“The Vampire Diaries” might not be as strong as it once was and the writing isn’t the best with contrived storylines, yet the ensemble cast mostly makes up for the series’ shortcomings so it should be interesting to see how it does going forward without star Nina Dobrev as well as a few other key departures. Still, the show has some entertainment value for what it is.
I wasn’t nearly as impressed with Dressed to Kill as others have since it doesn’t offer much mystery and the psychological elements which De Palma is normally a master of (look no further than Blow Out), isn’t very enticing either. I guess Angie Dickinson and Nancy Allen excelled in their roles as Michael Caine, while not entirely remarkable, still manages to turn in a sufficient (and unique) performance.
The Age of Adaline seemed to be born out of a Nicolas Sparks novel with incredible coincidences and a quasi-sappy storyline. That said, I can’t deny this was at least an entertaining and inventive romantic-drama with some fine performances including Harrison Ford and Ellen Burnstyn, and to some extent Blake Lively. If you’re game for this type of film, it might be worth a rental.
Furious 7 takes insanity to the next level with incredible action sequences as well as impressive stunt work to go along with seeing characters I’ve come to care about since the beginning. No doubt the loss of Paul Walker weighed heavily on the cast and crew and one must give kudos for getting it done.
“NCIS: New Orleans” is I’d say passable entertainment and an OK start for its first season thanks in part with some satisfactory storylines and story arcs to go along with the charisma Scott Bakula still possesses even in the much maligned “Enterprise.” This 6-disc DVD set is well done with some decent enough bonus features and good video/audio transfers.
The D Train is just plain awkward through and through and for me, awkward does not equal funny and that’s to go along with obnoxious characters. The Blu-ray release is simple enough featuring good video/audio and minimal bonus material.
Mad Max: Fury Road is a title that lives up to its name. The action is incredible and the characters outlandish yet awfully fun. It’s a great revival of the franchise from the creator himself and it features some of the most impressive stunt work captured to film with only moderate use of CGI to tie it all together rather than used as a crutch.
I’m not entirely sure how Aloha got off the ground but as one of the subjects of the Sony hack, it might’ve been doomed from the get-go and for good reason: it’s a film with a haphazard plot but worst of all, the cast share absolutely no chemistry in spite of featuring some fine actors. Bottom line, this is a movie destined for the bargain bin and later air on USA.
Life After Dark isn’t a bad attempt at doing retro 1980s slasher but the idea is one thing, the execution is another. Outside of a couple scenes, the film is fairly standard and doesn’t offer very much in terms of story (even as limited as it is for the genre) or the kills which were rather mundane, though the gore effects themselves were semi impressive.
Shocker is one of Wes Craven’s relatively unknown gems. It has an interesting and fun premise that allows Mitch Peleggi, who I more often see playing reserved characters, to go all out as a sadistic serial killer combined with Peter Berg as the pair beam (for the lack of a better word) into television shows.
“Once Upon a Time”: The Complete Fourth Season is another successful year for the residents of Storybrooke. The plotlines are interesting and the introductions to new characters, and return of others, make it feel fresh. Even as someone who doesn’t follow Disney very much and haven’t kept up with the series, I enjoyed this season.
I know plenty have hated the Divergent Series thus far and although hardly great, I found portions at least semi-entertaining but that’s about it. Unlike Hunger Games: Catching Fire and to a lesser extent Mockingjay Part 1, Insurgent just kind of “is”. There’s nothing really memorable and the performances are limited thanks to a screenplay that could’ve been better.
“Orphan Black”: Season Three might not be as strong as its first two seasons (which I would give an “A” grade) yet there’s still some good storylines and once again Tatiana Manslany gives several great performances with the different clone personas.
“NCIS”: The Twelfth Season is another solid year for the venerable series that excels mostly to the ensemble cast which, for the most part, has been together since the beginning. The stories also remain compelling with new and different obstacles for the team including a deadly antagonist to start the season out with a bang.
LEGO Super Heroes: Justice League: Attack of the Legion of Doom is another fun entry into the LEGO animated line with nice animation and good voice casting making for an all around entertaining flick serving as a good placeholder while we wait for LEGO Batman. The Blu-ray released by Warner Home Video offers solid video/audio transfers while the singular featurette is actually interesting.