Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on October 28th, 2014
Here we have a film that knows all the rules and stereotypes of horror films, but instead of twisting things around and turning the genre on its side, we get a convoluted mess that actually had some real potential. The film is stacked with some solid B-list actors who actually put in performances that remind the viewer why at one point these actors had relatively successful careers. Brian Austin Green (90210), Mena Suvari (American Pie and American Beauty), Zack Ward (A Christmas Story and Postal), and Joanne Kelly (Warehouse 13) are some of the actors that fill this cast, all with solid resumes such that you’d expect at any point they could make the leap to the A-list.
A group of friends decide to plan a trip to a secluded resort where they plan to not just have a little fun, but a few of the characters have some big secrets that they plan to reveal. This isn’t anything scandalous, but instead we are talking about wedding proposals as well as certain characters becoming parents in the not too distant future. This should be a happy and memorable trip, but things quickly spiral out of control when the caravan of friends arrive at the resort and discover no one else is around. All the group can discern is that it appears the guests and employees at the resort must have left in a hurry; after all, meals were left behind, pans still on the stove, as well as baths drawn but never taken. But what the group finds more ominous is the lack of wildlife to be seen or heard; it’s as though they are the only living souls in the area.
Posted in: Contests, Expired Contests by Gino Sassani on October 28th, 2014
Our friends at Arc Entertainment have more than horror on their minds this October. The 28th sees the DVD release of Plastic. A very young gang of criminals runs against a mob boss who has an offer they can't refuse...or can they. They've got to come up with $2 million or else. Arc Entertainment gave us an offer we just couldn't refuse. We have 3 copies of Plastic on DVD and we're going to shoot them out to 3 lucky winners.
To win just follow these instructions.
Posted in: The Reel World by Archive Authors on October 28th, 2014
Wow! OMG! WTH! This is a towering achievement in every way. It is staggering. It is literally staggering; you will leave the theater drained because all your adrenaline will have been used up. Fragmentary, flowing, electric, and it shows the disintegrating of a man's mind in a vibrant phantasmagoria. Any director in the world who sees this will slap himself in the face and say, “Why didn't I do this!” It is a technical tour de force, and everyone in it delivers at full throttle. It is breathless and exhilarating and your mind will be blown. It's a waste of time to compare this to anything else, since this is incomparable. There is nothing to compare it to. It stands alone. Sure, it's a comedy. Yeah, it's a drama, but what it really is is a whirlwind, a tornado, a cyclone, a tsunami of insanity. Everyone involved is fantastic, but Michael Keaton is front and center. Let me say, Batman is back! Wait, I mean Birdman.
Birdman is about an aging actor who refuses to reprise his big blockbuster franchise by making Birdman 4. Instead he has gone for broke and bet everything on a Broadway show that he has written, directs and stars in. It is based on a Raymond Carver short story, and nothing could be farther away from blockbuster. It is about integrity, but is he in over his head? He's a movie star, and he has never done Broadway. He's going to have to refinance the Malibu house even though his franchise has made billions. There are direct references to Iron Man and The Avengers as real world competition on entertainment news shows. Everyone is circling around him: mistress, girlfriend, ex-wife and daughter. None of them has every really connected with him, or he failed them all in some way. If one were to try and compare it to something it would be All That Jazz and Nine (or 8 ½ if you prefer the black and white non-musical). The difference is that the style of this movie is a new industry standard. It plays out as one handheld shot from beginning to end. It should be noted that it does not actually take place in real time, but the transitions are so seamless that you barely notice.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on October 28th, 2014
“That man brings hell with him wherever he goes.”
The “man” is supposed to be Paul Brennan (Jason Patric), a retired mob enforcer-turned-unassuming auto mechanic who reluctantly returns to his violent ways after his daughter goes missing. But the real culprit might be director Brian A. Miller. With The Prince and this year’s The Outsider, the director has made two consecutive sub-Taken crime dramas that lack the cohesion, refinement or energy to work even as satisfyingly junky action movies.
Posted in: Contests, Expired Contests by Gino Sassani on October 27th, 2014
31 Nights Of Terror is coming to an end this week. We have one more giveaway make this the most prizes we've ever given in October. Oscillascope offers Whitewash staring Thomas Haden Church. "Hell can be a cold dark place". An accidental death leads to terror in this DVD. One lucky winner gets to find out for free.
To win just follow these instructions.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on October 26th, 2014
“Inspired by the actual accounts of an NYPD sergeant.”
Deliver Us From Evil comes attached with what may be the most flowery variation yet of the “Based on a True Story” tag I'm always wary of. The deliberately-worded phrase is designed to lend an air of verisimilitude to the inherently supernatural demonic possession genre. (Not unlike what The Conjuring did with its real-life paranormal investigators on its way to becoming a smash.) While Deliver Us From Evil has a few decent jolts, it doesn't come close to capitalizing on the promise of its unique source material.
Posted in: Podcasts by Gino Sassani on October 25th, 2014
Most of you know Sarah Butler from her strong performance in I Spit On Your Grave. The remake might have gotten mixed reviews but Butler's strong showing has helped to create a promising career. In Free Fall she gets to work with Halloween producer Malek Akkad and screen legend Malcolm McDowell. I had a chance to chat with Sarah about the new film coming October 28th from Anchor Bay. She's got tons of energy and our time together was far too short to ask everything I had hoped. Bang it here to listen in on my chat with Sarah Butler.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 25th, 2014
The Mentalist was once the highest rated drama on television. There was a lot to like here, as I'll discuss throughout this review. But I think most of us had gotten a little sick and tired of the Red John story. The show milked the single case for over five years, and the fan base had dissolved to the point that the once #1 show has been on the bubble for the last two seasons. Next year it will return, but only as a January mid-season replacement, a place many shows begin their lives. Fans' patience has worn thin, but at long last the show's producers discovered what we've known since the second season. It's time to get Red John gone and move the show in another direction. If the show was going to survive, it was now or never. What you likely didn't see coming was a two-year jump in time and a retooling in the middle of an ongoing series. More on that later. Let's get you up to date first, shall we?
Simon Baker stars as Patrick Jane, a psychic who was riding high bilking folks out of their hard-earned money by playing on their desires to contact their deceased loved ones. He justified his con as providing closure for his marks and never looked back. That is, until one day he makes a fatal mistake. He never fooled himself into believing any of it was real. He wasn’t psychic. He just paid close attention. While working with the police to solve a serial killer case, he arrogantly demeans the murderer, known as Red John, on a television show. It was all chuckles until he gets home and finds that he made Red John so angry that he killed his wife and young daughter. Driven by guilt and a desire to avenge his family’s death, he abandoned his con game and decided to use the observational skills that allowed him to play a psychic to assist the California Bureau of Investigation, a sort of state-based FBI, to solve murders. He’s not a cop, but consulted with a tough-crimes division that answers directly to the state’s Attorney General. As he put it, “No gun. No badge. They don’t even give me dental.” While he’s shed his psychic persona, Jane is still incredibly full of himself. Jane is also deeply disturbed, although he hides it well. He still sleeps in the bedroom where his wife and daughter were killed. He never covered the red smiley face Red John drew at his crime scenes to taunt him in the victims’ own blood. A little Helter Skelter meets Barney.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on October 24th, 2014
by John Delia
Here’s a young adult targeted DVD that’s based on a graphic novel called The Scribbler. Perfect for those who want to cozy up on Halloween night, this science fiction thriller has a wicked tone and some ghoulish ghastly scenes. Actually, it’s very well acted for a low-budget indie, and the special effects are also a treat. The story gets kinda funky and way off the wall, but that’s what science fiction’s all about.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on October 23rd, 2014
Imagine if you had a second chance to tell that loved one you lost how much you loved them, or were able to do the things you wished you had done the first time, but you hesitated because you didn’t take into account the fragility of life. Life After Beth shows us the joys that can come with when getting that second chance while at the same time revealing the dark consequences that may come with this new opportunity. There are numerous zombie films and series out in the market, but Life After Beth may be the most unique take on the genre in some time.
Zach (Dane DeHaan) is a grief-stricken young man who is suffering from the tragic loss of his girlfriend Beth (Aubrey Plaza). All he can think about is how the two had last talked and it had been on bad terms and how losing her only seems to have made it clear how much he truly loved her. Her parents (played by John C. Reilly and Molly Shannon) as you’d expect are taking the tragedy badly. The parents take Zach in; after all, he seems to be the only one who can seem to understand the kind of pain they are going through. Back home Zach’s family couldn’t be more opposite and border on insensitive; besides, to Zach no one can seem to understand the pain, loss and guilt that he is feeling. But all this changes when by some miracle Beth returns from the grave.
On The Web
Sponsors
