Archives for January, 2010

On DVD: Best of the B’s Collection 1; Hot Bikes, Cool Cars & Bad Babes

Directed By: Various

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Gary Busey, Ellen Burstyn, Scott Glenn, Dan Hagerty, John Ireland, Dorothy Malone, Dixie Peabody, Sid Haig

Roger Corman is known as the “King of the B’s” the unquestioned master of the low budget movie. This is the first installment of a themed collection of his oeuvre. The title really says it all. Here are seven drive in standards ranging from the sublime to shlock.

The Movies

Some of these movies are public domain jewels and for others this is the first time they have been released on DVD. If your a fan of b-movies you might already own a few of these as several are popular in the -as many public domain movies we can squeeze onto a DVD sets- so here is a rundown of what’s included. …continue reading

In News: Have You Seen Episode 3 of Con Trek?

Episode 3 of Con Trek was shot on location at Wonderfest in Louisville, Ky and features interviews with a model designer for Iron Man 2 and GI Joe, the editor of Rue Morgue magazine, album art designer for Kiss and Coheed and Cambria, and much more!

In Comics: Dark Avengers #13

Written by Brian Michael Bendis
Art by Mike Deodato

Now comes the beginning of the end for Norman Osborn’s merrily band of sociopaths the world calls Avengers, with Dark Avengers wrapping up at the end of Marvel’s Siege event. Where better to start than with the most powerful and most unstable of the bunch – the Sentry?

The Story

It’s finally happened. The cracks are coming apart in Sentry’s fractured psyche as the inner/outer struggle between himself and the Void comes to a head. At first thought, I want to say “It’s about time,” but then I realize this is probably the perfect time (and probably planned that way). …continue reading

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Cinegeek Webcast Episode 98: Avatar Still Killing, Microsoft and Apple Making Friends, and History Channel Goes Cable Guy

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This week your online TV show viewing counts, sort of, Captain America finishes being reborn, and The History Channel jumps the shark!

On Blu Ray: Smokin Aces 2: Assassins Ball

Directed by P.J. Pesce
Starring Tom Berenger, Michael Parks, Vinnie Jones, Ernie Hudson

“Moderation is a fatal thing. Nothing succeeds like excess.”
Oscar Wilde

The original Smokin Aces became a bit of a cult hit once it hit DVD, much in the same way as The Boondock Saints did. Now, if you look at the filmography of the director P.J Pesce, which includes Lost Boys: The Tribe and From Dusk Til Dawn 3: The Hangmans Daughter, you might avoid this movie. But, should you give it a chance?

The Movie

Walter Weed (Tom Berenger), when he isn’t showing off his many card tricks, pushes papers in a nondescript government office. But somehow, he has been targeted for assignation. So, Walter is not having your typical day at work. …continue reading

In Comics: Adventure Comics #6

Written by Geoff Johns
Art by Francis Manapul

The Story

Now that the Blackest Night tie in with Superboy Prime is over, issue #6 brings the book back to the real Superboy – Conner Kent. This series has followed Superboy trying to figure out if he is more like Superman or Lex Luthor, the two whose DNA he is made from. This issue ends that, with Superboy coming to a conclusion about himself.

Superboy obviously has some parenting issues. Who wouldn’t when one of your “fathers” is Lex Luthor? His worries about any influence genetics may have on personality make sense, as does the conclusion he reaches. Johns develops a good characterization of Superboy with Superboy’s own self assessment in his journal, and Johns satisfyingly ties it up here. …continue reading

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On Blu-Ray: Pandorum

Directed by: Christian Alvart
Starring: Dennis Quad, Ben Foster

Pandorum was one of those films that came out last year, along with The Surrogates, that I really wanted to be great. The closer it came to release the more deflating the buzz became. Now looking at it on blu-ray I can see where there was so much potential for something great but it just never quite reached that potential. There are a few things that make this film worth a look though.

The Movie

Pandorum is unfortunately an extremely derivative film. Taking elements from other stories to make something innovative is a good thing but stitching elements from other stories together to make a beginning middle and end of a barely existent story is a bad thing. …continue reading

Contest: Win Prizes and Watch White Collar!

USA Network’s new hit series is back with all new episodes on an all new night. Don’t miss the return on Tuesday, January 19 at 10pm/9c! The season premiere picks up after December’s cliffhanger as Neal must infiltrate a company of corrupt Wall Street brokers to preserve his deal with the FBI. When Peter is forced to go undercover alongside him, a discovery is made that could change their partnership forever. Become a fan on Facebook, Follow on Twitter, Visit The Official Website for your chance to WIN a new Taurus (beginning 1/19).

Enter to win a White Collar Gift Bag containing:

  • Cashmere Scarf
  • Links of London Leather Credit Card Case
  • Thomas Pink Custom Collar Stays
  • Stainless Steel Flask
  • White Collar T-Shirt

To be entered to win click “Submit” and put White Collar Contest in the Subject line and include your name and mailing address in the body of the email. On February 15th we’ll draw one lucky winner!

SUBMIT

Contest Ends 02/15

Contest: Win Prizes and Watch Burn Notice!

Get ready to get BURNED! The #1 show on cable returns with all new episodes. Don’t miss Tyne Daly & Clayne Crawford guest-starring in the Burn Notice winter premiere – “A Dark Road” – airing Thursday, January 21 at 10/9C. Become a Fan on Facebook, Follow on Twitter, and visit the Official Site to play Covert Ops: Vegas Heist (beginning 1/21) for a chance to win an all-new Hyundai Genesis Coupe!

Enter to win a Burn Notice tote filled with:

  • Season 1 & Season 2 DVDs
  • Burn Notice Branded Flashlight
  • Burn Notice Book: The End Game
  • Burn Notice T-Shirt

Hit Submit and provide your name and mialing address to be entered to win. Be sure to include “Burn Notice Comtest” in the Subject Line!

SUBMIT

Contest Ends February 15th!

CineGeek Webcast Episode 97: Avatar Banned in China, Torchwood Remake, and More Video for XBOX

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This week we talk Avatar still rocking the vox office, Book of Eli, a Torchwood remake and tons more!

On DVD: Clannad: After Story collection 2

Directed by Tatsuya Ishihara
Featuring Voices by Mai Nakahara, Yuuichi Nakamura

The Series

The Clannad series is adapted from a visual novel video game series of the same name. This collection is the second half of the second season and wraps up the story between the male lead Tomoya Okazaki and his girlfriend Nagisa Furukawa.

Up until this point, the show is a generic high school romance. Now it’s time to grow up. This is still a romantic drama. There’s comedy here and there, but this part of the series deals with some pretty heavy issues that would be kind of hard to put a comedic spin on. While the first few episodes still deal with the young lovers, the series then changes towards a father-daughter relationship between Tomoya and his new daughter Ushio. …continue reading

On DVD: Streamers

Directed by Robert Altman
Starring Matthew Modine, Mitchel Lichtenstein, David Alan Grier, Michael Wright

“Prejudice squints when it looks, and lies when it talks”

Duchess de Abrantes

When the cinematic world lost Robert Altman in 2006, it lost one of most unique voices in filmmaking. From M.A.S.H, Short Cuts, 3 Women and Nashville (just to name a few), a film fan could depend on Altman to bring a fresh and distinctive perspective to the stories he chose. So, how does the film Streamers (1938) based on the award winning play written by David Rabe rate in the overall filmography of Altman?

The Movie

The year is 1965 and in Virginia, three soldiers await deployment to Vietnam. The only thing they have in common is being in the military. …continue reading

News: Con Trek Episode 3 Wonderfest!

In this episode of Con Trek we visit Wonderfest in Louisville, Kentucky. This is a show focused on model building and toys featuring some of the most stunning models and statues you’re likely to ever see. Other highlights include an interview with a model designer for Iron Man 2 and Star Trek, the editor of Rue Morgue Magazine, the album art designer for Kiss and many other bands, and an extremely unique model building competition.

On DVD: Ghost Machine

Directed by Chris Hartwill
Starring Sean Faris, Luke Ford, Rachael Taylor

The Movie

You die in the game, you die for real. Wait, wrong movie. Oh wait, no its not.

The premise of the movie is an America hot shot programmer and his partner decide to take a military virtual reality simulation they’re lending to the British army out for the weekend for beers, pot and their own version of Call for Duty. They choose to play in an old prison, where of course horrible deaths occurred at. Obviously, while playing their little game, a ghost of an abused prisoner gets trapped…in the machine (cue movie title). …continue reading

On Blu-Ray: Jennifer’s Body

Directed by Karyn Kusama
Starring Megan Fox, Amanda Seyfried, Johnny Simmons

Here’s a horror film written by one of the hottest writers in the business, Diablo Cody (Juno) and starring the girl of the moment, Megan Fox (Transformers 1 &2) that bombed at the box office. So why did this happen? When I saw the early trailers for the film it seemed like a no brainer. I actually didn’t get to see it in the theater myself so I was happy to get to see it in HD at home.

The Movie

Jennifer is that girl in high school that every teen boy wants to date and every girl wants to be friends with. The thing that doesn’t make sense is Jennifer’s best friend, nerdy girl named Needy. It turns out that these girls have been friends since before cool and nerdy mattered. These two friends live in a small town with not much to do but if there’s trouble to be found Jennifer finds it and she drags Needy along for the ride. Everything is as stereotypical as it gets until one night Jennifer and Needy sneak out to see a band play at a local bar. Jennifer hopes to hook up with the singer of the band and she does leaving Needy in the lurch. What neither of the girls could have expected is that they’d be fighting about whether Jennifer should jump in the van with the band while the bar they were in goes up in flames. …continue reading