Lilo & Stitch 2-Movie Collection (Blu-ray Review)
This summer Walt Disney Studios treats audiences to two animated comedies about bringing friends and family together even when they seem worlds apart in one fun Lilo and Stitch 2-movie collection. Available June 11, 2013 for the first time on Blu-ray with great picture and sound quality, the Lilo & Stitch and Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has A Glitch movies are hours of fantastic fun in one incredible collection! The 3-disc Blu-ray Combo Pack includes both feature films on one Blu-ray disc plus each film on individual DVDs. Lilo and Stitch is the story of Lilo, a lonely little girl, and Stitch the mischievous little creature from outer space. When Stitch crash-lands in Hawaii, Lilo adopts him as her pet, but he soon turns her world upside down. Stitch takes Hawaii by storm, wreaking havoc and hanging ten while he evades the alien bounty hunters who are after him, and also learning about loyalty and friendship. Featuring six original Elvis Presley songs, Lilo and Stitch is fun for the entire family. The laughter continues in the sequel Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch. As Stitch settles into life with his human family it appears his molecular makeup is out of whack and his friendship with Lilo is threatened as a result. Lilo and her friends must find a way to restore his “goodness” level before he ruins everything, including Lilo’s big hula competition – the same competition her mother won years before. Continue reading ‘Lilo & Stitch 2-Movie Collection (Blu-ray Review)’
When Oscar Diggs (James Franco), a small-time circus magician with dubious ethics, is hurled away from dusty Kansas to the vibrant Land of Oz, he thinks he’s hit the jackpot. Fame and fortune are his for the taking. That is until he meets three witches: Theodora (Mila Kunis), Evanora (Rachel Weisz) and Glinda (Michelle Williams), who are not convinced he is the great wizard everyone’s been expecting. Reluctantly drawn into the epic problems facing the Land of Oz and its inhabitants, Oscar must find out who is good and who is evil before it is too late. Putting his magical arts to use through illusion, ingenuity and even a bit of wizardry, Oscar transforms himself not only into a great wizard but into a better man as well. 
I wonder how many of my reviews for Pixar films begin with how I approach their studio with a lot of faith, given their track record. The notion to mention favorites from the beloved animation studio is also a tendency. It really should not matter and maybe in another 5-10 years, they will be just another studio that does not need to be called out for their past films. With all of that in mind, regardless of whatever Pixar has done in the past and how their newer films stack up, I can that I had a lot of fun with Monsters University, the prequel to 2001’s Monsters, Inc. It is a funny, bright, and colorful underdog story that relies on a lot of good-natured humor to make up for its traditional plotting. The emotional resonance is there, as per usual with Pixar, but the film is about as affecting as it needs to be, for a film that sets out to simply be a fun, all-ages comedy.
This title piqued my interest when it came through. A zombie tale based off of a graphic novel I’d never heard of. It deals with zombies and one is a superhero of sorts. It was a fully imagined CG movie as well. The key demo for it appeared to be the older, mature crowd. A zombie who is all about being ready and able to “kick ass” is how the box tries to sell it. Well, I’ve never seen that approach to the zombie genre (one I’m a sucker for), so bring it. I had not seen a trailer or anything from it, but I felt optimistic going in blind. Unfortunately this turned out to be a complete failure for me at every turn. Maybe I was too old for this. Maybe I’m not of the ilk that would enjoy something like this. I wasn’t familiar with the source material, but I’m pretty positive I wasn’t really missing out on anything. As a film itself, it’s quite a challenging piece to get through and it’s also a short one to boot. 
It feels like this movie has been in production for so long that it would be a miracle if it was any good. Let’s take a quick look back and count the ways World War Z has suffered from setbacks. First thing first, Brad Pitt’s production company, Plan B Entertainment, first secured film rights in 2007 from the novel of the same name by Max Brooks. That’s when director Marc Forster was first approached to direct. Things proceeded slowly as Matthew Michael Carnahan was hired to write the screenplay in 2009 and filming didn’t begin until around July 2011. The movie originally was set for a December 2012 release date. However, in July 2012 the film’s release date was pushed back and seven weeks of reshoots were scheduled. Wow! That’s right…seven weeks! During that time Damon Lindelof was hired to rewrite the third act, but he didn’t have time and Drew Goddard was hired to rewrite it. What is this, Prometheus? Now with all that in hindsight, the thing that worries me the most is the flick’s PG-13 rating for what looks like one hell of a wild, zombie invasion ride. Were my worries justified? Read on and find out you will.
Magicians, or Illusionists, have sort of become a dying breed in modern times. In the 80s and 90s they were a pretty big deal. There were television specials, tours and merchandising. Growing up, one of my favorite celebrities was David Copperfield. I taped his television specials and went and saw him when his tour came to my hometown. For those who read my 
A horror anthology is one of the easiest types of films to see as hit or miss. Not only can some of the segments either be good, bad, or just okay, but the film itself can drag depending on how many short films we are watching and whether or not the connective tissue between each film (if there is any) is effective. V/H/S suffered from this issue. Some of the segments were better than others; one segment was straight up terrible, in my eyes; and I really disliked the wraparound material to keep it connected in some fashion. What is great about V/H/S 2 is how it manages to correct most of these issues. It is a leaner and meaner experience. I had less issue with the wraparounds, I enjoyed all the segments, the film does not drag, and the creativity is even more prevalent throughout. There may still be curiosity regarding why digital camera footage has been put onto V/H/S tapes, but the film is an effective horror experience overall.
Seriously, how many people out there can rattle off many good third entries in a feature film franchise or at least halfway decent attempts? Any takers? They say that by the third time around a movie franchise usually wears out its welcome. Third time’s not always the charm. A strong concept is harder to conjecture and any fresh breath air you had you have must be rejuvenated and excite the crowd all over again or else you risk quickly boring the bejesus out of your viewers. However, lessoned learned, you must not stray too far from that original formula or suffer the curse of The Hangover Part III you will. How about playing it safe? Does that ever work? Very rarely it does in my opinion. But what about if you give the people what they want? You know they aren’t coming for mind blowing plots or Oscar worthy performances so why even try to venture down that road? If you know what people will desire and exactly who will be showing up, then just give it to them. 
We’ll always have Superman: The Movie. While Superman has arguably been the most recognizable superhero since his creation in 1938 and has remained a national icon, the 1978 film from Richard Donner seems to be the only time cinema had truly done its best to do him justice, let alone be the film that created the template (still in use) for a majority of superhero movies. Superman II is a great example as well, though that film is practically the second half of the first, given that it was part of one big story and shot back-to-back with the first film. For whatever reason, other attempts at a Superman film can’t seem to do anything else that is interesting with the character, regardless of spectacle, the cast involved, or whoever may be directing or producing. Man of Steel is the best Superman film since the first two Christopher Reeve films, but it still ends up waving off some of the more interesting ideas in favor of letting us see super fights on an enormous scale and settling for bursts of emotional content, amidst an unfocused story. As a person who already does not find Superman to be any more fascinating than the story written around him, the potential for this newest iteration to explore the character is downplayed, despite the film still playing out as a visually stimulating experience in the realm of big summer blockbusters.
The day is finally upon us. They said it couldn’t be done. They said it was impossible. They said not in your wildest imagination. Okay. I admit it. I said all of this when I first found out they were attempting to go down the road of reinventing, rebranding and rebooting the legendary Superman franchise. Ha! You should have heard the expletives I said when I found out that Watchmen’s Zack Snyder was helming the project. I have nothing against the looks and visual style of his Watchmen, but my God was that one of the most boringly long, tearjerking films of recent years filled with too many frames of big blue @#$%. However, I know Snyder has more potential than that. After all he did do 300 and created one of the most stunning movie intros ever, in my opinion, in Sucker Punch. So the cat has talent, that much I can’t deny. But then it became to be known that Christopher Nolan was going to be serving as a producer and I thought maybe, just maybe, under the tutelage of King Nolan, Snyder could possibly nail it on the head and get it right this time out. This franchise needs a hero. 
As a child growing up in the 80’s I always lived in fear of losing one of my hands after I witnessed Darth Vader cut of his own son’s hand in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. I went to great lengths to devise robotic hands and whatnot out of any material I could find lying around the garage and house. Sadly, cardboard limbs just don’t suffice for the real thing. See what kind of traumatic effect violence in films can have on our youth? Haha. However, it’s good to know that if I learned nothing else after watching today’s Blu-ray subject, American Mary, the human hand can be reattached if it hasn’t been more than 8 hours since the amputation. Of course, situations may vary. But hey! That’s very nice to know. And we all know that knowing is half the battle. Furthermore, I also learned the same holds true for the arm clocking in at no more than 4 hours since amputation and fingers at 12 (DISCLAIMER: I have no factual data to prove this…just going by what was taught in the movie’s classroom). With that being said, the future is looking bright for my phobia that still to this day haunts me. But I digress… 
The apocalypse has been quite a popular topic for film in recent years. It has also been handled in various forms; from disaster drama (2012, Knowing), to the various zombie films (the upcoming World War Z), to romantic dramas (Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, a film I will continue to go to bat for). Even the provocative, avant-garde filmmaker Lars von Trier took a stab at the end of the world with Melancholia. So with the end of the world as such a popular subject for film, why not see it as a broad studio comedy? This Is The End is a wild joke-fest about the world coming to an end, as well as something akin to The Avengers of comedies, given that it stars many comedic actors all playing versions of themselves in a weird sorta-pseudo-sequel to every Judd Apatow-produced comedy, even though he had nothing to do with this film. Regardless, This Is The End is a hilarious, no-holds bar, star-filled extravaganza that manages to bury some interesting themes within its very bawdy self.
There is a big mystery regarding Anchor Bay’s Charlie Zone. Why is this movie called Charlie Zone? It’s not a character’s name or code name. It’s not a place. It’s not a mission. What is it? I have no desire to backtrack through it to find out in the event I missed it. I didn’t catch it the first time. The film is a dull journey to rescue a junkie and return her to her family that keeps opening new door after new door in terms of the mission’s severity. It’s all really confusing and drags on. The film also has a hard time balancing what it really wants to be. It tries its hand at drama, action, thriller, mystery and even horror, falling flat and uninteresting with every attempt. The movie does think it’s smarter than it is which kind of feels insulting to the viewer. You’ll never guess anything that’s coming, mostly because you have no clue as most turns are not earned or built up very well. 
The wait is finally over! All of Jason Voorhees machete wielding adventures will finally be gracing blu-ray players on Friday, September 13th. Both of Jason’s slasher icon colleagues, Freddy Krueger and Michael Myers, have already had their full oeuvre on blu-ray for a while now, so it’s high time Jason finally got his. Thanks to Warner Bros purchasing video distribution rights from Paramount last year, this is the first time the full series has been available in one box set. Not only will you get the first 8 Paramount adventures, but the New Line additions as well. And Freddy Krueger even makes an appearance. Paramount began releasing the original films on blu-ray in anticipation of the remake, but stopped after the first 3. Fans of the series have been pining since. Even getting the disappointing news a few years back that Paramount didn’t feel there was an interest in releasing the rest and found it a financial risk. Warner Bros has swooped in and saved the day for fans. Your wait is over. This set is getting some royal treatment and you shouldn’t be leaving Crystal Lake unhappy! 
