Category: Movies (Page 324 of 498)

Blu Tuesday: Greedy Studio, Hidden Agenda

In lieu of my weekly Blu-ray column, I wanted to take the opportunity to take a closer look at one of this week’s higher profile releases. Fans of Ang Lee’s martial arts epic, “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” have been waiting for an HD version of the film for quite some time now, but no one could have imagined it would happen like this. Instead of being given the update it deserves – complete with new bonus material and a silly subtitle like The Green Dynasty Edition – the film limps onto Blu-ray as part of a three-pack with two other movies it has nothing in common with other than falling under the wuxia subgenre. That’s not a slight against the included Zhang Yimou films (both “House of Flying Daggers” and “The Curse of the Golden Flower” are quite good in their own right), but rather the studio for thinking they could get away with such a heartless scam.

While most fans of “Crouching Tiger” will likely enjoy the other two movies (no doubt Sony’s big selling point), what the studio has failed to consider is that those same people probably bought them on Blu-ray the first time around. An unfortunate oversight or a crafty scheme to force consumers to pay for an added value they don’t want? I’m going to lean towards the latter, especially when the “Crouching Tiger” disc has been treated so poorly. True, the movie looks absolutely stunning in high definition, but there isn’t a single new thing about the release other than the upgraded video and audio. The same three special features have been imported from the DVD, while the addition of access to BD-Live means very little in terms of ever seeing new extras. If you don’t own any of the films, you could certainly spend your money on worse things, but just know that by doing so, you’re only encouraging Sony to do more of the same in the future.

More comic book-to-movie stuff

I’ve got a thoroughly crazy day ahead and it’s anyone’s guess whether I’ll be posting about the Wednesday release of the new “Harry Potter” flick or any other important movie-world news tonight or tomorrow. In the meantime, though, a couple of quick links to stuff that’s been going on in the film/geek-sphere of things.

* First of all, just in case you haven’t been reading, say, Cinematical, Variety, or CHUD, as was long ago prognosticated, Natalie Portman will be the love interest in the upcoming film based on Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s “The Mighty Thor.” Indeed, her character will be based on one from the comic’s early days. Christopher Campbell has the blog reaction. I’m cool with it, personally.

* AICN has the (very lengthy) scoop on the comic book film from the highly underrated Matthew Vaughn (who I personally feel is much better filmmaker than his old partner, Guy Ritchie). I’m not familiar with the very odd sounding “Kick-Ass” but I’m willing to give this one a go, though I get the feeling I might wind up closing my eyes a few times as I did during the jail sequence in “Watchmen.” On the other hand, I kind that I kind of like stylish movie violence. Yeah, I’m a walking mass of contradictions.

“Treevenge” and the perils of gorephobia

Pity the poor gorephobic geek. I may love science fiction, fantasy, and yes, horror — particularly comedy-horror — but I also have a lifelong issue with extreme gore. And, when I say, “issue” I mean something like abject fear. I could go on and on about it, but I’ve already done that by way of explaining how I finally got myself to watch George Romero’s 1978 original “Dawn of the Dead.” Definitely the goriest, cannibaliest movie I’ve seen to this point. (The short version is that many quickly consumed martinis were involved.)

Now, I have no idea whether the gore level in the Christmas-themed short horror comedy “Treevenge” gets to Romero or merely “Shaun of the Dead” (plenty gory enough for me) levels. In any case, I’m told its very good and has apparently been turning heads, if not stomachs, on the festival circuit. When it was suggested that I post this here, my attitude was basically — “I’ll embed it, but that doesn’t I have to watch it!” Seriously.

In any case, according to the folks at Horrorsquad, the blood/gore here definitely renders this unsafe for work, assuming your boss is not Tom Savini. After you’ve watched it, tell me what you think. Can I take it?

“Maybe I’ve just gone gay all over a sudden!”

With “Brüno” #1 at the U.S. box office, it may be time to mention that probably the first use of the word “gay” in a mainstream American film to denote something other than happiness came from an unlikely source. Director Howard Hawks is best known for films celebrating traditional masculine values, populated by tough, lovable guys and emotionally strong, super sexy women. (My DVD review of “El Dorado” starring John Wayne and Robert Mitchum covers a late example.) Epitome of movie guyness that he was, Hawks nevertheless had no problem playing with sexuality/gender roles just a bit in the 1938 screwball romantic comedy classic, “Bringing Up Baby“.

Fifteen years later, making the iconic Marilyn Monroe musical, “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes,” Hawks, who had never made a musical, decided to have famed choreographer Jack Cole direct all the musical sequences. As far as I can tell, he was delighted to let Cole really gay it up in this famed scene featuring the ultra-hot brunette Jane Russell, who was an even bigger sex symbol at the time than Monroe and received top billing. It was a reasonably safe move because, in those very pre-gay liberation days, homosexual innuendo flew right by most audience members. Besides, with Russell around, few straight males of the time were going to notice much of anything else.

True Blood 2.4 – Put On Your Wig, Woman!

I don’t want to start any blasphemous rumours, but those guys from the Fellowship of the Sun have a sick sense of humor, don’t they? Criminey, talk about playing on poor Jason’s worst nightmares! Of course, he recovered pretty quickly, offering up that militaristic monologue (its effectiveness aided in no small part by the score) behind him. Come the next morning, he’s smirking like nobody’s business, offering up great lines about how maybe Jesus was the first vampire, what with all the blood drinking going on. It’s a pretty heavy debate for breakfast, with the discussion about the first evil – was it Cain, or was it Eve? – but it all comes to an abrupt end when Jason gets called off to see the Rev. It’s nothing ominous, though: he just wants to take Jason on a vampire target-practice run. Afterwards, it’s back to the Rev’s homestead for Ribs a la Sexy Sarah. Whew, was there any better song than Sammy Kershaw’s “Louisiana Hot Sauce” to serve as the soundtrack for that display of culinary excellence? I don’t know what kind of career Anna Camp has in store for her as an actress, but I think we can count on a couple of good Maxim layouts in her immediate future, don’t you? Obviously, the other guys in the Fellowship are jealous that Jason appears to be on the verge of sliding into Sarah’s good graces…and, yes, that is a double entendre…and when she turns up in his bedroom in her nightie, there’s every reason to believe that something is going to happen between them.

Sam and Daphne are still skinny-dipping when we pop back in on them, but Sam’s also laying bare his feelings a bit as well. Everything looks like it’s sittin’ pretty between the two of them until she climbs out of the water and Sam spies those nasty claw marks on her back. Still, it’s been the kind of evening that’s made him rethink his plans to depart…or, at least, it’s served to delay them slightly. Sookie’s ego forces her to presume that it’s because of her that he’s decided to leave, resulting in a angry conversation between them. Unsurprisingly, things at the bar remain a little tense for the rest of the night, though it’s also in no small part because of the total lack of customers (the exception being a highly drunk Detective Andy), and the evening takes a surprising turn when Tara’s apparently-still-sober mama turns up to deliver a birthday present for her absent daughter. When he gets over to Sookie’s place, he has brief words with Maryann before Daphne turns up, and he and Madame Clawback start to smooch. They stop briefly, but before Sam can reveal his secret to Daphne, she claims she already knows what he is. Why do I have this feeling that they might not be on the same wavelength?

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