Badges of Fury Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Jet Li, Wen Zhang, Collin Chou, Cecilia Liu

Director: Wong Tsz ming

Format: Blu-ray, Dolby, NTSC, THX, Widescreen

Language: Chinese

Subtitles: English

Dubbed: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: Unrated

Studio: Well Go USA

Release Date: January 7, 2014

Run Time: 98 minutes

 

 

        The cover art for Badges of Fury is widely misleading. With a stern-faced Jet Li facing forward and adjusting his cuffs with a somber gun-wielding Wen Zhang standing behind him, and a large explosion silhouetting the both of them, you might come to the conclusion that this is a buddy action film. In reality, this is simply a comedy that utilizes action for some of the jokes. All of the violence in the film is cartoonish, even when deadly, making the style of action more along the lines of a Stephen Chow (Kung Fu Hustle) film.

 

        The film even flirts with the supernatural when a series of gruesome deaths in Hong Kong are seemingly unexplained. Several men die with the same mysterious smile on their face, leading two troublesome cops in an unconventional investigation. Detective Wang is a young and reckless rookie with more zeal than intelligence, which is the opposite of his seasoned partner, Huang (Li). These two have different methods, but both are unafraid to go against police protocol to close a case.

 

Don Jon Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Scarlett Johansson, Julianne Moore

Director: Joseph Gordon-Levitt

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

Language: English

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Dubbed: English

Number of discs: 1

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: 20th Century Fox

Release Date: December 31, 2013

Run Time: 91 minutes

 

        The ideas about romance buried within the screenplay of Don Jon are far from original, to the point that each of the film’s twists can be seen far in advance, but the presentation of these ideas come through unique characters and original plot points. At the center of the film is a simple argument that Hollywood romantic comedies are just as unhealthy for the female mind as pornography is for the male mind, essentially setting both up for disappointment when life does not live up to their fantasy for cinematic perfection.

 

        Jon Martello (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) would be a likely candidate for a new “Jersey Shore” cast member, spending every day working out and cleaning so that he can spend every night trying to get laid in clubs. The one thing we don’t see Jon do much of is work, though his hours as a bartender would likely be during the very time we see him constantly gallivanting. When Jon meets Barbara Sugarman (Scarlett Johansson) he wants to sleep with her because she is the most beautiful girl he’s ever met, but she is high maintenance and leads Jon into a relationship by dangling sex like a carrot. The problem comes when Jon finally gets what he wants and is still left unsatisfied. Jon’s reliance on pornography to fulfill sexual desires is in complete contradiction to the Hollywood image of romance in Barbara’s fantasy, causing a rift in their relationship.

 

The Ultimate Life Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Drew Waters, Ali Hillis

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

Language: English (Dolby Digital 5.1)

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Dubbed: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: PG

Studio: 20th Century Fox

Release Date: December 10, 2013

Run Time: 110 minutes

 

        The Ultimate Life is the follow-up film to The Ultimate Gift, both adapted from the best-selling Christian books by Jim Stovall and made for nobody but fans of the franchise. The faith-based film industry often makes these movies with missionary attempts at saving mainstream audiences, but they make the films in such a way that insures only an ability to preach to the choir, so to speak. This type of insipid tale of religious affirmation hits the same notes repetitively in an overlong screenplay and dull direction. In other words, this film is suitable only for your religious grandmother who’s TV always seems stuck on the Hallmark Channel.

 

         The themes of The Ultimate Life are rather clear, repeating what was already learned the first time around. Money cannot buy happiness. If you truly need a film that is nearly two hours long and filled only with poorly written dialogue that is stiffly presented by the cast to tell you that money won’t buy happiness, this film may be able to teach you something. I imagine that this kind of lesson will only be interesting to those who don’t need it, as is the case with most Christian entertainment.

 

The Lone Ranger Blu-ray Review

   Actors: Johnny Depp, Armie Hammer, Tom Wilkinson, William Fichtner, Helena Bonham Carter

Director: Gore Verbinski

Writers: Justin Haythe, Ted Elliott, Terry Rossio

Producers: Gore Verbinski, Chad Oman, Eric Ellenbogen, Eric McLeod

Language: English (DTS-HD High Res Audio), French (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1)

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Dubbed: French, Spanish

Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1

Number of discs: 2

Rated: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)

Studio: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment

Release Date: December 17, 2013

Run Time: 149 minutes

 

        The Lone Ranger may not be a great film by any stretch of the imagination, but it is a far more interesting failure than you might imagine from the overwhelming mass of critical disparagement. It should be noted, however, that I had no previous attachment to previous radio, television and film incarnations of The Lone Ranger, so I was able appreciate this film as a standalone piece of entertainment without judgment about significant alterations made in the adapting process.   

 

        All of the criticisms made about this film are most definitely true; the budget was outrageous and all in an obvious attempt at harnessing some of the success from the previous Disney/Bruckheimer/Verbinski/Depp collaboration, The Pirates of the Caribbean. The film is also over-long with some structural issues, like much of Gore Verbinski’s filmography, and Johnny Depp’s elaborate performance overshadows the title character and hero of the film. I also saw some unexpected assets buried beneath all of the excess the film has to offer.

 

Elysium Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley, Alice Braga, Diego Luna

Director/Writer: Neill Blomkamp

Producers: Neill Blomkamp, Bill Block, Simon Kinberg, Stacy Perskie, Sue Baden-Powell

Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Dubbed: French, Spanish

Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1

Number of discs: 2

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Release Date: December 17, 2013

Run Time: 109 minutes

       

        Neill Blomkamp took everyone by surprise with his debut feature, District 9, able to combine cutting-edge action sequences within the socially and political relevant science fiction storyline. Elysium has all of the same things that made District 9 a success: heavy science fiction, special-effects-driven action, and a heavy-handed political message under the surface. Aside from the fact that this feels a bit more forced the second time around, District 9 was a film made in the filmmaker’s home country of South Africa with a message that was obviously personal in nature. Elysium is a Hollywood feature which makes some transparent social statements about the United States in the narrative. I found this a bit smug coming from an outsider, and Elysium tends to feel heavy-handed with cinematic soap box themes weighing the spectacle down.

 

        The biggest problem with the allegories and political subtext in Elysium is how blatantly transparent it is. The story takes place in the dystopian future year of 2154, in which Earth is ravaged and only the wealthy can afford to live a healthy life on the man-made space station called Elysium. This space station also provides perfect health care, which none of the impoverished citizens of the United States can get. It is already clear that the film is dealing with issues of universal health care and immigration, which is pounded into the audience’s head even more obviously by the fact that apparently all citizens on Earth are Hispanic and all on Elysium are white. This is an obvious attempt to advance the liberal agenda of addressing the health care and immigration issues the Unites States deals with in regards to our impoverished southern neighbors in Mexico. This entire film could have used a bit more subtlety and intelligence.

 

Insidious: Chapter 2 Blu-ray Review

     Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)

Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Release Date: December 24, 2013

Run Time: 106 minutes

 

 

        James Wan has made a career as a horror director by simply focusing on creepy dolls and haunted houses, and it has done wonders for him and the box office sales. 2013 alone saw two haunted house installments from Wan, including the period film based on a true story, The Conjuring, and the follow-up to 2010’s Insidious. Insidious: Chapter 2 is not as consistent as either The Conjuring, but even amidst a mediocre film from Wan we are able to see his skill and confidence as a director in this medium has increased. The over-all film is uneven, but there are still some terrifying sequences and original ideas sprinkled in this sequel.

 

        The Lambert family endured a battle with the spirit world in the first film when one of their children is under threat from a ghost wanting to take his body. In Insidious: Chapter 2, we learn more about this hereditary trait that allows members of the family to travel to the spirit world in their dreams. Josh Lambert (Patrick Wilson) has the same abilities as his son, learned and then forgotten in his troubled childhood, and returned to threaten his family once again in an Amityville Horror type transformation of personality. Meanwhile Renai Lambert (Rose Byrne) does all that she can to protect her family from the ongoing threat.

 

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters Blu-ray Review

    Actors: Logan Lerman, Alexandra Daddario, Brandon T. Jackson, Nathan Fillion, Douglas Smith

Director: Thor Freudenthal

Writers: Marc Guggenheim, Rick Riordan

Producers: Bill Bannerman, Chris Columbus, Karen Rosenfelt, Mark Morgan, Michael Barnathan

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

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Dubbed: English, French, Spanish

Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1

Number of discs: 2

Rated: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)

Studio: 20th Century Fox

Release Date: December 17, 2013

Run Time: 106 minutes

 

 

         The second in the film franchise adaptation of the popular young adult book series, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters, has plenty of action and excitement to match the first film. At the same time, it almost just feels like filler material in-between a much larger story. The first film gave us necessary introductions, and while a few significant characters make their appearance within the storyline of Sea of Monsters, little within the plot of this movie seems to hold any relevance by the film’s close. Characters have a way of undying after being killed off, which makes much of the action nearly irrelevant. If each book includes a quest of some sort, this is one which has all of the urgency and none of the relevance from the first film.

 

        The mission this time around isn’t even a quest that has been given to Percy Jackson, but instead to one of the other competitive demigods. There is a barrier surrounding and protecting the camp where the half-human, half-gods train and live, and that magical shield is caused by a tree that grew where one of them was killed many years earlier. After the tree is poisoned by a familiar enemy from the first film, the only hope to save it is with the Golden Fleece, which rests on the shoulders of a brutal Cyclops. Another new addition to the storyline is Percy’s half-brother, another demigod who also happens to be a Cyclops.

 

Force of Execution Blu-ray Review

     Actors: Steven Seagal, Danny Trejo, David House, Dylan Kenin, Jenny Gabrielle

Director: Keoni Waxman

Format: Color, Widescreen

Language: English

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1

Number of discs: 2

Rated: R (Restricted)

Studio: ANCHOR BAY

Release Date: December 17, 2013

Run Time: 99 minutes

 

 

        It would benefit these low budget action films to have a simple plot with minimal cast, but they are always convoluted and crammed with as many recognizable faces and names as possible. Even with a large cast, the story is never simple. It is always filled with a great many unnecessary scenes of serious-faced men proving how tough they are by the way they scowl. And when the action finally does arrive, it is never as impressive as you might hope. This may have something to do with the cast of veteran action actors who were in their prime two decades ago.

 

        Ignore the list of actors starring in this movie, such as Steven Seagal, Ving Rhames and Danny Trejo. They are all in this film, but can be considered no more than supporting actors to martial arts superstar Bren Foster, who is able to bring youth and speed to the action sequences while struggling to take a stab at the acting portion of the job. Foster stars as a hitman who is disgraced and dismissed by his mob boss, Mr. Alexander (Seagal), after a prison hit goes wrong. Years later he has the chance to redeem himself when he gets caught in the middle of a gang war with Mr. Alexander and a gangster known as ‘The Iceman’ (Rhames).