Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on May 8th, 2013
After a four-month hiatus, I have been called to assignment, a very special assignment indeed. Thankfully, the message did not self-destruct after five seconds. However, the message did have demands and required negotiation tactics. That is when I called in the SRU Unit from the show Flashpoint and they burst onto the scene. While they are handling a memo that has a notebook at gunpoint, they left me with a copy of Season Five of Flashpoint to review. Let’s take a look.
Posted in: The Reel World by Archive Authors on May 8th, 2013
The first question you have to ask: “Was Stanley Kubrick a genius?" There are those who assert his IQ was ridiculously high (200+). Kubrick himself replied that he was below average. I tend to agree with the former rather than Kubrick himself. Kubrick is a monumental legend in film history. I personally think he is the single greatest director of all time, but I say that with a little reservation. There are hundreds of directors who I admire and think are deserving of high praise, but Kubrick's incredible mystique is what raises him above the rest.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 8th, 2013
“If you have a tender soul, brace yourself.”
Sometimes I’ll get a stand-up comedy DVD and wonder how to write the review differently from other stand-up routines because there was simply little-to-no difference between the acts. Everyone just about knows — or should know — the basic formula. A guy walks out on stage and, for 45 minutes to an hour, delivers self-deprecating humor with the goal of receiving a few laughs. But then there are the comedians like Bo Burnham and Jeff Dunham, who at least try to bring something new to the stage by using music or puppets. In the case of Kristen Schaal, the mold continues to break
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Archive Authors on May 8th, 2013
I should start by saying I just re-watched the 1939 version of Wuthering Heights with Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon on Turner Classic Movies, and I fell in love all over again. Olivier was never more magnetic, naturalistic and appealing than he was as Heathcliff. I have watched it many times and Wuthering Heights has been done many times. There have been recent versions with Ralph Fiennes and Tom Hardy (The Dark Knight Rises, Inception). This is not one of those versions.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 8th, 2013
There has always been something about anime, as well as role playing card games like Pokémon and Kaijudo, that I’ve never quite been able to understand the draw towards them. When my friends talk about these games — with their booster packs and leveling up — all I can do is smile, nod my head, and pretend I have the slightest inkling at what they are talking about. Surely I can’t be alone on this. So when it came time to settle in and give Kaijudo: Rise of the Duel Masters a spin, I was reluctant; I hoped, perhaps, I could gain some insight into what some of my friends were talking about.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on May 6th, 2013
“This is America’s war as never seen before…”
When you consider the countless documentaries, miniseries and feature films dedicated to the Second World War, you’d think the defining conflict of the 20th century has been covered from every possible angle. And you’d be wrong! History has taken to the skies with WWII From Space, a two-hour special that originally aired on the cable network in December and promised to bring viewers an unprecedented, extraterrestrial perspective of the war.
Posted in: The Reel World by J C on May 3rd, 2013
It’s easy to forget how important it was for 2008’s Iron Man to be great. After all, the film was only asked to A.) properly introduce a B-list comic hero to the movie-going masses and B.) successfully kick off what turned out to be Phase One of Marvel’s March Toward Global Domination Cinematic Universe. “Good” would’ve been a letdown; Iron Man needed to be great. Fortunately, it delivered in spades; its critical and commercial success paved the way for an unprecedented run of films that culminated with The Avengers last summer. With a release date for the Avengers sequel already on the horizon, Tony Stark and Co. have once again been asked to set the tone.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 2nd, 2013
"So no one told you life was gonna be this way. Your job's a joke, you're broke, your love life's D O A. It's like you're always stuck in second gear. When it hasn't been your day, your week, your month or even your year. But I'll be there for you..."
And for ten years and 236 episodes, they were there for you. It was part of NBC's famous Must See TV Thursday Night. The show has been a perennial Top 10 placeholder in the Nielsen ratings.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 2nd, 2013
"You call this plain clothes?"
Few shows in television history have the kind of storied history that you'll find with Cagney & Lacey. The show's own story would make for compelling television drama in its own right. It didn't end with simply trying to get on the air. The trials continued through three cancellations and an unprecedented recasting of a lead...twice. It's no small miracle that the show made it at all, let alone lasting for six years and a total of over 130 episodes and television movies.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 2nd, 2013
Being raised Catholic the notion of God calling down to someone and delivering a message to help someone make a decision in life is actually a concept that’s easy to accept. Whether someone else believes, well, that’s a whole other can of worms people usually don’t like to discuss. But with If You Really Love Me we are given a look behind the curtain at one man’s decision to leave a successful law firm in order to fulfill the destiny laid out by what would appear is a higher power.








