|
This Month's Featured Equipment Reviews |
|
|
|
10 Most Recent Theatrical Reviews |
|
|
|
Blu-ray Software Forum Topics: |
|
|
|
Most Popular Blu-ray Reviews |
|
|
|
Theatrical
|
Editor's rating:
3.0
Sunday, 19 December 2010
,
Written by
Daniel Hirshleifer
Disney has sure made some bizarro live action picture over the years. The 70's in particular was a great era for Disney's live action department, bringing us such semi-forgotten classics as The Black Hole, The Watcher In The Woods, and two entries in the Witch Mountain series. But it wasn't until the early 80's that Disney released perhaps its most famous live action picture, a little oddity known simply as Tron. Starring a young Jeff Bridges as a man who finds himself sucked into a computer system and forced to play dangerous games (which to humans simply seem like the video games they play at arcades), Tron was absolutely groundbreaking. Using all kinds of never before seen visual effects, including very early CGI, Tron has grown from an odd slice of Disney arcana to a full fledged cult classic. Much like another sci-fi film released in 1982, Blade Runner, the ...
|
|
|
|
Editor's rating:
5.0
Friday, 03 December 2010
,
Written by
Daniel Hirshleifer
It didn't occur to me until I sat watching the end credits of Black Swan that Darren Aronofsky's movies to date have all shared a common theme. From Pi to The Wrestler, Requiem For A Dream to The Fountain, and now Black Swan, Aronofsky makes films about people who are consumed by their passions, their desires, or their fears. In a way, he's been making the same movie over and over from the start. But that doesn't stop each one from being fascinating on their own, and Black Swan is no exception.Natalie Portman plays NIna Sayers, a ballet dancer with a New York company. She lives with her mother (Barbara Hershey), who attends to her every need, even clipping her nails. The lead dancer in the company is Beth (Winona Ryder), but she's getting old, so the company's director, Thomas (Vincent Cassel), decides it's time for a new lead. Nina dares ...
|
|
|
|
Editor's rating:
4.5
Monday, 22 November 2010
,
Written by
Daniel Hirshleifer
It's a little difficult to believe that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the second to last film in the massively successful Harry Potter franchise, is at all related toHarry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Where that movie, the franchise's first, was filled with wide-eyed wonder, Deathly Hallows is dark and world weary. It's a credit to original author J.K. Rowling and the series varied filmmakers that they've been able to bring the audience to this point.
As the film opens, things do not look good for our heroes. Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) still reels from the loss of Dumbledore (Michael Gambon). Hermione (Emma Watson) reluctantly and painfully casts a spell on her parents to make them forget her in order to keep them safe. And Ron (Rupert Grint) is full of apprehension. Things pick up quickly, with Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) and his Death ...
|
|
|
|
Editor's rating:
3.5
Friday, 15 October 2010
,
Written by
Daniel Hirshleifer
In the wake of James Cameron's mega-blockbuster Avatar, all of the studios have been trying to get into the 3D game. Some are going out of their way to produce material that makes sense for the format. Others ran regular 2D movies through the post-conversion ringer, releasing product that sucked the momentum right out of the trend (here's mud in your eye, WB). As more and more movies come out in three dimensions, one thing has become clear: 3D works best when it's big, silly, and in your face. Sure, all these filmmakers could take ten years and spend millions of their own money working on a project designed to push 3D forward in new ways, but why bother when clearly the medium works best when it's showing T&A, horrible violence, or, in the case of Jackass 3D, pure nonsense.I remember when Jackass first ...
|
|
|
|
Editor's rating:
4.0
Friday, 15 October 2010
,
Written by
Daniel Hirshleifer
We all hear stories of retirees getting restless. Having become so used to doing a specific job, they find it hard to sit still when they're not actively employed anymore. But what if your job consisted of killing people in the company of some of the most dangerous men and women in the world? What could retirement hold for the person who's been everywhere, seen everything, and killed it? Such is the question posed by director Robert Schwentke's Red.Red, based on the graphic novel by Warren Ellis, tells the story of Frank Moses (Bruce Willis), a retired CIA operative. His life, once rich with adventure, is now dreary and dull. The only pleasures he has are growing a lone avocado and speaking with Sarah (Mary-Louise Parker), his representative at the pension office. Sarah is in the exact opposite position as Frank, ...
|
|
|
|
|
