oxenbould) is a 13-year-old freestyle-rapping, germophobic goofball who enjoys undercutting his older sister's self-seriousness. The pair take a train to the rural Pennsylvania town where their mother grew up and are met at the station by Nana (Deanna Dunagan) and Pop Pop (Peter McRobbie), who take the kids back to their dilapidated farmhouse.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on January 4th, 2016
It’s been a long wait for those of us wanting to see Eli Roth’s return behind the camera since Hostel 2 hit the screens. I’ve been more than a little excited since hearing about Roth’s plans to bring the cannibal genre to its jungle roots. It’s been long enough since audiences have been shocked by the ferocity we haven’t seen from the genre since Cannibal Holocaust and Cannibal Ferox. Sadly, the intentions were there, but the execution just fell short. Instead of getting the shock and gore we’ve come to expect since Cabin Fever and Hostel 1&2, this time around we get a film that feels a little restrained.
Justine (Lorenza Izzo) is a college freshman who desperately feels the need to protest against the injustices in the world but hasn’t quite found a cause worth fighting about. That is, until in one of her classes the subject of female circumcision is brought up. It’s a subject that offends and disgusts, and it’s one of Roth’s moments to interject his “agenda” upon the audience. Though for most viewers they will simply pick up on this scene as being a way to foreshadow some of the brutality to come.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on January 4th, 2016
“This road is like a magnet for serial killers.”
There's a difference between paying tribute and ripping somebody off. Wrecker — a high-speed, low-budget actioner — bills itself as “an homage to road classics like Duel.” Unfortunately, that's far from the only nod to Steven Spielberg's 1971 thriller. Wrecker rehashes every significant story beat from Duel, except with a lot less filmmaking skill and a pair of infinitely more annoying protagonists.
