DVD review: Protector 2 and Ong Bak trilogy blu rays

I was surprised with review copies of the upcoming Tony Ja blu ray releases for The Protector 2 and the box set Ong Bak trilogy last week.

   First up, I checked out The Protector 2. Tony Ja really needs to microchip that elephant, cuz he get taken again (this time by the RZA). The action goes big and cartoony with a rooftop battle with a dozen bikers. Rhe mayhem takes to the streets when about 150 more show up. Lots of CGI stunts and action, which is a shift from the original. 

   But after, the initial set piece, the films settle into more traditional, practical action (still some CGI, but not as dramatic at the bike gang stuff).

   It's a fun romp with some exciting action. Not as visceral as the original, but still a great modern martial arts action movie.

As for the Ong Bak trilogy, the boxset looks to be a repackage of the individual blu releases. In fact, the UV digital code that came with part 2, expired in 2012.

I rewatched part 2 and it looks and sounds great on blu. So, check out the boxset if you passed on them the first go around.

If you're a martial arts fan then then end of July will be a good time. Both releases come out July 29 from Magnet.

Dvd review: Under the Skin

Under the Skin (2014)

The folks at Lionsgate were nice enough to share a screener copy of "Under the Skin" with me to review on the site. It's a lovely piece of art house science fiction. Beautifully shot and well acted. It's nice seeing Scarlett Johanson doing roles like this. It reminds you that she is a very accomplished actor.

The film comes out July 15th on digital, dvd and blu ray. Check it out if you like a slow burn, character study with a sci-fi slant.

DVD review: The Office season 9 blu ray

Its labor day monday and I'm loafing around watching tv. TV Land is showing the best of Andy Griffith and I'm alternating between that and the Office season 9 blu rays I was sent for reviewing.

I'd lost interest in The Office a few years back and have only caught it off and on until this year. I started watching it semi-regularly on Hulu this season and have been catching up on some episodes I missed with the blu ray release.

It's a decent season. Uneven, but it has its moments. The whole Jim and Pam drama was a bit too soap operay for my taste and revealing the documentary crew felt unnecessary. One of the things I've always liked about the show was the breaking the wall moments of characters looking right at you, making you a part of the proceedings. Adding the camera crew as characters pushed back that intimacy, removing that feeling that you are there and in on the jokes.

But overall, theres plenty to be entertained by and the finale is a success in wrapping up the employees arcs, giving viewers so fan moments and being touching and funny. Something The Office often did to great success.

The show looks great in HD, as one would expect from a modern
network series and the blu offers numerous extras to give fans a reason to own the season.

Special Features include: audition tapes, two hours of deleted scenes, a retrospective documentary, video of the series finale table read, bloopers, music videos and a cast panel exclusive to the blu ray release.

Dvd review: The Collection (2012)

Its been a bit of a dry spell for dvd screeners, but things have picked up this last couple of weeks. The folks at Lions Gate sent a few things and one I watched this afternoon was "The Collection".
The Collection is the 2012 sequel to The Collector (2009) and follows the Alien/Aliens pattern of sequels, where you ratchet up the thriller into a full-on action, roller coaster ride. And boy does it work out well. The Collection is a breathless sprint from an insane opening sequence at a rave/club to the escape from the Collector's house of traps.

The basic set up: a serial killer, who's keen on booby traps and keeping one victim as part of his collection, must go head to head with one of his escaped captives and a team of mercenaries sent to rescue his latest victim. Its tense. Its actiony. Its gory. Its got likable characters. Its a well shot, well acted, 82 minutes blast. If your a horror fan, its a "buy" as far as I'm concerned.

Buy The Collection for $17 on Blu Ray, $13 on dvd. And snag the original The Collector for $7 on Blu and $4 on dvd at Amazon.com

DVD REVIEW: THE EXPENDABLES 2

DVD REVIEW: "THE EXPENDABLES 2" - DVD + DIGITAL COPY

RELEASE DATE: November 20, 2012

STARRING: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Chuck Norris, Terry Crews, Randy Couture, Liam Hemsworth, Scott Adkins, Nan Yu Also Jean-Claude Van Damme, With Bruce Willis, And Arnold Schwarzenegger


DIRECTOR: Simon West

One of my first loves is film and one of the things I had always hoped was for this blog to get big enough to get review copies of upcoming DVDs and BluRays. Well, in the last few weeks, Lionsgate and HBO Home Video has started sending me screener emails for upcoming releases. So, when I run across something that I think will fit well on the blog, I plan to request a review copy.

Yesterday, the fine folks at Lionsgate sent me a copy of the upcoming DVD release of "The Expendables 2" and I gave it a watch.

As a 80s kid, I grew up on the action movies of Stallone, Arnold, Willis, Van Damme, Chuck Norris and Lundgren. These guys are legends and they defined a couple of decades (plus some) of genre film. Seeing these most of these guys in Expendables 1 was like a great ice cream sundae. Now in Part 2, it's like someone hooking up an I.V. with Cinnabon icing to your heart. It's pure action movie bliss.

THE FILM:
Stallone and company are forced to recover blueprints showing the hidden location of 5 tons of plutonium in former Soviet Russia. Added to the mix are bit parts by Chuck Norris (as the Lone Wolf), Arnold and Bruce, Van Damme (as the aptly named big boss baddie, Vilain).

It's a fast-paced ride, that manages to give the most of the heroes rewarding character building moments. Couture and Crews seem to get the short end of things. Lundgren (a personal favorite of mine) get some get moments as Gunner, the addled former junkie/chemical engineer who is a zero with the ladies. He's a lovable oaf and stole the show. Stallone is fun. Arnold and Bruce bring their "A" game and Van Damme plays it great as a flamboyant and somewhat spacey bad guy. Norris has that twinkle in his eye. It seems like everyone's having fun.

The film is larger in scope and eastern block setting is a great. Cold and desolate. There's some great action set pieces: Nepal, boat chases, an abandoned 1950s era "Anytown, USA-type city" that the Soviets used as a trained ground, an abandoned mine and and Airport. Plenty of shoot 'em up action with some "Holy Shit!" violence peppered in.

SPECIAL FEATURES:
• GODS OF WAR: Assembling Earth's Mightiest Antiheroes (A rather disappointed fluff piece on Expendables 2. Check out instead, "Inferno", the doc on the making of the first Expendables for a great look at making a modern action film)
• ON THE ASSAULT: The Real-Life Weaponry of THE EXPENDABLES (for the firearm fans, Randy Couture takes you on a tour of the Las Vegas GUN SHOP to educate you on the weapons used in the movie, info on the guns and use in a firing range)
• BIG GUNS, BIGGER HEROES: The 1980s and the Rise of the Action Film (The gem of the special features with a looks at the 1980s and the evolution of the action film, the political landscape and the growth of the "Me" decade)
• GUNS FOR HIRE: The Real Expendables (a doc on real life security forces like Ronin)
• Audio Commentary with director Simon West
• Deleted Scenes

• Gag Reel

OVERALL:
A great action film. Superior to the first is scope, action and character development. The film looks and sounds great, even in standard def DVD. The release also has a digital copy from iTunes and it looks like a UV copy is also included. If you liked the first Expendables, this is a much see. If you love 80s action movies, this is like the ultimate mix tape of your favorite screen legends.

RATING: 9 out of 10
  LINKS: Lionsgate Ependables 2 DVD Amazon's "Expendables 2" DVD Amazon's "Expendables 2" Blu-ray