FlashForward should be the show poised to take over the bizzaro/sci-fi/mystery throne of Lost once that great show disappears. In fact, there is more than one allusion to Lost throughout the first ten episodes of FlashForward, which seems to suggest some sort of connection. But it's cle »»
Going into any movie titled The Donner Pary probably means you know how it is going to end. The story of the Donner Party has been passed around for many moons and its sordid tale of cannibalism among otherwise civilized people is a shocking one. But in a post-Alive world, does it still »»
Some movies make watching movies feel like homework. About twenty minutes in, you start promising yourself special treats if you actually stick with it all the way to the end. Your mind drifts. The minutes tick away. You may even start to think in terms of "If I died right now, would t »»
It's sort of mystifying that the movie Whiteout turns out to be as bad as it is. The book by Greg Rucka & Steve Lieber was tense, claustrophobic fun. Director Dominic Sena knows his way around action and big budget movies. Ditto Kate Beckinsale. You've got a great setting and strong premis »»
It is a dubious honor to be considered one of the best direct-to-video movies of the year, but in the case of Ghost Machine, that sums it up just about perfectly. The acting is above average, the FX are above average, the directing is above average and so on. An argument could also be made that »»
Pity the documentary - the saddest and most ignored film genre. Usually the stuff of tearful historical recounting or intimate personal diaries, documentaries have generally been at the bottom of the box office barrel, no matter what their artistic merit. For a mainstream audience more interested »»
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia may have the most durable formula on TV. It also may be the most formulaic show on TV. It is the Law & Order of sitcoms. For those who love tragic stories in which totally self-involved characters struggle to get what they want and trip themselves up on the »»
As mumblecore movies go, Humpday has probably the highest concept you're likely to find - two former college buddies struggle to prove to each other they haven't lost their respective wild sides and end up entering an amateur porn contest in which they will have to have sex with each other. What' »»
Eagles Over London may be most famous because of its most famous fan, Quentin Tarantino, or because the director, Enzo G. Castellari, directed the original The Inglorious Bastards, which was recently made famous by his most famous fan. It's what is known as a 'macaroni combat' movie - exploitatio »»
Any horror film that features a child as an antagonist has high hurdles to leap. First (and foremost) it has to have a scary child in the main role. Keep in mind The Omen didn't even have a good scary kid actor. Next, that scary kid actor, assuming you found a good one, has to play both sides o »»
There's only one thing you need to know about Wrong Turn 3: Left for Dead to understand why it is a failed movie, not only for this series, but as a movie in general: nowhere in the entire run time, most conspicuously at the top, does anyone make a wrong turn. That's a failure for the series for »»
The video store shelves are filled with DVDs that have blurbs from semi-prominent publications touting their masterpiece-ness or their shocking originality, etc. Generally if you've heard of neither the magazine nor the movie, that's a bad sign. But even if the magazine is known, it may not help »»
It's safe to say that there will never be a mumblecore movie that will punch a hole through the Earth, culturally speaking. There may be one that murmurs its way through the Earth, but that will be about it. This is because the genre is almost stringently non-ambitious, part of backlash to the b »»
You could be forgiven for thinking Wrong Turn is just more slasher dreck that was run through theaters for a couple weeks and then dumped onto DVD. Most critics didn't give it much love at the time and most just plain took it out in the street and gave it a beating. It's too bad, too, as much of »»
There are very few options left for the serious filmmaker who wants to shake up the world of slasher movies. Even after the genre had already become a parody of itself during the '80s, Scream came along and dissected the whole shebang and then the Scary Movie series came after and poked holes in »»
The Crazies is a movie that, at first glance, doesn't seem to have a lot going for it. There are no stars, unless you count director George Romero. There are no monsters. There's not much of a budget and it shows in every single scene. And even if you're the type who loves an obscure »»
The mere fact that the idea for The Stepfather is at least 20 years old now should tip you off pretty quick that you're not going to find a lot that's new here. The original movie that came out in 1987 starring Terry O'Quinn also had its flaws, but it was a much more efficient vehicle tha »»
Originally released in South Korea in 2006, Righteous Ties is an odd blend of prison movie and comedy. Heart-rending betrayals are set against gangster parody. Goofy characters intermingle with the depressed. Brutal violence intermingles with light humor. And while this mix manages to subvert »»
A mere 30 years ago, The Toolbox Murders was considered so shocking and controversial that it was banned in the UK. Sadly for the Blue Underground marketing department, that ban ended ten years ago - there's not much cache in announcing "A movie so shocking it was banned for a while some years ag »»
The early '80s slasher movie was a hard thing to master. John Carpenter gave us the very best example of a slasher ever in Halloween at the end of the '70s and nothing in the following decade came close to the horror masterpiece that was the end product. But they sure tried hard, piling on back »»
The Canyon is a big metaphor movie. One of those movies where it feels like the makers came up with the metaphor first, then tried to design a story around it. The problem with this kind of story is that the characters never seem to act on their own. They are there to serve the metaphor. So wh »»
It's a Wonderful Life is the best Christmas movie that has ever been made, bar none. Never mind that it is only a Christmas movie toward the end and that when it was released it was a gigantic bomb. Never mind, also, the naysayers who say "Nay! That movie is a cheesy, sentimental dud." They ar »»
The sci-fi slasher flick Hardware comes on like some mad nightmarish version of Short Circuit. A crude, squat robot becomes sentient and mayhem ensues. Only in this case, the mayhem is of the blood and guts variety as the M.A.R.K. 13 - not Johnny 5 - comes alive and slices through anyone he can »»
It's a little dismaying to think that the fight against the commercialism of Christmas has been going on for at least the last 60 years. And over those 60 years, the commercialism of Christmas has gotten to the point where a huge corporation will plan to make tons of money by commercially releasi »»
For a remake, 1994's Miracle on 34th Street is surprisingly old fashioned, which is good because all it needed was some kid teaching Santa Claus to breakdance and the whole thing would've been down the tubes. Its greatest suspense is that it teeters on the brink of failure throughout but still ma »»
The Butcher is as sick and repellent as movies come. There are no characters and there is no story - it is an endurance test. It also happens to be an exceedingly well made endurance test, most likely because it was made by people who love this stuff. There is a snuff film being made in a slaug »»
It's hard to get five words deep into any write up about Il Divo without reading the words "Scorsese" or "The Godfather". In fact, right on the box, the top line reads "The Godfather meets Nixon", so you can throw "Nixon" into the mix, too. What is most surprising is that, for once, the box blur »»
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia came out of nowhere in 2005 after the makers shot a pilot for around $200 and apparently blew away the execs at the FX Network, who promptly ordered a season of episodes. The basic premise is the same each time out - someone in the gang has an absolutely terrible »»
Bring the kids inside and lock the doors - something is very, very wrong. Wrong Turn 2: Dead End, the sequel to the critically ignored Wrong Turn that went straight to video, that features no returning crew or stars, and clocks in at 11 minutes longer than the original, is quite good and in some »»
Fox has built itself a nice business out of genius doctor shows. House and Fringe have both found quick and devoted audiences. The first season of Lie to Me one ups both of these series and takes the whole genre to a new level. Tim Roth is at his loopy best as Dr. Cal Lightman, a man learned in »»
