Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on August 26th, 2012
The “cast” of Jersey Shore have returned from their adventures in Italy as Season 5 is back to the American location that is the show's namesake. This means a return to their familiar zones for more partying and more...talking about how they partied.
Offering up any sort of synopsis of this show would purely consist of something along the lines of: (Person) got drunk and hooked up with (Person) which angered (Person) at a party. (Person) then talked about it endlessly except to go to the gym, tan or drink. Repeat this formula for each episode for all Five Seasons.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on August 26th, 2012
The Blu-ray case for The Viral Factor — an impressive, preposterous Hong Kong action offering available Aug. 28 — proudly boasts that the film comes "From the star of The Green Hornet", possibly marking the first and last time anyone has bragged about their involvement with The Green Hornet. (Don't look at me: I'm one of the few people who really enjoyed it.) Nevertheless, you shouldn't shy away from this one just because it may somewhat be selling itself short.
While escorting a criminal scientist from Jordan to Norway, International Security Affairs agent Jon (Jay Chou, Kato in The Green Hornet) and his team are ambushed. Unfortunately, a member of Jon's team is a traitor who puts a bullet in Jon's head, kidnaps the scientist, and threatens to unleash a deadly virus on the world. Doctors inform Jon that the bullet is lodged in his brain and he only has a few weeks until it causes complete paralysis. So far, I'm thinking we've got the ingredients for a pretty solid action flick. Jon has to race against time to get revenge against his traitorous colleague Sean (Andy Tien) and save the world before his body breaks down, right? Well, not exactly.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on August 24th, 2012
My wife listens to a lot of different music. We share some bands, but we do vary quite a bit. So normally, even if I have not heard the band before, I ask my wife whenever we here at Upcomingdiscs receive a new music disc. In this case, I had already known the band but it was a curiosity for me at best. My wife I come to find out though is a huge fan of Slipknot which leads us to our music Blu-Ray review: Slipknot: (sic)nesses. Let us see what really “heavy” metal is all about.
Slipknot was formed in 1995 out of Des Moines, Iowa. The founding members were percussionist Shawn Crahan and late bassist Paul Gray. The original name of the band was actually the Pale Ones. It was only after Joey Jordison (main drummer) suggested a name change in 1995, that the real Slipknot was born. Later in the same year they began recording material at SR Audio, a hometown studio. The album was self-financed and with only forty thousand between them, things were not going to be easy.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on August 23rd, 2012
As the credits rolled for this film I struggled to remember the last time I’ve been so relieved that a movie had finally come to an end. Christian Slater and Donald Sutherland are so much better than this. Can things really be so bad that they are slumming to do this “D” grade action nonsense? I understand a gig is a gig, but these guys used to be at least marketable names to the box office. They still have the talent and swagger to steal a scene, so why subject them to this? Before I digress any further, allow me to take a breath…
Assassin’s Bullet is an action film about a female vigilante who is out to kill several members of a terrorist organization. The assassin is haunted by her past after she witnessed her parents being murdered by a suicide bomber. Sure, witnessing something as severe as this is enough to make anyone want blood, but the thing is, she doesn’t even remember what all happened that day because her memories are all repressed. With the vigilante responsible for so many bodies piling up Robert (Slater), a former FBI agent, is brought in to hunt down the vigilante and discover who they are working for. Slater just doesn’t seem into this role at all as he coasts with his charm but brings nothing more to the role. For a character that is still in love with his wife after she died a few years prior, it doesn’t take much to distract him.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 22nd, 2012
Sylvester Stallone has had his share of up and down films over the years. After suffering a bit of a career letdown in the 90's, he started the new millennium by tacking on wonderful codas for two of his most iconic characters. Both Rocky and Rambo benefited from superior sequels that brought some class and closure to the franchises. He's followed that feat with his love letter to action fans, The Expendables, and the second film in that franchise is hitting now. It's really no surprise that Lionsgate wants to get in on some of that comet ride and they've done it with a Blu-ray package of three Stallone films. The most obvious choice was First Blood, the film that launched the Rambo character. Not so obvious are Lock Up and Cop Land. Neither set fire to the box office but both really do deserve a second look. If you don't have any of these films in your collection, this is a pretty good deal.
First Blood (1982)
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 22nd, 2012
Even the best have a bad day. Look at the cover art for the Perry Mason Season 7 Volume 1 release and you'll see the unexpected newspaper headline: Burger Defeats Mason. No, this isn't a Dewy Defeats Truman grand mistake. It happened, and you get that very episode in this rather historic Perry Mason release. This is one you are absolutely going to want to have in the collection. No Mason fan should be caught dead without it.
Erle Stanley Gardner wrote crime fiction, and while many of his 100 or so works are unknown to most of us, he created a character who has become as identified with criminal lawyers as any other in fiction. It was in these crime novels that Perry Mason first faced a courtroom. He developed a style where he would investigate these terrible crimes his clients were on trial for. He would find the real killer, and in what has become a Hollywood cliché, reveal his findings in a crucial moment during the trial. While we may not remember the novels, we all remember the man in the persona of Raymond Burr. Burr had a commanding presence on our screens and enjoyed a well deserved 11-year run as the clever lawyer. What makes this run so amazing is that the show followed pretty much the same pattern the entire time. We always know what’s going to happen, but we wait eagerly for that gotcha moment when Perry faces the witness on the stand. We know when he’s got the guy squarely in his sights, and we can’t sit still waiting for him to pull the trigger. OK, so maybe that’s a little over the top, but so was Perry Mason. From the moment you heard that distinctive theme, the stage was set. To say that Perry Mason defined the lawyer show for decades would be an understatement. Folks like Matlock and shows like The Practice are strikingly similar to Perry Mason. If you haven’t checked this show out, this is your chance. See where it all began.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on August 22nd, 2012
I've said before that they just don't make action movies like they used to. I'd like to slightly amend that statement: they still make action movies like they used to, it's just a heck of a lot harder to find them. As production costs continue to rise, studios seem to be playing it safer than ever in terms of which movies get the widest releases. As a result, bloodless PG-13 flicks designed to hit as many quadrants as possible tend to grab the most screens. Put it this way: I haven't seen the new Total Recall, but I'm fairly confident there's no scene where Colin Farrell yells, "See you at the party, sweetheart!" while holding the bloody stumps of Kate Beckinsale's arms.
Battleground — an action-horror hybrid out on DVD Aug. 28 — is actually reminiscent of a different Arnold Schwarzenegger action classic.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on August 21st, 2012
I have read more than my fair share of comic books. In recent years, I made the jump into graphic novels which are basically the same thing with a fancy cover. There is also another trend that I have seen from time to time in the last several years, digital comics on dvd (and occasionally blu-ray). The concept of taking a comic, adding voices, sound effects and a little motion and coming out with a product that can reach new and old audiences. Let us take a look at Astonishing X-Men: Torn.
Some time ago, Emma Frost sits on a boat and has a talk with Cassandra Nova and asks why me? The telepath explains because Emma is a predator and that she will do what’s best for her. She also mentions that they are all going to die, millions will die within minutes. But how is Emma going to survive? A secondary mutation will be created for this benefit. Furthermore, Emma hopefully likes diamonds as we cut to the opening.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on August 21st, 2012
There’s obviously nothing funny about the atrocities committed by some of history’s most notorious tyrants. So why have these men proven to be such a surprisingly fertile source of comedy? Whether it’s (Puppet) Kim Jong-il crooning forlornly about being lonely (actually “ronery”) in Team America: World Police or Adolf Hitler being saluted by a chorus line of high-stepping stormtroopers in The Producers, there’s certainly a precedent for mocking these reviled figures. With The Dictator, Sacha Baron Cohen appears to be taking his patented inappropriateness to a new level.
Cohen — the English actor, comedian and professional provocateur — stars as Admiral General Haffaz Aladeen, ruler of the oil-rich and fictitious Republic of Wadiya. (Muammar Gaddafi and Saddam Hussein are clearly major influences.) The trick to making this sort of (potentially-abhorrent) comedy seems to be focusing on the outrageous personalities of these tyrants, rather than all the horrible things they’ve done. As a result, Aladeen is racist, sexist and too many other negative “-ists” to list, but the movie portrays him as a bearded buffoon who isn’t even remotely dangerous. (Though try telling that to the dozens of people Aladeen orders to be executed over trivial offenses.) When he is summoned by the United Nations to address concerns about his country’s nuclear program, Aladeen travels to New York, where he embarks on a life-changing journey involving a boyish feminist (Anna Faris), a severed head and a few celebrity cameos.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 21st, 2012
The show differs in several ways from NCIS or JAG. While LA is still a military show, that angle is downplayed here. The atmosphere for the team is more civilian-looking all the way around. There are seldom folks walking around in uniforms. The operations utilize more of the standard surveillance and undercover work. In the back-door pilot, the leader of the group was an agent who had history with Gibbs. Her name was Macy, and she was played by CSI alum Louise Lombard, who was gone when the series premiered in its own right. Later we are told she was killed. There's a lot more street work to be found here. That means car chases and lots of shootouts. The cases often deal with terrorists, so these guys break a lot of the rules. They don't let any silly Constitution stand in their way.
The role of head honcho went to Linda Hunt as Hetty. You might remember her as one of the prominent judges from The Practice. She plays a character with a rich back story. She appears to have once been a Hollywood costume designer and has plenty of stories about the big celebrities she knew, and hints at sleeping with. She's a strong mother hen for the group, both nurturing and demanding. The lead undercover officer is Callen, played by former Batman sidekick Robin, Chris O'Donnell. He doesn't know his first name, only that it starts with a G. He's a little Jason Bourne. He knows little of his own past but has those mad instincts and ability to think on his feet. He was orphaned and has some security issues. He moves a lot, never staying in one home more than three months. He's a natural undercover with great instincts that allow him to blend into any situation. His partner is Sam Hanna, played by rapper LL Cool J. He's a former Navy Seal with the brains to go with all of that bulk. The team also includes Kensi Bly, played by Daniela Ruah, who was born in the US but spent most of her acting career on Portuguese television shows. She's the prerequisite supermodel that it seems every cop show has to have. Fortunately, she also has solid acting chops. The character is the CSI-styled forensic expert on the team. She's the one who combs the crime scenes for those hidden clues. In season 2 her former partner Nate Getz, played by Peter Cambor, leaves the show. He is replaced by LAPD liaison Marty Deeks, played by Eric Christian Olsen. The two have better chemistry than Kensi had with Nate. There's the expected sexual tension and a lot of banter that keeps the partnership interesting. Eric Beal, played by Barrett Foa, is the tech guy of the group. He does all of that computer hacking that every show does these days. He also has a partner, of sorts. Nell Jones is played by Renee Felice Smith. She's a bright young rising star who has a lot of the same tech knowledge that Eric has.
