HK and Cult Film News's Fan Box

Friday, December 31, 2010

STONE -- DVD review by porfle


The opening minutes between the fade-in and the "directed by" are a disheartening portrait of a very depressed and troubled man, with a wife who has long since resigned herself to quiet despair, both stuck in an endlessly bleak and unrewarding existence.  Sounds like fun, huh?

Well, STONE (2010) definitely isn't funhouse-fun, but it is a deeply satisfying movie to watch.  First you've got Robert DeNiro as Jack Mabry, a conservative, dutifully religious parole officer on the verge of retirement who has nothing to look forward to besides a meaningless life and a marriage in which he and his wife Madylyn (Frances Conroy) merely endure each other.  Then there's Edward Norton as his final case, an arrogant young convict named Stone who thinks he's paid his debt to society and goes to work trying to convince a dubious Jack. 

If we think we're in for the usual blowhard theatrics with a couple of Oscar-winning alpha-thespians trying to out-act each other across a desk, this movie surprises us by confounding such expectations.  Director John Curran is a skilled visual storyteller who conveys much information through compelling images--verbal exposition is kept to a minimum--and, accordingly, the lead actors express themselves with enough subtlety so that we're allowed to read their thoughts and feelings rather than having them all shouted at us.  This makes the times when they do go off more effective, especially when DeNiro's character loses it.


With Stone's first visit to Jack's office, the naturalistic aura of the film is jarred when Norton starts doing a "performance" full of bluster and prison jive-talk.  But we soon realize that this is Stone performing for Jack.  Later, as they get to know each other, he tones it down and gets more real.  DeNiro, on the other hand, gradually emerges from his guarded cynicism to lash out against Stone when his probing and perceptive questions about guilt and culpability strike too close to home.

While Norton continues to interest us with his more mannered performance, DeNiro fascinates with his barely-repressed emotional turmoil.  Which, needless to say, is stoked when Stone aims his beautiful, sexy wife Lucetta at him.  Lucetta (a seductive Milla Jovovich) soon has Jack wrapped around her legs as he grows more and more addicted to her and fearful of the consequences should their illicit relationship become known.

Stone, meanwhile, experiences a spiritual epiphany after witnessing a murder, and begins to seek ways to expand his consciousness and contemplate the meaning of his life.  But is this new outlook just part of the con to help get him paroled?  Either way, it only serves to exacerbate Jack's own ongoing crisis of the soul which has him questioning the existence of God.  And since we know from the prologue that he's capable of at least one desperate act every thirty years or so--as is Stone--we start to wonder which of them will come unwound first.


While all of this sounds like it could've been a lot of melodramatic hogwash, Curran and scriptwriter Angus MacLachlan, along with their terrific cast, manage to make it all realistic and compelling. Smoothly shot and edited, with an evocative, melancholy musical score that bolsters the emotional flow of the story, the film has the feel of a troubling dream that threatens to turn into a nightmare at any moment.

The DVD from Anchor Bay is in 2.40:1 anamorphic widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1 sound and subtitles in English and Spanish.  Extras consist of a brief "making of" featurette and a trailer.

You get the feeling that everything's building toward some shocking and violent finale, but as it goes along you start hoping that it doesn't.  Such an ending might work for a different movie, but simply watching these characters develop is a lot more interesting than that.  In this regard, STONE doesn't disappoint.


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Thursday, December 30, 2010

THE HESSEN CONSPIRACY -- DVD review by porfle



You don't watch Billy Zane movies because he's a great actor.  (He's pretty good, but not great.)  You watch them because he's...well, he's Billy Zane.  And you never know what he's going to turn up in, whether it's one of the biggest blockbusters in Hollywood history (TITANIC) or some DTV piece of dreck where you can imagine him snagging his paycheck and yelling "Taxi!" the moment he tosses off his last line (BLUE SEDUCTION). 

Somewhere between these two extremes is the not-great but definitely pretty good THE HESSEN CONSPIRACY, aka "The Hessen Affair" (2009).  What's ol' Cal Hockley up to these days?  Well, he's heading a post-WWII U.S. Army occupation force that's holed up in a German castle, enjoying the spoils of war now that the Third Reich has gone belly up.  Already we can tell that, whatever else, this is going to be a handsomely-mounted production with lush photography.  Director Paul Breuls utilizes actual locations well to give the film a more expensive look, and infuses it with convincing period atmosphere.

Amidst the nightly parties and other post-war frivolities, Col. Jack Durant (Zane) goes ape for a gorgeous but hard-to-get WAC lieutenant named Kathy Nash (Lyne Renée), who's more interested in searching the place for hidden treasures left behind by the vacating Prussian princess.  One night they discover a nifty stash of vintage wine.  The next night they run across...the Crown Jewels.  Now, the only problem is getting them to the States and finding someone to sell them to without getting caught along the way.
 

Back in New York, THE HESSEN CONSPIRACY sheds the military trappings and becomes a semi-hardboiled 40s crime thriller.  Not that it ever actually gets all that thrilling--the pace remains leisurely throughout as the story unfolds and there isn't a whole lot of action.  With the introduction of Michael Bowen as Ben Cassidy, a Vegas casino czar who's interested in buying the hot ice, the plot begins to twist its way through a maze of double-crosses, suspicion, and murder.  Jack and Kathy eventually reach a point where they no longer trust each other, but who's conning who?  We don't find out until the mildly suspenseful finale when everyone shows their hand.

As Kathy, the stunning Lyne Renée has the look of the classic noirish dame from Hollywood's past.  Michael Bowen ("Buck" of KILL BILL, VOL. 1), one of the best old-style character actors working today, plays a convincing bad guy while maintaining a light touch.  The cast is stocked with several other good supporting players including Gene Pyrz as an Army lawyer on the trail of the stolen jewels, Rudolph Segers as a volatile sergeant seeking revenge against Jack for cutting him out of the deal, and Noah Segan as their other weaselly cohort.
 

The script by Nicholas Meyer (STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN, TIME AFTER TIME) and Ronald Roose goes light on the violence and never tries to be shocking or intense--it's less of a pressure cooker and more of a crock pot.  The most hardboiled aspect of the film is the running voiceover in which Zane occasionally veers into Bogart territory, as when he describes Kathy as "the one you can't take your eyes off...that white-hot beauty that sneaks into a million dreams...the kind men die for."  Meyer is obviously having some fun with us here, which is pretty much what the whole movie is about.

The DVD from Anchor Bay is in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1 sound and English subtitles.  No extras.

Watching THE HESSEN CONSPIRACY is like settling into a mildly interesting pulp novel with very nice illustrations.  Not exactly gripping entertainment, but it does have its rewards if you stick with it.  Plus, Billy Zane is in it, and he's...well, darn it, he's Billy Zane.



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Wednesday, December 29, 2010

AND SOON THE DARKNESS -- DVD review by porfle


One of the perennial subsets of the "thriller" genre is the story about a desperate person frantically searching for their companion who has disappeared without a trace, usually in an unfamiliar location. Whether it's a big-screen affair with major stars (THE VANISHING, BREAKDOWN) or a tense little made-for-TV nailbiter with a meager budget (DYING ROOM ONLY), such films have the potential for keeping viewers on the edge of their seats if done with a little finesse.  Once it gets cranked up, AND SOON THE DARKNESS (2010) manages to do so to a certain degree, although the experience isn't quite worth going out of your way for.

Steph (Amber Heard, ExTERMINATORS, DROP DEAD SEXY) and Ellie (Odette Yustman, OPERATION: ENDGAME, CLOVERFIELD) are two flaky American girls who have ditched their bicycle tour group and decided to see Argentina for themselves.  Wandering into the Village of Bad Vibes, they seem oblivious to the apprehensive stares of the locals who regard them as though the two cutie-pie strangers might vanish from the face of the earth at any moment.  Which, we find, isn't an uncommon occurrence in those parts.

Since their bus doesn't leave until the next morning, they decide to hit one of the local night spots.  Steph, the marginally-sensible member of the duo, is concerned when Ellie gets dopey drunk and starts prancing around in front of all the guys like she's dropping a chum line in a pool of sharks.  Acting out the song "I Touch Myself" in front of the jukebox, she then breezes into the men's room and proceeds to take a whiz in front of whoever happens to be in there.


Amazingly, this is a character we're supposed to care about.  We pretty much know what's going to happen to her, yet she's such an obnoxious, irresponsible doofus that the prospect doesn't generate much concern.  Naturally, she attracts the attention of an unsavory type who might as well wear a name tag with "Kidnapped American Girls 'R' Us" printed on it.

One thing leads to another, and before you know it Steph is searching high and low for her missing friend.  Naturally, the local constable, Calvo (César Vianco) scoffs at her concerns, forcing Steph to start scouring the countryside on her own.  Enter Michael (Karl Urban, STAR TREK), an American who seems to turn up everywhere she goes.  Michael offers to help, but we're never sure if he's on the level or if he's going to turn out to be in league with the kidnappers.  This makes his character one of the few things about the story that isn't totally predictable. 

Urban does his usual solid acting job, but the actresses portraying Steph and Ellie aren't going to be mistaken for Dame Judi Dench anytime soon.  Their wafer-thin dialogue isn't much to listen to either, especially during the silly spat which causes them to unwisely split up in the first place.  Amber Heard manages to carry the lightweight film pretty much on her own--she appears in nearly every scene--using a variety of pained expressions while frequently rubbing her hands over her head to denote concern.
 

Director Marcos Efron does a workmanlike job and wrings as much suspense out of the script as he can while capturing some nice Argentine scenery along the way.  The highlight is a sequence filmed inside an actual ghost town called Lago Epecuén, which was destroyed by a flood and consists entirely of gutted ruins.  Somewhat implausibly, it takes Steph about ten minutes to find this place and stumble onto the kidnappers' hideout.  This sets into motion a series of fights, chases, standoffs, and narrow escapes leading to a fairly exciting finish.

The DVD from Anchor Bay is in 2.40:1 anamorphic widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1 sound.  Subtitles are in English and Spanish.  Extras consist of a commentary track with the director, editor, and DOP, a making-of featurette, deleted scenes, and a trailer.

AND SOON THE DARKNESS is based on a 1970 British film written by Brian Clemens and Terry Nation and directed by Robert Fuest, which I'd be interested in seeing now that I've watched the passable but unexceptional remake.  It's the kind of time-waster that can hold your attention till the fadeout, then vanish from your memory without a trace.


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Monday, December 27, 2010

COWBOY KILLER -- movie review by porfle

A modern-day cowboy who dresses like Michael Parks' "Earl McGraw" and acts like a more genial Darwin Joston from ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13 terrorizes a small town in the horror comedy COWBOY KILLER (2008), director and co-writer Jason Baustin's low-budget attempt to--well, I'm not really sure what he was attempting to do, but some of it is surprisingly entertaining.

The title psycho is Roy Thompson, who cruises the streets of town in his pickup looking for people to kill.  What's disarming about Roy is that he seems so darn happy and pleased with himself when he's killing them.  Roy gets a lot of enjoyment from his chosen vocation, particularly since every time he kills someone, the victim becomes part of his imaginary circle of friends and admirers.  He's especially fond of his first victim in the film, a pretty young teen named Ashley, and has romantic picnics and campouts with her head before depositing it in a book return bin at the local library. 

Naturally, the townsfolk don't enjoy Roy's antics as much as he does, so he becomes the target of several people who want to track him down.  This includes the only two policemen in town, brothers Jeffrey and Jimmy Dalmer, and a couple of wacky slacker dudes from the cable company who are after Roy for stealing cable TV.  By the time we've made it to the final sequence, in which Roy attends a rave with the intention of blasting away with both six-shooters, the contigent of citizen vigilantes waiting outside to ambush him include the two (now former) cops, the two cable guys, Ashley's boyfriend, the town drunk, a waitress, a bouncer, a stripper, and another serial killer who tried to partner up with Roy but was rebuffed because he was too crazy. 

It helps to keep in mind that this is a very dumb movie with some really idiotic characters.  As is often the case in this sort of flick, the level of acting ranges from capable all the way down to putrid.  But somehow even the worst members of the cast eventually grow more and more likable as the situations get stranger and the dialogue gets goofier.  Gene Campbell, who plays Les the town drunk, probably gives the best performance, although Paul Bailey as Roy seems to inhabit the character quite comfortably.

On a technical level, the film often resembles BLOOD FEAST, yet there are moments when it actually looks pretty good.  The lighting is especially nice in certain scenes, and the green screen in the driving shots is very well done.  Everything else is pretty slapdash, but once you get used to this it isn't that much of a problem.

Aside from some isolated carnage, the film isn't all that violent.  The fake blood looks like it would taste great on buttered toast, and a brief glimpse of one character's intestines clearly indicates the use of what appears to be link sausage.  Also, Ashley's disembodied head is, shall we say, less than convincing.  As for the nudity--woo-hoo!  There isn't much, but what's there is cherce.  In an early scene, the cable guys bust into the wrong apartment in their search for Roy and are confronted by a naked blonde who is, as Ali G. might say, quite fit.  Later, during a nudie bar sequence, we see a couple of topless strippers--a blonde (the delectable Kerry Kearns) and a brunette--who are so downright tuff that I oozed out of my chair and onto the floor.  Woof-woof!  Ah-ROOOOO!

The final battle between Roy and his ragtag gaggle of pursuers ends in a clever and satisfying way that closes the film on an unexpectedly high note.  As much as I wanted to hate on COWBOY KILLER--and believe me, during the first half hour or so, I was ready to pan the crap out if it--the ending left me with fond feelings toward this rinky-dink little flick and its cheerfully deranged title character.  As Roy likes to say before each killing: "You're in for a damn treat!"  Not quite a treat, perhaps, but it does have its small pleasures.


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Thursday, December 23, 2010

Al Adamson Cult Film "CARNIVAL MAGIC" on DVD/Blu-Ray Combo Jan. 25


Film Chest & Virgil Films & Entertainment Proudly Present (on the CULTRA Label) … Carnival Magic

Magicians, Monkeys, Mad Scientists & More!

Cult Classic Long Thought Lost is Newly Restored - Never Released on Video, First Time Ever on DVD and in HD

Special DVD/Blu-Ray Combo Pack Appears Jan. 25th



NEW YORK CITY - Jan. 1, 2011 - For Immediate Release - A supernaturally skilled conjurer and his simian sidekick, the stars of a small-time circus, must defeat a jealous rival and evil doctor to stay together in the cult classic Carnival Magic, being released in a special DVD/Blu-ray combo pack Jan. 25 from Film Chest on the CULTRA label (distributed by Virgil Films & Entertainment).

In Carnival Magic - never before available in any home entertainment format - swarthy, mystical magician Markov the Magnificent (Don Stewart, TV's Guiding Light, Knots Landing, Dragnet) can read minds and levitate people and objects at will.  Working a small-time carnival, he teams up with Alexander the Great ("Alex"), an über-intelligent chimp who has the ability to speak. Soon the duo is the belle of the fair, their act drawing huge crowds.

The carnival's dastardly and envious wild animal trainer, enraged that his own act has been unseated as the circus' top attraction, plots to rid himself of competition. "Chimp-napping" Alex, he hands him over to a shady scientist who is planning some very nasty medical experiments. A desperate Markov must quickly come up with a plan to save Alex, as well as his own livelihood.

Co-starring Regina Carrol (Doctor Dracula, Black Heat, Jessi's Girls), Jennifer Houlton
(TV's The Doctors) and Howard Segal (The Last Game), Carnival Magic was directed by Al Adamson and was once called "The finest family film since E.T." by Joe Franklin, WWOR-TV.
 

The late Adamson's G-rated talking monkey movie has been the source of rumors and wild speculation for nearly 30 years. Some insist only a single print was ever made, while others claim the film never saw the light of day until a copy was "found" in Adamson's Florida home shortly after he was murdered (on the cusp of a reported comeback effort) in 1995, his corpse discovered beneath the concrete and tile-covered whirlpool bath in his newly remodeled bathroom. Adamson was married to the film's star, Regina Carrol, from 1972 to 1992, when she passed away from cancer.

Carnival Magic was originally released theatrically in 1982 in 30 markets, doing well at the box office. Not until 2009 were the negative, screenplay, 16 complete 35mm prints, outtakes, press books, one-sheets and other treasures discovered in an east coast warehouse.  To celebrate, TCM Underground premiered the newly restored master this past October.

Carnival Magic is presented in widescreen with an aspect ratio of 16 x 9 and 5.1 Dolby Digital Stereo. Special features include an interview with producer Elvin Feltner; outtakes; audio commentary with cult film historian Joe Rubin and Feltner; "Making Of" featurette; original theatrical trailer; and Spanish subtitles.

About Film Chest:
Film Chest, headquartered in New York City, boasts one of the world's largest digitized libraries (10,000+ hours) of classic feature films, television, foreign imports, documentaries, special interest and audio, which it continues to grow aggressively. Founded in 2001, the company offers high-quality content (much in HD) for a wide variety of production and distribution needs and produces collector's sets for consumers. In 2010, Film Chest unveiled three new labels. HD Cinema Classics are films that have been painstakingly restored in HD and 5.1 stereo - utilizing state-of-the art digital technology - from original film assets. American Pop Classics restores classic American film and TV shows from the '30-70s. CULTRA showcases the best (and worst) of cult cinema, a cinematic cesspool of films that are surreal, eccentric, controversial, comical and scary but ultimately engaging and entertaining. With directors who were both visionaries and crackpots, these films were originally misunderstood and rarely a box office success, achieving status by word-of-mouth and underground distribution. Film Chest releases theatrically, on DVD (distributed by Virgil Films & Entertainment) and digitally on iTunes, Netflix, Amazon, Verizon FIOS and more. Visit us online at www.FilmChest.com.

About Virgil Films & Entertainment:
Virgil Films & Entertainment, formerly Arts Alliance America, was founded in 2003 as Hart Sharp Video by Joe Amodei to develop, acquire, market and distribute DVD product in the theatrical film, documentary, special interest and sports categories. The company has built partnerships with such high-profile entertainment brands as Sundance Channel Home Entertainment, National Geographic Cinema Ventures, ESPN, MLB Productions, Bombo Sports and Entertainment and Morgan Spurlock's Warrior Poets, among others. For more information, please visit: www.VirgilFilmsEnt.com.

Carnival Magic (2 Discs)
Film Chest / Virgil Films & Entertainment
Genre:  Family/Cult/Classic
Original Release: 1982 (Color)
Rated: G
Format: DVD/Blu-ray Combo Pack
Running Time: Approx. 100 Minutes (Plus Special Features)
Suggested Retail Price: $19.99
Pre-Order Date: December 21, 2010
Street Date: January 25, 2011
Catalog #:  APC-004
UPC Code:  #851169003049

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Monday, December 20, 2010

MESKADA starring Nick Stahl and Kellan Lutz comes to DVD March 22 from Anchor Bay Entertainment


The Haves And The Have-Nots Are About To Collide…And It’ll Be Murder!

ANCHOR BAY ENTERTAINMENT PRESENTS MESKADA ON DVD

Which Side of the American Dream Will You Choose?


Beverly Hills, CA -- On March 22, 2011, Anchor Bay Entertainment releases the small-town thriller Meskada on DVD. An official selection at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, the film boasts an all-star cast including Nick Stahl (Sin City, Terminator 3, “Carnivale”), Rachel Nichols (Charlie Wilson’s War, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants), Kellan Lutz (the Twilight Saga, A Nightmare on Elm Street 2010, Accepted), Grace Gummer (“Gigantic”), daughter of Oscar®-winning actress Meryl Streep, Broadway star Michael Cerveris (“Tommy”) and Norman Reedus (“The Walking Dead,” The Boondock Saints I and II). SRP is $26.98, and pre-book is February 23.

Written and directed by Josh Sternfeld (Winter Solstice), Meskada follows a small-town detective named Noah Cordin (Stahl) as he struggles to solve the brutal murder of a boy in the peaceful, affluent town of Hilliard . The killers left behind no clues at the crime scene, with the exception of a scrap of paper leading Cordin back to his working-class hometown of Caswell.

Here, Cordin and county detective Leslie Spencer (Nichols) consult with Cordin's old friends, all of whom are suffering from the economic troubles that have plunged Caswell into destitution and despair. As their search fails to turn up a suspect, feverish tensions rise between the towns of Hilliard and Caswell. Cordin will soon learn that some crimes find their criminals…

Meskada portrays an unforgettable picture of the chasm between two towns and their inhabitants, bound by loyalty, family, community, and a battle born of circumstances beyond their control.


Anchor Bay Entertainment is the home entertainment division of Starz Media, LLC. It includes the Anchor Bay Films and Manga Entertainment brands. It distributes feature films, children’s entertainment, fitness, TV series, documentaries, anime and other filmed entertainment on DVD and Blu-ray™ formats. It is the exclusive distributor in the U.S. of the theatrical titles from Overture Films. Headquartered in Beverly Hills , CA , Anchor Bay Entertainment has offices in Troy , MI , as well as Canada , the United Kingdom and Australia . Starz Media (www.starzmedia.com) is a controlled subsidiary of Liberty Media Corporation attributed to the Liberty Starz tracking stock group.


Meskada DVD
Genre:             Crime/Thriller
Rating: Not Rated
Languages:       English 
Format:            Anamorphic Widescreen (1.78:1)
Audio:              Dolby Digital 5.1
Subtitles:           English
Year:                2010
SRP:                $26.98
Street Date:      March 22, 2011
Pre-Book:        February 23, 2011
Length:             88 minutes
UPC :                0 1313 22852-9 0
Cat#:                DV22852

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HOW TO GET AHEAD IN ADVERTISING starring Richard E. Grant -- coming January 11 on DVD from Image Entertainment


A vigorous, cheerfully outrageous British satire.” - Rolling Stone

…a challenging, leave-your-brain-on comedy” - DigitallyObsessed.com



Stress takes many forms…a headache, irritability, harsh words.  But what if it took a completely unexpected shape?  What if the metamorphosis took a bizarre life of its own?  On January 11, 2011 , Image Entertainment will release on DVD How to Get Ahead In Advertising, the cult classic from Handmade Films that skewers the advertising industry with wit and without pity. This DVD will be available for an SRP for the DVD of $14.98. 

Ad man Dennis Bagley (Richard E. Grant, L.A. Story, Gosford Park, Withnail and I) is slick, cynical and successful.  But when Dennis develops a mean case of writer’s block during an ad campaign for acne cream, his anxieties escalate until his worries manifest as an evil twin head growing out of his neck. Can Dennis save himself from the demon whispering advice in his ear, or will his mental collapse completely engulf him?

Written and directed by Bruce Robinson (Oscar®, BAFTA® nominee, The Killing Fields), How To Get Ahead In Advertising attacks the mad world of advertising with eccentric glee.  Dennis’ job has made him a nervous wreck – who can he turn to for help:  his wife (Rachel Ward, “The Thorn Birds”), his psychiatrist (John Shrapnel, Chemical Wedding, Elizabeth: The Golden Age)?  Or someone, something else?


HowTo Get Ahead In Advertising - DVD
Genre:                          Comedy, 80’s, Dark Comedy, Fantasy , United Kingdom
Rating:                          R
Rating Reason:              N/A
Languages:                   English 
Format:                        Enhanced for 16x9 TVs (1.78.1)
Audio:                          Dolby Digital 5.1
Subtitles:                       English
Year:                            1989
SRP :                            $14.98
Street Date:                  January 11, 2011
Length:                         108 minutes
UPC :                            014381657425
Cat#:                            ID6574HHDVD

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Saturday, December 18, 2010

DYING GOD -- DVD review by porfle


Like digging a fun doodad out of a box of stale Cracker Jack, watching DYING GOD (2008) benefits from the element of surprise--you don't expect very much at all, so the fact that it doesn't totally suck makes it seem even better than it is.

James Horan (FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS, GODS AND GENERALS) stars as super-scummy cop Sean Fallon, who uses parolees to sell stolen guns on the street for him and executes them if they try to double-cross him.  Horan does such an effective job of playing this creep that we can hardly stand to look at the guy.  When he rescues some working girls from an abusive john and they reward him with a threesome complete with standard porn music, it's downright nauseating.

The thing is, though, he's so off the rails that after a while his BAD LIEUTENANT-style antics become amusing.  The movie takes its time getting to the monster, focusing instead on Fallon's active lifestyle. Then, when hookers start turning up dead after being violently raped by some kind of horrible beast, Fallon joins forces with the city's leading pimps to get to the bottom of the matter.  This eventually leads to a gory, bullet-riddled showdown in an abandoned factory.

One of the pimps is Fallon's old friend, Chance (Lance Henriksen), a wheelchair-bound smoothie with a beautiful, ass-kicking bodyguard named Angel (Agathe de La Boulaye).  Always the trouper, Henriksen brings his "A" game to this modest effort and is fun to watch as usual.  This is one of those cheap flicks where good actors rub shoulders with bad ones, but all of the performances are fun to watch in one way or another.
 

The film bristles with hardboiled dialogue that's hilariously over-the-top ("I'm a cop...you're a pimp...go f*** yourself!"), especially during a sitdown meeting in which the pimps and the corrupt cop form an uneasy alliance.  Argentinean actress Victoria Maurette, who was awesome as gorgeous gunfighter babe Clementine Templeton in Albert Pyun's 2007 Western LEFT FOR DEAD, nails her spotlight moment as she tells off a vile pimp named Ray (Iván Espeche).  She comes through again in a later scene in which she's picked up by a knife-wielding scumbag who ends up getting a faceful of Ray's shotgun (complete with graphic exploding-head effect).

Also on hand is Erin Brown, aka Misty Mundae, as a prostitute who's inexplicably in love with our boy Fallon.  The old softy reveals his tender side when he apologizes and makes nice after slapping her around and forcing her to go out and round him up a bottle of booze for breakfast.  Fallon's frequent run-ins with Duncan (Samuel Arena), a fellow cop who hates his guts, provide further amusement.
 
DYING GOD is hampered by bottom-of-the-barrel production values and that murky shot-on-video look that many viewers won't go near at all, yet it's quite well done compared to similar no-budget efforts that I've seen. Director Fabrice Lambot (INSANITY) clearly has style and works wonders with his limited resources.


Gore effects are plentiful and capably done, including copious amounts of blood, entrails, and the aforementioned head shot.  The most shocking visual of all, however, comes when the monster's surviving victims start giving birth.  "Kurupi", so dubbed by the nearly-extinct tribe who worships it, is realized by way of a full-body suit that resembles something out of a 50s horror flick.  It's less than totally convincing but is okay once you get used to it.  Nicolás Silbert performs well in the suit, turning several pimps into chitlins and battling with a circular-saw-wielding Fallon in the bloody climax. 

The DVD from Green Apple Entertainment is presented in widescreen with an aspect ratio of 16 x 9 (1.2.1) and stereo. Bonus material includes trailer.

I just kept liking DYING GOD more and more as it continued to entertain me in unexpected ways.  If you can't abide the look and feel of a truly low-rent indy, you'd do best to steer clear.  Otherwise, you might want to give this lively little creature feature a spin.
   

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Thursday, December 16, 2010

Ong Bak 3 Coming To Blu-ray & DVD February 8


Picking up at the cliffhanger ending where Ong Bak 2 leaves off, Tony Jaa ramps up the epic supernatural elements of the previous film, while still maintaining the trademark bone-crunching action that the series is known for.

This time he must face his ultimate enemy: a fierce supernatural warrior named “Demon Crow,” played by fellow martial arts sensation Dan Chupong (Born to Fight and Dynamite Warrior). Eagerly anticipated by martial arts aficionados for some time, the matchup of Jaa and Chupongis explodes.

--Street date: 2/8/11
--SRP: Blu-ray $29.98/DVD $26.98

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EA and Anchor Bay join forces again for DEAD SPACE: AFTERMATH coming to Blu-ray and DVD January 25, 2011



EA AND ANCHOR BAY ENTERTAINMENT JOIN FORCES AGAIN TO RELEASE DEAD SPACE ANIMATED MOVIE ON JANUARY 25


Redwood City, CA and Beverly Hills, CA – December 14, 2010 – Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) and Anchor Bay Entertainment today announced that a new Dead Space™ animated movie, Dead Space™ Aftermath will be available on January 25 to coincide with the release of the highly anticipated videogame, Dead Space 2. Coming from the award-winning game development team and the 2008 animated feature production company, Dead Space Aftermath will feature several internationally renowned animation directors that use their unique and bold visions to explain what happened during the first-responder mission to Aegis VII. The directors will do this through the perspective of four survivors in this fast-paced horrifying thrill ride that stretches the limits of time and space.

In Dead Space Aftermath, the year is 2509 and not only has Earth lost contact with the USG Ishimura and Isaac Clarke, but also the USG O'Bannon, which is the first responder ship sent to rescue them. Four crew members of the O'Bannon have survived, but no one knows what happened to the rest of the crew, what they were doing, or what secrets they may be holding. All will be revealed...in the Aftermath!

Making a return from the first Dead Space animated feature film is producer Joe Goyette and supervising director Mike Disa. Dead Space Aftermath will also be produced and animated by Film Roman (“The Simpsons,” “King of the Hill”), and boasts a stellar voice cast led by Christopher Judge (“Stargate: SG-1”), Peter Woodward (“Babylon 5,” “Charmed”), Graham McTavish (upcoming theatrical release of The Hobbit), Ricardo Chavira (“Desperate Housewives”) and Gwendoline Yeo (“Star Wars: The Clone Wars”). Dead Space Aftermath will be available on Jan. 25, 2011 on Blu-ray™ for $34.99 and DVD for $26.98, with the pre-book coming out on Dec. 29, 2010.

In Dead Space 2, engineer Isaac Clarke makes his return in a blood-curdling new adventure on an all-new space installation known as “The Sprawl.” The lone survivor of a horrific alien infestation, Isaac finds himself confronting a catastrophic new nightmare. Battling dementia, Isaac will do whatever it takes to save himself and dominate the relentless enemy onslaughts. Equipped with a new arsenal of tools to dismember the necromorphs, Isaac faces the challenge head-on. Players will see Isaac fight bigger, scarier and more epic battles that will keep them on the edge of their seats.

Dead Space 2 will be available on Jan. 25, 2011 for the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system, Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system and the PC. For additional information and news, visit www.deadspacegame.com, follow us on twitter www.twitter.com/deadspace or become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/deadspace.

DEAD SPACE™: AFTERMATH Blu-ray™
Street Date:                  January 25, 2011         
Pre-book:                     December 29, 2010
Cat. #:                          BD22291
UPC:                            0 1313 22291-9 5
Run Time:                     78 minutes
Rating:                          Not Rated
SRP:                            $34.99
Genre:                          Animated / Horror / Sci-Fi
Format:                        Anamorphic Widescreen (2.40:1)
Audio:                          Dolby TrueHD 5.1
Subtitles:                       English, Spanish
Bonus Feature:             Dead Space 2 Game trailer

DEAD SPACE™: AFTERMATH DVD
Street Date:                  January 25, 2011
Pre-book:                     December 29, 2010
Cat. #:                          ST22290
UPC:                            0 1313 22290-9 6
Run Time:                     78 minutes
Rating:                          Not Rated
SRP:                            $26.98
Genre:                          Animated / Horror / Sci-Fi
Format:                        Anamorphic Widescreen (2.40:1)
Audio:                          Dolby Digital 5.1
Subtitles:                       English, Spanish
Bonus Feature:             Dead Space 2 Game trailer

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Tuesday, December 14, 2010

BREAD CRUMBS -- DVD review by porfle


In one of the grand old traditions of slasher flickdom, BREAD CRUMBS (2009) begins with a group of young morons spending the night in a secluded cabin in the woods and finding themselves beseiged by local psychopaths.  When done right, this sort of thing can yield a good deal of giddy fun and a few goosebumps.  But in all too many cases, such as this one, it just bores you for a couple of hours.

The cast of characters is a veritable stereotype-o-rama.  I started to lose count after picking out the crude guy, the sensible girl, the bickering couple, the liplocked lovers, the pushy macho jerk, the glasses girl whom nobody notices is a total babe, and the vain bitch.  I may have left someone out, but it doesn't really matter--they're just kill fodder anyway.  Their first night in the cabin (where, needless to say, there's no cell phone reception) is the usual party time stuff, but the next day they get down to the real business of why they're there.  I won't spoil it for you, but it's a pretty nifty surprise, and...it involves boobies!  Woo-hoo!

What these idiots don't know is that there's a weird brother and sister named Henry and Patti living in the woods, and they're like some kind of psycho Hansel and Gretel.  I never really got what that was all about, but apparently what it means is that everyone in the cabin must die horribly.  They're both teens, but Patti dresses like a little girl and carries a big dolly, while Henry looks like one of those science club nerds who's wound so tight that he just goes off sometimes.  Henry and Patti like to play, and their toys include a straight razor, an axe, and an archery set. 

These characters are marginally interesting and Amy Crowdis and Dan Shaked are pretty good actors, but the trouble is that they're not in the least bit scary even when they're killing people.  There's not much here for gorehounds, either, with a throat-slashing (yawn) being about the most graphic murder and some of the kills taking place off-camera. 

One sequence in which the designated victims attempt an exodus through the forest features some mildly interesting mayhem such as the old bear trap to the ankle, the old sharp-spikes-in-a-hole trick, and the old arrows-in-the-back routine.  The latter eventually results in one of the all-time lamest slasher movie demises I've ever seen. 

The most disappointing thing about BREAD CRUMBS is that it's a handsomely-mounted production that starts out pretty well.  After a creepy opening scene, there's a killer main titles sequence that looks like somebody really put some work into it (three guys are credited).  The acting and direction also seem better than average at first.  Unfortunately, both pretty much fall apart as soon as things actually start happening, with director Mike Nichols and his cast seemingly unable to put together a single convincing scene. 

Attempts to create growing tension within the group are badly scripted and very poorly staged, and the ensemble acting is often laughable.  Worse of all, the lackluster story fails to build any momentum or suspense and starts to get boring way before the fadeout.  It doesn't even do anything interesting with its "Hansel and Gretel" premise.

The DVD from Green Apple Entertainment is in 1.33:1 full screen with Dolby Digital Stereo 2.0.  Bonus material includes trailer.

I've definitely seen worse slasher flicks than BREAD CRUMBS--total dreck such as MOTOR HOME MASSACRE, DARK FIELDS, and THE EVIL WOODS make it seem like GONE WITH THE WIND in comparison.  But those films were perversely interesting in their utter badness, while this one is mainly just dull.   


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Michael Madsen, Vinnie Jones and Kat Von D star in THE BLEEDING coming to DVD March 1st from Anchor Bay Entertainment


Surrounded by dozens of blood-thirsty vampires, Shawn Black is in a race to save the world from pure evil…

ANCHOR BAY ENTERTAINMENT PRESENTS THE BLEEDING

Join The Hunt March 1st on DVD



Beverly Hills , CA – Anchor Bay Entertainment, in association with Gigapix Releasing and Iron Bull Films, will release the vampire thriller The Bleeding on DVD March 1, 2011.  In the tradition of Blade, The Lost Boys and From Dusk Till Dawn, The Bleeding is an action-packed tale of fangs, guns, tattoos and frontier justice on the mean streets, and features an all-star cast including Vinnie Jones (X-Men: The Last Stand, Snatch),   Michael Matthias rap superstar DMX (Romeo Must Die), Rachelle Leah, Michael Madsen (Reservoir Dogs, Kill Bill Vol. 1 and 2),  tattooed reality star Kat Von D (“L.A. Ink”) and Armand Assante (“Gotti,” American Gangster, Judge Dredd). SRP is $26.98 and pre-book is February 2.

Shawn Black (Matthias) knows pain. His parents and brother were killed in front of him. Beaten, bloodied and left for dead by a gang of ruthless vampires led by the charismatic Cain (Jones) and his lethal lieutenant Vanya (Kat Von D). But like his would-be murderers, Shawn has come back from the brink of death to take his revenge. He soon comes upon Reverend Roy (Madsen), who reveals to Shawn his calling as a “slayer,” the only human capable of truly destroying vampires. 

Dark, brooding and with a palpable layer of cowboy justice, The Bleeding spins a tale of otherworldly influences running headlong into the very human thirst for revenge.  Redemption comes with a heavy, and bloody, price in The Bleeding.

THE BLEEDING DVD
Street Date:                  March 1, 2011
Pre-book:                     February 2, 2011
Cat. #:                          DV22526
UPC:                            0 1313 22526-9 8
Format:                        Anamorphic Widescreen (2.35:1)
Audio:                          Dolby Digital 5.1
Run Time:                     83 minutes
Rating:                          R
SRP:                            $26.98
Genre:                          Horror/Action
Subtitles:                       English, Spanish
Bonus Features:            Cast interviews; makeup & effects; stunts; trailer

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The Ultimate Hybrid! SHARKTOPUS coming to Blu-ray and DVD March 15 from Anchor Bay Entertainment


Half-Shark, Half-Octopus – All Killer!

ANCHOR BAY ENTERTAINMENT LANDS Syfy CHANNEL SENSATION "SHARKTOPUS"

Blu-ray™ and DVD Bows March 15th



BEVERLY HILLS , CA – He was featured in Entertainment Weekly. He was responsible for the highest rated Syfy Channel creature-feature to premiere in September. Whether in print, or the web, merely saying his name out loud inspired terror and fear. Forget Jaws, here comes...SHARKTOPUS! Produced by Roger (2009 Honorary Oscar®-winner) and Julie Corman, Sharktopus makes its DVD and Blu-ray™ debut on March 15, 2011 from Anchor Bay Entertainment. Starring Oscar®-nominee Eric Roberts (The Expendables, The Dark Knight), Sharktopus has already captivated the nation, as more than 2.5M viewers witnessed last September. SRP is $19.98 for the DVD, and $24.99 for the Blu-ray™, with pre-book on February 16th.

An eight-tentacled nightmare hybrid of shark and octopus, “S-11” was created by genetic scientist Nathan Sands (Roberts) as the U.S. Navy’s next super-weapon. But when its control implants are damaged during a training experiment off the Mexican coast, the beast escapes to Puerto Vallarta to sample the local fare -- bikini babes, jet-skiers, and spring-breakers. With the ocean terror now out of control and seemingly invincible, a ragtag group – comprised of a hotshot mercenary, an investigative reporter, and Sand’s biomechanical engineer daughter – have come together to stop the unholy beast from turning a seaside tourist resort into the ultimate human buffet. But it won’t be easy: it possesses problem-solving intelligence, attacks without mercy or warning – it even has the ability to walk on land. Not to mention a decided affinity to snack on bungee jumpers… Kerem Bursin and Sara Malakul Lane co-star, with a hilarious cameo by Corman himself.

In addition to capturing the hearts and minds of millions of viewers, Sharktopus gripped critics with its outrageous fusion of horror and humor. Examiner.com called it “Awesome! An apex moment in Syfy’s history,” while Horrornews.net declared the film “full of kickassitude!” Reelz Channel said the film “…has all the blood and bikinis you've come to expect from the Roger Corman Film Factory,” and Joe Crowe from RevolutionSF.com noted “Sharktopus finally gets it right. That’s how a creature feature should be done.”

SHARKTOPUS Blu-ray™
Street Date:                  March 15, 2011
Pre-book:                     February 16, 2011
Cat. #:                          BD22573
UPC:                            0 1313 22573-9 6
Run Time:                     89 minutes
Rating:                          Not Rated
SRP:                            $24.99
Format:                        Anamorphic Widescreen (1.78:1)
Audio:                          Dolby TrueHD 5.1
Subtitles:                       English SDH, Spanish
Bonus Features:            Commentary with Roger and Julie Corman

SHARKTOPUS DVD
Street Date:                  March 15, 2011
Pre-book:                     February 16, 2011
Cat. #:                          DV22568
UPC:                            0 1313 22568-9 4
Run Time:                     89 minutes
Rating:                          Not Rated
SRP:                            $19.98
Format:                        Anamorphic Widescreen (1.78:1)
Audio:                          Dolby Digital 5.1
Subtitles:                       English SDH, Spanish
Bonus Features:            Commentary with Roger and Julie Corman

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DEAR MR. GACY -- DVD review by porfle


I've seen several of those direct-to-video serial killer bios that have come out in the last few years, so I kind of expected DEAR MR. GACY (2010) to be cut from the same exploitative cloth--basically a lurid slasher flick marginally legitimized by the fact that it's more or less based on true events.  But this above-average account of college student Jason Moss' ill-advised attempt to get into the mind of John Wayne Gacy, who was then awaiting execution for the gruesome murder of 33 young men and boys, eschews gory sensationalism and takes us on a dark psychological spook ride into genuine fear.

When we first meet Jason, he's an aimless college student whose only real passion seems to be criminology.  The impending execution of Gacy gives him an idea--if he could find a way to contact the convicted serial killer, earn his trust and friendship, and persuade him to open up and perhaps even confess, it would make for a kickass term paper.  Inspired to an increasingly unhealthy degree by the prospect, Jason contacts Gacy by mail and even sends him some provocative shirtless photos to whet his interest.  After a little research, Jason is also able to say things in his letters which are designed to establish a sympathetic, trusting rapport with the killer.

The plan succeeds beyond Jason's wildest expectations, with Gacy becoming his ardent pen pal and even phoning him repeatedly from prison for long emotional chats.  But as the naive, overconfident Jason thinks he's getting one over on Gacy, he's being played like a cheap violin by a master manipulator.  The relationship begins to insinuate itself into every aspect of Jason's life until it finally becomes volatile and threatening. 


DEAR MR. GACY takes its time building up a sense of dread as we watch Jason stupidly get in deeper and deeper, stoked by both morbid curiosity and ego.  He's so naive that the smooth-talking Gacy has him dangling on a string before he even realizes it.  Jason doesn't even hear warning bells when Gacy creepily starts inquiring about his little brother, so sure is he that his "plan" to trick the wily convict into exposing himself is working. 

It's almost funny the way he thinks he's putting one over on Gacy when he hasn't the slightest clue of the massive mind game being played on him for the killer's twisted amusement.  This is especially evident when Gacy coaches him on how to read people and assess their traits and weaknesses in order to assert control over them.  Jason absorbs the information with interest and even tries it out on an attractive girl on campus (failing miserably, of course), oblivious to the fact that the sly Gacy is describing exactly what he's doing to the unwary Jason himself.

Director Svetozar Ristovski takes his time building a slowly-mounting sense of dread, keeping things low-key and realistic without trying to make the film overly "spooky."  We fear the seemingly inevitable outcome of Jason's downward slide (which is portrayed perhaps a bit too rapidly) as he alienates his family and his girlfriend while plunging into the depths of paranoia.  A somber cello-based score by Terry Frewer augments the film's downbeat tone throughout.


Veteran character actor William Forsythe (RAISING ARIZONA, THE ROCK) doesn't try to come off as a standard boogeyman.  He plays the character of John Wayne Gacy with seductive yet seething restraint, like a spider weaving its web for the unwary fly, until finally he gets Jason right where he wants him during the face-to-face meeting which the film has been leading up to all along.  This is where Forsythe lets loose and morphs into the terrifying monster we knew was lurking behind that fascade--it's almost like seeing Brian Cox's "Hannibal Lekter" from MANHUNTER unleashed.  The sequence inside the prison visitation room doesn't quite pack the wallop it might have, but it's still pretty unsettling.

Jesse Moss (FINAL DESTINATION 3) is well-cast as Jason and convincingly progresses from an almost groupie-like fascination with Gacy, to his growing addiction to the perverse thrill of Gacy's friendship and confidence, and finally his revulsion and terror as the relationship turns into an inescapable nightmare.  The rest of the cast is good, including Emma Lahana (ALIEN AGENT) as Jason's concerned girlfriend Alyssa and Andrew Airlie ("Defying Gravity") as his dubious criminology professor. 

The DVD from Anchor Bay is in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen and Dolby Digital 5.1, with English and Spanish subtitles.  Also included is a featurette, "The Gacy Files: Portrait of a Serial Killer", in which Forsythe talks with people who knew the man or were involved with his case.

There's no way to know how much of DEAR MR. GACY is strictly true--there's even an end-of-movie disclaimer reminding us that not all of Jason Moss' account, as related in his memoir "The Final Victim", can be verified.  But the story makes for a compelling and disturbing film, made even more so by a sad postscript which reveals that Gacy's malevolent influence may not have ended with his execution. 


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Saturday, December 11, 2010

STONEHENGE APOCALYPSE -- DVD review by porfle


By now, everyone should have a pretty good idea of what they're getting into when they stick a "SyFy Channel" movie into the DVD player.  The bad ones are beyond awful, and even the relatively good ones are hamstrung by low budgets and subpar SPFX.  I'd put STONEHENGE APOCALYPSE (2010) in the latter category, since I pretty much enjoyed it when I wasn't wincing at some of its shortcomings.

One of these is the fact that Stonehenge itself looks a little off from the very first shot.  This is because only 60% of it was actually built full-size on the Vancouver location while the rest was filled in with bad CGI.  I did like the early scene showing a group of tourists and their guide being disintegrated when Stonehenge suddenly comes to electrical life, rearranges itself, and starts emitting deadly energy rays.  This is due to the discovery of an ancient underground chamber in Maine where archeologists, led by Dr. Joseph Lesham (Hill Harper), somehow manage to power up the energy grid which crisscrosses the globe at various key points.  Which include, in addition to Stonehenge, many of the world's largest pyramids.

A scientific task force leaps into action, led by Dr. John Trousdale (Peter Wingfield) and Dr. Kaycee Leeds (Torri Higginson).  While they're busy getting nowhere, crackpot brainiac Jacob Glaser (Misha Collins) detects the power surge during his radio call-in show--where he espouses his widely-derided scientific beliefs and conspiracy theories--and hops the next plane to England.  It's a sure bet right off the bat that (a) Jacob will cut through the bull and pinpoint the problems baffling the more rigid-thinking scientists, and (b) they'll initially regard him as crazy and rebuff his every word until one of them finally realizes that he's right about everything and risks his or her reputation to help him.


But while we're waiting for that to happen, Stonehenge somehow sets a countdown to global destruction into motion and gives us about 30 hours to live.  As a warm-up, the deadly tourist attraction starts waking up various pyramids around the globe like sleeper agents, causing them to reconfigure themselves (with computer animation that resembles Terry Gilliam cartoons) and erupt like mega-volcanoes.  (In the film's biggest "duh" moment, a shot of the instantly-recognizable Great Pyramids of Giza in Egypt is helpfully subtitled "The Great Pyramids of Giza, Egypt.")

Director Paul Ziller does what he can to sell the resulting devastation with the limited resources available.  For a global apocalypse it's a pretty low-key affair and we're asked to use our imagination a lot.  In place of actually seeing all the catastrophic destruction taking place offscreen, we get lines like "Omigod, Indonesia has been flattened" and "Omigod, the Mediterrean Sea is flooding into Egypt."  This is augmented by lots of newsreader voiceovers and stock footage to take our minds off the fact that much of the film's action consists of people in rooms describing what's going on. 

Things begin to pick up when Glaser figures out that the key to stopping Stonehenge from realizing its mysterious goal is an ancient artifact housed in an American museum.  Dr. Leeds springs him from military custody and they rush to recover the item, but are met by gun-wielding fanatics who have foreseen the coming apocaplypse and fancy themselves its chosen survivors.  With a SWAT team as backup, they find themselves in the middle of some passable gun battles along with a dicey SPFX sequence of a gaping fissure opening up and threatening to swallow them as their vans try to outrun it.
 

More action takes place within a pyramid which has suddenly erupted from the earth, in which the fanatics plan to take refuge while the rest of humanity is wiped out.  As with the rest of the film, production design here is simple and low-rent.  I wouldn't really call any of it "bad", though--it's just a case of filmmakers making the best of what they have without the benefit of a Daddy Warbucks budget.  In fact, I admire Ziller and company for huffing and puffing to make this small project as good as it is. 

With time running out, everyone converges on Stonehenge once again, with scientists, military, and fanatics all working at cross purposes.  A fair amount of suspense is generated as Glaser, armed with the ancient key, races to deactivate the stone device while a fighter jet is en route to nuke the entire area as a last resort (resulting in some of the film's more impressive CGI shots).  The robust musical score by Michael Neilson really helps heighten the tension here--in fact, listening to the furious end credits music is almost as exciting as watching the movie itself.

Misha Collins ("Supernatural", "24"), who kind of resembles the late singer Robert Palmer, makes for an okay hero with an amusing running gag involving a robot head.  "Stargate: Atlantis" alum Torri Higginson does her best but, like several of her fellow castmembers, struggles in vain with a hopelessly phony-sounding British accent.  (Sprinkling the dialogue with terms like "bloody" and "mate" doesn't help.)  Welsh actor Peter Wingfield as Dr. Trousdale and Michael Kopsa as General Forsha, who orders the nuclear strike, acquit themselves well, while Hill Harper as Leshem does what he can with a rather silly character.

The DVD from Anchor Bay is in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen and Dolby Digital 5.1 sound, with English and Spanish subtitles.  Extras consist of a trailer and a pleasant half-hour "Behind the Scenes" featurette with cast and crew interviews and production footage.

It's no newsflash when a SyFy Channel movie turns out to be less than stellar, which makes something as blandly diverting as STONEHENGE APOCALYPSE come off even better than you might expect.  If anything--as one of the cast points out in the featurette--it's a great instructional video for what to do in case the events depicted in the film should actually occur. 


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