Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 11th, 2018
"Hey, it's Hannah... get a snack. Settle in because I'm about to tell you the story of my life. More specifically, why my life ended. But if you're listening to this tape, you're one of the reasons why."
13 Reasons Why started out as a novel in 2007. It didn't catch the world on fire and went largely unread until something appeared to cause the novel to pick up steam in 2011. It hit the New York Times Best Seller list and started to become a teen phenomenon around middle and high school campuses throughout the nation. If Harry Potter didn't provide enough proof that kids were still reading and doing it for their own enjoyment, this novel should do the job. There are no wizards or superheroes or distant alien worlds to explore here. The work is a very straightforward drama about some of the topics that real-world teens deal with everyday. Nothing is really taboo here; from cyberbullying to rape, it's all covered. It's even possible this particular work has saved a few lives over the years. Now Netflix has taken on the book and its serious themes in a new original series bearing the same title. Suicide is the second cause of death among teenagers these days, and this teen drama doesn't shy away from the circumstances that might lead a young teen with their entire life ahead of them to a tragic and irrevocable decision.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on April 11th, 2018
“Did you hear what the teacher wants?”
We’ve all had that especially demanding teacher whose class we quietly dreaded. Yet instead of pushing her students toward academic excellence, the educator at the center of The Teacher is infinitely more interested in what her kids’ parents can do for her. This Czech/Slovak drama hints at some interesting points about compliance. But like a student — or perhaps even a certain movie reviewer — who uses too many flowery words before finally getting to the point…the movie ultimately can’t get out of its own way.
Posted in: Tuesday Round Up by J C on April 10th, 2018
Looks like the hellraising bad guys of DC’s Suicide Squad didn’t wreak quite enough havoc during their recent big screen debut. The butt-kicking, wisecracking villains are back this week — in animated form — thanks to Warner Bros.’ Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay (4K). Elsewhere, Lionsgate gets in on the action with Braven (starring Aquaman himself, Jason Momoa) and Western adventure Gone are the Days. Meanwhile, Paramount tries to find itself with Tad the Lost Explorer and the Secret King Midas and tokes up with the Cheech and Chong stoner classic Up in Smoke. Finally, Hugh Jackman and Co. sing and dance their way into our living room with Fox’s The Greatest Showman (4K).
One last reminder before signing off for the week: if you’re shopping for anything on Amazon and you do it through one of our links, it’ll help keep the lights on here at UpcomingDiscs. See ya next week!
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 10th, 2018
When you are about to sit down for a comedy with Ed Helms and Owen Wilson, you pretty much know what you’re getting yourself into. Sometimes you just want to watch a movie for a few good laughs; then when it’s over, you return to your day-to-day routine. When it comes to Father Figures, the problem is that the film from the get-go is trying to get you to believe that Helms and Wilson could possibly be fraternal twins. Yeah, we’ve seen this before with the film Twins, only this time around we have a film about brothers attempting to overcome their differences as they work together to find their real father. When you have Glenn Close, Christopher Walken, and J.K. Simmons filling out your cast, the potential for a solid drama with great performances could be expected. Unfortunately, it seems everyone here for the most part showed up to the set to phone it in, and the film suffers for it.
Things get started when Peter (Helms) and Kyle (Wilson) meet up at their mother’s wedding. Peter is a successful yet lonely proctologist, while Kyle is the life of the party, making money off of residuals for having his likeness on a bottle. It doesn’t take much to get the joke that despite being twins, these guys couldn’t be any more different. As an odd twist of fate would have it, while watching an episode of Law & Order Special Victims Unit, Peter sees a character in the show that looks a lot like his dad. When he confronts his mother (Glenn Close) about this, she reluctantly confesses that she had lied, and that their real father is none other than Terry Bradshaw. This in turn has the brothers setting off on a trip together to confront and meet their dad for the first time. Since this is a movie, things obviously don’t go as planned.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Dan Holland on April 10th, 2018
Cinema is a beautiful thing, and it is really special when a film can remind you of its beauty. So often are we blinded by genre conventions: we want to see the gore of horror, feel the laughter of comedy, or the tears of drama. Yes, the films we watch are all indeed beautiful in their own right, but not every film captures the pure essence of cinema. In Search of Fellini delivers that essence on all fronts, whether it be through cinematography, on-location shooting in Italy, stylistic editing, or the fantastic acting. Naming your film after a man who’s widely considered to be a master of his craft sets the bar of expectations very high by default, and this film cleared the hurdle with no problems.
In Search of Fellini is a coming-of-age story about a sheltered girl named Lucy (Ksenia Solo), as she travels to Italy in search of her newfound favorite director, Frederico Fellini. Lucy’s mother, Claire (Maria Bello), has constructed a fantasy world for her daughter, shielding her from realities such as death, working, and sex. Once Claire receives grim news, she hides it from her daughter, but Lucy is blessed with the intuition to understand something is wrong. She begins to try to find work, but what she finds instead is a film festival that is dedicated to Frederico Fellini, and she falls in love with his work. It is from here that she sets off to Italy. This story is loosely based on a similar adventure had by co-writer Nancy Cartwright (the voice of Bart Simpson), when she traveled to Italy in her early 20’s.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 7th, 2018
Sports movies have been something of a cliché for years now. And it's not really a recent phenomenon. Everybody remembers Ronald Reagan appearing in the Knute Rockne All American as the famous George Gipp. That was 1940, and Hollywood is still selling films that ask teams to "win one for The Gipper". That's exactly what you get in director Sean McNamara's The Miracle Season. Substitute high school volleyball for college football, and you likely already know the story before you even order your popcorn and soda. Of course, even with established Hollywood formula and a well-trodden story, things are never quite that simple. Somehow the better films still tend to touch an emotional nerve, and when it's all based on a true and inspiring story, well then, break out the Kleenex and try to keep the tears from diluting your already watered-down drink. Still, some of these films manage to stand out from a very crowded field. So what exactly does it take to do that, and does The Miracle Season have what it takes? That's a little bit complicated.
The film begins with the story of two best friends. Caroline and Kelly have that special kind of bond, as the opening narration explains. We are treated to a montage of the close friends from young girls to adolescents who eventually find themselves teammates on Iowa City West's volleyball team. In 2010 they took home the state championship, and hopes are high as the girls begin practices for the 2011 season. All of the hope and enthusiasm is delivered by Caroline "Line" (Yarosh). Her energy and drive are contagious, and it's quickly evident why she's the natural leader of the team and a favorite of Coach "Bres" Bresnahan (Hunt). Her cheerfulness is even more amazing when we learn that her mother is dying of cancer and unlikely to survive to see her daughter win a second championship. She still manages to stay positive and keep her mother and father smiling. She decorates her shoes to dedicate the new season to her mother and encourages her friend Kelly (Moriarty) into believing she can also be a team leader. With someone like Caroline pushing the team, that second championship appears in the bag.
Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on April 6th, 2018
You might call me jaded, but I am pretty disappointed by the state of horror movies. It's not just the last few years. The truth is I haven't seen 10 really good horror movies in over a decade. Now that I've had a chance to see A Quiet Place, that number isn't going up. A Quiet Place is not a really good horror movie. It ends up making a lot of the same mistakes that filmmakers think define a horror film in the modern age. It relies too heavily on jump scares and characters who do some of the most idiotic things, thus placing them in a somewhat self-created dangerous situation. But I will make the argument that A Quiet Place is still a pretty good horror film because of a rather clever and unique concept and a filming process that allows us care for these characters more than the usual horror film red shirt fodder that too often leaves me rooting for the monster in a Darwin-like weed-out-the-gene-pool kind of way.
The film takes place in a near-future that newspapers place at about 2020. It's now day 86. We are now in the familiar post-apocalyptic world of deserted streets and a family of characters scrounging through the derelict buildings for scraps on which to survive. The difference here is that this family, a husband and wife with three young kids, are going out of their way to remain as completely silent as possible. They communicate strictly through sign language and walk on bare feet to avoid the sounds of footsteps. Each move is carefully calculated to avoid even the careless sound of placing a pill container on a counter. Silence is golden, and before the title card is revealed, we discover the reason for all of this care. The Earth has been invaded by creatures that are blind but with heightened hearing ability. They hunt strictly by sound and move at lightning speed toward any sound and attack with razor-like appendages. These attacks are over in a second, and the viewer is left with graphic evidence that in this future world, silence isn't golden, it's survival.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on April 6th, 2018
Ever since Jon Bernthal left The Walking Dead, he has managed to create quite the impressive resume over the years. From having some standout performances in Fury, Baby Driver and recently taking on the role of Frank Castle in The Punisher, he is easily making a name for himself. Now we get to see him take on the role of Sam in the new small town indie thriller, Sweet Virginia. In a film that is filled with well-crafted characters matched with some terrific performances by the cast, it’s a shame the film didn’t reach Blu-ray with more of a buzz around it. From the film’s violent opening, the film percolates with menace and unease to the final climax.
When we first meet Elwood (Christopher Abbott), it’s obvious there is something a little off about this guy, and it doesn’t take long before we see what the man is capable of. To put it simply, this may be the most intimidating hitman we’ve seen on screen since the Coen Brothers gave us Anton Chigurh in No Country for Old Men. A bold statement, but as we see Elwood unravel on screen, we see a man who is desperately wanting to be accepted, whether it’s being a son or simply a friend, but the guy is a pillar of rage and violence. And it’s when we see him show up to the motel as a guest and he’s trying to befriend Sam, you just know this will only end badly.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 5th, 2018
"And so we ran on. Into Summerland and the place they said did not exist. And all the while, wolves were at our heels. Black masks, boots and the one they called The Eye. We had come to do the work that must be done. To strip ourselves of the fog of life before."
If the first season of Legion was intended to lift any fog, it failed miserably. In fact, keeping you in a fog is series creator Noah Hawley’s superpower. He was also the creator of the television adaptation of Fargo, which was often more than a little confusing. But with Legion Hawley has taken these "skills" to the next level, and how you respond to the series will absolutely depend on how much you like your brain messed with while you're watching a show. If the answer is a lot, this is the perfect show for you.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on April 4th, 2018
John Cena continues to attempt to branch out from the WWE, this time with an animated film featuring a peace-loving bull in Spain. Granted, John Cena is not first person I envision when I think about nonviolence, but it is an interesting choice nonetheless. Ferdinand tells the story of a bull raised to participate in the matador competitions featured in Spain. Disney continues to buck against the grain, creating a character that contrasts with his circumstances. Naturally, this is an animated film, and being well into adulthood, I am clearly outside the target audience. However, I am fortunate enough to have a daughter who does fit that demographic, so I enlisted her services for this film. Ironically, I actually ended up enjoying the story a lot more than she did. Too be fair to the film, my daughter only possesses a 20-minute attention span. To her credit, she stuck out the entire film, and we can both provide you with the benefit of our experience.
Continuing my earlier statement about the character, Ferdinand (John Cena), unlike the other bulls, does not desire the glory of competing in the matador competition (at this point, the bulls are unaware that they will be killed in the competition). He would much rather spend his time grazing and smelling the flowers. This also contrasts with his size, as he has grown to be a large and intimidating-looking animal, but he remains a gentle giant.
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