Posted in: Disc Reviews by M. W. Phillips on October 16th, 2011
“Rush Week just became Death Week!”
Let me say first off that director Alex Pucci knows something about production values. For a film shot on Super 16mm for a reported budget of around $1 million, Pucci delivered a film that looks and sounds far more expensive. Reportedly attempting to be a homage to the seventies grindhouse slasher/revenge flicks, Pucci’s focus on detail is amazing, even if his seventies period piece comes with a few anachronisms.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on October 14th, 2011
For those who do not know, I am not a typical sports fan. I primarily watch three sports, none of which are football. I love me some wrestling, hockey, and the legendary sport of baseball. The Phillies have been my team for over 30 years and even though they took it hard this year in the playoffs, I look forward to more baseball in the years to come. I also appreciate the history of baseball so I was certainly curious to see a couple of great Red Sox teams come to Blu-Ray in this A&E presentation.
The 2004 Boston Red Sox (narrated by Dennis Leary) were expected to do some great things right out of the gate in spring training. But this was the Red Sox we were talking about, they had the curse of the Bambino to contend with for the last eighty-six years. They had failed at every opportunity, even years when it looked like a sure thing that the Red Sox were going to get the big one. But this year was poised to be different from the very start.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 12th, 2011
"From the day we arrive on the planet and blinking, step into the sun, there's more to see than can ever be seen. More to do than can ever be done. There's far too much to take in here. More to find than can ever be found..."
There's a period in the 1990's that has often been referred to as the second golden age of Disney animation. The studio had fallen from its once mighty perch, and most film historians tend to agree there was a creative dark ages through the 1980's. But the renaissance of the studio began with Aladdin in 1992 would go on to include such tremendous classics as Beauty And The Beast and The Little Mermaid. None of these films speak to the resurgence of the animated feature like The Lion King. The film set every animated record there was and holds some of those box office records today. It can be safely stated that the great flood of animated projects that followed can be traced to the impact of The Lion King. In 1996 Simba was the most popular name chosen for new housecats. Elton John saw his appeal extend to children, and there could be no mistake that the animated feature was back.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 12th, 2011
Stop me if you've heard any of this before. Peter Jackson directs a horror film that has an expedition going to Skull Island to retrieve a horrific primate. Of course, you might now be expecting a review of Jackson's remake of King Kong. But the primate here is something called a rat monkey, and it only figures into the film's early moments. Long before Jackson achieved household name status by taking us on a journey to Middle Earth, he was a small filmmaker with no less grand designs.
Dead Alive has become one of those cult films that has managed to keep strong legs for many years, long after the director has gone on to far more successful projects. One of the things that has made Peter Jackson as good as he's been even on big-budget films is the fact that he's like a kid in a candy store. He appears to absolutely love making films, and that's certainly evident on the Rings films. But it's also very evident here as well. Jackson demonstrates his love for such greats as Ray Harryhausen with some rather nice stop-motion work here and a few direct nods to the master. The stop-motion effects are quite obvious, but they are also quite fun and entertaining. Dead Alive is a bloody good time...literally.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 11th, 2011
"Cal Lightman sees the truth. It's written all over your face. It's also in your voice, your posture, the words you choose. Give him five minutes and 20 questions and he'll know whether you went off to Argentina to cheat on your wife, lied about a well-timed stock sale, or murdered a one-night stand."
I spent quite a few years as a detective. My specialty turned out to be in the interview room. When some of my fellow detectives had a suspect they couldn't break, they often called me in. It was my job to get the person talking. You see, the company’s insurance recovery from the theft was based on how much I could get the thief to admit they had taken over and above whatever they just got busted for. I have to admit that I rather enjoyed the job. I was able to read the person's emotions well enough to gauge how my approaches were making the suspect feel. The key was to be able to separate the truth from the deception. Well, it turns out there's a science behind what I just took as instinct. Apparently, our faces and body language are almost impossible to control, and anyone who could read and translate that language would be nearly impossible to deceive. I don't recall consciously looking for any of these things. I could just tell. After watching a season of Lie To Me, I'm not so sure that there wasn't more to it than just instinct.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on October 7th, 2011
A few years back, Paramount released all eight of the studio’s Friday the 13th films in a so-called “Ultimate Edition.” With cut versions of the films and no 3D, it wasn’t really that ultimate. So here we are again, with another Ultimate Edition (also Limited!) and this time, the package is much more worthy of the name, bringing together all the deluxe versions of the series.
As those deluxe editions have previously been reviewed on this site, I am now going to surrender the floor for a while. The comments below on Part 1 are by Aric Mitchell, and on Parts 2-6 are by Gino Sassani. I’ll come back for 7 and 8.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 6th, 2011
Written by John Delia
I don’t know if you recently had the opportunity to see The Lion King in 3D at your local theater or the original version in 1994 when it came out, but I had the opportunity to see the film in the 3D Blu-ray disc version and it’s amazing. The film will probably never be replaced as the all time animated entertainment event for me because it has all the action, drama, comedy and values that make it the best for family viewing, and now in 3D Blu-ray.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 6th, 2011
"I guess if this is the first you're hearing about it, I know how this must all sound."
Unless you've been in a coma like the lead character of The Walking Dead, you've been hearing a lot about this AMC television series of late. It's no wonder. I'm amazed that it's taken so long to see a zombie television series. The show has incredible visuals. There's a courtyard scene at the beginning of the pilot that is as impressive as anything you've seen in a movie. And when a character has to shoot a 6-year-old girl in the head, you understand instantly that this is going to be something unique.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 6th, 2011
We all remember Ed O'Neill as Al Bundy from Married With Children. It's an iconic role that he'll never be able to shake no matter what he does for the rest of his life. After that series ended its 11-year run, he even attempted to get out of comedy and take more dramatic roles. I'm sure there was a deliberate intent to try to distance himself from Al. It's not that he likely didn't love playing the role. He just wanted to avoid getting forever typecast in the mold.Those efforts weren't all that successful. But now he's back where he belongs again in a pretty solid sit-com. He's not playing Al Bundy any more, although you won't have to look very hard to find some of Bundy in Jay from Modern Family.
I have become somewhat frustrated over the television comedy genre for a lot of years. It seems that they all take the same path no matter what the show's actual concept might be. It's usually the same jokes, just in a different environment. I don't have children, but I expect that it must be near impossible to sit down and watch a comedy with your family any more. If I were a stranger visiting this planet for the first time, I would quickly come to the conclusion that sex is about the only thing that's funny here. Thank God that once in a while something fresh comes along and swims against the current tide of innuendo and toilet humor. Modern Family is the kind of show you can enjoy with the entire family. And guess what? It's pretty darn funny on top of it all.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 6th, 2011
Yes formed in 1968 and instantly became a pioneer in the area of progressive rock. The band utilized classical trends and ideas to create epic musical pieces that were often over 10 minutes in length. While that made AM radio success more fleeting, the band was huge at its peak, joining the ranks of Emerson, Lake and Palmer in the genre as one of the most endearing and enduring bands of the era. While there have been many musicians to come and go over the years, the most popular lineup includes Jon Anderson on vocals, Steve Howe on lead guitar, Chris Squire on bass, Alan White on drums and Geoff Downs on keyboards. Certainly, they haven't enjoyed the same amount of success in recent years, yet the band manages to survive in one form or another to this very day.
Eagle Rock Entertainment has given us a chance to drop in on our old friends and see how the last 43 years have treated the band in their Blu-ray release of Yes Symphonic Live. The concert takes place in Amsterdam in 2001 and is part of the band's triumphant tour with a full orchestra. It's something they hadn't really done quite like this before. The tour was intended to promote their latest release Magnification which features the return to the long-form songs and classical roots. It's likely the biggest concert tour the band has given in respect to arrangements and stage presence. They still appear to have a spark even if you won't find Howe or Squire moving about as frantically as they once did. Of all of the band members Anderson appears the least worse for wear and has incredible energy and a voice as strong as you remember from the glory days.
![Dead Alive [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/dead-alive-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![The Walking Dead: The Complete First Season (3-Disc Special Edition) [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-walking-dead-the-complete-firs-large.jpg)
![Modern Family: The Complete Second Season [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/modern-family-the-complete-second-large.jpg)
![Symphonic Live [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/symphonic-live-blu-ray-large.jpg)
