Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 11th, 2011
The setting is a comfortably large house in the English countryside. Kin and friends have gathered for the funeral of the family patriarch bringing with them their foibles, eccentricities, and disasters waiting to happen. At the centre are the two brothers, Daniel and Troy (Matthew MacFayden and Rupert Graves). The former struggles under the shadow of his famous brother’s success as a writer, his plight encapsulated by the fact that everyone in attendance is disappointed that Troy will not be giving the eulogy. But his problems are about to become much, much greater, as the funeral descends into a chaos of unwelcome revelations, blackmail, drug freak-outs.
Director Frank Oz here rebounds from the disaster of his Stepford Wives remake with a pure slamming-door farce, and, for the most part, he succeeds. While Dean Craig’s script isn’t exactly bursting with surprises, it does have plenty of fun antics, and there are many “oh boy here comes trouble” anticipatory moments to revel. The cast is strong, with Alan Tudyk (currently essaying yet another accent to fine comic effect in Transformers: Dark of the Moon) and Peter Dinklage turning in particularly funny performances. If the shenanigans are ultimately a little familiar, think of this as the comedy equivalent of comfort food. Shepherd’s Pie may not be enticingly new, but it goes down fine all the same, and so does this.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on June 24th, 2011
Most film-goers could identify a Michael Bay film just by the techniques he uses — quick edits, sun drenched color palette, and lots of action. This usually means that Bay is suited more for low-brow action movies as opposed to high-concept films. In Pearl Harbor, Bay proved that he couldn’t handle anything that didn’t explode — resulting in a lopsided film. The first hour was a tedious love story; the last 90 minutes were better — including an excellent recreation of the surprise attack.
The same is true in The Island. Bay can’t wait to make things explode, and once they do — Bay is very much at home. Though while the explosions are very well choreographed, The Island becomes another action movie that would have worked better had the concept been given more thought.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on June 22nd, 2011
One of the most commonly asked what if questions, is the question about superpowers. If you were a superhero, what would be your superpower? My initial reaction is X-Ray vision because I am after all a dirty old man. After some thoughtful moments, I do however come up with the ability to instantly adapt. There are many moments where I might feel out of place or unable to help. But with that power, I could change that. Or maybe I will just wear a green amulet and fight bad guys like Callan in the film: Cross.
The movie opens to the pages of a comic book flipping. Wait, is this a Marvel Comics presentation? Okay, not exactly. They mention that amulets are some of the most powerful source of power in the universe. The strongest amulet, that would be the Cross of the Isles. It is green, it glows a lot. Hey, was that Machete (Danny Trejo)? Doesn’t matter, he isn’t in the rest of the movie. We also learn about the Staff of Sekhmet which has the potential to kill the whole word.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on June 16th, 2011
It is that time again boys and girls for the movie of the week. This week, we visit a genre that is staler than your grandmother Edna’s cookies: the romantic comedy. *boo* *hiss*. Okay, okay before you start throwing those almond cookies, I think I need to let you know that there is a $5 bill in it for each of you. *whisper from editor* “Do we have that in our budget?” “No silly, just go with it.”. Audience – “What was that?” Why, our movie today is the Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston picture: Just Go With It. Roll the film!
Twenty years ago, Danny Maccabee (played by Adam Sandler) ended his wedding day with a big broken heart and an even bigger nose. Man, was that thing huge. Be sure to never invite him to a coke party. Coke party? Yes, this review is brought to you by Cherry Coca-cola. No, you can’t have any because I drank it all. Anyway, Danny goes off to a local bar to drink the night away (not Cherry Coca-Cola) and strikes up a conversation with a hot girl who notices his wedding ring.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 10th, 2011
"My father said the army makes all men one, but you never know which one."
There have been a lot of movies about Vietnam over the years. Some are quite political, while others try to capture the sheer horror of war...any war. It's been long enough now that there are even lighter works about the conflict. But this might just be the smartest film about the war ever made, because it never actually goes to Vietnam.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on June 6th, 2011
Looking for a something a bit different for you gangster flick fix? Then look no further than this box set of gritty, thematically linked Italian crime pictures from director Fernando Di Leo. Things don't get much more delightfully 70s than this.
Caliber 9 headlines Gastone Moschin as Ugo Piazza, a mob tough guy just out of prison. Everyone believes he stole 300 grand from the the mafia, which leads to no end of beatings and threats of worse. The old gang forces Ugo to work for them again, in order to keep an eye on him, and he tells girlfriend Barbara Bouchet that his plan is to find out who really took the money.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on June 2nd, 2011
There are a good number of people who have labeled Oliver Stone as a fan of conspiracy theories, out to destroy foundations of conservative ideology, while at the same time re-visiting 60’s nostalgic icons. Despite the jokes and the stereotyping, one has to admit that, as a filmmaker, he has helped bring to screen some of the most talked-about cinematic experiences of our time, including Midnight Express, Scarface, not to mention Conan the Barbarian. As a director, his works, such as The Doors, Nixon, JFK and Natural Born Killers, have generated discussion both within and aside from the technical merits. Platoon was his most personal work, and is widely regarded as one of the defining films of the Vietnam War.
Platoon relates the experiences of Chris Taylor (Charlie Sheen, Major League), who, like Stone, dropped out of college, and volunteered to serve in Vietnam. His battles are everywhere, be it the enemy, with his surroundings, some of his fellow soldiers, or with his identity. He is thrown into a platoon with several characters, each with their own distinguishing characteristics. Sergeant Barnes (Tom Berenger, The Big Chill) is riddled with facial scars, a veteran of many skirmishes in country, perhaps to the point where emotions have dwindled, as he is left a hard-nosed leader. Sergeant Elias (Willem Dafoe, To Live and Die in L.A.) tries to forget the memories and experiences through drugs, but acts as a spiritual center, if one could find that within a war movie. Other actors in this cast include John C. McGinley (Scrubs), Forest Whitaker (Bird), and a very young Johnny Depp (Finding Neverland), among others. They encounter many things during the time there, including ambushes and firefights. They experience the loss of fellow platoon members, either via combat or by other reasons, either wounded or serving their full tour of duty in country. The story and characters are done so well, when watching the movie, their losses are our own. When Taylor leaves his platoon following an injury during combat, the closing shot of the movie is his sobbing on the floor of the chopper taking him out. You could say the sobbing is due to finally being out, or to the friends that he lost, but it is without question that his (and our) experiences leave him a totally different person that when he arrived.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 31st, 2011
I remember when I first heard that Dead Man Walking was coming out. The first news was that it was a death penalty film that involved Tim Robbins, Sean Penn and Susan Sarandon. I was not very keen to see the movie at that time. All three of these actors are known for their over-the-top liberal antics, and I just knew this was going to be nothing but a rant against the death penalty in the United States. But you see, that's why you just have to watch the movie sometimes. I'm not sure why I ended up going to see the film, but I did. I was very surprised to find that while it certainly was anti-death penalty, the movie showed both sides and didn't hit you on the head with its morality.
The film was based on the autobiography of Sister Helen Prejean (Sarandon). She had been asked to provide some conversation and possibly a little comfort to a death row inmate who was reaching out to the church. She went to meet Matthew Poncelet (Penn) and ended up his spiritual advisor during his final days. She helped to organize a legal team headed by Hilton Barber (Prosky) and tried to get him to take responsibility for what he had done so that he could die with some dignity. Along the way she was shaken by encounters with the parents of the couple that was brutally murdered by Poncelet and his partner. Their pain causes conflicts within her, but she continues to fight for the condemned man.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 28th, 2011
Unlike most people my age, I still have a surreal view of love despite a plethora of failed relationships and a horrendous first marriage. Sometimes, I feel like I am the only person who doesn’t have a screwed up concept of love. But thankfully I did find my true love before anything happened to my ideology. Enter the movie Year of the Carnivore, a movie that disguises itself to be about sex when in reality it is more a statement about good old fashioned love.
Eight O’ Clock. Just another day for Sammy Smalls (played by Cristin Milioti) until she peers out his window and stares at a guy engaged in a self sexual act. (it is not graphic, just disturbing). Interested, she doesn’t even realize she is eating off her parent’s picture. So off Sammy goes to the grocery store to do her job as store security. She catches a old man stealing a steak and hands him over to the store manager, Dirk (played by Will Sasso) who mulls him over.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 28th, 2011
"I don't remember if I started drinking because my wife left me or my wife left me because I started drinking."
Nicolas Cage has played quite an array of oddball characters in what has to be one of Hollywood's most eclectic careers. But whatever your favorite might be, this is the one that earned him an Oscar. The movie also earned Elisabeth Shue her only nomination for an Oscar. While those were not the only nominations for this cult favorite film, that's really where the money is. The film is a character study of two people on a downward spiral. The film was also nominated for two additional Oscars, but it is the acting that makes this movie somewhat exceptional.
![The Island [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/the-island-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![Just Go with It [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/just-go-with-it-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![Tigerland [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/tigerland-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![Dead Man Walking [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/dead-man-walking-blu-ray-large.jpg)
![Leaving Las Vegas [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/leaving-las-vegas-blu-ray-large.jpg)
