Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 11th, 2019
"A clean girl is always attentive and dutiful. A clean girl embraces obedience. A clean girl is always humble and patient. A clean girl embodies sweetness. A clean girl is always temperate. A clean girl is honest and forthcoming. A clean girl gives the school loyalty."
... and is thrifty, healthy, and wise. Watching the beginning of Level 16 reminded me a little bit of that Boy Scout Oath we used to stand and deliver in the gymnasium of Saint Margaret's when I was a young teenager. There are also several aspects of the film that reminded me a little of the disciplined regiment at Saint Margaret's Elementary School. But there's something more sinister afoot at Vestelis Orphanage than a few sadistic nuns packing yardsticks or a scout leader who smelled of stogies.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on May 11th, 2019
I’m not a big fan of documentaries, and this one did nothing to disabuse me of that feeling, as the focal point of the documentary is not exactly a pleasant individual when he is not wallowing in self-deprecating despair, though he does have one thing going for him, an imaginative and elegant ability to create beloved and award-winning animation. Hayao Miyazaki has been heralded as one of Japan’s greatest animation directors. His notable works included Princess Mononoke, which was the first animated film to win the Japan Academy Prize for Picture of the Year; his film Spirited Away took home the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature at the 75th Academy Awards, and the critically and commercial successful Ponyo, as well as many others. In 2013, he announced his retirement, and the documentary covers the period after his retirement as well as his return to animation in 2016.
The lack of established narration left me quite disoriented early on, as the purpose of the documentary is never directly addressed. I recommend reading the DVD jacket beforehand to better orient yourself. Essentially the entire film acts as a behind-the-scenes featurette, which appears to even annoy Miyazaki at times. Following his retirement announcement, Miyazaki seems to just be awaiting death. He even goes so far as to ask why he is still alive at several points throughout the documentary. This portion of the film is very difficult to watch, as it forces you confront what age and lack of purpose is capable of doing to the human spirit.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 8th, 2019
In my review for The Hole in the Ground I talk about my feelings about the “Evil Kid” sub-genre. To sum it up, it’s pretty much my least favorite of the horror genres. Well, this week I got back to back reviews for movies in that genre, and I have to say, The Prodigy managed to surprise me. It brought in only $14 million at the box office with a production cost of about $9 million, and most of the critic reviews were not so kind to the film. Horror and critics really don’t get along so well, as history will show, mainly because for the longest time there has been a bit of a stigma attached to the genre. Thankfully things have started to change in recent years, but some critics still look at horror as nothing more than flashy B-rate cinema. Here at Upcomingdiscs I’d like to think we have always loved the genre and appreciate it at its most absurd and sometimes gory nature.
I bring this up because The Prodigy is something of a curve ball in its genre, and with its R rating I feel it’s earned its rating and has given us a character that is genuinely not just creepy but in fact terrifying while walking through scenes with a sweet innocent face. I needed to step away from the film and sleep on this review, because I have to admit I was a bit conflicted, but when I woke up there was still a moment in this film that stuck with me, and I’m a little more impressed by this.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 7th, 2019
Hollywood just can’t seem to get enough of kids doing creepy things and the parents believing their child has turned into some kind of monster. We’ve seen these films before, and to be honest, aside from The Omen and Children of the Corn, I can’t think of any other films in the “Bad Children” sub-genre that have made much of an impact on me. This week I’ll be reviewing two of them, and the first happens to be The Hole in the Ground. The major turnoff I have towards these kinds of films is that they play it too safe. It seems these movies tend to avoid crossing certain lines, and, well, that’s frustrating. After all, these tend to be horror films, and isn’t that the point, to make your audience squirm with unease and have genuine dread? It’s only a movie; it’s OK to be a little provocative in the name of entertainment. The films Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things and Come Out And Play pushed the envelope and were memorable for this, but unfortunately they didn’t have a gripping story to back up what they were doing. So where does The Hole in the Ground fare? Well, a lot better than I expected, but it missed out on some great opportunities.
Sarah (Seana Kerslake) and her son, Chris (James Quinn Markey) have recently moved to the Irish countryside as a way to give their lives a fresh start. From the looks of their new home, one would be surprised it was capable of have running water and electricity; it looks like a proper place to set a haunted-house film. With the exception of a random spider, the interior looks modern and homey. The start of the film mostly sets up the relationship Sarah has with her son. It’s a sweet bond the two share, and because it’s a horror film, we know this sweet bond won’t be lasting much longer.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 2nd, 2019
If it wasn't clear enough before, I think the Avengers: Endgame box office mauling put the final point on the situation between Marvel and DC. When it comes to Cinematic Universes, DC has had an impossible task of keeping up. Avengers took in more on the first weekend than Aquaman did its entire run. The box office round goes to Marvel, and it appears DC has started to come to grips with that fact and has started to transform their own films away from the team-up/combined universe and is going back to basics. Where DC has built a rather strong shared universe for their characters is in the animated feature department. In the last handful of years DC has released some very strong animated films, and that's where there appears to be a place where they not only compete with Marvel but leave them in the dust. The latest proof of that idea comes with the Warner Brothers release of Justice League vs. The Fatal Five out on UHD Blu-ray in 4K. It's a solid film with plenty of cheerful action and adventure that always got bogged down in the films with the notable exception of Wonder Woman.
The film begins a thousand years in the future and the League of Superheroes. Their HQ is invaded by three members of their chief nemesis, the Fatal Five. In an attempt to stop them from stealing their time machine the heroes attempt to trap them inside a frozen time bubble, but can't set the trap in time. The three bad guys: Mano (Rodriquez), The Persuader (King) and Thorack (Jessup) manage to steal the time machine and return to our present day with Starboy (Gabel) silently on their trail.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on May 2nd, 2019
“I didn’t violate every natural law to lose you again.”
If that is not a declaration of love, I don’t know what is. It is also quite possibly Keanu’s only true display of feeling in this movie. Replicas showcases Reeves as a scientist who basically plays God following a tragic accident that claims the life of his wife and children. As I mention earlier, given the emotional elements that occur in the film, I expected there to be a larger range of emotions, such as profound loss and desperation, but I never quite saw these outpours of emotion from his character, who approached everything quite clinically. Will Foster is a pioneer in neurochemistry who is attempting to transfer human consciousness to synthetic body, which would essentially allow human beings to outlive their human host. After several failed attempts, his boss, Jones (John Ortiz) tells him that the project is on the verge of being shut down.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 1st, 2019
“In space no one can hear you scream.”
That was the slogan that drew a conglomerate of horror and science fiction fans to theatres in 1979. Was it horror or sci-fi? Alien turned out to be a rare cross-genre film that managed to satisfy both audiences. Ridley Scott started out by bringing the “space ship” film away from the glamorous bright future and depicted a world startlingly very much like our own. In Scott’s gritty future, companies are quasi-government agencies, and these astronauts are not explorers out for glory and heroism. They are strictly blue-collar workers trying to make a buck. It’s hard to imagine that most of the cast, including Sigourney Weaver, were relative unknowns at the time. Weaver would create a new model for female leads that would later pave the way for actors like Linda Hamilton.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 1st, 2019
If I’m being honest, I never would have guessed that Nicole Kidman could ever pull off playing a dirty undercover cop. I’m not saying she’s a bad actress; I just never thought the day would come that she would play such a lowdown gritty role, and I’m so glad she did. How Kidman wasn’t showered with awards this past year for her performance in Destroyer is beyond me. This isn’t just a good performance, but what we get in this film is a woman who transforms herself into a role so different from what she’s done in the past that I respect the chance she took with this role, and the result is mesmerizing even if the film suffers from some pacing issues.
The film opens up with Detective Erin Bell (Kidman) being called out to a crime scene. It doesn’t take long before she realizes that she knows the victim. This takes us back 17 years prior to when she is being assigned a case that will have her going undercover with Chris (Sebastian Stan) to take down a gang of thieves. What’s nice is getting to see Kidman and Stan together onscreen. Whether it’s their chemistry or just good acting, these two make it difficult to not be sucked into their story. While they are infiltrating the gang, we see a real relationship develop between Chris and Erin that actually seems natural and not forced.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 26th, 2019
Just imagine for a moment that a 12-year-old version of yourself was taking a little stroll and you came across a sword that was protruding from a slab of concrete. We’ve seen plenty of versions of the King Arthur story. Some have been good (Excalibur and First Knight) but many have been not so good. In the case of The Kid Who Would Be King, it’s not a story about King Arthur but more an adventure that asks what would happen if a boy were to find the sword in today’s world. The film didn’t do so well at the box office, which isn’t a big surprise considering the film was made in the UK and not the States, but is the film one to be overlooked and forgotten, or is this a gem worth checking out? Simply put, this is perhaps the best “kids’” film I’ve seen in years, and this is a film that I’m willing to bet will garner a cult status in the years to come.
From the moment I saw the trailer for this I thought it looked like fun, but when I saw that it was written and directed by Joe Cornish, this film worked its way onto my must-see list. For those who may be unfamiliar with the name, Joe Cornish is responsible for the film Attack the Block (2011). For those that haven’t seen Attack the Block, please remedy this immediately. For a quick summary, it was a film about a group of kids who end up having to fight a group of aliens that have landed and are attempting to take over the neighborhood. The film is a fast-paced comedic blast that was responsible for kicking off the career for John Boyega, who went on to play the character Finn in a little franchise called Star Wars. So, it’s been a few years since Attack the Block has been out, and for me it was hard to keep my expectations in check, but Cornish managed to deliver another fun popcorn flick.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 19th, 2019
I don't scare. As a lucid dreamer, I am incapable of having nightmares. That might be one of the reasons I have always been attracted to horror, both in film and television. In my entire life I've only been frightened by one film, and that was the final segment of Trilogy Of Terror. There was something about that manic little doll that actually scared me. Of course, I was 10 when I saw it, and hiding behind a chair in our living room because I was supposed to be in bed. For whatever reason, that vivid memory remains. Around the same time I saw the first Night Stalker films, and I wanted to a writer just like Carl Kolchak, and yet another vivid memory remains. Yet a third memory was having our sitter pick me up from school. Often she'd volunteer to buy us ice cream or candy on the way home. I always declined. What would make a little kid refuse free sweets? It was a half-hour soap opera, of all things. Of course, I'm talking about Dark Shadows, and the thing that Dark Shadows, The Night Stalker and Trilogy Of Terror all have in common beyond the vivid memories is that they each came from Dan Curtis. For this once pre-teen kid, Dan Curtis pulled a hat-trick in the late 60's and early 70's, and I'll never forget it.
Of course, not everyone lived at the time Dan Curtis was making his mark. It's hard to believe that this master of Dark Shadows and other things that went bump in the night started his television career producing a golfing program for CBS Sports for 10 years. There are quite a few things I didn't know about my personal boogey man. I'll bet the same is true for all but the most devoted fans. MPI fills in a ton of blanks with Master Of Dark Shadows on DVD and Blu-ray.
