Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 23rd, 2011
When it comes to westerns, I certainly have a love hate relationship. For most westerns, especially anything with Clint Eastwood or spaghetti in the description, I have an extreme loathing and it is honestly hard for me to sit through. But then there is Tombstone which I think is one of the best movies of all time. This summer, I am even excited to go see Cowboys & Aliens. Maybe I just need a western that is out of the ordinary. However, I received Posse to review and by the looks of the cover, this might be a very conventional western or perhaps not.
An old black man (I don't normally get into race, but it is important here) (played by Woody Strode) spins us a story about black cowboys. He tells us to forget about the past and truth. One out of every three cowboys was black. He then goes into a few more facts before telling the tale of Jesse Lee and his posse. It all started long ago during the Spanish-American War, more specifically in Cuba around the year 1898.
![Posse [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/posse-blu-ray-large.jpg)
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by David Annandale on July 22nd, 2011
MGM's Limited Edition Collection heads into enjoyable but far-from-classic territory with this goofy horror tale. Tom Selleck is an art historian living in the Philippines with his in-therapy wife (Barra Grant). He buys a painting (supposed to be centuries old, but looking for all the world as if it were commissioned for a motel) that depicts witches being burned, and the central witch bears an uncanny resemblance to Grant. Then the weirdness begins.
The painting keeps changing. Other women, looking exactly like the other witches, show up with a mysterious agenda. Cultists make repeated attempts on Selleck’s life. Grant oscillates between terror and acting possessed. Will Selleck solve the mystery before his wife is inducted into a Satanic cult?
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 21st, 2011
The fourth season of The Virginian was a milestone year for the groundbreaking western. Four of the show's regular characters would be appearing in their final episodes. Lee J. Cobb was never completely happy doing the show, and while he always acted professionally, his castmates all knew he wanted to leave. Cobb finally left halfway through this season even though he would remain on the opening credits for the entire year. This would also be the first and last year for Diane Roter as Jennifer Sommers, the Judge's niece. She was a replacement for Roberta Shore's Betsy, who left the previous year but would return for one episode in year four to offer the character closure. Roter was a kind of Annette Funicello lookalike and only really appeared strongly in a handful of episodes. Finally, this was the last season for Randy Boone as Randy Benton. It's your last chance to hear a riff from the young character's guitar.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 21st, 2011
Mr. Skin and Panik House Entertainment have teamed up to provide us with what can only be described as a schlock-o-rama of 1980's exploitation cinema. After the run of blacksploitation and grindhouse films of the 1970's, we found ourselves in a cycle where the subject shifted to women behind bars. You could still find the same level of low-budget movie making here but with the added "bonus" of watching hot chicks, for the most part, used and abused while being usually unfairly incarcerated. This three-pack of movies includes the first uncut release of Chained Heat in North America. Now, I'm not really familiar enough with the movie to tell you what might have been added back into the mix, but I'll bet we can all guess, can't we?
Chained Heat (1983)
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 20th, 2011
Bands tend to change members about as often as I change my disposable razor. Heck, in some cases perhaps more often. (I really need to get a new razor) Whether it is a lead singer or perhaps a drummer, in some cases nobody is safe when people start arguing (ask Michael Anthony of Van Halen). But for this review, I was presented with a band that had changed members quite a few times. In fact, only one of the original members remains and he is the drummer. Meet Deep Purple.
Deep Purple was formed in the late 1960’s. The original lineup included Jon Lord, Ritchie Blackmore, Nick Simper, Rod Evans, and Ian Paice. The band was originally called Roundabout but after their first tour quickly changed their name to Deep Purple after Blackmore grandmother’s favorite song. They broke thru the rock world after and released three albums numbers that would do quite well in the US as well as abroad in the UK.
![Phoenix Rising [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/phoenix-rising-blu-ray-large.jpg)
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 20th, 2011
"A picture's worth a thousand words."
James Wan first came to national attention when a short film that he made set the stage for one of the most successful horror franchises in recent years. That short, of course, was Saw, and after no less than 6 sequels that franchise appears to be over, at least for now. Wan has teamed with the writer that also helped to bring about the original Saw film, Leigh Whannell, to try and turn the horror world on its head once again. But, lightning just doesn't strike the same place twice, or does it?
![Insidious [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/insidious-blu-ray-large.jpg)
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 20th, 2011
They say that when an alligator grabs hold of something tasty to eat, the reptile won't let go for anything. I guess the same thing could be said for Roger Corman. He's earned the title as King of the B Movie and has held reign for nearly 60 years. So we shouldn't be surprised that his relationship with SyFy and their monster mash-up series of original films would feature a few entries from Corman. Dinocroc came in 2004, followed by Supergator in 2007. Both found fitting places in the series from SyFy. Now Corman and the network have pitted the two against each other in the latest joint venture: Dinocroc vs. Supergator.
Two genetically-altered crocodilians have been developed in secret by the laboratories owned by Jason Drake (Carradine). The lab was funded by the government to create super-versions of food plants to solve the world's hunger problems. But these guys got greedy and decided to use the technology to develop a weapon out of an alligator and a crocodile. The result is two giant predators that soon break out of containment and threaten a Hawaiian island. There's plenty of the expected mayhem and chaos as the two creatures make their way through the population.
![Dinocroc vs. Supergator [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/dinocroc-vs-supergator-blu-ray-large.jpg)
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 20th, 2011
MGM has really started to roll out the titles in their Limited Edition Collection. The result is that you're going to start seeing titles that are quite obscure. While many of the names involved might be known to you, I'm sure you'll find plenty of titles you've never heard of before. Even a movie lover like myself comes across a film from time to time that has managed to escape my notice. This time the film is The Killer Is Loose, and it has escaped my attention for about 50 years. Most of the time there's a good reason why a film lives in obscurity. Usually it's well deserved and to resurrect it now even under such limited conditions is a waste of time. But every now and then a film comes along that looks more like an unpolished gem and deserves a second look, even so many years later. This is just such a film.
Leon Poole (Corey) is about as unassuming fellow as you are likely to find anywhere. His old Army buddies called him Foggy because he always seemed like he was walking around lost in a fog. He works as a meek bank teller. It is there his ability to be invisible comes in handy. The bank is robbed, and the police soon come to the conclusion it had to be an inside job. Their number one suspect is none other than Poole himself. When Detective Sam Wagner (Cotten) comes to arrest Poole, he fires through the closed door and injures one of the cops. He shouts out the clichéd "You'll never take me alive" line which causes the cops to bust in with their guns blazin’. Only it isn't Leon Poole who gets shot, but his innocent bystander wife (Crawford). She's killed, and it devastates Poole.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 19th, 2011
This is a biopic about two very obscure people whose relationship has escaped the attention of all but a select few. All kidding aside, what we have here is a dramatization of how the heir to the British throne (Nico Evers-Swindell) meets Kate Middleton (Camilla Luddington), and how their romance gradually blossoms. He arrives at university, and every blue-blooded young woman has him in her sights, but it is, naturally, the down-to-earth girl who draws him, the turning point being when she shows that she’s sexy as well as smart during a student fashion show. But the course of true love is not an easy one, especially with the pressures of the fishbowl life of royalty make themselves known.
If you’re wondering what on earth is the point of making a movie about something the entire planet has already feasted on (and is still doing so), then let me clear things up: there is no point. This is as bland a romance as was ever committed to film, hitting every tired cliché imaginable. Friends who discover they want to be more? Check. Bitchy Aristocrat Who Threatens to Steal the Heroine’s Man? Check. Third act falling out? Check. Last minute confession of love that saves everything? Check. Snore. The only tiny points of interest are the bits of unintentional comedy. So poor Ben Cross, in grotesque makeup, is stuck playing a Charles who is obviously about two feet shorter than the real thing. And do skip ahead to the final shot, where, after a montage of stock footage of African wildlife, William proposes against a hilariously fake sunset so whose colours are so supersaturated, the shot seems (but can’t possibly, can it?) to be echoing Gone with the Wind.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on July 17th, 2011
One of my favorite books growing up was Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Clearly. It was a charming book that told the story of a child who would write letters to his favorite author. But somewhere in the middle of the book, it turns from letters to a journal of his life in the second grade. The book series, Diary of a Wimpy Kid focus on the experiences of Greg Heffley and told through the pages of a journal. Today, I get to review the second movie adaptation subtitled: Rodrick Rules.
Like the pages of a drawing book, we join the Rocket Rollers Roller Rink (say that five times fast) where they are welcoming back Westmore 7th graders. A car pulls up and some drawings get out? Oh I get it. By the way, the sign has now changed to, More Lame 7th Graders courtesy of two 8th or 9th graders I assume. As the drawings come out, they dissolve to a family of four.
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