Tuesday New Releases On DVD And BLU/RAY And Streaming!!

After having a week with no new releases to note , there are three to films released for home viewing this week!!



GET HARD

Directed by Etan Cohen

Screenplay by six writers

Starring: Will Ferrell and Kevin Hart

When  multi-millionaire James King (Ferrell) is found guilty for fraud and is sent to San Quentin, he turns to Darnell Lewis(Hart) to prep him before he goes to jail.

The film is a disappointment. Six writers. I mention that because six writers were involved and this film did not have many laughs, which is shocking because these are two of the funniest people on the planet. It was more cringe worthy than funny. One scene at a gay diner, I think that is what it was, was just hard (no pun intended) to watch, it was not funny, and borderline homophobic. It was lazy writing with waaay to many coincidences and a rushed ending that seems like it was thrown together.
The positives? Ferrell and Hart had good chemistry. They just did not have much to work with.

2 stars out of 5 for Get Hard.



DANNY COLLINS
Screenplay and Direction by Dan Fogelman
Starring: Al Pacino; Annette Bening; Christopher Plummer; Bobby Cannavale; and Jennifer Garner



Inspired by the true story of singer Steve Tilson, Al Pacino stars as aging 1970s rocker Danny Collins, who is living off his past success, still partying like his golden days, living with a woman who is about 1/3 his age. But when his manager Frank (Christopher Plummer) uncovers a 40 year-old undelivered letter written to him by John Lennon, he Reflects on what he was or the person he was before stardom. Collins then decides to change his course and embarks on a heartfelt journey to rediscover his past, and try to make reparations while doing so.
This film surprised me. There is a sweetness to Danny Collins. There is one scene where he catches his girlfriend doing something wrong,and the way he handles it is surprisingly. From that point in the film I felt....wow...there is a softness to this guy that they did not show in the trailer.
It is a pretty good film with really good performances:
Pacino, it maybe the best performance he has given since The Insider. He plays Collins surprisingly pushy and soft at the same time.
Plummer, as Pacino's agent almost steals the film, as he usually does, with humor.
All these stars mean nothing with out another really good screenplay by Dan Fogelman (Crazy,Stupid,Love).

Well I cant classify it as great film, but it is a pretty good sweet film to sit and watch at home  3 1/2 out of 5 stars for Danny Collins. Well worth a look.



While We're Young
Direction and Screenplay Noah Baumbach
Starring: Ben Stiller; Naomi Watts; Adam Driver; Amanda Seyfried; and Charles Grodin



Josh and Cornelia (Watts and Stiller), 40-somethings who are going through their mundane lives. Josh has been hard at work on a documentary film for eight years, yes eight years. Cornelia is constantly being asked when she's going to have kids, while being afraid to tell her friends she may not want kids. Their lives gets thrown for a loop when they meet Jamie and Darby (Seyfried and Driver), young hipsters who live such a free life, Josh and Cornelia want to experience a part of their lives.
The film is listed as a comedy. Far from it. The only funny moments are seen in the trailer. So, the trailer is misleading. The film is more of a drama. It is almost sad to watch this couple try to hold on to their youth. Then out of nowhere the film delves into modern day electronics and ethics and the disagreement of who owns what information. And it also touches on being 40 and older and keeping up with technology, the feeling of always being a step behind.
The film has an odd tone. It is not a bad film, but not a very good film.

2 1/2 stars out of 5 for While We're Young. For a night at home for watching it has it's moments.




From the shadows as always thanks for your time.

Monday Recommended: Man On Wire!!

MAN ON WIRE
Directed by James Marsh



A look at tightrope walker Philippe Petit's daring, but illegal, high-wire walk between New York City's World Trade Center's twin towers in 1974.

A hold your breath documentary!!! Which is strange because you know the outcome, James Marsh does a great job of putting  the documentary together making you feel you are there. We see how the prep work for the walk was accomplished and we follow that crazy walk. We also see not only how nutty Petit is but also how he is a bright gentleman and he goes in fully knowing the consequences, even if he makes it. The documentary also  shows the beauty of the World Trade Towers in New York City, it brings to the documentary a little sadness.
If I had some negatives I would say the documentary spent too much time with Petit's life in Paris. I just wanted to get to the prep work for the walk and the walk.

4 out of 5 stars for this exciting/crazy documentary which is available on Netflix for streaming and rental. Now I brought this documentary up because later on in the week I will connect the documentary with something else. WOW I just gave you a cliffhanger for later in the week!!


From the shadows as always thanks for your time.

Film Review: The Wolfpack

The Wolfpack
Directed by Crystal Mosella



Locked away from society in an apartment on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, the Angulo brothers learn about the outside world through the films that they watch. Nicknamed, 'The Wolfpack,' the brothers spend their childhood reenacting their favorite films using elaborate homemade props and costumes. The only thing they know about the outside world is through movies. Their world is shaken up when one of the brothers escapes and everything changes.

Critics are really giving this documentary high praise. Me....not so much.
The brothers are so socially awkward from being locked away in their apartment that it makes the film uncomfortable to watch. How socially awkward? Well when one brother decided to leave the apartment on his own he decided to wear a Michael Myers mask so if his dad saw him he would not recognize him. Yeah!! Well as you could predict the police were called by many nervous people.
The father is just a bit insane (well maybe a lot). The mother is abused as you can imagine spends her life in the apartment almost as a little mouse, her eyes look empty. As you can tell...this is a tough watch. I think the critics loved this because they were taken in by the boys love of movies. Which is nice and sweet but also very sad in a way.
As far as the documentary itself. I thought it was sloppy. Jumping from time period to time period, I as the viewer kept getting lost. All the boys looked alike, same facial features and long hair, I struggled to tell the difference between them, so a caption continuously through the film of who they were would have helped. Also we see the boys go to their first movie, their first trip to a beach. However while watching this I wonder how they got to the beach. I wonder how they paid...what 100 dollars... to get into the movies. Did the filmmakers pay? Isn't that manipulating the documentary a bit?
As for the "Wolfpack" themselves. They seem like real nice gentleman. However because of their lack of social skills I feel they will really struggle in society.
2 1/2 stars out of 5...I felt a really sad and strange documentary.


As always from the shadows thanks for your time.

Film Review: Ted 2

TED 2
Directed by Seth McFarlane
Screenplay by Seth McFarlane; Alec Sulkin; and Wellesley Wild
Starring Mark Wahlberg; Amanda Seyfried; and SethMcFarland (Voice)



Newlywed couple Ted and Tami-Lynn want to have a baby, but in order to qualify to be a parent, Ted will have to prove he's a person in a court of law.


I have to start off by saying Ted, the first film, I was not a big fan. In fact I thought it was a one joke lazy screenplay of a film. I was pulled into Ted 2 because I thought the trailer was funny. Well I was kinda right. TED 2 I thought was a little bit funnier. Still....not a very good movie.
Problems: The film is all over the place with tone. It goes from a foul mouthed Teddy Bear to a long love song being sung by Amanda Seyfried to a funny bit with a pot field with the Jurasic Park score.
I think the problem is that McFarland's writing is more appropriate for television, where it is a 22 minute episode usually surrounded by one joke. With feauture length films, he sticks to a joke and runs it into the ground and over a span of two hours (he needs better editors) it falls flat. The bear jokes; the pot jokes; the running of movie stars in and out of the movie just falls flat.
The positives? Wahlberg should get more credit playing off a bear who is not really there, he makes it believable, it must be hard to do. Seyfried as a young pot smoking lawyer, is really funny in her second outing in a McFarland film (A million ways to die in the west).
Ted 2 I give 2 out of 5 stars for another McFarland disappointment. Maybe I just do not get his, pounding a joke to death humor. Well, at least I got more laughs in this one than the first Ted, just not as many as I hoped.


Well...from the shadows thanks as always for your time.

Wednesday YAY OR NAY Trailers!! Including Bridge Of Spies!!!

Each Wednesday I pick out three trailers and judge the film just by watching the trailers Yay Or Nay!! Play along!!

Learning To Drive
Release Date August 21st 2015



Ben Kingsley may be miscast ( Maybe Irrfan Kahn was not available), yes he played Gandhi, and his real name is Krishna Bhanji, still I cannot explain why it just seems he is miscast. I do love Patricia Clarkson however and the script looks cute. Still I am going with a slight NAY.


BRIDGE OF SPIES
Release Date October 16th 2015



Okay this looks crazy good.  Calling Mr Oscar!! YAY!!


MISTRESS AMERICA
Release Date August 14th 2015



Loooove. Did I say looove?! Greta Gerwig. I cannot not tell what the plot is...but it looks like everybody is a bit of a mess. Which is Gerwig's go to character. May be a bit messy so a slight ..YAY.


Well from the shadows thanks as always for your time.

A Revisit: 40 years ago this week JAWS!!!! The Original Summer Blockbuster!!!

A perfect week to have no new DVD/BLURAY/Streaming new releases to mention so we can all focus on this shark!!! We need a bigger boat!!!!! So in celebration of 40 years ago this week, I will give you some fun and not so fun facts!!

JAWS
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Screenplay by Peter Benchley and Carl Gottlieb
Based on the book by Peter Benchley
Starring: Roy Schneider; Robert Shaw; Richard Dreyfuss; and Lorraine Gary



Okay that trailer was awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just the score by John Williams brings chills!!!
Here I go:
-You are going to need a bigger boat...not scripted ..but improvised by Schneider
-The mechanical shark was broken down for most of the shoot. Spielberg decided to use the camera as the point of view of the shark, which unknowingly added more suspense.
-In fact the shark was never tested...to a point when it first went into the water it sank to the floor.
-Robert Shaw could not stand Richard Dreyfus which added to their tension on camera.
-Though respected as an actor, Robert Shaw's  trouble with alcohol was a frequent source of tension during filming.  When it came time to shoot the famous USS Indianapolis Scene, Shaw attempted to do the monologue while intoxicated as it called for the men to be drinking late at night. Nothing in the take could be used. A remorseful Shaw called Spielberg late that night and asked if he could have another try. The next day of shooting, Shaw's great performance was done in one take.
-The arm found in the sand was actually the arm of a female crew member buried in the sand
-The shark had a name "Bruce" named after a lawyer Spielberg knew.
-Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, was used as Amity Island primarily because even 12 miles out to sea, the sandy bottom was only 30 feet down, allowing the mechanical shark to function. Residents were paid $64 to scream and run across the beach as extras.
-The tax problem Robert Shaw was facing was that if he spent more than a certain amount of time in the U.S. he would face a tax liability. To circumvent that, Shaw was flown to Canada on his days off.
-Jaws only opened on 409 screens
-A scene filmed, but not included in the final release, was during the second beach attack. Brody's son, swimming in the "shallow area" is frozen in terror as the shark approaches him; the man saves his life by pushing the boy out of the way at the last minute and putting himself in the path of the shark. There is a shot of the bloody, dying man's upper body being dragged briefly along in the shark's jaws before being pulled underwater. Steven Spielberg shot the scene, but decided it was far too gruesome and didn't include


Where are they??
Susan Blackline-Played Chrissie the girl who sadly went skinny dipping in the beginning of the film. She played small roles in a couple films like 1941. She is now s a computer accountant in Ventura, California.\

Chris Rebello -Played Michael Brody. Rebello died at the young age of 37 of a heart attack while deer hunting with some lifelong buddies in 2000. He had a wife and three children.

Jay Mello- Married and living in West Burke Vermont with his wife and three kids. Was only 7 when Jaws came out. Arrested for lewd acts in 2010...what they were...that was not specified.

Lorraine Gary-Played the Sheriff's wife. Retired after the Jaws films. Note Marty McFly's mother was named after her in Back To The Future. Still alive and living a quite life.

Murray Hamilton-Played  Mayor Vaughn. A great actor who was also known The Graduate and The Hustler. He died in 1986 at 63 of cancer.

Robert Shaw- Also known for The Sting and From Russia With Love died in 1978 at 51 of a heart attack in Ireland. Just three years after the release of Jaws.

Roy Schneider-Also known for The French Connection; All That Jazz; and 2010. He died in February of 2008 at the age of 75 of Multiple Myeloma.

Richard Dreyfuss-One of our great actors known for many parts most notably for winning an Oscar for The Goodbye Girl. He is still a working actor last seen on the TV show Parenthood.


Jaws will be getting a wide screen release in some theatres in the next couple of weeks, and is available for rent from Netflix.
Remember!!!!!!!!!!! THIS WAS NO BOAT ACCIDENT!!!


From the shadow as always thanks for your time.

Monday Recommended!! Waitress!!

Each Monday I recommend a film that may have passed you by: This week I recommend Waitress!!
Now even if you have had the chance to see this before, take another look because I am recommending this not only because it is a good film, but also because it is coming to Broadway as a musical featuring music produced by Sara Bareilles!! Plus there is a real sad story to this movie that I will touch on later.

WAITRESS
Directed by Adrienne Shelly
Screenplay by Adrienne Shelly
Starring: Keri Russell; Nathan Fillion; Jeremy Sisto; Adrienne Shelly; Cheryl Hines; and Andy Griffith



Jenna (Keri Russell) is a pregnant, unhappily married waitress in the deep south. She meets a doctor (Fillion) new to her town and falls into an unlikely relationship.

I think the relationship with her DR is icky. The abusive relationship with Earl (Sisto) is maddening.
Still what makes this film work is the diner (and pies). In fact the relationship with the DR could have been written out and I could have just watched Jenna and the folks in the diner. Cheryl Hines as fellow waitress Becky is great. Adrienne Shelly (also writer and director) is adorable as Dawn. Andy Griffith is, well Andy Griffith as the grumpy but knowledgeable and very observant Old Joe. The diner brings much needed humor and so do the pies!!

This is a very sweet lovely film about a young lady trying to get out and follow a dream. I really like this movie, 4 1/2 out of 5 stars. Waitress is available for rent through Netflix. Catch it before it hits Broadway!!


Now the awful backstory:
While finishing up post production on the film, actress (Dawn in the film), also the screenwriter and director Adrienne Shelly was murdered in her NY apartment. An 19-year-old Ecuadorian illegal immigrant and construction worker confessed to slaying the actress, whom he left hanging by a bed sheet from a shower rod in the bathroom of her Manhattan office/apartment. She was found by her husband. The killer pleaded guilty to manslaughter. Diego Pillco. He admitted strangling her after she caught him trying to rob her apartment. He also confessed to hanging her and stage it as a suicide. At the time he was helping to renovate an apartment in the same West Village building where she had her office. He said he panicked when Shelly discovered him stealing from her purse and threatened to call the police.
When the film was released it put a damper on the premier and may have kept people away because of the sadness surrounding the movie. It made it hard to watch because she is in the film and her character is adorable. I disagree, I think this is what she left behind for us to see and out of respect for her it should be watched and enjoyed, just like she wanted.


Spoiler Warning: At the end you see Jenna walking down a road with her daughter. That young girl playing her daughter is Shelly's daughter Sophie. I hope the musical is a success for Sophie!!


From the shadows thanks for your time!!

FATHERS DAY WEEKEND!!!!! MY TOP 5 FATHERS IN FILM!!

In recognition of Fathers Day Weekend (like I did on Mothers Day weekend) I am giving you my top 5 Fathers in film from the year 2000 to now!!

Number 5
BRYAN MILLS
Played by Liam Neeson in Taken 2008



Lets face it , he has great instincts (Remember he kept saying this trip is not a good idea), and he will go to the end of the earth to help his daughter. And he even tries to help his daughter with a singing career.
Bryan's best line:
" I don't know who you are. I don't know what you want. If you are looking for ransom, I can tell you I don't have money. But what I do have are a very particular set of skills, skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you. If you let my daughter go now, that'll be the end of it. I will not look for you, I will not pursue you. But if you don't, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you."


Number 4
DANIEL
Played by Liam Neeson in Love Actually 2003



Yes twice Liam Neeson!! A stepfather makes my list. Some people find it creepy that he is helping his son meet this young girl. I find it endearing and a way, after the loss of his wife, to bond and relate with his stepson.
Daniels best line:
"Sam, you've got nothin' to lose, tell her you love her, and you'll always regret it if you don't! I never told your mom enough. I should have told her everyday because she was perfect everyday. You've seen the films, kiddo. It ain't over 'til its over."


Number 3
Jackie Elliot
Played by Gary Lewis in Billy Elliot 2000



Gary Lewis was the original Jackie Elliot before the stage musical. I know Julie Walters and Jamie Bell were the big stars in this film but nothing pushes forward without him. He is a blue collar miner faced with a son who just loves to dance and you watch him relent and feel for who his son is and to open his own mind and try to give his son a chance. He has trouble in the beginning showing love and you see his toughness melt away as the film moves on. Just watch his face in the final scene.
Best quote: After Billy says he is scared:
"That is okay Billy, we are all scared".


Number 2
Chris Gardner
Played by Will Smith in The Pursuit Of Happiness 2006



Trying to better himself while trying to be a single father without a home. And it is a true story!!
It is all about love.
Best quote:
"I met my father for the first time when I was 28 years old. I made up my mind that when I had children, my children were going to know who their father was. "


And my Number 1 father is:

Marlin
Played by Albert Brooks in Finding Nemo 2003



Lets face it...it was not close. He had to be number one. He wants to hold on tight to his son Nemo and keep him out of danger. He loses Nemo and is a relentless father trying to get him back. Then later, realizing, even though it is difficult, his son has to swim slowly away to learn about life and how to deal with dangers. A great, yet nervous father.
His best quote:
[Holding Nemo's cracked egg in his fin] "I promise to never let anything happen to you, Nemo."


Happy Fathers Day from the shadows!!