High-Def Digest: The Bonus ViewJ.J. Abrams Archives - High-Def Digest: The Bonus View

Overlord Review: Die, Nazi Monsters, Die!

Jason Gorber — Fri, 09 Nov 2018 16:00:51 +0000

Julius Avery’s Overlord mines enough deeply cathartic tropes – revenge drama, invasion thriller, escapist war film, revivification romp – that the film was always going to lean towards being either a scattershot and aimless homage or an impeccably realized redux. While the movie veers more toward the former than the latter, there’s still enough fun...

The post Overlord Review: Die, Nazi Monsters, Die! appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

Now Streaming: ‘The Cloverfield Paradox’

Philip Brown — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 17:00:13 +0000

From the beginning, the ‘Cloverfield’ franchise has been as much about J.J. Abrams’ interest in marketing as it is about the movies themselves. This weekend, Abrams’ pulled off his greatest ‘Cloverfield’ magic trick yet by announcing, without warning, the Netflix release of the almost-forgotten ‘Cloverfield 3’ during the Super Bowl and then premiering it immediately...

The post Now Streaming: ‘The Cloverfield Paradox’ appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

Weekend Roundtable: Worst TV Cliffhangers

Josh Zyber — Fri, 08 Apr 2016 19:00:16 +0000

The season finale cliffhanger has been a time-honored TV tradition ever since ‘Dallas’ left viewers guessing “Who Shot J.R.?” over three decades ago. Nevertheless, when ‘The Walking Dead’ ended its latest season with a cliffhanger last weekend, the show’s entire fan base collectively lost its shit in outrage as if none of them had ever...

The post Weekend Roundtable: Worst TV Cliffhangers appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

’10 Cloverfield Lane’ Review: Twilight Zoned

Philip Brown — Thu, 10 Mar 2016 20:00:46 +0000

The worst thing about ’10 Cloverfield Lane’ is the title. It’s not just awkward; it’s a spoiler. Sadly, the realities of contemporary Hollywood filmmaking mean that the movie has to be marketed as a franchise entry and even the deliberately oblique trailer or the claims that this is merely a “blood relative” to the original...

The post ’10 Cloverfield Lane’ Review: Twilight Zoned appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

The Flaws Awaken – Nitpicking the New ‘Star Wars’ Movie

Shannon Nutt — Mon, 21 Dec 2015 18:00:17 +0000

Before fanboys and fangirls out there ignite their lightsabers, let me preface this article by saying I liked ‘The Force Awakens’ – a lot. It was a monumental task for J.J. Abrams and company to revive the feeling most of us felt for the ‘Star Wars’ franchise back in the late 1970s/early ’80s, and for...

The post The Flaws Awaken – Nitpicking the New ‘Star Wars’ Movie appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ Review: Thrilling Fan Service

Philip Brown — Wed, 16 Dec 2015 16:00:44 +0000

I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, but there’s a ‘Star Wars’ movie opening this weekend. A new one too. Not a Special Edition. Not even a prequel. In fact, George Lucas isn’t involved for reasons that even he understands. It’s called ‘The Force Awakens’. You might have heard about it, briefly. Out of...

The post ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ Review: Thrilling Fan Service appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

Poll: Rank the Impossible Missions

Josh Zyber — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 12:00:07 +0000

As ‘Rogue Nation’ burns up the theatrical box office, how does it rate compared to the franchise’s earlier entries? Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to vote for the best ‘Mission: Impossible’ movie in today’s poll. I haven’t seen ‘Rogue Nation’ yet, so I can’t judge that one. Our reviewer Phil didn’t...

The post Poll: Rank the Impossible Missions appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

Poll: The New ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ Trailer

Josh Zyber — Fri, 17 Apr 2015 12:00:47 +0000

It’s been more than four months since we caught a fleeting glimpse of ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ in the first teaser trailer. Not much else about the film leaked out after that, until this week’s Star Wars Celebration convention in Anaheim, where the new official trailer was unveiled. So, how’s it look? This is,...

The post Poll: The New ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ Trailer appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

Statuesque: 2015 Oscar Nominations

Josh Zyber — Thu, 15 Jan 2015 17:00:52 +0000

The race is officially on! In a presentation broadcast this morning, actor Chris Pine, directors J.J. Abrams and Alfonso Cuaron, and Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Cheryl Boone Isaacs announced the 2015 Oscar nominations. This year brings us eight Best Picture nominees. Most of them were easy to predict beforehand, though I...

The post Statuesque: 2015 Oscar Nominations appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

‘The Force’ Examined: Dissecting the ‘Star Wars’ Teaser

Shannon Nutt — Mon, 08 Dec 2014 20:00:33 +0000

Although it only runs about 90 seconds (including a number of fade-to-blacks between segments), the new teaser trailer for ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ might turn out be the most examined piece of footage since the Zapruder film. I’ve cataloged some of the most interesting shots to provide my take on each of them. While...

The post ‘The Force’ Examined: Dissecting the ‘Star Wars’ Teaser appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

Poll: What Do You Think of the ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ Trailer?

Josh Zyber — Wed, 03 Dec 2014 14:00:44 +0000

A long time ago (well, last week) in a galaxy far, far away (YouTube), J.J. Abrams and his associates at Lucasfilm and Disney gave us a first peek at what they have planned for the much-anticipated ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’, née ‘Episode VII’. Now that you’ve seen the teaser trailer, are you hyped up...

The post Poll: What Do You Think of the ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ Trailer? appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.

Weekend Roundtable: Alternate ‘Star Wars’ Titles

Josh Zyber — Fri, 14 Nov 2014 20:00:12 +0000

When Disney and Lucasfilm announced last week that the title of J.J. Abrams’ upcoming ‘Star Wars’ sequel will be ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ (with no ‘Episode VII’ in between, apparently), fans were divided in their feelings about it. As is usually the case, the haters were a little more vocal in expressing their opinions....

The post Weekend Roundtable: Alternate ‘Star Wars’ Titles appeared first on High-Def Digest: The Bonus View.