Monthly Archives: May 2024

Shinobi [Limited Edition] 

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Available on May 28th, 2024, from Radiance Films 

In these first three films from the Shinobi series, the story of Goemon Ishikawa leads the viewer on a path with one of the most influential and earliest cinematic takes on the ninja genre, helping fans see what happened in the early days, through stories that feel as old as time and, somehow, new. The stories here are focused on Goemon Ishikawa, a young ninja who gets stuck in the middle of something much bigger than himself with stakes that become more and more important from film to film.  

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The Garfield Movie (2024)

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The latest iteration of the seemingly immortal Garfield franchise seems to work less in favor of retelling the classic story of Garfield and more in building a cinematic universe–apparently. Bafflingly, the producers seem to think there’s some merit in building this big world for Jim Davis’ Garfield. While Garfield does have a gallery of characters in his world, I never really thought of his franchise as being this sprawling world with side characters, and spin offs, and one off adventures. I doubt anyone wants a Nermal comedy, or Odie adventure. “The Garfield Movie” misses the key ingredient of what makes this series so beloved, which is Jon Arbuckle.

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IF (2024)

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While John Krasinski’s “IF” doesn’t exactly break new ground, nor re-invent the wheel, what he lacks in originality, he makes up for with oodles of charm. John Krasinski has emerged as a very good multi-faceted director, and with “IF” he delivers on a very heartwarming, often entertaining tale about the hardships of growing up and having to say goodbye to certain things that made us happy. “IF” suffers from not having a completely fleshed out idea (it also leaves a sub-plot unresolved), but I loved it mainly for its warmth, good humor, and wholesomeness.

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The Strangers Chapter 1 (2024)

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2008’s “The Strangers” was simple. It (and its painfully underrated sequel) was effective because it was simple. It relied on psychological torment where the strangers felt like perversely intrusive predators preying on a couple already in turmoil. When they arrive there’s the collective “What else can happen to us?” that we feel emanate through Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman’s characters. With “The Strangers: Chapter 1” all of that nihilism, that sheer sense of pure evil preying on the vulnerable is lost in favor of what is pretty much just a lazy remake of Bryan Bertino’s original film.

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The Bootleg Files: Carnival Story

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BOOTLEG FILES 866: “Carnival Story” (1954 drama starring Anne Baxter and Steve Cochran).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube and other online video sites.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: On public domain labels.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: A lapsed copyright enabled endless duping.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: The likelihood of a Criterion-style restoration and release is unlikely.

For many years, I avoided the 1954 “Carnival Story,” even though there were endless opportunities to view it. Back in the pre-cable television days, the film was a staple of very-late-night programming on local stations that needed to fill space between commercials during their twilight hours. With the dawn of VHS videos, the film’s public domain status ensured there were too many copies available from rival cheapo labels in bargain basement bins. And with the dawn of online video, “Carnival Story” is all over the Internet – but, then again, too many public domain films are all over the Internet, so why seek out this title?
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