Virtuosity isn’t a great movie by any stretch but I don’t think it intended to be taken seriously. While Denzel Washington plays it safe with a steady if not forgettable performance, Russell Crowe is an absolute hoot and goes over-the-top and was easily the film’s saving grace to go along with a thin but entertaining plot. The Blu-ray released through Warner is rather basic with no bonus material while the video and audio transfers are at least well done.
The Cell might look nice with amazing visuals by director Tarsem Singh and the production design team and conceptually it is an intriguing idea, but man its hard not to realize how dumb the movie is while watching. I suppose if viewing for the first time one might get lost in the effects and style, but drilling down, the substance is lacking to go along with one-dimensional characters (though Lopez for her part wasn’t terrible).
Neither The Outing/The Lamp nor The Godsend are particularly well made movies but they do have a niche audience who might appreciate it. The Blu-ray released by Shout via their Scream Factory line is rather basic with basically no bonus material while the video and audio transfers are both OK and nothing extraordinary.
“COPS”: Wildest Chases is a really basic release and the title is a bit misleading because rather than compiling the “wildest” chases, instead we get 7 full episodes from recent seasons. Considering there are “COPS” marathons on both Spike and CMT (in remix form), I’m not sure why one should pay a penny for this release…
Robot Jox is a dumb but harmlessly cheesy sci-fi actioner done on a relatively limited budget. The acting isn’t anything amazing but for the most part the special and visual effects were impressive enough all things considered.
1990: The Bronx Warrior was never meant to be good and it certainly is not. It is also not a movie to watch alone as I suspect one would have a far better time mocking it, “MST3K” style. This release by Blue Underground is alright with so-so audio/video transfers and an OK selection of bonus features.
The Encore of Tony Duran, which has been around for a few years floating around the Interwebs, finally sees a DVD release and although not polished, still has some charm with its star, Gene Pietragallo. The DVD itself is a bit weak with so-so video/audio transfers but the video commentary makes for an interesting enough listen.
Absolute Beginners isn’t great but the performances all around are well done and some of the songs were at least catchy. The cinematography was also impressive as was the camera work especially the opening which looks like a one take, though there were a couple places for splicing.
I hate reality TV and I’m tired of zombie movies and Fight of the Living Dead manages to combine the two to make for an annoying series that I’m sure a certain segment will like, myself I won’t think about it ever again. The DVD released by Cinedigm is light on substantive features but I guess it’s better than nothing.
State of Grace might not be the most well known drama especially in Sean Penn’s extensive filmography but it is a well done, if not overdrawn, flick worth checking out mainly for the performances especially by Gary Oldman who is at his finest. The Blu-ray released by Twilight Time has sufficient audio/video but is limited in the special features department.
The Night of the Generals isn’t the most well made WWII film but it is certainly different from others giving it a murder mystery spin to the formula. However, the cast is impressive with Peter O’Toole, Omar Sharif and Donald Pleasance each giving good performances. The Blu-ray released by Twilight Time is basic with good video and audio transfers but lacks in the special features department.
Both Tentacles and Reptilicus speak to a specific niche crowd, fans of the old creature-features so while I myself wasn’t overly impressed, it is nice to get both on one disc looking and sounding better than ever. Even though this release falters in the bonus feature department, it might be worth picking up for fans.
Five Easy Pieces might not have been my cup of tea as it is slow moving and no real plot to speak of being a character study, but Jack Nicholson’s performance, in one of his first lead roles, is fantastic and it is a fairly well written film with one iconic scene.
Scarecrows isn’t a great supernatural horror but it has its moments with a few impressive make-up effects and a well rounded cast of scumbags to get their comeuppance. The Blu-ray released by Scream Factory is fairly impressive with decent to fair video/audio transfers and a decent selection of bonus material.
Private Number is just the latest in a long line of cheap DVD releases destined for the cheap bin at Wal-Mart and even then it’s not worth that kind of money. It’s a shame as there was some good elements bogged down by bad writing and a really stupid third act and it’s another movie with Tom Sizemore being prominently displayed on the cover but having little to do with the plot.