OKA! available 10/22 on Blu-Ray from Well Go USA
One has to be skeptical when reading that a film is based on or inspired by a true story. It’s almost like buying juice boxes: how much of the stuff is real? This one’s 10% juice, this one’s 20%… this one is 100%, but it’s been diluted with apple juice. How much really occured and how much is the result of “artistic license”? There’s clearly a bit embellished upon in Lavinia Currier’s “Oka!”, coming to Blu-Ray 10/22. Based in part on ethnomusicologist Louis Sarno’s book “Last Thoughts Before Vanishing”, the film takes us on a beautiful, humorous and sometimes trippy journey through Central Africa. In some ways it reminded me of an episode of “This American Life”… but with elephant steaks and a whole lot of smoking. Read more
” Blu-Ray giveaway! Both of our lucky readers will be watching Danny Trejo slaughter the undead from the comfort of their own living rooms courtesy of Well Go USA. As always we’d like to thank all who entered and wish all of your entries could have survived the zombie apocalypse…
, written and directed by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, falls squarely in the middle of that spectrum. Like a comedy-version of Soderberg’s Ocean’s Eleven, the film succeeds on the chemistry of its cast, whose madcap performances liven up the mediocre material. 
” will arrive on Blu-Ray and attempt to run away from responsibility, heartache and the cold autumn of adulthood. 
“. Available on DVD on 9/3, this little indie sports some razor sharp dialogue and a superb cast that delivers some of the best performances I’ve seen in awhile. If you’ve ever considered your family to be insanely dysfunctional, Christian’s Petunia clan, with all of their eccentricities and sexual hang-ups, are sure to make you feel better about the ones you love (and maybe even the ones you don’t.) In the very least, you’ll feel better about your sex life… 
“, “
” or my older co-worker Ron who occasionally brings up hotboxing in a tank or smoking joints with a monkey he picked up somewhere in the jungle. In any event, I learned something new and it’s all because of Synapse Films’ new release of “
“, coming to Blu-Ray and DVD on 8/13. The movie is quite different from American films dealing with the same conflict, in that it has nothing really to say politically… and that made it pretty controversial in Australia.
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“. These are films that were regarded as colossal flops, but in reality turned out to be… well, not so bad. Video helped these misfits of cinema find their loving audience and even became bona fide classics (in “
“), sometimes it’s not… like in the case of “
“, finally coming to Blu-Ray on 8/6 after years of delay from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. Many people have ragged on the film over the years, including Gary Larson who mocked it in a “Far Side” panel, without ever having ACTUALLY seen the movie. Well, now’s your chance to give the film a fair shake… and it’s never looked better. 
“, coming to DVD July 30 from Wolfe Video, manages to hit many of the right notes, but doesn’t reach it’s destination without hitting a few speed bumps. 
“. Stephen Fung’s martial arts extravaganza was infused with video game and steampunk elements that electrified the genre and found an appeal with mainstream audiences the world over. On July 2, we go from “Zero” to “Hero”, as the second film in a planned trilogy, “
“, makes it’s way to Blu-Ray and DVD courtesy of Well Go USA. Continuing right from where the first left off, “Hero” maintains the mood and humor of it’s predecessor while amping up the fight scenes and visual effects. Fans of “Zero”, as well as the uninitiated are bound to have a lot of fun with this action-packed sequel. 
