Man on a Ledge (2012)

REVIEW NAVIGATION
The Movie | Special Features | Video Quality | Audio Quality | Overall

Genre(s): Suspense, Crime, Drama
Summit | PG13 – 102 min. – $30.49 | May 29, 2012

MOVIE INFO:
Directed by: Asger Leth
Writer(s): Pablo F. Fenjves (written by)
Cast: Sam Worthington, Elizabeth Banks, Jamie Bell, Anthony Mackie, Edward Burns, Titus Welliver, Genesis Rodriguez, Kyra Sedgwick, Ed Harris

Theatrical Release Date: January 27, 2012

DISC INFO:
Features: Featurette, Theatrical Trailer w/ Audio Commentary
Number of Discs: 1

Audio: English (DTS-HD MA 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1)
Video: 1080p/Widescreen 2.40
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
Disc Size: 28.8 GB
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Region(s): A

THE MOVIE – 3.5/5

Man on a Ledge seems like a simple title for a simple movie. And it is. This is the kind of movie that you can’t quite turn your brain off but at the same time, you really can’t think about some of the plot points or else you’ll walk away noticing major plot holes and conveniences.

The story, told back and forth from past to present, follows Nick Cassidy (SAM WORTHINGTON), an ex-cop wrongfully convicted and sent to prison for 25 years for stealing a $40 million diamond which was never recovered but thought Cassidy cut into pieces to sell off. After losing is last appeal, things seem hopeless but opportunity knocks when his father passes away and while attending the funeral, he gets into a fight with his brother, Joey (JAMIE BELL), and in the chaos, pulls one of the guard’s guns and makes his escape. He stops by a storage unit readied with the necessary equipment and supplies.

He then goes to an upscale Manhattan hotel, eats a great breakfast and proceeds to step out onto the ledge where soon people on the ground take notice. Soon enough the NYPD is called in lead by negotiator Jack Dougherty (EDWARD BURNS). Before any chat can begin, Cassidy threatens to jump if negotiator Lydia Mercer (ELIZABETH BANKS) isn’t there within 20-minutes. Understandably perplexed, Dougherty calls Mercer in despite her present condition especially since her last attempt the jumper went through with the suicide, jumping off a bridge.

Upon Mercer’s arrival, she wants to know what he wants but as Nick tap dances around his apparent problems and psychological issues, something else is going on in a building nearby. You see, the fight between Nick and his brother was entirely staged (big shocker there) with Joey and girlfriend Angie (GENESIS RODRIGUEZ) setting up to break into a mogul tycoon’s building and steal the very diamond that Nick was accused of taking in the first place, thus proving his innocence and taking down the perpetrators who set him up which includes the mean tycoon himself, David Englander (ED HARRIS).

As Nick tries to establish some trust with Mercer and get her to believe that he was set up, over in the other building, Joey and Angie accomplish feats that even someone like Ethan Hunt would have trouble achieving, although to be fair, they’re hardly perfect and make a few mistakes to keep the suspense up. The writer tries to explain their incredible abilities stating they had been planning the heist for a year, but I can’t quite buy that; however, there are other conveniences which are hard to ignore.

Like Tower Heist before it, Man on a Ledge asks the audience to disregard plot contrivances and instead sit back and enjoy the ride. Now, unlike Tower Heist, the threshold for suspension of disbelief isn’t quite as high here, but at the end if you think short and easy about what unfolded, you can punch giant holes in the plot if you’re not careful. There’s also issue of convenience which I find a bit more annoying than plot holes. Without getting into too much, the end is tied up in a nice bow where you wonder how exactly it could happen the way it did.

But, despite the issues I had with plot holes and plot conveniences, Man on a Ledge is still a fun movie that nicely breezes by. It features some good performances especially from Sam Worthington; perhaps his best that I’ve seen as his previous efforts have been less than effective. Elizabeth Banks also turns in a nice performance showing once again that she’s a bit underrated while Jamie Bell, Edward Burns and hottie newcomer Genesis Rodriguez (who, btw, gets a gratuitous underwear shot) all are decent in their parts. Not sure what to say about Ed Harris only that his appearance is fairly minimal and the character is only there to be an evil son of a bitch (similar to Alan Alda’s role in Tower Heist).

Man on a Ledge was effectively and adequately directed by Asger Leth making his feature film debut after helming a documentary entitled Ghosts of Cite Soleil about Haiti. So Leth seems to be an odd choice for a factitious heist-thriller, but he manages to keep the suspense going evenly through until the very end, so on that front he does a commendable job.

All in all, Man on a Ledge is a well crafted suspense-thriller which, despite some of the problems with the plot, is still enjoyable and worth checking out especially on a slow night when you just want to watch something simple. I’m not prepared to say this is one of those movies you should turn your brain off to enjoy, but certainly when it’s over and begin to think about it more, it can be hard to ignore some of those plot holes.

SPECIAL FEATURES – 1.25/5

Not much here except a generic EPK featurette (15:17) and, in one of odder features I’ve come across, the Trailer with Commentary (2:32). Yep, we get some chatter by star Elizabeth Banks talking about the trailer. I think this was done at a press junket but I have to wonder why it was even included. Heck, the entire trailer without the commentary isn’t even available.

There’s also a BD-Live portal.

VIDEO – 4.25/5

Man on a Ledge climbs out to admire the Blu-ray release and looks really good in 1080p high-definition transfer. Presented in its original 2.40 widescreen aspect ratio, the movie features sharp detail levels throughout, some nice color balance that doesn’t look overpowering yet still has a certain pop as well as some natural noise/grain which provides for a nice transfer which will look good in the home theater.

AUDIO – 4.5/5

The 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track comes across quite well, packing at times a decent punch, and there’s plenty to judge. You have dialogue which has good levels coming via the center channel, a couple action scenes making use of the front and rear channels and just some general ambient noises or crowd cheers and jeers from the rear speakers.

OVERALL – 3.25/5

Admittedly, the plot for Man on a Ledge is on the preposterous side with sizeable plot holes but given what it is and the cast gathered, I was still rather entertained. Sam Worthington is for once able to hold his own, albeit with a weaker script, and the supporting cast is impressive. The Blu-ray offers good video and audio transfer but utterly drops the ball in the features department, even including a commentary with the frikin’ trailer; so lame. Anyway, I won’t quite recommend purchasing this but at the very least it would be worth a rental.

Brian Oliver, The Movieman
Published: 05/21/2012

Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.

Journey 2: The Mysterious Island (2011)

REVIEW NAVIGATION
The Movie | Special Features | Video Quality | Audio Quality | Overall

Genre(s): Fantasy, Action, Adventure, Comedy
Warner Bros. | PG – 94 min. – $35.99 | June 5, 2012

MOVIE INFO:
Directed by: Brad Peyton
Writer(s): Richard Outten and Brian Gunn & Mark Gunn (story), Brian Gunn & Mark Gunn (screenplay)
Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Michael Caine, Josh Hutcherson, Vanessa Hudgens, Luis Guzman

Theatrical Release Date: February 10, 2012

DISC INFO:
Features: Featurette, Deleted Scenes, Gag Reel, DVD Copy, UltraViolet Digital Copy
Number of Discs: 2

Audio: English (DTS-HD MA 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1)
Video: 1080p/Widescreen 1.78
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
Disc Size (Blu-ray): 23.4 GB
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Region(s): A, B, C

THE MOVIE – 3.25/5

Journey 2: The Mysterious Island is the sequel to the modest hit, Journey to the Center of the Earth and starred Brendan Fraser who takes his nephew on an exploration that takes them on an adventure to, well, the center of the earth. The new journey doesn’t include Fraser and even recast the role of the mother…

The sequel opens with Sean Anderson (JOSH HUTCHERSON) on a motorbike escaping from the law after he broke into a satellite station. He’s eventually caught after biking through backyards and spectacularly going into the air and landing into a pool. Sean is bailed out by his stepfather, Hank (DWAYNE JOHNSON). The pair doesn’t get along and he’s not on the greatest terms with his mother, Elizabeth (KRISTIN DAVIS). We discover the reason for Sean’s exploits is to transmit a message received from his long-lost grandfather, to decipher it.

Lucky for Sean, Hank used to be in the Navy and when taking a look at the message he notices a Morse Code within the message and together using Jules Verne’s books, discover a map that when put together displays what is known as “The Mysterious Island” and it includes Longitude and Latitude coordinates. Hank doesn’t believe the island is real but he knows it’s important to Sean and with a desire to make a connection, he convinces Elizabeth to allow the pair to travel to the island of Palau. Once there, they discover that no pilot in their right mind would go to those coordinates as it’s known as a place where planes and ships get lost. Fortunately they find somebody, Gabato (LUIS GUZMAN), who is willing to take them. At first, Hank and Sean don’t want to get on his rickety helicopter, but once Sean sets his eyes on the pilot’s daughter, Kailani (VANESSA HUDGENS), he quickly changes his mind and the four take the trip. They soon discover where the coordinates are located there are swirling tornadoes and rough winds that quickly tears the helicopter apart before they can go back and are swept into the center of the storm.

They wake up on a rough patch of a beach and finding a passageway, they discover what they now know as “The Mysterious Island” and after battling insects and other predators, meet Sean’s long-lost grandfather, Alexander (MICHAEL CAINE), who has set up a nice tree house with all the amenities. The group had hoped to use the transmitter Alexander used to send the message out but find out that the satellite has to be in the right position… which it won’t be for another two weeks. The next day the group journey out but Hank, using more knowledge from his years in the Navy, realizes that the island is sinking after seeing salt water culminate. He estimates they only have a few days and their only hope of survival is to uncover Nemo’s submarine, the location of which is in a journal buried in his tomb on the island.

With the island sinking at a greater rate and the group finding new and interesting obstacles as they try to escape – including a volcano which erupts gold or giant predator birds attacking – will they make it in time? And what about the young budding love between Sean and Kailani? I don’t think there’s any question how this will end, but it’s about the journey (pun intended) to get there that makes or breaks a movie.

Journey 2: The Mysterious Island is simply put, a fun movie. No, these characters aren’t especially interesting or unique but between some of the comedy which does work and visual effects which tend to be fantastic (other parts look a bit off) makes for an enjoyable fantasy adventure with just enough for the adults to enjoy while those of a younger age will have a blast with.

I also have to give some kudos to the cast it can’t be easy acting against creatures that aren’t really there in an environment that doesn’t really exist. You can see how that kind of scenario worked out in the Star Wars prequels… And yet here, they manage well enough and share some good chemistry that it doesn’t make a thin plotline intolerable or feeling unnecessary, even though there wasn’t a good reason Journey to the Center of the Earth even needed a sequel. For his part, Dwayne Johnson comes across with the right amount of charisma and isn’t nearly as cheesy (save for a song) as he has in other family comedies (see: Tooth Fairy and The Game Plan). While I still think Johnson’s forte is better suited in movies like Fast Five and Faster, he’s not too bad in this movie…

Josh Hutcherson meanwhile has just come off of the wildly successful The Hunger Games, which I have yet to see so I have no idea what kind of an actor he is, but compared with others around his age who have had to carry a movie, he’s not bad and has decent chemistry with Vanessa Hudgens, both of whom turn in OK performances, albeit nothing special.

Then you’ve got the Jack of All Trades, Sir Michael Caine who late in his career apparently can’t say no to any script that comes his way, although he at least mixes it up appearing in some great movies (the Nolan Batman movies, the underrated Noises Off, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, etc) to many clunkers (see: Get Carter remake, Bewitched and, of course, Jaws: The Revenge). For Journey 2, he goes through the motions but like the others, looks like he’s having a grand old time but doesn’t offer anything new that we haven’t already seen before.

Journey 2: The Mysterious Island was directed by Brad Peyton and if you don’t recognize that name… well, there’s good reason because the only other movie of any note (bad or otherwise) was the awful Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore. Well, visually the movie is stunning but it is also light on story (from the writers of Bring It on Again), which is perfectly fine for something like this.

On the whole, Journey 2 is a breezy fantasy-adventure that, while it won’t be taxing on your brain, is still a fun movie that you can sit through without groaning and in fact might even laugh at a few of the jokes. It’s not a very memorable film but given there aren’t many movies in the genre that are fun for the entire family, it’s nice to see one of these released every so often.

SPECIAL FEATURES – 2.25/5

This release comes with a glossy slip cover.

Are You Strong Enough to Survive Mysterious Island? – With this feature you can either watch in two modes: “Interactive” and “Junior Explorer” (21:06). The former you jet around an animated island to check out different vignettes and the latter is basically the same but simplified. If you want to watch, just go with the “Junior Explorer” option.

We also get a Gag Reel (1:16; HD), some needless Deleted Scenes (5:53; HD), an UltraViolet Digital Copy download code and a retail DVD Copy.

VIDEO – 4.75/5

Not sure why, but a good number of Warner’s recent releases haven’t always looked the best on Blu-ray, yet Journey 2 looks fantastic. Because it was filmed for 3D, the picture is vibrant with not only bright colors but great levels of detail from the close-up shots to even background objects. The film is presented with a 1.78 aspect ratio and the 1080p HD transfer will be more than satisfactory for the home viewing public.

AUDIO – 4.25/5

The 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track is pretty subdued early on but picks up the pace during the action sequences late in the first act (when the group are sucked into the twister) and towards the end as they try to escape the collapsing island. Dialogue levels, coming from the center channel, are crisp and clear while the action elements make good use out of the front and rear speakers. The LFE channel kicks on a few times for the action scenes and while it’s nothing outstanding, still provides the right amount of depth.

OVERALL – 3.25/5

Overall, Journey 2: The Mysterious Island actually isn’t too bad of a movie. Even as an adult, I found it to be fairly entertaining and although I’d hardly say anything in the acting department was great and the characters are paper thin, the adventure and fantasy elements, along with a breezy plot, makes up for any of the movie’s flaws. The Blu-ray meanwhile serves up an excellent video transfer and a more than adequate lossless audio track. Not surprising given how sparse the features have been on Warner’s recent Blu-ray releases, this too is pretty minimalistic.

Even so, if you enjoyed these types of movies then by all means, give this one a chance. It’s not great but perfectly acceptable all things considered.

Brian Oliver, The Movieman
Published: 05/21/2012

Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.

Gone (2012)

REVIEW NAVIGATION
The Movie | Special Features | Video Quality | Audio Quality | Overall

Genre(s): Suspense/Thriller, Mystery
Summit | PG13 – 95 min. – $30.49 | May 29, 2012

MOVIE INFO:
Directed by: Heitor Dhalia
Writer(s): Allison Burnett (written by)
Cast: Amanda Seyfried, Daniel Sunjata, Jennifer Carpenter, Sebastian Stan, Wes Bentley

Theatrical Release Date: February 24, 2012

DISC INFO:
Features: BD-Live
Number of Discs: 1

Audio: English (DTS-HD MA 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1)
Video: 1080p/Widescreen 2.40
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
Disc Size: 20.5 GB
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Region(s): A

THE MOVIE – 3.0/5

“Nothing will stop her.”

That is the generic tagline for the Gone, the latest vehicle for rising star Amanda Seyfried, whose career has been on the uptick since Mamma Mia and Jennifer’s Body in 2008 and 2009 respectively. Since, she’s had some high profile movies (Red Riding Hood, In Time) with, at best, mixed results. This suspense-mystery showcases what Seyfried can do with a limited script.

Gone follows Jill (AMANDA SEYFRIED), a high-string, off-balance young woman who a year prior had been kidnapped by someone she cannot identify, wakes up in a deep pit and manages to escape but doesn’t know exactly where this pit. She also had told police, this is all done via a vocal recap, that there other bones in the pit, but unfortunately the police are unable to find it; and to be fair, given what I witnessed the police do in the present, doesn’t come much of a surprise…

In the present day, she’s living in a nice house with her sister, Molly (EMILY WICKERSHAM), who is in college studying for a big exam held the next day. She’s also a recovering alcoholic and gets annoyed with Jill because in her spare time, Jill goes to forest and marks off areas in the hopes of finding where she had been kept. Jill works nights at a local café but when she returns from work, and despite the important test, she discovers that Molly is missing or, I should say, GONE! She frantically searches the house but there’s no sign of her sister. All her clothes are still in their place and the pajamas Molly had been wearing were nowhere in sight. She also finds an heirloom diamond earring on the ground, something Molly would not have left behind voluntarily.

After contacting the boyfriend (SEBASTIAN STAN), which goes right to voicemail, she rushes off to the police station only to be met with what would be best described as skepticism as they’ve dealt with Jill many times in the past. She frantically tells them she’s sure the person who took Molly was the same person who kidnapped her. However, the station lieutenant (MICHAEL PARE) and two detectives, Powers (DANIEL SUNJATA) and Lonsdale (KATHERINE MOENING), have little time to hear her story and work hard to poke holes in it. However, newcomer to the unit is Detective Peter Hood (WES BENTLEY), who seems to believe her story far more than the others and gives her his card.

With the police unwilling to help and thinking she’s batsh*t crazy, unfolding via flashbacks, Jill goes it alone tracking down clues to Molly’s whereabouts. She begins at her reclusive neighbor who doesn’t sleep and saw a locksmith van outsider her house. Using that and his description, Jill does some all too simple Google searching (I’m glad they used Google than some lame made-up search site) and manages to locate the company where she meets the owner and his oddball son, Nick (JOEL DAVID MOORE) who, at gunpoint, reveals he had lent out the van for a couple hundred bucks to a guy he knows only as “Digger”. Inside the van she finds a receipt to a hardware store where the purchaser bought rolls of duct tape and some tarp. Being the novice detective she is, Jill follows the clues, trying to get the identity of the apparent kidnapper.

Thanks to her reckless behavior and the fact she has a gun the police are now out for her before she causes anymore chaos on the streets. So with the police on her tail and  Molly still missing, by this point it has been confirmed she never showed up for her exam, she gets closer to finding a name and perhaps the man who has her sister. With her own experience, she knows that her sister doesn’t have time and could be dead by nightfall.

After the movie was over, the first word that came to mind was, “lame”. The last act was a bit of a letdown, not that the rest of the film prior was a tour de force or anything. I felt it was all too simple and some of the promises made didn’t seem to payoff. But at the same time, given the inane twists that incorporate much of modern suspense-thrillers, thanks in part to M. Night Shyamalan’s The Sixth Sense, every screenplay needed something to keep the audience off balance. So after thinking about it some more, it was kind of refreshing to see a more simplistic ending. This is not to say it’s completely satisfying, but if it had ended with a twist, no doubt critics and audience members would’ve been rightly disparaging of it.

First, Amanda Seyfried makes this movie; period, end of story. I’m not saying she turns in some brilliant, award-worthy performance (even a minor, MTV-like, one) but she seems to be able to overcome a screenplay which meanders through the middle section. It’s not common to see a newish talent being able to have the kind of commanding presence but Seyfried does it so well, playing a psychologically damaged character but rarely goes over-the-top with it.

Next, the supporting cast is mostly useless playing either inept or utterly forgettable characters. You have police detectives who not only don’t take Jill’s concerns seriously, albeit I’m willing to cut some slack given her history, but are unable to get her into custody as she runs around town, borrowing cars and eluding police cars in the process; my experience watching hundreds of episodes of “Cops”, this rarely happens, so makes me wonder about the police and their skills. Guys, we’re not talking about some harden criminal here… Outside of those characters, which include Daniel Sunjata (most recently seen in One for the Money) and Wes Bentley (wearing his same wardrobe in Ghost Rider), Jennifer Carpenter of “Dexter” fame has a small role as Jill’s co-worker and Sebastian Stan (Captain America: The First Avenger) as Billy, Molly’s creepy/sly boyfriend. Neither one particularly stand out but performance-wise, they’re not bad and effective enough. Same goes for Bentley who was used in an interesting way, although I won’t reveal how only to say it’s somewhat laughable.

The film was helmed by Heitor Dhalia and if you don’t recognize the name… well, that’s for good reason as this is his first American feature film after directing a few Brazilian flicks. I won’t say Dhalia is an especially effective director but between him and cinematographer Michael Grady (Faster), they are able to keep what is a thin script – from Allison Burnett who also wrote Untraceable and Feast of Love, both interestingly enough were also filmed in Portland where this story takes place – going at an even pace, never slowing down or dragging in some places.

Gone at its core is kind of generic and if not for Seyfried’s rising star, should’ve been destined as a Lifetime Movie of the Week than a theatrically released feature film. Even so, clocking in at around 90-minutes, sans end credits, makes this a breezy film to get through that even when the plot gets a bit on the ridiculous side, still contains some entertainment value that doesn’t overstays its welcome.

SPECIAL FEATURES – 0/5

Sadly, not a single feature, not even the theatrical trailer… Only thing on here is a preview for Man on a Ledge and a BD-Live portal.

VIDEO – 4.25/5

Gone makes a break for it, right into the safe arms of Blu-ray. Presented in its original 2.40 widescreen aspect ratio, this 1080p high-def transfer looks great with sharp levels of detail, some fine black levels that don’t show any signs of artifacting and a color array that looks evenhanded, without going over (or under) the line. This is nothing phenomenal and probably on par for any new release.

AUDIO – 3.5/5

The disc comes with a 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track which isn’t anything special, but gets the job done, especially for a movie with a mixture of action, suspense and drama. The center channel is the most forceful with dialogue and central action while the front and rear speakers get used for the side action or ambient noises. The track as a whole isn’t predominantly aggressive since the LFE channel doesn’t kick in very much, but at the same time, it’s effective enough.

OVERALL – 2.5/5

Overall, there are many reasons I should dislike, even hate, Gone from the simple story to the one-dimensional supporting characters, but there’s something about Amanda Seyfried that elevates this from forgettable made-for-television drivel to semi-forgettable, slightly entertaining, direct-to-video release. For sure, that’s not high praise but I think if you’re a fan of Seyfried’s, then it might be worth checking out, especially for a slow Saturday afternoon. The Blu-ray has more than adequate audio and video transfers but there are no features, so on that front, it’s disappointing especially for a new release.

Brian Oliver, The Movieman
Published: 05/20/2012

Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.

Bringing Down the House (2003)
“9th Anniversary Edition”

REVIEW NAVIGATION
The Movie | Special Features | Video Quality | Audio Quality | Overall

Genre(s): Comedy
Buena Vista | PG13 – 105 min. – $20.00 | May 15, 2012

MOVIE INFO:
Directed by: Shawn Levy
Writer(s): Jason Filardi (written by)
Cast: Steve Martin, Queen Latifah, Eugene Levy, Jean Smart, Joan Plowright

Theatrical Release Date: March 7, 2003

DISC INFO:
Features: Commentary, Featurette, Deleted Scenes, Gag Reel, Music Video
Number of Discs: 1

Audio: English (DTS-HD MA 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0)
Video: 1080p/Widescreen 2.35
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
Disc Size: 24.8 GB
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Region(s): A, B, C

THE MOVIE – 3.0/5

Plot Outline: When Peter Sanderson (STEVE MARTIN), a divorced, uptight lawyer, meets Charlene (QUEEN LATIFAH), a street-smart soul sister who’s just escaped from prison, his life is turned upside down. Crazy complications abound, and Peter soon discovers he may need Charlene just as much as she needs him.

Quick Hit Review: I remember actually seeing this in the theaters back in 2003 and while I never found it to be a particularly hilarious movie, it does show Steve Martin’s classic slapstick humor that, up to that point, had been largely missing for a few years, the last might’ve been 1999’s Bowfinger, though he was a straight-man to Eddie Murphy’s over-the-top comedy. Even so, there were parts of Bringing Down the House that were laugh-out-loud funny, some that were merely amusing while other parts were obvious and unfunny.

Directed by Adam Shankman (The Wedding Planner, The Pacifier), Bringing Down the House isn’t too bad but it’s still pretty mediocre as far as comedies go. Martin does his best with the material while Queen Latifah is tolerable in what could’ve been a character that overstayed her welcome. Otherwise, this is a movie that doesn’t measure well on either end of the spectrum and thus completely forgettable.

SPECIAL FEATURES – 2.25/5

In this “10^th Anniversary Edition” (even though it’s only been 9 years), all the features from the DVD have been ported over.

Audio Commentary – Director Adam Shankman and Writer Jason Filardi provides a lively track as they break down the movie with tidbits about the script and production.

Breaking Down Bringing Down the House (16:33; SD) – This featurette, I think made for one of the pay cable networks or perhaps ABC, takes the viewer behind the scenes, getting comments by Steve Martin, Queen Latifah plus many others in the production talking about the script, hiring the right director, etc.

The Godfather of Hop (2:57; SD) is a “close-up look at Eugene Levy with tongue firmly planted in cheek.”

Lastly is the Music Video (3:44; SD), “Better Than the Rest” by Queen Latifah, a selection of Deleted Scenes (4:10; SD) and a Gag Reel (4:00; SD).

VIDEO – 3.75/5

Presented in its original 2.35 aspect ratio, Bringing Down the House makes its debut on Blu-ray with a good-looking 1080p high-def transfer. The detail levels are decent enough and I didn’t notice much in the way of pixilation, artifacting and other nasty critters that sometimes can permeate a transfer, whether its Blu-ray or not. The color array seems pretty good as well. Not a great transfer, mind you, but if you’re a fan of this movie, it might be worth upgrading.

AUDIO – 3.5/5

Meanwhile, the 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track is adequate for the genre, but nothing more. The bulk of the movie is dialogue-driven which comes out smoothly via the center channel as the other speakers get some use during the songs or any ambient noises.

OVERALL – 3.0/5

Overall, Bringing Down the House has its moments and Steve Martin, while not on his game as he had been in the past, has a few hilarious scenes, but as a whole, this isn’t a very memorable comedy. As far as the “15^th Anniversary” Blu-ray is concerned, both the video and audio transfers are decent upgrades over the DVD, so if you enjoyed the movie and can find this for under $10, then it might be worth it.

Brian Oliver, The Movieman
Published: 05/20/2012

Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.

One for the Money (2012)

REVIEW NAVIGATION
The Movie | Special Features | Video Quality | Audio Quality | Overall

Genre(s): Comedy, Crime
Lionsgate | PG13 – 91 min. – $39.99 | May 15, 2012

MOVIE INFO:
Directed by: Julie Anne Robinson
Writer(s): Janet Evanovich (novel); Stacy Sherman & Karen Ray and Liz Brixius (screenplay)
Cast: Katherine Heigl, Jason O’Mara, Daniel Sunjata, John Leguizamo, Debbie Reynolds

Theatrical Release Date: January 27, 2012

DISC INFO:
Features: Featurettes, Deleted Scenes, Gag Reel, Theatrical Trailer, Digital Copy
Number of Discs: 1
Slip Cover? Yes

Audio: English (DTS-HD MA 5.1)
Video: 1080p/Widescreen 2.40
Subtitles: English SDH, English, Spanish
Disc Size: 21.0 GB
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Region(s): A

THE MOVIE – 2.25/5

“She’s looking for a few not-so-good men.” And apparently a not-so-good movie as well.

In Hollywood there are actors who for some reason are on the A or B-list in terms of celebrity and headlining movies. Some have talent while others seem to run off of their looks than whether they can, you know, actually act. Just for example, you’ve got Gerard Butler, Jennifer Aniston, Colin Farrell and, of course, Katherine Heigl. No doubt thanks to her years on “Grey’s Anatomy” and the breakout hit Knocked Up, her star shot up and her name was basically everywhere and in every bad to mediocre comedy that came down the pike.

One for the Money is based upon a popular novel series (18 total) written by Janet Evanovich. The central character is Stephanie Plum (KATHERINE HEIGL), a woman who has recently lost her job as a lingerie saleswoman and is desperate for money, so she takes the job from her cousin as a bounty hunter. Initially, Plum wants the large $50,000 bounty on an alleged killer cop, Joe Morelli (JASON O’MARA), who also happened to be the man who she had dated way back when but she’s given some easier grabs after confronting Morelli but is unable to bring him in.

She receives help from a man named Ranger (DANIEL SUNJATA) who works freelance in security, but he once was a bails bondsman. He first introduces Stephanie to a gun and trains her to shoot and even buys it since she’d have to wait to get it; plus she doesn’t exactly have the cash to buy it anyway. She also gets a pair of handcuffs, but as she demonstrates throughout this movie, she can’t seem to handle what she has as time and again, Morelli gets the drop on her including handcuffing her to her own shower rod… while she’s buck naked. She also manages to lose her gun while tracking down another runner as he gets a hold of her purse.

You get the gist but Stephanie somehow is able to get her act together enough to solve a mystery involving Morelli (as he was set up). How, exactly? I have no idea and by the third act, I didn’t really care. Basically, despite Stephanie’s ineptness she becomes a hero and develops a sassy new attitude that will play out in sequels that will never be made.

One for the Money is another example of why the majority of novel adaptations tend to fail on the big screen. I haven’t ever read or even heard of the novel series but I can relate to fans who were frustrated with the movie given the flops perpetrated in John Sanford’s Davenport series which were botched not once but twice in 1999 and most recently in 2011. But from an outsider’s perspective and no having a clue how close Katherine Heigl got this character, I can honestly say it’s not a bad film, just a pretty boring and predictable one.

For her part, Katherine Heigl isn’t bad, merely miscast. I understand why studios might be enamored with her as she does possess a certain amount of charm, but I’m dubious that she’s a movie star and between this and her other starring roles, including dud rom-com The Ugly Truth (co-starring Gerard Butler), comedy-thriller Killers (with Ashton Kutcher) and the mundane romantic-comedy Life As We Know It which is the better movie in her arsenal, which isn’t much of a compliment. I don’t know, Heigl is an OK actress when the script works, as it did in Knocked Up, but she has shown she can’t carry a movie and that’s the case here, although in fairness, I’m not sure if the best younger actresses working today (like Rachel McAdams) could’ve made it much better.

The movie was adapted by Stacy Sherman, Karen Ray (debuts for both) and Liz Brixius creator/executive producer of “Nurse Betty” (this is her feature film debut) and was directed by Julie Anne Robinson who also helmed a variety of television show and marks her second theatrically released film following The Last Song.

On the whole, One for the Money is a movie that is destined to be lost on the shelves at Best Buy or in the Wal-Mart bargain bins. It’s not a bad movie, aptly made all things considered and does share a few laughs, but it’s completely and utterly forgettable.

SPECIAL FEATURES – 2.5/5

This release comes with a glossy slip cover that matches the interior cover.

Making Money: Behind the Scenes (11:01; HD) – This is your typical making-of featurette where the cast (Heigl and O’Mara) and crew (producers, writer, director) offering up insights into why the movie was made including honoring the loyal readers, which from what I read, was a complete and utter disaster. Still, there’s some BTS footage showing how some scenes were shot, but otherwise it’s a ho-hum featurette.

Bond Girls: Kicking Ass in the Bail Bonds Industry (10:28; HD) – Yeah, it’s one of those self-explanatory featurette titles that showcase females working in a male-dominated industry. Actually, this is an interesting featurette getting insights into the business that regular people don’t know much about.

Also included is a Gag Reel (2:37; HD), a Deleted Scene (0:47; HD) which is an alternate ending, the Theatrical Trailer (2:32; HD) and a Digital Copy download code for iTunes.

Previews – What to Expect When You’re Expecting, Casa de mi Padre, Man on a Ledge, Killers, The Switch

VIDEO – 4.25/5

One for the Money arrives on Blu-ray with a sharp-looking 1080p high-definition transfer and MPEG-4 encoding. The film is presented in its original 2.40 widescreen aspect ratio and looks great even on the relative small screen with fine detail level throughout and a well balanced color array, never looking oversaturated. Obviously this is a new release so none of it is a surprise and while it hardly pops off the screen compared with others, it’s still a good transfer.

AUDIO – 4.25/5

There’s not a whole lot to judge from the included 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track. For one, even though there is a fair amount of action, it doesn’t really showcase the lossless track. Now, the dialogue levels are clear and the front and rear channels do get some depth from the generic crime-comedy score but otherwise it’s one of those par for the course audio tracks.

OVERALL – 2.75/5

Overall, One for the Money is a serviceable crime-comedy but it’s also completely forgettable. Katherine Heigl is OK in the lead role and in fairness to her, I’m not sure any other actress could’ve done that much better of a job. The plot itself is pretty thin and, worse yet, absolutely predictable. As far as the Blu-ray is concerned, it has a couple interesting featurettes and the video/audio transfers are pretty good, so if you’re a fan of this movie or the supporting cast, then it’d be worth picking up, otherwise at best this is a rental.

Brian Oliver, The Movieman
Published: 05/17/2012

Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.

Dark Tide (2012)

REVIEW NAVIGATION
The Movie | Special Features | Video Quality | Audio Quality | Overall

Genre(s): Drama
Lionsgate | PG13 – 114 min. – $29.99 | April 24, 2012

MOVIE INFO:
Directed by: John Stockwell
Writer(s): Amy Sorlie (story), Amy Sorlie and Ronnie Christensen (screenplay)
Cast: Halle Berry, Olivier Martinez, Ralph Brown

Theatrical Release Date: March 30, 2012 (limited)

DISC INFO:
Features: None
Number of Discs: 1

Audio: English (DTS-HD MA 5.1)
Video: 1080p/Widescreen 2.35
Subtitles: English SDH, English, Spanish
Disc Size: 22.4 GB
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Region(s): A

THE MOVIE – 2.0/5

Poor Halle Berry, her post Oscar filmography has been less than impressive to say the least. First there was Die Another Day (though to be fair, she signed on to that prior), followed by the dreadfully dank supernatural thriller Gothika, the awful and shameful Catwoman (she was hot, so that’s something), yet another suspense-thriller turkey in Perfect Stranger and most recently the dreadful ensemble romantic-comedy New Year’s Eve. Berry has also had a couple decent roles such as X2 and Thing’s We Lost in the Fire, but needless to say, her career hasn’t exactly been on the upswing.

Her latest is Dark Tide, which received an extremely limited run, so limited that Box Office Mojo only has a foreign tally ($432k). Yikes. But beyond the box office, there’s a reason this movie probably had a difficult time finding a distributor: it’s simply put, downright boring and lacks a cohesive or coherent narrative.

When the movie opens, we meet Kate (HALLE BERRY), an expert in everything shark related. She’s working with a documentary filmmaker, Jeff (OLIVIER MARTINEZ), who just so happens to be her boyfriend. During one of their excursions to film a few sharks in the water, one of her crewmates gets attacked and eaten by one of these sharks; as you can imagine, the fella didn’t make it through…

Fast forward a year and we find Kate playing it safe, only taking customers out into the water for some sightseeing, refusing to allow anyone near any sharks and especially outside one of those cages. Unfortunately for her, the bills are piling up as the number of customers are drying up, preferring to go on ships that allow shark seeing. So with money troubles, she is offered a lucrative job by the now ex-boyfriend to take a snobby rich guy (RALPH BROWN) and his far more down to earth son (LUKE TYLER) out onto the seas and swim with the sharks. Initially resistant, she eventually caves but only under the condition that a shark cage would be used rather than free swimming.

Basically, the middle part of the movie has her butting heads with the rich douchebag, dealing with the emotional baggage of losing a friend and possibly rekindling a romance with the ex-boyfriend. It’s just as dull and boring as the first part and if not for the underwater photography, it would’ve been a complete waste of time. The third act somewhat picks up and while I’m not sure if director John Stockwell did it on purpose to put the audience in the characters flippers, it’s a chaotic sequence as a storm heads in, topples over the boat leaving passenger scattered all around, each trying to do one thing or another.

The biggest problem I had with Dark Tide is that it simply wasn’t a very interesting or compelling movie to watch. Halle Berry, God bless her soul, makes the most out of a lousy script – by Ronnie Christensen (Passengers) and Amy Sorlie (debut) – that crawls at an alarmingly slow rate, introducing us to characters we couldn’t care less about and participating in a plot that is, at best, boring as hell.

Outside of Berry, the supporting cast I suppose are alright. Olivier Martinez is a bit smarmy as the ex-boyfriend; Ralph Brown as Rich Guy Douchebag starts out as a jerk but gets the obligatory arc where he becomes less of a douche; Luke Tyler is alright as the son who is embarrassed by Mr. Douchebag; and Mark Elderkin plays the ship hand who probably is the most likeable character of the bunch.

The one and only saving grace to this movie is thanks to John Stockwell’s incredible underwater photography, giving audiences some awe striking shots of all creatures underneath the sea in very nice detail. Given Stockwell’s history, it’s no surprise how he got the gig, if only the script wasn’t better because otherwise Dark Tide might’ve been a memorable film rather than one destined for the annals of obscurity.

SPECIAL FEATURES – 0/5

This release comes with a matted slip cover (which matches the inner cover), unfortunately outside of a few previews, there’s nothing else on the disc.

VIDEO – 3.75/5

Dark Tide swims and bites its way onto Blu-ray with a good 1080p high-definition transfer, showing off the deep blue underwater shots as well as the land scenes which have fine detail levels and a color array that looks well balanced. The only drawback is, whenever they are in the water, banding is quite apparent so it’s not as smooth as I’d like it, but still it’s not overly distracting.

AUDIO – 4.0/5

The 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track isn’t anything fantastic but perfectly fine for this release. The lossless track tends to show off when character bob up and below the water and during the mundane musical score. Dialogue levels are mostly crisp and clean and some of the audio effects, as few as they are, were also fine.

OVERALL – 2.0/5

Overall, Dark Tide receives high marks for its underwater camera work but the story is lame and the acting is sometimes even worse. Halle Berry for her part is OK with a limited role. The Blu-ray offers up solid audio and video transfers but there are no features so even if you enjoyed the film, you might want to hold off until it’s around $5.

Brian Oliver, The Movieman
Published: 05/15/2012

Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.

Beyond (2011)

REVIEW NAVIGATION
The Movie | Special Features | Video Quality | Audio Quality | Overall

Genre(s): Crime, Suspense, Supernatural
Anchor Bay | PG13 – 90 min. – $24.99 | May 22, 2012

MOVIE INFO:
Directed by: Josef Rusnak
Writer(s): Greg Gieras (written by)
Cast: Jon Voight, Dermot Mulroney, Teri Polo, Julian Morris, Skyler Shaye, Ben Crowley

DISC INFO:
Features: None
Number of Discs: 1
Slip Cover? No

Audio: English (Dolby TrueHD 5.1)
Video: 1080p/Widescreen 2.40
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
Disc Size: 20.5 GB
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Region(s): A

THE MOVIE – 3.0/5

It’s a tricky thing when movies try to mix genres and in the case of Beyond, a direct-to-video release, they take crime-suspense and try to interject supernatural elements which, while a unique combination, never quite gels and it seems the filmmakers couldn’t choose which genre they wanted it to be in.

The story focuses on Detective Jon Koski (JON VOIGHT), working in Anchorage, Alaska and specializes in tracking missing children and taking down the perpetrator. In fact, the movie opens with such apprehension to which Koski bolding walks up to the wounded criminal and shoots him again. Back at the police station, he learns from the police chief, Jack Musker (DERMOT MULRONEY) that the perp’s family plans on suing but he has his back especially since Koski is only a few months away from retirement.

We next meet the Noble family: father Jim (BEN CROWLEY), mother Sarah (TERI POLO) and young daughter, Amy (CHLOE LESSLIE). They appear to be a happy family but not all is as it appears… Anyway, after tucking in Amy for bedtime, Sarah goes to bed when both she and Jim awaken to a loud noise; rushing to investigate, they discover Amy is missing. It turns out Sarah is the sister of Chief Musker who calls in Koski to head the investigation.

Koski begins suspecting everybody, interviewing anyone who could be involved from the parents to Amy’s babysitter, Megan (SKYLER SHAYE), who has a suspect alibi when Koski learns she wasn’t where she said she was when her parents had called earlier. Also getting involved in the investigation is a paranormal psychic named Farley Connors (JULIAN MORRIS) who is dating Megan and offers to help, quickly getting vibes and visions from Amy’s room. Of course, Koski is none too pleased and because of Farley’s involvement, he places him near the top of the suspect list.

There’s little suspense in Beyond and instead relies on strange storytelling going from a more grounded crime-mystery to the supernatural realm as somebody is communicating from, well, beyond seemingly helping the investigation along. Personally, I’m not that into movies involving the supernatural and while it’s OK in this film, there are still a few clunky moments when it stands out, as if coming from a different movie (one scene has Farley, Sarah and Megan communicating with the dead via a Ouija Board).

Despite the shortcomings in mixing the two genres, however, thanks to a surprisingly subdued performance from Jon Voight, who seemed a tad too old to still be a lead detective, though it is Alaska so who knows… Anyway, while it’s not an amazing job Voight did, he certainly keeps the energy up even when the story slows down a bit.

In regards to the supporting cast, they all turn in OK performances but nothing outstanding or special. For her part, Teri Polo was decent as the grief-stricken mother, Julian Morris provides just enough to make viewers suspect his involvement and Dermot Mulroney in a limited part, as always, gives a fine, if not understated, performance.

Beyond was written by Gregory Geras  and directed by Josef Rusnak who probably is best know, if anything, for the 1999 sci-fi film The Thirteenth Floor along with The Art of War II, a movie I highly doubt anyone except for Wesley Snipes was clamoring for. For this movie, Rusnak aptly helms this I suppose and made the best of a script that needed some retooling. Still, he displays some nice atmosphere.

Overall, Beyond is an effective enough movie, just nothing special and fairly predictable. Where the movie flounders is with the mixture of the crime-suspense genre with supernatural, neither of which really meld well together. If there’s any reason to see this movie, it’d probably be for Jon Voight and some excellent director of photography work from Eric Maddison, showing off the amazing Alaskan Landscape (it was filmed on location).

SPECIAL FEATURES – 0/5

Outside of some previews for other titles, there are no features included on this release.

VIDEO – 3.75/5

For a direct-to-video release, I have to admit that Beyond doesn’t look too bad. The movie is presented with an expansive 2.40 widescreen aspect ratio taking advantage of some Alaskan beauty not seen probably since Christopher Nolan’s Insomnia back in 2002. The 1080p high-def transfer looks to be void of any major flaws and while the picture lacks the clarity seen in other newer releases, and even some catalogues, it’s not too bad.

AUDIO – 4.5/5

Most impressive is the thumping Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track which showcases Mario Grigordy’s haunting score that provides the most depth for this movie. The dialogue levels seem to be decent and with clarity coming from the front speaker while the few action/suspense scenes expand outward to the front and rear channels as well.

OVERALL – 2./5

On the whole, Beyond actually isn’t too bad of a film. Clocking in at a mere 90-minutes (less without the credits), it has a good flow and the performance from Jon Voight probably is his best in quite a while as he seemed far more measured, avoiding mugging for the camera and instead seemingly provide his character with true emotions. The biggest drawback is the mixing of genres and the movie probably would’ve benefited more without the supernatural element but even so, it’s worth checking out and giving a rental.

Brian Oliver, The Movieman
Published: 05/14/2012

Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.

Father of the Bride / Father of the Bride Part II (1991/1995)

REVIEW NAVIGATION
The Movie | Special Features | Video Quality | Audio Quality | Overall

Genre(s): Comedy, Drama
Buena Vista | PG – 105 min./107 min. – $29.99 | May 15, 2012

MOVIE INFO (Father of the Bride):
Directed by: Charles Shyer
Writer(s): Frances Goodrich & Albert Hackett and Nancy Meyers & Charles Shyer (screenplay)
Cast: Steve Martin, Diane Keaton, Kimberly Williams, Martin Short, Kieran Culkin

Theatrical Release Date: December 20, 1991

MOVIE INFO (Father of the Bride Part II):
Directed by: Charles Shyer
Writer(s): Albert Hackett & Francis Goodrich (screenplay, “Father’s Little Dividend”); Nancy Meyers & Charles Shyer (screenplay)
Cast: Steve Martin, Diane Keaton, Martin Short, Kimberly Williams, George Newbern, Kieran Culkin

Theatrical Release Date: December 8, 1995

DISC INFO:
Features: Commentary, Featurettes, DVD Copies
Number of Discs: 3

Audio: English (DTS-HD MA 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0)
Video: 1080p/Widescreen 1.85
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
Disc Size: 44.0 GB
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Region(s): A, B, C

THE MOVIES – 3.75/5

Father of the Bride (1991) — 4.0/5

George Banks (STEVE MARTIN) is the All-American dad. He’s got a strong-willed and beautiful wife, Nina (DIANE KEATON), a smart and precocious son (KIERNAN CULKIN) and a wonderful and vibrant daughter named Annie (KIMBERLY WILLIAMS).

The movie opens with George explaining to the audience, in a tux with its tie loosened, about the ordeal that had occurred and recounts the experience: George owns a sports shoes manufacturing company and is anxious to see Annie return from a trip overseas. On his way home, he picks up a surprise present (fixing up her old bike) and finds she is already there, as vibrant as ever and seemingly different. He and the family find out why as she reveals that she met a guy, named Bryan (GEORGE NEWBERN), fell in love and are in fact engaged. Nina and her brother are surprised though congratulatory but George… not so much. After putting up a bit of a fight, he agrees to meet Bryan.

After a cordial but predictably awkward first meeting, the wedding plans are on beginning with hiring a wedding coordinator, the weird/quirky Franck Eggelhoffer (MARTIN SHORT) and his assistant, Howard Weinstein (BD WONG).

While having accepted the wedding and, to a lesser extent Bryan, George wants to penny-pinch as much as possible, dreaming up ways to save money from holding the ceremony at the house with a few guests and him behind the grill. But those dreams are soon dashed and Annie gets the wedding she wants with a nice, traditional church and a full fledge reception at the house. Unfortunately for George, the cost, as he tells anyone willing to listen, is $250/person and with over 500 people, you can do the math… You can guess the rest, but it’s more about the character and his journey than the wedding itself.

I remember watching Father of the Bride back in the mid-90s and even then, found it to be absolutely hilarious yet still heartwarming. It’s also one of the rare PG-rated movies that doesn’t pander to families by making it too safe or over-the-top with inane sound effects but instead keeps a level head even with George’s antics do touch the line of insanity, yet thanks to Steve Martin’s physical humor, works every time.

The supporting cast is another reason this remake of the 1951 comedy has endured the test of time and is now regarded as somewhat of a classic. The highlight of course is Diane Keaton who plays so perfectly opposite Martin’s subdued crazy mannerisms with a stern but calm demeanor. Also a delight is Martin Short in perhaps his last genuinely funny performance outside of maybe the sequel. And not to be outdone or overshadowed – well, OK, they kind of are – are Kimberly Williams and George Newbern. To be fair, these two do share some nice chemistry and for Williams, she manages to be likeable for a character that could come off a bit childish at times.

Father of the Bride Part II (1995) — 3.5/5

The second, and presumably final, part to the series finds George Banks (MARTIN), still a bit neurotic and it only gets worse when, just as he’s about to be accepting of son-in-law Bryan, is told that Bryan and daughter Annie (WILLIAMS) are pregnant. Complicating matters is, after getting frisky with wife Nina (KEATON) one night, Nina also gets pregnant and now mother and daughter are set to have their kids around the same time.

This review with be short and kind of sweet. Although not nearly as good as the first movie, this sequel still is sweet and incredibly funny from beginning to end. Steve Martin once again gets to show off some more of his physical comedy and this go around, where Martin Short was more of a cameo appearing for a few minutes here and there, gets a larger role and even though one would think his antics would get tiring, I thought it was a nice injection of energy.

Like with the first movie, I actually remember watching this with my parents back in my mid-teen years and while I enjoyed, my parents seem to get more out of it, which would make sense as those who are parents probably will get a more emotional impact versus those without.

SPECIAL FEATURES – 1.75/5

This release contains 1 Blu-ray disc with both movies and 2 DVDs containing each movie. The DVDs are the original issue so they contain all the features including the mislabeled “Audio Commentary with Steve Martin and Martin Short” which again is portrayed on the back cover. For the sake of time, I’m only covering what’s on the Blu-ray disc, but will note the Father of the Bride Part II DVD contains an interview (3:53), a production featurette (4:21) and the theatrical trailer.

Audio Commentary – Co-Writer/Director Charles Shyer is absolutely dry and needed someone else in the booth to provide some life as this track quickly becomes droll even with Shyer providing information about the making of the film.

An Invitation to Father of the Bride (10:35; SD) – This is a standard ‘making-of’ featurette where you get a ton of behind-the-scenes footage mixed in with some interviews with the stars including Steve Martin and Martin Short. The filmmakers also explain what makes the movie special.

Martin & Short Interview Each Other (5:13; SD) – As the description states, the two stars question one another about the movie and their characters.

VIDEO – 3.75/5

Father of the Bride — 4.0/5
Making its debut on Blu-ray, Father of the Bride looks very good in HD thanks to a new digital restoration. The movie is presented in its original 1.85 widescreen aspect ratio and although it doesn’t pop off the screen, it does offer up a clean picture free of any noticeable dust marks or scratches though there is a fair amount of grain which might turn off some people (not me).

Father of the Bride Part II — 3.75/5
While this transfer, again presented in its original 1.85 aspect ratio, isn’t quite as good as the first film, it still looks good. This transfer is basically spotless and doesn’t have much in the way of flaws including artifacting. Colors also seem to be well balanced without seeming pumped up and oversaturated.

AUDIO – 4.0/5

Father of the Bride — 3.75/5
The original DVD release contained a standard Dolby Digital Surround track so for Blu-ray, it has been upgraded to a lossless 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track. The soundtrack itself with the score and music sounds great but then falters a tad when we get to the dialogue which probably wasn’t the best recorded on the set. Even so, outside of a scene or two, the audio is crisp and clean from beginning to end.

Father of the Bride Part II — 4.0/5
This 5.1 DTS-HD MA track comes off a tad better than its predecessor. Again, the bulk of the audio comes from the center channel since the movie is dialogue driven. However, when the whimsical score picks up, it provides a bit more depth.

OVERALL – 3.25/5

Overall, the Father of the Bride two-movie collection is a nice set with two very good movies with more than adequate video and audio transfers which are a solid upgrade over their DVD counterparts. Even though the features are disappointing considering it is a “20^th Anniversary Collection”, but with a low SRP, this is well worth picking up.

Brian Oliver, The Movieman
Published: 05/12/2012

Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.

Clueless (1995)

REVIEW NAVIGATION
The Movie | Special Features | Video Quality | Audio Quality | Overall

Genre(s): Comedy
Paramount | PG13 – 97 min. – $22.99 | May 1, 2012

MOVIE INFO:
Directed by: Amy Heckerling
Writer(s): Amy Heckerling
Cast: Alicia Silverstone, Stacey Dash, Brittany Murphy, Paul Rudd, Donald Faison, Breckin Meyer, Dan Hedaya

Theatrical Release Date: July 19, 1995

DISC INFO:
Features: Featurettes, Trailers
Number of Discs: 1

Audio: English (DTS-HD MA 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.0), Portuguese (Dolby Digital 2.0), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0)
Video: 1080p/Widescreen 1.78
Subtitles: English SDH, English, French, Portuguese, Spanish
Disc Size: NA
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Region(s): A, B, C

THE MOVIE – 4.0/5

Plot Outline: Teenage bubblegum princess Cher (ALICIA SILVERSTONE) is a popular, but superficial, high school girl who spends her time planning her outfit combos, make-up, chatting up best friend Dionne (STACEY DASH), and, of course, boys. But she has no interest in the guys at her high school because of their style and upkeep and instead is into older guys. At the high school, she also gets her way by negotiating better grades from her teachers, which in a way she learned from her litigator father (DAN HEDEYA).

Also amongst the circus of people in her life is: Dionne’s boyfriend (DONALD FAISON from “Scrubs”); ex-step-brother Josh (PAUL RUDD) who, even though his mother and her father divorced, still sticks around much to Cher’s chagrin; and new girl in school, Tai (BRITTANY MURPHY), who is a bit homely but Cher decides to take her under her wings. Unfortunately doing so, and thanks to a “near death” experience, catapults Tai to a new stratosphere and eventually supplants Cher as high school queen while Dionne and rival Amber ELISA DONOVAN) become Tai’s BFF’s while Cher is demoted to a mere follower. Following this, she also experiences failures in her romantic life as well…

Note: This review contains spoilers.

Quick Hit Review: Released in 1995, and originally conceived as a television series (which it later got and ran for 3 seasons), Clueless is yet another irreverent look at high school life from writer/director Amy Heckerling who directed the timeless high school flick, Fast Times at Ridgemont High (although Heckerling managed to also provide the world with European Vacation and Look Who’s Talking…). Between Fast Times and Clueless, she has directed two of the best movies about high school that, although a bit hyperbolized in some situations, had more than a grain of truth at its core. For Clueless is looks at the vapid West Coast boys and girls with the Valley lingo and styles. While I don’t think it’s as specifically rapid today, the ideas still hold true about the youth of America.

Outside of the writing and direction, the movie also succeeds because of a star-turning performance from Alicia Silverstone who provides the right balance between the bubblegum personality that slowly develops into a person of substance, a transformation that’s not quite subtle, but fluid and natural. Silverstone’s co-stars are also well rounded even in limited roles from Breckin Meyer as the guy interested in the new girl, Dash as the best friend and Paul Rudd, who does have a larger role, as a potential love interest that develops as naturally as Silverstone’s transformation (if that makes any sense).

Despite being now 17 years old (yikes), Clueless is just as relevant today as it was in the mid-90s. The styles and lingo have changed but the ideas remain the same, just switch things out with cell phones and other electronic devices and we’d get a remake (which sadly probably isn’t too far away). In any case, if you haven’t seen the movie, or if it’s been a while like it was for me (I hadn’t seen it in probably a decade), now’s a good enough time to watch it again.

SPECIAL FEATURES – 3.0/5

The Blu-ray comes with a glossy, embossed slip cover and all the features have been ported over from the “Whatever! Edition”, so there’s no need to hold onto your hold DVD.

Clue or False Trivia Game is an interactive game where you answer questions while watching the movie and rack up points. I would’ve preferred a commentary track over this…

The Class of ’95 (18:31; SD) is a retrospective featurette that has interviews with the cast (Breckin Meyer, Brittany Murphy, Stacey Dash, Paul Rudd, Donald Faison, et al) and various members of the crew as they recall making what would become a cult classic. The only thing we get from Silverstone is an on-set interview from 1995.

Creative Writing (9:39; SD) examines how the movie got made and includes more “new” interviews with Heckerling and others.

Fashion 101 (10:46; SD) takes a look at the fashion of Clueless and tackling the outfits for the different characters.

Language Arts (8:09; SD) is about the lingo or slang created/re-incarnated from the past for the film that permeated the culture from Beverly Hills outward in the mid 90s (even referenced in Scream). “What-Ever!”

We also get a couple short features including: Suck ‘N Blow: A Tutorial (2:47; SD) about the game played in the movie; Driver’s Ed (3:49; SD) covering the freeway freak-out scene; and We’re History (8:52; SD) on the significance the movie has had over the years.

The disc also has the teaser (1:59; HD) and theatrical trailers (2:39; HD).

VIDEO – 3.75/5

Clueless shops its way onto Blu-ray with a nice looking 1080p high-definition, although it is a bit uneven especially in one noticeable scene where it seems Paramount couldn’t find the original negative (it looks like it was culled from a VHS copy or something). The movie is presented with a 1.78 aspect ratio (originally 1.85) and while there are some noticeable film grain and noise, and although not abundant, I did notice a few specs of dirt here and there. But even with the flaws, it is a fair upgrade over the 7-year-old DVD (not to mention the 1998 release).

AUDIO – 3.5/5

The disc comes with a decent, albeit subdued, 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track. While it’s a tad more balanced over the standard Dolby Digital 5.1 track from the DVD, it’s not as big of an upgrade by comparison. Of course, the movie is almost entirely dialogue driven with some moments of choice songs from mid-90s that provide some limited depth from the other channels. Also, the bass rarely if ever turned on so even there it’s minimal.

OVERALL – 3.75/5

Overall, Clueless is a timeless classic that even 17 years later is still relevant today as it was then even when styles and lingo changes. The movie features some great performances especially from Silverstone who probably deserved more award recognition than she got. As for this Blu-ray, if offers up the same features as the 10-year anniversary DVD and some decent video and audio upgrades.

Brian Oliver, The Movieman
Published: 05/08/2012

Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.

Underworld: Awakening (2012)

REVIEW NAVIGATION
The Movie | Special Features | Video Quality | Audio Quality | Overall

Genre(s): Fantasy, Horror, Action
Sony | R – 89 min. – $35.99 | May 8, 2012

MOVIE INFO:
Directed by: Marlind & Stein
Writer(s): Kevin Grevioux and Len Wiseman & Danny McBride (characters); Len Wiseman & John Hlavin (story), Len Wiseman & John Hlavin and J. Michael Straczynski and Allison Burnett (screenplay)
Cast: Kate Beckinsale, Stephen Rea, Michael Ealy, Theo James, India Eisley, Charles Dance

Theatrical Release Date: January 20, 2012

DISC INFO:
Features: Commentary, Picture-in-Picture, Featurettes, Gag Reel, Music Video
Number of Discs: 1

Audio: English (DTS-HD MA 7.1), French (DTS-HD MA 5.1)
Video: 1080p/Widescreen 2.40
Subtitles: English SDH, English, French, Spanish
Disc Size: NA
Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Region(s): A, B, C

THE MOVIE – 2.75/5

Full disclosure: I’ve never been much a fan of the Underworld franchise. Generally they’re dark, dreary and often feature lots of action scenes but none of them memorable. What does stand out, and a big reason why Sony/Screen Gems have now released the fourth movie in the series, entitled Underworld: Awakening, is because of Kate Beckinsale who fills her tight PVC outfit quite nicely appealing to different demos from the vampire/werewolf crowd to the fetish audience (I would assume the two cross paths).

The movie opens with a recap of the first two movies in case anyone has forgotten. Selene (KATE BECKINSALE) outlines the battle between the Lycans and Vampire clans as the fight has turned from going against one another to against the humans. We get an awkwardly cut series of scenes where Selene escapes from a dragnet of the authorities to meet up with Michael but gets there too late as the police open fire. He drops into the water, she after him with bullets floating by followed with a flash grenade which knocks her out.

We fast forward to find Selene, frozen upside down in a tank at some generic corporate research facility (possibly remnants of what was used in the Resident Evil movies) and something or someone has managed to release her from captivity. Lucky for Selene, her outfit is nearby and she gets dressed into her slinky gear ready to kick ass and NOT take any names. Later she would discover that she’s been in suspended animation for 12 years! Anyway, despite the best efforts of the Generic Facility’s manager, Dr. Jacob Lane (STEPHEN REA), Selene escapes, but she’s plagued by visions, seeing events happen in real time through the eyes of someone else.

In the meantime, we are introduced to Detective Sebastian (MICHAEL EALY) investigating the gruesome death of one man Selene had disposed of earlier; a Lycan but went back into human form. The reason this is important is because up to this point, the human race believed the Lycan populating was extinct but something more sinister is going on.

Selene continues trying to evade the authorities while also tracking down the person she’s psychically connect with and in the search, runs into fellow vampire David (THEO JAMES) and a group of Lycans who are hunting down the person Selene has been looking for. After fighting off the Lycans, she discovers 12-year-old Eve (INDIA EISLEY), who was another subject at Generic Facility. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure this out, so I’ll reveal it now with a SPOILER WARNING, that Eve is in fact Selene’s daughter.

With the help of David, Selene and Eve take shelter at an underground covenant after taking a car chase skirmish with a few Lycans in which Eve sustains injury. After some reluctance from David’s father (CHARLES DANCE) Thomas,, the leader of the covenant, Eve receives treatment where they discover she is a perfect mixture of Lycan and Vampire, which disturbs Thomas who wants the two gone before the Lycans discover their location. Unfortunately, the warning is not heeded and indeed they are found out in which a bloody battle ensues culminating in Selene taking on a massive mutant-like Lycan and Eve getting captured. Now Selene, with the help of David and Detective Sebastian, breaks back into Generic Facility and rescue Eve before it’s too late. I’d go a bit further, but there is a twist that should remain for the viewer. It’s nothing earth-shattering but kind of interesting, I guess.

Alright, so what about Underworld: Awakening? Well, honestly it’s not nearly as bad as the trailers have made it out to be. Although the simple visual effects look fine, others, like when the Lycans jump from car to car during the chase sequence, look pretty bad. Of course, it’s to be expected since none of these Underworld movies were heavy on the budget, although this one reportedly around $70 million (the first only cost $28 million or so with inflation), so they either beefed it up for the visual and special effects or Kate Beckinsale took a nice paycheck (worthy).

When it comes to the acting, the Underworld franchise has never been a bastion with fine acting, although for what it is, the series has had some good performances, from Bill Nighy’s (who is sorely missed) over-the-top grandeur to Michael Shannon as the split antagonist. I’m not sure how the supporting cast stacks up in comparison, but for a newcomer India Eisley does a good job for a kid actor playing a werewolf and vampire, Theo James is still a tad bland though it seems another sequel could help expand his character and Michael Ealy, while given limited screen time and passing character development, has some charisma.

Of course, the highlight and reason anyone would even want to bother with this sequel is because of Kate Beckinsale. After taking a break from the series, for which the filmmakers’ chose to make a prequel starring Rhona Mitra as the chick wearing the PVC outfit, Beckinsale returns and is fine form (take that anyway you’d like) and still kicks ass like nobody else.

Even though I’ve never been a fan of this franchise, I could at least admire Beckinsale for all that she brought the role even when the story and/or script wasn’t at its best, and the same most certainly can be said for Awakening. Written by a plethora of screenwriters including Len Wiseman who originally co-wrote and directed the first two movies, the story never really takes form and seemed more suitable as a made-for-TV movie. Also, I should warn you that while the back cover says its 89-minutes, take out the end credits and this clocks in at around 75-minutes or so, a really short running time I haven’t seen from a major production since Men in Black 2.

Directed by the Marlind & Stein who also helmed Shelter starring Julianne Moore and Jonathan Rhys Meyers; here was decent enough I guess but nothing amazing as they seemed to just match the darkness and tone of the previous entries. It’s nothing profound, just adequate for the genre.

On the whole, Underworld: Awakening isn’t nearly as bad as the trailer had made it out to be, but it’s certainly not a very good movie either. If you’re a fan of this series, maybe this entry will be satisfying, but for those who haven’t been enthralled with the others, it will hardly change your mind.

SPECIAL FEATURES – 3.5/5

Creating the Underworld: Picture-in-Picture Experience – This is a regular Blu-ray exclusive is pretty worthless showing bits of trivia while you watch the movie along with some footage from the previous films. The info provided is too far and between and even then it’s not all that interesting so you might as well just skip this.

Feature Commentary – Directors Måns Mårlind and Björn Stein, Producers Richard Wright and Gary Lucchesi & Executive Producer/Visual Effects Supervisor James McQuaide sit down for a fun but still informative commentary track where they offer up trivia and tid-bits on the making of Underworld: Awakening, some of the challenges that were presented and how the directors’ approached the story.

Behind the Scenes Featurettes (TRT 1:02:55; HD) – There are 5 extensive featurettes included: Selene Rises, Casting the Future of Underworld, Resuming the Action, Building a Better Lycan and Awakening a Franchise, Building a Brutal World. These are set of well made featurettes offering insights into making the sequel, getting Beckinsale back and just going through the story as a whole. Between interviews with the directors, producers, writers and the cast, we get some behind-the-scenes footage that gives info on how certain shots or scenes were done.

Blooper Reel (3:21; HD) – Here is a collection flubbed lines or missed marks.

A music video (3:25; HD) for “Heavy Prey” but Lacey Sturm (of Flyleaf) and download code for the UltraViolet Digital Copy are also included.

Previews – Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, Men in Black 3, The Amazing Spider-Man, Resident Evil: Retribution

VIDEO – 4.25/5

Underworld: Awakening bites and claws its way onto Blu-ray high-definition, presented in its original 2.40 widescreen aspect ratio and 1080p high-definition. First things first, one item I’ve seen much discussion on the Net is on the black levels and admittedly, it is a bit on the weaker side, showing more of a dark blue than black, but still, it’s not overly distracting and if any darker, it would remove more detail given how dimly lit this movie, and the previous movies as well, was shot. As for the picture in other aspects, it looks good and finely detailed throughout and while it doesn’t exactly shine on the smaller screen with its darkly lit set pieces, it’s still sharp and void of any flaws.

AUDIO – 4.5/5

The disc comes with a boom-tastic 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track. As you might imagine, a movie that’s high on action but low on substance will generally benefit from the extra channels and indeed it does for this one. The lower levels such as dialogue or ambient noises, when present, sound pretty good but once the gunplay, roaring and all general action begins, that’s when the bass kicks in and your walls will be shaking. During those scenes, it shows off the track’s depth from every channel and provides for a mighty home theater experience.

OVERALL – 3.5/5

Overall, Underworld: Awakening actually isn’t that bad of a movie, albeit it’s not that great either. It’s probably on par with the previous movies just with slightly lower quality in terms of the cast (Bill Nighy even in a small role is irreplaceable). As it stands, the movie is really short and the visual effects, despite an upgrade in the budget, is mediocre at best, although the make-up and monster effects are alright in an old school kind of way. As far as the Blu-ray goes, the video and audio transfers are impressive as are the selection of special features.

Brian Oliver, The Movieman
Published: 05/02/2012

Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.