MOVIES - NEW RELEASES
Battle of the Warriors aka Battle of Wits/Muk gong (2006) Serious-minded period war epic from Hong Kong, starring Andy Lau, based on a Japanese Manga. Solid, rather than spectacular, but indicates a direction away from the more fairy tale approach of the films that followed Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon/Wo hu cang long (2000). A comprehensive review can be read at kunfucinema.com. (DVD)
Bleach The Movie 2: The DiamondDust Rebellion/Gekijōban Burīchi Za Daiyamondo Dasuto Reberion Mō Hitotsu no Hyōrinmaru (2007). Directed by Noriyuki Abe (Ninku: The Movie), this English language version of the modest Japanese box-office anime hit from Studio Pierrot (released by San Francisco's Viz Media), tells of the search for the missing Ouin seal. Extras include production video, art gallery, and trailers. (DVD)
Blood Rain/Hyeol-ui nu (2005). Director Kim Dae-seung almost pulls off this period serial killer movie, set in 1808, but the supernatural overtones lead to an uncertain atmsophere. (DVD)
Crank 2: High Voltage (2009) Neveldine and Taylor can console themselves over Gamer's dismal weekend box office, with the week’s big Blu-ray release of their frenetic sequel. Corey Haim, Geri Halliwell (aka Ginger Spice) David Carradine, Maynard James Keenan and Ron Jeremy show up to lend a hand. (Blu-ray and two-disc Special Edition DVD)
Exit Speed (2008) Desmond Harrington (Dexter), Lea Thompson (Back to the Future), and Fred Ward (Tremors) star in this "bus full of strangers vs. meth-addicted bikers in a scrap yard" epic from director Scott Ziehl (Earth vs the Spider) and writer Michael Stokes (The Marsh). (Blu-Ray and DVD)
Freaky Farley (2007). The film-makers would like you to believe that this is a fun, cheesy retro horror movie ("a shocking, new independent movie in the tradition of Silent Night Deadly Night 2"), reports are that the reality is disappointing. Proceed with caution, and read the reviews at horror-movie-a-day blog and fatally-yours.com before committing. (DVD)
Greetings (2007) Low-budget (£100,000) Brit horror, the first full-length feature from veteran actor Kenneth Colley (The Blood Beast Terror, Star Wars, and 1990’s under-rated The Last Island) who used his own home for the location shoot. An innocent party turns to terror when a ouija board summons a new guest, Kenneth Colley (who also appears) is always interesting to watch, but the trailer doesn’t hold much promise. (DVD)
Hell House: The Book of Samiel (2008) Low Budget auteur Jason D Morris helmed the 2006 webisode drama Millennium Apocalypse, and if some reviewers are to be believed, he's not yet ready even for the straight-to-DVD market. Mike Varrati at fatally-yours.com calls the film a "scary good time", but Bill Gobron at DVDtalk.com lets the director have it with both barrels: "While Morris does show some minor … directorial flare, the resulting entertainment is stifled and stupefyingly lame". Trailer here. (DVD)
Hot Rod Horror (2008) Filmed at Turner's Auto Wrecking in Fresno, CA, actor Darrell Mapson's first time behind the camera, aims to be an old-school B horror film, and a tribute to 1950s California hot rods. Both are laudable, but judging by the trailer, the end result is another low budget poorly acted snooze-fest. (DVD)
Lady Ninja Kaede (2007) and Lady Ninja Kaede Volume 2 (2007) Exploitation Digital release these two erotic martial arts extravaganzas, featuring over-sexed ninja nuns. (DVD)
Live Animals (2008) Memphis-based film maker Jeremy Benson wrote Live Animals before seeing Hostel, based on a love of 70s horror movies his dad shared with him as a kid. The words "Hostel" and "70s influence" usually indicate a depressing, dank evening's viewing, with wince-inducing torture replacing character and story development, but judging by the trailer this is worth the rental (thanks, by the way, for creating a decent trailer, makers of Hot Rod Horror take note), with John Still leaving a particular impression as the business man dealing in human traffic. (DVD)
Murder, Take One aka The Big Scene/Baksu-chiltae deonara (2005) South Korean director Jang Jin (Guns and Talks) has a reputation for genre-bending, and he goes a little too far in this crime drama with supernatural overtones. Stars Seung-won Cha and Gyu-su Jeong can also be seen in this week's Blood Rain release, and Yeong-Nam Jang starred in Pil-Sung Yim's highly recommended Hansel and Gretel (2007). (DVD)
Nature of the Beast (2007) An ABC Family TV movie from a couple of Halloweens ago – Eddie Kaye Thomas (American Pie) plays Rich who, as his wedding approaches, reveals that he is, in fact, a werewolf. Autumn Reeser (The OC) plays his future spouse and Eric Mabius (The Crow: Salvation) provides the villainy, under the direction of TV Stalwart and occasional horror helmer Rodman Flender (Leprechaun 2, Idle Hands). (DVD)
Night of the Dribbler (1995) Pitched as a lost classic by distributors Code Red, this Canadian basketball slasher comedy stars the late impressionist Fred Travalena (who provides a commentary with Scott Spiegel, writer of the Evil Dead). From director Jack Bravman (Zombie Nightmare, and producer of Snuff). Discovered in a vault in Montreal, apparently and never before seen. (DVD)
Night Stalker (2009) Director Ulli Lommel’s latest serial killer “biopic”, this time on Richard Ramírez, who was convicted in 1989 of 13 counts of murder, 5 attempted murders, 11 sexual assaults, and 14 burglaries. He still sits on death row awaiting execution, and it's doubtful if anyone familiar with the facts of the case will recognize anything in this release. (DVD)
Rise of the Gargoyles (2009) Predictable Sci-Fi (sorry SyFy) Channel nonsense, directed by Bill Corcoran (Left Behind II: Tribulation Force), and starring Eric Balfour (The Spirit), and Nick Mancuso (Under Siege). Filmed in Paris and Bucharest. (DVD)
Sleep Dealer (2009) Winner of two Sundance awards, first time feature director Alex Rivera uses a science fiction framework to explore the US-Mexico border issue. Heavily influenced by Blade Runner and eXistenZ (not to mention The Matrix), the film has received mixed reviews, from Kenneth Turan on the LA Times: “…a welcome surprise … visually interesting science fiction done on a budget…”, and Kirk Honeycutt in The Hollywood Reporter: “…should spark a cult following among sci-fi fans at the very least…”; to Aaron Hills in the Village Voice: “…while … Rivera's feature debut focuses, admirably, on how globalization affects the third world, his ideas are as subtle as a light saber to the face.”, and Justin Chang in Variety: “…lacks the vision, or the budget, to pull off its fusion of sci-fi and aspirational saga.” Shot by Lisa Rinzler (Menace II Society, The Dead Presidents), and starring Luis Fernando Peña, Leonor Varela (Blade II), and Jacob Varga (The Hills Have Eyes II). (Blu-ray and DVD)
Uncharted (2009) Obscure wobbly-cam horror, supposedly pieced together from the recovered tapes of a missing documentary crew. Directed by reformed gang member Frank Nunez, it looks like the Blair Witch/[Rec]/Cloverfield "found footage" sub-genre has finally come full circle, back to Cannibal Holocaust (1980). (DVD)
MOVIES - RE-RELEASES
Bedknobs and Broomsticks: Enchanted Musical Edition (1971) Difficult to wholeheartedly recommend this disc, as the content is essentially the same as the 30th Anniversary reissue from 2001. The sole difference (barring a special effects doc to plug the TV show "The Wizards of Waverly Place"), is the lost song, "A Step in the Right Direction", with production stills replacing the lost footage. Directed by Robert Stevenson (Mary Poppins) and starring Angela Lansbury, Roddy McDowall, and David Tomlinson. The film won the Academy Award for Eustace Lycett's special effects, beating Jim Danforth and Roger Dicken's work on Hammer's When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth (1970). (DVD)
The Black Hole (2006)/The Last Sentinel (2007). Dire Sci-Fi (oops, SyFy) Channel double bill. The Black Hole has the saving grace of being directed by Tibor Takács (The Gate, Mansquito), and starring Judd Nelson (The Breakfast Club), so it’s at least fun, and borderline prescient after the issues with the Large Hadron Collider in 2008. The Last Sentinel, however is directed by Brit stuntman Jesse V Johnson, who went on to direct the dreadful Green Street 2/Green Street Hooligans 2 (2009) and the much better gangster movie Charlie Valentine (2009), and stars Don Wilson (without 'The Dragon' moniker), a what-was-she-thinking Katee Sackoff, on a break from Battlestar Gallactica, and some talking guns. (DVD)
Catwoman (2004) Dir: Pitof, with: Halle Berry, Benjamin Bratt, Sharon Stone. Beware the curse of the single-name director. (Blu-ray)
Creepshow (1982) In the UK, there is a well-loved two-disc special edition from 2007, with a 5.1 surround mix, deleted scenes, a 90 minute documentary entitled “Just Desserts: The Making of Creepshow”, a commentary track with George Romero and Tom Savini, as well as Savini's video diary of the effects work. So it is with great excitement that I can announce that the US Blu-ray release features the film, in stereo, with a trailer. Screw Warner Home Video with a voodoo doll. Seriously. (Blu-ray and DVD)
The Curse of King Tut's Tomb (2006)/Merlin's Apprentice (2006) Russell Mulcahy's second attempt to make a decent mummy movie, after Tale of the Mummy/Talos the Mummy (1998) – third time lucky, perhaps – and the disappointing sequel to Hallmark's Merlin miniseries, directed by David Wu and starring Sam Neill, together on one disc. (DVD)
Dead Calm (1989) Hi-res release for Philip Noyce's excellent Hollywood calling card. Stars: Nicole Kidman, Sam Neill, and Billy Zane. (Blu-ray)
From Dusk Till Dawn Triple Pack: From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)/From Dusk Till Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money (1999)/From Dusk Till Dawn 3: The Hangman's Daughter (2000) All three movies for $10.99 from amazon.com. Bargain. (DVD)
Halloween Triple Pack: Halloween - The Curse of Michael Myers (1995)/Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998)/Halloween Resurrection (2002) Donald Pleasence's final bow (aka Halloween 6), with Paul Rudd, Steve Miner's partial return to form, with Jamie Lee Curtis, Josh Hartnett and Michelle Williams, and Rick Rosenthal's disappointing follow-up with Curtis, Busta Rhymes and, er, Tyra Banks. (DVD)
The Postman (1997) Director/star Kevin Costner's $80M movie version of David Brin's post apocalyptic fable could only raise $18M at the US box office, but – the occasional laughable pretension aside – is nowhere near as bad as those figures indicate. (Blu-ray)
Mad Monster Party (1967) Special Edition of Rankin/Bass's perennial Halloween stop motion favorite with three featurettes: “Mad Monster Party: Making a Cult Classic”; “It‘s Sheer Animagic! Secrets of Stop Motion Animation”; and “Groovy Ghouls: The Music of Mad Monster Party”; along with a couple of sing-a-long numbers and a trailer. (Dear Lionsgate, please give Warner Bros a call and tell them how it’s done.) (DVD)
The Quick and the Dead (1995) Sam Raimi's excellent revenge western on Blu-ray, with Sharon Stone, Gene Hackman, Russell Crowe, and Leonardo DiCaprio (Blu-ray)
Scary Movie Triple Pack: Scary Movie (2000)/Scary Movie 2 (2001)/Scary Movie 3 (2003) First three of the Wayans brothers spoofs. Now with added lack of relevance. (DVD)
Scream Triple Pack: Scream (1996)/Scream 2 (1997)/Scream 3 (2000) Wes Craven's colossal franchise, well worth the $10.99 asking price. (DVD)
Slit-Mouthed Woman (aka Kaiki toshi-densetsu: Kuchisake-onna, 2007)/Zombie Dead (aka Zonbi deddo, 2008) Double bill of Tôru Kikkawa's well reviewed urban legend, and Kanzô Matsuura's zombies-in-a-hospital direct to video release. (DVD)
Sphere (1998) Barry Levinson's disappointing adaptation of Michael Crichton's underwater aliens saga, with Dustin Hoffman, Sharon Stone, Samuel L Jackson, and Liev Schreiber. (Blu-ray)
TV RELEASES
Fringe: The Complete First Season (2008) Fringe moved beyond its initial "X-Files lite" feel with a combination of a smart choice in directors, like Brad Anderson (Session 9, The Machinist), and writers such as Akiva Goldsman (I, Robot), as well as a well balanced (or unbalanced in certain cases) lead triumvirate of Anna Torv (all icy Estonian intensity), John Noble (a long way from Denethor), and (biggest surprise of all) Joshua Jackson (Dawson's Creek, Shutter), whose bad boy warmth acts as a bridge between the two extremes. Add the always reliable Jared Harris (son of Richard), and Oz alumni Lance Reddick and Kirk Acevedo (whose continuing role is very publicly in doubt), and Season 2's premiere in September 17th is highly anticipated. (Blu-ray and DVD)
Harper's Island: The DVD Edition (2009) CBS’s serial killer series will probably be remembered for proving that no amount of Web marketing can save declining ratings — albeit a decline caused by a "dump it and forget it" move from Thursday to Saturday after just three episodes. Extras include four featurettes (a "Making of", a piece on casting; a guess-the-killer survey of the cast and crew; and an interview with co-executive produce Karim Zeik on the process of informing the cast who was to die each week), as well as commentary tracks for four episodes, deleted scenes for six episodes, and all 16 of the “Harper's Globe” webisodes. (DVD)
Classic TV Sherlock Holmes Collection, Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 (1954–5) All 39 episodes of the US TV series, starring Ronald Howard as Holmes, and H. Marion Crawford as Watson, from public domain specialists Pop Flix. Made in Paris and shot at a rate of one episode every four days, the series is not well regarded in the Holmes pantheon. But at $6.98 a disc, it’s perhaps time for a re-evaluation. (DVD)
Red Garden: The Complete Series Box Set & OVA (2006–07) 22 episodes of the New York-set Japanese anime TV series, and its direct to video sequel. Four girls at an NY private school are recruited to fight monsters by a mysterious figure. (DVD)
Smallville: The Complete Seasons 1-8 (2001–09) All your Superboy needs for a mere $335.99. Should tide you over until Season 9 starts on September 25th. (DVD)
Goosebumps: Attack of the Jack-O-Lanterns and Goosebumps: The Headless Ghost. Three episodes per disc from the TV series based on RL Stine's best selling book series from Scholastic. (DVD)
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