The Pack (2015) [Blu-Ray]

Posted on July 5, 2016 by Felix Vasquez

Once again, “The Pack” is another in a long line of modern horror films that feel as if they were once written for the late seventies. Nick Robertson’s horror thriller is a very stripped down and simplistic survival thriller that packs in enough excitement and suspense to compensate for the lack of plot. “The Pack” is a combination of a home invasion thriller, and a nature run amok movie, where a seemingly normal family of four is attacked by a pack of large black wolves that arrive out of the wilderness of the Australian outback one night. The wolves are large and powerful as well as relentless, making the fight for survival absolutely intense.

The Wilson family are going through their troubles, as dad Adam finds out their farm is about to be foreclosed on. This creates familial tension, especially with daughter Sophie who wants to move to the city and be among actual people for once. Suddenly the pack of wild wolves burst from the woods and begin terrorizing the family, causing them to look for a way out of their farm and in to civilization. This proves to be more difficult than they could ever imagine, since they have no radio contact with the outside world, and any efforts from local authorities to rescue them results in the wolves literally tearing apart anyone that enters the threshold. A good amount of “The Pack” is built around the family spread apart and looking for a way to outwit and outmatch the wolves.

Their hunger is insatiable making them vicious and powerful in their pursuit. Robertson films some really tight and intense moments of evasion, as the characters hide in corners and small rooms trying to stay as quiet as possible while they devise a route out of the farm without being mauled. Though the budget obviously keeps us from seeing a full on attack by the wolves every minute, director Robertson works well with the limitations, making the wolves feel almost supernatural at times. Many of the best moments feature our characters making wise moves while the deck is stacked against them with these fierce clever monsters, and I was rooting for this family until the very end.

Though the final scene is a bit goofy for its blatant way of leaving the door open for a follow up, “The Pack” is a very good survival thriller and one I could definitely re-watch. The blu-ray from Scream Factory and IFC Midnight features an eight minute “Making Of” focusing on the dogs in the film, and how they worked with them, along with typical interviews about working with the director. There’s also the original theatrical trailer.

The Present (2014)

Posted on April 8, 2016 by Felix Vasquez

Based on the comic strip by Fabio Coala, director Jacob Frey adds an almost Pixar twist to the famed strip about a boy and his dog, injecting so much more emotion and a touching final scene. If the original comic weren’t bittersweet enough, “The Present” realizes the concept for a full fledged animated short that deserves a feature film. Jake is a boy who spends most of his time in doors playing video games and avoiding the outside world. One day after work his mom comes home with a present, and Jake is elated to see it’s a puppy. Initially surprised, he’s disappointed when he notices the pup only has three legs.

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The Phoenix Incident (2016)

Posted on April 4, 2016 by Felix Vasquez

On March 13th 1997, mass hysteria and dozens of conspiracy theories followed the sighting of a massive series of lights over the city of Phoenix Arizona. Known as “The Phoenix Lights,” said sighting has been a hot topic for UFO enthusiasts for years, and remains a mystery that the government has been very vague about discussing since. Director and writer Keith Arem has a good idea on his hands with “The Phoenix incident” and dares to combine various filmmaking formats including found footage, documentary, and action thriller. While it doesn’t amount to a flawless science fiction thriller, Arem’s ambition and concept is still pretty admirable when you step back and soak in the entire experience.

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Point Break (2015) [Blu-Ray/DVD/Digital]

Posted on March 27, 2016 by Felix Vasquez

Kathryn Bigelow’s 1991 action film “Point Break” was never really anything resembling a masterpiece, but one thing you could never call it was boring. It’s garnered something of a cult following over the years, for a reason. It’s a silly, goofy, and fun bromance where Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze bring their A game in one of the most sexless male romance action films of all time. It’s a camp classic despite its major failings. “Point Break” 2015 takes the 1991 original and saps out all of the fun and inherent camp, transforming it in to a tedious, overlong action thriller without a lick of humor about itself. Even “Fast and the Furious,” which copied “Point Break” shamelessly, had a sense of humor about itself and embraced its silly trappings and ridiculous plot line. Coming ten years too late, “Point Break” comes along after about fifteen retreads, and doesn’t really do anything except inspire the viewer to check out the original action film.

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Prehysteria! 3 (1995)

Posted on March 18, 2016 by Felix Vasquez

I’m not sure who is to blame for this film, but this is a terrible way to close out the “Prehysteria!” series. What began as a novel movie turns in to a piss poor series of kids films with diminishing returns thanks to the budget that gets lower and lower with every film. The original family that discovered the small dinosaurs must not have loved these animals too much, as when the third film opens, they’re once again being cared for by the eccentric old man from the second film who proceeds to lose them once again.

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Pee Wee’s Big Holiday (2016)

Posted on March 18, 2016 by Felix Vasquez

The good and bad news is that the big screen return of Pee Wee Herman has nothing to do with his groundbreaking kids show. It’s yet another phantasmagorical road trip movie that’s nearly impossible to pin down. It’s meta, satirical, tongue in cheek, and embraces the absurdity and absolute nonsensical comedy from Pee Wee Herman. Sometimes it misses and often times it hits. But only if you’re one of the people familiar with Pee Wee Herman’s brand of unique comedy. “Pee Wee’s Big Holiday” is a subtle message to the audience that Paul Reubens is trying to put his character in to new realms and situations. With Pee Wee being in a rut, Reubens tries his hardest to introduce the character to unusual scenarios and it works as a spiritual successor to “Pee Wee’s Big Adventure.”

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Plan 9 (2016)

Posted on March 7, 2016 by Felix Vasquez

There’s a huge problem when it comes to sitting through “Plan 9.” It’s essentially a remake of the infamous but hilarious Ed Wood disasterpiece “Plan 9 from Outer Space.” While Ed Wood never intended his film to be considered a comedy it ended up being accidentally one of the funniest movies of all time due to the ineptitude of its production. So how does a filmmaker with arguably more resources approach a remake of “Plan 9”? Basically director John Johnson tries to have his cake and eat it too, giving us a movie that’s literally all over the place. Sometimes “Plan 9” is a straight faced zombie movie with real stakes. Sometimes it’s a meta-remake with dark comedy. And other times it’s a pseudo-remake tha acknowledges the original film from Ed Wood exists in this universe. The latter idea makes no real sense when you consider the ideas presented in “Plan 9.”

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