Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on January 31st, 2024
While times may have changed a bit, many countries, especially in the 1970's up until the turn of the century looked down in disgust at those from the United States, from the way they looked, to way they acted, right down to the language they spoke. However, one of the things they most feared was that the US was going to take over their companies and do things the "American" way. Today, we take a look at a film called Mille Milliards de Dollars. In this film, we are introduced to the GTI, the Garson Texas International company, who are secretly taking over France Electronics, one of the biggest companies in Paris. It's quite the scandal and should be a very interesting film. Let's take a look.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on January 24th, 2024
On November 22nd, 1963; President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, TX at approximately 12:30pm. Quite possibly everything else about the event can be disputed in such a manner, and I won't even attempt to confirm one theory or disapprove another. We have had movie after movie about this assassination, taking it in about every angle imaginable. Those movies are not regulated to the United States, either, as other countries have also dabbled in the storytelling of this infamous event. Many times these foreign productions treat it as a fictionalized event set in their own country, but the similarities are often so obvious that it cannot be disputed. Today's film is I ... For Icarus, a French film that explores the controversy behind the assassination of President Marc Jarry, who was killed by Karl Eric Daslow. Attorney General Henri Volney disputes the lone gunman theory, and this is the story of that investigation. That sounds awfully familiar; let's take a look.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on September 2nd, 2023
I probably could be called a lot of things, some kind and some not so kind. But the one thing that probably most people would say about me is that I'm loyal. Loyal to my job, loyal to my wife, loyal to my son. However, in my life, I have certainly felt the pain of disloyalty, even to the point of infidelity. Despite what people might say or think, you never quite expect it, and furthermore one can't predict how you might feel or act given the situation. Today's movie Three into Two Won't Go explores the idea of what happens when a man cheats on his wife with another woman. However, this woman stays around long after the fact and continues to press into his everyday life until it becomes unbearable. Let's take a look.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on August 29th, 2023
Typically, I avoid World War II period films like the plague. I literally see the word Nazi or German occupation and usually find a reason not to see the movie. I have nothing against the pictures; the problem is that so many of these films are surrounded in clichés that it feels like an old hat with nothing new to offer. However, when I saw The Day and the Hour in my review pile, I was intrigued by the notion of it being in France with a female lead and something of a romance. Far different from the usual pow pow, war is heck, or a film that's going to have buckets and buckets of tears and worrying about the human condition. Though from the looks of things, this one might have some waterworks too. Let's take a look.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on August 23rd, 2023
I'm a sucker for clever movie titles. The best example I can think off the top of my head is I'm Gonna Git You Sucka. Or perhaps you need something from yesteryear, like Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia or They Shoot Horses, Don't They? Along the lines of Sucka, we can't also forget about Don't Be A Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood or The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. So imagine my surprise when I saw the title of today's movie and jumped at the chance to provide a review. Hopefully it is as good as the title suggests.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on August 18th, 2023
Some of my fondest memories growing up were those of my Polish grandmother and visiting her in New York for a week or two during the summer. It was so different than when I was with my parents in North Carolina. From the living arrangements to actually having a real basement to the subway itself, it was almost surreal in a very urban type way. Then everyone seemingly moved to Texas, including our family, and all of the innocence was lost. Today's movie is Gloria, a movie set in New York where a six-year-old Puerto Rican kid loses his innocence as his family is gunned down by the mob. The only thing he has to cling to is a friend of the family named Gloria who has a few special skills of her own. Let's check it out.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on April 25th, 2023
If someone were to read my biography below, one would probably learn one of two things, I have an unhealthy obsession with Alyssa Milano movies, and I deeply appreciate Basil Rathbone, the man who popularized Sherlock Holmes films. While many would argue who the best Holmes would be (Downey, Brett, Cumberbatch, etc), my heart will always go to Basil. So naturally, when I saw the movie Rio with him in the starring role had come to Blu-ray, I jumped at the opportunity to review it. Let's take a look.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on April 21st, 2023
Even though I consider myself to be well-rounded when it comes to films, I admit my personal viewing history of French film to be a little lacking. Go Google any top 20 list of French films, and I've probably seen maybe two or three of the films. This is very contradictory to say Chinese, Japanese, English (UK), Australian, etc. where I've seen hundreds of films. But I'm always willing to expand my repertoire, so I jumped when I saw there was a French crime thriller named L'Homme Du Train or The Man on the Train available for review. Let's see how it plays out.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on November 23rd, 2022
Many times when we watch films for the first time, we get distracted. Maybe it's a pretty girl, money issues, or perhaps you had something else on your mind that's hurting your focus. Whatever it is, it can really change your interpretation of a movie in a positive or negative way. One such movie for me is Mystery Men when I saw it in early 2000. Back when rentals were a thing, I remember renting this film and being distracted completely by someone who shall remain nameless. I barely liked the movie and didn't really watch it again until many years later only to realize I liked the film far more than originally thought. Four or five times later, I revisit the film again, this time in glorious 4K. Let's see how it does.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on October 12th, 2022
I am a big sucker for police procedural and detective shows. Once upon a time, I religiously watched CSI (and CSI: Miami), and these days I am watching various episodes of true crime series like Real Detective and Homicide Hunter on a weekly basis (the only other thing I tend to watch weekly is wrestling). It translates over to movies, naturally, as well. Well, today's film takes me into the world of a motorcycle cop who wishes to be a detective and then falls upon a murder case. Sounds like a must-watch to me. Let's take a look at Electra Glide in Blue.
