The Relic may not be a top notched film but looking at it as a call back to the old days of monster horror flicks, I think it works well enough to be a satisfactory Saturday movie night viewing party. The Blu-ray at least ports over all the features from the DVD version and the 7.1 channel audio is amazing.
Jade may be underrated in its vitriol but by the same token it’s still not a very good movie even with some erotic sex scenes meant to titillate and instead are weird (nothing new from Friedkin) bordering on boring. You add in a plot that isn’t very intriguing and a lead actor who is even less so and you’ve got a movie that deserves to be forgotten.
Sorority Row may just be another slasher pic with some unique kills but the finale is the real killer of this film. However, the audio and video are both solid and although I would’ve liked to have seen better featurettes than the standard EPK-like one’s we got, the Picture-in-Picture track is decent but the audio and video are both quite good and make this set a slightly above average Blu-ray.
The Brothers Bloom is writer-director Rian Johnson’s follow-up his surprisingly fantastic 2005 film, Brick starring Joseph Gordon Levitt. But often sophomore efforts after promising starts tend to greatly disappoint but Johnson’s latest once again surprised me as it wasn’t your typical con genre flick.
I was absolutely enthralled with 2006’s Paris, I Love You as it beautifully showcased the City of Love, Lights, Dreams, Art, et cetera while also giving us stories that made use of each precious minute allotted; and I had high hopes for the follow-up, New York, I Love You where we get to see the City That Never Sleeps. Unfortunately even though the directors try their best to showcase New York, the stories never quite hit the emotional levels (be it for comedy or drama) that I felt with Paris.
Although not as bad as I had imagined going in, Whiteout sadly just isn’t a special suspense-thriller. Indeed it does have a good moment or two but with a story that doesn’t exude feature film quality.
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation is one of my all-time favorite holiday films, a true classic in fact. What makes this movie so timeless is no matter how many times I’ve watched it (and if it’s on TV, I can’t help but put it on if only for a couple of minutes), it is still as funny as it was the last time. Read More…
Heat is an incredible and well layered crime-drama featuring two dynamic performances and one of the best supporting cast of any modern film. I’m a little hesitant to give this Blu-ray a full recommendation since the picture isn’t awe-inspiring but it is still a step above the DVD video, so if you can get this on sale, it is well worth picking up.
I think The Number 23 could have been a niche classic but unfortunately, it never quite builds the right momentum to take it across the finish line. Carrey once again gives a good performance, as does Virginia Madsen — who takes some risks with her Fabrizia alter-ego —, and I must give even Joel Schumacher some credit just for Fingerling’s world. The film has some intriguing ideas that might make watching once worthwhile.
If it weren’t for such an average video transfer — since there’s not a whole lot of difference between this and the DVD from what I could tell —, Wrong Turn just might’ve been a moderately acceptable purchase, but with only a nice DTS-HD MA audio mix and the same features, this is one I would skip, unless you don’t already own the DVD and can find it for under $10…
The Uninvited isn’t a particularly a great movie by any stretch but it did manages to exceed my own low expectations given it was advertised as yet another PG-13 teen horror movie. Also, some may not like the ending but for me it was surprising enough, even if the groundwork to get to that point was a bit lazy.
While Taking Lives may not be a top of the shelf serial-killer thriller, it at least has a creepy vibe to it and some decent performances from Angelina Jolie, Ethan Hawke and the woefully underused Kiefer Sutherland. The Blu-ray, however, is not all that impressive. Since you can get a new copy of the DVD pretty cheap, I’m not sure if it’s worth the extra cost.
The Spirit is a sad misstep of a film big on style – even if it is copied almost exactly from Sin City – but short on story. I know what Miller was going after with the campy nature but what might look good on the page (screenplay or comic book) may not translate too well on the screen.
Zodiac is a fantastic film and probably one of my favorites from director David Fincher. It’s a fascinating mystery/crime drama with excellent performances that were sadly overlooked by the Academy. Of course, it didn’t help that Paramount released this in March rather than December.
The Ruins may not be the most original horror film to come out, but it is definitely a lot better than the rash of remakes and sequels we have been force-fed down our throats for the past few years.