IMPRACTICAL JOKERS: THE MOVIE GETS EARLY DIGITAL RELEASE

Following a Successful Theatrical Run, truTV’s First-Ever Feature-Length Film is Arriving Early on Digital April 1

BURBANK, CA (March 27, 2020) Warner Bros. Home Entertainment is bringing the pranks into homes this April Fool’s Day with the early digital release of Impractical Jokers: The Movie on April 1, 2020, only five weeks after its successful theatrical debut. The film, an extension of the wildly successful Impractical Jokers series, was directed by Chris Henchy (Daddy’s Home, “Eastbound & Down”). A truTV original production and produced by Funny Or Die, Impractical Jokers: The Movie carries a suggested retail price of $19.99 for the Digital ($24.99 in Canada) and is rated PG-13.

“Impractical Jokers raised the stakes bringing their hijinks to the big screen and we couldn’t be more proud of their impressive box office debut,” said Brett Weitz, General Manager for TNT, TBS, & truTV. “The unwavering support of their fans prove that this comedy franchise continues to provide endless laughs and entertainment that we are pleased to bring into homes.”

“Impractical Jokers first premiered on truTV to much fanfare in December 2011 and quickly became a hit, especially among young adults,” said Mary Ellen Thomas, WBHE Senior Vice President, Originals, Animation & Family Marketing. “The power of the loyal fanbase has proven the sky’s the limit for this comedy franchise, and we are eager to bring home the laughter and antics of their first feature film for the whole family to enjoy.”

“For all our wonderful fans who’ve been requesting, we’re happy to announce that Impractical Jokers: The Movie will be available in your homes to watch digitally on April 1st”, said The Tenderloins. “Hoping we can provide some laughs to families and friends at a time when we can all surely use some.”

Impractical Jokers: The Movie stars James “Murr” Murray, Brian “Q” Quinn, Joe Gatto, and Sal Vulvano, also known as the comedy troupe The Tenderloins, playing themselves in a fictional story of a humiliating high school mishap from the early nineties. Featuring appearances from Paula Abdul, Jaden Smith, and Joey Fatone, the movie combines the fictional narrative with real life footage of over-the-top punishments and callbacks to classic moments from the series. Once the Impractical Jokers hit the road, they compete in hidden camera challenges for the chance to turn back the clock and find redemption.

Impractical Jokers: The Movie is produced by Gatto, Murray, Quinn, Vulcano, Henchy, and Funny Or Die’s Jim Ziegler and Buddy Enright. Executive producers include Jack Rovner and Funny Or Die’s Mike Farah and Joe Farrell. The Impractical Jokers series has aired eight seasons with over 200 episodes to date and remains a top three original cable comedy series with ratings that continue to grow. New episodes of Impractical Jokers keep truTV in the top 10 ranking among cable networks in primetime.

About Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Inc.
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment (WBHE) brings together Warner Bros. Entertainment’s home video, digital distribution and interactive entertainment businesses in order to maximize current and next-generation distribution scenarios. An industry leader since its inception, WBHE oversees the global distribution of content through packaged goods (Blu-ray Disc™ and DVD) and digital media in the form of electronic sell-through and video-on-demand via cable, satellite, online and mobile channels, and is a significant developer and publisher for console and online video game titles worldwide. WBHE distributes its product through third party retail partners and licensees.

About truTV
truTV, a WarnerMedia Entertainment brand, is a bold, fresh entertainment network that gives viewers audacious content with laugh-out-loud moments and relatable characters. With millions of engaged fans across linear, digital and social channels, the cable network features a growing roster of critically acclaimed and fan-favorite, premium scripted, non-scripted and hybrid series, such as Impractical Jokers, Adam Ruins Everything, At Home with Amy Sedaris, I’m Sorry, Tacoma FD, The Carbonaro Effect, Paid Off with Michael Torpey, Hot Ones: The Game Show, based off the popular digital series, and more. truTV is also a partner in airing the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship each year.
Website: www.trutv.com

About Funny Or Die
Funny or Die is a premiere entertainment brand and comedy studio that creates award-winning comedy. Known for its celebrity driven and political content, Funny Or Die reaches a global audience of more than 40 million people, and is the #1 comedy brand on both Facebook and Twitter. Funny Or Die’s Emmy Award-winning long-form division produces shows like the critically-acclaimed Brockmire for IFC, Emmy nominated Billy on the Street, the Peabody award-winning American Vandal for Netflix, the Emmy nominated Sarah Silverman series I Love You, America for Hulu and No Activity for CBS All Access, and Between Two Ferns: The Movie for Netflix. FOD also makes award-winning TV commercials and Branded Content for all verticals and many Fortune 500 Companies from soft drinks to automobiles and toilet paper.

About The Tenderloins
The Tenderloins is a New York-based comedy troupe, whose four members – Joe Gatto, James Murray, Brian Quinn and Sal Vulcano – are the Creators, Executive Producers, and Stars of truTV’s hit series, Impractical Jokers. Now in its ninth season, Impractical Jokers follows The Tenderloins as they compete to embarrass each other while being filmed by hidden cameras, all the while showcasing their longstanding camaraderie. Their newest TV show – TBS’s “The Misery Index” hosted by Jameela Jamil – premiered as a top rated cable comedy in 2019 and recently wrapped production on its second season. In addition to TV success, The Troupe has toured steadily over the last six years with its wildly popular live show, performing for over one million fans in the US and UK, including six sold-out nights at Radio City Music Hall, a sold-out Madison Square Garden, and six sold-out shows at London’s O2 Arena. Natives of Staten Island, NY, Vulcano, Gatto, Murray and Quinn met while attending high school and later formed The Tenderloins Comedy Troupe in 1999. After years of performing live improv and sketch comedy, The Tenderloins crossed over to the web, garnering millions of views for their internet sketches, eventually creating the runaway success Impractical Jokers for truTV. In addition to success in the US, Impractical Jokers is the #1 show on Comedy Central in the United Kingdom and India.

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Filed Under: Film Headlines Tagged With: digital, early, impractical, jokers, movie, release, ...

Film Review “Early Man”

Directed by: Nick Park
Starring: Eddie Redmayne. Tom Hiddleston, Maisie Williams, Timothy Spall
Distributed by: StudioCanal
MPAA Rating: PG
Running time: 89 minutes

Our Score: 2.5 out of 5 stars

Aardman Animations is probably best known for their characters Wallace and Gromit. This company has been around for nearly 50 years mastering the art of stop-motion clay animation. I absolutely love that format and this company has brought out some great content over the years including “Chicken Run” and “Shaun the Sheep”, unfortunately “Early Man” is not one of their better films. I hate it when I see a trailer for a movie and shriek and say “Oh boy, that’s gonna suck”. In this case, the trailer is 100% right.

“Early Man” takes place in the Stone Age when prehistoric creatures and cavemen roamed the Earth. There is a small tribe of caveman led by Chief Bobnar (Timothy Spall) and they live in a valley where they hunt rabbits. A young caveman, Dug (Eddie Redmayne), has dreams to do more. Their world is turned upside down when a Bronze Age army led by Lord Nooth (Tom Hiddleston) take over their land and force them out into the badlands. Dug seeks out a way to get back his home and challenges the Bronze army to a game of soccer finding out that his ancestors discovered the game before his time…and that about sums of the movie, not much else happens here.

Sitting in the theater, I looked over at my wife and she was yawning. I was dozing off myself as this film was barely able to keep our attention…even our 5 year old seemed bored as well. If you have seen the trailer, then you have seen the whole movie. Tom Hiddleston, known best for his work in the Marvel Universe playing Loki, literally was the best part of the whole film as Lord Nooth. He was funny for sure but can’t save the film by himself.

One comment my wife pointed out, which I happened to notice as well, is that the film is very drab and there was really only one color pallet the whole film. In other stop motion films like “Coraline” color is such an important part of the film. I have to give credit to the animators because I love the craft of stop motion animation and you can tell that a lot of work went into this movie. I just wish I could say that I enjoyed it more but it was simply boring (and only at 89 minutes) and lacking any depth whatsoever. Yawn!

 

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Filed Under: Film Reviews Tagged With: early, film, man, review

DVD Review “Frank Capra: The Early Collection”

Director: Frank Capra
Distributed by: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Number of Discs: 5
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Release Date: September 27, 2012
Running Time: 450 Minutes

Our Score: 4 out 5 of stars

Frank Capra is one of Hollywood’s most beloved directors, though many of his earlier films have never been made available on DVD….until now. This release features five key films which showcase his career before he became the legendary director we all knew him as. “The Frank Capra: The Early Collection” is available exclusively through TCM’s online store as part of the TCM Vault Collection. The five films includings includes re-mastered editions of “Rain or Shine” (1930), and four early collaborations with his legendary leading lady Barbara Stanwyck: “Ladies of Leisure” (1930), “The Miracle Woman” (1931), “Forbidden” (1932) and “The Bitter Tea of General Yen” (1933). If you are a fan of Capra’s work, I would HIGHLY recommend this release.

The following are the five films included in Frank Capra: The Early Collection:
“Ladies of Leisure” (1930) – This drama marked Frank Capra’s first collaboration with Barbara Stanwyck. The film tells of a Depression-era romance between a working-class model and a high-society artist, played by Ralph Graves. The film is based on the 1924 play Ladies of the Evening, written by Milton Herbert Gropper.

“Rain or Shine” (1930) – This rollicking comedy-drama follows the ups and downs of a struggling traveling circus. Joe Cook, Louise Fazenda, Joan Peers and William Collier Jr. star in this film, a non-musical version of a Broadway musical of the same name. {Note: The International version of the film is included here}

“The Miracle Woman” (1931) – In this dramatic exposé of religious charlatans, Barbara Stanwyck stars as a female preacher modeled on Aimee Semple McPherson. David Manners co-stars as the blind man who falls in love with her.

“Forbidden (1932)” – This charming, romantic drama depicts the intense relationship between librarian Barbara Stanwyck and a wealthy married man, played by Adolphe Menjou. Ralph Bellamy and Dorothy Peterson co-star.

“The Bitter Tea of General Yen” (1933) – This once-controversial drama depicts an affair between the fiancée of an American missionary, played by Barbara Stanwyck, and a Chinese warlord, played by Nils Asther. Toshia Mori shines as General Yen’s concubine, Mah-Li. The film, which was the first ever to play Radio City Music Hall, also features a memorable dream sequence in which Yen seduces the young missionary. The interracial aspect of the story led the film to be banned in many areas where miscegenation laws were in place.

These films are presented for the first time on DVD and have been restored and remastered. Each film looks equally fantastic, especially for their age.  This release has a lot of love behind it.  It also comes with a nice presentation flip-found case. There are also some decent special features including introductions from Martin Scorsese and Ron Howard on “The Bitter Tea of General Yen”. Ron also intros on “The Miracle Woman” and Michel Gondry intros on “Rain or Shine”.  There is an audio commentary track from Jeanine Basinger on “Forbidden” and Jeremy Arnold on “Ladies of Leisure”.  Each disc also comes with a “Digital Image Gallery” including Scene Stills, Movie Posters, Publicity Stills, Behind the Scenes Photos and Lobby Cards.  There is a “Screen Snapshots” featurette included as well.  Lastly there is a “Frank Capra Biography” on “Ladies of Leisure” and “TCMDb Articles” on each disc as well.

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Filed Under: DVD/Blu-Ray Reviews Tagged With: capra, collection, dvd, early, frank, review, ...
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