Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on June 11th, 2014
“You’re not just an analyst anymore. You’re operational now.”
Witness the birth of -- actually make that rebirth of --one of the most popular action heroes in literature. Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan has been a character of many jobs and many faces over the years. Baldwin, Ford, and Affleck have all stepped into the role of the man who has been a soldier, an analyst, an operative, and a president. Now Chris Pine looks to fill the shoes left behind by some of Hollywood’s heaviest hitters
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on June 11th, 2014
“Maybe you’re missing the real question: do you want to believe?”
Talk about a loaded question. If you apply it to the plot of Resurrection, it obviously refers to the formerly-deceased residents of Arcadia, Missouri who suddenly and inexplicably return home many years after their respective deaths. But I think the question also applies to the attitude modern TV viewers have toward any new network series. Before they decide to invest their time, those viewers "want to believe"…that an intriguing drama like Resurrection won’t get canceled after five episodes.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on June 9th, 2014
For most who have heard about the West Memphis Three, it is because of the HBO documentary Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills. It was a documentary that sparked the interest of many and fueled a movement to free Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley for the murder of three young boys in 1993. It was a documentary that attempted to expose the trial as a witch hunt in which the only things the boys were guilty of were listening to heavy metal, wearing black and participating in Wiccan practices.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 9th, 2014
Mike Warren (Tveit) has just graduated at the top of his class for the FBI. His family includes past directors, and he's personal friends with the current director (Vance). He expects to write his own ticket to a fast-track gig in DC and into a director's chair at a young age. It all gets sidetracked when he's assigned to Southern California and a place called Graceland. It's a beach house seized in a drug bust. Now it's an inter-department Federal unit. There are FBI, DEA and Customs officers all sharing the house and coordinating both their domestic lives and their law enforcement lives
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 9th, 2014
Perry Mason officially ended in May of 1966, but that wasn't going to be the end. Twenty years later the surviving cast members reunited for Perry Mason Returns. It was Perry and Della back together again. Both Raymond Burr and Barbara Hale returned to their roles. William Hopper had died in 1970, so William Katt joined the reunion as Paul Drake, Jr. Katt might not have really been Drake's son; he was Hale's son. When Katt left the films he was replaced by William R. Moses as Ken Malansky
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 9th, 2014
"The meek shall inherit the Earth when the strong say so."
Director Manish Patel wants his now. He is mostly known as a British television documentary guy, and it's only natural that he'd eventually want to try his hand at a feature film. If you can't find the right project, there's always writing your own. Patel ends up being one of those one-man bands with a low budget and a minimal crew. The result is Original Gangster, known as Full English Breakfast in his home territory of England.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on June 9th, 2014
After dating an endless string of duds and dolts, Jessica Stein has finally found someone smart, funny, kind, compassionate and attractive enough to meet her impossibly high standards. Much to Jessica's chagrin, however, it turns out her ideal match is a woman. Kissing Jessica Stein, the 2001 independent romantic comedy created by stars Jennifer Westfeldt and Heather Juergensen, is equal parts insightful and frustrating. You have a new chance to see for yourself now that the film has made its Blu-ray debut.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on June 9th, 2014
Despite the atrocities that Adolf Hitler was responsible for, this ruthless visionary had an uncanny way of getting people to not only listen to him, but to follow him, and die for his quest of world domination. We all know the name Adolf Hitler; it’s a name that will forever hold the stigma that it will remind people of nothing but hate and genocide. But what made this man slip into darkness, fueled by hate with the goal of eliminating the Jewish race?
Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on June 6th, 2014
"What I am about to tell you sounds crazy. But you have to listen to me. Your very lives depend on it. You see, this isn't the first time."
No, this isn't the first time. Tom Cruise seems to be making a habit of these science fiction action movies of late. There was Oblivion and War Of The Worlds, and quite frankly Edge Of Tomorrow looked to be pretty much more of the same. But there's a huge difference between this film and the previous two. Edge Of Tomorrow is actually good. What looks on the surface to be just Groundhog Day with futuristic toys turns out to be a redemption story that I actually never saw coming.
Posted in: The Reel World by J C on June 6th, 2014
“I believe we have a choice in this world about how to tell sad stories. On the one hand, you can sugarcoat it. Nothing is too messed up that can't be fixed with a Peter Gabriel song. I like that version as much as the next girl does. It's just not the truth.”
With its beautiful leads and an impossibly romantic European interlude, I wouldn't exactly say The Fault in Our Stars gets at the truth either. But the film has enough authentic touches — and, more importantly, treats its characters with enough unvarnished affection — to make it one of the most effective tearjerkers in recent years.
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