GamerNode: FilmPLOSION!'s Columns

Up Blu-ray Review

Continuing the trend begun by Wall-E, Up is a Pixar movie with depth, meaning, and even some tear-inducing depressions. Of course, there's still plenty of fun, adventure, and comedy. (And even a bit of hair raising action!) Basically, Up has every element you could want to find in a movie.

It's really hard to accurately describe what Up is about without giving important things away, or ruining their impact, but here goes. Up is the story of Carl Fredrickson. The movie begins with a silent prologue detailing Carl's life, from his young adventure club days, to meeting the girl of his dreams, to marriage, to the modern day world which features the grumpy old man you saw in all the original Up trailers.

Now in old age, Carl decides to finally realize a dream to adventure. Attaching balloons t...

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Monsters, Inc. Blu-ray Review

At this point, Pixar and Blu-ray basically go hand in hand. The studio has yet to make a truly bad movie (even their worst [in my opinion], Cars, is better than 90% of the movies out there) and their Blus have constantly been reference material, and must-owns in any collection.

So it should come as no surprise that their latest catalogue release, Monsters, Inc., is once again a must-buy for Blu-ray viewers, Disney fans, Pixar fans, and fans of great films.

Like many of Pixar's pre-Wall-E films, Monsters, Inc. is fairly simplistic in terms of its story. It revolves around the world of monsters. The monster in your closet or under your bed when you were little? Totally real. And they scare humans to capture their screams so that they can power their city, Monstropolis, with the efficient en...

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Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Blu-ray Review

Seventy-two years ago, Walt Disney released his vision: an animated feature length film that would go on to create an entire industry, and become arguably the most influential film of all time. That movie? The iconic Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Snow White's story is timeless, and although it may be taken from fairytales, Disney's adaptation and interwoven music gave it new life, ensuring it would entertain generation after generation. It started out as "Disney's Folley," but it became something more important than even Disney himself could imagine: a timeless piece of human culture, and a testament to the power of human creativity.

It's almost impossible to critique the actual movie itself, without taking all of that into account. It's not the most complex film; it doesn't have the gre...

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I Love You, Man Blu-Ray Review

The last several years, we've been treated to an onslaught of "comedies" where the formula for funny was nothing more than crude humor, profanity-laden tirades, or gross-out gags. Even the current man when it comes to comedies, Judd Apatow, has fallen victim to the modern comedic formula in most of his ventures.

Then, along came I Love You, Man. A movie which, by all rights, could have followed a very tried and true formula, and made a decent amount of money. But instead of that, director/writer John Hamburg took the romantic comedy genre, and turned it on its head by making it a bromantic comedy.

To say that I Love You, Man is one of the best comedies of the year would be offensive to the movie -- because it's one of the best comedies of the last decade. The movie centers around Peter Kla...

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Dollhouse Blu-Ray Review

No show of this past season faced as much expectations or critique as Joss Whedon's Dollhouse. The maker of Buffy, Angel, Firefly, and Dr. Horrible was loved by TV fans and geeks alike, and his second teaming up with Eliza Dushku was highly anticipated. Then the pilot aired, and we were found wondering -- what happened? Did Joss finally lay an egg? A few episodes went by, and I like many, was convinced that Dollhouse just wasn't worth watching.

It wasn't until a few weeks later that we all learned the first few episodes were bad because of Fox's interference (something no Whedon fan was surprised by). From there, it took off, and Joss did his own thing with it. Unfortunately, once it took off the viewers seemed to stop caring. Personally, I decided to wait until it came out as a season on...

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Dragonball Evolution Blu-Ray Review

Like many, Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z served to not only entertain me as a child, but also introduce me to the world of anime and martial arts. Goku, Piccolo, Roshi, and the rest of the crew were on the TV in our living room at least two days a week, and my friends and I would engorge ourselves on any and all things DB -- from official toys to unofficial translated ROMs of GameBoy and NES games that had little to do with the actual shows we had watched.

So when Dragonball Evolution was announced as a live action movie, and when the casting began to be revealed, to say I was worried would be an understatement. I had seen so many other classic shows and series ruined by modern movie remakes... But DBZ!? "Wait until it comes out," everyone would say. "Maybe it will be decent!"

Well, in a ...

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Slumdog Millionaire Blu-ray review

The story of Slumdog Millionaire is, oddly enough, something you could easily see becoming a movie. A little heralded, straight-to-DVD movie; an executive taking a chance by putting it out in theaters; that same film dominating the Academy Awards, and becoming one of the best films of the year, making a star of its young leading actor. Sounds Hollywood, doesn't it?

It's odd for a movie to become so inexplicably popular, but Slumdog did it. While I did (and do) love the movie -- and consider it one of the best films of 2008 -- I have to step out on a limb here and state, on the record, that I do think the movie is overrated. Good? Yes. Great? Close. The best movie of 2008? Not quite.

Still, Slumdog is a fantastic movie the first time you experience it.

The story revolves around Jamal Malik, a ...

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Lost Season 4 Blu-ray Review

*Given that the new season of Lost is starting, I felt it wise to re-post the Lost Season 4 Blu-Ray review, originally published December 28, again so that those interested in the series could find it easier*

A lot of TV shows suffered from the writer's strike last season. Some, like Scrubs, had awful shortened seasons that seemingly cried out, "I give up!" Others, like Lost, went with the flow, and managed to deliver not only what fans expected (even if it was slightly different than originally planned), but some of the best work yet in the franchise.

Before the fourth season of Lost began, it was announced that the show would end after six seasons, with a definitive ending. (Or so they claim!) This timetable put the entire series of Lost into a scheduled progression, which the strike thre...

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Event Horizon Blu-ray Review

What many movie watchers who only know Anderson for his questionable game-related films may not realize, though, is that he does have a library of well-received and well-made non-game movies, the best example of which is Event Horizon.

For horror, sci-fi, and thriller fans, Event Horizon needs no explanation. It is one of the top movies in each of those populated fields, and features some incredible acting for genres usually known for their lack of such a thing.

For those who haven't seen it, though, Event Horizon is considered a top-tier genre film for a reason. It tells a story which directly inspired Bioshock; a spaceship has lost communication with earth, so a team goes up to investigate it. Obviously, what they find isn't a malfunctioning communications system, but something much more ...

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Old School Blu-ray Review

"We're going streaking!" Will Ferrell's frantic yelling, Luke Wilson's quiet acceptance of his life, and Vince Vaughn's adamant holding-on to being a partying bachelor made Old School a comedy classic when it came out just a few short years a go. In the vein of Animal House and Revenge of the Nerds, the story focused on an unlikely group of guys on a college campus: grown up men who aren't even going to the school.

The story begins when Mitch (Wilson) loses his cheating girlfriend. His friends, Frank (Ferrell) and Beanie (Vaughn) hatch a plan to get career-oriented Mitch back into the social world; they rent him a house on-campus, and turn it into the most high-profile fraternity (complete with Snoop Dogg concert) around.

Compared to every other college-oriented comedy since the 80s, Old S...

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Tropic Thunder Blu-ray Review

Tropic Thunder amazed audiences when it came out earlier this year. What originally looked to be a highly entertaining, if not stupid, comedy turned out to be a highly entertaining, action-packed comedy that lampoons not only war movies, but also a host of Hollywood clichés and personalities.

The film revolves around three fading actors-the award winner (Robert Downey, Jr.), the action star (Ben Stiller), and the comedian with a declining quality of films (Jack Black). Joining them is the up-and-coming rap superstar with a number of licensed products (Brandon Jackson). They're brought together when director Damien Cockburn (Steve Coogan) decides to make an epic, big-budget war film. Unfortunately for him, the stars don't give a rat's ass about the production, and after only weeks of shooti...

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Kung Fu Panda DVD Review

What do you get when you combine state of the art CGI, some of the best actors in Hollywood, and animals performing kung fu? One of the year's best movies. Kung Fu Panda was widely loved by critics and fans during its theatrical release, and for good reason.

The movie centers around Po the panda, and his journey of self discovery. Po (Jack Black) is the (adopted) son of a noodle maker (played by the legendary James Hong), and his father wants nothing more than for Po to follow in the family footsteps of running the noodle shop. Unfortunately, Po has dreams of more kung fu-y things; his idols aren't chefs and cooks, but the legendary Furious Five.

When he hears that kung fu teacher Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) is going to hold trials to find out which of the Furious Five are the Dragon Warrior who...

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From Russia with Love Blu-Ray review

From Russia with Love is Connery's second go at playing James Bond, and in my opinion the best movie in the entire series. It includes everything one could want in a Bond movie - foreign locations, beautiful women, a great villain, and lots of thrills and suspense.

While Dr. No set up the premise for the Bond universe, From Russia with Love expanded upon it. People were shown to be mere pawns in a larger game (which is heightened by the fact one of the main characters is a chess grand master) and the series' most prolific bad guy is introduced: Ernst Stavro Blofeld.

For those not familiar with Blofeld, he's the inspiration for the character of Dr. Evil, as well as Dr. Claw. Bald with an affinity to Persian cats, Blofeld's face isn't revealed in the first of his six Bond appearances, but hi...

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Live and Let Die: Blu-Ray Review

When I asked our readers (and my friends and co-workers) which of the Bond Blu-Ray releases I should watch first, they unanimously picked Live and Let Die. Obviously if you've been reading my reviews you know that I ignored them, purely because I didn't want to start off with Roger Moore's first outing as Bond, which is an...odd film, to say the least.

With Connery (and Lazenby) gone from the Bond picture, the franchise seemed keen on reinventing itself with Moore and his different take on the secret agent. Rather than the suave styles of Sean, or the gritty gist of George, Roger went with a new direction for the Bond films: humor.

Don't get me wrong, Connery had his moments, but largely Connery's remarks were one-liners thrown at just the right time -- not all the time. What goes best wit...

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Die Another Day; Blu-Ray Review

As I've told numerous people asking me how my foray into the Blu-Ray Bond releases, I wish I could have skipped over Die Another Day. The minute I left theaters after seeing Pierce's last foray into Bond-dom, I knew that it was my least favorite of the entire franchise. Handily.

It wasn't my least favorite during the entire running time, though. As the 40th anniversary film, Die Another Day was almost a call back to the best moments from the previous Bonds, and featured elements of Moore, Connery, and Dalton. Sadly, somewhere along the line the film entered the dreaded Camp territory; not to the degree of Batman the Movie, but damned close.

Of all of Brosnan's Bond films, this is the one they decide to test the Blu-Ray waters with? The one with the glacial car chases, invisible car, DNA-al...

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For Your Eyes Only: Blu-Ray Review

For Your Eyes Only is widely considered Roger Moore's best portrayal of James Bond. I've always enjoyed Live and Let Die more, but to each his own; I'm certainly not going to argue that For Your Eyes Only is one of the better Bond flicks.

Until Daniel Craig's Casino Royale debut, For Your Eyes Only was also considered the toughest, grittiest portrayal of the suave spy on the silver screen. Once again, I'm not going to put up much of an argument.

The movie plays out like a Bond Paint by Numbers picture. In a series built around self imposing clichés and ideals, that's not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, it's a good thing. Where other Bond films have tried to do something different and failed (like Die Another Day's attempt to take Bond into the sci-fi realm...) FYEO sticks to the nitty gri...

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Dr. No: Blu-Ray Review

Bond. James Bond.

If you don't know where that line comes from, you've either been in a coma for several decades and just woke up, or you are the World's Greatest Hermit. To say that Ian Fleming's fictional creation is a pop culture icon doesn't do it justice; James Bond is more than that. There are arguably only two fictional creations better known worldwide than James Bond (and no I'm not going to try to troll religious people by including religious icons in that list).

It's with that legacy that MGM finally decided to begin releasing the Bond collection on Blu-Ray in the form of six randomly selected Bond adventures. While it wasn't the first of the set I watched (hey, I've seen them all before) I found it fitting to kick off my two days of Bond Blu-Ray reviews with the movie that spawn...

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DVD Review: The Cult of Cartman

Lately, South Park has been no stranger to releasing DVD sets built on themes rather than seasons. A way to make money? Sure, you bet. But what these sets also serve as are a way for fans to access specific episodes without having to dig through DVD binders or cases in order to find that one disc from season 5 with the Scott Tenorman episode.

Of all the South Park thematical releases, I have to say this Cult of Cartman set was easily the one I looked forward to most. A collection of Cartman's Best presented in a Biblical/teaching fashion? Count me in!

The Cult of Cartman: Revelations set features 12 of Cartman's greatest moments. The episodes included are: Scott Tenorman Must Die, Awesom-O, The Death of Eric Cartman, Cartoon Wars 1 and 2, Le Petit Tourette, Tonsil Trouble, Eek a Penis!, Ca...

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Sleeping Beauty: Platinum Edition DVD review

Should I need to explain how important Sleeping Beauty is as an animated film, or what it's about? Probably not. Sadly, the movie gets passed over in favor of its more appealing Disney brethren, and few of today's generation (especially males) have seen it. Heard of it? Sure. It's a classic, after all. With this latest DVD release, Disney is hoping to provide the children, teens, and adults of today with another reminder of one of its most forgotten-but most memorable-classics.

First hitting theaters in 1959 after nearly a decade of work during the last ten years of Walt Disney's life, Sleeping Beauty was a different looking animated movie, and the first animated feature to be completed in a super-wide scope for theaters. I bet you didn't know Sleeping Beauty was the first movie to be both...

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Blu-Ray Review: Transformers

Oh, Transformers, you guilty pleasure, you. I still remember when Transformers came out in theater, and my girlfriend and I bought tickets to the midnight showing a week before it played, then downed a couple bottles of soda in order to stay awake through the lengthy film. The way the seats shook, the screen lit up, the crowd cheered...it was definitely a great experience in the theaters.

Unfortunately, the DVD release didn't capture the same spirit as the original theatrical one, and Transformers became just another okay-but-not-great flick to watch with friends when nothing better was going on. How could a DVD hope to live up to the big-screen projection and booming speakers of a movie theater? It couldn't. Thankfully, with this new release of Transformers on Blu-Ray, there's now a home ...

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