On Blu-ray & DVD July 30 from Well Go USA
12-year-old Charlotte finds and raises a spider that grows at an incredible rate. Soon, people in her building die in mysterious ways, something Charlotte needs to face and deal with before her family becomes the next victims.
Now Available from Warner Home Entertainment.
This isn’t the ultimate Rocky Collection. I’m sure Warner is planning a big deluxe set with all the bells and whistles somewhere down the line because, while it is a very good set, it doesn’t have every Rocky chapter. Despite being a spin off, the “Creed” movies are “Rocky” movies to their very soul and should be included in the library. I don’t know if they’re waiting for “Creed III” or some anniversary, but “Creed” deserves its spot in this massive library alongside “Rocky III” and “Rocky.” They’re both wonderful films the same as Stallone’s creations are. Stallone has also expressed big interest in re-cutting “Rocky V” for re-release over the last few years, so if that ever gets off the ground, there’s room for another set down the road.
Nevertheless, for fans that wanted another go at the “Rocky” series, Warner releases an interesting and more thorough (thorougher?) collection.
Now Available from Shout! Factory. The Novel is Also Available.
Believe it or not, in 1998 Ben Affleck wasn’t the biggest star in the world. He was still coming down from being pigeonholed as the “villain” actor, and was working to transition from supporting actor to leading man status. With “Phantoms” he is basically paying his dues for what is a pretty standard horror thriller. Affleck is very good in the role as a local sheriff whose ill fitted cowboy hat is almost a character in and of itself. Like the hat, “Phantoms” is a silly vehicle for a collective of pretty great up and comers including Nicky Katt, Liev Schreiber and Rose McGowan to name a few. There’s also the wildcard veteran a la Peter O’Toole for good measure.
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.
Premiering at the LA International Short Film Festival, Tim Aslin and Shane Cibella’s short “5.7 Seconds” is a great idea, teeming with the feeling from a movie like “28 Weeks Later.” In an undisclosed location, in an unexplained calamity, a young woman rushes in to an abandoned car and locks herself inside from stalking individuals out in the middle of the day. Distraught and panicked, she locks the doors and is shocked to discover someone else has been hiding in the car, too.
Later in his career, George Romero never could win with audiences. If he was too campy, he was berated for not being serious enough. When he was too serious, he was berated for “losing his sense of humor.” With “Diary of the Dead,” Romero has a very unique and important statement to make about the media, misinformation, and the dangers of social media. With “Diary of the Dead,” Romero bounces back and forth between cheeky camp and some stern warnings about misinformation and sensationalism during very real times.
With this iteration of the zombie apocalypse, it isn’t so much the death of death that kills us, but the lack of information for the sake of entertainment.
A man believing he may be killed that day gathers his children to protect him or lose their inheritance.