Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 7th, 2021
"Welcome to the future. Life is good! But it can be better. And why shouldn't it be? All you need is to want it. Think about finally having everything you always wanted."
In 1917 Patty Jenkins teamed up with Israeli actress Gal Gadot to create one of the best comic book movies of all time. Wonder Woman had everything. It sported a really good lead actress surrounded by a really good supporting cast. It had a grand scope but still gave us characters at the core with wonderful chemistry and heart. We got plenty of action and huge set pieces without giving up anything in the trenches. It was easily the best superhero film of the decade and the best DC/Warner hero film since the 1978 Donner Superman movie. But the trouble here is that Jenkins already had an incredible formula going here but couldn't resist the temptation to want everything. There was a tremendously high level of expectations here, and as I've frequently opined: expectations kill. There are still a lot of the elements that made Wonder Woman so great here, but the film strays in ways that end up taking away from those great elements, and we end up with a very mediocre follow-up to a truly great film.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 2nd, 2021
"The theme of this picture is whether man ought to be ruled by God's law, or whether they are to be ruled by the whims of a dictator, like Rameses. Are men the property of the state, or are they free souls under God? This same battle continues throughout the world today. Our intention was not to create a story, but to be worthy of a divinely inspired story, created 3,000 years ago, the five books of Moses. The story takes three hours and 39 minutes to unfold. There will be an intermission. Thank you for your attention."
A sure sign that Easter is just around the corner is yet another home video release of perennial seasonal favorite The Ten Commandments. In years past, we got the multi-disc edition, complete with original silent version of the film. This particular version is rather more stripped down, as far as features go, but it does mark the film’s debut release on UHD Blu-ray and in 4K. Unlike previous editions, this one takes full advantage of the superior source material. The film was shot on 70 mm film, and that gives us an equivalent of 8K in today's resolution terms. And while this recent remaster doesn't take full advantage of that fact, it does amount to a 6K restoration that goes above and beyond the current specs of this release. No new extras are provided, and this version does not include the earlier silent film, but it's a must-have for completely technical reasons. You'll enjoy the improvement here, and you'll get to enjoy the film in a format that is the best resolution at which anyone has seen this film since the 1950's, and it was likely a very rare theater that actually projected the film at 70mm, if any actually did. It's the best this thing will ever look. Well ... at least until the eventual 8K release, and that's going to be ... never mind; don't want to break any of those commandments reviewing the film.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on March 31st, 2021
"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd, and I'm here tonight to bring y'all the news from across this great world of ours. Now, I know how life is in these parts, working a trade sunup to sundown. No time for reading newspapers. Am I correct?"
How about reading a review for Universal's News Of The World? If you spare a few minutes, I'll tell you a little something about the film, and you might just end up with a copy of the film on UHD Blu-ray in 4K on your home video shelves. I'm certainly glad there's a copy on mine. The film is based on the novel by Paulette Jiles with a screenplay by Luke Davies and director Paul Greengrass.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on March 29th, 2021
A year and a half ago, I had the opportunity to review a limited edition of Spirited Away, which was one of the pinnacles of Studio Ghibli animation, a film where the animation, story, and music were so well done that it warranted repeat viewings in appreciation. So, when I received today's movie for reviewing and it boasted the same production house as Spirited Away, well, then my curiosity is certainly awakened. But if I learned anything from other famous franchises, production is nothing without a good story and direction. Let's see how Earwig and the Witch turns out.
A red-haired woman (voiced by Sherina Munaf/Kacey Musgraves) is riding a motorcycle on a busy highway. All of a sudden, a car speeds up behind her. She proceeds to go faster; the other car keeps up as well. They are weaving in and out of traffic, and then suddenly the car behind her comes alive with a full set of teeth. The woman takes a couple of locks of red hair and transforms them magically into worms as she throws it at the car and is able to find her way out of the situation.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 26th, 2021
In the HBO limited series The Undoing, we get a scandal and murder that affects the high society of New York’s elite. I’ll admit at first glance this doesn’t seem all that original, but then when you see it stars Hugh Grant and Nicole Kidman, it was enough to give this a closer look. Then I notice the six-episode series is penned by David E. Kelley (The Practice, Ally McBeal, and Big Little Lies), and this really grabs my attention. Helming the project behind the lens is Susanne Bier, who directed the Netflix hit Birdbox (though I wasn’t impressed) but also the limited series The Night Manager (which was pretty great). With all these combined along with the backing of HBO, this seemed like it had more potential than I first thought, and for the most part this series didn’t disappoint, but is it worth sitting through six episodes to get answers in this whodunit?
Episode one of The Undoing introduces us to Jonathan Fraser (Hugh Grant) and Grace Fraser (Nicole Kidman) who seem to have it all: successful jobs, a happy marriage and family. Jonathan has a successful and noble career helping children who have cancer, and Grace is a successful therapist. The Frasers are a part of the elite, and their son Henry (Noah Jupe) is enrolled in one of the most prestigious private schools in New York. Everything goes sideways when a parent at the school is found murdered,, and the last people that may have had contact with the woman are the Frasers. It definitely has the feel of Law and Order, just with better writing and better dialog. The first episode does a good job with baiting the audience, but it’s the following episodes that definitely elevate the series.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 24th, 2021
“It’s not the end of the world.”
Just in time for the delayed release of Godzilla vs. Kong, we get a look back to the very beginning of this particular string of films. Of course it all really started back in 1954, but for our purposes this was the beginning of the current Warner Brothers/Legendary Pictures franchise featuring the true king of the monsters. Now Warner has released the film on UHD Blu-ray and in glorious 4K. So before you head to the cinemas or (God forbid) your phone screens for the latest battle, check in here to relive round one.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 19th, 2021
Promising Young Woman is a revenge film that takes what we’ve grown accustomed to seeing in the sub-genre and manages to give the audience something that is unique and fresh. It’s a film with a moral compass that is aiming to reflect an attitude towards “rape culture” where males have gotten away with inappropriate and vile behavior under the guise of being drunk and taking advantage of women who are in various stages of intoxication. It’s something that should disgust people because it continues to happen to this day, where privileged males seem to get a pass because they are young and come from prestigious schools. Despite the subject matter, the film doesn’t come off as a cautionary tale or a PSA; instead, it’s definitely an entertaining film that manages to prompt a discussion among its viewers. Now the film has several Oscar nominations; are they deserved?
When we meet Cassie (Carey Mulligan), she appears to be heavily intoxicated at a bar, and she’s gotten the attention of a few guys, one of whom decides to come to her aid in an attempt to be a “good guy”. He ends up taking her to his place where he attempts to get her more drunk before taking advantage of her, but to his surprise he discovers she’s not as drunk as she appears. This is where we discover that Cassie has made it a hobby of hers to go out to bars and lure men to take advantage of her, but she instead turns the tables on the guys. The film doesn’t go into detail of what exactly Cassie says or does to the men; it seems she just gives them an intense scare, but the possibility of violence is definitely implied. It’s this kind of ambiguity that I found a bit frustrating as the film goes on.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on March 19th, 2021
“I believe that every fascist should be swindled.”
The Last Vermeer truly was a worthwhile film experience for me, worthy of the silver screen. Granted, I doubt it would have been big at the box office domestically, but I don’t question that critics would have enjoyed just as I did. The film is based on the 2008 book The Man Who Made Vermeers by Jonathan Lopez, and tells the story of Dutch folk hero Han van Meegeren (played by Guy Pearce), an art forger who swindles millions of dollars from the Nazis. Following World War II, van Meegeren become widely known as one of the most ingenious art forgers of the 20th century, when it was revealed that he had sold a forged painting to Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands. These events were revealed after a sensational trial in which he was being charged as officials believed that he had sold Dutch cultural property to the Nazis, a capital offense. Facing potential death by firing squad, Van Meegeren confessed to the less serious charge of forgery. It is estimated that Van Meegeren swindled buyers out of the equivalent of more than US $30 million, including the government of the Netherlands. But that is enough with the history lesson; let’s talk about the film.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Brent Lorentson on March 15th, 2021
It’s been a while since Jackie Chan has put out a film I’ve gotten excited about. Vanguard seemed like it could be the movie that would change that, since it had Chan reteaming with Stanley Tong (Rumble in the Bronx and First Strike among many others), but alas, this isn’t the case. Despite his age I know the man still has some gas in the tank. He’s simply an amazing performer who needs the right script to come along with the right director behind the camera. Vanguard is an action thriller that definitely feels like a throwback to the late 80’s and early 90’s action films, but unfortunately there is too much bad CGI that gets in the way of the fun along with political undertones that just seem forced.
Vanguard is basically a covert security company and is led by Tang (Jackie Chan). When one of the company’s important clients is caught in an arms deal that goes sour, it’s up to Tang and his team to protect their client and his family. Tang, of course, doesn’t agree with his client’s practices, but he feels responsible to protect the family, and this results in a mini-globetrotting adventure that spans from London to Africa and India and more locals that will be tacking some major miles to their frequent flier program.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on March 14th, 2021
Road films are something of a passion when it comes to movies for me. It could be a movie on a ten-lane highway guaranteed to have multiple car crashes, a two-lane cross country expedition, or a one-lane dirt road going into darkness where the passengers might never return. Nothing gets me going more than films like The Hitcher, Road Games, Two-Lane Blacktop, or The Duel. It is the idea of not knowing exactly where the next turn is going to take you or what lies beyond the next hill. Characters, environments, situations all can change once you get to the next town or cross another state line. Today's road film is the 1997 thriller, Breakdown, with Kurt Russell and J.T. Walsh, where we explore what a man must do in order to find his missing wife. As one might guess, it is one of my favorites, as it delivers one nail-biting scene after another. Let's take a look.
A hot Utah desert, a long winding road, and a moving (possibly speeding) red Jeep. Jeff Taylor (played by Kurt Russell) and his wife, Amy (played by Kathleen Quinlan) are taking a trip from Boston to San Diego where Jeff has a new job waiting for him. The road seems monotonous as the driver reaches behind him to grab something. All of the sudden, an old dirty Ford F-150 truck pulls out in front of him and nearly causes an accident, but Jeff is able to swerve away from the accident just in time.
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