Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on January 3rd, 2011
Paul Rudd is desperate for a promotion. Moving from the drudgery of the sixth floor to the executive seventh will, he feels, cement his financial status and convince his girlfriend (Stephanie Szostak) to marry him. Opportunity knocks, but also has a price: he must find an idiot to bring to boss Bruce Greenwood's dinner party, where these unfortunates will be ridiculed. Rudd doesn't like the idea, but then he (literally) runs into Steve Carrell, a man of such transcendent idiocy that Rudd can't resist the siren call he represents. But before they can make it to the dinner, Carrell's well-meaning stupidity threatens to completely derail Rudd's life.
This is a remake of 1998's The Dinner Game (Le diner des cons). Francis Veber's farce clocked in at 80 minutes. Jay Roach's bloated retread is half again as long, and only half as funny. The Paul Rudd character in the original, played by Thierry Lhermitte, was a superior, cruel SOB who deserved to have his life taken apart. Furthermore, the characters never actually make it to the dinner of the title. The remake, of course, finds it necessary to stick literally to its title, and gives us the dinner, thus inviting us to engage in precisely the form of cruel laughter it pretends to condemn. It also tries to make Rudd sympathetic, and having his character be a nice guy runs counter to the very premise of the film. End result: a film that tries much too hard to be funny, laboriously working every last predictable gag until those horses are fit for nothing more than the glue factory. There are some amusing moments, but this is, by and large, a gigantic, time-consuming waste of the talent involved.
Posted in: Contests by Gino Sassani on January 3rd, 2011
On the 10th Day Of Christmas we looked under the tree again here at Upcomingdiscs and what did we find? The Santa's Helpers over at CBS were at it again. This time they left a copy of the Monte Walsh on DVD under the Upcomingdiscs Christmas tree. To win a copy of this Lee Marvin Western just follow these two steps…
Contest is now closed Winner is Patty B
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on January 2nd, 2011
8 corporate hopefuls gather at a mysterious location and are instructed to take one final exam as a final test to see which one will walk away with a prestigious job at a major company. The trouble is their exam papers are blank, and it would seem that there is not even a question to answer. For 80 minutes each must solve the puzzle without being disqualified by breaking one of the few rules, all of which double as a riddle/clue to solving the exam question and answer.
There are no set changes, no flashbacks to see more about the character's past, not a single thing that takes us outside of the tiny exam room. As our young hopefuls are slowly eliminated from the competition, the story becomes all the more engaging. The cryptic, “think WAY outside the box” puzzle solving (along with an interesting science fiction angle to the story that is revealed about midway through) makes this film resemble a film like Cube more than 12 Angry Men. Normally a film like this would hinge on the characters, but the riddles and their manner of deducing then trying to solve them is ample for maintaining the audience's interest. Like how the setting was far more interesting than the characters in Cube, the riddles are more interesting than who is trying to solve them.
Posted in: Contests by Gino Sassani on January 2nd, 2011
On the 9th Day Of Christmas our friends at Image Entertainment were at it again. This time they left two copies of Van Gogh: Brush With Genius for two lucky Upcomingdiscs readers. So lend me your ears and enter to win this IMAX documentary. Just follow these two steps…
Contest is now closed Winners are Carol Ames & Mike
Posted in: Contests by Gino Sassani on January 1st, 2011
On the 8th Day of Christmas we have a copy of Trading Places on DVD. This is the special "Looking Good, Feeling Good Edition". Help yourself to feel good by bringing in the New Year with this Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphie Classic. To win, follow these instructions.
Contest is now closed Winner is Rose
Posted in: Contests by Gino Sassani on December 31st, 2010
On the 7th Day Of Christmas we offer up 2 copies of the Jeff Dunham comedy I'm No Dummy on DVD. To win a copy of this Bryan W. Simon documentary just follow these instructions...
Simply go to our Facebook page and become a fan (like). When the contest expires we will pick the two winners from our Facebook followers. Stay with us even after the contest and don't hide the feeds. Throughout 2011 we will announce some contests only on our Facebook feed.
Posted in: Contests by Gino Sassani on December 30th, 2010
On the 6th Day Of Christmas we looked under the tree here at Upcomingdiscs and what did we find? The Santa's Helpers over at CBS were at it again. This time they left a copy of the Final Season of Beverly Hills 90210 under the Upcomingdiscs Christmas tree. To win a copy of this series swansong just follow these two steps…
Contest is now closed Winner is Susan D.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 30th, 2010
Written by Dave Younger
This is a prison drama, where the most feared criminal in Combs State Prison is born-to- be-bad Miles “Cain” Skinner (Ving Rhames). His nemesis Redfoot (Robert LaSardo) has just been caught doing his last drug deal and is transferred there. Which tough guy will prevail? Cain is so dangerous he’s in solitary confinement, so that makes it harder to take him out. But he is allowed out one hour a day. He’s handcuffed – sometimes – and security is increased, so it seems like Redfoot has an advantage. But those handcuffs could be nasty weapons…
Posted in: Contests by Gino Sassani on December 29th, 2010
On the 5th Day Of Christmas I heard such a clamor that I ran to my window to see what was the matter. I guess I told you this story already. This time they left copies of The Lightkeepers for 2 lucky readers at Upcomingdiscs. To enter to win 1 of the 2 copies of this Richard Dreyfuss and Bruce Dern heartwarming tale on DVD, just follow these two steps…
contest is now closed Winners are Dennis Plush & Alexa Marie
Posted in: Contests by Gino Sassani on December 28th, 2010
On the 4th Day Of Christmas I heard such a clamor that I ran to my window to see what was the matter. It seems our friends over at Image Entertainment thought it would be as good idea to send Santa by with a few gifts for the readers here at Upcomingdiscs. The good news? We have 2 copies of 16 Wishes on Blu-ray to give away. The bad news? Who's going to clean up all of those reindeer droppings on my roof? To enter to win this Magical film in high definition, just follow these two steps…
contest is now closed Winners are Katherine Williams & Denise Glazier
![16 Wishes [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/16-wishes-blu-ray-large.jpg)
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