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‘The Orville’ Pilot Recap: “There Is No Pizza Party”

Josh Zyber — Mon, 11 Sep 2017 20:00:15 +0000

Seth MacFarlane’s new live-action sci-fi series ‘The Orville’ gets just about everything right to look and even sound like a spot-on ‘Star Trek’ spoof. Inexplicably, the creator of ‘Family Guy’ then completely forgot to add in the spoof part. I thought this was supposed to be a comedy? MacFarlane himself stars as Ed Mercer, a...

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‘The Jungle Book’ (2016) Review: Unexpectedly Remarkable

Philip Brown — Thu, 14 Apr 2016 19:00:24 +0000

Disney’s recent trend of digging into its vaults and remaking its animated classics in live action has mostly been a frustrating endeavor. Movies like ‘Maleficent’ and ‘Cinderella’ felt forced and woefully inferior to their predecessors. The prospect of a live action ‘Jungle Book’ seemed particularly dire. Not only does the 1967 animated version hold up...

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‘Chef’ Review: Favreau Cooks on a Low Heat

Philip Brown — Thu, 05 Jun 2014 15:00:08 +0000

While anyone who directs a movie like ‘Iron Man’ obviously knows a thing or two about blockbuster entertainment, it was always a bit odd to see Jon Favreau working in the $150 million arena. The new indie comedy ‘Chef’ feels like a long overdue homecoming for Favreau. Even if it isn’t his best entry in...

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Weekend Movies: Party On, Wayne!

Luke Hickman — Fri, 09 May 2014 16:00:42 +0000

After last weekend’s blockbuster superhero kick-off to summer, this week brings some counter-programming. We have a crude R-rated comedy, an awful-looking animated flick, a light-hearted family movie and a few indies to kick around. Can one of these new releases dethrone the amazing ‘Spider-Man’? Opening on more than 3,000 screens is ‘Neighbors‘, the latest raunchy...

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Now Playing: ‘Identity Thief’ Commits Comedy Fraud

Bryan Kluger — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 16:00:40 +0000

I haven’t seen a decent road trip comedy since, well, ‘Road Trip’ back in 2000. With the poor performance of this year’s ‘The Guilt Trip’, I had some hope that ‘Identity Thief’ would reignite the genre. Unfortunately, due to scripted laughs and an unlikable main character, the movie falls flat. Even if the talented Melissa...

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Weekend Roundtable: Who Should Make the Next ‘Star Wars’ Movie?

Josh Zyber — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 20:00:18 +0000

Ever since news broke last week that Disney has purchased Lucasfilm and intends to release a new ‘Star Wars’ movie in 2015, the entire internet has been abuzz with speculation about who would actually make the film, now that George Lucas is out. Rumors abounded this week that ‘X-Men: First Class’ director Matthew Vaughn was...

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‘Revolution’ Pilot Recap: “What’s in the Whiskey, Bitch?”

Luke Hickman — Fri, 07 Sep 2012 17:00:53 +0000

I’m a snob when it comes to television – not just because I think that 99.9% of TV programming is a complete waste (which I do), but because I have to watch so many shows, that when I finally get to watch something that I want to see, it better be worth my time. After...

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Blu-ray Highlights for 8/23/11 – You’re So Money!

Josh Zyber — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 13:00:27 +0000

Indie movies dominate the Blu-ray scene this week, with a special emphasis on indie movies from the mid ’90s about gambling. What a strange niche to fill all of a sudden. Here’s the week’s complete release list: ‘Bambi II‘ (Disney/Buena Vista) ‘Bambi II (DVD Packaging)‘ (Disney/Buena Vista) ‘The Beaver‘ (Summit) ‘Blitz‘ (Millennium Media) ‘Emerson, Lake,...

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Weekend Movies: A Blockbuster, a Romance, a Family Flick and a Slew of Indies

Luke Hickman — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 17:00:25 +0000

Although August is usually peppered with a few hits, the end of July marks the descent of popcorn pictures and the dregs of the not-too-spectacular summer flicks. True, there are still big movies like ‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes’, ‘Fright Night’ and ‘Colombiana’ coming, but none of those quite fit the bill as...

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Now Playing: Too Many ‘Cowboys’, Not Enough ‘Aliens’

Luke Hickman — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 13:00:04 +0000

I’ve been looking forward to the release of ‘Cowboys & Aliens’ with a lot of anticipation ever since the teaser trailer began running over a year ago. The unique genre-blending concept grabbed my attention and never let go. Unfortunately, I let my excitement get the best of me. My expectations were sky high, so high...

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Now Playing: Iron Man 2

Drew Taylor — Wed, 05 May 2010 18:00:49 +0000

‘Iron Man,’ released two years ago, wasn’t exactly the most nuanced superhero outing. It had a mechanical “origins” plot and muddy politics. (Billionaire industrialist Tony Stark wants his tech taken off the market to stop it from being used to kill people. But then he just appropriates the same tech and… kills people, right.) In...

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