Category Archives: Blu-ray

Stand Up for Pain in the Oblivion of Pines

Posted on September 15, 2013 by rorydean

I watch so many movies I often get swept up in the effort to write about all of them in an effective and coherent way. Monday to Wednesday and I’m already behind, by Friday I’ll be right back here scrambling. This time I’m micro-reviewing, a handful of celluloid with the films Oblivion, Pain & Gain, Stand Up Guys and The Place Beyond The Pines. Continue reading →

Posted in Blu-ray, Movie I've Seen, Movies You Should or Should Not See, My Review of Their Review:, On DVD, Online, philosophy and film, Rants & Raves | Tagged above the line, al pacino, Alan Arkin, blue valentine, Bradley Cooper, Brian De Palma, bucket list, christopher walken, crazy stupid love, Derek Cianfrance, Die Hard, Joseph Ruben, Le Mecanisme de cineaste du jour, limitless, made for TV forgettable, michael bay, Mikael Salomon, miss it, moon, Movie Mechanic, oblivion, Pain & Gain, Paul Verhoeven, practical movie reviews, rory dean, ryan gosling, see it, silent running, stand up guys, the place beyond the pines, tom cruise, Wolfgang Petersen | 3 Comments

Born on the Fourth of July (1989)

Posted on August 3, 2013 by rorydean

Oliver Stone’s films live and breathe in the aether of happenstance and catastrophe, hand-wrung spaghetti noodles on the wall of Americana in Technicolor pasticcio, washed in controversy and teeming causticity. Driven by Stone’s familiar and articulate camera, his branded editing techniques and his signature bravado that makes heroes of all his criminal souls, Born on the 4th is quite easily among his best films. Continue reading →

Posted in Blu-ray, Essays on art, Essays on Film, Movie I've Seen, Movie Makers & Shakers, philosophy and film | Tagged 4th of July is about community and the celebration of togetherness, above the line, aether of happenstance and catastrophe, born on the fourth of july, Character actor, condemnation and awe, everyday Americana of the 1960s, Film, hollywood, Independence Day (United States), oliver stone, practical movie reviews, rory dean, savages, specter of curiosity, Stone, Stone's driving passion and ability to weave together history and fantasy, Stone's most salient talent is to empower his broken characters with gut-level verisimilitude, tom cruise, war movies | 3 Comments

Total Recall (2012)

Posted on January 20, 2013 by rorydean

Arnold’s not back, he was never invited and for good reason. Total Recall is everything a good sci-fi action thriller should be and perhaps it will do better in time, after the nuclear fallout has settled, faded, surrounded some other bare naked movie. Continue reading →

Posted in Blu-ray, Movie I've Seen, Movies You Should or Should Not See, My Review of Their Review:, On DVD, Online, Rants & Raves | Tagged 2012 films, above the line, action movies, bill nighy, colin farrell, Dan O'Bannon, guy ritchie, hugo award winner, Jackie Chan, Jessica Biel, John Cho, John Woo, Jon Povilk, kate beckinsale, Kurt Wimer, Kurt Wimmer, Len Wiseman, Mark Bomback, philip k. dick, practical movie reviews, robert downey jr., Ronald Shusett, rory dean, sci-fi thriller, speculative fiction, Total Recall, Underworld Evolution | 23 Comments

Killer Joe (2011)

Posted on January 19, 2013 by rorydean

It is Friedkin’s mannered pursuit of the macabre in his 2011 socio-pathetic amorality tale Killer Joe that elicits gut wrenching contractions, disarming the viewer to uneasy laughter that feels wrong for all the wrong reasons. The collateral damage does not end right away but lingers like nuclear fallout to poison all those who come after. Killer Joe excels at depravity for the sake of sick humor, blanketing terror in makeshift excuses that, because the real is strained through an excess of absurdity, bad judgment and dumb decisions are rendered palatable, even socially accessible when they are anything but. Continue reading →

Posted in Blu-ray, Essays on art, Essays on Film, Movie I've Seen, Movie Makers & Shakers, Movies You Should or Should Not See, My Review of Their Review:, On DVD, Online, philosophy and film, Rants & Raves | Tagged above the line, corrupt law, drama, Emile Hirsch, Friedkin, Gore Vidal, Joe, Juno Temple, Matthew McConaughey, mel gibson, passion of the christ, play to the screen, porch light confessionals, practical movie reviews, rory dean, sadistic stories, Schadenfreude, stage play, Stoning of Soraya M, Tracy Letts, trailer park wastelands, William Friedkin | 5 Comments

Premium Rush (2012)

Posted on January 15, 2013 by rorydean

There are no finish lines or flashy answers to what troubles you in Premium Rush, no dating advice or practical instructions on how to ride or not to ride a fixed gear bicycle. The closest you come to learning anything comes from that tiny voice inside your head screaming at you to “GO FAST!”. So strap on the jet pack of whatever wheels can carry your imagination and escape the steering wheel or office cubicle before you get lost in the intersections of other people’s’ lives. Continue reading →