Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on February 23rd, 2022
If you ever wondered just why Marilyn Monroe is the icon that she is today, all you have to do is watch Some Like It Hot, and you’ll see how she captured the attention of audiences from 1959 and well beyond to this day. She was already a star by the time she made the Billy Wilder classic after being in films like Gentleman Prefer Blondes and The Seven Year Itch, but it’s her role as Sugar that really showcases all of her talent, though unfortunately it was the film where her troubles off screen were taking a toll on her physically and emotionally. This would also be the film that would launch Jack Lemmon’s career and be the first of many collaborations with the acclaimed writer and director Billy Wilder. Some Like It Hot isn’t simply a classic film, it is literally a piece of film history that made a profound impact on the motion picture industry, and the American Film Institute proclaimed it to be the greatest comedy of all time.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 23rd, 2022
"And I thought we were pals."
Bert I. Gordon and I shared a friend. He was one of Forry Ackerman's favorite people, and when I would see Forry, he never failed to mention Gordon. Bert I. Gordon was once the king of schlock. He was as much a marketing genius as he was a filmmaker. Like William Castle, he knew how to find something zany and odd which was just different enough to bring in the audiences. I saw most of his films of the 60's and 70's at drive-ins where most of his films were shown in those days along with many of the Hammer and AIP Poe films from Roger Corman. If you look at the B films in the science-fiction/horror genres from that time, you will find them dominated by Gordon, Corman, and Castle. Gordon often used stories in public domain so that he didn't have to pay a writer and he would adapt them with some clever "hip" idea and out would come a cheapie, but something that was always a hoot to watch.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on February 23rd, 2022
For me the promo art for Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins is without a doubt one of the most memorable VHS covers I can remember from my childhood. The hero dangling by one hand from the tip of the Statue of Liberty has always stuck with me. As a kid, when finally getting to see this over-the-top action sequence, it left an impression on me to the point that when I made my first trip out to Liberty Island as a kid, all I could do was stare in wonder at how they could have pulled off such a crazy scene. As I’ve gotten older, my impression of the film has changed, but this sequence is still up there when it comes to favorite action sequences of all time. Now Kino Lorber has put out a remastered copy of a film that has fallen through the cracks, though I know it does have a cult following. What are my thoughts on this action spectacle, and is it worth revisiting?
Posted in: The Reel World by Brent Lorentson on February 18th, 2022
The Naughty Dog series Uncharted has been a bit of an obsession in my home since I played the first game. I always viewed the series as the Indiana Jones video game fans always wanted but just never got. There’s a reason for the game’s popularity. Each game comes with a great story, fun action game play, and memorable set pieces. It’s no surprise that it would eventually become a blockbuster movie, but what has surprised me is how long it has taken to bring the character of Nathan Drake to the big screen. Sure, you can argue we’ve gotten a new Tomb Raider film, and some could argue Uncharted is simply an Indiana Jones knockoff. But then I’d have to ask those people, have they actually played the game? Even with another Indiana Jones film in post production, and as much as I love that franchise, that fourth film simply left a bad taste in my mouth, and I’m slightly concerned about what could happen with a fifth film not helmed by Spielberg. It’s these thoughts that have me gotten me so excited about the prospect of an Uncharted film, a passing of the torch for a new adventure franchise that’s filled with treasure hunting, exotic locations, and plenty of action. After a decade of development, does the film live up to my expectations, or does it disappoint like so many other video game adaptations that have been released over the years?
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on February 17th, 2022
Wondering what happen to Stephen Amell and Alexander Ludwig after wrapping up their separately widely popular television series? I mean, what is there to do after playing a superhero and a king? Apparently, the answer is to star in a series about a local independent wrestling league, as the two bring us Heels. Amell and Ludwig play brothers, Jack and Ace Spade, sons of a local legendary wrestler (played by David James Elliot), carrying on their family business, the Duffy Wrestling League (DWL), of playing out scripted wrestling matches in a small town in Georgia. Amell plays the heel, or villain, while Ludwig acts as the face, or hero of the promotion. Despite their bond, the brothers find themselves at odds over the direction of the wrestling promotion, as they vie for national attention. Outside their ring, their lives are just as messy, as their personal relationships also face scrutiny by their very public personas. Rounding out the cast are Alison Luff as Jack’s wife, Staci, Mary McCormack as Willie Day, Jack’s business partner, Allen Maldonado as Rooster, a star performer for the DWL, and Chris Bauer, a former member of the DWL who went on to find national success.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on February 16th, 2022
Kino Lorber has plundered the vaults of MGM and released one of the better known Charles Bronson films, Murphy’s Law. To me this is one of the Cannon classics where it was simply a fun tough guy film filled with everything that would make today’s woke audiences cringe. There is no way a film like this would get made now, and it’s a shame, because, well, this is pure escapism and is a good time from start to finish. I’m not saying that this film is perfect, but it captures the energy of what made Cannon films fun during the 80’s and early 90’s. Charles Bronson is playing Jack Murphy, a detective who has hit hard times with his wife wanting a divorce, though he’s not ready to give up on that relationship. Things are about to get much worse when Jack is framed for the murder of his ex-wife and her new boyfriend who runs an exotic dance club.
Posted in: The Reel World by Jeremy Butler on February 13th, 2022
“It’s simple. You’ll grow a mustache.”
Now here is a movie that the pandemic hit hard. Originally slated for December 2019 release, this Kenneth Branagh directed and starred sequel film is finally coming to theaters after a two-year-and-some-change delay. Branagh reprises his role as director, as well as his role as one of the most famous detectives both fictionally and in the reality, Hercule Poirot. Adapted from another Agatha Christie classic novel, this follow up to the Murder on the Orient Express takes us from the railroad tracks to the Egyptian Nile River, as Poirot once again finds himself in the middle of a murder investigation, where the suspects are aplenty. Just like in the previous film, Branagh is joined by a star-studded cast that includes Gal Gadot, Armie Hammer, Leticia Wright, Annette Benning, Rose Leslie, Russell Brand, and Sophie Okonedo.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on February 11th, 2022
The hunted vs. the hunters. Now here is a premise that has seen its fair share of movies. Ever since Jean Claude Van Dame’s rendition in Hard Target, filmmakers have been coming up with new and sometimes cliches version of the idea of a man being hunted for sport. Personally, I’d rather just get my fix of this idea by reading Richard Connell’s The Most Dangerous Game. It’s just hard to imagine that there is any unique way left to come at this idea. Apex tries, but it falls short of the desired effect. In the case of this film, they bring in action veteran Bruce Willis to serve as the prey. Given his pedigree, you’d expect him to deliver one-liners while dispatching folks in creative manners. He delivers on the one-liners, but as far as the creative kills, he actually isn’t the person doing the most of the damage. In fact, Willis barely rates above a bystander in this film. I suppose it was ambitious to expect Willis to be duking it out like he did back in his Die Hard days; I mean, the man is in his mid-sixties now. However, if he wasn’t going to be the agent of chaos, why even bother putting him in the movie at all?
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 11th, 2022
"This wasn't a game of cops and robbers. We were playing for keeps. It boiled down to a duel between me and an unknown fellow waiting up in the rocks or struggling on ahead of me. I never had the slightest doubt that he was there and that I would find him. But I didn't like it. It was all wrong somehow."
John Sturges has directed some of the biggest classics of his era. He became known as a huge action director and knew how to put to together large and powerful ensemble casts. Among his classic films you'd find The Magnificent Seven (1960) with Yule Brynner, Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson, Eli Wallach, and Robert Vaughn.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 8th, 2022
"There's a new superhero in town."
The original Starman was created by Gardner Fox and Jack Burnley back in 1941. Since that time there have been quite a few DC characters who have taken on the mantle of Starman. When DC executive and veteran comics writer/creator was asked to do a series on one of Starman's sidekicks, Pat Dugan and his eventual comic Stars And S.T.R.I.P.E., he was given a directive that he could not use the iconic S.T.R.I.P.E. armor, and that just would have made the series so much weaker. Instead he counter-pitched an idea from the same era of the comics. He pitched the idea of a new Stargirl who would be somewhat based and named after his daughter Courtney, who was tragically killed in a plane crash when she was just 18 years old.
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