Movieman's Guide to the Movies
The Final Word on Physical Media
Hercules was never one of my favorite Disney animated movies of the 1990s, falling far short of the likes of Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid (and even in some aspects, Tarzan), but it’s still a decent enough film that the whole family can enjoy with some fine music sequences.
The Railway Man is a well made movie but its main success is with yet another fine performance from Colin Firth who steals the show although Nicole Kidman gets some good scenes as well.
Jesse might’ve been well intentioned, and certainly a passionate project for the writers and director, but the outcome was a spotty script, subpar acting and an all around boring film not worth the time, energy or money. The DVD also is less than desirable with an average video, substandard audio and basically no special features.
Toy Story of Terror is another solid entry in the franchise with some great humor and some decent, kid-friendly, terror. It’s also wonderful that they manage to get the cast back even in limited roles rather than go the cheaper/easier route with voice imitators.
Bedknobs and Broomsticks, while having its fans, isn’t the most well-known Disney musical taking a backseat to the likes of Mary Poppins, but it’s still fun and energetic led by the wonderful Angela Lansbury along with some nice musical numbers.
Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! is one of the more quirky romantic comedies I’ve come across but that’s the appeal for the film written and directed by famed Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar with two solid performances from Victoria Abril and Antonio Banderas.
Continue reading “Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!: The Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review”
Without Warning is a low-budget and sometimes laughable sci-fi/horror but seeing Jack Palance and Martin Landau was fun and it at least kept my attention until the end
Tarzan seems to be the ignored stepchild amongst Disney’s animated titles (talking 80s and 90s), taking a backseat to Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Aladdin or The Little Mermaid but it’s a fun and finely animated flick with some good voice casting and incredible sequences.
Cuban Fury is a fun, if not uneven, music-comedy. Nick Frost and Rashida Jones both turn in fine and funny performances and the music itself is catchy, even for those unfamiliar with the style; all in all, this is rental worthy.
Divergent is what I’d like to call a ‘nice’ movie. There’s nothing here terrible offensive but at the same time, it doesn’t break new ground either. The direction is more than adequate and the performances are good. But for all the good, the story structure is odd with the bulk of the time relegated to the training with another plotline almost an afterthought taking over the third act.
Ironclad: Battle for Blood is an unnecessary sequel and add to that, doesn’t come close to having the talent the original did (Brian Cox, Kate Mara, Paul Giamatti, Jason Flemyng) but with the popularity of shows like “Game of Thrones”, it’s a quick money grab by a smaller studio, though the quality this go around, both in terms of story and production values, isn’t that great.
Continue reading “Ironclad: Battle for Blood Blu-ray Review”
Some of the animation in Lionsgate distributed Tarzan actually isn’t bad… if kept at difference otherwise close-ups tend to reveal the creepy dead-eyes. However, the story also isn’t that good, although unlike some, I actually don’t have many issues with the changes made, it’s just that what is there, to go along with clunky dialogue, isn’t all that enthralling.
The Other Woman takes its time at the start but picks the pace up once Diaz and Mann join forces making for a fun movie with some funny scenes amidst a few heartfelt moments as well. The performances from Diaz and Mann are both fantastic and got to give kudos to Nikolaj Coster-Waldau for having to play a thoroughly bad douche with no redeeming values whatsoever.
Tyler Perry’s The Single Mom’s Club is a typical entry for the writer/director with inconsistent writing, one-dimensional characters and melodrama suitable for a daytime soap opera. Still, I suppose fans of Perry will enjoy it, though for me, it’s not exactly going to stand out by year’s end.
These five movies released by Mill Creek are merely cheap cash grabs that can be had at most Wal-Marts (apparently) for a mere $2.88 and trust me, you get what you pay for: no features, no real menu and basic audio/video transfers. I suppose if you only want the movies and couldn’t care less about the audio, it might be worth picking up.
Continue reading “Review: Mill Creek Entertainment 7/22/2014 Titles”