Movieman's Guide to the Movies
The Final Word on Physical Media
Innocence isn’t awful and is passable entertainment but it’s the latest in the ‘tween vampire trend that began with Twilight. The acting is OK headlined by Kelly Reilly as the main villain and Sophie Curtis for her part wasn’t half bad the lead actress. Fans of this genre (or subgenre) might get something out of it, for others it’s destined for the Wal-Mart dump bin.
Tinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast is another solid entry into the series though both of these movies are more centered on Fawn than Tinkerbell herself. The story this go around is darker and could be scary for kids of a certain age and it’s not the most heartwarming finale yet with that I actually appreciate the movie even more for not taking the easy route. The Blu-ray released by Disney might not have great bonus material but the audio and video transfers are both solid.
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Scooby-Doo! Moon Monster Madness isn’t the strongest of the modern animated movie line but it still has some entertainment value and if you have kids, they’ll probably eat every bit of it up. The animation itself isn’t bad either and the voice casting once again is well done.
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The Musicals: 4-Movie Collection is an economical way for fans of these films to own with the low SRP. The set itself is well done contained in a nice box but I’m not a fan of the digibook style and wish the studio would’ve just released this in a standard Blu-ray case. And although the features aren’t great, it’s good enough with the two commentaries and well made documentary for Singin’ in the Rain (though that has been available for a couple of years).
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This 10th Anniversary release of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is merely a repackaging of the old disc with commemorative packaging so if you already own this, or even the HD-DVD, there’s no need to pick this up. Outside of that, my opinion of the film hasn’t changed: I didn’t like it then and I still don’t like it today.
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Love and Death is one Woody Allen’s more quirky outings but found his footing and voice with follow-ups including Annie Hall (1977) and Manhattan (1979), two of my all-time favorite Allen films (along with Match Point). The Blu-ray released by Twilight Time is simple with only a trailer but decent audio and video transfers.
Return to Me is somewhat of an underrated and overlooked romantic-drama-comedy and in spite of the surprising casting of David Duchovny in the typical male lead role, the movie really works from beginning to end the he and Driver actually have good chemistry with one another. The supporting cast is also impressive from James Belushi to veterans like Robert Loggia and Carroll O’Connor.
Lenny is one of those movies propelled and almost entirely stands on the performance of its lead. Dustin Hoffman does an amazing job bringing the late, great and “controversial” (for his time) Lenny Bruce, deserving of his Academy Award nomination (though he had the unfortunate timing of going against so many greats like Nicholson and Al Pacino and losing to Art Carney). The Twilight Time Blu-ray release is limited in terms of features but the video and audio transfers were both well done.
An Autumn Afternoon is not only a beautifully written film but, to go along with the excellent performances, was beautifully shot by director Yasujiro Ozu and his longtime cinematographer Yûharu Atsuta. The Blu-ray released by The Criterion Collection brilliantly restores the picture and audio and while the features aren’t bountiful, are still interesting especially the commentary track.
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VANish actually was a surprisingly well done, if not flawed, suspense thriller with what is hopefully a star-making performance by Maiara Walsh while the writing and direction from Bryan Bockbrader was well done with a unique format with the film entirely taking place in the confines of a van.
LEGO DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League vs. Bizarro League isn’t great and is even a notch below LEGO Batman: The Movie but is still a fun little adventure with impressive animation and it’s something comic book fans and young kids will enjoy. The Blu-ray released by Warner has a good video transfer and an OK lossless audio track.
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The St. Valentine’s Day Massacre is a well acted, especially by Jason Robards as Al Capone, and all around well made crime-drama from Roger Corman. The Blu-ray released by Twilight Time isn’t amazing from both a features and video perspective but I suspect this 45 year old film has never looked or sounded better, though considering the high price, you might not be getting the most bang for your buck.
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this horror-oriented version of The Phantom of the Opera isn’t great but there are some things to admire: Robert Englund does well enough as the title character and Jill Schoelen is absolutely stunning as the female lead. The Blu-ray, though, is a bit limited. There is a good commentary track and a well made retro documentary with new interviews while the audio/video are at best serviceable.
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To Sir, With Love is a well made drama that is elevated not only with an uplifting story but also powerful, yet not forced, performance by Sidney Poitier. The Blu-ray released by Twilight Time offers up solid video/audio transfers and a fair amount of bonus material compared with other TT releases.
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Poker Night isn’t a terrible movie but it really doesn’t offer anything new to the genre as it delves into every cliché in the horror book. That said, the acting wasn’t half bad and I can’t complain seeing more work from the venerable Titus Welliver in a supporting role. The Blu-ray released by XLrator Media is very basic with good audio/video transfers but the bonus material is almost non-existent save for the trailer.