Out on Blu-ray and 4K UHD July 30, 2024
When a CIA agent and a KGB agent find themselves on a joint mission to stop an organization from getting nuclear weapons in the wrong hands, they butt heads, but find a way to make things work.
Tag Archives: Adventure
Every Bugs Bunny Ever: Big House Bunny (1950)
Big House Bunny (1950)
Directed by Friz Freleng
Written by Tedd Pierce
Animation by Virgil Ross
Music by Carl Stalling
I know that I compare a lot of the premises for Bugs Bunny shorts to Tex Avery, but there’s no doubting that a lot of his influence remained on the Looney Tunes long after he left for MGM. Not only did he have an unusual albeit genius formula, but he was funnier in MGM because he was pretty much allowed to be as insane as possible. With “Big House Bunny” it feels like a plot for one of Droopy’s shorts where Droopy ends up at the wrong place while the warden would normally be the hilarious rival of the wolf.
That doesn’t hinder the entertainment factor of “Big House Bunny” it’s just that the concept for this short feels familiar in its ingredients.
The Fall Guy (2024): Extended Edition [4K UHD/Blu-Ray/Digital]
Now Available from Universal Pictures.
If you told me that they were going to turn a somewhat memorable 1981 action series starring Lee Majors in to a big budget action comedy, I would have been very skeptical. Lo and behold there should have been a market for it, because “The Fall Guy” is all kinds of good Hollywood shenanigans. It’s loud, funny, and action packed, and stacks a respectable cast of big stars. This includes Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, both of whom are still riding the success of their huge movies from 2023. Sadly, that didn’t carry in to big numbers; that’s a shame since “The Fall Guy” has some big franchise potential.
Every Bugs Bunny Ever: Homeless Hare (1950)
Homeless Hare (1950)
Directed by Chuck Jones
Written by Michael Maltese
Animation by Ken Harris
Music by Carl Stalling
A lot of Looney Tunes relies on the formula of the whole industrial revolution and the trampling of the environment. While most of it just used as a means of finding a catalyst for a narrative of the short, so many times these shorts always begin with the real bad guy of the piece. Either Bugs, or Daffy are minding their business and are interrupted by some company either destroying their homes, or demolishing some kind of ecosystem. Even shorts like the Coyote and Road Runner finds them primarily battling in man made roads, and train tracks and bridges. They’re rarely hunting each other in the wild, or in bushes, which is an interesting look at how much America was changing in this era.
Satu – The Year of the Rabbit (2024)
So much credit goes to Joshua Trigg, an ace filmmaker who has delivered one of the most affecting and engaging dramas of the year. “Satu – Year of the Rabbit” is a powerhouse drama packed to the brim with beauty, sadness, and grief, and pairs two people together, both of whom are in search of something. In the tradition of films like “Harry and Tonto,” Joshua Trigg’s film is about two wandering spirits that find a purpose in the middle of the amazing countryside of Laos. This is where “Satu” also acts as something of a travelogue akin to 1991’s “The Inland Sea,” acting as a means of conveying the richness, and vast scope of their home.
Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire (2024) [4K UHD/Blu-Ray/Digital]
Now Available on Streaming and on Physical Media.
Gil Kenan’s “Frozen Empire” is a movie that, when all was said and done was fine. It was perfectly fine. The problem was that it was yet another of the just fine, perfectly okay movies for 2024, and that doesn’t sit well with me. There are so many places that they can go with “Ghostbusters” and they are still basically stuck in the shadows of the original film. Not only do they refuse to expand on the sceop of the firehouse but they still aim for big city bound showdowns that really don’t hit the mark too well.
I didn’t hate “Frozen Empire” like apparently many others did. I liked it. I just wish there was more thinking outside of the box.
Every Bugs Bunny Ever: Mutiny on the Bunny (1950)
Mutiny on the Bunny (1950)
Directed by Friz Freleng
Written by Tedd Pierce
Animation by Gerry Chiniquy
Music by Carl Stalling
Friz Freleng’s “Mutiny on the Bunny” is another of Bugs Bunny’s sea faring adventures and they always manage to hit differently. There’s just something more inherently funny about Bugs Bunny out at sea that allows the writers to get a bit more creative. Meanwhile, we’re given yet another appearance by Yosemite Sam who plays the sea captain, and I couldn’t have asked for a better nemesis this time around. Yosemite Sam is one of my all time favorite nemeses for Bugs. Probably even more so than Elmer Fudd, now that I come to think about it.