4k-UHD/Movie Review: Ocean's 8

 

Ocean's 8 is a 2018 film starring Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway, Sarah Paulson, Rihanna, Helena Bonham Carter, Awkwafina, and Mindy Kaling. It  is partly a continuation and partly a reboot of the modern-day Ocean's movie franchise. The storyline centers on the character of Debbie Ocean (played by Sandra Bullock), the sister of Danny Ocean (George Clooney's character from Ocean's 11, 12, and 13). At the beginning of the film, she is being released from prison, much as he was in Ocean's 11. Of course, upon her release from prison, she ends up planning a heist. Specifically, the robbery of a 150-million-dollar necklace during the Met Gala. She heads an all-female crew, including Cate Blanchett (whose character mirrors Brad Pitt's character), Mindy Kaling, Sarah Paulson, Helena Bonham Carter, Rihanna, and Awkwafina. Anne Hathaway plays the actress whose neck the necklace needs to be removed from. James Corden also has a pretty hilarious supporting role.

I will not give away too much of the plot for those who have not seen it. It does have a similar feel to the other movies, especially how the details of the heist are laid out at the end. While Soderberg did not direct the film, he was a producer on it. So, while the style of the movie differed somewhat from the prior films, it retained some of the overall feel. There are a couple of cameos from the Ocean's 11 cast. If more movies are made, it definitely leaves room for other original cast members to appear, but the story was written in such a way that this could be the final film in the franchise.

The 4k set is a two-disc set containing a UHD disc and a standard blu-ray disc. The A/V quality of the 4k disc is outstanding, and the movie looks and sounds great in the UHD format. Like most, the UHD disc has only the movie itself, and then the bonus features are on the regular blu-ray. The extras include a few minutes of deleted scenes, then a few behind-the-scenes and making-of featurettes. Probably about 40 minutes of material. Good for what is there, but not a ton (especially compared to the Ocean's trilogy blu-ray set).

I cannot say that everyone will like this. Given that it is rebooting a popular movie franchise (which itself was a reboot), there are going to be people who hate it because it does not feature the original cast or because it is ripping off the original story. Personally, I think it was well done and paid homage nicely to the prior movies without being a carbon copy of what has come before. Like the previous films, it requires some suspension of disbelief to buy into the story and everything that happens. Ultimately, it effectively updates the franchise and is worth watching.

Blu-Ray/Movie Collection Review: Die Hard 5-Movie Collection

 

This is the five-movie blu-ray set for the Die Hard movie franchise, including the original 1988 film Die Hard, and the four sequels: 1990's Die Hard 2, 1995's Die Hard With a Vengeance, 2007's Live Free or Die Hard, and 2013's A Good Day to Die Hard. There have been a few different iterations of the movies put out on blu-ray, including sets that just had 3, then 4 of the five total (at least to date) movies. I believe there have also been a couple of different versions of the five-movie set as well. Each film starred Bruce Willis as John McClane, an NYPD detective who is thrown into the middle of crazy situations. The supporting cast throughout the franchise included Alan Rickman, Reginald VelJohnson, Bonnie Bedelia, William Sadler, Franco Nero, John Amos, Dennis Franz, Jeremy Irons, Samuel L. Jackson, Justin Long, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Timothy Olyphant, Maggie Q., Kevin Smith, and Jai Courtney.

Chances are most people who are interested in getting the set are fans of the movies and have seen them all at least once. Pretty much everyone agrees that the first movie, put out in 1988 is iconic, not only because it saw Bruce Willis transition from a TV star to an action movie star, but also was a breakout performance for Alan Rickman (who is probably best known for his role as Snape in the Harry Potter franchise) as the great villain, Hans Gruber. The first film was a movie about a NY city cop who ends up in the wrong place at the wrong time in Los Angeles in a building taken over by terrorists. As the franchise went on, the movies took on a larger scale, required more suspension of disbelief, and, at least in my opinion, never really equaled the quality of the first movie.

The sequels were of varying quality. I think there are varying opinions on which is the best and which is the worst of the sequels, but I think everyone agrees that having the 4th movie release with a PG-13 rating for the theatrical version was a big mistake. In all of them, for various reasons, Willis' character is an imperfect hero who ends up in outrageous situations where he has to take down a bunch of bad guys. That part of the storyline never really deviates throughout the franchise, but they manage to pull it off by not having the movies be carbon copies of each other.

The A/V quality varies from film to film. Of course, the A/V quality of the later movies is better than that of the early films; however, each movie received at least a decent HD transfer. There are a lot of extras for each movie. The 4th and 5th movies have the most behind-the-scenes and making-of material, and all of them have deleted and/or extended scenes, at least one commentary track, and other extras (like a gag reel, trailers, and TV spots, etc,) vary from movie-to-movie.

Overall, the Die Hard franchise is meant to be fun, summer-action movies. They do not have award-winning acting and writing, even though there have been many good to great actors appearing (Samuel L. Jackson, Jeremy Irons, Timothy Olyphant, Alan Rickman, etc.). If you accept that, they are fun movies, and for people who are big fans of the franchise, you get a lot of extras to watch (more than the total running time of all the movies combined). For casual fans, this set may be a bit much, however, and you may just want to get the individual movie(s) you like. Ultimately, the first movie is a must-see for fans of Willis or action movies in general. The others may not appeal to everyone, but they are worth checking out, and this set is definitely worth picking up for fans of the franchise. 

DVD/Movie Review: Sleepy Hollow

 

Sleepy Hollow is a 1999 horror film starring Johnny Depp, Christina Ricci, and Christopher Walken. This version is an adaptation of the story written and directed by Tim Burton (post his departure from the Batman movies). Johnny Depp plays Ichabod Crane, and Christina Ricci plays Katrina Van Tassel, the daughter of the richest man in Sleepy Hollow, whose residents are being picked off by The Headless Horesman (played by Christopher Walken and Ray Park performing the stunts). The supporting cast includes Miranda Richardson, Michael Gambon, Ian McDiramand, Christopher Lee (yes, Palpatine, Darth Maul, and Count Dooku in the same non-Star Wars movie), and Michael Gough (among others).

The DVD release had an okay video transfer. The extras included deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes material, and a commentary track by Tim Burton. Overall, a good amount of material for those who like bonus content.

The movie was excellent, with great acting and writing. It was an interesting choice to make Crane as eccentric as he was in the story, but not as goofy looking as he was written in the book (although Depp was willing to wear prosthetics). The love story between Depp and Ricci's characters was a bit creepy given their age difference, but there were no actual love/sex scenes between the two. The movie is very violent and gory (given the beheadings), so it is definitely not appropriate for young kids. Overall, however, it is a great adaptation of the story that is worth watching.

Blu-Ray/Movie Collection Review: The Oceans Trilogy

 

The Ocean's trilogy is a collection of three movies, starting with the 2001 remake of Ocean's 11 (which originally starred The Rat Pack), followed by the 2004 and 2007 sequels, Ocean's 12 and Ocean's 13. The core cast members of the updated version and the sequels included George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon, and Andy Garcia. The supporting cast included Don Cheadle, Bernie Mac, Carl Reiner, Elliot Gould, Casey Affleck, Scott Caan, and Shaobo Qin. The rest of the cast changed from film to film, but included Vincent Cassel, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Robbie Coltrane, Eddie Izzard, Albert Finney, Cherry Jones, Ellen Barkin, Al Pacino, and David Paymer. 

The basic storyline of the first movie is that a group of thieves led by George Clooney and Brad Pitt put together and execute a plan to steal 160 million dollars from a Vegas casino owner (played by Andy Garcia). The sequels stood mostly on their own, essentially as revenge stories. Ocean's 12 and 13 were very different, with Ocean's 12 essentially being an extension of the storyline from the first film, and Ocean's 13 having a more stand-alone story. They are all directed by Steven Soderbergh and maintained the same production team, which I think allowed the films to be cohesive, keeping a similar tone and feel, without being carbon copies of each other. 

The blu-ray set is a four-disc set. The A/V quality of the blu-rays is good, but is probably not what A/V enthusiasts would consider reference quality. Ocean's 13 definitely looks the best of the three. Each movie is on its own disc and includes at least one commentary track, deleted/extended scenes, and some behind-the-scenes material (such as the HBO first looks), specific to the particular movie. The Ocean's 13 disc also includes a feature on real-life heists (such as the MIT card-counting group). Then there is a separate blu-ray with more bonus material around two hours worth of extras that spanned all three movies. 

The movies were well-written and acted. Each film had a mix of comedy and drama, with some action included here and there. Ultimately, if you are a fan of the movies and like watching the bonus material, this is definitely a good pickup.

4k-UHD/Movie Review: Cheeky!

 

Cheeky is an Italian erotic comedy from 2000, starring Yulia Mayarchuk, Francessca Nunzi, and Jarno Berardi, and directed by Tinto Brass. It was released in Italy under the name Tra(sgre)dire, which is a play on the words transgress and cheat in Italian. In it, Mayarchuk plays Carla, who has recently moved to London from Venice to begin a job working as an intern at the front desk of a hotel. While looking for an apartment that she hopes to share with her jealous, possessive boyfriend (played by Berardi), she is seduced by a real estate agent (played by Nunzi). 

The 4k Set is a two-disc set, containing a UHD disc and a standard blu-ray disc. The A/V quality of the UHD disc is very good, especially for a low-budget 25-year-old international film. The film has the original Italian audio track and a dubbed English audio track (which it defaults to). It can be played with English captions that do not always match the actual dialogue. The film also has a commentary track by film critics Eugenio Ercolani and Nathanial Thompson, in which they discuss the film and Brass's larger body of work. The only other extra on the UHD disc are trailers for some of Brass' other films. The rest of the bonus material is on the regular blu-ray disc. Those include an archival backstage interview with Brass, some still photos from the film, a discussion with the cinematographer, Massimo Di Venanzo, in which he mostly talks about his career and how he began working with Brass, but does not discuss much about Cheeky at all, and an isolated score that just plays the music of the film over one of the still photos. It also comes with an illustrated booklet that discusses the film's controversial nature.

Cheeky is one of Brass's later films. It also marked a turn for him. He was known for making erotic movies, but he had been very much against making explicit films. He famously wanted his name removed from Caligula (which is the film he is probably best known for, at least in the United States) after the explicit material was added in without his knowledge after principal photography was complete. While this film did not feature actual sex, it got very close. Mayarchuk is in almost every scene, and is nude probably 90% of the time and partially nude the rest of the time, including very close-in shots that are akin to what you would see in Penthouse magazine back in the day. It is much more explicit than what you would see in the soft-core "Skinemax" type movies, but not quite what you would get in an unedited hardcore pornographic film. There is some full frontal male nudity as well, but most of that is done with prosthetics. Ultimately, this is a cult film that will probably only appeal to those familiar with Brass's other works. The movie itself is quite bad, but the quality of the writing and acting wasn't really the point. It does have a plot, but it is very much secondary to the sex scenes, of which there are many. If you do not expect it to be more than it is, it is entertaining. 

Blu-Ray/Movie Collection Review: Police Academy 1-7: The Complete Collection

 

Police Academy was a rather prolific series of comedy movies (at least at first) during the 1980s. They were put out in rapid succession every year from 1984-1989, and the final movie (yes, there are actually seven in all) was released in 1994, at which point the series was (thankfully) put out of its misery after the final two horrible entries.

The first movie, starring Steve Guttenberg, Kim Cattrall, G. W. Bailey, Bubba Smith, David Graf, Michael Winslow, Leslie Easterbrook, George Gaynes, and G.W. Bailey, is by far the best movie of the bunch. The subsequent movies varied in quality, with two and three being the best of the sequels (in my opinion), and the last two movies being the worst. The seventh movie was just plain stupid, with a bad plot, stupid sound effects inserted, and a feeling that what was left of the original cast was really just going through the motions. Steve Guttenberg stopped returning to the movies after Police Academy 4, which is the point where they should have really stopped.

This set is a seven-disc set, packaged in three keep cases (three discs in the first case and two in each of the other two) that can be kept in a decorative outer box. While it is a UK release, it seems like the set is region-free. I did not try playing them on a Region 1 player, but I have a region-free player, which, aside from one exception I have come across so far, can play DVDs and Blu-ray discs from anywhere, and it plays this set just fine. The extras vary from movie to movie. Each disc has a behind-the-scenes feature, which includes interviews with the cast and filmmakers. The length of them varies, with the longest being the one for the first movie (at about 25 minutes, give or take), and the others being around 7- 8 minutes. Then some of the discs may or may not include commentary tracks on the films, deleted scenes, trailers, specific character profiles, etc. It seems most of the interviews were conducted around 2004, before Bubba Smith and David Graf passed away, as they were both included in the interviews.

Overall, this set is a good, inexpensive way to get all of the movies in one collection. Even the best of them never tried to be more than they were, used very tongue-in-cheek comedy, and never took themselves too seriously. Over time, they became more and more slapstick and almost a caricature of themselves. The movies do have a lot of swearing, some violence, sexual jokes, and some include brief nudity, so the films definitely earned their R ratings. But, for those of us who grew up with the original movie, it is a fun blast from the past. Ultimately, if you are a fan of 80s comedies and/or a fan of the series, this is worth adding to a physical media collection.

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Bolero

 

Bolero is a 1984 romantic drama starring Bo Derek, George Kennedy, Andrea Occhipinti, Ana Obregon, Olivia d'Abo, and Greg Bensen. It was written and directed by Bo Derek's husband, John. The plot involves an orphan heir to a massive fortune named Ayre "Mac" McGillvary (played by Bo Derek) looking for the right man to take her virginity after she graduates from college. She travels the world with her best friend, Catalina (played by Obergon), and chauffeur, Cotton (played by Kennedy), looking for the perfect man.

The A/V quality of the blu-ray is good, but not outstanding. Given that it was a low-budget B-movie when released, it is not surprising that it did not receive a high-quality HD restoration. There are no bonus features with the release, just the movie itself, which can be played with English captions.

It was a very controversial movie for its time, because of sex scenes that rival the soft-core "Skinemax" movies, and the fact that d'Abo, who was 14 when the movie was filmed, appeared nude (although not close up, and not in sex scenes). It could not get a traditional release because it would have received an X-rating (even though there are no explicit sex scenes) since the NC-17 rating did not exist at the time. The movie itself is bad. The acting and writing were horrible, but anyone who is old enough to remember Bo Derek's heyday knows that her movies were not made because of their award-winning content. They were made because she was hot and willing to get naked at the drop of a hat. It was a bit funny to have Derek, who was almost 30 when the film was released, playing a 23-year-old recent college grad, but again, the details were not important. The movie does have a lot of nudity and several sex scenes, so it is not family-friendly. Ultimately, it is not a movie that you would watch because you want to see quality acting and writing, but if you are into cheesy 80s movies that show a lot of skin, it is worth checking out. 

DVD/Movie Review: ...And God Created Woman

 

And God Created Woman is the 1956 French romantic drama starring Brigitte Bardot, Curd Jurgens, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Marie Glory, Georges Poujouly, and Christian Marquand. It was directed by Bardot's then-husband, Roger Vadim. The movie is set in San-Tropez, France, where Bardot's character, Juliette, is an 18-year-old orphan whose outrageous (for the time) behavior makes her the subject of town gossip. To prevent her from being sent back to the orphanage until she turns 21, the town's wealthy real-estate developer tries to convince the eldest brother (Antione) of the family, whose land he is trying to purchase, to marry Juliette. While she wants to marry Antione, he is not interested in marrying her. His younger brother Michel, who is infatuated with Juliette, proposes to her, which she begrudgingly accepts. 

The Criterion DVD remasters the film quite well. It is not on the level of a Blu-ray or 4K-UHD high-quality restoration, but the film looks very good. The movie only has a French audio track (it does not have the English dubbed track that some versions of the movie include), but it can be played with English captions. It has a few bonus features, including the theatrical trailer (which is in English) and a featurette on the remastering process. 

The movie is definitely dated and feels like a product of the 1950s. It was, of course, the film that launched Bardot's popularity into the stratosphere as a sex symbol. It was also Vadim's (who should have been named "lucky bastard" since he married Bardot when she was 18, married Jane Fonda in her mid-20s, and dated several other gorgeous actresses) first film as a director. It does have some quick flashes of nudity, although you cannot really see much aside from a quick flash of side-boob, and some violence (highlighted by a hilariously awful fight scene about a third of the way through the movie). Ultimately, even though it would likely be made quite differently today than it was in 1956, and would probably not be found as entertaining or controversial today as it was back then, if you are a fan of classic films, it is worth watching.

4k-UHD/Movie Review: Barbarella

 

Barbarella is the 1968 Sci-Fi cult-classic starring Jane Fonda, John Phillip Law, Milo O'Shea, Anita Pallenberg, Ugo Tognazzi, David Hemmings, Marcel Marceau, and Claude Dauphin. It was directed by Fonda's husband at the time, Roger Vadim, and produced by the famous Italian producer, Dino De Laurentiis. It was based on and adapted from a French comic book. The movie itself is bad. The writing and acting are god-awful, and the plot is silly. It was mostly a comedy (or what passed for comedy in the late 1960s) and was very tongue-in-cheek and campy (similar to the 1960s Batman TV series). It did have some (very bad) action, a slight political message, and a heavy anti-war message (based on the free-love hippie culture of the time). Of course, Fonda would become a highly controversial figure in the 1970s due to her protests against the Vietnam War, including visiting Hanoi, the capital of North Vietnam. 

Despite having a very high budget (for the time), everything about the movie looks cheap and fake. Obviously, special effects in the late 1960s were nothing like what they are today; however, if you compare this film to the other major Sci-Fi classic that came out the same year, 2001, the difference is night and day. However, the movie does feature Fonda (who was an absolute smoke-show back then) in skimpy revealing outfits, and nude during the opening credits. Sadly, Fonda actually had an eating disorder at the time the movie was being made, so the outfits they put her in probably did not help that. The plot involves Barbarella (played by Fonda), who is a space traveler and representative of Earth (which, at some time in the future around the year 40,000, has become a peaceful utopia), being sent to the Tau Ceti planetary system to track down a rogue scientist named Durand Durand (played by O'Shea), who has created a weapon with the power to destroy humanity. There, she has sex with pretty much everyone she meets in exchange for help tracking Durand down. 

The 4K set is a two-disc set, containing a UHD disc and a standard Blu-ray disc. The A/V quality is very good, but it definitely exposes the limitations of the late 1960s special and practical effects. The UHD disc contains the movie and a handful of extras (alternate opening and closing credit sequences). The movie can be played with an audio commentary track by film critic Tim Lucas. The standard Blu-Ray contains hours of bonus content, most of which was produced in 2003 specifically for the 4K release by Arrow Films. The longest feature is a zoom discussion between Tim Lucas and comic book artist Steve Bissette, in which they discuss the movie, the comic it was adapted from, and the influence it had on similar films and comics, and pop culture in general (such as inspiring the name of the 1980s British pop group, Duran Duran, which was probably the best thing that resulted from the film's popularity). Additionally, the release includes behind-the-scenes footage, photo stills (which feature both promotional and behind-the-scenes images), interviews with some of the surviving cast and crew members, the theatrical trailer, and radio spots. Notably, Fonda does not appear in any of the updated bonus features. 

Ultimately, the movie is a product of the late 1960s that does not hold up particularly well, aside from being a cult classic. It is not necessarily a movie that you will watch because you want to see award-winning entertainment (unless you count the Razzies), but it is entertaining in its own way. And, if you like physical media releases with a lot of bonus content, this has you covered. I cannot say that the film will appeal to everyone, but if you like campy sci-fi that is "so bad it's good", this is worth watching. 

DVD.Movie Review: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny

 

Sword of Destiny is a sequel to the 2000 movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. It stars Michelle Yeoh (who was the only cast member from the original film to return for the sequel), Donnie Yen, Natasha Liu Bordizzo, Jason Scott Lee, Harry Shum Jr., Eugenia Yuan, Roger Yuan, JuJu Chan, Chris Pang, Woo Young Park, and Darryl Quon. The movie is set 18 years after the events of the first film. In the movie, we learn a bit more about Shu Lien's (Yeoh's character) past and the man to whom she was betrothed. There is another fight for, and an attempt to steal, the Green Destiny, which is still at the home of the recently deceased Ser Te, and then there are some weird side plots.

The DVD is clearly not an official release. It can be played in a variety of languages (defaulting to Chinese), with an English audio track also available. The movie was actually filmed in English, even though it was released in Hong Kong and China before being released in the US. Therefore, if you watch it with the English audio track, you won't have to sit through bad overdubbing. It is also captioned in a few different languages, including English, but the English captions do not even slightly match what the characters are saying in the English audio track. Even though the DVD menu indicates there are bonus features, there is no way to select "bonus" from the menu; you can only play the movie, navigate the scene selection, or choose the audio and captions. The A/V quality is only okay, and there are some really bad (and cheesy) CGI effects in a couple of scenes.

The movie is okay, but nowhere near as good as the original film. It appears that the script was written with the hope that Zhang Ziyi would reprise her character from the first movie, and then the script was slightly altered when she did not. It features some good action sequences, some of which pay homage to scenes from the first film. I think it would have been better as a straight sequel to the first movie, telling what happened to Jen after she jumped from the mountain, and what Shu Lien did after Li Mu Bai's death. Ultimately, it is not a must-watch, but if you liked the first movie, it is interesting to check out. 

4k-UHD/Movie Review: American Pie 2 (Deluxe Collector's Edition) [UK Import]

 

American Pie 2 is the 2001 follow-up to 1999's unexpected hit comedy, American Pie. All the primary cast members (Jason Biggs, Seann William Scott, Chris Klein, Eddie Kaye Thomas, Tara Reid, Alyson Hannigan, Shannon Elizabeth, Eugene Levy, Mena Suvari, Natasha Lyonne, and Thomas Ian Nicholas) return for the sequel, as do many of the supporting cast, including Chris Owen, John Cho, Casey Affleck, Molly Cheeks, Jennifer Coolidge, and Eli Marienthal. The new cast members in this film include Denise Faye, Lisa Arturo, JoAnna Garcia, and Joelle Carter. 

The story is set a year after the events of the first movie, as the characters' first year of college is ending, and they go back home for the summer. In an attempt to rekindle the post-high school weirdness, the friends decide to rent a house on Lake Michigan for the summer, with the plan to throw a massive blowout party at the end of the summer. Of course, hijinks ensue, and the group ultimately learn something by the end of the film. 

The 4K set is a two-disc set containing a UHD disc and a regular Blu-ray disc. This is an import set from the UK, so while the UHD disc is region-free and can be played on a Region 1 4K player, the Blu-Ray disc is region-locked, so you will need a Region 2 player to watch it (which is really only an issue if you want to watch the bonus content, aside from the commentary tracks). The UHD disc includes both the theatrical and unrated versions of the movie and all four commentary tracks (one by the director J.B. Rogers, one by the writer Adam Herz, one by cast members Jason Biggs, Thomas Ian Nicholas, and Mena Suvari, and one by cast member Eddie Kaye Thomas) on the theatrical version. Both Rodgers and Herz's commentary tracks provide a lot of insight into the film and the process of getting it made, changes that were made, etc. The commentary with Biggs, Suvari, and Ian Nicholas is the most entertaining as they spend most of the time joking with each other. Thomas provides some insight into the movie, but he is a bit dry, and there are long stretches when he does not say anything (probably because he is by himself when it was recorded). The unrated version of the film adds about five minutes to the runtime and essentially extends a few scenes, but does not add anything significant to the storyline.

The rest of the bonus features are on the regular Blu-Ray. Some (like the deleted scenes, music video, trailer, etc.) were carried over from the original DVD release, but not everything from the original release is included on this release, so if you have the original DVD, you may want to keep it. Other bonus content includes featurettes on the changed Oz and Heather storyline, and the storyline with Stifler's dad that was ultimately cut from the movie.

The movie is a good follow-up to the original. While the tone (and many of the jokes) echo those of the first movie (especially in the beginning), it is not a carbon copy of the original film. There are some very funny moments and some dramatic moments in the film. The roles of the various characters underwent significant changes as the movie shifted its focus to Jim and Michelle's relationship. As a result, characters like Vicky and Kevin received much less screen time, while Hannigan's role expanded considerably in this movie compared to the first. Oz and Heather's story was supposed to be quite different, but it got changed during reshoots, as did Stifler's storyline, which changed the amount of screen time those characters received. Eugene Levy received similar screen time and served a similar function to his role in the first film. Shannon Elizabeth had a bit more screen time than she did in the first film (unfortunately, she does not get naked in this one), but she is mostly seen talking on the phone until the movie's third act. 

The movie does earn its R-rating, as it does have a lot of raunchy comedy, swearing, sexual dialogue, and nudity. Ultimately, it is a good movie about how life and relationships change after high school, whether you want them to or not. If you liked or loved the first movie, this one (while probably not quite as good as the first film) is worth watching.

4k-UHD/Movie Review: Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon

 

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was the martial arts masterpiece of a film from 2000. It was directed by Ang Lee and starred Chow Yun Fat, Michelle Yeoh, Zhang Ziyi, Cheng Pei-Pei, Chang Chen, Xian Gao, and Sihung Lung. The story is set in 19th-century Imperial China. Fat and Yeoh play two master warriors named Li Mu Bai and Shu Lien. Bai is a Wudang swordsman. He and Shu Lien head a private security company. The two are in love, but because Shu Lien had been engaged to Li Mu Bai's close friend, they do not act on their feelings. Li Mu Bai is also grieving the murder of his teacher by a mysterious woman named Jade Fox (played by Pei-Pei), and decides to retire, giving his sword, Green Destiny, to Shu Lien to bring to their benefactor, Sir Te. She brings the sword to Sir Te's palace, where he is hosting a Governor and his family in advance of Governor Yu's daughter, Jen (played by Ziyi). The Green Destiny is stolen, which sets off the rest of the film's plot. 

The 4k-set is a two-disc set released in 2016 containing a UHD disc and a regular blu-ray disc, each containing the identical content. The A/V quality is outstanding. Both the audio and video of the UHD disc are at or near reference-quality. Although I will note that some of the audio seemed out of synch with the video upon my first viewing.  I think, however, that was my 4k player's fault, rather than a problem with the disc. 

Most of the bonus content from the prior physical media releases is included in this release, and there is some new bonus material created for the 4k release. There are two commentary tracks on the movie. The first is with director Ang Lee and screenwriter James Schamus. The second is by the cinematographer Peter Pau. Both commentary tracks provide a wealth of information about the film. Pau's is particularly enlightening because he explained how they pulled off all the visual effects on a very limited budget, which meant that the film had very few CGI effects. Then, there is a conversation with Michelle Yeoh and a photo gallery that was carried over from prior releases. New for this release is an introduction to the film by Ang Lee, several deleted scenes, a making-of featurette that includes some footage from the original making-of material included on the original release, and two versions of the music videa for the film's ending credits song, A Love Before Time (one in English and one in Mandarin). The most extensive bonus feature is a three-part retrospective on the movie that includes interviews with Lee, Schamus, and the movie's editor, Tim Squyres. 

The movie was a surprise hit, especially given that it was filmed in China, all of the dialogue was in Mandarin, and it played in US theaters with English Subtitles, had a cast made up of actors who were not extremely famous in the United States. Fat and Yeoh were pretty big international stars, and Pei-Pei was well-known in Hong Kong and China. This was the first major film role for Ziyi, who really had to carry much of the movie, especially during the half-hour-long flashback sequence in the middle of the film. Although she was only 19 when the movie was filmed, she did a wonderful job. Even though she was not billed as the movie's lead, she ended up being the lead. The movie came on the heels of the first Matrix film (and used the same stunt coreographers) and really (along with the first Rush Hour film, which was released a couple of years earlier) revitalized the martial arts movie genre. Unlike Rush Hour, this one incorporated fantasy elements into the story, such as the ability of some characters to "fly" (actually jump and soar, kind of like how Superman initially flew in the comics), which required a lot of wirework by the actors. Interestingly, Fat had never done a similar movie to this in his career, which was pretty extensive before this film, and Ziyi had a dance background, with no formal martial arts training. Yeoh, who had been in many martial arts films before this one, tore her ACL early on in filming, so the filmmakers had to use a lot of tricks to make it look like she was more mobile than she actually was. All the actors did an extremely good job with the action sequences and the dramatic moments. 

Unlike some martial arts films, it has a very good story. It is a bit harder to follow the story because you have to read subtitles while trying to watch what is going on (unless, of course, you understand Mandarin). Even so, the story is not that difficult to follow, even having to rely on subtitles. The only time it gets tough is when the characters are talking during the action sequences, so you have to try to read what they are saying and watch the action. While it does have a lot of fighting and some character deaths, there is not a lot of gore. There is also some sexual content, but no nudity. Ultimately, it is a wonderful movie that is worth watching and is a must-see for anyone who is a practitioner of martial arts and/or a fan of martial arts movies. 

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: The Cloverfield Paradox

 

The Cloverfield Paradox is a 2018 horror/sci-fi/thriller in the Cloverfield movie franchise. It is the third film in the franchise and, as of this writing, the most recent movie, following 2008's Cloverfield and 2016's 10 Cloverfield Lane. It was produced by J.J. Abrams and Lindsey Weber and directed by Julius Onah. It stars Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Elizabeth Debicki, Chris O'Dowd, David Oyelowo, Zhang Ziyi, Daniel Bruhl, and Aksel Hennie. Donal Logue has a cameo appearance, and Simon Pegg and Greg Grunberg make voice appearances. 

The film is set in 2028, when Earth is at the peak of an energy crisis that threatens the entire human race. As a result, several countries have come together to build and test a particle accelerator aboard the Cloverfield space station that, if it works, can solve the world's energy crisis. After the test, the astronauts aboard the station discover that Earth has seemingly vanished and must figure out a way to get back. There are several twists and turns in the story, and it is primarily a thriller more than it is a monster movie (somewhat like 10 Cloverfield Lane). It does have subtle ties to the other films and does provide an explanation for the appearances of the monsters in those movies, even though the events of this movie are set in the future.

The A/V quality of the blu-ray is outstanding, and the movie looks and sounds great in the HD format. There is about half an hour of making-of and behind-the-scenes content, but unlike the prior film, there is no commentary track on this one. 

Ultimately, the movie is good, but if you are expecting a direct sequel to the other two movies that wraps everything up in a nice bow, or if you are expecting a bunch of monsters, this is not it. That said, if you are a fan of sci-fi thrillers and enjoy the other films in the Cloverfield universe, this is worth watching.

4k-UHD/Movie Review: 10 Cloverfield Lane

 

10 Cloverfield Lane is a 2016 thriller/horror movie. It stars Mary Elizabeth Winstead, John Goodman, and John Gallagher Jr. It was directed by Dan Trachtenberg and produced by J.J. Abrams. It is set in the same universe as the original 2008 film, Cloverfield, but it is a stand-alone film and not a direct sequel to the first movie. In it, a woman named Michelle (Winstead) is shown leaving her fiancé (voiced by Bradley Cooper). As she is heading out of town, her car is hit by a truck, and she wakes up in a room chained to a wall. She is told by a man named Howard, who is a doomsday prepper, that there has been an attack of some kind outside and that the air outside his bunker is uninhabitable. Most of the rest of the movie involves Michelle, Howard, and a man named Emmitt's (played by Gallagher) life in the bunker while Michelle tries to find out what is going on outside. The final act of the story becomes a monster movie, much like the original film. 

The 4k set is a two-disc set containing a UHD disc and a standard blu-ray disc. The UHD disc has the movie, and the regular blu-ray disc has the movie and the bonus content. The bonus content includes several featurettes that can be played simultaneously or individually. The total run time for the bonus content is just under 35 minutes, and the featurettes include interviews with the cast and crew members, touching on topics such as the movie's production, score, and special effects.

The movie is a good entry in the Cloverfield universe. Again, it is not a direct sequel to the first movie. It is set in Louisiana and only tangentially references an attack on the East Coast. It is never made clear if that is the same attack that we saw in the original film. This one is primarily a psychological thriller and does not have as much action as the first movie does, although it does have some action. Goodman plays a character who is somewhat unusual and may or may not be mentally unstable and possibly evil. It is a very different role for Goodman, who is mainly known for his comedic roles. Winstead and Gallagher are also wonderful in their respective roles, but Goodman really carries the film. The fact that most of the movie is set in a very confined space actually adds to the suspense. The ending was somewhat controversial when the movie was released, but it was actually foreshadowed throughout the film. While I cannot say that everyone who liked the original movie will like or love this one, if you are a fan of the horror and/or thriller genres, you will probably enjoy this one. It is well-written and very well-acted, and is absolutely worth the time to watch.

4K-UHD/Movie Review: Cloverfield

 

Cloverfield is a 2008 horror film produced and conceived by J.J. Abrams (it was one of the first movies produced by his production company, Bad Robot), written by Drew Goddard, and directed by Matt Reeves. It starred Michael Stahl-David, Odette Yustman (now Anabelle), Jessica Lucas, T.J. Miller, Lizzy Caplan, and Mike Vogel. It is a monster movie, heavily influenced by the old Godzilla movies, that involves a creature that destroys New York on the night of a going-away party for Stahl-David's character, Rob Hawkins. The premise of the movie is that footage from a personal camcorder is recovered in what is left of Central Park. The tape begins with footage of Rob and his girlfriend Beth (played by Yustman) spending a day together, and is intercut with footage of the day of the party, the events of the party, and the creature's destruction of the city. T.J. Miller's character, Hud, is tasked with recording the party and encouraging the partygoers to film farewell messages for Rob. The events of the film are mostly shown from the point of view of what Hud is filming and narrating. 

The 4K set is a two-disc set, containing a UHD disc and a standard Blu-ray disc. It also has a code to redeem a digital version of the film. There are a couple of different 4K releases, including a steelbook edition, each of which has the same content. The UHD disc only includes the film, while the regular Blu-ray disc contains the film and all the bonus content. The extras include a director's commentary track by Matt Reeves, a gag reel, a making-of documentary, featurettes on the visual effects and creating the creature, a few deleted scenes, and a couple of alternate endings. The film can also be played in an investigation mode, where facts about the characters and the events in the movie are displayed while the movie plays. Reeve's commentary had a lot of interesting information about the production process. 

The movie is good, but different. It was a low-budget film that was intentionally made to appear like a home movie, so the camera shakes a lot and does not always capture everything that is happening. The best way I can describe it is a cross between Godzilla and The Blair Witch Project. While the A/V quality is excellent and it looks wonderful in UHD, it has a distinctly different look and feel compared to major blockbuster movies. The film is very short (under an hour and a half, with the credits), which was almost necessary given the way the movie was filmed. It is well-written and acted, and the cast, despite being filled with young, relatively unknown actors, does a great job in their respective roles. It is much more suspenseful than it is gory, and for most of the film, the creature is shown only very fleetingly. That said, there is some violent content and a lot of swearing, so it is not suitable for young kids. If you're a fan of the horror genre, especially monster movies, this is worth watching. If you have a physical media collection, it's also worth adding to it. 

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle

 

Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle is a 2003 action/comedy film that is the direct sequel to the 2000 film Charlie's Angels. McG returned to direct the film, which brought back Drew Barrymore, Cameron Diaz, and Lucy Liu to reprise their roles as the Angels Dylan, Natalie, and Alex. Crispin Glover, Luke Wilson, and Matt LeBlanc also reprised their roles from the first movie. The additions to the cast included Demi Moore, Robert Patrick, John Cleese, Shia LeBeouf, Justin Theroux, Bernie Mac, and Ja'Net Dubois. The film also features several cameo appearances, including Carrie Fisher, Pink, Robert Forester, Bruce Willis, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, and Jaclyn Smith, reprising her role as Kelly Garrett from the TV series. 

The plot involves a pair of rings that contain and unlock a list of people in the witness protection program. The list is stolen and set to be sold to various criminal organizations. A couple of revenge plots are intertwined within the story, and we get a bit more backstory about Crispin Glover's character. 

This is a single-disc release containing both the theatrical version of the film and an unrated version that adds a few more minutes to the runtime, mostly by adding more violence to a couple of the big fight scenes. The extras include several commentary tracks on the film. There is an audio and a telestrator commentary by McG. The audio tracks are exactly the same, but the telestrator commentary is annotated with things being circled in the background of some of the scenes while McG talks. Then, there is a commentary track by a couple of the writers. The theatrical version can also be played with a trivia track similar to the old show, Pop-Up Video, where information about the movie is displayed in pop-up boxes while it plays. Then there are several different making-of and behind-the-scenes featurettes, a preview for the 2019 reboot, and the music video for Pink's song Feel Good Time. 

Ultimately, the movie is a fun action-comedy. It is similar in style and tone to the first movie. It does have a lot of adult humor that skirts the bounds of what can be included in a PG-13 film. There is also a scene where the Angels are nude in shadow so you cannot really see anything except for a brief flash of sideboob from Drew Barrymore. Of course, the big draw when the movie came out was that this was Demi Moore's return to movies after a hiatus of about six years. She was phenomenal in the role and looked fantastic. It seems all the actors had fun in their respective roles and did not take themselves too seriously. The big change from the first film is that Bill Murray did not return. The writer's commentary track touched on Murray's absence, stating that they knew they would have to go in a different direction with the Bosley character when it was clear that Murray would not be back. There was no mention in any of the bonus content of the conflict between him and Lucy Liu in the first movie. They came up with a good way to have Bernie Mac be the new Bosley and did include a picture of Murray in one of the scenes. If you liked the first movie, you will probably like this one. Like the first film, this one takes a lot of suspension of disbelief and has some plot holes, but if you do not overthink it and just enjoy it for what it is, it is worth watching.   

4k-UHD/Movie Review: Charlie's Angels

 

Charlie's Angels is a 2000 action-comedy based on the 1970s TV series of the same name. It stars Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu, Cameron Diaz, Bill Murray, Sam Rockwell, Kelly Lynch, and Crispin Glover in the main roles. Tim Curry, Matt LeBlanc, Luke Wilson, Melissa McCarthy, Tom Green, LL Cool J, and Alex Trebek have smaller roles (or cameos). John Forsythe reprised his role from the TV series playing the voice of Charlie, while Barrymore, Liu, and Diaz played the Angels. Murray plays Bosley, who is the go-between the Angels and Charlie. The plot involves misdirection about who the true bad guys are, but the meat of the storyline is that someone is trying to track down Charlie as a part of a revenge scheme, using the Angels and Bosley as unwitting pawns in the plan.

The 4k set is a two-disc set containing a UHD disc and a regular blu-ray disc. The A/V quality of the UHD disc is outstanding and is a massive upgrade over the DVD release and a decent upgrade over the 1080p release. Most of the extras are on the regular blu-ray, but the UHD disc has the teaser and theatrical trailers for the movie and a sneak peek at the 2019 reboot/quasi-sequel written and directed by Elizabeth Banks. The extras on the regular blu-ray were carried over from the prior physical media releases and include a commentary track by director McG and cinematographer Russell Carpenter, several behind-the-scenes featurettes featuring cast interviews, a blooper reel (which are the same bloopers shown in the end credits), deleted scenes, and two music videos.

The movie is a bit dated, but it holds up pretty well even after 25 years (as of this writing). It has a good blend of action and humor, and Barrymore, Diaz, and Liu had no qualms about looking silly. They did work their asses off to do a lot of the stunts. And, they were all hot as fire. Some of the humor is a bit cheesy, and Tom Green is annoying, as always. While Barrymore, Diaz, and Lui seemed to have great chemistry, there was no mention in any of the bonus material of the tension between Murray and Liu that would lead to the role of Bosley being recast in the direct sequel, Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle. Ultimately, this combines a good action movie and a silly comedy. If you can accept it for what it is and what it is not, it is worth watching. 

4k-UHD/Movie Review: Basic Instinct

 

Basic Instinct is the 1992 erotic thriller starring Michael Douglas and Sharon Stone. It was written by Joe Eszterhas and directed by Paul Verhoeven. The supporting cast includes George Dzundza, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Denis Arndt, Leilani Sarelle, Wayne Knight, Stephen Tobolowsky, and Mitch Pileggi. In the film, Stone plays a novelist named Catherine Tramell. Her boyfriend is killed with an ice pick at the beginning of the movie by a woman whose face we never see while having sex. Douglas and Dzundza play police detectives investigating the murder. Tramell begins playing mind games with Douglas' character, telling him that she is going to base the lead character in her new novel on him. The movie is essentially a who-done-it that throws a lot of misdirection meant to make it ambiguous as to whether Catherine is really the murderer or is being set up.

The 4k set is a three-disc set containing a UHD disc and two regular blu-ray discs. The A/V quality is excellent.  While some of the scenes still have some imperfections and grain, many of the scenes show a lot more detail than any prior physical media releases of the movie. The UHD disc and the first regular blu-ray have the same content, the movie and some bonus features. The second regular blu-ray disc just has additional bonus content. The bonus features include three commentary tracks on the film: the original 1993 commentary track by Verhoeven, a second commentary track that was created for the special edition DVD release featuring Verhoeven and the director of photography, Jan De Bont, and a third commentary track by Professor Camille Paglia. The first two contain a lot of good information about the movie, the casting processes (especially casting Stone to play Catherine Tramell), and all the controversy the movie's production garnered. Paglia's track is not as good. It seemed like she wrote a scene-by-scene breakdown of the movie for a college lecture and just read it word-for-word. It does not seem like she was giving an authentic reaction to just watching the film. 

The rest of the bonus content on the UHD (and first regular blu-ray) disc includes a couple of new featurettes featuring interviews with the cast and crew that were made for the 4k release, and some of the archival featurettes that were transferred over from earlier physical media releases (such as a featurette on how the movie was edited for television, original screen tests by Stone and Tripplehorn, a TV spot, and the trailers, as well as an archival interview with Stone). The rest of the bonus content on the second regular blu-ray disc is all archival content transferred from the prior physical media releases, including the original making-of featurettes (including one from the VHS release of the film), storyboard comparisons, and the like. Some of the material on this disc (such as the screen test and trailers) is duplicative of the material on the UHD disc. Note that some 4k sets are UK imports, meaning that the UHD disc is region-free and will play in the US, but the two regular blu-rays are region-locked, so you will need a region-free or Region-2 player to watch them. The Lionsgate Steelbook edition is a US release so all the discs will play in on Region-1 players.

The movie is a good thriller, but some things about it would probably be changed if it were made today. It is absolutely not family-friendly, as it contains a lot of nudity (including the infamous interrogation scene), swearing, and sexual content. The movie's ending is ambiguous as to whether Catherine is guilty or innocent, but Verhoeven definitively answers that question in the commentary tracks and other bonus material. The bonus material is where the set really shines. It has hours of bonus content, and even in the newly added bonus features, all the participants discuss all aspects of making the movie and the controversies surrounding making the film (including the reaction from the gay and lesbian community before and after the film came out). Verhoeven and Stone still wildly disagree as to whether she was made aware of what was going to be shown in the upskirt shot in the interrogation scene, but Stone admits, while she was pissed that she was never told that her crotch would be visible, that it worked for the movie. Ultimately, it is a good movie that is worth the time to watch, and if you like going through bonus content, the 4k version is a must-add to your collection.

4k-UHD/Movie Review: American Pie [UK Import]

 

American Pie is the iconic 1999 coming-of-age teen comedy written by Adam Herz, directed by Paul Weitz, and starring Jason Biggs, Chris Klein, Thomas Ian Nicholas, Seann William Scott, Eddie Kaye Thomas, Alyson Hannigan, Shannon Elizabeth, Natasha Lyonne, Tara Reid, Mena Suvari, Eugene Levy, and Jennifer Coolidge. Chris Owen, Christina Milan, Casey Affleck, and Eli Marienthal have more minor supporting roles, and the members of the band Blink 182 have cameo appearances. 

The movie is set in the fictional town of East Great Falls, Michigan, and centers around a pact made by a group of friends in their senior year of high school (Biggs, Klein, Nicholas, and Thomas) to lose their virginity by prom. The film launched the careers of the younger actors (most of whom were in their early to mid-twenties when the movie was filmed, except for Thomas) and helped revive the careers of Eugene Levy and Jennifer Coolidge. It is primarily a raunchy comedy with more serious moments between various comedic moments. While all the cast members do a great job in their roles, Hannigan and Levy steal most of the scenes they are in. 

The 4k set is a two-disc set from the UK containing a UHD disc and a regular blu-ray disc. The UHD disc includes both versions of the movie, the theatrical and unrated versions. The UHD disc is region-free and will play on US (Region A) players. The regular blu-ray is region-locked to Region B and appears to be coded so it will not play on region-free players. When I put it in my Region 2 player, the blu-ray disc loaded to the menu, and although the menu page had sound, when I tried to play the movie or the bonus feature, no sound came out. The only extra on the UHD disc is the original DVD commentary track featuring Herz, Weiz, Biggs, Scott, and Thomas. All the other extras are on the regular blu-ray. Most of them are carried over from the original DVD release (such as the outtakes, music videos, trailer, etc.). However, not all of the bonus content from the original release is included. There are a couple of new featurettes included specifically for this release, but as I said, none of those played with sound. The A/V quality of the movie on the UHD disc is outstanding and is a significant upgrade from the DVD.

The movie is good and holds up relatively well even after twenty-six years (as of this writing). There are certainly things in the film that probably would not be included or significantly changed (like the scrambled porn scene, the webcam scene, etc.) if the movie were made today. Some of the themes in the film are timeless to growing up and will remain true forever. The movie is definitely raunchy (it really revived the raunchy teen comedy genre) and has a lot of sexual content and dialog, although only one real nude scene (in which Shannon Elizabeth is topless). The unrated version of the movie is nearly identical, with the only real change being to the pie scene to make it raunchier than in the theatrical version. Ultimately, the movie is good, even if it is a bit dated. This release could have been better if all the extras had been put on the UHD disc. If you are in the US and don't care about watching the bonus content, it is worth the pickup since the UHD disc will play on your player. If you want the bonus content, you may want to wait and see if the movie gets a US release. 

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw

 

Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw is a 1976 action-thriller/crime drama starring Lynda Carter, Marjoe Gortner, Merrie Lynn Ross, Jesse Vint, Belinda Balaski, and Gene Drew. In the film, Carter plays Bobbie Jo, a waitress at a drive-in restaurant who wants to be a country music singer. She hooks up with a thief named Lyle Wheeler (played by Gortner). After they start running from the law, they meet up with Bobbie Jo's sister (played by Ross) and her boyfriend (played by Vint), and the four end up on a robbery and murder spree throughout the southwest while being pursued by a local sheriff. 

The A/V quality of the blu-ray is decent, but the film did not get an extensive restoration for the blu-ray release. It mostly looks good, especially if you like transfers that preserve a lot of film grain, but some film damage occasionally comes through. The extras include two different commentary tracks on the film, one by the movie's director, Mark Lester, and one by writer John Harrison. Lester discusses all aspects of the film and the process of making the movie. Harrison goes off on many tangents, including what many of the people involved in the movie did later in their careers. The extras also include separate interviews with Lester, Balaski, and Ross, the theatrical trailer, and two radio spots. The bonus content is quite interesting, including addressing the fact that Carter, who found religion after making the movie (and became massively popular because of the Wonder Woman TV series), did not want much to do with the movie and its promotion because of the nude scenes.

The movie is more of a cult classic than a great film. The best way I can describe its plot is that it is what you would get if you mixed the real-life Bonnie and Clyde and Billy the Kid stories with The Dukes of Hazzard. Much of the movie would have been written differently if it had been made today, including having Lyle follow Bobbie Jo home from work without talking to her and having her willingly jump in his car instead of calling the cops on him for stalking her. The movie's big attraction is that Carter was a couple of years removed from winning the Miss World USA pageant and had just filmed the Wonder Woman Pilot when the movie was made. Carter was absolutely gorgeous in her mid-20s, and the movie is one of the only (if not the only) times she went topless on film (and they are spectacular). Some of the dialogue is very cheesy by today's standards, and almost everything about it is unrealistic. That said, it is a decent low-budget action movie and is worth checking out.