2009 | U.S. | 146 minutes (153 minutes unrated) Director: Judd Apatow Writers: Judd Apatow Cast: Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, Leslie Mann, Eric Bana Distributor: Universal Pictures Cdn video distributor: Universal Studios When you make a movie about stand-up comics, cast it full of comedians, advertise that it’s from the writer/director of 40-Year-Old Virgin and [...]
Posts from ‘November, 2009’
New on video for November 24/09 | “Angels & Demons”
2009 | U.S. | 138 minutes (146 extended) Director: Ron Howard Writers: Tom Hanks, Cast: Tom Hanks, Ewan McGregor, Ayelet Zurer, Stellan Skarsgård Distributor: Sony Pictures Entertainment Cdn video distributor: Columbia/Tristar Angels & Demons is the follow-up to The Da Vinci Code — based on a book written prior to its release — and replaces [...]
New on video for November 24/09 | “Four Christmases”
2008 | U.S. | 88 minutes Director: Seth Gordon Writers: Matt R. Allen, Caleb Wilson, Jon Lucas, Scott Moore Cast: Vince Vaughn, Reese Witherspoon, Robert Duvall , Jon Favreau, Mary Steenburgen Distributor: Alliance Atlantis Cdn video distributor: Alliance Atlantis Four Christmases is a movie that probably started out as a pitch. It certainly has comedic [...]
New on video for November 17/09 | “Star Trek”
2009 | U.S. | 127 minutes Director: J.J. Abrams Writers: Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman Cast: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto , Leonard Nimoy, Eric Bana, Bruce Greenwood Distributor: Paramount Pictures Cdn video distributor: Paramount By now this much should be obvious — the new Star Trek is visually lush with a slick new Enterprise, a hot [...]
New on video for November 17/09 | “My Sister’s Keeper”
2009 | U.S. | 109 minutes Director: Nick Cassavetes Writers: Nick Cassavetes, Jeremy Leven (based on a book by Jodi Picoult) Cast: Cameron Diaz, Abigail Breslin, Sofia Vassilieva, Eric Baldwin, Joan Cuzack Distributor: Alliance Atlantis Cdn video distributor: Alliance Atlantis My Sister’s Keeper launches right away into it’s captivating story; desperate parents (Cameron Diaz and [...]
New on video for November 17/09 | “The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard”
2009 | U.S. | 89 minutes Director: Neal Brennan Writers: Andy Stock, Rick Stempson Cast: Jeremy Piven, Ving Rhames, James Brolin, David Koechner, Kathryn Hahn Distributor: Paramount Vantage Cdn video distributor: Paramount NOTE: Though the dvd release is not scheduled until December 15th, rental versions of this title are now available. I have to confess, [...]
New on video for November 10/09 | “Up”
2008 | U.S. | 96 minutes Director: Pete Docter, Bob Peterson Writers: Pete Docter, Bob Peterson Cast: Ed Asner, Christopher Plummer Distributor: Walt Disney Studios Cdn video distributor: Walt Disney Video When I was kid our family had a dog named Nemo. It was a wonderful German Shepherd/Labrador mix that loved catching all sorts of [...]
New on video for November 10/09 | “The Accidental Husband”
2008 | U.S. | 90 minutes Director: Griffin Dunn Writers: Mimi Hare, Clare Naylor, Bonnie Sikowitz Cast: Uma Thurman, Colin Firth, Jeffrey Dean Morgan Distributor: No domestic theatrical Cdn video distributor: Sony Pictures Much like this week’s The Ugly Truth (critique posted last week), The Accidental Husband uses the much-loved template of boy meets girl, [...]
Fun Flicks of the 50s | “Roman Holiday”
Premiered August 27, 1953 (New York, New York) Directed by William Wyler Starring Audrey Hepburn, Gregory Peck, Eddie Albert and Tullio Carminati 118 minutes Released by Paramount Pictures. If you mention Roman Holiday to someone who has seen the film before, there’s a good chance his or her face will light up, and a smile [...]
New on video for November 10/09 | “The Ugly Truth”
2009 | U.S. | 96 minutes Director: Robert Luketic Writers: Nicole Eastman, Karen McCullah Lutz, Kirsten Smith Cast: Katherine Heigl, Gerard Butler, Eric Winter Distributor: Columbia Pictures Cdn video distributor: Sony Pictures The Wife loves reading Cosmo, or just about anything that will help her unlock the secrets to the male mind. Naturally — as [...]
New on video for November 3/09 | “The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3″
2009 | U.S. | 106 minutes Director: Tony Scott Writer: Brian Helgeland Cast: John Travolta, Denzel Washington, John Turturro, James Gandolfini Distributor: Columbia Pictures Cdn video distributor: Sony Pictures New York has changed a lot in the the last 35 years. So have the movies. Everything is more high-tech and fast-paced — just like this [...]
New on video for November 3/09 | “The Answer Man”
2009 | U.S. | 95 minutes Director: John Hindman Writer: John Hindman Cast: Jeff Daniels, Lauren Graham, Lou Taylor Pucci, Nora Dunn Distributor: Magnolia Pictures Cdn video distributor: Mongrel Media The Answer Man is your standard romantic comedy — boy meets girl, gets girl, loses girl, gets girl back — that throws in two subplots. [...]
“Dawn of the Dead” and escalators
When I was preparing my Halloween list, I couldn’t resist revisiting Dawn of the Dead. Here’s a clip that is one of my favourites. Fans of the George A. Romero “Dead” films always like to debate which one is the best. For me, there’s no debate. Only this one has joyous moments like this. According [...]