Pet Fooled (2016)

Posted on February 5, 2017 by Phil Hall

Kohl Harrington’s documentary takes a harsh look at the questionable ingredients and frequently shabby quality control in today’s pet food industry. The film argues that too many dog and cat owners gets distracted with user-friendly marketing to notice that many of the canned and packaged foods being served to their pets are nutritionally dubious and fail to meet the basic dietary needs despite generous promises of being healthy. Even worse, the lack of care in the processing of these foods resulted in the poisoning deaths of pets and the uncontrollable grief of the owners that felt guilty in feeding their beloved creatures contaminated food. But it appears that no one is keeping an eye on this sector.

Continue reading →

The Monster (2016) [Blu-Ray]

Posted on February 3, 2017 by Felix Vasquez

Bryan Bertino has a talent for depicting the inexplicability of evil, first with “The Strangers,” and now with how a seemingly chaotic force of nature threatens to destroy a mother and daughter. What’s worse is that when we do meet the titular monster, it’s about to completely obliterate a relationship already on the cusp of falling to pieces. Director and writer Bertino succeeds in creating a creepy monster movie that also builds a compelling relationship that pulls us through the emotional wringer time and time again. Zoe Kazan and Ella Ballantine are an excellent pairing as Kathy and Lizzy, an estranged mother and daughter that are constantly at war with one another.

Continue reading →

The Trouble with Terkel (2017)

Posted on February 2, 2017 by Felix Vasquez

An animated re-release/recycling of a hit Danish animated film, “The Trouble with Terkel” was released in 2004, and rather than remake the original animated movie, this new version is re-released with a new title, and a hastily recorded American dub was slapped on to the film. There’s no update to the animation, no re-editing, or anything of the sort. 2004 feels like a whole other century ago, so it’s not surprising “The Trouble with Terkel” watches like a painfully outdated mess. It also doesn’t help that the producers kept all of the country’s background signs and whatnot. So when our characters are in the candy store buying “Sukkerfryd Slik” with “Fedt Nuder!” it’s impossible to not get pulled out of the paper thin narrative.

Continue reading →

Douglas Fairbanks presents Alexandre Dumas’ The Three Musketeers (1921): 95th Anniversary Edition (DVD)

Posted on January 31, 2017 by Felix Vasquez

Courtesy of Undercrank Productions, “Alexandre Dumas’ The Three Musketeers” starring Douglas Fairbanks garners a brand new DVD restoration. With a new score by Ben Model (along with new color tinting digital restoration, and stabilization), and with restoration by Karl Malkames, “The Three Musketeers” can be appreciated in a new edition and new vision. One of the many iterations of the classic action tale, “The Three Musketeers” stars film icon Douglas Fairbanks as the noble swordsman D’ Artagnan a young man who goes to Paris to become an ally to three of the best swordsmen alive. They are, of course, Athos as played by Leon Bary, Porthos as played by George Siegmann, and Aramis as played by Eugene Pallette.

Continue reading →

Don’t Knock Twice (2017)

Posted on January 30, 2017 by Emilie Black

A young mother who gave up her daughter up during a troubled period is trying to reconnect with her years later. As they try to repair their estranged and strained relationship, they become plagued by the legendary Baba Yaga witch. Written by Mark Huckerby and Nick Ostler and directed by Caradog W. James, the film takes a folk tale that originated in Old Russia and brings it to the UK and modernizes it. Together they create a horror film that will scare the uninitiated but may not do much for hardcore horror fans. There are a few well directed and developed scares that should work for all however. These happen in an environment built around the strained, but attempting to be rekindled, mother-daughter relationship.

Continue reading →

The Edge of Seventeen (2016)

Posted on January 30, 2017 by Felix Vasquez

Easily one of the best films of 2016, Kelly Freman Craig’s “The Edge of Seventeen” is a wonderful drama comedy teeming with engaging characters and compelling human dilemmas all of which garner a sense of sheer sadness. Not since “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” have I seen a drama comedy evoke the themes of John Hughes so beautifully. Too often when directors and writers try to invoke Hughes, they forget the key element to their narrative that the main protagonists can be and often are as flawed and selfish as the supporting characters and antagonists. The same can be said for “The Edge of Seventeen” where Hailee Steinfeld is incredibly adorable and compelling as Nadine Franklin. From the moment we meet her, Nadine is her own worst enemy, she’s someone who is always doubting herself and on the verge of a break down.

Continue reading →

Timecode (2016)

Posted on January 30, 2017 by Felix Vasquez

ACADEMY AWARD NOMINEE – I love a good romantic movie and I especially love it when directors approach the genre from a different angle. The reason why “Timecode” might just win an Oscar come February is because the way director Juanjo Giménez approaches the love of two people. The romance is built through technology, but not in the way you’d assume. Director Juanjo Giménez unfolds his short film with very little dialogue and a lot of acting that relies on facial expressions and heavy reactions to events that ensue.

Continue reading →