A Simple Plan Blu-ray Review: You Work for the American Dream. You Don’t Steal It.
By Greg Hammond |
Scott B. Smith’s and Sam Raimi’s A Simple Plan is a perfect little bit of darkness in the midst of small-town America.
Book Review: Life Sucks by Jessica Abel
By Greg Hammond |
Life Sucks by Jessica Abel is a mishmash of Clerks and Reality Bites that, except for the artwork, completely misses the mark.
Watchmen Chapter 2 Blu-ray Review: The Watchmen on the Walls of Freedom
By Greg Hammond |
Brandon Vietti’s Watchmen Chapter 2 continues a visually remarkable re-telling of the classic twelve-part limited comic book series.
Valkyrie Blu-ray Review: Ensemble Cast Saves Middling Thriller
By Greg Hammond |
Bryan Singer’s Valkyrie, starring Tom Cruise as part of an ensemble cast in a historical drama, delivers excitement without any of that bothersome characterization.
Looney Tunes Collector’s Choice Vols. 1 – 4 Blu-ray Review: Button Up Your Tonsils and Enjoy a Looney Ride
By Greg Hammond |
Looney Tunes Collector’s Choice Vols. 1 – 4 is a great place to start for those who would like to begin a stellar Looney Tunes collection.
Bill & Ted’s Most Triumphant Trilogy Review: “Sorry. They Melvined Me.”
By Greg Hammond |
Bill and Ted’s Most Triumphant Trilogy from Shout! Studios brings the laughs from over three decades of space-time.
Daiei Gothic: Japanese Ghost Stories Blu-ray Box Set Review: Broodingly Atmospheric Revenge Stories
By Greg Hammond |
Daiei Gothic: Japanese Ghost Stories is an excellent addition to any horror aficionado’s collection.
Separated Movie Review: Harm to the Children Was Part of the Point
By Greg Hammond |
Errol Morris’s Separated elucidates the recent government policy of separating parents from their children at the U.S. – Mexico border.
Watchmen Chapter 1 Blu-ray Review: Checking the Time on the Doomsday Clock
By Greg Hammond |
Brandon Vietti’s Watchmen Chapter 1 is a visually remarkable re-telling of the classic twelve-part limited comic book series.
Book Review: Cormac McCarthy’s The Road: A Graphic Novel Adaptation by Manu Larcenet
By Greg Hammond |
Cormac McCarthy’s The Road: A Graphic Novel Adaptation by Manu Larcenet is a stellar adaptation of McCarthy’s brilliantly bleak novel.
The Watchers (2024) Blu-ray Review: Weak Plot but Strong Direction from Ishana Night Shyamalan
By Greg Hammond |
The Watchers, starring Dakota Fanning, is a strong directorial debut for Ishana Night Shyamalan.
Knuckles Blu-ray Review: Strong TV Show Bolsters Sonic Universe
By Greg Hammond |
Knuckles the six-episode tv show is a great springboard from the hilarious Sonic the Hedgehog 2 to the to-be-released at Christmas, Sonic the Hedgehog 3.
Game Night 4K UHD Review: Game of Life Offers Monopoly of Laughs
By Greg Hammond |
John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein co-directed Game Night, starring Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams, and created a hilarious game of cat and mouse.
Book Review: What We Mean By Yesterday, Vol. 1 by Benjamin Marra
By Greg Hammond |
Benjamin Marra’s What We Mean by Yesterday, Vol. 1 is a drug-fueled trip through one man’s life on the edge.
IF 4K UHD Review: The Opposite of a Magical Adventure
By Greg Hammond |
John Krasinski’s IF is too scary for the very young, too boring for teens, and a complete disaster to any discerning adult.
Observe and Report Blu-ray Review: Two Jokes and Ray Liotta
By Greg Hammond |
Jody Hill’s Observe and Report stars Seth Rogan and Anna Faris in a comedy that relies on Ray Liotta to tell all its jokes.
Risky Business Criterion Collection Review: Introducing Tom Cruise and Guido the Killer Pimp
By Greg Hammond |
Paul Brickman’s Risky Business, starring Tom Cruise and Rebecca De Mornay, is a coming-of-age story that helped create a mega-celebrity.
The Lost Weekend Movie Review: Don the Writer; Don the Drunk
By Greg Hammond |
Billy Wilder’s The Long Weekend, starring Ray Milland, is a beautifully made vision of the hell that is alcoholism.
Birdman (or the Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) Movie Review: What We Talk About When We Talk About Fame
By Greg Hammond |
Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s Birdman (or the Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), starring Michael Keaton, is a wonderful film about love, loss, fame, and fading into obscurity.
Rebecca (1940) Movie Review: Last Night I Dreamt I Went to Manderley Again
By Greg Hammond |
Rebecca, Alfred Hitchcock’s only Academy Award winner for Best Picture, and first American-produced film, is a showcase of the greatest talents of the era.
Prey (2022) Movie Review: A Great Script and Talented Cast Breathe New Life into an Aging Franchise
By Greg Hammond |
Dan Trachtenberg’s Prey is a top-tier entry in the Predator universe.
Justice League Dark Movie Review: I Will Take You There, So You Are No Longer Here
By Greg Hammond |
Jay Olivia’s Justice League Dark doesn’t earn its R-rating, but has a compelling, adult story all about demons good and demons bad.
Teen Titans: The Judas Contract Movie Review: A Fast-Paced Action Thriller
By Greg Hammond |
Sam Liu’s Teen Titans: The Judas Contract is an action packed thriller with a fast script and intelligent characterizations.
Batman: The Killing Joke Movie Review: Two Guys Are in a Mental Asylum
By Greg Hammond |
Sam Liu’s Batman: The Killing Joke is a fast-paced action flick starring Batman and the Joker in a psychological thriller that drags you through a carnival of terrors.
Son of Batman Movie Review: I Owe My Grandfather a Death
By Greg Hammond |
Ethan Spaulding’s Son of Batman brings a little glimpse of family back into Bruce Wayne’s life with interesting, exciting results.
Team America: World Police 4K UHD Review: Pulls the Right Strings
By Greg Hammond |
Team America: World Police is a slightly dated romp through bad taste and good humor.
South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut 4K UHD Review: Still Funny but Aging Rapidly
By Greg Hammond |
Many of the jokes in South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut are still funny over two decades later, but the topical nature of some subject matter hurts subsequent views.
Blue Beetle Movie Review: A Family Drama that Deserves a Lot of Attention
By Greg Hammond |
Blue Beetle is a wonderful superhero film about the super strength known as family.
Book Review: Petar & Liza by Miroslav Sekulic-Struja
By Greg Hammond |
Miroslav Sekulic-Struja’s Petar & Liza is a tender Yugoslavian romance in which broken people do their best to help each other.
The Trip to Greece Movie Review: Stan Laurel and Tom Hardy Walk Into a Restaurant
By Greg Hammond |
All four Trip movies are good, but The Trip to Greece is, unfortunately, the weak one in the bunch.
Orphan (2009) Collector’s Edition Blu-ray Review: Surprisingly Strong Psychological Thriller
By Greg Hammond |
Jaume Collet-Serra’s Orphan is a strong psychological thriller starring Vera Farmiga and Peter Saarsgard.
Killer Klowns from Outer Space 4K UHD Review: The Bloody Circus Comes to Town
By Greg Hammond |
Killer Klowns from Outer Space, by the Chiodo Brothers, is comedy-horror at its best.
The Powerpuff Girls: The Complete Series DVD Review: Fighting Crime, Trying to Save the World
By Greg Hammond |
With 78 episodes and 30 hours worth of bonus features, The Powerpuff Girls: The Complete Series is all you will ever need to satisfy your Powerpuff Girls cravings.
Vitagraph Comedies Blu-ray Review: A Beautifully Restored Archive of Early Silent-Era Films
By Greg Hammond |
Vitagraph Comedies collects forty short comedic films from 1907 to 1922 in black and white and tinted color.
Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island (1998) and Scooby-Doo! Return to Zombie Island (2019) Blu-ray Review: Wallow in the Warmth of a 20-Year Story Arc
By Greg Hammond |
Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island (1998) and Scooby-Doo! Return to Zombie Island are great bookends to 20 years of straight-to-video goodness.
The Big Country Blu-ray Review: A Comfortable Ride on a Slow Horse
By Greg Hammond |
William Wyler’s The Big Country, starring Gregory Peck and Jean Simmons, is a comfortable ride on a slow horse.
White Squall Blu-ray Review: Boys Bonding on Boats
By Greg Hammond |
Ridley Scott’s White Squall, starring Jeff Bridges, is a white-knuckled actioner you don’t want to miss.
Lorenzo’s Oil Blu-ray Review: We Leave Science to Its Own Concerns
By Greg Hammond |
George Miller’s Lorenzo’s Oil, starring Nick Nolte and Susan Sarandon, is a “hopeful” story about a dying child.
The Border (1982) Blu-ray Review: Great Stars in Search of a Script
By Greg Hammond |
Tony Richardson’s The Border, starring Jack NIcholson and Harvey Keitel, is one long missed opportunity.
Phantasmagoria DVD Review: Great Music and Visuals in Search of a Story
By Greg Hammond |
Cosmotropia de Xam’s Phantasmagoria starring Rachel Audrey and Mari K is pretty to look at but the story is nonexistent.
Mean Girls (2004) and Mean Girls (2024) 4K UHDs Review: So Fetch They’re Grool
By Greg Hammond |
Both of these entries into the Mean Girls oeuvre sing beautifully.
The Coffee Table DVD Review: I Said the Smartest Thing to Do Was Get a Vasectomy
By Greg Hammond |
Caye Casas’ The Coffee Table, starring Estefania de los Santos and David Pareja, is a top-notch psychological thriller / horror movie that belongs on your shelf.
Midnight Cowboy Movie Review: I Only Get Car Sick on Boats
By Greg Hammond |
John Schlesinger’s Midnight Cowboy, starring Jon Voight and Dustin Hoffman is one of the all time great dramas.
Arcadian Movie Review: Let Nicolas Out of His Cage
By Greg Hammond |
Nicolas Cage is excellent in Ben Brewer’s competent Arcadian, but he just isn’t present enough.
Gigi Movie Review: Weak Heads and Careless Bodies
By Greg Hammond |
Problems aside, Gigi is a great American musical classic with excellent acting, a fast, entertaining plot, and many memorable songs.
Book Review: Blessed Be by Rick Altergott
By Greg Hammond |
Rick Altergott’s Blessed Be is a raunchy, raucous, fun-filled story of friendship and murder.
Coup de Chance Movie Review: He Caught His Wife Having an Affair with Their Marriage Counselor
By Greg Hammond |
Woody Allen’s Coup de Chance is a comedic thriller filled with charm and wit.
The Best Years of Our Lives Movie Review: People Are Playing Golf…Just As if Nothing Had Ever Happened
By Greg Hammond |
William Wyler’s The Best Years of Our Lives is solid storytelling from the outset: it grabs you and never lets go.
Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema XVI Blu-ray Review: A Worthy Entry to the Series
By Greg Hammond |
Film Noir: The Dark Side of Cinema XVI contains Edgar Allen Poe’s The Mystery of Marie Roget, Chicago Deadline, and Iron Man.
Wednesday: Season 1 Blu-ray Review: Two Snaps Up
By Greg Hammond |
Tim Burton’s Wednesday is yet another excellent entry into the Addams Family universe.