Blow Out is a 1981 film that stars John Travolta as an unwitting witness to an assassination; set in Philadelphia, this film is full of intrigue and will have listeners on the edges of their seats throughout. The use of color and darkness in Blow Out is perhaps the strongest side of the title, and is something that simply looks fantastic in this Criterion release. This is because the company…
In this time of rapidly-increasing gas prices, it is important to view a film like Gashole and see exactly why they are what they are. This is not a documentary that merely focuses on the present, but looks into the history of the United States and its fascination with oil and gasoline. To properly flesh out this story, the creators of Gashole place this question in the larger context of…
Funimation has done a tremendous amount of working trying to get all of the One Piece episodes captured onto DVD in the last few years. This April, 2011 release sees episodes 196-205 captured, with the “marathon play” option perhaps being the most interesting inclusion of them all. This “marathon play” feature allows viewers that may have a few hours to watch the show the ability to cut straight to the…
I find that there are two distinct types of fans of Fox’s Glee. There is a decided side of the fans that like the show for the narrative quality it contains, and there are those people that are much larger fans of the musical numbers that the cast does. Glee: Encore is a DVD (and Blu-Ray) release that captures just these musical numbers, excising any of the plot or other…
There is little information present online about the HD Cinema Classics label. In fact, after giving Dementia 13 a spin, the only thing that I know about the company is that they are looking to become a major force in giving forgotten-about films the light of day. Dementia 13 is one of the examples of this; Francis Ford Coppola’s first film is cleaned up and given its proper chance to…
The Way Back is a film that covers ground that has been trod fairly often; World War II. Furthermore, this is a title that focuses on the escape of prisoners from a Soviet prison camp. Saying that, what Jim Sturgess (Across the Universe, Legend of the Guardians), Colin Ferrell, and Ed Harris do in The Way Back is create a realistic and extremely fun title.
This is the definitive collection for anyone that is into the storyline or special experience that TRON brings them. Where many releases only require a single Blu-Ray (possibly 2 if there are a number of additional features), Disney has ensured that they provide viewers with a tremendous amount of information. This 5 disc Blu-Ray set has the best special feature ever – a remastered version of the original 1982 TRON.…
Few films that are created for the 3D market really seem to shine in regards to storyline. However, The Asylum Session does not require parlor tricks or other googahs to keep viewers interested. This hour-long title surrounds the actions taken by a number of homeless youths that take residence in a stadium. Creating community and a sense of family amongst the members of The Asylum, plans to tear down the…
This is the last version of Fiddler on the Roof that you need to buy. This is because Fox has provided every single thing fans of this 1971 film adaptation of the Broadway musical could want. First off, the transfer from the original source over to the Blu-Ray format has been done masterfully, blending a slightly dark print with a stunningly sharp (for the age) focus. The audio is the…
Viewers have to understand that Sharktopus is not a movie that takes itself seriously. When viewers do that, they can begin to know what makes it such a fun flick. This new Roger Corman-produced film begins with a shark / octopus hybrid breaking free from the Navy and beginning to wreak havoc on a surfer’s haven in Mexico. In the desire to restore order, a number of Navy troops are…
The absolutely beautiful transfer of The Mikado is well worth the purchase price of the movie, even without the number of additional features that Criterion has bundled alongside it. The Mikado is the 1939 D’Oyly Carte Opera version of the Gilbert and Sullivan opera, which linked together masterful performers like John Reed, Phillip Potter, Valerie Masterson, and Christene Palmer. Schertzinger’s direction of The Mikado links together softly-spoken (or sung) musical…
Ya Entertainment does a tremendous service to anyone that fancies themselves a fan of Korean television. What previously was only available in shady food stops and in pixilated versions on online video services like Dailymotion and Youtube has been placed on DVD sets with value prices. For example, the 8-DVD collection of Prosecutor Princess can be purchased online foor well under $75, and provides viewers with 15 hours of drama.
Wagnaria’s titular location is a Hokkaido restaurant, and its different quirks and nuances are explored fully in the show’s 13 episode run. While humerous at a number of points, Wagnaria!!’s intricate storylines are what will keep viewers coming back for more. Why exactly does Inami punch all the males that come around the restaurant? What desires does Sota have towards Inami, and what about the checkered past of Yachiyo, the…
While You Can (Not) Advance is a middle film in the Rebuild of Evangelion tetralogy, the story is pretty well contained here. While it would be much easier for viewers just to catch up with the previous film, You Can (Not) Advance fills in fans and gets things started all within the first ten minutes of the film. Mari Illustrious Makinami, the new Evangelion pilot, immediately dispatches the Third Angel…
Though technically not a documentary, No One Knows About Persian Cats might as well be. Using a cast of real Iranian underground musicians and filmed on the sly across the country, the director and actors clearly draw from their own experiences on how to get fake permits and passports to tour out of the country and how to hold shows/parties and rehearsals without getting arrested. The film, which won the…
Teen Wolf is one of those modern day classics that I continually find myself coming back to watch whenever I find it on a channel. It is also one of the few traditional horror type (mummy, wolfman, vampire) of films that I can actually watch through. However, I may not have to do that anymore with the release of Teen Wolf on Blu-Ray this month. This Blu-Ray release is value…
There are a few professional wrestlers that do well in films. Hulk Hogan and Rowdy Roddy Piper are two of the earlier generations of wrestlers-turned-actors, and Stone Cold Steve Austin, Triple H, The Big Show, and Ted DiBiase Jr. are some of the current generation lacing up their acting boots. Knockout is a title that comes out at the end of April on Phase 4 Films, and may be the…
A romance placed alongside a murder mystery is an interesting concept; I would have to say that I cannot fathom a film that claims to service both genres in the way that All Good Things does. The film itself is directed by Andrew Jarecki (Catfish, Capturing the Friedmans), and employs a number of heavy-hitting actors (Ryan Gosling, Kirstin Dunst) to tell the story of murder and love present in a…
Despite the sexually-charged atmosphere that is present during a great deal of the film, Consinsual discusses some pretty heady philosophy in its hour and a half runtime. The film starts with Terrance Moore (Siaka Massaquoi, Hero Man), a chef that wishes the best for eir wife (Keena Ferguson, The Last Laugh), attempting to please eir other half in any way possible. Unsure where the hard and soft limits in their…
For a great many, marriage is one of the most difficult things to succeed in. Whether it is making sure things stay interesting or that you provide the right amount of love to your better half, marriage is hard to perfect. Every Day is a film about these problems, and contains some interesting and unique characters. Ned (Live Schreiber) has a job writing for a television drama, all while hating…