Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 3rd, 2011
"Hey everybody, McQueen's back."
Cars is only the second film in Pixar history to have at least one sequel added to the franchise. Of course, all of that is about to change. Monster University will explore the world of Monsters, Inc as a prequel. Brad Bird has recently spoken about plans for a follow-up to The Incredibles. And Toy Story appears ready to continue at least a little longer into the future. Personally, I've been looking forward to the Monsters film. But after watching Cars 2 I'm a little bit worried, and with good reason. This might well be the weakest film from the creative team to date.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 3rd, 2011
"There comes a moment when you look around waiting for the person in charge to help you, and then you realize you’re the person in charge."
Sometimes things get lost in translation, and while I've never read Aimee Bender's An Invisible Sign Of My Own, I know that it has quite a core of fans. So I'm forced to believe that something just didn't make the transition to screenplay and ultimately onto the screen itself. Of course, some things don't really translate to film, and I suspect this is really the case here. So where do I look for blame for the 90 minutes of my life lost on An Invisible Sign?
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on November 2nd, 2011
Here are four evenings music fans did not anticipate coming, yet anyways hoped for. In 2005 Cream reunited for the first time since their breakup (save for one performance when they were inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame in 1993) for four concerts at the legendary Royal Albert Hall. The bad blood between the members of Cream was almost as famous as their influential music. With that in mind, it is wonderful to see these extremely talented men play just as tightly as they did in the 1960s, and some might argue that they've never played better than at these shows.
The set list is a rich mixture of chart topping originals (White Room, Sunshine of your Love...), classic covers (Born under a bad Sign, Crossroads...) and even some songs that the band had never played live before, such as 'Pressed Rat and Warthog.' The set that appears in this film is cobbled together with clips from each of the evenings, most likely to give us the best possible concert experience. As well, along with the songs, Ginger Baker gets a lengthy drum solo and, of course, Eric Clapton is alloted many opportunities to demonstrate some of the smoothest Blues guitar playing that has ever blessed our listening ears.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on November 2nd, 2011
Personally, I do not watch much reality television. Most “realities” they present is quite boring or scripted. However, as of late I have started to watch reality shows that I have dubbed, “One Man’s Junk is another Man’s Treasure.” My two favorites are Storage Wars and Pawn Stars. The idea that just because one person might think it is a piece of crap, the next might think it is worth a ton of money. Today’s review is the second volume of American Pickers. Will it be another diamond in the rough?
So, as I asked myself when I unwrapped this sucker, what exactly is American Pickers about? Well, there are these two guys, Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz who roam the United States in search of knick knacks, car parts, collectibles, anything that will bring them money. A picker. Their method is somewhat unorthodox as they actually visit people’s homes, storage sheds, and any other place where somebody have stored their collection.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on November 2nd, 2011
Bubokan is one of those venues that has become a goal for any major band. Dream Theater had toured Japan numerous times over the course of 12 years but never yet rocked this venue. Japan is, and has been, one of those markets that tends to embrace things differently than North America or Europe; and Progressive Metal is not exactly rocking the Top 40 stations (at least, not since RUSH were in their prime...and even then...). It was only a matter of time that the most relevant “Prog” band playing today would make it to Budokan, and they celebrated by making it into a concert film.
Each member of this group is a virtuoso at their instrument. Taking time for instrumentals or solos are rather commonplace for arena concerts. Instead of the standard guitar or drum solo, all but the lead singer of the group would flex their progressive metal playing muscles while putting on a clinic of just how flashy a musical education can be when the most technically impressive of scales and rhythms are played at breakneck paces and mixed with very strange time signature changes.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 2nd, 2011
"You lose. You die."
In 2005 Russian-born writer director Gela Babluani had a bit of an Eastern Europe success with his film 13 Tzameti. The film took the Grand Prize Jury at Sundance and a few other film festivals, winning also in places like Venice and Transylvania. The film made quite a splash, and it wasn't long before it attracted the attention of American distributors. An English-language version was inevitable at this point. Thankfully Babluani was able to work out a deal where he got to direct his own remake. Babluani has received more than a little heat for essentially remaking the exact same film with only a few changes to cater to the American audience. I never saw the original film, but now I have seen his remake. It would become his first American film and what a film it has turned out to be.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by M. W. Phillips on November 2nd, 2011
“I might be wrong, but I'm guessing you know something that I don't.”
First off, this is not the 2011 Sucker Punch directed by Zack Snyder. This was shot in 2008, but released in 2011 under the name Sucker Punch just months after Snyder’s action fantasy. I can only imagine this was done to capitalize on confused DVD renters and buyers.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on November 2nd, 2011
Everybody needs a little help in their life but many are afraid to ask for it. Perhaps they need to know how to ask for a raise, or perhaps help with their geometry homework. One does not exactly gain knowledge of how to ask out a beautiful redhead supermodel unless they get a little help from somewhere. But I digress. Today, we explore the life of Laura who apparently needs a little help when her cheating husband dies right in front of her. Things are not as easy as they seem.
Laura (played by Jenna Fischer) is a dental assistant. Behind is a very noisy macaw outside the window who constantly repeats “Rinse Please”. He is supposed to be soothing. She talks to the patient and tells him about her husband and how he flosses with the extra waxy floss and how that is not good for him. Laura obsesses a bit about the fact that her husband ignores her and the patient soon wonders where the exit sign is at.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on November 1st, 2011
His troops defeated and massacred, General Pang (Jet Li) staggers away from the battlefield, more dead than alive. After a brief by intense overnight encounter with a mysterious Lian (Xu Jinglei), he falls in with bandits headed up by Er Hu (Andy Lau) and Wu Yang (Takeshi Kaneshiro). He finds a renewed purpose in life with this group, and forges the band into a formidable fighting force, one that will play an ever greater role in shaping the conflicts that are dividing China. But the fellowship he forms with his blood brothers has a fatal flaw: as fate would have it, Lian is promised to Er Hu. Betrayal and tragedy lurk in the wings.
First, the positives: this is a very handsome production, with a visual sweep that is appropriately epic. The battle scenes are expertly staged, whether these be small-scale skirmishes or grand campaigns. These are spectacular, exciting moments in the film. The characters and their story, however, are far less interesting. The love between Pang and Lian is difficult to empathize with – we don't really understand why these two are obsessed with each other, and must take it on faith that they are. All of which makes it difficult to care about the relationship, and thus its consequences are more irritating than tragic. And while Pang's internal conflicts are sometimes compelling, Lian's characterization is so perfunctory that she comes across as little more than venal, misogynist caricature. In the end, then, the film seems to drag on longer than its 113 minutes, as one finds one's eyes glazing over between the battle scenes. This is a beautiful movie, but an uninvolving one.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by M. W. Phillips on October 31st, 2011
“In a blaze of blood, bones, and body parts, the vivacious young girl was instantly reduced to a tossed human salad... a salad that police are still trying to gather up... a salad that was once named Elizabeth.”
Ah, there is nothing that can bring an exploitation movie alive like the unhinged imagination of Frank Henenlotter. Frankenhooker is another love letter to the seedy side of a New York City from a long-gone era. It is a cult film extraordinaire.
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