Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on August 2nd, 2007
This is, I gather, part of a series of documentaries under the wider umbrella of “America Undercover,†and is not the first of the taxicab ones. What we have here is a collection of vignettes as various people hail a cab and, captured by the cab’s security camera, engage in revealing conversations with the driver. Most of these discussions deal with relationships and sex (the guy and his transsexual girlfriend, the guy with the big woman fetish, the guy with a thing for “crazy chicks†and so on). Over the course of the hour, this becomes a little tiresome, and one hopes for a passenger with something else on his/her mind. This moment finally comes in the form of a passenger whose former boyfriend is a firefighter who barely escaped the collapse of the World Trade Center with his life, and her narrative, moving and disturbing, is the highlight of the episode.
Audio
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 2nd, 2007
As much of a Bruce Willis fan as I am, I have to admit that this movie has no initial appeal to me. Still I am a fan of thrillers and hope I can be surprised by this one as it has a good enough cast including the previously mentioned Bruce Willis, Halle Berry, and Giovanni Ribisi.
The movie opens with the death of Grace, best friend of Rowena Price (Halle Berry, X-Men). We don’t learn much about her so it’s hard to garner up any feelings towards Rowena’s plight in tracking down the killer. But nonetheless as the story plays on Rowena enlists the help of her good friend Miles (Giovanni Ribisi Gone In 60 Seconds) and narrows down the list of potential killers to Harrison Hill (Bruce Willis, Live Free or Die Hard). The rest of the movie consists of Rowena following a trail of evidence that in the end is irrelevant in a twist ending that is quite common of modern day film.
Posted in: News and Opinions by Archive Authors on August 1st, 2007
Via Boing Boing - the 50 Best Movie Robots Ever. #50 - Andrew Martin, the Bicentennial Man. #1 - Terminator Series 800/Model 101. Great list, each entry has a corresponding YouTube video. Beware - this is a workday afternoon killer.
Posted in: News and Opinions by Archive Authors on August 1st, 2007
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 1st, 2007
I can just feel already, what an epic teen comedy Surf School is going to be, much pun intended of course. But appearance isn’t everything and I hope that this film can somehow surprise, as much as I doubt it.
Laguna Beach High School is tough for everyone, especially the outcasts, the non surfers. But when a group of social misfits band together, they decide to beat the schools reigning champions in a surf competition. The group goes to Costa Rica to learn, meeting some interesting people along the way. I bet you can already guess how this one ends, and trust me there are no surprises.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on August 1st, 2007
Edward G. Robinson is the war crimes investigator on the relentless hunt for the fugitive Nazi who masterminded the Final Solution. He arranges for the one man who knows his face to escape imprisonment, and follows him to a small Connecticut town. There he loses his quarry, but evidence soon points to Orson Welles, who, under the identity of Charles Rankin, is now a college professor and new husband to Loretta Young. Welles stops at nothing, including murder, to protect his secret, but little by little Young is forced to realize who her husband really is.
Welles’ third film as a director is far more conventional than Citizen Kane or The Magnificent Ambersons, and it isn’t quite up to its predecessors. Robinson is terrific as a detective who must become almost as cold-blooded as his prey, but Welles’ performance is too big: his character might as well be wearing a “NOT A NAZI WAR CRIMINAL†name tag. That said, the suspense is powerful, and the cinematography pure, gorgeous noir.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 1st, 2007
Tyler Perry, best known for Madea's Family Reunion, is responsible for yet another film in Lionsgate's line of movies about nice black people. In Daddy's Little Girls, the writer-director explores the conflict between the ghetto-class African Americans we've seen so much of in films and the black middle- and upper-class we haven't. While this aspect of the conflict is relatively fresh in cinema, what the premise really boils down to is an age-old tale of love between princess and pauper.
When his mother-in-law passes away, Monty (Idris Elba, The Gospel) is forced to take care of his three daughters full-time. While he loves them and has been supporting them faithfully their whole lives, Monty is also struggling financially and the burden may prove too much. The mother of his kids, Jennifer (Tasha Smith, The Whole Ten Yards), has been absent for years, preferring to live it up with her drug-dealer boyfriend, Joe (Gary Sturgis, Pride).
Posted in: Dare to Play the Game, News and Opinions, Regular Columns by Michael Durr on August 1st, 2007
Missionaries Online, 360 Price Drop and Live Chess? - Welcome to the column that promises to abuse its readers for cash and prizes known as Dare to Play the Game.
Welcome to another edition of Dare to Play the Game. Life just keeps on rolling for me. I bowled last friday, did fairly well. I also won 4 tickets to a future astros game(8/21) as a door prize. But yet, I have nobody to take. I mean I asked "the girl" if she wants to go but she doesn't like baseball. She might end up going and that would take care of the two tickets I already had from a company event thing (8/10). But the four are something of a mystery and I'm honestly thinking that they might just go to waste. Sad, because actually those 4 are really good tickets. I'm a Phillies fan by choice so while I like baseball;watching the Astros play isn't really all that entertaining. Unless you like trainwrecks.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 1st, 2007
I am a big fan of Kung Fu on film, whether it be Bruce Lee’s Enter The Dragon or Jackie Chan’s Drunken Master I can't get enough. More specifically I love Asian Kung Fu cinema, the Sammo Hung's and the Sonny Chiba's. So I think it goes without saying that this isn’t the first time I’ve seen Kung Fu Hustle, and it certainty won’t be the last.
It’s the 1930’s in Shanghai and various gangs compete for territory, the most powerful being the deadly Axe Gang. The police are powerless and it seems the only people that can live without fears are the poor ones, who the gangs have no interest in. That is until things get shaken up by Sing (Stephen Chow, Shaolin Soccer) and his sidekick Bone (Lam Chi Chung, Shaolin Soccer). The two pose as Axe members in the tenement Pig Sty Alley, where they attract the attention of real gang members. Catastrophe is merely averted when three local tradesman the coolie, tailor, and baker showcase their kung fu talents and thwart an Axe gang attack.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 31st, 2007
Disturbia looks to potentially be a classic thriller; it has the elements of a classic Hitchcock film, and a noteworthy cast. Although I’m not and never will be a fan of Shia LaBeouf I will admit he has sold me with his performances several times before, but does he have the talent to carry this movie? Regardless there are some other semi-reputable names cast in Disturbia including Carrie-Anne Moss and David Morse, so here’s to hoping that this flick isn’t a waste of time.
In the opening moments of the movie Kale (Shia LeBeouf, Transformers) and his father are in an accident which results in the death of Kale’s father. Sometime goes by since the accident when Kale’s teacher makes a comment about his father, sparking Kale to crack him in the jaw. This results in a three month house arrest sentence for Kale, who in a fit of boredom starts spying on his neighbors with a set of binoculars. Mostly he spies on the girl next door Ashley (Sarah Roemer, The Grudge 2) but after befriending her, his attention turns to Robert Turner (David Morse, 16 Blocks). He drives a blue Mustang just as a suspected serial killer does, but this isn’t enough to sell anyone but Kale. But things become even more convincing when it appears that Turner kills a female visitor. Kale and his friends decide to take this matter into their own hands.
![Disturbia [HD DVD] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/disturbia-hd-dvd-large.jpg)
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