Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 29th, 2014
"This evening I finally met Count Dracula. He is younger than I expected, although his behavior and his demeanor seem to somehow contradict his appearance."
Dracula and vampires in general have taken on many appearances and personalities over the years. He has been portrayed as the suave European gentleman and a vicious gaunt creature best left to the shadows. Lately vampires have taken on the angst and yearnings of adolescence. Dracula has been around since 1897 when Bram Stoker wrote his groundbreaking novel.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 4th, 2013
Galactic Adventures from Image Entertainment is a nifty little collection of two Solar System IMAX films both running just under a half hour. The two short documentaries off a 3D ride to both the Sun and Mars. The films were produced in 2007 with 3D Sun opening at The Smithsonian's Air & Space Museum. Both films have made the circuit of science museums throughout the country and come to you now through the modern milestone of home 3D for the first time ever
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 4th, 2013
There's a saying that in the land of the blind the one-eyed man is king. No one would have expected that a one-eyed man could become the king of 3D. But that's exactly what happened with House Of Wax. The film has become one of the definitive films in the 3D format. To look at it on Blu-ray now, it holds up quite nicely in a day where 3D has become almost passé. Still, it's hard to believe that Warner Brothers would choose a man with only one eye to shoot their 3D film. That man was Andre' De Toth
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 19th, 2013
"After a half century of space exploration we're now being faced with what's long been a staple of science fiction: an orbiting junkyard of space debris."
There's an old saying that what goes up must come down. For most of human history that has been a pretty steadfast axiom. Of course any kid who has ever had a kite or a football stuck in a tree knows there are exceptions to every rule. But in the 1950's we began to place objects in orbit about the Earth. In recent decades the practice has almost become a frenzy. We have all of those cell phones, television networks and GPS devices that require more and more satellite support.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 10th, 2013
"The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few."
Every Star Trek fan has had that phrase beaten into their brain about as many times as Uncle Ben's mantra about great power and great responsibility. Who knew that the tagline was appropriate to filmmaking? When J.J. Abrams signed on to direct the reboot/remake/reimagining/rehash (insert your own word here) of Star Trek he quickly made it known that he was not really that into the franchise.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on July 25th, 2013
I was not looking forward to this sequel at all. Now, to those who saw the film in theaters and loved it, before you get bent out of shape, allow me to explain why. See, I don’t react to change very well, and after seeing the first film and liking it, let’s just say that I had certain reservations after learning that much of the original cast wouldn’t be returning (not to mention news of the worst kept secret about the demise of one of the characters). Needless to say when I sat down to watch Retaliation, I wasn’t expecting to enjoy. Happy to say that after watching it, I’m eating crow.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on June 12th, 2013
Hansel and Gretel, everyone has heard of this fairy tale, right? The Brothers Grimm tale about a brother and sister lost in the woods who come across a house made of candy. They go inside and are soon captured by a witch who goes about stuffing them with candy to fatten them up to be slaughtered. Somehow the cunning pair manages to escape their shackles, and while the witch is distracted with the oven, they push her into the oven and destroy her. We have all heard the tale, but what happened afterwards?
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 24th, 2013
Forget about all of the sequels, remakes and copycats. At least that's what original Texas Chainsaw Massacre writer/director Tobe Hooper wants you to do. As far as he's concerned, Texas Chainsaw 3D is the official follow-up to the groundbreaking, flesh-tearing 1974 cult classic film. To bring the point home, Hooper has signed on as a producer and brought along the original Leatherface Gunnar Hansen and Marilyn Burns who played Sally, the girl who got away in the original film. Both have cameos here.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on April 18th, 2013
“I want to visit a country of dreams, imagination and magic.”
Instead of “dreams, imagination and magic”, the Africa presented in this confounding, family-friendly offering from Spanish filmmaker Jordi Llompart is a place of trippy visuals, head-scratching dialogue and horrid CGI. Magic Journey to Africa — billed as a “giant screen spectacle” — is now available for home consumption, where the film’s dazzling 3D presentation is its only saving grace.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 17th, 2013
The computer-animated feature film has reached the point where you don't have to be one of the big boys to play. While Pixar and to a lesser extent Dreamworks have dominated this feature form pretty much since its inception, there have already been a handful of independent films that have managed to leave their mark on the landscape. Now the foreign market is getting into the act as well. A Monster In Paris, or Un Monstre a' Paris, is the result of that evolution.
