The Marine 3: Homefront Blu-ray review

Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English (DTS 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 5.1)

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Dubbed: English, French

Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1

Number of discs: 2

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: 20th Century Fox

Release Date: March 5, 2013

Run Time: 90 minutes

 

 

            WWE knows a good thing when they have found it. Why else would they still be doing their gaudy 80s wrestling shows? I know that there are people who get very into WWE and may find it insulting that I call it a show, but that is what they are doing. They put on a show for audiences, and ultimately all of the wrestler must be actors and performers first of all. This is why it makes complete sense for the franchise to start making movies. Action films do a great deal to promote the stars of WWE, even when they move on the bigger things. We all know how Dwayne Johnson got his start.

 

            John Cena was given the spotlight for the first Marine film, and then it was Ted DiBiase’s turn for the sequel. This time around it is Mike “The Miz” Mizanin, who stars as Sgt. Jake Carter, who is on leave when his sister is abducted by a band of violent extremists planning a deadly terrorist strike. With the authorities unwilling to risk saving his sister, Jake goes on a one-man rampage against the terrorists.

 

            On par with the first two films, there is plenty of hand-to-hand action, as well as some good gunplay. The simplicity of the first film is missing, and this one is easily the least believable for a myriad of reasons. That being said, the action is still hard-hitting and moderately engaging in the way that this type of film is meant to be. You won’t be challenged, but if you are lucky you will be entertained.

 

            The Blu-ray includes a number of features, including a journal from the star, several featurettes about him, and one about casting choices. There are also a few featurettes about the intricacies of filming on a boat set. 

The Master Blu-ray review

Actors: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Jesse Plemons, Price Carson

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson

Writers: Paul Thomas Anderson

Format: Color, NTSC, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Subtitles for the Hearing Impaired: English, Spanish

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1

Number of discs: 2

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: Starz / Anchor Bay

Release Date: February 26, 2013

Run Time: 144 minutes

 

 

            Filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson does not make throwaway films. He has never taken a break from making art films for the occasional blockbuster, and it would seem that he is one of very few in Hollywood who have not made compromises once blessed with success and fame. Even David Fincher made a remake and Christopher Nolan has cashed in on several franchises, but P.T. Anderson’s films get more complex, and often less enjoyable. The Master is as impressive as it is uncomfortable to sit through, a character study of intensely haunting proportions.

 

            The film has many plot points which are worth mentioning, but at the heart of the film is an examination of a single man returning home from World War II. The post-war trauma which swept through the nation after the war was enough to inspire an entirely new and exclusively American film genre, the film noir. Although borrowing style from German filmmaking of the 1920s, film noir had an attitude and mood exclusive to the post-war anxiety men had returning home from the war to find they no longer had a place at home. Women had taken the jobs while they had been away, and control was lost for many of them.

 

            The protagonist of The Master is one of these men, a drifter named Freddie Quell (Juaquin Phoenix, returning the screen for the first time since his poorly received prank). Freddie is more than an alcoholic, mixing booze with poisons and gasoline to give it extra kick. When this disturbed and aimless man crosses paths with a man named Lancaster Dodd (Philip Seymour Hoffman), he becomes entangled in a movement known as “The Cause.” Details are slowly revealed about this organization, which at times appears as more of a cult, but the film is much more focused on how this would appeal to a man like Freddie.

 

            Though I don’t believe it comes close to being the masterpiece that was There Will Be Blood, The Master only further solidifies my belief that Paul Thomas Anderson is this generation’s Stanley Kubrick. At times he is ahead of audiences, but I believe that historians will look back at him as one of the greatest films working at this time. Though not always the easiest films to sit through, movies like The Master offer rich complexities which beg for repeat viewings. Spectacularly shot in 65mm, gloriously acted, and directed with precision, The Master is surely one of the best films of the year. Unfortunately, most won’t be willing to endure the unpleasantness in the plot to discover the intellectual depths of the film.

 

            The Blu-ray includes outtakes and additional scenes, as well as a short film and behind-the-scenes featurette. The highlight of the bonus features, however, is a WWII documentary by John Huston, Let There Be Light. This 1946 documentary seems a likely source of inspiration for The Master, and opens the film up to even more understanding and analysis.

The First Time DVD review

Actors: Britt Robertson, Dylan O'Brien, James Frecheville, Victoria Justice

Director: Jon Kasdan

Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: English, French

Subtitles for the Hearing Impaired: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)

Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

DVD Release Date: March 12, 2013

Run Time: 95 minutes

 

 

            Please allow me to put aside usual formalities taken when reviewing films to appropriately describe my feelings after watching The First Time. Let me first ask, how the hell did this independent film impress me more than any other teen romance I have seen in the last few years? How did this film have dialogue far more compelling than much of Tarantino’s latest screenplay? (Regardless of the Academy’s decision, Inglourious Basterds is a masterpiece but Django Unchained was sloppy work for the filmmaker). But most of all, as I watched The First Time, I was thinking the same thing over and over again. Fuck Juno and Fuck 21 and Over. Give me more movies like this.

 

            What is wonderful about the teenagers and the way they behave in The First Time is the fact that they aren’t typical teenagers. They are dynamic and interesting. Dave (Dylan O’Brien) is a gentleman and a romantic, even though it isn’t popular to be so. Jane (Victoria Justice) doesn’t believe in Facebook or Twitter and prefers having face-to-face encounters. These aren’t the hipster too-cool for popular things either. They aren’t likely to get knocked up just out of boredom, and when they inevitably have their first time, it is treated more sensitively and honestly than I have ever seen on film before.

 

            Written and directed by Jonathan Kasdan, The First Time is a sweet and charming film that gives teenagers today a film that they can relate to, rather than watching a film that they are supposed to look up to and envy, which is usually just a film filled with heavy partying. There are several parties within The First Time’s storyline, but the most significant things that happen at them is dialogue related. The only sequence with topless girls seems out of place. Even the actors in the scene seem a little surprised. The First Time has a few moments like this, unnecessary to say the least. It isn’t a perfect film, but comes far closer than any big budget romance from this past year, all Nicholas Sparks adaptations included.

 

 

Storage 24 DVD review

Actors: Noel Clarke, Colin O'Donoghue

Director: Johannes Roberts

Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: Spanish

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: Magnolia Home Entertainment

DVD Release Date: March 12, 2013

Run Time: 87 minutes

 

 

            Alien invasion films are on the rise all over the world, including London. There is nothing altogether original about Storage 24. It confines a group of seemingly helpless humans in a confined space with an unpredictable alien, who slowly picks them off. Usually the confined spaces in these films are due to the constrictions of space travel; they may be in a space station or a spaceship, or otherwise confined from escaping. In this particular film, the confined space is a storage locker that the victims are trapped inside.

 

            There is far too much melodrama with the characters, but in the end it is all rendered insignificant anyway, so I won’t bother to go into great detail. Shelley goes to her shared storage facility with a couple of friends after breaking up with her boyfriend, Charlie. Charlie arrives with a friend of his own. This group along with some random workers and security guards are all trapped inside when a military cargo plane crashes, releasing an alien in the storage facility with them.

 

            The film tries too much to have characters that have relationship issues and other melodrama that doesn’t really matter. All of this seems sloppy and forced, whereas the effects and the deaths are much more complexly created. This is a film which savors the gore in each blood-spurting, skull-crushing moment. This is not for everyone, but those who appreciate it will also appreciate the quality with which it was completed.

 

            The DVD includes deleted scenes and a slew of behind-the-scenes featurettes in the special features. There are also several video blogs, a feature-length commentary with actor Noel Clarke and director Johannes Roberts, as well as select-scene commentaries. There are a ton of features, especially for a film like this.

Smashed Blu-ray review

Actors: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Aaron Paul, Octavia Spencer, Nick Offerman, Megan Mullally

Director: James Ponsoldt

Writers: James Ponsoldt, Susan Burke

Producers: Alishe Beardeaux, Andrea Sperling, Elise Salomon, Jennifer Cochis, Jonathan Schwartz

Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: Chinese, English, Korean

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Release Date: March 12, 2013

Run Time: 81 minutes

 

 

            Smashed is an extremely honest film, which is not always an easy thing to sit through. Life is difficult enough without having to experience the pain of someone else’s life as well when escaping to the movies, which is probably why most audience members would rather choose an evening watching a werewolf fight against a vampire over the love of a silly teenage girl. But for those looking for something with more depth, and performances that put most Academy Award nominees this past year to shame with brazen honesty, Smashed is a treasure. Though I don’t imagine I need to see it again any time soon, I would highly recommend this film.

 

            Mary Elizabeth Winstead carries the film as Kate, a young school teacher who still spends every night drinking heavily with her irresponsible musician husband, Charlie (Aaron Paul). When these nights of heavy drinking begin to get out of control for Kate, she realizes that it may have become a problem that is taking over her life. After vomiting in front of her first grade class, she tells people she is pregnant to avoid telling the truth. This inevitably disastrous situation paired with several nights of waking up in strange places leads Kate to seek help, turning to a new group of friends in AA (Nick Offerman of “Parks and Recreation” and Octavia Spencer from The Help).

 

            There are some moments within the film that are a bit too awkward, perhaps unnecessarily, but the one thing that always remains within the film is sincerity. Never for one moment did I doubt that anything in the film could really have happened, but Smashed also somehow manages to refrain from cliché and predictable territory. It is truly an original and honest film about addiction; somewhat heartbreaking, but excellent in every way.

 

            The DVD comes with a commentary track with director and co-writer James Ponsoldt and Mary Elizabeth Winstead. There is also a making-of featurette, some footage of the Toronto screening and Q & A, and some deleted scenes.

Playing for Keeps Blu-ray review

Actors: Gerard Butler, Jessica Biel, Noah Lomax, Dennis Quaid, Uma Thurman

Director: Gabriele Muccino

Format: AC-3, Blu-ray, Dolby, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)

Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Release Date: March 5, 2013

Run Time: 105 minutes

 

 

            I went into Playing for Keeps with no previous knowledge. I had not seen the trailer, and had no idea what type of film it was. All I knew was the cast of actors, and the cover of the film shows two leading men and four leading ladies, so it was unclear to me if this was an ensemble romance or if there was one special couple amongst those six actors. At a certain point during the beginning of the film, I though this might not even be a romantic comedy at all; I imagined it to be a father/son bonding film, perhaps through the love of soccer. But this is a romantic comedy, just one which is poorly constructed and defectively conceived.

 

            Gerard Butler has had a string of bad romantic comedies, but at least the others with a little less chaotic. There is a cast of actors involved in this film, all of whom seem to be giving it their all to be humorous. They very bravely go over-the-top and without any apparent guidance or restraint from the director. The one thing this film seems sorely lacking is direction, which is perhaps why it is so unclear what we are supposed to be rooting for. Much of the film had me cringing. I felt bad for the actors involved.

 

            Butler stars as a piece of man-meat who was once a soccer star, but now he just provides opportunities for gorgeous, desperate soccer moms who throw themselves at him when he starts coaching his son’s team. This coaching takes up very little screen time, though it introduces most of the extraneous characters, from fast-talking soccer dad (Dennis Quaid) to a slew of moms (Catherine Zeta-Jones, Uma Thurman, and Judy Greer). Jessica Biel also stars as the mother of our protagonist’s son, though her character is rather two-dimensional.

 

            The Blu-ray includes deleted scenes, a featurette about the casting and a making-of feature.

Lay the Favorite Blu-ray review

Actors: Bruce Willis, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Joshua Jackson, Rebecca Hall

Director: Stephen Frears

Format: Blu-ray, NTSC, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: ANCHOR BAY

Release Date: March 5, 2013

Run Time: 94 minutes

 

 

            To be honest, I was expecting more from Stephen Frears. There is nothing wrong with Lay the Favorite, but I found myself more irritated than entertained. This is mostly because I was expecting more about the world of gambling, since the film is based on a expose on the underworld by Beth Raymer. Instead of focusing on these interesting details, the movie wastes no time to give way to romantic melodrama. Perhaps in another film I would have been more interested in the characters than the secret underworld of professional gamblers, but not in this film and not with these characters.

 

            We are essentially given one secret of gamblers, which is the way that they place throwaway bets just to change the odds before making their own real bet. Once we are given this fact, the remainder of the film is essentially just a film about romantic entanglements. Former stripper Beth (Rebecca Hall) wastes no time in getting close to her gambler boss, Dink (Bruce Willis), despite his marriage to a feared woman (Catherine Zeta-Jones).

 

When she separates herself from that situation, Beth then becomes involved with another guy (Joshua Jackson), but her gambling career keeps her from pursuing it. If only we saw more of the gambling or if only there were a way to make gambling more interesting to watch, Lay the Favorite may have been a more engaging film. I understand the choice to make relationships just as dominant as the gambling; I just wish that the melodrama were more interesting and less predictably cliché. I guess that is what you get when borrowing from real life.

 

The Blu-ray includes deleted scenes.

 

             

Girls Against Boys Blu-ray review

Actors: Danielle Panabaker, Nicole LaLiberta, Liam Aiken, Michael Stahl-David, Andrew Howard

Director: Austin Chick

Format: Blu-ray, NTSC, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: Starz / Anchor Bay

Release Date: February 26, 2013

Run Time: 93 minutes

 

 

            The flippancy towards violence of all manners within Girls Against Boys is more than a little sickening. It isn’t quite clear if director is writer/director Austin Chick is addressing the violence in this matter as a form of commentary, or simply because the filmmaker is as desensitized to violence as the characters within the film seem to be. Either way, it makes for some socially awkward moments that may make for uncomfortable viewing in any audience member reading any level of seriousness from the plot.

 

            In something of a manipulative evening, Shae (Danielle Panabaker) goes out with her mysterious co-worker, Lu (Nicole LaLiberte) for a night of fun. By the end of the night, Shae has been violated by a man she met at a bar, giving Lu the perfect opportunity to share her particular madness. The pair hunt down the man responsible for Shae’s attack, but Lu ruthlessly assassinates any male they come into contact along the way, innocent or otherwise. This tears down the relevance, making this less of a revenge film and more of a spiteful psychopath killer type of a film.

 

            After the revenge has been had we are meant to believe that they got away with all of the killings without a hitch or suspicion from the police. Even more unbelievable is the fact that Shae seems hardly affected, immediately rebounding with a nice guy from her class. Lu is not so willing to move on after the mass murder, wanting to continue a rampage against all men, for no reason we are ever given other than for the mere pleasure of it. As cool as this film may be, it is sloppy filmmaking that doesn’t bother to look past the artifice of the image to the reasoning behind each character’s actions.

 

            The Blu-ray includes a commentary track with filmmaker Chick and actress Panabaker.

Deadfall Blu-ray review

Actors: Eric Bana, Olivia Wilde, Charlie Hunnam, Sissy Spacek, Kris Kristofferson

Director: Stefan Ruzowitzky

Format: AC-3, Blu-ray, Closed-captioned, Dolby, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: Spanish

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: Magnolia Home Entertainment

Release Date: February 5, 2013

Run Time: 95 minutes

 

 

            There are a few spectacular moments in Deadfall, as well as performances to solidify these moments in their greatness. Somehow the magnificence of these individual moments is bittersweet, however, because the film as a whole is rather forgettable. The plot is just shy of containing enough material to make a feature film, spread out perhaps a bit more than it should have been. At the very least, I kept anticipating some further character development, but instead much of the film seems to be killing time in between those miraculous moments of purpose. Director Stefan Ruzowitzky handles action nimbly, though they are more often simply moments of violence. This is less of an action film, and more of a hodgepodge of horror, film noir, family drama and western.

 

            When three thieves escaping from a casino heist are in a car crash, only two survive. Siblings Addison (Eric Bana) and Liza (Olivia Wilde) have a mysterious and slightly disturbing relationship with each other, but we are never given much of a chance to discover what it is before they split up to escape. Liza is rescued on the side of the road by an ex-boxer named Jay (Charlie Hunnam of TV’s “Son’s of Anarchy”), who is also on the run from the law. While Liza uses seduction to get where she needs to be, Addison takes other methods, leaving a path of carnage wherever he goes.

 

            What sets Deadfall aside from many other films is Addison. Whether it is the writing or Bana’s choices, he appears a unique type of madman. There doesn’t appear to be joy or malice in his actions, but instead he seems able to delusion himself into believing any violent act is justified if he deems it necessary to getting what he wants. The best sequence in the film is one in which this psycho comes across a Native American in the woods. This battle doesn’t seem to fit with the rest of the film, though it is one of the most memorable within it. The story dribbles into predictable territory when the siblings reunite at Jay’s childhood home, along with weapons and Jay’s parents (played expertly and without unnecessary melodrama by Kris Kristofferson and Sissy Spacek).

 

            The Blu-ray includes a behind-the-scenes featurette, as well as production interviews with essential cast and crew. There is also behind-the-scenes footage and a promotional program that aired on AXS TV about the film.