DVD Review “Hatfields & Mccoys: Bad Blood”

Directed by: Fred Olen Ray
Starring: Jeff Fahey, Christian Slater, Tim Abell, Perry King, Jerry Lacy
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Distributed by: Lions Gate
Release Date: June 5, 2012
Running Time: 90 minutes

Film: 2 out of 5 stars
Extras: 1 out of 5 stars

Alright so, who doesn’t love a good Western?  Especially one about the always interesting feud of Hatfields & Mccoys.  Well I made the terrible mistake with watching the new History Channel mini-series also called “Hatfields & Mccoys” with Kevin Costner and Bill Paxton.  That puts this film to shame extremely quick and makes this feel like a bargain discount DVD.  Jeff Fahey is bad-ass as usual and Christian Slater is relatively missing throughout the film popping up here and there.

The story follows two families who seek vengeance against each other, while also aiming to destroy each other’s loved ones. When it comes to Hatfields & Mccoys, you expect this intense drawn out bloody feud. Unfortunately with this film it is very anti-climatic and doesn’t really ever take the plunge over the bad-ass side.

Overall if I had to make a recommendation it is a total no-brainer.  For better acting (besides Fahey, since he’s a god) check out the new History Channel mini-series if you need your Hatfields & Mccoys fix. The DVD actually does comes with a decent Dolby Digital 5.1 track. The special features are lacking just like the film. The only real extra is a commentary track from director Fred Olen Ray. There is also a stills gallery, which is next to useless anyway unless you are an animation film.

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CD Review: 3 Inches of Blood “Long Live Heavy Metal”

3 Inches of Blood
“Long Live Heavy Metal”
Century Media Records
Producer: Terry “Sho” Murray
Tracks: 12

Our Score: 2.5 out of 5 stars

“Long Live Heavy Metal” is the newest album from the Canadian heavy metal band 3 Inches of Blood. The bands 5th full length album was produced by Terry “Sho” Murray and is being released via Century Media Records. The group consists of Cam Pipes, Justin Hagberg, Shane Clark and Ash Peason. Together the band blends a variety of both new and classic metal techniques while still forging new ground.

Vocalist Cam Pipes could be describes as half Halford and half Dickinson as his vocals ring out in the highest of falsetto ranges while tracks like “Look Out” and “Storming Juno” are drenched with dual guitar chugging, and sweeping solo passages.

Though a majority of the songs on “Long Live Heavy Metal” have a more vintage sound and structure, Tracks like “Dark Messenger” and “Die for Gold” feature a unique blend of the two which makes the latest release from 3 Inches of Blood quite an entertaining listen.

Track Listing:
1.) Metal Woman
2.) My Sword Will Not Sleep
3.) Leather Lord
4.) Chief and the Blade
5.) Dark messenger
6.) Look Out
7.) 4000 Torches
8.) Leave it on the Ice
9.) Die for Gold
10.) Storming Juno
11.) Men of Fortune
12.) One for the Ditch

 

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Blu-ray Review “In the Land of Blood and Honey”

Directed by: Angelina Jolie
Starring: Zana Marjanovic, Goran Kostic, Rade Serbedzija, Dzana Pinjo, Nikola Djuricko
Distributed by: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
MPAA Rating: R
Release Date: March 27, 2012
Running Time: 127 minutes

Film: 3 out of 5 stars
Extras: 3 out of 5 stars

When you hear that Angelina Jolie is writing/directing a film, the first thing that pops into my head isn’t a foreign film. Well she did a really great job with “In the Land of Blood and Honey”, it is directed with a sharp eye and written very smartly. The content of the film is very intense consisting of rape and violence but she is still able to intertwine her romance into the story. I felt the film drags a little in the second half and gets a little confusing but overall I would say I enjoyed it.

The film is set in the in the 1990s during the Bosnian War. It locks conflicted romance of Danijel and Ajla, two people from different ethnic backgrounds. Danijel, a soldier fighting for the Serbs, and Ajla, a Bosnian held captive in his camp. Shortly before the war though the two knew each other and were one their way to possibly falling in love. As the war develops the their relationship gets more complicated as war drives them apart.

This combo back includes the Blu-ray and also a DVD of the film. The authentic language version is available on the BD with English subtitles, and the newer before released English language version is available on the DVD. If I had the option to watch it I would highly recommended the foreign language version. The Blu-ray presentation is superb. It looks great with its 1080p transfer, very sharp and very realistic. The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is also very impressive and works well with the war scenes and the film’s beautiful score.

The extras are decent but lacking commentary from Angelina Jolie. “The Making of In the Land of Blood and Honey” Featurette takes you behind-the-scenes through filming in two languages and the local cast reflections on the actual the war. There are a few deleted scenes also included. Lastly exclusively available on the Blu-ray version is a Q&A with Jolie and Actress Vanesa Glodjo. Definitely worth checking out to get more insight into the film.

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“In the Land of Blood and Honey” Available March 27th on Blu-ray + DVD Combo Pack

Academy Award® Winner Angelina Jolie Makes Her Acclaimed
Filmmaking Debut with the 2012 Golden Globe® Nominee for
Best Foreign Language Film – IN THE LAND OF BLOOD AND HONEY

Featuring Both Authentic Language Theatrical and Never-Before-Seen English-Language Versions of the Film Available March 27th on
Blu-ray™ + DVD Combo Pack. Get Both Versions Early on Digital and VOD – February 24th*

“Extraordinary! A total triumph!” -Danny Miller, MSN News

“Brilliant! A powerful, important, humane and uncompromising film.” – Pete Hammond / BACKSTAGE MAGAZINE

“Jolie is a startlingly effective director.” – John Powers / VOGUE

Culver City, CA (2/13/12) – From Academy Award® winner Angelina Jolie (Best Supporting Actress, Girl, Interrupted, 1999) comes the acclaimed war drama IN THE LAND OF BLOOD AND HONEY, available March 27th on Blu-ray™ + DVD Combo Pack from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. Jolie makes her stunning directorial and screenwriting debut with this gripping tale of love and survival set against the backdrop of the Bosnian War. Nominated for a 2012 Golden Globe® Award for Best Foreign Language Film, IN THE LAND OF BLOOD AND HONEY has been hailed by critics as “the starkest, most relentless film about war since Kubrick’s Full Metal Jacket.” (David Ehrenstein, Quarterly Review of Film & Video). Now, movie fans can experience this riveting film with a Blu-ray + DVD Combo Pack which includes two versions of the film –the authentic language film with English subtitles on the Blu-ray and the English language version featured on the DVD disc. Both versions of the film will arrive early on VOD and Digital on February 24th.

The Blu-ray combo pack includes a “Making of” featurette that goes behind the scenes of filming in two languages with a local cast, who share their painful stories of their personal conflict during the war. Exclusively available on the Blu-ray version is a Q&A with Jolie and Actress Vanesa Glodjo.

IN THE LAND OF BLOOD AND HONEY is the winner of the Producers Guild of America’s 2012 Stanley Kramer Award, which honors films whose “achievement or contribution illuminates provocative social issues in an accessible and elevating fashion.”

Synopsis: Set against the backdrop of the Bosnian War that tore the Balkan region apart in the 1990s, IN THE LAND OF BLOOD AND HONEY tells the story of Danijel and Ajla, two people from different sides of a brutal ethnic conflict. Danijel, a soldier fighting for the Serbs, and Ajla, a Bosnian held captive in the camp he oversees, knew each other before the war, and could have found love with each other. But as the armed conflict takes hold of their lives, their relationship grows darker, their motives and connection to one another ambiguous, their allegiances uncertain.

IN THE LAND OF BLOOD AND HONEY features an all-Bosnian cast that includes Zana Marjanovic, Goran Kostic and Rade Serbedzija, cinematography by Academy Award® winner Dean Semler (1990, Best Cinematography, Dances with Wolves) and music by Academy Award® winner Gabriel Yared (1997, Best Music, The English Patient). It was produced by Angelina Jolie, Graham King, Tim Headington and Tim Moore.

The film has a run time of approximately 126 minutes and has been rated R for war violence and atrocities including rape, sexuality, nudity and language.

Blu-ray™ and DVD Bonus Material:
· “The Making of In the Land of Blood and Honey” Featurette
· Deleted Scenes
Blu-ray™ Exclusive:
· Q&A with Writer/Director Angelina Jolie and Actress Vanesa Glodjo

“Academy Award®” is the registered trademark and service mark of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

* English-language version available on select providers.

ABOUT SONY PICTURES HOME ENTERTAINMENT
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is a Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) company. Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE’s global operations encompass motion picture production, acquisition and distribution; television production, acquisition and distribution; home entertainment acquisition and distribution; worldwide television networks; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; development of new entertainment products, services and technologies; and distribution of entertainment in more than 142 countries. Sony Pictures Entertainment can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.sonypictures.com.

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Q&A with Angelina Jolie Talks “In The Land Of Blood And Honey”


On January 12th, we were proud to present Angelina Jolie in a Live online Q&A brought to you by PartnersHub. “In The Land of Blood and Honey” is the first film Angelina has written and directed. Fans were be able to ask Angelina questions LIVE! See the video below to hear her responses to those questions.

“In the Land of Blood and Honey” has been nominated for a Golden Globe. In the film, Angelina Jolie tells the love story between a Bosnian Serb who is in charge of a prison camp and a Muslim artist who is taken prisoner during the Bosnian War in the early 1990’s.

Behind The Scenes Photo With Angelina Jolie:

Promotional Film Still:

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3D Blu-Ray Review “Peter Gabriel: New Blood- Live in London”

Starring: Peter Gabriel
Studio: Eagle Rock Entertainment
Rated: NR (Not Rated)
Running Time: 162 minutes

Our Score: 3.5 out of 5 stars

I grew up listening to Genesis before and after Peter Gabriel left the band. So I have always been a fan and this concert aims right at that fan in me and I am sure other. It was filmed at Hammersmith Apollo in March 2011. It features Peter Gabriel performing live with a 46 piece Orchestra. This concert covers versions from his “Scratch My Back” album and also touches on classic tracks from his solo career but in brand new orchestral arrangements. I think the orchestral arrangement really adds an interesting aspect his his songs. It reminds me of when Metallica went on tour with an orchestra almost makes it feel like new spin on classic music.

Of course I have to comment on the presentation of this disc. It looks really great in 3D and works well for this concert. I think they did a really great job with it. The video is really clear and the sound is extraordinary. The special feature includes on the disc is called “Blood Donors”, which is a documentary on the making of the “New Blood” concert. It is worth the watch as it shows how much really went into this event. If you are a fan of Peter Gabriel, this is a must purchase especially if you can experience this is 3D.

The concert’s set list features over twenty songs:
“Intruder”
“Wallflower”
“The Boy In The Bubble”
“Après Moi”
“The Drop”
“Washing Of The Water”
“The Book Of Love”
“Darkness”
“The Power Of The Heart”
“Biko”
“San Jacinto”
“Digging In The Dirt”
“Signal To Noise”
“Downside Up”
“Mercy Street”
“The Rhythm Of The Heat”
“Blood Of Eden”
“Red Rain”
“Solsbury Hill”
“In Your Eyes”
“Don’t Give Up”
“The Nest That Sailed The Sky”

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“True Blood” star Ryan Kwanten’s “Griff the Invisible” DVD Giveaway [ENDED]

THANK YOU FOR ENTERING, THE CONTEST HAS ENDED. WINNERS HAVE BEEN CHOSEN AND NOTIFIED VIA EMAIL. PLEASE CHECK BACK EVERY WEEK FOR NEW GIVEAWAYS!

To celebrate the release of “Griff the Invisible”, Media Mikes would like to giveaway THREE copies of the DVD. If you would like to win one of these great prizes, please leave us a comment below or send us an email and let us know your favorite superhero and why. This giveaway will be open until Tuesday November 15th at Noon, Eastern Time and is only open to residents of the United States. Only one entry per person, per household; all other entries will be considered invalid. Once the giveaway ends, Movie Mikes will randomly pick out winners and alert the winners via email.

Ryan Kwanten, of TV’s “True Blood” fame, stars in the charming, quirky and totally unpredictable romantic comedy GRIFF THE INVISIBLE, swooping in on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital this November 15 from Indomina Releasing. Critics have called Kwanten “a pleasure to watch” (Manohla Dargis/The New York Times) and “especially wonderful” (Robert Abele/Los Angeles Times) in the role of Griff, a shy and awkward office worker by day, who finds escape from his ordinary life by assuming the identity of a fantastic superhero each night. Rising star Maeve Dermody, two-time Australian Film Institute nominee for Best Supporting Actress (2009’s Beautiful Kate, 2007’s Black Water) and recent recipient of The Australian International Movie Convention’s Australian Star of the Year Award, co-stars as Kwanten’s equally oddball love interest in a film about how the world can make us invisible, courage can make us incredible, and love can make us invincible.

Synopsis
Griff (Kwanten), a shy and awkward office worker by day, finds escape from his ordinary life by assuming the identity of a fantastic superhero each night. Griff’s secret is jeopardized when he meets Melody (Dermody), a cute but unconventional daydreamer. She quickly becomes fascinated by his idiosyncrasies, which are equal only to her own. In the face of mounting pressure to live in the “real world,” it’s up to Melody to rescue GRIFF THE INVISIBLE for the sake of herself, Griff and their newfound love for each other.

DVD Bonus Material
Behind The Scenes Featurette
Anatomy of a Scene
o Opening Sequence
o Steadicam Shot
o Anyhoo
Deleted Scenes
Appear Calm: Diary of a First Time Director
o Pre-Production
o The Shoot
o Post-Production
Rain Stops Play
Patrick’s Set Tour
Music Video – “Don’t Give Yourself Away” by The Shadow Bureau

 

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GWAR’s Michael Derks aka “Balsac the Jaws of Death” Talks “Blood Vomits”

Michael Derks aka “Balsac the Jaws of Death” guitarist for the rock group Gwar has a new project coming out titled “Blood Vomits” which is a puppet based adventure series that was fully funded through the internet donation site Kickstarter.com. Mediamikes.com had a chance to catch up with Michael to talk about the project and how he came about using Kickstarter.com

Adam Lawton: How did you first become involved with the “Blood Vomits”?
Michael Derks: I didn’t really know too much about it at first and I don’t really know why. I knew about the idea as Davis Bradley who basically came up with the idea and built the puppets used to tour with Gwar and was one of our Gwar slaves. After he left the band he was working on some other weird little projects and one of them was these puppets. A friend of Davis’s by the name of John Brennan had written a script about three Mexican banditos with one being a priest and the other two being completely evil. Davis took that script and adapted it to the puppets he was building and then had Dave Brockie and Todd Evans do the voices. I hadn’t really heard about it until I found it on YouTube. This was a couple years later as nothing had really been done with it except for the skit being put up on YouTube. I went to Davis and asked him what he was doing with the puppets and Davis told me nothing really become of the project so I asked why not? As I thought it was really awesome. I asked him if he had a problem with me using the puppets and writing some more stuff. The only problem was Davis didn’t have any money for the project and couldn’t really afford to do the project just for fun. A short time later I saw Chris Gethard from “Upright Citizens Brigade” on his comedy tour and I got a chance to talk with him and he told me about how he had funded the tour he was on through a website called kickstarter.com. I thought that sounded perfect for what I wanted to do so I asked Davis and he said sure and we just ran with it from there. We had a budget of $5,000 which is nothing but we were able to save a lot of money due to all the in house talent we had with the band.

AL: Other than writing you also did some of the voice work as well correct?
MD:  I added some writing and a few additional voices but not a whole lot. I decided that since Todd Evans wasn’t around anymore we had to recast other than Dave Brockie’s character. I thought it would be a cool idea to get a super group of Richmond, VA metal bands together and have them do something other than play music. I was able to get Randy Blythe from Lamb of God as well as Tony Foresta from Municipal Waste. It’s kind of become a collaboration between the three of us.

AL: What were your first thoughts when you reached your budget goal on kickstarter?
MD: We put it up there as kind of a test. The original idea was to do more episodes so us reaching the goal kind of gave us hope that once we have the first episode done there will be interest to do more and keep funding those episodes.

AL: What are the release plans for the project?
MD: It’s almost edited. Davis had thought it would take around a month to have everything edited but unfortunately it has taken closer to 3 months. It’s almost done we just have to get together and do the final tweaks on everything and make sure everyone is happy. I’m guessing within a few weeks we will have it out.

AL: This being just the first film/episode what are the future plans for the project?
MD: We are hoping to do a full 12 episode television season. We want to release it on YouTube for people to watch for free and just see how it goes. We want to get the funding before we make the next episode so if people like it and want more they have to help us. (Laughs) As we go along we want to get more celebrities involved doing different voices and such. When we are on the road with Gwar we run into a lot of our rock star friends so the idea is to give them the lines and record them right on the bus.

AL: Do you have any other projects your working on right now?
MD:  I have a couple things that I am sort of working on. I am thinking about another puppet based series but that’s still in the development stages.
For more info on “Blood Vomits” you can go to www.gwar.net for all the latest info.

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GWAR’s Dave Brockie aka “Oderus Urungus” Talks “Blood Vomits”

Dave Brockie aka Oderus Urungus has a role in the upcoming kickstarter.com funded puppet adventure “Blood Vomits” Mediamikes.com caught up with Dave to talk about the project as well as some of the other things he has been working on lately.

Adam Lawton: Can you tell us about your role in the “Blood Vomits” project?
Dave Brockie: I didn’t really do a whole lot. I offered some moral support as well as doing the voice of Mad Dog who is one of the lead characters. Pretty much Davis Bradley and Michael Derks were responsible for getting all of the elements of the story together. I just came in and did my voice. For once I wasn’t running the show. I really enjoyed the hell out of coming in and just being a supporting player! There just is so much talent in the Gwar camp that it was nice to sit back for a change. I have been doing a lot of the publicity and informing the fans about the project which has been great.

AL: Had you heard of Kickstarter.com prior to this project?
DB: No I hadn’t. Mike brought that idea to everyone and it’s really an amazing thing. We were very surprised with how well we did. Originally the guys were going to only ask for $2,500. I told them to just go for it and ask for $5,000 and we ended up with $7,000 so we were really happy with it. I’m sure we will be using it again in the future as it’s a really awesome tool for artists.

AL: Can you tell us about your book that was released recently titled “Whargoul”?
DB: “Whargoul” came out on Dead Eye press which is a division of Eraser Head press. I had written the book about 10 years ago and had it up on my website for quite awhile. This company got in touch with me and was interested in putting out the story in a real book form. I said “Hell Yeah” they set everything up and it has been doing pretty good. It’s also available in a Kindle version as well. They have asked me to write a sequel but I don’t know if I can write a sequel to “Whargoul”. I did leave the character in spot to where a sequel could happen but I don’t know. “Whargoul” took a really long time to write and it was a struggle. I want to write another novel but I’m not sure I want to write a sequel just yet. At some point I think I could though. People have been really supportive of this and the other side projects I am involved in which has made me work harder. Gwar fans are tremendous and support us in everything we do. I just finished a short story for a zombie anthology which is titled “Bone Manner Revisited”. I had written this story for one of my creative writing classes in college and similar to “Whargoul” it sat around for a few years. I was contacted by a publisher about doing a zombie type story and I remembered that short story from college. I did a re-write on it and some buffing up and it should be coming out pretty soon.  I also have my blog on rvanews.com which continues to tell the story of Gwar’s inception. I definitely plan to compile that for a novel one day as well. When I finally get into my last days of decrepitude I can totally see myself writing a lot more.

AL: There has been a lot going on in the Gwar world lately with the news of the Gwar B-B-Q line up and a fall 2011 tour. There also has been gossip of a new band member. Can you tell us anything about that?
DB:  It’s getting out now that Casey Orr has left the band. Casey has played Beefcake a few different times over the years. The split was something that didn’t come as a surprise as we knew that he would eventually be moving on. Basically the economy right now is really rough and Gwar is not the easiest band to be in. It’s especially difficult for guys who don’t live in the Richmond area. All of Casey’s family and projects are in Texas so the strain of holding those two different lives together got to the point where he had to make a decision. The split is completely amicable and we love Casey. It wouldn’t surprise me if he didn’t end up working for us again at some point. I know for a fact next time we are in Dallas he will be back stage drinking all of our beer. We all play characters in Gwar and there have been 3 different Beefcakes with Casey playing the role twice. The characters are defiantly bigger than the musicians who play them. The new Beef Cake the Mighty will be debuting at this year’s Gwar B-B-Q but we do wish Casey all the best and we will miss him.

AL: The Fall tour is being dubbed “Return of the World Maggot Tour” correct?
DB: Yes! We recently moved into a new slave pit and when we were moving we went through all the old costumes. We came across the World Maggot and it was still in pretty good shape. We are always getting asked when we are going to bring that prop back. Because we didn’t have time to build a whole new show and we don’t have a new album out we decided to bring out a bunch of the old characters. It’s going to be a cool tour as we will be out with Every Time I Die as well as playing a few shows with Ghoul and Warbeast. We are really looking forward to get back out there!

AL: Are you involved at all with the Gwar “Dim Time” book which is being compiled by former Slave Pit/Gwar members Don Drakulich and Chuck Varga?
DB: They have asked me my opinion about stuff but it’s been Don and Chuck who have been sorting that stuff out. Everyone is really starting to get their own side project niche now and this is one of those times. I trust that they are going to do a great job. Don was with us from the very beginning and he has a lot of really amazing footage. It a story that needs to be told however I don’t really need to contribute that much because I lived it! (Laughs) Anything about the “Dim Time” is going to have my mug all over it.

For more info on all things Gwar you can head over to Gwar.net and you can follow Dave on twitter @therealoderus and also read his blog at rvanews.com.

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