Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 16th, 2004
Jeff Foxworthy has experienced something of a renaissance as of late. In the early 90’s, this loveable redneck burst on to the comedy scene with his southern style of humor, driven by the ever-popular series of “…you might be a redneck” jokes. Living in the south myself, I was both entertained and angered by his routine. On the one hand, it kind-of made me angry that he was making Southerners sound so stupid. On the other hand, it was funny because it was true. Such is the dilemma of living in the South.
An...way, as I understand it, the swift life of an instant celebrity was a little more than Foxworthy was able to handle, so instead of ruining his life with wine, women and song, he disappeared from the spotlight for a while. After some time away, he has re-emerged as a member of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, and the spotlight is back.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 9th, 2004
When I was a kid in the 80’s, Predator was one of those films that you weren’t supposed to watch, but everybody did anyway. Over-the-top action, invincible heroes, cheesy one-liners and big, big explosions made this a film that was a favorite of pre-pubescent boys everywhere. Going into this disc, I found myself wondering if the film would stand up to the harsh tests of time and maturity.
The answer to that question is both “yes”, and “no”. In the “no” column, it is very apparent early on in the film...that there is very little here in the way of plot. Some soldiers are hired to go behind enemy lines to rescue an American politician that has been kidnapped by generic terrorists. Once the team arrives at their location, they discover that they have actually been sent on the mission for different reasons altogether, though those reasons are never really made clear. On their way back to the rendezvous point, they have multiple encounters with an evil and mysterious creature who tries to kill them (and occasionally succeeds). That’s about it. Beyond these basic plot outlines, dialog is basically reserved to screaming profanities and the aforementioned goofy one-liners.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 31st, 2004
Comic book characters have provided a large slate of movie productions in recent years. This really isn’t anything new; both Superman and Batman have each fueled successful film franchises (It should be noted that both are soon to return). Spider-Man’s record take opened a new floodgate. Some have been quite disappointing (The Hulk and The Punisher) while a few (X-Men and Spider-Man) have provided outstanding products. Hellboy fits somewhere in the middle. The character is somewhat lesser known and considerably more ...ecent. Ron Perlman is perfectly cast here. He almost makes this larger than life creature believable. Guillermo Del Toro creates a convincing world of dark hues with tremendous style that never gets pretentious or interferes with the story. At first this film looks unsettling, but as you allow yourself to be immersed in the rich shadows, you are completely transported away. It’s a hell of a fast 2 hours.
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Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 20th, 2004
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Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 19th, 2004
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Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 17th, 2004
I am sure that many consumers have noticed the disturbing trend taking place in DVD land with regard to the same movie being released in multiple versions. This practice, commonly referred to in the industry as “multiple bites at the apple”, is a cheap way for studios to persuade consumers to buy movies that they already own over and over again, since each new release offers some sort of extra upgrade from the previous versions. Even those of us in the DVD community sometimes get burned on this type of thing, as ther... is not always a way to tell if we should purchase a product when it is new, or wait for a few years, in the hopes that a better version will come along. Adding to the frustration is the fact that on some occasions, versions are so different that consumers actually want to own multiple versions of a film. This is the case with the Lord of the Rings films, as the extended editions are quite different from their theatrical counterparts. Arguably, the upcoming Kill Bill releases will merit this kind of double purchasing as well.
Das Boot is also one of those films that has fallen victim to the practice of multiple releases. Originally, the film was released in a standard American theatrical version. It became such a hit with movie buffs, however, that an extended Director’s Cut was issued as well. Following this release, a separate Superbit edition of the Director’s Cut hit the shelves. All versions sold well, and the legend of Wolfgang Peterson’s epic film about a German submarine crew during World War II continued to grow. As more and more people saw this film, word started to circulate about the existence of a massive five-hour version of the film. Being a town that never misses a chance to make a buck, Hollywood listened to the ramblings, and in 2004, the complete epic was finally released on DVD.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on June 20th, 2004
Well if you don’t know what is going on in this film then I am not quite sure why you are reading this review. This is the third and final installment of the Lord of the Ring’s trilogy, we finally after three long years get to discover the fate of Frodo, the ring, Sam, Gollum and all of Middle Earth. This film like The Two Towers just keeps getting better and managing to exceed our ever increasing expectations.
The multiple story lines all come together and finally conclude themselves, maybe not quite exac...ly as it is in the book but some changes had to be made. The only complaint about the film itself is that the endings seem to drag on longer then necessary but again when viewed in the context of the books it actually wraps up quite neatly and quickly. Nonetheless the film is superb and for all those collectors out there we are still waiting with baited breath for the announcement of the 4 disc extended cut but, this will keep is satisfied until then.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on June 12th, 2004
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Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on June 10th, 2004
Joe Queenan is one of my favorite writers. He is the author of wonderfully amusing essays and books dealing with the subject of film. In his book Confessions of a Cineplex Heckler, he is bold enough to take on the challenge of watching every Merchant Ivory film, back-to-back. At one point late in the narrative, he has this to say:
As I sat there in my reclining chair with my kids lighting matches to my feet, I realized that God had created Merchant and Ivory for only one reason: because otherwise ...he concept of death was too terrifying.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on June 8th, 2004
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