Tag Archives: Crime
Ernest Triple Feature DVD Set (DVD)
Hey Vern! Guess what? Ernest is on DVD again! And this time Mill Creek Entertainment is bringing us the follow up to their release of “Hey Vern!” and it’s a triple feature of three of the most questionable Ernest films ever made. Sure, to the American public they may not be classics, but to those of us who grew up with the lovable Ernest whose intentions were at least admirable, you can’t help but feel a considerable fondness and soft hearted approach toward three movies that vary vastly in style and tone. “Ernest Goes to Jail” is a definite Ernest outing that dabbles on the verge of adult humor and is much too surreal and dark for kids to actually enjoy. But on the upside there is “Ernest Scared Stupid!” a definite kids film in which Ernest must fight tree trolls with Miak that’s kind of spooky but intended as a Halloween film with some good hearted humor and Ernest’s usual sense of attire that varies from the “wacky” to the “what the hell?”
Fight the Foot (2011)
Now this is what I call a fan film. Not only does it make good use of its resources, but it manages to re-invent the lore it pays tribute to all the while pleasing the fan base behind it. “Fight the Foot” is a proposed prologue to the new universe of the Ninja Turtles, a film made by the Reserve that is supposed to be a gritty re-working of the Turtle lore while also being respectful to the legacy.
I Spit On Your Grave: Unrated (2010)
Was this remake entirely necessary? Actually no. Especially when you consider Meir Zarchi’s 1978 revenge film continues to be a widely revered, and critically reviled piece of volatile grindhouse cinema that not only set the stages for future revenge films, but was already remade subsequent its theatrical release where we saw no end of women on a rampage revenge films in the late seventies in to the eighties. “I Spit on Your Grave” is still one of the most heavily discussed and angrily debated cult masterpieces to this day inspiring hatred and praise from many film buffs and to this day inspires pure vitriol from iconic film critic Roger Ebert who despises Zarchi’s film so passionately, he banishes anyone who enjoyed it.
The Green Hornet (2011)
Yes, I’m sure when Bruce Lee came to America, he dreamed of having the American remake machine take what was once a dignified television property that made his career and turn it in to a bonafide vanity project for someone like Seth Rogen. I’m sure he’d love the fact that rather than take his entire project seriously and transform the Green Hornet in to a truly adult and complex superhero epic like “The Dark Knight,” it would instead become another version of “Rush Hour.”
The Cape
It’s almost as if someone from NBC got together with writers and thought “Okay, we tried superheroes as real world individuals and we all saw how that worked out. Now how about we just drop the pretenses and dive head first in to the superhero genre?” And that’s exactly what happened. Even I as a major “Heroes” fan in the day–and trust me “Heroes” was all I talked about during the first season–can admit that after the season finale of season one, the show fizzled and deflated with startling speed. So it is only natural NBC would want to go for the superhero fad yet again, but this time diving in to the cheese without the attempts to recreate the success of “Lost.”
Bitter Feast (2010) (DVD)
It’s not uncommon for artists of any kind to go off the rails or be driven mad by critics. Vincent Gallo is famous for lashing out at Roger Ebert for his bashing of “Brown Bunny,” producers like Avi Arad and studios are known for bashing critics that bash their work, and in 2010, Kevin Smith just sank in to the deep end after the critical destruction of “Cop Out.” But while “Bitter Feast” is a commentary on pushing people too far, it’s also a look at what happens when two bitter absolutely pretentious men meet and decide they’re going to make each other suffer for their lives’ miseries. While many will be quick to deem this as a satire of the critical world, director Joe Maggio actually spoofs both sides of the field, the artist and the critic. Or in this film, the pompous pretentious artist who takes his work much too seriously, and the critic who refuses to be honest and or kind and just wants to purposely play a heel for the sake of publicity and readership.