Limitless DVD and Blu-Ray Release Review

This is an excellent film, 4.5 stars.

Limitless follows the exploits of aspiring author Eddie Morra (Bradley Cooper; The A-Team, The Hangover) whose life is radically changed when he meets his ex Brother-In-Law, who gives him a gift of an untested pill which, when ingested, allows the taker to access one hundred percent of their brain function. What follows is a battle to hang on to his dwindling supply and manage his new found skills, as he begins to come to the attention of various unsavoury characters.

The film is fast paced and exciting and the storyline is intelligent and well written, based on the best selling novel The Dark Fields by Alan Glynn. Limitless is directed by Neil Burger (The Illusionist, Interview with the Assassin) who does a superb job. The acting is also very good, and the film stars Anna Friel (Pushing Daisies, Time Line), Robert De Niro (Taxi Driver, Raging Bull) and Abbie Cornish (Sucker Punch), all of whom bring a good deal of credibility to the whole thing.

Also worthy of a mention are the special effects, which are quite something in places and really allow the Blu-Ray to flex it's muscles. There are lots of clever little devices used which help you to immerse yourself in the experience.

There are several special features included on the disc: Director's commentary, Alternate Ending, Taking It To The Limit: The Making of Limitless, A Man Without Limits and a Theatrical Trailer.

In summary Limitless is a thoroughly entertaining film and comes highly recommended for a great way to spend a night in.

Limitless is available on DVD and Blu-ray from August 1, 2011

Fright Night

I think I missed this over the last couple of weeks until images started hitting the Internet. This time it's for a horror film, well actually a remake of the 1985 classic, Fright Night. Not only does the film star Colin Farrell but also Doctor Who, David Tennant.

From watching the trailer for the remake and compared to the original. It seems that the new version is a lot more gritty and, in a way, less comedic than the original. Not only that, the film is coming out in 3D! So don't expect any ground breaking use of the extra dimension, but more along the lines of what other horror films have given us when they throw 3D into the pot. I would expect to see crossbow bolts flying past the audience and the like...

I can't find an International, ie UK, trailer but the US, domestic, one is available and you can watch it below.

Senior Charley Brewster (Anton Yelchin) finally has it all—he’s running with the popular crowd and dating the hottest girl in high school. In fact, he’s so cool he’s even dissing his best friend Ed (Christopher Mintz-Plasse). But trouble arrives when an intriguing stranger Jerry (Colin Farrell) moves in next door. He seems like a great guy at first, but there’s something not quite right— yet no one, including Charley’s mom (Toni Collette), seems to notice! After witnessing some very unusual activity, Charley comes to an unmistakable conclusion: Jerry is a vampire preying on his neighborhood. Unable to convince anyone that he’s telling the truth, Charley has to find a way to get rid of the monster himself in this Craig Gillespie-helmed revamp of the comedy-horror classic.

Ripping into cinemas September 2, 2011

Crazy Stupid Love gets a Crazy, Stupid and Love trailers

It's been quite a while since we saw anything from Steve Carell's up coming film, Crazy Stupid Love. Now we don't only get a new trailer, but three of them. One called This is Crazy, a second called This is Stupid and no guesses on what the third one is called. No it's not called Thermonuclear Warfare!

This Is Crazy

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This Is Stupid

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This Is Love

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At fortysomething, straight-laced Cal Weaver (Steve Carell) is living the dream—good job, nice house, great kids and marriage to his high school sweetheart.  But when Cal learns that his wife, Emily (Julianne Moore), has cheated on him and wants a divorce, his “perfect” life quickly unravels.  Worse, in today’s single world, Cal, who hasn’t dated in decades, stands out as the epitome of un-smooth.

Now spending his free evenings sulking alone at a local bar, the hapless Cal is taken on as wingman and protégé to handsome, thirtysomething player Jacob Palmer (Ryan Gosling).  In an effort to help Cal get over his wife and start living his life, Jacob opens Cal’s eyes to the many options before him: flirty women, manly drinks and a sense of style that can’t be found at Supercuts or The Gap.

Cal and Emily aren’t the only ones looking for love in what might be all the wrong places: Cal’s 13-year-old son, Robbie, is crazy about his 17-year-old babysitter, Jessica, who harbors a crush on Cal.  And despite Cal’s makeover and his many new conquests, the one thing that can’t be made over is his heart, which seems to keep leading him back to where he began.

Hitting UK Cinemas September 11, 2011
© 2011 Warner Bros. Entertainment. All rights reserved.

Clive Owen in Intruders

Released earlier today over at Yahoo Movies, the first trailer for Clive Owen's new film, Intruders.

The screenplay was written by Nicolas Casariego and Jaime Marques. Starring alongside Clive Owen are Carice van Houten, Daniel Bruhl, Pilar Lopez de Ayala and Kerry Fox. Not only that, the film is to open the 59th San Sebastian Film Festival on September 16.

Intruders tells parallel stories of two families whose lives are disrupted by menacing apparitions: in Spain, a mother tries to protect her son from a faceless stranger, while in Britain, a young girl has terrifying dreams of a demon who becomes a real danger to her and her family

In Cinemas October 7, 2011

Super - DVD and Blu-ray Release Review

Where to start? This film has to be worth 4 stars of anyone's money.

Super is an 18 certificate superhero film, and certainly thoroughly deserves that rating. Although it is in some respects a comedy, it is also extremely twisted and disturbing in places. It leaves you feeling slightly soiled, maybe slightly guilty for laughing and every now and again downright uncomfortable.

Super is written and directed by James Gunn (Slither) and features brilliant performances from Rainn Wilson (Sahara), Liv Tyler (The Lord of the Rings), Kevin Bacon (Mystic River) and Ellen Page (Inception). Rainn Wilson is quite magnificent as The Crimson Bolt (maybe a little too good in places!) and the strange but fascinating storyline is held up very well by this amazing cast, who add delightfully to the sense of moral dilemma that you feel while watching Super.

The film asks some very interesting and pertinent questions about vigilantism and whether or not normal everyday people know (or care) where the line should be drawn and whether you would cross it regardless. It seems to be as much as anything else an interesting study of human nature and certainly it has been a while since any film has caused so much debate after watching.

Included on the disc are; Behind the Scenes, Theatrical Trailer.

All in all, Super is not one for the faint hearted, but if you have a robust sense of humour then it is ideal for an entertaining night in - Shut Up, Crime!

Super is available on Blu-ray and DVD from August 1, 2011

The Silent House DVD and Blu-ray Release Review

This film has some good ideas but doesn't really work that well, so I have given it only 1 star.

The Silent House is a Uruguayan production, directed and written by Gustavo Hernandez and is quite bold in its concept, being filmed on a hand-held digital SLR in one continuous take. This is intended to increase the horror of the situation, however its overall effect seems to be to make the whole thing rather tedious (I think films tend to be edited for a reason).

The film stars Florencia Colucci (Laura), Gustavo Alonso (Wilson, Laura's father) and Abel Tripaldi (Nestor) and follows them as they arrive at an old house in preparation to repair it ready for sale, and throughout the ensuing events. You do have to admire the acting, as it is almost the equivalent of stage acting, and a huge amount to learn. Although I didn't enjoy this filming method, I can see that it must have been a logistical nightmare.

The storyline is pretty weak and although it purports to be based on a true story which allegedly happened in a village in Uruguay in the 40s, this seems unlikely as the story is full of holes, disjointed and somewhat confusing towards the end and you can't help but feel that had it been based on a true story it might have made sense.

The audio is available in Spanish and German with subtitles in English and German and the only special features on the disc are Theatrical Trailers.

All in all this is not something that I would recommend for general viewing or for entertainment, however if you are interested in different filming techniques then this will definitely be for you.

The Silent House is available to buy on DVD and Blu-ray from August 1, 2011.

The Hunger Games gets a poster

Lionsgate has just released the first, teaser poster for their upcoming film, The Hunger Games.

The way the synopsis reads it has the feel of a cross between The Running Man and Battle Royale. However, I haven't read the book that the film is based on but that's the feeling I get from reading the below synopsis.

In a not-too-distant future, the United States of America has collapsed, weakened by drought, fire, famine, and war, to be replaced by Panem, a country divided into the Capitol and 12 districts. Each year, two young representatives from each district are selected by lottery to participate in The Hunger Games. Part entertainment, part brutal intimidation of the subjugated districts, the televised games are broadcasted throughout Panem as the 24 participants are forced to eliminate their competitors, literally, with all citizens required to watch. When 16-year-old Katniss' young sister, Prim, is selected as the mining district's female representative, Katniss volunteers to take her place. She and her male counterpart, Peeta, the son of the town baker who seems to have all the fighting skills of a lump of bread dough, will be pitted against bigger, stronger representatives who have trained for this their whole lives.

The Hunger Games is released March 23, 2012.