High-Def Digest: The Bonus ViewChristopher Plummer Archives - High-Def Digest: The Bonus View

TIFF Journal: Knives Out

Jason Gorber — Fri, 25 Oct 2019 12:00:21 +0000

The most obnoxious thing I can say about Rian Johnson’s Knives Out is that I prefer its mix of genre tropes and social commentary to Jordan Peele’s Get Out. Frankly, the mix of Clue with an acerbic and biting look at race, class, and privilege in America is more entertaining to me than taking The...

The post TIFF Journal: Knives Out appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

‘All the Money in the World’ Review: Greed and Last Minute Plummer-fication

Philip Brown — Fri, 22 Dec 2017 16:00:52 +0000

‘All the Money in the World’ is a perfectly decent Hollywood thriller. It’s a little heavy-handed and often sinks under the weight of its ambition, but in the pantheon of half-thought-out late Ridley Scott pictures, it’ll hold up well enough. However, the film will now be enshrined into Hollywood history for its behind-the-scenes turmoil. Unfortunately,...

The post ‘All the Money in the World’ Review: Greed and Last Minute Plummer-fication appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

‘The Man Who Invented Christmas’ Review: Cute Christmas Caroling

Philip Brown — Fri, 24 Nov 2017 15:00:28 +0000

There have been so many adaptations of ‘A Christmas Carol’ at this point that the Disney Channel must have a tough time deciding which version to air each year. (Note: They should always pick the one with the Muppets.) The last one involved motion capture and Jim Carrey in nearly every role, and the apathetic...

The post ‘The Man Who Invented Christmas’ Review: Cute Christmas Caroling appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

‘The Forger’ Review: Phonier Than Travolta’s Hair

Philip Brown — Thu, 23 Apr 2015 17:00:42 +0000

Poor John Travolta. Since he’s always been kind of odd-looking for a movie star, he should have transitioned in his later years into playing character parts as none-too-bright deadbeats. Unfortunately, his public persona became so ridiculous over the last few decades that it’s absolutely impossible to take him seriously anymore. Even though ‘The Forger’ features...

The post ‘The Forger’ Review: Phonier Than Travolta’s Hair appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

‘Danny Collins’ Review: Placid Pacino Tomfoolery

Philip Brown — Wed, 08 Apr 2015 19:00:01 +0000

For years, we’ve suffered the indignity of watching Robert De Niro attempt to redefine his career by committing to comedy rather than that “acting” thing he helped revolutionize. His forever linked contemporary Al Pacino, meanwhile, decided to give up subtle acting in favor of screaming all his dialogue, convinced that the best performances are the...

The post ‘Danny Collins’ Review: Placid Pacino Tomfoolery appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

TIFF Journal: ‘Hector and the Search for Happiness’

Philip Brown — Thu, 11 Sep 2014 19:00:23 +0000

‘Hector and the Search for Happiness’ just might be the breaking point for anyone willing to follow Simon Pegg to any project based on his talent, track record and likeability. This maudlin, tiresome and hopelessly lost attempt at feel-good claptrap is like an endurance test for Pegg fans. This is the type of movie that...

The post TIFF Journal: ‘Hector and the Search for Happiness’ appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

Statuesque: 2012 Oscar Predictions – Acting Categories

Aaron Peck — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 18:00:50 +0000

In this post, we come to the categories that most people care about, which are tucked further back and spread throughout the telecast just to make sure that you watch the whole thing. Let’s take a look at the four acting categories and see if we can suss out the winners. The acting categories, for...

The post Statuesque: 2012 Oscar Predictions – Acting Categories appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

Statuesque: Will the SAG Awards Predict the Oscars?

Luke Hickman — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 16:00:53 +0000

Awards season always fills me with such anxiety. I worry that the films I deem worthy to win will lose to films that I completely dislike. Like other critics, I know that I’m right and anyone who disagrees with me is wrong. (Yes, I’m being sarcastic). I’m so opinionated over this matter that I get...

The post Statuesque: Will the SAG Awards Predict the Oscars? appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

Weekend Roundtable: Favorite Acting Performances of 2011

Josh Zyber — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:15 +0000

Let’s do one more of these prior-year look-back Roundtables before we move on to newer topics. Over the past couple of weeks, we’ve discussed both the overrated and underrated films of 2011. This week, we’ll talk about our favorite acting performances of last year. Aaron Peck The best performance from an actor in 2011 was...

The post Weekend Roundtable: Favorite Acting Performances of 2011 appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

New to VUDU: Week of October 30th, 2011

Josh Zyber — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 17:00:15 +0000

You might expect a streaming service like VUDU to add a bunch of new horror titles to the line-up on the week of Halloween. Due to licensing agreements and whatnot, I guess that’s just not how things shook out this year. Instead, the week seems to be dominated by romance and relationship dramas. Consider that...

The post New to VUDU: Week of October 30th, 2011 appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

Weekend Movies: ‘X-Men’ Stands Alone

Luke Hickman — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 15:00:17 +0000

As the only movie opening wide this weekend, the new ‘X-Men’ prequel is almost a sure-fire box office winner. Currently at 90% on Rotten Tomatoes with over 80 reviews, it just might end up being the best-reviewed summer blockbuster of 2011. Like I said in my review, ‘X-Men: First Class‘ apologetically makes up for the...

The post Weekend Movies: ‘X-Men’ Stands Alone appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

Now Playing: Life for ‘Beginners’

Luke Hickman — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 13:00:39 +0000

‘Beginners’, the latest film from writer/director Mike Mills (‘Thumbsucker’), stars Ewan McGregor as a 38-year-old lonely guy stuck questioning the life he lives and the direction he’s headed. Three events in his recent past have left him feeling alone and directionless: the death of his mother, his father coming out of the closet, and his...

The post Now Playing: Life for ‘Beginners’ appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.