Category: Movies

Go Ninja, Go Ninja, Go! | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991)

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze 1991

After the surprise success of the 1990 live-action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Chinese studio Golden Harvest rushed out a sequel to hit theater screens less than a year later, hoping to cash-in again before Turtlemania subsided. From a business perspective, that was probably a smart decision. Although nowhere near as big a blockbuster, Teenage Mutant… Read More Go Ninja, Go Ninja, Go! | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991)

Josh Zyber1 Comment

A Haunted Mansion and a Turned Screw | The Innocents (1961) Criterion Collection Blu-ray

The Innocents (1961)

Movies are an inherently sensationalized medium, and haunted house movies in particular often rely heavily upon cheap scare tactics to startle viewers into spilling their popcorn and clutching the hand of the date they brought to the theater. Subtlety is not generally a defining trait of the genre. Produced in 1961, director Jack Clayton’s The… Read More A Haunted Mansion and a Turned Screw | The Innocents (1961) Criterion Collection Blu-ray

Josh ZyberLeave a comment

The Destroyer of Worlds | Godzilla (1954) Criterion Collection Blu-ray

Godzilla (1954)

By this point, I’m sure most people understand that the first Godzilla movie (or Gojira as originally known in Japan) from 1954 was, for all its inherent absurdity and cheese, designed and intended as something a little more thoughtful and introspective than just a schlocky giant monster fright flick. This is hardly a new observation.… Read More The Destroyer of Worlds | Godzilla (1954) Criterion Collection Blu-ray

Josh Zyber2 Comments

Nolan’s Inception | Following (1999) Criterion Collection Blu-ray

Following (1999)

Before he became a brand unto himself with a rabid cult fandom slavering to see his latest three-hour-long, bombastic IMAX spectacle, Christopher Nolan started his filmmaking career with a very modest, small art film called Following that was little seen by anyone until the Criterion Collection picked it up on home video. To be honest… Read More Nolan’s Inception | Following (1999) Criterion Collection Blu-ray

Josh Zyber3 Comments

That Can’t Be Good at All | Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) 4K Ultra HD

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)

It seems that Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade wasn’t Indiana Jones’ last crusade after all. Just shy of two decades after director Steven Spielberg and star Harrison Ford seemingly closed the book on their iconic archaeologist adventurer, producer George Lucas convinced them to pull the old fedora and bullwhip out of storage one more… Read More That Can’t Be Good at All | Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) 4K Ultra HD

Josh Zyber4 Comments

You Call This Archaeology? | Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) 4K Ultra HD

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade almost was, and in many fans’ estimation probably should have been, the last adventure for the iconic screen hero. After the disappointing (yet still extremely profitable) Temple of Doom, the film was a significant return to form and offered many unmistakable notes of closure to bring this blockbuster trilogy… Read More You Call This Archaeology? | Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) 4K Ultra HD

Josh Zyber2 Comments

Anything Goes | Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) 4K Ultra HD

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)

Whether it be a case of selective memory or rose-colored glasses, I find it fairly amusing the way disgruntled Indiana Jones fans, when complaining about how much they dislike later entries in the series, tend to either forget that Temple of Doom happened or act like it was ever one of the good ones. The… Read More Anything Goes | Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) 4K Ultra HD

Josh Zyber4 Comments

A Woman on Safari? No Thank You! | King Solomon’s Mines (1950) Warner Archive Blu-ray

King Solomon's Mines (1950)

Author H. Rider Haggard’s 1885 adventure novel King Solomon’s Mines has been popular fodder for movie and TV adaptations over the years, most of them sadly not very good. Of the various attempts to bring it to screen, the most successful and arguably best was the 1950 version starring Stewart Granger and Deborah Kerr, which… Read More A Woman on Safari? No Thank You! | King Solomon’s Mines (1950) Warner Archive Blu-ray

Josh ZyberLeave a comment

It’s Not the Years, Honey | Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) 4K Ultra HD

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

With the combined talents of George Lucas as producer and Steven Spielberg directing, I don’t think anyone ever doubted that Raiders of the Lost Ark would be another big smash. Between Jaws and Star Wars, the two men had each only recently held the title for the highest-grossing movie of all time, back-to-back, Spielberg handing… Read More It’s Not the Years, Honey | Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) 4K Ultra HD

Josh Zyber7 Comments