Elvira’s Movie Macabre: Blue Sunshine/Monstroid
Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 11th, 2007
I grew up on a steady diet of horror hosts. In the
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Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 11th, 2007
I grew up on a steady diet of horror hosts. In the
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Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on September 25th, 2007
Shout Factory has begun to release DVD editions of Elvira’s Movie Macabre, the cult hit TV show from the 80s wherein our curvaceous goth host makes off-colour jokes and pokes fun, during the commercial breaks, of the movies she’s showing. Up on the chopping block in this set are Gamera, Super Monster and They Came From Beyond Space.
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Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on September 20th, 2007
Since Mystery Science Theater 3000 came to an end, fans have been having to make do with various second-best replacements. The most obvious one has been Mike Nelson’s solo commentaries on the likes of Reefer Madness and House on Haunted Hill. Though his efforts have been amusing, they have like the lunatic fun generated when he had Tom Servo and Crow to bounce off. With The Film Crew releases, we have the closest thing yet to a return of MST3K, as Nelson is reunited with Kevin Murphy and Bill Corbett (who were the ‘bots). Playing themselves, they are a trio of working joes whose job is to provide commentary tracks to undeserving films. We don’t see their silhouettes, but we hear their exchanges over the course of the film. The result is pretty damn funny.
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Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 23rd, 2007
Video games (especially those with platformer elements) were easy fits for syndicated cartoons. I spent a lot of time watching the Super Mario Super Show despite the show’s silliness and use of Captain Lou Albano. Another show I naturally watched in the same vain was the Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog. Featuring Sonic, the speedy blue hedgehog and his sidekick Tails (something resembling a fox but with two tails) would face off against Dr. Robotnik and a legion of robots that wanted to take over the planet Mobius.
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Posted in Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 23rd, 2007
Synopsis
I started watching cartoons in the 80’s growing up and remembering most fondly cartoons like Transformers, Batman, Thundercats, TMNT and so forth. Oh I’ve had my fill of Looney Tunes and appreciate them greatly. But once you go past Looney Tunes a lot of the older cartoons escape me (with the exception of Droopy and Scooby Doo). Good examples are the Flintstones and almost anything out of the Hanna-Barbara lineup like Yogi Bear and Huckleberry Hound. So imagine my …
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Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 25th, 2007
Since its premiere in 1994, Inside the Actors Studio has been a fascinating talk show for film fans and aspiring actors, writers and directors alike. Each episode a famous guest � usually an actor � is interviewed one-on-one by host James Lipton, followed by questions from the student audience.
If you�ve never seen the show, this three-disc set would make a fine introduction. Inside the Actors Studio: Icons features episodes with four towering entertainment personalities. In chronological order, star…
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Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 16th, 2007
Since its premiere in 1994, Inside the Actors Studio has been a fascinating talk show for film fans and aspiring actors, writers and directors alike. Each episode a famous guest � usually an actor � is interviewed one-on-one by host James Lipton, followed by questions from the student audience.
In early 2006, one such guest was Dave Chappelle (Chappelle�s Show). Chappelle�s appearance followed some controversial events in his life, mainly his surprising exit from his mega-hit Comedy Central sh…
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Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 8th, 2006
Synopsis
Here we go again. Punky Brewster (Soleil Moon Frye) is pretty comfortably ensconced in the home of Henry Warnimont (George Gaynes) now. The season follows Punky through the usual round of problems at school, with friends, with boys, and so on. Will she do her homework and get to a rock concert? We await the answer on the edge of our seats. Frye is a few years older now, and so is moving from precocious youngster to tiresome tween. Lessons are learned in the most painfully didactic and mundan…
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Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on June 11th, 2006
Synopsis
Long before she paired up with Phil Donahue and the two went on to do..who knows what, Marlo Thomas appeared in some smaller TV shows from in the early ’60s, until she got a break when she was given a TV show to utilize her talents. That Girl is the story of Ann Marie, who decided to move to New York City to try to find steady work as an actress, and over the course of the show’s five year run, Ann Marie’s exploits are documented in situation comedy fashion.
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Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on June 4th, 2006
Before it became a somewhat famous regional barbecue house (I kid, I kid!) red, hot and blue was another name for the Red Hot Organization, a group designed to help fight the AIDS epidemic. Back in the early and mid ’90s kids, AIDS was raging on through the land, and Ronald Reagan did nothing to stop it. In fact, he was injecting homosexuals with AIDS while delivering crack into the ghetto.
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Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on April 28th, 2006
Teddy Pendergrass, one of the lesser known soul rebels of the seventies, comes to DVD in this lackluster edition, which purports to be 80 minutes – but that’s only true if you factor into the running time the one bonus feature. This fact could be a detriment to fans of Teddy’s music. For me, however, it was a relief to discover the actual concert only ran about an hour. There was nothing here to justify the man’s status as some kind of legend, as his audience interactions and movements on stage were limited in scope …
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Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 5th, 2006
Judd Apatow and Paul Feig may have been stung by the criticism and cancellation of their show Freaks and Geeks back in 2000, but that did not deter them from pressing forward with another project. Freaks and Geeks was about a group of kids growing up in high school in the 1980s, while Undeclared is about the first year of college for a group of kids.
Now there are a lot of similiarities between Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared, but I’ll focus on some of the bigger things, b…
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Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 11th, 2006
Synopsis
For fans of comedy, the influence that the original “Not Ready For Prime Time” players on Saturday Night Live was indelible, but did not deter from enjoyable sketch comedy after the group left in 1980. Sketch comedy was being done at an equally accomplished level with the Second City players, some of whom Lorne Michaels recruited for the initial cast of SNL. Those that remained provided some hysterical moments and quality comedy.
Shout! Has done a commendable job in bringing this c…
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Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 23rd, 2005
Miracles is a unique television experience in the same vane as X-Files but with a religious rather then an alien spin. Many seem to blame this series short network run (6-episodes) on its misplacement and movement within ABC’s schedule, but there is also talk of the War in Iraq possible having something to do with it. As we all know… timing is everything. This set adds seven episodes to the six that originally aired on ABC… giving us all a chance to see the full 13 episodes that were filmed.
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Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 16th, 2005
Synopsis
If you have any interest in this series, then a synopsis is surely unnecessary. I can’t imaginenew fans flocking in droves to this soggy material. Punky Brewster (Soleil Moon Frye) is thespunky former street urchin who is now the ward of lovable curmudgeon Henry (GeorgeGaynes). We follow Punky to school and elsewhere, and see her learn all sorts of life lessonsthrough what passes for humour. This is total pap, and a reminder of just how depressingly badthe sitcom form can b…
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Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 3rd, 2004
Synopsis
This is the life story of Howard Hughes, as told by the man himself. Literally. Sort of. Michael Ferreri is the voice of Hughes, and he narrates his life from birth to death. This narration is intercut with interviews with Hughes’ surviving friends and widow. The visuals are a lively mix of footage and animated stills. Though the case boasts a running time of almost three hours, this is when all the extras are factored in. The actual feature is only 56 minutes long. Though the effort is alwa…
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Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 18th, 2004
Born Rich is a documentary about, well, rich kids. The subject makes it hard to sympathize with the piece (“oh those poor millionaires”). But the director and main character, Jamie Johnson (an heir to the Johnson & Johnson fortune), gives us interviews with other heirs from rich families – Ivanka Trump (Real Estate Heiress), Josiah Hornblower (Vanderbilt/Whitney Heir), Cody Franchetti (Textile Heir), S.I Newhouse IV (Publishing Heir), Luke Weil (Gambling Heir), and others. Johnson makes his subjects talk abo…
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Posted in Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 18th, 2004
SCTV is back with Volume 2. We all know the players, Joe Flahrety, Andrea Martin, Catherine O’Hara, Eugene Levy, Rick Moranis, Dave Thomas, and John Candy. Martin Short wasn’t on board yet. But this volume has all your favorite characters, Bob and Doug MacKenzie, Count Floyd, Johnny LaRue, Dr. Tongue, Jerry Todd, Lola Heatherington, and I always loved the Hi-Q sketch.
SCTV’s kind of satire and parody is not biting like Monty Python. It’s more endearing, like wrestling match with a friend….
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Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on September 30th, 2004
Synopsis
Groucho Marx hosted this popular game show for 14 years, and this set collects 18 episodes.The way the game works is as follows: a paired set of contestants comes out, and Grouchobanters with them, having fun with whatever way these people are unusual (and they frequentlyare). Then they are asked a series of questions. If they get four right, they win a thousand dollars,and have the opportunity to return at the end of the show to risk the money for a bigger pr…
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Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 15th, 2004
Synopsis
The How’s Your News? team is a group of physically and/or mentally challenged reporterswho set off on a journey across the US, interviewing people on the street, at a cattle-call, onalligator farms, and so on. Though at first blush the premise might raise warning flags, not tomention the presence of Matt Stone and Trey Parker as exec-producers, but such worries (which Iconfess I shared) are unwarranted. This is a film that the reporters are proud of, and directorArthur Brad…
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Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on June 9th, 2004
Synopsis
Abandoned street kid Punky Brewster (Soleil Moon Frye) lives in an empty apartment withher dog Brandon until the building supervisor (George Gaynes) discovers her. Gruff old sort thathe is, he takes her in. Subsequent episodes see Punky’s adventures with friends, in school, and soforth.
Take Diff’rent Strokes, dump Willis, replace Gary Coleman with Soleil Moon Frye,and voilà, instant sitcom. Don’t worry about coming up with new jokes, however. In fact, youb…
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Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on June 2nd, 2004
Synopsis
It might have seemed like it was never going to happen, but SCTV is finally getting the DVDtreatment. According to the accompanying booklet, legal rights involving the music is what heldthings up for so long. At any rate, this first release is not Season 1 — it represents a fairly lateperiod in the ensemble’s history. Here are the 90-minute NBC episodes that began broadcastingin 1981. A lot of the material is repackaged older fare, but that’s just fine. All your favouritec…
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Posted in Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 19th, 2004
Synopsis
The collapse of the studio system was followed by the rise of the independents, and the late-60s to the early 70s saw what is sometimes termed the American Renaissance. This is the era thatsaw the rise to prominence of Dennis Hopper, Peter Bogdanovich, Francis Ford Coppola, MartinScorsese, and Sam Peckinpah, among other, along with, most fatefully, Steven Spielberg andGeorge Lucas. Based on the book of the same name, Kenneth Bowser’s film narrates the rise and(often drug-fu…
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