Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on November 26th, 2014
It’s great to see the love that comic books and their characters are getting from the public; only a couple decades ago people didn’t look so kindly on the medium. Growing up it wasn’t the wisest decision to broadcast to your classmates about your enthusiasm over the new Punisher or Batman comic. I got lucky and never really had to deal with bullies, but I had friends who had their fair share of torment over liking the kind of music, movies or comics that they did. The comic book store was a safe haven away from it all, and it was between the pages that all of us comic book geeks would escape and live vicariously through the animated panels before reality came barreling in.
In the documentary Legends of the Knight, writer and director Brett Culp seems to have two goals. First is to tell the story of how Michael Uslan made it his personal mission to bring Batman to the screen and to be viewed as a serious character, unlike the parody of what he was in the Adam West series. There is also the other side of this documentary; the heart of it that after watching this film I don’t think it is possible to view superheroes the same way ever again. I don’t mean to imply there is anything negative here. In fact it is quite the opposite, and the stories that fill this feature will tug at your heartstrings to the point that I believe it could possibly change and make a difference.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on November 24th, 2014
As adults we somewhat have a better understanding of how our dreams work and understand that those fears of the dark when we were children were somewhat silly in retrospect. But when we were kids, the nighttime was a mysterious time that held so many possibilities, where the magic in the world around us was something that was very real for us all. In the new Spanish language animated feature Nocturna, the first-time filmmakers (Adria Garcia & Victor Madonado) seem to have tapped into that childlike wonder and have crafted a film that I simply adore.
Tim (originally voiced by Helene Bizot) is a young orphan boy who like most young kids has a fear of the dark. To help him with his fears, he has become fascinated by the stars above, and on the roof top of the orphanage he has mapped out many of the constellations, but his favorite of all the stars above is Adhara. For Tim this is his last connection to his mother, who has told Tim that anytime he feels alone or frightened he basically will always have this star to count on. Unfortunately, one evening Adhara seems to vanish from the sky.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on November 24th, 2014
“Welcome to the 21st century!”
Sylvester Stallone has dedicated the better part of the last decade to giving moviegoers what they wanted 20 years ago. It started with 2006's Rocky Balboa, which closed out Stallone's signature franchise in the satisfying manner fans have been craving since 1990's Rocky V debacle. We’ve also gotten another Rambo sequel, as well as long-awaited team ups with icons both real (Schwarzenegger in Escape Plan) and cinematic (Grudge Match was “Rocky vs. Raging Bull”). But Stallone's biggest recent success is the veritable fantasy team of action stars he's assembled for the Expendables films.
Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on November 21st, 2014
"All we need now is the perfect message".
It has almost become expected. When a successful franchise based on a series of books reaches the end of the published material, studios start to think about the approaching end with some dread. One way to put off the inevitable is to split the final book into two films. It worked for Harry Potter and Twilight. Peter Jackson managed to squeeze three long films out of one Tolkien book. For most of these cases it was a severe case of milking those final chapters for all that they're worth and then going beyond that. That's simply not the case with Mockingjay Part I. The book itself has two very distinctive parts, and telling this story in a single film would not have done justice to the material. Trust me when I tell you that you'll feel like you've gotten a complete story, but one that has more story left to tell. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part I is the beginning of a payoff that has been promised since the first film debuted just two years ago. Yes, any film that contains Part I in the title might appear a little intimidating with promises of an untold story and a portent to a feeling of dissatisfaction. Don't let any of that keep you from the best film in the franchise. Take the risk. You'll be well rewarded for your two-hour investment.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on November 21st, 2014
Breaking news: anyone who goes to see movie called Into the Storm is probably more interested in “the Storm” than they are in any of the people running away from it. The good news is the film understands this, to an extent, and clocks in at a slender 89 minutes. Of course, the titular Storm doesn’t appear for every one of those 89 minutes. This is very bad news because Into the Storm is populated with characters and storylines that are both forgettable and irritating. It’s basically Twister with somewhat better effects, but much less interesting people.
Into the Storm is mostly set in and around the fictional town of Silverton, Okla. A group of storm-chasers — led by cranky, road-weary Pete (Matt Walsh) — has been struggling to film tornadoes, and Pete is taking out his frustrations on the entire team. That includes data-driven meteorologist Allison (Sarah Wayne Callies), who steers the team toward Silverton. The decision looks like a bust until a dissipating system comes back with a vengeance. The storm erupts during a high school commencement ceremony, where Vice Principal Gary Fuller (Richard Armitage) realizes his oldest son is missing (and very inconveniently hanging out in an abandoned paper mill with his would-be dream girl). Gary eventually crosses path with the storm chasers, who help him in his quest to find and rescue his boy.
Posted in: Tribute by J C on November 20th, 2014
“One word: plastics.”
It’s a classic line from The Graduate, yet it seems impossible to sum up the career of Mike Nichols, who died Wednesday, in a single word. Maybe that word is EGOT. Nichols was the rare entertainer to hit an awards show grand slam, winning Emmys (for directing and producing Angels in America and Wit on HBO), a Grammy (for the comedy album “An Evening with Mike Nichols and Elaine May”), an Oscar (for directing The Graduate) and Tonys (for directing and producing both plays and musicals). But that only scratches the surface of the impact Nichols made. Click through and join us for a look at his eclectic work in the UpcomingDiscs archives.
Posted in: Contests, Expired Contests by Gino Sassani on November 20th, 2014
Those Santa's elves at Arc Entertainment want to get you in a Holiday mood so they've given us three copies of Northpole on DVD. Robert Wagner and Jill St. John lead the cast. The Northpole is having an energy crises. The place is powered by Holiday cheer but too many folks are getting too busy to keep up their Christmas Spirit. Can one boy help by showing his Mom the magic of the season? Find out.
To win just follow these instructions.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on November 19th, 2014
Laughing out loud and getting startled out of your wits are two of the most visceral reactions you can have as a moviegoer. For a director to elicit either reaction is challenging enough, which is why I was so delighted to be feeling both during the thrilling, funny finale of Housebound. It’s an even more impressive feat when you consider it was accomplished by a first-time filmmaker working on a shoestring budget.
We first meet Kylie Bucknell (Morgana O’Reilly) as she and an accomplice comically fail to steal money from an ATM. She is a professional screw-up who has battled alcohol and meth addiction. Instead of sending Kylie to her umpteenth rehab program, the judge sentences her to eight months of house arrest at her family’s rustic home. Given Kylie’s unpleasant childhood memories there and the fact that she now has to share space with batty, blabbermouth mom Miriam (Rima Te Wiata), it seems like Kylie might have preferred spending time in prison.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 18th, 2014
"If anybody gets up, they're dead. Anybody moves, they're dead. Anybody makes a sound before I leave this movie, ..."
You get the idea. These are the words of one John Wojtowicz, better known as The Dog. On August 22, 1972 he attempted to rob a Chase Manhattan bank in order to finance his male lover's sex change operation so that he could become a woman. The heist was about as amateur as the come and went horribly wrong from the start. In a matter of minutes the bank was surrounded by a swarm of police units and a growing mob of bystanders. In the hours that followed, The Dog interacted with the crowd, gave a radio interview, and managed to whip the crowd into a frenzy by throwing thousands of the bank's dollars out of the front door. If this all sounds familiar to you, it should. While you may not have heard of these exploits directly, you surely saw the movie Dog Day Afternoon. Al Pacino played John Wojtowicz, and now you know where he got the nickname The Dog.
Posted in: Holiday Gift Guides by Gino Sassani on November 18th, 2014
“I don’t know why death still surprises me.”
As we get closer to holiday shopping time, Upcomingdiscs will be here to help you find something for that home theater fanatic on your shopping list. Keep checking back to see more recommendations for your holiday shopping. These gift guides ARE NOT paid advertisements. We take no money to publish them.
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