Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 26th, 2014
"The First World War shaped the 20th century. It sparked the Russian Revolution, and it launched America as a world power. The fault lines from its failed peace settlement led to a second terrible world war barely 20 years later. We all live with its unresolved consequences..."
The First World War long existed in the shadow of the second. When it was fought, the term World War was not yet in existence. Until after the Second World War, it was referred to mostly as The Great War. The footage from this war is far more rare.
Posted in: The Reel World by Archive Authors on May 25th, 2014
There is a famous painting from 1779 of Dido Elizabeth Belle with her cousin Lady Elizabeth Murray which is owned by the present Earl of Mansfield and rests in Perth Palace. It is the inspiration for the movie Belle. The history of events that swirled around Belle are pertinent to this day. The film doesn't always hold to historical accuracy, but mostly in matters that do not aid the excellent story being told. The historical inaccuracies are minor and mostly irrelevant. Here is what is true. Belle is the daughter of Admiral Sir John Lindsay and an enslaved African, Maria Belle. Lindsay had his uncle, William Murray, take care of her at his estate
Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on May 23rd, 2014
"You and I have a lot of catching up to do. What's the last thing you remember?"
In 2006 director Bryan Singer appeared to have turned his back on the film franchise he had brought to life. After two successful runs at the X-Men universe Singer was primed and ready for a third when a certain Man Of Steel caught his eye. At seemingly, the last minute Singer dropped out of the third X-Men film to direct the dubious return of Superman. I actually like Superman Returns better than most. I wonder how much of the film's hatred might have been directed at its director, considered a traitor by many fans. I never really looked at it quite that way. It's a business, after all, and people come and go.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on May 22nd, 2014
Jackie Mabley, the trailblazing subject of this HBO Films documentary, earned plenty of superlatives during a comedy career that spanned more than 50 years. She was touted as “the funniest woman in the world.” The DVD cover art crowns her as “the Original Queen of Comedy”, and one of the film's interview subjects calls her “the original cougar” thanks to her on-stage predilection toward younger men. Of course, Mabley would probably prefer it if you just called her “Moms.”
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 21st, 2014
Ever since Elijah Wood completed filming Lord of the Rings, it would seem that he has done everything in his power to not be locked down with the label of simply being Frodo. From playing a mute psychopath in Sin City, to voice work in Happy Feet, a suicidal pot-head that is best friends with a talking dog in Wilfred, and even the killer role in Maniac, it’s clear that he’s an actor that likes to challenge himself. With Grand Piano Wood delivers his most dynamic performance as the brilliant concert pianist Tom Selznick who suffers from stage fright.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 21st, 2014
Most action pictures have an aura of super-seriousness, or they are filmed as comedies and everything is meant to be ridiculous. It definitely is a difficult task to mix the two effectively. On some level most action pictures are ridiculous, since most of us will never experience the close proximity to death and danger that is depicted on the screen. Also, life and death are often cheapened with high body counts but little consequence for our hero. In 3 Days To Kill, all sorts of elements are brought to bear in order to reinforce the average everyday family experience and not the lone killer.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 21st, 2014
When it comes to locations in horror films, insane asylums seem to be one of the go-to spots, and with good reason. From watching numerous ghost-hunting shows over the years, it would also seem that there are numerous “haunted” asylums out there that are nothing more than rundown relics of what they once were. So getting into House of Dust and seeing it is yet another haunted asylum film, the expectations went down, and I hoped for the best. In the end it turned out to be a fun little film.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by J C on May 21st, 2014
“You just never know who’s gonna be at the door.”
A virginal babysitter with bad cell phone reception is terrorized by a masked killer in Mischief Night. You don’t have to be a gorehound to know this is basically the plot of every slasher movie ever made. So it’s natural for viewers to expect some sort of swerve to differentiate this horror flick from all those that came before it. With the flawed, micro-budgeted Mischief Night, that swerve comes courtesy of the film’s intriguing assertion that a “boogeyman” can come from anywhere.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on May 20th, 2014
American Jesus is an intelligent film. It does not judge. It is balanced in its approach to some basic questions. It shows many sides to a very large and ill-defined subject. It attempts to understand in a comprehensive way Christianity in America. Right from the beginning it uncovers unique splinter churches that are part of why America approaches religion differently than other countries
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on May 20th, 2014
Shelter Island is not a movie about the place but about two people who made a connection. Jimmy Olinkiewicz found Harold Olson one day, and a unique friendship was born. Jimmy is a very basic hardworking guy with a Long Island accent who does anything and everything, and he sees some potential in Harold. Harold is obsessed with painting and will frequently listen to one song hundreds of times for 48 hours straight until he finishes a painting. Jimmy seems like a very normal, average guy, and Harold does not seem very normal.
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