Super - overshadowed by the hugely successful and similarly-themed Kick-Ass, James Gunn's Super has Rainn Wilson (terrific both in comedy and drama here) adopting a superhero alter ego--the Crimson Bolt!--after his wife (Liv Tyler) leaves him for an exploitive relationship with drug dealer Jacques (Kevin Bacon, in fine comic form). The Crimson Bolt wages a one-man street war against various small crimes (petty theft, line jumping) by smacking the perpetrators around with a pipe wrench! But the stakes are raised when he gains an eager and impulsive sidekick (Ellen Page) and the two go after Jacques and his henchmen (including Michael Rooker, criminally under-used here). The superhero satire/black comedy gives way to a stunningly violent climax and, surprisingly, a poignant message about the nature of law and order. Look for Nathan Fillion (who headlined Gunn's earlier delight, Slither) in an almost-straight portrayal of a Christian TV superhero, the Holy Avenger. I think Kick-Ass has the upper hand, but Super is a worthy adversary. The Blu-Ray looks good and there are a few extras, including a commentary with actor Wilson and director Gunn. Film: 6/10, Disk: 7.5/10.
The Star Wars Saga showed up this morning. Haven't watched the movies yet but popped in episodes III & IV for quality comparisons. The picture is very good, however the set has left me otherwise dissapointed. The Good Good picture and sound quality for the movies. Sturdy packaging Deleted scenes and mini docs for all movies The Bad Obviously, no unaltered versions of the originals. The wonderful Empire of Dreams documentary from the first DVD releases is nowhere to be seen. Instead we have a smattering of archived docs, with one dating back to 1977. The only new one is a 30 minute effort for the 30th anniversary of Empire. The interior of the packaging, disc design and insert book are dull as dishwater - gone are the individual cases for each movie. The disc menus are extremely dull and boring and not a patch on the DVD versions. "90 minutes of Star Wars spoofs". Yes, some are mildly amusing, like Family Guy, but they are all clips instead of the full spoofs - and did we really need 90 minutes of that taking up the disc space that could've gone to a new "making of" doc or Empire of Dreams? Verdict Movie quality - 6/10 (based on two good ones, two ok ones and two piles of festering shite) Sound & picture - 8/10 Special feature - 5/10 Overall - 6/10 I can't help feeling that some genius over at Lucasfilm thought that that inclusion of deleted scenes from the original trilogy was enough to make this set highly desirable, but the truth is that so much more could've been done with it to make it the ultimate set, especially considering the blu-ray disc capacity. I can't help but think this is on purpose and that at some point there will be another set containing the unaltered versions as well that will be billed as the ultimately mega set and have twice as many features, so that Lucas can double dip again.
Y'know what Lucas's douple, triple, quadruple, quintuple, etc, etc, dipping reminds me of? That scene from South Park where Kyle has to reach up Cartman's asshole to make that big satellite dish come out, and Cartman keeps farting, and it gets to the point where it's not funny anymore, then one more past not funny makes it funny again, and so on. I think that's how he feels about us fans. I really do.
AICN had a story the other day about GL and why he feels compelled to continually tweak the films. This quote stood out to me:
As someone who "films" and edits stories, I was thinking the other day about how even the very best stories I've done (award-winning stuff) have things in them that I don't like. Shooting or editing decisions that I made that, upon watching the stories again, don't sit well with me now (and some that didn't sit well with me at the time, but I had no other options). I remember thinking that I could maybe go back and re-edit the stories, to "fix" them so parts of them are better than they originally were. Since it's news, though, that wouldn't be right. In fact, most contests have rules that explicitly state that re-editing isn't allowed and that only the original version of a story should be entered. The story has to stand on its own, with the original "vision" being the one that's judged. I wish Lucas thought that way. Unlike a lot of other people, the 1997 rereleases don't bother me all that much. The constant tweaking/updating since then, though, has gotten on my nerves. This latest bit with the added "Nooooooo!" lines in Jedi will likely keep me from buying the movies on BluRay, something I was looking forward to. Stop it, already, George.
Last night was the 30th anniversary screening of Raiders of the Lost Ark in LA, and the blogger POVOnline attended. He says that after the screeing there was a discussion of the film with Spielberg and Harrison Ford, and the biggest applause line of the night centered around this: Here's a link to the blog post quoted. Oh, and the 70th Anniversary edition of Citizen Kane has just been released on Blu-Ray!
Ok, I am adding an extra point off on account of the cuntitude of Mr. Lucas. I popped the prequel bonus disc in to watch the deleted scenes. I expected to see the "finished" and lengthy deleted sequences that were on the individual DVDs. Instead these are small, unfinished scenes that were also cut. That means if you want the better deleted "finished" sequences and don't have the DVDs you are fucked. This makes me even more convinced that this is all part of a Lucas plan to double dip again in a major way. What a cock sucker.
Got the Star Wars Blu-Ray set and am working my way through it. I've only watched Episode IV so far. I have to say: the picture quality is STUNNING. The amount of detail in the Star Destroyer as it passes overhead in the beginning of the film is astounding. I'm a little irked at the audio. Although there are Dolby Digital soundtracks in several other languages, the only discrete surround format in English is friggin' DTS Master Audio, which my surround processor doesn't support. I had to listen to the film in ProLogic. :blech: I sampled all of the deleted scenes and there are some really interesting ones... 1. Finally, the Luke/Biggs/Tatooine sequence is presented in its entirety. Although I thought the scene worked well enough, I agree that it is an unnecessary delay on the forward momentum of the film. 2. There's a different version of the Cantina scene that is almost exactly the same as the theatrical version with some interesting differences. First, it appears that ALL of Harrison Ford's scenes were either re-shot or different takes were used. All of Alec Guiness's and Mark Hamill's parts of the same scenes are the same. This is a good thing because Ford's performance in this alternate version isn't quite...right. Next, Han is seen kissing a woman, who gets up and lives just as Luke and Ben arrive at Han's table. The original audio of the bartender and the "wanted men" is used as well, and it's jarringly different. Also, when Greedo shows up, it's a much cheesier, less believably real version. Still, Han kills him and Greedo never fires a shot! 3. There was quite an extensive Wampa sub-plot in The Empire Strikes Back, and is presented here, although it is fragmentary and without finished audio or effects. One of the more interesting sequences has a Wampa claw scratching through an ice wall DURING the Han/Leia argument ("I'd just as soon kiss a Wookie") in the hallway. 4. That same argument is shown in considerably longer form, and Han is a lot more forthcoming in his own interest in Leia, although he insults her by telling her she's as cold as the planet Hoth. Instead of ending with him walking away yelling "You could use a good kiss!" this version ends with her essentially washing her hands of him, slapping him on the shoulder, and saying "Have a nice trip, hotshot" and storming off. 5. Leia shows a softer, slightly playful side in a romantic scene with Luke (while he's still recovering from the Wampa attack). Before Empire, I thought it inevitable that Luke and Leia would be a couple; this scene hints at an interesting what-might-have-been. 6. Leia and Han's first kiss in the Falcon is a little different. Han kisses Leia but C3PO does not interrupt. After their lips part, there's a brief pause, and Leia mutters "Okay, hotshot" and SHE kisses him. That's when Threepio comes in. 7. An extended version of the "Leia taking care of Luke on the Falcon" scene from Empire has her "catching him up" on what's happened. If this scene had been kept in its entirety, their exchange is the only time the words "Boba Fett" would've come up in the entire film. 8. Jerjerrod (the officer who assures Vader that they will "redouble our efforts") originally had a larger role. In one scene, he stops Vader from entering a room and (perhaps a little too gleefully) says "You will not pass!" Vader gives him a brief "the fuck d'you say?" look and Force chokes him. Jerjerrod explains that it is by the Emperor's command and is released. Later, the Emperor orders Jerjerrod to destroy Endor if the shield generator falls. Jerjerrod, concerned for imperial forces on the moon, is visibly hesitant. He does ultimately give the order to destroy Endor which, presumably, would've been just about to happen when the Falcon destroys the reactor. 9. We get to see a rebel crew on board the Falcon during the final battle. They repair stuff that blows up and two of them man the turret guns, obviously destroying enemy fighters. Very neat stuff. More comments to follow in the next few days...
A few quick hits: Pulp Fiction - Tarantino's groundbreaking lowlife anthology still charms 17 years later. Great cast (John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Willis, Christopher Walken, Ving Rhames, Harvey Keitel, and Uma Thurmann) plays a terrific set of characters who find themselves in precarious situations. The dialog is as fresh as always, and, depsite being frequently labelled as excessively violent, the film is rather modest with on-screen violence. The Blu-Ray looks pretty good and there are some great extras (a pop-up trivia track that's full of interesting info, an episode of Siskel&Ebert focussing on Pulp Fiction, a Charlie Rose interview of Tarantino). Highly recommended. Film: 9.0/10, Disk: 7.5/10 Fast Five - first off, an admission: I've seen none of the earlier films in The Fast and the Furious series. That didn't keep me from enjoying this multi-faceted-team-pulls-impossible-heist film. Regulars Vin Diesel and Paul Walker snatch some cars off a moving train in Brazil and draw the attention of a ruthless Brazilian gangster (Joaquim de Alameda) and a relentless U.S. federal agent (Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson). The movie culminates in Diesel and Walker (aided by returnees from prior films in the series) stealing a bank vault by pulling it down the streets of Rio Janiero with their cars! Perhaps not quite believable, but a good deal of fun. The Rock, in particular, plays a great character (that should be spun off into his own film series) and gets some great dialog. The Blu-Ray looks great and there is plentiful behind-the-scenes stuff in the extras. Film: 7.5/10, Disk: 7.0/10. Paul - Simon Pegg and Nick Frost return as two comic book nerds touring UFO-connected sites across the Southwestern U.S. who encounter a very hip, very laid back extraterrestrial, the titular Paul (CGI, voiced by Seth Rogen), who's escaped government custody. Kristen Wiig comes aboard and works nicely as a Christian fundamentalist who gets a new perspective on existence from her encounter with the alien. As the three humans take the alien to a rendezvous, they are pursued by government agents (led by Jason Bateman), a Bible-thumping father, and some angry rednecks. The climax features a terrific (and appropriate) cameo. Fun and funny, but not quite up to Shawn of the Dead or Hot Fuzz. The disk looks great and the extras include plentiful behind-the-scenes content and a cast commentary. Film: 6.5/10, Disk: 7.5/10.
Horrible Bosses - I said this about the film back in July: That's probably still right, though I think I enjoyed it a little more on the second viewing. I watched the Extended version on the Blu-Ray, which added about 8 minutes (alas, none with Jennifer Aniston) to the film. The video itself looks terrific, and there are a few small extras included. The "Totally Inappropriate Edition" (which is the one I bought) also contains a separate Blu-Ray(!) and a DVD, each with the theatrical cut. Film: 6.5/10, Disk: 8.0/10.
Any word on Game of Thrones bluray release or Lawrence of Arabia? Spartacus by the way the new show looked Fantastic and so did all the star wars movie.
No word on Thrones. Lawrence has been "coming soon" since the launch of Blu-Ray. I've heard that about Spartacus, but haven't seen either season yet. The Star Wars films do look fantastic. I watched Empire yesterday and it was great...
Yeah!!!! http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/s..._Complete_First_Season_Blu-ray_Announced/8218 HBO has to have the most overpriced Blu-Rays.... But I'm buying Game of Thrones anyway. Great series!
Haven't posted here in a while; too tied up IRL. But today I picked up... Cowboys and Aliens Evil Dead 2 25th Anniversary Hangover Part II The Debt Citizen Kane 70th Anniversary ($11[!!!!] at Best Buy) ...we'll see how these play.
Holy Shit!! It's been 25 years since Evil Dead 2 came out? I took my first date to see that at a double feature of it and Predator! I'm an old geezer! As much as I love film, I've never seen Citizen Kane. For $11, I definitely will pick it up.
A couple of quick ones... Cowboys and Aliens - enjoyable, genre-bending actioner from director Jon Favreau (Iron Man, Iron Man 2) has some folks from a western town abducted by flying aliens and a posse--including mysterious stranger Jake (Daniel Craig) and ruthless cattle baron Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford)--riding out on a quest to save them. Great supporting cast includes Sam Rockwell, Paul Dano, Olivia Wilde, Keith Carradine, and Clancey Brown. Fun and fast-moving with lots of western and sci-fi action, and it carries a solid message about redemption. The Blu-Ray looks terrific and there's some nice extras on the disk including a commentary by Favreau. Film: 7.0/10, Disk: 7.5/10 The Debt - nice little spy thriller from director John Madden (Shakespeare in Love, Proof) tells the story of three Israeli Mossad agents (Sam Worthington, Jessica Chastain, and Martin Csokas) who undertook a much-celebrated and supposedly successful mission to extract a Nazi concentration camp doctor from East Berlin in 1965. Interwoven is the tale of the same characters' older selves (played by Cieran Hinds, Helen Mirren, and Tom Wilkinson) in 1997, dealing with possibility that the truth of what happened on the fateful mission may come out. Good marks for the requisite spycraft, an authentic-looking '60s East Berlin, and performances all around. Not really an actioner, but there are some good moments of suspense and an unexpectedly violent climax. Blu-Ray looks good but the extras are pretty thin. Film: 7.0/10, Disk: 6.0/10 The African Queen - John Huston's classic 1951 tale features very upright Methodist missionary Rose Sayer (Katherine Hepburn) who, after World War I breaks out and the East African village she serves is sacked by the Germans, convinces humble, good-hearted Charlie Allnut (Humphrey Bogart, in an Academy Award-winning performance) to take her on his boat, the titular Queen, down a dangerous river to sink a German ship. Of course they're going to fall for each other. And you'll fall for them, too. Just a great, great movie with equal touches of humor, drama, suspense, action...and two great actors at the top of their games. All filmed very arduously on location in Africa, as several documentaries on the disk detail. The Blu-Ray itself looks marvelous. Film: 8.0/10, Disk: 8.0/10.
Some more quick ones... Contagion - Director Steven Soderbergh's serviceable drama/thriller about a deadly flu epidemic works because of pervasive verisimilitude and a great cast: Matt Damon is a man whose wife (Gwenyth Paltrow) and young son are among the first victims, trying to safeguard his daughter; Kate Winslet is a doctor trying to track the disease in the field; Lawrence Fishbourne is a CDC administrator trying to manage the outbreak, who suffers an ethical lapse; Jude Law is a cynical blogger exploiting the disease for financial gain; and Marion Cotillard is an epidemiologist looking for the source of the outbreak, who winds up caught in a desperate ploy to obtain the vaccine. Fairly gripping, this film manages to keep you engaged even though the action is minimal. Interesting note: this film was shot on the Red digital video camera. The Blu-Ray looks good, although the extras are few. Film: 7/10, Disk: 6/10. Friends with Benefits - the second of this year's can-friends-have-sex-and-stay-just-friends movies, this one works because of the immense likeability of the two leads, Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis. Dylan (Timberlake) is an L.A.-based web producer who comes to NYC at the behest of corporate headhunter Jamie (Kunis). Initially reticient to leave California to pursue the high-profile position she's angling him for, he's won over by her charm. But when the two new friends, both of whom are commitment-phobic, having recently been on the relationship rocks, decide to combine sex and friendship, will things change? This film gets extra points for being aware of (and actively making fun of) the cliches in modern rom-coms, even if, ultimately, it has to repeat some of them. This film is mostly light and enjoyable, but be forewarned: it has some rather raunchy moments. Guest cast includes Woody Harrelson (as a flamingly gay sports writer who offers good advice), Patricia Clarkson (playing Jamie's whacky, sexually hip mom), Jenna Elfman (as Dylan's perceptive sister), and Richard Jenkins (as the Alzheimer's-afflicted father to whom Dylan is afraid to open up). The Blu-Ray looks decent if not stellar, and there are a few extras (outtakes, a commentary with the director and two leads, deleted scenes, etc.). Film: 7/10, Disk: 7/10.
A few new ones... The Eagle - actioner has the son (Channing Tatum) of a disgraced Roman centurion trekking north of Hadrian's Wall into Celtic lands on a quest to recover the titular standard of his father's vanished legion, guided only by a slave Briton (Jamie Bell) who despises the Romans. Starts strong, drags a little in the middle, and ends on a violent, but not particularly thrilling note. Great guest cast includes Donald Sutherland, Denis O'Hare, and Mark Strong, but lead man Tatum doesn't make too strong an impression. Blu-Ray looks great and there are a few extras, including director's commentary. Film: 5.5/10, Disk: 6.5/10 Belle de Jour - Luis Bunuel's classic and controversial psychological drama has incredibly hot Catherine Deneuve as Severine, a young housewife whose past has left her cold to her understanding husband (Jean Sorel) and secretly unable to achieve sexual gratification without masochistic attention, who finds herself drawn to a second life working as a prostitute. Despite the subject matter, there's very little nudity (save a mouth-watering shot of Deneuve in a translucent shroud) and no on-screen sex; still, you WILL get the point. Developments in the third act involving a gangster client who wants Severine all to himself lessen the story, but this is still a great film. Once again, Criterion has delivered a beautiful picture--check out the depth in the forest that the coach travels through in the beginning!--though the extras are a bit light. Still, highly recommended for film buffs. Film: 8/10, Disk: 7/10. 50/50 - involving dramedy tells the tale of Adam (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), struggling to stay normal in the face of a devastating illness, his best friend (Seth Rogen) who tries to be supportive and keep things normal, his girlfriend (Bryce Dallas Howard) who seems ambivalent about staying with Adam, and a rookie therapist (Anna Kendrick) in whom Adam develops an interest. Well-acted all around (though a little Rogen goes a long way) and equal parts funny and poignant, the film made me care about Adam's fate. Kendrick is just adorable. Angelica Huston, Phillip Baker Hall, and Matt Frewer co-star. The Blu-Ray looks great--look at the long lens shot of Adam jogging with Seattle in the background near the start!--and there are some nice extras including a commentary, deleted scenes, and some behind-the-scenes pieces. Film: 6.5/10, Disk: 7.5/10
Wow, I really let this thread slip away. Last update was in January! How about a few ULTRA-quick reviews? The Dark Knight Rises - Film: 8.0/10, Disk: 8.0/10 *HIGHLY* recommended Lawrence of Arabia - Film: 8.0/10, Disk: 8.0/10 *HIGHLY* recommended Ted - Film: 7.5/10, Disk: 8.0/10 Recommended James Bond 50th Anniv. Collection - Films: 5.0-8.0/10, Disk: 8.5/10 *HIGHLY* recommended Rashomon - Film: 7.5/10, Disk: 8.0/10 Recommended I picked up the Coen Brothers Blu-Ray Collection and, though I haven't watched Raising Arizona, Blood Simple, or Fargo yet, I did get a chance to watch Miller's Crossing. I had forgotten just how terrific this film is; I think it makes my all-time Top 10. [wyt=Miller's Crossing trailer]zYifReJJn4M[/wyt]
Miller's Crossing is definitely one of the all-time greatest movies ever made. Gabriel Byrne was born to play Tom Reagan.
Another quick one. Got myself the Alfred Hitchcock Masterpiece Collection on Blu-Ray for Christmas. What a terrific set! Yes, I went straight for the crown jewels: Vertigo, Rear Window, Psycho, and North by Northwest. They're all wonderful and they look great on Blu-Ray. (Some of those Vertigo scenes with Jimmy Stewart driving around San Francisco are so sharp, they almost look like they were filmed recently!) The extras are terrific, too. I've listened to several commentaries; the one on Rear Window is especially enlightening. There are a lot of "making of" and "behind the scenes" materials, the standout so far being those on Psycho; of course, the drama involved getting that picture made is the story of the current film Hitchcock. I've never seen Rope or Saboteur or Torn Curtain or The Trouble with Harry and I look forward to experiencing them the first time on this great set. No rating yet as I have not seen all the materials, but offhand I'd say this will probably be HIGHLY recommended for fans of Hitchcock and/or classic suspense films.
I was getting time out errors earlier with the board as well as slow load times. Perhaps the hamster that powers the server is a bit ill.
