Ex Machina is one of the better surprises of 2015 with a well told story taking a subject seen many times before yet giving it that extra layer and giving us three distinguished characters each fleshed out so well.
Inferno is a cheesy but fun suspense yarn from the 1950s utilizing fantastic 3D technology and, at least what I’ve received, the first 3D title released by Twilight Time which offers a solid video and audio transfers but a bit limited in the features department.
Who’ll Stop the Rain is based on the novel “Dog Soldiers”, I assume this was titled for the 1970 hit song, but whatever the case, it’s a well made, barely-known, thriller.
The Accidental Tourist is an interesting little drama that excels with its performances, particularly that of William Hurt and Geena Davis (who took home an Academy Award), more so than the story.
Seven Days in May certainly seems to be a prescient film given today’s climate and the movie itself is a showcase of some solid performances by prominent actors of that era, namely Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas.
Unforgiven is probably one of the best westerns ever made and it’s a movie that transcends audiences so if you’re like me and don’t normally watch those kinds of movies, give this one a shot: it features fine performances, fine direction and a story that is compelling from beginning to end.
3:10 to Yuma is one of the best modern westerns that features precision direction from James Mangold and includes a stellar cast by Russell Crowe, Christian Bale and Peter Fonda not to mention Ben Foster, Alan Tudyk and Logan Lerman in supporting roles.
The Climber was an interesting little Italian flick and features a fun performance by lead Joe Dallesandro and although I wasn’t fully involved with the crime-thriller centric story, no doubt any fan of Italian cinema might find it at least interesting.
Oklahoma is a nice addition to Shout’s new “Broadway” line and being, from what I could tell, being out-of-print on DVD, it’s nice to see this rendition of the classic play be put onto Blu-ray.
Admittedly I’m really not a fan of surrealism cinema, not that the ideas go over my head (albeit some do) but often times it comes across pretentious and worse yet, outright dull. Even so, Kiju Yoshida’s visuals are at least something to behold.
Rock Dog a third tier animated movie that was based off of a Chinese story and the style, while pleasant enough, has a thin story and, at best, so-so voice performances. For adults it might be somewhat tedious to sit through, but for younger viewers, it’s harmless enough.
The High Schooler’s Guide to College Parties might have an eye-catching title, and an eye-catching cover, but the actual movie is filled with unfunny jokes combined with poor production design and unlikeable characters. Please don’t let that cover fool you.
The premise was interesting enough but the execution was pretty bad, as were some of the performances (though Alexandra Stewart was okay). I guess if you have a fascination with Dutch/German productions in the English language, with Hitchcockian-like stories, this might be worth checking out, if only for the oddball nature.
This Wonder Woman animated movie is decent enough featuring a solid story and a nice selection of voice casting. This was one of DC’s earliest animated releases and probably one of their better outings.
The Loved One is an oft funny and humorous take on the funeral business with shots at… well… just about everything under the sun, kind of a 1960s version of South Park really.