Category Archives: Movie News and Articles

Ten Character Posters for “Paddington in Peru” – In Theaters This Weekend

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“Paddington in Peru” is set to hit theaters this weekend and I couldn’t be more excited. This is the third installment in what has been a delightful film series that follows the adventures of Paddington, a lovable Peruvian bear who finds a home in London with the equally lovable Brown family. Dougal Wilson takes the directing reins from Paul King to tell a story of Paddington (voiced by a returning Ben Whishaw) visiting his beloved Aunt Lucy in Peru. But upon arriving he learns that Aunt Lucy has gone missing. Good times most definitely ensues.

“Paddington in Peru” opens exclusively in theaters this weekend courtesy of Sony Pictures Releasing. To celebrate here are TEN vibrant and colorful character posters to help warm your heart and get you read for another Paddington adventure.

New on Home Video: “Play It Again, Sam” on Blu-ray

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Kino Lorber Studio Classics is bringing the delightful comedy “Play It Again, Sam” to home video in a fantastic new Blu-ray edition. Released in 1972, “Play It Again, Sam” follows a neurotic and insecure film journalist and recent divorcee (played by Woody Allen) who is inspired by the ghost of Humphrey Bogart to get back into the dating game. Allen wrote the screenplay but it’s directed by Herbert Ross (“Funny Lady”, “The Turning Point”, “Footloose”, “Steel Magnolias”).

This handsomely packaged Blu-ray special edition of “Play It Again, Sam” will be available to purchase on February 11th. See below for a full synopsis of the film as well as release info including a list of special features.

About the Film:

Year: 1972

Runtime: 86 Minutes

Directors: Herbert Ross

Screenwriters: Woody Allen

Cast: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Tony Roberts, Jerry Lacy, Susan Anspach, Jennifer Salt, Joy Bang,

Rating: PG

Woody Allen’s wonderful comedy was his first film with Diane Keaton, a relationship that would continue to produce great films like “Sleeper”, “Love and Death”, “Annie Hall” and “Manhattan”. Allen plays Allan, a fanatical movie buff with an outrageous recurring hallucination: Humphrey Bogart (Jerry Lacy) offering tips on how to make it with the ladies. His married friends Dick and Linda (Tony Roberts and Diane Keaton) fix him up with several eligible young ladies, but his self-confidence is so weak that he’s a total failure with them all. Eventually Allan discovers that there is one woman he’s himself with: Linda, his best friend’s wife. The final scene is a terrific takeoff on Casablanca’s classical ending, complete with roaring plane propellers, heavy fog and Bogie-style trenchcoats. “Play It Again, Sam” was penned by Woody Allen, based on his own 1969 Broadway play, and directed by Herbert Ross (“The Goodbye Girl”, “California Suite”).

Special Features:

Product Extras : 

  • Brand New HD Master – From a 4K Scan of the 35mm Original Camera Negative 
  • NEW Audio Commentary by Screenwriter/Producer Alan Spencer and Author/Film Historian Justin Humphreys 
  • Theatrical Trailer 
  • Optional English Subtitles

New on Home Video: A Spaghetti Western Double Feature – “Kill Them All and Come Back Alone” + “The Hellbenders” on 4K Ultra HD

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Kino Lorber Studio Classics has released a terrific spaghetti western double feature on home video. This special edition includes Enzo G. Castellari’s “Kill Them All and Come Back Alone” and Sergio Corbucci’s “The Hellbenders”, both on 4K Ultra HD for the very first time. Kino Lorber continues to be an industry leader in the preservation of classic cinema on physical media. They prove it again with this handsomely packaged collection.

This 4K Ultra HD two-film special edition is now available to purchase. See below for a full synopsis of both films as well as release info including a list of special features.

About “Kill Them All and Come Back Alone”:

Year: 1968

Runtime: 100 Minutes

Directors: Enzo G. Castellari

Screenwriters: Tito Carpi, Francesco Scardamaglia, Joaquín Romero Marchent, Enzo G. Castellari

Cast: Chuck Conners, Frank Wolff, Franco Citti, Leo Anchóriz, Ken Wood, Alberto Dell’Acqua, Hercules Cortez

Rating: R

From Enzo G. Castellari, the legendary director of “Street Law”, “The Big Racket”, “Keoma” and “The Inglorious Bastards” comes this action-packed spaghetti western starring screen and television great Chuck Connors (“The Big Country”, TV’s “The Rifleman” and “Branded”). In 1864, a mercenary Clyde McKay (Connors) leads a squad of tough-as-nails cutthroats on a mission for the Confederate high command to infiltrate an enemy fortress and steal millions in gold from the Union Army. Frank Wolfe (“Once Upon a Time in the West”) co-stars in this fully restored first-rate tale of betrayal and revenge.

About “The Hellbenders”:

Year: 1967

Runtime: 92 Minutes

Directors: Sergio Corbucci

Screenwriters: Ugo Liberatore, José Gutiérrez Maesso, Albert Brand

Cast: Joseph Cotten, Norma Bengell, Julián Mateos, Gino Pernice, Ángel Aranda, Claudio Gora, María Martín, Aldo Sambrell, Al Mulock

Rating: NR

From Sergio Corbucci, the legendary director of “Django”, “Navajo Joe”, “The Great Silence” and “The Mercenary” comes this classic spaghetti western starring screen icon Joseph Cotten (“The Third Man”, “Duel in the Sun”) as the fanatical patriarch of a family of ex-Confederate killers who massacre an army convoy carrying millions in cash to finance an invasion of the North. But before they can re-ignite the Civil War, they’ll have to smuggle a coffin crammed with the stolen cash across a frontier enflamed by lust, violence and extreme vengeance. Aldo Sambrell (“For a Few Dollars More”) and Al Mulloch (“The Good, the Bad and the Ugly”) co-star in this fully restored western shocker. “The Hellbenders”—also known as “The Cruel Ones”, Features a rousing score renowned composer Ennio Morricone (“A Fistful of Dollars”).

Special Features:

Product Extras : 

  • 2020 UHD SDR Masters by StudioCanal 
  • Includes Both the 99-Minute English and 100-Minute Italian Cuts of KILL THEM ALL AND COME BACK ALONE 
  • Audio Commentaries (Both Films) by Filmmaker Alex Cox, Author of 10,000 Ways to Die: A Director’s Take on the Italian Western 
  • Theatrical Trailers (Both Films) 
  • KILL THEM ALL – Triple-Layered UHD100 Disc 
  • THE HELLBENDERS – Dual-Layered UHD66 Disc 
  • Optional English Subtitles

FIRST GLANCE: “Jurassic World Rebirth”

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Studios are ramping up promotion for their big summer blockbusters. Yesterday it was Disney and Marvel Studios teasing The Fantastic Four. Today it’s Universal Studios releasing the first full trailer for “Jurassic World Rebirth”, the seventh feature film in the Jurassic Park franchise. While the previous two films made a lot of money, they left a lot to be desired. Thankfully “Rebirth” gives us reasons to be optimistic starting with the first trailer.

“Rebirth” is a standalone sequel to 2022’s “Jurassic World Dominion”. It’s story takes place five years after “Dominion” and follows a top-secret mission back to the island of Jurassic Park. Team leader Duncan Kincaid (Mahershala Ali), Covert Operative Zora Bennett (Scarlett Johansson), and paleontologist Henry Loomis (Jonathan Bailey) are among the group searching for DNA that can be used in a number of medical cures. Of course they find much more than they bargained for mostly in the form a dangerous mutated dinosaurs.

The cast is a good one and helps make the film intriguing. But what excites me most is Gareth Edwards directing. He has delivered big with each of his last three films, “Godzilla” (2014), “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” (2016), and “The Creator” (2023). After seeing the new trailer, there’s no reason to believe he won’t deliver once again.

“Jurassic World Rebirth” tromps into theaters on July 2nd. Check out the trailer below and let me know if you’ll be seeing it or taking a pass.

First Glance: “The Fantastic Four: First Steps”

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It should go without saying that the existence of superhero fatigue is a real thing. The question is how far has it gotten? Many believe a good barometer with be Marvel’s upcoming film “The Fantastic Four: First Steps”. The feature will bring Marvel’s first family into the MCU for the first time although exactly how remains somewhat of a mystery. Today Marvel Studios released their first teaser trailer and what we see seems to capture the spirit of the early source material while differing in some notable ways.

Fitting for the team’s 1961 comic book debut, the story is set on a 1960s retro-futuristic alternate earth (different than the MCU’s mainline universe). In the trailer it appears that the Fantastic Four (Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn and Ebon Moss-Bachrach) are already established in their world with the story referencing their origins rather than retelling them. Everyone gets to showcase their powers with the odd exception of Reed Richards, and we get a brief glimpse of the film’s antagonist, Galactus (voiced by the great Ralph Ineson).

It’s an interesting teaser with the aesthetic being the real highlight. But it doesn’t move the needle much for me. In some ways the whole multiverse concept still feels like a crutch and so far the returns have been pretty underwhelming. But as a fan of the Fantastic Four and of some of the casting, I’m curious to seeing where Marvel takes the characters and the audience.

“The Fantastic Four: First Steps” releases in theaters July 25th. Check out the trailer below and let me know if you’ll be seeing it or taking a pass.

New Home on Home Video: “Juror #2” on Blu-ray + Digital

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Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has announced the release of “Juror #2” on home video. Much controversy surrounded the release of the legal thriller and not because of anything relating specifically to the movie itself. It was due to the decision to skip theaters and send what may be director Clint Eastwood’s final film straight to streaming. But now this captivating feature will be available to own and it’s absolutely worth it. (Read my review of the film HERE).

This Blu-ray edition of “Juror #2” includes a digital copy and will be available to purchase on February 4th. See below for a full synopsis and release info including a list of special features.

About the Film:

Year: 2024

Runtime: 113 Minutes

Directors: Clint Eastwood

Screenwriters: Jonathan Abrams

Cast: Nicholas Hoult, Toni Collette, J.K. Simmons, Chris Messina, Zoey Deutch, Keifer Sutherland, Cedric Yarbrough, Leslie Bibb, Amy Aquino, Adrienne C. Moore, Francesca Eastwood

Rating: PG-13

“Juror #2” follows family man Justin Kemp (Hoult) who, while serving as a juror in a high-profile murder trial, finds himself struggling with a serious moral dilemma…one he could use to sway the jury verdict and potentially convict—or free—the accused killer.

Academy Award winner Eastwood directs from a screenplay by Jonathan Abrams (“Escape Plan”).  The film is produced by Eastwood, Tim Moore, Jessica Meier, Adam Goodman and Matt Skiena, and executive produced by David M. Bernstein, Ellen Goldsmith-Vein, Jeremy Bell.

Eastwood’s creative team includes such frequent collaborators as director of photography Yves Bélanger, production designer Ron Reiss, Oscar-winning editor Joel Cox (“Unforgiven”) and editor David Cox, BAFTA-nominated costume designer Deborah Hopper (“Changeling”); Mark Mancina created the original score.