Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on March 4th, 2012
Most people that regularly read my work can probably see my love for the Transformers. We are not talking about the movies either (the first one was decent, the rest were abominations), but instead it is the cartoons that I enjoy so much. Generation One, Beast Wars, Cybertron all hold a special place in my heart. So, when my webmaster mentioned he had season one of Transformers Prime on Blu-ray for me, I think I literally jumped through the ceiling in anticipation. Let us take a look.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on March 2nd, 2012
"As a boy, I came to understand that two things marked my family: distinctive names and extreme stubbornness."
In fact, it was Thurgood Marshall's "extreme stubbornness" in the face of racial inequality that led to his name becoming synonymous with the civil rights movement and to his 1967 appointment as the United States Supreme Court's first African-American justice. Marshall's remarkable life story is told in Thurgood, a sensational one-man show starring Laurence Fishburne that previously aired on HBO and was filmed before a live audience at the Kennedy Center's Eisenhower Theater in Washington, D.C.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 2nd, 2012
With the release of the book written by Jack Ketchum (author of Offspring) to coincide with the theatrical release of the film, Jack Ketchum and Lucky McKee bring us a horror story not quite like anything we’ve seen for a while. The Woman is a continuation of the film/novel Offspring that followed a tribe of cannibals struggling to survive. The Woman is not a story about cannibal, but instead a story about a family being ripped apart by the many secrets they try at all costs to keep hidden.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by M. W. Phillips on February 29th, 2012
“Remember... Winter is coming.”
Very rarely, the stars align and a media magic event happens, creating a flawless television series. Such an event happened last year with the premiere of HBO’s Game of Thrones based on the novels from George R.R. Martin’s best selling and ongoing series A Song of Ice and Fire. HBO was so pleased with the series, it green-lit the second season only hours after the pilot premiered. Co-President Richard Plepler said, “We told George (R.R. Martin) we’d go as long as he kept writing.”
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on February 28th, 2012
Josephine Baker was an international sensation who faced adversity all her career because of the colour of her skin. Terrified and sickened by the treatment of black people in the US, Baker fled to France where she found joy, fame and fair treatment as an entertainer. As her career exploded into super-stardom, she was more than just an exotic singer/dancer, she became a war hero and civil rights defender.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on February 27th, 2012
Carlos Santana is too cool for words. When I say that, I refer to both his widely-acknowledged status as a "Guitar God" and to the fact that he doesn't utter a single word until the 21-minute mark of his latest concert film, Santana — Live at Montreux 2011. Santana may not be chatty, but he and the rest of his eponymous band do a valiant job of holding your attention throughout most of this 167-minute concert in Montreux (which is in Switzerland, and I'm only a little ashamed to admit I had no idea where Montreux was located before I watched this disc).
Posted in: Disc Reviews by M. W. Phillips on February 25th, 2012
“At this very moment, I have no desire to stab you in the neck.”
Between Weeds and Nurse Jackie, Showtime has the corner on shows about drugged up, ethically challenged women. The great Edie Falco somehow keeps Nurse Jackie relatable even though she is an unrepentant drug addict, thief and manipulative narcissist. It doesn’t hurt being surrounded by such a smart supporting cast and given lines that crackle with poignancy and humor.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on February 23rd, 2012
Looking over my sports dvd library, one might notice a lot of contact type titles. From Wrestling to MMA to high intensity action films, I have my fill of male testosterone fueled viewing. The question remained what would I think of some bare knuckled fist fighting in the documentary that took over ten years to make: Knuckle. Would it be simply too barbaric or would I crave more?
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 22nd, 2012
"The darker picture is always the correct one. When you read the history of the world you are reading a saga of bloodshed and greed and folly the import of which is impossible to ignore. And yet we imagine that the future will somehow be different."
One thing that is absolutely different is HBO's The Sunset Limited. I can assure you that this film is unlike any movie you've ever seen before, or are likely to see again. There are a lot of reasons for this, of course.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on February 21st, 2012
I completely understand if you bailed out on Weeds a long time ago. The fact is the current show bears little resemblance to the subversive, suburban sitcom that became one of Showtime's first comedy smashes. That's partly because the tone of the show took a dark turn into Mexican cartels and human trafficking after the end of season 3. Even worse, the once-fresh characters had become, at
