Posts Tagged ‘Blu-ray’

Texas Chainsaw 3D Blu-ray Review: Wither Heatherface?

Posted: 13 May, 2013 in Movies/TV
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Texas Chainsaw 3D Blu-ray Review: Wither Heatherface?

While I was never a “huge” fan of the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre series (the ones that started with The Texas Chain Saw Massacre in ’74), I must confess that one of my favorite LPs in my record collection is that of the soundtrack from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 from 1986. Of course, any motion picture soundtrack that contains Concrete Blonde, Oingo Boingo, Timbuk3, and The Cramps simply demands to be taken seriously – and there’s even an offering from The Lords of the New Church (a group that, interestingly has a new singer named Adam Becvare) entitled “Good to Be Bad” – which was inspired from a line of dialogue from the film, and recorded solely for the album. Read the rest of this entry »

Blu-ray Review: Panic in the Streets – “Hang the DJ, Hang the DJ”

Posted: 10 May, 2013 in Movies/TV
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Blu-ray Review: Panic in the Streets – “Hang the DJ, Hang the DJ”

Article first published as Blu-ray Review: Panic in the Streets – “Hang the DJ, Hang the DJ” on Blogcritics.

Every actor needs to start somewhere. In the case of the late great Jack Palance, he started out doing what he will always be remembered for: playing the part of a very bad man. When offered the part of the heavy in the 1950 film noir, Panic in the Streets, stage actor Walter Jack Palance (as he was known by then) flew to New Orleans for his very first film role. And while the rest of his career may be simply summed up with the ever-annoying line “And the rest is history,” Elia Kazan’s memorable Panic in the Streets is certainly worth noting for due to much more than introducing the filmgoing world to the man who would both frighten and entice grown-up and adults alike for generations to come. (more…)

Heavenly Shades of Delight: Twilight Time’s Blu-ray Releases, Volume Three

Posted: 9 May, 2013 in Movies/TV
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Heavenly Shades of Delight: Twilight Time’s Blu-ray Releases, Volume Three

Once more, friends, we (or rather I) invite you to join me as I poke about a bit with some of the newer Twilight Time Blu-ray releases in another chapter of the Heavenly Shades of Delight series, which started with Volume One and Volume Two earlier this year. For this illustrious third entry, I am taking a peek at seven titles from the exclusive niche label – each of which is available exclusively online from Screen Archives (providing they’re not sold out already, that is!). Read the rest of this entry »

Ripper Street [Series One] Blu-ray Review: As My Teachers Always Said: “Needs Improvement”

Posted: 2 April, 2013 in Movies/TV
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Ripper Street [Series One] Blu-ray Review: As My Teachers Always Said: “Needs Improvement”

Some will tell you that life imitates art. Others will insist that the opposite is true. Personally, from what I’ve seen in the fields of film and television, I would venture to say that art imitates art. Well, sometimes it’s art that’s being imitated. Other times, you have people emulating the likenesses of other endeavors from the film and television genres that simply weren’t too terribly outstanding to start with – and which were really only popular with the masses. It’s almost like popcorn imitating popcorn: a tasty treat when you dive into it, but it’s oh-so-fleeting in the long run. And yes, I know how truly awful that analogy was, so please accept my apologies here and now for that. Read the rest of this entry »

Parental Guidance (2012) Blu-ray Review: Usually, Jokes are Funny – But Hey, Why Kill Time Laughing?

Posted: 30 March, 2013 in Movies/TV
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Parental Guidance (2012) Blu-ray Review: Usually, Jokes are Funny – But Hey, Why Kill Time Laughing?

In an early episode of Scrubs, Neil Flynn’s Janitor character sprayed Zach Braff’s fictional persona of J.D. in the crotch with a mist of water. Several times, in fact. And such a juvenile prank worked then and there because the writers knew it wasn’t funny – which, in turn, made it funny. The dynamic WGA-approved talents of the rarely-employed duo Lisa Addario and Joe Syracuse – two of the seven people to have received credit for the already-forgotten animated kiddie film Surf’s Up – on the other hand, completely failed to realize that such a cheap joke seldom causes so much as a chuckle. Ironically, their recent collaboration, Parental Guidance, contains the line “It’s interesting because, usually, jokes are funny. But hey, why kill time laughing?”. Read the rest of this entry »

Heavenly Shades of Delight: Twilight Time’s Blu-ray Releases, Volume Two

Posted: 22 March, 2013 in Movies/TV
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Heavenly Shades of Delight: Twilight Time’s Blu-ray Releases, Volume Two

What do classic musicals, aerial races, William Faulkner, and flesh-eating zombies have in common? Not much, really – apart from the very fact that indie label Twilight Time has released all of the above on Blu-ray in the recent past. Continuing where I left off with the previous Heavenly Shades of Delight article, I present you with eight more titles the popular niche outfit has quietly unleashed upon the world of collectors within the last year. Each of these titles are/were limited to only 3,000 pressings apiece, and are available exclusively online from Screen Archives. Read the rest of this entry »

Heavenly Shades of Delight: Twilight Time’s Blu-ray Releases, Volume One [Mondo Bastardo]

Posted: 14 March, 2013 in Movies/TV
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Heavenly Shades of Delight: Twilight Time’s Blu-ray Releases, Volume One [Mondo Bastardo]

I know it’s one of those things that we all hate hearing about, but nevertheless, it’s true: the economy in the last couple of years has really made for some hard times. Though it’s not as awful as, say, losing your house or job, the world of home media was not immune to the downfall of the financial system. Nearly a decade ago, we were treated to the digital disc debuts of titles we never even thought we’d see on videocassette back in the ’80s. Once things started to take a turn for the lesser, however, we lost many of our glorious indie DVD distributors and the gems that they would have surely presented us with. Read the rest of this entry »

Blu-ray Review: Pixar Short Films Collection, Volume 2

Posted: 12 March, 2013 in Movies/TV
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Blu-ray Review: Pixar Short Films Collection, Volume 2

Article first published as Blu-ray Review: Pixar Short Films Collection, Volume 2 on Blogcritics.

Ever since the folks at Pixar Studios first unleashed their groundbreaking animated feature film Toy Story in 1995, they have been viewed upon as a serious group of professionals to be reckoned with — especially by the people at Disney, who didn’t hesitate to buy Pixar outright for an astronomical sum more than a decade after the premiere of the aforementioned now-classic family flick. Since then (and even before then), moviegoers have been treated to the occasional Pixar short attached to the beginning of a feature-length Disney (or Pixar/Disney) item after packing themselves and their rugrats into crowded theaters. Sadly, some of these itty-bitty ditties — which were, let’s face it, often better than the movies that followed them — have been unavailable on home video. (more…)

A Late Quartet Blu-ray Review: Christopher Walken Finally Gets to Play a Real Person!

Posted: 12 March, 2013 in Movies/TV
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A Late Quartet Blu-ray Review: Christopher Walken Finally Gets to Play a Real Person!

As just about anyone who has ever surfed either the shelves of a video store’s “hip” section or scoured throughout the various forums available on the Interweb (and the avatars of the users contained therein) has probably deduced, Christopher Walken is hailed as something of a badass with several generations. It’s really no surprise, of course: the famous performer has become something of a living meme for the oft-bizarre characters he has played, not to mention his own wild-style and keen ability to mock even himself repeatedly on Saturday Night Live. But then there’s that side of Walken that not very many of today’s viewers are truly aware exists: his dramatic, serious edge — as aspect of a typecast actor which is just as equally fascinating. Read the rest of this entry »

Blu-ray Review: Guns, Girls and Gambling – Been There, Done That

Posted: 8 March, 2013 in Movies/TV
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Blu-ray Review: Guns, Girls and Gambling – Been There, Done That

Article first published as Blu-ray Review: Guns, Girls and Gambling – Been There, Done That on Blogcritics.

In the mid ’90s, mainstream cinema and the direct-to-video market alike both experienced a significant change in their product — due largely in part to the worldwide success of Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction, a movie that dared to toss out the traditional formula of ABC filmmaking in favor of a more nonlinear style of storytelling. Granted, any well-read (or well-viewed) disciple of film knows that Tarantino did not solely create the genre of hip features. There were numerous avant-garde artists before him — most of whom did it far better than he could have ever hoped to, but whose methods of moviemaking did not become as hugely popular in the fact that they simply weren’t as popular. (more…)

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