Shut up, Mr. Burton! You are not brought upon this world to get it!

or.... "Something old, something new, something rented , something viewed."

-From the Catalogue-

The Lavender Hill Mob- Delightful and funny, a great little heist flick. Alec Guiness is always terrific in these Ealing comedies. The story is entertaining and the photography is at times beautiful. Hurry and see this before it gets remade the way The Ladykillers was ....not a pretty sight.

Police Story- Jackie Chan is truly remarkable. Again. Eye-popping (and bone-breaking) stunts. Movies like this are why he is an international superstar not stuff like The Tuxedo.

-New Releases-

Les Formidables- An excellent Korean police action film. It stars Joong-hoon Park from the unforgettable Nowhere to Hide. If you are a fan of action films, or just looking for something different, Nowhere to Hide is a must rent.  Ask Sandy where to find it and tell him Sean sent you he'll make sure you don't miss out on this movie.

The Walker- An interesting film by Paul Schrader. Slowly and steadily  the mystery unfolds, gentle gentle, as befitting the southern dandy at the heart of the story. A good turn by Mr. Woody Harrelson.

The Beast with a Billion Backs. If you are curious about Futurama rent the series instead to start. the movie is funny but somehow lacked a little zip. This is for fans of the series only as there are refrences to details from early in the narrative arc of the show that could alienate the newcomer. 

In Theatres Now

Kung Fu Panda- Fun and enchanting. The animation is vivid and sucks the viewer in to this world. My one complaint would be Dustin Hoffman as Shifu. His voice lacked a certain something (wisdom, weariness, depth) for the role, on the other hand James Hong was "Indeeed" a treat to hear as Po's father. This movie is a sure fire hit with the whole family, take the kids and the grandparents and everyone will enjoy it. It has a refreshingly positive body image spin as well as doing away with the constant pop-culture references that seem to be bogging down a lot of other contemporary animated kids/family films (Shark Tale ironically enough, Cars, Shrek 2, Happily N'Ever After.)

Speed Racer- I saw this at the dollar theater and was completely blown away. It really was a live action cartoon. I loved it. Visually inventive and kinetic capturing the spirit of the cartoon without disparaging the simplicity and good hearted nature of the original. RUN AND SEE THIS.... or wait and rent it its your choice but make sure you see it. 

Thats right, Egg Shen. The best of two worlds... DVD and Theaters. 

Lo Pan

Phone's ringing, Dude.

This week at Alternative Video we were blessed to receive some new releases of a couple of true kung fu classics in addition to our usual array of fantastic arrivals.  The movies I had a chance to lamp this week (so far) were Definitely, Maybe , The Spiderwick Chronicles, Heroes of the East, and Come Drink With Me. 

The Spiderwick Chronicles was a really scary (for kids) kids movie. The special effects were pretty good and well conceived. It is a fun action packed and tightly paced little family film. The nonmonster portion of the story revolves around strained relations between Fathers and their families. 

Definitely, Maybe is the rare romantic comedy that I enjoyed. The performances are all good and believable, the way the story unfolds is interesting and kept me guessing. Abigail Breslin can at times be a little precocious but there are a few scenes near the conclusion where her earnest performance really pays off. A good time will be had by the romantics in the audience and even a few of the more jaded (myself included). 

Come Drink With Me is a classic kung fu epic. The heroine Cheng Pei-pei will be familiar to fans of Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon where she appears as Jade Fox. The director is King Hu who directed more than a few classics including the brilliant and must see A Touch of Zen (available for rent). 

Heroes of the East stars Gordon Liu (Kill Bill 1&2, The 36th Chamber of Shaolin) and is a fantastic depiction of the differences between Japanese and Chinese martial arts. Each of the action sequences is brilliantly shot to really highlight the subtleties of each style and weapon showcased. A great movie for martial art movie fans it is at times funny, compelling and eye-popping action throughout.

Each of these movies is really worth watching for different reasons. Give them a shot and let me know what you thought.

Coming soon  Grave of the Fireflies an anime film from Japan dealing with the struggles of some children to survive World War II.

Thank you, Donny

Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together... mass hysteria!

I hope everyone enjoyed the solstice this weekend. The days just get shorter from here which means more dark to enjoy movies in. Hurray! It has been a busy couple of days-yard work, traveling, job interviews, and of course I found time to watch a few movies.

Two new releases at the store that I watched recently were both Asian films. The movies were Ghost Delivery and Vexille .

Vexille- is an animated feature length film that reminded me of Tetsuo: the Iron Man a little (very little). Japan is experimenting with robotic technology that has been banned by the UN for years. Vexille and the rest of the SWORD team of super solider types are sent into Japan to investigate. The animation in this movie is great until you look at the people. The backgrounds and all the robots and machines are fantastic but for some reason the people seem more artificial and stiff than the robots. There are some interesting elements to the story but it felt incomplete

Ghost Delivery- This is a Thai comedy that mixes Hellraiser, Ghost, The Sixth Sense, The Net and Ghost Busters (except instead of catching ghosts they deliver them-like pizza). Funny and strange for fans of Asian comedies only. I found it interesting as it explored different types of ghosts and there folk history. If you do rent this be aware that the subtitles are not the most accurate I have seen. Light-hearted and different worth a look especially on a Thursday (2 for 1).

I also had the chance to finally see Manhattan.  This was the first time I had seen the whole thing and not just bits and pieces. Funny and unsettling (the 17 year old girlfriend is a little off putting seeing as how... well you know). Hemingway aside loved this movie. Funny and beautifully shot. 

I feel I should tell everyone that reads this that this Tuesday (June 24th) the movie Persepolis gets released on DVD. A beautiful animated retelling of Marjane Satrapi's autobiographic graphic novel of the same title. The story tells of Satrapi's experiences growing up in Iran before during and after the revolution. Animated in a beautiful and comedic way, the movie is a delightful and moving coming of age story. It is rated 14a so almost the whole family can enjoy. I was lucky enough to see this film at the Telluride International Film Festival last August and to meet Satrapi herself. This women exudes intelligence and humour, both characteristics are on full display with our charming young heroine throughout the movie. Everyone should make the time to see this movie. 

Remember if someone asks if you are a god you say, "yes!"

Winston Zeddemore.

The New Movies Are Here! The New Movies Are Here!

Arriving this Tuesday are new movies. Surprise! Of course every Tuesday is the new release day down at the old Alt Vid. Three of the myriad of titles coming out today are Be Kind Rewind, Fool's Gold, and The Grand. 

Disclaimer- The opinions in this blog are mine and do not represent the views or opinions of Alternative Video Spot, its management or ownership, the other employees or even that of anyone else who has or will see the movies discussed herein.

Signed- Sean

I mention these three movies because I have seen them and can tell you a little about them.

First up- Fool's Gold- A new romantic comedy/adventure film starring Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson. The movie is about a divorcing pair of treasure hunters who share a passion for a legendary lost treasure called the "Queen's Dowry". The movie has wonderful locales and an interesting reason for moving along (treasure). However it also has one of the worst scores- not the soundtrack, who doesn't like a little Marley to liviley up with now and then?- the music is at times inappropriate, very often irritating and worst of all obtrusive like the loud guy on his cell phone on the bus.  Fool's Gold tries to capture the spark and dynamic of earlier screen couples, Bogey and Bacall, Grant and Hepburn, Powell and Loy, or more recently Douglas and Turner, but the pairing of Hudson and McConaughey falls woefully short of achieving a small measure of the humour, tension, and chemistry of any of their predecessors. If you are looking for a good and rewarding romantic comedy/adventure movie rent Romancing the Stone or one of The Thin Man movies. Both Romancing... and The Thin Man have coupled leads who are witty, smart, and believable as couples. 

Secondly- The Grand- an improved comedy about a high stakes poker tournament luckily enough named The Grand. The movies subject matter would have been a little more popular two years ago but with poker still appearing nightly on T.V. it just might find an audience on home video. The movie is funny in a low key way, unfortunately there are to many spots that drag between the laughs. Most of these involve Ray Romano. Film geeks will be pleased to see Werner Herzog  director of Grizzly Man and Rescue Dawn playing a world renowned gambler who goes by the name "The German". Poker geeks will like the inclusion of several poker stars to add that touch of authenticity. For me the best parts of the film involved David Cross as Larry Schwartzman this guy is flat out funny. It was also nice to see Gabe Kaplan as Larry's dad in the movie. Welcome back Mr. Kaplan.

Last but certainly not least on the list of new releases is the Michel Gondry movie- Be Kind Rewind- Gondry's recent films include The Science of Sleep and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. This film has the same inventiveness as both of these movies. Be Kind Rewind is a movie about movies and the love and passion that they can inspire. It is a sweet and gentle piece of work that relates the ups and downs of a local video store in a historic neighbourhood- sound familiar to any of our regulars?  This is a PG rated film that families can enjoy together. Ideally you will laugh, cry and laugh again when you sit down to watch Be Kind Rewind. You get a real sense of just how in love Gondry is with the movies and hopefully it will remind you why you love them to.

Navin R. Johnson

What happened to my $12.50?

The Happening-  For a quick capsule review see the title of this blog entry. For the longer version read on.

My wife and I were looking forward to this movie as we are both M. Night fans (Yes we even liked Lady in the Water). We are aware there exists a limited return on the twist ending, but thought the visuals and semi-surreal qualities and dreamlike nature of his stories were always compelling. 

This however was a big disappointment. We felt the film was lacking the tension and suspense of his other works. (The following could be a SPOILER) The message of the film is way to heavy handed especially since everyone and their other has seen An Inconvenient  Truth. The film felt as flat as the books on the shelves of the model home Mr. Wahlberg is handling at one point in the story. 

If your interested in an atmospheric comic book film this weekend (more on The Incredible Hulk in a later post) instead of going to the cineplex rent Shyamalan's Unbreakable.  Unbreakable was Shymalan's second film and probably the best of the lot. The colours, lighting and the camera work are excellent and capture that comic book mood. The movie tells a great story that if you are a fan of comic books and comic book movies (who else is pumped for Hellboy II: The Golden Army??) like I am you will really appreciate the attention to detail and care that went into this story. 

Tell me what you think of The Happening or any of Shymalan's other films so I know I'n not the lone voice in the interwebs.

This transmission can serve no purpose anymore. Goodbye.

In like Kevin Flynn!

Hello from somewhere in the w's. Now that I am retired from front line duty I have been sent here Master Control style to inform and hopefully entertain in some small way. It has come to my attention that I watch a lot of movies so I have been directed to use that power for the good of the people.

As this blog progresses I will be letting you know about new arrivals (not just the new releases) at Alternative Video, as well as pointing out films of interest that may have been overlooked. I have been given the green light  by Master Control to write about whatever it is that is currently sparking my interest. I'll be reporting on movies I see in the theaters as well. 

I hope that anyone interested will post comments on this blog as often as you see fit to give me some idea of what you want me to look at and discuss here.

I am finished.

Clu (a.k.a. Sean)