HDTV Magazine Reviews

Blu-ray Review: Dolphin Tale

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 07:48:18 -0800

Dolphin Tale is inspired by the amazing true story of a brave dolphin and the compassionate strangers who banded together to save her life. Swimming free, a young dolphin is caught in a crab trap, severely damaging her tail. She is rescued and transported to the Clearwater Marine Hospital, where she is named winter. But her fight for survival has just begun. Without a tail, Winter's prognosis is dire. It will take the expertise of a dedicated marine biologist, the ingenuity of a brilliant prosthetics doctor, and the unwavering devotion of a young boy to bring about a groundbreaking miracle-a miracle that might not only save Winter but could also help scores of people around the world.

Cute movie based on a true story, it’s a great movie to watch as a family. It is a heart-wrenching story that had the wife crying. The script is...

Blu-ray Review: The Debt

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 07:50:09 -0800

The espionage thriller begins in 1997, as shocking news reaches retired Mossad secret agents Rachel (Helen Mirren) and Stephan (Tom Wilkinson) about their former colleague David (Ciarán Hinds). All three have been venerated for decades by their country because of the mission that they undertook back in 1966, when the trio (portrayed, respectively, by Jessica Chastain, Marton Csokas, and Sam Worthington tracked down Nazi war criminal Vogel (Jesper Christensen) in East Berlin. At great risk, and at considerable personal cost, the team's mission was accomplished - or was it? The suspense builds in and across two different time periods, with startling action and surprising revelations.

Interesting concept to tell a little history about a lesser villain. Based just after the war...

Blu-ray Review: Killer Elite

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:49:03 -0800

A match-up made in tough-guy heaven -- Jason Statham, Clive Owen and Robert De Niro star in Killer Elite. Based on a shocking true story, Killer Elite pits two of the world's most elite operatives - Danny, an ex-special ops agent (Jason Statham) and Hunter, his longtime mentor (Robert De Niro) - against the cunning leader of a secret military society (Clive Owen). Covering the globe from Australia to Paris, London and the Middle East, Danny and Hunter are plunged into a highly dangerous game of cat and mouse - where the predators become the prey.

This film is billed as "Action Thriller"...

Blu-ray Review: Real Steel

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 07:43:14 -0800

In a future world where flesh-and-blood boxers have been replaced by towering mechanized fighters, pugilist-turned-promoter Charlie Kenton reconnects with his estranged son, Max, to convert a discarded machine into a World Robot Boxing contender.

When I first saw previews for this film, I chucked thinking that it was just a glorified version of Rock’Em Sock’Em Robots. Boy was I...

Blu-ray Review: The Double

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 07:51:16 -0800

In The Double, the mysterious murder of a US senator bearing the distinctive trademark of the legendary Soviet assassin "Cassius”, forces Paul Shepherdson (Richard Gere), a retired CIA operative, to team with rookie FBI agent, Ben Geary (Topher Grace), to solve the crime. Having spent his career chasing Cassius, Shepherdson is convinced his nemesis is long dead, but is pushed to take on the case by his former supervisor, Tom Highland (Martin Sheen). Meanwhile, Agent Geary, who wrote his Master's thesis on Shepherdson's pursuit of the Soviet killer, is certain that Cassius has resurfaced. As Shepherdson and Geary work their way through crimes both past and present, they discover that Cassius may not be the person they always thought him to be, forcing both to re-examine everything and everyone around them.

Suspense fans unite...

Blu-ray Review: Paranormal Activity 3

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 07:36:30 -0800

A malign and murderous spirit continues to dwell within a San Diego home in this second creepy sequel to 2007's chilling Paranormal Activity. Hoping to catch photo evidence of Bloody Mary, the residents soon become victims in their own horror film.

Paranormal Activity 3 does a great job of cranking up the tension, but...

Blu-ray Review: Moneyball

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 07:30:06 -0800

Based on a true story, Moneyball is a movie for anybody who has ever dreamed of taking on the system. Brad Pitt stars as Billy Beane, the general manager of the Oakland A's and the guy who assembles the team, who has an epiphany: all of baseball's conventional wisdom is wrong. Forced to reinvent his team on a tight budget, Beane will have to outsmart the richer clubs. The onetime jock teams with Ivy League grad Peter Brand (Jonah Hill) in an unlikely partnership, recruiting bargain players that the scouts call flawed, but all of whom have an ability to get on base, score runs, and win games. It's more than baseball, it's...

Blu-ray Review: The Change-Up

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 07:18:40 -0800

Growing up together, Mitch (Ryan Reynolds) and Dave (Jason Bateman) were inseparable best friends, but as the years have passed they've slowly drifted apart. While Dave is an overworked lawyer, husband and father of three, Mitch has remained a single, quasi-employed man-child who has never met a responsibility he liked. To Mitch, Dave has it all: beautiful wife Jamie (Leslie Mann), kids who adore him and a high-paying job at a prestigious law firm. To Dave, living Mitch's stress-free life without obligation or consequence would be a dream come true. Following a drunken night out together, Mitch and Dave's worlds are turned upside down when they wake up...

Blu-ray Review: Contagion

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 07:47:53 -0800

Soon after her return from a business trip to Hong Kong, Beth Emhoff dies from what is a flu or some other type of infection. Her young son dies later the same day. Her husband Mitch however seems immune. Thus begins the spread of a deadly infection. For doctors and administrators at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, several days pass before anyone realizes the extent or gravity of this new infection. They must first identify the type of virus in question and then find a means of combating it, a process that will likely take several months. As the contagion spreads to millions of people worldwide, societal order begins to break down as people panic.

Contagion is not a emotionally driven thriller that tugs at your heartstrings. It plays more like a...

Blu-ray Review: Mr. Popper's Penguins

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 07:38:39 -0800

In this live-action adaptation of Richard and Florence Atwater's classic children's book, Jim Carrey takes on the titular role of Mr. Popper, a businessman who inherits a small flock of penguins and must transform his Manhattan apartment into an arctic habitat.

Mr. Poppers Penguins is a warm hearted family film that addresses important issues of family in a very unconventional way. The story unique with a ridicules premise, that requires you to leave reality behind. Somehow this movie is able to walk fine line of being completely silly and sensitive at the same time. This is mostly due to Jim Carrey's performance. It's nice to see him in a comedy that doesn't require him to make a fool of himself. His charisma and comedic timing carry the film and make it charming. The movie handles the dark topics of...

Blu-ray Review: Kung Fu Panda 2

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 07:33:12 -0800

As the legendary Dragon Warrior, Po (Jack Black), the kung fu panda, dutifully guards the Valley of Peace alongside his allies the Furious Five. When a frightful new enemy emerges, Po and company embark on a perilous journey to save China and the art of kung fu.

Kung Fu Panda 2 does of great job of entertaining audiences of any age. In the first Kung Fu Panda, Po proved himself to be the true dragon warrior. In this sequel he is challenged with the difficult task of...

Blu-ray Review: Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 07:00:40 -0800

James Franco headlines the reboot of the immensely popular Planet of the Apes franchise, a prequel which boasts cutting-edge CGI effects and a gripping story set in modern-day San Francisco, where scientists are conducting genetic research on apes. The evolved primates, including Caesar (Andy Serkis), develop advanced intelligence and revolt against being used as lab rats, unleashing a war for dominion over Earth.

When I first heard they were making another Planet of the Apes movie, I thought it was a horrible idea. Boy was I wrong. Along with Star Trek and Batman, this film is...

Blu-ray Review: Fright Night

Fri, 06 Jan 2012 07:57:39 -0800

This update of the 1985 horror comedy focuses more on terror than laughs when teen Charley Brewster (Anton Yelchin) suspects that his new neighbor, the sinister Jerry Dandrige (Colin Farrell), is a vampire, and turns to a self-styled vampire expert, Peter Vincent (David Tennant), for help. Las Vegas magician Vincent proves useless, and it's up to Charley to save his mom, Jane (Toni Collette), and girlfriend, Amy, from the seductive bloodsucker.

I was a fan of the original Fright Night and had high expectations for this remake and was not let down. Fright Night is still bloody, funny, and full of scares. I was glad that it...

Blu-ray Review: Cowboys & Aliens

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 07:54:16 -0800

It’s 1873 when gunslinger Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig) awakens in the Arizona desert with no memory of his past and a mysterious metal shackle encircling his wrist. Stumbling into the nearby town of Absolution, Lonergan discovers a tightly closed community that takes its orders from the iron-fisted Colonel Woodrow Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford) — and Dolarhyde has a bone to pick with Lonergan. But the colonel’s influence wanes when the desolate city is attacked by monsters that drop from the sky with blinding force and abduct the helpless townsfolk one by one. As Lonergan’s memory slowly returns, he realizes he holds a secret that could give the town a fighting chance against the alien force. With the help of mysterious beauty Ella (Olivia Wilde), he assembles a posse comprised of former opponents: townsfolk, Dolarhyde and his boys, outlaws and Apache warriors. United against a common enemy, they prepare for an epic showdown for survival.

When I heard that Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford were going to star in comic book movie directed by Jon Favreau and produced by Steven Spielberg I expected it to be the best movie of the summer. My expectations were...

Blu-ray Review: Conan the Barbarian

Wed, 04 Jan 2012 07:47:22 -0800

Based on the pulp fiction of Robert E. Howard, this action-driven adventure breathes new life into the story of Conan the Barbarian, a warrior who rises to defend the people of Hyboria after evil forces slaughter his family and fellow villagers.

I’m a fan of the original Conan movie, I even read a few Conan comic books, so I had high hopes for this movie. All my dreams and hopes for a good Conan movie...