Psycho Cop Returns (Blu-ray Review)
The original Psycho Cop released in 1989 sort of quietly but moreso was something to be checked out during the late 1980s boom of VHS home video. Said slasher was a super cheapy that has aged itself into something campy. That first film is still awaiting some sort of Blu-ray release. Another four years would pass and suddenly it was getting a sequel, giving officer Vickers another killing spree, something Harry Warden was never even alotted. Psycho Cop Returns is making its debut on the format via the wonderful folks over at Vinegar Syndrome. In addition to a new scan, their release includes a documentary, commentary and interview focusing on the special effects. You can pre-order now for release on April 25th. Continue reading ‘Psycho Cop Returns (Blu-ray Review)’
I imagine many people reacted the same way I did when I first saw the trailer for a film titled The Bye Bye Man – by laughing and mocking and questioning why someone thought that title was a good idea. Well, after having seen the film that bears that laughable title, I was able to extend that mockery to every other element of this film’s production. The Bye Bye Man is so immediately recognizable as a bad movie that within fifteen minutes one is forced to start considering if it is worth watching as something to enjoy with friends as a joke. But no, while it is incompetently made and has bad acting, it can’t quite even get being a good-bad movie right as it too often sways into boring territory. Let’s explore what makes The Bye Bye Man absolutely not worth watching. Don’t see it, don’t buy it! 
It wasn’t until I completed my Christmas Eve review of Underworld on 4K Blu-ray (
The 1990s found me knee deep in anything I could consumer horror-wise, no matter what depths the first half of the decade would bring. Though, both with the theater and the rental store, I’m pretty sure I never sat down to watch Tales From The Hood. Maybe I did, but I figured I’d remember it. The film probably came across as too silly for me at the time and I wasn’t really into comedy-horror (I wanted my stuff serious and scary) or moreso wasn’t on the wavelength of it back then. Like what happens so many times, the folks at Scream Factory help to rectify past missed opportunities and give the films the best possible chance to win me over with their Collector’s Edition series of films. Tales From The Hood is entering that fold when they bring it out on April 18th. I’m looking forward to digging into this one as I feel there’s a good chance I’ll have a fondness for the movie that probably would not have been there when it was new and I was in my teens. 
M. Night Shyamalan has been the butt of many the general filmgoers jokes and received such visible and audible ire from audiences whenever even a trailer of his plays and his name shows up. The director took a steep drop after being heralded as the next great thing following The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable and Signs. But, in 2015, he broke his rotten streak and made The Visit, a truly fun, low budget horror film that really took him back to square one. While one film a full on comeback does not make, you still have to give the guy credit and realize he could be on to something. Shyamalan smartly chose to stick with the low budget studio Blumhouse for his follow up, Split which wound up dazzling audiences this past January, becoming one of his biggest and Bluhmhouse’s biggest releases ever. You can own or check out Split when it comes to Blu-ray on April 18th. 
While I didn’t make it to the theater to see it, Office Christmas Party had my interest and attention. You put Kate McKinnon in something and you’ve immediately got that from me, but the movie looked like a little bit of escapism lunacy that would probably be a fun time. It opened the weekend right before Rogue One: A Star Wars Story showed up to take all the moneys (Moana was taking the moneys at this time, about to tag another Disney fighter into the ring), but managed to do some pretty solid business despite rather middle of the road to negative reviews. And now, its coming home to Blu-ray where it will probably find even more of a life. You can grab the film to own beginning April 4th! 
A movie that is truly absolutely everything its title says it is; Monster Trucks. The film is literally about a truck that is pretty much controlled by a monster. Star Lucas Till says “Its everything the title says it is”. Its a trailer that was sort of groaned at and laughed at or people weirded out by a “What the heck is this?” reaction. So, yeah, it was pretty much dead on arrival. When it opened in January, its numbers underwhelmed. I couldn’t find the budget, but from the sounds of it, this thing cost too much and lost a lot of money. However, for the scoffy adults, this movie was obviously not made for them (or was it?). Now, we’ll see if a generation of kids picks up on this movie when it comes home on April 11th to Blu-ray (Digitally March 28th). 
Like it or not I’m going to start this 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray review of Planet Earth II off by admitting I’m not generally a fan of documentaries. Unless the subject matter really interests me I tend to find them boring and rather uninteresting. I’m sorry. I’m just wired ignorantly like that. However, if you’re and A//V enthusiast like us all here there’s no denying the special place 
Ben Wheatley’s name being attached to this latest collaborative distribution effort from Scream Factory and IFC Midnight, titled Tank 432, brings me a little bit of enthusiasm and expectation. I don’t know much about Wheatley’s cameraman turned director, Nick Gillispie, but he shot the movie Wheatley made that put him on my “list”. That would be Kill List from a few years ago, which turned heads with how awesome it was. If you haven’t seen that one, try and find it and give it a watch as soon as you can. Its a bit of a genre mish mash, with familiar thematics, but done in its own sort of way. Tank 432 is being sold as a military thriller that “unfolds like a delirious, pulse-pounding puzzle” and a “a mind-bending plunge into hallucinatory terror”. I’d not heard of it til now, but am eager to see how this one delivers. It will be available on both Blu-ray and DVD on April 4th, so get your pre-order in now. 
I’m going to start this one by giving you the same ramble I did last year. Working in the IT industry myself I can’t tell you what a breath of fresh air it is to see people going through the same stress, trials and tribulations as myself in the industry. I may not be involved directly in a tech startup company, but I know how things work in corporate America/Silicon Valley and sometimes HBO’s hit comedy series Silicon Valley hits oh so close to home for me. You can read all about my take on Season One in my 2014 Blu-ray review over 
In celebration of the 4K Ultra HD release Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, the latest adventure and series starter in the wizarding world lived in by J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter, Warner Bros is format jumping the original films in the series. They’ll all get that higher resolution with High Dynamic Range applied to them, to look sharper, prettier and newer. In my opinion, Warner Bros has been one of the more impressive studios when it comes to upgrading their catalog titles to 4K. One would think they are going to a lot of attention to one of their biggest franchises ever. They are releasing them in waves, with the four David Yates films (The back half of the series) being the first to come out. No date is set yet for the first four, but they’ll be here soon enough. This review will focus on the final chapter of the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 from 2011. It, and the others will be available March 28th. 
In celebration of the 4K Ultra HD release Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, the latest adventure and series starter in the wizarding world lived in by J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter, Warner Bros is format jumping the original films in the series. They’ll all get that higher resolution with High Dynamic Range applied to them, to look sharper, prettier and newer. In my opinion, Warner Bros has been one of the more impressive studios when it comes to upgrading their catalog titles to 4K. One would think they are going to a lot of attention to one of their biggest franchises ever. They are releasing them in waves, with the four David Yates films (The back half of the series) being the first to come out. No date is set yet for the first four, but they’ll be here soon enough. This review will focus on the sixth film in the series, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince from 2009. It, and the others will be available March 28th. 
Why Him? is ordinarily not the kind of film I would go see in the theaters. Had it not been for two key factors I don’t think I would have gone. First it had the very irresistible and hilarious trailers on its side. That Red-band one was insane. Although I went in hoping that all the funny parts were not included in said trailers. Second, there was the nod to “from the makers of I Love You Man.” I love that comedy flick! So as you can see right from the get go I was walking into Why Him? ahead in the count. Now is the moment of truth and also the chance to have fun with the title’s question mark. What did I think of Why Him? That is the question we are all pondering here, right? Why Him? 
While Rogue One: A Star Wars Story was sold as the first “spin off” of the galaxy far far away, its far from the first side stepping project. Most of it has been through television (Christmas! Ewoks!), books, comic books, video games and other mediums. But, its no stranger to the theatrical front, either. Star Wars: The Clone Wars, while really three episodes tied together, was launched as a feature film in 2008. What Rogue One really represents is an attempt at serious, hardcore canon, live-action films that have as much put into their production and development as that of the Skywalker saga. As much pressure as there was on The Force Awakens to help restore Star Wars and introduce it to a new generation, Rogue One had pressure to show George Lucas’ creation could branch out and do other things while also being a virtual unknown in terms of how something like this might look and feel. Sigh of relief, the movie turned out to be outstanding, was well reviewed and took to audiences globally to a tune of over a billion dollars worldwide and becoming one of the highest grossing films of all time. You’ll be able to own the tale of stealing the Death Star plans on Blu-ray starting April 4th. 
Ahh…the Smurfs. That song; La la la-la la la, Sing a happy song. La la la-la la la, Smurf it all day long. La la la-la la la. Smurf along with me! La la la-la la la. Simple as can be. Next time you’re feeling blue just let a smile begin, Happy things will come to you..So smurf yourself a grin! La la la-la la la, Now you know the tune, You’ll be Smurfing soon! When I was a kid, I was singing along, but after this movie, maybe I’m more in tuned to what cartoon Gargamel said during that opening sequence in the animated (Well, 2D television cartoon animated) “Oooooo I hate Smurfs! I’ll get you, I’ll get all of you if it’s the last thing I ever do! hehehehe!” Oh yeah, we’re here reviewing the debut of the 2011 film on 4K UHD Blu-ray. The sequel to the film is already available on the format (One of the launch titles), but this one is jumping in on March 28th. 
In celebration of the 4K Ultra HD release Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, the latest adventure and series starter in the wizarding world lived in by J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter, Warner Bros is format jumping the original films in the series. They’ll all get that higher resolution with High Dynamic Range applied to them, to look sharper, prettier and newer. In my opinion, Warner Bros has been one of the more impressive studios when it comes to upgrading their catalog titles to 4K. One would think they are going to a lot of attention to one of their biggest franchises ever. They are releasing them in waves, with the four David Yates films (The back half of the series) being the first to come out. No date is set yet for the first four, but they’ll be here soon enough. This review will focus on the first part of the finale of the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 from 2010. It, and the others will be available March 28th. 
