Into the Blu

Lisbeth Salander has been returned from near death but, while recovering in hospital, she is charged with murder. She must rely on her former lover, reporter Mikael Blomkvist to help investigate and hopefully unravel the truth behind the enormous political cover up that has pinned Salander falsely. Continue Reading

The original Swedish title of this film is Man som hatar kvinnor, which literally translates to Men Who Hate Women. Indeed, there is a great deal of brutality and hate within this investigation/revenge plot. The pace can seem slow at points, but it may only seem that way when contrasted against other points that all-too suddenly become so insanely intense that you may not initially believe what is happening on the screen. The term “gripping” comes to mind when trying to express this films overall effect. Continue Reading

I cant say that I am a fan of extended edition films. Normally, the film as exhibited in the theater was the best version of the film. Extended material which is usually from the cutting room floor, was there for a darn good reason and really was better left unseen. It kind of reminds me of a poor answer to a college essay exam where you don’t really have a clear vision of what the answer should be, so you just regurgitate everything that you can recall about the particular subject of the question in the hopes that you hit upon just enough to get some credit. Continue Reading

I know that I have commented a few times in the past that there is really precious little in the way of original material coming out of Hollywood these days. I don’t know if it is the result of a brain drought or due to the economy, with film makers and their financial backers only willing to make or finance films that are based on tried and true formulas. Hence, copies of prior successful films seem to be what we are left with these days. The only real originality these days seems to be what for lack of a better term I will call combo films as opposed to the combo pack so common these days with Blu-ray releases. A combo film is one that combines two or more successful films into one which can lead to a mildly entertaining result. Such is the case with the subject of this review Battle: Los Angeles. Continue Reading

I had seen the trailer for Unknown and thought that it looked rather interesting. Clearly, Liam Neeson has become something of an action suspense stars what with his riveting performance in Wanted in a role that is rather similar to the one he has in Unknown. While I was intrigued by the story line for the film as revealed in the trailer, I was quite surprised by the film, which while keeping one’s attention for a time , is nothing more than a remake of another film, set in Berlin rather than on Mars. Continue Reading

It was only a few months ago that I would see these posters of garden gnomes all over the local mall advertising for the movie Gnomeo & Juliet. It seemed that they were everywhere, which is normally not a good sign for the ultimate success of the film. It didn’t take a Mensa member to figure out that the film was a take off on Romeo & Juliet, featuring the music of Elton John. However, the film was out of the local cineplex fairly soon due to mediocre box office results, which is not surprising given the short length of time it took for the film to make its way to home video. Nevertheless, the film seemed like an interesting concept so I decided to request a review copy, in 2D. Well, it has finally arrived as has my review. Continue Reading

When it comes to films produced by Michael Bay, I can’t say that I really expect all that much in the terms of quality. You know, a quality screenplay, quality dialogue and character development. There are plenty of quality special effects, CGI and wiz bang sound effects, but not that much else. If you have seen Transformers or even worse, Transformers 2, you know the score. I was therefore expecting more of the same when the subject of this review, I Am Number Four, showed up on my doorstep. While not directed by Michael Bay, would I Am Number Four follow the Michael Bay playbook? Continue Reading

I was surprised when I saw Jackass 3 on store shelves when it wasn’t released in 3D, considering the industry is hoisting 3D up as a savior for staggering box office performances I would assume that they would try and take that same approach with home media release. I’m guessing they’re going to wait a while and release the 3D Blu-ray down the road… So is the film worthwhile without the extra dimension?

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Cocaine was the drug du jour in the early eighties, and as stated in this film, if you did some during this time in the United States, there was an 85% chance it came from George Jung’s smuggling. This film chronicles the life of George Jung, as played by Johnny Depp, from his childhood, through his rise as millionaire drug smuggler, to his latest incarceration. Like many drug films, this one rides a fine line between glamorizing the lifestyle and depicting the horrible consequences of it. Continue Reading

I have always been skeptical of making Broadway hits into films. It seems that far too often, what works so well on the stage doesn’t always translate well to film. They are two very different mediums both for the actors as well as the audience. Far too often, too many changes have to be made to the script and the overall presentation to make the play work for the big screen. In doing so, some of the magic of the play, especially if you have seen it live, is lost. One of the exceptions to this rule is the subject of this review, Fiddler On The Roof, which takes on a whole new dimension on the silver screen. Continue Reading

At least for this reviewer, one of the most anticipated new releases on Blu-ray is The Incredibles. In addition to being a great movie, it was long regarded back in BBR days (before Blu-ray) that The Incredibles had reference audio and video presentations. I frequently saw The Incredibles DVD being used in many high end and low end home theater demonstrations at CES and other home theater confabs and it was to say the least used very effectively. Well, after a long wait, The Incredibles has finally made its way to Blu-ray. Was it worth the wait? Does it regain its spot at the top of the reference audio and video heap. Oy my, yes it does! Continue Reading

I guess you can say that I was pulled into the world of Happy Potter against my will. One of my kids was a fan as was my wife so when the first film was released, I was dragged along. Much to my surprise, I enjoyed the film. I kept hearing how the films were faithful to the books and how detailed the books were and that I should really read the books as well. The books are rather long and for quite awhile, I was very content to just visit the cinema with the family and get the whole gist of the book in a couple of hours. It was not until a trip to of all places, the UK, where I first grabbed a copy of The Half Blood Prince which I was able to finish on a long trip. I enjoyed the book and really found it interesting to see how the book was brought to the screen. Continue Reading