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Backcountry
Jenn (Missy Peregrym) and her boyfriend Alex (Jeff Roop) have decided to go camping against her better judgement. The trip begins fine enough as they take in the beauty of the great outdoors, but it soon becomes clear that beauty comes with a sharp bite too. They lose their way, they’re trailed by a strange Irishman and they may just be breathing the same air as a hungry black bear.
Writer/director Adam MacDonald’s feature debut begins on familiar terrain. A couple lost in the woods, a creepy loner, frightening sounds echoing between the trees at night — but somewhere around the mid-point the wide open spaces they’re traversing close in around them to become an oppressive and claustrophobic nightmare. What was beautiful becomes harrowing, what was inviting becomes threatening and then the film delivers a sequence that may just feature the most terrifyingly-crafted animal interaction since I don’t know what. Fear and anxiety morph into pure horror — and I’m not just saying that as someone who recently hiked in Alaska and saw a Kodiak bear in the wild — this is a breath-holding, fist-clenching, pants-soiling nightmare fuel.
[Blu-ray/DVD extras: Commentary, behind the scenes, gallery]
Blood Punch
Milton (Milo Cawthorne) is a bit too smart for his britches, and after getting busted for inappropriate use of chemicals he’s sent to a rehab facility where he meets Skyler (Olivia Tennet) who has a problem of her own. She needs a cook for a big meth score, and Milton is her man. The pair are picked up by her psychotic boyfriend, and the three head to a remote cabin to get busy getting rich. Soon double crosses, romance, murder and something very, very weird happens. And then it happens again.
This is an incredibly entertaining little blood-splattered romance with a sci-fi twist that is best entered with as little advance knowledge as possible — to that end be sure to ignore the back of the DVD which gives away way too much information. Hell, ignore the front cover too. Things start deceptively slow, but stick with it as the smart humor and story turns become more and more engaging and enjoyable.
[DVD extras: Deleted scenes, outtakes, test footage]
Good Kill
Tom Egan (Ethan Hawke) is an Air Force pilot who served multiple tours overseas only to be reassigned to a base in Nevada where he pilots drones from a high-tech shed. He wants to return to the sky, but he’s stuck staring at screens through a series of missions with an escalating acceptance of civilian casualties. The stress begins to take a toll on his marriage and his sense of well being.
Writer/director Andrew Niccol takes an engaging and incredibly cynical look at modern warfare to reveal the casualties beyond the targeted enemy. Hawke does great work here as a man whose heyday is well behind him as he struggles to come to grips with what his life and job have become. Zoe Kravitz and Bruce Greenwood give strong supporting turns as well, and it’s a movie that would make for a thoughtful double feature with Camp X-Ray. It’s a dark film — a brightly lit dark film — that should have you thinking deeply the next time you hear about a drone strike on the news. Which is every day.
[Blu-ray/DVD extras: Behind the scenes]
Mad Max: Fury Road
Max (Tom Hardy) is a loner in a world gone mad, and his efforts to stay that way have once again landed him in between violent oppressors and good people in need of help. He’s not alone in being a hero though as a woman named Furiosa (Charlize Theron) is just as ready and even more willing to step up and lead these people to safety.
George Miller’s long-awaited return to the world of The Road Warrior is not just the best action film of the year, but it’s also one of the best films of the year. Never has visible CG distracted me less in a film — you’re just swept away by the sheer energy and propulsive power of the film with what amounts to a two hour chase scene. It’s a beautiful movie too — nearly every frame is suitable for hanging on your wall, and the score by Junkie XL is designed for blasting loudly whether you’re watching the movie or not. There’s so much to love here including a kick-ass heroine who’s every bit as capable as Max himself that even after multiple — multiple — viewings I’m still every bit as entertained and engaged as I was on viewing number one.
[Blu-ray/DVD extras: Featurettes]
7 Minutes
Three friends are compelled by a tough guy to commit a bank robbery, but what should have been a simple and fast crime threatens instead to become a disaster. There’s talent on display here, both in front of and behind the camera, but the script’s structure unnecessarily confuses things with time jumps that are more distracting than suspenseful. Too much of it is in the service of plot turns that feel fairly obvious too.
[Blu-ray/DVD extras: Featurettes]
Army of Frankensteins
A young man is abducted by a mad scientist and transported back to the Civil War alongside an army of reanimated human monsters. I’m not gonna lie — I almost turned this one off at the ninety second mark. A severed arm gag grabbed my attention and gave me the strength to ignore the acting, script and digital effects issues that were already clear, but my forgiveness didn’t last long. Those three problems continue without improvement, and that’s too bad because the core idea holds the promise of real potential. Time travel is a rarity in horror and it’s a refreshing change, but the film can’t survive the execution resulting in a movie that can’t even hold a candle to a mediocre thriller like Frankenstein’s Army.
[Blu-ray/DVD extras: None]
The Blood Lands
A British couple arrive in Scotland as proud owners of an old farmhouse and surrounding land, but their very first night there becomes a fight for survival when intruders arrive intent on evicting the newcomers. There’s a great build-up here as the husband (Lee Williams) and wife (Pollyanna McIntosh) settle in to their situation and begin suspecting something is amiss, but once the bad guys actually arrive the thrills and drama dry up through a series of dumb or cliched turns. The threat isn’t scary or unnerving once they come visible, and that ending. Eesh.
[Blu-ray/DVD extras: Making of]
Broken Horses
Buddy was just a slow-witted boy when he witnessed his lawman father’s murder by an unknown assailant, but a local business owner named Julius Hench (Vincent D’Onofrio) pointed him in the direction of revenge. Fifteen years later the mentally-challenged young man (Chris Marquette) is working for Hench full-time as a trained attack dog with the outward appearance of a puppy. Buddy’s younger brother Jake (Anton Yelchin) moved away years ago but has returned to collect Buddy before realizing that the man holding the end of Buddy’s leash has no intention of letting that happen. Yelchin feels a bit too passive at times, but he delivers when it comes to the intensity of his brotherly bond. Marquette meanwhile has the more challenging role and manages to keep his performance more natural than gimmicky. It involves a lot of saliva though, so watch out for that. This is a slow-burn thriller that survives more on its characters, performers and style than its narrative — not because it’s bad, but because it’s so familiar — but the end result is a satisfyingly combustible film.
[DVD extras: Featurettes]
The D Train
Dan Landsman (Jack Black) has always been something of a loser with dreams of being the cool guy who everyone adores, and he finally gets a chance at it when he takes up the challenge of bringing his school’s success story, actor Oliver Lawless (James Marsden), back home for their class reunion. His plan succeeds, sort of, but not without a whole lot of chaos along the way. Marsden is always gold in comedies, so he’s more than enough reason to watch, but far less successful is the film’s attempt at serious turns of event. One bit in particular is played oddly for laughs when it really, really shouldn’t be. Still, Marsden.
[Blu-ray/DVD extras: Gag reel, deleted scenes]
Dark Was the Night
The small, rural town of Maiden Woods has begun receiving nightly visits from something that used to stay hidden in the forest. Pets are being slaughtered, people are in danger, and the local cops (Kevin Durand, Lukas Haas) begin to suspect it may have something to do with the nearby logging activities. Regardless of the cause though, they’re unprepared for the evil they’re about to face. This is an unassuming little creature feature that succeeds in creating a mildly unsettling atmosphere and strong visuals. The monster design is fresh — a real rarity in horror films these days — and it ends on a high note. Genre fans should give this one a shot.
[Blu-ray/DVD extras: Behind the scenes, Q&A]
Extinction
The world is a winter wasteland — presumably unrelated to an infectious outbreak that has wiped out most of humanity while turning others into carnivorous creatures — and Patrick (Matthew Fox) and Jack (Jeffrey Donovan) are neighbors. Patrick makes supply runs, blares rock music on loud speakers and broadcasts a bummer of a podcast in the hopes of finding other survivors. Jack meanwhile is raising his daughter as an educated, inquisitive shut-in forbidden from stepping foot beyond the fenced-in yard. All three believe the monsters are long gone, dead like the rest of humanity. All three are in for a surprise. This plays at times like any number of similar films — most notably I Am Legend and 28 Days Later — but it still features a small handful of memorable scenes and images. Unfortunately, most of them are in the film’s first thirty minutes. Action is front loaded before giving way to an ill-advised character drama that never really becomes engaging or all that interesting.
[DVD extras: Featurettes]
The Harvest
Maryann (Natasha Calis) moves to a new town to live with her grandparents and finds comfort in the odd friendship she shares with a sickly boy named Adam (Charlie Tahan). His parents (Samantha Morton, Michael Shannon) don’t fully support the friendship with the mother in particular being incredibly strict with the boy’s daily activities, and soon Maryann will know why. This is an odd one in that it’s cast, crew and setup hold such promise, but it just falls apart in strange fashion. The “surprise” plot turn isn’t all that surprising and there are some idiotic actions, but the bigger issue is Morton. We know she’s talented, but you wouldn’t know it by her performance here — it’s flat and flat-out terrible. Shannon is almost as disinterested, and instead the adults are all outshined by Calis who delivers real emotion and energy.
[Blu-ray/DVD extras: None]
I’ll See You In My Dreams
Carol (Blythe Danner) leads a full life, but it’s filled with the same old things. With the support of her three best friends she decides to shake things up a bit by stepping outside of her routine. How else is she going to meet the likes of Sam Elliot? This is a sweet and fun little film headlined by a strong, lively performance from Danner. It doesn’t break new ground in its tale of an older woman looking to spice things up, it’s a enjoyable and amusing experience rounded out with supporting turns from Malin Akerman, Martin Starr, June Squibb, Rhea Perlman and Mary Kay Place.
[Blu-ray/DVD extras: Featurette]
Lost After Dark
A group of rambunctious teenagers sneak out of their high school dance and head to the woods for some ’80s-style shenanigans, but what they find is ’80s-style slasher shenanigans. A bearded killer is stalking them, and the best night of their lives is about to become their last. The film earns points for the highly atypical order in which the teens are killed off, but that aside it’s an instantly forgettable excursion into forced nostalgia. None of he characters stand out, the dialogue and decisions are ludicrous, and we see so much of the killer that he never manages to be even remotely scary. Plus, you know, the beard.
[Blu-ray/DVD extras: None]
Redeemer
Pardo (Marko Zaror) once drew blood as a cartel enforcer, but he’s left that world behind in order to draw blood as a vigilante. His new career finds him crossing paths with a wannabe drug lord (Noah Segan) forcing Pardo to fight his way through dozens of henchmen and one very nasty hitman. I’m in the minority on this one, but this is not a great action picture. There’s lots of action here, to be sure, but the fight choreography — by a man named Marko Zaror — is severely lacking. The fights are slow and are shot/edited so that it’s repeatedly clear that no actual contact is occurring. Segan brings some levity to the proceedings which doesn’t match the tone of the rest of the film, but at least it’s funny.
[Blu-ray/DVD extras: Making of, deleted scenes]
Run Hide Die
Addison’s husband was killed during a home invasion one year prior, but she’s trying to move on with the help of her friends. They head to a remote cabin to relax, but their vacation takes a dark turn when someone else arrives with deadlier plans. The forty minutes or so preceding the murders — the time spent getting to know the girls and seeing them interact — is actually quite good, but like The Blood Lands above it takes a serious downward turn when the killing begins. The writing here that had previously been smart and funny becomes utterly idiotic. The explanation given for the murderer is so terrible, and the writing around the scenes is even worse. And that cover art? Never happens.
[DVD extras: None]
Star Wars: Rebels – Complete Season One
The Galactic Empire continues its death grip on democracy and free will throughout the galaxy, but a small group of rebels stand between it and complete domination. They engage in a series of increasingly dangerous missions that put them in the cross-hairs of laser blasters and in the arced path of light sabers, but will their efforts be enough against the power of the dark side? This is a creatively designed and fast-paced series set in the Star Wars universe that I absolutely can not get into. It says more about me than the show, but I can not stand this kind of stylized animation. Ignore my weird distaste though and go enjoy these adventures because you never know when we’ll get anything else set in this world.
[Blu-ray/DVD extras: Featurettes, artwork]
The Surface
Mitch (Sean Astin) heads out to the middle of Lake Michigan with a plan, but just as he’s about to commit to it his boat hits some debris in the water. A small plane floats in pieces, and when he brings the wounded pilot (Chris Mulkey) aboard both men discover truths about themselves, each other and their odds of ever seeing shore again. The opening scenes here are beautifully done and convey a real sense of loneliness through the imagery and soundtrack, but there’s something a bit rough about the conversations that follow at first. Astin and Mulkey find a nice groove and become the main draw here as the story doesn’t quite come together as well as its leads.
[DVD extras: Commentary, photo gallery, music video, featurette, deleted scenes, documentary about the Great Lakes]
Wolf Warrior
Feng (Wu Jing) is a top member of China’s Special Forces, but after an incident involving a hostage rescue sees him disobey a direct order he’s tossed into jail and labeled a trouble-maker. That’s just the kind of soldier the Wolf Warriors are looking for, but as he joins the team for a training exercise a group of terrorists (led by Scott Adkins) come calling looking for revenge. Wu and Adkins are both spectacular fighters so this really should have been a home run, but unfortunately it doesn’t even come close. The two barely scrap, and the majority of the action is either gun-play or goofy wire-fu — we even get a sequence involving CG wolves. There’s some fun to be had here, but it’s a major missed opportunity.
[Blu-ray/DVD extras: None]
Boulevard, The Curse of Downer’s Grove, The Face of an Angel, Gemma Bovary, Lawless Kingdom, Lords of London, Para Elisa, Paranormal Island, Texas Rising, Walker Texas Ranger: 4-Movie Collection
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