“31 Nights Of Terror” Open Water 3 Cage Dive (Blu-ray)
Posted in Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on October 12th, 2017
In 2003 Open Water hit the screen; it was a success since at the time the found-footage genre hadn’t yet saturated the market. I thought it was a fun little movie that was creative, and what impressed me most of all was the use of the sharks in the film. The danger always felt real, and to a point it was a convincing film. It was inevitable that a sequel would follow, though it came and went so fast, it’s not big surprise that many seem to have forgotten the film existed. Now it’s nearly a decade since the sequel came out that we now have a third installment, Open Water 3: Cage Dive.
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“31 Nights Of Terror” Starship Troopers: Traitor of Mars (UHD Blu-ray) (4K)
Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 11th, 2017
“C’mon, you apes, you wanna live forever? I have only one rule. Everybody fights, no one quits. The bugs have breached Mars, and the Federation’s fleet is too far to help. It’s up to us to save the planet. On the bounce, Troopers! The only good bug is a dead bug! Oorah!”
Robert Heinlein wrote the Starship Troopers novel in 1959. Since that time it has taken on many forms from pulp fiction to comic books.
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Once Upon A Time: The Complete Sixth Season (Blu-ray)
Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 11th, 2017
Things are about to change in big ways for the Disney series Once Upon A Time. The sixth season is now out on Blu-ray, and the seventh season has just begun its run on ABC. If you try to go back and forth between these seasons, you might be puzzled more than usual. The show goes into a serious reboot this year. The economics of the show have been pulling it towards either cancellation or pulling in the purse strings. While the ratings aren’t exactly blockbuster, it’s been a clever way for the Mouse House to keep their properties buzzing as they continue to remake many of their fairy tales in live action these days.
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Churchill (Blu-ray)
Posted in Disc Reviews by J C on October 11th, 2017
“You know, there comes a time when even the greatest leader has gone as far as he can go.”
Winston Churchill was once voted the Greatest Briton Ever, beating out the likes of Princess Diana and William Shakespeare. Although Churchill had a staggering number of accomplishments throughout his long life, he is most closely associated with being Great Britain’s prime minister during World War II. That’s why the notion that Churchill vehemently opposed the D-Day invasion at Normandy in the days leading up to the pivotal battle is a provocative premise for this well-crafted, well-acted movie. The only problem is that it remains unclear whether that was actually true.
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“31 Nights Of Terror” Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Complete Series
Posted in No Huddle by Brent Lorentson on October 10th, 2017
It’s hard to believe it has already been twenty years since Buffy the Vampire Slayer first aired on television. I was still in high school at the time, and when I first heard about the show, I couldn’t have been any less excited. All I could think about was the cheesy movie that had Luke Perry. At the time horror was having a weird revamping so to speak. Horror seemed to stop being scary and instead went the direction of trying to be cool and have slick visuals, rather than deliver genuine scary tales.
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Tommy Live at The Royal Albert Hall (Blu-ray)
Posted in Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 10th, 2017
I was first introduced to The Who through the original Tommy album. It was one of my mother’s favorites when I was young, and she had actually written out by hand her interpretation of the story the rock opera appeared to tell. I can’t remember those scribblings, and I’m not even sure if they’re still tucked away in that Decca album I have around here somewhere. But the music always stayed with me. Now, I didn’t ever become a huge fan of the band. I always liked them and collected a couple of their albums over the years. I did play a lot of pinball, however. I fell more in with the likes of Elton John. So you can imagine how excited I was in the summer of 1975 when my favorite musician was cast to play the Pinball Wizard
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Tuesday Round Up: October 10, 2017
Posted in Tuesday Round Up by J C on October 10th, 2017
We are smack dab in the middle of spooky season and our annual “31 Nights of Terror.” That means we’ll be bringing you at least one horror-themed post every day for the rest of this month, and that includes one of this week’s Tuesday Round Up titles. Lionsgate isn’t afraid to go in the water with Open Water 3: Cage Dive. Elsewhere, Eagle Rock comes up with some pinball wizardry thanks to The Who: Tommy Live at The Royal Albert Theater. Finally, Warner Bros. bets on The House, explores royal intrigue with Reign: The Fourth and Final Season, and feels festive with Peanuts Holiday Special Collection (4K).
One last reminder before signing off for the week: if you’re shopping for anything on Amazon and you do it through one of our links, it’ll help keep the lights on here at UpcomingDiscs. See ya next week!
“31 Nights Of Terror” Sleepy Hollow Season 4
Posted in No Huddle by Gino Sassani on October 9th, 2017
“Welcome to The Vault, the most amazing library ever. An archive of the incredible. A repository of the impossible. A storehouse of secrets great and small. This is the untold history of America.”
Things have not been going so well for Ichabod Crane and his fight against the supernatural. The show has had trouble finding an audience as well as a footing. Season Four marks the second time the show has been re-tooled in order to tweak whatever keeps it from completely catching on.
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“31 Nights of Terror” Gerald’s Game
Posted in No Huddle by J C on October 8th, 2017
“Try to call for help…there’s no one for miles.”
The horror stories I tend to enjoy make me empathize with the ill-fated characters on screen instead of making me yell at them for their stupidity. In other words, “What would I do in this situation?” is a much more compelling question than, “Are you a freakin’ idiot?!” We don’t need to get into whether or not I’ve ever found myself handcuffed to a bed. But suffice it to say that Gerald’s Game — Netflix’s brutal and thrillingly taxing adaptation of Stephen King’s 1992 novel — kept me absolutely riveted from start to finish.
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The Mountain Between Us
Posted in No Huddle by Gino Sassani on October 8th, 2017
“History doesn’t repeat itself, but it rhymes. – Mark Twain”
Last year Leonardo DiCaprio walked away with an Oscar for his performance in the winter wilderness survival film The Revenant. The film also took statues for its amazing cinematography and also for direction. By the time I was finished screening The Mountain Between Us, I had already started to have flashbacks. Consider this movie to be a Revenant built for two. The film has a great many of the same strengths as last year’s epic. I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see at least nominations for Hany Abu-Assad for director in his first English-language film.
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“31 Nights Of Terror” Contest: Win Peanuts Holiday Anniversary Collection
Posted in Contests by Gino Sassani on October 7th, 2017
Okay, this one might appear to be a strange contest for our annual 31 Nights Of Terror. We’re giving away a three-Blu-ray collection of the most beloved holiday specials in television history. It’s the Peanuts Holiday Anniversary Collection. Yes, it has A Charlie Brown Christmas and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. But it also that Halloween classic It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. So get ready to guard those pumpkin patches and enter to win this high definition trip down memory lane.
To win a copy of this prize, follow these instructions.
- Fill out your name and email address in the comment form below – your email address will remain private and visible only to us.
- Do not post your address as an actual comment! Instead tell us – Who is your favorite Peanuts character?
- Only those comments that answer our question will be considered.
Contest is now closed Winner is Jim Gardner
Winners are notified by E-mail. If you did not get a confirmation E-mail from us, check your Spam filter and contact us. Any prize not claimed in 2 weeks will be forfeit and be placed in the end of year contests next Holiday Season.
Upcomingdiscs NEVER sells or shares your information with anyone.
“31 Nights Of Terror” iZombie: Season 3
Posted in No Huddle by Gino Sassani on October 6th, 2017
“Turns out we’ve had a hellish night. Peyton, kidnapped by Seattle’s criminal kingpin, saved by a new amnesiac version of Blaine, which doesn’t seem to be sitting well with Ravi. Major, suffering because he promised a zombie named Natalie she’d wake up to a new and beautiful world. And now he can’t find her. And poor Clive. 48 hours ago, he had no idea that zombies were a real thing. What I need to tell him may send him over the edge.”
And by now you might be either over the edge or at the edge of your favorite television seat.
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Taken: Season 1 (Blu-ray)
Posted in Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on October 6th, 2017
In 2008 Taken first exploded on the big screen and not only created an action franchise but also took Liam Neeson from being a respected dramatic actor and transformed him into an action star. It’s been nearly a decade, but now the action franchise is getting the television treatment where we get to see the revenge-fueled CIA agent in action before retirement. Remember the now infamous line, “I don’t know who you are. I don’t know what you want. If you are looking for ransom, I can tell you I don’t have money. But what I do have are a very particular set of skills, skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you…” The
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The Wizard of Lies (Blu-ray)
Posted in Disc Reviews by J C on October 6th, 2017
“In our conversation, he seemed relaxed, unfailingly candid, earnest, and trustworthy. That is his talent and his curse.”
You probably know the name Bernie Madoff, the notorious fraudster who used a Ponzi scheme to steal almost $65 billion dollars from his victims. (Yes, that’s “billion” with a B!) But if you were hoping to gain some insight into the man and his methods, this HBO film isn’t really the place to look. The Wizard of Lies features a fantastic cast, some effective directorial touches, but is too often guilty of telling rather than showing.
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“31 Nights Of Terror” Warm Bodies (UHD Blu-ray) (4K)
Posted in Disc Reviews by J C on October 5th, 2017
“This is a corpse infected with the plague. It is uncaring, unfeeling.”
When it comes to the overwhelming majority of zombie fiction, it’s all about brains (or rather, BRAAAINS!!!) It’s what the undead hunger for, and a well-placed headshot is usually the only way to kill them (again). And that doesn’t even cover the popular device of using the walking dead as an allegory for an increasingly mindless society. Warm Bodies stands out because it’s more concerned with an entirely different bodily organ. Based on Isaac Marion’s popular novel of the same name, the zombie romantic comedy deals directly with matters of the heart.
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Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In The Complete Series
Posted in No Huddle by Gino Sassani on October 4th, 2017
“And now, folks, it’s sock-it-to-you time.”
Few television shows have had as much influence on the pop culture as did Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In. The brainchild of George Schlatter the series has left behind a rich legacy. Even if you’ve never seen an episode of Laugh-In, you’ve heard the catch-phrases, or you’ve watched another show that was directly influenced by it. Lorne Michaels, who created the iconic Saturday Night Live, began as a writer on Laugh-In, and once you’ve seen Laugh-In, you are going to instantly recognize many of the same ideas. Shows like Hee Haw and the British Benny Hill have admitted to taking material directly from Laugh-In.
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“31 Nights Of Terror” Contest: Win A Troma Toxic Avenger Double Feature
Posted in Contests by Gino Sassani on October 4th, 2017
31 Nights Of Terror continues with a third straight contest. Some folks like their horror a little on the wacky side. That describes the King Of Schlock Lloyd Kaufman quite well. Troma has delivered the best of the worst for decades. They don’t come any worse than The Toxic Avenger, the film so bad they made a ton of sequels. We’ve got The Toxic Avenger Part III & The Toxic Avenger IV on Blu-ray for one lucky Upcomingdiscs follower. The discs include a ton of absurd extras. Just the thing for a Troma fan.
To win a copy of this prize, follow these instructions.
- Fill out your name and email address in the comment form below – your email address will remain private and visible only to us.
- Do not post your address as an actual comment! Instead tell us – What was the worst horror movie you ever saw?
- Only those comments that answer our question will be considered.
Contest is now closed Winner is Chris Cook
Winners are notified by E-mail. If you did not get a confirmation E-mail from us, check your Spam filter and contact us. Any prize not claimed in 2 weeks will be forfeit and be placed in the end of year contests next Holiday Season.
Upcomingdiscs NEVER sells or shares your information with anyone.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (Blu-ray)
Posted in Disc Reviews by J C on October 4th, 2017
“This may seem a peculiar request…but could someone explain why I’m here?”
That question is posed slurred by Jack Sparrow, Johnny Depp’s perpetually sloshed swashbuckler, during his very first appearance in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. Given that this is the fifth film in a faded franchise — and that Depp probably needs the money — the answer for why any of this is happening appears to be painfully obvious. Which is why I was delighted (and frankly a little shocked) by how much fun I had watching this latest entry, which manages to entertain while openly plundering the original movie’s winning formula.
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“31 Nights Of Terror” Contest: Win Mickey Mouse: Merry & Scary From Disney
Posted in Contests by Gino Sassani on October 3rd, 2017
We haven’t forgotten the little ones this 31 Nights Of Terror. Disney knows how to make even the Halloween scares a little bit less frightening and a little more fun. They’ve given us a copy of Mickey Mouse Merry & Scary on DVD to help celebrate the spooky season. It’s a mash-up of Christmas and Halloween You get The Scariest Story Ever: A Mickey Mouse Halloween Spooktaular. Mickey tries to tell the ultimate scary story. You also get Duck The Halls: A Mickey Mouse Christmas Special. Donald is resisting the call to migrate south but he finds out shivering in December might not be all it’s quacked up to be. You also get 5 bonus short features. It’s a Holiday Collection extravaganza and one faithful Upcomingdiscs follower is going to get the goods.
To win a copy of this prize, follow these instructions.
- Fill out your name and email address in the comment form below – your email address will remain private and visible only to us.
- Do not post your address as an actual comment! Instead tell us – Who is your favorite Disney character?
- Only those comments that answer our question will be considered.
Contest is now closed Winner is Bernie Wallace
Winners are notified by E-mail. If you did not get a confirmation E-mail from us, check your Spam filter and contact us. Any prize not claimed in 2 weeks will be forfeit and be placed in the end of year contests next Holiday Season.
Upcomingdiscs NEVER sells or shares your information with anyone.
Tuesday Round Up: October 3, 2017
Posted in Tuesday Round Up by J C on October 3rd, 2017
Yo-ho, yo-ho, it’s a pirate’s life for us here at UpcomingDiscs HQ! Lucky for us, we didn’t have to plunder Disney’s treasure chest…the Mouse House was kind enough to send us some of their most valuable booty on their own. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales arrives in both 4K and on Blu-ray this week. Elsewhere, Shout! Factory mines drama out of the When Calls the Heart 6-Movie Collection and prepares for the worst with The Survavilist. Cohen Media Group relives one of the world’s darkest hours with Churchill, Acorn goes searching for Loch Ness: Season 1, and Warner Bros. shuffles along with iZombie: Season 3. Finally, HBO examines the downfall of Bernie Madoff with The Wizard of Lies.
This is the start of a new month, but I’m going to give you the same ol’ reminder: if you’re shopping for anything on Amazon and you do it through one of our links, it’ll help keep the lights on here at UpcomingDiscs. See ya next week!
Empire: The Complete Third Season
Posted in No Huddle by J C on October 2nd, 2017
“You love this type of drama.”
When Fox’s Empire premiered in early 2015, it became an instant sensation that re-wrote the ratings record books. The show’s mix of high drama and hip-hop obviously struck a chord with an underserved segment of TV viewers. Of course, that sort of otherworldly buzz and ratings success was never going to be sustainable. So while Empire has inevitably lost some of the sizzle from its unprecedented debut, this unapologetically over-the-top soap rap-era continues to entertain by leaning into its Twitter-shattering craziness.
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“31 Nights Of Terror” Contest – Win The Cabin In The Woods on Blu-ray
Posted in Contests by Gino Sassani on October 2nd, 2017
We kick off our 31 Nights Of Terror by sending you on a little trip out to a certain Cabin In The Woods. That’s right, we’ve got a copy of the cult classic The Cabin In The Woods on Blu-ray and it’s going out to one of the Upcomingdiscs faithful. We just reviewed the film on 4K and here’s a little something for those of you who aren’t quite at the UHD market.
To win a copy of this prize, follow these instructions.
- Fill out your name and email address in the comment form below – your email address will remain private and visible only to us.
- Do not post your address as an actual comment! Instead tell us – What horror film are you most looking forward to seeing this year?
- Only those comments that answer our question will be considered.
Contest is now closed Winner is Howard Bilecky
Winners are notified by E-mail. If you did not get a confirmation E-mail from us, check your Spam filter and contact us. Any prize not claimed in 2 weeks will be forfeit and be placed in the end of year contests next Holiday Season.
Upcomingdiscs NEVER sells or shares your information with anyone.
Grey’s Anatomy: The Complete Thirteenth Season
Posted in No Huddle by Gino Sassani on October 1st, 2017
“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. The saying’s as true of the human body as it is of a washing machine or a blender. A good surgeon knows that if you go screwing around with something that doesn’t need screwing, you are the one who is liable to end up screwed.”
One of those things on television that doesn’t appear “broke” is Grey’s Anatomy, heading into its 14th season on ABC. By now Shondra Rhimes must own a pretty big piece of ABC. OK, she doesn’t likely own any of Disney, ABC’s parent company, but if this were a game of Monopoly, Rhimes would be smiling all the way to the fake bank.
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American Made
Posted in The Reel World by Dan Holland on September 29th, 2017
“Backslidin’, how do you do? These slippery people gonna see you through.”
It has been a long while since I have witnessed a pop song’s lyrics fit so poetically into a feature film. “Slippery People” is a track off the groundbreaking Talking Heads album, Speaking in Tongues, released in 1983. Not only does this song fit the plot of American Made within its lyrics (hints of backsliding with a lot of slippery people), but it also represents a specific aesthetic for one of the many years shown throughout the film.
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Friday Night Lights – The Complete Series
Posted in No Huddle by Gino Sassani on September 29th, 2017
I taught at a Florida high school that took two state championships in seven years, and believe me, I know how seriously these schools take their football. I’m told Texas treats high school football as something sacred to be worshipped, and church meets every Friday night during the fall season. If that’s the case, I can’t imagine a series capturing the emotion that goes into one of these programs as well as Friday Night Lights has. Taken from the film of the same name, the series is even better. So many things about this freshman show impressed me throughout its season run. The cast of relative unknowns, except for Kyle Chandler and perhaps Connie Britton, morph into their characters so well you might never know that a good many of them are performing in their first show. This cast gives new meaning to the term ensemble cast.
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