CliqueClack

Heart of Darkness lacks bonus content on DVD, but still an entertaining film

While it may be safe to say that movies are indeed a dime a dozen, good films are in fact few and far between. Take it from me, folks. I’ve been watching films since I was a kid. From what I can ascertain, it seems that back in the early days of motion pictures, it was a non-negotiable prerequisite to produce quality films. These days, the bad outweighs the good. This is why it comes as such a welcome relief to see Warner Brothers releasing DVDs from their awesome Archive Collection. Look at it like the Disney vault – but instead of fun animated sing-alongs, it’s live action thrillers.

One of the films that have been recently released from the Warner Archive Collection is Heart of Darkness, the 1993 thriller starring John Malkovich from RED and RED 2 and Tim Roth whom I’d only known from his role in 2008’s The Incredible Hulk.

I’m pretty sure I just dated myself. Don’t judge me.

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Throwback Thursday: The Matchmaker is a match made in heaven for this Valentine’s Day

With Valentine’s Day looming ever closer on my singles radar, I decided now would be the ideal time to review a classic romantic comedy that has been graciously provided from the Warner Archive Collection. I selected The Matchmaker (1958), starring Shirley Booth, Shirley MacLaine, Anthony Perkins, Paul Ford and Robert Morse. I love screwball romantic comedies, and this here-to-now unseen gem was everything I’d hoped it’d be and more.

What I found most enjoyable about The Matchmaker was the way the characters draw you immediately into the story by doing asides to the camera for the audience’s benefit. In fact, I’d say this movie featured some of the best asides I’ve ever seen. Right away, you’re given a first impression into each main character’s psyche with a simple — albeit cleverly written — phrase or two. You can tell that Dolly “Gallagher” Levi (Shirley Booth) is a bit of a meddling matchmaker, Horace Vandergelder (Paul Ford) is an impatient, selfish curmudgeon and Irene Molloy (Shirley MacLaine) is a little bit of a tart taunting you with her pretty petticoats as she steps off a stagecoach in Yonkers, New York, 1884. You’re also left with the assumption that Cornelius Hackl (Anthony Perkins) is an incorrigible flirt, as he’s seen admiring ladies passing by him on the street while he charms you with that devilishly handsome smirk of his, asking if you’re alone and then nodding his head in understanding that your date is out getting your popcorn. (Or maybe that’s just me. I’ve been in love with Anthony Perkins since the first time I saw Psycho. Norman Bates was just tragically misunderstood, haha)

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RoboCop is back on the beat

1987’s RoboCop is a classic action movie that successfully blends the typical action tropes of the day with a bit of wry satirical commentary on society. The film was also rated R for its sometimes hilariously over-the-top violence, and it made a star out of lead Peter Weller (and gave Nancy Allen an opportunity to remind everyone that she could do more than just appear in Brian De Palma movies, from whom she was divorced in 1984).

RoboCop was also Paul Verhoeven’s first major Hollywood film, which he followed up with Total Recall three years later. Total Recall was given the remake treatment in 2012 with less than successful result – due mainly to blowing the story’s central mystery in the first ten minutes – and now the same studio (Columbia) is dipping into Verhoeven’s back catalog with a remake of RoboCop. Does it suffer the same fate as Total Recall? (And is Basic Instinct next on the list?)

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Sherlock, The Americans, Dallas and more TV on DVD and Blu-ray

Sherlock‘s third season just ended, and now it’s coming to home video! Just how did Holmes survive that fatal second season finale? All will be explained on the home video release. New seasons of The Americans and Dallas are about to start, so you can catch up with the past season of each this week as well. WWE’s Shawn Michaels gets a couple of video releases as well, and the acclaimed French zombie series The Returned comes widely to home video after a run on the Sundance Channel. Animation fans of all ages can enjoy new video releases for Regular Show, Looney Tunes and DC Super Heroes, as well as an all-new Scooby Doo release with puppets! Classic TV fans can rejoice in the long-awaited second season of Newhart finally coming to DVD, as well as mini-series Windmills of the Gods and The Last Days of Pompeii (cleverly tying in with the new theatrical release). These and more are available February 11th. You can find out more or make a purchase through our handy shopper’s guide … and remember, any purchase made through our links helps support CliqueClack. And we thank you for your support!

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All is Lost, Ender’s Game, Diana and more on home video February 11

Some pretty major films are coming to home video this week, and pretty much all of them got snubbed by Oscar. The most surprising omission has to be Robert Redford as Best Actor in All is Lost. He seemed to be a shoo-in for his man lost at sea performance, but Oscar voters must have felt they could only have one 70+ actor in the running and went with Bruce Dern instead (and now Jonah Hill has more acting nominations than Redford!). Everyone probably thought Naomi Watts was going to get a nomination for her role in Diana, but the film was so poorly received — and barely distributed in the US — that she didn’t stand a chance. One multi-nominee, Gravity, gets an early digital only release this week before hitting DVD and Blu-ray. Other small but interesting titles to consider for your buying and viewing pleasure include GBF and Chastity Bites. Disney is unleashing The Jungle Book onto Blu-ray for the first time and Chicago is getting spiffed up to remind us that it won the Best Picture Oscar.

These titles are more are due on home video February 11, and you can get more information about a title or make a purchase through any of the links in our handy shopper’s guide. Any purchase made through a link helps support our work here at CliqueClack, and we thank you for your support!

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The Monuments Men: Raiders of the lost art

Not many people know Adolf Hitler was an artist. Or at least he fancied himself as one … unfortunately no one else did and he may have channeled that disappointment at not being taken seriously as an artist into other endeavors. Who knows what the world would have been like had little Adolf been allowed to pursue his dreams.

Of course, we all know what did happen as Hitler tried to turn Europe into his own personal playground, but not many know that his obsession with art continued while he was waging war. As his troops stormed through Italy and France, they also collected art wherever they could find it — museums, churches, people’s homes. The majority of the fine art by the old masters was being kept for display in the proposed Fuhrer Museum which was to be built in Hitler’s home town. When it became known that these original masterworks (paintings and sculptures alike) were disappearing, a team of art historians from the US, England and France banded together to save and return the art.

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JLA Adventures: Trapped in Time is a Family-friendly Delight for DC Fans

This weekend I made my yearly travel to the mysterious land of Toronto, Canada, to see quite a few of my Canadian friends and those international friends who could make the trip. And because many of these friends are superhero nerds, I made sure to bring JLA Adventures: Trapped in Time, the straight-to-DVD WB release only made available in the US as of last month. Sitting down and rewatching the kid-friendly adventure with my buddies, I got to appreciate just how good the movie is

I was worried about the superteens from the future Karate Kid and Dawnstar simply because they were the only characters I didn’t know much about going into the movie, but truth be told, I like them. Even when they were doing the “I’m from the future and don’t understand how taxis work” schtick, it was pretty charming. More than that, the story did a decent job of setting up their personal flaws as young heroes and how they had to deal with it. They’re also the ones to come up with solutions the two times things get really bad for the heroes. And they happen to be two non-white characters whose costumes are appropriate for their age (I looked up Dawnstar’s comic costume and this is a vast improvement, especially considering she’s a teenager here). Continue reading 'JLA Adventures: Trapped in Time is a Family-friendly Delight for DC Fans' »

War Horse storms the stage

For as long as I can remember, I have loved the movies. Movie magic has the power to deliver practically anything one can imagine, but as we have come to expect more and more from that movie magic as blockbuster after blockbuster pushes the envelope with special effects, we have almost become desensitized to the visceral thrill the movies can bring. Go back a few decades and look at the old school effects to see what real movie magic was. The movie that inspired me to want to know how movies were made was The Poseidon Adventure, which used every practical effect in the book to make it look like a cruise ship had overturned. That was exciting to see through ten year old eyes.

The only other place that can still give you that visceral thrill of seeing something unbelievable right before your eyes is the stage. Yes, shows are incorporating more video screens to create sets and visual effects, but there’s still something thrilling about seeing the stage transform before your eyes into various sets and locations, or to watch someone defy gravity, or to see a beast change into a prince. It’s awe inspiring because you know it’s really happening and not something that was created inside a computer. The latest show to bring that wow factor to live audiences across the country is the Nation Theatre of Great Britain’s production of War Horse which is currently touring North America, with a brief stop at Baltimore’s Hippodrome Theatre through February 9th.

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Dallas Buyers Club, Free Birds and more come to home video

A few major titles are coming to home video this week, including the multiple Oscar nominee Dallas Buyers Club. The film is nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor. Matthew McConaughey has already won several awards for his performance (or weight loss) so he seems a shoo-in for the Oscar … although many would love to see Bruce Dern win for his performance in Nebraska. Jared Leto has also won some awards for his touching, sympathetic portrayal of transsexual Rayon, and my money is on him for the Oscar win as well. With the home video release, you’ll have time to judge for yourself before the ceremony on March 2. Be warned, it is a tough film to sit through, especially if your life has been touched by HIV/AIDS in any way.

Also out this week is the anticipated team-up of Stallone and Schwarzenegger in Escape Plan, the animated Free Birds, Baggage Claim and another version of Romeo & Juliet. Early digital releases include Thor: The Dark World, Austenland and The Armstrong Lie. Fans of classic action and horror will be happy with new Blu-ray releases of Night of the Demons, Witchboard and Death Wish, and Napoleon Dynamite celebrates its 10th anniversary! These titles and more are available February 4, and you can see all of the major highlights in our shopper’s guide. Click on a link to get more information or to make a purchase from Amazon.com.

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Win passes to see Endless Love in Indianapolis

CliqueClack has partnered with Universal Pictures to offer readers in the Indianapolis area an opportunity to attend an advance screening of the new film Endless Love starring Alex Pettyfer, Gabriella Wilde, Robert Patrick, Bruce Greenwood, Rhys Wakefield, Dayo Okeniyi, Emma Rigby and Joley Richardson. Endless Love tells the story of a privileged girl and a charismatic boy whose instant desire sparks a love affair made only more reckless by parents trying to keep them apart.

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