Archive | July 2014
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Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Quite possibly the best “Planet of the Apes” film ever made. The 1968 Charlton Heston-starring original will always be the most iconic(they manage to squeeze in a “Blue Eyes” in-joke in “Dawn”—priceless!), and the 2011 reboot was pretty damn good(James Franco returns in a brief video segment). But “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” […]
“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”…for kids?
I owe my six-year-old son a movie trip, because I’ve already taken my nine-year-old boy to a couple of the big superhero sequels this season(namely “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” and “The Amazing Spider-Man 2”). For a couple of weeks now, we’ve been chatting about the coming “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” reboot as a strong […]
Flashback: on 1984’s Purple Rain
It’s been thirty years as of today, and I still remember that rush of excitement I felt when I first experienced it. Did I catch it on that first weekend? I can’t recall, but I do remember my first attempt to see it failed. It was sold out! Whether that meant I went the next night […]
300: Rise of an Empire 3D
How much do I adore French actress Eva Green? So much so that she’s going to break me down into watching an episodic television program. It’s an oft-repeated joke of mine that I don’t watch T.V. shows, because if I did add them to the roster I’d never leave dark rooms my entire life. But […]
“Violet” cast album…reviewed!
You have roughly a fortnight left to catch the Broadway debut of “Violet” the musical starring Sutton Foster(it goes dark on August 10th), but I understand your dilemma if you don’t reside near the New York City area. I did manage to experience “Violet” in early May of this year, shortly after it opened, and […]
Woody’s July “Magic”?
There was a solid 15 year stretch, when I would never miss a Woody Allen release. In fact, between the period of 1986-2000, the Woodman was the sole director of 16 different features. I visited the theater for 8 of them, and caught the other half upon their video debut. Most of them were, at […]
Fincher’s “Gone Girl”
There was a time, not all that long ago, when I felt that David Fincher was going to become one of my three favorite living directors. What was so cool about that, in my eyes anyway, was that the trio would all sport the first name of David. The Trinity of David, I found myself […]
Jodorowsky’s Dune
Watching and listening to the mesmerizing cult film director Alejandro Jodorowsky spin his tale(about his failed attempt to bring Frank Herbert’s “Dune” to the big screen in the mid 1970’s), it’s easy to see how the studios almost backed him. In his mid 80’s now, Mr. Jodorowsky hypnotizes you with the story of his aborted […]
“Snowpiercer” is on VOD!
Last month I did a feature on “Snowpiercer”, the English-language film debut of South Korean filmmaker, Bong Joon-ho. I’ll let you find that story(in my June archives)to get detailed information on this exciting release from the director of 2007’s “The Host”. But imagine my excitement to learn that “Snowpiercer” has just joined the ever-increasing roster of […]
Reviewed by Mark Leonard 