Mat Brewster

Cinema Sentries

Jack and the Beanstalk (1952) Blu-ray Review: Abbott and Costello Meet the Giant

Two not-so-classic comedies from the very much classic comedy duo get a 4K upgrade.

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Joint Security Area Blu-ray Review: Friendship and Murder in the DMZ

Park Chan-wook’s breakout film gets the Arrow Video treatment.

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Cinema Sentries

Lupin III: The First Blu-ray Review: Lots of Fun

Lupin III’s first foray into digital animation is a lovely looking, fun adventure for the family.

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Cinema Sentries

Mouchette Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: So Beautiful, So Sad

A few days in the sad little life of a French girl.

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Cinema Sentries

Popeye (1980) Blu-ray Review: A Strange Little Miracle

It is amazing this film ever got made and that it is actually good.

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The Deeper You Dig Blu-ray Review: A Terrific Low-budget Horror

A perfect addition to your Halloween viewing schedule.

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Focus Features 10-Movie Spotlight Collection Blu-ray Review

A fine collection of films from one of my favorite studios.

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Five Cool Things and Dune (2020)

Enjoy these cool things.

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Blumhouse of Horrors 10-Movie Collection Blu-ray Review: A Mixed Bag

Ten of the most popular Blumhouse horror films get a nice boxed set.

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Five Cool Things and Two Jules Dassin Films Get the Criterion Treatment

What a marvelous week for cool things.

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Brute Force & The Naked City Criterion Collection Blu-ray Reviews: A Jules Dassin Double Feature

Two classics film noirs from Jules Dassin get the Criterion treatment.

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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and No Time to Die Trailer

I’ve really been enjoying a lot of older films that aren’t quite up to classic status lately.

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The Balcony Blu-ray Review: Cinematic Satire, I Guess

This adaptation of a French satire failed to make me laugh or think very deeply.

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Five Cool Things and Chadwick Boseman

May he forever rest in power.

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Breezy Blu-ray Review: Like Sunday Morning

A sweet romance from Clint Eastwood feels a bit queasy due to the age difference.

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Cry Freedom Blu-ray Review: A Fight for Justice

An important black story unfortunately told from a white perspective.

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There’s Always Tomorrow Blu-ray Review: A Nuanced Portrayal of a Man Grown Bored with His Life

This Douglas Sirk melodrama takes a realistic look into a marriage on the rocks and the temptation of another woman.

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Cinema Sentries

The Flash (2014): The Complete Sixth Season Blu-ray Review: The Stakes Have Gotten Higher but the Fun Has Gotten Smaller

The Flash keeps getting bigger and bigger, but not necessarily better and better.

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Toni Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: An Influential French Drama

Jean Renoir’s realistic portrayal of migrant workers in the South of France helped influence the French New Wave and Italian Neorealism.

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Tender Mercies Blu-ray Review: A Gentle, Beautiful Film

The script by Horton Foote is smart. It won him an Oscar. It knows about people and their inner lives

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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and The Suicide Squad

After a couple of weeks off, I’m back with Five Cool Things.

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Life Is a Long Quiet River Blu-ray Review: It Could Use a Few Noisy Rapids

A lighthearted social satire about French life that could have used a few more laughs.

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Raid on Rommel Blu-ray Review: Raids Other Films for Ideas

It says something about Richard Burton’s star power that he still had a career after this stinker.

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Cinema Sentries

DC’s Legends of Tomorrow: The Complete Fifth Season Review: So Much Fun

The way they swing for the fences with absolute nuttiness is glorious.

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Batwoman: The Complete First Season Blu-ray Review: The Arrowverse Finally Goes to Gotham

When Batwoman finds its groove, it’s really good.

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Backlash (1956) Blu-ray Review: Searching for Gold and Daddy

A great opening setup leads to just a pretty good film.

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Bloodstone Blu-ray Review: Indiana Jones and the B-Movie Knock-Off

Nico Mastorakis gets into the exotic adventure game with typical mixed results.

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The Eagle and the Hawk Blu-ray Review: World War I Was Hell

Frederic March is brilliant as a fighter pilot slowly going mad in this gripping war drama.

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Hiroshima Blu-ray Review: Unrelenting Terror

A documentary-style narrative film about the days following first atomic bomb dropping.

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Black Rainbow Blu-ray Review: A Spiritual Thriller

Mike Hodges oft-neglected thriller about a fake medium who gets real powers works best when it focuses on the relationships between the characters.

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The Quest (1986) Blu-ray Review: Sit This Adventure Out

Utterly disappointing in every way.

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Zombie for Sale Blu-ray Review: A New Take on an Old Genre

This zombie rom-com takes the genre into fun directions.

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Audie Murphy Collection Blu-ray Review: War Hero Becomes a Movie Star

I’ve heard about Audie Murphy’s remarkable life since I was a kid. I’m thrilled to finally be getting to see some of his films with this new set.

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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and the New Mutants

What an eclectically cool week.

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Tony Curtis Collection Blu-ray Review: Charming

Kino Lorber presents three mid-tier films from the great actor, and it is great to finally have them on Blu-ray.

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Five Cool Things and a Bookstore Haul

A cool week was made even cooler by a trip to the bookstore.

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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Possessor

I’m getting tired of staying home, but at least there are still cool things to consume

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The World in His Arms Blu-ray Review: Swashbuckling Gregory Peck

A high-flying adventure on the high seas.

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Book Review: Gramercy Park by Timothée de Fombelle and Christian Cailleaux

The rare comic that uses the trappings of noir to tell a new story.

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Five Cool Things and Gillian Welch’s All the Good Times Are Past and Gone

Some of the cool things from this past week.

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Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema IV Blu-ray Review: Too Much Melodrama, Not Enough Noir

These three films are decent enough dramas but lack the edge of a good film noir.

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America as Seen by a Frenchman Blu-ray Review: A Fascinating Snapshot in Time

A glimpse into my country’s past a viewed from a foreigner.

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Blood Tide Blu-ray Review: Fun and Monsters in the Greek Sun

James Earl Jones quotes Shakespeare and conjures a barely seen monster in this masterpiece from Greek auteur Nico Mastorakis.

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Five Cool Things and the Fourth of July

Happy Birthday, United States of America.

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Five Cool Things and Pearl Jam Uncensored

Here’s five films I’ve watched this week and enjoyed.

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White Fire, The Wind, and Why Don’t You Just Die! Blu-rays Review: Three from Arrow Video

Three very different films get the excellent Arrow Video treatment.

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Five Cool Things and Ian Holm

We are still staying home and still finding cool things to watch.

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