The folks at A&E have this tremendous knack of taking the truly odd and seemingly mundane tasks and turning them into DVR-worthy TV. Storage Wars is the latest and quite possible best example as it is now the networks most popular show. The first season focuses on four individuals who make their living by bidding on storage units that have gone up to auction after the owners fell behind on…
Like a cross between an 80’s American sex romp comedy and Waking Ned Devine, Zonad sounds dreadful on paper. An alcoholic runaway from a rehab hospital, clad in a red leather jumpsuit with a goofy helmet on his head is found in the home of a simpleton family in a small Irish town and the stranger manages to convince everyone that he’s an alien. Oh, and the family has a…
There’s something about the state of Louisiana the draws reality shows like… well like New Jersey draws reality shows. While the Garden State has Jersey Shore, Cake Boss, Real Housewives of New Jersey and Jersilicious, Louisiana has Swamp People, Bad Girls Club, Steven Seagal Lawman, Trashmen, Real World New Orleans (yup, that one counts) and now Billy the Exterminator. Billy the Exterminator (the third season just out on DVD) profiles…
The sheer sights that are present on this release are stunning. While individuals watching Best of Travel: South Africa will undoubtedly drive by some sort of interesting panoramas on a daily basis, this program hits viewers with vista after vista. This set captures three episodes hosted by Rudy Maxa, focusing (in order) on the safari process, Cape Town (South Africa) and gardens and wineries. In my opinion, each program showcases…
Van Von Hunter is tremendously funny, having an insightful look at the differences that are present between United States and Japanese culture. Where movies like Spinal Tap covered hair metal superstars, Van Von Hunter is a mockumentary that showcases the rise and fall of the slayer of evil, Van Von Hunter (Yuri Lowenthal). Deposed formally by eir previous bosses, Van Von Hunter moves from the U.S.A. to the east. Previously…
Fanboy & Chum Chum is one of Nickelodeon’s newest shows, and it is pulling some tremendous numbers with each subsequent episode. “Brain Freeze” is a collection of seven episodes that will immediately bring viewers up to date with the show. The titular episode surrounds Fanboy and Chum Chum chugging a Frosty Freezy Freeze, which in turn leads to a mind-crippling brain freeze. As the day gradually spins out of control,…
Rio is one of those films that viewers of all ages can appreciate. This is due to the fact that the film showcases the trials and tribulations of an underdog, who meets a tremendously interesting cast of characters on the way. Blu (Jesse Eisenberg) is a macau that has never learned to fly, and is constantly egged on by a number of the local animals. Feeling that ey is missing…
Fans of 2005’s Hoodwinked will be pleased to know that this is a fairly straightforward sequel to the original Hoodwinked. In this film, a star-studded cast that includes Hayden Panettiere (Red), Patrick Warburton (Wolf), Bill Hader and Amy Poehler (Hansel and Gretel) and even Glenn Close (Granny) will have viewers on the edge of their seats throughout the film’s entire hour and a half runtime. The film is fleshed out…
Not since The Big Chill has a drama so deftly relied on music to serve as its own character in a movie. The emotional indie, The Music Never Stopped, is based on a true story by neurologist/researcher Oliver Sacks (the doctor who also inspired the book and eventual movie “Awakenings”) about a father (played flawlessly by J.K. Simmons) who uses music to connect with his son (Lou Taylor Pucci), hospitalized…
After a bumpy couple of seasons, the long-running HBO series finally gets back into its groove with the seventh and second to last season. This season finds actor Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier) between movies, hooking up with porn star Sasha Grey (essentially playing herself) and getting addicted to booze and Cocaine. His hangers on have each found their own lives, Eric (Kevin Connolly) managing other actors; Turtle (Jerry Ferrara) pitching…
Matthew McConaughey may have just found his ticket out of the romantic comedy ghetto. Lincoln Lawyer, based on the wildly popular Michael Connelly novels, centers around the somewhat sleazy defense attorney Mickey Haller who works out of his Lincoln Continental (get it?). Don’t worry, Haller (played deftly by McConaughey) is a loving dad, gets along great with his ex-wife and has just the right amount of charm to make you…
American TV audiences have a problem saying goodbye… well, let me clarify, American TV show producers have a problem saying goodbye as evidenced by how often they keep the shows on life support long after all of the story lines have been exhausted and the audience has moved on. Though NBC’s ER happens to be a big exception to that rule. By centering the show around a revolving cast of…
There has been a lot of buzz surrounding Hobo With A Shotgun over the course of the last year. This DVD (and Blu-Ray) release looks to be the comprehensive release regarding this DVD. Hobo With A Shotgun focuses on Rutger Hauer’s character as ey moves into a new city and looks to try to make a new start. However, the denizens of the city are sufficiently messed-up to ensure that…
Nightbeast is a 1982 film directed by Don Dohler (The Alien Factor, The Galaxy Invader), which had on its crew a young J.J. Abrams. Nightbeast focuses on the exploits of an alien that is using a deadly gun to waste the inhabitants of a small city. Along with the sheer body count, there are gore shots and other scenes of destruction that will keep viewers interested throughout. Troma has bundled…
There are a number of examples of films that use a non-acting celebrity that end up being some of the worst of all time (Kazaam, for example). However, Love’s Kitchen is a movie that looks to destroy this belief; the inclusion of Gordon Ramsay in the film seems to work well. This is likely because the title does not only revolve around Ramsay; Dougray Scott (Rob) and Claire Forlani (Kate)…
I had a Hungarian grandmother, so the topics that are covered during Hunky Blues are tremendously interesting to me. This documentary, directed by Péter Forgács, showcases the unique experience of Hungarian immigrants to the United States. To showcase the first-hand materials that ey has found, Forgács presents viewers with footage culled from the Library of Congress, different members of the New Jersey Hungarian community, and even from the museum on…
Peace is an interesting concept. Despite being a nation that prides itself on peace, the United States has gotten in to a tremendous amount of war. The idea of peace is something that is poorly defined; this is why the Perpetual Peace Project has gotten together to create this DVD. By trying to tease out what peace means, both in terms to individuals as well as in a philosophical sense,…
ER: The Complete 15th Season captured the final episodes of the venerable show, which all originally aired in 2008 and 2009. These twenty-two episodes tie together a number of the loose ends that had been presented viewers over the course of the show, while still having time to create cutting-edge medical drama. Where the 14th season had seemed to sputter due to the writer’s strike, the 15th season immediately hits…
Kino continues to impress with their Blu-Ray releases in 2011. The Romantic Englishwoman is a film that has been relegated to the dustbin of history, but represents an impressive title that should be sought out by anyone that is a fan of seventies cinema, Michael Caine, or of comedies of errors. The Romantic Englishwoman surrounds a couple; Lewis (Michael Caine) and Elizabeth (Glenda Jackson) are visited by a German named…
The 39 Steps is a fantastic bit of cinema from deep in the VCI vault; this 1959 film features Kenneth More and Taina Elg and is a recreation of the 1935 Hitchcock thriller, which itself was based on a spy novel by John Buchan. The film starts out with Richard Hannay (More) attempting to save a woman nearly killed by a driver. After realizing that things are not exactly as…