Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 31st, 2012
Perhaps one of the best known science fiction authors ever, Phillip K. Dick’s short stories and novels have been the basis for many film adaptations including The Minority Report, Paycheck, A Scanner Darkly, Blade Runner, and the upcoming release Next. Of course the reason I mention Phillip K. Dick is because Total Recall is based upon his story We Can Remember It for you Wholesale. In the past Total Recall has been known for quite a few reasons – its achievements in special affects, its high budget, the re-launch of Sharon Stone’s career – but ultimately when we think of Total Recall we all think of the big guy himself, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Set in 2084, Douglas Quaid (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is an average-joe construction worker who as of late can’t stop dreaming about being on Mars. Though there is in fact a population on Mars, it is a conflict zone unsafe for travel as the tyrant Vilos Cohaagen has a monopoly on the oxygen which is heavily disputed by a group of rebels. Instead Quaid goes to Rekall – a company which will implant memories into his mind making him believe he was in fact on a vacation to Mars. Quaid opts to go for the vacation where he is a secret agent on a special mission on Mars called “Blue Skies on Mars.” While undergoing the procedure alarms start going off, it turns out that Quaid’s mind has already been altered; he has an outburst which results in him being subdued and his memory of ever going to Rekall erased.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 30th, 2012
Most people who read my reviews can realize that me and prison films just do not mix. Far too many of them are incredibly hokey and if I hear one more cliché about dropping the soap, I swear I might just go watch about a 12 hour Golden Girls marathon. However, our film today deals with a psychiatric hospital for criminals. It sounds a lot like a prison to me, but perhaps today’s review will take on a much gentler tone and provide us with something just a little different.
Allen Meneric (played by Nick Stahl) and his girlfriend (played by Haley Webb) drive up to a house. Allen is angry, upset and tells his girlfriend to get in the car and drive home. Apparently, the girlfriend was raped by a guy who just so happens to be here at the house ready for Allen to strike. The girl drives away sobbing. Meanwhile, Allen proceeds to pick up a wrench. That is when everything goes black.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 27th, 2012
While I have watched a ton of cartoons, the same really can not be said of anime. Sure, I know my classics like Akira, Ghost in the Shell, or Vampire Hunter D but by and large I am not up on my anime. I certainly like it but when I look the shelves and shelves of television episodes or movies, I’m mostly overwhelmed. However, a little bit ago I saw a commercial for some Marvel Anime on G4, I was instantly interested. Little did I know that a couple of the series would end up on my doorstep.
Eric Brooks hunts vampires. He is half human and half vampire. He is what is known as a day walker, able to harness the strengths of the vampire but not exhibit their weaknesses such as death by sunlight. Eric is on a mission to hunt these monsters for they infected and killed his pregnant mother. The vampires call Eric by another name, Blade. He is on the hunt…
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on July 26th, 2012
After a family moves into a new home, they are taken hostage by a group of hitmen who are searching for money that has been stolen from a crime-boss. The film's title, “Aggression Scale,” refers to a psychological evaluation that measures the tendency for an individual to act in aggressive ways that may harm others. This applies to our hero Owen, the son of the family, whose violent/survivalist tendencies are worrisome and detrimental in all situations except this one, where he may be the savior of the family.
Many other reviews, including those quoted on the DVD box art, refer to this as a hyper-violent version of Home Alone. This is in reference to the sort of traps the Owen sets out to harm the hitmen. Granted, the climactic final trap does have a couple nods in that direction (with the use of nails and Jacks as booby traps) but Owen's devices are less comical and complex (save for the aforementioned climactic trap) and more brutal and reminiscent of something Rambo might construct. I suppose the comparisons are made less because of the traps, but more the cat-and-mouse game being played between a child and a group of career criminals. Since Owen never speaks, the communication between these two parties is purely through acts of violence upon each other. This bare bones dynamic saves us some groans from any redundant, cheesy banter...which I appreciate.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 26th, 2012
"Space... The final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its continuing mission, to explore strange new worlds. To seek out new life and new civilizations. To boldly go where no one has gone before."
Nearly 20 years after the original Star Trek left the network airwaves, Gene Roddenberry set out to discover if he could catch lightening in a bottle once again. Some say he did an even better job with Star Trek: The Next Generation. There are times I tend to agree. The Star Trek sequel series had a lot more advantages from the moment it was conceived. Star Trek, a series that barely registered on the ratings during its three-year primetime voyage, became a huge sensation in syndication. By the time Next Generation came on the scene, the original show had been syndicated in over 20 different languages all over the world. It had launched an animated series, and a fifth feature film was already in the early stages of consideration. So it isn't quite fair to judge the success or quality of The Next Generation over the original series. One thing is inarguable. The second would never have existed if not for the first.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 25th, 2012
Hopefully, a lot of the readers had a chance to read my Transformers Prime: Season One on Blu-Ray review. In it, they would have found a fantastic animated series that is almost on equal level to the Generation one cartoons. The series has captivating characters, amazing sound and a better story than those silly live action movie sequels. Today to review, I have the Prime special dvd: One Shall Stand. The dvd has four episodes from season one and three new episodes from season two cut into one huge movie. Let’s go shall we?
As we open, we listen to Optimus Prime tell the crew of a doomsday prophecy known as the Covenant of Primus that has the potential to destroy the earth. It seems to be only a few days away and is connected to the Decepticon leader: Megatron. It would be best to squash this prophecy before it begins. Meanwhile, we are transported to the war ship of the Decepticons where Megatron has been on stasis. He was fixed up by fellow Decepticon, Knockout.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on July 25th, 2012
I knew this movie was in big trouble as soon as it decided to kill off its most charismatic character/actor in the first 10 minutes. Don't worry, MMA fans: the poor soul who prematurely bites the dust is not played by UFC legend Randy Couture, who headlines this straight-to-DVD airplane "thriller" that makes you appreciate all the skill and care devoted to making even enjoyably junky action flicks like Passenger 57.
When a terrorist group known as The Tribe hijacks a luxury jumbo jet belonging to wealthy industrialist Bruce Lieb (Craig Fairbrass), they weren't counting on having Paul Ross (Couture) as a passenger. Ross is a government agent who has been doggedly pursuing the terrorist group. The Tribe demands a suspiciously specific payment of $2.73 billion or they will start executing hostages. Among the hostages is Ross's estranged ex-fiancee (Tiffany Dupont), because beefy action heroes have the worst luck when it comes to having cherished loved ones in peril.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 24th, 2012
"Satan has sent me Twins Of Evil."
Okay, it wasn't really Satan, at least I don't think it was. It was the folks over at Synapse who sent me the Blu-ray release for Hammer's Twins Of Evil, and I'm pretty glad that they did. If you're a horror fan of any worth and are old enough, you have some wonderfully frightful memories of Hammer's run of horror films starting in the late 1950's. Hammer pretty much began where Universal ended their celebrated cycle of horror films. Like Universal, the cycle produced a new generation of atmospheric horror films that included the classic creatures. Dracula, Frankenstein and The Mummy were all resurrected under the Hammer banner. The studio also delivered the next generation of classic horror actors led by Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. While it's true that changes of the guard at Hammer and a lean toward more exploitation cinema led to a decline by the 1970's, there continued to be some notable exceptions. Twins Of Evil was one such exception.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on July 21st, 2012
"An Asian man wearing a German uniform was discovered by the U.S. military at Normandy on D-Day. Upon questioning, he was identified as a Korean."
My Way cannily opens with this bit of real-life information. As the movie reaches its heartbreaking conclusion, we know only one of a pair of lifelong rivals-turned-friends — one Korean, one Japanese — will make it to the end.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 19th, 2012
"On the clearest of nights when the winds of the Etherium were calm and peaceful, the great merchant ships with their cargos of Arturian Solar Crystals felt safe and secure. Little did they suspect that they were being pursued by pirates."
Everybody loves a pirate story, and Walt Disney Studios has made a good bit of money from that particular fact. The Pirates of the Caribbean ride and eventual Johnny Depp films have gone a long way to fill the booty chests of the studio to overflow. But, of course, Disney didn't invent the pirate sensation, and they were not the first to fully capitalize on their popularity. That honor might well fall to Robert Louis Stevenson and his 1883 novel Treasure Island. The book has been a favorite of daydreaming young boys and girls for well near 150 years. More than just a story of pirates and adventure, it's a story of self-discovery and coming of age. It's quite a timeless tale and has had several film versions over the years. In 2002 Walt Disney Animation took on the task and created an animated feature that used the material rather loosely and opted for a grand space adventure. The result was Treasure Planet.
