Draw a triangle. Use "The Road," "I Am Legend" and "28 Days Later" as corners. There, in the shadowy center, we find "Stake Land," a low-budget effort that's probably the best horror film of the year. Post-apocalyptic movies overrun by the undead almost always fail to live up to their incredible premise, but "Stake Land" delivers on multiple … [Read more...]
‘Donnie Darko’ doppelganger for year 10
"The dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had," the man sings at the end of "Donnie Darko." It's an old Tears for Fears number, one of several major intersections of lyrics and storyline in the film -- guaranteed chills for admirers of this odd and addictive film. The 2001 movie bombed, but it wasn't long before a "Rocky … [Read more...]
‘High and Low’ and hard-boiled
Akira Kurosawa wasn't known for film noir or crime thrillers, but he did do a genre drive-by back in 1963. Of course, it's killer. The Criterion Collection has reissued to Blu-ray "High and Low," the Japanese master's tale of a hardworking factory chief whose life is ruined after his son is targeted by kidnappers. Toshiro Mifune plays shoe … [Read more...]
‘Beauty and the Beast’: HD visions from 1946
French critics of 1946 were so wary of "La Belle et la bete" that its director decided to begin the film with a plea to his audience: "Children believe what we tell them," Jean Cocteau wrote across the screen. "I ask of you a little of this childlike simplicity." Children believed in the fairy tale of "Beauty and the Beast," but what were they … [Read more...]
‘Platoon’ brings the jungle back home
MGM has redeployed Oliver Stone's "Platoon" in a Blu-ray edition that marks the movie's debut in high def and its 25th anniversary. The Vietnam War film -- released at Christmas 1986 -- has been followed by a host of Vietnam War films, but remains in the upper tier because of its strong young cast, terse storytelling and claustrophobic scenes of … [Read more...]
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