Tuesday, November 12, 2013
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
New Holiday DVD & Blu-Ray Releases 11/05/13
Huge volume of holiday movies released this week! Includes special editions of Mickey's Christmas Carol, A Very Merry Pooh Year, a special for the popular TV show, Duck Dynasty: I Am Dreaming of a Redneck Christmas, Rise Of The Guardians Holiday Edition DVD and Blu-Ray sets. Blu-Ray releases of other classics too, including A Christmas Story, Bishop's Wife, Scrooged, Elf and lots of other classic movies and TV. Plenty of new original movies to add to your collection as well!
Thursday, October 31, 2013
John Carpenter's Halloween
Happy Halloween!!! This is our final post for the month of October, and we are going out with a BANG as we review the most notorious Halloween film of all-time - John Carpenter's Halloween! When it comes to horror movies there are some that are memorable, some that are forgettable and some that reach the level known as timeless. When looking at the John Carpenter's 1978 classic known as "Halloween", there are few that can say this isn't a classic and a must-watch on Halloween night.
On Halloween night in 1963, in a small town called Haddonfield, IL, a small six year old boy named Michael Myers murders his older sister Judith, in an unprovoked attack. Michael puts on a clown mask (and through Michael's perspective) we get to see him go up the stairs and stab his sister with a butcher knife. Michael then heads outside at the exact moment his parents come home. Michael's father takes off Michael's mask and both parents stare in shock as they see their son standing there holding a bloody butcher knife. At this point we have no knowledge what triggered Michael to commit such a horrific act. We are left to wonder, what was the reason???
We move forward fifteen years to October 30th, 1978 where we see Dr. Sam Loomis (who would become the ultimate protagonist in the Halloween franchise) and a nurse driving to a mental hospital in the middle of the night. We are informed that Dr. Loomis is in the process of having Michael Myers brought to court to be committed for life and feels that Michael is pure evil. As they approach Smith's Grove mental hospital they see several patients wandering around the premise unwatched. Dr. Loomis tells the nurse to pull up to the front gate so he can find out what's going on. As he goes to the gate Michael jumps on the car and forces the nurse out. Michael then takes the opportunity to steal the car and escape the hospital.
The next day is Halloween and we are introduced to Laurie Strobe ( Jamie Lee Curtis) who is a high school girl making her way to school. She is approached by a young boy named Tommy Doyle, who we learn she is suppose to babysit that night. As Laurie talks to Tommy and makes her way to school she appears to be watched by Michael Myers from a voyeuristic perspective. This is the first clip of several that provide us with a unique perspective where we are seeing things through Michael Myers eyes. This gives the viewer a unique and rather suspicious feeling as we try to learn why Michael is watching Laurie.
From this point forward a chilling and suspenseful plot begins with Michael Myers watching and almost analyzing Laurie and her friends (Annie and Lynda) on Halloween night. No gore or blood, just simply a build up, but enough to keep you glued to the screen wondering what is going to happen. Dr. Loomis and the local Sheriff head to Michael Myers childhood house to watch for him while we learn more about Michael Myers. Dr Loomis informs the Sheriff that he feels Michael is pure evil and has no logic or feeling a normal person would, almost like a monster. The Sheriff is doubtful of Michael's arrival but also angry that Dr. Loomis let someone of Michael's mental status escape knowing what could happen.
Michael Myers slowly begins to attack Laurie's friends as the opportunity arises. Unlike standard horror movies, the rash of killings doesn't begin till a good 45 minutes into the movie. Annie is the first fatality and Lynda and her boyfriend are next to feel Michael's wrath.
In my opinion, one of the best scenes in Halloween is Halloween night when Laurie goes to check on her friends and sees the fate that has resulted due to Michael Myers. In her state of fear, Michael appears out of the darkness and attacks her. She is able to get away and run back to the house she is babysitting at but Michael starts to follow her. Laurie tries to survive the best she can, but Michael will not stop or stay down. Laurie tells the kids she is babysitting for to run to the neighbors and call the police. When the kids head out screaming Dr. Loomis hears them and heads to that house.
Michael begins to strangle Laurie, but Dr. Loomis fires several shots at Michael causing him to fall off the balcony. Dr. Loomis goes to look at Michael's body, but it's gone. The movie closes out with shots of all the key locations of the movie and hearing Michael's deep breathing, making us wonder where Michael could be as the movie fades out.
Halloween is a unique approach to horror movies. There is no bloodbath or forced back to back killing sprees, but rather the opportunity to learn who the characters are and seeing things from Michael Myers perspective. The movie is simple and does not have a lot of high budget value, but it provides an edge-of-your-seat horror flick that has become a staple every Halloween night on television. The series has had seven sequels, most of which have had mixed reviews, but the original Halloween has ranked as one of the top five best horror movies of all-time with reviews written by Fangoria, Wicked Magazine and other horror publications. Watch the trailer for this classic, influential horror film that no Halloween would be complete without!
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
Tuesday, October 15, 2013
Wednesday, October 9, 2013
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
This October we will be reviewing a few of our very favorite Halloween specials and movies. Keep an eye out for these in the weeks to come, as we go back in time to reminisce on those classic films that had such a great impact on us over the years!
When it comes to Halloween specials, there are not many that give the feeling that "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" provides. Charles Schultz yet again puts together a 30 minute classic that has been a staple of the Halloween season.
The special starts right out with a perfect fall landscape. Linus and his sister Lucy go out to the pumpkin patch to get ready to carve a jack-o-lantern. When they bring the pumpkin back in the house Lucy lays out some paper and begins carving. Poor Linus, being unfamiliar with pumpkin carving, cries "You didn't tell me you were going to kill it!!!"
Linus then writes a letter to the Great Pumpkin, who he believe will come to the most sincere pumpkin patch on Halloween night and deliver presents to all the good kids in the world. Unfortunately for Linus, none of his friends or even his sister are taking him seriously and think he is making a fool of himself. That is, everyone but Charlie Brown's sister Sally, who believes anything Linus tells her.
Halloween night arrives and Linus takes his place in the pumpkin patch with a sign reading "Welcome Great Pumpkin", while the rest of the gang is getting ready for a fun Halloween night of trick-or-treating, then heading over to Violet's for the big Halloween party. On their way out, they stop by the pumpkin patch to tease Linus some more but Linus stands by his belief that the Great Pumpkin will arrive. Sally, feeling bad for her crush, decides to stay with him in the pumpkin patch instead of going out with the other kids.
During trick-or-treating, the gang receives a assortment of candies, apples and gum, while poor Charlie Brown gets stuck with only rocks. Meanwhile, Charlie Brown's faithful dog, Snoopy, is wearing his World War I flying ace costume, and climbs onto his doghouse, which he imagines to be a fighter plane. He flies into battle against the Red Baron, where they engage into a fierce battle in which his plane is shot down and he finds himself in enemy territory. Snoopy travels through the countryside, which leads him to the Halloween party, where Charlie Brown and his friends are at. He hangs around a bit, mostly near Schroeder's piano, who is playing World War I tunes just for him.
Snoopy ends up leaving the party and heads to the pumpkin patch where Linus and Sally are still waiting for the Great Pumpkin to show up. By this time Sally is having doubts about the whole thing, when suddenly they hear rustling in the vines. Linus gets so worked up with excitement that he ends up fainting before he could see it was not the Great Pumpkin rising from the pumpkin patch, but only Snoopy. Sally is deeply let down and scolds Linus for making her miss the Halloween party, trick-or-treating and all the Halloween fun. Just then, the gang shows up as everyone is heading home for the night. Sally decides to leave too, while Linus tries to convince everyone that the Great Pumpkin is still coming and promises to put in a good word for them.
At 4 am Lucy wakes up and notices her brother is still not in bed, which prompts her to go look for him. When she comes to the pumpkin patch, she finds Linus asleep and shivering, so she brings him back home and puts him to bed. A couple weeks later Charlie Brown and Linus are at the rock wall discussing their disappointment from Halloween night. Charlie Brown tries to make Linus feel better by telling him he has done stupid things before, but this just angers Linus and he vows next year the great pumpkin will come!!!
This halloween classic has been a highly regarded family favorite every October. I know in my household this has become a must when we are carving Jack-O-Lanterns. What makes this special so great is how it touches on the childlike innocence that Linus provides in his undying belief of the Great Pumpkin, as well as captures this special time of year with great fall imagery. It's simple, yet effective in reminding us of our childhood experiences at Halloween.
Tuesday, October 8, 2013
Tuesday, October 1, 2013
New Holiday DVD & Blu-Ray Releases 10/01/13
Quite a lot of holiday releases this week! It's the first day of October, but we're actually seeing more Christmas movies and sets than Halloween this time around. A little something for everyone and every holiday, including Berenstain Bears: Pumpkin Party for Halloween, a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving 40th Anniversary release, and the sequel to Raymond Brigg's beloved story The Snowman, The Snowman & The Snowdog!
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
New Holiday DVD & Blu-Ray Releases 9/24/13
Not a great number of Holiday releases this week, but this Dark Knight Trilogy Blu-Ray boxset is high on the list. Also we have a Blu-Ray, 35th Anniversary release of John Carpenter's classic movie, Halloween. And for the kids we have Scooby-Doo: 13 Spooky Tales Ruh-Roh Robot.
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
New Holiday DVD & Blu-Ray Releases 9/17/13
Coming off the heels of the zombie craze is this direct-to-video animated feature film, Daddy I'm A Zombie, which is clearly inspired by the works of Tim Burton (Nightmare Before Christmas, Corpse Bride) and Chris Butler (Coraline, ParaNorman). According to the description on Amazon, it's a story about a 13-year-old girl named Dixie who suffers an accident and wakes up in a cemetery as a zombie. With the help of some unlikely friends, she seeks out a strange man in the forest who holds the key to returning her back to life. Though I suspect the quality of animation is not up to par with Burton and Butler, I really love the style and am always looking for fun, lighthearted movies to add to my Halloween viewing, so I'll definitely check this out and write up a review. Keep an eye out for that and in the meantime check out the trailer:
Other than that, it looks like other notable releases are a Classic Horror Collection that is an Amazon exclusive, a handful of single issue Blu-Rays of some of the Universal Monster classic films (which was released as a box set last year), The 2nd Season of Grimm and George A. Romero's Day of the Dead on Blu-Ray.
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
New Holiday DVD & Blu-Ray Releases 9/10/13
Just in time for this coming Friday the 13th, this new box set of the Friday The 13th horror series, The Complete Collection on Blu-Ray. Seems it has left some fans wanting, due to the fact there are no new bonus features and the 3D from Past 3 has not been updated to suit new technology. Still, it seems to be a good starter collection for anyone getting into this series who has not yet bought them on DVD or Blu-Ray. Along with this release, also comes Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History Of Friday The 13th, which takes viewers behind the mask on an epic journey into the making of the landmark horror franchise, from its humble beginnings in 1980 at a New Jersey summer camp to the blockbuster release of its 2009 "reboot."
Other notable releases include Season 8 of Supernatural, the classic 1958 version of The Fly (starring Vincent Price) getting the Blu-Ray treatment, Scare Zone (A Conjuring Halloween Tale), and a slew of Ruby Gloom DVDs.
