Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on December 17th, 2021
"If you expect disappointment, you will never be disappointed."
That's the trouble with sequels. The filmmakers feel this great responsibility to give us more than they've given us before with no thought to the idea that more is often less. There has never been a truly great comic book hero film that had extra villains. It just doesn't work. You can't give enough time and back story to everybody, so you have to cheat somewhere and cut a few corners. Those corners are things like characterization and heart. But what if you could? I mean, seriously. What if it were possible to do a multi-villain comic book movie that was really good? Until just now, I would have thought it was impossible. But isn't that what the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has been doing for over 20 years now? Isn't that what comic books have been delivering since the 1930's when an alien baby stole the hearts of millions? Aren't they in the business of doing the impossible? Spider-Man: No Way Home has done the impossible. There are five ... count them ... five villains, and this is the best Spider-Man film of them all. The pandemic might not be over, but the box-office drought will be. Spider-Man is set to break all post-COVID records, and there's just one reason why. This movie reminds us why we used to go there in the first place. A movie that feeds the 10-year old Spider-Man comics fan inside of me and the adult looking for some real entertainment from my center seat in an IMAX theater. Run. Don't walk. Run. Take your precautions, of course. But run. Run to the box office, and remember:
Posted in: The Reel World by Gino Sassani on December 17th, 2021
"Step right up and behold one of the unexplained mysteries of the universe! Is he a man or beast? This creature has been examined by the foremost scientists and pronounced, unequivocally, a man. I am prepared to offer you folks one last chance to witness this supreme oddity. Where did it come from? Begotten by the same and threat that got us all walking on this earth, but gone wrong somehow in maternal womb. Not fit for living. Is it a beast, or is it a man?"
Guillermo del Toro knows how to deliver atmosphere. His love for the horror films of the 1930's shows in his use of shadows and lighting to build a world that's always uniquely belonging to each of his films. He makes these worlds a thing unto themselves while leaving all the familiar markers that keep his worlds from appearing too alien. You want to take a ride in his worlds even if they are dark and foreboding. Mix in more than a little film noir with dark, saturated colors, and you pretty much already know what to expect from Nightmare Alley. The film is based both on the 1946 novel by William Lindsay Gresham and the 1947 film by Edmund Goulding and staring Tyrone Powell and Joan Blondell. The film leans heavier on the novel for source material and less on the original film. That's because only del Toro is willing to go quite this dark, and it's a good thing for us he is.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 17th, 2021
"In February 2021 Eric Clapton's live shows at The Royal Albert Hall are cancelled due to the global pandemic. Determined to play, he brings his band together in the English countryside. In the absence of a live audience, he decides to record the performances. This film is the culmination of their sessions together."
You've heard the old expression that when life gives you lemons, you make lemonade. That's what Eric Clapton did when he was unable to give a few concerts he was ready to do. If you're a performer, you know what it's like to get all ready to go. There's just no letting off that energy any other way than to do what you came here to do. Clapton brought the fellas to historic Cowdray House in West Sussex, England. They took over a room in the mansion and set up the gear. That's how this release begins. We watch the mostly masked technicians, do we still call them roadies? They set up for the audience-less show.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on December 17th, 2021
While I enjoyed the first couple seasons of Rick and Morty, I wasn’t all that sure about the show’s staying power with Adult Swim. I’d talk about the show with some friends, but for the most part this seems to be a show that finds its fan base more in their late teens. It’s fair to say it’s been more than a few years since I was a teenager, so perhaps it shouldn’t be much of a surprise that I was a little hesitant with this season (feel free to check out my review of Season 1). When Season 3 came out, the show blew up in a big way, gaining numerous fans, and even managed to make “Pickle Rick” a part of everyday pop culture and make Szechuan sauce at McDonalds a thing. The show, for those who may be unfamiliar, is something of a blend between Back to the Future and more than a sprinkle of Futurama. If that sounds like a fun ride, well, then this may be the animated series for you.
I was a little disappointed with Season 4, and I was a little hesitant in delving into Season 5, but I decided that I’d give this season a shot, and if it failed to impress, I’d just pass the next season on to another writer. Well, I’m glad I gave it a shot, because Season 5 was about as good as the show has ever been, and there are a few episodes that definitely are not only rewatchable, but ones I can see myself returning to again and again for the quick laughs and the fun story. What is also a little surprising is that this season seems to have a little more emotion, and by the end of the season, I was surprised by how much the show evolved with the characters and gave us some growth in their relationships. Basically, it became more than just a cartoon to entertain stoners, and I mean that in the best way.
Posted in: Holiday Gift Guides by Gino Sassani on December 17th, 2021
I think I see your problem. You have this list. It’s a list of people you need/want to buy a Christmas gift for. The trouble is that they’re into home theatre, and you don’t know Star Trek from Star Wars. You couldn’t tell a Wolf Man from a Wolverine. And you always thought that Paranormal Activity was something too kinky to talk about. Fortunately, Upcomingdiscs has come to the rescue every Christmas with our Gift Guide Spotlights. Keep checking back to see more recommendations for your holiday shopping. These gift guides ARE NOT paid advertisements. We take no money to publish them. With conditions as they are, shopping won't be easy this season. The nice thing about discs is that they're so easy to get from places like Amazon that you can give a great gift and stay perfectly safe while you do it. Now we present a couple of goodies from CBS Home Entertainment.
"Some say that in life, there are no second chances. Experience tells me that this is true. But we can only look forward. We have to be torchbearers, casting the light so we may see our path to lasting peace. We will continue exploring, discovering new worlds, new civilizations. Yes - that is the United Federation of Planets. Yes, that is Starfleet. Yes, that is who we are. And who we will always be."
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 17th, 2021
Besides the fact that it stars Leonardo DiCaprio and that it’s essentially a white collar gloss on Goodfellas, you’d be forgiven for thinking somebody other than Martin Scorsese directed The Wolf of Wall Street. I don’t mean to suggest Scorsese has lost his masterful touch or his passion for filmmaking, both of which were on display as recently as two years ago in the wonderful Hugo. It’s more that after spending the better part of the 21st century making strong, serious dramas, I didn’t necessarily expect Scorsese to make his funniest, loosest and most audacious picture in decades.
“I want you to deal with your problems by becoming rich.”
Posted in: Uncategorized by Gino Sassani on December 16th, 2021
I think I see your problem. You have this list. It’s a list of people you need/want to buy a Christmas gift for. The trouble is that they’re into home theatre, and you don’t know Star Trek from Star Wars. You couldn’t tell a Wolf Man from a Wolverine. And you always thought that Paranormal Activity was something too kinky to talk about. Fortunately, Upcomingdiscs has come to the rescue every Christmas with our Gift Guide Spotlights. Keep checking back to see more recommendations for your holiday shopping. These gift guides ARE NOT paid advertisements. We take no money to publish them. With conditions as they are, shopping won't be easy this season. The nice thing about discs is that they're so easy to get from places like Amazon that you can give a great gift and stay perfectly safe while you do it. Warner Brothers release of The Mad Max Anthology:
"Born with a steering wheel in his hand and lead in his foot, he is the Nightrider, cruising at the speed of fright! This is the Nightrider, and we ain't never coming back. I'm a fuel-injected suicide machine..."
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on December 16th, 2021
I was disappointed when it was announced that James Wan wouldn’t be returning to helm the third Conjuring film, but when the reasoning was that he had a new original concept to direct, well, it still made me pretty happy. When it comes to the technical side of filmmaking, I feel James Wan is one of the most exciting directors currently working in the industry. What the guy pulls off is impressive mostly because he relies more heavily on in-camera trickery than depending on CGI. Sure, he did Aquaman and is about to do the sequel, but those films aside, he’s pretty much a master of the practical craft who I’d put up there with Hitchcock. So when I saw the trailers for Malignant, I’ll admit I was a bit excited, especially when Wan had said that this was a nod to the Giallo films of the past. But did he deliver?
The first thing I have to say is this film is not a Giallo film, but what it does have in common with the stylized Italian slasher genre is that Malignant IS highly stylized, but it’s more of a hybrid of several other genres. In many ways this might be James Wan’s best work behind the camera and shows just far he has grown since he made his splash in the industry with Saw. But from a storytelling standpoint, I can understand why it is a film that divides fans.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 16th, 2021
"That was a long time ago, wasn't it?"
Everyone has one. There is that shirt in your closet. Or maybe it's a pair of pants, socks, or even shoes. Whatever it is, it should have been thrown out decades ago. There could be holes, and it's certainly so threadbare that you could do the New York Times crossword through the fabric. It's not practical, if it ever even was. If it were any other piece of clothing, you'd be embarrassed to be wearing it. But the dang thing is so comfortable. It's soft against your skin, or maybe it brings back one of your favorite memories. Whatever the reason, you love that thing, and you wish you could wear it all the time. That's exactly how some of us feel about Clint Eastwood. I was a teen in high school when he asked us if we felt lucky and begged us to make his day. A lot of years and a lot of movies have come and gone since then. Clint doesn't have the abilities to run around shooting up the joint anymore. His delivery has gotten softer over the years. Face it. Clint has lost more than a few steps. At 91 years of age, it's somewhat amazing that he's still directing with the quality he is, and every time he also steps in front of the camera, I'm in the audience saying my goodbyes. But I've been saying goodbye since before Gran Torino in 2008. Now it's 2021, and after Hollywood has experienced its most grueling two years in the last century, it is becoming clear to me that Clint Eastwood isn't going anywhere. And that makes my day.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on December 16th, 2021
A whodunnit with teeth … that is a most apt description, and for me, that made the film all the more entertaining. I mean, who doesn’t love a good whodunit? And when that whodunit comes with a supernatural twist … even better. In the case of Werewolves Within, that supernatural twist in kind of on the nose. One of the characters actually gives a great explanation regarding the existence of werewolves being more likely than a particular type of person. I wish I could use the exact phrasing, but I fear that would ruin the whodunit element of the film for you. Sam Richardson leads the cast in this quirky yet intriguing comedy horror. Richardson is someone who has been showing up more and more on my radar in recent years. Each time he does, he feels a bit typecast in the role of a socially awkward individual; he was that way in The Tomorrow’s War as well as when he stared alongside Brittany Snow in Hooking Up. Despite this typecasting, Richardson has presence, somehow invoking the words of Mr. Rogers and applying them in modern day context. However, we are getting ahead of ourselves.
The story follows Richardson as Finn Wheeler, a forest ranger newly assigned to the town of Beaverton. The consummate nice guy, Wheeler almost immediately finds himself at odds with several townsfolk, who are embroiled in a debate regarding approving a gas pipeline to be implemented in town. This issue has divided the town, as its implementation requires a majority vote. On a positive note, Wheeler does manage to make a friend/possible love interest in the form of mail carrier Cecily Moore (Milana Vayntrub). Like Wheeler, she is a bit quirky, and the two do seem like a good fit. However, their potential romance is complicated by the fact that Wheeler is still hung up on his ex, who he didn’t realize was an ex until Cecily clued him in. And of course, a suspicious blackout and the discovery of a corpse also complicates their potential romance.
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