Steve Geise

Book Review: Daughters of Snow and Cinders by Núria Tamarit

When a determined young adventurer sets out into the wilderness in search of gold, she quickly encounters threats from the ...
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One Way Passage Blu-ray Review: Book This Voyage

When a convicted murderer gets extradited from Hong Kong to San Francisco, the last thing on his mind is falling ...
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Sick of Myself Movie Review: The Dark Side of Narcissism

Writer/director Kristoffer Borgli’s new film is the darkest of black comedies, at least until the comedy runs out. He imagines ...
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The Hunters: Complete Seasons 1 & 2 DVD Review: A Man Called Backström

A grumpy old retired cop is slogging through his golden years as a security guard at a start-up gold mine ...
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iMordecai DVD Review: Judd Hirsch Strikes Gold in His Golden Years

iMordecai is the Taxi TV series reunion I never knew I needed, starring alums and fellow Oscar nominees Judd Hirsch ...
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Secret Defense Blu-ray Review: Twisty Secrets Hampered by Indefensible Direction

This French drama gets off to a promising start when a scientist named Sylvie (Sandrine Bonnaire) learns that her father ...
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Arsène Lupin Collection Blu-ray Review: Two Hits and a Miss

The famous fictional thief arrives on Blu-ray in this new collection of three of his French theatrical adventures. The Lupin ...
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Star Trek: The Next Generation 4-Movie Collection 4K UHD Review: First 4K Contact

Following up on last year’s six-movie 4K box set of the original Star Trek movies, Paramount has moved on to ...
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Book Review: The Heavy Bright by Cathy Malkasian

A young girl is tasked with a seemingly impossible quest: to hunt down and destroy 999 black eggs closely held ...
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Knockabout Blu-ray Review: Sticks, Shticks, and Slapstick

Arrow Video continues their new series of Sammo Hung releases with this action comedy from early in his directorial career. ...
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Make Believe Seattle 2023 Review: Smoking Causes Coughing

If you’re in the Seattle area this weekend, Make Believe Seattle Film Festival is making its debut with a fascinating ...
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The Son of the Stars Movie Review: Rare ‘80s Romanian Cartoon Gets Blu-ray Release

Thanks to Deaf Crocodile Films, U.S. viewers will finally get the chance to watch this Romanian sci-fi rarity. The film ...
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Book Review: Ephemera: A Memoir by Briana Loewinsohn

Briana Loewinsohn’s debut graphic novel heralds the arrival of an intriguing new talent already operating at a masterful level. Her ...
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Book Review: Mickey and Donald: For Whom the Doorbell Tolls

In 1999, a teacher at Disney’s Italian school for cartoonists presented his students with a prompt: select a short story ...
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Book Review: Evita: The Life and Work of Eva Perón by Héctor Germán Oesterheld, Alberto and Enrique Breccia

Fantagraphics continues their series of Alberto Breccia releases with this graphic biography of the polarizing Argentine icon, Eva Perón, popularly ...
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Millionaires’ Express Blu-ray Review: Chinese Bullet Train

After shining a light on the rise of the Hong Kong film industry with their phenomenal Shaw Brothers box sets, ...
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The Bliss of Mrs. Blossom Blu-ray Review: Guess Who’s Coming to Breakfast

London, 1968. It’s the height and epicenter of the Swinging Sixties, and hip housewife Mrs. Blossom (Shirley MacLaine) is content ...
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Love on the Ground Blu-ray Review: Much Ado About Nothing

This 1984 French drama follows actors rehearsing a play, a time-worn concept of a show within a show dating back ...
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Emily Movie Review: Frances O’Connor’s Directorial Debut Soars to Wuthering Heights

First-time writer/director Frances O’Connor reimagines the final years of writer Emily Brontë’s life in this stunning period drama, heralding her ...
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Lets hope its a girl, a film poster

Let’s Hope It’s a Girl Blu-ray Review: Italian Film, Continental Cast

While this Italian film was a critical success in its native land in 1986, winning seven of its national awards ...
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Book Review: The Extraordinary Part: Book One: Orsay’s Hands by Florent Ruppert and Jerome Mulot

The latest work from powerhouse French graphic novelist duo Ruppert and Merlot imagines a world much like our own with ...
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That Man Bolt Blu-ray Review: That Man Hammer

At first glance, this movie seems to bear all the hallmarks of a blaxploitation classic: its prime 1973 release date, ...
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Little Nicholas: Happy as Can Be Movie Review: Adventures in Real and Imagined Past

This thoroughly charming French animated feature takes a unique approach in its storytelling. Rather than solely recounting the fictional adventures ...
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Broker Movie Review: The Korean Shoplifters

Japanese writer/director Hirokazu Kore-eda continues his cinematic explorations outside his native land and language with this dysfunctional relationship drama set ...
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The Girl on a Motorcycle Blu-ray Review: Spins Its Stylish Wheels

This 1968 UK/France co-production boasts star turns from Alain Delon and Marianne Faithfull in their prime, automatically making it an ...
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5-25-77 Blu-ray Review: A Long Time Ago in a Town Far, Far Away

For sci-fi starved ‘70s youth, the arrival of Star Wars was a watershed moment forever etched in our collective memories. ...
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Entre Nous Blu-ray Review: Sisters Are Doing It for Themselves

Writer/director Diane Kurys borrowed from her own family history to craft this story about two women finding their way in ...
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Three Thousand Years of Longing Blu-ray Review: George Miller’s Genie

Writer/director George Miller enables his whimsical side in between Mad Max movies in this modern riff on the Aladdin myth. ...
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Book Review: The Man Who Fell to Earth by Dan Watters and Dev Pramanik

The creators of this new graphic novel were faced with three apparent approaches to its production: craft an adaptation of ...
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Private Desert Blu-ray Review: Troubled Characters Seek Their Oasis

Daniel is in a rut. As a disgraced macho cop with anger management issues, he spends his days in Brazil ...
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Carmen (2022) Blu-ray Review: Welcome to Malta

When a lifelong servant of the church finds herself out on the street, she’s faced with an uncertain future that ...
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Bullet Train Blu-ray Review: Snakes on a Train

Stuntman-turned-director David Leitch (Deadpool 2) helms this crime caper featuring a colorful collection of scheming assassins gathered on a bullet ...
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Going Places Blu-ray Review: Traveling Nowhere, Reaching Enlightenment

The title of this 1974 French film is somewhat ironic, considering the rudderless path of its twenty-something drifter characters. Co-written ...
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TV Review: Love & Rockets: The Great American Comic Book

After 40 years of ongoing publication, the Love & Rockets comic book is long overdue for a celebratory retrospective. Thankfully, ...
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A Fugitive from the Past Blu-ray Review: An Epic from the Past Finally Reaches USA

Director Tomu Uchida’s sprawling 1965 crime drama has finally arrived on home video for the first time outside of Japan. ...
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The House of the Lost on the Cape Blu-ray Review: House of Lost Time

Two girls and their elder move into a remote country home and set about cleaning it up for their residence. ...
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South: Ernest Shackleton and the Endurance Expedition Blu-ray Review

It’s hard to imagine the trials and tribulations that must have befallen Ernest Shackleton’s expedition to reach the South Pole ...
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Rain 90th Anniversary Blu-ray Review: Luminous Joan Crawford Drives the Clouds Away

When a massive monsoon wallops the tiny South Pacific location of Pago Pago, it traps an assortment of colorful travelers ...
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Karmalink Blu-ray Review: Dreams of Treasure and Past Lives

When a teenage boy starts having dreams about his past lives, he discovers that he may have the key to ...
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If…. Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: If Only It Had a Plot

This 1969 UK film has exactly one notable claim to fame: Malcolm McDowell’s first star turn in a film just ...
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Neptune Frost Blu-ray Review: The Revolution Will Be Televised

This feature film from recording artist Saul Williams and Anisia Uzeyman is undeniably ambitious, boasting an enticing amalgamation of Afrofuturist ...
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The Gilded Age: The Complete First Season DVD Review: Manhattan Abbey

While this period drama originates on HBO and is based in New York, its DNA is wholly derived from the ...
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Night Gallery: Season Two Blu-ray Review: The Gallery Expands

If you started your Night Gallery Blu-ray collection with the Season One set (as I reviewed here), the first thing ...
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My Old School Movie Review: Something Is Rotten in Scotland

In 1993, a 16-year-old boy named Brandon Lee enrolled at a secondary school in an upscale neighborhood in Scotland. A ...
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The Nan Movie Review: Bad Grandma

Before Catherine Tate gained recognition in the U.S. with her turns as a Doctor Who companion and a boss in ...
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Giallo Essentials [Black Edition] Blu-ray Box Set Review: Back in Black

Arrow Video is back with their third limited-edition box set exploring three lesser-known giallo films from the early 1970s.  In ...
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Hero (1997) Blu-ray Review: The Heroic Return of Shaw Brothers

This classic Hong Kong action movie has two big draws for me: a star turn by Takeshi Kaneshiro and direction ...
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Book Review: Radical: My Year with a Socialist Senator by Sofia Warren

A young Latina politician runs for and wins office in New York as a virtual unknown, ousting a veteran incumbent ...
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The Clock Blu-ray Review: Judy Garland’s Time

By 1945, 23-year-old Judy Garland was already a screen veteran with 20 leading roles to her credit. She was also ...
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Poupelle of Chimney Town Blu-ray Review: A Whole New World

Following a brief U.S. theatrical run, this charming new anime is now making its way to home video. The story ...
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The Red Shoes Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: 15 Minutes in Heaven

Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s classic 1948 film treads a well-worn path of backstage drama at a stage production, but ...
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Uncharted Blu-ray Review: Charted in the Video Games

As I watched the thrilling mid-air action scene that opens Uncharted, I realized that it seemed familiar to me. That’s ...
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Twisting the Knife: Four Films by Claude Chabrol Blu-ray Box Set Review

Following quickly on the heels of Arrow Video’s five-film Chabrol box set, this second box set is smaller but contains ...
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Saturday Fiction Movie Review: Return of the Queen

Lou Ye’s latest film has a huge ace: a star turn by Gong Li. After rising to art house prominence ...
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Paris, 13th District Movie Review: The City of Light Romance

Writer/director Jacques Audiard’s latest film follows four young adults as they navigate the ups and downs of dating and professional ...
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Book Review: The Junction by Norm Konyu

Far too rarely, a graphic novel lands in the market with such an assured sense of style and substance that ...
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Man’s Favorite Sport? Blu-ray Review: Rock Out of Water

Rock Hudson stars in this romantic comedy about the author of a well-known fishing guidebook who has never actually fished, ...
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Rick and Morty: The Complete Seasons 1-5 Blu-ray Review: One Pickle, Two Crows, and a Multiverse of Mirth

Rick and Morty is the rarest of TV phenomena: a series so popular that the studio keeps releasing “complete” series ...
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Blue Skies Blu-ray Review: Holiday Inn Revisited

While most musicals would be lucky to have one of the three powerhouses featured in Blue Skies, this film suffers ...
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Lies & Deceit: Five Films by Claude Chabrol Blu-ray Box Set Review

Arrow Video’s latest box set shines a light on the works of French New Wave director Claude Chabrol. Although he’s ...
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The Three Musketeers (1948) Blu-ray Review: Night of 100 Stars

MGM’s 1948 version of this classic tale is full of stars but short on clear direction. The first act plays ...
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Drive My Car Movie Review: A Sublime Journey

As the least-known contender in this year’s Oscar Best Picture nominees, Drive My Car has the best opportunity to surprise ...
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Catwoman: Hunted 4K Ultra HD Review: DC Goes Anime

DC’s latest animated film answers the question you probably never asked: what would a DC film look like as anime? ...
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The Lover 4K UHD Collector’s Edition Review: Fall in Love Again

Famed director Jean-Jacques Annaud’s adaptation of this steamy semi-autobiographical tale by author Marguerite Duras caused a sensation upon its 1992 theatrical ...
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Giallo Essentials [Yellow Edition] Blu-ray Review: Masked Killers, Disrobed Victims

Arrow Video’s second box set collection of giallo classics is now available, arriving less than a month after the first ...
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West Side Story (2021) Movie Review: Spielberg Keeps It Real

In Steven Spielberg’s vision of 1950s New York City, the West Side resembles a bombed-out warzone. That’s largely due to ...
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Giallo Essentials [Red Edition] Blu-ray Box Set Review: Mixed Bag, Solid Box

Just in time for the holiday gift giving season, Arrow Video has repackaged three individual Blu-ray releases from 2018/19 into ...
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Night Gallery Season One Blu-ray Review: Rod Serling’s Other Series Gets a Fresh Coat of Paint

Rod Serling will always be most closely identified with The Twilight Zone, but his follow-up series is finally getting Blu-ray ...
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Mad Max Anthology 4K Ultra HD Box Set Review: Work in Progress

You know how all major video games launch with issues that have to be fixed after release? Well, sometimes it ...
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Freud Blu-ray Review: Montgomery Clift Exorcises His Demons

This mid-career effort by legendary director John Houston is overlong, clinical, and ponderous, and yet Montgomery Clift’s tortured lead performance ...
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Lullaby of Broadway Blu-ray Review: Don’t Sleep on This Joyous Delight

Doris Day leads an engaging cast in this fairly conventional but highly entertaining musical. She stars as a young dancer ...
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The Bitter Stems Blu-ray Review: Argentine Noir

Alfredo Gasper is a hard-working newspaper reporter in Argentina who has become disillusioned about the trajectory of his stalled career. ...
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Audrey Hepburn 7-Movie Collection Blu-ray Review: More Loverly Than Ever

This collection of Audrey Hepburn’s most memorable starring roles has been available on DVD since early 2019, but has only ...
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Doctor Who: The Edge of Reality Video Game Review: Allons-y!

Licensed video games are always fraught with the peril of hardcore fan expectations vs. actual gameplay. Add in the burden ...
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Change of Habit Blu-ray Review: Easy Habit to Break

This offbeat film bears the distinction of being Elvis Presley’s final acting role, which is about the only remarkable thing ...
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Becoming Cousteau Movie Review: From Exploration to Conservation

Decades before David Attenborough became a household name in the U.S., Jacques-Yves Cousteau was the king of nature documentaries. Along ...
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Come September Blu-ray Review: Hudson Rocks the Riviera

Rock Hudson is in prime leading man form in this beautifully photographed 1961 romp through the Italian Riviera. Hudson plays ...
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On Broadway DVD Review: Start Spreading the News

After an unprecedented 18-month shutdown caused by the pandemic, Broadway finally started reopening many shows last month. Oscar-nominated director Oren ...
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Blithe Spirit (2020) Blu-ray Review: Bland and Unspirited, But Mann and Fisher Shine

Noel Coward’s play has been adapted for the screen multiple times dating back to 1945, but it’s been long enough ...
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The Nowhere Inn Movie Review: Make Plans to Check In

St. Vincent decides to try out smoking during the production of her concert tour documentary film, declaring to her friend ...
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Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection 4K Ultra HD Review: 4K, The Final Frontier

In celebration of the 55th anniversary of the debut of the Star Trek TV series this month, Paramount has released ...
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In the Good Old Summertime Blu-ray Review: You’ve Got Snail Mail

Modern Hollywood gets plenty of well-deserved grief for rebooting stories before the originals have even faded from memory, but it’s ...
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Blind Beast Blu-ray Review: An Assured Vision by Director Yasuzo Masumura

When an alluring young fetish model named Aki visits a gallery exhibiting her nude works, she’s shocked to find a ...
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Thoroughly Modern Millie Blu-ray Review: Thoroughly Charming

This zany musical was a big hit in the 1960s, garnering huge box office and seven Oscar nominations, along with ...
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The Daimajin Trilogy Limited Edition Blu-ray Box Set: Stone Cold Kaiju Action

What if a Godzilla-sized monster was a living stone statue who battled evil human warlords instead of other monsters? Japan’s ...
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It Happened at the World’s Fair Blu-ray Review: It Probably Shouldn’t Have

Elvis Presley starred in dozens of films in the ‘50s and ‘60s, and many of them were quite entertaining. This ...
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Take Me Out to the Ball Game Blu-ray Review: Almost a Home Run

Now that it’s mid-summer, it’s peak time to enjoy the national pastime: baseball…in musical form. Warner Archive rounds the bases ...
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An American in Paris: The Musical Blu-ray Review: C’est Bon

As live musicals shut down during the pandemic, recorded performances stepped in to help fill the entertainment void. The 2014 ...
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Years of Lead Limited Edition Blu-ray Box Set Review: Transforms Lead into Gold

When most film fans think of Italian genre films of the 1970s, the first term that comes to mind is ...
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It Happened on 5th Avenue Blu-ray Review: Thoroughly Charming Happenstance

You know how sometimes you stumble across a movie you had no intention of watching but end up really liking ...
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Irezumi Blu-ray Review: Kiss of the Spider Woman

A wealthy merchant’s daughter becomes a murderous geisha after receiving a huge back tattoo of a spider. At a glance, ...
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World of Wong Kar Wai Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: What a Wonderful World

Wong Kar Wai burst into the international film scene in the 1980s and has remained an icon ever since. While ...
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Madame Curie Blu-ray Review: Geniuses Oblivious to Their Attraction

Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon portray the Curies in this biographical film about the early career of the discoverer of ...
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Ziegfeld Follies Blu-ray Review: Two Hours of Follies, Half Hour of Jollies

While movie musicals typically follow a paper-thin plot as a device to string together their songs, this oddity ditches the ...
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Indiana Jones: 4-Movie Collection 4K Ultra HD Box Set Review: Dolby Atmos to the Rescue

Just in time for this month’s 40th anniversary of the theatrical debut of Indiana Jones, this new box set presents ...
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Just a Gigolo Blu-ray Review: Bowie and Dietrich Make the Best of a Misfire

This Berlin-set film arrived at an opportune time in David Bowie’s career, since he was living in the city for ...
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Tove Movie Review: Moomin Mama Makes Her Mark

Tove Jansson rose to international fame thanks to her creation of the iconic Moomin characters. Although she passed away 20 ...
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The Tender Trap Blu-ray Review: Trapped in Dated Attitudes But Still Tender Fun

Frank Sinatra plays a wealthy Broadway talent agent named Charlie whose chief talent seems to be adding girlfriends to his ...
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Santa Sangre 4K UHD Limited Edition Box Set Review: Jodorowsky’s True Vision

Alejandro Jodorowsky is the quintessential Renaissance man, although he’s most widely known as a feature film director. His true definition ...
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Flowers of Shanghai Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Mise-ry en Scene

This Taiwanese movie was based on a novel about “flower houses” of 19th century Shanghai, high class establishments where courtesans ...
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Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House Blu-ray Review: Solid Comedy Construction

If I hadn’t watched this new Blu-ray, I never would have realized that the old Tom Hanks comedy The Money ...
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Masculin Feminin Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Tres Chic

Jean-Luc Godard’s study of young love in Paris pulses with style but doesn’t have much of a story. The film ...
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Annie Get Your Gun Blu-ray Review: Shoots a Few Blanks but Hits the Overall Target

Prior to its release this week, this classic MGM movie adaptation of an American musical theatre staple has never been ...
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Broadway Melody of 1940 Blu-ray Review: De-Lovely

The obvious draws for this classic MGM musical are the star turn by Fred Astaire and the songs written by ...
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On Moonlight Bay Blu-ray Review: Day and MacRae Play on the Bay

Booth Tarkington is most famously remembered as the author of the Pulitzer Prize winning novels The Magnificent Ambersons and Alice ...
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Book Review: Corto Maltese: Mu, The Lost Continent by Hugo Pratt

Italian comics star Hugo Pratt led a life that was nearly as adventurous as his most famous character, Corto Maltese. ...
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Three Films by Luis Buñuel Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The Don’s Swan Songs

As Luis Buñuel neared the end of his life, he swore each time he made a film that it would ...
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The Harvey Girls Blu-ray Review: MGM Misses the Bullseye

Despite the top billing of mega-star Judy Garland and some pricey-looking location shooting and hundreds of extras, The Harvey Girls ...
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Young Man with a Horn Blu-ray Review: Birth of the Cool

Kirk Douglas was a force in Hollywood for so many decades that it's easy to forget that he was a ...
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Saturday Night Live: The Early Years: The Best of Seasons 1-5 DVD Box Set Review

This new box set cherry picks 33 complete episodes from the first five years of Saturday Night Live, acting as ...
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The Pirate Blu-ray Review: Choppy Seas Lead to Treasure

On paper, this classic musical has everything going for it. Headlined by the top-tier star pairing of Gene Kelly and ...
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Martin Scorsese’s World Cinema Project No. 3 Criterion Collection Box Set Review

Legendary writer/director and noted film buff Martin Scorsese established The Film Foundation's World Cinema Project in 2007 to restore and ...
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Sukiyaki Western Django Blu-ray Review: The Good, the Bad, and the Quentin

Writer/director Takashi Miike rose to international fame around the turn of the century with a string of audacious cult classic ...
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Taste of Cherry Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Not to Everyone’s Taste

Abbas Kiarostami's understated film won the prestigious Palme d'Or Award at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival, leading to its initial ...
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Solid Metal Nightmares: The Films of Shinya Tsukamoto Blu-ray Box Set Review

If you've seen one Tsukamoto film, you definitely haven't seen them all, as evidenced by this amazing new box set ...
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Wild Palms Blu-ray Review: It’s No Twin Peaks

In the wake of the spectacular rise and fall of the original Twin Peaks, its network ABC was keen to produce ...
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Portrait of a Lady on Fire Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Burning Bright

Writer/director Celine Sciamma's latest film is both exhilarating and depressing: spellbinding because of its absolute excellence and disheartening because it ...
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Watchmen (2019): An HBO Limited Series Blu-ray Review: An Instant Classic

If you come to HBO's Watchmen limited series with a knowledge of the original comic book series and/or Zack Snyder's 2009 movie, ...
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The Gentlemen Blu-ray Review: Finally, a Real Guy Ritchie Film

Guy Ritchie's latest film is a winning return to the gritty ensemble crime caper format that fueled his rise to ...
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Superman: Red Son 4K UHD Review: It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane, It’s a Communist

DC's latest animated movie explores the question of what would have happened if baby Superman landed in Russia instead of ...
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Frozen II Blu-ray Review: Call the Police, It Got Robbed of an Oscar Nomination

Frozen II represents a new pinnacle in feature film animation, with dazzling artistic and technical prowess, a surprising and engaging story, ...
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The Addams Family (2019) Blu-ray Review: Not Creepy or Kooky

The Addams Family is the very definition of Hollywood product, a project so completely lacking any creative spark or reason for ...
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The Lighthouse Blu-ray Review: A Shining Beacon of Excellence

I wasn't at all familiar with director and co-writer Robert Eggers until this masterful sophomore effort, but immediately added his ...
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Lucy in the Sky Movie Review: No Diamonds Here

Hey, did you hear about the new astronaut movie starring Natalie Portman and Jon Hamm directed by Noah Hawley, the ...
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Hustlers (2019) Blu-ray Review: Hustles the Audience

Inspired by a true story, Hustlers follows a group of conniving strippers as they turn the tables on their clients for illicit ...
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63 UP Movie Review: The Best Reality Show of All Time

Decades before we were deluged with a never-ending stream of “reality” TV shows, a British TV crew selected a group ...
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All About Eve Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: All the World’s a Stage

Best Picture Oscar winners don't always age well, but as All About Eve approaches its 70th anniversary, it's every bit as entertaining ...
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The Wizard of Oz 4K UHD Review: Somewhere Over the HDR Rainbow

Dorothy and the gang are back in a sparkling new 80th anniversary edition of the classic film, released in 4K ...
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Wonder Woman: Bloodlines 4K Ultra HD Review: All Hail the Princess

The latest DC animated film starts off poorly, with a prolonged 10-minute origin story on Wonder Woman’s home island of ...
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Midsommar Blu-ray Review: Unsettling in Any Season

Midsommar is marketed as a horror film, but it's so different from the typical entries in that genre that it really ...
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Dilili in Paris Movie Review: Michel Ocelot’s Love Letter to the City of Light

In his latest feature film, veteran animation auteur Michel Ocelot immediately toys with audience perceptions by opening on what appears ...
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Anna 4K Ultra HD Review: La Femme Anna

A tough, beautiful woman faces seemingly impossible odds as she battles her way to freedom. Can you name that Luc ...
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The Koker Trilogy Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The Rise of Abbas Kiarostami

This series of Iranian films is a trilogy in only the loosest sense, as they don't share overlapping casts or ...
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Batman: Hush 4K Ultra HD Review: The Bat, the Cat, and Villains Aplenty

DC's animated films tend to be adaptations of their classic comic-book works, with this story in particular being one of ...
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Missing Link Blu-ray Review: Missing Story, Finding Artistry

Missing Link is the latest film from the animation wizards at Laika, the tiny U.S. studio responsible for gems including Kubo and ...
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The Doors: The Final Cut 4K Ultra HD Review: Break on Through

Although the movie is named after the band, it's really all about the rise and fall of Jim Morrison. The ...
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The Batman Four Film Collection 4K UHD Review: Long Live the Bat

It seems impossible now, but 30 years ago there was only one blockbuster cinematic superhero: Batman. In celebration of the ...
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Book Review: The Amazing Spider-Man: The Ultimate Newspaper Comics Collection Vol. 5, 1985-1986 by Stan Lee, Floro Dery, and Dan Barry

In its early years, the daily Spider-Man comic strip had typically followed a comfortable pattern of Spider-Man facing off against ...
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Never-Ending Man: Hayao Miyazaki Blu-ray Review: Return of the King, or Don Quixote?

Workaholic anime legend Hayao Miyazaki has “retired” so many times after completing difficult films that each announcement is met with ...
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Batman Ninja Blu-ray Review: East Meets West

Batman Ninja is truly unique in the DC animated universe, not only because of its radical premise, but because it ...
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Batman: Gotham by Gaslight Blu-ray Review: The Steampunk World’s Greatest Detective

Nearly 30 years ago, DC Comics launched an ongoing series of standalone stories set outside their normal comics continuity, eventually ...
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Superman / Batman: Apocalypse Blu-ray Review: Destined to Be a Fan Favorite

Here's a recipe for surefire fanboy satisfaction: pair the two most recognizable superheroes in the world with their most well-known ...
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Batman and Harley Quinn Blu-ray Review: Poison, But Not the Ivy Kind

After 10 years and 30 animated films, the brain trust behind the DC Universe Animated Original Movies is long overdue ...
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Book Review: The Amazing Spider-Man: The Ultimate Newspaper Comics Collection Vol. 4, 1983-1984 by Stan Lee, Fred Kida, and Floro Dery

With Fred Kida in control on daily art duties, Stan Lee started his writing chores in 1983 with nearly four ...
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Book Review: Batman: The Silver Age Newspaper Comics Vol. 3, 1969-1972

Long before most of us were reading the funny pages, Batman was finishing up a six-year comic strip run fueled ...
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Book Review: The Amazing Spider-Man: The Ultimate Newspaper Comics Collection Vol. 3, 1981-1982 by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, and Fred Kida

After taking over the art duties from comic strip originating artist John Romita Sr., Stan Lee's brother Larry Lieber continued ...
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Justice League vs. Teen Titans Blu-ray Review: That’s So Raven, Damian

DC appears determined to cater to all manner of Justice League fans this year. If the dark, brooding Batman V Superman ...
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Cinema Sentries

Book Review: The Amazing Spider-Man: The Ultimate Newspaper Comics Collection Vol. 2, 1979-1981 by Stan Lee and John Romita

st The trouble with a daily serialized story is how long it takes for anything to happen. Thanks to IDW's ...
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Sisters (2015) Blu-ray Review: Forty-Six Candles

Sisters might sound like a sibling relationship comedy, but it actually joins Hollywood's long, proud heritage of ribald comedy films ...
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Cinema Sentries

SPECTRE Blu-ray Review: Ghosts of Bond’s Past

After the nearly universal acclaim and gigantic box office for the previous Bond outing, Skyfall, any follow-up was likely to ...
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Bridge of Spies Blu-ray Review: Spielberg’s History Tour Reaches the Cold War

For the last decade, Steven Spielberg has been stuck in the past as a director, churning out one historical film ...
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Bitter Rice Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The Beauty of the Downtrodden

Long before Dino De Laurentiis was a noted Hollywood producer, he produced Italian films such as this 1949 drama. Interestingly, ...
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Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials Blu-ray Review: Diminishing Returns

While the first Maze Runner film delivered moderate thrills and sci-fi adventure, the sequel seems to be running in place. ...
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Jellyfish Eyes Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Surprisingly Unsurprising 

The most surprising thing about unconventional artist Takashi Murakami's first feature-length directorial effort is that it is entirely conventional. Based ...
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Trainwreck Blu-ray Review: Apatow Wrecks the Comedy

Judd Apatow's latest directorial effort has its problems, but first-time leading lady Amy Schumer isn't one of them. Working from ...
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A Special Day Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Special Performances from Italian Screen Legends

The setup for this Italian film is deceptively simple, but belies the impact of the performances by its two stars, ...
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My Little Pony: Equestria Girls: Friendship Games DVD Review: Ponies No More

You know how kids are good for exposing you to stuff you otherwise never would have touched? This film is ...
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Empire: The Complete First Season Blu-ray Review: Birth of a Dynasty

The pilot episode of this series is a huge mess. Stuffed with a random assortment of seemingly unrelated scenes, frequent ...
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Pitch Perfect 2 Blu-ray Review: Re-Introducing Hailee Steinfeld

The Barden Bellas are in trouble. After winning the hearts of a cappella aficionados and casual fans everywhere, both within ...
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Stray Cat Rock Review: Bento Box of ’70s Delights

Starting in 1970, Japan's Nikkatsu studio produced the five films presented here, labelling them all under the Stray Cat Rock ...
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Orphan Black: Season Three Blu-ray Review: Maslany Clones a Success

The latest season of Orphan Black is easily superior to Season Two for one reason: more Tatiana Maslany. Where the ...
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Insurgent Blu-ray Review: Improved FX Help It Surge Above Its Predecessor

The films of The Divergent Series have firmly established themselves in the second tier of young-adult literature adaptations, joined by ...
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Cinema Sentries

Book Review: The Amazing Spider-Man: The Ultimate Newspaper Comics Collection Vol. 1, 1979-1981 by Stan Lee and John Romita

Let's face it: daily newspaper comic strips have never been a great way to follow serialized stories. When a story ...
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Five Easy Pieces Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: One Easy Role to Nicholson’s Stardom

A year removed from his breakout supporting turn in Easy Rider, Jack Nicholson moved to headliner status in this 1970 ...
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Teen Titans Go!: The Complete First Season Blu-ray Review: Polarizing Superhero Hijinks

Like much of DC's animated fare, this series has its share of fans and detractors, but not for the typical ...
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Star Wars Celebration 2015 Review: The Biggest Star Wars Convention in the Galaxy

The biennial Star Wars Celebration took place over the weekend at the Anaheim Convention Center, an occasionally frustrating experience in ...
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Batman vs. Robin Blu-ray Review: Another Dark and Dangerous Day in Gotham

The title of DC's latest animated film is catchy, but it's also a bait and switch. Sure, Robin briefly toys ...
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The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness DVD Review: The Glorious End of an Era

Studio Ghibli has long garnered acclaim as an animation powerhouse, and yet very little is known about its inner workings ...
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Atlas Shrugged Part III Blu-ray Review: Fool’s Gold

The final act of this unlikely trilogy spotlights a strong-willed individual who ignores public opinion and forges ahead with his ...
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The Maze Runner Digital HD Review: Lord of the Labyrinth Flies

Oh great, another teen dystopian flick, right? Yes, The Maze Runner seems like an also-ran following the lead of the ...
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Cinema Sentries

It Happened One Night Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The Original Runaway Bride

It's hard to imagine now, but there was a time in cinematic history when romantic comedies were extremely rare. That ...
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Unit One: Set 1-3 DVD Review: Hannibal Plays a Cop

Long before international star Mads Mikkelsen terrorized TV viewers with his take on the role of Hannibal Lecter, he acted ...
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Miss Marple: Volume 1 DVD Review: Old Dames Rule

Agatha Christie's famous fictional heroine has moved from page to screen many times, but this series bears the distinction of ...
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Snowpiercer (2013) Blu-ray Review: Off to See the Wizard

Chris Evans struck box-office gold with his latest Captain America film this year, but his other recent comic book film ...
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Neighbors (2014) Blu-ray Review: All Good in This Hood 

This summer's breakout comedy hit delivers on its deceptively simple concept via some fresh character development, largely avoiding what could ...
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Death in Paradise: Season Two DVD Review: Conventional Murder Mysteries, Unconventional Setting

A stuffy English investigator gets transplanted to a laidback Caribbean island to solve their murders and his own misanthropy. Even ...
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All That Jazz Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Lord of the Dance

Joe Gideon is tired. Tired of women, tired of choreography, tired of drugs, and yet inexplicably driven to continue pursuing ...
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Orphan Black: Season Two Blu-ray Review: Attack of the Clones 

Here's some breaking news: Tatiana Maslany is amazing. Although the Emmys don't seem to recognize her existence, or the existence ...
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Rio 2 Blu-ray Review: Welcome to the Jungle

Although the first Rio didn't really set the box office on fire or generate frantic demand for further adventures, it ...
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Hinterland: Series 1 DVD Review: The Prints of Wales

Although we Yanks are mostly familiar with Wales in relation to “Prince/Princess/Duchess of”, it is very much a real place ...
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Death in Paradise: Season 1 DVD Review: British Mysteries with a Tropical Twist

Given the sheer volume of British mystery series available, it's almost essential to have a hook to differentiate from the ...
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Ernest & Celestine Blu-ray Review: A Tail of Two Cities

One of the biggest surprise nominees at this year's Academy Awards was this little-seen French animated film. Thanks to its ...
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Wolverine Weapon X: Tomorrow Dies Today DVD Review: Days of Future Deathloks

Marvel continues their ongoing motion comics conversions with this tale starring the omnipresent Wolverine. While there's no shortage of Wolverine ...
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Republic of Doyle: Season 1 DVD Review: Conventional Mysteries, Unconventional Setting

Every so often a product crosses our desks that appears to be so unique it demands a closer look. This ...
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Nikita: The Complete Fourth Season Blu-ray Review: The Short Kiss Goodnight

Nikita's long strange trip from Luc Besson's original 1997 film to her second TV series reaches its conclusion in this ...
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Out of the Furnace Blu-ray Review: Burning Too Many Fires

Out of the Furnace is a frustrating misfire, made all the more dispiriting by the unwarranted high caliber of acting ...
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The Hidden Fortress Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The Gold Standard

A long time ago in a country far, far away, esteemed director Akira Kurosawa filmed a grand adventure that took ...
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Book Review: Snowpiercer Vol. 1 & 2 by Jacques Lob, Benjamin Legrand and Jean-Marc Rochette

This French comic is currently receiving renewed international attention thanks to its use as the source material for a new ...
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Book Review: Sherlock Holmes and the Vampires of London by Sylvain Cordurie and Laci

With all of the Sherlock Holmes revisionism in movies and TV over the past few years, it's become confusing to ...
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Borgen: Season 3 DVD Review: Once More Unto the Breach

When we last saw feisty Danish Prime Minister Birgitte Nyborg (the stellar Sidse Babett Knudsen), she was calling for a ...
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Justice League: War Blu-ray Review: Take a Walk on the Darkseid

A few years ago, DC Comics rebooted their entire superhero line under the audacious New 52 plan, throwing out decades ...
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Book Review: Captain Midnight: Volume 1: On the Run by Joshua Williamson and Fernando Dagnino

A patriotic Nazi-fighting U.S. superhero who disappeared in the 1940s suddenly appears in the present day, seemingly not a day ...
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Wolverine Versus Sabertooth DVD Review: Not the Best There Is at What Loeb Does

Wolverine and Sabertooth are at the pinnacle of classic comic-book opponents. Jeph Loeb is a reliably impressive writer and TV ...
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Mary Poppins: 50th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray Review: A Disc Full of Sugar

Never ones to pass up a marketing opportunity, the fine folks at Disney lined up a two-fer with the Blu-ray ...
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Burn Notice: Season Seven DVD Review: Burning Bridges

USA Network's veteran spy show took a turn for the deadly serious in Season 6 with the murder of a ...
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Prisoners Blu-ray Review: Trapped in the Maze

Child-abduction movies aren't ranked high on the must-see lists of most viewers, making the stellar cast assembled for this project ...
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Morrissey: 25 Live Review: November Spawned a Monster of a Blu-ray

OK, it actually came out in late October, but I just watched it and the tagline was too tempting to ...
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Turbo Blu-ray Review: The Fast and the Cautious

An unusual thing happened in the world of feature film animation this year: DreamWorks didn't release any sequels. The home ...
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John Cassavetes: Five Films Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Independent Spirit

Whether or not you enjoy the directorial efforts of John Cassavetes, it's impossible to overlook his contribution to the rise ...
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Nikita: The Complete Third Season Blu-ray Review: La Reine Nikita

Shows airing on CW aren't generally known for the strength or complexity of their writing, but Nikita has been a ...
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Luther: Series 3 DVD Review: Panic on the Streets of London

If you're looking for a feel-good cop show with a tidy resolution at the end of every episode, this is ...
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Bones: The Complete Eighth Season Blu-ray Review: Going Through the Motions

Bones is the TV equivalent of comfort food. You know what you're getting, you know you won't be challenged in ...
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Star Trek: Into Darkness Blu-ray Review: The Wrath of Fans

Remember how in the original Star Trek film series the even-numbered movies were the best? Apparently the current revisionist Abramsverse ...
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From Up on Poppy Hill Blu-ray Review: The Son Also Rises

Goro Miyazaki is in a tough position. As the son of beloved living legend Hayao Miyazaki, and a budding anime ...
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Epic Blu-ray Review: Heart of Darkness

I don't ever pay attention to MPAA ratings on animated films, because why bother? After decades of reliably mild animated ...
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The Big City Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Girl Power

Prior to The Big City, director Satyajit Ray had never tackled a contemporary project, choosing to focus on explorations of ...
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Charulata Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Indian Film, European Sensibility

This is not a Bollywood film, at least not in the accepted modern-day definition of the term. Half a century ...
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Smiley’s People Blu-ray Review: The Man with the Olden Gun

George Smiley is the polar opposite of James Bond. They're both spies for the British Secret Intelligence Service, but Smiley ...
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Orphan Black: Season 1 Blu-ray Review: Black is the New Black

There's a point in this sci fi series that one clone is asked to temporarily impersonate another clone and you ...
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The Life of Oharu Criterion Collection DVD Review: The Downward Spiral

While watching this film, I was reminded of another tale of a classy lady who gradually becomes marginalized: Anna Karenina. ...
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Wolverine: Origin DVD Review: The Best There Is at What He Does.

Ever wonder about how Wolverine got his start? So did the rest of the Marvel Comics Universe and its readers, ...
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Borgen: Season 2 DVD Review: Nothing’s Rotten in Denmark

Who knew Danish politics could be so much fun? Picking up a year after the first season, this collection finds ...
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Todd & the Book of Pure Evil: The Complete Second Season DVD Review: Once More with Feeling

A group of high school outcasts battles supernatural beasties and their dastardly principal. Oh, and there's a musical episode. Nope, ...
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Marketa Lazarova Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Defiantly Experimental

You know how Game of Thrones gets really confusing with the various warring clans populated by so many characters that ...
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Slugterra: Slugs Unleashed DVD Review: Arrested Development

For those new to this vibrant and expertly animated series, Slugterra is an underground land populated with many different types ...
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Burn Notice: Season Six DVD Review: The Spy Who Came in from the Cold

If you've never watched USA Network's long-running crime/action show, here's a quick recap: faithful U.S. spy gets blacklisted by his ...
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Vexed: Series 2 DVD Review: A Vexing Decline

After only one season, co-star Lucy Punch is gone. While that wouldn't be a big deal for a show with ...
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LEGO Batman: The Movie – DC Super Heroes Unite Blu-ray Review: Holy Bricks, Batman!

I recently slammed the achingly buffoonish LEGO Star Wars Blu-ray while lamenting that LEGO would have been much better served ...
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George Gently: Series 5 Blu-ray Review: Murder Most Groovy

With a seemingly unending stream of British mystery series in play, it's becoming increasingly difficult for relatively recent arrivals to ...
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The Syndicate: Series 1 DVD Review: Mo Money Mo Problems

This British TV drama about lottery winners gets off to a shaky start until we get to know the downtrodden ...
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Inhumans DVD Review: Welcome Back, Old Friends

Marvel has released quite a few motion comics in the past few years, but none as surprising a choice as ...
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Gate of Hell Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Not Quite Heavenly, but Far from Hellish

Celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, this Oscar-winning Japanese film has fallen off the radar over the past few decades ...
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LEGO Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Out DVD Review: The Force Is Weak with This One

I love all of the LEGO video games. Love love love them, and play all of them to completion. A ...
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Lincoln Blu-ray Review: History Can Be Entertaining in the Right Hands

Lincoln is one of those films I had to force myself to watch. As a Very Important Film from esteemed ...
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Borgen: Season 1 DVD Review: The Far West Wing

This Danish political drama recently received some unexpected U.S. traction when author Stephen King took to the pages of Entertainment ...
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Badlands Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Birth of a Legend

Forty years ago, writer/director Terrence Malick's first feature film announced the arrival of an important new voice. Through the ensuing ...
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Strawberry Shortcake: Berry Friends Forever DVD Review: Berry Bland

Once upon a time, Strawberry Shortcake was aimed squarely at little girls. Originating as a greeting card character, then expanding ...
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Life of Pi Blu-ray Review: Piscine in the Wind

Ang Lee fully deserves his Oscar win for successfully bringing this seemingly unfilmable project to screen, but the end result ...
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Sansho the Bailiff Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The Ties That Bind

Based on the movie title, one would expect Sansho to be the main character. One would be wrong. In fact, ...
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Atlas Shrugged Part II Blu-ray Review: Critic Shrugged

After middling returns for the first movie, it's surprising that this second installment even exists. For that fact alone, the ...
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Argo Blu-ray Review: Sealed with a Presidential Kiss

A funny thing happened on Lincoln's way to Oscar domination: Argo came back from the dead. With a stunning slew ...
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Slugterra: Return of the Shane Gang DVD Review: Pre-Teenage Dream

Deep beneath Earth's surface, tribes of various humanoid characters live and do battle with adorable little slugs. Why slugs? Because ...
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House of Cards (UK) Trilogy Blu-ray Review: Long Live the King

Have you finished your binge marathon viewing session of the new Netflix series starring Kevin Spacey? If so, you're ready ...
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Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Part 2 Blu-ray Review: Supes vs. Bats, We All Win

Warner Bros Animation's concluding adaptation of Frank Miller's classic comic book series (Part 1 review) contains the fight every superhero ...
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Misfits: Season Two DVD Review: Last of the Greats

What is it about the BBC that makes them incapable of maintaining original casts on their shows for prolonged periods ...
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Twenty Twelve: The Complete Series DVD Review: Past Its Sell-By Date

This irreverent British mockumentary series about the inner workings of the London Olympics planning committee takes a fantastic premise and ...
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Ivan’s Childhood Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review:  War is Hell, but Looks Superb

On the surface, this film might not seem to offer much enticement for viewing considering its decidedly downbeat subject matter ...
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56 Up Movie Review: Still Going Strong After Nearly 50 Years

For nearly 50 years now, a group of ordinary English citizens have been participating in an ongoing sociological study that ...
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Cinema Sentries

TV Review: Doctor Who: The Snowmen

Santa Claus brought Doctor Who fans a new companion this year, and she proves to be a keeper. As 19th ...
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The Hour Series 1 Blu-ray Review: Would Have Been Better at That Length

As we gear up for the imminent home video release of series 2, let's take a look back at series ...
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Beasts of the Southern Wild Blu-ray Review: An Acquired Taste

Director Benh Zeitlin‘s film is this year's Little Indie That Could, a micro-budgeted, challenging art house effort that defied long ...
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Purple Noon Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The Talented Mr. Delon

Remember The Talented Mr. Ripley? Director Anthony Minghella's 1999 adaptation of Patricia Highsmith's crime novel helped launch Jude Law to ...
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Ice Age: Continental Drift DVD Review: Drifting into Murky Waters

Scrat’s back for more frosty adventures, but unfortunately so are the rest of those other boring characters. As anyone who ...
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Call the Midwife: Season One Blu-ray Review: Call a Doctor, My Retinas Are Burned

Author Ayelet Waldman calls the memoirs that served as the basis for this series “tremendously moving”. I agree, but in ...
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Kaijudo: Rise Of The Duel Masters: Creatures Unleashed DVD Review: Rise of the Enjoyable Merchandising Tie-In

What do you get when you cross giant monsters and sweet martial arts fighting? Kaijudo! I didn't initially figure out ...
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La Jetee / Sans Soleil Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Stay for the Stills, Run from the Motion

Director Chris Marker's two most well-known works have been compiled into one Criterion release, but only one of them is ...
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Hawkins: The Complete TV-Movie Collection DVD Review: Jimmy Stewart, TV Star

Did you know Jimmy Stewart starred in a TV show? Actually, he headlined two series during his illustrious career, with ...
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DreamWorks Dragons: Riders of Berk DVD Review: New Series Soars Above the Competition

DreamWorks Animation finally has a truly great animated series. While they have previously produced the Penguins of Madagascar and Kung ...
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The Watch Blu-ray Review: The Don’t Watch

Remember how funny many of Saturday Night Live's Digital Shorts were? Remember the ones that weren't, such as most of ...
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Astonishing X-Men: Unstoppable DVD Review: Astonishing Cassaday

I forgot how much I love John Cassaday's artwork. While writer Joss Whedon was the unquestionable star of the Astonishing ...
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Rashomon (1950) Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Restoration Shows Improvements, Not Perfection

If you're reading this review, chances are you're fully familiar with this classic film and just have two questions: how's ...
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Vera: Set 2 DVD Review: Murder, She Grumbled

There's something irresistible about old-timers solving crimes, although the quality of those crime shows isn't always timeless. Thankfully, this vehicle ...
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Thundercats Nintendo DS Video Game Review: Thunder, Thunder, Thundercats NOOOOOO!

One of the most pleasant surprises of the current golden age of animated shows is Cartoon Network's Thundercats reboot. Regrettably, that pleasure ...
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Flight Movie Review: Robert Zemeckis and Denzel Washington Soar, Script Crashes

After spending most of the last decade laboring over a string of motion-capture CG films I'd prefer to forget, director ...
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Copper: Season One Blu-ray Review: Dodge This Bullet

Not content to just rebroadcast programming from the UK, BBC America has entered the arena of original scripted programming with ...
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The Walking Dead Video Game Review: A Scary Good Time

Creator Robert Kirkman's zombie apocalypse tale isn't just chewing up comic book racks and TV ratings, it's also terrorizing video ...
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Kingdom: Season One DVD Review: No Treasure Here

A long time ago in a country far, far away, two young comedians were introduced by Emma Thompson while all ...
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The Forgiveness of Blood Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Nik Full of Angst

Remember Maria Full of Grace? Writer/director Joshua Marston's 2004 film about a Colombian drug mule garnered international acclaim and recognition ...
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Moonrise Kingdom Blu-ray Review: Love in the Time of Eccentricity

There's no mistaking a Wes Anderson movie, and with his latest work he's more distinctive than ever. That's both a ...
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Waterloo Road: Series 1 DVD Review: The Headmaster Ritual

This long-running UK drama series has been airing in its native land since 2006 and has appeared on BBC America, ...
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Cinema Sentries

Tomorrow Never Dies Movie Review: Enter The Dragon

I've seen all of the Bond movies. I've read all of the original Fleming novels. And yet, this DVD is ...
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Rock of Ages Blu-ray Review: Overstuffed Rock That Lasts Ages

Sherrie and Drew are destined to meet and fall in love. She's just a small town girl, livin' in a ...
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Wallander Series 3 DVD Review: No Loki, Still Heavenly

In between filming Wallander series 2 and 3, star Kenneth Branagh directed a little art house film called Thor. In ...
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Children of Paradise Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Cinematic Paradise

At first glance, this film might seem like a poor candidate for greatness, or even relevance in our era. It’s ...
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Vexed: Series 1 DVD Review: A Brief Burst of Genre-Bending Hilarity

The hilarious opening scene of this offbeat cop show sets the tone for the rest of the series. A man ...
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Sacrifice (2010) DVD Review: Not Worth Your Time Sacrifice

Highly esteemed director Chen Kaige (Farewell My Concubine) spins an intriguing revenge yarn in his latest film but is undone ...
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Injustice (2011) DVD Review: The Vigilante Barrister

Over the course of its five episodes, this miniseries very slowly reveals its true intention. What starts out as a ...
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Quadrophenia Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: We Are the 5.1 Mods

Even if you’ve seen this film before, you’ve never seen it like this. Boasting a complete restoration including a new ...
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Once Upon a Time: The Complete First Season Blu-ray Review: Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One Before

I’ve just returned from a dream world of magic populated by classic fairy tale characters experiencing modern angst. No, it’s ...
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Third Star Movie Review: Benedict Cumberbatch Leads the Way

”I’m 29 today. Won’t see 30.” With that opening line, Third Star clearly defines its theme and outcome, tracing the ...
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True Wolf Movie Review: Don’t Be Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf

Wolves have traditionally been vilified as vicious, bloodthirsty predators not worthy of any human compassion. This documentary aims to influence ...
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Astonishing X-Men: Torn DVD Review: More Astonishing Motion, Less Astonishing Story

Continuing the Astonishing X-Men motion comics saga initiated in previous DVDs Gifted and Dangerous, this latest disc covers issues 13-18 ...
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Jay and Silent Bob Get Old: Tea Bagging in the UK DVD Review: Friendship Never Gets Old

Now that the London Olympics are over, it’s time to turn our attention to these other notable American heroes staking ...
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The Bourne Legacy Movie Review: Renner 1, Gilroy 0, Mistakes Aplenty

A couple of things become clear early on in the new Bourne movie: Jeremy Renner is an excellent choice to ...
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Misfits: Season One DVD Review: They’re No Heroes

The review excerpt used as a marketing tagline on this series proclaims “Heroes with Buffy-esque snark”, which is a fair ...
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Le Havre Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Light-Hearted, Surreal Take on a Serious Subject

The setup for this film is straightforward: a poor aging French shoe-shiner helps a young African illegal immigrant evade capture ...
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Mansome Movie Review: Lots of Comedians, Little Comedy

Morgan Spurlock continues his prolific output of documentary feature films with this look at modern male grooming. While the topic ...
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Suez DVD Review: For Hardcore Tyrone Power Fans Only

Tyrone Power and his frequent co-star Loretta Young team up once again in this tale that aims to inject some ...
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Metropolitan Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Two Decades Later, I Still Don’t Get It

Writer/director Whit Stillman’s debut film received massive critical accolades following its 1990 theatrical release, including a Best Screenplay Oscar nomination. ...
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Wrath of the Titans (2012) Blu-ray Review: Wrath of the Critic

When you think back to the reimagined Clash of the Titans released two years ago, what memories come to mind? ...
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Love Is News DVD Review: The News Is Good

While I’m familiar with the name of leading man Tyrone Power, I realized before watching this film that I’m almost ...
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Midsomer Murders: Set 20 Blu-ray Review: Crime and Bemusement in the English Countryside

Deep in the English countryside, there’s a fictional county with an alarmingly high murder rate. Despite its fairly low population, ...
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LEGO Ninjago Masters of Spinjitzu: Season One DVD Review: A Fun but Lightweight Extended Toy Commercial

Four pizza-loving teen ninjas battle the forces of evil under the tutelage of their wise old sensei. Teenage Mutant Ninja ...
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The Samurai Trilogy Criterion Collection DVD Review: Mifune in His Physical Prime

Japanese screen legend Toshiro Mifune is most closely associated with the directorial efforts of fellow legend Akira Kurosawa, and yet ...
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American Reunion Blu-ray Review: Reunited and It Feels So Good

The kids from American Pie are all physically adults now, but the guys are still as juvenile as ever. On ...
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Doc Martin Series 5 DVD Review: Baby Makes Three, Doesn’t Spoil the Chemistry

This show may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but its offbeat cast of characters continue to delight those willing ...
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Shame (2011) Blu-ray Review: A Shameful Waste of Michael Fassbender’s Acting Talent

Shame is one of those whiny, self-involved New Yorker tales that makes most normal folks cringe. It’s further hampered by ...
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Wallander: The Revenge Movie Review: Original Book Author Contributes a Terrific Film Plot

Believe it or not, Stieg Larsson didn’t corner the market on Swedish crime fiction with his Dragon Tattoo (aka Millenium) ...
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Summer with Monika Criterion Collection Blu-Ray Review: Bergman in Love

This early success from director Ingmar Bergman follows a completely straightforward and conventional path to its obvious conclusion, offering little ...
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Certified Copy Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Certified Original

An esteemed English author named James Miller (William Shimell) has written a book on the value of copies versus original ...
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Sherlock: Season Two Blu-ray Review: It’s Elementary That You Must Watch This

My keen powers of observation have allowed me to deduce that you’re thinking “Another Sherlock Holmes project? Enough already!” Sure, ...
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The Secret World of Arrietty Blu-ray Review: Another Ghibli Gem

Even when legendary animation director Hayao Miyazaki isn’t officially helming films for Studio Ghibli, his touch is so ingrained in ...
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Hell on Wheels: The Complete First Season Blu-ray Review: The Boiling Melting Pot

This AMC series didn’t seem to get much attention during its first season, especially in comparison to the network’s critical ...
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Cinema Sentries

The Avengers (2012) Movie Review: Merry Marvel Mayhem

After years of planning and audience baiting through individual Marvel superhero films, the massive Marvel team-up finally arrives in U.S. ...
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Cinema Sentries

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1979) Blu-ray Review: The Spy Who Went Out in the Cold

Decades before last year’s theatrical adaptation, John le Carre’s classic espionage novel was the basis for this BBC TV miniseries. ...
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Late Spring Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Moving Look at a Family’s Season of Change

Writer/director Yasujiro Ozu is widely regarded as one of the most important Japanese directors of all time, generally second only ...
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Frozen Planet Blu-ray Review: BBC Hits the Poles

Following the huge worldwide success of their previous epic nature projects Planet Earth and Life, the BBC cameramen don their ...
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Astonishing X-Men: Dangerous DVD Review: Joss Whedon Earns His Marvel Stripes

Before helming this summer’s Marvel team-up blockbuster film The Avengers, Joss Whedon earned his Marvel Comics bona fides in the ...
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David Lean Directs Noel Coward Criterion Collection DVD Boxset Review: Box of Delights

Although best remembered for his widescreen epics such as Lawrence of Arabia, Dr. Zhivago, and The Bridge on the River ...
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Cinema Sentries

Secret Pleasures DVD Box Set Review: Asian Grab Bag

This box set of fairly recent films takes a grab-bag approach, carrying no real unifying theme other than a focus ...
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Cinema Sentries

In the Garden of Sounds DVD Review: Who Says Blindness is a Disability?

Wolfgang Fasser went blind in his early 20s, the victim of a rare genetic disease. “Victim” may be the wrong ...
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The Last Temptation of Christ Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Still Controversial

Nearly a quarter of a century ago, famed director Martin Scorsese sparked a firestorm of controversy via the release of ...
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Todd & the Book of Pure Evil: The Complete First Season DVD Review: Join the Cult

Just in time for tonight’s Second Season premiere on FEARnet, the complete First Season DVD box set is now available. ...
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Vanya on 42nd Street Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Timeless Theatrical Experiment

Seemingly random individuals are filmed roaming the streets of New York’s Broadway area before separately converging on a dilapidated theater. ...
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Justice League: Doom Blu-ray Review: Action Triumphs over Plot

DC’s latest animated movie pits its greatest superheroes against some of their most dangerous foes, meaning it’s light on plot ...
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World on a Wire Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The Nature of Unnatural Reality

Two business colleagues at a supercomputer research facility are enjoying a pleasant conversation before one of them declares that he ...
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A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas Blu-ray Review: The 19th Best Christmas Movie of All Time

Harold and Kumar aren't the ideal characters one would envision for a frothy Christmas movie or a senses-shattering 3D experience, ...
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Three Outlaw Samurai Criterion Collection DVD Review: Three is the Magic Number

When peasants stage an uprising against their greedy local magistrate, they find an unlikely ally in the form of a ...
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After Fall, Winter Movie Review: Love in the Time of Desperation

A lonely writer wanders around the streets of Paris before stumbling into an exciting new romantic relationship that reinvigorates his ...
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Belle de Jour Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: How Severine Got Her Groove Back

A young, wealthy housewife goes for a horse-drawn carriage ride in the idyllic French countryside with her dashing husband. So ...
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Glee: The Concert Blu-ray Review: Fun Performances, Lame Interludes

The Glee concert film captures a moment in time of a pop-culture phenomenon that had already started its slow march ...
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Tokyo Drifter Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Style Over Substance

Iconic director Seijun Suzuki’s film isn’t very impressive from a story standpoint, but is packed with wall-to-colorful-wall visual flair. It’s ...
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West Side Story 50th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray Review: The Story’s Not the Thing

For a 50-year-old, this film still has great legs. It’s certainly not without its shortcomings, but this new HD remaster ...
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Professor Layton and the Eternal Diva DVD Review: Animated Sleuthing Success

Professor Layton’s Nintendo DS puzzle-game series introduced the characters carried over to this all-new feature-length anime movie. The games don’t ...
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Fanny & Alexander Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Bergman’s Documentary Trumps Feature Film

As a newcomer to Fanny & Alexander, I was surprised to learn that the original format of the project was ...
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Atlas Shrugged Part One DVD Review: Who Is John Aglialoro?

After languishing in development hell for nearly 40 years, the film adaptation of author Ayn Rand’s magnum opus finally reached ...
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Blue Velvet 25th Anniversary Blu-ray Review: Just As Good As You Remembered It

In celebration of its 25th anniversary, Blue Velvet is being released in a feature-packed Blu-ray edition highlighted by the inclusion ...
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Cars 2 Blu-ray Review: Stuck in Neutral

After over 15 years of unparalleled critical and commercial feature film success, it was inevitable that Pixar would hit a ...
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Batman: Year One Two-Disc DVD Review: Rise of the Bat

Twenty-five years ago, DC Comics opted to reboot the Batman mythos in an attempt to expand his origin story and ...
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Kuroneko Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Things That Go Bump In The Night

Although classified as a horror film, Kuroneko isn’t very scary. Instead, it delivers atmosphere and oddities, making it more akin ...
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Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Blu-ray Review: Few Pirates, No Caribbean, But Still Fun

After Captain Jack Sparrow’s confusing and overblown third outing nearly sank the entire Pirates franchise, there was a palpable sense ...
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Harakiri Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: The Samurai Condition

When a bedraggled masterless samurai, or ronin, approaches the estate of a large warrior clan and asks for permission to ...
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Terri DVD Review: The Outsiders

High school alienation isn’t new subject matter for films, but Terri takes alienation to the extreme with its focus on ...
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Angel of Evil DVD Review: The Italian Mesrine

Angel of Evil is a gripping study of a career criminal as he robs banks, escapes prisons, and breaks hearts ...
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Dum Maaro Dum DVD Review: Crime in Paradise

Goa. Just the name conjures up images of sunkissed Indian beachside bliss for electronic dance music fans around the world, ...
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Book Review: Star Wars Omnibus: The Complete Saga Episode I – VI: Greedo Shoots First Here Too

The comic book adaptations of all six Star Wars films are fairly straightforward and faithful for the most part, but ...
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The Phantom Carriage Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: Impressive Ghost of Cinema Past

I don’t spend much time watching silent films, especially foreign silent films, but The Phantom Carriage has me rethinking that ...
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The Butcher, the Chef, and the Swordsman DVD Review: Three Tales, One Blade, Zero Entertainment

I was hoping for some originality in this film, a fresh take on martial arts period drama. It boasts a ...
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Bridesmaids DVD Review: A Star Is Born

Don’t let the title and picture fool you: this movie is all about Kristen Wiig. Sure, there’s an ensemble cast ...
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Brand New Day Blu-ray Review: Fast Forward to the Songs

An Australian musical with singing Aborigines, hippies and priests? What could go wrong? While the film clearly falls into the ...
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