To say I was disappointed in this Beauty and the Beast live action adaptation would be an understatement. Although the technical aspects were impressive, the performances, particularly for Emma Watson and Dan Stevens, were underwhelming, and the new music was rather forgettable.
Buena Vista Home Entertainment has announced the date and released artwork for Disney’s latest live action adaptation, Beauty and the Beast starring Emma Watson and Dan Stevens and directed by Bill Condon. Click on the link below or image to the left to check out the features and artwork.
American Pastoral receives, let’s say, mediocre reviews but for my money, I found all of the performances genuine and the story rather compelling, if not outright depressing and sad; for his first outing as director, Ewan McGregor did a fine job.
Lionsgate Home Entertainment has announced the date and released artwork for the drama, American Pastoral starring Ewan McGregor, Jennifer Connelly and Dakota Fanning and directed by McGregor. Click on the link below or image to the left to check out the features and artwork.
Our Kind of Traitor is hardly perfect with a script that probably could’ve used some fine-tuning but with some great performances, headlined by Ewan McGregor and Stellan Skarsgård, as well as Naomi Harris who has some wonderful scenes, I think this is worth a rental or, if cheap, outright purchase.
Angels & Demons is technically better than The Da Vinci Code in many regards especially in terms of pacing and a tighter story and while Tom Hanks delivers in his performance and Ewan McGregor and Stellan Skarsgard make for fine supporting roles.
Last Days in the Desert seems to be a passion project from all involved and anyone not interested in movies with a personal journey, as a fair portion McGregor treks through the desert, this might bore you. Still, Ewan McGregor does turn in a nice performance but otherwise it’s a throwaway movie that I have no interest in seeing again.
Jane Got a Gun, when you push away all of the pre-production drama and switch-a-roos, isn’t a half bad western-adventure-drama that features two fine performances by Natalie Portman and Joel Edgerton backed up by at least a quasi-interesting story.
When it comes down to it Mortdecai is just a bad movie. None of the jokes worked and Johnny Depp’s latest outlandish performance is no longer charming and the respectable supporting cast is completely wasted. This is not even worth a rental. As for the Blu-ray, the bonus material is basic while the video/audio transfers are more than respectable.
This 4K mastered release of Angels & Demons is certainly an upgrade over its Blu-ray counterpart, HOWEVER, it’s not a huge one nor something worth the $15 price point for a release that didn’t bother porting over the features (even if they were placed on a second disc). Still, if you have the proper equipment you’ll see a good difference.
Perfect Sense is not a movie for everybody but the chemistry between Ewan McGregor and Eva Green as well as a compelling story makes it at least worth watching at least once. Unlike a movie like Contagion, this deals almost entirely on human emotion and little to nothing about the actual epidemic, its causes and possible cures. Similar to Never Let Me Go which is about cloning, that film as well centers on human relations than the ethics of cloning.
Haywire is one of those movies that should’ve been a lot more fun than it actually was. The action scenes are well done and the fight sequences are realistic and not overdone to the extreme that you often see in over-the-top Hollywood flicks. However, from the get-go, the movie never has that energy or drive that makes one care about any of these characters, made harder when the supporting cast is only in it for 10-15 minutes at a time.
In the hands of another director who adherer’s to the old substance over style of filmmaking, The Island could’ve been a profound, even memorable film. Instead, we get several insane (and inane) action sequences with some semblance of a substantive story where the action takes precedence over all else with Bay’s signature shots thrown in for good measure.
Twentieth Century Fox and Lucas Films have finally released the official artwork for the science fiction saga, Star Wars Episodes I-VI. Click on the link below or image to the left to check out the numerous features and artwork for the Blu-ray.
Angels & Demons, the sequel to 2006’s The Da Vinci Code, was originally slated for a 2008 release but due to the writers’ strike, it was delayed. Many, myself included, felt The Da Vinci Code was a bloated and boring adaptation to a controversial international best seller that told the story that Jesus took on a wife and his bloodline still existed. However, where there was extreme interest in Da Vinci, such controversies were basically non-existent with Angels & Demons. Read More…