Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 30th, 2021
"I must admit I didn't think much of Andy first time I laid eyes on him; looked like a stiff breeze would blow him over. That was my first impression of the man."
Our first, middle, and last impression of writer Stephen King has always been one thing. He's considered the King of the Modern Horror Novel. Pretty much everything he has ever written has found its way to the small or large screen and often with various versions over the years. The problem is that King is such a visceral writer, and his novels tend to be so long that it's very difficult and damn near impossible to translate a good King story for television or the box office. No matter how hard some of the best filmmakers have tried, an alarming number of King's written masterpieces have fallen flat at the box office.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 24th, 2021
" Okay, listen up! I want 50 of the best men! I want guns! I want wheels, freaking X-wing fighters -- I don't care! The Millennium Falcon, Chewbacca if you can get ahold of him. Money's no object. Go."
The year 2020 and nearly half of 2021 make up a time in our lives we'd all like to try to forget. And while the remnants of a pandemic that is not quite over still intrude on our realities, many aspects of our lives are starting to return. We're spending time with our family and friends again. Those simple parts of our lives we once took for granted are starting to return, and I suspect we're all apt to savor them just a little bit more from now on.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 18th, 2021
When Justice League hit the box office in 2017 it was met by relatively good box office numbers but not warmly received overall. It was a troubled shoot. During production Zack Snyder had to leave the director's chair when his daughter Autumn passed away. When you consider how hard the folks at DC have been chasing the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it was no surprise that they brought in Joss Whedon to pick up the pieces and finish the film. Whedon, of course, directed the first Avengers film for Marvel, which turned into the perfect example of how to bring a diverse group of heroes together for a film. Whedon was also the king of the ensemble cast from his early days on Buffy The Vampire Slayer and later Firefly. The first problem was that Whedon and Snyder have very polar opposite styles. Snyder rules with tons of angst, darkness and brooding characters.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 16th, 2021
"Space...The Final Frontier. These are the continuing voyages of the Starship Enterprise. Its ongoing mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no one has gone before!"
From the moment of the first UHD releases, I have had a wish list of films I wanted to see in 4K. Most of them have finally reached my home theater video shelf, but there remain a few elusive titles that I am still waiting for. Paramount is doing a great job, but two of my most wished for UHD franchises happen to be The Godfather films and the original Star Trek films. I'm still waiting for The Godfather, but the Star Trek wait is somewhat over. I say somewhat because this new release from Paramount contains those first four films. Star Trek: The Motion Picture is eventually going to be released with upgraded f/x and a few other upgrades. But the original version of the film is included with the trilogy of The Wrath Of Kahn, The Search For Spock, and The Voyage Home.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on September 9th, 2021
It would seem that the animated film and the 2021 live-action film suffer from the same issue: more time is dedicated to setting up the tournament than the actual tournament itself. I suppose I should take solace in the fact that the two are consistent; however, I’m afraid that is not the case for me. I would have much preferred that proper time be allocated to what is supposed to be the main plot of the film. The whole point of this franchise is to show champions fighting to protect the Earth realm, but it would seem that more time is shown depicting the underhandedness that the other realms attempt to use in order to secure Earth realm by other means. If that was the case, hell, why even have a tournament, if our fate is going to be decided through other measures. OK, that is my little rant about the film, but in truth, it is not a great film, but I wouldn’t go so far as to categorize it as terrible one. There are a few things to enjoy about it. Want to know more? Keep reading.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 2nd, 2021
Every decade or so sees the popularity of a Broadway stage show become something of a cultural phenomenon. When I was young, Cats and Annie were the big-event shows. Over the years it's been Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom Of The Opera, and more recently, Rent. In these last few years the stage champ has been Hamilton, written by Lin-Manuel Miranda. To say that it has been one of the more popular shows in the last few years would be an understatement. Based very loosely on the historical life of Alexander Hamilton, it is still currently the hardest ticket to get in New York City. Lost in the excitement and fame over Hamilton is that Miranda has had another rather large success with In The Heights. The play was selected best musical in 2003. While it never did come close to the success of Hamilton, it was also once a hard ticket to obtain. Just one year after Hamilton made it to the big screen, In The Heights will get its chance to offer moviegoers something to help bring them back to the cinemas.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 1st, 2021
What James Wan did with The Conjuring (2013) was something I don’t think anyone expected, he didn’t just deliver a haunted house film that’s genuinely scary as well as being a technical achievement, but also he kicked off a successful franchise that’s now seven films deep with no signs of stopping. I’ll admit when it comes to the stories about Ed and Lorraine Warren I have a bit of a bias. I’m a sucker for just about any and every paranormal show out there, and I’ve read numerous books about the Warrens and their case files. Everything from the “true” story behind the Amityville house, the “real” Annabelle, to some of the not-so-famous cases (at least the ones we haven’t seen a movie about). Whether you believe in the paranormal or feel the Warrens were nothing more than skilled hoaxers, the stories behind their cases are the stuff that will always make for a great campfire story, and as it’s been proven, some successful and entertaining films.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on August 27th, 2021
“Boring is still always best.”
To preface this review, I feel I should tell you just how big a fan I am of the original film (The Hitman’s Bodyguard). It’s a movie that I have watched more times than I can count. There is something about that film for me that just works. Maybe it is the chemistry between Samuel L. Jackson and Ryan Reynolds, the way that they perfectly play off one another. Perhaps it’s that there is an air of philosophy to it, where they both argue that their occupation is just and the manner in which they argue it is so passionate that you can see both sides of the argument. Maybe it’s just the fact that it was chock full of action. Either way, suffice to say this movie holds a special charm for me.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on August 9th, 2021
Retaliation resumes sometime after the original movie. Duke (Channing Tatum) is now leader of his own team, which includes Roadblock (Dwayne Johnson), Lady Jaye (Adrianne Palicki), Snake Eyes (Ray Park), and Flint (DJ Cotrona). After completing a successful mission, the team returns to base camp and awaits extraction. Dropping their guard, the group enjoys downtime; however, when a security patrol arrives ahead of schedule, it does not go unnoticed. Their suspicions are proven right, as a massive assault devastates the camp. Unable to adequately defend themselves, the team suffers heavy casualties including a vital and precious member of the team. (I’m sure you’ll have no trouble figuring out who.)
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on August 9th, 2021
So it’s back to the one that started them all with this review. Coming hot on the heels of a film set to reboot the franchise comes the re-release of the first live-action film adaptation of the popular Hasbro property starring Channing Tatum, Marlon Wayans, Rachel Nichols, and Dennis Quaid. I remember loving the film back when it initial debuted, but now seeing it through the scope of age and wisdom, I can recognize that the film was only decent in comparison to the rave review I’d probably would have given it years earlier. That is not to designed to be a dig, because there are aspects of the film that I still to this day truly enjoyed, but it is very clear that story development was second to the action, as I watched again. Not to mention, not much was done in the way of character backstory and development, especially if you are someone with no familiarity with these characters prior to the watching of this film. The franchise appears to be addressing that now with the recent origin story release of one of the franchises’ most popular characters, but rectifying that now does nothing for this adaptation.
