Posted in: The Reel World by Archive Authors on May 30th, 2016
The Lobster could easily be in contention for one of the weirdest movies you’ll ever see. It’s certain to be the weirdest movie of this year. It isn’t weird in a pointless or flashy way. It isn’t weird just for the sake of being weird. It is low-key and tastefully filmed. It seems to fit comfortably in the tradition of absurdist or surrealistic comedy/drama. If you are familiar with the works of Kafka or Bunuel or Beckett or Pirandello or Ionesco or, more recently, Charlie Kaufman, you’ll understand the nature of absurdist cinema. Of course, Rhinoceros by Ionesco, Metamorphosis by Kafka, or Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs are examples of people who transform into animals or insects. The Lobster does not attempt to portray these transformations very literally, although we do see animals representing people throughout the movie. The comedy is gentle, but insane and relentless in its constant twisting of logic. You won’t always laugh out loud, but your mouth is likely to be agape half the time. The film is built on a long collection of purposeful inanities drolly presented. It creates an alternate reality which is gentle in presenting its bizarreness and violence.
David (Colin Farrell) has been dumped by his wife, which forces him to go to a resort hotel with his brother, who is now a dog. David has 45 days to find a mate from the inhabitants of the hotel who are also without partners. If he doesn’t complete the task of finding a mate, he will be turned into the animal of his choice. In David’s case, that would be a lobster, which he chose for various logical reasons. In fact, David almost seems resigned to the fact that that will be his fate, and that’s fine with him. David’s reasoning, along with everyone else’s in the hotel, is faulty. The main difference is that David seems content and resigned to his fate.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 30th, 2016
It seems every network has stepped up their game to compete for viewership with scripted television. WGN now has Outsiders. At first glance I wasn’t all that impressed with the trailers; after all, it seemed like a bad knockoff of Justified and Sons of Anarchy. But the great thing about writing for Upcoming Discs is we get the opportunity to review titles we normally wouldn’t give a chance to. Nothing against any show, but these days there is simply so much content out there it’s just about impossible to keep up with it all, and in the process there are some real gems that slip between the cracks. As it would turn out, Outsiders is a show I’m happy to say it found its way into my hands, because it’s actually really entertaining.
Taking place in the Appalachia area of Kentucky, there is a feud brewing between the residents of a small town and a clan of people who live off the land in the mountains. These “outsiders” are known to everyone as the Farrell clan and are led by Big Foster Farrell (David Morse). The show takes its time introducing us to all the members of the clan and showing us their various customs and ways of survival. Some of their methods of survival even go so far as to break the law, something the Farrell clan seems to believe don’t apply to them. It’s Big’s cousin Asa (Joe Anderson) who is the first to add to the conflict on the mountain after he returns from spending time trying to survive on his own in the big city. Despite being family, Asa spends a good portion of the show trying to prove himself to the clan and declare his loyalty and in the process manages to stir up more conflict.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 30th, 2016
"Welcome to Benghazi."
It shouldn't matter what your politics might be. The events in Benghazi on September 11th, 2012 bring up some very important questions. Contrary to one 2016 presidential hopeful's declaration, it does make a difference. It did to the people who were there. It does for the families of the four who lost their lives. And it should make a difference to you. With such a political hotbed issue, you'll find that 13 Hours goes out of its way to avoid the political questions. Some might view this as an oversight, but I think it gives the film a greater sense of credibility and makes its impact on the audience to fill in their own political blanks.
Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on May 28th, 2016
“Everything they've built will fall! And from the ashes of their world, we'll build a better one!”
Since Disney has taken over The Bullpen at Marvel, they have had an unprecedented run of successful comic book superhero films. During that same time DC/Warner has had trouble finding a direction for their cinematic universe. But the Marvel titles still in the hands of other studios haven’t shared in that run of good fortune. Sony finally had to relinquish control of Spider-Man, and Fox has followed disaster with disaster with The Fantastic Four. The single exception to that rule has been the Fox handling of The X-Men universe. Since Bryan Singer’s 2000 hit the series has had some ups and downs, but the box office verdict has generally been good. Since the series was revived with prequels in 2011, we’ve enjoyed two solid X-Men films sporting a younger cast. Spin-offs with Wolverine and Deadpool have added to the Fox/Marvel winning combination. But it seems the X-Men can fight end of the world events but can’t seem to quite get the hang of third movies in trilogies.
Posted in: The Reel World by Archive Authors on May 27th, 2016
Alice Through The Looking Glass is the sequel to Alice In Wonderland. Alice In Wonderland is a proven blockbuster of all time. It is part of the billionaire club in total box office gross. It is number 23 on the all-time biggest films list with a total box office of $1,025,500,000. It is obvious then that a sequel would have to be made. Alice in Wonderland was a Tim Burton film, his biggest in fact. Needless to say, Lewis Carroll’s creation is a time-worn classic favorite, but neither movie is very faithful to the books. The fact that this isn’t a Tim Burton film is actually a big deal. There doesn’t seem to be anyone talking about why he didn’t include Burton. Burton is always very busy, and he is one of the producers of the film. The director this time is James Bobin. Nobody important. He directed some television and two Muppet movies. Sounds just like the kind of person the corporate heads at Disney can control to turn out product. I’m sure Tim Burton is someone who insists on total creative control, and that means Disney can’t have control. And Disney now is the biggest octopus in Hollywood with control of the Marvel universe and Star Wars. If a film makes over a billion dollars a sequel is required as soon as possible, but it has been six years since Alice In Wonderland came out. It sounds like the corporate hotshots got impatient to get some product out.
Alice Through The Looking Glass brings back all of the cast members from Alice In Wonderland, including the late Alan Rickman. Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway, Helena Bonham Carter, and Mia Wasikowska are the main stars, with Sasha Baron Cohen joining the cast. The scriptwriter Linda Woolverton has returned as well. But I think the film lacks the guiding finesse of Tim Burton. Tim Burton is not the strongest director in the world, but he does have a unique vision. It is obvious this film tried to graft Burton’s vision onto the director Bobin’s work. The CGI effects are stunning, of course. That isn’t enough to make a satisfying film. A film should be created with a clear and pure artistic vision. This film seems all sound and fury, signifying nothing. Johnny Deep’s Mad Hatter is front and center. The Hatter has descended into a life-threatening depression because he can’t get over the death of his family. Alice (Wasikowska) tries to wrest control of time from a character literally called Time (Cohen) in an attempt to bring the Hatter’s family back alive. It is not in any way something that resembles the original stories by Lewis Carroll.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 26th, 2016
There are many films that depict the ferocity and cataclysmic power of the vast ocean. It is a fearsome display that cannot be imagined in any way that compares to the reality of the experience. The Perfect Storm, Life of Pi, The Guardian, and Titanic are just a few examples of disasters at sea. It is the United States Coast Guard’s job to rescue distressed people under severe emergencies at sea. The Finest Hours is a depiction of a true-life sea rescue under the most challenging and horrifying conditions. It is known as the most successful small boat rescue ever recorded. When I say small boat, it is the rescue boat I’m talking about, but the ship they were singlehandedly sent to rescue was a gigantic T2 tanker Pendleton, which had split in half on open seas. Part of the problem was that another tanker had already split in half a few hundred miles away, and all resources had already been diverted in that direction. The second tanker was an afterthought that was tackled by a relatively inexperienced crew. To repeat the true-life situation, T2 tankers SS Mercer and SS Pendleton were split in half off the New England coast. The Pendleton had lost radio communication and was only identified by an alert citizen from the shore.
The Finest Hours is a Walt Disney film, and I think Walt would be proud. The film takes place on February 18, 1952, and all of the American values that were part of this country at the time are on display. It is a very old-fashioned film in both look and approach. The only difference is that modern-day technologies are fully utilized to show an amazing true-life display of courage that would have been impossible to do in 1952.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 26th, 2016
"Everybody here knows what a spin-off is."
No doubt about it. Major Crimes has managed to do what few shows before it have been able to pull off. Shows have survived the loss of their lead, but the remaining years were usually something lesser than it once was. That's not the case when The Closer lost its lead actress/character. The title was changed, and with just a few cast tweaks the series returned as Major Crimes, and I dare say it’s a much better show than its predecessor. Is it a spinoff? I might have to go to the replay booth to answer that one.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 26th, 2016
I have just binge-watched 34 ½ hours of television. That’s 47 episodes and two seasons’ worth. That’s a lot more episodes than most TV shows today. The binge was season three and season four of an acclaimed series from 1991 to 1996. It received eight Emmy nominations, and it is considered the first demographic hit because of its strong female viewership. It revels in all the glories of wonderful Winnetka, Illinois. The deceased father of the Reed sisters named them Alex, Teddy, Georgie, and Frankie. The father was obviously expecting boys and was severely disappointed. If you haven’t guessed yet, the show was Sisters.
Of course, no man should watch this show, because you might get an estrogen overdose. It is a maximum dose of over-the- top melodrama, humor full of corn and cheese, and lots of warm family love. Everything that can happen to four sisters is likely to happen to these sisters over six seasons. I am writing about season three this time. But check back in the very near future about more excitement from season four.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 26th, 2016
Konstantinos Koutsolitas is a visual effects supervisor for American films like Guardians of the Galaxy and 300: The Rise of an Empire. You might have guessed by his name that he is Greek, so it is natural that his first directing effort would be Greek. The Winter is about a struggling writer who tries to hide his failures that he left behind in London from his noisy and intrusive family. Dimitri Gounaras (Vangelis Mourikis) moves back to the deserted ancestral home of his father, which has been abandoned for some time. There is madness in the house, or perhaps just in members of his family, and there are ghosts lurking, real or imagined.
The film meanders back and forth from a slacker comedy to a dreary existential nightmare. It references H.P. Lovecraft and The Shining most directly. It plays out with tenuous reality evolving into out-and-out animated dream images. The imagery is sometimes raw and sometimes playful. There are lots of making-of documentaries included which show how much care was given to the imagery.
Posted in: Contests by Gino Sassani on May 26th, 2016
Our friends at Shout Factory have given us the power to make one Upcomingdiscs reader happy. We have a copy of Power Rangers: Wild Force The Complete Series on DVD to give away. You'll get all 40 episodes in this nice collection. The only hope for the world is The Power Rangers. It's time to bring the hope home.
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