There might not be a more colossal misfire this year than Creature. That’s not to say that it’s the worst horror film of the year. but there are a few things worth recommending in this tale of a monster living in the Louisiana bayou. Worst of all, Creature feels no need to overcome its shortcomings by at least being fun. There’s very little joy to be had in how bad this film is.
As a sports film, Warrior doesn’t offer any new twist on a tried and true template, but it could be held up as a perfect example of how to make an uplifting sports film. This story of two estranged brothers trying to make their way through a newly formed mixed martial arts tournament hits almost every beat the audience expects, but it does so with near flawless precision. This isn’t exactly the reinvention of the wheel, but it sure does give one of the smoothest rides of the year.
Publisher DC Comics recently made the bold decision to relaunch their comic book universe in an effort to make their comic books more "modern and accessible". Dubbed "The New 52", the rebooted universe offers a fresh start for iconic superheroes and lesser known characters alike with all 52 titles being renumbered to #1. It's a major event, which is why local DC Comics fans Nug Nahrgang and Andrew Cymek are planning to review EVERY single issue of "The New 52" through their first story arcs.
As the season’s end draws near, True Blood amps it up this week with the eleventh episode ‘Soul of Fire’. This latest installment was dynamic, but felt somewhat rushed. That can only mean Alan Ball is gearing up for one hell of a finale, right? Here’s hoping.
Catherine is a bit of a legacy project from the Persona Team, but they don’t drag any Persona iconography kicking and screaming into it. There are no zombie dogs, Pyramid Head or pretty pan blonde boys with goofy swords. Catherine's pastiche is conjured from scratch. And that’s one hell of a reason to start a steamy affair.
The last time we heard from our favourite Gallifreyan and his time-traveling companions, Amy Pond had given birth to a baby girl named Melody. She and her baby had been held against their will by the Clerics, an organization led by Madame Kovarian intent on using Melody as a weapon. Ten thousand light-years away, the Doctor and the Last Centurion assembled an army to recover the female Ponds. Unfortunately, nothing went to plan and a lot of people died.
True Blood follows up last week's doofy ghost story with a surprising tearjerker of an episode entitled 'Burning Down the House'. In the tenth episode Sookie and Eric's worst fear comes true, Tommy finally gets his and Bill is determined to take out the witch once and for all, no matter the cost.
It's hard not to like Paul Rudd. The actor has an affable, everyman charm and a real gift for comedy that comes through in almost every role he plays, even when the source material isn't particularly inspired. Rudd's new film, Our Idiot Brother — in which he plays the titular dumb sibling — is not a particularly inspired piece of filmmaking, but it nevertheless manages to coast by on good intentions and happy accidents much like its central character.
Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark is the kind of film that will probably freak out pre-teens in the same way Goosebumps books or TV’s Are You Afraid of the Dark? did. It feels lovingly crafted by people who missed being stuck home on a Friday or Saturday night with their parents. In its own […]
If this week’s True Blood had you thinking, ‘What the fuck?!‘ you aren’t alone. Ball seems to have dropped the ball this week with ‘Let’s Get Out of Here’. At least it wrapped up that ridiculous Baby Mikey plot. That’s over, right?
Griff the Invisible is an odd little film, one that wears a big heart on its sleeve. Writer/director Leon Ford has created a film that is equal parts enamouring and sad. The film stars Ryan Kwanten as the titular Griff, a quiet loner who doubles as a masked vigilante by night. What makes this film different from the growing roster of DIY vigilante movies, is that our hero's crime-fighting adventures are essentially made up. His foes are imagined fantasies and his feats gross exaggerations of his own creation. It's a relatable tale of outsiders who try to fit in the only way they know how.
Fright Night is unquestionably the best film to come out of the recent deluge of recycled properties. This doesn’t just mean it is the best horror reboots in recent years, but it is one of the best remakes in any genre. It is the rare reboot that hits many of the same notes of the original film, while simultaneously subverting the audience’s expectations of what is going to happen. The fact that Fright Night manages to be on par with the original is a miracle in a world of shoddy remakes and cheap cash-ins.
Conan the Barbarian is an unnecessary, but often entertaining adaptation of Robert E. Howard's series of stories about the Cimmerian warrior who was "born of battle." And to the film's credit, it doesn't feel like a full remake of the Arnold Schwarzenegger take on the character. This Conan is actually smarter and even more action packed than the beloved films from the 80s, but under the direction of Marcus Nispel sometimes the film can be excessive even by the standards of the character.
No one seems to be quite themselves in this week’s episode of True Blood, 'Spellbound’. Picking up where we left off last week, Jessica is under the witches’ spell and is about to walk out into the sun to meet her true death. It didn’t even occur to me last week that Ball might have the balls to kill off a character and even though I like Jessica, I secretly wanted to see her go up in flames because it's pretty cool.
30 Minutes or Less is a strange sort of film, but the elements are all there to make for a decent bit of entertainment. It is an affably ridiculous action comedy that takes an extremely convoluted plot and boils it down to a film that clocks in at just a shade over 80 minutes. The film continues in the same self-referential vein of most hybrid comedies of the past few years, with nods to everything from Die Hard and The Great Santini, to Friday the 13th Part 3. It all adds up to a film that is fun while it lasts, but ultimately ends up going nowhere special.
