Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 5th, 2007
Catch and Release is appropriately dubbed as a chick flick. Written by Susannah Grant, who also makes her directorial debut, is responsible for the screenwriting of some rather dismal movies in the past, including Ever After, Erin Brockovich, and 28 Days. Although I hint at a dislike for romantic comedies, I'll have you know that in the past I have enjoyed several, and am going into this completely unbiased.
The movie starts off on a sad note, Grey (Jennifer Garner) a grieving a...most widow mourns the death of her fiancé Grady. Originally they were to be married on that day, but due to an accident on a fishing trip, Grady was killed. Dealing with the loss in her own way, Grey sits in a bathtub where she can be alone with her thoughts. Before long, Grady's friend Fritz (Timothy Olyphant) bursts in and seduces a waitress. Waiting until the woman leaves, Grey reveals herself and tells Fritz she never understood why Grady was his friend.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on April 24th, 2007
Synopsis
Robert Francis is a wet-behind-the-ears naval officer whose first posting is aboard the Caine, a ramshackle minesweeper. He is dismayed by the rough-looking crew and captain, and when that captain is replaced by Bogart, a by-the-book commander, Francis is initially relieved. But Bogart’s fixations on minutiae are tyrannical and obsessive, his refusal to admit error dangerous, and his behaviour increasingly erratic and paranoid. Francis and fellow officers Fred MacMurray and Van Johnson reali...e that Bogart is unfit for command, and one stormy night, Johnson (the first mate) is forced to take action. The consequences are serious.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on April 18th, 2007
There was a time when National Lampoon’s was known for their comedic presence, with classics like the Vacation franchise, Animal House, and their first decent production in ten-years - Van Wilder. Since then they have seldom come out with anything remotely humorous, usually brining in novelty has been or never was actors/actresses to fill the roles, such as Paris Hilton (Pledge This), Vida Guerra (Dorm Daze 2), and David Faustino (Pucked). I’ll admit having not seen or even h...ard of this movie prior to now, I’m a little curious to see what’s come of David Faustino (Bud Bundy from Married with Children) as well as Bon Jovi and his bleached white teeth.
The plot is very simplistic, Frank Hopper (Bon Jovi) was formerly a lawyer who has since become a dreamer residing in his sister’s garage. Carl (David Faustino) is Frank’s loyal best friend whom is slightly more successful as of late. While out looking for a birthday present for his mom, Frank fills out a credit application that he presumes to be a survey; jokingly he fills out his annual income as a million dollars. Before long he gets a high limit credit card in the mail, in his eyes this is a way to finance his newly realized get rich dream - an all-woman hockey league.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on April 14th, 2007
Synopsis
Baseball films always hold a place near and dear to me. I would go see them with my dad when I was a kid and enjoy the plight of a team or an individual with a desire to win and overcome the odds. Sometimes it would be funny (Bull Durham), sometimes it would be sad (Eight Men Out), sometimes it would be uplifting (Field of Dreams). However, all of the above movies would have never been as successful without one movie in particular. That movie is The Natural . The Natura... (starring Robert Redford & Glenn Close and so many other great actors & actresses) is the story of a fairy tale; one where Roy Hobbs (Redford) grows up with a great gift. The gift to play baseball better than anybody who has ever played the game. However, fate deals him a cruel hand as he encounters a mysterious woman (played by Barbara Hershey) who guns him down with a silver bullet. This ends his career for the next sixteen years until he battles back to find a spot on the Knights, a last place professional team in search of a hero. From here, this is where the story begins of a man battling his health and his demons to capture the pennant and to have his name remembered for ever.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 29th, 2007
Pedro Almodévar is a big deal in Spanish film, and well respected worldwide by those in the know. Almodévar - director, screenwriter and producer - has had major success with films that explore complex themes and favor female characters. His latest, Volver, remains true to those qualities.
Starring Penélope Cruz (Vanilla Sky), Carmen Maura (Comunidad, La) and Lola Dueéas (The Sea Inside), Volver is a film about female resilience, and the power of death over life. Raimunda (Cruz) is a hardworking mother with a lazy husband and a teenage daughter, Paula. When Paula's dad drunkenly approaches her for sex, claiming he's not really her father, she accidentally stabs him to death. Raimunda, taking charge and protecting her daughter, cleans up the mess and hides his body in the freezer of her neighbor's nearby vacant restaurant, which she's supposed to be minding.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on March 25th, 2007
Synopsis
Family pictures usually miss when viewed by a lonely dvd reviewer who has nothing better to do on a saturday morning. There are no kids to laugh at the bad jokes and slapstick mayhem, there are no wives to go awwwww and marvel at the cute kids. All that one man can hope for is a decent lead who provides thought provoking characterisms and smart laughs. Wait, I'm watching Are We There Yet?, so I have pretty much no chance of that. Are We There Yet? is the stor... of Nick Persons (played by Ice Cube) who just bought a Lincoln Navigator (good blatant advertising to start a film off of) and works at the local fine sports collectibles shop. One day he spots a fine woman ( Nia Long as Suzanne Kingston) and wants to ask her out until he realizes she has two kids (been there, done that) Lindsey and Kevin (played by Aleisha Allen and Philip Bolden respectively. After another brief encounter he decides to pursue her anyway and gets introduced into the friend zone. He tries to break out of the zone and is unsuccessful until an opportunity arises when somebody is needed to escort the kids to meet her in Vancouver for New Year's eve. So from there, we get Ice Cube and two terrible kids in and out of a Navigator for an hour and a half. Hilarity, mayhem and a single dvd reviewer who wishes to impale himself with blunt objects ensue.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 18th, 2007
The Pursuit of Happyness is inspired by the true story of Chris Gardner, who wrote a biography of the same name, from which the movie is based. Will Smith plays Gardner who is a salesman of medical equipment, who actually only manages to sell the odd unit. Because of his poor sales, his family is struggling making it from bill to bill, until finally his wife becomes so fed up she packs up and leaves for New York. Gardner is now left by his request, with his five-year-old son Christopher. With the untimely loss...of their apartment, Chris has to make a hard decision; pursue the career path of a stock broker which requires six months training with no pay and no employment guarantee, or continue the life as a salesman in hope of earning enough to put food on the table. After a short time of deliberation Chris chooses to go after the internship, but endures some real hardships along the way including going hungry and homelessness.
This film is really inspirational, it proves that no matter where you’re from and no matter the circumstances that you face if you want something you can have it. The acting was impressive by Will Smith, but I was more impressed with the ability of young Jaden Smith who will obliviously be following in his father’s footsteps. Aside from the great cast and intense realism of the life on the streets this movie provides a good plot, and sends out a good message. This movie ultimately has a positive vibe to it and it beings such a touching story I have a hard time saying this, but it wasn’t awfully engaging. I felt for the characters, but the story dragged on a bit and didn’t always keep me interested, it’s the sort of movie that is going to be hit and miss. Some people will love it and call it inspirational, will others will simply shrug and say it was like any other underdog movie. For me personally I thought it was better than I anticipated, but wasn’t a perfect movie, but definitely worth checking out.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 27th, 2007
A small town is being terrorized by a gang of thugs who use extortion and violence to buy up all the businesses. The only person who tries to stand up to the gang is the sheriff, but then he meets a violent end. His son (Kevin Sorbo), who, one gathers from vague references, has military training, shucks his apathy, dons his father’s badge, and sets out to clean up the town.
The cover art is hilariously misleading, in that it shows what appears to be Sorbo leading his posse for the titular payback. But those folks behind him are actually the villains. Whatever. At any rate, this follow-up to the remake starring The Rock is mildly entertaining, but no more. Sorbo has little of Dwayne Johnson’s screen presence or sense of humour, and the storyline is utterly by-the-numbers. So routine is it, that the lack of action set-pieces really makes itself felt. On the upside, AJ Buckley is so completely unpleasant as the primary villain that he kicks the film to a semblance of life.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 23rd, 2007
For the sake of full disclosure, I wrote this review while I was sitting in a meeting. For the sake of having a challenge, I wanted to start every sentence in this review with the name of the movie, for no discernible reason whatsoever. Feel free to call shenanigans on me at any time, as it helped me get through my meeting and to a larger extent, the film.
Crossover is a film that at least as of this writing, has no positive reviews on Rotten Tomatoes for some sort of reason, and I think that's because of the razor sharp casting that was employed. Crossover includes Anthony Mackie, who was more recently seen as the drug dealing Frank in the Ryan Gosling Oscar-nominated film Half Nelson, but that's the only praiseworthy casting decision in the film. Crossover includes a supporting performance by Wayne Brady (Whose Line is it Anyway?) who is supposed to be a greedy sports agent who is running an underground street basketball league involving several teams, however in playing a bad guy, he makes his appearance in Chappelle's Show look really smart, because he's simply not believable. Crossover has a female role played by Eva Pigford, who was more recently seen in America's Next Top Model, so I guess if you can impress the scrutinizing eye of Tyra Banks, there's nowhere to go but up. Crossover also features a few real life "streetballers", including one whose name is "hot sauce". Crossover doesn't explain why this nickname was given, but I think it's the second dumbest athletic nickname I've heard, save for those whose nickname is the first letter of their first name and the first three letters of the last, like A-Rod, T-Mac.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 21st, 2007
There were a lot of changes in store for the Bunkers in the sixth season. The Jeffersons, long a source of irritation for Archie and a ton of laughs for us, were moving on up to the East Side and that big de-lux apartment in the sky. Mike and Gloria finally move out of the house, but only as far as next door in the vacated Jefferson home. Most importantly, little baby Joey joins the family. For the 30 years since All In The Family, there is still speculation as to just how Carroll O' Connor was able to take such a bigoted, seemingly irredeemable character and make him loved by millions. We get perhaps the best insight into that mystery in year 6. In the now famous Joey's Baptism episode, we see just a glimpse of the Archie Bunker that O'Connor had been playing all along. Arguably the best episode of the series finds Archie worried about his grandson's soul when Mike and Gloria refuse to have the child baptized. Archie takes matters into his own hands, culminating in one of the most touching moments in television history. Archie Bunker is a complicated man, and nowhere has that been more evident. Season 6 is well worth your time. This was the peak of the show, and it would never again regain the ratings numbers enjoyed at this point.
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