Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on June 15th, 2019
Revamping old shows and movies is the latest trend in television. CBS has made several endeavors at this with varying success. Such was their attempt when they tried to convert Rush Hour into a TV series; however, the Macgyver reboot gaining a fourth season shows that the practice is not without its merits. CBS’s recent reboot of the popular series Magnum P.I. is the newest foray into this genre of television, and the fact that it has earned a second season bestows credit onto the show. Starring Jay Hernandez in the titular role, the character that Tom Selleck made famous, is breathing new life with new action. Minus the mustache, of course.
Staying true to its source material, Hernandez’s Magnum is a former Navy Seal, and his best friend T.C and Rick are Marines. While staying true to its source, the series also digs deeper into the characters’ connection by illustrating the three as former POWs along with a fourth compatriot whose death serves as the catalyst for the pilot episode. The pilot sets the stage for a season arc that relates back to the group’s time in Afghanistan.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 13th, 2019
"Does announcing your identity help with the covert part of the job?"
Let me begin by saying that actress Brie Larson doesn't want me to write this review. It's not that I didn't like the film and intend to cut it down. Actually I rather liked the movie, and while it isn't going to crack my top five Marvel films, it's a very entertaining film that adds wonderfully to this always evolving world of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, or as we fan geeks like to refer to it, the MCU. So she wouldn't take much if any umbrage with my evaluation of the film. It turns out that I happen to be a white male, and she has made it known that she doesn't want to see reviews for this film written by white males. Sorry, Brie. I suggest you skip this one. Just put it out of your mind. Still reading, Brie? I thought you might be. So, after a rather long wait for a movie only teased at in the final frames of a stinger added to Avengers: Infinity War, we finally get to meet the newest member of the Marvel MCU. Welcome, Carol Danvers, aka Captain Marvel, and as they used to say on the comic covers when welcoming new characters: I hope you survive.
Posted in: The Reel World by Brent Lorentson on June 13th, 2019
“Something weird is going on.”
If you’re having a bit of zombie fatigue, you’re not alone. From movies to TV shows and video, we’ve had well over a decade of being blasted with the undead. Basically it’s the sub-genre that just won’t die. I love zombie movies, but I feel audiences could use a bit of a break from them for a little bit and let another monster indulge in the spotlight. With that being said, when a good one comes along, I’m still going to want to give it a try. Already this summer we have Black Summer on Netflix that is worth giving a binge, and now hitting the cinemas we have The Dead Don’t Die. Never in a million years would have guessed that writer and director Jim Jarmusch (Dead Man, Broken Flowers, Stranger Than Paradise) would ever tackle this kind of horror film, but it is a welcome surprise. What’s more enticing about this film is the unique cast that has been put together: some familiar faces from Jarmusch’s work like Bill Murray, Adam Driver, Tilda Swinton, Steve Buscemi, and Tom Waits.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 12th, 2019
For many years Acorn Media has been the best source for a lot of those classic British drama shows that you've seen reviewed here and elsewhere. They've brought us some of the best British stars in some landmark work spanning decades of British broadcast. These shows were always something produced by someone else, most notably the BBC itself. So while we can be thankful to Acorn for distributing these shows particularly here in the United States, they haven't actually been responsible for the actual content. That all changes with the release of London Kills Series 1 from Acorn Media. For the first time the company has created its own straight-to-series production. If this first effort is any indication of what we might expect in the future, I'd say there is great promise here, and while I didn't find it quite as compelling as favorites like the George Gently series, I saw a ton of potential. There are some very good reasons why I didn't enjoy this as much as many others, and I'll get into that in a moment.
Hugo Speer is Detective Inspector David Bradford. He has been on leave because his wife has disappeared. Detective Sergeant Vivian Cole is played by Sharon Small, and she has been running the unit while he has been away. When her squad is called in on a grisly murder scene where a mutilated body is hung from a tree as if to suggest suicide, she fully expects to lead the investigation. But when Bradford shows up at the crime scene, she sees those plans dashed. There's absolutely some tension and even a bit of hostility between the two. It's equally obvious that they have some unpleasant history. Cole is also not so popular with her Detective Constable Rob Brady, played by Bailey Patrick. He's happy to see Bradford's return. He's also the squad's tech geek. Under Brady is Trainee Detective Constable Billie Fitzgerald, played by Tori Allen-Martin, who is appearing in her first show. It's her first day, and between the bizarre case and the newly arrived Bradford, she's going to get a running start on her career.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 11th, 2019
In the late 1980’s Batman was in trouble. No, he wasn’t tied to a table saw by The Joker. Catwoman didn’t have her claws on him. It was the camp residue of the 1960’s television series. The idea of a Batman film was clamored after by fans, but the studios couldn’t get the Adam West series out of their minds. And, while the success of Superman might have awaken the studio bosses to the appeal of comic book films, there was surprisingly very little interest in a Batman film. Since DC Comics had become a part of the Warner Empire, it seemed only logical that they would want to do the film. But even Warner resisted for several years as a team tried to get the Caped Crusader back on the movie screen.
The Dark Knight was the brainchild of a young comic artist named Bob Kane. He was actually inspired by a Leonardo DaVinci drawing and quote. He was looking at the bat-like wings DaVinci designed for human flight and immediately set to work on creating the follow up to Superman. Unlike Superman, Batman had no superpowers. His parents had been killed in front of his eyes, gunned down on their way home from the theater. The young millionaire’s son grew morose and dark. When he matured, he used the vast resources of his wealth to design weapons, armor, vehicles, and gadgets all around the theme of the bat. With the help of the family butler, who raised the young lad after the death of his parents, Bruce Wayne became the night avenger, Batman. The comic was an almost overnight success. Now there was a superhero who didn’t rely on supernatural powers. This hero relied on his own intelligence and resourcefulness to fight the criminals of Gotham City. The comics would lead to movie serial reels and animated adventures. In the 1960’s Batman would explode on to television screens in a campy, not-so-serious incarnation. Graphic novels in the 1980’s would bring the comic book out of the shadows of guilty pleasures for adults and bring these conventions to the mainstream world of literature. Artists like Frank Miller would bring the Dark Knight back to its roots and expose the world, once again, to Batman. By 1989, the time was right to bring Batman back to life -- live action, that is. And who better to capture the dark and psychologically disturbed world of Batman than Tim Burton.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 11th, 2019
"What happens in Palm Springs stays in Palm Springs."
That's not exactly true. Since the 1950's, the small town of Palm Springs has been home to many celebrities looking to escape the bustle of Hollywood, yet remain close enough to work there. It was 1947 when Jimmy Van Heusen introduced Frank to the desert community, and he fell in love with the town. His own home was built in time for his wedding to Ava Gardner, and while that relationship lasted only seven years, Sinatra's relationship with Palm Springs lasted 50 years. He was the best advertisement a town could have. In 1954 he built the massive Rancho Mirage and invited all of his close friends to join him. Many built homes of their own, but there was always plenty of room at Frank's place. He had several complete guest houses, each built in the size and luxury that Frank's kind of friend expected. They were named after his famous songs, with the largest being New York, New York. The compound was Frank's home and playground. In 1976 Frank married his last partner in Barbara Marx, and they lived in the compound until Frank started to fall ill in 1995. Sinatra In Palm Springs tells the wonderful story of Frank's 50-year love affair with his desert town.
Posted in: Release Announcements by Gino Sassani on June 9th, 2019
"...One day when the lady met this fellow, and they knew that it was much more than a hunch
That's this group must somehow form a family. That's the way we all became the Brady Bunch."
Has it really been 50 years? Nothing make me feel as old as when a film or television show I watched as a kid celebrates some grand anniversary milestone. It's like birthdays without the ice cream cake. On September 26th, The Brady Bunch will celebrate its 50th anniversary, and the folks at Paramount/CBS have given yours truly a little homework to do before that date hits. We're talking about The Brady Bunch 50th Anniversary TV & Movie Collection. They call it the Bradiest collection ever, and that's no exaggeration. The 31-disc collection features just about anything that was ever associated with the name Brady. I'm surprised there isn't a complete collection of New England Patriot games for the last decade or so. What you will get is pretty impressive:
Posted in: The Reel World by Brent Lorentson on June 9th, 2019
When the first trailer of the Secret Life of Pets film came out I thought that the Illumination and Universal Pictures were onto something. I think every kid and even adult wonders at some point what their pets’ lives are like when they are not around. This was what I felt could have been the pet equivalent to the Toy Story franchise. As it would turn out, the first film started out strong, but for me it quickly fizzled into an absurd storyline. Kids seemed to like it, and really that’s all that mattered, but personally I felt there was enough strength in the material where we could have gotten something great. Now we have Secret Life of Pets 2. Does the film manage to pull off something great, or is this a big pile of stale kibble?
The film picks up with Max (Patton Oswalt), a tan and white terrier, and his best canine pal, Duke (Eric Stonestreet) living the life together. It doesn’t take long before things change in a big way. Their owner gets a boyfriend, and not long after the pair end up having a baby. We already know Max isn’t keen on sharing affection, so how is he going to adjust to having a new baby coming into his home? Really, I liked where this could have gone, to get to see a boy and his dog film from the perspective of the dog and just seeing the challenges the puppy has to adjust to this new human in their lives…we get some of that, and then the film takes a twist by the family randomly planning a trip to head out to the farm/woods.
Posted in: The Reel World by Jeremy Butler on June 9th, 2019
“The mind is a fragile thing. Takes only the slightest tap to tip it in the wrong direction.”
The simple reality is that this franchise should have ended with Days of Future Past. That would have been a good point to call it quits; it had a good resolution and all, but the chasing of additional box office revenue has forced us to have to endure two more mediocre additions to the franchise. Though Dark Phoenix is better than Apocalypse, and it is a better telling of the Dark Phoenix Marvel Storyline, Fox’s second bite at the apple is still not the film that I hoped it would be. Fortunately, with Marvel recovering the property we are undoubtedly due for another reboot, and perhaps the third time will be the charm.
Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on June 8th, 2019
"All you have to do is learn to connect the dots and get ready."
Noble Lincoln Jones hasn't had any real feature experience in the director's chair. He's notable for some rather well-known country music videos, and now he's made the jump to the feature film world. It shouldn't come as any complete surprise that his first effort would be a rather small-budget independent film like The Tomorrow Man. The movie offers a pretty simple premise with a limited cast, so there aren't a lot of moving parts here. It's the kind of playground where a young filmmaker gets to show us what kind of a storyteller he is without the grand distractions of a seasonal anchor film and all of the trimmings that entails. Can he take a small amount of money and show an audience that they're in good hands? Jones passes most of these tests, and for most of the 90-plus minutes he enthralls us with clever characters and superb acting. How many more resources do you need if you have John Lithgow, arguably at the peak of his skills, and Blythe Danner, who has thrived on this kind of independent project? The Tomorrow Man makes the case that these two actors are pretty much all that you need if a director can avoid falling temptation to some silly plot device or curveball that might lesson all of the good faith he might have earned for most of the film. Ooops.
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