Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on June 7th, 2023
The name Shirley Temple is about as iconic as it gets when it comes to film history, and despite how many films I’ve seen in my lifetime, I had somehow managed to never see a film with Shirley Temple in it. When I volunteered to check out this film, I honestly thought it was going to be the 1980 version of the film that had Walter Matthau and Julie Andrews, simply because I didn’t realize that there were at least three versions of the film that were made. Despite the mixup, I was happy to get a chance to see the film and find out for myself what made Shirley Temple such a cinematic darling on the screen and made her memorable enough to even have a drink named after her. Personally, I’m not sure if this is the best example of her work, but it is certainly a product of its time.
Posted in: The Reel World by Jeremy Butler on June 3rd, 2023
“Miles, being Spider-Man is a sacrifice. You have a choice between saving one person and saving every world.”
So, I’m not sure how I feel about this whole breaking films into two-parters phenomenon that seems to be sweeping Hollywood. Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning is expecting to do it, while the Fast and Furious franchise has essentially made a three-part finale with the first installment out now. Now we have Spider-Man: Across the Spider-verse joining the party. Personally, I blame the Harry Potter and Twilight franchises for this; they opened the door for this type of scheme. Pardon my saltiness; it could have something to do with the fact that I wasn’t aware that I was only going to be watching part one of two-parter prior to showing up at the theater. Had I known, I would have mentally prepared myself.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 2nd, 2023
When I was a young boy I loved playing with my toys. We didn't have Transformers in those days, but we did have Major Matt Mason, plastic dinosaurs, Hot Wheels, and Creepy Crawlers Thingmaker sets. Yeah, in those days a toy could cause third-degree burns and no one really worried about getting sued. Kind of takes the fun out of being a kid today. You know who else, I bet, loved to play with his toys? Michael Bay. I bet he had the coolest toys in his neighborhood. He probably wasn't the best guy to be friends with, however. He didn't invite the kids over to play with his toys. He likely charged you a nickel to watch him play with them. It's many decades later, and Michael still has the coolest toys on the block. Only now you have to cough up twenty bucks if you want to watch him playing with them. Sadly, that is what the Transformers film franchise has been reduced to. We're all watching the rich kid playing with really cool toys.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on June 1st, 2023
In the mid-80’s this was pretty much the height of teen cinema across all genres. John Hughes had success with Sixteen Candles and in 1985 would put out a little film called The Breakfast Club. That same year Secret Admirer would come out which would borrow a little from Cyrano de Bergerac and add in a healthy dose of the 80’s teen comedy and would almost strike gold. But what may be the film’s most noteworthy factoid is that in 2016 a writer and director by the name of Eduardo Ortiz releases a film that was a word-for-word and scene-by-scene ripoff in Puerto Rico and was found out days upon its release. One could only imagine he felt the film was such a hidden gem that no one would notice, but thankfully people did find out, and now with Kino putting out this Blu-ray, perhaps this will give new audiences a chance to check out this charming little film that is filled with familiar faces from the 80’s and absurd hijinks that were acceptable back then.
Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on May 26th, 2023
"You can't live in that world unless you become a human yourself."
That's what Disney thinks, anyway. In 1989 Walt Disney Studios was suffering a bit. The box office had been loaded with several disappointments, and it seemed that the storied studio might have to give up its crown for the dominant provider of family entertainment. It was the release of The Little Mermaid as a animated feature film that brought families back to the movies in droves. But it wasn't only that particular film that would save things for Disney. The Little Mermaid set the template for what would become one of the best decades in Disney animation history. With animated features like The Lion King and Beauty And The Beast, it was like a new golden age of hand-drawn animation. It was an unprecedented run, to be sure. Now we're in a new millennium, and Disney has once again suffered some box office miscues, and in the middle of that is this trend to create live-action
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Michael Durr on May 24th, 2023
I think all of us want to be on stage, at least in theory. For me, it started with some plays in high school. But from there, those aspirations were cut short due to my father telling me that I needed a real job (which was his favorite thing to tell me in high school and college). I don't think the decade I spent in karaoke bars (and actually singing) really counts for anything either. So I've always been fascinated with theater, particularly when it comes to comedy. When I saw King of Laughter as a possible review title, I took a peek at the trailer and decided to give it a shot. After all, what's not to like about a story featuring the famous actor/playwright Eduardo Scarpetta in a battle with the courts over the concept of parody? Let's take a look.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on May 24th, 2023
I know that we all know that the DC universe is going through a bit of a revamp right now. I’m sure we’ve all seen it, with the cancellation of the Batgirl movie and the getting our hopes up over the prospect of Henry Cavill’s return to the fold, only to be crushed when it was announced that the studio was going in a different direction. We all have our feelings about it. That said, if there was a franchise that I would recommend keeping around, it would be the Shazam films. I know, I know, I’m surprised by this revelation too, but the thing is, this franchise of them all was the one that took me by the most surprise. I wasn’t expecting to enjoy it. Prior to the release of the first film, the character of Shazam (a.k.a. Captain Marvel) had been nothing more than a background character that I’d observed in the animated films and shows. I even questioned the wisdom of introducing a character like this when DC was behind the curve in comparison to Marvel. I thought they should focus on building up the main Justice League heroes so they could get back in the race. Then in 2019, I went and saw this, and it won me over.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 24th, 2023
"He was here before Christ, before civilization. He was king here! Rawhead, that's what they called him! Rawhead!"
Rawhead Rex started life as one of many stories in a young Clive Barker’s published collection called The Books Of Blood. As a story it has been hailed by the likes of Stephen King as one of the best horror stories ever written. I'm not sure I would go anywhere near that far, but there's little doubt it's a well-crafted horror tale. I read it years ago and recall that I was quite impressed. The movie version of the story is something else entirely. It fails on really one important element, and that's the design of Rawhead himself. It's one of the worst-looking film monsters I've ever seen. It's a cross between an ape and a clown without the colorful make-up, and the young actor that brought him to life did anything but.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on May 24th, 2023
When Superman was first introduced to us, it was in Action Comics #1 back in 1938 from the writer Jerry Siegel and the artist Joe Shuster. Since then the character has become a cultural phenomenon that’s been featured in just about every form of media from radio shows, TV shows, cartoons, movies, and everything else in between. The character has evolved quite a bit since those early comic book days, and one of the characters biggest evolutions came with the Max Fleischer cartoon series. It was 17 animated short films that played in theaters before the feature film began, but these short films would draw in audiences that wanted to see this caped hero and his amazing adventures
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 24th, 2023
"Most people think if they pay a few dollars to a community chest and goodwill agencies and so on, they've done their duty and they can shrug aside all responsibility. But you've got to do more than that."
Fritz Lang was one of the greatest directors of all time. He was one of the masters of the early silent films and of the German Expressionism that he brought with him when he got to Hollywood. Metropolis and M with Peter Lorre are two of the most renowned silent films ever made, and unlike many actors and directors, he was able to bring his style and talent forward when the talkies started bringing sound to our movie theaters. His later sound pictures included Beyond A Reasonable Doubt with Dana Andrews and The Return Of Frank James with Henry Fonda and Jackie Cooper.
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