Posted Nov 24th 2009 11:15AM by Monika Bartyzel
Filed under: New Releases, DVD Reviews, New on DVD, Home Entertainment
Angels & Demons
The first was met with much critical disdain, but fought back to earn over $750 million at the worldwide box office.
Angels & Demons still managed to make money, but less than $500 million (needing worldwide take to even make up for the budget) as Tom Hanks tries to hunt down a symbol-loving murderer.
Eric D. Snider called it: "is as overly serious as its predecessor, and poor Mr. Hanks -- the world's most likable man, for crying out loud! -- is still dour and intense."
Skip it. Also on Blu-ray.
Add to Netflix queue |
Buy at Amazon
Four Christmases
Just as the title implies, Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon are forced to stop avoiding their crazy families and must hit four households over the holidays. In his review,
William Goss wrote: "The rest makes for an occasionally amusing, mostly shrill series of encounters with an ensemble that only encourages misanthropic ideals, and maybe if
Four Christmases had decided to extend itself beyond white trash targets and projectile vomiting, we could've found ourselves talking about a new Christmas classic right now."
Rent it if you want some uncomfortable holiday humor. Also on Blu-ray.
Add to Netflix queue |
Buy at Amazon
Funny People
If ever there was a reason why Adam Sandler has been sticking to the ridiculous fluff, this is it -- a dramedy with a lot of heart that couldn't even make back its budget after worldwide release. In his review,
Todd Gilchrist said: "
Funny People is one of the summer's, if not the year's best films, because it's a comedy that inverts the medium's typical use – effectively revealing feelings rather than concealing them – and invites the audience to share in that discovery."
Buy it and give the film some love. Also on Blu-ray.
Read Our Blu-ray Review |
Add to Netflix queue |
Buy at Amazon
Hit the jump for a peek at
Shorts and other new releases...
Continue reading Spin-ematical: New on DVD for 11/24
Posted Nov 23rd 2009 10:02PM by Todd Gilchrist
Filed under: Universal, Fandom, Home Entertainment, Interviews
Read Part One of this interview right here
When
Judd Apatow's latest film,
Funny People, was announced, many critics and audiences hailed it – even before they saw it – not only as an evolution of the filmmaker's style, but a return to the kind of drama-laced comedy that flourished in the 1980s and early '90s thanks to folks like
Cameron Crowe and
James L. Brooks. When it was released, the film more than satisfied those expectations, offering an unflinching but frequently hilarious portrait of an A-list comedian rediscovering himself, but there seemed to be a sense that audiences knew themselves less well than they felt like they knew the film's main character, resulting in a less enthusiastic response than perhaps even they expected.
The film
arrives on Blu-ray this week, offering what is indisputably the most complete and comprehensive look behind the scenes at a comedy ever produced, and offers audiences a second chance to check out Apatow's most meaningful and resonant work to date.
Cinematical got a chance to catch up with the writer-director via telephone to discuss the contents of the expansive, 2-Disc Collector's Edition; in the second part of our chat, Apatow talks about precisely what made the movie so personal for him, and offers a few insights about its place in his growing body of work, and its potential influence on his future films (including a
Harry Potter movie, maybe?).
Cinematical: With or without talking to you at the time of the film's release, people seemed to assume that this was a very personal film, I think because it was more serious than your previous work. Was it really personal, and if so in what way or why? Continue reading Interview: Judd Apatow (Part Two)
Posted Nov 23rd 2009 8:35PM by Erik Davis
Filed under: Home Entertainment
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Our good friend and EIC Erik Davis (that's me!) had a very thoughtful idea for the holiday season: Why not scan the early flyers for the Black Friday sales, and report back to you -- the ravenous movie junkie -- to let you know where to find the best treats on the day after Thanksgiving? We'll be bringing you deals for a variety of stores and online retailers all week long. Here's what we've posted so far so you can keep track:
Black Friday Movie Deals: Best Buy
Black Friday Movie Deals: Target
Walmart opens at 5am on Friday, November 27th. I've highlighted the most notable (for being awesome) deals
in bold.
DVD/Blu-ray
17 Again (DVD) $9.00
Aliens In The Attic (DVD) $9.00
Blazing Saddles (DVD) $2.00
Blood Diamond (DVD) $2.00
Braveheart (Blu-ray) $10.00
Casino Royale (DVD) $2.00
Facing Giants (DVD) $2.00
Fast & Furious (Blu-ray) $10.00
Fireproof (DVD) $9.00
GI Joe (DVD) $9.00
Gladiator (Blu-ray) $10.00
Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets (Blu-ray) $10.00
HellBoy II (DVD) $2.00
Horton Hears A Who (DVD) $5.00
Hotel For Dogs (DVD) $5.00
I Am Legend (DVD) $2.00
Ice Age: Dawn Of The Dinosaurs (Blu-ray) $10.00
Ice Age: Dawn Of The Dinosaurs (DVD) $9.00
Iron Man (DVD) $5.00
Kung Fu Panda (DVD) $5.00
Little Black Book (DVD) $2.00
Madagascar 2 (DVD) $5.00
Mall Cop (DVD) $5.00
Marley & Me (DVD) $9.00
Monsters Vs Aliens 2 Pack (DVD) $9.00
Nim's Island (DVD) $5.00
More after the jumpContinue reading Black Friday Movie Deals: Walmart
Posted Nov 23rd 2009 8:02PM by Cinematical staff
Filed under: Horror, Fandom, Home Entertainment
From Horror Squad
I love
Paranormal Activity. It's one of my favorite horror films (for a variety of reasons), yet its absolutely insane success has proven to be a double-edged sword for horror fans. On the one hand, it gives a level of legitimacy not often seen within the horror genre outside of the throngs of fans who live for it. Conversely, it gives The Asylum an opportunity to make another movie.
In the wake of the film
Walking Distance changing its name to
Experimental Activity, which much like the very existence of The Asylum is nothing more than a shameless attempt to capitalize on the success of others, it would seem the company behind stellar films such as
The Day the Earth Stopped and
Transmorphers (which may or may not be better than the film it's emulating) has decided to make their own adaptation of Oren Peli's smash hit, known simply as
Paranormal Entity.
Those wonderful folks over at
Quiet Earth even got a look at the poster and revealed a brief synopsis for the "mockbustermentary" (my word, not theirs):
"Actual found videotape footage of the 2008 "murders" of the Finley family."
Short and sweet. The film will pollute video stores on December 29th of this year.
By: Brad McHarguePosted Nov 23rd 2009 5:54PM by Erik Davis
Filed under: Fandom, Home Entertainment
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Usually this is something we'd post over at
SciFi Squad, but I thought these sneakers deserved some more love over on
Cinematical, too. Apparently
adidas Originals is launching a collection of Star Wars-themed sneakers and clothing for the 2010 Spring/Summer season -- and with it comes this first look (more of a tease) at some of the products they'll be pimping to the public. As a self-proclaimed adidas fanatic (not to mention a giant fan of all things Star Wars), I'm already head over heels (get it?) for these Stormtropper sneakers. Of course they don't show you the entire sneaker, but how cool is that back? I'll be the first to admit that I'm not the hippest or most up-to-date when it comes to the hot new sneakers on the market, but that Stormtrooper sneaker has to be one of the more fantasticlly fanboyish I've seen in quite some time.
In addition to the Stormtropper sneakers, adidas Originals is also adding Vader-themed sneakers, sweet Skywalker-themed sneakers, Yoda-themed sneakers and a totally retro sparkly silver lightsaber battle/Han Solo vibe'd pair of sneakers for those who have no problem saying "F*ck it -- this is what I'm wearing, this is what I love." Check out the teaser images below, and stay tuned to
SciFi Squad as we'll dole out more photos over there once they arrive online. The line is due out in January 2010.
Posted Nov 23rd 2009 2:15PM by Scott Weinberg
Filed under: Home Entertainment
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Our good friend and EIC Erik Davis had a very thoughtful idea for the holiday season: Why not scan the early flyers for the Black Friday sales, and report back to you -- the ravenous movie junkie -- to let you know where to find the best treats on the day after Thanksgiving? To those who choose to brave the stores on 11/27/09, you have my best wishes. I'll be sleeping.
We'll be bringing you deals for a variety of stores all week long. Here's what we've posted so far so you can keep track:
Black Friday Movie Deals: Best Buy
For Target, the 2-Day Sale starts Friday, November 27, at 5 a.m
- 2001: A Space Odyssey (blu-ray) -- $12.99
- Baby Mama (standard) -- $3.99
- Christmas Vacation (standard) -- $5.99
- The Dark Knight (blu-ray) -- $12.99 (standard: $3.99)
- Elf (standard) -- $3.99
- Forgetting Sarah Marshall (standard) -- $3.99
- Gone With the Wind (blu-ray) -- $12.99
- Goodfellas (blu-ray) -- $8.99
- Gremlins (blu-ray / Target exclusive) -- $12.99
- I Am Legend (blu-ray) -- $8.99
- Kung Fu Panda (standard) -- $5.99
- Monsters vs. Aliens (standard) -- $10.00
- Nights in Rodanthe (standard) -- $5.99
- P.S. I Love You (standard) -- $5.99
- The Polar Express (standard) -- $5.99
- The Proposal (standard) -- $8.99
- Paul Blart: Mall Cop (standard) -- $5.99
- Sex and the City (standard) -- $3.99
- Transformers (standard) -- $5.99
- Up (standard) -- $13.99
- V for Vendetta (blu-ray) -- $8.99
- The Wizard of Oz (blu-ray) -- $12.99
Continue reading Black Friday Movie Deals: Target
Posted Nov 23rd 2009 12:02PM by Monika Bartyzel
Filed under: Drama, Music & Musicals, New Releases, Fandom, Home Entertainment
Cinematical has just received the following title track for Nick Cave and Warren Ellis' original and haunting film score for
The Road. It's simple and chilling -- just as any accompaniment to a post-apocalyptic world should be -- full of violin and piano tunes, some wind instruments and sound loops. The soundtrack is being released digitally today over at
Amazon, with further digital retailers tomorrow and a CD release to follow on January 12, 2010.
We first alerted you to the score
back in March, and then to the duo's Soundtrack Collection
in September. As you might have gathered, some of us are big Cave & Ellis fans. And rightly so. They provided an award-winning score for John Hillcoat's earlier feature
The Proposition (which Cave also wrote), and also scored
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. And of course, that's besides their work in Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, which has
memorable cinematic ties to Wings of Desire (before Ellis teamed up with Cave).
Too often these days it's easy to get pulled out of movies due to overly imposing and grandoise film scores desperately trying to yank at emotions, rather than just lightly coaxing the right feel for a particular scene, and Cave and Ellis definitely know how to let simplicity reign. Check out the clip and track list after the jump and grab it over here at
Amazon.
Continue reading Exclusive: Title Track for 'The Road' Soundtrack
Posted Nov 21st 2009 3:02PM by Todd Gilchrist
Filed under: United Artists, Fandom, 20th Century Fox, Home Entertainment
While new Blu-rays of old movies are sometimes dubious replacements for prior editions (hence the need for this column), box sets released in the high-definition format have thus far been fairly helpful, at least in terms of shelf space: many or most of them forego a lot of the frills and flourishes of their standard-definition iterations in favor of more streamlined packaging. Unfortunately, that's also sometimes extended to their extras, thanks in no small part to the legal entanglements of transferring commentaries and bonus content from one format to another.
Both Warner Brothers and Fox have faced this challenge a couple of times thanks to their ownership/ adoption of the libraries of MGM and United Artists, which until a few years ago issued their own releases.
Rocky, which is one of United Artists' premier franchises, was recently released on Blu-ray in
The Undisputed Collection, a set that contains all six of the films in the series, but it remains to be seen whether complete also means comprehensive in this particular case.
What's Already Available: Continue reading Making The (Up) Grade: Rocky
Posted Nov 20th 2009 9:02PM by Todd Gilchrist
Filed under: Universal, Fandom, Home Entertainment, Interviews
Funny People was the latest in
Judd Apatow's ongoing series of summer comedies, but it was anything but a typical summer comedy: following a successful comedian (played by Apatow's longtime friend
Adam Sandler) who reflects on his life after discovering he's going to die, the film offered lots of humor but with decidedly heavier themes lurking beneath the yuks. The film debuts on Blu-ray in a
2-Disc Collector's Edition next week, and the contents are amazing, showing how Apatow combined lighthearted fare with more serious ideas in the service of exploring something substantive.
Cinematical was lucky enough to catch up with Apatow via telephone one recent morning to discuss the process of putting together the film's home video iteration. In addition to discussing the bonus materials, extras, featurettes, and a documentary that's the most thorough and thoughtful ever produced about a comedy production, Apatow talked about finding the right ending for his magnum opus, discovering and deconstructing the process of producing laughs, and front-loading the film's universe with outside content about the supporting characters.
Cinematical: One of the ideas highlighted in the Blu-ray bonus materials was the fact that you knew this was going in a different direction than your previous films. Even knowing that while you were making it, were you surprised by the reactions of audiences and critics when it was released? Or does it matter? Continue reading Interview: Judd Apatow (Part One)
Posted Nov 20th 2009 6:45PM by Monika Bartyzel
Filed under: Home Entertainment
The '90s were a good time to be a teen -- especially if you were itching for more than just the mainstream. Nestled between the John Hughes '80s and the bubbly Disney '00s, the '90s were a time when teen films thrived in tunes-led rebellion. It wasn't all about spunky mainstream music marketing and bubbly personalities. Scores and strangeness got to go a little wild, and Gregg Araki ran with that idea when he made
The Doom Generation.
Dubbed Araki's "heterosexual movie," the film starred then-newcomer
Rose McGowan as Amy Blue, a tough-as-nails, filthy-mouthed, self-proclaimed virgin in love with one Jordan White (
James Duval). Their rather mundane lives are thrown through the ringer when they help out a strange boy named Xavier (
Johnathan Schaech), who leads them through an insane road trip of unintended violence. A trip, mind you, that showcases a slew of names from all walks of life -- Skinny Puppy (band), Margaret Cho, Dustin Nguyen (
21 Jump Street), Heidi Fleiss (the Hollywood madam), Perry Farrell (Janes Addiction), Parker Posey, Nicky Katt (
Dazed and Confused), Zak Spears and Rex Chandler (gay adult film stars), Christopher Knight (
Brady Bunch), Lauren Tewes (
The Love Boat)...
It is, however, a film spliced in tone. The first three quarters are violent, black comedy, while the last third makes the violence personal as the trio faces off against Neo-Nazis -- a rather apt juxtaposition between pulpy imaginary thrills and violence laced with a sense of reality.
Get dark with The Doom Generation now on SlashControl!
Posted Nov 19th 2009 7:02PM by Peter Hall
Filed under: Family Films, Home Entertainment
I was unaware that one could trademark a dog, but apparently you can, though it may not hold up in court.
Rin Tin Tin Inc., a German Shepherd breeding company named after the dog an American soldier during World War I in France, filed a lawsuit last year against Nu Image and First Look Studios alleging that the use of their breed's name in the kid film
Finding Rin Tin Tin: the Adventure Continues was, well, a trademark infringement.
Unfortunately for them, a judge has
finally ruled on the matter, coming to the rather obvious conclusion that "This descriptive use of the name is fair because it tells the consumer what the film is about -- the story of the historical dog Rin Tin Tin -- and because it is actually about the historical dog Rin Tin Tin." What I find funny about all of this is not only the fact that an entity who takes their name from a widely-known, long-dead dog actor would sue a film for doing the exact same thing, but that their suit called for retainership of all profits from the film and complete destruction of every DVD of it in existence.
Really? It's not as though Rin Tin Tin Inc. invented German Shepherds or discovered the original dog that would go on to be a film, TV, and radio star (yes, a dog used to have several radio shows). All they thought to do was capitalize on its popularity by making a brand out of the dog's genealogy, which at this point must be severely diluted. I hate to see our legal system put to such frivolous use, but I'm glad to see a judge saw fit to dismiss the suit: I'd hate to live in a world without a single DVD of
Finding Rin Tin Tin!
Posted Nov 19th 2009 3:15PM by Erik Davis
Filed under: Comedy, Fandom, Home Entertainment
While the wheels on the Wagon Queen Family Truckster are still in motion with regards to a brand new
Vacation film as told through the eyes of Clark Griswold's son Rusty and his family (which
New Line is currently working on alongside David Dobkin), the original Clark and Ellen Griswold (Chevy Chase and Beverly D'Angelo, respectively) will be making a return appearance this February on the small screen as part of a Superbowl commercial for
HomeAway vacation rentals.
Yup, Chase and D'Angelo will be reprising their characters for a commercial that
US Weekly says will pay homage to the 1983 original film,
National Lampoon's Vacation. Says Chase, "To this day, people ask me, 'When is the next Vacation movie?" So I'm sure everyone will get a kick out of seeing the Griswolds and their misadventures once again." D'Angelo adds, "Clark and Ellen have one of the most enduring marriages ever to come out of Hollywood. I am thrilled that HomeAway is reuniting Chevy and me." Aside from Chase and D'Angelo, the TV spot will also reportedly feature an exact replica of the iconic station wagon featured in first film.
Though it's not exactly a big-screen reunion for the original Griswold parents, it'll be fun to see them back together again for what I hope will be an entertaining Superbowl spot. And, hey, I guess after watching that we'll know whether or not we want them back for cameo appearances in the next
Vacation movie, too.
Posted Nov 19th 2009 10:33AM by Todd Gilchrist
Filed under: Fandom, Home Entertainment, Shelf Life
This week, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment released
Leon: The Professional on Blu-ray, and because I have the best job in the world, I got to watch it for this column. The truth is that this was a formative movie for me, not only augmenting my budding cinephilia in terms of attention to and interest in strongly visual filmmakers, but in understanding the technical and artistic value of widescreen cinema. Before the film was released on widescreen VHS and later, DVD, I watched the pan-and-scan version when it was first released on video and almost got sick from the cropping and scanning of director
Luc Besson's balletic camerawork.
Thankfully, I never have to watch it via that sort of butchered presentation again, and even if you don't think the movie is a masterpiece, at the very least, SPHE's new Blu-ray offers a gorgeously rich transfer that fully celebrates Besson's cinematography. But even though this is a film I've revisited several times since its original release in 1994, I was curious to see how well
The Professional would hold up some 15 years later – which brings us to this week's "Shelf Life."
Continue reading Shelf Life: The Professional
Posted Nov 18th 2009 2:18PM by Peter Hall
Filed under: Fandom, Home Entertainment
One of the first big information breaks on the secrets of James Cameron's
Avatar came back in June when the director himself took the stage at E3 during Ubisoft's press conference to talk about the upcoming video game based on the film. In his now notorious talk, Cameron drained the energy out of the room by going on and on about the plot of the game, which mirrors the movie's, revealing so much information that
Joystiq remarked "we no longer feel obligated to see it when it hits theaters." What they were shown of the game, however, was stunning. Ubisoft had been plugging away at it for over two years and it showed in the lush, player-interactive world of Pandora.
And now you too can get a first hand look at the
Avatar game without having to hear Cameron spoil the movie. That is if you have a PC that meets the minimum system requirements which are, not unsurprisingly, quite beefy.
ShackNews picked up on the PC demo for the game, which will be available in full for the 360, PS3 and Wii on December 1st, from the German Coca-Cola Zero site of all places, and now they're
hosting it for nerds the world over to try out. Being a worldly nerd, I grabbed the 1.6gig demo and gave it a play through. It was fun, but more surprising was how much context it gave the images we've seen so far from the mega-budget production.
Read the rest of our preview over at SciFi SquadPosted Nov 17th 2009 7:32PM by Erik Davis
Filed under: Fandom, Home Entertainment
Those of you wondering whether you'll be able to toss a
District 9 DVD or Blu-ray onto your Christmas Wish List are in luck, as the film is set to debut in stores on December 22 (up from the previous release date of December 29th). Makes sense to release it BEFORE Christmas rather than four days AFTER Christmas since it was one of the biggest movies of the summer. We're looking at a two-disc set that will feature 1.85:1 1080p AVC video accompanied by a 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack. As far as extra features go on the Blu-ray release, check it:
-- movieIQ
-- cinechat
-- Joburg From Above: Satellite and Schematics of the World of District 9 - Interactive Map
-- Director's Commentary
-- Koobus Big Gun
-- The Alien Agenda: A Filmmaker's Log Three-Part Documentary
-- The Alien Agenda: A Filmmaker's Log - Chapter 3: Refining District 9
-- Metamorphosis: The Transformation of Wikus
-- Innovation: Acting and Improvisation
-- Conception and Design: Creating the World of District 9
-- Alien Generation: Visual Effects
Read the rest and find out why it's set to make Blu-ray history over at SciFi Squad
Next Page >
Peter Jackson Says Spielberg's 'Tintin' is Done Filming, but...
Interracial Harmony: 'Ninja Assassin' vs. 'Blind Side'
Spin-ematical: New on DVD for 11/24_thumbnail.jpg)
Exclusive 'Nine' Poster Premiere!
Exclusive: Title Track for 'The Road' Soundtrack
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