You either die a hero or live long enough to become a villain. That’s the sad fate for Sheriff Brody who, years after the events of “Jaws,” is now seen as the crackpot of Amity Island. Despite the fact that the mayor admitted defeat in the end of “Jaws,” and in spite of academic backing, and a very experienced shark hunter dying at the teeth of the beast, Amity Island has a streak of memory loss prompting a lot of people to forget what Sheriff Brody accomplished at the end of the original movie.
Tag Archives: Adventure
Jaws (1975)
I can’t imagine saying anything about “Jaws” that hasn’t already been said by hundreds of movie buffs all around the world. It’s all at once a movie about fear of the unknown, the trauma of being controlled by our fear, and man vs nature. “Jaws” is absolutely flawless gem that worked on little resources and so many accidents that director Steven Spielberg had to literally take bruised, busted, lemons to make lemonade. “Jaws” had every potential to fail and be an infamous box office flop, but its measured tension, deliberate pacing, and ability to establish our heroes before their fateful battle on the ocean with the shark.
Twister (1996) [4K UHD/Digital]
Available from Warner Home Entertainment.
Director Jan De Bont is one of the last remaining blockbuster directors that delivered a one two punch of big movies in the 1990’s. After his big debut with the thriller “Speed,” De Bont followed it up with a classic disaster film in the tradition of Irwin Allen. The climate was just right as disaster pictures had experienced a big resurgence and “Twister” hit all the right chords. While it might not be the most complex of disaster pictures, it has a great time staging huge scenes of weather wreaking havoc on land.
Every Bugs Bunny Ever: Hurdy-Gurdy-Hare (1950)
Hurdy-Gurdy Hare (1950)
Directed by Robert McKimson
Written by Warren Foster
Animation by JC Melendez
Music by Carl Stalling
I love “Hurdy Gurdy Hare” because it doesn’t really follow the traditional formula for Bugs Bunny toons. It feels a lot like a callback to the Abbot and Costello show where there’s not a real plot line. There’s just a lot of stuff that happens and Bugs Bunny is at the forefront of it all. Seriously, a lot of stuff just happens with not a lot of the usual Bugs Bunny defending people or whatnot. It’s just Bugs trying to make a living and coming across a devious, greedy little monkey.
Dexter’s Laboratory: The Complete Series (DVD)
Now Available from Warner Home Entertainment
In 1996 the cable channel Cartoon Network had solidified itself as a competitor with fellow kids channels like Nickelodeon and Disney Channel. After spending many years playing reruns from their massive Hanna Barbera back catalog, the channel began to dabble in airing their own original series. They recruited a slew of brilliant creators to offer up their own unique animated series, and among them was “Dexter’s Laboratory.” Created and animated by Genndy Tartakovsky, “Dexter’s Laboratory” was an entertaining and often hysterical animated show that dove head first in to the over the top realm with an extraordinary premise packed to the brim with comedic potential.
Every Bugs Bunny Ever: Rabbit Hood (1949)
Rabbit Hood (1949)
Directed by Chuck Jones
Written by Michael Maltese
Animation by Ken Harris
Music by Carl Stalling
After the nastiness that was last week’s “Which is Witch” it’s nice to see Bugs Bunny return to the basics again. “Rabbit Hood” is one of my top ten Bugs Bunny shorts of all time. It’s a hilarious spoof of the Robin Hood tale that ranks up there with 1958’s “Robin Hood Daffy” in terms of hilarity and clever jokes. Oddly Bugs isn’t Robin Hood but he is falling prey to the fascism of the king who is desperate to snag Robin Hood at every turn. Now with the king’s property guarded, Bugs comes under attack by the Sheriff of Nottingham. When Bugs seeks a few carrots from the king’s garden, the two go at it, prompting a hysterical war between the pair.
The Guyver (1991): Limited Collector’s Edition [4K UHD/Blu-ray/CD Soundtrack]
Coming Soon from Unearthed Films.
Toshiki Takaya’s anime and manga are science fiction body horror martial arts chaos mixed in with a ton of concepts involving corporations, mutant aliens, and genetics. America saw “mutants” and ran with it in an effort to kind of build upon the winning formula of “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.” In effect, 1991’s American adaptation of “The Guyver” takes the very gory original material and transforms it in to a silly, but absolutely fun love letter to Japanese culture and just horror in general. With the help of Screaming Mad George’s amazing special effects, director Steve Wang realizes a lot of concepts from the original source material that would have otherwise been utterly impossible in 1991.