Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on January 29th, 2007
John Cena is The Marine. Though, as matters develop, The Maroon might be a better handle. At any rate, after being discharged for having Disobeyed a Direct Order in Iraq (where, in a scene distinctly reminiscent of the opening of The Naked Gun, our boy shoots up one of those elusive Al-Qaeda training camps that nobody else seems to be able to find). Readjustment to civilian life is difficult, but then, while heading out for a little holiday with his wife (Kelly Carlson), an unfortunate stop at a gas station results in Carlson being abducted by a violent gang of jewel thieves headed up by Robert Patrick (who comes across, as was pointed out to me, like the love child of Martin Sheen and Chandler Bing).
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 29th, 2007
Based on Augusten Burroughs� popular biographical memoir of the same name, Running With Scissors is a dark, comedic tale of surviving a bizarre and painful childhood.
The film covers Augusten�s life mostly from about age 12 to 16. Part of what makes this film intriguing is that it�s so outlandish that viewers can hardly anticipate events before they happen, so I will attempt to avoid spoiling it all in this review. With that in mind, here�s my very high-level plot summary: Augusten�s parents� relatio...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 28th, 2007
The relationship between Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor appeared to blossom when they were both on the set of Cleopatra. The epic film was famous, not for the success of the film but more for the near bankruptcy of the studio and for the romance that blossomed between the two. Warner Brothers has recently been releasing groups of films surrounding various film icons, and this set of four titles focuses on the two acting giants.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 28th, 2007
The only thing I knew about Extras as of a couple of weeks ago was that Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant were behind the show, the follow-up to their cult hit The Office, which has been adapted into a Steve Carell vehicle to showcase his talent. Seeing very little on The Office and not being familiar with Gervais' work, I downloaded the first episode of the second season of Extras from iTunes (Season Two recently resumed airing on HBO), and I found it one of the funnier things I've seen in recent memory, and not just because it didn't cost me anything.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 25th, 2007
The Rock � sorry, Dwayne Johnson � sure has come a long way from his melodramatic days as a WWE superstar. His first major film role, as the Scorpion King in 2001�s The Mummy Returns was more about his physical presence than any acting ability. Two years later, he proved he could handle action comedy with The Rundown. Now, with Gridiron Giants, Johnson has added the drama notch to his genre belt.
The film, based on a true story and following a 1993 TV documentary of the same name, tells...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 21st, 2007
For all the talk about a film being "just as relevant now as when it was released", Oh! What a Lovely War seems to fit that bill more than a lot of movies I've seen recently. From a screenplay by Len Deighton and directed by a first-time director (but longtime actor) in Richard Attenborough (Jurassic Park), the film may be a daunting endeavor for some to see, probably because it's a film that's two and a half hours long and contains a lot of songs.
It also contains a lot of dialogue, and both the songs and dialogue were from the period.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 21st, 2007
Back in late 2006 there was a minor to-do about a film depicting the last days of Jesus, except that Jesus was played by a black man. Written and directed by Jean-Claude La Marre, Color of the Cross tries to do what it can to tell the tale of this black Jesus, or be-jeezus if you will.
The film, like others covering the last two days of his life, follows Jesus as he performs the Last Supper, gets betrayed by Judas and the other stuff. While in town, many Jews are trying to celebrate Passover without being abused or persecuted by the Romans, so they celebrate in secret.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 19th, 2007
The only thing I really knew about The Librarian was that Noah Wyle, previously known for his work in ER was playing in some goofy looking film, and the making of this film was getting in the way of whatever theatrical film I was watching from August-October. Imagine my surprise when I found out that it was more than just a goofy little film, that it was the second in a presumed series, and hey, it's not all that much about a library at all!
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 19th, 2007
Back in 1979 (that's a whole generation ago, kids!) Matt Dillon was appearing in films that would make the average reader of Tiger Beat swoon. He was in plenty of material like Little Darlings, Rumble Fish and The Outsiders that didn't help that idea too much in the eyes of his female fans (of which there are scores). But since the early '80s, he's gone through a bit of a rediscovery, and in the film Factotum, based on the works of author Charles Bukowski, he may have hit his best stride to date.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on January 18th, 2007
This is the second volume of Pluto cartoons, here going from 1947 to the end of the series in 1951. The neat thing about these themed collections in the Wald Disney Treasures series is that they highlight particular strengths in Disney’s animation. Thus, if the Silly Symphonies sets focus on the marriage of movement with music, the Pluto cartoons are wonders of pantomime, since the central character doesn’t speak. Pluto is not a jot less communicative for not using words, however, and the sight gags involved in some of his facial expressions (such as when wearing the unwanted “Pluto’s Sweater”) are priceless.
