In Fear Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Iain De Caestecker, Alice Englert, Allen Leech

Director: Jeremy Lovering

Format: Blu-ray, NTSC, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: Spanish

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: ANCHOR BAY

Release Date: March 11, 2014

Run Time: 85 minutes

 

       

        Horror films are about clever ideas and solid execution. Even with bad acting or little else to praise, a small horror movie can be effective if it manages to touch upon a universal fear. In Fear has a simple set-up that is relatable and extremely effective, despite very little feeling original about it by the time the credits have rolled. It is essentially Funny Games set in a car, relying on an atmosphere of dread rather than blood and gore.

 

Commitment Blu-ray Review

 

     Actors: Choi Seung-hyun, Han Ye-ri, Jo Sung-ha

Director: Park Hong-soo

Format: Blu-ray, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen, Dolby, THX

Language: Korean

Subtitles: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1

Rated: Unrated

Studio: Well Go USA

Release Date: March 11, 2014

Run Time: 113 minutes

 

       

        As far as social or political issues are concerned, Commitment really has nothing of significance to say about the constant struggle between North and South Korea, but it does provide some undeniably impressive action sequences with Korean rap/pop superstar Choi Seung-Hyun (aka T.O.P.) heading up the cast. In other words, this is a blockbuster with plenty of entertainment and very little concern for realism or social relevance. Fans of South Korean action films, particularly the popular sub-genre of professional killer crime films recently released, will find this a worthwhile endeavor. 

 

George Washington Blu-ray Review

     Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1

Number of discs: 2

Rated: Unrated

Studio: Criterion Collection

Release Date: March 11, 2014

Run Time: 90 minutes

 

       

        David Gordon Green’s debut feature set the tone for his entire body of work, proving immediately that he was a voice of significance in the world of American independent cinema. Green’s latest film has received praise and attention already, particularly due to the early death of one of its performers. Using non-actors within his cast to give nuanced performances began with George Washington, and it is a technique he still utilizes with great effect.

 

Lost in Thailand Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Wang Baoqiang, Fan Bingbing, Huang Bo, Xu Zheng, Tao Hong

Director: Xu Zheng

Format: Blu-ray, Dolby, NTSC, Subtitled, THX, Widescreen

Language: Cantonese

Subtitles: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: Unrated

Studio: Well Go USA

Release Date: February 25, 2014

Run Time: 105 minutes

 

        Lost in Thailand is currently the highest-grossing film in China’s history, though this should not necessarily be a badge of quality. Take into consideration the films which are often the biggest box office winners in Hollywood, and how few of those are simultaneously critically praised or award-winners. 12 Years a Slave just won Best Picture at the 2014 Academy Awards, despite having very little impact on ticket sales in comparison to many other films in 2013. Lost in Thailand is a very safe film, filled with irreverent comedy and mayhem comparable to an inoffensive Chinese take on The Hangover type humor.

 

You Will Be My Son Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Niels Arestrup, Lorànt Deutsch, Patrick Chesnais

Director: Gilles Legrand

Format: AC-3, Blu-ray, DTS Surround Sound, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: French

Subtitles: English

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: Cohen Media Group

Release Date: February 25, 2014

Run Time: 102 minutes

 

         I was captivated by You Will Be My Son, from the opening scene to the last. Unfortunately, once I reached that last scene it was with a certain amount of disappointment. The film builds spectacularly upon its characters and the spectacular performances, which make every plot twist and every conversation compelling, though this does not save the ending from feeling somewhat bleak and pointless. As competent as the drama within the film’s narrative may be, it ultimately leads the audience to an almost pointless conclusion which feels somewhat unresolved.

 

The Artist and the Model Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Jean Rochefort, Claudia Cardinale

Director: Fernando Trueba

Format: AC-3, Blu-ray, DTS Surround Sound, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: French

Subtitles: English

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: Cohen Media Group

Release Date: February 11, 2014

Run Time: 105 minutes

 

        There are some great sequences within this meditation on art and life set during Nazi occupation of France in the summer of 1943, combined with beautifully fitting black-and-white photography by Daniel Vilar. Scene to scene, The Artist and the Model is a thoughtful and elegant film, but the overall product left me feeling somewhat under-whelmed. Rather than dig into the emotional and personal connections in the material, the narrative ends up feeling far more philosophical and theoretical instead. Even with the inclusion of dramatic story elements involving the struggle against the Nazis and hidden Spanish resistance fighters, The Artist and the Model stays too emotionally detached from its characters for any real suspense to form.

 

See This Film: Inside Llewyn Davis DVD Review

     Actors: Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, John Goodman

Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

DVD Release Date: March 11, 2014

Run Time: 104 minutes

 

        The worst films to review are the ones that have nothing spectacular about them, surviving merely on adequacy in order to make enough money in ticket sales to justify calling it a success. These films are nearly impossible to review, mostly because they are so boringly stuck in familiar formulas and predictable character arcs. Reviewing Inside Lllewyn Davis is proving to be just as difficult to review, but not for its lack of spectacular elements. The problem with this film is finding a place to begin, with every scene of the filming exuding confidence in filmmaking from every possible aspect. This may very well be the most understated film of the year, though every bit as good as every other film nominated for Best Picture this past Academy Awards.

The 300 Spartans Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Richard Egan, Ralph Richardson, Diane Baker, Barry Coe, David Farrar

Director: Rudolph Maté

Writers: George St. George, Gian Paolo Callegari, Giovanni d'Eramo, Remigio Del Grosso, Ugo Liberatore

Producers: Rudolph Maté, George St. George

Format: Blu-ray, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English (Mono), Spanish (Mono)

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Dubbed: English, Spanish

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: NR (Not Rated)

Studio: 20th Century Fox

Release Date: February 25, 2014

Run Time: 114 minutes

       

        This week being released in theaters is 300: Rise of an Empire, following up Zack Snyder’s successful theatrical adaptation of Frank Miller’s graphic novel, 300, which was inspired by this 1962 classic film epic. Though this original classic that went on to inspire future mediums and franchises lacks the visual flair of Miller’s comics and Snyder’s film, the narrative is almost exactly the same. Rather than bulging muscles and rippling abs in slow-motion mayhem, The 300 Spartans utilizes the clever battle techniques of the outnumbered Spartan soldiers, making for a less exciting but equally intelligent narrative of loyalty in war.

 

The Agony and the Ecstasy Blu-ray Review

     Format: AC-3, Blu-ray, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English (DTS 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo), Spanish (Mono)

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Dubbed: English, French, Spanish

Aspect Ratio: 2.20:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: NR (Not Rated)

Studio: 20th Century Fox

Release Date: March 4, 2014

Run Time: 138 minutes

 

 

        Recently I have had quite a few conversations about the use of nudity in art, particularly with the controversy of French art house darling, Blue is the Warmest Color. Of course, I would never claim to make many more connections between the artwork displayed in Vatican City and the seven-minute lesbian love scene in a modern film, but it is worth noting that nudity in art was something up for debate even in the times of Michelangelo and his Sistine Chapel. The famed artist’s choice to show man as he is described in the Bible rather than saints clothed in excess was a controversy in his time, which makes you wonder what will be considered of great controversial art in the future. 

Cold Comes the Night Blu-ray Review

    Actors: Alice Eve, Bryan Cranston, Logan Marshall-Green

Directors: Tze Chun

Format: AC-3, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: Danish, English, Greek, Norwegian, Swedish

Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Release Date: March 4, 2014

Run Time: 90 minutes

 

        Fresh off of his success with “Breaking Bad,” Bryan Cranston is going to have to work hard to break away from the crime genre. This is somewhat ironic considering the monumental role of Walter White broke the comedic persona gained from years on the sitcom “Malcolm in the Middle.” Cold Comes the Night is not a groundbreaking film, nor is it a career-defining role from Cranston, though the seemingly unnecessary choice to make his character speak with a thick Russian accent at least gives the actor a chance to escape type casting. If only the editors had done a better job of cutting out the lines or takes in which Cranston’s accent slips away, this performance may have helped the otherwise standard thriller narrative.   

 

Oldboy Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Josh Brolin

Format: AC-3, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: English

Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Release Date: March 4, 2014

Run Time: 104 minutes

 

       

        There was absolutely no reason to adapt Chan-wook Park’s Oldboy, and even less reason for Spike Lee to be the chosen director for this project. Over the ten years since the groundbreaking South Korean film was released, there were many possible directors attached the adaptation. At one point it was thought that Steven Spielberg would adapt it with Will Smith in the leading role. In my mind, the only possible director who could have done justice to the original would have been David Fincher, so perhaps I was biased in my viewing of the 2013 adaptation by Lee. This film comes nowhere close to the original. With that being said, there are a few moments within this unnecessary film which are at least compelling enough to be entertaining. This film may not come close to being needed for anyone willing to read subtitles, but at least it isn’t boring.

 

The Counselor Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Michael Fassbender, Penelope Cruz, Brad Pitt, Javier Bardem, Cameron Diaz

Director: Ridley Scott

Format: AC-3, Blu-ray, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English (DTS 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (DTS 5.1)

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Dubbed: English, French, Spanish

Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1

Number of discs: 2

Rated: Unrated

Studio: 20th Century Fox

Release Date: February 11, 2014

Run Time: 118 minutes

       

        I wanted to like The Counselor. I’ve read quite a bit of acclaimed author Cormac McCarthy’s work, and was amazed at how brilliantly the Coen brothers were able to capture the poetry in the violence with their adaptation of No Country for Old Men. The Counselor only further proves what a delicate balance was needed for the material in No Country for Old Men, showing how difficult making a film out of McCarthy’s material truly is. Sadly, Ridley Scott’s film proves this by being a complete and utter failure.        

 

Breathless Blu-ray Review

     Format: Black & White, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: French

Subtitles: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1

Number of discs: 3

Rated: Unrated

Studio: Criterion Collection

Release Date: February 25, 2014

Run Time: 90 minutes

 

       

        I could spend an entire review merely discussion the significance that Breathless had on cinema, internationally. Cinema as we know it today is still carrying waves of the initial impact of films like Breathless, radical pioneers in an ever-changing (and growing) art form. Even if you don’t care for French New Wave or Jean-Luc Godard’s ironic and cold homage to film noir narratives, there is no denying its ultimate significance and influence that Breathless had on modern cinema.

               

Killing Kennedy Blu-ray Review

      Format: AC-3, Blu-ray, DTS Surround Sound, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English (DTS 5.1)

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Dubbed: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: NR (Not Rated)

Studio: 20th Century Fox

Release Date: February 11, 2014

Run Time: 88 minutes

 

 

        Despite the widespread criticism of Killing Lincoln, a recreation style adaptation of the best selling book by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard from producers Ridley Scott and Tony Scott, this was apparently seen as reason to try again. Killing Kennedy, also adapted from a book by O’Reilly and Dugard, at the very least benefits from the disposing of recreation elements, instead approach the narrative in a more straightforward manner. The unfortunate thing about this final film is how much it resembles the superior Parkland feature film. The simple truth is that this material is over-used and we have had enough films about Kennedy’s assassination to last several decades.

Fists of Legend Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Jeong-min Hwang, Woong-in Jung, Yo-won Lee

Director: Woo-Suk Kang

Format: Dolby, Dubbed, NTSC, Subtitled, Surround Sound, Widescreen

Language: Korean

Subtitles: English

Dubbed: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: Unrated

Studio: CJ Entertainment

Release Date: February 18, 2014

Run Time: 155 minutes

 

       

        Fists of Legend has the feel of a blockbuster; one of those feel-good predictable pieces of popcorn entertainment that the masses indulge in ever summer and holiday weekend. These films aren’t always great, because they often play it safe rather than taking chances, but they are a reliable source of distraction. In a lot of ways, this is a slightly more believable Korean Here Comes the Boom or Grudge Match.

See This Film: King of the Hill Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Jesse Bradford, Jeroen Krabbé, Lisa Eichhorn, Kristin Griffith, Lauryn Hill

Format: AC-3, DTS Surround Sound, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1

Number of discs: 3

Rated: PG-13 

Studio: Criterion Collection

Release Date: February 25, 2014

Run Time: 103 minutes

 

 

        I remember watching King of the Hill when I was around the same age as the film’s protagonist, Aaron (Jesse Bradford). The mere fact that I was able to enjoy it as much today as I did as a child is a testament to the magnificence in Steven Soderbergh’s filmmaking. Never shying away from the harsh reality of the times, King of the Hill also manages to do so with a childlike naivety and optimism that slowly shifts to a hopeful independence. Soderbergh is able to obtain the feel of the times in this period film, but almost more important is his ability to place us in a coming-of-age narrative with effortless accuracy. As a child I was able to admire Aaron’s ability to survive starvation, but as an adult I was impressed by his ability to retain hope.

 

On the Job Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Piolo Pascual, Joel Torre, Joey Marquez, Gerald Anderson

Director: Erik Matti

Format: Blu-ray, Dolby, NTSC, Subtitled, THX, Widescreen

Language: Filipino

Subtitles: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: Unrated

Studio: Well Go USA

Release Date: February 11, 2014

Run Time: 116 minutes

      

        On the Job has the type of premise which is begging for a Hollywood remake, excitingly original content for a genre that has been overdone in many countries. The promise of this unique plot is wasted somewhat in the execution, mostly because this Filipino film chooses character study over action sequences. There are still some riveting moments within the film, but it ends with more of an introspective whimper than a bang.

 

Battle of the Damned Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Dolph Lundgren, Melanie Zanetti, Matt Doran

Director: Christopher Hatton

Format: Blu-ray, NTSC, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Dubbed: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R

Studio: Starz / Anchor Bay

Release Date: February 18, 2014

Run Time: 89 minutes

 

        I was actually surprised at how decent the effects were in Battle of the Damned, especially considering how ridiculous every other aspect of the film is. Dolph Lundgren is a far better actor than he gets credit for, especially being able to handle this material with a straight face. The only saving grace to Battle of the Damned beyond Lundgren’s weathered mug is the willingness to throw logic out the window when creating the script. An absurd addition of fighting robots to the story halfway through the film is inexplicable and strange enough to keep this from becoming just another low-budget zombie disaster.

 

Romeo and Juliet Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Hailee Steinfeld, Douglas Booth

Format: AC-3, DTS Surround Sound, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English (DTS 5.1)

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Dubbed: English

Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: PG-13 

Studio: 20th Century Fox

Release Date: February 4, 2014

Run Time: 119 minutes

 

        Anyone over the age of twenty-five is likely to be skeptical at the necessity of yet another adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet, while it simultaneously seems doubtful that anyone younger will enjoy the somewhat straightforward approach to the widely recognizable tale. Everything about this latest adaptation is underwhelming, almost as if the filmmakers had hoped the entire production could lean on the popularity of Shakespeare’s most manipulative melodrama and a few pretty young faces.

 

Wadjda Blu-ray Review

    Actors: Waad Mohammed, Reem Abdullah, Abdullrahman Al Gohani

Director: Haifaa Al-Mansour

Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: Arabic

Subtitles: English

Dubbed: French

Subtitles for the Hearing Impaired: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1

Number of discs: 2

Rated: PG 

Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Release Date: February 11, 2014

Run Time: 97 minutes

       

        Even in Hollywood it is rare that a female director sees the same success as male competition, with only a few names as exception. If you were to remove the nepotistic connections which make this possible, even fewer female filmmakers would be standing, and so the production of Wadjda would seem a small miracle in any country. The fact that it was the first feature film shot entirely in Saudi Arabia is impressive enough, but that the project was driven by a female director with a message that challenges the male-dominated ways of life is more than a small miracle. Wadjda is a spectacular film exceeded only in the impressiveness of the story behind the production, with director Haifaa Al Mansour unable to interact directly with the male crew or be present during the filming of the street sequences.