Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 31st, 2007
Left alone when his family leaves town to visit relatives, professor Edward G. Robinson hangs out at his club with his two cronies, one of whom is DA Raymond Massey. He is fascinated by a striking portrait of a young woman, and one night, leaving the club late and alone, he runs into the portrait’s model (Joan Bennett). Though he knows better, he accompanies her back to her apartment. A jealous lover bursts in and attacks Robinson, who murders him in self-defense. Panicked by the situation, Bennett and Robinson cover up the event, but both the authorities and a blackmailer circle closer and closer.
Robinson is magnificent as a basically decent man whose one lapse in judgment leads him to catastrophe. His eyes radiate a desperate desire to turn back the clock, and the audience squirms along with him. Bennett’s character is interesting as the unintentional femme fatale: she never has any desire to cause trouble for Robinson. Director Fritz Lang holds the audience in a lethal grasp, which never loosens in the slightest until the unfortunate cop-out ending.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 31st, 2007
In an old-groundbreaking television event likely orchestrated by classic TV aficionado George Clooney, Fail Safe was presented live on CBS in 2000. Seven years later, it hits DVD with little fanfare, but it should grab the attention of fans of any or all of the following: classic TV, live theatre, all-star casts and military dramas.
I haven’t seen the original film version based on the 1962 novel, Fail Safe, by Eugene Burdick and Harvey Wheeler, or read the book, so I approached this live teleplay with an open mind. What stuck out most for me was the sheer depth of talent at work in this production.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 31st, 2007
In the same cinematic style of Sin City another Frank Miller graphic novel has found its way to the big screen. For those of you history buffs out there, you might recognize this story as the Battle of Thermopylae. Although 300 is large in part fictitious, the core elements of the historical story remain intact, and factual. Regardless of your knowledge of history, 300 is to be enjoyed by anyone, and everyone.
300 is told in a narrative from Spartan orator Dilios (David Wenham, The Lord of The Rings). It begins with a young Leonidas who is in the midst of his typical Spartan training. He is cast out into the wild and survive amongst the beasts throughout the winter, when he comes home he is crowned King of Sparta. Some time goes by and Leonidas (Gerard Butler, The Phantom of the Opera) now the fully grown Spartan King is faced with a problem. Persian King Xerxes sends messengers to Sparta demanding their submission to the Persian Empire. Insulted by the offer King Leonidas kicks the Persian messenger into a pit and the rest of his commandants follow shortly. Leonidas seeks the advice of the Oracle and requests permission to go to war, only to be denied. He then takes the matter into his own hands and gathers 300 of Sparta’s best warriors, to take on the dominating numbers of the Persians. The Persians demand that the Spartans drop their arms but the persistent group of warriors will not let up and they try to hold up knowing that they are facing sure death.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 31st, 2007
What time is it? That’s right, Home Improvement fans, it’s once again Tool Time. Unfortunately for the show’s followers, Season 7 would be its next to last outing, and even the most loyal fans seem to agree that the show had lost its edge by now. For me the decline started around the 6th year when the age of the boys created a need to shift stories away from Tim Allen’s routine and become a little bit more serious in tone. It’s not that situation comedies can’t find a great deal of success mining such a territory. MASH often ventured away from its comedic roots and occasionally brought us dead serious material, and it only improved the quality of an already good show. In the case of Home Improvement, the stories just became awkward as the writers tried to find ways to work in the boys’ increasing age and demands for screen time. True enough, Tim Allen never lost the persona that defined Tool Time, but there’s little question that it was not fitting in well with the deepening family issues the series began to explore. Suddenly Tim’s character was an inappropriate father and husband underneath the clever buffoonery. I will always remember Home Improvement for what it started out as, and these DVD’s just don’t represent that show any longer.
-
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 31st, 2007
There are 8 simple rules for having a successful sit-com on television today.
1. Strong leading actor: John Ritter never really had much of a chance in his early career to show just how good his acting chops could be. Let’s face it. While Three’s Company had quite a loyal following, it was never mistaken for anything more than a parody. Ritter was never asked to stretch himself here, and the role likely cost him better opportunities over the years. Fortunately, while 8 Simple Rules wasn’t a great show either, it did offer quality enough work to allow Ritter to thrive. Unfortunately he would not live long enough to reap the rewards he was earning for himself.
2. Solid supporting cast: Who knew Katey Segal wasn’t a one trick pony riding on the coattails of Peg Bundy? Who also knew you could find teenage girls who could act and satisfy the “other†attributes often necessary from female actors on television these days. The casting on this show is well above average.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 31st, 2007
Throw reason out with the trash, and sit down to a feel-good movie that tries just a little too hard to be quirky. That’s your best approach to The Astronaut Farmer, which pits Billy Bob Thornton against all odds to reach outer space by way of his farm-built rocket.
Everyone likes an inspirational story now and then, so I’m sure this film will find an appreciative audience. For me, there are better choices – say, October Sky, for example. Here, instead of a boy who loves rockets, we have Charlie Farmer (Billy Bob, Sling Blade), a former astronaut who never made it to space. Now he’s trying to get there by himself, having built a rocket from spare parts, a project which has brought him this close to foreclosure on his house, his farm and his family. Though they’re supportive, even Farmer’s wife and kids have to reach beyond the stars to find the guts and lack of reason to commit to helping their father reach his goal – or bust.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 30th, 2007
Director David Fincher (Se7en) has returned to serial killer territory in a very different way. Zodiac is an effective period piece that enwraps the viewer in a real-life mystery that remains unsolved because it happened before the age of computers and minute C.S.I. technology.
In 1969, a serial killer who eventually became known as the Zodiac struck for what is believed to be the first time. While the Zodiac continued to kill and take credit for murders for more than two decades, the killer eluded police, reporters and hobbyist investigators who tried to nail him down.
Posted in: Highly Defined, Regular Columns by Archive Authors on July 30th, 2007
Want to know the perks of working where I do? I get discounts to places. So I walk into Best Buy, and order a Pioneer Elite 92 for the insane price of cost plus 5%. That works out to a little under $700 for a $1300 receiver. It’s good to be the king baby. Once I get it locked and loaded, I’ll let you know what I think of it.Â
Hardware wise there’s been a few surprises, the pleasant one appears to be the details on Samsung’s dual format player. The BD-P2400 includes BD-J, HDi, DTS-HD and other little goodies to warm the heart, and at a SRP of just over a grand, might actually help rein more folks into the high defi, er, next generation video format. In lesser but still notable news, the PS3 got a firmware upgrade that included 1080p/24Hz, so now we can all see the films just like in the theater, or something. Oh, and the 360 HD DVD add-on got its price cut as well, down to $179. So, you know, yays all round.Â
Posted in: News and Opinions by Archive Authors on July 30th, 2007
Yeah. Of all the portents of HD DVD's coming demise, this one - citing the Japanese porn industry's technology decision - is the least savory, though SFW on PC World. Thanks for the creepy cover art, Crunchgear.
Sony Corp. has started offering more technical support to the adult film industry in Japan, movie makers said at the Adult Treasure Expo 2007 in Chiba, Japan, and the problem of finding companies to mass produce their movies appears to be over.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on July 30th, 2007
I have to admit that I have never heard of this film prior to receiving it for review, so I went into this one completely blind without any expectations. My only guess was that this would be some sort of fantasy/horror film, and it turns out I was right. Perfect Creature is a different sort of take on a vampire film which makes it rather unique, but how’s it going to end up?
Set in a fictitious New Zealand referred to as Nuovo Zelandia, Perfect Creature takes place in an alternate world not unlike our own. There is, of course, one major difference, which is the acceptance of vampires as the next level of evolution in human beings, referred to as The Brotherhood. Members of The Brotherhood and humans have a pact in which they live amongst each other in harmony, humans donating blood at the churches to quench the thirst of the vampires. That is, at least, until the renegade vampire Edgar begins attacking and killing human beings. Lilly, the local hard-knock cop, who has lost her entire family to a sweeping influenza epidemic, teams up with Edgar’s brother Silus who wants to protect the rights of The Brotherhood and stop Edgar’s madness. Eventually, the two succeed and even share a few almost romantic moments, but before long Edgar escapes the confines of The Brotherhood once again, and he carries with him a dark secret powerful enough to change the society forever.
On The Web
Sponsors
