Into the Blu

I always wince a bit when I hear that a particular film, TV show or record is a “Cult favorite”. After all, a particular piece of “media” can’t be anywhere near a commercial hit or it wouldn’t have “cult” status. Therefore, for me, cult status and commercial bomb are often times synonymous. Often times there is a very good reason why a particular piece of media is a bomb, and that is because is wasn’t very good in the first place. That isn’t always the case, as certain films and albums are simply ahead of their times and had they been release later in different times, would have struck more of a chord with the mass audience. Continue Reading

When you look over the mass marketplace of entertainment, it is amazing to see the lack of totally original content that seems to be available these days. From films to TV to music, the mass market seems to regurgitate the same things over and over again, looking to cash in on what they think has been popular in the past or looking to create content on the cheap. You see it in TV with the upsurge in reality TV shows which seem to gather high ratings at low cost. You see it the non reality genre as well. I mean, have many versions of CSI or Law and Order Do you really need? Then there is the recycling of old TV shows that haven’t been on in decades. The same is true for popular music, where act after act does nothing but imitate another. After all, isn’t Lady Gaga nothing but a clone of Madonna? Continue Reading

There is little doubt that life’s greatest mystery doesn’t involve life at all but what happens when you die, as life’s curtain is drawn to a close. There are those who believe that when the lights go out, that is it. There are others who believe that that is not the end, that there is another side. The problem is that it is really just a matter of faith, as there is no definitive proof one way or the other, despite the claims of those who have had near death experiences. While those with near death experiences may have compelling stories to tell, there are scientists who will tell you that those experiences, i.e. the light at the end of a tunnel pulling you towards it, are simply methods developed by the brain over the years to prepare you for the end and do not portend an afterlife. I for one am hoping that there is. I am sure you are wondering why I am getting so philosophical. Well, that is because this very issue, about whether there is life after death, is the issue that forms the heart of the film that is the subject of this review, Clint Eastwood’s Hereafter. Continue Reading

Warner Home Video in Canada is releasing Wave II of their Limited Edition Steelbooks (available exclusively through Futureshop).  The first of five releases is Batman Begins (also being released are Goodfellas, Heat, 2001 & The Matrix).  While the differences between this release and the previously released version are slight (same A/V specs with only three new “additional footage” special features), it is the Steelbook packaging (with slick cover art) that makes this release stand out.   Most of this review will be ported over from our original review of Batman Begins (written by Brian White), with the new features highlighted for easy finding. Continue Reading

It is amazing how the passage of time makes what once seemed scandalous seem rather mundane. I can recall how they had to show Elvis from the waist on the Ed Sullivan Show in the 1950′s, how his shaking and gyrating while performing was seen as dangerous for America’s youth. Rock N’ Roll after all was the devil’s music. This came to mind while I was thinking out the subject of this review, Last Tango in Paris. I was in high school, when this film debuted in 1972 and I can recall how it caused quite a stir, with what was for the time, shocking sexuality in a mainstream film. Due to my age, I did not see the film during its initial run and have never seen it before its arrival on Blu-ray. Would its sexuality seem as mundane now as Elvis’ performances on Ed Sullivan now seem in retrospect? In a word, yes. Continue Reading

All college hoop fans are surely aware of the Big 5, the collection of 5 Philadelphia area based colleges that have been playing basketball in their own association since the 1950′s. It is unique and there is nothing else like it in college basketball. There is another Big 5 out there as well, at least according to film historians and that is the 5 films that form the foundation of the Disney Empire. Those films are Snow White, Pinocchio, Fantasia, Bambi and Dumbo. The first three of this so-called Big 5 have already made their way to Blu-ray. The fourth, Bambi, is finally making its debut on Blu-ray as well. Continue Reading

Some directors go to the same well over and over again, making films with the same basic formula with different settings and actors but the same basic plot. Once a film is successful, the natural inclination is to repeat that formula so long as it remains box office gold. Whether the films are any good or not is irrelevant. The only issue is will it make money. Well, that is the case with the film that is subject of this review, Due Date, which is brought to us by the same team that brought us the widely successful (at least at the box office), The Hangover, looking to repeat that box office gold. Continue Reading

The old saying goes that life is full of missed opportunities. While that is certainly the case from personal experience, the same can just as readily be said about the movie business. You see a great trailer, a film with a great cast and/or an interesting or promising premise and are disappointed when you actually see the film. Sometimes it is the trailer which is edited and presented in such a way as to give the viewer a false or at best a misleading look at the film. In some cases, that great cast isn’t so great and simply mails it in. In other cases, while the idea for the film is a good one, the script is just not up to the task. Sometimes the fault lies with one of these areas and at times a combination or all three. The result, a missed opportunity. Just such a missed opportunity is the subject of this review, You Again. Continue Reading

When you hear about a film that takes place entirely within one location that may feel pretty intimate, you’re going to get to know everything about that location and everyone in it… how about when the whole film takes place within a coffin with one guy buried inside? Claustrophobic? Does the film hop the hurdles of making its audience uncomfortable with just the setting alone or does it lack the breathing room?

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I was reading an article on the web the other day asking why anyone casts Jennifer Anniston in a movie anymore given that she is box office poison these days. The question asked was just how many more bombs would it take before she has a hard time getting any work. Given that she continues to get work, we clearly haven’t reached that point yet. Maybe soon give the trailer I have seen for her new film with Adam Sandler “Just Go With It”. In pondering this issue, which is not exactly one of the great issues of the day, it quickly dawned on me that Jennifer Anniston was far from the only one to ask this question about. Continue Reading

Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore is a sequel to the 2001 film Cats & Dogs. I can’t say that I’ve ever seen the original but it definitely isn’t a prerequisite to the sequel. I’ve always had a thing for family films it gives me the opportunity to be a kid again for the duration of the film. What really makes these children oriented movies fun is when there are a few parts for the adults as well. With a cast including Bette Midler, Neil Patrick Harris, Nick Nolte, Christina Applegate, and James Marsden Cats & Dogs instantly has potential. Continue Reading

Needless to say, there are many films about famous people or events. The best of these films are able to pull you into the narrative despite the fact that the ending of the film is well known before you enter the theater. It is the back story, the story behind the story that is often the critical element in making such films as captivating as they are. It is the little things about the lives and circumstances of the real life characters that contribute to the narrative and that makes these films so successful. A perfect example of just such a captivating back story is that of Penny Chenery which is the backbone of the film that is the subject of this review, Secretariat. Continue Reading