Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on September 27th, 2018
“So here we are...in the belly of the beast. A lot of power and money in this room.”
That cheeky line came from Iggy Pop during The Stooges' induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2010. It's also featured in Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: In Concert — Encore, a wonderfully comprehensive collection of the four induction ceremonies between 2010 and 2013. The 2-disc Blu-ray set features over 8 hours of content, including full induction speeches and 44 musical performances from rock and roll icons and rising stars. Iggy was right about the power and money in the room; this set features some of the biggest names in the history of music...plus A-listers like Meryl Streep and Oprah Winfrey!
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 26th, 2018
"Is there life out there? Good heavens! To doubt it is a failure of more than the imagination. It is a failure to recognize the limits of our own stupidity. The nascency of our science. The rudiment of our tools. We listen. We search. We hope for a sign, as if our eyes and ears are good enough, our brains large enough, our egos small enough."
By the time The X-Files had reached its seventh season, the two stars of the show were feeling the stress of doing over 20 episodes of the series every year. In the eighth season David Duchovny was going MIA, and Gillian Anderson's Scully character had a new partner in Robert Patrick's Agent Doggett.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 26th, 2018
Are you feeling a little déjà vu when you turn on a television or live stream these days? It seems like almost half the shows on television today are either revivals or reboots of shows that have aired before. Recently there have been revivals of The X-Files, 24, Prison Break, Growing Pains, Roseanne, and even Murphy Brown. The box office is filled with feature films of Star Trek, The Equalizer and Baywatch. While Tom Selleck is playing a family patriarch on Blue Bloods, Jay Hernandez is in Hawaii driving a bright red Ferrari in a new version of Magnum P.I. Hawaii 5-O is one of the most popular shows on CBS, and Charmed is bewitching an entire new generation of streamers on the internet.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 26th, 2018
"A long time ago in a galaxy far far away..."
Yes, those lines open this Star Wars story, because the filmmakers want to be sure you know what you're watching. This is Star Wars. Just in case there was anyone at all in the audience who had no idea they just bought a ticket to Star Wars. If he were dead, George Lucas would be rolling over in his grave. Instead, maybe he's just having some restless nights with little sleep. It is Star Wars. And that means there will be a droid as a main character, space battles, and some good old fashioned one-reel-serial-days adventure. It's a heck of a visual amusement park ride, and the film will certainly entertain. But I have to open by saying it is my least favorite of the Disney Star Wars films to date.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on September 26th, 2018
With Halloween just around the corner, it’s that time of the year when the studios start cranking out horror films to fill up the shelves hoping that eager fans will scoop up any new horror titles they can add to their collection. The Row is one of those releases that has the cover with beautiful girls and the tease of murder and mayhem to ensue. Does it deliver what the cover is attempting to sell? Well, the simple answer is yes, but to call this film horror is the equivalent of calling a toddler’s finger painting art. This is a film that sadly is a product of the times. Though it has an R rating, the film seems tame, and considering the director claims he was aiming for Spring Breakers meets Friday the 13th, I have to wonder if he saw either of those films.
Posted in: Tuesday Round Up by J C on September 25th, 2018
Do you feel that chill in the air? (Well, if you're anywhere near UpcomingDiscs HQ in Florida, the answer is an emphatic “No”...but just go with me on this.) That spine-tingling feeling signals the impending arrival of Horrorcane season and our annual 31 Nights of Terror throughout October. This week's Round Up offers a sneak peek at 31 Nights thanks to RLJE Films pulling some strings with Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich (4K) and Scream Factory's head-spinning Exorcist II: The Heretic. In slightly less spooky news, Lionsgate fends off an alien invasion with Occupation and goes back to school with The Row. Warner Bros. assembles a team of time-traveling heroes with DC's Legends of Tomorrow: Season 3, while Shout! Factory recounts Rolling Stone Magazine: Stories from the Edge.
Acorn gets in a different sort of holiday spirit with Murdoch Mysteries: Home for the Holidays, CBS/Lionsgate gets resourceful with MacGyver: Season 2, and Time Life hosts an all-star jam session with Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: In Concert — Encore. Fox takes on a new case with C.B. Strike: Season 1, tries to find out if the truth is out there with The X-Files: Season 11, and gets re-acquainted with its most famous mutants thanks to The X-Men Trilogy: Evolution (4K). Finally...never tell Disney the odds for Solo: A Star Wars Story.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 24th, 2018
"Once upon a time there was a magical forest filled with fairytale characters. One day a powerful curse trapped them in a city which had no magic, and each of them forgot who they really were. This is how it happened..."
Once Upon A Time hasn't been a big ratings winner for the last few years. Each season the show appeared on the bubble and ended up getting renewed at the last minute. One of the reasons the show managed to escape the axe was because it had some value for the network's parent company, Walt Disney Studios.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 24th, 2018
"Do you remember the first time you saw a dinosaur? The first time you see them, it's like a miracle. You read about them in books, you see the bones in museums, but you don't really believe it. They're like myths. And then you see the first one alive."
By the time you get to the fourth sequel of a film, the results are usually not very good. Even a groundbreaking film like Jurassic Park has been followed by at least one terrible sequel. The problem with these kinds of things is pretty easy to figure out. You can't please all of any film's diehard fans, and it's hard to continue to deliver on the formula's expectations, all the while breaking new ground without the result feeling more contrived than original.
Posted in: The Reel World by John Delia on September 23rd, 2018
by John M. Delia, Jr.
Our life experiences influence what we do in our future, and what our parents experience could also influence how we are as well. And in tragedy and death, we experience large amounts of loss that could also transfer to our unborn offspring. Lastly, we experience many ups and downs throughout our lifetime, and how we react to those good or bad experiences make up who we are and how strong our will is to survive. Keep moving along knowing that there will be good life experiences, even though you will always have many hurdles to overcome, as we see in Life Itself.
Posted in: The Reel World by John Delia on September 23rd, 2018
Children’s fairy tales have taken a new drift with the film The House with a Clock in Its Walls. Packed with exciting action adventure, the movie, based on the book by John Bellairs, envisions the story with an incredible amount of CGI. You could almost call the film animated, but that’s a good thing here as things go bump in the night, magic forms the basis, and solving the mystery becomes the prominent focus for older youngsters. Orphaned due to a car crash that took his parents, young Lewis Barnavelt (Owen Vaccaro) gets invited to live at his Uncle Jonathan’s (Jack Black) magical mansion. He’s a bit fearful of the old house with its grand stairway and many mysterious rooms, but Lewis sort of likes the flamboyance of the magician turned warlock. There he’s introduced to Jonathan’s neighbor and best friend Florence Zimmerman (Cate Blanchett), who assures Jonathan that he will enjoy living with his uncle.
On The Web
Sponsors
