Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 11th, 2011
The real world will try to teach us many things. It teaches us that only two things are certain, death and taxes. Unfortunately, one of the things that is not always certain is the wonderful mystery of love. Sometimes, it lasts for a lifetime but more often than not it can be a cruel device and become fleeting. The movie, Blue Valentine deals with this difficult subject and explores one such relationship that is clearly on the ropes.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 25th, 2011
Every year when the Academy Awards have been given out, I look over the winners in each category, and more often than not I scratch my head at the ultimate winners. I find myself wondering if they saw the same movie I saw. I start to ponder if there might be an alternate-universe version of these movies that somehow find themselves in the hands of the Academy jury. Sure, once in a while they get it right.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on March 11th, 2011
"I guess if this is the first you're hearing about it, I know how this must all sound."
Unless you've been in a coma like the lead character of The Walking Dead, you've been hearing a lot about this AMC television series of late. It's no wonder. I'm amazed that it's taken so long to see a zombie television series. The show has incredible visuals. There's a courtyard scene at the beginning of the pilot that is as impressive as anything you've seen in a movie.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 16th, 2011
"This despicable remake of the despicable 1978 film, I Spit On Your Grave adds yet another offense: a phony moral equivalency."
Roger Ebert is at it again. Over thirty years ago he pretty much hated the original film, but he didn't stop there. He extended his hatred to the fellow movie-goers he encountered as well. The 2010 remake appears to retain his disgust, and couldn't be prouder of the slight. Go figure.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 13th, 2011
"A vile bag of garbage named I Spit On Your Grave is playing in Chicago theaters this week. It is a movie so sick, reprehensible and contemptible that I can hardly believe it's playing in respectable theaters..."
Seldom has a film been so proud of a bad review like the one Roger Ebert delivered when he saw the film in 1980 during its limited Chicago area run that year. The rest of the review continues its rant against the violence and despicable nature of the film. But Ebert doesn't stop there.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 12th, 2011
Character studies. They might be the most misunderstood movies in the business. Those who do understand them love them when they're done right. When the perfect balance of performance and direction create dynamic moments through character and to a lesser extent the story, we get pretty excited. I watched Stone recently, and I got pretty excited. But that's not the experience a lot of folks had. Perhaps because the film had a limited release in just over 100 theaters nationwide, the idea that it was an art-house or festival film might have put the mainstream folks off a bit.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 3rd, 2011
Vampires are real. There are millions of them out there. They might drink a little blood, but they're also quite fond of milkshakes and french fries. They don't usually haunt the local cemeteries at midnight because they often have curfews. They don't spend their days lying helpless in coffins deep in hypnotic slumber. They save those hypnotic states for uncomfortable desks. You can't scare these creatures with garlic or a crucifix. They're far more frightened of homework and detention.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on January 27th, 2011
As most fans of this site know, I’m the resident video game expert on the site. Which means? I play lots of video games. So by default, whenever something video game related comes to this site, it goes to me. Good, bad or indifferent. Many video games these days do the cross-promotion thing whether it would be books, movies or even games before the actual game. One of these I received recently was Dead Space: Aftermath on Blu-ray to promote the launch of Dead Space 2.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on January 17th, 2011
Philip Seymour Hoffman has become quite the acclaimed movie star by working in many well nominated flics such as Capote, Doubt, and Charlie Wilson’s War. However, Mr. Hoffman does a great deal of stage work when he is not performing in front of a camera. His recent directorial debut involved a piece of stage work that he brought to film, Jack Goes Boating. Let us see how this plays out.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on January 15th, 2011
Well, I've been about a month off since my last review and the rest was sorely needed. I visited my folks, thought about my future and spent the holidays enjoying life and trying to do somethings I wouldn't normally do with my paying job and my writing gig. So, the first movie I crack open is Fire on the Amazon with Sandra Bullock, Craig Sheffer and produced by Roger Corman. Wait, Roger Corman, king of schlock and “B” movies? Hrmmm, I feel another vacation coming on.