As a film reviewer, it is almost embarrassing to admit that I have viewed none of the films created by directors in the French New Wave.  In my defense, I can offer that this “new wave” took place before I was born, and that by the time I was able to cultivate a taste for movies, many of the “new wave’s” inventiveness had already been co-opted by others.

This led me to two important questions I hope to answer in my review.  Firstly, if subsequent movies have taken advantage of a once-new filmmaking technique, does this make the originating movies any less relevant?  And secondly, can entertainment value survive in what is considered “experimental” cinema?  Although films can have artistic merits on their own, they must still be accessible to the common movie viewer.  Read the full story

The pairing of Jack Lemon and Walther Matthau was a staple of 70’s and after the two had basically been declared retired from acting; they headlined Grumpy Old Men together. Surprisingly it became a financial success and was received fairly well among critics. The film gave new life to their careers and the pair went on to make a series of films together, including a sequel to ‘Grumpy’; Grumpier Old Men. How do the two films hold up on Blu-ray and is this double-feature release a worthy representation of the milestone in these actors’ classic filmography?

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Horror films have been a big part of movie making since its earliest days, nothing is more exciting than going into a movie and letting your imagination run away with implausible horrors that still make you wonder… what if? In the early 1900’s it was Dracula, Nosferatu, Frankenstein, The Phantom of the Opera, etc. The thought of such villains lurking around in our world could really get our hearts racing. Then mid century the thrills started to change. Terrestrial horrors, demonic plague, and of course end of times. Legends like Vincent Price and Alfred Hitchcock made their way into our imaginations, finding new ways to leave us startled. Read the full story

Jackie Chan had gained notoriety through the 70’s impressing the masses with his unique style of martial arts and ability to choreograph a scene incorporating comedy, kung fu, and all sorts of props. However, none of his early films could prepare him for the mainstream success he had received from 1978’s Drunken Master. The film is still highly regarded and was the catalyst that has made Jackie Chan Asia’s biggest action star, and made him the most recognizable face in China. Throughout the 80’s Jackie Chan became more well known for his action comedies and his death defying stunts which he would always perform himself. Read the full story

As you may know, I had the pleasure of being able to review the Blu-ray releases of the first and second seasons of Dexter, one of the most original and intriguing shows in the history of television. Not being a Showtime subscriber, I was not able to catch the third season and I was anxiously waiting to receive the season 3 Blu-ray to see just what type of mayhem Dexter would get involved with next. Well, season 3 has arrived on Blu-ray and here is the review. Read the full story

For me, Sling Blade was one of those films that fell through the cracks. I never was able to see it in the theater and for some unknown reason, I never got around to renting it on DVD. One of the benefits of being able to do these Blu-ray reviews is that I am able to catch up on films that are truly worthwhile and original films and well worth a look. One of the films that fits that description perfectly is Sling Blade. Read the full story

I will admit up front that I am not an Adam Sandler fan. I find his films to be juvenile at best and insulting at worse. I guess he is what I will call an acquired taste and one that isn’t for me. However, in The Waterboy, Adam Sandler hits his all time low point, at least me me (right alongside the inane inane Zohan film). However, The Waterboy has made its debut on Blu-ray so I placed it in the Blu-ray player for a spin. In hindsight, I wish I hadn’t. Read the full story

“Two Yoots. What is a Yoot?” Asks the Judge. “I am sorry Your Honor, youths, 2 youths.” replies Vinny. That is just but one of the many funny scenes in My Cousin Vinny, a 1991 comedy making its high def debut on Blu-ray. My Cousin Vinny is one funny movie, which is just as funny today as it was when it was released in 1991. Some comedies don’t hold up all that well over time, especially those with more period sensitive humor. Not so with My Cousin Vinny which remain fresh 18 years later. How does it look on Blu-ray? Unfortunately, not as good as I had hoped. Read the full story

Movie stars without a doubt lead very glamorous lives. The money, the fame and lavish living are all very attractive. Of course, there is a downside. The paparazzi, the lack of privacy and the like. There is also another factor that often goes unnoticed and that is the lengths to which some actors go to get into their character and make them as authentic as they can. This brings me around to the work of Robert DeNiro in Raging Bull where he becomes Jake LaMotta, the former middleweight boxing champion in the 1940’s and 1950’s. Read the full story

There are only so many hours in a day. That along with the fact that I do not subscribe to Showtime are two of the reasons I did not catch the first season of Dexter during its initial run. In addition, the subject matter of the series didn’t sound very appealing so I even missed its debut on CBS.  However, I just returned from a trip to Paris where adverts for Dexter appeared in every Paris Metro or RER station. In fact, there were so many adverts for Dexter that I half expected to see a poster for Dexter hanging in the Louvre. Therefore, I thought why not give this release a spin when I got back. I am glad I did. Read the full story

Pierce Brosnan only got to play James Bond for four films, which is unfortunate when you watch a film like Die Another Day. He’s always had a great presence in the part, but watching this movie gives you tremendous appreciation of what he brought to the character and to the franchise. In such a short time he made the part his own in a way that only Sean Connery had done before. Read the full story

The title of Roger Moore’s 5^th Bond film actually comes from a short story written by Fleming and not a novel as most of the earlier films did. To make up for the limited source material another Fleming short, Risico, was added to the mix and the screenplay would draw from both works. I’ve already said that Moore is my least favorite Bond, but I have to admit that I like For Your Eyes Only quite a bit. Coming on the heels of one of the absolute worst Bond films ever, Moonraker, it was a welcome return to a simpler adventure that relied more on the characters than gadgets and out of this world locations. Read the full story

Thunderball was actually the first James Bond story that began life, not as a Fleming novel, but a film screenplay. Long before Harry Saltzman acquired the film rights to the novels, Fleming himself considered bringing Bond to film. He worked with screenwriter Kevin McCoy to write an original James Bond film. Fleming eventually grew discouraged trying to make the film, and the story elements were used to create a new Bond novel instead. When the book was released, Kevin McCoy realized that he had created many of these story elements and sued for his share of the credit and money. This would make the Thunderball story a unique one in the James Bond collection. Read the full story

Live And Let Die wasn’t Roger Moore’s first brush with James Bond. It wasn’t even his second. When Saltzman and Broccoli first began assembling their team, Roger Moore was their second choice, after Cary Grant, to play the Fleming spy. Moore was doing television at the time and so was unavailable. He did, however, play the spy in a television skit spoofing the character, which is included in the special features of this release. When Sean Connery left the franchise for a second time, presumably for good, the search was on again to fill the role. Read the full story

Not too long after we thought we had seen the last of Indiana Jones following his Last Crusade, George Lucas had an idea. Like The Grinch, it was an wonderful, awful idea. Hard at work in his lair deep inside the Evil Empire, Lucas pounded away at the script that could please only himself. The result was something called Indiana Jones And The Saucermen From Mars. Exuberant over his own misguided genius, he showed it to his fellow Indy masterminds. Predictably to anyone not named Lucas, neither Ford nor Speilberg thought very much of the idea. Read the full story

Out For Justice is a classic Steven Seagal action flick set in the mean streets of Brooklyn. Seagal plays a cop named Gino who has seen the ups and downs of the neighborhood, but has done his best to keep it safe and running as smooth as possible. His childhood adversary, turned criminal scum (William Forsythe), has turned the streets into a war zone leaving a huge trail of dead bodies in his wake. Seagal decides to ?take care of him? personally rather than bringing him to justice. Read the full story

Where do you start with a film like The Untouchables? I suppose you start at the beginning. This has to be the best script David Mamet has ever written. The highly stylized vision of 1930 Chicago utilizes as much of the myth as it does the fact. After all, we want our mobster dramas larger than life. For rights issues the film claims to be based on the 1959 Robert Stack television series; however, all of the participants admit the result is completely unique and original. Read the full story