One last blowout before reality sets in: it's Labour Day 1988, and although they graduated from high school four years earlier, the kids from the class of '84 get together for a party that will surely (because we're watching a movie about it) settle old scores and kindle new romance. But a little creative improvisation will be necessary for Matt Franklin (Topher Grace, who also co-produced and co-wrote the story), who is wasting his degree from MIT on a summer job at Suncoast Video; he's just told his secret high-school crush (Teresa Palmer) that he works for Goldman Sachs--and she's going to be at the party. Throw in Matt's loud and newly unemployed buddy (Dan Fogler), who has just found a baggie of cocaine in the glove compartment of the car he "borrowed" from his former job, as well as Matt's ambivalent sister (Anna Faris, not quite unleashed enough), and the ingredients are there for an epic night. That's clearly the intention for this movie, and while the ideas are all in place, its grasp of comedy and drama feels generally forced. Forced in its song list, too: all the lumbering behemoths of '80s rock are rolled out, from "Der Kommissar" to Dexy's Midnight Runners. For anybody with a nostalgia jones for the 1980s, there are enough funny bits along the way to justify a look, and the supporting cast has its share of craziness: Chris Pratt as the clueless host of the party, Demetri Martin as a disgruntled classmate, Michael Ian Black as the dream girl's douche-bag boss. And any movie that sets Balls of Fury cutup Fogler on a toot will not lack in energy. But nope, Take Me Home Tonight falls short of the realm of American Graffiti and Dazed and Confused, to which it obviously aspires, and no amount of Wang Chung on the soundtrack is going to hide that. --Robert Horton
Coming at a time when the action genre was dominated by shaky-cam Bourne editing shenanigans, 2008's Taken registered as a pleasantly streamlined surprise: a straight-ahead thriller where the clean, clear style both matched and accentuated Liam Neeson's ruthless-blunt-object force. Strangely, the sequel feels much more in line with producer Luc (The Transporter, Colombiana) Besson's other franchises--noisy, chaotically slammed together, and in dazed thrall to its own flash. (If there's an opportunity for a swooping helicopter shot or a fruit-cart collision, this sucker's going to go for two.) However, even if it can't match the impact of its predecessor, the sight of Neeson in righteous revenge mode still carries some considerably addictive juice. Set several years after the events of the first installment, the story finds Neeson's black-ops professional losing ground with his beloved daughter (Maggie Grace), while forming a tentative rapprochement with his ex-wife (the always welcome Famke Janssen). During a working vacation in Istanbul, their family ties are sorely testing by the appearance of an army of villains with a particular score to settle. Director Olivier Megaton (Transporter 3) digresses wildly from previous director Pierre Morel's no-nonsense approach, choosing instead to revel in over-the-top implausibilities; some pleasantly goofy (two words: grenade cartography), and others just sort of baffling (the reprisal of the first film's famous phone call comes in the middle of a fight scene, while a bunch of armed goons stand around obligingly). Still, even if the narrative rarely makes sense, Neeson keeps things from wandering too far off track, via sheer movie star presence. Craggier and somehow taller than ever, he makes for an ideal Family Man of Action: intriguingly self-contained, tender in repose, and absolutely ferocious when provoked. When he gets going, prepare to feel a little sorry for the bad guys. --Andrew Wright
Grace Jones: Bloodlight and Bami takes the viewer on an intimate and electrifying journey that moves between four cinematic layers performance, family, artist and traveller to explore the fascinating world of this pop cultural phenomenon. Jones' bold aesthetic echoes throughout unique musical performances that include hit songs Slave to the Rhythm and Pull Up to the Bumper. Larger than life, wild, scary and androgynous, Grace Jones plays all these parts yet here we also discover her as lover, daughter, mother, sister and even grandmother, allowing us to explore the world inside the icon.
A dazzling, high-tech thriller that infuses Ray Bradbury's classic novel of the same name with a decidedly 21st Century sensibility, the HBO Films presentation of Fahrenheit 451 depicts an American future where the media is an opiate, internet bots control everyday routines, history is truncated or rewritten, and brigades of celebrity firemen engage in televised search-and-destroy missions to burn books and bring their shamed owners to justice. Within this paranoid world, a zealous fireman (Michael B. Jordan) who's being groomed to replace his longtime captain (Michael Shannon) begins to question long-held assumptions about the practice of torching books and other graffiti that leaders say caused widespread dissent and, as a result, a Second Civil War where millions perished. After meeting a young informant (Sofia Boutella) who's on probation for supporting those who value literature and history, the fireman makes a dangerous decision to assist a group of underground Eels who have a bold plan for preserving the contents of thousands of classic books, arts and culture if they can outwit the all-seeing forces intent on destroying them.
Dennis Quaid and Topher Grace star in this modern day tale about corporate takeovers and falling for your colleague's daughter.
Spider-Man returns to battle a host of new baddies in the third adventure based on the popular comic book hero.
TakenLiam Neeson stars in this action-packed thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. When his daughter is kidnapped in Paris, a former spy (Neeson) sets out to find her at any cost. Relying on his special skills, he tracks down the ruthless gang that abducted her and launches a one-man war to bring them to justice and rescue his daughter. Taken 2Liam Neeson returns as Bryan Mills, the retired CIA agent 'with a particular set of skills' who stopped at nothing to save his daughter Kim from Albanian kidnappers. When the Father of one of the kidnappers swears revenge and takes Bryan and his wife hostage during their family vacation in Istanbul, Bryan enlists Kim to help them escape... Taken Special Features: Making of Avant Premiere Inside Action: Side by Side Comparison Segments Taken 2 Special Features: Extended and Theatrical Feature
After his mother unexpectedly dies, 17-year-old Ethan discovers he is the owner of a horse he never even knew existed. He travels cross country to live with his grandparents. Next door live three children who are taking riding lessons at the same farm where his mother's horse is boarded. Their lives intersect when they all have to deal with the school bully. This is a delightful family movie that will appeal to children, teens, horse-lovers and people of all ages.
In this contemporary version of Hawaii Five-0, a new elite federalized task force is formed with a mission to tackle crime in the Aloha State. Detective Steve McGarrett, a decorated US Navy lieutenant commander turned cop, returns to Oahu to investigate his father's murder and stays after Hawaii's governor persuades him to head up the new team: his rules, her backing, no red tape and full blanket immunity to hunt down the biggest game in town. Joining McGarrett is Detective Danny Danno Williams, a newly relocated ex-New Jersey cop who prefers skyscrapers to the coastline but is committed to keeping the Islands safe for his 8-year-old daughter (His re-married ex-wife also lives in Honolulu); and Chin Ho Kelly, an ex-Honolulu Police detective wrongly accused of corruption and relegated to a federal security patrol, who is also a former protege of McGarrett's father. Chin's cousin, Kono, is a beautiful and fearless local, fresh out of the academy and eager to establish herself among the department's elite. McGarrett vows to bring closure to his father's case while the state's brash new FIVE-0 unit, who may spar and jest among themselves, is determined to eliminate the seedy elements from the 50th state.
Iconic movie star Eve Wilde (Glenn Close Fatal Attraction) is getting married once again raising concerns with her three grown sons and her favourite ex-husband, Laurence (John Malkovich Being John Malkovich). As the entire extended family pours in to witness the nuptials of Eve and Harold (Patrick Stewart Logan), the long summer weekend offers the opportunity for everyone to get to know each other a bit more intimately. With everyone and their exes invited, sexual sparks begin to fly and lead to unforeseen consequences that make for a WILDE wedding!
Sean Penn and Don Cheadle star in this drama that follows the life of a disillusioned salesman who takes extraordinary measures to make his presence felt.
The Chase (1994)
A pre-code film that sneaked onto screens just as the censorious Hays Office began cracking down on Hollywood's racier propositions, Cleopatra is a libertine paean to decadence and depravity that can still send a viewer's mind reeling and pulse thumping – all courtesy of the Golden Age's swampiest psychosexual auteur, Cecil B. DeMille (The Ten Commandments; The Greatest Show on Earth; The King of Kings). Claudette Colbert (It Happened One Night; The Palm Beach Story; Drums Along the Mohawk) presides over the most outrageous spectacle this side of The Scarlet Empress as the eponymous pharaoh queen who speeds from Julius Caesar (Warren William) to Marc Antony (Henry Wilcoxon), from Egypt to Rome, from war-room to bedroom… The whiff of incense permeates every scene, with each connected to the next in a veritable matrix of whips, blindfolds, and bindings – the crazed arrangement laying bare all the fetish inklings of the moving-picture dream.
TakenLiam Neeson stars in this action-packed thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. When his daughter is kidnapped in Paris, a former spy (Neeson) sets out to find her at any cost. Relying on his special skills, he tracks down the ruthless gang that abducted her and launches a one-man war to bring them to justice and rescue his daughter. Taken 2Liam Neeson returns as Bryan Mills, the retired CIA agent 'with a particular set of skills' who stopped at nothing to save his daughter Kim from Albanian kidnappers. When the Father of one of the kidnappers swears revenge and takes Bryan and his wife hostage during their family vacation in Istanbul, Bryan enlists Kim to help them escape... Taken Special Features: Making of Avant Premiere Inside Action: Side by Side Comparison Segments Real Time Mission Intelligence - Bonus View Taken 2 Special Features: Extended and Theatrical Feature Deleted Scenes Alternate Ending Black Ops Field Manual Sam's Tools of the Trade FX Movie Channel Presents: In Character with Liam Neeson
A View to a Kill, Roger Moore's last outing as James Bond, is evidence enough that it was time to pass the torch to another actor. Beset by crummy action (an out-of-control fire engine?) and featuring a fading Moore still trying to prop up his mannered idea of style, A View to a Kill is largely interesting for Christopher Walken's quirky performance as a sort-of super-villain who wants to take out California's Silicon Valley. Grace Jones has a spookily interesting presence as a lethal associate of Walken's (and who, in the best Bond tradition, has sex with 007 before trying to kill him later), and Patrick Macnee (Steed!) has a warm if brief bit. Even directed by John Glen, who brought some crackle to the Moore years in the Bond franchise, this is a very slight effort. --Tom Keogh, Amazon.com On the DVD: For Roger Moore's final Bond outing the production crew faced the usual quota of difficulties and disasters, the "making-of" documentary reveals: from base jumpers off the Eiffel tower whose antics threatened to jeopardise fragile relations with the Parisian authorities, to Ridley Scott thoughtlessly burning down the 007 at Pinewood right before production was due to start. Patrick MacNee, who has a supporting role in the movie, hands over narrative duties on this one to Rosemary Ford. The commentary is one of those less-than-satisfying montages of comments from various members of cast and crew. Also included is Duran Duran's "A View to a Kill" video (sounding hopelessly dated now), the usual trailers and a brief deleted scene of comic relief inside a Parisian police station. The second documentary concerns the music of Bond--always a crucial ingredient--although it manages the neat diplomatic trick of interviewing both Monty Norman and John Barry without giving the least hint of any controversy about the famous James Bond theme. --Mark Walker
The passion violence mystery and beauty of India are rapturously evoked in Merchant Ivory Productions' acclaimed HEAT AND DUST based on the novel by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala the Oscar winning screenwriter and novelist.Blending east and west and moving effortlessly between the vibrant world of modern-day India and the magnificent splendours of the Raj HEAT AND DUST intertwines the contemporary story of Anne a young woman drawn to India by her desire to unravel the scandal surrounding her great-aunt Olivia's seduction in the 1920s by a glamorous Indian prince. for Anne it proves as much a journey of self-discovery as the opportunity to solve an enigma as she too becomes seduced by the romantic and luxurious enchantments of India.
This tremendous box set features a quartet of Jimmy Stewart's classic performances. Harvey (Dir. Henry Koster 1950): James Stewart stars as Elwood P. Dowd a wealthy alcoholic whose sunny disposition and drunken antics are tolerated by most of the citizens of his community. That is until Elwood begins to claim that he has a friend named Harvey who is an invisible six foot rabbit. Elwood's snooty socialite sister Veta determined to marry off her daughter Myrtle to a respec
This seven-disc box set includes the following titles: The Trouble with Harry: the 1955 black comedy concerning a pesky corpse that becomes a problem for a quiet, Vermont neighbourhood. The Man Who Knew Too Much: the 1956 remake of Hitchcock's own 1934 spy thriller. James Stewart and Doris Day play American tourists who discover more than they wanted to know about an assassination plot. Rear Window: the 1954 film in which the story and visual perspective are dictated by its protagonist's (Jimmy Stewart) imprisonment in his apartment. Stewart's convalescence in a wheelchair provides the revolutionary perspective from which both he and the audience observe the lives of his neighbours. Rope: the 1948 experimental film masquerading as a Hollywood thriller, the plot is simple and based on a successful stage play: two young men commit murder as an intellectual exercise. Shadow of a Doubt: the 1943 thriller which sets a tone of menace and fear by introducing a psychotic killer into the quite suburban town of Santa Rosa, California. Hitchcock claimed it to be his personal favourite. Saboteur: the 1942 film, set during the initial stages of World War II, concerning a ring of Nazi fifth columnists who plot to weaken American military defences and cause a falsely accused man being forced on the run. Bonus disc: Psycho: the 1960 film which contains one of the most famous scenes in movie history. Anthony Perkins is unforgettable as Norman Bates (a role he could never seem to leave behind) the mama's-boy proprietor of the Bates Motel. On the DVD: with the wealth of writing and documentation surrounding the great master and his work, it would be a great loss to find this collection lacking in special features. Thankfully this box set does not disappoint. The special features are not only laid out clearly but they offer an outstanding range of information that will please any Hitchcock fan. Each disc varies in content but many include original storyboards and sketches from art directors and even, on one occasion, Hitchcock himself. They contain beautifully edited interviews or "Making Of" features, plus there's a trailer compilation with a voice-over from the great Jimmy Stewart. All discs come with a scene selection and choice of languages and subtitles. The DVD picture and sound is almost perfect, making each classic feel like new. The box set offers a small booklet with details of each film along with original poster. The Psycho bonus disc, includes cast biographies and a theatrical trailer and the lavish package design makes it a great coffee-table accessory --Nikki Disney
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