Mike Gencarelli, Author at MediaMikes

Film Review “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales”

Directed by: Joachim Rønning, Espen Sandberg
Starring: Johnny Depp, Javier Bardem, Brenton Thwaites, Kaya Scodelario, Kevin McNally, Geoffrey Rush
Distributed by Walt Disney Studios
Release date: May 26, 2017
Running time: 129 minutes

Mike G’s Score: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Yo-ho, Yo-ho, a pirate’s life for me! Honestly, I expect very little from this latest (and claimed final…yeah, right!) adventure in the series. But “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales” is a fun ride. I have been a fan of each of the films in this franchise. They are not perfect by any standards but they are entertaining for sure. Even though everyone loves Captain Jake Sparrow, my favorite part of these films have been the baddies…and in this film Captain Salazar steals the show. I would honestly recommend seeing this film just to watch Javier Bardem’s performance. He is an amazing bad guy. Everything from his flowing hair to his weezing as he speaks is just amazing! Even though claim as a the final adventures, this franchise still has steam left in it and I am on board for sure!

Official Premise: Thrust into an all-new adventure, a down-on-his-luck Capt. Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) feels the winds of ill-fortune blowing even more strongly when deadly ghost sailors led by his old nemesis, the evil Capt. Salazar (Javier Bardem), escape from the Devil’s Triangle. Jack’s only hope of survival lies in seeking out the legendary Trident of Poseidon, but to find it, he must forge an uneasy alliance with a brilliant and beautiful astronomer and a headstrong young man in the British navy.

I’ve read some reviews saying that “Dead Men Tell No Tales” tries to tell too much story and no character but I loved the back story that Salazar provides to the franchise and how it ties in with Jack Sparrow’s origin. The worst part of the film is no question the inclusion of Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley’s characters. There combined five seconds on screen is surely laughable and worth nothing. Johnny Depp seemed a little tired in the role and just rolling with the punches but people love Jack Sparrow and he delivers some great laughs. There is even a nice little cameo from The Beatles’ Paul McCartney as Sparrow’s Uncle.

The visual effects are solid in this fifth entry. The zombie sharks were a bit of a let down and wasn’t the spectacle that I was hoping for, visually cool but they really didn’t do much. Co-director’s Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg took the film in a good direction and I enjoyed their spin on this franchise. I am curious to see where this franchise goes next after this film (which is sure to make another billion dollars for Disney). I just hope that they don’t pick up with the same old Elizabeth Swann and Will Turner love story again, been there done that. This is definitely a solid kick off though for this Summer and makes this film the first popcorn flick to catch. So grab some snacks, sit down and enjoy the ride!

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Filed Under: Film Reviews Tagged With: caribbean, dead, film, men, pirates, review, ...

PAW Patrol Live! Lands in Orlando June 24 & 25th

PAW Patrol is on a roll with the first-ever live tour! It’s the day of the Great Adventure Bay Race between Adventure Bay’s Mayor Goodway and Foggy Bottom’s Mayor Humdinger, but Mayor Goodway is nowhere to be found. PAW Patrol to the rescue! For the mission, Ryder summons Chase, Marshall, Skye, Zuma, Rubble, Rocky, and the newest pup, Everest. Their mission is to rescue Mayor Goodway and run the race in her place. Using each of their unique skills and teamwork, the pups make several heroic rescues on their race to the finish line.

Show date: June 24 & 25, 2017
Show time: Show times vary
Tickets start at $21.75
Walt Disney Theater

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS

A VStar Entertainment Production. Presented by Pedigree

Be a VIP – Very Important Pup!

VIP package includes:

Premium seat
Special Gift
Exclusive access to a Meet & Greet with Chase, Ryder and Skye after the show

Each adult & child in a group must have a VIP ticket. Pick up your VIP Packet at the VIP Check in table prior to the show. One adult may accompany up to 4 children. For any remaining questions, please contact info@vstarentertainment.com.

FAIRWINDS Broadway in Orlando presents “Finding Neverland” Starting June 6th

FAIRWINDS Broadway in Orlando presents Finding Neverland

This breathtaking smash “captures the kid-at-heart” (Time Magazine). Vogue cheers, “it’s a must-see you’ll remember for years to come!” Directed by visionary Tony winner Diane Paulus, Finding Neverland tells the incredible story behind one of the world’s most beloved characters: Peter Pan. Playwright J.M. Barrie struggles to find inspiration until he meets four young brothers and their beautiful widowed mother. Spellbound by the boys’ enchanting make-believe adventures, he sets out to write a play that will astound London theatergoers. With a little bit of pixie dust and a lot of faith, Barrie takes this monumental leap, leaving his old world behind for Neverland where nothing is impossible and the wonder of childhood lasts forever.

Show dates: Tuesday-Sunday, June 6-11, 2017
Show times vary
Tickets start at $33.75
Walt Disney Theater

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS

Super Bowl LI: The Perfect Sporting Film?

Source: NFL via Facebook

You just couldn’t script it, could you? Bill Belichick’s New England Patriots, one of the most successful franchises in the history of the National Football League, produced the greatest Super Bowl comeback of all-time to beat the Atlanta Falcons back in February.

Trailing 28-3 at half time, Tom Brady led the Patriots to a phenomenal victory that will live long in the memory of football fans across the globe. If you want to create a dramatic sporting film based on real events, look no further than this game – it will go down in the annals as one of the craziest matches in Super Bowl history.

If truth be told, nobody saw it coming and that is what made it even better. Heading into the famous half time show, the Patriots and the great Tom Brady were down by 25 points. Only a fool would have claimed that New England were going to win from such a bleak position…

But they did. In true Hollywood style, the Patriots offense rallied and started to close the gap. On the other side of the ball, defensive co-ordinator Matt Patricia made a handful of tweaks to the system and the Falcons just couldn’t cope with the added pressure. A movie would have to go down the route of a favourite bouncing back despite facing major odds rather than a true underdog story; the Patriots were well fancied going into the clash.

To be honest, you wouldn’t even need to focus primarily on the first half at all. While some may be looking for eye-witness accounts from New England players, a greater emphasis on the storyline might work better.

Source: New England Patriots via Facebook

Shooting a movie based on the comeback could be relatively straightforward; open up with the Patriots heading into the locker room with the scoreboard in sight and dive in there with a Belichick speech littered with inspirational quotes and passion. If you want to grab attention right from the beginning, an opening scene like that would certainly fit the bill.

Who knows, we could be set for another equally dramatic event in 2018. Next year’s Super Bowl will take place in Minnesota and it wouldn’t be a huge surprise to see Bill Belichick and the Patriots, currently +600 in NFL betting odds with bet365, competing on the big stage once again.

As long as Belichick and Brady are at Gillette Stadium, New England will always be in contention and a film focusing on how both men have carried the Patriots’ dynasty in recent years would go down a treat with sports fans.

Last year’s Super Bowl was truly remarkable and New England supporters will never forget the comeback. Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons have been criticised for choking but that is completely unfair to the Patriots; they deserved to win based on that second half effort.

When we look back through the history of sporting films, underdog stories tend to dominate so it is about time that we celebrated an era of success; the New England Patriots deserve a movie on Super Bowl LI – let’s hope that a film maker out there agrees.

Blu-ray Review “Fifty Shades Darker”

Actors: Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan, Eric Johnson, Rita Ora, Luke Grimes
Directors: James Foley
Rated: NR
Studio: Universal Studios Home Entertainment
Release Date: May 9, 2017
Run Time: 131 minutes

Film: 2 out of 5 stars
Blu-ray: 4 out of 5 stars
Extras: 2.5 out of 5 stars

I do not understand the thrill of the “Fifty Shades of Grey” series. The first film is a melodramatic turd and the second film is honestly worse. The “steamy scenes” in the film are not sexy at all and nearly laughable. Watching this film was petty painful to be honest. Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson are fine in the film and do what they can with this mess but I wouldn’t waste my time on this…just watch a damn porn, LOL. The production though is decent and you can tell that they were trying harder this time but it’s a hard pass for me…and to think there is still another sequel coming.

Official Premise: Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson return as Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele in Fifty Shades Darker, the second chapter based on the worldwide bestselling Fifty Shades phenomenon. When a wounded Christian tries to entice a cautious Anastasia back into his life, she demands a new arrangement before she will give him another chance. As the two begin to build trust and find stability, shadowy figures from Christian’s past start to circle the couple. Jack Hyde (Eric Johnson) and Elena Lincoln (Kim Basinger) join the cast, determined to destroy the couple’s hopes for a future together. This time there are no rules.

This Blu-ray includes an unrated cut of the film. Personally the film is long enough running 117 minutes but this new cut expands it out to 131 minutes. If you enjoyed the film you might be interested in more, but I’m not. Despite whether or not the film is worth watching, the A/V presentation is extremely solid. The 1080p transfer looks amazing and really crisp colors. The real shocker here is definitely the DTS:X Master Audio soundtrack. Normally, I would say a film like this wouldn’t need a track like this but it really does sound great. From the film’s music to the subtle sound effects throughout. It is really solid.

“Fifty Shades Darker” comes with some solid special features including contains six featurettes, a two short deleted scenes, and a preview for the next film, “Fifty Shades Freed”…very short. “Writing Darker” features the author E.L. James talking about the book and the film. “A Darker Direction” features cast and crew talking about this sequel. “Dark Reunion” looks deeper into the characters. “New Threats” looks at the films new characters. “The Masquerade” looks at the films party sequence. Lastly “Intimate with Darker” looks at the sex scenes both filming and physical meaning.

Blu-ray Review “The Red Turtle”

Directors: Michael Dudok De Wit
Rated: PG
Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Release Date: May 2, 2017
Run Time: 81 minutes

Film: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Blu-ray: 4 out of 5 stars
Extras: 2.5 out of 5 stars

I am a huge fan of Studio Ghibli, “The Red Turtle” marks a change for the company. This is not an original film from them but instead a French film acquisition. It is also a wordless film yet also a beautiful film. Put it this way, I watched this film with my 5 year old and she was interested the whole time, even without words. The story was beautiful and the animation was gorgeous. Not your typical Ghibli film but definitely a different one and quite enjoyable.

Official Premise: Marking the much-anticipated return of Studio Ghibli, this masterfully animated fantasy film tells the story of a man shipwrecked at sea who becomes stranded on a beautiful but desolate island. He learns to live in isolation, seemingly tormented in his efforts to escape the island by a giant red turtle. Miraculously, he soon comes upon a young woman also lost at sea and they create a family together.

The 1080p transfer looks solid. The animation is well represented here and the colors are vibrant. The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 works perfectly with the films score and sound effects, which gracefully drive the film along. The special features are a little light. There are two featurettes going behind-the-scenes including “The Birth of The Red Turtle” and “The Secrets of The Red Turtle” as well as a AFI Fest Q&A with Director Michael Dudok de Wit. This is a solid interview with a lot of great details though.

DVD Review ” Shark Week: Shark ’n’ Awe Collection”

DVD Release Date: May 9, 2017
32 episodes on 6 discs
Distributed by: Lionsgate
Run time: 22 hours and 35 minutes

Our Score: 3.5 out of 5 stars

“Shark Week: Shark ’n’ Awe Collection” is a Walmart exclusive release and released to get us all excited for 2017 Shark Week coming up soon! Over the six discs, there is nearly a full day of content. This is not a full collection of 2016, rather what you get are some of the best episodes from both 2015 and last year. Some of the episodes includes in this new collection are “Alien Sharks: Close Encounter”, “Ninja Sharks” and “Sharks Versus Dolphins: Face Off” to name a few out of the 32 episodes included.

Official Premise: Shark Week is back, making a huge splash with all-new, compelling and jaw-dropping shark stories and shark technology. Working with the most respected marine biologists and science institutions, Shark Week: Shark ’n’ Awe Collection highlights some of the most recent breakthroughs and developments that have led to remarkable new insights into these magnificent creatures.

Other than the 32 episodes included over six discs, there are no additional special features included. The episodes chosen are solid choices for sure. Every year I watch Shark Week and I always think it will be the same of the same each year but it is not. I always learn something new with each year and these collected here deliver for sure. I am a big disappointed with the fact that Lionsgate did not include digital copies like with previous releases.

DVD Review “Beaches (2017)”

Starring: Nia Long, Idina Menzel
Studio Lifetime
MPAA rating: PG-13
Running Time: 87 minutes

Our Score: 2.5 out of 5 stars

I’ve seen the original Bette Midler (Actor), Barbara Hershey classic film “Beaches”, not a huge fan but I am familiar for sure. This is not a terrible remake. Unnecsary but definitely not terrible. It does scream TV movie though but it is a Lifetime movie so its sort of ok. If you like the cast and can deal with it being a remake, you might enjoy it also.

Official Premise: In this contemporary remake, Beaches follows the serendipitous meeting of two young girls on the Venice Boardwalk, who, though worlds apart in lifestyle, embark on unexpected and lifelong friendship.

This update to the 1988 film does include solid performances of the iconic songs from the original movie such as “Wind Beneath My Wings” and “The Glory of Love” from Idinal Menzel as well as her new original song, “Last Time”. This film is a Walmart only title. So if you want it that’s the only please to get it. No digital copy or special features are included on this DVD.

Blu-ray Review “Orange Is The New Black: Season Four”

Actors: Taylor Schilling, Laura Prepon, Kate Mulgrew, Michael Harney, Nick Sandow
Number of discs: 3
Rated: NR
Studio: LIONSGATE
Release Date: May 9, 2017
Run Time: 778 minutes

Season: 4 out of 5 stars
Blu-ray: 4 out of 5 stars
Extras’: 2.5 out of 5 stars

The fourth season of Orange Is The New Black proves this show gets better and better with each new season. It is darker, gritty, funnier, crazier! Just all around great! This show is showing no signs of slowing down at all. The cast is all simply amazing together. The story for this season just brings this show to a whole new level of great. I can’t wait to see what is in store for season 5!

Season 4 Premise: New faces and old resentments make for a potentially volatile blend, especially now that Litchfield is a for-profit business. Overrun with new inmates and overseen by inexperienced guards, the prison undergoes an unprecedented culture war.

The 1080p transfer of the episodes looks great. The colors are crisp and even though the prison is drab. The flashbacks and outside scenes are well represented. The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 works as well with no issues and spotlights the movie well. The special features are not the best to be honest, There are only two audio commentary tracks include as well as a tour of Litchfield and a gag reel included.

Blu-ray Review “A Dog’s Purpose”

Actors: Britt Robertson, KJ Apa, John Ortiz, Dennis Quaid, Josh Gad
Directors: Lasse Hallstrom
Rated: PG
Studio: Universal Studios Home Entertainment
Release Date: May 2, 2017
Run Time: 100 minutes

Film: 3 out of 5 stars
Blu-ray: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Extras: 2.5 out of 5 stars

Who doesn’t love animals?! This movie looked really cute film about a dog through many lives to help its original owner. I enjoyed it overall. I don’t see myself raving about it though to anyone else, especially after the controversy came out about the production. But I do like the message over and how it was setup. Dennis Quaid pops in for a few minutes and does his confused look thing. Dog lover will probably love it if they if they don’t know about what happened during the production. Otherwise, this is a one-timer.

Official Premise: Based on the beloved bestselling novel by W. Bruce Cameron, A Dog’s Purpose, from director Lasse Hallström (The Cider House Rules, Dear John, The Hundred-Foot Journey), shares the soulful and surprising story of one devoted dog (voiced by Josh Gad) who finds the meaning of his own existence through the lives of the humans he teaches to laugh and love.

Like all Universal releases, this one is no different impressive audio and video included, though nothing spectacular worth mentioned for this film. It comes as a combo pack with a Blu-ray + DVD + Digital copy included. The special features are very light the are two production featurettes including “Lights, Camera, Woof!” and “A Writer’s Purpose”. There are also Deleted Scenes and Outtakes included.

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Blu-ray Review “La La Land”

Actors: Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, John Legend, Rosemarie Dewitt, Finn Wittrock
Directors: Damien Chazelle
Rated: PG-13
Studio: Lionsgate
Release Date: April 25, 2017
Run Time: 128 minutes

Film: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Blu-ray: 5 out of 5 stars
Extras: 3.5 out of 5 stars

I was highly anticipating “La La Land”. I told myself I wasn’t going to hear a note of the music before seeing the film. Funnily enough after my first viewing, I felt really let down. Afterwards, I spent time listening to the soundtrack and since have fallen absolutely in love with the music and the film itself becoming one of my favorites from 2016. Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone are/and also sound amazing. I love them singing and I love them together. A must see for sure!

Official Premise: Winner of 6 Academy Awards® including Best Director for writer/director Damien Chazelle, and winner of a record-breaking 7 Golden Globe® Awards, LA LA LAND is more than the most acclaimed movie of the year – it’s a cinematic treasure for the ages that you’ll fall in love with again and again. Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling star as Mia and Sebastian, an actress and a jazz musician pursuing their Hollywood dreams – and finding each other – in a vibrant celebration of hope, dreams, and love.

The 1080p transfer is gorgeous. I love the look and the way that this film was shot. I feel like it speaks true to Hollywood today. Since this is an musical, you would assume that the sound of this Blu-ray is very important. Well Lionsgate films does not disappoint. They have delivered us with an epic Dolby Atmos track as well as a Dolby TrueHD 7.1. So two great options way to enjoy this beautiful film and its beautiful songs!

The special features are solid. There are about over 10 featurettes focusing on all aspects of the production bringing nearly 80 minutes of content. There is an informative audio commentary with Writer/Director Damien Chazelle and Composer Justin Hurwitz. I love these two together on this track. “Damien and Justin Sing: The Demos” is a look at two demos for the track “What a Waste of a Lovely Night” and “City of Stars”. Lastly there is a gallery and trailers.

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Blu-ray Review “Rings”

Starring: Matilda Anna Ingrid Lutz, Alex Roe, Johnny Galecki, Aimee Teegarden, Bonnie Morgan, Vincent D’Onofrio
Director: F. Javier Gutiérrez
Rated: PG-13
Studio: Universal Studios
Release Date: May 2, 2017
Run Time: 102 minutes

Film: 2 out of 5 stars
Blu-ray: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Extras: 2 out of 5 stars

“Ringu” aka “The Ring” originally was a great Japanese horror movie. Honestly didn’t need an expensive US remake. Still, the remake was decent and worth working. “The Ring 2” is hardly. When I heard report of “Rings”, I thought “yeah sounds cool, it’s been some years now and what could they do with all this new technology etc”. Well this was just another boring reboot of the original film with nothing worth wild here at all. Samara is not scary at all and all her scenes could have been taken scene for scene from the previous films and you wouldn’t have realized.

Official Premise: A new chapter in the beloved RING horror franchise. A young woman becomes worried about her boyfriend when he explores a dark subculture surrounding a mysterious videotape said to kill the watcher seven days after he has viewed it. She sacrifices herself to save her boyfriend and in doing so makes a horrifying discovery: there is a “movie within the movie” that no one has ever seen before…

“Rings” comes as a combo pack with a Blu-ray + DVD+ Digital HD cop included. The DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track is solid for this film I do have to give credit there! The special features are bland and pointless like the movie. There are two featurettes “Terror Comes Full Circle” and “Resurrecting the Dead: Bringing Samara Back” about the production and creating Samara again, respectively. “Scary Scenes” is a stupid cast reaction to horror. Lastly there are nearly 20 minutes of deleted/alternate/extended scenes, cause you can tell this movie was chopped up to hell and was probably an entirely different film before it was released!

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Blu-ray Review “Gold”

Actors: Matthew McConaughey, Edgar Ramirez, Corey Stoll, Bryce Dallas Howard
Directors: Stephen Gaghan
Rated: R
Studio: LIONSGATE
Release Date: May 2, 2017
Run Time: 121 minutes

Film: 3 out of 5 stars
Blu-ray: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Extras: 2.5 out of 5 stars

For the talent involved you would have thought that a film like “Gold” would have gotten a lot more notice. This film stars Matthew McConaughey (“The Dark Tower”), Bryce Dallas Howard (“Jurassic World”), Corey Stoll (“House of Cards”), as well as veterans Stacy Keach (“American History X”) and Bruce Greenwood (“Star Trek”). Talent-wise this film is a score. I enjoyed watching it, thought it would be a film that I would never see again for sure. Not my kinda movie.

Official Premise: “Gold” is the epic tale of one man’s pursuit of the American dream — to discover gold. Oscar winner Matthew McConaughey stars as Kenny Wells, a prospector desperate for a lucky break, who teams up with a similarly eager geologist, and they set off on an amazing journey to find gold in the uncharted jungle of Indonesia. Getting the gold was hard, but keeping it would be even harder, sparking an adventure through the most powerful boardrooms of Wall Street.

“Gold” comes in a combo pack with a Blu-ray + DVD + Digital HD included. The 1080p transfer is typical. Doesn’t stand out. Doesn’t suck. Looks solid enough. Same goes for thhe DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, which delivers great sound especially for the title track by Iggy Pop and Danger Mouse. The special features includes an audio commentary with director Stephen Gaghan as well as a deleted scene, a featurette on the film’s locations and a behind-the-scenes look at Matthew McConaughey’s character.

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Film Review “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2”

Directed by: James Gunn
Starring: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Michael Rooker, Karen Gillan,
Pom Klementieff, Elizabeth Debicki, Chris Sullivan, Sean Gunn, Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell
Distributed by Walt Disney Studios
Release Date: May 5, 2017
Running time: 136 minutes

Mike G’s Score: 4 out of 5 stars

When I left the advance screening back in 2014 for Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy”, I said to my wife that this movie is the “Star Wars” for our new generation and it will be HUGE! Fast forward to 2017 and here we are with Vol.2 being released and looking back at how much the first film affected Hollywood. The magic of the first film has tried to be copied since and the only film to get close was “Deadpool”. It is hard for me to scream that “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” is better than the first. I really really liked it but I also watch the first film almost weekly or at least monthly, so to say I’m a big fan is an understatement. I even got my 5 year old daughter into the first film (I know I’m a terrible dad, but she LOVES IT!). Vol.2 is easily one of the best films I have seen this year and an amazing follow-up to the first film. I have a feeling as I see it a few times more my love will only grow.

Personally, I am bored with “The Avengers” in general, i.e. Iron Man, Captain America and their movies. I am more into Marvel’s releases like “Guardians”, “Doctor Strange” and even the new “Thor” looks fantastic! These are great superhero movies and I can easily add Vol.2 to that list! The sequel not only is action packed entertaining movie but also packs some mega emotional character driven dramatic moments. I love those moments. This movie has so much heart, literally so much. The jokes are funnier. I swear everything that Drax says is pure gold. Baby Groot was cute and really wasn’t overused like I assumed he would be to steal the show.

Everyone was talking about Kurt Russell’s role of Ego and Peter Quill’s father..and he was everything I wanted and more! Russell is just tearing it up with this and the “Fast and Furious” franchise. He is on fire. The star of this film is no question, Michael Rooker. His role of Yondu was expanded greatly from the first film and really gets some amazing screen time (cue Cat Stevens’ song “Father and Son”). Even Sean Gunn (James’ brother) got an expanded role and delivered some really great scenes. I really enjoyed Kraglin in this film! Sylvester Stallone popped up for a bit, cool to see him but didn’t do much. He was mostly just setup for future films playing the important character aka Starhawk. And if you are a Toby fan like me from the TV series “This Is Us” keep an eye out for Taserface! Love him! The girl power in “Guardians” was very strong, which makes me happy due to having an eager to see this 5 year old. Karen Gillan got a chance to expand Nebula more in this sequel and she was just brilliant. Zoe Saldan and her got some nice screen time together. Pom Klementieff joined on playing a very important character named Mantis and easily stole our hearts…even though she is really ugly…(according to Drax).

The songs from the first “Guardians” really made the film so special and unique. The second film doesn’t disappoint in terms of great picks and don’t feel forced like when “Suicide Squad” tried to copy. ELO’s “Mr. Blue Sky” is a great track. Fleetwood Mac’s “The Chain” has great placement in the film. Sam Cooke’s “Bring it on Home to Me” was a great and very sweet moment. George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord” is one of my favorite songs ever. I mentioned above Cat Stevens’ song “Father and Son,m which was just a perfect choice for this film. James Gunn’s band along with David Hasselhoff, yes David Hasslehoff even have a fun song in the end credits. The score is beautiful again from Tyler Bates. I’ve been listening to it for about a week now before seeing the film and I had a really great appreciation for the music when I saw it. Honestly this is the first Marvel film that really interested me with their score.

The visual effects are just beautiful. Ego’s planet is breathtaking for sure. This is a film that needs to be seen in the theater. Preferable the biggest IMAX screen possible. Please do not see this film at little theater. 3D was good didn’t really jump out too much. I could have gone either way on that. This franchise has a BIG future ahead of it and as long as it has James Gunn’s vision leading it down this path I am on board and very excited to see what is coming next! Hopefully Gunn will actually give Nathan Fillion a decent role in next film that won’t be cut 😉 I am just happy that Vol.2 doesn’t disappoint and I believe that it is because they didn’t just try and copy the first film. They took what worked from the first film, expanded it perfectly and ended up with one of the year’s best film.

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Filed Under: Film Reviews Tagged With: 2, film, galaxy, guardians, review, vol, ...

Blu-ray Review “The Girl With All The Gifts”

Actors: Gemma Arterton, Paddy Considine, Glenn Close, Sennia Nanua
Directors: Colm McCarthy
Rated: R
Studio: Lionsgate
Release Date: April 25, 2017
Run Time: 111 minutes

Film: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Blu-ray: 4 out of 5 stars
Extras: 1.5 out of 5 stars

Who knew that six-time Academy Award nominee Glenn Close’s next film was going to be a post apocalyptic zombie film, I would have said “Hell no!” But she kicks some major ass in “The Girl With All The Gifts”. This British zombie flick definitely stands out among the flood of non-stop entries into this popular genre. In this film the flesh-eating beasts are called “hungries” and are teachable like pets (sort of). Very cool flick. Great performance from the underappreciated Gemma Arterton and stealing the show is the newcomer Sennia Nanua! She was amazing and I hope to see much more of her!

Official Premise: Humanity has been all but destroyed by a fungal disease that eradicates free will and turns its victims into flesh eating “hungries.” Only a small group of children seems immune to its effects. At an army base in rural England, these unique children are being studied and subjected to cruel experiments. When the base falls, one little girl escapes and must discover what she is, ultimately deciding both her own future and that of the human race.

Lionsgate is delivering the film as a combo pack with a Blu-ray + DVD + Digital HD copy. Unlike the film, the special features are disappointing. There is only one featurettes included here called “Unwrap the Secret World of The Girl with All the Gifts”, which is a pretty standard brief behind-the-scenes look. Was hoping for a commentary track to get a little deeper into the subtext of the film itself.

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Filed Under: DVD/Blu-Ray Reviews Tagged With: bluray, gifts, girl, review

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Page 44 of 346

Author: Mike Gencarelli

Film Review “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales”

PAW Patrol Live! Lands in Orlando June 24 & 25th

A VStar Entertainment Production. Presented by Pedigree

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Blu-ray Review “The Girl With All The Gifts”