Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 18th, 2007
Blood & Chocolate is based upon the novel of the same name by Annette Curtis Klause, which was written in 1997 and has since been in the talks of screenplay adaptation. Written by Ehren Kruger (Arlington Road, Scream 3, The Ring) and directed by little known German director Katja von Garnier, Blood & Chocolate looks too impress.
It was refreshing to see a werewolf movie with a much different formula then were used to. Instead of the typical blood soaked horror we are presented with a dark an...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 8th, 2007
I will admit that on occasion I have enjoyed a romantic comedy or two, and when I initially saw the trailer for Failure to Launch, I anticipated it to make the list. Aside from the film’s stars Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew McConaughey, Failure to Launch has a rather well assembled list of co-stars, including Kathy Bates (Misery), Terry Bradshaw (Former NFL Quarterback), Justin Bartha (National Treasure), and Bradley Cooper (Wedding Crashers). Sounds good enough, how does it turn out?
Matthe...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 6th, 2007
Dreamgirls created a substantial amount of buzz when it was first released at the end of 2006, and has since won two Academy Awards. Although this movie never really struck me as being something I just had to watch, I've been curious to check out what all the praise was about. For those of you that don't know, Dreamgirls is a musical, a whole whack load of singing intertwined with the ongoing plot; much like Grease or Chicago. Like most musical films, Dreamgirls is adapted from a pl...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 6th, 2007
Synopsis
Hey lookee here, in this movie called Off the Black, there are two Oscar nominees and one Oscar winner! So with this pedigree of talent, you’d expect to be a gangbusters piece of dramatic storytelling, right? Well, not exactly.
Written and directed by James Ponsoldt (Junebug and Hurricane), Ray (Nick Nolte, Blue Chips is a high school umpire in his spare time, when he normally works at an auto yard. He makes a controversial call in a game and later that night, some pl...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 5th, 2007
Synopsis
Well in the ever ongoing series of reviews of the James Bond series, this particular installment is the last of the Pierce Brosnan collection (the others are on the site, so go find them). And in Tomorrow Never Dies, I saved it for last because well, I needed some form of drama to keep me going.
This one takes Ian Fleming’s characters and adapts them into a screenplay that was written by Bruce Feirstein (GoldenEye) and directed by Roger Spottiswoode (Under Fire). And ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 4th, 2007
Synopsis
A serial killer who sounds just like Jigsaw (only rather less interesting) and kills exclusively using explosives (!) blows up the brother of a criminal psychologist, then turns his unwanted attentions to seminary student Marc Blucas, taking his life apart one explosion at a time. Blucas is convinced that the killer is a dark figure from his past, and turns amateur sleuth even as he is consumed by guilt. Most of his time, however, he puts his energy into being one of the whiniest protagonist...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on April 26th, 2007
Synopsis
Well, time may not have been too kind to George Lazenby since he assumed the tailored suits of James Bond for On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, but considering how well Daniel Craig did in Casino Royale, and the basic storyline is the same for both films, why do people still want to bash Lazenby now? Is it because he wasn’t a carbon copy of his predecessor, Sean Connery? Who knows?
As for the film itself, Lazenby was as unknown as one could get for the job, as this was only h...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on April 26th, 2007
If any of you watch America’s Most Wanted or have followed the news over the past few years, chances are you know about Jesse James Hollywood, the notorious twenty-year-old drug dealer. Alpha Dog is based upon Hollywood, his crew, and their unlawful activities. Of course the names are changed due to the fact that there are trials pending, but the story is a chilling tale of how young men can push each other too far trying to adhere to a “tough guy” image.
Johnny Truelove (Emile Hirsch, The Gir...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on April 24th, 2007
Ahead of the pack with eight nominations, Dreamgirls had a lot of buzz leading up to this year’s Academy Awards. In the midst of it all, there was talk of a surprise standout performance by American Idol alumnus Jennifer Hudson in her first film role, and even more surprisingly, Pluto Nash – I mean, Eddie Murphy was up for best supporting actor.
With that many nominations, Dreamgirls, in yet another surprise, was not up for the coveted best picture Oscar. And after the dust settled, the film had been honored with just two of the golden statues, for Jennifer Hudson as best supporting actress and best achievement in sound mixing. No best picture nod and so few wins seemed to say, ‘yeah, your movie had a lot of good parts, some even great, but they didn’t add up to something more.’
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on April 23rd, 2007
I’ve just watched Smokin’ Aces for the first time. What. A. Mess.
Having read and heard comparisons with Tarantino films like Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill, I had anticipated a violent, highly entertaining romp. The violence part I get, no problem. Smokin’ Aces is certainly a bloody film, but come on, ”Tarantino”? You’ve got to be kidding me.
I barely got through this film. At the half-way mark, I wanted it to end so badly I paused it to grab the DVD case and check ...