[X] My Assistant

This marks the 40th, and I have films on zombies, a shitty nature show, and Nicholas Cage as a treasure seeker again.


Strange Wilderness
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The Category: Comedy
The Stars: Steve Zahn, Jonah Hill, Justin Long, Allen Covert, Ashley Scott, Peter Dante, Kevin Heffernan, and Ernest Borgnine
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 87 min.
Rated R for non-stop language, drug use, crude and sexual humor.

The nature show dubbed "Strange Wilderness" has problems. In the sayings of Ed Lawson(Jeff Garlin), "The show sucks". And it's host, Peter Gaulke(Zahn) is the major cause. He's dumb as hell, saying things like"No matter how many sea lions are killed each year by sharks, it never seems like enough" and "Monkey's make up over 80% of the world's monkey population." Facing being canceled, Gaulke and his rowdy crew head off into the wild to find that one fabled creature, Bigfoot. Amongst his fellow men is the slightly insane Cooker(Hill), the slacker Junior(Long), and the soundman Fred(Covert). This is their last chance, so they better not blow it. A few of the Happy Madison(Adam Sandler's film company) guys are here, with Covert, Peter Dante, and Hill along for the ride, but they can't save "Wilderness". It's just pretty much Grandma's Boy in nature. You can sit through half and already have finished having your laughs and say, "What the fuck am I watching?" I got bored easy. And the sad thing is this was produced by Sandler, who's known to have some hilarious and GOOD roles. The DVD has 4 featurettes and deleted scenes. Not even the stoners will want this.

The Verdict: D+
The Good: Sandler's on board(executive producer)
The Bad: I'm sure this is about the same as Grandma's Boy.


George A. Romero's Diary of the Dead
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The Category: Horror
The Stars: Shawn Roberts, Michelle Morgan, Joshua Close, Joe Dinicol, Scott Wentworth
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 95 min.
Rated R for strong horror wiolence and gore, and pervasive language.


Romero's baaaaaaaaaack, and this time he's got another "Dead" entry. This one revolves around a group of film students who are making a horror movie called "The Death of Death". There's makeup artist Tony(Roberts), director/cameraman Jason(Close), actor Ridley(Philip Riccio), Jason's girlfriend Debra(Morgan), Eliot(Dinicol), Gordo(Chris Violette), and their professor, Andrew Maxwell(Wentworth). These guys hear about zombies popping up and Jason wants to document this historic event. The stand Romero blood and guts ensue as these youngsters try to stay alive. Romero fans, he's done it again!!!! Romero's taken his zombie formula to the next level by going all "Blair Witch Project", which is you see the film from Jason's(and later Tony's) camera. He also adds some unusual things, including a zombie getting it's eyes blown out with a defibrillator, a zombie's head disolving from some nasty acid, and the film's ultimate money shot: a deaf dynamite throwing Amish farmer named Samuel(Jason: "I thought the Amish were friendly folk!!"). Go Georgie! The gore is excellent, but the acting is what can make this movie a little dead(pun intended). I say the students' acting is as dead(pun again) as the zombies. But there's cameos by Romero as a police chief and Simon Pegg, Guillermo del Toro, Wes Craven, Quentin Tarantino, and my favorite author Stephen King as the voices of newscasters. The DVD has commentary, a making of, and 2 featurettes. It's as fun as Cloverfield, but with zombies instead of a huge monster.

The Verdict: A-
The Good: The good ol' Romero formula we know and love, the use of only handheld cameras a laCloverfield.
The Bad: The dead(pun times 3) acting.


National Treasure: Book of Secrets
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The Category: Action/Adventure
The Stars: Nicholas Cage, Diane Kruger, Justin Bartha, Jon Voight, Helen Mirren, Ed Harris, Harvey Keitel
Price: $19.99-single disc, $21.99 for 2-Disc Collector's Edition
Running Time: 125 min.
Rated PG for some violence and action.

Ben Gates(Cage) is back and now he's got a new adventure. There's evidence showing that his greta-great grandfather might have assisted in the infamous Linclon assassination. Bummer. Now he's out to clear his family name and find anothe treasure: Cibola, the legendary Native American city of gold. And to do so, he'll have to use the Book of Secrets, which includes Area 51 and the JFK assassination. Most of the crew's back, with Abigail Chase(Kruger), Gates' sidekick Riley Poole(Bartha), and Gates' pop(Voight). But Helen Mirren is also on board as Gates' mother Emily. The bad boy, however, is Mitch Wilkinson, who also wants the treasure. Same old same old, but with some new little puzzles. Gates and his gang also head to locales such as Mount Rushmore and Buckinghame Palace. Cage is doing better on his acting, but he's needs to try more! The historic bits make for a bit of a snooze, but the action's pretty good. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Collector's Edition and has commentary, deleted scenes, 7 featurettes, a documentary, bloopers, and more. A nice watch here and there.

The Verdict: B
The Good: Some nice action, clever puzzles, and better acting from Cage.
The Bad: Cane boring, plus we've seen this before.


Evilresident's Must Buy DVD of the Week is......"George A. Romero's Diary of the Dead" with an A-.


Next week I'll be back with a review of "Rambo"(Sylvester Stallone, Julie Benz).

Well, I was tired as hell yesterday, so I couldn't do Week 41's solo review. But today I'm rejuvinated, and I have a whacked out Vietnam vet who's been missing in action since 1988.


Rambo
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The Category: Action
The Stars: Sylvester Stallone, Julie Benz, Paul Schulze, Matthew Marsden, Maung Maung Khin, Jake La Botz
Price: $19.99-single disc, $22.99 for 2-Disc Special Edition
Running Time: 93 min.
Rated R for strong graphic bloody violence, sexual assaults, grisly images and language.


John J. Rambo(Stallone) has been living the quiet life near the Thailand-Burma border, capturing snakes and using his signature bow and arrow for shooting at fish. When a group of missionaries led by Michael(Schulze) ask him to lead them into the Burmese jungle, Rambo at first refuses, but with a persuasive speech by Sarah(Benz), he agrees and drops them off in a village in the Burmese. All hell breaks loose when the village is attacked by the Burmese army, led by Major Pa Tee Tint(Khin), and a majority of the missionaries and villagers are killed. The rest are taken prisoner. Now Rambo, still unstable, has to lead a team of mercenaries, including sniper "School Boy"(Marsden), the chicken Reese(La Botz) and the team's foul mouthed leader Lewis(Graham McTavish), into the Burmese to save the last few alive missionaries. It's Rambo time, baby. I want to start off by saying THIS IS THE MOST VIOLENT FILM I'VE SEEN IN YEARS!!!!! Good God, there was so much gore. The scene where the missionaries were attacked was just brutal. I was thinking, "Is this really a Rambo film?" the whole time throughout. There's decapitations, disembowelments, graphic gunshots, body parts flying, and even babies tossed into fires. If you've seen one of the earlier Rambos, you'll think you're watching some ultraviolent film that took the title of Stallone's franchise. At times I almost felt sick to my stomach cause there was too much brutality. THis also has the highes body count in the franchise, with 236 confirmed kills(alomst 60 in the .50-cailber machine gun scene). But I'm a gore nut, and if you are, this is a pure winner. Stallone may be in his 60s, but he can still play Rambo. There's also a good pace of action and some early scenes with the mercenaries are funny. but does anyone remeber Rambo. He's been M.I.A. since Rambo III back in 1988 and even I almost forgot one of Stallone's iconic characters. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Special Edition that has commentary, deleted scenes, 6 featurettes, and a digital copy of the film. But don't buy yet, as I hear Stallone may release a Director's Cut! Overall, action fans will find a good time in this installment in the series. And don't think Rambo's done yet. I hear Stallone is halfway through writing Rambo V.

The Verdict: B
The Good: Stallone still has it, the violence is perfect for gore nuts.
The Bad: The violence goes way too far at times, the 20-year disappearance still has some trying to remember Rambo.


Next week, I'll be back with reviews of "Meet the Spartans"(Sean Maguire, Carmen Electra), "The Eye"(Jessica Alba, Alessandro Nivola), and "Semi-Pro"(Will Ferrell, Woody Harrelson).

Here's my favorite part of the week: another pack of DVDs to review. And the first batch of summer ones too! Included in today's are a fictional basketball team, a bad eye transplant, and a spoof on some of 2007's best films.



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The Category: Comedy Spoof
The Stars: Seam Maguire, Carmen Electra, Kevin Sorbo, Diedrich Bader, Method Man, Ken Davitian
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 87 min.
Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual humor throughout, language and some comic violence. Also available Unrated.

This spoof of some of 2007's best films mostly skewers 300 with Leonidas'(Maguire) army of 13 taking on Xerxes'(Davitian) army of mostly green screen guys. That's basically the plot, with more movies ans some TV shows being made fun of, including Transformers, Spider-Man 3, Stomp the Yard, Amrican Idol, Ugly Betty, America's Next Top Model, Deal or No Deal, Rambo, and Ghost Rider. This movie's worthless though. It's like everything The Naked Gun did, but with all of it bad. The DVD is available in an Unrated "Pit of Death" version and has commentary, 4 featurettes, a gag reel, and trailers. Waste of time, yes. And next up on the spoof film series is Disaster Movie which is hitting theaters this August, they guess.

The Verdict: F
The Good: Pokes fun at something you might hate.
The Bad: Suffers from the idiot syndrome.


The Eye
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The Category: Horror/Remake
The Stars: Jessica Alba, Alessandro Nivola, Parker Posey
Price: $19.99-single disc, $21.99 for 2-Disc Special Edition
Running Time: 97 min.
Rated PG-13 for violence/terror and disturbing content.

This tells the story of Sydney Wells(Alba) a violinist who was became blind when fireworks damaged her corneas when she was only 5. When she hears of an eye transplant she can have, she agrees and now somewhat blurry, she can start seeing again. She begins seeing some unpleasant images though and discovers she sees horrifying things that happened in the past. She has to find out what's going on, accompanied by her therapist, Dr. Paul Faulkner(Nivola). I was ready to burn this movie after that shit One Missed Call remake, but this is a lot better than I thought. The suspense is pretty good and at least this movie has some acceptable acting! The PG-13 downgrade wasn't needed, like Call, but it didn't ruin the movie. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Special Edition that has deleted scenes, 4 featurettes, and a digital copy of the film. Now I can give a little hope to American remakes of Japanese horror films.

The Verdict: B-
The Good: Acting and terror.
The Bad: I would've liked to have seen an R or Unrated version of the film.


Semi-Pro
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The Category: Comedy/Sports
The Stars: Will Ferrell, Woody Harrelson, Maura Tierney, Andre Benjamin, David Koechner, Will Arnett, Andrew Daly
Price: $19.99-single disc, $21.99 for 2-Disc Unrated Edition
Running Time: 91 min.
Rated R for language and some sexual content.

Jackie Moon(Ferrell) is the owner of the Flint Michigan Tropics, the worst basketball team in the American Basketball Association, or ABA. He is also the coach. He also players power forward. This bozo started the team after he got a huge amount of cash from his hit single "Love Me Sexy". He actually sucks at basketball and tries to reel in fans with promotions(such as "Pancake Night" and "Clown Make-up Night") and ridiculous halftime shows. When he hears feom the ABA comissioner Alan(Koechner)that only 4 teams in the ABA are going to merge with the NBA based on ther record, Jackie has to get some help to get his team in perfect shape. He chooses Ed Monix(Harrelson), former member of the champion Boston Celtics. As a side problem, Jackie also has to get a total of 2,000 fans at each game for the rest of the season. This means Jackie'll need to boost his promotions. Among the co-stars are Andre Benjamin as Jackie's friend and fellow player Clarence "Coffee" Black, Mauara Tierney as Monix's love, Lynn, Andy Richer as Bobby Dee, and Will Arnett and Andrew Daly as the commentators Lou Redwood and Dick Pepperfield. This movie busted my guts with laughter. The commentary by Arnett and Daly is really goofy and there are some great scenes including that scene where Moon takes on Rocky the Bear(the same bear that killed trainer Stephan Miller back on April 22). Plus Ferrell is still on his game. The major problem is I think we've found out his capabilities, and sooner or later we'll be tired of him. But not yet. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Unrated "Let's Get Sweaty" Edition that has both version of the film(R and Unrated), deleted scenes, 8 featurettes, a music video, and trailers. Add this comedy to Talladega Nights, Blades of Glory, Old School, and Anchorman.

The Verdict: A-
The Good: Hilarious throughout
The Bad: Ferrell's style may be boring to some.


Evilresident's Must Buy DVD of the Week is......"Semi-Pro" with an A-.


Next week I'll be back with reviews of "Witless Protection"(Larry the Cable Guy), "Funny Games"(Naomi Watts, Michael Pitt), "The Other Boleyn Girl"(Natalie Portman, Eric Bana), "The Bucket List"(Jack Nicholson, Morgan Freeman), and "Jumper"(Samuel L. Jackson, Hayden Christensen).

Alright guys time for some more DVD reviews. I wasn't feeling so good about it at first(not feel too happy today) but it's my duty to keep you guys informed. Enjoy Week 43.


Witless Protection
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The Category: Comedy
The Stars: Larry the Cable Guy, Ivana Milicevic, Yaphet Kotto, Peter Stormare, Joe Mantegna, and Jenny McCarthy
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 96 min.
Rated PG-13 for crude and sex-related humor.

Sheriff Larry(Larry) is a small town sheriff, who's got a good wife(McCarthy) and a good job. But he's also dimwitted. So when he sees some black suits escorting a woman named Madeleine(Milicevic) roughly, he thinks she's been kidnapped. He "rescues" her and finds out those suits were actually FBI agents protecting her, which is called witness protection. But those agents led by Alonzo(Kotto) were actually not the good guys. They were employed by Arthur Grimsley(Stormare) to make sure Madeleine didn't say the right thing as a witness in the trial on him. Now the duo of Larry and Madeleine are on the run from the bad FBI agents. Well, Larry tried again for a film with at least a little success but like Health Inspector and Delta Farce, he fails every note. The only thing I feel bad for is Stormare, Kotto, and McCarthy, cuase this'll maybe ruin their careers. At least Joe Mantegna had a less than 5 minute cameo as a mortician, so he might still be alive after this. But the acting blew, the jokes were yawn and everthing else blew to hell. The DVD has 3 featurettes. Stick to the Blue Collar comedy, Larry.

The Verdict: F
The Good: Nyet.
The Bad: Everything.


Funny Games
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The Category: Thriller
The Stars: Naomi Watts, Tim Roth, Michael Pitt, Brady Corbet, and Devon Gearheart
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 111 min.
Rated R for terror, violence and some language.

A family of three have arrived at their vacation house. There's the father George(Roth), the mother Anne(Watts), and the young son Georgie(Gearheart), as well as the family dog. They begin to unsettle, setting up their boat, and putting away their knick knacks they brought along. Then a knock at the door. A young man dressed all in white asks for eggs. Then he comes by again and asks for eggs again, since he broke the first ones. He also destroys Anne's cell phone "accidentally". Then he comes back again but with another white-dressed chap and this one takes a golf club to "practice" outside. Anne gets pissed and asks the rude boys to leave. They respond by whacking George in the leg with the club. Paul(Pitt) and Peter(Corbet), the boys, are now in control. They bet the family that they will be dead by 9:00 the following morning. Between then, they have the family participate in a series of games. This remake of the 1997 Austrian film of the same name and by same director Michael Haneke is utterly disturbing. He shows us that this family has no hope and that there's little chance they'll get to the happy ending. One slice of proof is in a scene where Anne kills Peter, but Paul grabs a remote control, hits the rewind button CAUSING THE FILM TO REWIND, and stops Anne from killing Peter. Paul and Peter are the oddest serial killers you ever met. Paul is the main villian of the two and he often breaks the fourth wall to talk to who's watching the film, saying things like "What do you think? Do you think they stand a chance?" They actually act nice a majority of the time and in one game where Anne has to strip down, they prevent Georgie from seeing to "preserve dencency. This is one shocking film and I felt uncomfortable part of the time. And yet, I liked this movie. This is a must see for suspense lovers.

The Verdict: B+
The Good: Pure terror, gleefully disturbing.
The Bad: Could be too much for some, child endangerment with Georgie.


The Other Boleyn Girl
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The Category: Drama
The Stars: Natalie Portman, Eric Bana, Scarlett Johansson, Jim Sturgess
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 115 min.
Rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements, sexual content and somw violent images.

The plot of this film is basic. It tells the story of Anne(Portman) and Mary(Johansson) Boleyn sisters in the 16th century. Anne is rebellious, while Mary plays by the rules. Both of these girls are vying the love of a very important character. This is one Henry the VIII(Bana) and these sister swill go beyond betrayal to find out who the wife of Henry will be. Based on the best selling novel, this movie felt like one big soap opera if you ask me. The acting's alright. The actors are funny though cause non of the three are British(Johansson's America, Portman's Israeli, and Bana's an Aussie) which pissed off the Brits when this movie came out. The DVD has commentary, camera tests, deleted scenes, and 3 featurettes. Snooze for dudes, sweet for gals.

The Verdict: C+
The Good: Acceptable acting.
The Bad: Inaccurate on character's nationalities, and the soap opera style.


The Bucket List
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The Category: Comedy/Drama
The Stars: Jack Nicholson, Morgan Freeman, Sean Hayes
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 97 min.
Rated PG-13 for language, including a sexual reference.

This follows the story of Cole(Nicholson) and Carter(Freeman) two elderly fellows who have become diagnosed with cancer. While in the hospital, the wealthy Cole and the family man Carter become friends. Tragically the two find out they have, at most, a year of life left in them. Carter develops a "bucket list", a list of things to do before they kick the bucket. The film then follows these two asthey trek around the world completing items on the list as well as showing Cole try to reunite with his disowned daughter. This was a good starter of '08. Nicholson and Freeman are the perfect pair in this witty dramedy rom Rob Reiner. There is some goo humor, especially in scenes where Cole torments his serant Matthew(Hayes), who Cole calls Thomas. The movie trys to make cancer sound humorous, and that's where there's a bump in this film's road. Cancer isn't funny and should be taken seriously. But this is still a good movie to see. The DVD has 2 featurettes. After seeing this, I'll need to remember to write my own bucket list.

The Verdict: B+
The Good: Funny, Nicholson and Freeman still got game.
The Bad: Inaccuracy on cancer.


Jumper
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The Category: Action
The Stars: Hayden Christensen, Samuel L. Jackson, Jaime Bell, Rachel Bilson, Michael Rooker
Price:$19.99-single disc, $21.99 for 2-Disc Special Edition
Running Time: 90 min.
Rated PG-13 for sequences of intense action violence, som language and brief sexuality.

David Rice(Christensen) found out as a teenager that he had the ability to teleport or "jump". He decided to rob a bank and leave his father(Rooker). Now David basks in the wealth from his robbery and goes anywhere he pleases. Then Roland Cox(Jackson) appears. He is the leader of the Paladins, people who kill Jumpers like David. Now David, his childhood sweetheart Millie(Bilson), and fellow Jumper Griffin(Bell) have to stay one step ahead of Roland and his band of Paladins. This movie had real promsie. I even bought advanced tickets at the theater for it. But in the end it was this year's Ghost Rider, being that it looked good, but in the end was a waste of time. The acting is as wooden as Abe Lincoln's log cabin andthere is as many plot holes as the eye can see. At least it's got Samuel "motherfuckin'" Jackson. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Special Edition that has commentary, deleted scenes, an animated grahpic novel, and 5 featurettes. Jump away from this film.

The Verdict: D
The Good: Samuel L. Jackson
The Bad: Horrendous acting and loss of a good plot.


Evilresident's Must Buy DVDs of the Week are......"Funny Games" and "The Bucket List" each with a B+.


Next week I'll be back with reviews of "Welcome Home, Roscoe Jenkins"(Martin Lawrence), "Be Kind, Rewind"(Jack Black, Mos Def), and "Fool's Gold"(Matthew McConaughey, Kate Hudson).

This is evilresident's DVD reviews, for your viewing pleasure. Just want to say a quick thanks for the 1000+ views of this little deal. Gracias to all.


Welcome Home, Roscoe Jenkins
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The Category: Comedy
The Stars: Martin Lawrence, Joy Bryant, Cedric the Entertainer, Mo'Nique, Michael Clarke Duncan, Margaret Avery, James Earl Jones, Mike Epps
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 113 min.
Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual content, language and some drug references.

R.J. Stevens(Lawrence) is a successful talk show host and has it all. The cash, his wife Bianca(Bryant), his son Jamaal(Damani Roberts), and everthing else in between. But when he has to go back to his old hometown for his parents 50th anniversary, we find out about R.J.'s nutty family and even his real name, Roscoe Steven Jenkins Jr.. He has plenty of odd family members including hot shot and Roscoe's main rival Clyde(Cedric), the big and tall Otis(Duncan), the hustler Reggie(Epps), and the large and religious Betty(Mo'Nique). His parents(Avery and Jones) are the only sane ones but his dad, Papa, doesn't take kindly to what Roscoe has done. Now it's time for Roscoe to learn a lesson in family. This is your normal Lawrence vehicle, with lot of laughs and a simple plot. But the laughs aren't too big in this one. There's a few tee-hees here and there, but it's typical stuff mostly. There's also should've have been more splicing on the running time(almost 2 hours). Most people will turn this off before the movie ends. The DVD has commentary, deleted scenes, an alternate ending, 3 featurettes, and a music video. Worth a rental, at most.

The Verdict: C
The Good: Has a few laughs.
The Bad: It's all been seen before.


Be Kind Rewind
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The Category: Comedy
The Stars: Jack Black, Mos Def, Mia Farrow, Danny Glover, Melonie Diaz
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 101 min.
Rated PG-13 for some sexual references.


Mike(Def) is a worker at the video store Be Kind Rewind in New Jersey. The store is having terrible sales due to having VHS tapes, not DVDs. When Mike's friend Jerry(Black) unsuccessfully tries to destroy a power plant(don't ask), he gets shocked and becomes magnetized. He then takes a walk through the store and due to his condition, erases the footage on all of the tapes. In order to keep Be Kind Rewind from ending, Jerry and Mike decide to do some sweding, or "remaking" the tapes into 20-Minute versions starring themselves. They also get help from a local woman named Alma(Diaz), who helps Jerry with his magnetized problem. The tapes are a success and the owner, Mr. Fletcher(Glover) might get enought money to renovate the store. But they'll soon run into trouble, due the the FBI's "No Copyright" law. This is an odd, but very entertaining film. The plot was good and the performances by Black, Def, and Glover were really good, with Black being the best. Diaz, however, needs a lot of work. This is also going to be under the radar, thanks to almost zero showing of trailers about the DVD. The DVD has only 1 featurette, and that's a shame. But check this one out soon.

The Verdict: B+
The Good: Some superb acting and an out of the ordinary plot.
The Bad: Some acting is bad and there's a lack of DVD extras.


Fool's Gold
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The Category: Action/Comedy
The Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Kate Hudson, Donald Sutherland, Alexis Dziena, Kevin Hart, Ray Winstone
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 112 min.
Rated PG-13 for action violence, some sexual material, brief nudity and language.

Finn(McConaughey) and Tess(Hudson) were once lovers and treasure hunters. But after no avail in finding a big treasure called the Queen's Dowry, Tess leaves Finn and works on a yacht owned by Nigel Honeycutt(Sutherland) and his daughter Gemma(Dziena). Finn finds a clue to the treasure he and Tess were once looking for and convinces her and the Hoenycutts to help out. But the gangster Bigg Bunny(Hart) and Finn's mentor Moe(Winstone) also want the treasure as well. What's left is a race against time between Finn and Tess and Bunny. Once again, high hopes fall down for the action/comedy. this film had a lot of problems. First is the bad acting. No one got close to giving even a so-so performance. Second is the bad attempt athumor. A gangster named Bigg Bunny. Ha ha. Then, and this is a biggie, why the hell is McConaughey without a shirt, again!!!!! I'm sick of it! The DVD has only 1 featurette, and like Be Kind Rewind , that knocks Gold off a few more points. The only part they got right was the title, cause on a fool would find this film golden.


The Verdict: D
The Good: There's people you know in it.
The Bad: Bad acting, DVD extras, and godammit someone put a shirt on Matt!


Evilresident's Must Buy DVD of the Week is......"Be Kind Rewind" with a B+.


Next week I'll return with reviews of "Definitely, Maybe"(Ryan Reynolds, Abigail Breslin), "In Bruges"(Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson), "Charlie Bartlett"(Anton Yelchin, Robert Downey Jr.), "The Spiderwick Chronicles"(Freddy Highmore), and "10,000 B.C."(Steven Strait, Camilla Belle).

The first batch of "official" summer reviews is here! We have a school student/psychiatrist, a lovestory, a black comedy set in a Belgian city, a film based off of a children's book, and one of the worst films of this year.


Definitely, Maybe
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The Category: Comedy/Drama
The Stars: Ryan Reynolds, Elizabeth Banks, Abigail Breslin, Isla Fisher, Rachel Weisz
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 105 min.
Rated PG-13 for sexual content, including some frank dialogue, language and smoking.

Will Hayes(Reynolds) is divorced and has a daughter, Maya(Breslin). After her 1st sex education class, Maya wants to know about her mother and how Will and her met. To not go over the top, Will changes the names and twists some facts on his three relationships, making it a mystery, so to speak, which is shown through flashbacks. There's Emily(Banks), Will's college sweetheart. Then there's his friend, the reporter Summer(Weisz). Last is Clinton campaign copy girl April(Fisher). The film basically follows his relationship with all three. Ryan Reynolds has been on a roll recently, with good films like Waiting and Smokin' Aces and now he goes all soft. It semi works. And Breslin is still doing well, thanks to that excellent start in '06's Little Miss Sunshine that got her an Oscar nom. The three ladies aren't too bad either. The plot is effective turning this into something other than just a mushy deal. The DVD has commentary, deleted scenes, and 2 featurettes. A not too shabby love mystery.

The Verdict: B+
The Good: Some good performances and a nice plot.
The Bad: Reynolds can't nail soft roles.


In Bruges
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The Category: Comedy
The Stars: Colin Farrell, Ralph Fiennes, Brendan Gleeson, Clemence Poesy
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 107 min.
Rated R for strong bloody violence, pervasive language and some drug use.

After a failed mission, hitmen Ray(Farrell) and Ken(Gleeson) are sent to the town of Bruges, Belgium by their boss, the ruthless Harry(Fiennes). Ray finds the town to be a complete dump, while Ken thinks the opposite. Ray has become very sad and depressed, thanks to that last hit. Apparently, he shot a young boy, which has left Ray full of guilt. Harry soon finds out and has to go to Bruges to kill Ray for going "beyond the pale", or doing an unmoral act. Meanwhile, Ray gets in a realtionship with Chloe(Poesy), a drug dealer. This crime comedy is utterly hilarious! I couldn't stop laughing at Farrell's character of Ray. Whether he's insulting tourists or hanging with midgets, Farrell gives a pretty damn good performance. Gleeson is also excellent, trying to defend the town of Bruges. Fiennes is menacng as Harry. The plot is also a good piece of work. The problem is that even though it's funny it goes pitch black sometimes. The DVD has deleted scenes, a gag reel, and 4 featurettes, all on Bruges. A well done film to say the least.

The Verdict: A-
The Good: Well done performances all around.
The Bad: Can go too dark at times.


Charlie Bartlett
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The Category: Comedy
The Stars: Anton Yelchin, Kat Dennings, Robert Downey Jr., Hope Davis, Tyler Hilton
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 97 min.
Rated R for language, drug content and brief nudity.

After being kicked out of a school for making fake IDs, Charlie Bartlett(Yechin) is sent to public school in the form of Western Summit High School. He gets beaten by the bully Murphy(Hilton), hated by practically all other students, and is kept under close watch by the uptight Principal Gardner(Downey Jr.). Charlie's mother(Davis) even thinks he should stop trying to be popular. Soon he has to see a therapist and is perscribed with Ritalin. Now Charlie has become a dealer of drugs and cauht the eyes of Susan(Dennings), who truns out to be the principal's daughter. Charile then later becomes a school psychiatrist who helps students via chats in the school bathrooms. He also strikes a business partnership and becomes friends with Murphy. Now Charlie's only obstacle is the often drunk Gardner. This yet another fine little gem that's caught my eye. The performace by Yelchin is hilarious and witty. Downey Jr. isn't too bad, but it's nothing compared to his Iron Man performance. The last act is also a real bummer, making it a drug message to kids. The DVD has commentary, deleted scenes, a music vid, and some featurettes. The doctor is definitely in.

The Verdict: A-
The Good: A good performance by the lead and a "come from behind win" feel.
The Bad: Downey didn't shoe full potential and the last part sucks.


The Spiderwick Chronicles
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The Category: Fantasy
The Stars: Freddie Highmore(in dual roles), Sarah Bolger, Nick Nolte, David Strathairn, and voices of Martin Short and Seth Rogen
Price: $19.99-single disc, $21.99 for 2-Disc Field Guide Edition
Running Time: 97 min.
Rated PG for scary creature action and violence, peril and some thematic elements.

The Grace family has just moved into the Spiderwick Estate, which was owned by the late Arthur Spiderwick(Strathairn). There's the twins Simon and Jared(both played by Highmore), their sister Mallory(Bolger) and their mother(Mary-Louise Parker). When Jared finds a field guide Spiderwick left, he ignores the warning and reads the guide, which is about faeries. He then meets Thimbletack(voice of Short), who give him a stone that allows him to see magical creatures unseen to the human eye. He also meets the hobgoblin Hogsqueal(voice of Rogen) who helps Jared see faeries without needing the stone. He later is told about the ogre Mulgarath(voiced and played by Nolte when in human shape), who wants the guide for bad purposes. The three kids then have to fight off Mulgarath's goblins. The effects of this film are the show stealers, with the well done CGI creatures and landscapes. The dual performance of Highmore is also pretty well done. The problem is this is for kids, so almost everyone who reads this will have no reason to see the movie. There's also a couple plot holes. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Fied Guide Edition and has deleted scenes, a making of, 7 featurettes, and trailers. A good gift for a young relative.

The Verdict: B+
The Good: Some wonderful effects.
The Bad: There's an age limit on the entertainment level.


10,000 B.C.
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The Category: Action
The Stars: Steven Strait, Camilla Belle, Cliff Curtis
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 109 min.
Rated PG-13 for sequences of intense action and violence.

D'Leh(Strait) is a mammoth hunter of the Yaghal tribe. One day a group of mysterious warlords raid the tribe and kidnap many of the tribe, including his love Evelot(Belle). D'Leh and a small band of warriors, including his mentor Tic Tic(Curtis), head to save their tribe. Along the way they'll battle creatures and rally with other tribes to stop the evil warlords. That's about it. A complete waste of time this film was. First is the acting, in which Strait gives a performance that's even more wooden than Hayden Christensen from Star Wars II and III, believe it or not. Then is the costumes. Belle looks like she has fucking alien eyes. Then there's a lack of a real plot. Hero rescues his loved one and saves friends. How original. The only thing that kept me from completely destroying this films was the excellent effects, which is the film's only redemming quality. You think from a guy who brought us Independence Day and The Day After Tomorrow that this would work. Wrong. The DVD has an alternate ending and deleted scenes. And this trash kept me from having a good week in review!! Do a favor by skipping this.

The Verdict: D-
The Good: Some nice CGI.
The Bad: Horrible acting, creepy make up, and 1 million times rehashed plot.


Evilresident's Must Buy DVDs of the Week are......"In Bruges" and "Charlie Bartlett" with an A-.


Next week I'll be back with reviews of "Drillbit Taylor"(Owen Wilson, Leslie Mann), "Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns"(Tyler Perry, Angela Bassett), and "Vantage Point"(Dennis Quaid, William Hurt).

It's time for the host who knows the most on this week's DVDs in another edition of evilresident's DVD reviews. This week we have a homeless bodyguard, more work from Tyler Perry, and an assassination thriller. Time for #46, I believe.


Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns
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The Category: Comedy/Drama
The Stars: Tyler Perry, Angela Bassett, David Mann, Rick Fox, Tamela Mann
Price: $19.99-single disc, $21.99 for 2-Disc Special Edition
Running Time: 100 min.
Rated PG-13 for drug content, language including sexual references, thematic elements and brief violence.

Brenda(Bassett) is a struggling mother of three and has gotten laid off. She starts losing hope until she gets a letter stating that her father has died and she needs to come for the funeral. The trouble is, she didn't know she had a fther. So off she goes to Georgia for the funeral wwith the family in tow and she then meets her southern clan, the Browns. The family includes the pistol packing and regualr jailbird Madea(Perry), Deacon Theodore Leroy Brown(D. Mann), the religious neighbor of Madea and wearer of clothes that are too small, and Cora(T. Mann), the daughter of Leroy and Madea. These mixed nuts however, are about to give Brenda more hope aand help change her life. This is standard Perry stuff. At least this time they put back that nutty Madea. she'sthe funniest part of this movie, along with Leroy. But the film goes scatter brains too often with the plot. The drama is also kind of unsatisfying. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Special Edition and has 4 featurettes. Ripe for a rental. Not so sure about buying, though.

The Veridct: C+
The Good: Madea's back, and she got her crazy family with her.
The Bad: Messed up lot and loss of good drama for the ladies.


Drillbit Taylor
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The Category: Comedy
The Stars: Owen Wilson, Leslie Mann, Troy Gentile, Nate Hartley, Alex Frost, Josh Peck, David Dorfman, Danny R. McBride, Stephen Root
Price: $19.99 for Theatrical or Unrated Extended Survival Edition
Running Time: 102 min.(Rated)/109 min.(Unrated)
Rated PG-13 for crude sexual references throughout, strong bullying, language, drug references and partial nudity.

Ryan(Gentile) and Wade(Hartley) are just plain losers. But when they stick up for fellow dork Emmett(Dorfman) from bullies Filkins(Forst) and Ronnie(Peck), they're mercilessly bullied and harassed every day. But when they try to squeal on the two using the principal(Root), who doesn't believe them, Filkins goes psycho and even tries to kill the three. then decide to hire a bodyguard and after many failures(with cameos of Chuck Liddel and Adam Baldwin reprising his My Bodyguard role) they find a winner in Drillbit Taylor(Wilson), a U.S. Army Ranger. In reality, Taylor is a homeless man wwwho wants nothing more to rob the kids of their money and go to Canada. But as he plays pretend to the kids, he actually does try to keep them protected and gets attached to them. He infiltrates their school as a sub teacher and falls in love with a fellow teacher(Mann). This comes from the mind of the now famous Seth Rogen and Judd Apatow, who wrote and produced. There are some good laughs here and there. But there are some problems. The level they go to on showing Filkins' psychotic crazy is over the top. It's downright uncomfortable to watch this kid. Dorfman is also completely annoying as Emmett a short kid with a horrible squeaky voice. The DVD is available in an Unrated Extended Survival Edition, which includes 7 more minutes of footage, commentary, 6 featurettes, deleted scenes, a line-o-rama, anda gag reel. The extras make this a good view. And it's not bad for Wilson's return, after that suicide mess.

The Verdict: B
The Good: Funny and a good fresh start for Wilson.
The Bad: Some characters are over the top, including Filkins and the squeaky Emmett.


Vantage Point
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The Category: Action
The Stars: Dennis Quaid, Matthew Fox, Forest Whitaker, Edgar Ramirez, Eduardo Noriega, Said Taghmaoui, with Sigourney Weaver and William Hurt
Price: $19.99-single disc, $21.99 for 2-Disc Deluxe Edition
Running Time: 90 min.
Rated PG-13 for dequneces of intense violence and action, some disturbing images and brief strong language.

President Ashton(Hurt) arrive in Salamanca, Spain to speak of anti terrorism amidst a huge crowd. All is well until the president is sot by an unknown assassin. The assassination is shown from various viewpoints: from Secret Service agents Thomas Barnes(Quaid) and Kent Taylor(Fox), tourist Hoeard Lewis(Whitaker), GNN producer Rex Brooks(Weaver), and the real President Ashton, since a body double was used. The terrorists are revealed to be policeman Enrique(Noriega), his girlfriend Veronica(Ayelet Zurer), special forces soldier Javier(Ramirez), who was forced to help the terrorists, and the leader Suarez(Taghmaoui). As the others put together the pieces, the terrorists plan to escape, but with the real Ashton as hostage. This thriller is an excellent choice. The cast is grade-A with Quaid Fox, and some more well known people. The climax is nonstop action plain and simple. The negative comes in the form of the repeating assassination. It's a little boring seeing Ashton shot for the fourth time. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc deluxe Edition and has commentary, 4 featurettes, and outtakes. It's worth it.

The Verdict: B+
The Good: Gret cast and action.
The Bad: Repeats itself.


Evilresident's Must Buy DVD of the Week is......"Vantage Point" with a B+.


Next week I'll be back with reviews of "Superhero Movie"(Leslie Nielson, Drake Bell), "Stop-Loss"(Ryan Phillippe, Channing Tatum), and "The Ruins"(Jonathan Tucker, Jean Malone).

I went to see In Bruges a couple of months ago, was fucking awesome. Totally agree with the pitch black humor, that shit is morbid.

Part 47 of my ongoing reviewing spree is here.


Superhero Movie
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The Category: Comedy Spoof
The Stars: Drake Bell, Sara Paxton, Leslie Nielson, Christopher McDonald, Kevin Hart, Tracy Morgan, Craig Bierko, Simon Rex, Pamela Anderson
Price: $19.99 for Theatrical or Unrated Extended Edition
Running Time: 85 min.
Rated: PG-13 for crude and sexual content, comic violence, drug references and language.

In this spoof to superhero films, mostly the 1st Spider-Man film, loser Rick Riker gets bitten by a genetically altered dragonfly and gets special powers. He decides to fight crime under the alias of "The Dragonfly" and take on the villianous Lou Landers(McDonald) a.k.a. Hourglass. Among the parodies is Fantastic Four, X-Men, and Batman Begins. Some of the actors were in previous spoofs, such as Leslie Nielson(Scary Movie 3), Kevin Hart(Scary Movie 3/4), Regina Hall(Scary Movie 1, 2, 3, 4), and Pam Anderson(Scary Movie 3). Like all recent spoofs, this movie fails, but David Zucker is on board t ohelp provide at least a few good laughs. The DVD is available in an Unrated Extended Edition and has commentary, deleted scenes, an alternate ending, 2 featurettes, and the trailer. If it weren't for Zucker, this movie wouldn't have a chance even from the starting reel.

The Verdict: D
The Good: Master of spoofs Zucker adds the humor.
The Bad: Wish he could've added everything else this movie needed.


Stop-Loss
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The Category: Drama
The Stars: Ryan Phillippe, Abbie Cornish, Channing Tatum, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Timothy Olyphant
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 113 min.
Rated R for graphic violence and pervasive language.

SSG. Brandon Leonard King(Phillippe) has returned from Iraq after serving his tour of duty. He continues from where he left off before the war with the help of his family as well as fellow wra buddies Sgt. Steve Shriver(Tatum) and Pfc. Tommy Burgess(Levitt). But when he has to be rusehed back due to the stop-loss policy(your service is involuntarily extended) due to the lack of drafts. King decides to go AWOL and begins to question his honor to the Army, as well as to his family and friends. One and a half thumbs up to this interesting war deal. The acting is on pace and there is some excellent info into that dick stop-loss policy. Too bad this film can get incredibly graphic. Those who can't handle brutal war images should skip this. The DVD has commentary, a making of, additional scenes, and a featurette. Don't miss it, if you can handle it.

The Verdict: B+
The Good: Superb acting.
The Bad: Gets too graphic.


The Ruins
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The Category: Horror
The Stars: Jonathan Tucker, Jena Malone, Shawn Ashmore, Laura Ramsey, Joe Anderson, Dimitri Baveas
Price: $19.99 for Theatrical or Unrated
Running Time: 91 min.
Rated R for strong violence and gruesome images, language, some sexuality and nudity.

Two American couples, Eric(Ashmore) and Stacy(Ramsey) and Jeff(Tucker) and Amy(Malone), are on vacation when the meet a man named Mathias(Anderson), who is searching for his brother Heinrich. Heinrich was last seen going on an archaeological dig in the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. The 4 travelers, along with Greek traveler Dimitri(Baveas) head to the ruins via a map Heinrich left for Mathias. Little do they know what hell lurks
within the ruins. Not only are the attacked by Mayans, but there is also a horrific force in the vines of the ruins that want to claim the lives of the six people. This is a sick film. The vines eat throught the flesh of their victims and then dra gthe maway into the dark. But I like the unique plot of killer vines killing in Mexican ruins. There's also some unrelenting terror involved in some of the latter scenes. Unfortunately, half of the actors can't do their jobs. The DVD is available Unrated and has commentary, deleted scenes, an alternate ending, a making of, 2 featurettes, and the trailer. A good scare.

The Verdict: B+
The Good: Terrifying and unique.
The Bad: Too gross and lack of grade-A actors.


Evilresident's Must Buy DVDs of the Week are......"Stop-Loss" and "The Ruins" with a B+.


Next Week:
"The Bank Job"(Jason Statham, Saffron Burrows)
"Penelope"(Christina Ricci, James McAvoy)
"Shutter"(Joshua Jackson, Megumi Okina)
"Step Up 2 the Streets"(Briana Evigan, Channing Tatum)

And here's a few more upcoming releases:
Never Back Down-July 29
Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay-July 29
Prom Night-August 19
and.........IRON MAN-September 30
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Week #48, for your enjoyment.


The Bank Job
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The Category: Crime
The Stars: Jason Statham, Saffron Burrows, Daniel Mays, Michael Jibson, James Faulkner, Alki David
Price: $19.99-single disc, $21.99 for 2-Disc Special Edition
Running Time: 111 min.
Rated R for sexual content, violence, nudity and language.

Terry Leathers(Statham) was once a small time crook. Now he's clean and owns a failing car-sales garage. He's also annoyed by debt collectors. When his ex-girlfriend Martine(Burrows) offers him a chance to make a lot of money by committing a robbery in Baker Street in London, England. Terry hastily agrees and puts together a team of other small time crooks, including Eddie Burton(Jibson), Dave Shilling(Mays), Bambas(David), and Guy Singer(Faulkner). They pull off the heist with a bit of luck but they don't know what they've gotten themselves into. Let's just say cops and MI5 are after them. This was based on a true robbery in 1971, just to let you know. I'm glad Statham got into a good film this year after that trash film he was in that was directed by Uwe Boll. I really liked this movie. Performances are well done and the pacing is perfect during the heist. After, however, it tends to be slow and boring. But there's some little dabs of humor stuck in here and there. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Special Edition and has commentary, deleted scenes, 2 featurettes, and the trailer. Good caper from the land of the Brits.

The Verdict: A-
The Good: Great acting and pace(for a while)
The Bad: Tends to get a little boring.


Penelope
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The Category: Comedy-Drama
The Stars: Christina Ricci, James McAvoy, Reese Witherspoon, Catherine O'Hara, Peter Dinklage, Richard E.Grant, Simon Woods
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 90 min.
Rated PG for thematic elements, some innuendo and language.

For generations, only men were born in the Wilhern family due to a curse in which if a girl is born, she'll have a pig snout. It finally happens in the birth of Penelope(Ricci). Due to tabloid stalkers including Lemon(Dinklage), her parents(O'Hara and Grant) keep her in their mansion. Lemon and spoiled Edward Vanderman III(Woods) hire Johnny(McAvoy) who they mistake for someone else, to catch a photo of Penelope. But when Johnny meets her, he decides to forget about the photos. This is like a children's fairy tale put on the screen. You have standard perfromances, weepy drama, and the great big happy ending. Not much to most people over the age of 10. The DVD has a making of and a sneak peek of Twilight, or what I call probably the next horrible book adaption since Eragon(Check out the wonky trailer. Those effects are enough to make me sick). Yet another for the kiddies.

The Verdict: C+
The Good: Perfect for kids.
The Bad: Bad for us.


Shutter
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The Category: Horror
The Stars: Joshua Jackson, Megumi Okina, Rachel Taylor, David Denman, John Hensley
Price: $19.99 for Theatrical or Unrated
Running Time: 85 min.
Rated PG-13 for terror, disturbing images, sexual content and language.

Ben(Jackson) and his wife Jane(Taylor) move to Tokyo so he can start a job as a photographer. But his pictures have strange lights. These are later discovered as a spirit. Ben finds out it is Megumi Tanaka(Okina), a girl who Ben had a relationship with a while back. Now Ben and Jane have to try to find a way to stop Mehumi from followin them and killing their friends. This is the third American remake of a Japanese horror film this year, and I'm getting tired of it. Now where does this stack up with One Missed Call and The Eye? Well it's way better than the first, but it doesn't have as good of terror as Eye. There are some good screamers, but most you can be ready for before they happen. It also suffers the PG-13 deal. The acting is so-so and the plot is nice, reminding me of Fatal Frame. I also liked the ending. The DVD actually has the balls to go Unrated(something Call and Eye didn't do) and has commentary, deleted scenes, an alternate ending, 7 featurettes, and trailers. It's a good view.

The Verdict: B-
The Good: Plot, some good chilling bits, and the DVD is Unrated!!!!
The Bad: Average acting and predictable scares.


Step Up 2 The Streets
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The Category: Drama
The Stars: Briana Evigan, Channing Tatum, Robert Hoffman, Will Kemp, Black Thomas
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 97 min.
Rated PG-13 for language, some suggestive material and brief violence.

Angie(Evigan) has a dream of being a street dancer. She dances in the 410 crew until she gets removed. Tyler Gage(Tatum in a small cameo role) tells her to audition for a part in the Maryland School of Arts and when she does, she gets in thanks to Chase Collins(Hoffman). She and Chase the form their own crew to take on the 410, led by Tuck(Thomas). The 2006 film Step Up became a hit to teens. This won't dissapoint to them, cause it's alomst the same thing. Unlike the first, it goes into illegal street dancing. The acting is off, but the dancing is alright. There's also a nice soundtrack including the now famous "Low" by Flo Rida. The DVD has a making of, deleted scenes, 2 featurettes, bloopers, and music videos. If you like dancing, you'll like this film. That's about all it appeals to.

The Verdict: B-
The Good: Good dancing and songs.
The Bad: Bad acting and almost the same as the first.


Evilresident's Must Buy DVD of the Week is......"The Bank Job" with an A-.


Next Week:
"21"(Jim Sturgess, Kevin Spacey)

Week #49, for your enjoyment.


21
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The Category: Crime Drama
The Stars: Jim Sturgess, Kevin Spacey, Laurence Fishburne, Kate Bosworth, Aaron Yoo, Liza Lapira, Jacob Pitts
Price: $19.99-single disc, $21.99 for 2-Disc Deluxe Edition
Running Time: 123 min.
Rated PG-13 for some violence, and sexual content including partial nudity.

MIT student Ben Campbell(Sturgess) is very gifted, especially in the field of numbers. This is discovered by advanced math professor Micky Rosa(Spacey), who invites Ben to join a blackjack team that counts cards. At first refusing, Jim finally agrees to join when he finds out he needs $300,000 for school expenses in Harvard. Among the group is Rosa, the jealous Fisher(Pitts), Choi(Yoo), Kianna(Lapira), and Jill(Bosworth), who strikes a relationship with Campbell. Before long, they're in Vegas and using their techniues, snatch cash just like that. But they're being kept under the very careful eye of security agent Cole Williams(Fishburne), who is just one step from catching Campbell. This is based off of the true story of a group of MIT students who took millions in cash from Vegas casinos. Jeff Ma, who Campbell is based off, actually makes a cameo as Jeffrey the dealer, so keep you eyes and ears out for him in the later part of the film. The film has a good cast, including Sturgess, Bosworth, and Spacey. Fishburne is menacing as the brutal Williams. The problems arise in the drama. There's just too much to make it look like this was based off a true story. The film is also quite lengthly, clocking in at over 2 hours. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Deluxe Edition that has commentary and 3 featurettes. It's not 21, but it's still a good enough hand.

The Verdict: B+
The Good: Great cast.
The Bad: Too much drama and a tough running time.


Next Week:
"Doomsday"(Rhona Mitra, Malcolm McDowell)
"Never Back Down"(Sean Faris, Djimon Hounsou)
"Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay"(John Cho, Kal Penn)

Yes! 50 weeks on the board! Time for some more reviews.


Doomsday
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The Category: Action/Adventure
The Cast: Rhona Mitra, Bob Hoskins, Malcolm McDowell, Craig Conway, David O'Hara, Lee-Anne Liebenberg, MyAnna Buring
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 105 min./113 min.
Rated R for strong bloody violence, language and some sexual content/nudity. Also Unrated.

After a lethal virus called "Reaper" is unleashed in 2008, Scotland is completely walled off from the rest of the world. Now, 25 years later, the virus has started popping up in London. The Prime Minister sends Eden Sinclair(Mitra), recommended by her commander Nelson(Hoskins), and a team of scientists to find Dr. Kane(McDowell), who might have a cure for Reaper. But when they enter the wasteland Scotland, they find that not everyone is dead, but the survivors have become psychotic cannibals known as Marauders, led by Kane's son Sol(Conway). What was a simple mission has now become a fight for survival from the maniacal Marauders. And back in London, the sinister Canaris(O'Hara) may not be so happy about a cure. This apocalyptic action film mixes Outbreak with Mad Max, and it partially works. The costumes are great, with the Marauders having crazy hair and strange tattoos. Their vehicles are also reminescent of the Mad Max films. The plot of this film is pretty good, going all apocalypse. The negatives appear in the form of acting. Mitra's good, but everyone else needs to know how to act right. There's also a lame script and lackluster action scenes. The DVD is available in an Unrated Edition which has both versions of the film(the rated 105 min. and Unrated 113min.), commentary, and 3 featurettes. Nice for a rent, but only a buy for fans of the genre.

The Verdict: B-
The Good: Plotting and costumes.
The Bad: So-so acting, bad script, and lack of good action.


Never Back Down
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The Category: Drama
The Stars: Sean Faris, Djimon Hounsou, Cam Gigandet, Amber Heard, Evan Peters
Price: $19.99-single disc, $22.99 for 2-Disc Extended Beat Down Special Edition
Running Time: 110 min./113 min.
Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material involving intense sequences of fighting/violence, some sexuality, partying and language - all involving teens.

Jake Tyler(Faris) is the new guy in school. But he's been known for his short temper. He even beat up a taunting football player before he left his old school. At the new school, he gains positive rep for his fight on the football player. He makes friends with kickboxer Max Cooperman(Peters) and even gets interested in Baja Miller(Heard). But he also catches the eye of Ryan McCarthy(Gigandet), a ruthless fighter who loves beating his opponents senseless. He challenges Jake to a fight, and Jake is horribly beaten. He decides to get help from Max's instructor Jean Roqua(Hounsou), a mixed martial arts vet. With this training, Jake hopes to not only defeat Ryan, but gain respect of his fellow students. This movie acts like it's the 21st century version of The Karate Kid. It's average. The dialogue is laughably cheesy, but the fight scenes are good(it won the MTV Movie Award for Best Fight Scene). The running time is unbearbly long, but the young cast looks sharp. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Extended Beat Down Special Edition that includes the 113 minute version, commentary, deleted scenes, and 5 featurettes. It's not Fight Club or The Karate Kid, but you might want to catch it sometime.

The Verdict: B
The Good: Great fight scenes and a bright new cast.
The Bad: Horrible dialogue and a long running time.


Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay
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The Category: Comedy
The Stars: John Cho, Kal Penn, Rob Corddry, Paula Garces, Danneel Harris, Eric Winter, and Neil Patrick Harris
Price: $19.99-single disc, $22.99 for 2-Disc Unrated Special Edition
Running Time: 102 min./107 min.
Rated R for strong crude and sexual content, graphic nudity, pervasive language and drug use.

Taking place right after the events of the first film Harold(Cho) and Kumar(Penn) book a flight to go to Amsterdam so harold can find his crush Marai(Garces). They manage to get on the plane thanks to Kumar' ex- girlfriend Vanessa(Danneel Harris) and her fiancee Colton(Winter). On the plane Harold and Kumar are mistaken for terrorists and taken by Ron Fox(Corddry) to the infamous Guantanamo Bay prison facility. They soon escape and go on a zany journey where they meet prostitutes, the KKK, and of course, Neil Patrick Harris, who is stoned on shrooms and Jack Daniels. This was better than the first one. The humor is still excellent, the cast is funny, and they even make fun of ol' Dubya. But......it has a dumb plot and feels too much like the first. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Unrated Special Edition and has the 107 minute version, commentary, deleted scenes, outtakes, 4 featurettes, and some trailers. Still a good flick and a must have for the next 420.

The Verdict: B+
The Good: Still as raunchy as ever.
The Bad: Felt too much the same.


Evilresident's Must Buy DVD of the Week is......"Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay" with a B+.


Next Week:
"Nim's Island"(Abigail Breslin, Gerard Butler)

And attention "Dark Knight" fans!!! Even though it's only been in theaters for a little over 2 weeks, I already have the DVD release date for Batman's recent adventure: December 9. So be ready this Christmas, cause the Dark Knight'll be coming to your nearest DVD store.

Time for Week #51's solo review.


Nim's Island
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The Category: Adventure
The Stars: Jodie Foster, Abigail Breslin, Gerard Butler
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 96 min.
Rated PG for mild adventure action and brief language.

Nim Rusoe(Breslin) has an island in the Pacific. Her only companions are her father Jack(Butler, in a wannabe Indiana Jones look) and various critters including pelicans and sea lions. When Jack goes missing, Nim asks for the assistance of her favorite author, Alexandra Rover(Foster), who's created the Alex Rover adventure series. Rover overcomes her agoraphobic fears and decides to help Nim. But Nim thinks Alexandra is like the adeventurer of her book series. More trouble comes to Nim's island in the form of a cruise line who wants to put tourists on the island. Another film for children is what this movie is. The peformances slack. Breslin is no Little Miss Sunshine, Butler is no 300, and Foster is definitely no The Brave One. The effects and scenery are quite nice, however. It's also not so long, with just a little over an hour and a half. The DVD has commentary, deleted scenes, 3 featurettes, and trailers. Another good Christmas idea for that little sibling.

The Verdict: C
The Good: Effects and running time.
The Bad: Bad acting and just not entertaining enough for the adult audience.



Next Week:
"Smart People"(Dennis Quaid, Ellen Page)

Time for Week #52's solo review.


Smart People
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The Category: Comedy-Drama
The Stars: Dennis Quaid, Sarah Jessica Parker, Thomas Haden Church, Ellen Page, Ashton Holmes
Running Time: 95 min.
Rated R for language, brief teen drug and alcohol use and for some sexuality.

Lawrence Wetherhold(Quaid) is a college English professor. He cares about no one and his kids Vanessa(Page) and James(Holmes) try their best to keep him out of their lives. But after suffering a head injury, he needs his not so smart adopted brother Chuck(Church) to drive him around everywhere. Chuck also wants to stay at Lawrence's home and wants to borrow money. Meanwhile, Lawrence could be falling in love with an ex-student of his, Janet Hartigan(Parker). This movie was produced by Michael London, who had earlier produced the Oscar-winning Sideways back in 2004. You see the little peeks of what could've been another successful dramedy but this movie is far away from that. I'll bite that the performances aren't too bad. But the dialogue is bad and the directing is bogus. The DVD has commentary, deleted scenes, outtakes, and 2 featurettes. If you liked Sideways, you just might want to rent this one.

The Verdict: C+
The Good: Performances
The Bad: Dialogue and direction.


Next Week:
"Prom Night"(Brittany Snow)
"Street Kings"(Keanu Reeves, Forest Whitaker)

And here's another blockbuster film announcement. On October 14, the international blockbuster Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is coming to DVD. So be ready on the 14, Indy fans.

Now for Week 53. It's the first in a couple of weeks that's had more than just 1 release(2 this week).


Prom Night
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The Category: Horror
The Stars: Brittany Snow, Jonathan Schaech, Scott Porter, Dana Davis, Collins Pennie, Jessica Stroup, Kelly Blatz, Idris Elba
Price: $19.99 for Theatrical or Unrated
Running Time: 88 min./89 min.
Rated PG-13 for violence and terror, some sexual material, underage drinking and language. Also Unrated.

Three years ago, Donna Keppel(Snow) saw the sadistic teacher Richard Fenton(Schaech) kill her family. Fenton had a thing for Donna but before he managed to do anything he was caught by police. Now go to the present and Donna's senior prom is coming up and her friends are all getting ready, including her date Bobby(Porter) and her friends Lisa(Davis) and Claire(Stroup) and their dates Ronnie(Pennie) and Michael(Blatz). But when the prom is held at the Pacific Grand Hotel, Fenton is also an unexpected guest, having just broken out of prison and is now looking for Donna to finish what he started. I say this isn't too bad, if I want a good April Fool's film!! This was pathetic! It was almost as bad as One Missed Call. It was also the first movie where I asked for my money back when I saw it at the theater. The acting is half-assed, the terror is lame(we already know what'll happen thanks to shitty pacing), and there's an idiotic scribe who I want to kill right now. The only positive is the music by Paul Haslinger, the guy who did that catchy Vacancy theme. The DVD is available Unrated and has commentary, deleted scenes, an alternate ending, a making of, and 4 featurettes. Here's my alternate ending: killing the director for doing such a shit job.

The Verdict: D-
The Good: Music
The Bad: Everything else.


Street Kings
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The Category: Crime
The Stars: Keanu Reeves, Forest Whitaker, Hugh Laurie, Chris Evans, Common, Jay Mohr, Cedric the Entertainer, Terry Crews, The Game
Price: $19.99-single disc, $21.99 for 2-Disc Special Edition
Running Time: 109 min.
Rated R for strong violence and pervasive language.

L.A. police officer Tom Ludlow(Reeves) is a guy who barely plays by the rules. In fact, almost everyone in his department, including the captain Jack Wander(Whitaker), break the rules to achieve justice. When an officer who seemingly went straight gets killed with Ludlow present, he is innocent but is heavily investigated by Internal Affairs Captain James Biggs(Laurie). He teams with Detective Paul "Disco" Diskant(Evans) and they go after the killers, Fremont(Cle Shaheed Sloan) and Coates(Common). But there may be more corrupt cops out there. I actually liked this film. The cast is excellent and the lead performances by Reeves and Whitaker are good. THe plot was also good, even if used before. The pacing is somwhat flawed and there's an obvious twist towards the end. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Special Edition and has commentary, deleted scenes, alternate scenes, vignettes, a behind the scenes, a making of, and 3 featurettes. See it soon.

The Verdict: B+
The Good: Excellent cast, plot, and acting.
The Bad: Somewhat flawed and predictable.


Evilresident's Must Buy DVD of the Week is......"Street Kings" with a B+.


Next Week:
"Redbelt"(Chiwetel Ejiofor, Tim Allen)
"Postal"(Zack Ward)
"Where in the World is Osama bin Laden?"(Morgan Spurlock)
"What Happens in Vegas"(Ashton Kutcher, Cameron Diaz)

Week 54, coming right up.


Redbelt
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The Category: Drama
The Stars: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Tim Allen, Alice Braga, Emily Mortimer, Randy Couture, Joe Mantegna, David Paymer, Rodrigo Santoro
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 99 min.
Rated R for strong language.

Mike Terry(Ejiofor) is a Jiu-Jitsu instructor who teaches his students a way to defend themselves. He also has a thing for disliking combat tournaments, as he says competition is "weakening". One night he ends up saving a guy from a brutal bar fight. This guy is actually actor Chet Frank(Allen). He and Terry sort of become friends and Frank even asks him to be in his new film. But sooner or later he finds out he's be set up and combined with a bad financial issue, notified by his wife Sondra(Braga), Terry will unfortunately have to compete. This is one of those good limited release films that you thought was going to be just plain boring. The acting is great, featuring a superb cast including Ejiofor, Allen, Braga, Emily Mortimer, Rodrigo Santoro, and even the old faces of David Paymer and Joe Mantegna. There's a good script and also some nice action sequences. The only major problems are the shaky weave between action and drama and also a short running time, barely ahead of an hour and a half. The DVD has commentary, a behind-the-scenes, and 5 featurettes. It's like an adult "Karate Kid", and I mean the first one, not the bad sequels.

The Verdict: A-
The Good: Superb acting, cast, script, and action.
The Bad: Genre changes and running time.


Where in the World is Osama bin Laden?
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The Category: Documentary
The Stars: Morgan Spurlock
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 93 min.
Rated PG-13 for some strong language.

Morgan Spurlock has been getting some publicity recently, after that superb doc Super Size Me and his show 30 Days on FX. Now he's going big time and is in search of one of the most trickiest people in history: Osama bin Laden. He travels to the Middle East to try and find the tall bushy beard, interviewing the foreign individuals and asking each of them "Where is Osama bin Laden?" at some point. That's basically the premise for Spurlock's latest offering. It's got a hilarious plot and he has fun with the film, but do we? 'Cause I saw the same thing as Super Size Me, with the only difference being the suject. If you liked that film, you'll also notice this. Just rent if you get the chance.

The Verdict: B
The Good: Great plot.
The Bad: Seen it before.


Postal
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The Category: Comedy
The Stars: Zack Ward, Dave Foley, Julia Sandberg, Verne Troyer, J.K. Simmons, Larry Thomas, Brent Mendenhall, Uwe Boll
Price: $19.99-single disc, $21.99 for 2-Disc Unrated Edition
Running Time: 100 min.
Rated R for extremely crude humor throughout, including strong sexuality, graphic nudity, violence, and for pervasive language and some drug use.

In Paradise, USA, a man known only as Postal Dude(Ward) just got fired from his job. He decides to side with his cultified Uncle Dave(Foley) and steal some cash from a German themed amusement park run by the ultimate asshole Uwe Boll(as himself). Unfortunately, the Taliban is headed to that same park as well, sparking a scene of complete chaos along the city. This is actually the best Boll has offered us in his shit career. This is one fucked up movie, featuring exploding fat ladies, Verne Troyer getting ass raped by monkeys, a mock on 9/11, and even a freindship between Geroge W. Bush(Mendenhall) and Osama bin Laden(Thomas). The movie is signature Boll trash, but one scene kept me from turning off the TV: Boll is killed in this film and by none other than the creator of Postal, Vince Desiderio(as himself). Brilliant!!!!!!! The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Unrated Edition that has the game Postal 2, commentary, the critic boxing shenanigans Boll did, and more. Just buy the DVD for the game, not the movie.

The Verdict: D-
The Good: Uwe Boll dies.
The Bad: It's a Uwe Boll movie.


What Happens in Vegas
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The Category: Comedy
The Stars: Cameron Diaz, Ashton Kutcher, Rob Corddry, Lake Bell, Queen Latifah, Treat Williams, and Dennis Miller
Price: $19.99-single disc, $21.99 for 2-Disc Extended Jackpot Edition
Running Time: 99 min./101 min.
Rated PG-13 for some sexual and crude content, and language, including a drug reference.

Jack Fuller(Kutcher) is a lazy guy who just got fired from his job by his own dad. Joy McNally(Diaz) is a hard worker who just got dumped. Jack and his buddy Hater(Corddry) decide to head to Vegas, as do Joy and her friend Toni(Bell). Joy and Jack meet by chance and after a while end up a great night. Not really, as the next morning they find out they were so drunk, they got hitched. They're about to divorce when all of a sudden Jack wins a $3 million dollar jackpot. The two fight over who deserves the money and end up in court. The judge(Miller) decides to freeze the money for six months and within that time Joy and Jack must be husband and wife. What follows is a wacky bunch of attempts by Joy and Jack to stop each other from getting the money. The film is average, thought it ended making $200 million dollars worldwide. The acting is average and the plot is ok, but the film makes a sappy turn into a comedy-drama about halfway through. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Extended Jackpot Edition that has commentary, a gag reel, deleted scenes, trailers, and 4 featurettes. It's a standard comedy.

The Verdict: B-
The Good: Good plot and somewhat good acting.
The Bad: Gets sappy.


Evilresident's Must Buy DVD of the Week is......"Redbelt" with an A-


Next week has no new releases, so here's what's coming two weeks from now:
"The Forbidden Kingdom"(Jackie Chan, Jet Li)
"Baby Mama"(Tina Fey, Amy Poehler)

After a week of no new movies, I have two this week. #55, step right up!!


The Forbidden Kingdom
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The Category: Action/Adventure
The Stars: Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Michael Angarano, Collin Chou, Yifei Liu
Price: $19.99-single disc, $21.99 for 2-Disc Special Edition
Running Time: 113 min.
Rated PG-13 for sequences of martial arts action and some violence.

Jason Tripitikas(Angarano) is a Boston kid and a kung fu film fanatic. He is also an easily bullied geek. After he visits a pawn shop owned by Hop(Chan) that has a strange golden staff, he is attacked by bullies and forced to help them rob the store. Things go wrong and Jason is sent to the past via the staff. He is sent to ancient China and is helped/trained by Lu Yan(Chan, again), assassin Golden Sparrow(Liu), and later The Silent Monk(Li). Their task is to take on the Jade Warlord(Chou) and rescue a figure known only as the Monkey King. This is one of the ultimate team-up films, putting well known martial artists Chan and Li together. The action of the film is standard ass kicking, brought to you mostly by Chan and Li. The problems can include the dull attempts at humor throughout, and those odd dreadlocks Chan is sporting. It also has too much material that exists outside of the story. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Special Edition and has commentary, deleted scenes, 6 featurettes, and a blooper reel. For the martial arts fan in all of us.


The Verdict: B
The Good: Chan/Li team up and some gret action sequences.
The Bad: Dull humor and too much out going material.


Baby Mama
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The Category: Comedy
The Stars: Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Greg Kinnear, Dax Shepard
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 99 mins.
Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual humor, language and a drug reference.

Successful businesswoman Kate Holbrook(Fey) wants a child, but finds she has the slimmest chance of getting pregnant. So she finds a surrogate mother in the form of Angie(Poehler), a childish ditz. Things go crazy when Angie, already pregnant, has to stay with Kate since she has no home, making Kate cater to her kiddish needs. Kate will now learn about motherhood first hand. She also begins dating Rob(Kinnear), a blended juice cafe owner. The acting is the star of this show, wiht great lead performances by Fey and Poehler. The humor is pretty funny, mostly aimed at sex and motherhood. But on the other hand, the movie is pretty predictable. It's also pretty sappy at points. The DVD has commentary, deleted scenes, an alternate ending, a making of, and a featurette. It's lightweight, yet funny.

The Verdict: B-
The Good: Performances and humor.
The Bad: Sappy at times and way too predictable.


Evilresident's Must Buy DVD of the week is......"The Forbidden Kingdom" with a B.


Next Week:
"Made of Honor"(Patrick Dempsey, Michelle Monaghan)
"The Love Guru"(Mike Myers, Jessical Alba)
"88 Minutes"(Al Pacino)
"Speed Racer"(Emile Hirsch, Christina Ricci)

Week #56, GO!!!!!


Made of Honor
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The Category: Comedy
The Stars: Patrick Dempsey, Michelle Monaghan, Kevin McKidd, Sydney Pollack
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 101 min.
Rated PG-13 for sexual content and language.

After a stray chance, Tom Bailey Jr.(Dempsey) met Hannah(Monaghan) by mistake. They have been good friends ever since, even though Tom is sleeping with women every week. Finally he decides to tell his feelings toward her after finding out sleeping with other women is dissatisfying to him, but things go bad when he sees she's engaged to wealthy guy Colin(McKidd). Tom decides to find a way to stop the wedding, so he agrees to go to the wedding as her maid of honor. This is a comedy film, but it mostly aims to the female audience. I'll give props to the choice of cast, including the last screen appearance of Oscar winning director Sydney Pollack(as Tom's father) before his death. But the laughs are running on fumes and the lines are terrible. It's also sort of predictable: guy tries to stop wedding of best friend. How original. The DVD has commentary. Dempsey, isn't the best man in this one.


The Verdict: C
The Good: Cast, including the late Mr. Pollack.
The Bad: Cheap humor, bad script, and terribly predictable.


The Love Guru
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The Category: Comedy
The Stars: Mike Myers, Jessica Alba, Romany Malco, Justin Timberlake, Meagan Good, Verne Troyer, and Ben Kingsley
Price: $19.99-single disc, $21.99 for 2-Disc Special Edition
Running Time: 88 min.
Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual content throughout, language, some comic violence and drug references.

Maurice Pitka(Myers) is one of the best love gurus in the world. Thanks to his training by Guru Tugginmypuddah(Kingsley in a spoof of his infamous Ghandi role), Pitka is only one step away from being #1 in the world. He gets his chance in helping Darren Roanoke(Malco), the star hockey player of the Toronto Maple Leafs, whose wife left him and is dating goalie Jacques "Le Coq" Grande(Timberlake). This has caused the team to enter a horrible losing streak. Pitka is enlisted by Jane Bullard(Alba) to help Darren to get his game on, both on and off the ice. The cast also includes Verne Troyer(NOT as Mini Me) as the team's pint-sized coach, Meagan Good as Darren's wife Prudence, and cameos by Chris Rock, Oprah Winfrey, Jessica Simpson, Kanye West, Val Kilmer, Morgan Freeman, and Myers, all as themselves. But this shows that Myers' career is slipping. There are tons of gross jokes, but only a few of them are effective. Most of the cast plays their roles like complete idiots and the one-liners aren't funny. I was checking my watch every 5 minutes, hoping I was almost done with this horrendous ordeal. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Special Edition and has deleted scenes, 4 featurettes, an alternate ending, outtakes, bloopers, and the theatrical trailer. I show no love for this guru.

The Verdict: D+
The Good: There's a few good laughs.
The Bad: Terrible acting and poor attempts at humor make this a forgettable Myers comedy entry.


88 Minutes
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The Category: Thriller
The Stars: Al Pacino, Benjamin McKenzie, Alicia Witt, William Forsythe, Neal McDonough, Amy Brenneman, Leelee Sobieski
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 108 min.
Rated R for disturbing violent content, brief nudity and language.

Dr. Jack Gramm(Pacino) is a successful college professor/psychiatrist, who was known for helping put serial killer Jon Forster(McDonough) on death row. All is good for Gramm until he receives a phone call saying he has 88 minutes to live. Quicky, Gramm calls for help, and is assisted by Special Agent Frank Parks(Forsythe), Agenta Mactire(Julian Christopher), his assitant Kim Cummings(Witt), and his associate Shelly Barnes(Brenneman). He also suspects students, like Mike Stemp(McKenzie), and various others as the threat becomes more real and his 88 minutes tick on by. You think with putting Academy Award winner Al Pacino in a starrring role, you'd get a good movie. WRONG!!!!!!! This movie killed my expectations. The film is scattershot, confusing at times, and most of the cast, save for Pacino, is horribly out of talent. The movie isn't 88 minute slong(108 minutes instead), but it does deliver a little bit of what's going on. The DVD has commentary, an alternate ending, and 2 featurettes. Yawn.

The Verdict: C-
The Good: Pacinop is over average and there's a bit of an explaination.
The Bad: Terrible costars, scattershot, and a real headscratcher at times.


Speed Racer
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The Category: Action
The Stars: Emile Hirsch, Christina Ricci, John Goodman, Matthew Fox, Susan Sarandon, Roger Allam, Rain, Paulie Litt
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 135 min.
Rated PG for sequences of action, some violence and language.

Speed Racer(Hirsch) is a kid who only thinks about one thing: racing. He is a skilled race car driver who commandeers the Mach 5 racecar and has made himself quite the story. His parents(Goodman, Sarandon) are also proud of his skills on the track. When Mr. Royalton(Allam) asks Speed to join his racing team, Speed declines, finding out that Royalton's races are rigged. Speed teams with his girlfriend Trixie(Ricci), rookie racer Taejo Togokhan(Rain), and the mysterious Racer X(Fox) to stop Royalton by entering in the Casa Cristo 5000, where Speed's brother Rex was killed. Or was he? That's.... pretty much the whole plot. This was anticipated to be quite a hit, thanks to the announcement of the Wachowski brothers(The Matrix). But it utterly flopped, and I can see why. It's too damn kiddish!!! The PG rating was probably the thing that drew away most of the audience. The effects are the film's highlights, featuring incredible CGI. The races are also entertaining. But the rest is clunky, including the performances. The DVD has 2 featurettes. It may be far form the finish line, but it has its perks.

The Verdict: B-
The Good: Great effects and racing sequences.
The Bad: Bad acting and too kiddy for adults to fully enjoy.


Evilresident's Must Buy DVD of the Week is......"Speed Racer" with a B-.


Next Week:
"Run, Fatboy, Run"(Simon Pegg, Thandie Newton)
"Leatherheads"(George Clooney, Renee Zellweger)
"Sex and the City"(Sarah Jessica Parker)

1... 2...

Due to a very full work week, including a 10 hour shift Tuesday, I couldn't post my reviews for a couple days. But now Week 57's here.


Run, Fatboy, Run
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The Category: Comedy
The Stars: Simon Pegg, Thandie Newton, Hank Azaria, Dylan Moran, Harish Patel
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 100 min.
Rated PG-13 for some rude and sexual humor, nudity, language and smoking.

A few years back, Dennis(Pegg) was about to marry the love of his life, Libby(Newton). But then he chickened out and left her at the altar. But the times weren't kind to Dennis. Now he works security and has put on some weight. Then he learns that Libby is now seeing someone, the hot shot Whit(Azaria). Dennis wants to win back Libby, and the only way to do that is to run the Nike River Marathon and complete it and maybe even beat Whit while he's at it. Dennis will have to go through rigorous training from his bud Gordon(Moran) and his crazy landlord Mr. Ghoshdashtidar(Patel) if he wants to fix a mistake he's regretted ever since. Pegg's done great over the past few years with big Brit hits Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz. But this is an American directed outing for him and you can tell the difference. The humor is still funny and gross-out(one particularly involving a little "guest" on Dennis' foot.) and Pegg proves he's in his prime still these days. But this is predictable and some of the cast(the non-Brits) aren't so great. The DVD has commentary, deleted scenes, outtakes, a featurette, and the theatrical trailer. Not something you'd run for, but still a good Pegg comedy.

The Verdict: B+
The Good: Pegg's in full form and great humor is provided.
The Bad: Some of the cast is terrible and the plot's predictable.


Leatherheads
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The Category: Comedy
The Stars: George Clooney, Renee Zellweger, John Krasinski, Keith Loneker
Price: $19.99
Running Time: 114 min.
Rated PG-13 for brief strong language.

Back in the 1920s, there were no rules in football. And the Duluth Bulldogs took that to every extent. However they're struggling and captain Dodge Connolly(Clooney) is the only hope to not only save his boys, including Big Gus(Loneker), but also pro football itself. He hires Carter "The Bullet" Rutherford(Krasinski), a WWI hero and ex college football player, and suddenly the Bulldogs are back on track. That is, until Chicago reporter Lexie Littleton(Zellweger) catches the eye of both players, leading to a rivalry on and off the field. I had hopes for this sports comedy starring and directed by Clooney, but it felt flat. The cast is great and the plot is alright, but the movie mainly focuses on moments and not the plot. It's also pretty long for a romantic comedy. The DVD has a making of and 3 featurettes. A head shaking fumble.

The Verdict: C+
The Good: Great cast and plot.
The Bad: Doesn't put too much emphasis on the plot and the running time is long.


Sex and the City
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The Category: Comedy-Drama
The Stars: Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis, Cynthia Nixon, Jennifer Hudson, Chris Noth
Price: $19.99-single disc, $21.99 for 2-Disc Extended Cut Special Edition
Running Time: 148 min./151 min.
Rated R for strong sexual content, graphic nudity and language.

Following 4 years after the TV show's series finale, Carrie(Parker) is finally going to marry Mr. Big(Noth), much to thr dismay of Charlotte(Davis), Miranda(Nixon), and Samantha(Cattrall). But at the last second Big pulls a Run, Fatboy, Run and leaves Carrie at the altar. He changes his mind and goes back to Carrie, but she's already pissed. Then the four gals head to Mexico to relax from their stressed lives. That's the basic plot. Girls and fans of the show, you'll love this film. Guys, you'll take a baseball bat and destroy you DVD player or Blu-Ray before this movie is even halfway over. The film is like a drawn out 2 1/2 hour TV episode, despite a good cast. The DVD is available in a 2-Disc Extended Cut Special Edition that has a 151 minute version(worse for us guys), commentary, deleted scenes, and 3 featurettes. There's TV-to-film adaptions anyone can enjoy(The Simpsons Movie) and then there's ones you have to really be a great fan of. This falls in the latter category.

The Verdict: D-(for the Guys), B(for the Girls)
The Good: Strong cast and is perfect for ladies.
The Bad: WAY TOO LONG and makes guys want to think "Why the fuck am I watching this?"


Evilresident's Must Buy DVD of the week is......"Run Fatboy, Run" with a B+.


Next Week:
"Forgetting Sarah Marshall"(Jason Segal, Mila Kunis)
"Iron Man"(Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow)

This post has been edited by evilresident: Sep 25 2008, 12:44