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Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Otis DVD Review
Straight from the South By Southwest Film Festival we get the horror comedy that premiered on opening day's midnight showing Otis. In all honesty, I was intrigued and excited to watch this indie flick due to the great buzz surrounding it, some were comparing Otis to Freddy or Jason. Sadly, I was horribly disappointed. Otis is by far one of the dumbest films I have seen this year, and that is actually stating a lot. I have seen better films at student film festivals, and those are total crap for the most part.
The film is about some psycho who kidnaps girls and forces them to play a perverted role where they are going to the prom together. He locks them in a hidden room in his basement and tortures them with lights when they don't play along (it was hard to figure out why the girl wouldn't just break the light bulbs with any of the random objects in the room, they are easily in reach). He also continually calls the victims family trying to force them to play his idiotic game, but the family of this victim didn't want to play along..
First of all, I would state that this is nothing along the lines of what horror is, this is comedy. Unfunny comedy, but comedy nonetheless. It is a huge surprise to me that director Tony Krantz convinced these great actors to play a part in this disgusting piece of junk we are calling films these days, but it just goes to show that the actors aren't the ones who are at fault in making this a load of dung, the director is. Really, the main charachter is supposed to be 40 but looks more like 20, and it seems to be more of a high school prankster rather than some sick twisted adult. The cinematography is simply out of place, it looks more like Days of Our Lives than something that intends to be horrific, and the props are way out of whack.
In the hands of someone who is the least bit competent this film would have the potential to be something that is actually watchable, even great, but unfortunately Krantz got it and we have the piece that is Otis, which is the only real horror about this film.
* ¶ 12:06 PM 0 Comments
Straight from the South By Southwest Film Festival we get the horror comedy that premiered on opening day's midnight showing Otis. In all honesty, I was intrigued and excited to watch this indie flick due to the great buzz surrounding it, some were comparing Otis to Freddy or Jason. Sadly, I was horribly disappointed. Otis is by far one of the dumbest films I have seen this year, and that is actually stating a lot. I have seen better films at student film festivals, and those are total crap for the most part.
The film is about some psycho who kidnaps girls and forces them to play a perverted role where they are going to the prom together. He locks them in a hidden room in his basement and tortures them with lights when they don't play along (it was hard to figure out why the girl wouldn't just break the light bulbs with any of the random objects in the room, they are easily in reach). He also continually calls the victims family trying to force them to play his idiotic game, but the family of this victim didn't want to play along..
First of all, I would state that this is nothing along the lines of what horror is, this is comedy. Unfunny comedy, but comedy nonetheless. It is a huge surprise to me that director Tony Krantz convinced these great actors to play a part in this disgusting piece of junk we are calling films these days, but it just goes to show that the actors aren't the ones who are at fault in making this a load of dung, the director is. Really, the main charachter is supposed to be 40 but looks more like 20, and it seems to be more of a high school prankster rather than some sick twisted adult. The cinematography is simply out of place, it looks more like Days of Our Lives than something that intends to be horrific, and the props are way out of whack.
In the hands of someone who is the least bit competent this film would have the potential to be something that is actually watchable, even great, but unfortunately Krantz got it and we have the piece that is Otis, which is the only real horror about this film.
* ¶ 12:06 PM 0 Comments
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
John Adams HBO Series DVD Review
I would have to flat out say that I was extremely impressed with this mini series. Taken from the book of the same name by David McCullough the show takes you through the first fifty years of the United States, starting with the Boston Massacre, through the eyes of John Adams who is brilliantly played by Paul Giamatti.
The cinematography of the show is what blew me away from the beginning with a straightforward approach, and I am sort of glad that I slept through this part of history class since I hardly had any idea about Adams as a man.
The show is truly for anyone who is a fan of great acting and great cinema, but also for the history buffs out there. What a time to be living, when the US was young and far from the powerhouse that she is today, and to see what true patriotism is, to love a country as Adams did. Laura Linney is astounding as his wife Abigail and the rest of the cast are wonderful at giving life to the men and women who shaped our nation whom we have only read about in history books.
The show is surly fictionalized for some dramatic effect, but for the most part it is as true telling as you could ask for. I would suffice to say that if this was part of my history classes in high school I would most likely have paid more attention..
**** ¶ 12:02 PM 0 Comments
I would have to flat out say that I was extremely impressed with this mini series. Taken from the book of the same name by David McCullough the show takes you through the first fifty years of the United States, starting with the Boston Massacre, through the eyes of John Adams who is brilliantly played by Paul Giamatti.
The cinematography of the show is what blew me away from the beginning with a straightforward approach, and I am sort of glad that I slept through this part of history class since I hardly had any idea about Adams as a man.
The show is truly for anyone who is a fan of great acting and great cinema, but also for the history buffs out there. What a time to be living, when the US was young and far from the powerhouse that she is today, and to see what true patriotism is, to love a country as Adams did. Laura Linney is astounding as his wife Abigail and the rest of the cast are wonderful at giving life to the men and women who shaped our nation whom we have only read about in history books.
The show is surly fictionalized for some dramatic effect, but for the most part it is as true telling as you could ask for. I would suffice to say that if this was part of my history classes in high school I would most likely have paid more attention..
**** ¶ 12:02 PM 0 Comments
The Richie-Rich Scooby-Doo show: Volume One DVD Review
As a kid I endured many hours of sitting too close to the television watching the silly antics of Scooby and his pals chasing down one mystery after another. As I grew up the enjoyment faded somewhat, but I am sure that now that I have my own child my Scooby days are long from over, so I was excited to check out this DVD. Unfortunately for the Scooby fans out there, this isn't the show you watched as a kid.
For some reason in the early 80's they paired up Scooby with Richie Rich, who in my opinion was a total jerk. We didn't have every luxury growing up, so watching a kid run around dumping money into everything wasn't my kind of entertainment. The hour long episodes are sliced into seven minute shorts that have hardly the time to build up any sort of story or mystery, so you loose out on what made the Scooby show great, as well as the rest of his team except for Shaggy and Scrappy.
Scoob has blown through seemingly a million different shows over the years, and I would say that this DVD set is only for those who are a collector of his many different exploits. The transfer is pretty good considering, but the sound isn't stellar and the extras are totally lacking...
*1/2 ¶ 11:57 AM 0 Comments
As a kid I endured many hours of sitting too close to the television watching the silly antics of Scooby and his pals chasing down one mystery after another. As I grew up the enjoyment faded somewhat, but I am sure that now that I have my own child my Scooby days are long from over, so I was excited to check out this DVD. Unfortunately for the Scooby fans out there, this isn't the show you watched as a kid.
For some reason in the early 80's they paired up Scooby with Richie Rich, who in my opinion was a total jerk. We didn't have every luxury growing up, so watching a kid run around dumping money into everything wasn't my kind of entertainment. The hour long episodes are sliced into seven minute shorts that have hardly the time to build up any sort of story or mystery, so you loose out on what made the Scooby show great, as well as the rest of his team except for Shaggy and Scrappy.
Scoob has blown through seemingly a million different shows over the years, and I would say that this DVD set is only for those who are a collector of his many different exploits. The transfer is pretty good considering, but the sound isn't stellar and the extras are totally lacking...
*1/2 ¶ 11:57 AM 0 Comments
CHiPs Season 2: DVD Review
Having little knowledge of the actual show I popped in the second season of CHiPs and was astounded by it. It is no wonder this show stayed on the air and returned in reruns for so long.
Erik Estrada was far from discovered in this show, but this is the role that landed him on posters as a teen idol in the late 70's. The second season really seems like the show started really coming into it's own, building on a format that made so many shows work in that era. The campiness of the series is hilarious, seeing the seemingly dramatic zooms on characters faces with squinting eyes is awesome, mixed with some suprisingly impressive stunts for a television show of that time.
The soundtrack is also a classic, with all of the drama and funk that you would want, and a theme that is recognizable even 30 years later. There has been some talk of a remake in the works, everything gets remade eventually, but I don't think you could remake the feel of this untouchable classic.
This I would say would be a great addition to anyones collection, as long as you find 70's drama funny as hell. And rockin police bikes, who doesn't like rockin police bikes?
***
Interesting to see, in the episode "Disaster Squad" the newscaster on tv is Regis Philbin. Nice.
¶ 11:23 AM 1 Comments
Having little knowledge of the actual show I popped in the second season of CHiPs and was astounded by it. It is no wonder this show stayed on the air and returned in reruns for so long.
Erik Estrada was far from discovered in this show, but this is the role that landed him on posters as a teen idol in the late 70's. The second season really seems like the show started really coming into it's own, building on a format that made so many shows work in that era. The campiness of the series is hilarious, seeing the seemingly dramatic zooms on characters faces with squinting eyes is awesome, mixed with some suprisingly impressive stunts for a television show of that time.
The soundtrack is also a classic, with all of the drama and funk that you would want, and a theme that is recognizable even 30 years later. There has been some talk of a remake in the works, everything gets remade eventually, but I don't think you could remake the feel of this untouchable classic.
This I would say would be a great addition to anyones collection, as long as you find 70's drama funny as hell. And rockin police bikes, who doesn't like rockin police bikes?
***
Interesting to see, in the episode "Disaster Squad" the newscaster on tv is Regis Philbin. Nice.
¶ 11:23 AM 1 Comments
The Bucket List BD/DVD Review
Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman in a pretty nice feel good movie that I think anyone would enjoy. Initially, we were all hesitant to watch this movie because it seemed like something we wouldn't like, but since my girlfriend has an insatiable appetite for all things Jack we popped it in.
From the start of the film you are absorbed by Morgan Freeman's familiar narration (which Family Guy has officially made funny) describing his friend. We come to find that Carter (Freeman) is somewhat of a historical genius but working as a mechanic when he gets a call that sends him back to the hospital. Then we meet Edward (Nicholson) and we find that he is a billionaire tycoon who is struck with cancer. After a funny but sad bit of Edward going through his first round of Chemotherapy (which has a great line about Freeman's freckles) we find that Edward has less than a year to live. He had started making a list but tossed it when hearing about the amount of time he had left. Edward finds it and convinces him to go out with a bang, and they embark on a journey that is heartwarming and funny.
The film itself is mostly shot on green screen, but it is really good green screen, and most wouldn't notice. It doesn't really matter anyway because these two actors have enough talent to pull at your heart strings in an empty room. The paring of these two is thoughtful, and I would say that the film is a relaxing way to spend a rainy Tuesday night at home.
***
Oh, and be sure to check out The Bucket List Facebook Application, available at thebucketlist.warnerbros.com Or, facebook at the link below http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?api_key=9c7db6bda0fddb83a621e5e7cd2b5564 . Add The Bucket List facebook application to create your own list and share it with friends!
¶ 9:56 AM 1 Comments
Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman in a pretty nice feel good movie that I think anyone would enjoy. Initially, we were all hesitant to watch this movie because it seemed like something we wouldn't like, but since my girlfriend has an insatiable appetite for all things Jack we popped it in.
From the start of the film you are absorbed by Morgan Freeman's familiar narration (which Family Guy has officially made funny) describing his friend. We come to find that Carter (Freeman) is somewhat of a historical genius but working as a mechanic when he gets a call that sends him back to the hospital. Then we meet Edward (Nicholson) and we find that he is a billionaire tycoon who is struck with cancer. After a funny but sad bit of Edward going through his first round of Chemotherapy (which has a great line about Freeman's freckles) we find that Edward has less than a year to live. He had started making a list but tossed it when hearing about the amount of time he had left. Edward finds it and convinces him to go out with a bang, and they embark on a journey that is heartwarming and funny.
The film itself is mostly shot on green screen, but it is really good green screen, and most wouldn't notice. It doesn't really matter anyway because these two actors have enough talent to pull at your heart strings in an empty room. The paring of these two is thoughtful, and I would say that the film is a relaxing way to spend a rainy Tuesday night at home.
***
Oh, and be sure to check out The Bucket List Facebook Application, available at thebucketlist.warnerbros.com Or, facebook at the link below http://www.facebook.com/apps
¶ 9:56 AM 1 Comments
National Treasure 2 DVD Review
* ¶ 9:19 AM 0 Comments
I had really no particular opinion when popping this dvd into my ps3 and sitting back on the couch to watch it. really, there are some nicolas cage movies that i enjoy, some that are alright and others which are downright awful. i would proudly throw this one into the awful category.
The original film was actually pretty entertaining and I have stopped flipping through channels a number of times in order to watch it, but the follow up is downright ridiculous. Actually, let me clarify that, its the SAME MOVIE. Really. I don't understand how the script got approved, let alone released.. I guess that hollywood gets a bad rap of churning out more of the same, but this time they really have pushed the envelope. Oh, there are subtle differences, like the first one is actually watchable and that this one is just painful to watch.
The film attempts to be a disney version of the davinci code but for all accounts it dosent even come close. Nicolas Cage's character fumbles along the film making silly connections to wacky historical innacuracies, where Tom Hanks' character at least bound the clues he found somewhat close to reality. In my honest opinion, if you really want to see this film, just rent the first one again, you will have a much better time..The original film was actually pretty entertaining and I have stopped flipping through channels a number of times in order to watch it, but the follow up is downright ridiculous. Actually, let me clarify that, its the SAME MOVIE. Really. I don't understand how the script got approved, let alone released.. I guess that hollywood gets a bad rap of churning out more of the same, but this time they really have pushed the envelope. Oh, there are subtle differences, like the first one is actually watchable and that this one is just painful to watch.
* ¶ 9:19 AM 0 Comments
P. S. I Love You DVD Review
Ok, so a while ago my girlfriend forced me to watch The Notebook. Sorry for all you ladies out there, but the movie sucks. Seriously. I made it suck for her to by asking questions. He says famously that he "wrote her a letter every day for a year." Ok, so, did you mail two letters on Sunday? What about holidays? Were there days when you would send her three letters? See, to me, you kind of lose the impact of sending those love letters if she gets three in one day. Today that would be called stalking. Well, after never having to sit through that again good old Hollywood has to pop out another love letter movie. This time it is different though, the dude dies right away, which was cool, but man, he wrote her some serious letters..
P. S. I Love You stars Hilary Swank, who blew me away in Boy's Don't Cry and Million Dollar Baby, shot right back to the Next Karate Kid against Gerard "300 Abs" Butler. I was hoping for some sort of fight scene between them, but when it happened it was the relationship sort of fight that ended with kissing (no love scene) instead of a bloody rage.
The reality of the film is based around this ultra quick death and he somehow had time during his brain tumor to set up a year long scavenger hunt filled with presents and heart felt letters. How he accomplished this in the hospital without his wife's knowledge is anyones guess. Hilary bumbles along this outragous quest to figure out how cute her dead husband was, then she (spoiler) figures out that she is an amazingly gifted shoe designer, so gifted that she has enough to open her own botique in New York within six months of her first drawing of a shoe. Wonders never cease.
Seriously, this is a total gushy girl movie, and if you are somehow conned into seeing it just remember it so the next time you want to say, "Honey, I'm going to play video games for the next two hours. Oh, and P. S. I love you."
*1/2 ¶ 9:10 AM 0 Comments
Ok, so a while ago my girlfriend forced me to watch The Notebook. Sorry for all you ladies out there, but the movie sucks. Seriously. I made it suck for her to by asking questions. He says famously that he "wrote her a letter every day for a year." Ok, so, did you mail two letters on Sunday? What about holidays? Were there days when you would send her three letters? See, to me, you kind of lose the impact of sending those love letters if she gets three in one day. Today that would be called stalking. Well, after never having to sit through that again good old Hollywood has to pop out another love letter movie. This time it is different though, the dude dies right away, which was cool, but man, he wrote her some serious letters..
P. S. I Love You stars Hilary Swank, who blew me away in Boy's Don't Cry and Million Dollar Baby, shot right back to the Next Karate Kid against Gerard "300 Abs" Butler. I was hoping for some sort of fight scene between them, but when it happened it was the relationship sort of fight that ended with kissing (no love scene) instead of a bloody rage.
The reality of the film is based around this ultra quick death and he somehow had time during his brain tumor to set up a year long scavenger hunt filled with presents and heart felt letters. How he accomplished this in the hospital without his wife's knowledge is anyones guess. Hilary bumbles along this outragous quest to figure out how cute her dead husband was, then she (spoiler) figures out that she is an amazingly gifted shoe designer, so gifted that she has enough to open her own botique in New York within six months of her first drawing of a shoe. Wonders never cease.
Seriously, this is a total gushy girl movie, and if you are somehow conned into seeing it just remember it so the next time you want to say, "Honey, I'm going to play video games for the next two hours. Oh, and P. S. I love you."
*1/2 ¶ 9:10 AM 0 Comments
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
One Missed Call DVD Review
In the throws of the never ending remakes of Asian Horror we get the masterpiece of One Missed Call, a film that simply throws away all sense and tries to remake The Ring, but instead of an old cassette they use cell phones.
I was actually kind of excited to see this film since it stars Shannyn Sossamon, whom I fell in love with watching Rules of Attraction, and who is still quite attractive, but my god how far she has fallen. This movie puts a nail in the coffin of her once promising career. Simply put, when your agent calls you to do a horror movie, if it has a PG-13 rating, DON'T DO IT. There is no such thing as PG-13 horror. It just doesn't exist.
This rather bad joke of a film is just simple laziness. Nothing in it is original at all, and I am sorry, (SPOILER) little girls do not scare me. Seriously, what is up with all of the little girls who are sadistically attempting to murder people after they die? I really think there is a real life horror going on, that there is the ghost of a little girl trapped in Hollywood, churning out all of these wretched PG-13 "horror" flicks in the attempt to torture our teenagers into giving her money. It is really a sad thing if you think about it.
* ¶ 3:42 PM 0 Comments
In the throws of the never ending remakes of Asian Horror we get the masterpiece of One Missed Call, a film that simply throws away all sense and tries to remake The Ring, but instead of an old cassette they use cell phones.
I was actually kind of excited to see this film since it stars Shannyn Sossamon, whom I fell in love with watching Rules of Attraction, and who is still quite attractive, but my god how far she has fallen. This movie puts a nail in the coffin of her once promising career. Simply put, when your agent calls you to do a horror movie, if it has a PG-13 rating, DON'T DO IT. There is no such thing as PG-13 horror. It just doesn't exist.
This rather bad joke of a film is just simple laziness. Nothing in it is original at all, and I am sorry, (SPOILER) little girls do not scare me. Seriously, what is up with all of the little girls who are sadistically attempting to murder people after they die? I really think there is a real life horror going on, that there is the ghost of a little girl trapped in Hollywood, churning out all of these wretched PG-13 "horror" flicks in the attempt to torture our teenagers into giving her money. It is really a sad thing if you think about it.
* ¶ 3:42 PM 0 Comments
Botched DVD Review
Botched is a film that attempts to prey on those who enjoyed horror/comedies in the likes of Shaun of the Dead but the campiness just seems that instead of being pleasant and funny it feels
completely forced and idiotic. It is at time grotesque but in such a way that really isn't gross at all, it just seems awkward.
While watching the film you get the feeling that the makers of it came up with a rather odd idea and instead of writing a script about it they just decided to start shooting, coming up with the scenes and dialogue as they went along, reminding the audience of a rather poor student film then something that actually got a budget, similar to the infamous Uwe Boll films.
The film stars one of my favorite B stars, Stephen Dorff, who has always felt like someone who could actually come into a role and do a good job, but instead he fall into these terrible movies where one gets the sense that he is forced to write his own dialogue. Also it stars Jaime Murray, in which after adoring her in the second season of Dexter she falls of this cliff smacking hard onto the pavement of C-Class stardom. She basically just stands around looking smarmy the entire picture as various members of the cast get mutilated in ridiculous ways. By the end of the film, if you actually make it, the big payoff isn't the ending of the movie, it is that the movie has finally ended.
* ¶ 3:13 PM 0 Comments
Botched is a film that attempts to prey on those who enjoyed horror/comedies in the likes of Shaun of the Dead but the campiness just seems that instead of being pleasant and funny it feels
completely forced and idiotic. It is at time grotesque but in such a way that really isn't gross at all, it just seems awkward.
While watching the film you get the feeling that the makers of it came up with a rather odd idea and instead of writing a script about it they just decided to start shooting, coming up with the scenes and dialogue as they went along, reminding the audience of a rather poor student film then something that actually got a budget, similar to the infamous Uwe Boll films.
The film stars one of my favorite B stars, Stephen Dorff, who has always felt like someone who could actually come into a role and do a good job, but instead he fall into these terrible movies where one gets the sense that he is forced to write his own dialogue. Also it stars Jaime Murray, in which after adoring her in the second season of Dexter she falls of this cliff smacking hard onto the pavement of C-Class stardom. She basically just stands around looking smarmy the entire picture as various members of the cast get mutilated in ridiculous ways. By the end of the film, if you actually make it, the big payoff isn't the ending of the movie, it is that the movie has finally ended.
* ¶ 3:13 PM 0 Comments
