Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on October 29th, 2013
Every once in a while a film comes along that looks like it could be interesting, but you don’t really expect to like it all that much. It’s simply meant to be filler, something to kill time until something better comes along, but somehow you get drawn in and become so engrossed in the story that you forget everything else. That is the most apt description of my experience with The Way, Way Back, a socially awkward dramedy with a ton of heart featuring Steve Carrell, Sam Rockwell, Toni Collette, Liam James, and many more.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on October 29th, 2013
Independent films can be about just about anything. Usually if it's about something you have never seen before, that can be a good thing. In this case, I'm not so sure. Free Samples is a movie that takes place almost entirely in and around a crappy little van giving away a cup of either chocolate or vanilla ice cream or at least something that resembles ice cream as far as we know. Free Samples is an existential comedy about the search for meaning when you step away from a future that looked very bright in search of who knows what.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on October 28th, 2013
Those of us who love horror movies can remember the first great scare we ever got. (To be fair, those of you who hate horror movies probably remember the first scare you ever got too, since it’s probably why you stopped watching them.) Stephen King’s It wasn’t my first scary flick, but the image of Tim Curry’s Pennywise coaxing poor Georgie into the storm drain seared itself into my brain and became my original childhood freak-out. What I enjoyed most about All Hallows’ Eve is that it tapped into the unique impact a genuinely scary clown movie can have.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on October 27th, 2013
With Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness and Dragons: Riders of Berk, it would seem only fitting that Monsters vs. Aliens would get an animated series of its own as well. Nickelodeon seems to know what they are doing by mass producing these hit DreamWorks animated films and bringing them to the small screen. The biggest shock is that in doing so they’ve managed to maintain the quality on a story level as well as animation level while under the budget constraints of having to produce multiple episodes as compared to one feature film.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on October 26th, 2013
Welcome kids to another 31 Nights of Terror spectacular. This time, the legendary (in his own mind) Michael Durr has descended from the rafters to bring you another cult classic blu-ray presentation. This time we explore 1982 Wes Craven adaption of Swamp Thing. Shout Factory has produced an excellent blu-ray for us to watch. As with most of the Scream Factory work that Shout does, this should be quite the treat. Let us continue and go forth with one wicked green monster.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on October 25th, 2013
Nicolas Winding Refn is a director who may not be a household name but is easily one of the most unique directors working at this time. With films like Pusher, Bronson, and Valhalla Rising, he has managed to make a name for himself for doing artistic films filled with beautiful visuals as well as intense violence. It was the film Drive, though, that most people know him for. I was already a fan of Refn going into Drive, and for me it is one of the best films I’ve seen in the past decade, where the film is a rare piece of perfection that broods with atmosphere and simply captivates me from the opening frame to the closing credits.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on October 25th, 2013
Hugh Laurie is not the first — and he certainly won’t be the last — actor who decided he wanted a career in music too. The move might come as a surprise to people who primarily know Laurie from his sterling eight-year run as the misanthropic title character on House M.D. (Though not if you watched the show carefully.) In the past, Laurie has rocked out with some of his small-screen comrades for charity. But it turns out that after eight years of playing one of the crankiest characters in television history, Laurie was ready to sing the blues.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on October 25th, 2013
Well, this is a new one for me; usually when I see a movie about a couple being abducted it generally involves a couple backpacking their way through Europe, but in this case, a good old-fashioned trip to Hollywood has become hazardous. No complaints about the change of locale, however, because it actually makes for great contrast from films with similar premises. Abducted does a good job building suspense towards a conclusion that I would have never guessed.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 25th, 2013
It appears that Kevin Sorbo has shed his heroic image for that of the direct-to-video family film. Back in 2009 we interviewed the actor for another horse film called Tommy And The Cool Mule. Interestingly enough, Storm Rider also involves a mule. He appears quite comfortable with the change. And while he's not playing the kind of heroes he did in Hercules or Andromeda, he has been working quite a bit in these smaller productions. I'm sure that the fans would love to see him once again in the larger-than-life roles that made him famous. For now you'll have to settle for heartwarming and small-budget. For now, you'll need to settle for Storm Rider.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on October 25th, 2013
The right honorable 5th Baron Haden-Guest is a well known multi-hyphenate. He is probably best known as Nigel Tufnel who likes to turn things up to 11. He is also renowned as Count Tyrone Rugen, the evil six-fingered man. He has also been called Corky St. Claire, Herb Minkman, Rajeev Vindaloo, Senor Cosa and Harlan Pepper, but only when he has the appropriate costume. He is married to Jamie Lee Curtis, and she likes to be called the baroness.
