I can’t believe it’s actually been twenty five years since “Beauty and the Beast” actually came to theaters. It’s one of the many Disney films I went to see as a child, and loved it for its amazing animation and fantastic tale. Disney offered up their own twist on the fairy tale many read as children, and it’s a unique iteration that managed to be a huge hit in the 90’s. It is also the last animated movie to be a serious Oscar contender before the Oscars stuffed animation in to their own category away from live action fare. “Beauty and the Beast” thankfully still holds up as a moving and charming tale that takes a very epic tone toward the classic fairy tale.
Little House on the Prairie: Legacy Movie Collection (DVD/Digital)
When I was a kid, “Little House on the Prairie” was one of my favorite shows and I saw it all the way through the end. It was the drama that always kept me interested and engrossed, as Michael Landon was a favorite of my household. For fans of the series, the “Legacy Movie Collection” comes to DVD with three movies that close the series and resolve the entire saga of the Ingalls once and for all. The famed TV show starring Michael Landon and Victor French, and loosely based on the books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, followed the Ingall family as they dealt with the hardships of living in the late 1800’s America, and how they fared against various obstacles in their lives. The series was a compelling drama that ended in 1983, and gained another life among a new generation that followed the series when it went to syndication.
Snowden (2016)
If Hannah Arendt focused on the banality of evil, Oliver Stone focuses on the banality of goodness. His new film “Snowden” feels like a retread of “Wall Street,” where a terminally bland young man is intoxicated by the excesses of a brilliantly corrupt environment but turns on his benefactors in the name of justice. In this case, Stone is working from a real-life adventure that does not necessarily translate smoothly into a reel-life presentation.
An Interview with Jamie Marshall, Director of Dirty Lies
Dirty Lies is available on VOD currently, and with Cinema Crazed’s review coming soon, we had a few questions that director Jamie Marshall was kind enough to answer.
An Interview with Michael Borowiec and Sam Marine, directors of “Man Underground” [FrightFest 2016]
Michael Borowiec and Sam Marine co-wrote and co-directed the feature Man Underground (review here) about a conspiracy theorist who loses his job and his marriage after what he believes is an alien visit. Michael and Sam worked together beautifully on this film, here they are talking about it with Cinema Crazed.
Dark Angel: The Ascent (1994)
Full Moon offers their take on “Innocent Blood” with the tale of a vigilante demon and her hapless doctor boyfriend who proceeds to fall in love with her despite her demonic underpinnings. Angela Featherstone is insanely sexy as Veronica, a young demon who hangs out in hell sorting out sinning souls with her father, a dutiful monster who wants her to step in line and follow his orders. Veronica is restless though, and seeks to visit the Earth realm to see what it looks like. After fighting with her father once more, she escapes with her loyal German Shepherd to the outer world. There, she discovers the world isn’t that different from hell, save for the fact that the sinners and pure evil are able to hide among the civilized, rather than be punished.
White Coffin (2016) [FrightFest 2016]
Virginia and her daughter Rebeca have left behind husband and father respectively. When Rebeca is kidnapped, Virginia must play a disturbing and violent game to get her back. She must see how far she is ready to go to save her daughter. Written by Adrian Garcia Bogliano and Ramiro Garcia Bogliano, the film is directed by Daniel de la Vega. Together, they create more of a thriller with horror elements than a flat out horror film.