Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on October 8th, 2013
Caroline Esmeralda van de Leeuw didn’t know she was a jazz singer until somebody told her. Growing up in Amsterdam, she was too lazy and impatient to properly learn how to play an instrument. Fortunately, she was blessed with a sultry, soulful and sassy singing voice. Caro Emerald has used that voice to smash chart records in the Netherlands. Earlier this year, her second album, “The Shocking Miss Emerald”, reached #1 in the United Kingdom. And that’s where she happened to be when I was introduced to her funky brand of jazz.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on October 8th, 2013
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It's funny. It's a funny show. That's kind of a big thing for a sitcom. It's good at comedy. You wouldn't think that would need to be said, but it does. I've seen many sitcoms which were like death. They were boring, uncomfortable and unfunny. I've seen many sitcoms that are a joyless exercise executed by unfunny people who have no clue on how to make a funny show. It actually isn't the easiest thing in the world to do unless you have the knack for it. You kind of have to be able to loosen up and kind of go for it. You kind of have to get real and go crazy. New Girl is that kind of show.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on October 7th, 2013
“This story is based on a remarkable but true incident that took place in Africa in 1913 before the Great War, when the world was very different.”
The moviemaking business was also drastically different in 1976, the year this British, pre-WWI romp was released. Today, the risk-averse film industry has made large-scale adventures like Shout at the Devil — starring big personalities trekking across even bigger locations — all but extinct. I get that greenscreens and CGI are more cost-effective. But a movie’s ability to transport its audience gets an extra jolt when we know we’re looking at the real thing.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on October 6th, 2013
You know, it’s odd, I had the strangest feeling of déjà vu while watching V/H/S 2. Just kidding, and that feeling is probably due to the fact that I wrote the review for the original V/H/S. In my original review I spoke about the history of the found-footage technique; this time around I think I will address the fine line that must be walked to make a successful sequel. See, the trouble with sequels is that they tend to stray too far away from what attracted people to the original. The key is to maintain enough of original that attracted the first audience, all the while also providing enough difference to bring in a new crowd. Challenging, isn’t it?
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on October 5th, 2013
Have you ever watched a movie that is so insane that when it ends you’re stuck on your couch wondering what just happened? Adam Chaplin: Violent Avenger did just that, and as it turns out, that is not such a bad thing. The film is such a mash-up of crazy visuals and violence, it’ll leave your mind rattled for some time just trying to make sense of it all. This is pure splatter cinema straight out of Italy where the gore runs red and by the buckets.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 4th, 2013
There's a saying that in the land of the blind the one-eyed man is king. No one would have expected that a one-eyed man could become the king of 3D. But that's exactly what happened with House Of Wax. The film has become one of the definitive films in the 3D format. To look at it on Blu-ray now, it holds up quite nicely in a day where 3D has become almost passé. Still, it's hard to believe that Warner Brothers would choose a man with only one eye to shoot their 3D film. That man was Andre' De Toth
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on October 4th, 2013
Although he’s only mentioned briefly in the Bible, the man known as Barabbas was a key figure during the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. According to the Gospels, Pontius Pilate gave the crowd in Jerusalem the choice of either sparing Jesus’ life or saving the rebel/thief Barabbas during Passover. (No “Spoiler Alert” necessary; I’m sure you can guess which one they picked.) Since very little is known about Barabbas, his life story has basically been transformed into the first documented case of “survivor’s guilt.”
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on October 3rd, 2013
It’s only the first of October, and already the Christmas spirit is being thrust upon us. It’s not that I’m trying to be a Grinch about it, but for me my true Christmas is in October when we get to celebrate the ghouls and goblins that lurk in the shadows. But I did what I could not to let the season we’re in get in the way of a movie; after all, Die Hard was a Christmas movie in the summer; same goes for Iron Man 3. Sure, those are action titles, but they are still great no matter what time of year you watch them. So perhaps So This Is Christmas may turn out to be this under-theradar gem that will surprise me.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 3rd, 2013
All good things must come to an end, and so it was at Walt Disney Studios. The Golden Age of feature film animation had started with Snow White And The Seven Dwarves in 1937. By the end of the 1970's it was all but gone. As the studio entered the 1980's the things had gone from bad to worse. Walt was gone, and so it seemed was the magic. Most of The 9 Old Men had either retired or passed away. The studio leadership was considering closing the animated studio and moving on to live-action films only.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on October 3rd, 2013
“What makes a song beautiful is not always the quality of the voice but the distance that voice has had to travel.”
Well said, Mrs. Redgrave, well said. I should broach this subject early; I am not a fan of musicals or musically-themed films. That said, Unfinished Song is much more than a musical; it is a tale of an emotionally crippled man who has only formed one meaningful connection and about what you do when you lose that connection: do you lie down and die, or do you find a median to that will allow you to form new connections?
