Rated: R

Genre: Action, Drama, Sci-Fi

Release Date: 2 February 2010

Runtime: 97 min

Director: John Hyams

Cast: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren, Andrei Arlovski, Mike Pyle, Corey Johnson, Garry Cooper Emily Joyce, Zahary Baharov, Aki Avni

For this new addition to the Universal Soldier series they brought back the the two original actors, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren, back to duke-it-out. It is odd to see two 50 something actors who are definitely showing their age, fight. Still, the fight scenes were very good (even with the age thing) and they had plenty of fights filled with younger men that were convincing.

The militant Islamist Chechen Basayev abducts the children of the President and takes control of Chernobyl, threatening to unleash a radioactive cloud unless his demands are met. Luc Deveraux (Van Damme), now a Universal Soldier again, joins a new team of UniSols secretly held in deep storage. Their mission is to retake Chernobyl and disable explosives that will unleash radioactive clouds. Luc discovers that one of the reactivated Universal Soldiers is a clone of his old, homicidal Sergeant, Andrew Scott (Lundgren). He also must face the NGU, the next generation in the UniSol biotechnology.

carole Action, Drama, Sci-Fi

Rated: R

Genre: Comedy

Release Date: 16 October 2009

Runtime: 84 mins

Director: Scott Sanders

Cast: Michael Jai White, Salli Richardson-Whitfield, Byron Minns

It takes skill to make a movie bad on purpose, but movies that are bad by accident can be a lot more fun. That paradox is the main lesson of Black Dynamite, a painstaking parody of some of the lesser examples of the blaxploitation genre that flourished in the early 1970s.

The acting is stiff, the dialogue painfully self-conscious, the action sequences choreographed and edited to look as cartoonish as possible. All of which is fun, for a while, in an academic kind of way. The title character — always referred to by his full name — is a solemn ghetto avenger played by Mr. White. He mixes it up with cops, pimps, hustlers and revolutionaries, all on his way to uncovering the evil machinations of (who else?) The Man.

The thing is, The Man is not the man he used to be, and the filmmakers’ tweaking of old-style militancy and old-fashioned racial oppression never amounts to much beyond a sendup of pop-cultural attitudes that were often self-mocking to begin with.

“Black Dynamite” was made with evident affection and a modicum of visual wit — Mr. Sanders’s nose for aged cinematic cheese is impressive — but the movie wears itself out long before The Man gets his comeuppance. As a five-minute clip on YouTube, this spoof might be a small masterpiece. As a feature film, it’s both too much and not nearly enough. (Source: NYTimes)

carole Comedy

Rated: R

Genre: Drama

Release Date: 31 July 2009

Runtime: 105mins

Director: Jean-Pierre Dardenne

Cast: Arta Dobroshi, Morgan Marinne, Jérémie Renier, Fabrizio Rongione

Lorna (Arta Dobroshi), an Albanian immigrant who dreams of opening a cafe with her largely absent boyfriend, has married Belgian junkie Claudy (Jérémie Renier) to secure citizenship, which will allow her to get a bank loan. As part of a deal set up with taxi driver/low-level crook Fabio (Fabrizio Rongione), Lorna has agreed to make her newly-acquired Belgian citizenship useful by passing it on to a Russian stranger via another marriage. Claudy thinks he’s going to be paid 5,000 Euros to divorce Lorna so the second half of the deal can go through, but Lorna knows that Fabio really plans to kill Claudy and make it look like an overdose. When Claudy asks for her help in getting off heroin, Lorna tries to convince Fabio to spare Claudy’s life, faking domestic violence so that they can get a quickie divorce. At the point where Lorna is self-inflicting head injuries, it looks like Lorna’s Silence is on the road to a happy ending. It’s not.

Lorna and Claudy’s relationship is the heart of the film. It’s clear that lonely, self-loathing Claudy would love for Lorna to be a real romantic and domestic partner, but Lorna’s motivations are much more ambiguous. Why does she suddenly becomes emotionally invested enough in Claudy to try to save his life, to the point where she literally throws herself mind and body to the cause, when everyone she trusts insists that a junkie’s life is expendable? Fabio suggests at one point that her show of basic human empathy is out of character with “the Lorna I know.” Something has happened over the course of the marriage to change her. Indeed, the Dardennes’ project here seems to be emotional whiplash: when you suspect you have a character pegged you’re proven wrong, the moments of lowest spirit bump up against the highest, and there’s a dark humor to its deepest horrors. (Source: Spout)

carole Drama

One of our favorite plastic surgeons Sean McNamara (Dylan Walsh) has flipped over to the other side. No longer playing a sexy Dr. but instead plays as David Harris in The Stepfather. He seems like the perfect father and husband to everyone…but is he?

I guess for those of us who have not yet seen it in theaters we can wait a a week until it is released on iReel (Feb 9th).

carole iReel News

There are those who like their modern day films loaded with CGI, big explosions, green screen editing and then there are those who like the classics. I’m talking about Laurel & Hardy, Bob Hope, Errol Flynn and other stars you wouldnt know if you were born after the 80s.

This is what Nostalgia Studios has brought to iReel dozens of movies that have paved the way of cinema. Sadly though these films have gone the way of the dodo having to move over to allow todays fast-paced movies loaded with characters, plots, morals all shoved into a 120min long feature which I personally feel cannot compare to the calmer 60 to 80minutes movies of the past.

Stick around the iReel blog as I will attempt to watch and review these films and be sure to recommend the ones that I feel might entertain todays modern movie watcher.

carole iReel News

One of the greatest Zombie films from 2009 is coming to iReel in early February. Zombieland is a horror comedy that does just that. Scares you while making you laugh at the same time. Nothing makes me laugh more than Bill Murray’s guest appearance.

Either way stick around for February 2nd when the movie will be officially available for our members to watch the movie.

If you want to read more about Zombieland head over to our past blog here.

carole Uncategorized

Rated: PG-13

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Sci-Fi

Release Date: 17 July 2009

Runtime: 97mins

Director: Duncan Jones

Cast: Sam Rockwell, Kevin Spacey, Matt Berry, Robin Chalk, Dominique McElligott, Kaya Scodelario, Malcolm Stewart, Benedict wong

Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell) has a three year contract to work for Lunar Industries. For the contract’s entire duration, he is the sole employee based at their lunar station. His primary job responsibility is to harvest and periodically rocket back to Earth supplies of helium-3, the current clean and abundant fuel used on Earth. There is no direct communication link available between the lunar station and Earth, so his only direct real-time interaction is with GERTY (voiced by Kevin Spacey), the intelligent computer whose function is to attend to his day to day needs. With such little human contact and all of it indirect, he feels that three years is far too long to be so isolated; he knows he is beginning to hallucinate as the end of his three years approaches. All he wants is to return to Earth to be with his wife Tess (Dominique McElligott) and their infant daughter Eve (Rosie Shaw), who was born just prior to his leaving for this job. With two weeks to go, he gets into an accident at one of the mechanical harvesters and is rendered unconscious. Injured, he awakens back at the station in the infirmary, he assumes assisted by GERTY. GERTY tells him that a rescue team named Eliza will come to the station to clean up the aftermath of the accident. After his recuperation, he takes an unauthorized trip back to the broken harvester, where he makes an unexpected discovery. Because of his find, he begins to doubt his sanity, then his true identity, then the company and GERTY’s willingness to do what is best for him. Because of his resulting beliefs, his sole mission becomes how to get back to Earth on his own.

Very early on in the film you begin to question what is happening and why things are the way they are. It is hard to talk about this film without giving much away. All I can say is it is a sad story with a sad or happy ending… depending from which point of view you decide to take. Moon is a fascinating film. It is not a fancy movie with shiny props, instead uses props that look old with wear and tear, even GERTY isn’t a fancy machine, just a simple bulky machine that runs on a track. GERTY also is equipped with an on-board camera and small screen with post it notes stuck on his front and back, nothing fancy, actually reminds me of how plain Wall-E was. The space station itself appears as one that’s has been around for many years as well as the screens, keyboards and other gear inside the station that are not fancy floating screens you tap your fingers on that shoot out holograms but basic keyboards like you would find at home with widescreen displays still present.  I recommend that people watch this film, it is different and definitely worth the 90mins.

carole Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller

Rated: R

Genre: Biography, Documentary

Release Date: 1958

Runtime: 53 min

Director:

Starring: Eva Braun, Adolf Hitler

A short 1950’s television documentary special entitled The Secret Life of Adolf Hitler includes interviews with Hitler’s sister Paula Wolf and a fellow prisoner who was incarcerated with Hitler, actual footage shot by the Nazi’s and Eva Braun’s rare home movies.

The documentary is a sensational piece, which is clearly illustrated by the opening line: “The swastika of the Nazi party… it is gone today, blasted from the earth… but the memory of its evil genius remains.”

The documentary attempts to summarize Hitler’s (secret) life including WWII in only 52 minutes, which is impressive. Most interesting are the interviews with Hitler’s sister, and other people who were close to him.

The historical facts may not always be correct, but the documentary is definitely worth watching if you’re interested in the story behind Adolf Hitler and WWII. (Source: TorrentFreak)

carole Biography, Documentary

I for one, am excited to hear that one of 2009’s best documentary films is coming to iReel.

A compilation of interviews, rehearsals and backstage footage of Michael Jackson as he prepared for his series of sold-out shows in London in This is It.

The documentary is as close as any fan can get to seeing what would have been one of the greatest and most entertaining, and certainly most talked about concerts, to have ever been staged. Luckily for iReel members, on January 26th iReel will be one of few to stream this movie Legally.

carole iReel News

Rated: Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some startling images and a scene of suggestive material.

Genre: Action, Adventure, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Comedy

Release Date: 25 December 2009

Runtime: 128 min

Director: Guy Ritchie

Cast: Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Rachel McAdams, Mark Strong, Eddie Marsan

In a dynamic new portrayal of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s most famous characters, Sherlock Holmes sends Holmes (Robert Downey Jr.) and his partner Dr. Watson (Jude Law) on their latest challenge. Revealing fighting skills as lethal as his legendary intellect, Holmes will battle as never before to bring down a new nemesis and unravel a deadly plot that could destroy the country. After finally catching serial killer and occult “sorcerer” Lord Blackwood, legendary sleuth Sherlock Holmes and his assistant Dr. Watson celebrate as they close yet another case. However when Blackwood mysteriously returns from the grave and resumes his killing spree, Holmes must take up the hunt once again. Contending with his partner’s new fiancée and the head of Scotland Yard, Inspector Lestrade (Eddie Marsan), the dauntless detective must unravel the clues that will lead him into a twisted web of murder, deceit, and black magic as well as the deadly embrace of temptress, and ex-wife, Irene Adler (Rachel McAdams).

Guy Ritchie manages to make this a quick paced movie. Not wasting time by introducing all the characters within the first 30mins or so of the film, he does not waste time getting the film started either. The film opens with a man running down the streets in the dark as well as a carriage riding just as fast, it appears to be a chase sequence however it is only the first of many twists in the film. The movie manages to keep audiences captivated by allowing them all to play detective by providing us with all the clues that are presented to the Dr. and Holmes. Every moment of the film is solid fun. The acting, the actors, the set design, the writing, the camera movements, everything is fast, to the point, and enjoyable to watch.

Richie’s use of special effects do not go unnoticed however he does not over do it with crazy explosions and trickery that would require loads of CGI, however they felt very natural to the film. Moreover his fight scenes were fantastic. The way Holmes walked through them carefully before we are given the real-time fight on screen. This film is well worth the trip to the theater especially if your up for some subtle jokes and a screen full of attractive faces.

carole Action, Adventure, Comedy, Crime, Drama, Mystery