Welcome back! Well, to some of you, anyway. To the rest of you, glad you decided to stop by and I hope that this humble column helps you navigate the stacks of new releases each week. My goal is to point you toward titles of interest and warn you away from those films that seek to do nothing but leech away your time and give you nothing in return.
Full disclosure: I have not seen many of these titles and what follows are not necessarily reviews, but opinions based upon what I know of the titles I pluck from the new release lists that I peruse. The opinions I give based on the new releases are my own, and my recommendations are based on my personal interest. In any case, I hope you enjoy and perhaps find something you like or a title to point me towards.
Taken: Extended Cut (also Blu-ray).Taken is a thrilling ride from start to finish. Yes, it does feature human trafficking as a story device and yes, it is a bit exploitative of such a tragic occurrence, but it has a great glossy sheen of action. No one can shepherd an action film to the screen like Luc Besson. This movie is an absolute thrill ride from start to finish and is also one of the great box office stories of 2009. I am looking forward to seeing this longer cut, I want to see how much more wild it can get.
Underworld: Rise of the Lycans (also Blu-ray).Less complex than the first two films, Rise of the Lycans' sole purpose is to put full-bodied action to the dawn of the war merely glimpsed in earlier films. It fails to engage the brain in any meaningful way, leaving it content to wander around the familiar blue-tinted frames watching the performances play out. It is not really bad, but it is not terribly good either. It is worth it for fans of the series and those looking for a fun diversion.
Star Trek: The Original Motion Picture Collection (Blu-ray).Just in time to catch up with the new movie comes this high definition box set featuring the first six films of the series. It is all the films featuring all of the original cast. If it is done right, this could be a great set.
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (Blu-ray).The classic Sergio Leone/Clint Eastwood spaghetti western is arriving on high definition. How can you go wrong? This is a great film that everyone needs to see at least once. That reminds me, I need to see it again.
Seth MacFarlane's Cavalcade of Cartoon Comedy (also Blu-ray).Do we really need this? Probably not, but I bet it is still pretty funny. It is a collection of animated skits that, from the bits I saw, are just like the asides from Family Guy.
Fargo (Blu-ray). One of the Coen Brothers' best films, this Oscar winning film is coming to Blu-ray. I can just imagine how much whiter those snow-filled scenes will look, not to mention the wood chipper...
Big (Blu-ray).Tom Hanks' classic comedy. How can you not like this movie about a boy who gets his wish to be big? Not sure I need it in high definition, but the movie is well worth the time.
Star Trek: Motion Picture Trilogy (Blu-ray).In case you don't want that big six-movie set mentioned above, but you still need a fix for the classic Trek, this will fill the bill. This trilogy contains The Wrath of Khan, The Search for Spock, and The Voyage Home.
Licence to Kill (Blu-ray).One of the two Timothy Dalton Bond films. I have not seen this one in some time, but I remember this being the one I liked.
The Man with the Golden Gun (Blu-ray).Step back before Licence to Kill, back to the Roger Moore era. This one is where Bond faces off with Christopher Lee and his one shot/one kill gun. It was a ridiculous entry, but still fun.
There's Something About Mary (Blu-ray).This movie was made back when the Farrelly Brothers still made good movies. I remember sitting in the theater and laughing so hard I was sure I missed half the jokes. This movie is genuinely funny, very funny.
S. Darko (also Blu-ray). The sequel to the cult hit Donnie Darko is here. Is there any way this can hold a candle to the first film? I have not read or seen anything about this film, but I cannot say I am not excited. I would really like getting my hands on it.
The Best of Star Trek: The Original Series. Want a series sampler? This has four memorable episodes to tease you: "The Trouble with Tribbles," "City on the Edge of Forever," "The Balance of Terror," and "Amok Time." Nice selection.
The Best of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Just like the disk above, four episodes to tease you: "Best of Both Worlds Pt. 1," "Best of Both Worlds Pt. 2," "Yesterday's Enterprise," and "The Measure of A Man."
The Grudge 3. Is this really necessary? Wasn't the second one bad enough?
Plague Town (also Blu-ray).I had never heard of this film before, but the trailer looks very promising. American tourists stranded in the English countryside where strange things are happening. Violence, horror, and bloodshed ensue.
Around 1964, Gene Roddenberry came up with the now legendary “transporter” effect for Star Trek, mostly out of necessity. I don’t think he believed that teleportation technology would actually exist within 300 years or so, but as a writer’s device, the transporter solved a myriad of production problems for Roddenberry’s planned TV series. Compared with having to build complex miniatures to show the USS Enterprise landing on a new planet each week, “beaming” actors off the set was a much simpler effect to insert each week.
“Land a ship fourteen stories tall on a planet surface every week?” Roddenberry exclaimed to writer Stephen E. Whitfield in his classic 1968 book, The Making of Star Trek. “Not only would it have blown our entire weekly budget, but just suggesting it would have probably ruined my reputation in the
A great sampling of Ray Charles hits that will leave fans wanting even more classic material.
Kicking off the upcoming reissue program that Concord Records has planned for the Ray Charles discography is Genius: The Ultimate Collection, a new set of 21 Charles classics. Ray Charles' back catalog is in need of an overhaul, as many albums remain out of print or simply were never re-released at all. It is hard to argue with the choice of...
The blockbuster season has gotten off to a pretty good start money-wise behind the good opening weekend fortunes of X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Star Trek . I only see the latter as having any long term success, but I could be wrong. Anyway, week three sees us step away from the big effects, teen-targeted blockbusters to a potentially more thoughtful thriller aimed at an audience that skews older. I have to wonder if it has the strength to climb to the top, or if last week's champ, Star Trek , will stay at the top on the strength of its positive word of mouth. Aside from that, we also get a limited release romantic comedy that hopes to do well enough to garner a wider release.
Angels & Demons. (2009, 140 minutes, PG-13, thriller) A few years ago, director Ron Howard and star Tom Hanks teamed up for The DaVinci Code . That film arrived amid immense hype and a boatload of
There have been a lot of musical siblings through the years and some of them immediately come to mind, but it's difficult to imagine a group of brothers and sisters quite like the Dinnings. Over a period of several decades, they covered just about every aspect of music; including songwriting, bandleading, recording, and performing on stage and screen. And those doing the performing included a popular all-girl singing group, and a young crooner who thrilled teens with a chart-topping hit that was banned in Great Britain. (And if that wasn't enough, the family's next generation included a member of a popular modern rock group -- but more later about that.) Of course, there were nine Dinning siblings so that gave them a leg up but it's still a fascinating story, one that began with a musical childhood in Oklahoma encouraged by their father, the musical director of a
Blues-rock duo The Black Keys showcase their live music on Live At The Crystal Ballroom.
Some dudes just want to rock, and that's exactly what a couple of guys that make up The Black Keys do.In support of their fifth full-length LP Attack & Release, The Black Keys recorded their April 4, 2008 concert performance at the Crystal Ballroom in Portland, Oregon. Produced and directed by Lance Bangs (R.E.M.'s Road Movie, Nirvana: With The...
Raw, dirty blues from one of pop music's great underrated R&B acts.
Before there was Tina Turner, there was Ike & Tina. Thanks in large part to the 1993 film, What's Love Got To Do With It? — based on I, Tina, her 1986 autobiography — Tina's tumultuous relationship with Ike Turner, including details of the abuse she suffered at his hands, has become common knowledge to music fans. It's a...
