May 18 2013

Movie Review – Chris Ranson on Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)

This review was written by my Film Swappers partner, Chris Ranson. You can follow Chris on twitter @Wolverinefactor.

Title: Star Trek Into Darkness
Runtime: 132 minutes
Director: J.J. Abrams

—

Star Trek Into Darkness has done everything it could to make me think it was going to be terrible, from the cheesy title, to the pretty-but-boring ten-minute IMAX preview before The Hobbit. Yet, there I was on opening day, dropping $15 to see an IMAX 3D showing and placing the title at number 3 in my top 5 summer films I couldn’t wait for.

The film opens with the same ten-minutes that were shown before The Hobbit and let me just say, what happens afterwards is some great sci-fi fun. These scenes in 3D look awesome, as water drops in front of your eyes and things burn up all over. The 3D was a solid addition to the film, and while it isn’t Avatar quality, it really adds an extra layer to each scene, be it smoke rising around you or all kinds of particle effects fluttering in front of your eyes. Continue reading →

May 16 2013

Second Annual Cinefessions Summer Screams Challenge

The Second Annual Cinefessions Summer Screams Challenge

The weather is warming up, and classes are finally letting out, which can mean only one thing: it’s time for the return of the Cinefessions Summer Screams Challenge! Those that joined in last year will be familiar with this challenge, but we’re hoping to bring in a lot of new faces this year, with more prizes, more points to be earned, and more fun to be had all around.

The Cinefessions Summer Screams Challenge is all about having a good time with some friends while watching as much horror and science fiction during the month of June that one can stomach. The best part about the whole thing is that even if you plan on only watching a few sci-fi or horror films during the month, you are still invited to join in and, best of all, win some awesome prizes! Unlike last year, Cinefessions has been able to gather up some giveaway material, and the big prize this year (if the challenge garners at least 25 participants) will be a giveaway of the winner’s choice to the best cult horror and sci-fi distributors out there, Scream Factory! You can find out the details on the giveaways below.

If you are interested in the final results from last year’s challenge, take a look here. The main objective of this challenge is to have fun, and though there are some great prizes this year, it’s still really about just having a good time with our favorite genres. Continue reading →

May 14 2013

Movie Review – Chris Ranson on The Great Gatsby (2013)

This review was written by my Film Swappers partner, Chris Ranson. You can follow Chris on twitter @Wolverinefactor.

Title: The Great Gatsby (2013)
Runtime: 143 minutes
Director: Baz Luhrmann

—

The Great Gatsby was my second most anticipated film of the 2013 summer season. The movie had huge shoes to fill, not just because I was excited for it, of course, but also because Baz Luhrmann directed one the finest musicals ever released in Moulin Rouge. So how does Luhrmann’s latest effort hold up on its own?

I never read the classic novel that this film is based on, so I knew was that Gatsby was a “man of mystery with a secret”. The film starts with an almost zany approach, with weird camera angles, and overacting silliness; it gets the viewer in the mood for one trippy experience. That implied experience is delivered in spades during the first hour of the film thanks to a mix of modern artists blaring rap across crazy-fevered parties. There are also a number of throwbacks to Moulin Rouge in this time: some of the dance moves, and the party atmosphere of that film’s larger numbers, for example. Continue reading →

May 13 2013

Disc Deals – Amazon Deals of the Week for May 12th – May 18th, 2013

Each week, Amazon offers up three different featured deals. The prices on these deals are valid from Sunday through Saturday, and are usually worth talking about. There are always three different categories: television, kids and family, and Blu-ray. Here are this week’s featured deals.

Amazon Deals of the Week for May 12th – May 18th, 2013

Television:

Save up to 58% off select seasons of the popular CBS crime drama NCIS, and spin-off series, NCIS: Los Angeles. The following seasons are on sale this week:

NCIS: Los Angeles – The First Season – ~~$29.98~~ $14.99 (50% off)
NCIS: Los Angeles – The Second Season – ~~$39.98~~ $19.99 (50% off)
NCIS: Los Angeles – The Third Season – ~~$62.99~~ $29.99 (52% off) Continue reading →

May 10 2013

Movie Review – Troll Hunter (2010)

This review is part of the Around the World in May-ty Days challenge that Cinefessions is taking part in throughout the month of May. The challenge originated on Letterboxd thanks to a user named Berken. Find out more, including how to follow along, via this list on Letterboxd.

Title: Troll Hunter (2010)
Runtime: 103 minutes
Director: André Øvredal

—

I make no qualms about enjoying the hell out of a good found footage movie. I started loving the subgenre with the release of The Blair Witch Project when I was much younger, and the Paranormal Activity sequels of recent years (not the original, mind you) have cemented the fact that I simply like these types of films. Are there problems with these movies? Of course there are – namely, justification – but I am willing to suspend disbelief if the story is interesting and engaging.

Troll Hunter more than fits that bill, and is one of the finest found footage movies I’ve seen since my introduction to the genre in 1999.

The Norwegian film follows a group of students who start out believing that they are hot on the heels of the country’s most notorious bear poacher. The three students follow deaths of bears, interview professionals and get fed stories by the wildlife patrolman. As the trio gets closer to the poacher in question, they start to follow him late at night as he routinely disappears from his trailer. What they discover is that this “poacher” is actually a hunter, but bears are not his area of expertise. Instead, he hunts gigantic, ugly, deadly trolls for the government. Continue reading →

May 8 2013

Film Swappers #5: The Girl Next Door (2007)/April Fool’s Day (1986)

Welcome to Film Swappers, where Chris and Branden force the other person to watch any movie of their choosing. The only rules are that the films chosen have to be ones that the other person hasn’t already seen, and they must be watched and reviewed.

Film Swappers #5
The Girl Next Door (2007) and April Fool’s Day (1986)

Title: The Girl Next Door (2007)
Director: Gregory Wilson
Runtime: 91 minutes
Viewer: Chris

Pre-Viewing Thoughts
The Girl Next Door is another film that I’d never heard of, and one I would have just passed over like most “horror” titles on Netflix. This was nothing like what I was expecting and I wouldn’t even call it a horror film, or torture porn, even though it offers many similar ideas.

Summary of Film
The Girl Next Door (based on the Jack Ketchum novel of the same name) follows the story of two recently orphaned sisters who go to live with their aunt. One of the sisters, Meg, does not get along well with her aunt, and this eventually leads to her enduring unspeakable torture and abuse. The film is based on a true story, one I read about after viewing the movie, and despite taking place in the 1950s, it strikes to the heart of the bullying situation many kids go through these days, although a lot more extreme and bit more personal. Continue reading →

May 6 2013

The Cinefessions 2013 Summer Movie Preview

The summer movie season is now upon us, having officially kicked off with the release of Iron Man 3 this past weekend. This summer, like we see every year, Hollywood studios will be aggressively vying our hard-earned dollars in order to justify the hundreds upon hundreds of millions of dollars they have thrown into these movies. Some will be busts, sending those studios into a quick panic, but others are sure-fire hits (anything with a superhero involved is pretty much a guaranteed success nowadays).

With such a loaded summer season, it might be difficult to know where to spend your extra money, so we here at Cinefessions are here to help. Each writer has gone through the assortment of films being released this summer season, and thoughtfully – or not – picked out the five films they are most excited to see. These may not be the best or biggest movies coming out this season, just the ones that we are anticipating the most. Continue reading →

Cinefessions

Where Movie Secrets Come to Die

Movie Review – Chris Ranson on Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)

Movie Review – Chris Ranson on The Great Gatsby (2013)

Movie Review – Troll Hunter (2010)

Follow “Cinefessions”