Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 11th, 2011
Oh, how the rich can get into mischief. This DVD set is smack dab in the middle of Dynasty’s successful nine season run. The mudslinging, both literal and figurative, was at its height in this fifth season, and no $200 haircut or $1000 outfit was left unruffled by the various scandals and plots set into the web of these wealthy Denver residents. In fact, this season was the one and only time this series won a Golden Globe for best TV drama.
Both my age and lack of interest from the time I was between the ages of 1 to 5, when this show originally aired, betray any memories I may have of this program. Approaching it these days, I can clearly see how it was derivative of Dallas, its CBS rival (Dynasty having aired on ABC). If these wealthy folk are not in each other’s faces, they’re in each other’s beds.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on July 11th, 2011
Written by Bamboo
An old black and white movie made in 1958, Curse of the Faceless man has a familiar plot line. A stone-covered body is discovered in the ruins of Pompeii which turn out to be the remains of Quintilus Aurelius. While trying to flee Pompeii, the mummy was buried in volcanic ash and turned to stone. Carlo Fiorillo, Italian archaeologist, speculates the mummy may hold some life; medical researcher Paul Mallon dismisses the idea. But people left alone with the seemingly petrified "faceless man" keep dying of crushed skulls; and Paul's artist fiancée Tina starts having strange visions of the mummy. Even for a film made in the 1950s, the acting is terrible, and the plot is very predictable.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on July 11th, 2011
Written by Bamboo
On January 9th 2009, five college students left New York City for a weekend in the country. 48 hours later they vanished without a trace. There were no leads and no evidence ... until now. (Meaning the video we are watching was found.) You get to see the movie on a hand held camera from one of the people alone on this adventure. It’s Miriam’s 21st Birthday. Miriam’s Aunt Gail lends Miriam her beautiful country house for the weekend as her birthday present. This country house is surrounded by breathtaking mountains and miles and miles of woods. Interestingly enough there appears to be no cell phones anywhere in this movie, which I find hard to believe when five college kids take a weekend trip. I mean it can’t be that there isn’t any reception for anyone wherever this house is. Anyway, Miriam invites her college buddies Cassy, Mark, Tanya, and Leo to join her at the country house for the weekend.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 11th, 2011
The setting is a comfortably large house in the English countryside. Kin and friends have gathered for the funeral of the family patriarch bringing with them their foibles, eccentricities, and disasters waiting to happen. At the centre are the two brothers, Daniel and Troy (Matthew MacFayden and Rupert Graves). The former struggles under the shadow of his famous brother’s success as a writer, his plight encapsulated by the fact that everyone in attendance is disappointed that Troy will not be giving the eulogy. But his problems are about to become much, much greater, as the funeral descends into a chaos of unwelcome revelations, blackmail, drug freak-outs.
Director Frank Oz here rebounds from the disaster of his Stepford Wives remake with a pure slamming-door farce, and, for the most part, he succeeds. While Dean Craig’s script isn’t exactly bursting with surprises, it does have plenty of fun antics, and there are many “oh boy here comes trouble” anticipatory moments to revel. The cast is strong, with Alan Tudyk (currently essaying yet another accent to fine comic effect in Transformers: Dark of the Moon) and Peter Dinklage turning in particularly funny performances. If the shenanigans are ultimately a little familiar, think of this as the comedy equivalent of comfort food. Shepherd’s Pie may not be enticingly new, but it goes down fine all the same, and so does this.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 8th, 2011
"As the American Civil War ended, another war was just beginning. The Mexican people were struggling to rid themselves of their foreign emperor - Maximilian. Into this fight rode a handful of Americans, ex-soldiers, adventurers, criminals, all bent on gain. They drifted south in small groups. And some came alone."
Ben Trane (Cooper) was one of those who came alone. He was a southern officer fresh from the defeat of the Confederacy. He's come to Mexico to hire out for the Emperor in fighting the rebellion. Along the way he meets Joe Erin (Lancaster). After a series of unfortunate incidents, he meets up with Joe's gang. Joe figures there's more money to be made by bringing some numbers. The two soon prove themselves to the Mexican government and are hired to escort Countess Marie Duvarre (Darcel) and a wagon filled with gold to the port town of Vera Cruz. There the Countess is expected to go back to Europe and use the money to bring back more soldiers and weapons. Along the way the two men plot with the Countess to steal the money. But the Marquis Henri (Romero) is on to the plan and has laid a trap. The journey is filled with double-crosses and betrayals that will lead to conflict between the two men as their loyalties begin to widen.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on July 8th, 2011
Written by Bamboo
Johnny Cool is a black and white movie made in 1963 starring Henry Silva and Elizabeth Montgomery. The movie starts in a flashback of Sicily in 1943. Giordano, as a young boy, kills a solider in an attempt to save himself and his mother. This starts him on his path to become a local Robin Hood-like hero. Early in the movie he is chased down and appears to be killed by police and soldiers. Colini, an exiled American gangster living in Rome, fabricated Giordano’s death in order to exploit his bold, emotionless ability to take down the ones who took Colini down.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 7th, 2011
A good friend of mine and I have had long-standing difference of opinion about Black Sabbath. He has no interest in anything post-Ozzy. I continued to buy Sabbath albums though all the band’s different incarnations, and while some releases did, I confess, require a greater degree of loyalty than others, the Ronnie James Dio studio albums (Heaven & Hell, Mob Rules, Dehumanizer) have always been favorites of mine. So the events of the last few years were something of a roller coaster ride for fans of my ilk, the joy of a new album (The Devil You Know, with this configuration of the band rechristened Heaven & Hell), followed by the shock and sadness following Dio’s untimely death. This release, a record of a 2007 concert, is a fitting valediction to a great band.
The fifteen songs are a fine selection. Doubtless, each of us will miss one favorite or another. I’m sorry that “Turn Up the Night” and “Buried Alive” were left off the playlist. But I can’t complain about any of the songs that are included. All three albums are well represented, and the absolutely necessary pieces – “Mob Rules,” “Children of the Sea,” “Die Young,” “Heaven and Hell,” “Neon Knights” – are all present and correct. Also performed are two songs – “The Devil Cried,” “Shadow of the Wind” – that were (along with “Ear in the Wall”) included on the Dio Years collection and heralded the band’s return to active songwriting.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on July 7th, 2011
A high school football team has a longstanding tradition of bringing their team good luck by sleeping with virgins and then crossing their names off of a secret list. Three girls on said list figure out the football player's plan and decide to strike back with pranks and some feminist rebellion that is supposed to be inspired by Lysistrata.
First and foremost, let me immediately address any connections to Lysistrata this film claims to have. While Lysistrata is about women withholding sex from men because of they have gone to war (to put it in simple terms), Wild Cherry is more about the girls seeking revenge over a sense of humiliation that their boyfriends may not like them as much as they'd hoped. Lysistrata empowered its female characters while the three protagonists of this film are ultimately still just trying to be liked by the popular boys. The rebellion they stage builds to nothing more than a couple juvenile pranks and a lame speech made at a the most sparsely attended football match in cinematic history.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 6th, 2011
World War II has just ended, and the recently discharged Robert De Niro hits New York on the prowl for sex. He runs up against WAC Liza Minnelli, and the more she resists his advances, the more determined he becomes. There is more: he is a saxophonist, and she (of course) is a singer). So begins a tempestuous relationship between two artists whose enormous talents and equally enormous personalities mean they can neither live with nor without each other.
The idea of Martin Scorsese taking on the form of the classic musical is so bizarre that it had to happen, and here it is. Scorsese’s conceit is ingenious: all the conventions are there (the meet cute, the songs, the artificial sets and colors), but they collide with the naturalism of the performances and the emotions. A perfect case in point: wandering the streets at night, De Niro sees a sailor and his girl perform a dance together. It is a classic musical moment, but the only sound is that of a train passing. It is a scene of extraordinary beauty, grit, and cinematic truth. And it belongs in an extraordinary film.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 6th, 2011
Happythankyoumoreplease is centered on a group of twenty something New Yorkers at various levels of transition: love, career, and growing up. The film is written, directed, and also stars Josh Radnor (How I Met Your Mother). Radnor’s directorial debut showcases a colorful side of New York and a variety of colorful characters. The group of young actors all put together solid performances which is essential for an ensemble cast. This is another festival friendly film with a solid group of actors that is definitely worth a look.
All too frequently independent films are stymied by previous failures and clichés. It’s refreshing when a film utilizes prior missteps to shape its story. The multiple narrative is difficult to pull off if the characters are flat. The integral part is that the characters need to be interesting. I found myself drawn to Sam Wexler (Josh Radnor) he’s an aspiring writer that finds himself taking care of a foster child. Sam is the lead of the ensemble cast as well as the character experiences the most development. Radnor’s performance is more than just a guffaw or two. He actually demonstrates some range with his ability to show compassion as well as have some comedic timing. He is undeniably charismatic and had some chemistry with Mississippi (Kate Mara). I found Annie (Malin Akerman) to be the weakest of the cast. Throughout the film, I found myself having to get through her scenes to the more interesting storylines. Most people would chalk that disinterest up to writing. However, I feel like good actors will command the viewer’s attention whenever they are on camera and she just does not do it. As an up and coming actress, she just needs to be better.
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